Worship by Faith: Honoring God Through Intentionality
Summary
Worship by faith is a profound act of recognizing God for who He is, what He has done, and what we trust Him to do. It is an acknowledgment that He alone deserves our praise and adoration. Abel, our first kingdom hero, exemplifies this by offering God the firstlings of his flock, demonstrating his righteousness by giving God the best he had. This act of worship is not just a ritual but a heartfelt recognition of God's person and position. However, Abel's story also reminds us that being a worshiper does not exempt us from life's challenges, as seen in his tragic death at the hands of his brother Cain.
Despite the pain and trials on earth, Abel's faith-filled worship transcends his earthly life, as he continues to communicate with God even after death. This illustrates that our relationship with God is eternal, and worship is a means of upgrading our communication with Him. In contrast, Cain's offering was merely a religious act without a worshiping heart, leading to a life of emptiness and wandering. This highlights the importance of worshiping by faith, not by feelings, as true worship is an intentional act of giving God the glory due to His name, regardless of our emotions.
God seeks true worshipers who will honor Him with both attitude and action. As we grow in our understanding of His attributes and deeds, we find more reasons to worship Him. Worship should not be a forced act but a natural response to His goodness and faithfulness. It is an investment of our time, yielding eternal dividends. By giving God the first and the best of our day, we invite His presence into our lives, both now and in eternity.
Key Takeaways:
- Worship by faith is about recognizing God's unique worthiness and giving Him the best of what we have, as Abel did. It is not just a ritual but a heartfelt acknowledgment of His greatness and our trust in Him. [01:01]
- Life's challenges do not negate our worship; rather, they can deepen it. Abel's story shows that even in pain, our worship can transcend earthly life and continue in eternity, affirming our eternal relationship with God. [01:46]
- True worship is not about feelings but about faith. We often do things we don't feel like doing because they are necessary, and worship is no different. It is an intentional act of giving God the glory He deserves. [03:13]
- God seeks worshipers who will honor Him with both attitude and action. As we learn more about His attributes and deeds, we find more reasons to worship Him, making worship a natural response to His goodness. [03:38]
- Worshiping by faith is an investment of our time, not merely a spending of it. By giving God the first and the best, we invite His presence into our lives, both now and in eternity, reaping eternal dividends. [04:49]
Youtube Chapters:
[00:00] - Welcome
[00:34] - Worship by Faith
[00:47] - Recognition of God
[01:01] - Abel's Righteous Offering
[01:16] - Worship Amidst Crisis
[01:46] - Eternal Communication
[02:19] - The Privilege of Worship
[02:32] - Cain's Empty Worship
[03:01] - The Call to Faithful Worship
[03:13] - Worship Beyond Feelings
[03:38] - Seeking True Worshipers
[04:02] - Reasons to Worship
[04:12] - The Importance of Corporate Worship
[04:23] - Worship as an Investment
[04:49] - Eternal Dividends of Worship
Study Guide
Bible Study Discussion Guide: Worship by Faith
Bible Reading:
1. Genesis 4:1-10
2. Hebrews 11:4
3. John 4:23-24
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Observation Questions:
1. What specific actions did Abel take that demonstrated his faith in God according to Genesis 4:1-10?
2. How does Hebrews 11:4 describe Abel's offering and its significance in the context of faith?
3. In the sermon, what was highlighted as the difference between Abel's and Cain's offerings? [02:32]
4. According to John 4:23-24, what kind of worshipers is God seeking?
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Interpretation Questions:
1. How does Abel's offering reflect his understanding of God's worthiness, and what does this teach about the nature of true worship? [01:01]
2. What does the sermon suggest about the relationship between worship and life's challenges, as seen in Abel's story? [01:31]
3. How does the concept of worshiping by faith, rather than by feelings, challenge common perceptions of worship? [03:13]
4. What does it mean to "upgrade our communication" with God through worship, as mentioned in the sermon? [02:19]
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Application Questions:
1. Reflect on your current approach to worship. Are there areas where you might be offering "leftovers" to God, similar to Cain? How can you change this? [02:48]
2. Abel's faith-filled worship continued to speak even after his death. How can your worship today impact your legacy and influence others?
3. Consider a time when you faced a significant challenge. How did your faith and worship play a role in how you navigated that situation? [01:31]
4. Worship is described as an investment of time. How can you prioritize giving God the "first and the best" of your day this week? [04:49]
5. Identify one attribute of God that you have recently come to appreciate more deeply. How can this understanding enhance your worship experience? [03:51]
6. How can you ensure that your worship is a genuine response to God's goodness and not just a ritualistic act? [03:38]
7. What practical steps can you take to cultivate a worshiping heart, even when you don't feel like it? [03:13]
Devotional
Day 1: Worship by Faith as Recognition of God's Worthiness
Worship by faith is a profound act of recognizing God for who He is, what He has done, and what we trust Him to do. It is an acknowledgment that He alone deserves our praise and adoration. Abel exemplifies this by offering God the firstlings of his flock, demonstrating his righteousness by giving God the best he had. This act of worship is not just a ritual but a heartfelt recognition of God's person and position. Abel's offering was a testament to his understanding of God's worthiness and his trust in God's promises. [01:01]
Hebrews 11:4 (ESV): "By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks."
Reflection: What is one area of your life where you can offer God the best of what you have today, as an act of faith-filled worship?
