Stay Far Away

The last chapter of Romans is mostly shout outs from Paul. However, towards the end he does give some final advice to the church. Stay away from people who cause divisions through false teaching. Good advice. Notice that he doesn't say sit around and argue with them and try to persuade them with the truth. Nope, he says get away from them. Divisive people aren't to be messed around with, especially when they are causing division based on false doctrine. Of course, that means you have to have a good handle on what the truth really is, otherwise you won't be able to tell! So pay attention, really listen to what people are saying, false teaching is dangerous and those people aren't to be trifled with.

I think that today we are so concerned about being inclusive and tolerant that we often let things slide that we shouldn't let slide. Can we just get back to calling evil evil? Can we just get back to calling false teaching false teaching? I think we may find that it is far better to just call things what they are than to let them slide in the name of tolerance. Is it any wonder that God isn't blessing our churches the way He did in the New Testament? Paul would have kicked these people out immediately. But we don't want to upset anyone so we have meetings to talk about how we can persuade this person without actually saying they did anything wrong. Well I don't know about anyone else but I'm tired of it. I'm tired of pretending that things that aren't ok are ok. I'm tired of sitting by and letting things I know to be wrong continue to be done so that no one will get upset.

Maybe it's time we took a cue from Jesus and started turning over a few tables.

Enjoy the Journey

What now?

Paul says that those who are strong must take care of those who are sensitive. I can't just live to make ourselves happy. I have to be willing to help others. This is what it means to be a spiritual parent. It is my job to take care of those who are growing in their faith. Your faith can't be about you, truthfully it was never about you to start with! Even Christ didn't live for Himself while He was on earth, so what makes me think that I can?

It is my job to make sure that the message of Jesus is being spread to people who haven't heard it before. That might mean setting aside some of the things I want to do. It might even mean setting aside things that are good in order to do what is best.

I am learning this with Micah everyday. It really is amazing, God's design for the church and God's design for the family are perfect parallels. Life is no longer about what I want, it is about taking care of Abi and Micah. Similarly, my life in Christ is first and foremost about pleasing Him and growing closer to Him. Then it is about helping others come to know Him more! It really has very little to do with me and what I want to do. The funny thing is, the closer I get to Christ, the more I want to do what He wants me to do anyway! My desires are becoming aligned with His desires. Just like I don't think of it has work to take care of Abi and Micah (I love doing that!), my desire to please Christ by helping others is growing.

Enjoy the Journey

Arguments

Don't argue over stupid things. That is the basic point of this chapter. Do your best to get along with everyone in the church so that the cause of Christ can be advanced. Don't let things like what day church happens or is it ok to eat meat distract you from the mission. If you think it is wrong to eat meat (the Bible doesn't say that btw), then don't eat meat! It's not that hard! That being said, don't argue with people who do eat meat and cause a disruption in the church. Also, if you ow that someone thinks it is wrong to eat meat, don't eat a baconator in front of them! You are being childish and looking for a fight.

The big idea here is we have more important things to do than argue over silly things. We have a mission to spread the saving news of Christ to the world. We can't do that if we spend all of our time arguing over things that don't make any difference in the end. Obviously we need to address sin as it arises within the church (and it will). But there is a big difference between a husband cheating on his wife and whether or not the children's wing should be painted blue or red.

Living peacefully with everyone is hard enough without getting hung up on things that don't matter. Choose your battles wisely, and don't do things that you know will cause other people to struggle. Just because it isn't a sin doesn't mean it is wise. Words to live by...

Enjoy the Journey

Transformed

If it's true that Jesus came and died on the cross to save us, then we have a major debt. We can't keep living the same way we've always lived, we at least owe Him that right? Paul actually says that we should stop trying to imitate the world and be 'transformed' into something new. Sounds exciting, but what does that really look like?

It's not exactly Optimus Prime kind of stuff, but truth be told it will have more impact on the world if we actually live it out! We are supposed to take an honest look at ourselves, not being conceited. We should figure out what our gifts are and use those to the glory of God. God doesn't want everyone to be a preacher, but if that is your gift you better use it! If your gift is serving, teaching, encouraging, whatever it is God can and wants to use you to do great things!

Here is where it gets hard. It says "Don't just pretend to love others. Really love them." It is hard to love some people. But the truth is Jesus died for everyone, and I am just as much of a sinner as the next person. It is my job to love people. It is actually counterintuitive. How can you really love someone if it is your job to love them? Is it really love? That is where the transformation has to take place. Only Jesus can change your heart. When we love people, we take care of them, we celebrate with them, we cry with them, we welcome them even when it is inconvenient. Only after we have been transformed can we get rid of the urge to seek revenge and give that to God.

We are supposed to do our best to live at peace with everyone. Easier said than done right? This transformation is a daily process. It is a daily decision to live for Jesus. Simple, but not easy.

Enjoy the Journey

Grandma won't Save You

From the beginning God chose the Israelite nation to be His people. He chose them to be the people through whom Jesus would come. That means it is through them that salvation came to the planet. Therefore they are special. All that being said, it is not being an Israelite that saves you. Just because you are an Israelite doesn't mean you will be saved. This was (and still is) a common thought among the Jewish people. Paul makes a pretty convincing argument that not all of the Jews throughout the Old Testament were chosen by God, so why would we think that it is any different now? He pretty much sums it up by saying God can choose whoever He wants, because He is God.

