The third way the devil tempted the Lord, Jesus Christ was in the following area:
Worship!
Let’s look at how he carried out this temptation:
He showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory…
He said, ‘All these will I give You, if You will fall down and worship me’…
In summary, all that the devil is saying to everyone, Christians inclusive is ‘worship me…’
Who is the object of your worship?
Who is at the central point of your worship life?
In other words, the devil was saying, ‘If You can only worship before me, all these kingdoms and their glory will be handed over to You, on a platter of gold’.
‘But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth’ (John 4:23-24).
The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth…He animates (quickens) you, such that you worship the Father in Spirit and in truth…
Jesus replied him thus, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve’” (Deut. 6:13).
The Holy Spirit reveals the frailty and weakness of the world system and its glory to you. Except it is revealed to you, it’s impossible to reject the ‘glory’ of the world…
But there is a better, greater, far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory which surpasses that of the world (2 Cor. 4:17).
It takes the enabling of the Spirit to yearn for that type of glory, because it can’t be physically seen, it takes the eye of the Spirit to see it…1 Cor. 2:9-16
To worship God is to honour God, it means you hold Him in high esteem, you’re always mindful of God in everything you do.
The three Hebrews (in Daniel 3) valued God above every other thing. They worshipped God and honoured Him greatly, even before King Nebuchadnezzar. The Lord God eventually honoured His Word in their lives.
Honour God! He said ‘those who honour Me, I will honour’… (1 Sam. 2:30).
Don’t be an Esau, who never for once honoured the things of God. He later on pleaded for the blessing, even with tears, but had no room for repentance in his heart…He was a worshipper of self! He delighted greatly in the flesh and the things of the world (Heb. 12:16-17).
Worship the LORD your God, and serve Him only! (Josh. 24:14-15)
Worship comes before service! You can only serve the Lord with purpose and singleness of heart, when you become a true worshipper of God.
You can only become a worshipper of God in spirit and in truth when the Holy Spirit dwells in you! (Rom. 12:1).
