Living a life of worship

Psalm 101:1–8 (ESV):  

1  I will sing of steadfast love and justice; 

to you, O Lord, I will make music. 

 2  I will ponder the way that is blameless. 

Oh when will you come to me? 

  I will walk with integrity of heart 

within my house; 

 3  I will not set before my eyes 

anything that is worthless. 

  I hate the work of those who fall away; 

it shall not cling to me. 

 4  A perverse heart shall be far from me; 

I will know nothing of evil. 

 5  Whoever slanders his neighbour secretly 

I will destroy. 

  Whoever has a haughty look and an arrogant heart 

I will not endure. 

 6  I will look with favour on the faithful in the land, 

that they may dwell with me; 

  he who walks in the way that is blameless 

shall minister to me. 

 7  No one who practices deceit 

shall dwell in my house; 

  no one who utters lies 

shall continue before my eyes. 

 8  Morning by morning I will destroy 

all the wicked in the land, 

  cutting off all the evildoers 

from the city of the Lord. 

David, the author of this psalm is concerned with loving God well and becoming a just king under God’s authority. The opening sentences show that David’s aim is to bring worship to God with his life. He knows that he can sing and play music to honour God, but true worship is about living the way that God desires by discovering ‘the way that is ‘blameless’. This is a more beautiful sound to God and more evident of a heart for Him than any well sung song or well played tune.  

David has the desire to be all in with God, giving Him glory with his life. So he considers; his conduct at home, what he looks at, who he spends time with and the character of those who he knows. In order to truly worship God, David recognises that how he behaves, and the choices he makes about what he does and who he spends time with are important. Wanting to live a life of integrity requires you to put God first in the whole of your life, making ruthless decisions about your conduct, what company you keep, and what activities you get involved with. It is not about attending christian gatherings, reading the Bible, or singing worship songs, although these are natural responses to loving God and wanting to live His way. Your heart of worship is seen in your interactions with others and by what you choose to do with your time. Your interactions with family, neighbours, friends, people of faith, unbelievers, and the wicked all need to be assessed for their value in living a life worthy of worshipping God. This, along with the activities you do and don’t get involved with show whether you are living a life of integrity or not, they show if you really are a worshipper. 

David is ruthless, he says that he ‘will not endure’ the arrogant and proud, he ‘will destroy’ those who falsely accuse their neighbours and those who lie shall not ‘continue before my eyes’. David makes decisions to cut out people like this from his life because they harm his life of worship. They damage his ability to live life with integrity before God, so they have got to go. Are there people in your life that have too much influence or who lead you astray? Is there anyone that you are spending time with who damages your ability to live life well before God? Living a life following God is not easy, and it is harder when you have people around you of poor, ungodly character who; lie, are proud, gossip, and put others down. So carefully consider the relationships you are investing in, who and what you are listening to, are they really worth it? Or are there some whom, like David, you will no longer endure? (v5)

Those David wishes to have influence in his life are the ones, ‘who walks in the way that is blameless.’ He says that he will allow these people to ‘minister to me’. These are the ones he can trust, it takes time to find them, yet it is worth it. Their advice is solid, they are honest and trustworthy. They can give true comfort even when they say things you don’t like, because they are truthful and want the best for you. They will lead you in the way that is blameless so that you can live a life of worship to God. Who are those people in your life and do you intentionally spend time with them? 

You get to choose who you follow and who has influence upon you. If you want to live a life following God, then it requires you to purify your life. This means that you need to consider who you are spending time with, what you are watching and how you are behaving. Think about who is in your life, what you are doing with your time and your behaviour. Do these things honour God? For being a person of integrity demands that your conduct is the same wherever you are, whoever you are with, and whatever is happening. David is an inspiration in this, as he desired to live a life of integrity even when he felt distant from God. As he wrote this psalm he asks God, ‘Oh, when will you come to me?’ (v2). David, even when he didn’t feel like God was near him, was still seeking to follow God’s ways. Some people when they hit a time in life like this where it seems that God is absent start to doubt Him, drop their guard, and make decisions that do not honour God. This could be through the activities they partake in, their behaviour and the company they keep. These are the ones who ‘fall away’ (v3). David though remains faithful and uses this time to reflect and consider how he can honour God more in his life. He thinks about what he does within his household, his relationships, and how he spends his time. For he knew that every area of life should be impacted by his love of God, even when God does not seem close. God should be the one influencing how you behave, the decisions you make and the people you trust and spend time with. Do not just do what everyone else expects, but do what God would say is right even when you do not know where He is. For God desires a set apart people. If you desire to be part of His kingdom then you need to live your life in purity and with integrity. You have no time or space for distractions no matter how nice or attractive they may be. You are responsible for deciding what you are living for, so do not let anyone else influence your life other than Jesus and those whose lives demonstrate that they are honouring Him always. Like David, you need to be ruthless about who your friends are, your behaviour, the activities that you participate in and the people you allow to influence you. Is there something you need to change in your life today? Is there a relationship that is unholy? Activities that you participate in that do not honour God? Behaviours you need to stop? Do you live with integrity across every area of life? It is not enough to worship God with song and music, He requires your life to be one of worship.