“Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker! Psalm 95:6
Luke writes about our Lord:
“And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed.” Luke 22:41
Even the father of many nations, knew when he was among the most high:
“Abraham looked up and saw three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he hurried from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground.” Genesis 18:2
Here we have examples of the importance of being penitent to the God most high.
Other examples:
“As surely as I live, says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.'” Romans 14:12 NiV
When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” (Luke 5:8)NIV
“Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before. Daniel 6:10 NIV
So what is it about kneeling? Why does God see this a higher form of worship?
God acknowledges our kneeling as a complete submission to his authority, and our hearts totally opening to his Spirit and word. This is acknowledged by our Lord Jesus, Abraham, many prophets, apostles, and psalmists from early days, throughout all generations.
When we kneel, we draw closer to God. This closeness allows him, as Spirit, to work in us. He is royalty, the King of Kings, he is worthy of this form of submission.
Kneeling shows humility, and God honors those who choose to submit to him.
“Humility and fear of the LORD bring wealth, honor, and life” Proverbs 22:4 NIV
A refusal to kneel shows pride and we know how the Lord feels about pride:
“God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble” Proverbs 3:34 NIV
In the end, we all will kneel:
“Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Phillipians 2:9-11 NIV
Charles Stanley has said “Fight all your battles on your knees and you win every time.”
Which one of us, does not wish to win the battles we face daily?
Praise be to our Lord and our God, Christ Jesus!
In our day, we no longer kneel to show respect to the higher authority or more honored person; however, that does not eliminate the need for a “kneeling of the heart”!
Only as we see HIM, “high and lifted up” will we understand the love and grace He has for us.