WORSHIP AND THE SCHOOL OF FAITH

"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for,
the evidence of things not seen."
- Hebrews 11:1 -

Faith has it's anchor in the unseen realm. It lives from the invisible towards the visible. Faith actualizes what it realizes. The Scriptures contrast the life of faith with the limitations of natural sight. Faith provides eyes for the heart.

Faith sees. It brings His Kingdom into focus. All of the Father's resources, all of His benefits, are accessible through faith.

God is very committed to teaching us how to see. To make this possible He gave us the Holy Spirit as a tutor. The curriculum that He uses is quite varied. But the one class we all qualify for is the greatest of all Christian privileges - WORSHIP. Learning how to see is not the purpose for our worship, but it is a wonderful by-product.

Those who worship in spirit and in truth, as mentioned in John 4:23-24, learn to follow the Holy Spirit's lead. His realm is called the Kingdom of God. The throne of God, which becomes established upon the praises of His people, is the center of that Kingdom. It's in the environment of worship that we learn things that go way beyond what our intellect can grasp - and the greatest of these lessons is the value of His presence. David was so affected by this that all his other exploits pale in comparison to his abandoned heart for God. We know that he learned to see into God's realm because of statements like, "I have set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved" (Psalm 16:8). The presence of God affected his seeing. He would constanly practice recognizing the presence of God. He saw God daily, not with the natural, but with the eyes of faith That priceless revelation was given to a worshiper.

The privilege of worship is a good beginning place for those unaccustomed to addressing some of these kinds of themes found in Scripture. It's in that wonderful ministry that we can learn to pay attention to this God-given gift: the ability to see with the heart. As we learn to worship with purity of heart, our eyes will continue to open. And we can expect to see what He wants us to see.

An extract from : When Heaven Invades Earth by Bill Johnson
Blessings - TPWC

PRAISE IS GOD'S RESET BUTTON

Are you trapped in a prison of despair, doubt or anxiety? Learn to release the power of praise.
The apostle Paul's letter to the Philippians is one of the Bible's most unique books. Some scholars call it "the epistle of joy" because the word "joy" or "rejoice" appear in it 16 times. Yet what is amazing is that this letter about Christian joy was written from a prison cell!
While Paul was under the watchful eye of Roman guards, bound in chains, he wrote some of the most uplifting spiritual words ever penned. In the letter's four short chapters the author continually exhorts us to praise God no matter how dark our circumstances are. He writes: "I will rejoice" (1:18, NASB), "I rejoice and share my joy with you all" (2:17), "I urge you, rejoice in the same way" (2:18), "Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord" (3:1) and "Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!" (4:4).

"Paul always looked for the hidden blessing in every trial. Have you been complaining about your situation? Grumbling short-circuits faith, but joy revives it."

Like a broken record, Paul hammers the same theme over and over and over. REJOICE! The word "rejoice" actually means "to re-joy." It's like a reset button on a computer. When any type of electronic equipment goes out of whack, a reset button will get it back online. That is what happens when we rejoice: The joy we've lost is restored and our feeble faith rises again.
Perhaps Paul wrote this message to the Philippians because he remembered his first visit there. It was in Philippi that Paul and Silas were arrested and thrown into jail by the city's magistrates. Yet while the two men sat with their feet fastened in stocks, they began to pray and sing hymns. Long before the invention of subwoofers, this Holy Ghost jam session triggered an earthquake that shook the foundations of the prison and shattered everyone's chains (see Acts 16:25-26).
Do you feel bound by your circumstances? I know I do. Sometimes I feel literally trapped in a tiny prison of limitation and delay. And because of today's weak economy, many people who have enjoyed a carefree life in the past are facing job loss, financial uncertainty, debt and a dismal lack of opportunity. Yet when I pray about my own situation I always am led back to the ancient words of Paul to the Philippians: "Rejoice in the Lord!"
Perhaps right now, in this difficult season, you need to put Paul's message on your iPod and play it over and over. The supernatural joy that is released in praise will do many things:

Praise shatters despair

You think your situation is hopeless? Paul was under house arrest, and he couldn't leave his cell to preach the gospel. Yet he wrote: "Yes, and I will rejoice, for I know that [my imprisonment] will turn out for my deliverance through your prayers and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ" (Phil. 1:18b-19). Know that God is working behind the scenes. The clouds over your head may be dark, but praise will lift you above them so you can see the sun again.

