THE "S"ENNCE

Just something that I was pondering yesterday - as I was contemplating what elements, according to scripture, are necessary when Jesus followers gather together.  This is by no means exhaustive, but I think this covers the basics. There seems to be a blessing or, if you will, benefit, to following a method God has put in place which the early church adopted with Kingdom effectiveness.

This loosely follows Acts 2:42-27...

SPIRIT

Everything - EVERYTHING - starts here.  Before the account in Acts 2, we read about the Holy Spirit falling upon the gathered believers.  This was the direct fulfillment of the promise Jesus made just before He ascended.  He clearly told his followers that the Holy Spirit would come upon them and baptize them and give them power that would aid them in reaching the world with the gospel. The Holy Spirit is not an "add on" (like you get with a software program or new media device.) The Holy Spirit is like the gas in your car - no gas and you ain't goin' nowhere!  You can certainly get out and push the car but after a while your arms will get tired!  You're better offer filling the tank! The Holy Spirit is where it all begins. 

SIGNS

At the risk of making some readers nervous, we read clearly that one of the ways the Holy Spirit works is through signs and wonders.  Healings. Manifestations. Encounters.  Whatever words you want to use - this is a reality of operating in the power of the Holy Spirit. I don't personally believe that there MUST be specific signs (ie: tongues, physical healings, laughing in the spirit, words of knowledge, etc.) but I do completely believe that we must allow for the possibility of these to occur in our gatherings - there must be a freedom within our houses of worship for the Holy Spirit to operate completely apart from whatever plans we have devised for the worship service.  And I will add that I have always felt more aligned with God's presence and power in a gathering where this type of Holy Spirit awareness was present.  Allow the Holy Spirit to operate in the gathering. 

SERMON 

A devotion to the teachings of the primary pastors and elders.  A devotion to their leadership.  A choice to pay attention to their wisdom under the joyful assumption that they have been called and ordained by God to lead the flock.  Yes, all teaching is to be measured against the Bible - so, my charge to you, if you don't like what's being said, is to do exactly that - research the preached topic in God's Word on your own and see how it measures up.  Don't simply choose to ignore the teaching because you disagree with what is being said. Be devoted to the pastors and leadership. 

SERVICE

The early church went out of their way to love and serve one another.  There was no special quarterly campaign for one specific need that a few could support if they felt like it.  The regular, day-to-day, posture of these people was to serve others.  They actually sold their belongings to help those in need. By my reading, this was not limited to only those in the church but outside as well.  There was an underlying attitude of generosity and delight within the body.  One other comment on this point - and this is a little delicate - when we bring our own personal wants and wishes; our agenda for what constitutes a "better" worship service - then we are actually being selfish and, in no way, thinking of others ahead of ourselves.  Can we please stop doing that?  Personally, I think that this attitude of love towards one another was the direct result of the joyful and eager welcoming of the Holy Spirit in their gatherings.  Love and Serve one another above yourself.   

SONGS

I realize that this passage in Acts is not necessarily a sequential, step-by-step process to be followed.  In other words it's not A = B = C... At the same time, it seems clear that the singing these early Christ followers engaged in - and - they DID sing - was more of a response than a "pre-show."  They praise God with singing and with glad and sincere hearts - that's what it says.  And they were loud in this activity - so much so that they could be heard outside the walls of the church!  This was a very loud, joyful, expression of praise and joy and delight BECAUSE of Who God is and what He had done for them!  Off the top of my head, I think they must have recalled some of the great miracles they read about in scripture, as well as the most recent re-birthing in the power of the Holy Spirit.  They rejoiced in their singing!  And this was very, very, VERY infectious!  In no way were they hoping to replicate whatever style of music they imagined David using when he composed his psalms.  They were not trying to emulate whatever was "popular music" in their period.  The songs were not sung to delight the people, in other words.  The songs were song as prayers, and declarations, and victorious announcements, and proclamations to the glory of God - and God alone.  Wow... 

