As disciples, we worship and are known as worshippers. 

Matthew 4:19 (NIV84) “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.”

• We are committed to following Christ, being changed by Christ, and we’re committed to the mission of Christ.
• We are all disciples if we are believers. We are growing as we understand God’s perspective and surrender to it.

• The scriptures talk a lot about worship. Jesus was worshipped often, as observed by the disciples and others.
• I think many believers/Christians/Disciples would say they worship.
• We will be looking at the different aspects of worship.
• If I were to ask people, “What is worship and give me an example of it?” what would they say?

What is worship? 

• Worship: extravagant respect or admiration for or devotion to an object of esteem; reverence offered a divine being or

supernatural power¹

The Greek used in the Bible

• Proskuneó is the Greek word most often translated “worship.” It means “to fall down before” or “bow down before.”²

• Note: faith in Christ makes us right with God. This implies that we were not right with Him. (See Romans 1:16-17

and Romans 3:10)

Romans 1:18–31 (NLT) 18But God shows his anger from heaven against all sinful, wicked people who suppress the truth by their wickedness. ¹⁹They know the truth about God because he has made it obvious to them. ²⁰For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.

²¹Yes, they knew God, but they wouldn’t worship him as God or even give him thanks. And they began to think up foolish ideas of what God was like. As a result, their minds became dark and confused. ²²Claiming to be wise, they instead became utter fools. ²³And instead of worshiping the glorious, ever-living God, they worshiped idols made to look like mere people and birds and animals and reptiles.

²⁴So God abandoned them to do whatever shameful things their hearts desired. As a result, they did vile and degrading things with each other’s bodies. ²⁵They traded the truth about God for a lie. So they worshiped and served the things God created instead of the Creator himself, who is worthy of eternal praise! Amen. ²⁶That is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires. Even the women turned against the natural way to have sex and instead indulged in sex with each other. ²⁷And the men, instead of having normal sexual relations with women, burned with lust for each other. Men did shameful things with other men, and as a result of this sin, they suffered within themselves the penalty they deserved.

²⁸Since they thought it foolish to acknowledge God, he abandoned them to their foolish thinking and let them do things that should never be done. ²⁹Their lives became full of every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malicious behavior, and gossip. ³⁰They are backstabbers, haters of God, insolent, proud, and boastful. They invent new ways of sinning, and they disobey their parents. ³¹They refuse to understand, break their promises, are heartless, and have no mercy.

ο   Notice the condition of the people in verse 28.

• They would not acknowledge the presence and work of God. (verse 20)
• They would not worship (bow before) the real God; they wouldn’t praise Him. (verse 21)
• They exchanged false gods for the real one. This created the downward spiral: wickedness suppresses truth which leads to darkness, spiritually.
• God’s response? He abandoned them; He gave them over to themselves, though not permanently. (verse 28)

Romans 5:6–10 (NLT) 6When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. ⁷Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. ⁸But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. ⁹And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. ¹⁰For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son.

• God is righteous, and He will destroy both sin and those who refuse to worship.
• God wants to save us. He is merciful to those who accept who He is and what He is done.

John 4:19–24 (NIV) 19“Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet. ²⁰Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.” ²¹“Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. ²²You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. ²³Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. ²⁴God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”

• It’s not a feeling. We choose Him and to obey Him. It’s a commitment, demonstrating loyalty in every part of our lives.

• The truth comes from the Jews; the Jewish Scriptures are true.

• Reverse engineering the Romans 1 passage: We acknowledge the truth that the world is His. We worship—surrender,

bow down. We thank Him for what He has done. We walk in the light.

Passages to consider: Psalm 148, 146, & 19; Isaiah 6:1-8

• What from the sermon was meaningful to you?
  1. Read Isaiah 6:1-8. Describe what you see about God and Isaiah’s response in this passage. What does that show you about worship?
  2. Worship can be defined as giving worth. What worth does God hold for you? A) What helps you recognize/

remember who God is and His worth? In what ways do you express that?

• 1. Read Romans 12:1-2 and Mark 12:29-31. What do these passages show you about worship?
  2. What do you think is at the heart of worship?
  3. How would/could/do you involve each part of heart, soul, mind, and strength in worship of God? A) Which comes easy or the most naturally? Which is the most difficult or challenging?
  4. What is God showing you about worship? How will you respond to Him?

Called Out to Worship in Real Life (Week 2): Personal Worship

1 Peter 2:9-10; Luke 7:36-47; 2 Samuel 6:12-22

¹Merriam-Webster definition of worship found at Merriam-Webster.com/dictionary/worship

²Greek definition of proskuneó found in Strong’s Concordance, accessed at BibleHub.com/greek/4352.htm. Occurrence of Greek words translated as “worship” can also be found at BibleHub.com in one of many concordances.

Scripture quotations marked NIV84 are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version. Copyright 1978, 1984 by New York International Bible Society. Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale