Worship Warnings

Sometimes I think it would be wise to put the caution sign that you see on the screen in all of our church publications to put it at the front of the door of the church. So it would be the first thing you see as you come in to prominently display it in our bulletin. So the first thing you see when you open it would be this warning church attendance may be hazardous. Now please don't misunderstand me. I believe in church attendance obviously I would believe in church attendance. God God values church attendance. It's very important that we gather together with God's people to fellowship and to worship and to be a part of of his body of Christ serving him in this way. So it's very important. It's not unimportant at all. But God is more concerned about why we come and how we come than the fact that we come. In fact I believe that with the emphasis just on the fact of church attendance we have created what amounts to a popular religion especially in America and that popular religion pop religion goes something like this. We go to church because that's expected of Christians. It's our custom. It's our habit. It's expected. But we give little thought to how we should come. What kind of part and mind preparation we should come with. We give little thought to why we are here and what God expects of us and thus much of our worship is shallow, hollow, even hypocritical. God is very concerned about that. And Solomon deals with that very thing in the fifth chapter of Ecclesiastes. The verses we'll look at today, chapter five, verses one through seven. I remind you that they come in a section of the book that we've been looking at lately chapters three through five which deal with various hard realities of life, difficulties and hardships of life that may seem to cause us to question whether or not Solomon's premise in this section that God has a plan for all things, all things are beautiful in his time. It may cause us to question that and all these hard realities of life may cause us to wonder is that really true? This one probably would not show up on your radar screen. This one probably would not make your top ten list of hardships or hard realities of life that would cause you to question God's sovereignty or providential plan in life. And that is empty worship. But I can assure you this morning that in God's eyes there is nothing more meaningless or empty, which is Solomon's point with all of this, nothing more empty or meaningless in life than the kind of worship we often offer him. There's nothing more meaningless in life than this. This is right at the top of his list. And so what Solomon does in these verses is to stab at the heart of popular religion and show us what God expects of us as worshipers. Not what he wants about the order of service, not what style of worship he approves of. Those are not the issues with God. They're at least not they're not found in his word. What God is driving at is the heart and mind of the worshipper. These these words remind me so much of what Jesus said in John chapter four when he was speaking to the woman at the well. He said, yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the father in spirit, in the spirit and in truth. Now here's the the next statement really grabs me, shocks me. For they are the kind of worshippers the father seeks. God is spirit and his worshipers must worship in the spirit and in truth. But look at that phrase. God is actually seeking worship. He is seeking a particular kind of worshiper. God actually is looking expecting something of us this morning. He is eagerly looking at our hearts and lives as we come to church, as we make our way to our pew, as we begin our worship. God is anxiously looking for something from us. He is looking for a particular kind of worshipper. What is it? What is it that he is looking for? That is where Solomon fills into blanks. Solomon gives us worship warnings that are intended to help us see exactly what God expects of us. When we worship God, he expects three heart attitudes. This is what Jesus says. God is looking for. God is eagerly seeking for when we worship him. These three heart attitudes. Solomon fills in the blanks here. The first heart attitude that God is looking for is this. Prepare your life for worship. Look at it as he begins chapter 5, verse 1. Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. The house of God in Old Testament times, literally a house where God manifested his presence, the temple in Solomon's day. Previous to that, the tabernacle. While the church is not God's temple, he does not uniquely manifest his presence here in a visible way like you did in Old Testament times, we typically speak of the church as the house of God. At least it is the building where we gather together to worship. So if I could have the liberty to transfer these thoughts to our setting, what we are talking about here is how we enter the church building, how we come to a worship service. And notice again, Solomon says, guard your steps when you go to the house of God. The word guard literally means to exercise great care. It's the personal discipline of making sure that your walk is within proper bounds of obedience to God and yieldedness to him. And it is restraining any tendency to kick over the traces and go outside those boundaries of obedience to God's word and yieldedness to him. That's what guard means. But notice he says guard your steps. Now he's not talking about what's your step because the sidewalk may be a little slick. You might trip out there. It's not what he's talking about. When Solomon uses the word steps, he's literally talking about our walk of life, the direction we are heading, what we're doing, what we're thinking, what we're saying, the attitudes that we have toward life, toward God, toward others. In short, in one word, it is our lifestyle, our lifestyle that God is talking about. So here's what he's saying. Literally exercise great care in regard to your lifestyle, exercise personal discipline about the way you're living, keep it within proper bounds of obedience and yieldedness and resist any temptation to go outside that as you come