True Worshippers-Do They Exist?

  The ability to see, to perceive with the eyes.  A field of vision. Sometimes we see clearly, sometimes we don’t.  When we worship God we surrender our lives to His will.  And in doing so, the fog begins to lift and we see clearly.  What object has become the focus of your attention these days?  For most of us the object of our attention is us.  

“How will my financial needs get met.”  “How will I meet my deadlines at work?” “When will my relationships get fixed?”  

But what if it were never meant to be that way?  What if God were really the only Object worth focusing on?  What if our focus on His beauty made our problems pale in comparison?  What if we were never meant to be the actors on center stage?  What if we were meant to be the audience members, watching Jesus on center stage?  Is that what true worshippers do?  Is that what true worship is all about?  So how’s your eyesight?  

I don’t know about you, but there seems to be a never-ending supply of things that blur my vision; a continual bombardment of my senses that leave me with a foggy view of God; a siren call off of the high ground and back to the low.  Ever since the fall of man, Satan has been devising ways and means to blur or distort our picture of who God really is.  And he’s gotten very good at it.

He starts when you are very young, and utilizes adults in your life to distort your view of God: An abusive parent; A sexual predator; An impatient and harsh teacher who is supposed to be a Christian.  Satan has endless ways or people to mess up your picture of who God is and what He is like because He knows that if he can mar the image of God when you are young, you will reject God as the answer to your search and you will look to any number of ways to fill the longing deep in your soul. And your vision grows blurry.

If he can’t succeed by marring the picture when you are very young, he’ll work on you in your teenage years through peer pressure, pop culture and hurtful relationships, all the while utilizing all of the tools he may have used earlier in life.  He knows if he can derail you here, he can lead you down a road from which many never return.  And a fog descends.

In young adulthood, he will continue to use relationships, work associates, your new-found legal status and freedom from parental restrictions to entice you, oftentimes out of curiosity, into places and situations where no Christian should find themselves.  And the picture is marred still more.

And if that doesn’t work, if he can just marry you off to someone with a distorted picture of God, then they can work up close and personal on your picture.  This human relationship often becomes paramount for how we view ourselves, and we take our eyes completely off of God and place them on our spouse and ourselves.  And if one or the other isn’t refocusing on God on a consistent basis and helping the other to do the same, your world will shrink to just you and your immediate circumstances.  And your picture of God goes more out of focus.

Later, when things just aren’t working out and you find yourself the victim of a cheating spouse or an abusive spouse or an admiring co-worker, your gaze shifts yet again, seeking a solution to the mess you find yourself in.  Add young children to that mix, and you will suddenly become a tool in the hands of Satan to mar the image of God for the next generation.   And on and on it goes with seemingly no solutions or way out of your predicament, because Satan has done a masterful job of hiding God from your view.

John Piper has observed, "Worship has to do with real life. It is not a mythical interlude in a week of reality. Worship has to do with adultery and hunger and racial conflict."  True worship is a way out our predicament.

Craig Brian Larson reminds us of the time not long ago, when “the world watched as three gray whales, icebound off Point Barrow, Alaska, floated battered and bloody, gasping for breath at a hole in the ice. Their only hope: somehow to be transported five miles past the ice pack to open sea. Rescuers began cutting a string of breathing holes about twenty yards apart in the six-inch-thick ice.

"For eight days they coaxed the whales from one hole to the next, mile after mile. Along the way, one of the trio vanished and was presumed dead. But finally, with the help of Russian icebreakers, the whales, now named Putu and Siku, swam to freedom.

"In a way, worship is a string of breathing holes the Lord provides his people. Battered and bruised in a world frozen over with greed, selfishness, and hatred, we rise for air in church, a place to breathe again, to be loved and encouraged, until that day when the Lord forever shatters the ice cap."   (Craig Brian Larson, Leadership, Vol. 11, no. 2)

The problem is, we have gotten a distorted view of worship as well.  We’ve made it “me-focused” instead of Christ-focused. In Experience God in Worship George Barna observes the contemporary Christian's view of worship: "Most adults will contend that a Christian has a responsibility to worship God. However, when asked to define what worship means, two out of three are unable to offer an appropriate definition or description of worship.

"Even among the people who consistently attend Christian worship services, apparently for the purpose of worshiping God, the majority does not consider worship to be a 'top priority' in their lives. It need not be the top priority; but most of them do not even include it among a laundry list of top priorities."

He goes on to reveal the true motivation behind many American Christian's attendance at worship services. He says it's to "satisfy or please them, not to honor or please God" (p. 15). 

We must be cautious of turning our worship and religion into a man-centered selfish pursuit. Worship has always been and will always be about God - whether we recognize it or not. For in the end "at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Phil. 2:10-11). -Preaching September/October 2002

Which brings us to this passage in scripture where Jesus talked about worship. 