As for the rest of us (who aren't Jewish), we were simply out of luck until Jesus came. Now we have the opportunity through faith in Jesus to be made right with God. However it is still easy for us to have the same entitlement mentality that the Jewish people Paul was writing to had. Many times we think because we come from a good family who has gone to church all their lives, and because we went to church when we were little that we are fine. Never mind that we have not made a single disciple in our lifetime! My grandma was a saint!

So what? Big deal. That has nothing to do with you. This is the message Paul is trying to get across in this passage. A relationship with God is now available to everyone, but it is based on what YOU are doing, and it has nothing to do with your family. For some of us that is a comforting thing, for others it is really scary. It means I need to take a look at my life, and find out if I'm really following Jesus, or if I'm relying on my family to get me to heaven. There is only one way into heaven, and it has nothing to do with my grandma.

Enjoy the Journey

Life in the Spirit

There is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus! Isn't it great when a passage starts like that? How is that even possible though? I'm such a screw up surely that can't be true. If we were living under the law, that statement wouldn't be in the Bible. The law was powerless to save. Don't get me wrong, the law is perfect, I am the problem. I keep breaking the law, and the law in and of itself can't forgive me. All it can do is point it that I'm terrible. That is why we needed Jesus to come so badly! He came and lived a perfect life. He kept every law from the day He was born until the day He died! That is why His sacrifice for our sins worked. You see, if God is just, then sin has to be punished. But punishing one sinner for the sins of others sinners doesn't really work now does it? In order for it to really be a sacrifice, it would have to be someone who didn't deserve the punishment. That is why Jesus had to come and live a perfect life. If He had sinned while He was here on earth, there could have been no sacrifice. He would have deserved death, just like I do.

Now, in light of His sacrifice, I can be forgiven! That means that I am free from the law, I am free from sin and from death! Not physical death mind you, that was the punishment on all creation for Adam's sin in the garden. I still sin today, and even though God forgives me, I still have to pay that price for Adam's sin and for my own sin. But I don't have to die spiritually, which is by far the bigger deal!

Because I am free from sin, I don't have to let it control me anymore! I know that is much easier said than done, and I still sin everyday, but now I don't belong to sin. Now I can choose to live by the Spirit of God who lives in me. I can choose to glorify God with my life. The Spirit of God helps me in my daily fight against the sin that still wants to control my life. Because of this, I can look forward to the day when Christ returns! Before I was set free, that was going to be a scary day of death and judgement. Now it will be a day for a party! Now there is nothing that can separate me from the love of Jesus. Not sin, not other people, not even death. Praise God!

Enjoy the Journey

From Death to Life

If God's grace is seen more clearly when we sin, should we sin more so His grace can be seen more clearly? It's kind of a stupid thought really, but that is how Paul begins Romans 6. Then he says 'of course not!' When we were baptized into Jesus, we were buried with Him. At that moment we died, just like Christ died. But we were also raised with Him into a new life, free from the bondage of sin. Now we are able to live a new life, physically and spiritually! Since we have died with Jesus, we will be raised with Him. In other words, when we died (in baptism), our sins were crucified with Christ and no longer have power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin! Baptism is a picture of Jesus' death in our lives. Since Jesus was raised from the dead and will never die again, we too can have faith that we have been raised, set free from the power of sin and death, and are now truly alive through the power of God. If our old self has died, we should no longer give in to our sinful desires. We don't have to do that anymore, we have been set free! Our lives should be used to glorify God. True, we are no longer slaves to sin. However, Paul says that we are slaves to whatever we choose to obey. So, if you have chosen to obey Jesus, well...what do you think that means? I don't really like the slavery analogy very much, but the it holds true. There are really only two choices. I can obey my sinful nature, which results in eternity in hell. The alternative is to obey God, which results in eternal life. The choice is mine to make. Romans 6:23- "The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord."

How to be Made Right with God

I love this chapter so much. First Paul talks about how humans act. Most of us wouldn't give our lives for anyone, even if they were good. We certainly wouldn't give our lives for bad people, or people that hate us. But that is exactly what Jesus did. He gave His life on the cross for you and for me. I know most of us wouldn't say that we've ever really hated God, but when we sin, it's pretty much spitting in His face.

Sin was first introduced into the world through Adam and Eve, and the consequence was death. Since then, everyone who has ever lived has sinned, and therefore suffers death as well (I know there are a couple of people who were taken to heaven and didn't die, can anyone name them?). But physical death isn't the only thing that we have to worry about. In fact, it is spiritual death that is much scarier, because it results in being separated from God forever. When Jesus came, He lived a perfect life and died for all the things we've done wrong, He made it possible for us to gain forgiveness. He made it possible for us to escape death, not physical death, but spiritual death. Only now do we have the chance to spend eternity with God.

I know that leads to several interesting questions, was His death retroactive? What about the people who died before He came? They had to follow the law and make the sacrifices, but Jesus' death changed everything for everyone! I'm glad that God makes the call of who has eternal life, but I'm also glad that I can be sure of my standing with Him because now my standing with Him has everything to do with Jesus' perfection!

So how are we made right with God? Through faith in Jesus and the sacrifice that He made. We believe, repent (or turn away from) the wrong things we have done, confess His name in front of others, are baptized, and live our lives for Him. Simple...but not easy.

Enjoy the Journey

By Faith

Thank goodness our standing with God is based on faith and not our obedience to the law. Many Jews believed you could only be a Christian if you were circumcised and then started following the law. Paul was trying to knock that out. He says that Abraham, that father of the Jewish nation, was accepted by God long before he was circumcised! Why was he accepted? Because of his faith! Therefore Abraham is the spiritual father of both the Jews and the Gentiles.

