Coming Before God

Imagine being invited to meet the president of the United States. You win an essay contest, and the grand prize is a trip to Washington, D.C. You are excited, but nervous at the same time. You wonder what clothes you should wear, what time you should arrive, what you should call the president—"Mr. President" or "President, Sir." You also wonder what to say and how to say it. You are thinking that you need to be on your best behavior.

Now let's change the scene. Suppose you get to be in the presence of the God of the Universe Who is much more important than the president. What do you wear? What do you say? How should you act? The truth is, this is not an imaginary scenario. God designed a way for humans to come before His throne. It is called worship. When we worship God, we are singing and praying to God, Who hears us. Even though we cannot physically see God, we are still in His presence spiritually.

So, how should we act when we go to worship? First, we should prepare our minds before we get there. Worship is a spiritual event, which means that it is done with our spirits or minds. We must try to stop thinking about ordinary things like video games, sports, or school, and focus on important, spiritual things like Jesus, God, and the Bible.

Second, during worship we should always be respectful. It is a shame to misbehave when the Bible is being read, during the singing of a song of praise to God, or during the Lord's Supper. We would not even think about misbehaving in the presence of the president, yet some young people talk, giggle, and misbehave in the presence of God. We should always be respectful, and remember that we are worshiping before God's throne.

In the book of Leviticus, two men were severely punished because they worshiped God incorrectly. To explain why He did this, God said: "By those who come near Me I must be regarded as holy; and before all the people I must be glorified" (Leviticus 10:3). When we worship God, we must remember that we have come into the presence of the Ruler of the Universe.

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