Worship

Through my bible study I write about what I read and what I feel God is trying to teach me. I look at this time as personal devotion and sometimes I share this in a public setting that God can use for other people too. Yesterday’s section was on Orderly Worship. Worship is a has been a hot topic button at so many churches as of late. As I was praying about it and reading the scripture I debated writing about it. Could this offend people? Am I truly qualified to talk about this subject? Am I doing this out of the wrong desires? The more I read the scripture and prayed the more I felt God was telling me to write this. So before you is what I learned about worship through 1 Corinthians 14…

I think back to my own desires of worship. If I had a choice of worship music, DC Talk’s In the Light would be played every Sunday. It’s a song that has always touched my heart and love for the church and Jesus. This would be pointless. People would get tired of hearing this song even if I wouldn’t. Those are my own desires. One question we have to ask ourselves is what we want from worship? We have different songs, instruments, singers and leaders that touch our hearts. We constantly have to ask ourselves is the worship service supposed to be for me or for more then me?

At Seminary I was taking a preaching class and was taught about humbleness from a man who has been preaching for about 40 years. Chuck Sackett was teaching about the overall worship service. He said something along the lines of…

“For the most part I don’t enjoy the worship at our church and that is a good thing. I have been a Christian for over 50 years. If everything we did was to make me happy we are pleasing an already baptized believer who has been preaching for a very long time. That is not the intent of the worship service.”

I pray that I have this humbleness when I am older. Worship isn’t about my own desires, it’s about God. Hailee and I had a guest over the weekend. This guest over the age of 50 has visited our church several times and said this is the first time they felt the Spirit of God in the service. The goal of the worship service is to plan a service designed to grow people closer to God not to please people. If it was to please people I would imagine most would want five minute sermon.

On a couple of different occasions we have had communion mediations go longer then the three-five minutes they are supposed to go. Sometimes I will have a guest with me and they will turn to me and say, wow that was a great sermon, it was short and had a point. I have to tell them that was the communion meditation. They will look at me with shock and disgust. One said to me, “You mean I have to listen to two sermons!”

1 Corinthians 14:26 and 40…

“What then shall we say, brothers and sisters When you come together, each of you has a hymn, or a word of instruction a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation Everything must be done so that the church may be built up.…. But everything should be done in a fitting and orderly way.”

We need to make sure we try not to take scripture out of context. Now there is much I can say about speaking in tongues and interpretation but that will be for a separate time. One of the words I first see that can cause division is the word hymn. We have to have a hymn. The word hymn is translated from a word meaning Psalm. We need to make sure we aren’t looking at just what we want with worship.

The Christian Church was broken up about musical instruments in worship. Some people hated the use of the piano in the church. It caused a church to divide. The people didn’t like the traditional hymn Hallelujah Thine the Glory. Why? It was a bar song (The only place the piano was in were bars and carting that over to the church was wrong) and titled “Hallelujah I’m a Bum.” Therefore the church was divided on it. Honestly, I am glad they kept with the instruments in the church. My brothers and sisters at non-instrumental church I have much love for and no hatred. They still love Jesus just as much if not more then me, but we can worship in that difference and still love each other.

The point of verse 26, we are supposed to be lifted up through the worship service. In order to please God there has to be a plan and practice to execute that plan. Opening Up 1 Corinthians…

“When Christians gather together to praise God and hear his Word, nothing should be given prominence that draws attention to human personalities or distracts from concentrating on the Lord himself and his message to his people. ‘Does it edify?’ is a question to be asked about every part of any coming together of the church.”

We are not supposed to have our own desires in mind with worship. The musical aspect of worship is not supposed to be a request line. People need to pray and think about the song selections to whether they tie in with the overall message about God. This can take hours of planning and sometimes we as non-worship ministers have no idea how much time and planning goes into every aspect of a church service. I see this from the two worship ministers’ I have served beside in Wally and Kris. These guys put a ton of effort more then anyone would know.

The second verse that goes hand and hand with this verse is verse 40. The Corinthian church was struggling with the worship services and The Message writes verse 40 like this, “Be courteous and considerate in everything.” The worship leader needs to look at not their own preferences but God’s. The Bible Exposition Commentary puts it this way…

“The Corinthian church was having special problems with disorders in their public meetings (1 Cor. 11:17–23). The reason is not difficult to determine: they were using their spiritual gifts to please themselves and not to help their brethren. The key word was not edification, but exhibition. If you think that your contribution to the service is more important than your brother’s contribution, then you will either be impatient until he finishes, or you will interrupt him.^”

From this section we are to learn that the worship service is supposed to build the church up and it needs to be done to with careful consideration. This is why I have a special love for those in this position. The worship minister is not an easy position. We need to realize that we can be part of the problem rather then the solution. No matter how much I want In the Light played every Sunday, it’s my own selfish desires and not for the Glory of God.