John 4: 4   Now he had to go through Samaria.  5 So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph.  6 Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about the sixth hour.  7   When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?”  8 (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)  9   The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.)  10   Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”  11   “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water?  12 Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his flocks and herds?”  13   Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again,  14 but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”  15   The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.”  16   He told her, “Go, call your husband and come back.”  17   “I have no husband,” she replied.

 Jesus said to her, “You are right when you say you have no husband.  18 The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true.”  19   “Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet.  20 Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.”  21   Jesus declared, “Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.  22 You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews.  23 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.  24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”  25   The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.”  26   Then Jesus declared, “I who speak to you am he.”  27   Just then his disciples returned and were surprised to find him talking with a woman. But no one asked, “What do you want?” or “Why are you talking with her?”  28   Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people,  29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?”  30 They came out of the town and made their way toward him.

Here’s a woman who has so had the image of God marred by bad choices and relationships that she has to come to the well in the heat of the day, instead of the morning or evening when it is cooler.  When Jesus engages her in conversation she is stunned, and even more so when He tells her about her current living arrangements.  But Jesus simply points out the obvious so that she will be open to seeing what is truly important.  He is trying to restore to her a better picture of what God is like, and in so doing, gives us a very good picture of what God is looking for.  True worshippers.  Look again at verses 23 and 24. 

23 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.  24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”

Have you ever wondered what that meant?  What does it mean to worship in spirit and in truth? In his book The Purpose Driven Life, Rick Warren notes, "Since worship is delighting in and enjoying God, it engages your emotions. God gave you emotions so you could worship him with deep feeling -- but those emotions must be genuine, not faked. God hates hypocrisy. He doesn't want a show, or pretense, or phoniness in worship. He wants your honest, real love. We can worship God imperfectly, but we cannot worship him insincerely.

"Of course, sincerity alone is not enough; you can be sincerely wrong. That's why both spirit and truth are required. Worship must be both authentic and accurate. God-pleasing worship is deeply emotional and deeply doctrinal. We use both our hearts and our heads.

In another place, in the same book, he says: “In our competitive world we’re taught to never quit trying, never give up, and never give in - so we don’t hear much about surrendering. If winning is everything, surrendering is unthinkable. Even Christians would rather talk about winning, succeeding, overcoming, and conquering than yielding, submitting, obeying, and surrendering. But surrendering to God is the heart of worship.

“Offer yourselves as a living sacrifice to God, dedicated to his service and pleasing to him. This is the true worship that you should offer.

“True worship -- bringing God pleasure -- happens when you give yourself completely to God.” (from Rick Warren’s book The Purpose Driven Life)

Inspired author Ellen White, in her book The Desire of Ages, page 189 writing about this story says: He (Jesus) desired to lift the thoughts of His hearer above matters of form and ceremony, and questions of controversy. "The hour cometh," He said, "and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship Him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth."  {DA 189.1}

Here is declared the same truth that Jesus had revealed to Nicodemus when He said, "Except a man be born from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God." John 3:3, margin. Not by seeking a holy mountain or a sacred temple are men brought into communion with heaven. Religion is not to be confined to external forms and ceremonies. The religion that comes from God is the only religion that will lead to God. In order to serve Him aright, we must be born of the divine Spirit. This will purify the heart and renew the mind, giving us a new capacity for knowing and loving God. It will give us a willing obedience to all His requirements. This is true worship. It is the fruit of the working of the Holy Spirit. By the Spirit every sincere prayer is indicted, and such prayer is acceptable to God. Wherever a soul reaches out after God, there the Spirit's working is manifest, and God will reveal Himself to that soul. For such worshipers He is seeking. He waits to receive them, and to make them His sons and daughters. {DA 189.2}

God longs for us to seek Him and be born of His divine spirit.  It is only in this that we have a new capacity for knowing and loving God.  It
will give us a willing obedience to all His requirements.  Romans 12: 1,2 says:

1   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.  2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will.

True worshippers are those who don’t just offer a praise song.  They don’t just throw a buck at the offering plate.  They offer themselves as a spiritual act of worship.  They become consumed with a passion for God.  They are ones who are no longer being squeezed into the world’s mold.  They don’t allow Satan to mar their picture of God through looking at the things of the world.  Instead, they are being transformed through worship that renews their minds.  How do you know if that’s you?

Pastor, author and speaker, Louie Giglio writes: "Follow the trail of your time, your affection, your energy, your money and your allegiance. At the end of that trail, you'll find a throne; and whatever, or whomever, is on that throne is what's of highest value to you. On that throne is what you worship." (Louie Giglio, The Air I Breathe)

What if God were really the only Object worth focusing on?  What if our focus on His beauty made our problems pale in comparison?  What if we were never meant to be the actors on center stage?  What if we were meant to be the audience members, watching Jesus on center stage?