SACRAMENTS

They took seriously certain sacraments taught by the apostles, disciples, teachers, leaders... among those was communion.  They did what Jesus said - they remembered Him - whenever the partook of the bread and wine.  They also extended this beyond the sacrificial table and actually gathered for meals together.  This was a huge part of their life as followers of Jesus - community.  While it doesn't specifically mention an "offering" in this passage, there seems to be ample proof that they were generous for the good of their Kingdom partners.  Perhaps we need to view our offering times in our modern gatherings with a similar attitude.  No, we may not sell our boat to pay someone's mortgage, but we gladly offer part of our wage to the "church vault" and let the leaders distribute the money as needed.  In our time, this means things like maintaining the facility and staff, funding missionary work, funding programs that minister to the lives of children and teens, providing leadership for a worship service that helps those gathered encounter all that was talked about earlier.  God gave us the sacraments for a purpose and they are to be followed.

SOLUTION

Well, this was the best "S" word I could fine... the meaning here is result, or outcome, or benefit, or blessing... "Solution."  And - what is that solution?  We read it in Acts 2:47 - that the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.  That numerical (and, by inference, financial) growth came about as the direct result of Surrendering to the Spirit and allowing for His moving during the gathering, Devotion to the Leadership, Love, Service and Generosity to one another, Singing Songs of praise in response to God's power and might, gathering together in community and obeying sacramental practices.  No mention of program, strategic planning, guest speakers, high tech, well-performed music, slick media, theater lighting... If you want to see growth, follow the plan.

SIMPLICITY

The final "S" for me - is SIMPLICITY.  As you read Acts 2:42-27 one things that should be obvious is how simple this format was.  It all flowed from one source - the outpouring and power of the Holy Spirit that included miracles and more.  That is what paved the way for devotion to the leaders and to the other followers.  It opened the door to loving and serving one another.  It helped create an attitude of generous giving.  It was the reason those who gathered felt a strong desire to shout and sing songs of praise to God.  They chose to obey sacraments modeled by Jesus and the first apostles and teachers.  None of this was "man-made" or created by man's intellect, wisdom or experience.  People FOLLOWED as the Lord led through Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit.  In other words - the burden of "making church happen" was lifted completely off of their shoulders because they trusted that God knew what He was doing and had imparted that to their leadership.  Keep it simple...

As I said at the outset, this is not meant to be an exhaustive list of what must be followed all the time in order to ensure an effective ministry.  You will need to examine your own church and see if these various "S's" fit your paradigm.  I do believe that the more a church does follow this format - because it has been mapped out for us in scripture - then you will get closer to fulfilling the call to impact the world (city, community) around you that Christ has given to each of us.     

SECOND-HAND WORSHIP

I grew up in a house with two parents who smoked - heavily.  It was the late 50's and 60's and back then, everyone - even doctors on TV - smoked.  It was just the thing to do...

So, I was one of the millions who experienced what came to be known as "second hand smoke." My clothes, books, toys - everything - smelled like cigarette smoke. That was my reality.

I didn't smoke - but I smelled like I did.  It was almost as if I was a smoker - because of my proximity to that activity. 

There is another second-hand activity taking place in a lot of churches today - second-hand worship! This is where people show up, find a seat, read the bulletin, say hello friends, and then - WATCH - as those on the platform (the professional worshipers) DO the worship FOR them.  But unlike me being mistaken for a smoker due to the proximity of the cigarettes in my life, these second-hand worshipers never actually reap the benefits of true worship and, often time, for example in the church parking lot right after the service, it's hard to tell the difference between them and all those other "non-Christians" driving around... In other words - they really have not dived in and encountered the life-changing transformation of true worship of God.  

The question to ask is WHY... Why do we have churches filled with second-hand worshipers?  The easy answer - and the one that most church leaders leap to - is to blame the people in the pews.  If they were more serious about their faith... or if they cared move about God and less about sports... or if they spent more time reading their Bible and praying... why, THEN things would be different.  But I don't think that's the best jumping off point for blame.

