True Worship that Pleases the Lord

A little boy left his toys out and went in to practice the piano, using hymns for his lesson. When his mother called him to pick up his toys, he said, “I ca n’t eat; “I’m singing praise to Jesus.” His mother responded: “There's no use singing God's praises when you're being disobedient.”

Christians are saved by faith, not by obeying the law, but the law shows us how to please, love, and resemble the one who saved us by grace.

Christians are saved by faith, not by obeying the law, but the law shows us how to please, love, and resemble the one who saved us by grace.


True Worship That Pleases the Lord | DevotionaL

Read Psalm 147:12–20.

12. Extol the Lord, Jerusalem; praise your God, Zion.

13. He strengthens the bars of your gates and blesses your people within you.

14. He grants peace to your borders and satisfies you with the finest of wheat.

15. He sends his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly.

16. He spreads the snow like wool and scatters the frost like ashes.

17. He hurls down his hail like pebbles. Who can withstand his icy blast?

18. He sends his word and melts them; he stirs up his breezes, and the waters flow.

19. He has revealed his word to Jacob, his laws and decrees to Israel.

20. He has done this for no other nation; they do not know his laws. Praise the Lord.


Praise And Obedience. A little boy left his toys out and went in to practice the piano, using hymns for his lesson.

When his mother called him to pick up his toys, he said, “I can’t come; I’m singing praise to Jesus.”

His mother responded: “There’s no use singing God’s praises when you’re being disobedient.”

God delights not merely in words of acclaim but in people who obey his laws (verses 19–20; verse 11).

If you get an emotional experience out of a worship service but aren’t willing to obey, you are using him without giving yourself to him.

Christians are saved by faith, not by obeying the law, but the law shows us how to please, love, and resemble the one who saved us by grace.

Prayer: Lord, ethical behavior without joy-filled worship or exuberant praise without whole-life obedience—both of these are counterfeit Christianities.

I have veered in both directions in my life. Keep me on the straight path. I offer you my whole life, mind, will, and emotions. Amen.

Image of Timothy Keller

Timothy J. Keller is an American Christian pastor, theologian, and author, born on September 23, 1950, in Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania. He grew up in a Presbyterian family and attended Bucknell University, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in English in 1972.