How Does One Get to the Heart of Worship?

 What is worship?

Worship ascribes worth to the being or object being worshipped.  There is true worship and false worship.  When the children of Israel made a golden calf in the absence of Moses and worshipped it, they were ascribing worth to their object of worship.   However, when Moses showed up with the Ten Commandments, they found that their object of worship was not truly worthy of their worship.

True worship defies definition; it can only be experienced. In seeking to define it, we often cheapen the very act of worship.

To worship, according to William Temple, in his book, The Hope of a New World,  is:

To quicken the conscience by the holiness of God.  To feed the mind with the truth of God. To purge the imagination with the beauty of God.  To open the heart to the Love of God.

Franklin Segler and Randall Bradley in their book “Christian Worship” lay out a basic understanding of worship.

Worship is a mystery.

It is both a revelation of God’s immanence (His ability to reside within the human heart) and God’s transcendence (His inability to be contained or understood)

The mystery is that we can at once grasp His personal attention while at the same time recognize that He is a Holy God far beyond our reach.  Were it not for Him choosing to commune with us and granting us that privilege, we would never be able to reach Him.

Worship is a celebration

It is a celebration of God in History.  His work at creation.  His leading of the people in the Bible.  His coming as a child, reducing His transcendence into the form of a helpless baby.

Worship is a celebration of Jesus life, His teachings, His suffering and His death in our place, as well as His resurrection and victory over the power of death.

Worship is, as writer Von Ogden Vogt put it: "an interruption of work to praise and celebrate God’s goodness."  The problem with most of our society today is that they never stop working.  I went out onto my porch at about 6 this morning, and was amazed at the amount of people heading to work or driving work vehicles already.  We need to interupt our work to praise and celebrate God’s goodness.

Worship is Life or Lifestyle

In it’s broadest sense, worship is related to all human action.  As a part of creation, humankind responds in gratitude to the creator.  Every area of life belongs to the Kingdom of God; therefore, worship is practicing the presence of God in every experience in life.

When I talk  with someone, I practice the presence of God…that is, I talk as if God were standing right there with me. When I eat, I practice the presence (and possibly the restraint) of God. When I study, I study as if God were there with me. When I pray, I practice the presence of God. When I go to Wal-Mart, I stand in line as if God were right there with me. (and He needs to be with me in the line.) Anything I do in life then, becomes an act of worship if I practice the presence of God.

Worship is dialogue.

Worship is a dialogue between God and the worshipper.  God is revealed to the worshipper’s spirit through the Bible, through the fellowship of believers, through music, through symbols, through banners, through human actions and through God’s Spirit.  

As God is revealed, the worshipper is moved to respond.

When I talk about the manger scene…Joseph and Mary struggle up the hill, exhausted as they take those final steps into Bethlehem.  Mary may already be experiencing labor pains and Joseph is urgently seeking shelter because the baby is coming.  When you read those words describing Jesus's beginnings,  you are moved to respond.  Think about someone who yells in a crowd: "Make some room, we have a pregnant lady with a baby on the way and we have to get her to the hospital."  That revelation causes your response.  You are compelled to move.  As God is revealed, the worshipper is moved to respond.

It is more than a conversation though. It is an encounter.  In the encounter, God confronts and makes demands on the worshipper. 

There are times as we worship that we come under conviction.  There may be something in our life that is out of line.  God wants us to yield that to Him as we worship.

There may be a hurt that we have hung on to that is now eating our spirituality alive in the clutches of bitterness.  Worship gently demands that we let go of it.

There may be un-forgiveness in the heart.  God confronts us in worship with our own sinfulness and then asks, “If I’ve already forgiven you, shouldn’t you forgive one another?”

It’s an encounter where God confronts and urges the worshipper to respond.

Worship is an offering.

In the Old Testament system, worship always included a sacrifice.  A giving up of something.   Giving is central to worship; both what we have and what we are.  True worship demands that we give of our selves and of our means.

Worship is Eschatological fulfillment

Gerhard Delling, in his book entitled, “Worship in the New Testament” pg 182 says: It is the continuing decisive working out of salvation in history, which ends in the eternal adoration of God.

Isa 66: 22,23 "As the new heavens and the new earth that I make will endure before me," declares the LORD, "so will your name and descendants endure. “From one New Moon to another and from one Sabbath to another, all mankind will come and bow down before me," says the LORD.

W.T. Connor, in his book, “The Gospel of Redemption” pg 277 states, “The first business, then, of a church is not evangelism, nor missions, nor benevolence; (meaning service to others) it is worship.  The worship of God in Christ should be at the center of all else that the church does.  It is the mainspring of all the activity of the church. (Emphasis mine)

The heart of worship then comes down to the heart of the worshipper.  There is no possibility of the church being Christian without worship.  There is no possibility of a Christian being Christian without worship.  So the question begs to be asked: What is in your heart today?

