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Last week we started looking at what I think is one of the most beautiful descriptions of worship in the New Testament, Revelation 7:9-17.

This passage is so striking to me.

A multitude of people from every tribe and tongue and people worshiping around the throne. These people had lived through many of the horrors of the tribulation – political upheaval (Rev. 6:2), wars and unprecedented bloodshed (Rev. 6:3), widespread famine (Rev. 6:5-6), deaths of unfathomable numbers of people worldwide (Rev. 6:7-8), horrific persecution against those who had come to faith in Christ (Rev. 6:9-10), an earthquake unlike any earthquake the world had seen before that moved every mountain and island from their places (Rev. 6:12, 14) and terrifying changes in the sun, moon, stars, and atmosphere (Rev. 6:12-14).

Sometime during these years of terror these individuals had realized that God was judging the earth – and instead of raising fists of rebellion to His face, they bowed their knees and clung to Christ Jesus as their only hope. They probably lost their lives because of their trust in Christ.

They had experienced so much pain, so much suffering… if there was ever a group of people who could have responded with the proverbial, “how could a good God allow this?”… but they don’t.

These people understand what they deserve – they have seen and experienced the wrath of God first hand. They were almost too late, but God in His rich mercy saved them. The astonishing reality of that moves them to worship with all that they are. They worship with one theme – “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”

The amazing thing is… what they have been given is so much more than just not suffering the punishment for their sin.

Therefore,

“they are before the throne of God

and serve him day and night in his temple;

and he who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them.

Never again will they hunger;

never again will they thirst.

The sun will not beat upon them,

nor any scorching heat.

For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd;

he will lead them to springs of living water.

And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

Revelation 7:15-17

Remember, God Himself is the real treasure. He gathers these precious souls into His presence and shelters them. Those who suffered through brutal famine will hunger no more. Those who have lived in a world ravaged by war, earthquakes, and natural disasters will never have the sun beating down on their weary backs again. The Lamb Himself will shepherd them… God Himself will wipe away the tears from their eyes.

As I stated last week, I have come to see the tribulation as a time of incredible mercy in the midst of God’s wrath. Even as He begins to pour out rightly deserved judgment on the earth, He also is drawing many who will humble their hearts to Himself. When He could choose to immediately destroy the earth with no warning, He delays seven additional years.

This multitude is rich evidence that we serve a merciful and gracious God. A God who does not give us what we rightly deserve when we take refuge in Him. A God who not only spares us from judgment, but gathers us gently to Himself, shelters us, cares for us, shepherds us, and wipes away the remnants of our suffering.

Last week we looked at the Revelation of the Lamb in Revelation 5:5-7. His appearance on the scene is the source of tremendous comfort both to the Apostle John and also to us  – He is the only one worthy to rule and reign over His created universe! He is the only One who can banish sin and the curse and restore everything to its intended state. He is our only hope!

When we realize that He truly is our only hope, when we recognize how worthy He truly is, there is only one possible response for those who have bowed the knee to Him as Lord!

And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

And they sang a new song:

“You are worthy to take the scroll
and to open its seals,
because you were slain,
and with your blood you purchased men for God
from every tribe and language and people and nation.
You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God,
and they will reign on the earth.”

Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels, numbering thousands upon thousands, and ten thousand times ten thousand. They encircled the throne and the living creatures and the elders. In a loud voice they sang:

“Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength
and honor and glory and praise!”

Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing:

“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
be praise and honor and glory and power,
for ever and ever!”

The four living creatures said, “Amen,” and the elders fell down and worshiped.

Revelation 5:8-14

Once we have come face to face with the Lamb, we are compelled to worship.

To fall down in awe.

To offer Him all that we are.

Often when I read this passage I think that we really have no idea what real worship is. Sometimes I wonder if we really know who He is. How can we offer Him trite, half-hearted, or self-centered rituals and refer to them as “worship?”

He is worthy of much more than that.

I’d encourage you to spend some time pondering this passage from Revelation 5-  pondering who He is, how worthy He is, what He is worthy of, and how we should respond to that truth. You might also consider our past discussions from the Psalms of what praise and worship truly is. You can also download it as a free ebook here.