Praise shatters negativity

Have you been complaining about your situation? Stop talking trash. Remember that Paul was in chains when he wrote: "Do all things without grumbling or disputing" (Phil. 2:14). He knew the children of Israel were barred from the Promised Land because they grumbled against the Lord (1 Cor. 10:10). Grumbling short-circuits faith, but joy revives it. Paul always looked for the hidden blessing in every trial, to the point that he thanked God even in the midst of shipwrecks, beatings, riots, death threats and starvation.

Praise shatters doubt

When you stop praising, you get stuck in the muck and mire of your own problems. All you can see is the here and now. But something supernatural happens when you rejoice in the Lord. You are lifted out of the prison of impossibility and translated into a realm where you can do "all things through Him who strengthens me" (Phil. 4:13). When you praise, you go into a phone booth looking like Clark Kent and you come out looking like Superman!

Praise shatters anxiety

Paul said that when we hit the "rejoice" button and replace worry with joy-filled prayer, "the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus" (Phil. 4:7). Joy will calm your anxious heart and allow you to receive the promises of God.

Way back in 1970 a military chaplain named Merlin Carothers wrote a

small book called Prison to Praise. Today it has sold more than 17 million

copies in 53 languages. It challenges readers to thank and praise God in the midst of difficulties—and it's full of testimonies of everyday people who experienced miraculous breakthroughs when they obeyed this simple principle.
What Carothers wrote 40 years ago is still relevant today: "The very act of praise releases the power of God into a set of circumstances and enables God to change them. Miracles, power and victory will all be a part of what God does in our lives when we learn to rejoice in all things."

Source : Charisma Online - by J. Lee Glady (contributing editor of Charisma)

THE DISCIPLINE OF WORSHIP

To The Degree That You Are Willing To Discipline Your Life, God Will Be Able To Accomplish His Desired Plan For You ... To Bring To Pass Those Desires That He Has Placed In Your Heart, And To Bring About Those Things For Which You Are Believing Him. It Doesn't Happen Merely Because God Said It Was Going To Happen. A Lot Depends On You And Me." - The 2nd Flood by John W. Stevenson

When God shows us something about our lives, He looks for us to obey Him, and such obedience takes discipline. If it has been sometimes since you received a revelation or a vision and God doesn't seem to have done anything about it yet; it is not because He is slothful concerning His word, but because there are things we need to understand more before He starts accomplishing His word. Discipline concerns many areas of our lives. And one very important area for all who wish to truly worship Him in spirit and in truth is the Discipline of Worship, which is touching God where He is.

John 4:24 emphasies that we must worship the Father in spirit and in truth. There is no "try". Ever since the fall of man in the Garden of Eden, God has been continually wanting to draw us to Himself. Today one of the ways to His holy presence is through praise and worship (Ps 100:4); but the is no place for sin in His presence! Be it deception or disobedience as it is written in 1 John 4:20, we cannot worship God with anger, bitterness or resentment in our hearts

1) WORSHIPERS MUST KEEP THE CHARGE
Ezekiel 44:6-14 reveal that there were three classifications of Levities. Two groups were not allowed to enter into the His sanctuary to worship because they did not KEEP THE CHARGE.

What is the CHARGE? The word "CHARGE" in the Old Testament comes from the Hebrew word "mishmereth." (H4931 - Strongs). It means "to watch; the act of custody; a guard, service, preservation, command, law."
Deuteronomy 11:1 says, “Therefore you shall love the LORD your God, and keep His CHARGE, His statutes, His judgments, and His commandments always.

When we talk about the discipline of worship, we must understand that there has to be conscious decision in our mind that our life is wholly yielded to one ministry (like the Levites who were the ones appointed as priests) and that is the ministry unto God.

a) The First Group - The Rebellious Ones (Ezekiel 44:6-9)
The were "the rebellious ones" and God said they would not have a place at all! They have become an abomination to God. They did not KEEP THE CHARGE of His holy things (Ezekiel 44:8-9). They had moved to a place of rebellion, which is a the sin of witchcraft. 1 Samuel 15:23 - " For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft,and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry.Because you have rejected the word of the LORD,He also has rejected you from being king.” (NKJV)
It is an abomination before God. Galatians 5:19-21 "Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are these ... idolatry, witchcraft ... of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God." You see, the rebellious refuse to accept God's Word and would rather lean on the arm of flesh (See Ezekiel 44:7).

