WHAT KIND OF WORSHIP DOES GOD DESIRE?

Genesis 1v2: Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

Psalm 46v10: "Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."

1 Kings 19v11 The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.” Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.'

If we look at these passages very simply, it becomes clear that God usually avoids the spectacular atmosphere for the quiet and still one. In the first scripture, the Spirit hovered over waters which were surrounded by an earth that was formless and empty. In the second, God tells His people to be still and just 'know' that He is God. In the third, God reveals that He does not reside even in the monumental and spectacular- although He may work such things, He reveals to Elijah that RELATIONSHIP with Him exists in a communication with Him which is very normal, very humble (ie Elijah hiding his head in his cloak), and usually quite private.

We as a people have begun to misunderstand the relationship and worship that He desires. This is seen when we look at the beginning of human history. Ironically, while the earth was formless and empty, the Spirit resided over it, however, when the garden came, and the TEMPTATION to the FLESH came, and when men had fallen to that temptation, they were driven from the presence of the Spirit. This was to show us that while God gives us all things to richly enjoy (1 Tim 6:17), men must at the same time flee those things that exist in the world which cause great temptation to our flesh. Even though Adam walked with God in the cool of the morning, the tree that existed was still a temptation to him. How could this be? How could the very presence, power and person of God be, not only with him and evident to him, but talking with him, and he still fall? The answer lies in realising, one, the power of the enemy to realise our weakness for being enamoured and deceived by the physical and the sensational (Gen 3v6: When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. + Gen 3:5 ...'you will be like God, knowing good and evil'), and two, the fact that, while the garden was a perfect garden and a perfect atmosphere, still Adam and Eve weren't satisfied with it, and desired more in the fruit of tree of the knowledge of good and evil. As soon as we as a Church begin to focus on the material and physical in our worship, where and when do we stop? Is one big screen tv enough? Are two smoke machines good enough? Are three fluorescent light displays going to do it? Unfortunately, because we are are still very weak, and we all, like Paul, are the 'chief of sinners,' nothing physical will ever be enough, if we give in to the lust of our eyes, that lust is never satisfied, and we will become more and more distracted from the Spirit and from the relationship of faith that God desires for us (2 Cor 5v7: 'We walk by faith, not by sight'). Like Adam and Eve, we'll go from a worship of God that can still be spiritual while enjoying those things God has given us, to a worship which tries to be spiritual AND fleshly (Adam and Eve eating the fruit), and obviously this can't be; instead of enhancing our relationship with God, it will hinder it. 


Furthermore, extending the irony, we see that it was not until Adam and Eve were driven from the garden that they ended up walking truly and consistently with God by faith. Remember, pain had entered the world at this point, as had the need to work, but still they followed God uprightly till they died. This shows us that while we as a Church may want the ideal atmosphere for worship, and while we may want the most ideal humanistic doctrines to bring us continual ease and comfort, these are not the will of God for us. One day men will be brought back into the ideal and perfect state with God and a perfect worship of Him, but for now, God has allowed hardship, pain and a less than spectacular physical setting for worship, whether in Churches or in our own day to day lives, because God desires that our relationship with Him be from the inside out, and that our relationship with Him be according to a simple communication and a faith walk with Him, not about what we see with our physical eye (1 John 2:16). The physical eye was what first got us in deep trouble with God, and so God didn't want that to happen again while on earth, so He kicked us out of a place which would still be tempting to us because of the weakness of our flesh. We then, as a Church, must learn from this and keep ourselves from creating a garden to surround our worship. If we do, we will tempt ourselves to think that ultimately we know better than God about what is good for worship (ie 'knowing good and evil'), and it will cause, not only great distraction for us, but also sin, grief and pain, and rather than grow our relationship with God, it will hinder it.

SHINING WHEN JESUS IS HIDDEN

Acts 1v8: 'But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.'