I actually think the primary reason we have second-hand worshipers is the fault of the church leaders - the pastors, the staff, the elders, the worship leaders and others in leadership both in our church and out in the world of "church leadership" in general - web and tv pastors, worship celebrities, Christian music stations, etc.  

We have, over time, trained the people in the pews to OBSERVE rather than engage... to WATCH rather than participate.  Many of our churches simply don't offer a gathering that lovingly encourages a deeper encounter with the Holy Spirit.  We create well-timed, 60-minute services that are well-performed, well-themed, well-rehearsed - - to the point of totally missing an actual connection with God.  Most of what we offer is not designed to draw in the pew sitter - songs are pitched in keys most people cannot sing... the tech and media take over and create a show to watch... what we offer in most churches today is something to go and see... and, friends, that is NOT worship.  

I'm thankful that I never took up smoking.  If I had, I would have reaped the damaging effects of that activity on my body. (My abuse of food has done it's own damage - why make it worse with smoking!)  

But flipping this around, second-hand worship has nowhere near the eternal benefits that true worship has.  So, if you are a second-hand worshiper, I encourage you to take up the habit of true worship to the fullest and let God transform you from the inside out!  

THE VALUE OF WORSHIP

Honestly, I'm not really sure how to begin this article.  I know what my heart wants to say.  And I believe that what my heart wants to say is true, at least based on my understanding of what I read in scripture. But I also know that I live in an age where the true, biblical meaning of words and phrases and teachings have been twisted to fit the human-driven agendas or cultural trends.  For that reason, knowing how some of this will be received, I find it difficult to put my heart's thoughts into words.  

So, I am not really sure how to begin this article.  

But, it must be said - so - here goes...

I will begin with the broken record - something you've heard me say before.  I believe that most of today's believers do not have a clear or accurate understanding of what God means when He speaks of "worship."  We have reached a point in Christian history where the very idea of "worship" has been greatly distorted. We have allowed the worship of God to slowly transition into the worship of man or, at the very least, man's selfish desires.  It is rare these days for gatherings of Jesus followers to enter a worship space and actually fall on our faces (metaphorically or in reality) in submission and surrender to THE God of all creation.

What we tend to do, instead, is gather to enjoy and/or participate in some sort of replacement for true worship.  We watch. We listen. We follow the commands to stand or sit. But, in most cases, in many churches, we are following a formulaic process of what we have allowed ourselves to think of as "worship." 

Currently, I am between church positions.  This has given me the opportunity to see what's out there.  

I was recently visiting a church that was well-attended.  Wonderful pre-service media, a countdown to the start of the service that including escalating music so you knew "something" was about to start.  The lights dimmed and then two "God songs" (as I call them) were led by a high-quality worship band who sounded pretty close to what you might hear on Christian radio - probably playing to a click track as many do these days.  The songs were not really designed to engage people in worship - just songs about how good God is.  Then the sermon - augmented by slick media.  Then the offering. Then a couple more closing songs. People in the theater-style seats did what the leaders said - stand up, sit down, etc. I imagine that most in the room were engaging at some level.  I noticed a few who seemed to honestly express their worship to God physically.  Others were checking their smart phones.  In general, my opinion is that the majority of the audience (and they were an audience) were EXPERIENCING the presentation.   

In contrast, I visited another church. The music was good - but not "as good" as the other church.  Some of the song lyric slides did not fall in sync with the music.  Nobody came off "polished" or "slick" in their stage persona.  The congregation (they were not an audience) were seated in chairs, facing a stage area that was simply a platform higher than the rest of the room.  There was a problem with the first song - the musicians were not together.  There were some problems showing a video - the sound didn't work.  Eventually they got it working.  But here's the thing - there was an unmistakable difference from that first church - these people arrived eager the ENCOUNTER the presence of God in a way that would transform them.  They were not coming to "watch worship." They were coming to "participate in worship." If anyone was distracted by the mishaps, it did not seem to derail the obvious presence of the Holy Spirit in the room.  People sang. People danced. People waved banners. People shouted.  There was a clear "connection" with God in the room.  

