On this thirtieth lenten morning, the psalmist
gives us a very important and timely charge in Psalms 100:2,
“Worship the Lord
with gladness.”
"I worship You, Almighty God,
There is none like You.
I worship You, O Prince of Peace,
That is what I long to do.
I give You praise, for You are my righteousness.
I worship You, Almighty God;
There is none like You."
"Worship the Lord with gladness."
"There is none like You.
No one else can touch my heart like You do.
I could search for all eternity long and find there is none like You."
“Worship the Lord with gladness.”
"He is Lord; He is Lord.
He is risen from the dead and He is Lord!
Every knee shall bow, every tongue confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord."
Indeed, "Jesus Christ is Lord" (Philippians 2:11, NIV) and we are to worship Him with gladness.
A short imperative, the above charge impels us to recognize three significant
blessings housed in Christ Jesus:
-
Our
purpose (worship)
-
Our
position (servants of the Lord),
-
Our perception
(gladness, joy, gratitude, etc.)
Can we honestly say that we live with worship as our main purpose?
Can we genuinely affirm that our position or stance is that of a servant of the Lord?
Can we truthfully claim gladness, joy, and gratitude as our first response to Christ's Lordship?
Often,
an earthbound perception poisons our hearts (replacing the gladness Christ
richly provides with a discontent that begets grumbling), prevents us from
acknowledging our God-given position (seeking to serve our own selfish
desires), and presents to us an erroneous purpose that discards the worship of
Christ but elevates worthless idols.
This lenten journey aims to take you and me to a place where we will learn to rend our self-governing bent and submit to the Lordship of Christ.
Christ is the boss!
Christ calls the shots!
Christ rules in our hearts!
He is Lord when life is rosy; He is Lord when life is black like tar.
He is Lord when friends are loving; He is Lord when friends betray and forsake.
He is Lord when bills are paid; He is Lord when there is too much month at the end of the money.
He is Lord!
He is Lord!
He is Lord!
Today, let us be reminded that, despite
what we may have on our plate, we have a Lord who is watching over us. He is
our light and our salvation—whom shall we fear indeed?
The oft-encountered
“Fear not” command beckons us to ponder Christ’s Lordship. Is He truly our Lord
and Master? Do we worship Him or do we worry over the trials and headaches
found on our plate? Do we seek to handle most of our decisions on our own
strength and only go to Him for the really big ones? Do our lifestyle and
perception back up the all-too-familiar “Lord Jesus” statement?
Regarding this
topic, it is only fitting that Paul shares the following words from his heart,
“So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in Him,
rooted and built up in Him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and
overflowing with thankfulness” (Col. 2:6-7). Paul’s exhortation paints a new
Lenten stroke—we need to turn away from a blasé and all-too-common use of the
word “Lord” and embrace a lifestyle of steady growth, total surrender, and
complete submission to the ways of Christ.
Let us pray:
Precious Jesus,
we acknowledge that You
reign above all else.
You are the Anointed, the wise God,
the Ruler of the kings
of the Earth—You are Lord.
We confess that there are many areas in our lives
that we have kept under our own grip;
we have not submitted them to You.
We do
not always mean it fully when we call You Lord.
We do not submit all our
relationships, our finances,
and the use of our time under Your Lordship.
Teach
our hearts and tongues to be grateful for Your Lordship
especially when our
every inclination is otherwise bent.
Thank You for loving us anyway
and for
seeking our hearts
in order to bridge the gap which separates us from You.
Keep
us desirous of Your Lordship today
and for the rest of our lives.
It is in the
name of our Lord Jesus we pray.
Amen.
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