Texts: Luke 1:46-55, Luke 4:5-8, Deuteronomy 11:16, John 4:1-24, Luke 19:37-40
Continuing on with the theme of worship – what it is, how it happens, the role and function it plays in believers lives – we are invited to look at some informative incidences as they are found in the New Testament, in particular in the life and work of Jesus.
- Luke 1:46-55 – this is often known as the “Song of Mary,” the joyous and worshipful response of the young woman to the discovery that she would bear a child whose name would be called “Immanuel,” which means “God with us.”
- From what did her joy spring?
- What elements of praise and worship are revealed in this song?
- What makes this little experience worshipful?
- Luke 4:5-8 – this recounts part of the interchange between Jesus and the devil commonly known as the temptations of Jesus. After 40 days of fasting, Jesus is tempted by the Devil, one of the temptations being that he will be given the nations of the world if he will bow down and worship and serve the devil.
- On what basis does Jesus resist the temptation?
- What do you think the devil had in mind when he said, “if you will worship me?”
- What is the significance of bowing down in worship?
- Notice that the words “worship” and “serve” are linked here. What do you think the significance of this is? What is the connection between “worship” and “serve?”
- Can you worship something without “worshipping it?
- Perhaps here we have insight to the reason for so much idolatry in the OT.
- John 4:1-24 – this is a long passage dealing with the interchange between Jesus and the Samaritan women at the well. This is one place where we find specific dialog on the subject of worship.
- How did the subject of worship come up in this conversation?
- What lessons or instruction do you draw from this conversation particularly about worship, what it is, and how and where it may be done?
- Notice how the woman tried to divert the progression of Jesus’ thought by trying to get him into a discussion of a contentious worship issue.
- What does it mean to worship “in spirit and in truth?”
- What kind of worship does the Father desire? How might that be offered today?
- Do you think worship is something we devise, or is it more like a natural response to something or Someone truly awesome?
