GENUINE WORSHIP: IMPOSSIBLE WITHOUT FAITH -- Devotional for July 27, from "Good Seeds"

Though you have not seen Him you love Him; and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory. (I Peter 1:8)

The Bible says that “without faith it is impossible to please God” (Hebrews 11:6), but did you know that it is also impossible to truly worship Him, apart from faith? There are many definitions of worship, but it can hardly be described apart from the total involvement of the soul of a man: his mind, his will and his emotions. Peter says belief in Jesus leads directly to rejoicing in Jesus. If you don’t know Him, how could you love Him? But if you have come to know and love Him, how could you not rejoice in Him? The words of an old praise song reflect this truth: “The greatest thing in all my life is KNOWING You…” But then we sing the second verse, which almost seems to contradict the first: “The greatest thing in all my life is LOVING You…” And then, it happens once more, when the third verse boldly asserts, “The greatest thing in all my life is SERVING You.” But there is no contradiction here, only a progression, for how could we know God without loving Him? And if we love Him, how could we not worship and serve him with every ounce of our being? Our lips will not remain silent, and our joy will not be tame, for it cannot be contained. As hard as we try, our ability to express our love for Him will never be able to keep up with the glory of God that He progressively reveals to us. But knowing God, and loving and serving Him, are all predicated on one other thing, which is the most basic underpinning of our life in Christ: faith! Faith is the conviction of the reality of something or someone apart from empirical evidence (see Hebrews 11:1). Following Christ’s resurrection He appeared in the flesh to His friends. But old “Doubting Thomas” was not present at the time and he wouldn't accept it: “Unless I can put my finger into the nailholes in His hands, and place my hand where the sword pierced His side, I will not believe” (John 20:25). In his heart Thomas wanted so badly to believe, but his mind wouldn’t allow it. Where did that leave him: sour-faced, sulking, certainly not worshiping – and hardly fellowshipping! (Sound like anybody you know?) What convinced Him that Jesus had in fact risen from the dead? An actual appearance, a personal audience with the Savior. But Jesus wasn’t happy with Thomas. “You’ve lost the blessing that others will enjoy, those who will not see Me as you see Me now, and yet will believe.” And Peter picks up right where Jesus left off: “Having not yet seen Him, you love Him. How blessed indeed are you!” It is only such a faith that will enable and equip us to praise God with genuine inexpressible joy!