Ephesians Lesson #5 Worship but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Ephesians 5:18-19
We are His House So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God s holy people. You are members of God s family. Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself. We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord. Through him you Gentiles are also being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit. Ephesians 2:19-22 NLT
The Church is not: A spiritual country club (a place to socialize) A spiritual gas station (where to fill up weekly) A spiritual theater (a place to be entertained) A spiritual drug store (to rid your pain) A spiritual Wal-Mart (to meet all your needs) A spiritual fast-food restaurant (get it & go)
The Church is: The Body of Christ Ephesians 1:23 The House of God Ephesians 2:19-22 The Bride of Christ Ephesians 5:22-33 We are the church. This building is where the church meets corporately. Every believer, all around the world, in many different denominations are a part of the church.
Statement of Purpose Return Church is a family of diverse individuals, returning to what matters an intimate, love relationship with Jesus Christ. Our purpose is to glorify Jesus in all we do through worship, evangelism, discipleship, ministry, fellowship, and helping the vulnerable. Worship Evangelism Discipleship Ministry Fellowship Helping the vulnerable
We are Created to Worship God O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms. For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods. In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also. The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land. O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker. Psalms 95:1-6
What is worship? Ascribing ultimate value or worth to something or someone in a way that engages your whole being. True worship engages your body, soul and spirit. You soul is your mind, will and emotions. Clarence Larkin in 1918 wrote that in our spirit is a channel of worship, the same channel in our souls is affection and in our body is touch.
What is worship? Worship is giving due worth or value to God. He alone is worthy of our worship. It is the created catching a glimpse of the creator and responding. We should not seek after an experience, but should seek after God. Worship is not an event or an experience it is giving due worth to God. It is our expression of love toward God. Example: A lady inherits an antique piece of jewelry, years later she gets it appraised.
Worship But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers 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. John 4:23-24 From Strongs #4352 προσκυνέω pros-koo-neh'-o; (meaning to kiss, like a dog licking his master's hand); to fawn or crouch to prostrate oneself in homage (do reverence to, adore): worship. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit glorify each other, but they can t worship, because there is none higher. The Father is seeking a true worshiper.
The Sacrifice of Praise Therefore, let us offer through Jesus a continual sacrifice of praise to God, proclaiming our allegiance to his name. And don t forget to do good and to share with those in need. These are the sacrifices that please God. Hebrews 13:15-16 NLT We need to come to church with the idea of giving instead of receiving. Worship is giving, it is a sacrifice. Give thanks Give money Give time Give service Give my will Give myself away
Why should we worship God? We all are worshipping something or someone. Worship is built into our being. Atheist worship. We all are ascribing ultimate value to something or someone. If you worship the wrong thing, it is idolatry and it will distort your life. Money, power, human acceptance, people, career, etc whatever controls us is our Lord. True worship is transferring the ultimate value or worth to God. We must recalibrate our beings. We need to reset our internal compass toward north or toward God. True worship will transform your life. It should be practiced often.
If your Heart is not Right, it is not True Worship I hate all your show and pretense the hypocrisy of your religious festivals and solemn assemblies. I will not accept your burnt offerings and grain offerings. I won t even notice all your choice peace offerings. Away with your noisy hymns of praise! I will not listen to the music of your harps. Instead, I want to see a mighty flood of justice, an endless river of righteous living. Amos 5:21-24 NLT Rituals, liturgies, cultural traditions, dogma, forms of worship don t please God if your heart is far away from God. I don t care how demonstrative you are, if you heart is full of idols and not turned toward God, you are not worshipping God in Spirit and truth, you are simply demonstrating zeal.
How can we worship better? Psalms 95 1. Community: Let us 2. Truth: We must know who God really is and get rid of our golden calves. The God of the Bible is the one true God. Our worship must be grounded in the Holy Scriptures. 3. Holy Spirit: We must let Him lead our worship. We should enter into His Presence. We can encounter God through worship. Worship is about Him, not us. 4. Rest
Community Let Us O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms. For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods. In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also. The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land. O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker. Psalms 95:1-6
Worship in Spirit & Truth O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms. For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods. In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also. The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land. O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker. Psalms 95:1-6
Praising God but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Ephesians 5:18-19 KJV And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved. Acts 2:46-47
Worship In Spirit and Truth Pray, sing, praise, give, teach, preach. True worship is love for God expressed Can be quite or loud, cold or hot Must be Biblically grounded, all things done decently and in order I challenge you to throw away all dead forms, past liturgies that are not Biblical. Discover a better way to worship. Some churches are like cemeteries, and some are like insane asylums. I think God is somewhere in the middle. Jim Cymbala We will not push the Holy Spirit out of this church, but we also will not allow human fleshly, non-biblical demonstrations of worship.
Don t Grieve or Quench the Holy Spirit And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Ephesians 4:30 Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. Quench not the Spirit. I Thessalonians 5:16-19 Don t try to push the Holy Spirit out of this church. Don t allow fleshly zeal, bring attention to yourself, we are here to bring attention to Jesus.
Demonstration I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting. I Timothy 2:8 O clap your hands, all ye people; shout unto God with the voice of triumph. Psalms 47:1 And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: I Corinthians 2:4 Let all things be done decently and in order. I Corinthians 14:40
Praise the LORD Praise ye the LORD. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power. Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp. Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs. Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals. Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD. Psalms 150:1-6
How to worship during Church Service Engage your entire being, body, soul and spirit. Sports fans do not need a list of how to behave at a basketball or football game. Just don t hurt or offend others around you. Consider your neighbor. Gaze upon Jesus. Focus your attention on Him. See how wonderful, majestic, beautiful, gracious He is. Ascribe the ultimate worth or value to God. Give yourself all over again to God 100%. Connect with God through Jesus Christ. Experience His presence. Let Him know how much you love Him.
Praising God Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk. And he took him by the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ancle bones received strength. And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God. And all the people saw him walking and praising God: Acts 3:6-9
Prayed and Praised And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely: Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks. And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one's bands were loosed. Acts 16:23-26
How to act in a Church Service? Quiet or loud? Yes Shout or be still? Yes Reverent or emotional? Yes Hymns or contemporary? Yes Kneeling or dancing? Yes Crying or laughing? Yes Hands up or down? - Yes Worship with your entire being, but consider others. All things done decently and in order. Stay Biblically grounded, but follow the Holy Spirit.
How to Worship Better? Psalms 95 1. Community 2. Truth 3. Holy Spirit 4.Rest Cease from your works and enter into His Sabbath Rest. Believe the Gospel. Don t turn your worship into another religious good work or deed that you must do correctly trying to please God.
Enter into His Rest For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. To day if ye will hear his voice, Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness: When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my work. Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways: Unto whom I sware in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest. Psalms 95:7-11
Believe the Gospel to Enter into His Rest Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it. For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. Hebrews 4:1-2 There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief. Hebrews 4:9-11