We really have to choose between trying to come to God by our obedience to the law and coming to God in faith. If we can perfectly obey the law, then we really don't need faith or forgiveness, because we will have earned our way into heaven, much like we earn our paycheck from work. The problem is, if you break the law even once you've blown it. The other problem is we all break the law every day! So we are in desperate need of forgiveness! A relationship with God isn't something that we've earned or even deserve.

This is the whole reason Jesus came! To take our punishment for breaking the law and make it possible for us to have a relationship with God based on faith. That is why His coming was such good news! There is only one way to be forgiven, through the death of Jesus. Faith is something that is available to all people. Therefore, a relationship with God isn't just for a select few, but something that is open to everyone. That is good news!

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God is Faithful

The Law is hard to obey, in fact it is impossible. The purpose of the law is to show us how much we need Jesus. Paul tells the Jews that they are a special people in that they were given the law and no one else was given it. They were the people God chose to have a relationship with first! But then he warns them not to get too big headed, because the law does not save. God is the only God there is, and therefore He is God of all. Through Jesus He opened the door to have a relationship with the entire world. Through Jesus we all have the opportunity to be saved! But first we have to realize that we are all equally guilty of sin.

Like the Jews, sometimes I have a tendency to think that I am...shall we say...less sinful than other people. The Bible is very clear, everyone sins, therefore everyone deserves death. The good news is that everyone has the chance for life in Jesus. This is the good news of the gospel! Jesus came for everyone, not just for Jews, and not just for me! I would do well to remember that as I go about making disciples. I don't get to choose who deserves to hear about Jesus. The truth of the matter is, that I didn't deserve to hear about Jesus! How can I keep this news to myself.

God is and has always been faithful. Jesus took my punishment for breaking the law. I have been
set free from the law! Praise God.

Enjoy the Journey

What Really Counts

Paul says in Romans 2 that the Jews shouldn't condemn people for sinning, because they are just as bad! You see, the Jews thought they were going to heaven because they were Jews. So they tried to obey the law, but they figured they were safe either way. Paul is explaining that being right with God has nothing to do with who your grandma is or even what she did. It has everything to do with YOUR relationship with Jesus. There will be a day when God's patience runs out, and the world will be judged. But when that happens it won't be based on whether or not your family has a history of following God. The only thing that will matter for you is whether or not you did! This would have shaken the Jews who read it, and it causes me to take a look at myself today. I have a great family, but I can't rely on my mom or dad to get me into heaven.

He also says that they (the Jews) think they are special because they have the law and can tell other people how God wants them to live. While that may be true, the problem was that they weren't following it themselves! Having the law doesn't do you any good if you don't follow it! Just like knowing about God doesn't do you any good unless you are a follower. It really comes down to relationship. I know a lot about Michael Jordan, but we aren't having lunch today. That is how my relationship with God is sometimes. It doesn't do me any good to be able to quote a ton of scripture, to go to church, even to teach others about Him if I'm not spending time with Him myself on a regular basis.

To paraphrase Paul: You are not a Christian just because your parents were Christian and you grew up in church. No, the true Christian is the one whose heart is right with God.

Enjoy the Journey

New Year, Same Goal

As I begin a new year, I thought about what resolution I should make. Instead of losing weight or something like that, I determined that my goal should be one that will actually matter 100 years from now. So my goal is to take my relationship with Christ to the next level. Because the only thing that will matter 100 years from now is whether or not you have a relationship with Jesus. With that in mind, I start the new year off in Romans...

Paul begins with some pleasantries, introducing himself and talking about how he wishes he could come and join them. He wants to come and see them so that he can preach the gospel to them! He says he isn't ashamed of the gospel because it has the power to save everyone, whether they are Jewish or not. This was a big debate in that time, the Jewish people were still not really wanting to be inclusive of Gentiles (non-Jews). Paul says that through faith I Christ, anyone can have a relationship with God, no matter what their family tree looks like.

He then goes on to say that no one has an excuse for not believing in God. Even if they haven't heard about God directly, they have seen all the things He has made. In spite of that, most of the world doesn't believe, and so God gave them over to their sinful desires. People chose to worship idols rather than the true God, and so He just let them. This has lead to all kinds of problems as we can see. However it tells us something about God: He won't make you love or worship Him. It is a choice that you have been given and only you can make. God wants everyone to love Him, but if we don't get a choice in the matter, then it can't be love.

The question I have to ask myself is this: What am I substituting for God? What things in my life am I worshiping instead of Him? It might be the iPad that I'm typing this on, it might be the tv, it might be my son or my wife! At least in my life it isn't a statue that I bow down to worship, but it can be reply easy to substitute time with God with a bunch of other things that just seem more pressing at the time.

In 2013 it is my goal to worship and serve the Creator rather than the created things. Pray for me.

Enjoy the Journey,
Elliott

Go All Out

We are meant to go all out in worship. "Worship in heaven is unapologetically passionate and highly demonstrative. The whole multitude worship God, each with their whole heart. Heaven's worship is also physical. John saw the heavenly host fall on their faces before God:
And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God. -Revelation 7:11
And the twenty-four elders who sit on their thrones before God fell on their faces and worshiped God. -Revelation 11:16
In heaven, humility is the only possible posture, and the glory of God throws the worshipers to their knees. Everyone is actively involved."

