Recovery Step 4 Worship

Introduction

When it comes to addictions and resentments, something that is typically in short supply is worship of Almighty God. There is plenty of worship of other things, but not Him. Many times in Scripture God warns us about worshipping things and/or people because it is self-destructive as it drives us down the slippery slope of addiction. By contrast, worshipping God with a pure heart brings joy, peace, stability and contentment. Tonight we return to the process of Step 4: Spiritual Inventory. Let the Truth of the Word sink into your minds tonight and see what changes need to be made in your life.

Now that we are back to in-person gatherings, small groups in large spaces as we call it, the Tuesday Celebrate Recovery and Sunday worship services are being linked. On Tuesday we will concentrate more on individual inventory while on Sunday the focus will be group (church) inventory.

Worship:

I say often that worship is a huge part of recovery. Actually, it is the shifting of worship from our addictions and onto the One True God. There is no recovery without that.

What does is mean to worship? We call all kinds of things “worshipping” God including going to church and singing Christian songs. The word worship occurs like 197 times in Bible, but Church gatherings and music not mentioned as part of it. Lets consider some things the Bible does tell us about worship. Isaiah 46:6 says.  “They lavish gold out of the bag, and weigh silver on the scales; they hire a goldsmith, and he makes it a god; they prostrate themselves, yes, they worship.” Obviously that verse talks about perverted worship, that of worshipping an idol, but notice carefully what the people who worship do. In Exodud 4:31 we find, “So the people believed; and when they heard that the Lord had visited the children of Israel and that He had looked on their affliction, then they bowed their heads and worshiped.” Exodus 34:8 agrees, “So Moses made haste and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshiped.” Joshus 5:14 also states, “And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped.” Then there is 2 Chronicles 29:30, “Moreover King Hezekiah and the leaders commanded the Levites to sing praise to the Lord with the words of David and of Asaph the seer. So they sang praises with gladness, and they bowed their heads and worshiped.” Job 1:20 says Job, “fell to the ground and worshiped.” Psalm 95:6 is almost a definition of worship when it says, “come, let us worship & bow down; let us kneel before the LORD our Maker.” The New Testament is no different with Matthew 2:11, “And when they had come into the house, they saw the child Jesus with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him.” Then in Rev 4:10-11, “the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying: “You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created.” See the pattern? Worship involves humbling yourself before God physically & attitudinally. It’s not about singing, it’s about humbling yourself and giving God reverence, glory and honor.

Why should I humble myself and bow in worship to God? If you have to ask that question, you don’t understand who God is. You are denying His power and authority and elevating yourself falsely. Here are some reminders of who God is. Revelation 4:11 says, “You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created.” Hebrews 4:13 adds, “And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.” Then Ephesians 2:4-6 tells us, “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” God is all powerful, all knowing, everywhere present, holy, perfect, and your Creator and Judge. He alone has provided a way for your sinful soul to be reconciled to His holiness, through the sacrificial death and glorious resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ.

An example of worship comes in the account of a particular wealthy landowner and rancher. One day, a messenger arrived with terrible news: a hoard of barbarians came, killed the servants and taken all of the livestock. Soon after, a second messenger arrives saying a fire claimed all of the sheep. Then a third messenger arrives saying an enemy killed the servants and taken all the camels. All of this man’s wealth was gone in a moment. Then a fourth messenger arrived; a storm took the lives of all of his sons and daughters who had been trapped in the oldest son’s house. The man’s name is Job. He lost everything, literally in a matter of moments, as one messenger after another arrived with terrible news. What was Job’s response to these sudden and overwhelming tragedies? He fell to the ground and worshipped (see Job 1:20-22). So, Job worshiped and quickly everything got better, right? Hardly, after this, Job suffered even further as he was stricken with sore boils and his wife told him to just “curse God and die” (see Job 2:10). Things didn’t get better, but Job didn’t accuse God of wrongdoing or hate God. You see, worship is not about appeasing God or trying to get Him to do something for you. Worship is about acknowledging who God is. Worship is about humbling ourselves before God our Creator. Worship is all about Him. In loosing ourselves in Him, we find conscious contact with Him. We find peace, strength, and healing.

Conclusion

When trials come, when addictions hunt you, when resentment overwhelms you find the strength to stand, the power to be healed, and the peace to endure. That victory is not found in reading the 12 Steps or phoning a friend; it’s in getting our eyes off of ourselves and our situation and consciously focusing on worshipping God. Psalm 46:1-3, 10 says, “God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble.  Therefore we will not fear, even though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; though its waters roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with its swelling…Be still and know that I am God.”

Have you ever actually worshipped God by humbling yourself and bowing before His majesty? Worship is a huge part of recovery because it connects your heart to God’s. Review the verses mentioned in this post, bow and worship…telling God how great He is.

Grace & Peace,

Pastor Mark