SUNDAY THOUGHT -9

From: Joji George <jojivimin@yahoo.com>
Date: 2008/8/1
Subject: SUNDAY THOUGHT -9

SUNDAY THOUGHT - 9                                                        Remembrance in worship   God made man with the ability to observe, to experience, to memorize and to remember. Based on the same, God requires man to respond to Him. In worship, we praise or adore or honor God based on our remembrance of Who God is and what has he done for us. Any failure to remember this would adversely affect the true worship we would offer to God. In the life of the people of Israel, remembering God and His acts were essential to worship God. We see the command to remember from God Himself and a call to remember from the Scripture writers throughout the Old Testament.   All the aspect of true worship is keyed to this one important truth- Remembrance. We pray, or praise or serve God all because we remember who God is and what has he done for us. Let us examine the significance of remembrance in worship.   1.  Remembrance enhances our Thanksgiving   Thanksgiving is integral to worship. How would we be motivated to give thanks unless we remember what God means to us and what has he done for us? God instructed the people of Israel to remember all that he has done for them so that they will thank him.(A beautiful example for remembering the works of God and giving thanks is Psalm 136). But once they came in to the Promised Land, they did not remember the LORD but went after other gods (Judges 8:34).  To the church, Jesus gave the command to observe the Lord's Table to remember what God has done for our salvation. Forgetting God's works towards us will result in developing a thankless Spirit. Once we actively remember the works of God for our salvation, sanctification and the future glorification, we will give thanks to God.   2.  Remembrance enhances our Love.   Love towards God is integral in worship. Our love to the Lord depends on our memory. A poor memory of God's blessings would lead us to develop coldness in loving God. Mary Magdalene's action of Love to the Lord (John 20) was due to her remembrance of what the Lord did for her (Mark 16:11). The Jewish community, after their return from the exile grew cold in their love towards the LORD. (See the prophecy of Malachi). The reason was they forgot what the LORD GOD had been doing in the lives of their people. Whenever they did not remember, it affected their love towards God (Ps. 78:42; 106:7). Prophet Isaiah called the attention of the people to look back and see from where they were taken (Isa.51:1, 2). It is a call to remember so that they would respond to God in Love. Remembrance is essential to enhance our Love towards God.       3.  Remembrance enhances our Confidence   In worship we also express our confidence in God. The moment we forget God's presence with us we behave humanly and naturally. The fact of God's constant presence is something that gives us confidence in worship. Though God's presence was there in their midst, the people of Israel failed to recognize it to honor God, often. Abraham remembered God's promises and he worshipped God. Jacob remembered God's words and he worshipped God. (Gen. 28:20-22 &35:3ff.). Asaph remembered God and he took confidence in Him (Ps. 77:3) David remembered the Lord's judgments and took confidence in Him (Ps. 119:52).The disciples did not remember that the Lord's presence is sufficient to satisfy the need when five thousand people had to be fed (John 6).  Remembrance of Who God is and what has he done in the past is essential to enhance our confidence in Him.    "Bless the LORD O my Soul, Forget not all His benefits" (Ps. 103:2). Constant remembrance is essential for our soul to bless the LORD. As we prepare to worship God this week let us remember the importance of remembrance in worshipping God!