Did you know that "in the Old Testament, the original Hebrew word used most often for worship means to bow down, fall down, humbly beseech, do reverence. The Greek word for worship used most often in the New Testament has a similar meaning: to prostrate oneself in homage, do reverence, to adore." In scriptures, there is no mention of people sitting in pews quietly as they worship God. They get passionately and physically involved! Think about it, "it is simply unnatural to restrain our worship. It's human nature to exude joy and energy. We get visibly exercised over a new car, a good meal, or our favorite movie. When discussing sports, religion, or politics, many of us are very animated; we use our hands to emphasize certain words or phrases. When we speak about a loved one, our eyes light up, we smile; our feet may even bounce as if they're about to break into dance. I don't know anyone who speaks in constant monotone, with no facial expression, hands glued to their sides when talking about something or someone they love. Yet that's how some of us try to worship. Meanwhile the saints in heaven are doing face plants in homage to the King of kings. So why do we hold back? Why so reticent? Why do we settle for lackluster worship?"

Our author suggests several reasons. Our culture has conditioned us to be comfortable and complacent, not actively engaged. From our televisions to our iPads, we are used to sitting back and watching other people do things without actually breaking a sweat ourselves. "Sometimes pride prevents us from fully entering worship. We want to avoid looking foolish, weak, or awkward because it might tarnish our image or damage our reputation." But here is the truth: "Actions always accompany heartfelt convictions. 'The good person out of the good treasure of his hear produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil' (Luke 6:45).

It could be fear of others that keeps us from being fully engaged. "We fear their disapproval, maybe even their scorn." Why do we really care what others think of us when we worship? David didn't care. "Jesus commands us to 'love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' We are to worship the Lord enthusiastically and completely, with everything we've got."

"Bringing God our best worship may mean something different for each of us, depending on personality, temperament, and religious background. For example, if your personality is quiet, laid back, or reserved, bringing god your best worship might mean that you do something overt, like raise your hands or kneel. If you're an extrovert, you might at times want to consider sitting reverently still in God's presence during corporate worship. As you try to discern what it means to bring God your best worship, I humbly offer what I hope are a few helpful suggestions."

Come hungry for God. Walk into church ready to encounter God. Respond to His presence with the worship He deserves.
Come ready to contribute.
Make your praise visible. "If you come ready to contribute, you won't sit back like a bump on a log; you'll automatically engage during worship."

Here are some physical expressions and their purposes:
Standing- appropriate for praying tribute or showing honor
Kneeling/bowing- postures of submission
Raising hands- prayer and worship

How much physical expression is enough? How much is too much?
"Here's a simple guideline: you should exert more energy worshiping God than you do cheering for your favorite sports team, your kid's soccer team, or your favorite band. Even if you're not a sports fan or don't attend rock concerts, I think you get the point. Your countenance and your posture should visibly demonstrate that you mean business when it comes to worshiping God."

Enjoy the Journey

Focus on God's Attributes

What I'm about to say is so simple it almost seems silly. Truthfully it would be silly if we weren't so bad at it. So here is a revelation that I am sure will shock you to the core of your being: "Heaven's worship is not focused on us but solely on God." I know, shocking right? "The result is pure ascription-worship that is obsessed with God's intrinsic worth and ascribes to God alone the glory and honor due Him. There are no personal pronouns recorded in heaven's worship- no 'me,' no 'my,' no 'I.' Instead, the names and attributes of God are front and center: 'Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen' (Revelation 7:12). Everyone in heaven is so enamored with God that they don't waste a single moment thinking only about themselves." This type of worship reminds us that we are not the center of the universe, God is.

In heaven, "God is worshiped not only for who He is but also for what He's done." Heaven's worship is overflowing with thanksgiving. It is hard not to be filled with thanksgiving when you are thinking of who God is and what He has done for you! "Praise and thanksgiving go hand in hand; they are the lifeblood of Christian worship, a natural response to God, for all He' done and continues to do."

It sounds simple, but it is not easy. This is because, "human beings are notoriously self-centered, always looking out for number one. All too often, we put our emotional needs ahead of the needs of others, sometimes at the expense of others. Our bottom line for everything-whether it be work, relationships, marriage, or even church-is too often, 'What's in it for me?' Sometimes we are even thinking about ourselves while we are singing. The truth is "I can sing praise songs at the top of my lungs with hands in the air with all my thoughts centered on me." Ever been there? "When the words coming from my lips are contradicted by what's happening in my mind and heart, I have failed to worship God."

D.A. Carson says, "We cannot ascribe to the Lord all the glory due His name if we are consumed by self-love or intoxicated by pitiful visions of our own greatness or independence."

Worship that is pure ascription takes our eyes off of us and places them where they belong...on God. Therefore worship is something that we offer God. "It's not a show the church puts on to make us feel good or to motivate us. Worship is something we do to honor God."

Some of us can't go through a single worship time without finding something to complain about. "Our heavenly father doesn't care for complaining; it offends him. Note His reaction to the people of Israel: 'And the people complained in the hearing of the Lord about their misfortunes, and when the Lord heard it, His anger was kindled' (Numbers 11:1). Complaining is an insult to God. It's like saying, 'God, I don't trust that You're good. I think You're holding out on me, and I can't be happy unless You give me what I want.' Truth is, God has never let us down and He never will. 'And from His fullness we have all received, grace upon grace' (John 1:16).

Contrast that with gratitude. Complaining offends God, but gratitude pleases Him. Over and over in the Bible we are commanded to be grateful to God! Why? Because we are so quick to forget the things that He has done for us. We have a tendency to take God for granted. "Followers of Christ are called to be worshipers, not complainers."