to the house of God. What he's saying basically is take a look at all this before you get here, before you get to my house, before you enter a worship service, is your life in the proper boundaries? Is it within biblical obedience to God and yieldedness to him? Do that before you get here, he says, come prepared with your life examine your heart, mind already right with God so that you will be totally in readiness to worship him and to receive from him. Church is not just a mechanical duty that we go through, check it off our list, get up, get in the car, get there as quick as we can, find our place to sit, get the show on the road, get out of here to the restaurant. It's not that kind of thing. Church is not just a duty that we perform. Church attendance coming into the presence of God to worship him is something that we must prepare ourselves for before we ever get here, before we ever come to this place. I think we've got it backwards. I often have it backwards. And that is that we come totally unprepared, heaven given no thought or heart preparation to being in God's presence and we expect the service to do that for us. We expect the music to prepare our hearts. We say for the sermon and we expect God's word through the preached word of God to then change us. And I'm not sliding that at all. No one in this room believes anymore in the power of God's word and especially what Paul calls the foolishness of preaching, the word of God to change hearts. I believe in the power of God's word that it is a living book that it is stepping into his presence that God breathed out this word through men of God who were prepared and guarded by the Holy Spirit to write exactly what God wanted. And so it's a living powerful book that can penetrate our hearts and divide between our soul and spirit and discern the very intense of our hearts and changes in mold us. No one believes more in the power of that than I do. But it will do much more of that very thing if our hearts are already tilled and prepared as good soil to receive it when we come. If we expect to come with all the clutter of life and sin and the busyness and frustration and lack of concentration in our hearts and then expect something to happen during the service that will straighten us out, not near as much will happen for the glory of God as if we came already prepared to receive his word. Come prepared for worship. I was looking back over my notes last night and in my typical Saturday evening review and I came across to happen to think about a couple of verses PowerPoint was already done so they're not on the screen. But I happen to think of a couple of verses that say this so directly in James chapter one. James says this just listen, James 121 therefore get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you which can save you. You notice the order there? Deal with sin, moral filth, evil that's all around us, deal with that first and then you are ready to receive humbly the word of God. Peter says much the same thing in his first epistle chapter two when he says therefore rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy and slander of every kind. Deal with that first then he says like newborn babes crave pure spiritual milk. Desire the milk of the word is what he's getting across so that by it you may grow up in your salvation. You see we're not really ready to receive God's word unless our hearts are cleared up first unless we've cleared them out of sin and distractions. Remember Jesus told the parable the soler in the seed and the soils and he talked about the seed falling on soil that is thorny. Remember that and he talked about the fact that the thorns are the worries and cares of life and those things weed out they don't give the word of God opportunity to take root and so when we come with unprepared hearts we can't expect God's word to take root. I love what Chuck Swindall said about this passage in his excellent book Living on the Ragged Edge. He said when when you are churning like an angry ocean God's truth doesn't drop anchor. What a beautiful picture and it's so true. When we come with everything churning inside with no focus with no heart and mind preparation for worship then God's truth doesn't drop anchor. In Jesus analogy the seed doesn't find prepared soil and take root and so we've got to begin our worship before we ever get here. We have to prepare our life for worship. It's Solomon's not done. There's another worship warning. If we would worship God in the way he's looking for the way he expects. Yes we've got to prepare our life for worship but secondly we need to come to listen to God speak. Come to listen to God speak. I hope that's the reason why you come. I'm reminded of a story I read once about Henry Ward Beacher. Henry Ward Beacher was a very eloquent preacher in New York City between 1847 and 1887 he pastored the first congregational church of New York City. He was a very well-known eloquent speaker drew huge crowds. It was very liberal in his theology but he was a very well-known speaker in his day. One day he was unable to be there and his brother Thomas K. Beacher filled the pulpit for him and when Thomas K. Beacher was was introduced as the speaker people started getting up and leaving. As Beacher got to the pulpit and people were filing out he said everyone who is here to worship God may stay. Everyone who is here to worship Henry Ward Beacher can leave and he was right. We don't come to worship anyone or anything not a worship style not music not a certain person up here any pastor we don't come for that reason we come to hear God speak and he speaks through his word but what does it mean to come ready to listen to God speak that involves three elements and Solomon addresses them very clearly first of all it involves expectancy expectancy look at it in verse one guard your steps when you go to the house of God and here it is go near to listen I'm going to stop right there go near or draw near to listen he is actually saying get up close to here now those of you are sitting in the back that's fine he's not talking about where you sit in the auditorium it's it's more of a heart