Are you weighed down with the cares of life? Ps. 55:22   Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous fall.  Let go and worship.

Are you seeking to see your way clear on an issue? Prov. 3: 5,6 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.  Let go and worship.

Do you find yourself bound up in worry? 1Pet. 5:7   Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.  Let go and worship.

Are you angry and unforgiving? Col. 3:13   Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.   Let go and worship.

Whatever it is, let go and worship.  Put aside the cares, the worries, the hurts, the pain and worship. Let’s go back to the manger, and worship Him.  Let’s go to the foot of the cross and worship Him.  Let’s go to the empty tomb and worship Him. Let’s go to the glorious return of Jesus that is promised and worship Him.  Worship Him with your heart, worship Him with your mind, worship Him with your body, worship Him with all you have.  Immerse yourself in worship.  For then you’ve gone back to the true Heart of Worship.

Godliness with Contentment

Years ago, Russell Conwell told of an ancient Persian, Ali Hafed, who "owned a very large farm that had orchards, grain fields, and gardens... and was a wealthy contented man." One day a wise man from the East told the farmer all about diamonds and how wealthy he would be if he owned a diamond mine. Ali Hafed went to bed that night a poor man--poor because he was discontented. Craving a mine of diamonds, he sold his farm to search for the rare stones. He traveled the world over, finally becoming so poor, broken, and defeated that he committed suicide. One day the man who purchased Ali Hafed's farm led his camel into the garden to drink. As his camel put its nose into the brook, the man saw a flash of light from the sands of the stream. He pulled out a stone that reflected all the hues of the rainbow. The man had discovered the diamond mine of Golcanda, the most magnificent mine in all history. Had Ali Hafed remained at home and dug in his own garden, then instead of death in a strange land, he would have had acres of diamonds.   (G. Sweeting, in Moody Monthly, May, 1988,  p. 95.)

True story.  And we look at Ali Hafed and we say, “Dude, you should have stayed put!”  but almost everyone of us is infected with the same thing.  A lack of contentment with what we have.

If I were to ask you to name three things you wish you had, what would you tell me?  

Now…if I were to ask you for three things you are thankful for, what would you tell me?

Which was easier to come up with?  Why?  Did you know we spend far more time thinking about the things we wish we had than we do being thankful for the things we do have.

Benjamin Franklin once wrote "Being content makes poor men rich; discontent makes rich men poor." 

It isn’t about how much you have.  It’s about how you view your circumstances.  The apostle Paul tells us the same thing in his first letter to Timothy and he’s talking to him about people who call themselves Christian teachers who do so for financial gain. 1Timothy ch. 6.  These are men who stirred up debates and controversies, criticizing what they saw, arousing suspicions against ones that called them out, going so far as to talk maliciously about them and trash their characters.  Why?  To seek to show themselves more godly and perhaps even more conservative in order to pull down the big dollars.  Of course that doesn’t happen in our day.  Let’s look at what Paul says. 

1Tim 6:3-11   If anyone teaches false doctrines and does not agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching,  4 he is conceited and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels about words that result in envy, strife, malicious talk, evil suspicions 5 and constant friction between men of corrupt mind, who have been robbed of the truth and who think that godliness is a means to financial gain.  6   But godliness with contentment is great gain.  7 For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.  8 But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.  9 People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction.  10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.  11   But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness.

Did you notice verse 6?  He’s been talking about all of these things and how men who have been robbed of the truth think that godliness is a means to financial gain.  And then he says: .  6   But godliness with contentment is great gain.

Did he say more stuff was the way to great gain?  Owning more land?  Better cars?  Bigger houses?  No… godliness with contentment.  Let’s take that apart for a minute.

In the original language, the word for godliness is actually two words meaning literally to worship, to be god-fearing and devout, well,well done.  In other words Paul is telling us that the first component to true gain is to worship, be god-fearing and devout, beyond the best of our abilities—that is, we can’t even do it on our own.  It has to be done in us by God.  So we are seeking God continually and seeking to worship Him and follow His ways.   And the second word, contentment, is translated, sufficiency or to be sufficient.  

So Paul says great gain is not found in wordly wealth, but in seeking to worship God and follow His ways while we find our sufficiency in Him.  

Put another way, when we finally understand and believe that God can and will take care of what we need, we will be content and that will show in our worship.  It won’t be about money and things money can buy.  It will be about knowing that God knows you, sees you and hears you and will take care of your needs.  That’s sufficiency.  That’s enough.  That’s contentment.

Tell me: Are you content?

