Living a Life of True Worship: A 6-Week, No-Homework Bible Study

OBSERVE

The first place the word worship is mentioned in the English Bible is in Genesis 22. Although the word appears only once in that chapter, you can learn some foundational truths about true worship by studying this passage.

Leader: Read aloud Genesis 22:1-10, which you see printed in the side bar. Have the group say God aloud every time He is mentioned. Also have the group…

draw a triangle around each occurrence of the word (plus all pronouns that refer to Him).

mark the wordworshipwith a W

Worship is the Hebrew word shachah (a as in father and ch as in Christ). It means to prostrate oneself or to bow down. In the Old Testament, it is the common term used for coming before God in worship to honor Him. The English word means to look at someone’s worth-ship. To worship God is to respect and honor Him for who He is.

1 Now it came about after these things, that God tested Abraham, and said to him, Abraham! And he said, Here I am.

2 He said, Take now your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you.

3 So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his don key, and took two of his young men with him and Isaac his son; and he split wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him.

4 On the third day Abraham raised his eyes and saw the place from a distance.

5 Abraham said to his young men, Stay here with the donkey, and I and the lad will go over there; and we will worship and return to you.

6 Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son, and he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So the two of them walked on together.

7 Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, My father! And he said, Here I am, my son. And he said, Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?

8 Abraham said, God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son. So the two of them walked on together.

9 Then they came to the place of which God had told him; and Abraham built the altar there and arranged the wood, and bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood.

10 Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.

OBSERVE

When Abraham was seventy-five years old and childless, God told him that He would make of him a great nation through whom all the nations of the earth would be blessed. Isaac, the son God had promised, was born when Abraham was one hundred years old. It was through Isaac that God would give Abraham a land, a nation, and a seed, which according to Galatians 3:16 would be Jesus Christ.

DISCUSS

What do you learn from marking the references to God?

What did God instruct Abraham to do?

OBSERVE

Leader: Read Genesis 22:1-10 again. Thistime have the group say Abraham’s name aloud and underline it every time you read his name or a pronoun that refers to him.

DISCUSS

Look at the references to Abraham that you marked and discuss what you observe about this man from the text.

What does Abraham do?

How does he respond to God’s command?

What’s his relationship with God? with his son?

Does anything surprise you about what you read?

OBSERVE

Leader: Read aloud Genesis 22:1-10 onceagain. Have the group read aloud with youand mark the phrase burnt offering likethis.

DISCUSS

What do you learn from these verses about the burnt offering and how it relates to the act of worship?

The burnt offering is described in Leviticus 1. A burnt offering was a voluntary offering, an offering by fire that was a soothing aroma to the Lord. The entire sacrifice (except for the skin) was to be placed on the altar. Nothing was to be held back. When the person offering the sacrifice laid his hand on the head of the sacrifice, it was accepted to make atonement on his behalf.

OBSERVE

Leader: Read 22:11-19 aloud and onceagain mark.…

every reference toGod,including any pronouns or synonyms.

every reference tothe angel of the Lordwith a box, like this: Do not bother to mark synonyms or pronouns for the angel of the Lord.

11 But the angel of the LORD called to him from heaven and said, Abraham, Abra ham! And he said, Here I am.

12 He said, "Do not