The golden calf in Exodus 32 was particularly offensive to God because He was at the same time giving instruction to Moses on proper worship. Meanwhile, the people of Israel were constructing a golden calf, which symbolized false worship. The correct worship of God is a major topic of the Old Testament, and we would do well to take to heart the instruction God has provided.
While Exodus provides great detail on the temple construction and various aspects of worship, many of those elements have been transformed since the resurrection of Christ.
References in Exodus 26-30 to offerings and incense have since been internalized into the heart. See, for example, 1 Corinthians 6:19, “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own?”
In 2 Corinthians 2:15-16 and Romans 12:1-2, for example, the incense and offerings are to be of ourselves.
“For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing; to the one an aroma from death to death, to the other an aroma from life to life. And who is adequate for these things?”
“Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.”
In Romans 12, the offering of ourselves as a sacrifice to God is a spiritual service of worship. The fragrance of incense offered to God is to be of ourselves in obedience to God’s commands and expectations and in service to others through ministry in the kingdom of heaven. This is consistent with Isaiah 6:1-8 and Psalm 51.
Next, we will consider the attitude of the heart in worship. When the priests were active in the temple worship service, they were required to wear specific attire and to be consecrated as holy. Exodus 28:6-14, Leviticus 8:11-13 Both “set apart” and “purity” are regarded as definitions of “holy”. In other words, our conduct, attitude, and attire is to be set apart from the world in our worship of God in conjunction with purity of heart. Recall that you and I serve in the role of priests. Revelation 1:6, 1 Peter 2:9, Exodus 19:6
Just as God set apart one day each week for worship and rest, our conduct, attitude, and attire in worship of God is to be set apart from all other activity.
Consecration in holiness primarily means that we are to approach the Lord in worship with a pure heart. Consecration involves devoting and setting apart unto holiness for service to the Lord. Once consecrated, our lives are to belong completely to the Lord, without sin and without impure motives. This is a tall order, and we are unable to consecrate ourselves without the aid of the Holy Spirit.
However, the thrust of the expectation is that we are not to be dripping with sin when we approach the Lord in worship. This is why confession and repentance play vital and major roles in the worship of the Lord. Put another way, we cannot be devoted to sin and to the Lord at the same time. A life of sin implies devotion to sin, and the heart cannot be devoted to opposite endeavors at the same time. This is double-mindedness, a lukewarm state, and a divided heart. Psalm 119:113, Matthew 6:24, James 1:8, James 4:8, Revelation 3:16
Of course, we cannot overlook prayer in worship. In many worship scenes in the Old Testament, such as the dedication of the temple (1 Kings 8, 2 Chronicles 5-7), prayer was a key element in worship. Many of those prayers were of repentance and confession, humility, and surrender.
Prayer aligns our hearts with the Lord. A major problem in prayer is seeking the Lord with wrong motives. See, for example, James 4:3 and Matthew 6:5-13. It is one thing to pray for God’s mercy, protection, and guidance. However, these verses illustrate a self-righteous heart and pride.
In James 5:16, the old King James Version is most remembered, “The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” Earnest and sincere prayer is effective.
Thayer’s Lexicon defines “effectual fervent” to mean “to be operative, be at work, put forth power.” Thayer’s entry summarizes “effectual fervent” as earnest, solemn, and inward prayer which is the reason a righteous name has outward success. By success, we do not understand this to mean monetary prosperity. Rather, success is as Paul describes it in 1 Corinthians 3:6, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth.”
We should also take note of Christ’s comment on prayer in Matthew 17:21, “But this kind [of power] does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” If we desire to be effective in ministry, powerful in works, and see God working mightily, there must be a great deal of prayer and fasting behind it all.
Likewise, if we want our churches to be effective, there must be a great deal of fervent prayer (and fasting) invested. James 4:2 points out the obvious, “You do not have because you do not ask.”
Worship of God does not consist in a particular style of music, songs, technology, or chairs as opposed to pews. Worship begins in the heart through prayer, confession of sin, and obedience to God.
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