10月20日
标 题：预备敬拜
经 节：祂必坐下如炼净银子的，必洁净利未人，熬炼他们像金银一样；他们就凭公义献供物给耶和华。（玛拉基书三章3节）
敬拜的质量不是基于活动的本身，而是基于敬拜者的品格。教会可能误以为：音乐愈好、教会建筑愈宏伟、讲道愈感动人心、敬拜经验愈丰富，就有愈好的敬拜。但事实上，真诚的敬拜是由心灵生出的。如果与神的关系不健康，我们所做的事不过是宗教虚饰的外表。
利未人是当代带领敬拜的领袖，他们的任务是为百姓献上祭品。神过去曾经宣告他们要以公义献祭。祂首先要以祂的火炼净他们，洁净他们的罪污。就算是教会全职事奉人员、负责教会圣工、并且参加敬拜仪式，都不能保证这些宗教的行为能够被神所悦纳。
我们现在的倾向是着重于一些外在的事，来加强我们的敬拜。然而，敬拜真正的质量是基于敬拜的一群人。如果不肯让神先来洁净我们，我们的敬拜不会拥有祂的同在。如果没有一颗清洁的心，我们所献上的奉献不会被神所悦纳。参加宗教性的崇拜，并不能保证我们与神相遇。
如果你不满足敬拜的质量，不要马上责怪环境，要先查看自己的心。允许神炼净你的心，直到讨神的喜悦为止。如此一来，你将能自由地敬拜祂，这是神本来要给予你的。
Prepared for Worship
He will
sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi, And
purge them as gold and silver, That they may offer to the LORD An offering in
righteousness. (Malachi 3:3)
The
quality of our worship is not based on our activities but on our character.
Churches can mistakenly assume that the better the music, the more impressive
the building, and the more eloquent the preaching, the more worshipful the
experience will be. Genuine worship, however, originates from within our
hearts. If our relationship with God is not healthy, all these things are
nothing more than religious pageantry.
The
Levites were the worship leaders of their day. Their task was to offer
sacrifices on behalf of the people. God declared that before they could worship
Him in righteousness, He would first refine them with His refiner’s fire,
purging them of any impurities. Merely being members of the religious
profession, having official responsibilities in the temple, and going through
the rituals of worship, did not guarantee that their religious activities would
be acceptable to holy God.
Today,
we tend to look to external things to enhance our worship. The true quality of
our worship, however, rests within us. If we have not allowed God to purify us
first, our worship will be void of His presence. If we do not have a pure
heart, we may give offerings, but they will be unacceptable to God. Attending a
religious service will not automatically ensure an encounter with God.
If
you are not satisfied with the quality of your worship, don’t be too quick to
blame your environment. Look first to your own heart. Allow God to refine your
heart until it is pleasing to Him, and you will be free to worship God as He
intends.