It seems contradictory to be told to be Jesus' witnesses when He has been taken from our sight, and the sight of all mankind. As Jesus showed though, it doesn't matter whether He is on earth or not, there will still be those that question, even in the face of the miraculous. For this reason, although witness is both in word and deed, in order to effectively witness, we must always rely on, and trust in, the work of the Spirit, not the evidence or fruit that we watch for or think exists because of what we see with our eyes and hear with our ears. Evidence may or may not exist straight away, or in time, but nevertheless, the Word tells us that there is not 10 days till the harvest, but the harvest is right now, the Spirit is always effective, no matter how weak or ineffectual we think we are. The Word is powerful and living and sharper than any two edged sword, and so is any witness with that Word.

Often discouragement comes in our witnessing because we don't have Jesus by our sides, visibly encouraging or instructing us. It also comes in times when we don't even feel we have that kind of encouragement spiritually speaking. There comes no great illuminations from the Word, no word of encouragement from others, in fact, no support seems to come from anywhere, and yet we still hear Him speak to us in His Word, 'you will be my witnesses'. We are told to shine our light. We don't need a massive strategy for that, we simply must just 'shine our light;' shine truth, shine good works, shine life. Let deeds reveal truth, and truth deeds, and let the Holy Spirit reveal Jesus, and do the work which, whether evident or hidden, is definitely and powerfully going on.

WE LIVE BY FAITH, NOT BY SIGHT

The whole point of Christianity being based on faith is so that we wouldn't have a love of Jesus based on sight, but based upon the fire of the Spirit's workings in our hearts and minds. To set up our Churches as places designed to enthral and entertain the senses of sight and sensation therefore, works against how our Lord and Saviour has designed not only how we are to know and love Him, but also how meetings of His Church family are to learn of and worship Him. 


If anything, the New Testament serves as a testimony to us to guard against being enraptured by the senses. Jesus turned His disciples' eyes away from the glittering temple building, He gave John the Baptist as a contrast to 'those that live in luxury' and live in palaces. In the disciples Jesus gave an example of how great the power of God was in the weakness of their own strength, and in the meagreness and often strangeness and poverty of their appearance. 


The books of the New Testament are devoted to the careful instruction about our hearts, minds and lives, and little to no evidence is found to justify OVERLY important emphasis on buildings for the sake of culture or anything else. One upper-room was enough for the Holy Spirit to descend in power when Pentecost came, and a stable was enough for our Lord and Saviour, the King of Kings to be born in. A cave was enough for God to give John the Baptist one of the greatest revelations in all of Church and Biblical history, and a tomb was enough for our Lord and Saviour to rise from and ascend to heaven, as were a few disciples enough of a crowd for Jesus to depart this earth with. A field was enough of a place for Jesus to break bread in and give thanks to the Father before feeding the people, and meeting from 'house to house' was enough for the early Christians to continue '...in the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.' 


There will always be obvious needs and basic requirements that the Church in the West may need, and the above doesn't discount those things. Such things in moderation are fine. But when we emphasise a Church of grandiose designs, flashy set-ups, and entertaining places of worship, we have completely missed the heart and the point of the grace and glory of Jesus. No matter what we call it, it won't be of Him.

'WORLDIFICATION'

'WORLDIFICATION'

There is something new that is trying to introduce itself into Church services at the moment, and while it doesn't seem to be a 'trend' at the moment, we need to be on our guard against it. This involves using worldly songs to worship the Lord. While the motive and reason that is given for doing this appears in all innocence to be good and pure, the reality is that it isn't Godly at all, and that the MOTIVE AND EFFECT is anything but good and Godly.

Churches are supposed to identify with Christ, and to be careful to represent Him according to how He is represented in His Word (He is a jealous God). They are supposed to represent His desires and those things that He loves. For us as a Church to begin to introduce worldly songs in order to worship the Lord, is like the children of Israel introducing a golden calf in order to worship God by. It is essentially trying to take something that is valuable and 'shiny' to the world, and to use it in order to give glory to God.

