May 2nd, 2021
by Kevin Benton
by Kevin Benton
God Chasers Daily Devotion #4 - Worshipers not Workers. Discover the delight of worshiping the Lord, not just working for Him.
We all should be willing to work for the Lord, but it is a matter of grace on God’s part. I am of the opinion that we should not be concerned about working for God until we have learned the meaning and the delight of worshiping Him. A worshiper can work with eternal quality in his work. But a worker who does not worship is only piling up wood, hay and stubble for the time when God sets the world on fire.
(A.W. Tozer, Worship and Entertainment, 16)
Who is A. W. Tozer?
Aiden Wilson Tozer was born April 21, 1897, on a small farm among the spiny ridges of western Pennsylvania. Within a few short years, Tozer, as he preferred to be called,
would earn the reputation and title of a “20th-century prophet.”
When he was 15 years old, Tozer’s family moved to Akron, Ohio. One afternoon as he walked home from his job at Goodyear, he overheard a street preacher say, “If you don’t know how to be saved…just call on God.” When he got home, he climbed the narrow stairs to the attic where, heeding the preacher’s advice, Tozer was launched into a lifelong pursuit of God.
Tozer’s forte was his prayer life, which often found him walking the aisles of a sanctuary or lying facedown on the floor. He noted, “As a man prays, so is he.” To him the worship of God was paramount in his life and ministry. “His preaching as well as his writings were but extensions of his prayer life,” comments Tozer biographer James L. Snyder. An earlier biographer noted, “He spent more time on his knees than at his desk.”
Reflection by Pastor Kevin
Joh 4:23 But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such to worship Him.
Joh 4:24 God is a spirit, and they who worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth.
God seeks those who worship Hm in spirit and truth. How do we do that? Worship Him with the inner man(indwelling Christ). The part of us that is connected to God, our spirit. Many times our worship is just full of our flesh. Singing songs, lifting our hands, shouting and dancing are all great and can be forms of worship, but only if and when they come from the inner man(indwelling Christ). This worship John is referring to extends beyond our musical form of worship. It refers to a lifestyle of worship where our inner man(indwelling Christ) is connected to and worshiping God. Our flesh and our carnal ways are subdued and we are totally devoted, in awe and in recognition of His greatness and fully aware of our insufficiencies and total need for Him!
The truth referred to here is the truth of the Gospel or "Good News" of Jesus Christ. Let us not be like the Samaritan woman and "worship what we do not Know" and let us worship who we Know through the spirit of our inner man(indwelling Christ) that connects us to Him. And while we worship hold on to and live in the truth of salvation in Jesus Christ. Lets make worship our lifestyle. (P.K.)
We all should be willing to work for the Lord, but it is a matter of grace on God’s part. I am of the opinion that we should not be concerned about working for God until we have learned the meaning and the delight of worshiping Him. A worshiper can work with eternal quality in his work. But a worker who does not worship is only piling up wood, hay and stubble for the time when God sets the world on fire.
(A.W. Tozer, Worship and Entertainment, 16)
Who is A. W. Tozer?
Aiden Wilson Tozer was born April 21, 1897, on a small farm among the spiny ridges of western Pennsylvania. Within a few short years, Tozer, as he preferred to be called,
would earn the reputation and title of a “20th-century prophet.”
When he was 15 years old, Tozer’s family moved to Akron, Ohio. One afternoon as he walked home from his job at Goodyear, he overheard a street preacher say, “If you don’t know how to be saved…just call on God.” When he got home, he climbed the narrow stairs to the attic where, heeding the preacher’s advice, Tozer was launched into a lifelong pursuit of God.
Tozer’s forte was his prayer life, which often found him walking the aisles of a sanctuary or lying facedown on the floor. He noted, “As a man prays, so is he.” To him the worship of God was paramount in his life and ministry. “His preaching as well as his writings were but extensions of his prayer life,” comments Tozer biographer James L. Snyder. An earlier biographer noted, “He spent more time on his knees than at his desk.”
Reflection by Pastor Kevin
Joh 4:23 But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such to worship Him.
Joh 4:24 God is a spirit, and they who worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth.
God seeks those who worship Hm in spirit and truth. How do we do that? Worship Him with the inner man(indwelling Christ). The part of us that is connected to God, our spirit. Many times our worship is just full of our flesh. Singing songs, lifting our hands, shouting and dancing are all great and can be forms of worship, but only if and when they come from the inner man(indwelling Christ). This worship John is referring to extends beyond our musical form of worship. It refers to a lifestyle of worship where our inner man(indwelling Christ) is connected to and worshiping God. Our flesh and our carnal ways are subdued and we are totally devoted, in awe and in recognition of His greatness and fully aware of our insufficiencies and total need for Him!
The truth referred to here is the truth of the Gospel or "Good News" of Jesus Christ. Let us not be like the Samaritan woman and "worship what we do not Know" and let us worship who we Know through the spirit of our inner man(indwelling Christ) that connects us to Him. And while we worship hold on to and live in the truth of salvation in Jesus Christ. Lets make worship our lifestyle. (P.K.)
4 Comments
I find it that working for God is Like trying to Get a pay check or reward.i go and sprend the Good News because there are lost ,hurt ,and hungry people without direction.when I was lost ,no body ever came to tell me about Jesus .I found out by myself.so now because of that I go out and speak the Good word for them to hear .if there was a burning building would anyone help rescue the people that will be facing torture ? well I look at it this way.i feel like a fireman saving life from getting burn and lost .I'm here for a purpose and is to give birth to life.and share it.....that's is my comment..
That is awesome! Worshipers are grateful for what the Lord has done for them and feel the burden of telling others how good Jesus is. We are all called to be fireman rescuing the lost from the burning fires of hell. Keep up that good work. That kind of work has eternal rewards!!!
I look @ my Insufficiencies as a Hindrance. When God is saying let me use your lack of to help others that are Lost. Your weakness i’ll make into meekness because I know your worth to Me! I can show you Great thing’s but allow the Holy Spirit to take control & move in Fear because You(All) are Fearfully & Wonderfully Made. You are the Head & Not the tale! 1 Timothy 6:10-13; 10For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. 11But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness. 12Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses. 13I give thee charge in the sight of God, who quickeneth all things, and before Christ Jesus, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession;
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Yes our insufficiencies can feel like hinderances. That is exactly how the enemy would have us view them. The blessing that can come from our insufficiencies is that they make us realize how human and imperfect we are. They also make us realize how awesome and perfect He is. They also make us rely on Him and not ourselves. In our weakness He is Strong!!! We keep clinging on to Jesus and He will always see us through.