Tag: Worshiping Jesus

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Abraham’s Test and Christ’s Fulfillment

Summary of my sermon, based on Genesis 22:1-14. Preached at Greenhills Christian Fellowship York on August 31, 2025.

Music captures attention, sets the tone, stirs the affections, and helps us remember truth. The Psalms repeatedly command it: “Oh sing to the Lord a new song.” Many Sundays we might forget a sermon outline but carry a line of a hymn all week. That’s not an excuse for poor preaching; it’s a reminder of how powerfully God uses singing in worship.

To think more deeply about worship, we turn to the first mention of the word in Scripture: Genesis 22. There we learn, first, that worship is a response. God speaks, and Abraham answers, “Here I am” (Gen 22:1). We don’t initiate worship; God calls, commands, and invites. Romans 12:1 says, “Therefore… present your bodies… this is your spiritual worship.” The “therefore” points back to who God is (Rom 11:33–36). He deserves it.

Second, worship requires preparation. Abraham rose early, saddled the donkey, split the wood, selected companions, and traveled three days (Gen 22:3–4). Leaders prepare setlists and slides; musicians practice for years. But all of us must also prepare our hearts. Life distracts and wounds. That’s why Jesus says, “Come to me… and I will give you rest” (Matt 11:28–30).

Yet here’s the heart of it: Worship is Christ-centered. On the way up Moriah, Abraham told his servants, “I and the boy will go… we will worship, and we will come again” (Gen 22:5). How could he say that when God had commanded him to offer Isaac? Hebrews 11 explains: Abraham considered that God could raise the dead (Heb 11:17–19). And when the knife was raised, God provided a substitute—a ram caught in a thicket (Gen 22:11–13). Moriah points us to Calvary, to the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

Jesus is our Passover Lamb (John 1:29; 1 Cor 5:7). “He was pierced for our transgressions… and by his wounds we are healed” (Isa 53:5). Because he “became obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross,” God “highly exalted him,” so that at the name of Jesus every knee bows and every tongue confesses he is Lord (Phil 2:8–11). We worship Jesus not merely because he inspires us, but because he saved us. The cross is the ground of his unique worthiness and the reason heaven’s song declares, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain” (Rev 5:12).

Left to ourselves, our hearts are “idol factories,” crafting gods in our own image or offering God lip service while our hearts are far away (Matt 15:7–9). The cross changes that. There, Jesus not only purchases our forgiveness; he wins our affection and grants us access. The cross is the objective evidence of God’s love. Whatever burden you carry—grief, doubt, the “dark night of the soul”—hear his invitation: “Come to me… and I will give you rest” (Matt 11:28). Because God’s wrath was poured out on Jesus, there is none left for those in him. So we don’t just admire Christ—we are drawn to adore him. The Spirit takes the finished work of the Son and turns reluctant people into willing worshipers.

Lift your eyes, then, from Moriah to heaven’s throne room: “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain… To him be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!” (Rev 5:11–14). That is where our singing on earth is headed.

In summary: Worship begins as God’s call and our response, deepened by intentional preparation. But it finds its center and power in Christ crucified and risen. We worship because of the cross—Jesus is worthy—and we worship through the cross—Jesus makes us willing and able. Turn your eyes upon Jesus; look full in his wonderful face, and let the things of earth grow strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace.

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The Visitors of Jesus

Summary of my sermon, based on Matthew 2:1-12. Preached at Greenhills Christian Fellowship Toronto on December 15, 2024.

Last week, I had a conversation with a friend of mine who lives in Tokyo but is originally from Vietnam. He was curious about the idea of a pardon, particularly in light of recent news about Joe Biden pardoning his son, Hunter Biden. He asked me if something similar could happen in Canada. I wasn’t sure, so I looked it up and found out that yes, the Governor General can grant pardons in Canada. But rather than getting into the complexities of it, I simply told him, “The King can.”

That really confused him! He wasn’t aware that Canada has a King. So, I explained that King Charles is also the King of Canada, but his role is largely ceremonial. Even when the Governor General grants a pardon, it is merely a rubber stamp on decisions already made by the government. Unlike in the United States, where a presidential pardon is fully within the president’s power, the Canadian monarchy has no real political authority.

This conversation reminded me of how different the world is today compared to most of human history. Kings used to have real power. In Matthew 2, we see a contrast between different kings that teaches us how we should respond to Jesus.

The first king in our passage is Herod the Great. He was king of Judea but not from the line of David. Instead, he was appointed by the Romans, who were the actual rulers. Though he held the title of king, he was a vassal—his power only existed as long as he remained loyal to Rome. When the wise men came searching for “he who has been born king of the Jews” (Matthew 2:2), Herod was troubled, along with the ruling elites of Jerusalem. They knew the prophecy about the Messiah, but instead of rejoicing, they feared the coming of the true King.

The second group in our passage is the wise men, often mistakenly called kings because of the Christmas carol, “We Three Kings.” The Bible never says they were kings, nor does it say there were only three of them—just that they brought three gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. These wise men were likely astrologers from Persia who had studied the Hebrew Scriptures, possibly influenced by Jews who had lived there since the Babylonian captivity. When they saw the star, they understood it as a sign that the promised King had come. Unlike Herod and the Jewish leaders, they sought Jesus to worship Him.

Matthew 2:10-11 tells us their response: “When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh.”

These wise men, who served the powerful kings of Persia, bowed before a baby in a manger. They were the first Gentiles to do what Paul describes in Philippians 2:10-11: “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.”

So, the question remains—how will you respond to Jesus? Will you reject Him like Herod and the Jewish leaders, or will you seek Him, worship Him, and offer your life to Him like the wise men?