He has written more than 25 books and numerous articles in English – which have been translated into many Indian and foreign languages. His messages are available on audio CDs and video DVDs.
praise the Lord this weekend I’ve felt I
should speak on the subject of true
worship and in the three weekends that
I’m going to speak on subsequently also
I want to make certain things clear
because it’s the truth that sets us free
that was a great help to me in my
younger days when I found so many
Christian churches using the same Bible
and preaching different truths all
claiming to have the truth the thing
that helped me with what Jesus said in
John 8:32 you shall know the truth and
the truth shall set you free and what
the Lord spoke to me from that verse is
that if you understand the truth
correctly on any subject it’ll make you
a little more free anything that brings
you into bondage cannot be the truth the
truth always makes us free from sin free
from fear free from anxiety free from
becoming servants of men free from every
human tradition free to live and to
serve God so the truth about worship is
very important to understand because
that’s what we’re going to do in all
eternity worship God we’re not going to
preach there we’re not going to pray but
we’re going to worship God and so Jesus
spoke about true worshipers he also
spoke about empty worship I want to show
you those two verses first first of all
in mark chapter 7 Mark’s Gospel chapter
7 he says in verse 6 and 7 Jesus said
these people honor me with their lips
but their heart is far from me
honoring God with our lips they you know
they sang and praise the Lord a lot in
the in the Old Testament times the Book
of Psalms indicates that but their heart
was not in it it was with words and
that’s very very true of a lot of Sunday
morning what is called praising
worship this people honor me with their
lips but their heart is far away from me
and in the next verse it says verse 7 in
vain do they worship me that means their
worship is empty the music is nice the
instruments play well the voices are
great but the worship is empty in spite
of all that they’re singing so that’s
what we don’t want is it possible that
the Lord will lay such a charge against
us I don’t want to hear that and in
contrast to that Jesus spoke in John
chapter 4 and verse 23 to the Samaritan
woman
he spoke about a day that an hour that
was coming John 4:23 an hour is coming
and now is when the true worshipers will
worship the father in spirit and in
truth for the father seeks such to be
his worshipers it hasn’t yet come notice
what he said it is coming means up until
that time right from the time of Adam
nobody could worship the father in
spirit man is body soul and spirit then
how were people worshiping in the Old
Testament embody clapping raising their
hands raising their voice that’s body in
soul that is with mind emotions feelings
great but there’s another part of man
spirit and they couldn’t worship in
spirit Jesus said but the are is now
coming when the true worshipers this is
worship and truth in the New Covenant
will worship in spirit and I’ve
discovered that most people don’t talk
anything about it that hour came on the
day of Pentecost but he also said it now
is now is meant the beginning of it is
already here because Jesus was here so
Jesus was there he was worshiping the
father in spirit and truth the first
human being ever to do it
and he paved the way open the way for
others from the day of Pentecost onward
so the Spirit of God
would come in and make us really worship
the father in spirit and in truth
there’s an Old Testament picture of this
in the tabernacle the tabernacle had
three parts you know tabernacle means
dwelling place man is the dwelling place
of God so that tabernacle was a picture
of man and the tabernacle had three
parts just like we are body soul and
spirit
it had an outer court that was visible
to everybody like the body and it had
two hidden parts called the under the
tent called a holy place most holy place
similar to our soul and spirit that are
hidden and between the holy place in the
most holy place in that Old Testament
Tabernacle was a thick veil indicating
that nobody could get into God’s
presence and God didn’t dwell in the
outer court he didn’t dwell in the holy
place he dwelled in the most holy place
nobody could go there when Jesus died
that veil was rent and the way into the
most holy was open the way into our
spirit was open so that the holy spirit
could come and dwell within this is the
significance of the rending of the veil
so that now we can worship God in the
spirit now this is not just a beautiful
picture it’s something that can change
our whole life if you can believe that
God desires the best for you there’s a
lovely verse in Jeremiah 29:11 which
says I know the plans I have for you God
says plans for your good and your
welfare it’s very important that all of
us recognize that every single thing God
is commanded in his word is for our good