Thank you for joining me on this journey of studying what is true praise and worship. I pray that it has been uplifting and challenging to you – God’s Word is so rich! Today I wanted to wrap up this series with some summary take-away points.

• What is “praise?” Praise is shining a light on who our God is and saying, “Look at our God – there is no one like Him!”

• God is worthy of all praise because of who He is, what He has done, and what He will do.

• True praise is not centered on us and how we feel – true praise springs from knowing who God is and lifting Him up, shining a light on Him, exclaiming publicly, “How great is our God!”

• The Psalms call for all different expressions of praise. Shouting, singing, playing instruments are the most obvious. The Psalms also include as praise: telling of His wonders, praises, salvation; Giving thanks to Him publicly; Declaring His righteousness to the younger generations; Shouting for joy; and Confession of sin and thanking Him for His forgiveness.

• Even in our rejoicing, we should be trembling before Him! True praise and worship must be rooted in Truth, and to behold God for Who He is must compel us to fear Him, even as we praise Him with all that we are.

• What is “worship?” Worship is recognizing and responding to Who God really is. Worship is closely tied to the fear of God and submission to God’s authority as our Maker and Master.

• “Praise and Worship” is not a particular style of music. It is not a genre. True praise and worship are external expressions of internal attitudes toward God.

• It is quite possible to perform external acts of “praise and worship” and be spiritually way out of line. Just as we see in Psalm 50, we might be falling into ritual and failing to bring God the sacrifice of true thanksgiving. Worse yet, we might be blasphemously giving lip service while living in flagrant sin.

After studying this more in-depth for the last couple of weeks, I feel more burdened than ever for our churches today. I am bothered that typically when we discuss praise and worship, we get stuck on styles of music. We equate praise and worship issues with contemporary vs. traditional, praise band vs. organ, powerpoint slides vs. hymnal.

The reality is, Psalms gives us a clear precedent for praise and worship being in a multitude of different expressions! The root issues really are – is it grounded in Truth? Is what we are saying about God true? Are our hearts sincere? Are we lifting God up and shining a light on Him, or are we glorifying ourselves in the name of “praise and worship” services?

I’m sure that people from all kinds of different denominational backgrounds will read this, people of all ages with generational preferences, people with different cultural backgrounds. We might all express praise and worship differently. And you know what? That’s fine! True praise and worship can be expressed while singing the “old hymns” to a pipe organ in a cathedral, while dancing to homemade sheet metal instruments in a mud hut in a third world country, while clapping and singing with a worship band at a concert.

It’s high time we stop fighting over style and start closely examining our hearts. You can bring an insincere and blasphemous “praise” offering to God to the tune of an organ, and you can be following a ritual and going through the motions while you dance to your hip praise band. No matter how we express it, the core issue is the same: is it true? Is it sincere? Does it lift up our God and give Him the honor He is due? It’s not about us!

Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe; for our God is a consuming fire.
Hebrews 12:28-29

Image from Bible Picture Gallery

Continuing on our journey of true praise and worship, today we’re going to take a look at Psalm 50. This Psalm was an address from God to Israel about their worship, and it is a sobering reminder to us, as well.

In verses 1-6, we are given a description of God as He addresses His people.

1 The Mighty One, God, the LORD, has spoken,
And summoned the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting.
2 Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty,
God has shone forth.
3 May our God come and not keep silence;
Fire devours before Him,
And it is very tempestuous around Him.
4 He summons the heavens above,
And the earth, to judge His people:
5 “Gather My godly ones to Me,
Those who have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice.”
6 And the heavens declare His righteousness,
For God Himself is judge. Selah.

Notice how God is described in verse one – He is “The Mighty One, God, the LORD.” The first two terms are rather generic terms for God used in the Old Testament. The third, however, is God’s covenant name with His people – Yahweh. It is the name by which He introduced Himself in Exodus. It is the name by which Israel “cut covenant” (the literal meaning of “made a covenant” in verse 5) with.