When you worship this Sunday, no matter what the song, who’s singing, who’s doing the communion meditation and who’s preaching, all the Glory goes to God and not the individual.

What can you do to lift up God instead of yourself? This is what God keeps telling me through this post.

Have a great day.

Cliques, communion and the church

Christians can very well miss the point of some scriptures. We can take things out of context and miss what God is trying to communicate with us. This deals with taking Communion or the Eucharist (the giving of thanks). There is one Bible verse used often mistranslated or misused when it comes to communion, 1 Corinthians 11:27…

“So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.”

Ouch. These are some harsh words. I have seen people hear this verse and feel so much guilt they feel they are a sinner and not worthy of taking communion. This isn’t right and needs to be explained.

The church in Corinth had issues just like every church (Remember a church is made up of sinners including the leadership, people will make mistakes). Paul starts out this section of scripture in verse 17 saying what I am about to say to you, I have nothing good to say. Paul would often commend and encourage the people before telling about the conflict or issues the people needed to work on. Paul is blunt with the people and the mistakes.

The church had a problem with cliques. The Lord’s Supper/Communion was considered an “Agape Feast” a love feast. The purpose was to show love by sharing a meal with one another. They would eat with their own group of people instead of the whole church. They were selfish people. Rich people brought a lot of food and didn’t share with poor Christians. For some of the poor Christians this might have been the only good meal they would have all week. This is why Paul said if you have an abundance of food, you can eat before you come and share your food with poor church members.

Then people wouldn’t feel worthy to take communion. It’s important to examine ourselves and remember what Christ did for us on the cross. If we sinned and therefore didn’t feel we should take communion because of sin, nobody would ever take communion in a church service. Communion is to remember that Christ died for our sins. He was our substitute, paying the price for our sins. We remember in the meal that Christ was resurrected and came back from the dead and later ascended to heaven. Last we need to look at ourselves. We need to look at our own sins before communion and give those over to Jesus. The Corinth church loved to examine everyone else but themselves. Look at yourselves before taking communion. You don’t have to be perfect but you have to be able to turn your sins to God. Every believer can take communion.

Communion is about love. It’s not a guilt time, just a little confession. Overall it’s a joyous part of worship. It’s a time of thankfulness for what the Lord did for us. Let’s not focus on cliques, and instead focus on a savior who gave his life for ours.

Have a great day.

Good or bad

We have a chance to be good or bad. My son Ty can be one of the most lovingly and sharing kids. It's normal of him to go somewhere and not eat all of his food so he could share some with brother and sister. He will go to the doctors office and always get a little sticker for his siblings. Yet while he can be good, he can also be bad.

Ty had some issues with listening to his Sunday School teachers. He bent one of his teachers fingers around and also was repeatedly hitting his teacher. Not the behavior we expect. For the good he can do, the bad he can also do. We can be the same way. While we might not hurt our teachers like Ty did, we have plenty of choices to do good or bad.

What we do can effect us in positive and negative ways. Listen to what Paul says in Romans 6:21-23...
What benefit did you reap at that time from the things you are now ashamed of? Those things result in death! But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

There are bad things we do that result in bad. This is what happens with sin, we can do things and face the punishment in the end. When you do bad things, bad results often happen. When you do good, good things can follow. Doing bad things against God's will is sin, nothing good happens from sin. Yet with faith in Christ, we are offered something even better, eternal life. You don't have to be ashamed anymore when you have Christ. You can be good.

You can do bad or you can do good. What do you regret in life? What if you didn't have to be haunted by those regrets? This is what Christ offers, no matter how much bad you have done, you can be modified. You don't have to be the person of your past and you can be a better person in the future. I love Ty, hopefully we will see him do more good and less bad. What about you?

Have a great day.

Letting time pass you by

I don’t always realize how much time can pass by. Hailee and I were reminiscing the other day about where we came from.  We talked about how different/tough it was for us with two kids. Now when we just have two kids at home and the other two are at school, it’s peaceful. Years ago when we had just two kids, it was such a crazy time in our life.  Time and life can change.

What at one point was a stress now is a cakewalk.  In the final chapter and section of Paul in the book of Acts we see Paul in Rome and what he was doing to pass the time.  This is how Paul spent the end of the book of Acts 28:30-31…

“For two whole years Paul Stayed there in his own rented house and welcomed all who came to see him. He proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ – with all boldness and without hindrance!”

Getting towards the end of his life, what was important to Paul? He spent his time visiting with anyone that came to see him and taught about Jesus without hesitation. What was important to Paul at this time? People and Jesus.  This really can make you reflect.  What is important to you?

When you look back at life, people can live lives different ways when they are younger then when they are older.