the plans he has for us are for our very
best we can never make a better plan for
our lives than the one God Himself has
made and when he teaches us to worship
it’s for our good let me show you in
other words that Jesus spoke this time
to the devil in Matthew chapter 4 in
Matthew chapter 4 we read of Satan
coming to Jesus in Matthew 4 9 and
telling him in the temptation in the
wilderness he showed him all the
kingdoms of the world and their glory
all the things the world had to offer
today the devil offers many things to
believers think of that he showed them
to Jesus whatever was available in his
time today he shows us all the
entertainment world and money and
everything else at the glory of the
world in those days whatever was
available the devil showed all that to
Jesus and said I’ll give you all of this
if you will fall down and worship Me
Matthew 4 verse 9 all you got to do is
worship me and there we see what the
devil longed for from the time he was
created when he was created he wasn’t
created as the devil he was created we
read in his ego 28 as the highest cherub
the anointed cherub a head of the angels
leading the angels the millions of
cherubs and syrups and angels in the
worship of Almighty God he was the
leader he was beautiful wise leading
everyone in worship of God and into his
heart came a desire I want people to
worship me I don’t want everyone to
worship God and you read that in Isaiah
chapter 14 that’s the meaning of his
saying in Isaiah 14 I will be like the
Most High I want to be like God where
people admire me and worship me and as
soon as that thought came into his heart
for the first time in this universe sin
was born and immediately he was cast out
of God’s presence and the most beautiful
of God’s creation in a moment became the
ugliest of God’s creation in a moment
that highest angel became the devil what
was his crime wasn’t murder
it wasn’t adultery it wasn’t telling
lies it wasn’t the things that we
normally consider Grievous serious sins
it wasn’t even hypocrisy it was the
desire to be worshipped by others
the desire to be the center of
attraction the desire to draw people to
oneself instead of to God and to Christ
Christendom is full of it there are
preachers pastors who got that spirit of
the devil where they draw people to
themselves they attract people to
themselves instead of being pointers to
Christ whose take the glory to
themselves that belongs only to God that
was the origin of sin and it’s in all of
us it came to us through our parents it
came to us from Adam and Jesus came to
save us from that to make us worshipers
of God you see how important worship is
this was the issue on which sin in which
sin originated and so when Jesus came
the devil was making one last attempt to
get Jesus to worship him and do you
think the devil tried to get Jesus to
worship him he won’t try that with you
and me you got to be really conceited to
think that he won’t try that with you
but he doesn’t come with horns and
hooves he comes as an angel of light
and so when he get tries to get you to
worship him he’s not going to be
directly he’s going to be indirectly if
he can get your worship that’s fine if
he can indirectly get you to bow your
knee to him that’s fine the Bible says
that Satan is the god of this world I
don’t know whether you know this Satan
controls the business world Satan
controls the entertainment world Satan
controls the programs on television the
movies that are made in different places
ultimately the god of this world and a
lot of the books that are written
children’s books that are written like
Harry Potter and things like that and
many other things which you innocently
allow your children to read there’s a
God in this world who’s trying to
control the minds of people and he
starts with children
to get them ultimately to bow down to
him I’ll give you whatever you want do
you want entertainment I’ll give it to
you I want you to bow down to me that’s
what I’ve always wanted the devil says I
want people to worship me I don’t want
them to worship God this is the great
issue that’s been right there from the
beginning of time and if you understand
this you’ll be very very careful never
to give that worship that belongs to God
to the devil it’s a very important issue
it’s not just a question of coming and
singing praise to God here for one
enough hours or one hour and saying well
I worship God we haven’t worship is an
issue of the heart is worshiping in the
spirit not just with words and with our
mind and emotions in the spirit where I
give God his rightful place and if that
place how does the devil make us worship
Him by taking away God from the center
of our lives and making something else
could be television could be innocent
things like sport and music all these
are good things sport and music very
good but it can become a God in your
life where it becomes so important that
it crowds out God can you think of the
early days when you were born again
