Subject: would like to study 4:23-24. |
Bible Note: Hi Searcher, You have said that "We don't worship Him by our service, nor do we serve Him in our worship." I do not agree. In Romans 12:1 the word worship is not in my Greek copies, yet I think that "your spiritual service of worship" is an appropriate rendering. When we serve God we are worshiping Him. He is worthy of our time. He is worthy of all the thoughts we have of Him. He is worthy of our praise in song. When I sing in a choir or duet with my brother, I am worshiping in song and serving Him. When my father preached in a worship service, he was worshiping God in that activity of service. Here are the references for Roman 12:1 in my study bible: Romans 12:1, "I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God,/ to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship." Romans 6:12,13, "Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body that you should obey its lusts, and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God/ as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God." 1 Corinthians 6:20, "For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body." Verse 17, "But the one who joins himself to the Lord/ is one spirit with Him." Hebrews 13:15, "Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His/ name. And do not neglect doing good and sharing, for with such sacrifices God is pleased." 1 Peter 2:5, "you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." So I would say that God wants all of us, totally, all that we are and can be. I don't think that He only wants us prostrate before Him; I think that He wants us active and moving, learning, giving, sharing, and relating with others. So yes, bow before Him on bended knee or prostrate before Him, realizing how much greater He is than we are. Yet, go to Him in prayer and worship on your feet in your daily walk with Him for we are His friends when we do as He commanded us and love one another. When we have tasted the kindness of the Lord we can come to Him as to a living stone, 1 Peter 2:3,4 says. We also are living stones, so it is almost like we can talk to Him as an equal; and certainly we can talk to Him freely because we know that He went through the same things that we go through. The words rock and stone in Scriptures I have found to be difficult to interpret. So you may sense that even now I feel that I must think of Him as a living Stone, certainly as our spiritual Rock, even though He was "a living stone, rejected by men, but choice and precious in the sight of God". 1 Peter 2:4 May we be obedient to the word as we study these things. I am assured that he who believes in Him, that is, this Man Jesus Christ, will not be disappointed. From the heart, Ray |