The Christian Lifestyle Of Worship Series

Dr. Bradford Reaves

Crossway Christian Fellowship

Hagerstown, MD

www.mycrossway.org

Last week we spend some time covering this portion of Scripture in Ephesians Chapter 5 where Paul is writing about the spiritual walk of the believer. The fact is the moment you put your faith in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you are given and sealed with the Holy Spirit.

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“But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me. (John 15:26 ESV)

And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:38)

You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact, the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. (Romans 8:9 ESV)

The life of the believer is characterized by being filled with the Spirit. We said this is not a static filling as you may fill a box with balls, but a dynamic empowering filling, like how the wind fills the sails of a boat and gives it movement. It is an ongoing filling that guides our lives, gives us direction, convicts us of sin, and (as we studied last week), grants us wisdom in an evil world, and enables us to discern the will of the Lord.

Today we are going to continue along that theme, in talking about our worship. What I first want you to understand is that worship is not an event; it is a lifestyle. William Temple defined worship as “…the submission of all our nature to God; the quickening of conscience by His holiness; nourishment of mind by His truth; purifying of imagination by His beauty; the opening of the heart by His love; and submission of the will to His purpose. All these gathered up in adoration is the greatest expression of which we are capable.”

· The quickening of conscience by HIS holiness (not mine)

· The nourishment of mind by HIS truth (not mine)

· The purifying of imagination by HIS beauty (not mine)

· Opening of the heart by HIS love (not mine)

· The submission of the to HIS purpose (not mine)

Nothing you do is more serious and important than worship; nothing. The basis of our worship, and the only basis of our worship, is to be the person, nature, and character of God through His son, Jesus Christ. It is not for entertainment. It is not a performance or an emotional appeal. It is the highest expression of love and reverence we can give to our Lord. Worship is the highest expression of the believer’s life and therefore the music that accompanies our worship should be the highest, noblest, and the best.

Music dominates our culture and world. Rarely, can we get away from it? If you are in the car, music is usually playing, at home, on the television, or on our phones. If you go into a store, on an elevator, exercise, and so on. In today’s world, almost everything we do has music involved in some manner. The reason is music is a powerful emotional stimulator. Truthfully, music is a gift from God. No wonder Satan uses music to pull people away from God and divide people.

And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, 19 addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, 20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ. (Ephesians 5:18–21 ESV)

Music bypasses the mind and reaches deep into the heart, but music also reaches deep into the mind. The more we know about God, the more we will worship Him, but the more we worship the more we will know about God. God created music to extol His truth and honor His name. Music helps us learn. Why do you think we use music to teach our children their ABCs?

Scientists found that music induces a state of meditation and relaxes the brain. Thus, the effect of music on memory is that it allows our brains to become more disengaged or freer of “debris” which impedes our thoughts. Marketers also caught onto this and search for that perfect jingle to help you recall the product they’re marketing:

· “We are Farmers....”

· “I’m a Pepper...” (Dr. Pepper,1977)

· “Two All Beef Patties....” (McDonald's, 1975)

· “Oh I wish I were...” (Oscar Meyer Hot Dogs #1 Jingle Ever 1960s)