“I want you to know how much I am struggling for you and for those at Laodicea, and for all who have not met me personally. My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”
Paul wants his readers to be encouraged in their hearts and united in love. Those are emotional parts of our being. When we worship God, we do worship Him in spirit and in truth. Many Christians are afraid of emotions. They are afraid of expressing their love or praise to God from their hearts lest they be looked upon in our evangelical culture as out of control.
worship can also be a doctrinal thing. We are not what people call a charismatic church nor are we a liturgical church where every prayer and all responses are carefully scripted before any service begins.
If you are sincere in confession of your sins, God is faithful and will forgive you. That is a faith based on fact, not feeling. If you put your trust in Jesus Christ to save you that is fact of Scripture, not feeling.
When Peter was on the Mount of Transfiguration, who wouldn't have enjoyed that experience of special revelation seeing Elijah and Moses and Jesus? Peter wanted to stay there all the time, but notice what Peter said in 2 Peter 1:19-21. He spoke of something being made “more sure”. What could be surer than something he had witnessed in person? Yet Peter said, “so we are even more confident of the message proclaimed by the prophets.” In others words, Peter was saying there is something even more trustworthy than what he saw and heard himself-namely the words written by men who were guided by the Holy Spirit of God. Then he says the Bible is not a matter of private interpretation. It is not a matter of human will. It is God breathed as men recorded it.
Apparently in Colossians some people had experiences of worshiping angels. Maybe someone met an angel and that experience caused everyone to want to experience angels. We see crowds running all over to see a vision of the Madonna. People going to the other side of the globe to some water or some miracle rock or some woman who saw a vision. Books are sold by people claiming to die, go to heaven, and returning, written to explain further insight into heaven and what it is like. Their faith is in the experience, and not in facts of what Jesus Christ did and believing in Him. Emotional experiences can actually divert one away from Christ, the rightful "Head of the body" – (Col 2:19). The apostles saw it as wrong to be worshiped and so did the angels. Only God is to be worshiped. Only God is to be prayed to, not saints or angels.
Application: When you hear people talking of their personal experiences always check out what the Bible says and put your faith and trust in that.
Gracious God, Heavenly Father. It is You I worship. As I worship You, Lord, I am filled with much emotion and many times driven to my knees as I behold You in Your Word.
************************
If you wish to get the fuller version of this daily devotion, send a request via email to pastordale@outlook.com
