The Motivation of Worship – Part 1

Dr. Charles Stanley explores the central motivation of genuine worship, asserting that many Christians miss the profound fullness of their faith by focusing only on God’s gifts rather than who He is. True, authentic worship flows from an occupation with the Person of Jesus Christ, who is the flawless image of the invisible God and the sovereign head of all creation.

Stanley aims to remove non-essentials and shift the focus to Christ’s unmatched glory and redemptive love.

I. The True Motivation of Worship: Who Jesus Is

For worship to be genuine, it must move beyond simply acknowledging Christ as Savior to being occupied with His essential nature.

A. Jesus: The Flawless Image of God: Jesus Christ is the “image of the invisible God”. He is God incarnate in the flesh, the perfect and flawless likeness of God. Meeting Jesus is meeting God.

• The Trinity in Unity: Jesus stated, “He that has seen me hath seen the father I and the father are one”.
• The Shekinah Glory: Christ is seated in the glory that is “indescribable”.
• Reflecting the Image: Every single person who is a child of God is a “marred image” of the likeness of Christ, who is the full and perfect image of God. God’s goal for every believer is to form, sculpt, and prune them so that they become the “walking likeness of Christ himself”.

B. Christ’s Preeminence and Sovereignty: True worship recognizes Christ’s absolute sovereignty and preeminence.

• First in Rank: Jesus is the “firstborn of all creation,” speaking not in time but in rank and priority. He is Lord; He is sovereign; He is “first and foremost and above all”.
• Head of the Church: Christ is the “head of the body the church,” which is not just an organization but an “organism permeated and saturated with resurrection life”. Believers belong to His family and are connected by the common bond of the Person of Jesus Christ.
• Final Authority: Worship requires acknowledging that Jesus Christ has “first place in everything”—the preeminence, the final say-so, and the last word in your life.

II. Christ as Creator and Sustainer: The Source of All Reality

To truly worship, one must grasp Christ’s role in creation, which demonstrates His infinite power and worth.

• Creation Out of Nothing: By Him, “all things were created”—in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible. He called everything into being “out of nothing” simply by speaking, such as when “God said let there be light”.
• The Sustainer of All: Christ did not just create everything; He is the one who is “holding it all together”. When believers become occupied with Him, the “shattered scattered fragmented emotional or spiritual feeling” that often harasses them ceases.
• The Superglue: Jesus is the “superglue in your life that holds everything of value together”. He makes us whole and complete.