I believe that this second church has a very strong value of true worship.  They understand that true worship is not about putting on a slick performance that makes people feel good.  They realize that long-lasing, substantial spiritual and numerical growth comes from an honest and transformational relationship with Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit.  They are not trying to be a popular or hip church that will attract the masses based on program.  As their sub-statement says, they are "simply Jesus."  Of course they miss the mark at times - we ALL do!  But their focus is on ENCOUNTER rather than EXPERIENCE.  

The value of true worship seems to be slipping away.  In many cases we have turned worship into a commodity - a "thing" we can program and measure.  We design "worship sets" of songs that usually start big and end reflective thinking we are helping the congregation prepare for the deep message from God's Word.  We do our best to develop music teams that can replicate what we hear on the radio to ensure that those in the gathering are pleased with our efforts.  

But the VALUE of worship has very little to do with those efforts.  Because the value of worship is Jesus.  The value of worship is me submitting myself to His Lordship.  The value of worship is not driven by the clock, or personal agenda.  The value of worship is something very difficult to explain but once you encounter it, nothing else satisfies.  

If your church desires to impact the world around you, then you must begin by discovering and then raising the value of true worship. 

PREFERENCE VS. PRESENCE

Pick a style, any style...

Let's be honest - no matter how well we craft our church's vision statement or the "about" portion of our website... in the end, in almost every single case, the way we design our church comes down to a particular style... be it music, decor, lighting, banners, sermon length, flow of the service, etc.  We just live in an age where HOW we "do" church takes the primary role. It's as if we have create a jukebox-type mentality when it comes to our worship gatherings.  Search church websites and you will see this played out over and over and over again in almost every instance. 

Almost. 

I say "almost" because, thank God, there ARE churches out there who seem to have grasped the importance of SUBSTANCE over SHOW.  Or, what I am calling in this blog post, PRESENCE over PREFERENCE.

Along the way on our eons long journey of creating these gatherings that we call "church services" (even though, "church" is simply ALL of us - the collective Christ-following community of believers), we have landed on making our decisions to attend a particular church based on our own preferences - those things that we like; those things we enjoy; those things we feel good aligning ourselves with.  You know, the way one might select a particular health club to join. 

Will I like the music? Do I like the pastor? Is the service time acceptable to me? Is the location suitable? Do they use the latest technology? Do they have a cool website? Do they embrace the arts? Are they too big, too small, too stuffy, too loose, too conservative, too liberal...……………..

Does anyone ever ask... Do they create an environment or atmosphere that will help me draw closer to God, through authentic worship of Jesus, in the power of the Holy Spirit?

Or is that too "old school" these days?

"Preference" is a great way to choose a car, or a hair stylist, or a health food store... you want to find a place or service that meets your needs, and that is wise.  But - - GOD is not a "thing" we select by preference.  And, when we do, we turn God into a commodity - a "thing" that WE pick according to the parameters WE have set up that fit OUR needs.  Narcissism 101. 

Here is the hard truth - - God will ALWAYS fill your needs, when you honestly seek Him first, regardless of the particular setting or "flavor" of the gathering.  His ability to work miracles in your life has nothing to do with HOW a particular churches DOES "their thing..." Likewise, God does not work MORE effectively in a church setting that DOES fit your particular list of wants and wishes.  In fact, I would argue that He works less - or, more correctly - is limited in His ability to work in your life because you are far too focused on some personal agenda that you define as "church." And that simply gets in the way.  Always.  

I once worked with a youth director who said to me on more than one occasion that he could not worship God with the pipe organ.  My answer was, "then you cannot worship God."  I am not saying that you need a pipe organ to worship!  I am saying that his inability to worship God had nothing to do with a pipe organ - and everything to do with his attitude.  

The most important aspect of worship is encountering God's presence.  That's not just my opinion. Flip through the pages of scripture and you will see this truth lived out.  The people in the Bible who worshiped God - both Old and New Testament - did not rely on preferences - but on the presence - of God - through Jesus - in the power of the Holy Spirit.  Now, we can pretend that's not true, or we can pretend that it was only true for "those people way back in the Bible days" - but that only keeps us from truly stepping into the overwhelming, life-transforming presence of God in a way that alters us. 

