Does the worship at the place you attend church mirror the worship of the Lord in your heart, are you learning more of the Lord from the one who stands behind the pulpit, or from your own personal, intensive study of the Word of God. Do those that are part of the congregation lift up the name of Jesus and give you a desire to be a part of that assembly, or has it always been a rote routine modified only by the context of the message, and you have just now begun to notice this truth.
Many of the songs that are sung in some churches today have very little in common with those written by men and women of God a hundred years or more ago, those songs of the power and majesty of the Sovereign Lord, the dust that man is, and the honor and glory of the Most High Sovereign Lord. Many of the songs sung today do indeed focus on His love, but there is a subtle difference, they are meant to inflict an emotional response, one that places, in a way, those that are hearing and singing along to place their hands in the air, close their eyes, and sway along with the words, one of an emotional response that attempts to join in instead of bows before His majesty.
The meaning and purpose of any music is to instill an emotional response, it matters little if it is rock, country, metal, reggae, or Christian, music’s responsibility is to place within the hearer an emotional response to the music. When Christian music changed, it changed as all things do, most generally, over time and slowly, and what has happened in this genre is the moving away from men and women of God who sing of His Sovereign Lordship, power, and majesty, to a feel good, charismatic interpretation of what love is, an emotional response and not an action.
This is why I opened this letter to you with the three statements generated towards the actuality of the church that you attend, and the façade, if you will, of what may be actually occurring. The place that we hold inside of our souls for worship is in a sense the Holy of Holies in our heart, it is where we, the real us that we are, presents ourselves to God, it is where there is no hiding, no emotions, no entertainment, or possibility of lies. “Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.” (Heb. 4:13) This place my friends is the place where God always meets us, and there is no hiding from His presence there.
Unless the Spirit of the Most High has been quenched within you over a period of time, by your own acceptance of what you would prefer to call worship, then you are able to understand all of the other responsibilities, according to the Scriptures that a preacher is to avail himself to, are you learning something new from the person that stands behind the pulpit each week, or has it become repetitive, expected, monotonous. Are there more emotion based, entertainment, dry fact, joke filled sermons, or are they “Thus saith the Lord,” no if, and, or buts about it. Is there conviction, not just in his words, but in those words towards you, do you feel better about yourself when you leave the church that morning, or do you feel convicted to act for the glory of God.
Do those in the congregation have smiles on their faces because they are desiring to be there, because the Word of God is being preached boldly and with firm convictions, or are they simply there to get their weekly fix, to feel better about their lives, to meet each other and see how their week has gone, or are they standing boldly, asking the Lord Jesus to use them for His glory, no matter the cost. My friends, does the church you attend produce men of God who go out into the world and preach boldly the truths of the Word of God, or are the individuals there to feel better about themselves.
