Based on Psalm 107:1-22 (New King James Version)
“Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy, and gathered out of the lands, from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south. They wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way; they found no city to dwell in. Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and He delivered them out of their distresses. And He led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city for a dwelling place. Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! For He satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness. Those who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, bound in affliction and irons—because they rebelled against the words of God, and despised the counsel of the Most High, therefore He brought down their heart with labor; they fell down, and there was none to help. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and broke their chains in pieces. Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! For He has broken the gates of bronze, and cut the bars of iron in two. Fools, because of their transgression, and because of their iniquities, were afflicted. Their soul abhorred all manner of food, and they drew near to the gates of death. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses. He sent His word and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions. Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! Let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, and declare His works with rejoicing.”
What is the true praise and worship that God seeks? Are songs necessarily what really pleases the Most High? Will nice and flattering words and entertaining music be what the Lord desires? Will the shows that are done today in different places with lights, and shouts, and applause be what God really wants? If there is not something genuine in the heart, if it is only words and music and entertainment, God hates it, as it is written: “…This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me…” Mark 7:6b-7a. True gratefulness and worship to God is shown with things that go way beyond the superficial and passing.
This is what God Himself says about what He really desires: “For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.” Hosea 6:6. And the Word also says this: “So Samuel said: ‘Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.” 1 Samuel 15:22-23a. So we can see clearly that God is not necessarily looking for what the masses think are manifestations of gratitude and praise and adoration. God desires mercy with our neighbor as adoration, that we seek to know who He is and what His will is. God desires obedience and that we pay attention to Him, that we finally do His true will, because this is also written: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.” Matthew 7:21. This is very different from what is taught or demonstrated in our congregations today. Unfortunately, there is much deviation and confusion, and that is why we have what we have today, a people that is not even convinced of the truth of God. And if the so-called people of God do not know or practice the true will of God, how will the world know God? That is why we do not see a great difference between the church and the world, because much of the church continues in the world, just with a different letterhead and different customs.
The first thing to start with is with the “why” God deserves true gratitude and adoration. He is God, and there is nothing and no one higher than Him. This is the first thing. The next thing should be because He created us, and by His will we are still alive. Nothing and no one can exist or subsist without God, as it is written: “For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.” Colossians 1:16-17. And this is very important to understand and believe, because if you are not alive, then you cannot come to know the value of the following, that God gave us the opportunity to have eternal life. We can live forever by His grace, through His sacrifice, through the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, which is the culmination of why He deserves all our gratitude and adoration. If a person is not fully convinced of these reasons, I am afraid to say that they still do not know God and do not know what faith really is. The Lord deserves everything because without Him, we would have nothing and we would be nothing, and even more, if it were not for His salvation, our destiny would be hell where there is only darkness, suffering, loneliness, and eternal pain. That is why, if a person does not appreciate the things that God has done, and is more focused on themselves and other things, they continue on that road to hell.
Let's understand one thing. The Lord Jesus Christ is our role model, and He fulfilled God's will perfectly. And since it is so, let's see His life, and what He did, or rather, what He never did, (because what we need to know was left written for us, so there is no need nor reason to speculate about what the Lord did or did not do). Is it written that the Lord sang praises with the masses? Is it written that a music concert was ever held? Is this written that the Lord had said to His disciples: “Is it necessary that you teach the world how to sing to God, and to know how to play instruments to honor Him? It just never happened, and if it never happened, then what are we doing? I am not saying that singing and praising God is bad, but it is not what God truly seeks and desires. It is not His priority, under any circumstances. And if it is not His priority, why has it been made a priority, and given so much prominence? Why has it become the focus of most of our congregations? As far as I know, Christ must continue to be our model.
This is what the Word says when it has to do with the things we should be doing: “In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.” 1 John 4:10-11. “And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, ‘Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?’ He said to him, ‘What is written in the law? What is your reading of it?’ So he answered and said, ‘ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’ ’ And He said to him, ‘You have answered rightly; do this and you will live.’” Luke 10:25-28. So, if you really want to thank the Lord and worship Him as He deserves, love Him with all that you are, and love your neighbor as yourself, and love is shown by deeds, not words. So, do you live a life that fully demonstrates your gratitude and worship to the Lord? Lord bless! John