The thing about "God's presence" (vs. preference) is that when you find it; when you fall into it; when you are immersed in it - there is just no mistaking it for anything other than the presence of God.  And, when that happens, you want nothing else because nothing else will satisfy, fulfill and truly transform you.  I know.  Been there, done that.  Once you encounter the powerful presence of God during an assembly of His people, no amount of slick, highly skilled, well-performed, perfectly timed music, media and tech will ever fully satisfy.  And, here's the rub - you will STILL find something WRONG with the presentation!  (Again, been there, done that...) 

Let me be clear about something - a well-rehearsed and expertly performed "worship set" is not automatically "the presence of God."  "Great Music" does not equal "Great Worship."  Please move away from that shallow thinking!  Listen, if you walk away from a worship gathering commenting on how GREAT the music was - you did NOT worship God.  You worshiped - the music.  If, however, you walk away from a worship gathering and you cannot even remember what songs were sung, or who led that morning, or how long you sang, or if there was a drummer today, etc. but, instead, comment on how you were moved to tears, or how you felt convicted of sin, or realized something about God's never-ending love for you, or something along those lines then I would say - you DID worship God!  Praise Him!  Yes, I realize it is not always so black and white - - but, sadly, the grey areas are growing greyer and greyer each passing year when it comes to our worship gatherings.

So - where do we go from here?  It's all about shifting our focus.  As we enter our places of worship, we all need to remember to focus FIRST on the PRESENCE - - and leave preference to the people at Home Depot trying to figure out what color to paint their Livingroom... 

DOOR NUMBER X

On "Let's Make A Deal," the entire show leads to the chance for the winning player to select between three different doors behind which is a surprise gift. Sometimes, it's a car.  And sometimes, it's a goat eating a bale of hay.  It all comes down to the random choice the contestant makes.  There is really no logic to that choice.  It's based on how they feel in the moment.  You know, like Vegas.  

Now, if there was a clearly defined rule as to how one should make their selection, that might make things easier.  For example, if Door #1 was always green, and you were told that the Green Door is the best one to select, then you would always select Door #1, right?  

What if I told you that, regarding our worship, the Green Door will always lead you to the right place?  Wouldn't you always want to go through that door?  I would.  

But here's what's happened with worship in so many of our churches.  We have not clearly defined what it is.  Most believers think we know what worship is based on our understanding of the Bible.  But even among believers - even mature believers - there continues to be confusion regarding the word, "worship" and how we define, program and chase it. 

The problem is compounded for those who lead in worship, primarily pastor and music or worship leaders.  (Yes, there are even some pastors who are not quite sure what worship is - or - they have simply aligned with the culture to avoid confrontation.) 

The first thing we must do is settle on an accurate definition of the word, "worship."  I have always liked a definition I first heard from Willow Creek church in Barrington, IL.  "Worship is responding to God for all He is with everything we are."  I like how personal and simple that is.  No mention of song styles or worship service length or use of media and other tech.  Just - a full-bodied response (heart, soul, mind and strength) to the God of all we have ever, or will ever, know.  That response can occur with choral music, hymns, moderns songs, rock bands, one guitar player, three people singing a Christian folk tune... how we get there is almost irrelevant.  The most important factor here is that we do, actually, really, authentically, RESPOND to the Almighty God with a heart of surrender and humility giving all that we have to give. 

So, just for clarity - "worship" is NEVER a music style, a hymn, a CCM song, a choir, a band, a prayer or a sermon.  "Worship" is our RESPONSE to God and those things mentioned here (hymn, CCM song, music style, etc.) are HOW we get there.  We are completely missing the focus when we refer to a set of songs, for example, as a "worship set."  A set of songs is only "worship" when those leading and singing are truly surrendering themselves to God, through Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Which leads me to some important distinctions that needs to be made.  