These verses in Psalm 50:1-6 would have sounded familiar to Israel’s ears. God is reminding them of their solemn covenant they made with Him at Mount Sinai.

Now Mount Sinai was all in smoke because the LORD descended upon it in fire; and its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked violently.
When the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke and God answered him with thunder.
The LORD came down on Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain; and the LORD called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.
(Exodus 19:18-20)

Talk about the fear of God! This event at Mount Sinai was awesome, in the truest sense of the word, and God is reminding them of this solemn covenant as He comes to judge His people. This should get our attention! So, what is He addressing them about?

The remainder of this Psalm falls into two addresses to two different groups.

7″Hear, O My people, and I will speak;
O Israel, I will testify against you;
I am God, your God.
8″I do not reprove you for your sacrifices,
And your burnt offerings are continually before Me.
9″I shall take no young bull out of your house
Nor male goats out of your folds.
10″For every beast of the forest is Mine,
The cattle on a thousand hills.
11″I know every bird of the mountains,
And everything that moves in the field is [a]Mine.
12″If I were hungry I would not tell you,
For the world is Mine, and all it contains.
13″Shall I eat the flesh of bulls
Or drink the blood of male goats?
14″Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving
And pay your vows to the Most High;
15Call upon Me in the day of trouble;
I shall rescue you, and you will honor Me.”

First of all, notice that in verse 7, God again calls Himself by a generic name for God and then adds “your God.” He is entitled to pure worship by both His existence as the only true God, and also by His covenant relationship to His people.

This first address is to His outwardly obedient people. In fact, at first blush this might look like a commendation. However, look at the wording – verse 4 says that He is coming to judge His people, verse 7 says He is testifying against them, and verse 8 points out what He is not reproving them for. So, what is the issue?

I like how Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown’s commentary talks about this passage:

“However scrupulous in external worship, it was offered as if they conferred an obligation in giving God His own, and with a degrading view of Him as needing it. Reproving them for such foolish and blasphemous notions, He teaches them to offer, or literally, “sacrifice,” thanksgiving, and pay, or perform, their vows–that is, to bring, with the external symbolical service, the homage of the heart, and faith, penitence, and love.”

The external worship expressions of sacrifice were symbolic of what should have been happening internally. David strikes upon this fact in Psalm 51:16-17 -

For You do not delight in sacrifice, otherwise I would give it;
You are not pleased with burnt offering.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
A broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.

External obedience must be in accordance with an internal reality.

We could be right on when it comes to our outward worship – we could have the best “worship service” in the world and say all the right pious sounding things about God; but, if our hearts are not truly bringing a sacrifice of thanksgiving, if our external worship is not line with an inward reality, we are missing the boat!

Now, onto the second group addressed in Psalm 50:

16But to the wicked God says,
“What right have you to tell of My statutes
And to take My covenant in your mouth?
17″For you hate discipline,
And you cast My words behind you.
18″When you see a thief, you are pleased with him,
And you associate with adulterers.
19″You let your mouth loose in evil
And your tongue frames deceit.
20″You sit and speak against your brother;
You slander your own mother’s son.
21″These things you have done and I kept silence;
You thought that I was just like you;
I will reprove you and state the case in order before your eyes.

This section is just chilling to me. Notice that these wicked people God is addressing “tell of [His] statutes and take [His] covenant into [their] mouths!” These people have all the right words! And yet, their lives are far from lining up with their pious words. In fact, the examples given show that they are living in flagrant violation of the 7th, 8th, and 9th commandment! They are associating with adulterers (7), they are stealing (8), and they are lying (9)!

Now, the most haunting part of this address to me is verse 21 – because God had kept silent and not directly called them on their sin, they thought He was just like them!

Considering this Psalm brings to mind for me the letters to the 7 churches in Revelations. The church at Ephesus is commended for their deeds, but reprimanded for leaving their first love. To the church at Sardis God said, “I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead.” The church at Laodicea was described as unuseful to God – they were lukewarm and He wanted to spit them out!

Have we clung to our first love? Are we truly alive and growing spiritually? Are we useful to our King? Does our internal reality match up with the external acts of worship we present before our Maker and Savior?