There are meany today who refuse to hear the Word of the Lord, or the Holy Spirit. They would rather continue on in the traditions of men and rely on the flesh. The end result for them will be the same as it was for the rebellious ones in Ezekiel. It was the same for king Saul: "Because you have rejected the word of the LORD,He also has rejected you from being king.” (1 Samuel 15:23b - NKJV)

b) The Second Group - Followers Of Those Who Went Astray (Ezekiel 44:10-14)
These Levites also went astray but they were not the initiators. However, because they followed after them, even though they knew the truth! For that reason they will only have charge at the gates of the house, ministering to the house and to the people, but they will not go near to the Lord to do the office of a priest. In verse 13, we see that these Levites were not only prohibited from coming near to the Lord:"And they shall not come near Me to minister to Me as priest, nor come near any of My holy things, nor into the Most Holy Place ..." They were not allowed to enter into His presence because they did not KEEP THE CHARGE.

Many today are not only worshiping from the outer court. There are some who are only ministering to the people, the congregation. This is not God's desire, nor is it His best for us. Jesus gave His life so that you and I could enter into the presence of the living God. We must be willing to discipline our lives as worshipers, and be determined to KEEP THE CHARGE.

c) The Third Group - The Priest Who KEEP THE CHARGE (Ezekiel 44:15-16)
“But the priests, the Levites, the sons of Zadok, who kept charge of My sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from Me, they shall come near Me to minister to Me; and they shall stand before Me to offer to Me the fat and the blood,” says the Lord GOD “They shall enter My sanctuary, and they shall come near My table to minister to Me, and they shall keep My charge."

This is where we want to be - because we have KEPT THE CHARGE, because we have kept the standard, because we have lived the disciplined life of a worshiper, we can enter into the presence of God unhindered.

Ezekiel 46:9 says, “But when the people of the land come before the LORD on the appointed feast days, whoever enters by way of the north gate to worship shall go out by way of the south gate; and whoever enters by way of the south gate shall go out by way of the north gate. He shall not return by way of the gate through which he came, but shall go out through the opposite gate." When you enter into worship, you should never leave the same way you came. There should be something that has changed in your life. The Scripture say we changed from glory to glory. You cannot enter into the presence of God and leave the same way you came. You will either leave transformed by the power of God or you will leave convicted by the power of God.


2) IT TAKES DISCIPLINE TO KEEP OUR CHARGE TO MINSITER TO GOD.

WORSHIP IS A LIFESTYLE, not a programme. Worship is not something we do, IT IS A LIFESTYLE WE MAINTAIN! (this requires our discipline). Many people think they can live any way they want, we need to understand that we cannot minister tothe desires and the passions of the flesh Monday through Saturday and then turn around and try to minsiter to God on Sunday.
A.W.Tozer in his book "Whatever Happened To Our Worship" said that "if you cannot worship God in the midst of your responsibilities on Monday, then it is very unlikely you were worshiping on Sunday!"

Today the Father is still seeking for "true worshippers who MUST worship Him in SPIRIT and in TRUTH". (John 4: 24). If you are willing to subject your life to the Discipline of Worship, it will revolutionize your life as a Worshiper.
(an extract from: The 2nd Flood by John W. Stevenson)

WORSHIP THAT SHAKES THE DOORPOSTS OF HEAVEN

Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of His glory!

At the sound of their voices

the doorposts and threshold shook

and the temple was filled with smoke.

Isaiah 6:3-4

Isaiah had a vision of the unsearchable glory of God. He saw the Lord in His throne room, high and lifted up, and His glory filled the room. Around Him stood massive angels called seraphim, who, because of God's great glory, cover their faces with their wings and cry out: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!"

We have sung these exact words in our churches in hymn form. Yet often our praises ring void of the passion found in these angels. You can see people yawning or glancing about as they sing the words. Oh, how different is the atmosphere in God's throne room!