I had a dream last night that seems to illustrate the above quite well. It started with me sitting in the back of a Church. As I listened to what was supposed to be a worship song, I soon realised that the worship leaders were singing a song from the world. As I looked closer at the projector screen up the front, I realised that the song title was actually a Christian song that I knew. This confused me- how could this be a worship song I knew when it sounded like a song from the world? The two worship leaders up the front were dancing like they were at a club; they danced with what seemed to be well-rehearsed moves and they danced in unison. Totally bewildered by this I tried to find the word to use to describe what was going on. What came to me was, 'sadistic,' but then I thought, 'no, that's not it.'

Upon waking I was quite shocked as to what 'sadistic' meant (though I'd always had a rough idea): 'The deriving of sexual gratification or the tendency to derive sexual gratification from inflicting pain or emotional abuse on others.' As I just mentioned, I was really shocked by this, and because of this, the dream above isn't easy to share. Essentially what I believe is implied by this is that SOME worship leaders in Churches that are doing this, and those that listen to those that are singing such worldly songs and 'worshipping' in such a way, are doing it in order to gratify the flesh, to the point that it is a sexual gratification. The moves of the 'worshippers' and they way they went about it was worldly and those moves had sexual connotations about them (they were also dressed up luxuriously and extravagantly). Worship, and they way we worship, is in some cases now being influenced by the world because of wrong desires of worship leaders and those that listen to them alike. The effect that this is having is an emotional abuse on true worshippers because it is creating great distress and a great conflict within them, after all, how can the worship of God be worldly? At the end of the dream someone said to me, 'well done for finally being independent.' The people of God need to separate themselves from such worship.

The heart is deceitful above all things, and the Church needs to be on guard against this shocking and awful reality that is now starting to rear its head in SOME Churches (there are MANY Churches that are completely free of this, and this post is in no way addressed to them or to those that attend them). In the Old Testament, when the Israelites started to worship a golden calf, it was said of them that- 'So the next day the people rose early and sacrificed burnt offerings and presented fellowship offerings. Afterward they sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry' (Ex 36v2). It is quite easy to tell if this is going on in the place that you worship. Is the worship becoming worldly? Is in becoming influenced by the world? Are the worshippers (leaders and listeners) worshipping in a reverent and serious manner? Are the worship songs Godly and not polluted by the lyrics and spirit of the world? All these questions are so important. Paul told Timothy to guard what was entrusted to Him. Jesus has entrusted the Church to His servants, to His ministers, and even to His sheep which make up His body which is the Church itself.

Are we as the people of God learning to apply the appearances, moves and spirit of the world? Or are we learning to apply the inward instructions of the Word? Are we learning to guard with Godly jealousy the glory and honour of the Lord? And above all are we guarding our hearts with the love of Christ that is according to truth? The love of Jesus and the love of the world are two totally separate things. The worship of the Lord is a Holy thing, are we keeping it that way?

THE DANGER OF GOING ON IN SIN

Incredibly it seems there exists today the belief that if Christians continue a life of sin, all is well, because Grace assures that all is well. Lets be clear. Grace assures salvation through faith, but don't doubt the work and power of sin to attack faith, and if we leave ourselves undefended, our faith will certainly be hard pressed, if not outright shipwrecked (1 Tim 1:19)

Heb 10v26 says that, 'If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. ' We all sin, and we all stumble, each and every day in fact. This is not talking about that. This scripture is talking about the kind of sinning that is a continual life of WILFUL sin. We know the truth, and yet we chose to be a constant, wilful participant in sinning, and we are bold in it. This scripture clearly says that such sin means that NO SACRIFICE FOR SINS IS LEFT (Heb 10v26), therefore Jesus' sacrifice for our sins is no longer left for those people. I think the primary reason that no sacrifice is left for sins, simply implies that by their actions, those people demonstrate that they no longer want a sacrifice for their sins, they are happy with their sin, and they reject Jesus' sacrifice (sin hardens their hearts so much that they can actually reach that place and that wilful choice). 

Let's be clear again. The Lord is VERY PATIENT, VERY MERCIFUL, VERY GRACIOUS, and such a thing I think to happen to any Christian would be so very rare. But the warning in Hebrews remains for every Christian, therefore God knew that we all need to hear it for our good. 

