Come to Worship is a 3 part series allowing us to take the time to focus on who Jesus is, on what He did for us, and on the power of the Virgin Birth. The title of this series is taken directly from Matthew’s gospel, Matthew 2:2, “Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him.”
The story of the wisemen happened a couple of years after Christmas time.
Where is the newborn King of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose and we have come to worship him.” Matthew 2:2
The wise men didn’t come to GET something from God, but they came to offer worship to Him. God does not exist for us, but we exist for Him, and we flourish in life when we live for Him. We are created to glorify Him, to worship Him, to make Him known, and to bring Him honor.
Worship is not just songs and singing, it’s a posture of living. When we worship, we flourish - even in the hard times.
In this series we’re going to look at three different postures of worship:
- Bow our Knees
- Pour out our Hearts
- Lift up our Hands
These are three postures of our body, but also postures of our heart.
Bow Our Knees
When [the wise men] saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary and they bowed down and worshipped him. Matthew 2:10-11
Scholars tell us that the wisemen likely traveled 900 or so miles to get to him, and according to their judgment Jesus was probably around 2 years of age.
The prestigious, high-society group of wisemen did not allow unique or unlikely circumstances to keep them from taking a posture of kneeling and bowing down and worshipping God.
Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker; for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care.
Psalm 95:6-7
A Hebrew word translated as worship: shâchâh
Shachah is used 170 times in the Bible. It means to bow down low, to stoop, to crouch, or kneel in worship. It doesn't mean just worship, but inside this word is the posture of kneeling in worship.
He must increase, but I must decrease.
John 3:30
To worship God is to say - God I want you to become greater in my life.
There are two unique ways that we can bow down in worship:
- We kneel in service
- We kneel in submission
Kneel in Service
God longs for us to not merely sing in worship, but to live our lives as worship. And the way to worship God with our lives is to shâchâh; to bend low, to stoop down, and serve others with our lives.
I hate, I despise your religious festivals; your assemblies are a stench to me. Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Though you bring choice fellowship offerings, I will have no regard for them. Away with the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps. But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!
Amos 5:21-24
Jesus modeled this kneeling in service to his disciples when he washed their feet.
Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist…After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.
John 13:3-5
Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, so what did he do with his power? He kneeled down to serve. We worship God when we kneel to serve others in his name.
‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
Matthew 25:40
Jesus reconciles us to God AND our neighbors, gives us the grace to be transformed in his image, and calls us to follow him in faith, loving God AND our neighbor. We worship God because of this Good News. And it should compel us to worship God as we serve others.
Kneel in Submission
Jesus is our example.
[Jesus] withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond [his disciples], knelt down and prayed, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.”
Luke 22:41-42
Jesus knelt in submission - not my will but your will be done
And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. When he rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, he found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow.
Luke 22:44-45
Kneeling to pray is often what gives you the strength to stand.
We come to worship, like the wisemen, when we kneel. It wasn’t a picture perfect nativity. The circumstances could have been better, but they recognized the awe and wonder of a God whose name was Immanuel - God with us.
Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker; for he is our God and we are the people of his pasture, the flock under his care.
Psalm 95:6-7