^{PS 15:1} LORD, who may dwell in your sanctuary? Who may live on your holy hill? These are the questions that we are going to investigate over these next few weeks. The common trap in our land is that we are so blessed that we don't truly stop and thank God for the blessings we enjoy. Affluence leads to apathy. As a result, American believers tend to treat Sunday worship like another task that needs to be successfully marked off the to do list. God is far more than a common task that needs to be completed. He is our Creator, Sustainer and Savior. He deserves our full attention. Worship should start before the worship hour. We should prepare our hearts and minds for an encounter with the Lord. If we seek the Lord individually, we set the stage to encounter Him while in corporate worship. So, what goes into this preparation? Psalm 15 contains a listing of specific standards that make up the preparation that God desires. The standard we are going to look at today is second on the list shared by the Psalmist: ^{Psalm 15:2b} ...and who does what is righteous...

The verb in this phrase is not passive but active. Whereas, it is true that God did all that was required for salvation at the cross, that does not mean that mankind does not have a part to play in the grand performance known as worship. By the way, the audience is not the congregation or the ministers, but the Lord. He is the one who watches. He is the one who is either pleased or appalled at our display. Too often those who sit in the congregation appear to be there waiting to be entertained; yet, the purpose of genuine worship is not to impress the worshipers. Rather it is meant to serve as an opportunity for the family of God to pour out their hearts in praise and gratitude to the Lamb of God. This is not a passive act. God expects every one of His children to consciously and voluntarily decide to worship Him!

First, this begins with deciding to place our full confidence and trust in the saving work of Jesus Christ at the cross. When we catch a glimpse of the awesome unconditional love of God manifested to us at the cross, there is no way that we can walk away from Jesus. When the glory of Jesus shines upon our sin sick lives there is no denying that we need a Savior. Thus, worship starts at the cross and quickly moves us to the resurrection. Life is preceded by death. The smell of death preceded the empty tomb. The smell of spiritual death once emitted from our sin soaked lives, but the power of the resurrected Christ changed our stench to the aroma of the Savior.

Worship has its beginning in recognizing Jesus and what He did at the cross, but it does not end with that acknowledgment. Once Jesus comes to live in us, He cannot help but live through us. The story is told of a little boy who went to church and listened carefully to the pastor's sermon. When church was over the little boy was puzzled. As he left with his parents, he saw the pastor across the parking lot. He ran over, calling, "Pastor, may I ask you a question about your sermon this morning?" When the pastor readily assented, the little boy said, "You said Jesus is a Man." The pastor confirmed: "That's right." Then the little boy said, "But I am just a little boy." The pastor looked amused but kept a serious _expression on his face as he replied, "That's right." Then the little boy said earnestly, "But you said if I asked Him to, Jesus would come live inside of me." Again, the pastor nodded affirmatively, "that's right." "But, pastor," the boy said in exasperation as though he was pointing something out to a child, "if Jesus comes to live inside of me, He will be sticking out all over!" To which the pastor firmly responded, "that's right!" When Jesus Christ is enthroned as Lord, His power, Person, and presence should be sticking out all over you and me.

Let me share one final thought. Worship is not confined to one hour on Sunday morning. We prepare our hearts to worship with others in God's family by worshiping the Lord before we gather with them. Worship is given to the Lord when we choose to do what is right. In other words, when we obey the prompting of God's Spirit and carry out that prompting through the Holy Spirit's enablement, we give the Lord an opportunity to applaud. He loves to see His children live in the power provided through His Son! We discover the Spirit's promptings as we read and apply the scripture daily. We discover the Spirit's promptings as we serve others in the name of Jesus Christ. We discover the Spirit's promptings as we bow our hearts before the King of Glory and say, "Speak, for your servant is listening" (1 Samuel 3:10).