think back to the time when you were
first converted when you gave your life
to Christ just stop for a moment and
think how it was then how you were ready
to give up anything for him how we were
willing to give up certain things that
YouTube MIT took time you cut out
certain things in your daily routine so
that you’d have time to read the Word of
God what’s happened to that as time
which is spent studying the word mean
now you say you’re busy who made you so
busy the devil has succeeded in crowding
God slowly out of your life because
something else has become your God it
could be sport it could be watching
sport endlessly on television it could
be music but and
the devil says there’s nothing wrong
with that it’s Christian music or choir
practice wonderful but you don’t have
time to to walk with God now anymore you
don’t have time to read God’s Word to
get to know him but you did have once
you think your progress because you know
more of the scriptures because you’re
more active in so-called Church work but
you don’t realize you’ve become less of
a worshipper and that’s why your life is
up and down and up and down and up and
down when it should have been a slow
steady progress to greater
Christlikeness we need to understand the
reason we have stopped worshipping God
so I want to show you something of what
the scripture says about worship the
first time that worship is mentioned in
Scripture Genesis chapter 22 the first
time the word worship occurs in the
Bible is in Genesis 22 and it’s always
interesting to study the first time any
word occurs in scripture and here is a
story of Abraham
he’s about 125 years old now we don’t
know his exact age but around that age
and it says here on Genesis 22:1 that
God tested Abraham 50 years earlier he
had tested him by asking him to leave
his family leave his country and to go
out where God called him and he had
obeyed the test was will you put me
first in your life the worship God is to
make him central and everything in our
life you remember what Jesus said was
the first commandment thou shalt love
the Lord thy God with all my heart all
thy soul and all our mind if you think
of that as a circle there’s no part of
that circle that’s got to be given to
anybody else he’s got to be God all the
way and then if I love my wife it’s got
to be through God if I do my work it’s
got to be with God being in the center
of my life
he must be everything to me and then I
do everything on earth that’s that’s the
true worshipper
when everything god is central he’s
number one to put God number one does
not mean just reading the Bible for half
an hour in the morning no it means that
throughout the day my whole life is
governed by the fact that I am a child
of God and I live by divine principles
I’m never going to say anything that I
will not say if Jesus were standing
right next to me I’m never going to talk
to my wife in any way that I would
wouldn’t talk to her if Jesus was
standing right there or do I order your
husband or anyone I wouldn’t do anything
in the office that I wouldn’t do if
Jesus were sitting right next to me I
wouldn’t watch a television program that
if gee I couldn’t watch if Jesus was
sitting right next to me this is what it
means to have God in the center of our
life it’s not just a question of reading
the scripture for a few minutes and
easing my conscience saying I read my
Bible today that’s not the meaning of
putting God first it means God is
central in everything I do from morning
till night the Bible says whatever you
do whether you eat or drink do all for
the glory of God so God tested Abraham
and 50 years later he’s testing him
again because you and I know how easy it
is as I said earlier to drift from that
first love and devotion to Christ and
where other things take the place that
God should have in our life and that’s
why God constantly tests us and he
tested Abraham when he was 50 years old
with the same test
am I still first in your life once upon
I tested he once upon a time I tested
you in relation to your parents am I
going to be first in your life Abraham
or your relatives in order the Kali’s
are you willing to leave them and follow
me he said yes Lord and he followed
later on we read in Genesis 13 there was
a conflict between Abraham and lot their
servants were property and God tested
Abraham again let me see what you’re
going to do now when there’s a conflict
over property am I going to be first in
your life and let him that you refuse to
fight with him and he passed the test he
told a lot you take what you like I’ll
take what you don’t want
I tested Abraham and he passed a test
now 50 years later he’s testing him and
again the same way this time it’s his
son the son whom he loves he says take
your son genesis 22:2
take him out to Mount Moriah and kill
him and God gives him three days to walk
up to Mount Moriah so that he can think
about it God doesn’t want you to decide
in a hurry he didn’t tell him to take
him there around the corner and kill him
