Nehemiah 8:5-6 Amplified Bible
5 Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was standing above them; and when he opened it, all the people stood up. 6 Then Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God. And all the people answered, “Amen, Amen!” while lifting up their hands; and they knelt down and worshiped the Lord with their faces toward the ground.
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son: and to the Holy Ghost; As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen, Amen.
“Will you stand with me?” is a question I asked my congregation each week.
They would rise, open their hymnals to the hymn and the music begins to play.
Our few voices joined together as one voice and one heart to worship our God.
I was a worship leader for several years, and as few or as many as we were, I was always amazed every week at how our God would meet us right where we are at.
Whatever was going on, we might be dealing with frustrating circumstances or excruciating disappointments, or high joy, but God met us in the middle of it all.
When we enter His presence with Word and song, and prayer and through the lifting up of our hands, and our hears two things happen: love and adoration for God stirs in our hearts, and He inhabits our praise, He inhabits our worship.
With platform ministry, however, comes the risk of personal ambitions vying for central focus – the value of “our worship” is more our own entertainment.
We will plan the very best worship based on our own need to hear some much Words of healing our wounds and uplifting us up after a rather long hard week.
Congregations can set those on the stage on a pedestal and forget that worship leaders are just like them bringing their own weeks trials and internal battles.
Bringing ourselves and our seasons into it – we can lose sight of true worship.
It is all about exalting God the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
The English word for worship comes from the Old English word “worthship.”
This word describes our actions and attitudes that honor God’s worthiness.
God is absolutely worthy of every single ounce of our praise and adoration.
True worship is God-centered, God-prioritized and not human-centered.
Our exclusive focus needs to be on who God is and his attributes.
Some of those attributes are faithfulness, omnipresent, eternal, unchangeable, compassionate, merciful, unconventional loving and patient.
We worship him when we know and confess that God is the only Lord in our life.
When we engage in God-centered worship through singing songs that remind us of who God is, we become equipped to face our difficulties with robust faith.
God-centered worship helps us grow and mature in our spiritual walk because it prioritizes God, it centers us on God, our hearts upon what is true about God.
This is important because the cares and complexities of life can easily choke out what we know to be true about God because all our cares loom large in our path.
The Book of Nehemiah
Nehemiah 8:1-8 English Standard Version
Ezra Reads the Law
8 And all the people gathered as one man into the square before the Water Gate. And they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses that the Lord had commanded Israel. 2 So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly, both men and women and all who could understand what they heard, on the first day of the seventh month. 3 And he read from it facing the square before the Water Gate from early morning until midday, in the presence of the men and the women and those who could understand. And the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law. 4 And Ezra the scribe stood on a wooden platform that they had made for the purpose. And beside him stood Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah on his right hand, and Pedaiah, Mishael, Malchijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam on his left hand. 5 And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was above all the people, and as he opened it all the people stood. 6 And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and all the people answered, “Amen, Amen,” lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground. 7 Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, the Levites,[a] helped the people to understand the Law, while the people remained in their places. 8 They read from the book, from the Law of God, clearly,[b] and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading.
The book of Nehemiah chronicles rebuilding of Jerusalem’s walls, the worship of God, the return of the Word of God and the exiled people’s hearts to the Lord.
Ezra the scribe stood before the people on a wooden platform and opened the Book of the Law, read it before them for the first time since who knows when.
Revival began with a renewed desire for God’s Word and a serious effort to understand it – and the people responded with lifted hands and bowed heads.
God longs for us to express our deep love to him with regular times of worship.
God longs for us to experience and relate and connect to His very deepest love.
Two very key principles help direct our worship.
John 4:23 tells us that “true worshipers will worship God in spirit and in truth.”
God’s main concern is with our hearts.
True worship comes from within a heart that max agrees with all that God is and a heart which instinctively chooses to live in maximum obedience to Him.
Our heart reflects godly character traits, reveals a deep inner devotion to Him.
We can worship God when we praise Him.
God provides different expressions of how to praise him throughout the ancient Words of both the Old and New Testaments.
It can be lifting of hands, shouting and singing, praying and confession of sin.
When Ezra and Nehemiah realized how the people had neglected God’s Word, they led the entire community in Word and in a passionate prayer of confession.
Prayer is another important aspect of worship.
We can pray publicly, privately, personally, or intercede for others.
Worship also includes the public reading of God’s word and preaching its truth.
Practical Reading, Practical Study, Practical Explanation, Practical Application of God’s Word, disciplining ourselves to live out our lives, is an act of worship.
One of the most beautiful aspects of a spiritually renewed heart of worship is the bringing about the “God” community it creates within a body of believers.
When we gather together in community, for a service, a time of bible study and prayer, we all come from different journeys and levels of personal difficulties.
These can distract us and serve to pull us away from intimacy with God.
One of the ways we can combat this is through worshiping together.
There is indescribable, miraculous power when we collectively lift our voices in God’s Words and God’s songs that remind us of who God is and what he can do.
Intersecting Faith and Life
Nehemiah 8:9-11Amplified Bible
“This Day Is Holy”
9 Then Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, “This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep.” For all the people were weeping when they heard the words of the Law. 10 Then Ezra said to them, “Go [your way], eat the rich festival food, drink the sweet drink, and send portions to him for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be worried, for the joy of the Lord is your strength and your stronghold.” 11 So the Levites quieted all the people, saying, “Be still, for the day is holy; do not be worried.”
Challenges of every complexity can and do fill our lives, chip away at our faith.
Often, we drift away from God through times of doubt, fear, disappointments.
But if we will all desire the challenge to step forward for God, refocus on God’s Word and prioritize and desire to know him better, we renew a heart of worship.
Whatever you find yourself facing today, pause and acknowledge God.
Bend the knee, bow your spirit, lift your hands and your voices to show 100% you fully trust in him and bow your head to prostrate and humble your heart.
He longs to connect with you right exactly where you are. Come to him today.
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
God of truth, sometimes I not sure if I’m actually hearing your voice, or if it’s just my own thoughts or even another spirit. Sharpen my spiritual hearing, Lord, so I can recognize your words when you are speaking to me. Help me know it’s really you, with no doubt or second-guessing. When I’m asking for your guidance in important decisions, give me your peace that surpasses understanding with your answer. Help me remember that your words to me will never go against your written word in the Bible. Give me a clear mind and push out all my confusion. Alleluia, Amen.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son: and to the Holy Ghost; As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen, Amen.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 