Video #23 - Are You Staying Clear or Drawing Near?

Any and every time you worship, your purpose should be to draw near to God.  The intention of worship isn’t for you to “get” something out of it, rather - to come boldly before God’s throne to give of yourself and all that you are to the One who gave it all for you.  You should be able to say along with David, “for me it is good to be near God” (Psa. 73:28).

God’s Word encourages us to “with confidence draw near to the throne of grace” (Heb. 4:16).  In fact, we are given the promise that when we draw near to God, He will draw near to us (Jas. 4:8).  This is what worship is all about – glorifying Him “in the splendor of (His) holiness” (Psa. 29:2).  But listen to me carefully here:   That will happen ONLY as we seek first His kingdom and righteousness in every aspect of our life (Matt. 6:33).

However, God also made it abundantly clear that “no one who has a blemish shall draw near” (Lev. 21:18).  In other words, when I hold on to sin in my heart, when I refuse to confess my sin and forsake it ... drawing near to God means nothing – my praise and my worship is worthless before God (Psa. 66:18 cp. Prov. 28:9).  We must first cleanse our spiritual hands and purify our ungodly hearts (Jas. 4:8).  Otherwise, we are just people who pretend to draw near to God on the outside, while on the inside our hearts are far from Him.

If “the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart” are going to “be acceptable in (God’s) sight” (Psa. 19:14), then I must begin by humbly crying out: “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me” (Psa. 51:10)!

What is the condition of your heart right now?  Do you have unconfessed sin?  Have you been sexually impure with your mind?  Have you done things that were even slightly sexually improper having even a hint of sexual impurity (Eph. 5:3)?  Drawing near to God always requires us to “draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean” (Heb. 10:22 cp. 2 Tim. 2:21).

So again, I ask, - recognizing that every day is a day to worship God - as you worship God today, are you simply drawing near with your mouth and honoring Him with your lips, yet your heart is not right with God?  Or are you coming into His presence with humility, confession, repentance, and genuine praise?

Don’t be like the men described in Ezekiel 33, men who “come to (God), as they usually do, and sit before (God) to listen to (His) words, but they do not put them into practice.  With their mouths they express devotion, but their hearts are greedy for unjust gain.  Indeed, to them (God is) nothing more than one who sings love songs with a beautiful voice and plays an instrument well, for they hear (God’s) words but do not put them into practice” (Ezek 33:31-32 NIV 1984).

Guys - don’t let this day go by - don’t let this moment go by - without examining your heart before God, confessing your sin, claiming HIS power and HIS victory over that sin ... and then step boldly into His throne room with confidence as you worship your Heavenly Father - the Almighty God of the Universe!

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About Steve Etner
Steve Etner is a National Men’s Speaker, Author and Purity Coach (www.thepuritycoach.com). He has authored many books, including “Extreme Mind Makeover: How to Transform Sinful Habits into God-Pleasing Patterns of Life”; “The Pure Man’s Devotional Guide: A Biblical Toolbox for Purity”; and “Are You A Super Man? Becoming God’s Man of Steel.” 

Steve’s conferences, seminars and retreats focus on what God has to say about the way we think and the impact it has on our behavior. By teaching men how to live in moral purity by equipping them with Biblical answers, Steve’s goal is for men to have a re-ignited passion for Jesus and learn how to prepare their minds to successfully overcome their temptations and thus live pure lives for Christ.