There is also the belief that nothing can be done to Grace, because Grace is freely given. But people forget that grace is given by the Son. If Grace is abused therefore, it means that the Son is also being abused:can be abused: 'v29: How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has TRAMPLED THE SON OF GOD UNDER FOOT, WHO HAS TREATED AN AN UNHOLY THING THE BLOOD OF THE COVENANT THAT SANCTIFIED HIM...'. There is also the SPIRIT OF GRACE (so grace doesn't operate as some type of independent magical formula)- v28 'Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. HOW MUCH MORE SEVERELY do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has INSULTED THE SPIRIT OF GRACE? The Spirit of Grace is the Holy Spirit, and the Word says that we cannot insult the Spirit of God in the manner of a life of continual wilful sin, and not expect punishment. 

Whether this passage means that salvation is lost, I do not know. I don't believe it says that explicitly, but I think it could very well imply it. Or it could just mean that (taken straight from the passage here) 1) there will be punishment for those that do this, 2) this punishment will include judgment, 3) The Lord will avenge, repay and judge 4) It's a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God 5) And that the Lord will not be pleased with his 'righteous one' (Heb 10v38) that has led a life like this when He returns. The writer of Hebrews may have qualified this whole passage when he ends the chapter with v39: 'But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.' The writer hopes here that he speaks to those that are truly saved. But how do you know for sure that you are truly saved in the present? Firstly your conscience will testify about it to you by the Spirit of God, and also in checking your life and yourself with God there is safety. The writer here speaks about salvation not only being past tense (as in 'has happened'), but present tense by saying 'who believe' and 'are saved'. He is admonishing the Hebrews to check themselves and their lives, to see if there is the fruit of believing. If so, they are safe! If not, they are to make the most of the warning!

THE NECESSARY BALANCE

..."The Lord will judge his people." (Heb 10v30)

Contrary to popular belief amongst Christians today, the Lord does judge His people (1 Pet 4:17). That judgment is because of DISCIPLINE, not payment for sin. We are only qualified for salvation through Grace, but if we are true sons the Word says we will be disciplined (far from losing heart at this, we should rejoice at the reason for this, knowing that it's only because the whom the Lord LOVES He disciplines! Heb 2v5). Hebrews 12v6 says that He 'punishes those that He accepts as sons.' When it speaks of that kind of punishment, in context, it refers to the suffering God allows to shape us into His image. Far from being 'light and fluffy' hardship, Hebrews speaks about the tremendous affliction and suffering those believers were facing: 'Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of suffering.' Such suffering is often a CONTEST, because of the conflict that is waged within us, i.e: the flesh lusts against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh. Suffering still tempts us to turn away from the Lord in order to live an easy life, but such temptation only shows the apple and not the death that awaits at the end of the line.

There is a belief that exists at the moment that says if we have been given His Grace, that obedience then becomes easy, this is unbelievably untrue, that is why the Lord called it a narrow way and a difficult way- Matt 7:14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it. There is still the necessity of taking up our cross and still the necessity of denying ourselves, and if anyone out there tells you that's a cakewalk, I'm sorry, but they're not following the Jesus of the Bible (i.e- 'take up your cross and follow me'). Peter said that we'd, by necessity, be at times grieved by various trials. Jesus said that we'd need to lose our lives to follow Him. So given that, while we have SUFFICIENT GRACE, we still must face GRIEVOUS trials, and we must also be equipped with the knowledge that such suffering comes to us because of divine, sovereign and LOVING judgment. 

One of the greatest, if not THE greatest apostles to ever live- Paul- knew more about Grace than probably anyone that ever lived, and yet he still was human, he still PLEADED God to take the thorn of affliction away from him, that 'messenger of Satan.' Take note here. Often affliction just seems EVIL, it cannot seem to come from a loving God, but it does, with good intent. There is the temptation in all called Christians to want to rid ourselves of God sent afflictions in the belief that Grace extinguishes all such things, however it is quite the opposite, God, again, gives SUFFICIENT GRACE in order to bear up under such trials, and in fact use them for His glory. 