Mark Batterson writes, "There are basically two types of people in the world: complainers and worshipers. And there isn't much circumstantial difference between the two. Complainers will always find something to complain about. Worshipers will always find something to praise God about. They simply have different default settings." Thanksgiving is the antidote for discontent.

Are you having trouble being thankful? "If the only blessing we ever received from God was salvation through Jesus Christ, that would certainly be enough." But God has given us so much more than that, and for most of us He has blessed us far beyond what we deserve!

So this week be on the lookout for names and attributes of God as we worship together. Focusing on the names and attributes of God will curb our negativity. Our author writes, "I've discovered that church folk can also be some of the most negative people you'll ever meet. They complain about the most trivial things. At one church where I worked, a man sent the pastor a note complaining that the cookie he received at the welcome booth on Sunday morning was 'too soggy.' Another groused that our worship leader said 'exult' instead of 'exalt.' (I honestly couldn't hear the difference.) Nothing draws more complaints from churchgoers than the music. Music is highly subjective; people have strong feelings about what they like and dislike. So you're bound to hear some songs in church you don't like and might even hate. You may also be subjected to music that is played or sung poorly. I once heard a worship band go through an entire song playing in two different keys-and no one on the platform even appeared to notice. Most church musicians are good-hearted amateurs. They mean well, but that doesn't mean they always play well. That's why it's important to concentrate on the message, not the messengers. If you're tuned in to the attributes of God, you will be able to worship regardless of the style or quality of the music."

My hope is that what drives you on Sunday mornings is not your love for the music we do, but your love for God. So this week, spend time throughout the service giving thanks to God for all He is doing and has done in your life. "Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you" (James 4:8). Remember that we are in the presence of God. "We worship the Father, through the Son, in the Spirit." "So as you walk into church, think of yourself as an active participant, not a casual observer, in the fellowship of the Trinity. In short, think of yourself as a vibrant worshiper."

Enjoy the Journey

Growing as a Corporate Worshiper- Worship in Revelation

What do you think the number one activity is in heaven? You guess it, worship! I hope you like worship, because that is what we are going to be doing for eternity! A.W. Tozer says, "I can safely say, on the authority of all that is revealed in the Word of God, that any man or woman on this earth who is bored and turned off by worship is not ready for heaven." So what is worship in heaven going to be like? Let's take a look at the scripture and see what it has to say.

It's going to be loud...I mean really loud!

Revelation 5:11-12 says, "Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands saying with a loud voice..."

Revelation 11:15, "Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven saying..."

Revelation 19:1, "After this I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, crying out..."

Does this mean that there won't be quiet, contemplative worship in heaven? Absolutely not. I believe that heaven will include plenty of opportunities for quiet reflection. "After all Revelation 8 opens with silence and prayer. However, when heaven worships, the volume generally goes way up. For some of us, that may take some getting used to."

"Every church that features contemporary music faces controversy over volume levels. Such churches field complaints that the music is too loud. I encourage compassion toward anyone who may be sensitive to loud sounds, but some people take their complaining way too far. They're rude to the ushers and the sound team. The stomp out of church angry and write nasty letters. Recently I saw a disgruntled man and his wife create an ugly scene at church by standing with their fingers planted firmly in their ears, scowls on their faces, during the entire worship set. I can't help but wonder how those folks will fare amidst the deafeningly loud sounds of thunder, earthquakes, and trumpets that await them in heaven's worship."

The Bible also has many references to loud worship on earth as well. "During Jesus triumphal entry into Jerusalem, 'the whole multitude of His disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen' (Luke 19:37). Therefore, loud celebratory praise has a rightful place in worship."

Worship in heaven is also repetitive. That may be a surprise to some people. Revelation 4:8 says that the four creatures around God's throne "Day and night never cease to say, 'Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!'" Words that extol God are worth repeating.

So what do we take away from this? We have to be teachable. Some of the things we've always thought about worship might need to be reconsidered. Maybe loud sounds or repetitive lyrics are not a problem for you. Maybe it is just a particular kind of music. This could apply to both people who only like contemporary music, or to people who only like traditional music. If you are in either of those places, let me say this to you. "God intended corporate worship to be a beautiful expression of Christian unity. It must break God's heart when we allow worship to become a source of strife and division." Let us not be caught up in a style, but let us worship God, because after all, He is worthy of our worship.

There may be instruments in heaven that we've never seen. "When King David introduced new instruments into corporate worship (1 Chronicles 23:5), the Bible makes no mention of anyone complaining about these newfangled innovations. Or if anyone did object, the writers of Scripture didn't think it was worth mentioning. In the same way, let's not be too quick to dismiss worship styles, old or new, that are different from what we're used to. Instead of judging a different approach by whether you like it or not, evaluate it on the basis of whether or not it contradicts Scripture. If a certain practice does nothing for you, respect and appreciate the possibility that it may enhance worship for others."

Jesus is going to prepare a place for us in heaven. We learn that in the gospel of John. But "Christ is not simply preparing a place for us; He is preparing us for that place. Part of our preparation for heaven involves us growing as worshipers. Therefore, every church service here on earth is preparation for the real thing - a rehearsal for the glorious praise gatherings we'll experience in paradise. So next Sunday morning as you head out the door, remember that you're not just going to church, you're going to worship practice."

