The Posture of Worship

The Posture of worship 2025

• Our working definition of worship from last week was: Worship is response to God with our whole body as an act of spiritual sacrifice.
• Matt 14: 33 It says they worshipped Him.
• What do you think happened here?
  • Someone in the back of the boat had a guitar and they broke it and they all sang Shout to the Lord?
    • There is no mention of singing here. There is no mention of a guitar either.
  • Rather the Greek word translated here as worshipped means: to fall down, to kneel, to bow down, fall at the feet of another, to prostrate oneself.
  • To prostrate oneself is the most common usage and meaning in Greek.
• Matt 28:9 It’s the same word as the last verse, to bow down, to fall down etc.
  • To add some emphasis here, it says they clasped His feet
  • A real picture of being low before Jesus at His feet.
  • Again, no mention of music or singing, just bowing down as worship.
• Matt 28:17 This is at the very end right before Jesus is taken up to heaven.
  • But it’s the same word, to bow down.
  • There is contrast here between those bowing down, and those doubting.
• Luke 24:52 It’s the same word to bow down.
• John 9:38 This is after Jesus heals a man born blind and the man comes back to Jesus to worship Him.
  • It’s the same word, to bow down
• Rev 5:14 John is seeing a vision of what Heaven is like, and they are bowing down.
  • It’s the same word. Even in heaven they are bowing down in worship.
  • Added emphasis here with “they fell down and bowed down.”
• Rev 7:11 It’s the same word.
• Both of these passages in Rev it says worshipped and it says fell down. Driving home the point.

John 12:3 She is low before Jesus, bowed down to be at His feet. Physical act one, posture

• Then pours out very expensive perfume. Physical act two, cost
• Then she dried his feet with her hair. Physical act three, intimacy.
• 2 Samuel 6:14 David is dancing before the Lord with all his might, in his underwear.
  • The Hebrew word translated here as might could also be seen as strength.
  • David was worshiping with all of his Strength.
  • This was a pure expression of David’s joy over the ark of God returning to Jerusalem.
• 2 Samuel 6:16 Michal is of course one of David’s wives, born of noble birth.
  • But she begins to despise her husband, because of how he worshiped with physical expression.
• 2 Samuel 6:20 David returns home to bless his household.
  • But his wife comes out and begins to nag and belittle him, insult him.
    • Calling him a commoner, any vulgar fellow.
      • Do you see how social status suddenly became an issue?
    • She was more concerned with what others would think. “These slave girls.”
  • Verse 22Because of his joy before the Lord, he will become even more undignified than this.

Verse 23 The scene started by saying that David came to bless his family.

• But it ends by saying that Michal, his wife, had no blessing

Nehemiah 8:6 This scene takes place right after the book of God’s Word is found and read again publicly for the first time in a long time.

• After hearing the word of the Lord, they fall into worship.
  • First, they lifted their hands.
  • Second, then they bowed down with their face to the ground.
  • Just because they heard the word of God. No song or music!!

Psalm 141:2 David asks that the spiritual act of prayer be like the physical act of burning incense.

• Then that the lifting of his hands be like the evening sacrifice.

Why does physical posture in matter? Why is it important?

• God created us with two natures, a physical nature, and a spiritual nature.
• Both natures must respond to God for our worship to be complete.
• So posture then is how our physical nature engages in worship.