| Spiritual Worship | ||
| World Harvest Church > About Us > Worship |
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| Spiritual worship is an expression of love from our spirit and soul to God. But He needed to go through Samaria … But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit (Pneuma), and those who worship Him must worship in spirit (pneumatic) and truth (John 4:4, 23-24 NKJV). • 'The hour is coming, and now is' means spiritual worship, which is different from the rituals of the Old Testament worship, started since that very moment when Christ declared it. He proclaimed the beginning of spiritual worship not in the Temple but at the well, not in Jerusalem but in Samaria, not to a male religious leader but to a rejected woman, to mean spiritual worship is for all people, in all places and at all times. Spiritual worship is your spirit (pneumati) worshiping the Spirit (Pneuma) of God, a direct interaction with Him. • Worship done 'in spirit' and 'in truth' engages the heart and the mind, feelings and intellect. In worship that involves the spirit and soul, God's presence is felt and His purpose is understood. 1. Experiencing liberty in spiritual worship We live in a season of worshipping God in spiritual freedom. On that day I will raise up the tabernacle of David, which has fallen down, and repair its damages; I will raise up its ruins, and rebuild it as in the days of old (Amos 9:11 NKJV). • 'On that day' in its context is about the final restoration of Israel. This prophecy is being fulfilled now. Many Israelites are returning from all over to reside in their homeland (see also Amos 9:14-15). a. The consciousness of God's grace David understood the 'ark of the covenant' speaks of God's grace. • Beneath the place in between the cherubim on the 'mercy seat', where the high priest sprinkled blood, kept three items that point to our rebellions. • The stone slabs written with the Ten Commandments signify our rebellion and inability to keep God's law perfectly (see Exodus 32:19). • Aaron's budded, flowered, and fruited rod speaks of our rebellion against God's appointed leadership (see Numbers 17:1-10). • The golden pot of manna signifies man's rebellion against God's provision. God gave angels' food to Israel and none of them fell sick for forty years, yet they called it 'worthless bread' (see Psalm 78:24-25; Numbers 21:5). • Do not uncover your sins or the sins of others when they are placed under the blood. 50,070 men in Beth Shemesh died when they lifted the mercy seat from the ark (see 1 Samuel 6:19 NKJV). • Christ is our 'mercy seat' ('propitiation' in 1 John 2:2 is the Greek translation of the Old Testament term 'mercy seat'). b. The liberty to worship God freely Passion for God's grace gives David the liberty to worship (see Psalm 132:2-5). • David wanted the 'ark of the covenant', which speaks of grace, to go back to Jerusalem where God wanted it to belong (see Psalm 132:13-14). The ark was placed in two houses for twenty years and three months after it was captured by the Philistines (see 1 Samuel 7:1-2; 2 Samuel 6:11). So they brought the ark of the Lord, and set it in its place in the midst of the tabernacle that David had erected for it. Then David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the Lord (2 Samuel 6:17 NKJV). • David placed the ark in a tent instead of putting it into the tabernacle of Moses which was at Gibeon about ten kilometers away from Jerusalem, where priests were still making offerings (see 2 Chronicles 1:4, 6). David worshipped the Lord with all his heart in dance and with music before the ark at the tent freely (see 2 Samuel 6:14). Yet he did not die before the ark! • The tabernacle of Moses which operates on the Law, rewards obedience with blessings and judges disobedience with curses. But the tabernacle of David operates on grace, follows the Melchizedek priesthood, gives blessings and no curse, had no threat of death. • The tabernacle of David has no veil and it gives free access to the worshippers. The veil that separated the ark in the Holy of Holies was torn from top to bottom when Christ died so that we can worship God freely (see Matthew 27:51). • At the tabernacle of Moses, priests stood to offer sacrifices repeatedly. Christ has offered one sacrifice for sins forever and seated at the right hand of God (see Hebrews 10:11-12). His finished work on the cross saved us! • David's consciousness of God's grace gives him the liberty in worship. God is raising a people conscious of His grace and worships Him in spiritual freedom. 2. Experiencing power in high praise This season of grace and spiritual worship is also a season of God's power. a. The covering of high praise The blood of the Lamb gives us the right to access God's presence but high praise protects us to minister in a strong manifestation of God's presence. • The holiness of God is extremely pure, readily devastates any sin and improper action like a consuming fire (see also Hebrews 12:29). A heavenly fire went out from the holy presence of God and devoured Nadab and Abihu because they had offered profane fire (see Leviticus 10:1-2). • God had to cover Moses with His hand when His extremely glorious and holy presence passed by (see Exodus 33:12-23). Whenever a high priest enters the Most Holy Place he must cover the 'mercy seat' of the 'ark of the covenant' with a dense cloud of holy incense fume which represents intense praises to protect himself (see Leviticus 