in the next five minutes because some
things we do in a in the moment of
emotional excitement and afterwards
he’ll regret it and God gave Abraham
three days to think about it that’s why
he told him to go three days journey
away to Mount Moriah now as he was
walking down the thought was in his mind
was this is it worth serving a god like
this who asks me for the only thing I
really have really that I love the one I
love even more than I love my wife
Isaac and at the end of those three days
Abram says it’s worth it God’s going to
be first in my life as he was fifty
years ago he’s going to be first my life
today even if I have to lose my only son
and they come to Mount Moriah and then
the third day it says in verse 4 that
Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the
place and he calls the young men who had
come with him
Genesis 22 verse 5 and says to them stay
here with the donkey Genesis 22 verse 5
I and the lad will go up there what are
we going to do we will worship that’s
the first time the word worship comes in
the Bible we will worship that means
when I offered to God that which is most
precious in my life and I don’t know
what that is in your life right now
could be a number of things that day for
Abraham it was Isaac he said God this is
my worship it’s not just singing a few
songs to you and then going away and
living my own life no it’s the surrender
of that which is most precious to me
where you
our number one in my life and I’m
willing to give it up I want to ask you
is there something in your life which is
so precious to you that you find it
difficult to give up because you always
say well it’s not a simple thing Isaac
wasn’t simple was he he was a healthy
boy and was in fact it was God’s gift
and he was asked to give up even that
God may ask us sometimes to give up that
which he’s given to us
Isaac was God’s gift but even that which
God’s given to us can become more
precious than God himself and that
becomes an idol and we say there’s
nothing sinful here I know there’s
nothing sinful there there’s nothing
sinful in watching clean sport on
television but it can be a god to you
and you you can’t give it up it could be
music it could be money it could be
something in your business where it’s
become so important you it’s crowded out
god I don’t know what it is it could be
a girlfriend or a boyfriend it’s crowded
out the vision of God from your life and
when you look back to the days when you
first converted it wasn’t like that
Jesus was everything to you you’ve
stopped being a worshiper that’s the
first thing I want you to see the second
place where we see worship which is also
in the beginning of time beginning of
human history as it were is in the book
of Joe now job is the first book that
God wrote because it’s a poetic book it
comes in the middle because the Bible’s
been arranged like that but job is the
first book that God wrote because
Genesis was written by Moses 1,500 years
before Christ where his job lived before
Abraham and all those details that are
written in the book of Job the detailed
discourse and conversation that he had
with his friends could never have been
written by anybody other than Jove
himself and it’s the only book in the
Bible by the way which is no connection
with Abraham Isaac or Jacob so there’s
every indication that this is the first
that God wrote and in the very first
book in the very first chapter you read
about a man a man of God who learned to
worship now isn’t that significant that
the very first book that God wrote he’s
teaching us about a man who worshipped
him and the first book that’s in our
Bible in Genesis also you read about a
man that worshipped him you see how
important it is because way back in the
beginning of time as I told you the
great conflict between Lucifer whatever
his name was we don’t know his real name
and God was the issue of worship we have
to settle this issue is God going to be
number one all the time in my life
central to me more important than even
my ministry more important than anything
at all more important than my family and
everything else that’s the question
and here we read that God allowed Satan
to test Jo again the test is will he
worship God when he loses everything
this time he loses Abraham didn’t lose
his son but job lost all his ten
children all his business in just a few
moments one servant after the other
comes to him with the news your children
of all died your businesses have
collapsed your property is burnt up I’ve
never heard of anyone who suffered like
this but imagine if you got news like
this one day that all that you valued
your family your property your business
your bank account everything is gone
what a joke do it says in job chapter 1
verse 20
Joh chapter 1 and verse 20 job arose
when he heard the news torez rolled in
shape is that he had sorrow we naturally
have sorrow and we hear such news but he
didn’t lose his senses he bowed down and
he worshiped he bowed with his head to
