Due
A three-letter word can have a powerful impact.
When used in the sentence from Psalm 29, the impact is one of definition and perspective. Our worship must be defined and measured by the glory due unto the Name of the Lord.
Psalm 29:1-2 NKJV
Give unto the Lord, O you mighty ones,
Give unto the Lord glory and strength.
Give unto the Lord the glory due to His name;
Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.
We must not define our worship by what pleases us, reflects our nature and preferences, or satisfies our humanity. We must not measure our worship by our standards or those of the surrounding culture. We must define our worship by the details of His wonderful name. We must measure our worship by the standard of the glory due God Himself. When something is due someone, it means they have earned it. It is theirs by right.
This changes everything about what we do on Sundays.
It takes the focus off us and places it back on the One who should be the object and the subject of public worship. Public services should be about giving unto the Lord before it is about receiving from Him. It should be about pleasing Him, not about pleasing ourselves. We should come before His presence with the Sacrifice of Praise, seeking to experience the revelation of His glory. We should not be presenting targeted music to targeted audiences in order to draw them in. “The glory due His name” leaves no room for a diffusion of our passions; they must be spent on the pursuit of the manifestation of His divine presence. The results of worship are blessings to be enjoyed but the blessings we receive are not our motivation. The truth of “it is more blessed to give than receive” is born out in true worship. We bless God and He blesses us in response.
When Jesus Walks among Us
In Luke chapter four, Jesus was asked to read the scriptures in His hometown synagogue. It was a tough audience filled with friends and family, fellow businessmen and former customers, and people who hadn’t forgotten the shadow over the marriage of Joseph and Mary and the birth of Jesus.
Jesus read from the prophet Isaiah of the ministry of the Messiah—an amazing list of benefits He would bring into the lives of those who worshiped Him. With the rapt attention of the worshipers, he initiated the Good News of the New Covenant.
Luke 4:21-22 NKJV
“Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”
Nothing less than a riot ensued. His friends took Him to the brow of a hill to throw Him off. He stared them down and walked through the mob like the Israelites through the Red Sea.
When Jesus Walks among Us
Jesus’ quote of Isaiah describes the thing Messiah will do when He visits His people. The list is amazing:
Luke 4:18-19 KJV
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor;
he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and
recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
When we give Him the glory due unto His name, Jesus walks among us in power:
- To preach the gospel to the poor,
- To bind up the broken hearted,
- To set captives free,
- To give sight to the blind,
- Set those who free who have been deeply injured, and
- Preach the Day of the God’s visitation.
This visitation of God among His people is the need of every generation gathered in the house of God. This is what the world needs from the church.
What prevents these blessings from being the routine? God’s promises are true and His character is beyond question. Surely the fault must lie in our worship, our public presentation focused on people rather than God.
What can we do?
We can recalibrate our theological instruments by the standard of the Glory due His name! We can recommit to biblical methods and principles in our planning and leading of worship. True Worship begins in the heart of each worshiper and extends to the healing of the nations.
Scriptures:
Psalm 29 NKJV
Give unto the Lord, O you mighty ones, Give unto the Lord glory and strength. Give unto the Lord the glory due to His name; Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness. The voice of the Lord is over the waters; The God of glory thunders; The Lord is over many waters. The voice of the Lord is powerful; The voice of the Lord is
full of majesty. The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars, Yes, the Lord splinters the cedars of Lebanon. He makes them also skip like a calf, Lebanon and Sirion like a young wild ox. The voice of the Lord divides the flames of fire. The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness; The Lord shakes the Wilderness of Kadesh. The voice of the Lord makes the deer give birth, And strips the forests bare; And in His temple everyone says, “Glory!” The Lord sat en
throned at the Flood, And the Lord sits as King forever. The Lord will give strength to His people; The Lord will bless His people with peace.
Revelation 4:8-11 NKJV
And they do not rest day or night, saying: “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come!” Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, sayi
ng: “You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, And by Your will they exist and were created.”
Revelation 5:9-14 NKJV
And they sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; For You were slain, And have redeemed us to God by Your blood Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, And have made us kings and priests to our God; And we shall reign on the earth.” Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice: “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain To receive power and riches and wisdom, And strength and honor and glory and blessing!” And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying: “Blessing and honor and glory and power Be to Him who sits on the throne, And to the Lamb, forever and ever!” Then the four living creatures said, “Amen!” And the twenty-four elders fell down and worshiped Him who lives forever and ever.
Prayer:
Lord Jesus, today, I will not measure my praise by my comfort or by what pleases me. I will lend all my humanity to the prospect of giving unto You the glory due Your name. I will hold nothing back. I will give You glory. I will give You praise. I will honor You for You are worthy. I will tune my heart to heaven’s music and fix my mind on the revelation of who You are by the Spirit. Your name will be my song; Your holiness it’s majestic tune and angel voices will harmonize with me. This and more is what is due unto Your Holy Name. Praise the Lord! Amen.
Song:
Come Now O Royal Priesthood
Words and Music: Stephen Phifer
1. Come now, O Royal Priesthood, bring the Sacrifice of Praise,
The fruit of lips that sing His Name, the song of ancient days.
Made holy by His Righteousness, made regal by His Grace,
Come now, O Royal Priesthood, bring the Sacrifice of Praise.
Refrain:
O sing unto the Lord Your King
And make the Courts of Heaven ring!
Let the measure of your praises be “the glory due His Name.”
Come now, O Royal Priesthood, bring the Sacrifice of Praise!
2 .Come now, O Holy Priesthood, bring the Sacrifice of Love;
The first commandment now obey, affections fixed above,
Where Jesus reigns in majesty on a Throne of Truth and Trust.
Come now, O Holy Priesthood bring the Sacrifice of Love.
Refrain:
O sing unto the Lord Your King
And make the Courts of Heaven ring!
Let the measure of your praises be “the glory due His Name.”
Come now, O Holy Priesthood, bring the Sacrifice of Love!
3. Come now, O Holy Nation, for the King is calling you
To stand for Him and live for Him, a people brave and true;
Ambassadors of Heaven with Heaven’s work to do.
Come now, O Holy Nation for the King is calling you!
Refrain:
O sing unto the Lord Your King
And make the Courts of Heaven ring!
Let the measure of your praises be “the glory due His Name.”
Come now, Holy Nation, for the King is calling You!
4. Come now, O Purchased People, come and follow close your King
for He has bought your souls from hell and given cause to sing.
The debt of love we owe to Him compels the love we bring.
Come now, O Purchased People come and follow close your King!
Refrain:
O sing unto the Lord Your King
And make the Courts of Heaven ring!
Let the measure of your praises be “the glory due His Name.”
Come now, O Purchased People, come and follow close Your King!
Semper Reformanda!
Stephen Phifer
© 2017 Stephen R. Phifer All Rights Reserved
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