And he said unto Moses, Come up unto the LORD, thou, and Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; and worship ye afar off. And Moses alone shall come near the LORD: but they shall not come nigh; neither shall the people go up with him. Exodus 24:1-2 KJVJesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh *, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. John 4:22-24
When the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness, God called Moses, Aaron, Nadab and Abihu to come up the mountain and worship from a distance. God allowed Moses and seventy elders of Israel to come up into the mountain but they were prohibited from coming close. Even though God had separated Himself a people, they could only worship afar off or from a distance. Only a select group of individuals were allowed to experience worshipping God, even if it was from a distance.
Could that be why the masses of the people continued to murmur, complain and doubt? Even in the face of great and mighty miracles, the children of Israel would quickly forget God’s power in the face of adversity. Perhaps they needed an opportunity to worship.
Worship is an act of our will that engages all of our senses but is based in and governed by the Spirit of God that lives within us. The Spirit of God is always compelling us to worship. In this dispensation of Grace that we live in, we do not have to worship from a distance, we can come closer. We have been redeemed by the shed blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We have been made free from sin for the purchased price of His shed blood and broken body.
We are empowered because He got up and ascended into heaven. He sent us a helper, a comforter, a mediator whose role is to remind us of the teachings of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit brings all things to our remembrance and then empowers us to act on those things that we remember of Christ. The Holy Spirit testifies of Jesus Christ and is constantly calling us to a place of worship. We must not quench that Spirit but in all things and at all times we must be prepared to bow down at His feet.
The Greek word for worship is Proskuneo; it brings to mind the act of bowing down to a far greater power. It connotes love, admiration and respect. It means to pay homage. One metaphor to consider is that of a dog that sits at his master’s feet and licks them lovingly. Have you paid that kind of homage to the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Have you come close enough to lap at his feet? Are you close enough that you can hear His voice and obey His command? Why are you so far away? Come closer!
Are you worshipping afar off when Jesus was born, bled, died and resurrects so that you may come closer? What is keeping you at that distance? Come closer! God wishes to tell you great and mighty things. He wishes to have an intimate relationship with you. Come closer! He desires to show you His love. Come closer!
He desires to wash your sin away. Come closer!
He desires to instruct you in life. Come closer!
He desires to impact every area of your life. Come closer!
He is interested in everything about you; nothing is unimportant about you. Yes, even that area that just came to your mind. He is interested in your situations, your choices, and the events of your life. Come closer!
Are you still afar off?
You know it is your right to come close. At one time we were separated from God by the sin of Adam. God had a plan to reconcile us back to Himself. That plan was Jesus Christ born, bled, died and resurrected. Sin keeps us afar off but we have been made free from sin. Sin has no dominion over us. Do not allow sin to keep you afar off. Repent. Receive forgiveness. Come closer!
Sin separated us from God but the sacrifice of Jesus built a bridge back. When Jesus died the veil of the temple was rent (torn) from the top to the bottom to demonstrate that the wall has come down. There is no separation between us and God when we accept Jesus’ sacrifice. We can go boldly before the throne of grace and obtain mercy in our time of need. We do not have to worship a far off. We can come closer. Come closer!
What is keeping you away? Fear not! He loves you. There is no rejection to be found in Him. He will rejoice in your return. Come closer!
He is ever present and He is here right now. When you look for Him and seek Him with all your heart, you will find Him. Come closer! James tells us that if we draw near unto Him, then He will draw near unto us. Come closer!
The children of Israel worshipped God from afar off. They had no choice. We have a choice. God is looking for some true worshippers who will worship Him in Spirit and in truth. Are you a true worshipper? Will you live for Him? Will you serve Him? Will you obey Him? Will you allow Him to shape you into the person He created you to be? Will you show others His love? Come closer!
Come so close until you lose your breath in Him. Come so close until you begin to diminish and only Christ remains. Come so close until you are hid in the secret place of the almighty and abide under His shadow. Come close enough to know Him intimately. Come close enough to place your confidence and your hope in Him.
Are you close enough? Then let us worship Him together.
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