the ground and worshiped he acknowledged
God see that that’s the meaning of it’s
very in eastern culture it is very clear
when you bow down your head
and touch the ground you’re worshipping
someone it’s a symbolic act of
submission to the one whom you worship
and that is why I have so much against
what we see on television and these
meetings nowadays in a lot of peace
creatures who lay hands on people and
they fall flat on the ground they’re
showing their feet to God it’s the
opposite of worship I mean coming from
an Eastern culture it’s crystal clear to
me it may not be to you but in in
Eastern culture if you show your feet to
anybody that’s the biggest insult you
can give correct a respect is by bowing
down and it’s amazing what the devil
does get all these Christians fall and
show their feet to God and devil has a
big laugh it can’t touch me
even if I go to such a meeting because I
have a promise in the Old Testament that
says a thousand will fall on one side
and ten thousand on the other but it
won’t come near me that’s in Psalm 91
and I have a promise in the New
Testament that says Jesus can keep me
from falling we worship God we bow down
and say God whatever you allow in my
life I accept it let God take away my
family take away my children let him
take away my job let him take away
everything there are certain things that
are still true when I’ve lost everything
in the world there’s still certain
things that are true with job did not
know he didn’t have a Bible he didn’t
have the Holy Spirit he didn’t know that
Jesus died for it would die for his sins
he didn’t know anything that we know he
had no fellowship no meetings no church
nothing but he could worship God how
much more we we we who understand so
much because we know that when we have
lost everything like the old saying goes
when you’ve got nothing left but God
you’ll find that God is more than enough
it’s absolutely true and you’ve got
nothing left but God you’ll find that
he’s more than enough because there are
certain things when I’ve lost everything
that are still true God is still on the
throne that hasn’t changed
that’s never
gonna change he’s still my father that’s
not going to change and avert lis
father’s know how to give good things to
their children my Heavenly Father will
give me all that I need definitely not
all that I want thank God he doesn’t
give us all that we want it would
destroy us he gives us all that we need
my God shall supply all your need
that’s that promise doesn’t change my
sins are all forgiven that hasn’t
changed
Christ death on the cross that’s taking
care of all the guilt of my past that
hasn’t changed the devil was defeated
2,000 years ago that hasn’t changed
Christ is coming back in glory I’m going
to spend eternity with him the most
important things haven’t lived in life
haven’t changed maybe I’ve lost a few
things on earth so what even their God
is in control and today we have greater
reason to worship even if you have lost
everything because we have this
wonderful promise which job didn’t have
Romans 8:28 which says God will make all
of these things work together for your
good I praise the Lord for that so
because we have this assurance we can
much more than job fall down and worship
God and continue to worship God now I’ll
tell you we can go higher than job you
remember what Jesus said about John the
Baptist that he was the greatest man
under the Old Covenant born of women
Matthew 11:11 but he said the least one
in the kingdom of heaven in rise higher
than him
I can rise higher than job in this way
job could not continue to worship God by
the time you come to chapter 3 his
endurance is worn out and he starts
complaining and criticizing and saying
God why have you treated me like this
and I mean so faithful to you and I’ve
done this for you and that for you and
you’re still targeting me I was firing
your arrows at me he couldn’t continue
but don’t blame him he didn’t have
fellowship he didn’t have the Holy
Spirit he didn’t have a Bible he knew
nothing about Jesus Christ so you cannot
compare yourself with him
today we can rise higher than job in
this sense that we can continue in
worshiping God without going up and down
like Joe if you read the book of Job his
life was an up-and-down experience
he’d worship God one moment you see I
can accept good and bad from from God
and the next day he’d be complaining God
and a few days later he say yeah even if
God kills me I’ll trust him and then
he’d go down in the dumps again and then
he’d come up and say I know my redeemer
lives but then he go down in the dumps
again this is the experience of many
Christians this is a mark that a person
is not living filled with the Holy
Spirit even if he speaks in tongues or
whatever he does if he’s really filled
with the Holy Spirit he will not be
going up and down and up and down
Paul said thanks be to God who always
leads us in his triumph in Christ I want
to tell you my dear brothers and sisters
