Worship
Course: The Higher Calling to Worship
Lesson Fourteen:
Lesson Title: Worshipping with Joy in Eternity: United with Christ in His glory
Text: 'For
we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ; that every one may
receive the things done in his body, according to that he has done, whether it
be good or bad', (2 Corinthians 5:10).
Introduction:
All believers will one day stand before the
judgement seat of Christ. This is not
the Great White Throne judgement where those outside of Christ will be judged
(Revelation
Worship is always motivated by love. Paul wrote to the Corinthians, 'the love of
Christ constrains us' (2 Corinthians
Peter loved the Lord and was willing to die
for Christ in
'My kingdom is not of this world: if my
kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be
delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence.' (John 18:36)
I think we have are all been guilty of using
carnal weapons in our Christian life. We
need to become weak in the flesh to be worshippers. Peter was 'sifted as wheat' on the night
that he denied the Lord, (Luke
Main Points:
Jesus went to
the cross worshipping the Father. He
counted it all joy to suffer the cross and its shame. He looked beyond the suffering, and rejoiced
in the harvest of souls who would be gathered together in Him. The worshipper looks with joy to an eternal
inheritance by 'Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher
of our faith'. (Hebrews 12:2). The word 'looking' is translated
from the Greek word aphoran which
comes from two Greek words apo
meaning 'away from' and horan meaning
'to look'. If we are 'looking unto Jesus'
then we must also be looking away from something else. Looking unto Jesus means we are looking away
from the things of the world and looking unto the beauty of Jesus. A worshipper will see that the only riches
worth having are in Christ.
The great chapter of faith, Hebrews chapter
11, is all about a company of people who worshipped. They looked away from the world because they
looked to a greater inheritance. Moses held
the reproach of Christ to be greater riches than all the riches of
When we compare the ministry of Paul with the
'heroes of faith' in Hebrews 11, it is easy to understand what motivated
Paul. He looked away from the pleasures
of life, and held no regard to his own reputation. He looked away from the suffering that he
endured, because he looked to the joy of worshipping Jesus with the fruit of
that suffering. Paul was concerned about the spiritual well being of
every believer. He desired to build up
the believers in Christ because he looked to the day when he would present them
to the Lord. Paul was a worshipper and
everything he did was with the thought that one day he would be with Jesus.
'Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching
every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ
Jesus:' (Colossians
When my wife and I were first married, I
taught at a Bible school in
Salvation is often regarded as a passport to
heaven, but every Christian should be seeking to be a worshipper with the goal
of entering eternity worshipping. Peter
spoke of being zealous to have an abundant entrance into eternity, he wrote:
'Wherefore the rather, brethren, give
diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if you do these things,
you shall never fall: For so an entrance
shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.' (2 Peter
1:10-11)
I worked for one and a half years at a
baker's in the
But how we approach the judgement seat of
Christ will be determined by how we answer the higher call to worship. How we approach this judgement is entirely
dependent upon our love for Christ. Paul
wanted to enter eternity worshipping, and his ministry can only be understood in the knowledge that
Paul was a worshipper. Why did Paul and
Silas allow themselves to be beaten by rods in
'But none of these things move me, neither
count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy,
and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the
gospel of the grace of God.' (Acts
Paul's love for the believers was linked
directly with his desire to worship in heaven.
He called the Philippians
his joy and crown because he saw them as treasures that he would present to the
Lord. This is how we should regard other
believers in Christ because the body of Christ is His eternal treasure. Our joy and crown in heaven will be the
reward of our love for Christ that we have expressed through ministering to the
body of Christ. Every believer is called
to ministry, and one day we will present what we have invested in the body of
Christ to the Lord.
'Therefore, my brethren dearly beloved and
longed for, my joy and crown, so stand fast in the Lord, my dearly
beloved.' (Philippians 4:1)
The desire of Paul was to enter heaven
worshipping on the highest level. He was
willing to face any trial in order to enter heaven with joy. He longed for the day when he would present
to the Lord the believers that he had won for Christ and built up in the
Lord. This was the fruit of his worship
on earth. He had suffered shame to win
them; he had gloried in God's eternal purpose and died to all his own ambitions
to win them. His love for Christ was
revealed in them. Only worshippers can truly understand
Paul's words
'For I reckon that the sufferings of this
present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be
revealed in us', (Romans
The difference between men and women who have
lived their lives for Christ, and the men and women who have reached great
heights in the world, is most clearly seen at the end of their lives. Those who reach great heights in politics
will one day have to step down and allow others to take their place. It is pitiful to watch films of some of the
great leaders as they stepped down, and to see the pain on their faces as they
leave the offices of power for the last time.
It is not like this for the worshipper who seeks to know Christ through
his or her life. He or she just carries
on worshipping into eternity.
Saul of
Tarsus had been the persecutor of the church.
He consented to the death of Stephen.
He was filled with hate for the believers. But this was the man who became a worshipper
of the Lord. One encounter with Jesus on
the
'Yea doubtless, and I count all things but
loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I
have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may
win Christ;' (Philippians 3:8).
The desire to build a big ministry can be
motivated by carnal reasoning. We must
always desire Christ more than a successful ministry. Even in missions we must learn to die to our
own ambitions. It is the Lord who leads
and we are to follow Him. Some people
are well known in ministry, but the majority is not well known. It does not matter, everyone is important and
no one should be seeking his or her own glory.
We are called to worship and to let the Lord do His work through us. We must learn to enter into His rest. Our greatest joy should be found in using our
lives and ministries to please the Lord.
Worshipping with joy in heaven is a
continuation of our worship on earth.
The worshipper just carries on worshipping from time into eternity. How
we enter into heaven depends upon our love for the Lord Jesus Christ. If we desire to worship like Paul in heaven
then we must worship the Lord to the highest levels on earth. We must seek to enter heaven with the joy of
having loved the Lord above all things, and with the crown of service. This joy and crown is given to those who love
the Lord, love His word, love His people and are willing to serve the Lord with
joy.