expectancy is what he's talking about he's talking about come prepared to get close to God and listen to him pull up your chair right beside his wherever you're seated let the holy spirits sit down right beside you let him come to your row to your aisle sit right there with you draw near to him and listen it's an anxious expectancy and alertness it's like you're sitting on the edge of your seat don't come to church doiled doll and insensitive and slumped in your seat just waiting for the thing to get over so I can get to lunch be alert God is giving you an opportunity to worship him think of that God is giving you an opportunity to come into his presence kind of a prelude kind of the lobby to heaven when we will all gather with saints of all ages in his very presence and worship him passionately and God's giving us a little bit of an opportunity to have a foretaste of that when we gather together to worship like this God's also giving us an opportunity to hear from him to hear his word he has something to tell you this is uniquely God's book and he has something to tell you to the degree that the preacher and the pulpit is faithful to the word of God God is speaking his word to you so focus upon the word of God be alert come with a sense of expectancy but then secondly Solomon is going to tell us there's another element needed to listen to God speak and that is concentration concentration notice how he says it go near to listen or draw draw close to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools who do not know what they are doing or do not know that they do wrong so Solomon is saying basically this make sure that when you come to church you concentrate on the things of God make sure that you don't bring a sacrifice in an Old Testament times worship was to bring a sacrifice to the temple make sure that you don't bring a sacrifice like a fool now sacrifice of a fool who doesn't know that they're doing wrong is just kind of bringing an animal throw it on the altar there get the priest to get his thing done get that next slit and the blood drained and get it get it on the altar let's get this thing over with God likes a little smoke and blood here it is it's not recognizing the significance of the offering it's not understanding why am I doing this what does it signify what does it mean what does it what does it require of a worshipper to bring something to God and to concentrate on what I'm doing what does it mean to enter into the full significance of every song that I sing of every word that I hear of every prayer that is prayed what does it mean to really concentrate on what I'm doing that's what Solomon's talking about and it's no different than that Old Testament worshipper just throw in an animal in there and say let's get this done no different than if we come to church and just say come on let's get the show on the road and get out of here no different so Solomon's saying concentrate on what you're doing no daydreaming no mental doodling no thinking about yesterday or today or tomorrow or the challenges of what's going on in your life or the game yesterday or this afternoon or the big decision you're facing or the roast that's in the oven no mental doodling thinking about those things whatever it takes for you focus concentrate on what's happening for some of you that may mean you need to take notes that's the reason we give you the sermon outline in the bulletin and leave a few spaces to keep you focused and awake oh what's the next word you know that's the reason we do that not everybody needs that not everybody likes to take notes and you don't need that for focus and maybe you'd like to take notes even if you don't need that for focus God bless you that's great but whatever it takes for you concentrate on what you're doing I've actually seen folks in church services pull out a satchel or a note pad or whatever and start working on stuff I can tell it's not the church outline not the sermon outline it's stuff they're actually working on oh I got a little time I can get ahead on stuff that I got to do this week how God must despise our worship sometimes we have other challenges today iPads and maybe that's a wonderful tool and you've got your Bible on your iPad that's great or your smartphone that's wonderful but you decide you know I'm going to check the preacher out do a little fact check here was Henry Ward Beacher really the the pastor from 1847 to 1887 was he was it really in New York was it in Brooklyn at first congregational church was he right about that and once you check that something else pops up and you know I'm going to check this I want to look at this and you're gone you're gone or the other problem we have today is our phones and texting oh you may have your phone on silent I hope you do but you can still get somebody out of text let them know what's going on tweet something if you do that today I hear so many people talking about during a service or a session or something they were in tweeting about it getting word out of it I don't know how you can do that and concentrate on what you're hearing from the word of God and by the way I'll tell you right now this is something else that that we always struggle with and that is cell phones please turn them off before you come in and I said that in the first service five minutes later since cell phone went off and bear support person to this so go ahead and turn yourself right now check it make sure so you won't get embarrassed I've done it you've done it we've all done it from time to time but a little thinking ahead will prepare us to focus and to be able to concentrate concentration on what is happening here as I worship as I sing as I hear the word of God rather than taking off on my own my own mental direction the third thing Solomon says the third element of coming to listen to God speak is quietness not real sure that's a word but if it isn't I just made one quietness look what he says in verse two do not be quick with your mouth do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God God is in heaven and you are on earth so let your words be few we just sang the song that philips crag and dean