Being Worthy

 

In her book, Emmanuel, Ruth Chou Simons wrote: "We can’t truly encounter Christ the Messiah without the awe and wonder, the response of faith, the repentance, the thanksgiving, the love, and the worship He deserves . . . Jesus is worthy of worship, and because of God’s faithfulness through Christ, we are made worthy to worship Him. Joy to the world!” 

 “We are made worthy to worship Him.”  We are worthy to worship Him. I am worthy. You are worthy. Are we?

I gladly and faithfully write, sing and say, “You are worthy, Lord, of my worship, my service and my love.” There’s no doubt about it. My Lord is worthy. Our God is worthy.

I am worthy?  To worship Him? I have a hard time with that. I am willing to worship Him with all my heart, and I desire with all my mind to worship Him. I’m just having trouble with, “I am worthy to worship Him.”

Maybe it’s the definition of worthy that’s holding me back from this statement. The dictionary defines worthy as: deserving effort, attention, or respect; having worth or value.

“We are made worthy.” Does Simons mean we are worthy because we are children of God after accepting Jesus as our Lord and Savior, so we are destined, commanded, drawn to worship Him because of all He has done for us?

Maybe I’m making a big deal out of nothing, but my knowledge of the word “worthy” doesn’t compute with her statement. Or maybe I just don’t like saying, “I’m worthy.” What I do know is my God is worthy of my love, devotion, service, and work. Then I read a verse like this and I'm confused once again.

Colossians 1:10

"So that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please Him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God."

Biblerepository.com: "This verse from Colossians speaks volumes about our spiritual journey and responsibilities as followers of Christ. At its core, it encourages us to live in a way that brings honor to God. We are called to walk worthy of Him, which means aligning our actions, thoughts, and behaviors with His teachings and examples . . . Walking worthy of God's calling leads to pleasing Him and fosters a life rich in good deeds."  

Preceptaustin.org/Amplified, Lockman: "That you may walk (live and conduct yourselves) in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to Him and desiring to please Him in all things, bearing fruit in every good work and steadily growing and increasing in and by the knowledge of God [with fuller, deeper, and clearer insight, acquaintance, and recognition]."

What I do know is our God is worthy of our life as we serve Him, work for Him, honor Him, pray to Him, live for Him, and worship Him. I’m the fortunate one here. 

By His Grace . . .