I believe that, today, in our churches, we have (in general) created four "worship doors" we tend to offer to our congregations.  (Only one of them is the "green" door, btw...)  

WORSHIP PERFORMING

This seems to be the current flavor of choice and we all recognize what this is.  There is a high level of stage presence and near celebrity persona taking place.  Choreographed movements, a band in sync with a click track, the hope to replicate and perform the song as heard on Christian radio, lights and other tech to enhance the stage presentation, etc.  The goal here, it seems to me, is to lure people in following a slick, "American Idol" type experience.  The congregation, (which closer resembles an audience than a true "worshiping congregation") for the most part, watches the "worship concert." If they happen to know the songs, they might sing or clap along.  In the end, this can be a very uplifting enjoyable experience or even show that may or may not actually "worship" God.  That is, of course, between the worshiper and God himself.  Just remember that simply singing a song with the words "God" or "Jesus" in them does not automatically mean you are worshiping.  Just like singing along to a secular song that talks about drugs does not automatically make you a drug addict.  It's all a matter of the HEART that is singing.   

WORSHIP FORCING

I have seen this in a lot of churches.  The worship leadership team feels pressure to replicate what they see on worship song videos from large, mega churches.  They do their best to get their musicians to learn the songs with perfection so they can, again, perform them well.  Then, they launch off into their worship set, telling everyone to stand, singing songs that often times are in keys that most are unable to participate with, which can leave the congregation easily slipping into that first model of Worship Performance - where they became an audience watching the worship team sing for them. This becomes a type of forcing when the worship leader begins offering specific commands into the mic such as "let's all stand now" or "everyone sing louder now."  People don't like to be forced into a mold like that and it has nothing to do with shepherding your flock. 

WORSHIP DIRECTING

This is the term or title that is most often used in churches today.  The lead musician is the church "worship director" which implies that they "lead" the worship.  There are two main problems with this. First, the Holy Spirit actually leads the worship - period.  He does not need our help.  He simply needs us to pay attention to how He is moving (see below).  He decides the direction of the worship as created by the collective and individual spiritual needs of those in the gathering.  Second, in many churches, the church policy dictates that the Senior Pastor of the church is the one responsible for the worship in the gathering making them, by definition, the "leader" of worship for that church.  All choices for the worship service fall under their pastoral leadership.  In the best case scenario, the Pastor has spent time seeking the wisdom of the Holy Spirit for his church, and has clearly communicated that to the chief musician who then shares that vision with his team of musicians which leads to song selections and other elements of the service that support what the Holy Spirit has brought forth.  If that sounds like a lot of work, it is, and, it should be!  And, sadly, this happens far less often that you might care to believe or admit.  When we take on the role of "directing the worship," then we are saying, by implication, that we agree with the reality that the Holy Spirit is our true "worship director" and that everything we do comes from His guidance.  The question to ask is, are we really doing this? 

WORSHIP LEADING

I saved this one for last because, in my opinion, this occurs the least amount of time in most of today's churches.  Contrary to all three listed above, in this situation, there is a spiritually gifted leader - not necessarily a musician - who pays attention to the moving and guiding of the Holy Spirit during the assembly.  I believe this can happen in a setting where the songs have been rehearsed and prepared in a "set" and I have also seen it occur with impact in a setting where no songs are planned, no slides ready to go, no rehearsal.  Because the preparation of the music is not as important to encountering God's presence as we have been led to believe.  But that is not the only thing that helps someone lead a congregation into worship.  In order to be "led in worship," the people in the gathering themselves must be eager to encounter God's holy and mighty presence in the power of the Holy Spirit.  If the congregation does not want to encounter God's presence, the worship leader will be unable to lead and very quickly slip into the role of "worship directing," or "forcing" shouting out commands like, "come on," or "let's clap," or "you can sing louder!"  This is not leading in worship and has nothing to do with paying attention to the spiritual DNA of your congregation.

If you want to see your church explode in its effectiveness and impact your congregation and your surrounding community, I strongly suggest you examine which "worship door" you tend to walk through and see if God might be encouraging you to try a new path.