composed about that very verse it goes on to give a proverb in verse three that addresses this issue a dream comes when there are many cares and many words mark the speech of a fool the idea is this it's a comparative proverb it's a proverb which says basically if you're worried about a lot of stuff at work you're going to have a tendency to dream about stuff at night sometimes dreams come for other reasons but they come for this reason surely that you're thinking about a lot of stuff during the day and you're worried about it and go to bed with it on your mind and so you dream about it just like a lot of cares lead to dreams a lot of words lead to foolishness that's the comparison many words mark the speech of a fool quietness now does that mean we should never say anything we should walk in like monks in a monastery chanting something is with no no does it mean that we should never speak to each other or we should never talk no no doesn't mean that but could I suggest some things that I think this means when he talks about letting your words be few because you recognize God is in heaven he's sovereign and remember who he is and remember where we are and who we are it is a reverence for God and the fact that we are here to look to him I've said it many many many times Sunday morning church is for the purpose of worship this is not the place to get the no folks it's great to fellowship and to greet one another and we have a part in the service where we we do that it's great to fellowship before and after but we're not coming to a ballgame there is some point at which we need to quiet our hearts before God and need to focus on what we hear from him I think it also means that there should be no pretense in prayer I know what happens when I preach on these things it happens to me I begin to be really careful about my next prayer what people are going to think about what I'm praying maybe that's good our prayers should be genuine not just the rapid clatter of religious phrases that we've heard and we become enamored with and we repeat without any thought or any feeling any real heart behind them our prayers need to be heartfelt talks with God even publicly as we lead the congregation into the presence of God we need to pray I appreciate so much Jim's prayer this morning that came from his heart didn't came from his heart he was just talking to the Lord about the needs of the church the needs of folks here that was from his heart that's the way we ought to pray I think it may include mindless chatter as we gather again please don't misunderstand me I'm not against greeting one another and patting each other on the back and hugging each other and having a good talk with each other before the service but again there comes a point where okay it's time for the service to start let's get our focus right let's get our hearts quiet before God and even as we worship quietness there's so much banter that goes on even in the middle of a worship service some of you think that a preacher doesn't really notice what goes on in a service you'd be surprised what you can see from this vantage point I see sometimes the banter that goes on between folks the mindless talk the turning to talk to your neighbor or your spouse the correcting of the preacher when he says something I see that or the letting somebody else know your great Bible knowledge when something is said about a passage of scripture so you just got to tell somebody right now wait till you get home to correct me okay this is a time to be quiet and listen to God speak how God must be disturbed with our worship sometimes when we are so distracted come to listen to God speak so I'm not done I may wish he were but he's not because now it's really going to get tough prepare your life for worship get ready before you come and then when you come be quiet before God listen to him speak but here's the third worship warning take your promises to God seriously and notice I did not say the promises of God we should take those seriously yes that's not what Solomon's talking about he's talking about your promises to God take those seriously now here's how Solomon explains that here's what Solomon says about that he says four things about taking your promises to God seriously first of all verse four when you make a vow to God do not delay to fulfill it now here's the way I would summarize what Solomon's saying commitments are not wrong but take them seriously notice Solomon does not say if you make a vow to God he says when you make a vow to God commitments promises vows to God are expected they're good they're life changing they're one of the ways we respond to what God's done in our hearts commitments are not but we better take them seriously when we make them you see we live in a day and we all struggle with this we live in a day where we easily make promises that sometimes we have no intention of fulfilling in the Old Testament a vow was made when someone basically was asking God to work in a particular situation answer a prayer or work out a particular situation in their lives and a vow would be God if you answer this prayer if you work in this way I vow to give you this to do this for you that was a vow it was often accompanied by a sacrifice there was one particular sacrifice in the temple that was dedicated for these kinds of vows was called the peace offering the fellowship offering there were several reasons why it might be given but one of the reasons was for a vow and when you would make a vow then you would go to the temple and offer a sacrifice to show that you were serious about this vow but it could be just in the form of some action that you promised God for instance Jacob when he was leaving Canaan land because he saw he tricked his brother he saw out of the birthright or remember that and he's running for his life because he saw the killing and so he's going back to where his folks came from and see if he can connect with his family there and right before he gets out of Canaan his last stop is Bethel and he goes to sleep at night laying his head on a rock that was just as hard as his head and he fell asleep there and God spoke to him