16:11-13). High praise must precede his intercession for Israel (see Hebrews 7:25-26). But You are holy, enthroned in the praises (Heb. Tehillah) of Israel (Psalm 22:3 NKJV). • Tehillah refers to the highest level of praise offered to God. God manifests His authority only after Israel has offered the highest praise. • As the Levites who were sent by Jehoshaphat to the war front sang high praise, God defeated all their enemies (see 2 Chronicles 20:22). b. Lyrics and melodies of the Holy Spirit Singing with the lyrics and melodies given by the Holy Spirit is giving high praise. And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord (Ephesians 5:18-19 NKJV). • 'Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs' are lyrics and melodies given by the Holy Spirit to believers whose spirits can flow freely with Him and whose minds are renewed by the Word (see also Colossians 3:16). Psalm (Gk: psalmos, meaning 'a sacred song, sung to musical accompaniment') is spontaneous singing about God, while 'hymn' is a song of singing to God. • Psalms are songs of praise, joyful expression flowing out from a cheerful heart (see James 5:13b). They are songs about God's attributes and good deeds. Hymn (Gk. Humnos, is literally 'a song of praise addressed to God') is spontaneous singing to God. It is a song of worship given by the Holy Spirit. • Paul and Silas rose above the crisis of being tortured and imprisoned to singing hymns given by the Holy Spirit. God's presence touched the hearts of prisoners. An earthquake shook the prison, the doors flew open, and the chains of every prisoner fell off! God's presence transformed their lives and released them back to freedom (see Acts 16:25-26; 9:1-20; 2 Corinthians 3:18). Spiritual songs are singing with the tunes given by the Holy Spirit. • Just like speaking in 'tongues' is speaking with the utterance given by the Holy Spirit, singing spiritual songs is singing with anointed tunes. It is singing in tongues (see Acts 2:4), expressing deep mysteries from your heart to magnify God (see 1 Corinthians 14:2; Acts 10:46). You can express the melody or tune of the Holy Spirit with instruments. • When David played the melody from God with the harp, the presence of God came and the demon fled from Saul (see 1 Samuel 16:23b). • The godly musician whom Elisha asked for played the melody of God with the harp and God gave a prophecy (see 2 Kings 3:15). • The godly musicians appointed by David could minister prophecy with various musical instruments (see 1 Chronicles 25:1a). 3. Experiencing intervention in open heaven Soaking in the presence of God connects you to God's intervention. As he slept, he dreamed of a stairway that reached from earth to heaven. And he saw the angels of God going up and down on it. … He was afraid and said, What an awesome place this is! It is none other than the house of God—the gateway to heaven!" (Genesis 28:12, 17 NLT). • When God's presence manifests there is a gateway to the heavenly realm with an angelic traffic bringing in God's intervention. The 'gateway to heaven' is also the 'house of God' where His presence stays. • God assured Jacob that His presence would be with him to benefit his future (verse 15). Under an open heaven, the adversities that he faced in twenty years had all worked out for his benefit (see also Romans 8:28). And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, ascended before God from the angel's hand. Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and threw it to the earth. And there were noises, thunderings, lightnings, and an earthquake (Revelation 8:4-5 NKJV). • Angels ascend to carry your adorations and requests to God and descend to bring God's rule into situations that afflict people. Christ was the House of God on earth, an open heaven with 'angels of God going up and down upon Him' (see John 1:51). • With Christ in your life, you are the house of God. From the newest Christians to the most mature each of us is part of the temple or house of the Holy Spirit (see 1 Corinthians 3:16; 2 Corinthians 6:16b). • There is an open heaven over each one of us when we abide in Christ, staying connected in our love for Him (see John 14:21, 23). • With angels ascending and descending on assignments under an open heaven, we can assert the authority Christ shares with us at the right hand of the Father (see Ephesians 2:6) to terminate afflictions and release salvation, restoration, renewal, healing, deliverance, and prosperity (see Luke 4:18-19). Belief of Christ as the Son of God opens a gateway to heaven. Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven" (Matthew 16:17-19 NKJV). • Gate is a place of access. Your belief that Christ is the Son of God puts you on the offensive against 'the gates of Hades'. And demons shall not prevail against you, a part of the Church. You have the authority to stop on earth what is not permitted in heaven and to allow on earth what is free to operate in heaven. The gift called 'discerning of spirits' enables you to look at the heavenly realm (see 1 Corinthians 12:10). • Stephen looked at the heavenly world and saw Jesus stood at the right hand of God to defend him (see Acts 7:55-56). As Elisha prayed, God opened the eyes of the young man to look at the spiritual realm and saw angelic beings at work (see 2 Kings 6:17). Moses asked for an open heaven experience and he had a glimpse of the glory of God (see Exodus 33:18-23). |
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