The Way to Worship Him

“But he commanded the skies to open; he opened the doors of heaven. He rained down manna for them to eat; he gave them bread from heaven. They ate the food of angels! God gave them all they could hold. He released the east wind in the heavens and guided the south wind by his mighty power. He rained down meat as thick as dust— birds as plentiful as the sand on the seashore! He caused the birds to fall within their camp and all around their tents. The people ate their fill. He gave them what they craved. But before they satisfied their craving, while the meat was yet in their mouths, the anger of God rose against them, and he killed their strongest men. He struck down the finest of Israel’s young men. But in spite of this, the people kept sinning. Despite his wonders, they refused to trust him. So he ended their lives in failure, their years in terror. When God began killing them, they finally sought him. They repented and took God seriously. Then they remembered that God was their rock, that God Most High was their redeemer. But all they gave him was lip service; they lied to him with their tongues. Their hearts were not loyal to him. They did not keep his covenant. Yet he was merciful and forgave their sins and did not destroy them all. Many times he held back his anger and did not unleash his fury! For he remembered that they were merely mortal, gone like a breath of wind that never returns.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭78:23-39‬ ‭NLT‬‬

When the grumbling Israelites wanted something besides manna, God sent them quail. He gave them what they craved. When they were in the midst of their indulgence, His anger swelled against them and began killing the strongest men among them. The best young men became casualties. In spite of this catastrophe the people remained stubbornly set in their rebellious attitude. Their lives were cursed with misery and terror. In their utter brokenness they, finally, turned to God and recognized Him as El Elyon (God Most High). Repentance was their appropriate action. However, even after their acknowledgement of Him, they gave only lip service in their worship. This is exactly what Jesus said as He quoted Isaiah the prophet (Isaiah 29:13): “Jesus replied, “You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you, for he wrote, ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” ‭‭Mark‬ ‭7:6‬ ‭NLT‬‬ (see also Matthew 15:8) How many "Christians", of our own time, attend houses of worship, sing the songs, go through the motions, and yet their hearts are not loyal to Jesus Christ? Their worship is nothing more than lip service. It is as if they want to appease their conscience through religious association, but their actual allegiance is to their own selfish will!  Listen again to what happened next:  "Yet He was merciful and forgave their sins and did not destroy them all." Friends, God has withheld his fury from our own generation! We have offered a tremendous amount of lip service to Him and yet He has lovingly, and patiently, preserved us. Without His merciful kindness, we would have been exterminated from the face of the earth. Aren't you glad that God knows our mortal weaknesses? Although we have lived in a place of rebellion, He has graciously given us His continued gift of life. Now, let's turn this gift of life into a living sacrifice to His name.  “And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.” ‭‭Romans‬ ‭12:1‬ ‭NLT‬‬