The Emerald Throne Scene In Heaven (Revelation 4:2-11)http://www.revelationillustrated.com/

These mighty, awesome angels are not bored or restless; they are not merely singing nice songs. They do not say, "God, I have been singing this song before Your throne for millions of years; do You think a replacement could be brought in? I would like to go explore the other parts of heaven." NO WAY! They would not desire to be anywhere else but crying out and singing praises before the throne of God.These spectacular angels are not merely singing a song. They are responding to what they see. Every moment, through veiled eyes they glimpse another facet and greater dimension of God's glory being revealed. Overwhelmed, they shout, "Holy, holy holy!" In fact, their voices and the entire room is filled with smoke. Wow, it's one thing for sound waves to shake a natural building here on the earth, but it is quite another matter to shake the doorposts of heaven's architecture! These angels have been around God's throne for untold ages, for time ummeasurable. Yet they experience a perpetual revelation of God's power and wisdom. His greatness is truly unsearchable.
(An extract from - The Fear Of The Lord by John Bevere)

"SOUNDS OF GOD'S GLORY"
When I was a young girl, I went directly from school to the church on Wednesday afternoons. The faithful of the church were gathered in prayer from one to four. I attended most of those prayer meetings.
During the first two hours they had been making their petitions and interceding before God. During the last hour they would just bask in His presence. Those were the best times. Every petition they could think of had been made. Now the Holy Ghost took over. Sounds of glory, dropped into my spirit from those years, have kept me as I traveled all over the world in ministry.
I have been in thousands of meetings and heard thousands of sermons, but the greatest influence in my life has been those glory sounds that came forth in the latter hours of those prayer meetings where God's people touched the eternal realm.
As air is the atmosphere of the earth, GLORY is the atmosphere of Heaven. It lifts us up above the earthly, into the very presence of God. (extract from - GLORY! Experiencing The Atmosphere of Heaven - by Ruth Heflin)

WORSHIP BELONGS TO GOD

What are God's demands in His Word

regarding Worship?

Do you know that there is a spiritual war going on? It is a war between the kingdom of heaven and the kingdom of hell. It is a war as to which kingdom gets WORSHIP... God or Satan? We can see it from Genesis to Revelation ... every event throughout The Ages of the Patriachs, The Bondage in Egypt, The Conquest of Canaan, The Period of the Judges, The History of Israel, The Gospel, The Acts of the Church and The Revelation ... leads to one question: "WHO GETS WORSHIP?"

Exodus 20:3-6
v3 - You shall have no other gods before me
v4 - You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on earth beneath or in the water below.
v5 - You shall not bow down to them; for I, the Lord your God am a jealous God
Exodus 34:14- Do not worship any other god. for the Lord, Whose name is jealous, is a jealous God.

It is from these verses in the scriptures that we learn that WORSHIP BELONGS TO GOD AND GOD DEMANDS IT!

What is worship? In Hebrew, the word SHACHAH means to kneel and worship. In Greek, the word PROSKUNEO means to go forward to kiss His Hand. In other words, to give EVERYTHING to Him. It is confessing Him as God.

What is the work of the devil? From the account in Genesis of the Garden of Eden, we really cannot discern the devil's purpose. But in Isaiah 14:12-14 we see that the devil wants to be like God. Isn't that's what the devil said to Adam and Eve, that they too could be "as gods" when they partook of the forbidden fruit?

As we look into the New Testament, we read in the Gospel of Matthew 4:8-10:
v8 - Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor.
v9 - "All this I will give you," he said, "If you will bow down and worship me."
v10 - Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.'
It is in the third temptation of Jesus that the ultimate goal of the devil was exposed when the enemy finally came out with the confrontation:

"WORSHIP ME!"

When we come to the book of Revelation, we see that God's purpose is worship and Satan's purpose is also worship. From chapter 4 to 19, we learn that the twenty-four elders and four living creatures worship in heaven. But in chapter 13, we see worship of the image of the beast on earth - worshiping the beast is the worship of Satan. In chapter 14:7, we see that the eternal Gospel is preached: "Fear God, and give glory to Him, because the hour of his judgement has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water."

WORSHIP GOD - this is the eternal Gospel! In Revelation chapter 21 and 22 we read about the new heaven and the new earth. Again we are commanded to worship God (Revelation 22:9)
(An excerpt from the book "Worship God" by Watchman Nee)

Today as we stand in anticipation of His soon return, that same question is being asked: "Who will you worship?" What is our duty as Christians? It is not enough just knowing salvation or serving Him. What is it that will satisfy God? Who will satisfy Him?
We must put worship into everything we do. Do you have difficulites? First worship God, Are you weak and weary? Worship God. We learn in Psalm 8:2 that the praise of a weak child has the power to silence the enemy. Satan fears the worship of God. Worship by the few today is giving God what He will one day have from all. What the world will one day give God, we first give Him. We do not need to wait till the new heaven and new earth to worship.

NOW IS THE TIME TO WORSHIP!

Today the Father is still seeking (searching, yearning) for true worshipers. What is our duty as Christians? Worship God!
TPWC