Enjoy the Journey

Worship Amidst Adversity

Worshiping when times are tough is one of the hardest things to do. David seemed to have it down pretty well though, and he was not at all a stranger to calamity. There are times when he was hopeless and discouraged, like when his father in law sent assassins to kill him in the middle of the night and the only reason he escaped is because his wife tipped him off! Maybe you've never had assassins after you, but I bet you know what it is like to be hopeless and discouraged.

David also faced anxiousness and fear. He couldn't stay in the country because Saul was trying to kill him so he had to flee to Gath, which in case you didn't know, was Goliath's hometown. He wasn't exactly going to win any popularity contests there either! He was so scared for his life that he pretended to be insane, drooling all over himself and acting crazy so they wouldn't kill him! Instead they just kicked him out of town.

Later Saul died and he became King, but he faced frustration and disappointment because he wanted to build a temple for God, and God told him no! Not only did he tell David no, but told him that his son would get to do it! David had long dreamed of building a house for God, but God denied his request and David didn't even live long enough to see the project started! David was allowed to help make preparations, but he couldn't help start the build. "There are times when a dream is from God, but the role He has for us is not what we hoped or imagined."

David faced devastation and depression because of family issues. One of his sons raped his half sister and then another one of his sons killed him for it! That makes for awkward dinner conversation! Absolom (the one who killed his brother) then ran away from home. Later he started a coup that drove David out of the palace and he lost the kingdom for a little while! David went into depression and he was absolutely worn out from all of this. Later Absolom was killed in a fight with some of David's men. Talk about family problems!

So how did David respond? He worshiped. Did he vent to God? Absolutely. It amazes me how many people think that asking God why something happened is a sin. David did this constantly! He bore His soul to God. He cast his burdens on God. God is big enough to handle your problems and your concerns! But here is the thing. David didn't just talk to God about his problems, he also talked to his problems about his God. He constantly dwelled on the attributes of God. Even among the hardest times of his life David often referred to God as his Singh and shield. When you spend time focusing on the attributes of God, God gets bigger and your problems come into proper perspective. They may not disappear, but they are placed in the hands of a huge, almighty God who can handle them with ease if He chooses to do so. "Worship reminds us that God is always bigger than any burdens we carry or any challenges we face."

When this happens, our faith is increased and we are transformed. Trouble is part of life this side of heaven. Jesus promised that we would have trouble in this world. But He also said that we shouldn't fear, because He has overcome the world! Trials and tribulations build in us endurance, which builds in us character, which produces hope.

May we, like David, be people that trust to God first in adversity..not as a last resort. As worship leaders, we come from a long line of people including David, who have learned to worship God in the good times and the bad. May we remember that "no matter what happens, God is still sovereign, He is still good, and He is still worthy of our highest praise."

Enjoy the Journey

Smash Your Idols

"David regarded obedience as the highest form of worship: 'In sacrifice and offering you have not delighted...burnt offering and sin offering You have not required...I delight to do Your will, O my God; Your law is within my heart.'" Putting the law of God within us is the way to maintain integrity, and "serious worshipers strive to be people of godly character and integrity. Jesus also equated obedience with worship. He said, 'If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me.' You can't express love to Jesus and then ignore His will, do whatever you want, and break his commandments. Willful disobedience renders our worship unacceptable to God." It would be like if I told Abi I loved her and she was the only woman I ever wanted and then went out and cheated on her. That would make me a hypocrite at best and a liar at worst.

God says this to the people of Israel because of their superficiality, "I hate, I despise your feasts, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies. Even though you offer Me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them; and the peace offerings of your fattened animals, I will not look upon them. Take away from Me the noise of your songs, to the melody of your harps I will not listen. But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream. (Amos 5:21-24)" "When what we sing doesn't match what we do, the result is hypocritical worship, which is something that God absolutely loathes."

I pray that we are not a people who worship idols. At first the idea seems a little ridiculous, I mean who bows down to a golden calf these days right? At least not anyone I know! But the truth is that idolatry runs rampant in our world and even lurks in our hearts daily. You see, "idolatry is simply worship directed in any direction but God's." To get a better idea of what idolatry is, listen to what Pastor Timothy Keller has to say in his book 'Counterfeit gods.'

"An idol is anything more important to you than God, anything that absorbs your heart and imagination more than God, anything you seek to give you what only God can give. A counterfeit god is anything so central and essential to your life that, should you lose it, your life would feel hardly worth living. An idol has such a controlling position in your heart that you can spend most of your passion and energy, your emotional and financial resources, on it it without a second thought. It can be family and children, or career and making money, or achievement and critical acclaim, or saving 'face' and social standing. It can be a romantic relationship, peer approval, competence and skill, secure and comfortable circumstances, your beauty or your brains, a great political or social cause, your moreality and virtue, or even success in the Christian ministry...An idold is whatever you look at and say, in your heart of hearts, 'If I have that, then I'll feel my life has meaning, then I'll know I have value, then I'll feel significant and secure.' There are many ways to describe that kind of relationship to something, but perhaps the best one is worship."

This is probably not new information for you, but I just want to remind you that not all idols are bad things in and of themselves. "Many of our counterfeit gods are actually good things, which is why we pin our hopes and dreams on them. But even the best things in life can never replace God. Sin, therefore, is not just a matter of doing bad things or breaking God's rules. Sin is letting a good thing become an ultimate thing and, therefore, taking the place of God in our lives."

So how do you identify idols in your life? Answer these questions:
1. What do you think most about? 2. How do you spend your money? 3. What sets your off emotionally? 4. What brings you joy, peace, security, or fulfillment? 5. How do you react when an idol is taken away?

