Look Upward, Then Inward, Then Outward - Zac Poonen
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Summary
The sermon advises believers to reorient their focus by prioritizing worship over service, drawing parallels from the angels' wings and Jesus' teachings. The speaker emphasizes that true worship involves heartfelt devotion to God, as exemplified by the woman in Samaria, and that this foundational worship must precede any form of service for it to be effective. He urges the audience to begin their day by focusing on their heavenly Father rather than immediate earthly needs.
Outline
The message in plain words, in the order it unfolds. Select a time to jump the video to that moment.
Turning to the Lord when leaders disappointWhen human leaders whom we look up to disappoint us, we must follow Isaiah's example in Isaiah chapter 6 and look to the Lord instead of backsliding.
Beginning prayer by looking upJesus taught us to pray by starting with our Father in heaven rather than immediately presenting our own physical needs.
Learning from the angels' proportion of worship to serviceThe angels in heaven use four of their six wings to cover themselves in worship and only two to fly and serve, showing that worship must come before service.
The priority of worship in Jesus' ministryWhen tempted in the wilderness, Jesus emphasized foundational truths, concluding that we must worship God before we serve Him.
Worshiping in spirit and truthJesus spoke to a Samaritan woman with a broken past about the Father seeking true worshippers who worship in spirit and truth.John 4:18–23
The pattern of the Lord's PrayerIn the model prayer, Jesus places hallowing God's name, His kingdom, and His will above daily bread and the forgiveness of sins.Matthew 6:9–11
Man was created to look upwardUnlike animals that always look down at the earth, humans were created to look up toward God.
Seeing the Lord's glory and looking inwardWhen Isaiah saw the Lord and heard the angels declare His holiness, he immediately looked inward and confessed that he was a man of unclean lips.
Judging ourselves correctlyWe should judge ourselves only after looking upward at God's glory, rather than comparing ourselves to others or looking inward on our own.1 Corinthians 11:31
Moving from pronouncing woe on others to woe is meBefore seeing God, Isaiah pronounced woes upon other groups of people, but seeing the Lord caused him to cry out 'woe is me' for his own sin.Isaiah 5:8–25
The danger of a critical spirit and the language of JesusWithout seeing the Lord, people easily spot the weaknesses of others, but Jesus modeled mercy by refusing to condemn the woman caught in adultery.
The purity of the tongueJames emphasizes the importance of the tongue, and Isaiah's deepest conviction before God was the unclean way he used his own speech.
The burning coal and God's purificationAn angel used tongs to touch Isaiah's mouth with a burning coal from heaven, showing the miracle of salvation where a sinner is purified by God's fire.
Moving from inward confession to outward serviceLooking upward and inward naturally leads a person to look outward toward the needs of others around them.
Reaching our own small worldGod so loved the whole world, but our specific mission field is often the small world of our relatives, colleagues, and neighbors.
Chewing and digesting the Word of GodJust as food must be chewed and digested to nourish the body, we must meditate deeply on scripture rather than rushing through it.
Responding to God's call to goWhen the Lord asked who would go for Him, Isaiah responded 'Here am I, send me' because he had already worshipped God and judged himself.
Rivers of living water flowing from small beginningsService for the Lord often starts as a small trickle like the waters in Ezekiel, eventually growing into mighty rivers of blessing to others.