I learned about this on the way to Kalamazoo to a Porn and Pancakes breakfast with two elders. One of the guys Pat liked to ask questions. I asked him one back, what is something you would have liked to do more as you were younger? Both Pat and Mickey said, spend more time with your kids when you’re younger. They grow up so fast and you truly miss the time.  They were both in agreement with this.

You miss what happens when you are younger. Reflect on this, what are you spending your time doing right now and is that the best use of your time? If you can learn from other people, you can benefit greatly from this.

What can you do with your time that would make you not regret? We only have a certain amount of time on this earth, how are you spending your time and what do you truly what to be doing with your time?  You have a decision, what are you doing with your time? Paul spent his time talking about Jesus to anyone who came to visit. What do you do with your time?

Have a great day.

Like Destiny’s Child are you a survivor

There are times in life things don’t go accordingly to plan. New Year’s resolution can always be an interesting time of reflection. We reflect on what we don’t like and vow to change it. Usually these revolve around self-image, losing weight, being happier, eating better etc.

How often do we focus on other people with our resolutions? Paul had to focus on other people to save himself. Paul was going through a rough time. He was being transported on a boat and hurricane like forces were tearing the boat apart. 14 days the craziness went on and the result was the crew going that entire time without eating and wondering if they had any chance of living.

The crew was lowered the lifeboat down and to save themselves. Paul told them if they didn’t stay with the boat, they would die. They stayed with boat. Paul was able to convince the people to eat for the first time in 14 days while this storm was going on. Even with a storm going on, Paul did this in Acts 27:34-36…

“Now I urge you to take some food.  You need it to survive. Not one of you will lose a single hair from his head. After he said this, he took some bread and gave thanks to God in front of them all.  Then he broke it and began to eat.  They were all encouraged and ate some food themselves.”

They survived. Even in front of a group of people that came from different faiths, he gave thanks to God. What if the captain of the boat was thickheaded and thought he could survive on his own? He could have said, you’re just a prisoner and your opinion doesn’t matter to me.

Where would they be if that happened? Sometimes our own thickheaded thinking keeps us from accomplishing resolutions. Often our resolutions revolve around what we want selfishly. What if we focused on others? What if this year we decided we were going to forgive someone else that we haven’t forgiven? Maybe you have been fighting with someone for a while and you’re waiting for them to apologize first. A good resolution can be to reconcile a broken relationship.

Often we focus so much on our selfish desires of getting in shape or eating healthier rather than repairing a relationship. God cares more about your ability to forgive than your ability to look better with your earthly body. I have been in an interesting spot lately. I have seen a lot of relationships struggle and it can all go back to selfish desires.

People want to be forgiven and be right rather than forgive other people. If the captain of the boat was focused on being right, 276 people would have died on Paul’s boat. Instead he was humble and listened to the advice of a prisoner. What can be a true resolution for you…

Forgiving someone else?

Asking someone for forgiveness?
Showing grace to someone who hurt you?
Maybe going to counseling and applying what you learn to your own life?

You can be a survivor, one who goes through a bad situation and comes out strong in the end. Are you ready to be the one to take that first step? You can have a great resolution. You can be a survivor of a bad situation.

Have a great day.

Life on the line

Putting your life on the line is never easy.

What you believe and what you say can differ.

What do you give your life for?

Think about that.

What do you give your life for?

Off the top of my head…

·         My family
·         My faith
·         My ministry
·         My friends

What do you give your life for?

Some of the things I waste my life away doing that has no value to it…

·         Video games
·         Selfish desires (I want to go to every Major League Baseball Stadium in the US).

These are just two answers but it can be so much more than this.

We give are life and waste our lives for some meaningless things that just please us.

I am guilty as charged.

But what is worth giving?

What is worth giving our lives for?

Jesus said this in John 10:17-18…

“The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life – only to take it up again.  No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord.  I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.”

This is one of the times Jesus mentioned giving his life to die on the cross for our sins.

God loves him because of Jesus’s will to put his life on the line for the people.

He volunteered for a life that would end in death.

Is what we give our life for a huge decision?

At CIY we watched the video Love Costs Everything.

It was talking about Christians being martyred for their faith.

One of the lines a minister from the Middle East said, “Last week I baptized 13 people and 11 were killed for their faith.”

All over the world, the people most persecuted are Christians.

Yet through this video, the people gave their live for Christ.

They were willing to suffer tremendous suffering all for Christ’s name.

What is worth giving our lives for?

Jesus gave his life for us even though we didn’t deserve it because we make mistakes, we are sinners.

He did this for us.

What are you willing to do for your believe and decisions you make?

What if you were wrong with your decisions?

I am in awe of Jesus doing this for me.

I don’t feel worthy.

He did this for me….he did this for you.

Faith in Jesus is not an easy thing, but it is well worth the cost.

“Perfect Love Costs Everything.”

What do you in life that is worth the cost?

Have a great day.