Divine Currency

John 5:41 I do not receive Glory from People

Just for fun, a friend of mine will hand a cashier a foreign currency from his travels with a stright face when they tell him his total bill. Teenage cashiers looking at a Honduran Limpera, and trying to figure out a cordial way to communicate their thoughts of "what is this nut thinking?", always provides some awkward tension. That tension is relieved when the cashier says, "um, we don't accept this, sir", and my friend greets them with a tender smile and laughs. It can spring forth a conversation about Honduras, Faith, travels, or other things, but usually brings smiles from both sides as the daily monotany is broken with a little levity.

Jesus says in John 5 above, that he does not accept any "currency" that is not originally from God when it comes to worship. Rather it be in prayer, mission, singing or any other effort, He can not accept something that He did not first give. Just as a Honduran limpera will has no value at my local chik fil a, anything we try to conjure up aside from the spirit's leading and empowering that is anchored in the Word of God is useless in the Kingdom. Why? If it is not Holy and divine, then it is tainted and wordly. If it is of this created, fallen world, we should not expect a perfect, Holy God to acccept it. Not only will he not accept it, but He will hate it as it is sin.

This can be a little confusing until we understand how this undergirds the mission of Jesus. Jesus' divine nature was wrapped temporarily in human flesh. It is in the sacrifice of His perfect Holy life that the father is pleased. It is in the mediation of Christ, that we bring acceptable worship to the father. Why? Because we are simply re-directing His own Glory back to Him as we exhalt Christ. The Glory we praise is not our own, or even from our own world, but is simply a taste of the Holy God that He graciously gives us. As we encounter Him and wonder at His majesty, acceptable worship in the form of redirected Glory points back to the Lamb on the Throne and honors the triune God.

So what is it that you bring in your prayers and worship? Routines, memorized words. dutiful obligations? Unless our transformed Hearts are simply mirrors of praise that point His Glory back to Him based and fueled upon the work of Christ, it is unacceptable "currency" to our Lord. You best be bringing Him something else.