in a dream and he woke up the next morning you remember what he did he made an altar to God and worshiped him there and he said this he made a vow to God Genesis 28 says made a vow to God if you will protect me and bring me back to my father's house safely then I will and he promised God three things I will worship you I will make you God of my life I'll always honor you I will make this place a place of worship and I will give you a tenth of all I earn you made those three promises to God I had a little bit of trouble keeping those when he came back and so God had to remind him of those after 20 years away but God dealt with him about that Hannah made a vow you remember the the woman Hannah in 1 Samuel 1 she was barren and she wanted a child so badly and she prayed in the tabernacle one day God if you will give me a child I will give him back to you and a razor will not touch his head it will be a Nazarene I've been to Nazarene right vowed all of his life and God answered her prayer giving her Samuel and she fulfilled her vow and gave him back to God you know there are all kinds of examples of this Jeff the made a rash vow in the Old Testament in judges chapter 11 a Jonah made a vow to God that he would be a prophet and he broke that vow God dealt with him about that commitments are not wrong but we'd better take them seriously when we make it again we live in a day of shallow promises and superficial commitments where a promise is basically a hope with a lot of contingencies cross fingers behind our back whether it's a promise to pay a debt whether it's a promise to fulfill our wedding vows whether it's a promise that we made to God yes God I will read your word faithfully God I promise to you that I will maintain moral purity God I promise to you that I will make my family a top priority God I promise to you that I will raise my children in the ways of the Lord we had a beautiful dedication service last Sunday in this very service we had two families up here that I believe meant that with all their hearts don't take those promises lightly those kinds of promises lightly when you make a promise in regard to your family to train them in the ways of the Lord you better keep that promise and I'll tell you something folks when you drop your kids off on Sunday night and Wednesday night and then take off the Walmart you're breaking that promise because you're not modeling for them what discipleship is all about you're undoing everything you're saying to them with your actions take seriously your vows to God your promises to God you promise to raise that children in the ways of the Lord you promise to have them in church you promise to set a good example and model them you better keep that promise take it seriously you promise to serve God take it seriously nothing wrong with commitments they're great but we better take them seriously especially in a day in which we live where we make promises so easily with no intent to keep them second thing Solomon says about taking your promises to God seriously is this do not underestimate God's view of your promises I look again at verse four middle of verse he has no pleasure in fools fulfill your vow it is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it you see God says I take your vows very seriously you may not but I do when you make a promise to God I take that very seriously God says in fact God considers us a fool to make a promise and not keep it or to make a rash promise without thinking about what we're doing and taking it seriously because God takes it very seriously and so time and time again God warns us about making rash vows without thinking about what we're doing because he expects us to keep them all the way back at the beginning of the nation of Israel when Moses is about ready to bring them to the brink of the promised land he told them this very thing actually in stronger words than Solomon does here look at these verses in Deuteronomy 23 if you make a vow to the Lord Moses told the people of Israel if you make a vow to the Lord your God do not be slow to pay it for the Lord your God will certainly demand it of you and you will be guilty of sin but if you refrain from making a vow you will not be guilty whatever your lips utter you must be sure to do because you made your vow freely to the Lord your God with your own mouth you see how clearly Moses makes it God doesn't require you to make any promises vows or commitments you don't require you to do that but if you make a commitment keep it because he takes it seriously and he considers that a sin a violation of his will if you do not keep the value made to him you uttered it freely with your own mouth God didn't require it but he requires you keep it Solomon says the same in Proverbs 20 it's a trap to dedicate something rashly and only later to consider one's vows that's a trap that's dangerous you say what are you thinking John I failed I made a bunch of promises to God and I failed them all what do I do now or here's the good news friend God's grace and mercy welcomes you back to renew and fulfill those vows from this point on you can keep them you can't undo the past you can't unscramble the egg but from this point on you can keep those vows now I have Bible for that Jonah I mentioned earlier was a prophet who'd made a vow Jonah was a prophet who had vowed to God made a prophetic vow accompanied no doubt by a sacrifice a piece fell a fellowship offering in the temple and he didn't keep that vow did he God told him okay here's your next assignment go to Nineveh and Jonah said no no no no I'm going to go the other direction I'm not going to do what you told me to do he broke his prophetic vow God took him through some rough circumstances didn't he to remind him of the vow he'd made and as he is in the belly of the fish believing that God is delivering him he realizes I need to renew that vow I've broken my vow and this is what he prays in 2 verse 9 but I with shouts of grateful praise will sacrifice to you what he's saying is I'm going to go back to the temple and I will offer another fellowship offering another peace offering which indicates my vow to you notice