Pastor Rich's sermon for Sunday, October 17, 2004

You were planned for God’s pleasure. Let’s just think about that for a moment. You were planned for God’s pleasure. Is that how you live your everyday life?

In today’s culture I think most people believe God is there for their pleasure. Just look at how people pray. We are masters in offering prayers of supplication. God supply me with what I want. Bless me God. We know where God is when we want something or need something, but what about when our life isn’t in crisis? How often do you start your prayers with praise and thanksgiving?

I said last week we are the focus of God’s love. He created us to love us. The question we must answer is do we reciprocate?

Jesus said,

“Love the Lord your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength. This is the first and greatest commandment”

OUR FIRST PURPOSE IN LIFE IS TO WORSHIP GOD.

“Because of God’s great mercy to us…offer yourselves as a living sacrifice to God, dedicated to His service and pleasing to Him.”
Romans 12:1

“You (God) created everything and it is for Your pleasure that they exist and were created.”
Rev 4:12

Everything was created for God’s pleasure. God’s desire is that you and I would love Him as completely as He loves us. Another word for loving God with heart…soul…mind…and strength is WORSHIP.

WORSHIP IS MY RESPONSE TO GOD’S LOVE and WORSHIP IS GIVING LOVE BACK TO GOD.

When I was a junior in high school I remember being desperately in love with Ann. She was captain of the cheerleading squad and a senior. We were friends but I wanted her to love me as I loved her. I went out of my way to see her when we changed classes. I remember being given a pair of tickets for a Broadway show. At the time I was kind of dating Diane so I could have taken her but she had her foot in a cast so I asked Ann. Yes, I had other reasons.

She said, Yes. This was my moment in the sun. Bottom line we had an awesome time and to thank her I sent her a dozen roses. I guess the roses sent her a signal because when she called to thank me for the roses she said, “You are a great friend, but…You can figure out the rest.

I was crushed.

I believe this is how God feels when we fail to RESPOND to His love. When we fail to GIVE BACK, to return His love. I believe that most people don’t think of worship as GIVING BACK love to God. Worship is too often limited to what we are doing right now. Worship is what you do in church. It is ritual, tradition, liturgy, hymns, etc. Worship is a designated to a particular time and place.

Just recently I read a story about a person who was convicted of theft. When the judge announced the sentence the person’s lawyer protested. The lawyer said it would be unfair punishment to sentence his client to jail when it actually it was just his hand that committed the crime.

The judge was sympathetic to the lawyers appeal and so he sentenced his hand to serve the jail sentence.

You can image the judge’s shock when the convicted criminal detached his prosthetic arm and left it on the court’s table and walked out of the court room.

Sadly this is often repeated with regards to our worship of God. In spite of the fact that Jesus said,

“Love the Lord your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength.”

We don’t surrender ALL. We may give God a portion. Even when we are physically sitting in the pew it doesn’t mean our minds or our hearts here with us.

When Jesus said,

“Love the Lord your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength”

He is telling us that GOD WANTS ME TO LOVE HIM THOUGHTFULLY, that is with all my mind, PASSIONATELY that is with all my heart and soul, and PRACTICALLY that is with all my strength. The truth is that God has created everything, but there is one thing God doesn’t have, unless you give it to Him and that is YOUR LOVE.

WORSHIP IS FOCUSING MY ATTENTION ON GOD.

“Focusing on yourself is the opposite of focusing on God. Anyone completely absorbed in self ignores God, and ends up thinking more about self than God.”
Romans 8:7

God doesn’t want you to put into autopilot when you worship. Putting into autopilot might suffice in work or other relationships, but not with God. God wants your attention just as you desire attention from those you love.

A frustrated husband vented to his Pastor about his wife’s constant nagging saying, “She is never satisfied. I can never do enough to please her. How can she say I don’t love her? I work long hours and make a good living so she can have the house she lives in, so she doesn’t have to work. I give everything she wants and more. I can’t think of another thing I can give her.”

The Pastor then asked, “When was the last time you gave her your attention?”

God wants what that man’s wife wanted, ATTENTION. He is not interested in people filling up the pews putting their time in or going through the motions. It is easy to say, I love you God, but does your life prove it. Is God the FOCUS of your ATTENTION?

“Focusing on yourself is the opposite of focusing on God. Anyone completely absorbed in self ignores God, and ends up thinking more about self than God.”

WORSHIP IS EXPRESSING MY AFFECTION TO GOD.

“I don’t want your sacrifices – I want your love!
I don’t want your offerings – I want you to know me!”
Hosea 6:5

The most important thing you can know in life is that God loves you. The most important thing you can do in this life is to love Him back.

In one of the readings this past week Rick Warren suggested that we pray every morning, “God if I don’t get anything else done today, at the end of this day. I want to know you a little better and I want to love you a little more.” To know and to love God that is to worship and is our first purpose.

How are we to love and know God, passionately. Exodus 34:14 says this about our God.

“He is a God who is passionate
about His relationship with you.”

God wants to be loved back just as passionately. God doesn’t want your duty he wants your desire. He doesn’t want rituals and religion and rules and regulations. He wants a relationship. And He’s passionate about that.

How can I express my affection to God? Just start thanking Him. Thanksgiving, gratitude is a good way to start expressing your love to God. Don’t hold back. If you are going to

“Love the Lord your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength”

All you have to do is remember how much God loves you. He loved you enough to come to earth and die on a cross for you.

“Give yourselves completely to God
since you have been given new life.”
Romans 6:13

WORSHIP IS USING MY ABILITIES FOR GOD.

“Whatever you do, work at it with all heart, as though you were working for the Lord and not for people.”
Colossians 3:23

In life it is not what you do that matters; it is WHO you do it for. You give it all to God. And all your work can be turned to worship. I don’t care if you’re a butcher, a baker, a candlestick maker. You can do it for God. Let your attitude be, “I am going to do this as if I’m doing it for you, God.”

You may be a carpet cleaner, attorney, nurse, an at-home mother raising children, you may be an executive, a manager, sale person or a truck driver. It really doesn’t matter what you do. It’s WHO you do it for.

The greatest mistake you and I can make in this life is to miss our primary purpose.

“Love the Lord your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength”

Amen