Daddy's Daughter: Insights on My Dad's Sermon

Why do you go to church? Dad opened yesterday's sermon with. It may be because you've always gone to church. Maybe it's because your parents go to church. Or maybe it's because you just feel guilty. But in the text, Psalm 29, we discovered that all those reasons are wrong. There's only one pure, Biblical reason for going to church, and it's to worship Christ. But what do we mean by worship?

Dad's sermon-in-a-sentence was: Worship is not an option; it's defined by God, it's directed by God, and it's demanded by God.

1. Worship defined. True worship, as found in Psalm 29:1-2, is giving glory to God. This is often misunderstood. Our giving glory to God is not an act of us giving God something that He needs. Nor is it us giving God something we have that He doesn't. Our giving glory to God is entirely because He deserves it. We give glory to God (i.e. worship Him) because He is worthy to be worshipped.
2. Worship directed. What this means is that true, Biblical worship is directed by God (Psalm 29:3-8). He is the motivation and the means by which our worship comes, and He is, of course, the object of our worship.
3. Worship demanded. As we learn in Psalm 29:9-11, God demands our worship. There is no way to get around it. We will either bow the knee now, or we will bow the knee the moment after we die. God will be worshipped. He will be worshipped through His mercy in granting some salvation, and He will be worshipped through His judgement on those who rejected Him. 

So why do you go to church?