what he says what I have vowed I will make good I will say in other words I will declare your message lord no matter where it is no matter where you tell me to go I will be the faithful prophet of your message salvation comes from the Lord no doubt and he was speaking of his own deliverance physically but also of the salvation message he had he had committed himself to proclaim for God and he had broken that vow but God gave him another opportunity and God will give you another opportunity too and his grace and mercy he will give you another opportunity to keep those vows if you need to renew them like Jonah did please my friend do not underestimate God's view of your promises third thing Solomon says about taking your promises to God seriously do not sin with your words verse 6 he says do not let your mouth lead you into sin and do not protest to the temple messenger my vow was a mistake but Solomon is saying here is you make a rash vow you make a promise to God to get you out of a fix and you'll do this or this or this or this or you just made some rash commitment to him without really thinking about what you were doing without any real intent to fulfill it and then all of a sudden you start trying to backpedal and you tell the temple messenger which according to Malachi 27 is the priest in the temple who's receiving your sacrifice you tell that priest oh that was a mistake sorry I really didn't mean that I would you understand I was under a lot of stress when I made that promise to God and this sacrifice is really pretty expensive it's costly I just can't do this now I think God will understand now I'm here to tell you God does not accept that and he tells us right here if you made a promise to him he expects you to keep it do not sin with your words in trying to weasel out of it somehow do not sin with your words and then forthly do not anger God the folks this is serious do not anger God you see what he says there in the middle of verse 6 why should God be angry at what you say and destroy the work of your hands you don't want to anger God I know we love to think of God as a God of love and a God of mercy and grace and he is but never forget God's attributes are perfectly infinitely balanced he is not only a God of grace and mercy he's a God of righteousness and justice and holiness and when we treat him flippantly so as to make a promise to him that we don't intend to keep where we try to weasel out of that anger's God you don't want to anger God ask the children of Israel and the wilderness you don't want to anger God ask Ananias and Sapphira when they made a vow to God to give a certain part of their income from a sale they had made to God and then backed off of it and only gave a part you don't want to anger God you don't want to anger God and God may in turn frustrate everything you do notice what he says why should God be angry at you at what you say and destroy the work of your hands where your attempts whatever area they may be in are unsuccessful until you deal with your sin honestly until you come clean with God and fulfill the promises you've made to him God can withdraw his blessing on your life and frustrate everything you try to do until you get back right with him where you see what I mean church attendance can be dangerous it can be hazardous to your health spiritual health to get the idea that God takes our worship very seriously and that what he's expecting when we come to church is lives that have already been prepared to worship him and an expectant concentrating quiet readiness to listen to him speak and commitments that are made from the heart with full meaning and keeping them God takes it seriously you want all this in a nutshell Solomon gives it to us in verse 7 here it is in a nutshell here's the conclusion much dreaming and many words are meaningless therefore fear God and the way Solomon uses that throughout the book indicates to me this is not some you know be afraid of what he'll do to you it's genuine fear of God Solomon is telling us the bottom line of worship is to fear God remember what that means it means to recognize who God is and respond accordingly so it means that when we come to church we recognize God you are holy I dare not come into your presence with uncomfests in in my life I got to get my heart right my life right with you before I come because you're holy that's how I should respond it means God I know you're sovereign you're in heaven you're ruling over all things you have a purpose in plan you have something you want to tell me today so I'm going to be a person of few words and I'm going to listen I'm going to listen God you're faithful you've never broken one of your promises you're faithful and so by your grace and your spirits power give me the strength to fulfill my vows to you my promises to you God help me not to take them lightly because you're faithful I want to be faithful God you're a God of truth and so I don't want to treat sin frivolously I want to be honest about sin in my life and right with you so that you can bless me and not frustrate the work of my hands because it will be unsuccessful fear God that's what it's all about that's what worship really is and if we come to God in that way then and only then are we ready to worship Him let's pray together Father deliver us from popular religion deliver us from coming to church because it's expected and it's our duty it's our custom it's our practice it's our habit it's our Sunday morning thing deliver us from that old God please help us to see that you want us to prepare our hearts till the soil of our hearts and minds and be ready to come into your presence before we ever get here to deal with sin before we ever get here help us to see old God that we are to come to listen to you speak and that when we make vows and promises to you we've got to take them seriously as seriously as you do God please help us please help us to worship you as you are looking for as you're expecting as you're longing for us help us right now to adjust our lives and hearts to renew the vows we've made to you in ways that will make us different from this day on we pray in Jesus name amen