Bowing Down

God has called you to be His children.

God has called you to be His servants.

God has called you to be His disciples.

God has called you to be His followers.

What characteristics do all these callings have in common?

Humility and Submission!

A child has to humbly submit to the authority of the parent.

A servant has to humbly submit to the authority of the master.

A disciple has to humbly submit to the authority of the teacher.

A follower has to humbly submit to the authority of the leader.

God has given us a beautiful discipline to help us as Christians to show our humble submission to Him.

Worship

The word translated worship in Hebrew means to bow down.

The word translated worship in Greek means to kiss the hand out of reverence.

Worship is to bow down and kiss the hand out of reverence.

The bowing down and kissing the hand out of reverence shows a humble submission. If my worship is truly bowing down and kissing the hand out of reverence, then I have really worshiped.

So how do I really worship God?

We really worship God by bringing the first and best to God.

Deuteronomy 26:10

And now I bring the first fruits of the soil that you, Lord, have given me. Place the basket before the Lord your God and bow down before Him.

God doesn’t want leftovers. He wants the best and He wants it off the top, not the bottom.

We really worship God by leading our family to honor God.

Psalm 22:27

All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations will bow down before Him.

I cannot make my family worship and honor God. I can set an example of worship and create an atmosphere for worship in my family.

We really worship God by praising His name.

Psalm 138:2

I will bow down toward your holy temple and will praise Your name for Your unfailing love and Your faithfulness, for You have so exalted Your solemn decree that it surpasses Your fame.

I praise God’s name. That means I praise God for who He is, not just for what He has done for me.

We really worship God by acting justly, by loving mercy, and by walking humbly.

Micah 6:6-8

With what shall I come before the Lord and bow down before the exalted God? Shall I come before Him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands rivers of oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

I act with justice and honesty in my dealings with others. That is true worship.

I show mercy to others, because God shows me mercy. That is true worship.

I walk humbly before others and with God. That is true worship.

We really worship God by acknowledging God as who He is - God.

Romans 14:11

It is written: “As surely as I live“, says the Lord, “every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.”

Referring to God as:

- The Man Upstairs

- The Big Guy

- The Good Lord Up Above

- The One Who Snatches My Butt Out of Trouble

- The Religious Santa Claus

- The Provider of All My Desires and Wishes

- The One I Blame When I Don’t Get What I Want

That Is Not Acknowledging God!
Because that is NOT who He is.

When we acknowledge God, we recognize Him for who He is:

- Lord

- Savior

- Father

- Creator

- The Only Ruler of All Creation

Why do I really worship God?

I really worship God because of His awesome power.

2 Kings 17:36

But the Lord, who brought you up out of Egypt with mighty power and outstretched arm, is the one you must worship. To Him you shall bow down and to Him offer sacrifices.

I really worship God because of His great unconditional love.

Psalm 5:7

But I, by Your great love, can come into Your house; in reverence I bow down toward Your holy temple.

I really worship God because He is my Creator.

Psalm 95:6

Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.

I really worship God because He cares about me.

Exodus 4:31

And they believed. And when they heard that the Lord was concerned about them and had seen their misery, they bowed down and worshiped.

I really worship God because He saved me.

Exodus 12:27

Then tell them, “It is the Passover sacrifice to the Lord, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when He struck down the Egyptians.” Then the people bowed down and worshiped.

God emphasizes that we are to worship, bow down and kiss the hand out of reverence. He tells us to do that only to Him.

Exodus 23:24

Do not bow down before their gods or worship them
or follow their practices. You must demolish them and break their sacred stones to pieces.

Matthew 4:10

Jesus said to him, “Away from me Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.’”

We are not to bow down and kiss the hand out of reverence to anyone but God.

An awesome picture of not bowing down and kissing the hand out of reverence is found in the lives of three Jewish young men. These three young men, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah are told along with thousands of other officials of the Babylonian Empire to bow down and worship a ninety foot tall gold statue that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

Their answer to the king is found in Daniel 3:16-18, “Your Majesty, we will not try to defend ourselves. If the God whom we serve is able to save us from the blazing furnace and from your power, then He will. But even He doesn’t, Your Majesty may be sure that we will not worship your god, and we will not bow down to the gold statue that you have set up.”

They said, “NOT GOING TO BOW!”

If we are children of God, servants of God, disciples of God and followers of God, then we are to humbly submit ourselves to God. We are to worship, bow down and kiss the hand out of reverence. We are to do that to God and no one else.

If we really want God to Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls, then we will humbly submit ourselves under God’s authority. We will do that by worshiping and serving God, and God only.

Humbly Submitting to God Raising the Roof and Removing the Walls

Joe