The Wisdom of Worship

Feeling unsettled no matter how much you binge watch or play video games?  Always seem to have that dark sense of foreboding hanging over you when you stop focusing on anything?  Let me take you on a journey back in time, in light of this current coronavirus pandemic, to look at a story in Scripture that I think may help give you a much more peaceful outlook.  So…to the story.

In the early morning light, in the desert of Tekoa, a strange and fascinating scene was unfolding before the eyes of the soldiers as they stared at the oncoming army.  Usually by this time, someone would have sounded the command to attack, but they all stood transfixed in their ranks, listening to the unmistakeable sound of- a choir?  What would a choir be doing out on the battlefield?   Before their question could be answered, suddenly there came warriors out of nowhere.  Fierce. Big. Determined.  With a single slash of a blade, 10 men would fall.  Panic.  Run for your life.  Kill or be killed.  And the once formidable army became a terror-filled, “every-man-for-himself” retreat.

In the book of 2 Chronicles, chapter 20, a fascinating story is recorded that every Christian should acquaint themselves with.   On different boards and committees, we often worry about what type of precedent a given vote might set.  This story contains a number of key decisions that I think would serve as precedents for the modern Christian.  So let me share with you 2 Chronicles 20 beginning with verse 1.  I’ve chosen to use the New Living Translation for it’s easy readability.

1After this, the armies of the Moabites, Ammonites, and some of the Meunites^a declared war on Jehoshaphat. ²Messengers came and told Jehoshaphat, “A vast army from Edom^a is marching against you from beyond the Dead Sea.^bThey are already at Hazazon-tamar.” (This was another name for En-gedi.)

This was no run-of-the-mill army. These were long time enemies that wanted to settle old scores. These were the children of Esau wanting to do in the children of Jacob, now named Israel.   In fact, they wanted nothing less than to wipe the Israelites right off the map.  And now they had joined forces with other countries around them and were descending, even now to leave a path of death and destruction in their wake.  And word reaches Jehosphaphat, and the message is very clear…”YOU are a DEAD MAN Big J!”

Oh, great!  What a day-brightener.   Ever have one of those kind of days?  You’re doing fine until someone comes and says,  “There are three known cases of the Coronavirus that have been identified to have been in the same building you were in.”  Or “You’re  Corvid-19 test came back positive.” Or it could be more along the lines of general life, “You owe $4,000 more in taxes.”  Or “There’s been a terrible accident…”

No matter how it comes, bad news seems to always catch us off guard.  It causes our knees to go weak, our stomach to develop a pit of anxiety, and our mind to start racing.  We immediately start trying to… what?  Figure out what we are going to do.   We start checking our savings accounts, calling to see if we can get our credit limit extended, or looking for the name of the best doctor available.  Anything we can do to help us out of the bind.  And most of us won’t stop until we have arrived at some form of a solution.  But notice what Jehoshaphat did.

Precedent # 1.  v.3Jehoshaphat was terrified by this news and begged the LORD for guidance. He also ordered everyone in Judah to begin fasting. Jehoshaphat was human.  He developed the pit in the bottom of his stomach.  But his reaction was far different than many of ours would be.  He begged the LORD for guidance, and then proclaimed a fast, so they could have clear minds to hear whatever God was saying.  In short, he took his problem to the Lord in prayer.  He didn’t just complain about what a difficult situation he was in and then whiningly hope that others would pray for him or that it would somehow work out.  He went directly to the Throne, himself.  Immediately.

 v.4 ⁴ So people from all the towns of Judah came to Jerusalem to seek the LORD’s help.

2Chr. 20:5      Jehoshaphat stood before the community of Judah and Jerusalem in front of the new courtyard at the Temple of the LORD. ⁶ He prayed, “O LORD, God of our ancestors, you alone are the God who is in heaven. You are ruler of all the kingdoms of the earth. You are powerful and mighty; no one can stand against you!

Notice his approach. (He first acknowledges God’s greatness.  He says, “I know that you can do anything.)  

 v. ⁷ O our God, did you not drive out those who lived in this land when your people Israel arrived? And did you not give this land forever to the descendants of your friend Abraham? ⁸ Your people settled here and built this Temple to honor your name. ⁹ They said, ‘Whenever we are faced with any calamity such as war,^a plague, or famine, we can come to stand in your presence before this Temple where your name is honored. We can cry out to you to save us, and you will hear us and rescue us.’

(He refers back to a prior agreement that God had already made with His people.  He claims a promise, as it were.)

  2Chr. 20:10   “And now see what the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir are doing. You would not let our ancestors invade those nations when Israel left Egypt, so they went around them and did not destroy them. ¹¹ Now see how they reward us! For they have come to throw us out of your land, which you gave us as an inheritance. ¹² O our God, won’t you stop them? We are powerless against this mighty army that is about to attack us. (He acknowledges that he has neither the resources nor the strength to fight the battle.) We do not know what to do, (and here’s the kicker) but we are looking to you for help.”  

