Worship Precedes Service — E.A. Johnston

Worship Before Service

Well, it's raining outside to-day, friends, but I trust that in here we will see the Son of Righteousness as He rises and appears to us. I believe, friends, that we often put the cart before the horse in regard to our service to God.

I know a great many in ministry to-day who rush out from one meeting to another, under the burden of a busy ministry, and many are worn out like a dishrag. There is much activity to-day in the name of the Lord, but we lack power from on high, and consequently there is very little transformation in personal lives by the Spirit of the Lord.

Spiritual Power Must Precede Evangelistic Activity

I believe it is because we are spiritually out of order, because we are too quick to go out and evangelize without the tarrying in Jerusalem to receive the anointing from Heaven by God's Spirit, for my Bible declares, It is not by power nor by might, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.

I am afraid in our denominations to-day, friends, we rely too much on money and manpower to get the job done, rather than prayer and holy ghost power. Listen to me, friends. My message to-day is on the devotional life, and it is my prayer that this message will absolutely transform someone's life to-day for God and His Kingdom.

The Martha and Mary Account in Luke 10

The title of my message is, Worship Precedes Service, and my text can be found in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 10. You can turn in your Bibles there now, friends. We will be in verses 38 -42. As we study this well-known passage of scripture, which centers around two sisters, Martha and Mary, allow me to read us this striking passage of God's Word at this time, and it is my prayer, friends, that the Spirit of the Lord will be pleased to attend the reading of His Holy Word.

Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village, and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house. I will pause here, friends. That little home in Bethany was a refuge for our Lord Jesus.

It was a place he felt comfortable in, and he was understood there. He enjoyed himself there, and often retreated to this home of his friends, Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. As a matter of fact, in the Gospel of John, it states,.

Now Jesus loved Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. And it is obvious to me, friends, that Jesus loved to hang out, so to speak, at their home in Bethany, for he felt accepted there, and it was a place he could put his feet up and kick off his sandals and relax.

Making the Home a Place Where Jesus Is Preeminent

Let me ask you, friend, is your home and is your family a place where Jesus feels comfortable? Is he preeminent in your home? If he is not, then your priorities are out of place. Allow me to continue with our text in verse thirty-nine.

Mary at Jesus' Feet: Worship Before Service

And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word. But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone?

Bid her, therefore, that she help me. Let me pause here, friends. Here we have a striking picture of Martha in his face, and Mary at his feet. Busy, bossy Martha ordering Jesus around, and literally in his face, contrasted with quiet, reflective Mary at his feet, hearing his word.

Oh, friends, this is a vivid example of us, says Martha today. Too busy to sit at the Lord's feet and hear him and worship him. Now we see my main point, that worship must precede service. If we are to have any impact on the sinful generation for our Lord, listen to what Jesus says.

And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things, but one thing is needful, and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.

I will stop there. You see, friends, worship precedes service. That is the proper order. When we foolishly try to serve God, whether as a worn-out missionary on a foreign field, or a busy pastor in a busy pastorate rushing from place to place, we fail miserably.

Worship, Sacrifice, and the Priority of Prayer

If there is a hole in our devotional life, worship is the key here. In Matthew's Gospel, we see the great arrogance of Satan as he tempts the Lord Jesus with the words, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.

Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan, for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. Listen to me, brother preacher, and listen to me very carefully.

We are only as tall in the pulpit as we are long on our knees. Worship precedes service. Our daily devotional life must have a first priority, and a sacrifice attending it, for God delights in sacrifice for.

He sacrificed his only beloved son on a bloody cross for a sinful man, and the sacrifice of Christ's blood was all over that bloody cross. Jesus himself, Mark's Gospel relates, would rise a great while before day to pray.

The Devotional Life of the Pastor and the Church

My late homiletical mentor, Dr. Stephen Olford, impacted my life more than any man, I suppose. It was he who taught me how to have a daily devotional time, and Dr. Olford told me that, in counseling thousands of pastors through the years, he discovered that the average pastor only spent ten minutes a day in prayer.

This explains our spiritually impoverished pulpits throughout this land. Listen, dear friends, always arrange your life in the proper order. Worship precedes service, and it is a prayer. Mary knew the one thing needful.

She sat at his feet and heard his word, with a heart overflowing with worship, much like the fragrance of the oil which she poured out upon him from the broken alabaster box. Let me ask you, friend, is your devotional life like that broken alabaster box?

A Renewed Call to Prayer and Transformation

Is there a sweet fragrance of your prayer time that ascends up to heaven's throne room, to God? Do your desperate and burdened prayers move the Almighty? Do your labored intercessions for this sin-soaked nation stir heaven's portals with a holy violence that take it by faith and force?

Does your daily devotional life make your home a Bethany, where Jesus is comfortable there and preeminent there within the life of your family? Oh, friends, if not, how we must go to our knees and confess our lack.

Oh, one thing is needful, and that is the presence of our Savior and Lord. I want to give you, friend, time right now, right now, to go to God in prayer and ask him to burden you with a deeper devotional life.

And I'm going to ask you right now if there is someone here today upon whom the Holy Spirit has brought conviction to get up from your seat and get on your face before God at this moment and confess your lack and beg him for a transformation of your life and ministry for him in your daily devotional life to him.

Go to God now, friend. Go to your God and ask him for a fresh touch on your life to better worship and serve him. I promise you, friend, that if you are serious in this desire of your heart and you ask God to change you in this area of your life, you will never be the same.

But remember this, what counts costs, and what costs counts. Let us pray.