Teach Me How to Worship - Ps. Samuel Deuth

Uh, 2 Kings 17, it's kind of an interesting, it's an interesting passage because a, a not, not a godly king, but this sort of foreign, uh, the Assyrians have taken over and they're kind of establishing rulership on different areas.

And it's interesting, it says this in 2 Kings 17:24, "The king of Assyria brought the people from Babylon," right, "and they, they settled them in their towns in Samaria to replace the Israelites.

They took over Samaria and lived in its towns." So they're taking over kinda God's area.

"When they first lived there, they did not worship the Lord, so he sent lions among them." Some really interesting passage.

I'm not even gonna attempt initially to, like, un- fully unpack or understand all of the nuance of this.

It's just a wild passage.

So he sends lions among them, and they killed some of them.

It was reported to the king of Assyria, "The people you deported and resettled in the towns of Samaria do not know what the god of that country requires.

He sent lions among them which are killing them off because the people do not know what he requires." Then the king of Assyria gave this order: "Have one of the priests you took captive go back to live there and teach the people what the god of the land requires." So one of the priests who had been exiled from Samaria came to live in Bethel and taught them how to worship the Lord.

As I was reading this, it just stuck out to me so interestingly that, that i- in, I mean, it's, it's a wild sort of concept and passage.

Even this pagan king understood authority and geography and sort of spiritual dynamics of authorities and prince of powers, of heirs and regents.

A- and he understood that, hey, listen, something's off because the God of that land is not being worshiped correctly, and someone's gotta teach them how to worship.

So it's a, it's an interesting kind of unpacking, but it kinda reminds us that when you and me come to God, when you and me begin to bring our worship to God, there's actually an acceptable way to worship.

There's actually acceptable worship, and then there's not acceptable worship.

I thank, I'm thankful in this new dispensation, I don't think God's gonna send any lions through this audience, so, so we're good on that.

But, um, but there i- there is a reality of it, and all throughout the scripture you see this different interactions of people bringing worship to God, and God either receiving it or God rejecting it, right? Cain and Abel, of course, that first offering, that first worship, one was acceptable, one wasn't.

All throughout scripture you see these different moments and when worship would come and, and sometimes it would be described as this sweet aroma that was ascending to heaven, right? Uh, when, when, when a really great meal is being made.

You know, we were, uh, my wife and I were grilling up some veggies and chicken on the grill, and it just was, oh, it was a sweet aroma.

You know what I'm saying? This, that burnt offering, come on, somebody.

[laughs] Just rising up.

But it's, there, there's something about that your worship, uh, ha- has a, has a fragrance to it.

Your worship has something that kinda goes up to heaven, and there's an acceptable worship.

There's an acceptable way that our Heavenly Father...

So that's why the king goes, "Hey, listen, someone needs to teach these people how to worship God." Yeah.

Okay? They, they, he's, th- he's not being worshiped and honored in the correct way.