I think that last one is the hardest one to answer. the true test of whether or not something has become an idol in our life is to find out whether or not we can give it up. If I can't live without it, odds are it has become an idol in my life. Jesus didn't pull any punches when it came to this stuff. He said we can't love our families more than Him if we want to follow Him! Jesus doesn't want to be part of your life and fit in to your agenda. You can't serve two masters. "The Christian life doesn't allow for Jesus and my porn habit, or my greed, or my selfish desires to coexist."

In order to get rid of these things in our lives, we have to repent early and often. Repentance isn't something you just do once and assume you're covered! Dying daily to our struggles is part of following Jesus. We have to flee idolatry. In other words, stop putting yourself in situations where you know you will struggle with an idol. Ask God to give you strength to part with any idols in your life. We have to replace our idols. It's not good enough to just stop doing something and replace it with nothing. Eventually that will come creeping back into your life unless you replace it with something better. Try replacing it with worship. Worship "can be a powerful tool against temptation." It is almost impossible to worship something else while you are worshiping God! We need to get to the point in our lives when we can truly say that God is enough. We need to come to a place where we really believe that God is all we need. Only then will idols be powerless in our lives.

"May the Holy Spirit grant you the courage to abandon any idols that hinder you from knowing God-and God alone-as your lasting satisfaction, deepest joy, and greatest pleasure."

Enjoy the Journey

Establish a Regular Routine

"David lived a life of continuous worship and invites us to do the same: 'May those who love Your salvation say continually, Great is the Lord!'" (Psalm 40:16) Do you have a regular worship routine? Does your worship really extend beyond Sunday morning? In order to get the most out of our times together on Sunday we have to enter with a heart that is full of worship. In order to do that, we need to be worshiping throughout the week in addition to what we do on Sunday morning. So how do you worship throughout the week? I will offer a few suggestions, but keep in mind this list is far from exhaustive. It is good to try out different things in order to keep your time with God fresh, so feel free to add things to this list!

At the beginning of your devotions, try spending a few minutes praising God, "either verbally or in writing, drawing on whatever attribute of His" that comes to mind. Most of the time it will be the one that you have recently seen or experienced! Sometimes the attribute or characteristic of God that you will be drawn to will reflect a specific need in your life. For example, when times are tough, you may be drawn to God's comfort. Spend time praising Him for being the Comforter that you need. Reading the Psalms is a great way to find different attributes of God that you might not normally think of. When you are reading the Psalms, try reading them out loud. "Originally, psalms were intended to be sung or spoken. I find that reading psalms out loud forces me to slow down and read the words more carefully and thoughtfully."

During your devotions, with each passage of scripture you are reading, answer two questions:

1. How does this passage apply to my life?
2. What does this Scripture tell me about who God is?

"The Bible is our ultimate authority on God-what He's like, how He thinks, and how He acts." So throughout your reading, be on the lookout for attributes of God and names of God (He has many in scripture), and take time to thank Him for those!

How much time do you spend meditating? Let me clarify what I mean by meditating. When I say meditating all I mean "is simply taking the time to think about who God is and what God has done." To be honest, I find it difficult to meditate because my mind tends to roam all over the place. Here are some questions you might ask during your meditation time.

1. How have I seen this particular name or attribute of God manifested in my life or in the world around me?
2. Why am I drawn to this particular aspect of God's character?
3. How did Jesus embody this attribute of God?
4. How can I reflect this part of God to others?
5. Is God inviting me to do anything in relation to this particular name (of God) or attribute?

Try praying about the names and attributes of God that you are reading about! "Do you ever feel like you prayers are dull and repetitive? Try "to include a line or two of praise for an attribute of God when" you pray. It doesn't matter if you are praying during your devotions, at mealtime, or anytime in between! "If you want to breathe more life into your prayers, try praying as you worship and worshiping as you pray."

Have you ever written your own Psalm? Some of you are poets and songwriters! Every songwriter or poet will tell you that 98% of what they write will never see the light of day outside of the room it was written in. So don't think that everything you write has to be wordy or eloquent, because it doesn't! It just has to be a genuine offering of praise before God! I find that this greatly enriches my personal worship time. I have probably written at least 10 songs for every 1 song that you will ever hear. Sometimes I sing them when I am doing my devotions as an expression of praise to God. Maybe you should try it too!

Maybe you aren't really into writing your own songs or poems. Have you tried singing other people's songs or reading other people's poems to God as an act of personal worship? Christianity has a deep and rich tradition of songs that date back to the first century, surely you can find a few that you would want to sing to God during your personal time of worship!

Others of you may find that worship happens spontaneously when you are out in nature. "If you're a nature lover, you need to schedule regular field trips to the nearest forest preserve, nature center, or beach. You could go for long leisurely walks every day or once a week. Consider a bike ride or road trip into the country. Bring a camera and take pictures. Draw or sketch your favorite scenes. Write down your thoughts. Describe what you see. Read Scripture. And don't forget to worship as you go. Sing praise to the Lord. May you join David, a fellow nature lover, in exclaiming, 'The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims His handiwork' (Psalm 19:1)."

"Whether it's listening to music, being out in nature, or doing something else that calls forth your worship, make sure you intentionally incorporate those activities into your regular routine." Again, the things we have talked about today are not even close to all of the things you could do to worship. But whatever you are doing, I hope that God will lead you into a deeper and exciting discipline of private worship.

