Cornerstone Mission Church, Sunday Sermon, April 26 2009
When you think of worship, what comes to your mind? Perhaps, you think of worship in how we praised God this morning together. When we worship God, when we praise God, what are we doing?
Klyne Snodgrass explains that worship is about our opportunity to tell the truth about God.[1] When you and I take time to worship and praise God, we are taking opportunity to express what is true about God. When you begin to express what is true about God, the reality of who God is, what he has done, and what he will do grips your heart. And, being gripped by God, you cannot help but speak well of him. When you sincerely speak well of a person, it is because you are personally gripped and fascinated, inspired, compelled and moved by this person. If a person makes no life changing impact on you, you won’t feel compelled to speak well of this person. But, if you are deeply touched, inspired and changed by a person, it will be hard for you not to speak well of the person.
What I see in Paul’s letter to Ephesians is a man who had whole lot of good things to say about God. Paul was a true worshiper because his heart was gripped and fascinated by God, inspired, compelled and moved by God. And, experiencing God in this way, it was only natural for him to speak well of God.
This morning did you know that you had an opportunity to tell the truth about God through songs? In that opportunity, were you able to worship, praise, that is speak well of God? If you spoke well of God during the time of praise, what were your reasons to speak well of him? Are you gripped and fascinated by God, inspired, compelled and moved by God? Are you a true worshiper as Paul was?
This morning I want you to understand that true worshipers cannot contain their words to speak well of God. When you are gripped by God’s incredible choice to exercise his power to demonstrate his love, his forgiveness, to transfer you into the kingdom of his Son he loves from the kingdom of darkness, to build eternal relationship with you in and through his Son Jesus Christ, what else can you do, but to speak well of God, to worship God.
1. Worship overflows when you are captivated by what makes God fascinating and compelling.
Let’s dig deeper into God’s word and learn more about worship. You may have noticed that in Ephesians 1:1-14, the word, “worship” does not occur. Instead, you come across “Praise” in verse 3; “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” NIV translates the Greek adjective eujloghtov" as “praise” while other literal translations like ESV as “blessed”. eujloghtov" is a compound word from “eu” meaning well and “log” from word logos meaning word. Together, it literally means to speak well.[2] You are familiar with the word eulogy in funeral settings. It is also a compound word formed from “eu” and “logos”. In eulogy you expect to hear a speech that speaks well and honors a deceased. So, when you think of worshiping, praising God, think of speaking well of God for all his excellence in his blessings. Paul says in Ephesians 1:3 that God has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.”
Worships is all about blessing God, speaking well of him because of the way he grips and fascinates us, touches, inspires, and moves us. Some of you guys have noticed these days how I like to talk about what God is doing in our lives. When we know that God is active and living, powerfully working in our lives, we can worship him, speak well of him.
Do you want to worship God as Paul did? Your worship will deepen when you are captured by God who grips and fascinates you, inspires, compels and moves you. In Ephesians 1:4-14, what you see is Paul worshiping God, speaking well of God because he was gripped by God’s excellence in his choice to seek and establish eternal relationship with the people like you and me in Christ.
2. Worship God who has chosen you in Christ.
Why is our God captivating and compelling? It is because of his excellence in his eternal choice to build lasting relationship with you and me. Paul says in Ephesians 1:4 that God chose us in him [that is in Christ] before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.
His choice long ago: His choice was planned long time ago even before the creation of the world. Can you wrap your head around this? I have hard time planning my weeks in advance, but here was God setting his heart on choosing you and me long ago before anything was created and working out the history to fulfill his purpose to choose us. The fact that he chose us unfathomably long time ago speaks to his serious commitment and determination to pursue us. This is a reason to speak well of God.
His choice in his character: His chose not because he was compelled or influenced by the external force, but out of his nature of mercy and grace. He chose us long ago because he is God of mercy and grace. It means God’s eternal choice does not permit the worldly sense of feeling pride and superiority for being chosen. God made it abundantly clear to the Israelites that he chose them out of his goodness, his kindness, his grace, not because the Israelites deserved to be chosen. It says in Deuteronomy 7:7-8, “The LORD did not set his affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples [meaning God didn’t choose you because you were special], for [the fact of the matter was] you were the fewest of all peoples. But it was because the LORD loved you and kept the oath he swore to your forefathers that he brought you out with a mighty hand …” And, Deut 4:37, “Because he loved your forefathers and chose their descendants after him, he brought you out of Egypt by his Presence and his great strength.” God has chosen you and me, not because we deserve to be picked and be chosen by him, but because he is loving and kind God. There is no room for pride or sense of superiority in being chosen by God. True worship fully acknowledges this and responds with humble gratitude in speaking well of God. His choice makes our choice possible. And, this is something we can speak well of God.