Grace does not take away discipline and it does not take away the punishment that comes in order to discipline, rather it uses all such things to mould us more and more into His image, to work for us a far more exceedingly weight of eternal glory, and is used so that ALL THE MORE we should be to the PRAISE OF HIS GLORIOUS GRACE. You see, GRACE and JUDGMENT aren't so far apart after all. God is even in His grace judging His people in order that HIS GRACE MAY BE PRAISED ALL THE MORE IN US WHEN HE RETURNS. Grace and judgment are both needed to make us more like God. We must welcome them both :)


Heb 12v4 + onwards-: 'In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: "My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son. Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children not true sons. v10 Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. v11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.


1 Peter 4v12: Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. v17: For it is time for judgment to begin with the family of God; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God? And, "If it is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?" So then, those who suffer according to God's will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.

"WE WOULD SEE JESUS"

John 12v20-26: Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the festival. 21 They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we would like to see Jesus.” 22 Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus.

23 Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. 24 Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. 25 Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.

We all want to see Jesus, we all want to behold Him. The Christian's greatest joy in this life is in seeing the King, in times where we are 'caught up' in the Spirit, and we see Him for who He is. There are times when this is a simple thing. Times in our lives when the heavens seem to open over us and we hear the Father's voice so clearly over us. Times like this are so blessed. Those are incredible times; when all is peaceful and the world seems to line up perfectly with all our hopes and expectations (and even line up with heaven itself), and God seems to be just as He should. But there are also harder times, when seeing Jesus will be and must be more of a pursuit and will be, by God's design and necessity, be times where we must also face death to self, and in dying to self, still be active in serving Him. It's then that our comfort and joy, namely, seeing Jesus, will still be a part of our lives, and even more so, because, '...where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honour the one who serves me.' In following closely in Jesus' footsteps, we will readily find Jesus in front of us, and Jesus beside us. In serving as He served, we will see Jesus and thus the evidence and fruit of who He is in our lives and in the lives of those around us. In dying to self, following His example ('Not my will, but thine be done'), we shall find that His comfort will also be our comfort, that our gesthemane will also find a light from heaven; one that perhaps we've never known and seen before.

It is very interesting to note that those Greeks that wanted to see Jesus, were FIRST going to worship Him. Seeing Jesus for ourselves, each and every day, is very possible, but we must first enter His courts (His Presence) with, '...thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.' It is then that Jesus will reveal Himself in the way that He chooses. Those men probably wanted to see Jesus immediately 'High and lifted up' and yet where was Jesus headed? He was headed to the cross FIRST, THEN He would be glorified. So must we head to the cross first, before we see the glory of the risen Lord for ourselves. In some of the hardest times in our lives, it is often a struggle to even come to the Lord for times of intimacy, because we first only see the cross and only feel it's pain for ourselves and we doubt that such an awesome and powerful Saviour could be part of what we are going through. It sends us into doubt and confusion and the waves begin to make us afraid. However, there is great hope for us, because Jesus stands upon the waves, and He Himself conquered calvary, and we need only to come to Him, to SUBMIT OUR WILLS AND OUR UNDERSTANDING to Him, and there to except the pain we experience as being from a faithful Creator, and there begin to worship. It is then that the Lord will part the heavens, through that cross experience and that service, the Lord will reveal Himself in a unique and extraordinary way.

There will be times in our lives that in order to see Jesus, it will cost us much, if not all we have. The more we see Him though, the more that cost will seem to make sense in light of the eternity that awaits, and in light of the God to whom all our hopes rest. So don't question the way the Lord reveals Himself, but trust that He reveals Himself in the way and ways that He desires, and those ways are precious and full of sovereign will and specifically designed purpose. And if we are to lose our lives one day anyway, what does it matter if we lose them now to see as much of Jesus as we possible can. Would you see Jesus? It's possible, just believe that His ways are higher than our ways, and all His ways and means are good and give for our encouragement to continue to pursue Him. "...for he that comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.' (Heb 11v6)