Enjoy the Journey

Make Worship a Priority

King David made worship a priority in his life. You can tell because he said that the one thing that he longed for was to be with God and worship Him forever. Is worship a priority in your life? "You can always discern your priorities, for better or worse, by what angers you or stirs you, what frustrates you and what excites you. Honoring God was the utmost priority for David." I mean come on, that was the reason he ended up fighting Goliath! He didn't like the way that Goliath was talking about God! He went out there to defend His honor!

We are created to worship. God says in Isaiah that He created us for His glory. Psalm 150 says, "Let everything that has breath praise the Lord." So not only are we created to worship, we are commanded to worship. We are also destined to worship Jesus. You know what we are going to be doing in heaven right? Psalm 44:8 says that we will tie thanks to God forever! "Worship is one of the few things that we're currently doing that we will do forever-all the more reason to make it a priority in our lives."

Worship is something that covers every aspect of our lives. Colossians 3:17 says, "And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus." That means everything. That covers everything from singing on Sunday morning to filing that report for work on time to taking the garbage down on garbage day. "Understanding even the mundane aspects of our jobs as acts of worship brings new energy to our work."

Worship should be our top priority because it is God's top priority. Everything that happens is for God's glory. That is His purpose in everything He does. So the next time you are wondering why God is doing something, you already know the answer...it's for His glory. Creating us, the plagues of Egypt, yes even the cross was for His glory. "As unusual as it may sound, God's ultimate purpose is not that we be saved but that He be glorified. Redemption is not all about us; it's all about God. We are saved so that we can know and proclaim God's glory. That's why Pual referred to the gospel as the 'glory of the blessed God.' Jesus' ultimate goal on the planet was to bring God glory, why should our goal be any different? When we make worships a priority, we will see some changes in our lives.

We will have an increased awareness of God's presence. "Our worship does not lead us into God's presence; Jesus does! 'For Christ also suffered once fl ruins, the righteous fl rthe unrighteousness, that He might bring us to God' (1Peter 3:18). So while worship, in and of itself, doesn't summon God's presence, it reminds us that God is continually near."

We will also have increased delight in God's attributes. How we view God affects everything: how we think, act, and how we feel. Like a painter who is doing a portrait, we need to continually look at who God really is so that we can have an accurate picture in our mind of who God is. We can only do this by staying in the Word of God. We must dive deeply into the scripture to discover the true character of God. We cannot take for granted what the preacher says or what our culture says about God, but we must let Him speak for Himself. A wrong view of God will lead us down a wrong path of worship. We can't appreciate the attributes of God if we don't know what they are. And we can't know what they are unless we are in the Bible finding out what they are for ourselves. On the contrary, if we are in the Word we will begin to see the attributes of God more clearly, and we will see Him move in ways we have never seen before! May we be a people who make worship a top priority in our lives.

Enjoy the Journey

Growing as a Private Worshiper

How can we improve worship at our church? That's a loaded question if there ever was one! Truthfully though, the best answer is not a new keyboard, new sound system, or new worship leader! The truth is if we want worship to be all it can be on Sunday mornings, then we need to grow in our personal worship of God on the other days of the week! D.A. Carson writes: "In the same way that, according to Jesus, you cannot find yourself until you lose yourself, so also you cannot find excellent corporate worship until you stop trying to find excellent corporate worship and pursue God Himself. Despite the protestations, one sometimes wonders if we are beginning to worship worship rather than worship God. As a brother put it to me, it's a bit like those who begin by admiring the sunset and soon begin to admire themselves admiring the sunset."

We are put here on this earth to worship God and bring Him glory. Truthfully it's just practice for heaven, where we will...you guessed, worship God and bring Him glory forever and ever! If you aren't into that, I'm afraid heaven going to be a major letdown, because I have news for you, heaven isn't about you! Heaven is about God, and so is earth.

The book of Psalms is like a worship journal written by David (mostly anyway). Each page is dripping with passionate worship that extends far beyond the walls of the synagogue and reaches into every area of his life and touches on every emotion a person can have. The Psalms are both intensely personal and deeply passionate. May we be known as intense, passionate, devoted worshipers of God.

This is the part where you may think I am going to say that this will look different in each of your lives. You may think I should say something like, 'worship God the way you feel most comfortable, do what feels natural.' But I am not going to say that. The Ark of the Covenant was a central part of worship in the Old Testament because it represented the very presence of God. When David was bringing it back to the temple (because it had been captured) they had it on a cart and the cart hit a bump in the road and the Ark started to fall off! Uzaah reached out his hand to steady the Ark and God immediately struck him dead! Seems a little harsh right? Maybe, unless you know that God had prescribed that the Ark be transported using polls slid through the rungs on the side of the Ark and carried by four priests. NO ONE was to touch the Ark, and no one would have had to touch the Ark had they followed God's instructions in the first place.

Eventually David figured out why this happened and brought the Ark back to Jerusalem the way it was supposed to be. Like David, "we too need to scour the Bible to learn how God wants to be worshiped. For it doesn't matter how you and I want to praise God. It's not ultimately important whether worship makes us feel good or if the music is to our liking. True worship must always be offered on God's terms, not ours. So we need to learn how God wants to be worshiped." I know that isn't a popular thing to say, but at the end of the day, it's not about us or what we like, it's about God and what He likes.

"Christians can be stubborn as mules, set in their ways, especially when it comes to worship. Let's you and I respond differently by laying aside long-held notions and searching the Scriptures to learn all we can about how God desires to be worshiped." Then we can grow as private worshipers, and then we can grow as corporate worshipers as well.

Enjoy the Journey