The New International Version says: “We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you.” Not focused tightly on the problem, but on God.   

Precedent #2.  They choose to wait.  They have made their request known to God, and now they wait and trust that God will do what He has promised.  Jehoshaphat knew that no matter what befell he and his people, if they would simply turn and seek the Lord, God would take care of things.  It takes humbling oneself, acknowledging that you have neither the answer or the direction, but enough faith to know that if you will but wait, God will deliver on his Word.  Not only the leader, but his entire people stood there before the Lord.

Nothing is needed more in the Church right now, than for Christians to stand humbly before the Lord.  No pretense.  No politics.  No power plays.  Just prayer and faith-filled hearts that He will provide.  When we wait, He answers.  Let’s go back to the story.

v. 13 As all the men of Judah stood before the LORD with their little ones, wives, and children, ¹⁴ the Spirit of the LORD came upon one of the men standing there. His name was Jahaziel son of Zechariah, son of Benaiah, son of Jeiel, son of Mattaniah, a Levite who was a descendant of Asaph.

V15   He said, “Listen, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Listen, King Jehoshaphat! This is what the LORD says: Do not be afraid! Don’t be discouraged by this mighty army, for the battle is not yours, but God’s. ¹⁶ Tomorrow, march out against them. You will find them coming up through the ascent of Ziz at the end of the valley that opens into the wilderness of Jeruel. ¹⁷ But you will not even need to fight. Take your positions; then stand still and watch the LORD’s victory. He is with you, O people of Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Go out against them tomorrow, for the LORD is with you!”

How do you respond to a message like that?  Wouldn’t it be great in the face of this virus and life’s uncertainty for the Lord to say, “Stand still and watch the Lord’s victory.”  I believe He is.  

But wait, Pastor Don…what was the point of going out if they didn’t need to fight?  What is the point of  taking up their positions and then standing still?

In the midst of the waiting, it doesn’t mean that we don’t have to do anything.  We need to continue to be obedient to what God has asked of us.  He has asked us to bring courage to those around us, and in the going out, or in this case, the staying home yet with peace and sharing that, that may lead others to find peace as well.  We practice common sense and precautions, yes, but it also means that we acknowledge we don’t have the resources, the knowledge, the wisdom, nor anything else to make a difference in the outcome.  We are trusting and waiting on God.  And in the waiting, notice how Jehoshaphat and his people respond.

Precedent #3.  They worship.  v.18 Then King Jehoshaphat bowed low with his face to the ground. And all the people of Judah and Jerusalem did the same, worshiping the LORD. ¹⁹ Then the Levites from the clans of Kohath and Korah stood to praise the LORD, the God of Israel, with a very loud shout.  

This wasn’t just half-hearted worship while wondering how the roast in the oven was doing.  This was full-blown, “we-have-an-answer-from-God-so-get-up-and-shout” type worship.  It was a celebration-type of worship-(of course I’m sure they didn’t use drums-ha).  But notice something here.  This celebration of worship happened before God had even delivered them. 

They got peace in their hearts on the issue and went ahead and rejoiced because they knew He would do what He promised.  They were joyous because they knew that no matter how scary the problem had seemed a few minutes ago, that whole picture just changed when God came on the scene.  Those Moabites and Ammonites and Meunites were a mighty big force, but when God walks in, their party’s over!

No matter how dark your picture looks, no matter how scary, or hopeless, or bleak, when God gives you an answer, it’s time to celebrate, because we know that He’s going to do exactly what He says.  Don’t sit there whimpering, “Oh, I hope it works out.  Oh, I hope He does what He promised.”   If you have prayed, if you have waited, if you have gotten an answer, from the wealth of promises in scripture, or from the Holy Spirit impressing you, then go ahead and throw a worship party. He’ll do what He promises when you can hold on by faith.

When you can learn that type of spiritual walk, the Holy Spirit will empower you to be a mighty, dynamic and effective witness for His cause. People will take note of the life you live.  Jesus wants to empower us to do His work.  He wants to make us powerful witnesses.  When you and I can learn to wait for His empowerment, trusting that He will make good on His promises,  great things will always happen.  Back to 2 Chron.

20 Early the next morning the army of Judah went out into the wilderness of Tekoa. On the way Jehoshaphat stopped and said, “Listen to me, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Believe in the LORD your God, and you will be able to stand firm. Believe in his prophets, and you will succeed.”  21After consulting the people, the king appointed singers to walk ahead of the army, singing to the LORD and praising him for his holy splendor. This is what they sang:

“Give thanks to the LORD;

his faithful love endures forever!”

