A few years ago, God spoke to me and said, "Nobody will ever rise above their experience in worship". An individual will never be greater than his experience in worship. A church will never rise higher than their experience in worship. The heights that we reach in life will be a direct function of the heights that we reach in worship.

Our spiritual depths will be directly proportional to the depths of worship we attain. How far we go in life will be determined by how far we go in worship. You will be as effective, as powerful, as anointed, as victorious, as blessed as your worship dictates.

God said to me "Everytime my people moved to a new level, look very closely - it is because their worship moved to a new level; and the magnitude of their greatness was always in direct correlation to the intensity of their worship".

If we, as a church, are going to experience revival, there must first be a revival of worship on a personal and corporate level. My desire over the next few weeks is to ignite a passion for worship in your heart and to fan the flames of worship in our church. My desire is to be a catalyst that will bring the congregation into a new dimension of worship.

There are four important truths about worship that can be seen from John 4:19-24.

1. Worship can be misunderstood: John 4:20,21

   Worship can be misunderstood and therefore, can be abused. I believe this woman had a genuine desire to know how to truly worship God - hence the poser she presented to Jesus. But Jesus, in replying her was saying something like this, "Woman, you have got it all wrong!

   That is not what worship is all about. It is not about location, ceremonies or any of those physical things. True worship transcends the natural"

   If you don't understand worship, you can reduce it to a ritual - a sequence of activities performed according to a particular routine. Worship is not an act, nor even an art; true worship is a function of the heart.

   For too long, in church, we have been trying to get our act together, we have even tried to perfect the act. But God is not so much interested in the act or the art as He is in the heart. Let us examine some of the ways that we have misunderstood worship.

   1. Worship is not the same as singing:

      Yes singing can be a form of worship - one of the ways by which worship is expressed, but singing and worship are not synonymous. You can sing without worshipping. Matthew 15:7-9. You can worship without singing.

      There are three examples of people who worshipped Jesus:

      • A leper - Matthew 8:2
      • Jairus - Matthew 9:18
      • A Syrophoenician woman - Matthew 15:22-25; Mark 5:1-6.
      All worshipped Jesus, I am not sure there was a lot of singing involved.

       

       

       

       

       

       

   2. Worship does not have to be slow singing

      The difference between praise and worship is more than just a difference in beat and tempo. In praise, we thank God for what He has done, what He is doing and what He will do for us. Praise is usually related to our condition. Worship on the other hand, has to do with our position. We worship Him for who He is and who we are in Him.

      Praise is a function of God's performance, while worship is a function of His person. With this distinction in mind, you will find that only believers can worship God. Anyone can praise God - but only those who have a true intimate relationship with Him can worship.
      Psalm 150:6 - "Let everything that has breath praise the Lord".

   3. Worship is not about clapping or raising your hands.

      Again, while these are legitimate scriptural expressions of worship, they are not in themselves worship. Acts 17:22-25 "Nor is He worshipped with men's hands, as though He needed anything."  However, clapping and raising your hands is a command on how to praise Him..

   4. Worship is not what we do during a service.

      Worship is our service - Romans 12:2 ". . . which is your reasonable service" NKJV
      ". . . which is your spiritual worship" RSV

   Worship must not be confined to a location or time of day - IT IS A LIFESTYLE.

   Worship comprises the very essence and foundation of our life in Christ. Worship is the complete consecration of our lives to God. It is the attitude we walk in, speak from and meditate in at all times. Our life is completely and totally His.

   Worship means we give up this idol and turn over that obsession, put off the old man's sinful thinking and habits and crucify our flesh again and again.

   Worship is falling down before the Lord in complete submission and humility on the inside at all times, making ourselves totally available to whatever He would have us say or do. Worship is giving to the Lord all of the honour and glory due His name twenty four hours a day.

   Our worship is never-ending. What we do in worship on earth is only a prelude to what we will be doing throughout eternity. We can never fully comprehend all that God is, but the more we worship Him and the more we love and understand His thoughts and ways, the more we love to worship Him with every breath of our lives. With each new revelation about our incredible God, the richer and deeper and higher our worship becomes. To know Him is to worship Him. When we truly know Him, we can't help but worship Him.

   To Paul, worship was not something he did occasionally as a ritual or special event; it was something he did continually. Following his example, worship must not be something we do with one aspect of our being, such as our voice, it is something we do with all that we are.

   Worship flows from our spirit in power, infuses our soul with understanding, gives divine expression to our bodies, and causes illumination of our countenance. Believers in Christ Jesus don't have to stop to think about worship. We don't say, "I think I will pause to worship God now". No, we live in a state of worship as our first response, our first thought, our first emotion and our first action.

   "Worship of our God is our highest calling, our deepest walk, and our greatest joy. Worship brings intimacy with God". - Bishop T.D. Jakes.

2. Worship and knowing God are inextricably connected: John 4:22

   You cannot truly worship God until you know Him. The more you worship Him, the more your knowledge of Him increases. Our worship flows from our understanding of who God is. THEREFORE, you must study God's Word.

3. Worship is a spiritual phenomenon: John 4:24

   If your spirit is not involved, it is not worship. The only way you can commune and communicate with God is through your spirit and vice versa. Romans 8:15,16

4. God is looking for true worshipers: John 4:23,24

   Heaven identifies some people as true worshippers. This means that not everyone who professes to worship God is actually doing so. It also means there is a possibility that true worshippers are in short supply.

   How does God recognise true worshippers?
   - Their heart. 2 Chronicles 16: 9

   When God finds true worshippers, He shows Himself strong on their behalf.

God is looking - Will He find you?