The love and mercy,
that was shown,
when Christ our God,
left His thrown.
For me to come,
donned in flesh,
that I through Him,
‘scape second death.
Worship the babe,
praise the King,
now through eternity,
forever I sing!
The love and mercy,
that was shown,
when Christ our God,
left His thrown.
For me to come,
donned in flesh,
that I through Him,
‘scape second death.
Worship the babe,
praise the King,
now through eternity,
forever I sing!
Oh come, let us worship and bow down; Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker. For He is our God, And we are the people of His pasture, And the sheep of His hand.
~ Psalm 95:6-7
[They] honor Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me.
~ Matthew 15:8a (NKJV)
The Christian faith is first and foremost a matter of the heart. If one thinks living for Christ is simply, or primarily, going through a set of religious rites and rituals, they have missed the point entirely. Sadly, we can convince ourselves otherwise. Many do practically, though maybe unintentionally, honor Jesus with their lips while their hearts are far from Him.
The Lord made this clear even under the Old Covenant with Israel. He desires our heart. Though true believers in the Lord Jesus should honor Him with their lips, it should be from a heart that is drawn near to Him. It isn’t either or, it’s both. May we not depend on our outward conformity as the basis for our experience with God, rather may we be inwardly convicted and surrender our whole hearts unto Him honoring the Lord heart, mind and soul.