Now this just blows my mind.  The king consults the people and they all agree that the best thing they can do is put the choir out in front of the army.   They want to show that they are not worried about the Lord keeping His promise.   And some of the choir boys probably said, “Yeah, that’s easy for you to say”, but the very fact that they went out first speaks of their confidence in the saving power of the Lord.  They saw wisdom in worshipping.  They realized that their worship brought their salvation.  

Can you imagine the enemy army.  They look up through the clear desert air and see. . .a choir?  

“That can’t be a choir.   It’s a mirage- just a vision.  Fairly realistic though, because I can hear music too.   We been out here too long!”

 22 At the very moment they began to sing and give praise, the LORD caused the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir to start fighting among themselves. ²³ The armies of Moab and Ammon turned against their allies from Mount Seir and killed every one of them. After they had destroyed the army of Seir, they began attacking each other. ²⁴ So when the army of Judah arrived at the lookout point in the wilderness, all they saw were dead bodies lying on the ground as far as they could see. Not a single one of the enemy had escaped.

Precedent #4: They watched the Lord’s deliverance.

When God grants victory, He truly grants victory.  Did you know that in light of your own salvation, that’s all you can do?  Pray, wait, worship and watch.  Pray for forgiveness and seek deliverance from sin.  Wait as the Lord works in you to will and to do His good pleasure, worship Him for His goodness, His mercy and love, and watch Him take you to heights that have been unattainable to you.

Whenever you face trials of every kind, know you can find peace through His chosen route.  Pray for deliverance, wait, trusting in Him, worship Him, watch His mighty deliverance.   

In our current crisis, we have received the bad news. There is a new plague among us! We can panic and freak out, or we can practice the precautions we do know and turn our eyes towards God.  Are we praying?  And in the current crisis, there is nothing we can do but wait…it has been mandated.  But are you just waiting it out or waiting on God?  

What you do next will determine the amount of peace you experience.  Why not Worship?  I’m convinced if we would follow Jehoshaphat’s example, God would be able to bring about victory after victory in our life. Fears would melt away.  Doubts would flee.  Long-term rivalries would end, and forgiveness would begin to flow where once only grudges resided.  And yes, your trust in God would grow exponentially.  Worship takes us out of the present and transports us to the throne of Grace.  No matter what the circumstances, there is wisdom in worshipping God.   

There is no wiser course we can set but to worship.  Not  ho-hum worship, but worship that lifts the soul heavenward.  Worship that we participate in that allows us to experience God’s forgiveness, acceptance, love and yes, His peace.   Worship that has at its very core, Jesus Christ and Him crucified.  Worship that allows our hearts to dance with the joy of His victory.  And when you participate in that kind of worship, it will be said of you, as it was of the Apostles in Acts 3:13,  that “these men had been with Jesus.”

If we are worshipping, we are already demonstrating that we believe His deliverance is coming. Watch for His deliverance. It may not be in the form that we imagine…because God seldom does the expected.  It may not even be in the form of protecting us from the Coronavirus or from dying.  Even in the face of death, I can have peace knowing that God will bring about our ultimate deliverance!

Let’s finish our story.   25  King Jehoshaphat and his men went out to gather the plunder. They found vast amounts of equipment, clothing,^a and other valuables—more than they could carry. There was so much plunder that it took them three days just to collect it all! ²⁶ On the fourth day they gathered in the Valley of Blessing,^a which got its name that day because the people praised and thanked the LORD there. It is still called the Valley of Blessing today.

27   Then all the men returned to Jerusalem, with Jehoshaphat leading them, overjoyed that the LORD had given them victory over their enemies. ²⁸ They marched into Jerusalem to the music of harps, lyres, and trumpets, and they proceeded to the Temple of the LORD.

29   When all the surrounding kingdoms heard that the LORD himself had fought against the enemies of Israel, the fear of God came over them. ³⁰ So Jehoshaphat’s kingdom was at peace, for his God had given him rest on every side. 

When you pray, wait, worship and watch, the Lord brings to you blessings.  And the most important blessing is the ability to have peace when everyone else is freaking out.  Had Jehoshaphat stopped with the collection of the plunder, he would have missed the greatest blessing of all.  But because he saw Wisdom in Worship, God granted he and his country the greatest blessing, peace on every side.   

And friend, if you’ll put into practice God’s way, seeing the wisdom of worship no matter how dark or scary your circumstances may seem, that’s exactly what He will give you.  I’m praying that peace for you this day!

Church- No Thanks!

Yea, it's been awhile.  But I was awakened early this morning with a burden to write some thoughts that God has been stirring in me for awhile.

In my work as a young adult ministry director, tasked with helping to solve the issue of a young adult migration from church, I’ve stumbled on something I find somewhat disturbing.  The conversations start out well enough, but invariably lead to a statement made by my conversant that, though they take many forms, typically have one origin.

