Thursday, February 15, 2007

Worship In Spirit And In Truth

I've been thinking a lot today about a blog a friend of mine posted the other day titled: "Totally Confused About Worship." It caused me to think about today's view and definition of worship (which has become so generalized) and caused me to challenge my own thought and definition about it. I realized that in the past year, I have been challenged in that area, and today something hit me so I ran with it. Let's see if I can unpack this. Remember I'm learning.

In the Gospel of John, 4:23 Jesus tells the woman at the well "Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks." That verse popped into my head today and so I started to analyze it.

Let's take the SPIRIT side of it first. In Romans 12:1 it says "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship."

So what does this say? That we should live a life of righteousness, servitude, holiness, purity, selflessness all in view of the mercy and grace God showed us through His son Jesus Christ? Maybe so

TRUTH: Jesus said He was "the way the truth and the life". I think this is where the intellectual side of worship comes into play. It so often gets pushed out by mindless singing of songs that we don't take the time to listen to, and think about their meaning. If Jesus is TRUTH, then it only makes sense to me that we should be filled with the knowledge of who Christ was, what He did and will do. Truth is light, truth is revealing, truth is trust worthy. Truth is living with the intimate knowledge of who Christ is and what he has done for you.

I have always believed that if people fully realized what Christ did for them and who He is, they would not be able to contain the joy and wonder that would swell up inside them. They would have to let it out or they would burst. It would dramatically effect their life and the lives of those around them.

So I guess to sum it up based on what I have expressed, to worship in spirit and in truth is;

To respond to God with an intimate knowledge of who He is, what He has done in my life, and what He said He will do. To surrender my entire being to His will and to serve Him with a grateful and humble heart.

I know one day we will know exactly what Christ meant when He said "Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks."

This is what I live for, to worship God my Father, this is what I was created for and this is what you were created for. So let us worship Him with all that we are, with all that we've been given, in response to who He is.

Saturday, February 10, 2007

Old Song, Same Message

I grew up singing hymns, and can remember fondly the harmony and power of the voices as those songs were sung. I remember my Grandmothers voice ringing out above all others as she sang to her King with these songs. As time has gone on, hymns have gotten pushed to the wayside by the more "contemporary" genre of music. Thus the battle of music that has been raging in the church. Hymns, contemporary, hymns, contemporary.

Tomorrow we will be singing "There Is Power In The Blood". Like many of the songs today, this song carries a really neat hope filled message in the form of a question and answer. To paraphrase, the songs says:

Questions:
Would you be free from the burden or bondage of sin?
Would you win over evil?
Would you be so pure, that you would be whiter than snow?
Would you serve Jesus by doing His work here on earth?
Would you live everyday praising God and singing to Him?

Statements:
Sin is washed away by the blood of Jesus.
There is an active power in the blood of Jesus Christ.

The blood of Jesus is active in the lives of those who choose to accept it.

As we sing this song along with many other contemporary ones tomorrow, I will sing with the knowledge that although the song may be old, the message is still the same. The blood of Jesus Christ is always active in my life.

Sunday, February 04, 2007

NEVER HAD A DOUBT

Blue is now my favorite color, What a night for the Colts and as always Dungy and Irsay giving credit where credit is due, the good Lord above. What a cool night to live in Indiana. Way to go Colts, Congratulations!!!