Malachi 1 6 8 12 14 Bringing Our

Malachi 1: 6 -8, 12 -14 Bringing Our Best To Worship

Bringing Our Best To Worship • People under the Law of Moses were commanded to bring to the Lord their best • God told Israel to wash their clothes in preparation for Lord’s approach to the mountain – Exodus 19: 10, 11 • God demanded the BEST sacrifices and offerings

Bringing Our Best To Worship • God established His standard – Leviticus 22: 17 -22 • We can see from Malachi God’s attitude towards sacrifice and offerings that were not according to His standard – Malachi 1: 6 -8 • God demanded the best attitude of humility, worship, and love from the heart of every Israelite. • Israel was to Love the Lord God – Deuteronomy 6: 4, 5 • God desired sacrifices of the heart – Psalm 51: 16, 17 • God desired a heart of humility – 2 Kings 22: 19; Isaiah 57: 15

When We Come Together To Worship The Lord, We Must Remember To Bring Him Our Best • Our Best Attitude – And it will yield: – Best Submission – James 4: 7 – Have the attitude of Jesus – Matthew 26: 39 • Our Best Love – Mark 12: 29, 30 • Best Service – Luke 4: 8 – Presenting our bodies in service – Romans 12: 1, 2

When We Come Together To Worship The Lord, We Must Remember To Bring Him Our Best • Best Loyalty – Matthew 6: 33 – Cannot have divided loyalty – Matthew 6: 24; Joshua 24: 15 • Best Repentance – – Consider David – Psalm 51: 17 – Turning from sin is repentance – Acts 3: 26 – Must not “look back” – Ephesians 4: 20 -24 • Best Attitude Towards Truth – 1 Corinthians 1: 17, 18, 21 -25; John 4: 24

When We Come Together To Worship The Lord, We Must Remember To Bring Him Our Best • Best Attention – Make melody in our hearts – Ephesians 5: 19; Colossians 3: 16 – Understand purpose and meaning of the Lord’s Supper – 1 Corinthians 11: 26 -29 – During all prayers, we are all to be praying – We are to be listening when the word of God is being spoken – Scripture reading – Sermons – 2 Timothy 4: 1, 2, 13

When We Come Together To Worship The Lord, We Must Remember To Bring Him Our Best • Our Best Praises- sincere, coming from our heart and mind – we praise God because He is worthy of our praise and worship • Our Best Understanding – Colossians 1: 9 – 1 Corinthians 14: 20 • Our Best Attire – certain attire would be considered inappropriate for certain occasions – IF you attend a wedding, out of respect for the couple, you would dress nicely or in your best- Matthew 22: 11 -14 – IF you were invited to a formal dinner you would dress for the formal occasion, showing respect

When We Come Together To Worship The Lord, We Must Remember To Bring Him Our Best • Our Best Attire – certain attire would be considered inappropriate for certain occasions – When children participate in some type of performance, their teachers expect them to dress for the occasion – When you go to work, you wear clothes appropriate for the workplace. • What about the assemblies for worship would suggest that it is an informal & casual occasion? • Can you identify that one trait of our assemblies for worship that makes it less important than a funeral, a wedding or a formal dinner?

When We Come Together To Worship The Lord, We Must Remember To Bring Him Our Best • Can we truly say that worshiping God is an informal event or occasion? • The very nature of worshiping the Almighty Father demands from us our extreme honor, adoration, respect and reverence • Since outward actions reflect our hearts, can we say that a casual approach to our worship reflects a heart that is casual about the worship? • If God & His worship is not worthy of our respect, then how can any occasion be worthy of our respect?

When We Come Together To Worship The Lord, We Must Remember To Bring Him Our Best • Does the New Testament specifically address our apparel when we worship God? • There is not a passage that directly instructs the saints regarding their apparel during assemblies for worship. • Since this is the case, how can we properly decide what to wear? • We are discussing bringing our best worship, beginning with our best attitude, bringing our best to worship would be an excellent guide for what we wear to the assemblies for worship

When We Come Together To Worship The Lord, We Must Remember To Bring Him Our Best • Every culture is different and every country has its variations of economic and social standards • Your “best” garments may not fit the standards of one who is wealthy or from another country. • However, if your “best” is all you can afford, then truly it is your “best. ” • While God may not look upon our apparel, He does look upon our heart. • Bringing the Lord our best should apply to all areas of our worship.

In This Study We Have Shown That: • Worshiping God in an acceptable fashion requires our best. • We are to bring to God our best praise and adoration, which begins within our hearts and minds • We are to bring to God our best worship, worship that comes from the heart and is in all ways an expression of our faith, love, adoration, respect, devotion and thankfulness

In This Study We Have Shown That: • We are to bring our best to the assemblies for worship, bringing to Him our best attitude, our best attention, our best praises, our best understanding, and our best attire • Let us all strive to bring our best to the Lord when we come together to worship Him • IF you have viewed the assemblies for worship as some casual, social event that you do when you have time, I hope that you have been given something to consider.