Ezra 6 - The Heart of Worship

Ezra 6:16, 22 (ESV)

And the people of Israel, the priests and the Levites, and the rest of the returned exiles, celebrated the dedication of this house of God with joy.

And they kept the Feast of Unleavened Bread seven days with joy, for the LORD had made them joyful and had turned the heart of the king of Assyria to them, so that he aided them in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel.

Selflessness and service are foundational truths to experiencing God’s joy. True worship of a worthy God is also a source of joy. Corporate worship takes our eyes off ourselves and centers them on God and his greatness. Too often we have defined “good worship” as worship that makes us feel good, but good worship is worship that honors God. Worship means to bow the knee before the Almighty. I means to leave self at the altar and fall on our faces before the unapproachable God, only to be invited to stand and “with confidence draw near to the throne of grace” (Heb 4:16). Hebrews 10:22 tells invites us to “draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith.” But how does one get a true heart? The verse goes on to remind us that by faith our hearts have been “sprinkled clean.” Pure hearts are found in the grace of God. That grace leads believers to worship in grateful joy. That was the experience of the people of God in Ezra 6.

Matt Redman’s hymn The Heart of Worship speaks of this kind of worship. His second verse goes like this:

King of endless worth
No one could express
How much You deserve
Though I'm weak and poor
All I have is Yours
Every single breath

It is in corporate worship that begins with an attitude expressed by Redman’s hymn that we find great joy. Let us get back to the heart of worship, Self-seeking worship will only find disappointment for that is not worship at all. It is in worship from a true heart focused on the grace of God that we find great joy.