it is not God’s will for you to have an
up-and-down experience that is Old
Covenant it may be your experience but
it’s an Old Covenant experience the
devil’s cheated you and robbed you of
your birthright in Christ your
birthright in Christ is described in the
New Testament words like this thanks be
to God who always leads us in triumph we
can always rejoice we can be free from
anxiety but that will be true only if we
learn the secret of worshiping God
bowing down and saying God you will care
for me even if everything even if I lose
everything if I see God’s kingdom first
in His righteousness all that I need
will be added to me I prove that for 50
years in the poorest villages in India
poor people who have fuller than anybody
sitting here in debt and as I’ve taught
them to seek God’s kingdom first and his
righteousness I’ve seen how God’s
provided all their needs and they become
free from debt God can do that he’s done
that if he’s done that in a poor country
without social security without food
stamps nothing why can’t he do it here
we must trust God we must learn to be
worshipers most important then let me
say finally one more thing
we saw how it was at the beginning with
Abraham and Joe won’t go to the end of
the Bible in Revelation and chapter 4 we
read about how these elders in heaven
fall down and worship God revelation 4
and verse 10 it says the 24 elders
revelation 4:10 fall down and worship
Him who lives forever and ever and they
cast their crowns before the throne
saying Dowell all not worthy
this is worship where they refuse to
take credit for anything that’s the
meaning of casting their crowns before
God saying dowell oh not worthy I mean a
given a crown will be given crowns when
for being faithful on earth jesus said
that I’ve come I will come quickly and
my reward is with me
but we’re going to cast it down before
Jesus and say no Lord I don’t deserve
that it’s all you that’s worship where I
recognize that I have nothing that God
didn’t give me I have no ability that
God didn’t give me if I exercise an
ability and people are blessed by it I
cast it down before God and say god
that’s you it’s not me you see in 1
Corinthians in chapter 4 1 Corinthians 4
in verse 7 a wonderful verse what do you
have that you did not receive and if you
received it how can you boast as if you
didn’t receive it even a simple thing
like looking at your pretty face in the
mirror and admiring it comparing
yourself with someone else say thank God
I’m better-looking than him or her or
secretly congratulating yourself that
you’re intelligent and not dumb like the
other fellow sitting there you’re not a
worshipper anymore you haven’t cast your
crown before Jesus no your crown of
intelligence is sitting on your head you
haven’t learned to cast it down before
that’s why your life is up and down
you may be very clever your business may
be doing well but your spiritual life is
in the dumps most of the time why is
that because you’re not a worshipper God
wants you to give him the glory for
everything you have have you prospered
in your business give the glory to God
you could have been born mentally
challenged physically challenged and
you’d have been like a vegetable all
your life recognize that everything you
have is from God you know when the first
baby was born in this in the world we
read in Genesis 4:1 that Eve named him
Cain now I was reading it in the Living
Bible and it says there even named him
came saying meaning I have created I
have and said I have created a man-child
with the help of God she was pretty
proud because till then only God had
created a man Adam but now lo and behold
she found a baby coming out of her body
said I have created and she passed on
that spirit to came and he grew up to be
a murderer a lot of parents pass on that
spirit of arrogance to their children
what we can accomplish and she learned a
lesson when he murdered her second son
then she had another son where’s 25 and
I read that in the Living Bible it says
he named him she named him Seth meaning
granted or she was humble now God has
granted me we can look at our things as
our accomplishments or as God’s gifts
things that God has granted us or things
that we have accomplished it all depends
on whether we are worshipers or not may
God help us to learn this lesson to
worship Him in spirit and in truth let’s
pray
heads in prayer if the Lord has spoken
to you in any particular area that’s the
area where you need to yield yourself to
God and to say to him Lord there was a
time in my life when I first knew you
when you were everything to me but I’ve
drifted from there many things have
taken the place that you should have in
my life but I want you to come back to
that place Lord I want you to be central
in my life I want to love you with all
my heart soul strength and mind and
anything you want I’m ready to yield
upon the altar I give my body to you
it’s a living sacrifice every part of me
I want to be a worshipper in Jesus name
on it
Thank You amen