Day 2: Worship Amidst Life's Challenges
Life's challenges do not negate our worship; rather, they can deepen it. Abel's story shows that even in pain, our worship can transcend earthly life and continue in eternity, affirming our eternal relationship with God. Despite the pain and trials on earth, Abel's faith-filled worship transcends his earthly life, as he continues to communicate with God even after death. This illustrates that our relationship with God is eternal, and worship is a means of upgrading our communication with Him. [01:46]
2 Corinthians 4:17-18 (ESV): "For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal."
Reflection: How can you use a current challenge in your life as an opportunity to deepen your worship and trust in God?
Day 3: Worship Beyond Feelings
True worship is not about feelings but about faith. We often do things we don't feel like doing because they are necessary, and worship is no different. It is an intentional act of giving God the glory He deserves. Cain's offering was merely a religious act without a worshiping heart, leading to a life of emptiness and wandering. This highlights the importance of worshiping by faith, not by feelings, as true worship is an intentional act of giving God the glory due to His name, regardless of our emotions. [03:13]
Habakkuk 3:17-18 (ESV): "Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation."
Reflection: Identify a routine or task you often perform without feeling. How can you transform it into an act of worship by focusing on God's glory rather than your emotions?
Day 4: Seeking True Worshipers
God seeks worshipers who will honor Him with both attitude and action. As we learn more about His attributes and deeds, we find more reasons to worship Him, making worship a natural response to His goodness. Worship should not be a forced act but a natural response to His goodness and faithfulness. It is an investment of our time, yielding eternal dividends. By giving God the first and the best of our day, we invite His presence into our lives, both now and in eternity. [03:38]
John 4:23-24 (ESV): "But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."
Reflection: What specific attribute or deed of God can you focus on today to inspire genuine worship in both your attitude and actions?
Day 5: Worship as an Investment
Worshiping by faith is an investment of our time, not merely a spending of it. By giving God the first and the best, we invite His presence into our lives, both now and in eternity, reaping eternal dividends. Worship is a means of upgrading our communication with Him, and it should be a natural response to His goodness and faithfulness. As we grow in our understanding of His attributes and deeds, we find more reasons to worship Him. [04:49]
Matthew 6:20-21 (ESV): "But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."
Reflection: How can you prioritize your time today to ensure that you are investing in worship and inviting God's presence into your life?
Quotes
"Worship is the recognition of God for who He is, what He has done, and what we are trusting Him to do. Sometimes you do it in meditation, other times you do it in celebration, you always do it in anticipation, but it is giving Him the recognition that He alone uniquely deserves because there's only one true God." [00:29:35]
"Abel is viewed as righteous because he gave God the best that he had. He gave it to Him first and he honored God's person and he honored God's position. But we also told that he ran into a crisis in life, his brother Cain slew it. That says that you can be a worshiper of the true God and still have pain on earth." [01:06:50]
"Faith worshiper was communicating with God even when he was no longer living on earth. Oh, that's some good news. Do you know what that means? When earth ends, it's not over. You've only just begun. Not only that, but God heard his voice and responded to Abel from eternity to a situation in history." [01:43:56]
"His brother Cain was not like that. His brother Cain gave God the leftovers. His brother Cain did not recognize God. In fact, Cain is viewed as evil in the Bible, even though he played the religious game of going to church. He went through the worship actions without a worshiping heart and as a result, he lived a wandering life." [02:38:08]
"If you want meaning in your existence, then you're going to have to worship by faith. That means you don't worship by feeling. You don't have to feel like you want to praise Him in song. You don't have to feel like you want to give Him the glory to His name, because sometimes if the truth be told, you don't feel like it." [03:08:47]
"Isn't it true in our lives that we do a lot of things we don't feel like doing because we need to do it? You need to worship. Why? Because the scripture says God seeks worshipers. He's looking for folk who are going to give Him an attitude and in action the praise due His holy, great, awesome name." [03:27:36]
"The more you learn about Him, the more you recognize He's worthy to be worshiped. All of His attributes, His characters, what He's done in history, what He's doing right now. In fact, I bet you if you look at your own life and you see all that God has done, even though there's things you still want Him to do, you can find a reason to worship Him." [03:47:55]
"You shouldn't have to be forced to get up on Sunday morning and to go to corporate worship. Why? Because He deserves to be celebrated. At least brought you through a whole week, right? And you need Him in the week to come. Let's worship by faith. Don't make feelings the engine, keep them the caboose." [04:08:00]
"Let your decision to give Him praise start your day in many worship even as you do maxi worship on Sunday. But let each day be filled with giving Him the first, the best, and let's see how He walks with you in time and gives you special attention in eternity." [04:28:24]
"Worshiping by faith is an investment of your time, not merely a spending of it, and good investments always pay good dividends. So when you worship, you're not wasting your time, you're upgrading your communication, because in worship, what do we do? We sing, we pray, we praise, we listen to God." [04:49:52]
"His brother Cain was not like that. His brother Cain gave God the leftovers. His brother Cain did not recognize God. In fact, Cain is viewed as evil in the Bible, even though he played the religious game of going to church. He went through the worship actions without a worshiping heart and as a result, he lived a wandering life." [02:38:08]
"If you want meaning in your existence, then you're going to have to worship by faith. That means you don't worship by feeling. You don't have to feel like you want to praise Him in song. You don't have to feel like you want to give Him the glory to His name, because sometimes if the truth be told, you don't feel like it." [03:08:47]
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