Holy God cannot be worshipped apart from the sacrificial death of the Lord Jesus Christ. "God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; Neither is worshiped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things" (Acts 17:24-25). Many who are ignorant of Christ's righteousness and grace, attempt to beautify themselves for God with elegant cathedrals, stained glass windows, and impressive architecture. And while most of us are beyond bowing to a statue made with men's hands, we all by nature seek to approach God by our own good works as if we can actually give Him something. Yet, it is the blessed character of God that "…he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things." God gives us what we need to worship Him; and the believer's conscience testifies that you need the Sacrifice to cover your guilt, appease God's wrath, and establish you as acceptable through the righteous sufferings of the Lord Jesus Christ.
God does not need our works, prayers, or anything else that comes from us to justify us in His sight. His holy character demanded, and His grace provided His Son to be the Sacrifice for the sins of His people. Before the Exodus, Moses and Aaron came to Pharaoh saying, "The God of the Hebrews hath met with us: let us go, we pray thee, three days' journey into the desert, and sacrifice unto the Lord our God; lest he fall upon us with pestilence, or with the sword" (Ex 5:3). Pharaoh demanded the Israelites return to their works and burdens (Ex 5), but having met God, Moses knew that He could only be pacified through the death of Christ. The difference between the saved and the perishing is that the believer comes to God through the life, death, and resurrection of his Substitute while the unbeliever, no matter how sincere in religion, has dared to approach the Consuming Fire with some additional righteousness beyond the blood of Christ. Paul writes, "Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God…" It was the goodness of God to provide His Son as the believer's total acceptance; and, if you continue in His goodness, then you shall be saved (Rom 11:22).
A Sacrifice is also essential in every aspect of our SERVICE unto God. In Ex 7:16, the Lord told Moses, "And thou shalt say unto him, The Lord God of the Hebrews hath sent me unto thee, saying, let my people go, that they may serve me in the wilderness…" What was spoken of as a sacrifice in Ex 5 is now referred to as service. Volumes are written, sermons are preached, and burdens are laid upon the backs of sinners who cannot bear them… all in an attempt to glorify God with human service; but the very notion that God needs something from me is ridiculous and contrary to Scripture (Acts 17). Christ tells us that the only way we can glorify God is by faith. He says, "This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent" (John 6:29). It is by faith in Christ that we honor God's law as so holy, just, and good that only the Son could fulfill its righteous demands (Rom 3:31). Believers delight in God's law because we know its essence is love, but by faith, we testify that only the perfect love of Jesus Christ is worthy of God's acclaim. It is by faith in Christ alone that we're able to praise and thank God for giving us His most beloved Son. My brethren, by faith in Christ we glorify God for who He is; and this is good works. Good works have nothing to do with your will, zeal, or ever giving to Him first. All good works are the fruit of looking to Christ-crucified, and you that love Him and trust Him, do honor Him. You love the brethren and have the fruits of brotherly kindness unto the household of God because you hear and see Christ in the saints (I John 5:1). You've been humbled by His grace, "… worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh" (Phil 3:3). The faith God has given you is true and brings forth fruit evidencing that you're a partaker of eternal life. No, you cannot pay God back for clearing your unfathomable debt, but He is served and honored by your believing His Son.
Finally, shortly before the Exodus, Moses demanded Pharaoh saying, "… We will go with our young and with our old, with our sons and with our daughters, with our flocks and with our herds will we go; for we must hold a feast unto the Lord" (Ex 10:9). The worship of God is rightfully called a feast when the Sacrifice is seen by faith. As believers, we don't need to walk around with sad faces and drooped shoulders trying to mourn enough for our sins. We've been redeemed. The sinner who comes to Christ does not need to loathe and bemoan his sinfulness as a condition preliminary to grace. We cannot mourn enough nor confess enough individual iniquity to please the Father. The law demands infinite satisfaction, and this is why we meet God in Christ and feast upon the Son. Jude calls the gathering of the saints a "feast of love", and Solomon wrote, "A feast is made for laughter…" (Eccl 10:19) Let the seemingly pious but deceitful notions that worshipping God is drudgery depart from your mind. Although sins' presence in the world and our old nature produces thorns, thistles, and causes sweat in our spiritual service, we are not without help from our God. He has not left us to climb one inch or lift one burden in our own strength. The mountain that hinders us is unbelief, and it shall be cast into the depth of the sea by a little faith (Matt 17:20). The preaching of the Gospel is called bringing glad tidings, publishing peace, bringing good tidings of good, publishing salvation, and saying to the church of God, "Thy God reigneth!' (Is 52:7). Moses refused to leave Egypt without his possessions, and the believer shall never be the worse for worshipping God. The dreary burdens of religion are always foolishly self-imposed, and all who come to Christ will find that His yoke is easy and His burden is light. Believing is a feast because we enter His rest. Rest, poor sinner! Stop trying to run your life and have your life run; stop trying to save yourself and be saved; stop working, stop trying to advance yourself in spiritual matters, and humble yourself in subjection to the grace of God in Christ. As a poor sinner, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall find rest for your soul, peace, and laughter. "… the Lord loveth the righteous" (Ps 146:8).
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