“Well Pastor, I like going to church, I really do, but Sabbath mornings, I am so tired that I like to sleep in.”  Or “I get so much more out of just sitting in nature and allowing God to talk to me from His second book than I do sitting in church.”  Or “I have to be honest with you, there are things the church is doing that I just don’t agree with and I can’t get anything whenever I go.”  Or “There are so many great preachers on the internet, I get my spiritual blessing there.  I mean, sometimes I watch 4 or 5 sermons in a row!”  Or “I get so much more spending the morning alone with my prayer journal and my Bible reading plan, I’d rather not go and bother with all of the people at my church.  Besides, most of them are hypocrites anyway.” Or “Sabbath School?  Just an opinion fest!  Church? Just a show…and it’s always the same.” And I could go on, but I think you’ve heard enough variations on the theme that you get my drift.

These aren’t new, but what is disturbing is that I’m hearing them more from people in their 50’s, 60’s and 70’s than I am from young adults. To be sure, young adults are using some of the same statements and even adding new variations, but they all have a common origin.   Self. What’s in it for ME?  Or what isn’t there for me?  Or what I get more from.  Or what I like better.  Or how I’m spiritually more advanced than the average pew sitter so shouldn’t have to be bothered on a Sabbath morning to go and sit next to them.  And if church really is all about me, then why shouldn’t I be able to decide how I spend my Sabbath mornings?  And the same being that started the selfishness thing is behind those thoughts, because he knows that if he can’t hit the church head on, then he will divide and conquer.  

But then I come to this passage in Hebrews 10:19-25 NLT  

Heb. 10:19 And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus. 20 By his death, Jesus opened a new and life-giving way through the curtain into the Most Holy Place. 21And since we have a great High Priest who rules over God’s house, 22let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting him. For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water.


Heb. 10:23 Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. 24 Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. 25 And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.

Verses 19-23 most certainly would encourage us in our personal pursuit of God, but suddenly verse 24 turns us outwardly. Now we move from thinking about “me and God” to “we and God”. Notice the words “Let us” and then the commands that follow… “think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works.” “Let us NOT NEGLECT our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another,especially now that the day of His return is drawing near.”

Perhaps here, we get a clue as to why many of us have given up on church. Perhaps it’s because we have missed our role. And perhaps church, in the way it is currently happening, isn’t conducive to helping us with our role.

If I were to make a case for your role at church just looking at these passages, unassisted by the many others in scripture that are saying the same thing, I would say that first and foremost, you are called to be a worshipper as you remember the sacrifice Christ made, and the fact that He made it possible to approach the throne of grace. Worship because your guilt has been taken away. Christ has made you clean. Hold tightly to that belief and worship Christ because of it.

“But I can do that at home, or in nature!” you might be saying. And you would be right. You can worship anywhere. But now we come to another role of every Christian in the church. That of using your gifts to add to the sum total of the church.


A believer, singular, is just that. A believer. But to have a church, you have to have a group of believers. And it is into that group that the Holy Spirit disperses His gifts for the good of all believers. No one has ALL of the gifts. YOURS are important to the Body of Christ as well. So… “think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works.” “Encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.”


This means that even if you aren’t on the program, you have a role to play. The Holy Spirit could have brought someone to church that needs your love and encouragement. And if you aren’t there to distribute it according to your giftedness, that person will leave just as empty and discouraged as when they came. And enough times of experiencing nothing at church ends up causing another to drop out.

Now before you accuse me of laying all the blame on you and seek to self-justify, let me just say, “I get it.” YOU aren’t the church’s salvation, and therefore you shouldn’t have to carry the responsibility of being there for other people. And to a point…you’re right. Jesus is the only Savior of anyone, the church people included.

But what I am saying is that He has called you to be His hands and feet, not just to address the noble causes of starving children and abused women and homeless people. But He is calling you to also serve those who sit in the pew with you. Those who come and are starving spiritually. Those who have suffered the abuse of a bad workplace all week and just long for some spiritual balm to give them courage to go back into it. Those who find themselves without a home church, but who keep looking. YOU have what they need, and God can use YOU!


So before you skip church again this week, think about the blessing of service that you are missing if you do. Think about who won’t be welcomed or encouraged if you aren’t there. Think about the contribution to the Body of Christ that you can make instead of the blessing you want for yourself. And you will invariably find that the blessing you were looking for is waiting for you in the foyer before church, or in the fellowship hall after church, or in Sabbath School class where someone pours out their heart and gives you a chance to respond with a private note of encouragement. As the old Nike ad pointed out: “You won’t know unless you go.”

And after you have engaged for a while, take a Sabbath off to recoup. Spend some time in nature, or with your Bible, or watching sermons on the internet. Just don’t make that your weekly go-to. Because someone at the church was put there to encourage YOU. And they can’t use their gift if you aren’t there.

Heb. 10:23 Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. 24Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. 25And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.