The Hope of Worship

The Hope of Worship
Words of Faith 11-15-2022
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2022
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL
www.faithfellowshipweb.com
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Exodus 15
[13] "In your unfailing love you will lead the people you have redeemed.
In your strength you will guide them to your holy dwelling.
[14] The nations will hear and tremble; anguish will grip the people of Philistia.
[15] The chiefs of Edom will be terrified, the leaders of Moab will be seized with trembling, the people of Canaan will melt away; [16] terror and dread will fall upon them.
By the power of your arm they will be as still as a stone-- until your people pass by, O Lord, until the people you bought pass by.
[17] You will bring them in and plant them on the mountain of your inheritance-- the place, O Lord, you made for your dwelling, the sanctuary, O Lord, your hands established. [18] The Lord will reign for ever and ever."

In the first worship song of the Hebrew people, we learn a great deal about worship. The HEART of worship is one of joy and wonder before God. The WALK of worship stands in the victory of God even before it can be seen. The FOCUS of worship is God alone and not us. Today we see the HOPE of worship.
The hope of worship is that God will continue to strengthen and preserve us into the future. The Israelites had witnessed the devastating defeat of their enemies. Moses did not so much rejoice in that defeat as simply hope that the Lord would go before them.
Five hopes are expressed in the last part of Moses' song.
-- The Lord, in His unfailing love, will lead the redeemed to His dwelling.
-- Enemies will tremble, be terrified, and melt away.
-- By the power of God's arm, the redeemed of the Lord will pass by.
-- The people of God will be planted in the mountain of inheritance.
-- The Lord will reign forever and ever.
We first notice that the redeemed do not hope for any further pain or destruction on their enemies. This is not the nature of hope found in the Lord. There is nothing vindictive in this worship song. There is nothing vindictive in the hope of worship. But the heart of worship longs for safe passage to the dwelling place of God and His inheritance.
The hope expressed in Christian worship is hope in the Lord. Through Jesus, we have also seen the devastating defeat of our enemies, sin, and death. Our hope is not for the destruction of anyone. Our hope is that by His unfailing love, the Lord will lead us to His dwelling.
Our hope is that the enemies of God's people will tremble and melt away. Our hope is that by the power of God, we will pass by those who would seek to thwart us or destroy us. Our hope is that we will be planted in the mountain of inheritance. Our hope is that the Lord will reign forever and ever. The melody of the Hallelujah Chorus comes to mind here.
The question for us may be, "Am I worshipping with hope?" When I worship am I truly drawn in heart, soul, mind, and strength to actively hope not in the cures and fixes of the day but in the future that God has planned for me?
As believers on this side of the cross, we are absolutely people of hope. We are not to walk in dismay. His victories for us are great, and His plans are even more significant. "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11).

Lord God, I place my hope in You. I focus upon You and Your unfailing love. My hope is that the enemies of God will melt away so that the redeemed may pass by. My hope is that God's people will be planted in the mountain of inheritance and that The Lord will reign forever and ever. In Jesus' name.

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© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2022
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)
2820 Business Center Blvd.
Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2022 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.