Comment on Selfish Worship? Reasons the Modern Church is at Risk by Reverend D Carlson

According to one of the simplest definitions of worship, taken from the Cambridge dictionary, adoration is to show a strong sense of respect, reverence, adoration and admiration towards a deity. From this definition, it seems that worship is directed TOWARDS a being, in this case our God. So how does it get selfish, when it's totally about someone else? I mean is selfish worship possible? I have the following reasons to believe that our worship in the modern church has actually become more about us than about the God we worship.

"DID NOT FEEL THE WORSHIP VIBE TODAY, IT WAS A LITTLE OFF"

That's a statement I've heard so many times, even myself. I would like to believe that the reason is that worship has become a drug. Although the Bible says in Ephesians 5 v 18, do not get drunk with wine, but be filled with the Spirit, that does not mean taking the Holy Spirit to make you feel like the wine. Wine, drugs, etc. bring us to this place of absolute euphoria, they make us soar, in a place where our worries no longer exist. And almost likewise, in the presence of the Lord, there is fullness of joy and freedom. However, this joy (of the Lord) is more than euphoria. This joy changes our way of seeing things and we carry it from that moment on. It's not like the euphoria that goes away as soon as we get sober again. So why is it soon after the big and awesome worship session, after the service, we are now back to REALITY. Back to our old worried selves. We used worship to FEEL GOOD.

Selfish worship is when we think we feel good when worship was never meant for us. As the worship leaders are the facilitators and we are on the receiving side. When the singer isn't singing our favorite song and the keyboard isn't on the key, instead of focusing on God and lifting our spirits as instruments of worship, we start thinking about how we haven't been put in the mood yet. Almost as if the value of God was determined by the state of our feelings.

The good news, however, is that God is not selfish like us. When praise goes up, He shares His glory with us, His glory comes down and that's why worship is good. It is in this, we forget that worship was not FOR US, it was for God.

When our hearts are still willing to worship God for the God He is, we don't need to feel good first, we don't need the worship leader to sing our favorite song, because we understand that it's not about us, it's all about God.

"I DON'T SEE HOW I CAN APPLY THIS IN MY LIFE."

Once at the church, there was a series of Old Testament Feasts of the Lord. I found the teaching breathtaking. Realizing how perfectly God aligned the Passover from the time of Moses until the crucifixion left me amazed. An old tradition was actually a repetition illustrating the most important point in history, where the Lamb of God was sacrificed for mankind. What I saw was a God beyond words awesome, wise, omniscient. I couldn't find the words to explain it. I saw His sovereignty and His abilities to see everything and to plan beyond human ability and comprehension. I couldn't help but fall to my knees and worship God for being the greatest God in the whole universe.

What was surprising was that a lot of people didn't like this series, simply because they didn't know how to apply this knowledge in their lives. One said: 'I came to church with my problems expecting an exhortation on how God is going to get me out of this not how the Passover has come' . It occurred to me why many people don't read books like Daniel, Revelation, other prophets, where they describe the power and majesty of God. The reason for this is that these books only focus on God and his overall plan for the whole world and not just one individual, and apparently it has nothing to do with what one goes through on a normal day. (Insert questioning emoji lol)

Selfish worship is when we don't see God for who He is, not just who He is for us. He is our Father, our Protector, etc., but all of this is derived from our existence. Even if we didn't exist, even when His glory had nothing to do with us, He would still be God worthy of worship. He has the whole world in his hands and we are so small if he looked at us with the human eye he wouldn't see us at all.

However, the good news is that God is not self-centered like we are. He uses his majesty, his great power for our good. We sometimes take this for granted and think that is all there is, a God who belongs to us and who must meet our every need and desire.

"I AM THE LORD'S FAVORITE"

I like this statement because it is true, encouraging and biblical. Many scriptures speak of what the Lord has done to us by his grace. The only reservation I have...