His choice for relationship: His choice is for building relationship, not any kind of relationship but father and children relationship bound in Christ. Paul says that God predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ in Ephesians 1:5. This echoes God’s prophecy from Malachi 3:17, “They will be mine,” says the LORD Almighty, “in the day when I make up my treasured possession…” His choice creates belonging for us in Christ as God’s children. This is a reason why you can speak well of God.
His choice to preserve: He affirms and preserves you in his choice through the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 1:13 says that when we respond in faith to God’s loving will to choose us, to make us a people belonging to him, he says he marks us with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit. Paul likens the Holy Spirit as a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance. The Holy Spirit is a down payment, a first installment that guarantees the complete payment; the Holy Spirit affirms and preserves us to run the race without failing. Can you speak well of God for filling you with his Spirit to convict you, to guide you, to tell you which way you should go? He promised in Isaiah 30:21-22, “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” Then you will defile your idols… you will throw them away.” God doesn’t choose us only to leave us alone to fend for ourselves. He gives you the Holy Spirit as your abiding helper, your enabler to walk in the right path. This is something you can speak well of God.
His choice for community: His choice is corporate in nature. Verse 4 says, “he chose us in him,” verse 5, “he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ,” verse 11, “In him we were also chosen,” all these verses make it abundantly clear that we cannot envision salvation apart from our corporate identity in the body of Christ. God’s choice was never to create a private religion. He choice was to create a cohesive relationship of his people for himself bound in Christ and through Christ. This is why 1 Peter 2:9 speaks of our identity not as individually chosen persons, but as “a chosen people.” His choice has always been to create a chosen people for himself. To speak well of God means we take our corporate identity seriously and do all that we can to build up the body of Christ. In order to speak well of God, we need to find ways to appreciate the body of Christ, appreciate each other in Christ and speak well of each other. We cannot speak well of God without speaking well of others in whom God is at work.
His choice and our response: His choice calls for responsible response from us. Can God bless us in the sense of speak well of us? When God has chosen us, he has envisioned creating a chosen people who are set apart, “saints” in Christ (v. 1), to be holy and blameless in his sight (v. 4). We are chosen so that we can live as his new creation. Ephesians 5:27 says that Christ works “to present her [the church] to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.” Can God bless you and me? Can God speak well of you and me because we will be presented to himself as a radiant church?
When faith is not lived out, when faith is reduced to a sentimental feeling of a spoiled child wanting nothing more than being pampered by God for our own selfishness, then evidence of God’s choice, his election won’t be there. Apostle Peter said in 2 Peter 1:10, “Therefore, my brothers be all the more eater to make your calling and election sure.” And, apostle Paul said in Philippians 2:12-13, “continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.” And, he also said in Titus 1:1, “… the faith of God’s elect and the knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness.” Can we truly speak well of God, worship him without responsibly responding to his choice, his call, his election? Can we praise God without rejecting godlessness and without thirsting after godliness? To speak well of God sincerely, we need to take God’s “commission to fruit-bearing service, obedience and a God-fearing and God-trusting life.”[3] Then, God who blesses us with his grace and works in us to will and to act according to his purpose can speak well of us in his delight.
His choice for his glory: His choice is to the praise of his glory. Ephesians 1:6 says that the purpose of God for choosing relationship with us as our Father in Christ is “to the praise of his glorious grace.” Ephesians 1:12 again Paul repeats that it is “for the praise of his glory” that we were chosen. And, for the third time, Paul explains that the purpose of the seal of the Holy Spirit who guarantees our complete redemption to the end is “to the praise of his glory” (Ephesians 1:14). Less we forget that it is all about God, Paul repeats three times to make it crystal clear to us that God has chosen you and me in Christ to godly life so that we can praise his glory, that is to speak well of his excellence in choosing us in Christ.
3. Conclusion
Do you have the reasons to speak well of God? Do you know that you are chosen to speak well of God? God wants to raise us up as true worshipers. And, we must press on to experience God, to be griped by him, to be fascinated by his character, his goodness, his kindness, his grace, his power, to be inspired by his wisdom, his truth, to be touched by the conviction of the Holy Spirit, to be moved from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of the Son God loves.
Remember this week, God has chosen you so that you speak well of him.
[1] Snodgrass, Klyne. “Contemporary Significance” In NIV Application Commentary, New Testament: Ephesians. By Klyne Snodgrass, 61. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, © 1996.
[2] The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology: Volume 1. 205. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, © 1967, 1969, 1971.
[3] The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology: Volume 1. 542. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, © 1967, 1969, 1971.
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