Tonight, we kicked things off with a game called “Who am I?” Each student was given a slip of paper with a different identity and told to keep it hidden. We got in a big circle, and each student took turns acting out who they were. The trick was they could not say precisely who they were. So, if they were a fireman, they couldn’t say, “I’m Fireman Joe?” they had to act like the person. We all then had to guess who they were. Some of the identities were things like a fireman, astronaut, and a Pokemon Trainer. Then, some identities were also some of the pastoral staff here at THP. Some of it got really silly.

The Lesson

Ask: Why did you do some of the things you did to tell us who you were?

In Christianity, there’s a lot of things we sometimes just take for granted. We assume people know how to do certain things as Christians. One of those things is worship. Some of you have learned to worship by watching others, but the question needs to be asked, do you know what worship is or why we do it?

Ask: What does the word “Worship” mean?

When we use the word “Worship,” we don’t realize that several words come together throughout the scriptures to form our understanding of the act of worship.  Let’s look at a few of these words:

OT words translated as worship

• 7812 – Shachah – To bow down – paid homage
• 5647 – Abad – become slaves – observe – serve
• 4931 – Mishmereth – a guard – duty – function
• 5457 – Segid – to do homage

NT words translated as worship

• 4352 – Proskueno – to kiss the ground when prostrating before a superior
• 4576 – Sebo – To personally esteem; to hold something (someone) in high respect
• 2151 – Eusebeo – Pay homage – to revere
• 2999 – Latreia – render sacred service
• 3000 – Latreuo – Someone hired to accomplish a technical task because they are qualified

All of these words seem focused on the action of bowing down, giving respect, and serving. In the Old Testament, worship was centered around God’s people going to the temple or an altar and offering sacrifices and other things before the Lord. In the New Testament, however, Jesus makes it clear that this would be different under the new covenant. In John 4, Jesus is talking with the woman at the well, and she asks about where she’s supposed to worship God because different cultural rules said different things. Let’s see what Jesus says:

Read: John 4:21-24

Ask: Looking at Jesus’ words, what does this mean worship will be like for those who serve Jesus?

Here, Jesus is saying that worship will no longer be about you going to a specific place to offer sacrifices to God; rather, it’s bigger than that. In Romans 12:1, Paul says that our “spiritual worship” or the way to “truly {the way to} worship Him [God]” is to give our very bodies to God, meaning our actions and words are something that should reflect our devotion to God. This would suggest that Worship is not now just about singing and lifting our hands (though we will talk about that later), but rather it is a lifestyle we live. This is why, here at THP, we define worship as “living a life fully surrendered to Jesus.”

We will discuss the “how” of worship later, but today, we will focus more on the “WHY.” There’s several reasons why God is worthy of worship, but today we will cover some basics

For starters, we do it because we understand that God is our creator

In Colossians Paul is correcting some false teachings that were entering the church. Those teachings seemed to lower the importance of Jesus and maybe even introduced the a form of the idea that “all roads lead to god.”  Amid this we see this verse about what the one true God has done:

Read: Colossians 1:16-17

This verse shows that God created everything, including what we see and don’t see. He also holds it all together. In Job 12:10, we read that the very life of everything is in God’s hands. The very fact that you are breathing is because God allowed it.

Second, he knows us personally.

Read: Psalm 139:13-14

Not only did God personally create every one of us, but he also created us with a purpose.

Read: Ephesians 2:10

Finally, one of the big reasons

Read: John 3:16-17

God is worthy of Worship, of ultimate worship, because He loves us so much that he created the way for us to be saved truly. To know Him as our heavenly Father so that we don’t have to spend an eternity in hell in torment.  See, God did create everything, and he does know you personally. He knew that mankind would rebel against his law, but he didn’t want people to go to hell. Thus, he provided his son Jesus. No, there is no other way to heaven except through Jesus. Salvation is a free gift to us all if we are willing to accept it honestly. If we are willing to repent and truly follow Christ,

This is why we worship.

To close up our time, we each found a space in the room for reflection and prayer. We each saught the Lord, thanked Him, and worshiped Him through prayer. Then, at the end, we gathered to pray over each other.

Parent Questions

How do you think you can live a life of worship at home or school this week?
(Encourage your student to think of specific ways they can apply the idea of worship as a lifestyle in their everyday activities.)

Is there an area in your life where you feel God is calling you to surrender more to Him? How can I help you with that?
(Give your students time to think on this, maybe even a few days. I recommend being vulnerable with them and sharing where you can personally grow.)

How can we, as a family, worship God together this week?
(Really encourage your student to think through this idea of family involvement in worship; this will help the student see that worship is not just individual but can also be communal.)