Greetings in Christ,
“Rabbi, You are the Son of God; You are the King of Israel.” What a way to respond to Jesus. This was Nathanael responding to Jesus after He called him to become a disciple.
How do we respond to Jesus on a daily basis? Do we recognize Him as King of our lives? Do we rejoice with gladness Jesus is our Savior?
King David was probably the most controversial person the people had ever seen during his reign over Judah. He was not afraid to rejoice, dance, praise, sing, play musical instruments, act on impulse, and whatever crossed his mind when he felt he needed to praise the Lord. The least of all was what he felt others thought of him while he was before the Lord in worship.
David did not let the things of this earth, or people’s impressions stop him from engaging one on one with the Lord in worship. David was more prone to act crazier, so to speak, in public than in private. The more audience David had the more he rejoiced to the Lord, and people thought he was off his rocker.
David, as king, was to be staunch, poised, reserved, and most of all not to make a fool of himself in public. It was written down somewhere in a rule book for kings he had to follow while being king. I think this tradition follows suit with the British Kingdom today. There is a prim and proper way to act, and it must be followed or you will fall out of grace. People will not respect you for making yourself look like a fool in public.
King David was chastised for worshiping the Lord while bringing the ark of covenant into Jerusalem. Saul’s daughter, Michal, felt David crossed the line concerning the rules of behavior for a king. David’s response to her went something like this. It was before the Lord he rejoiced and danced not the people of Israel, and it did not matter who was watching or the impression he made on them. He was more concerned with what the Lord thought of him.
How many times do we hold back in our worship thinking we will be chastised for our actions? More so, are we concerned people will talk about us behind our back because we worshiped the Lord openly?
Paul writes to the Romans concerning who really owns us. “For not one of us lives for himself, and not one dies for himself; for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord; therefore whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s.” No one else can lay claim on us. We are not owned by anyone else. We only allow our thought process of what others think of us to control us which binds us to what they may be thinking or have said. We become bound to their perception of how we should act, and this limits us in our actions of how we worship the Lord. We should be more concerned of what the Lord thinks of us rather than what others think of us.
My friends, if we do not worship the Lord here on earth, what will we do when we get to heaven? Heaven is supposed to be a place of rejoicing and worshiping the Lord. Why can’t we have a little of heaven here on earth while we are here on earth? I do not think the Lord will care if we break out in worship before Him and give Him the praise He so deserves especially in public. I would rather think He would feel we are not ashamed of Him, and we are glad to be His children.
Give the Lord a shout, a hallelujah, a dance or two, bow before Him, or whatever you feel led to do in worship to the Lord. Do not let others stop you from rejoicing. Who knows it may become an epidemic and others may feel inclined to join in and really get blessed while worshiping the King.
“O taste and see that the Lord is good; how blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!” Psalms 34:8
“Many are the afflictions of the righteous; but the Lord delivers him out of them all.” Psalms 34:19
“Ascribe to the Lord the glory of His name; bring an offering, and come into His courts.” Psalms 96:8
Lord help us to worship You in the manner You so deserve. Let our praises raise the heavens, and our hearts melt with admiration for Your love for us. Amen
Blessings,
Mark Johnson
Psalm 34, 93, 96; 2 Samuel 6:12-23; Romans 14:7-12; John 1:43-51