Empowered Services

Turn Your Bibles to Hebrews 11:6

Title: Empowered Services

Theme: Preparing for Life Changing Worship Services

Listen as I read Hebrews 11:6, “And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him.” Pray!

Introduction: It is imperative that you let the Holy Spirit place within your mind and heart the theme of today’s message. Today our worship services have become a place of crowd pleasing not Christ seeking. Chuck Colson said it best, “The church is not to be a place where we make people feel good about themselves but her ‘Commission’ is to make people holy.” In the giving of the “Great Commission” Jesus said, “Therefore, go… and [teach] them to obey everything I have commanded you…” (Matthew 28:19-20) The practical application for “commanded” (entellomai) here means to enjoin with Christ in the making of disciples with a desire to accomplish what Jesus has given charge of. (Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon; The Complete Word Study Dictionary; Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon)

Interrogative Sentence: Just how do we get prepared to enjoy worship services that the Holy Spirit will use to change peoples lives?

Proposition: I would propose to you that the church of Jesus Christ must believe two things. First, the Lord exists and second, He rewards those who diligently seek Him. In order to fully enjoy the Holy Spirit’s anointing on all we do as a Body of Christ we must have the assurance that if we are seeking the Lord’s will to be accomplished in and through us He will most definitely reward our labors.

Every true prophet of God and laborer for Jesus Christ has come to that point in their service where they say, as the Apostle Paul who wrote, “I have wasted my efforts…” (Galatians 4:11) When we see people backslide or things not going as we have planned it is easy to give in to the flesh and say, “I am going to get a real job, something that I can see some results in. I am not getting the results and fulfillment I want so I am going to spend my time and efforts on other things.” In such moments we must rest upon the Holy Spirit’s promptings “…stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” (1 Corinthians 15:58)

Transitional Sentence: In light of the fact that we have a Savior who got victory over sin and death and He is at the right hand of God interceding for us, (Romans 8:34) the church can find rest and assurance of rewards down here. It is imperative that the church remembers that salvation found in Christ is free not a reward, therefore our labors must come about out of a love relationship with Christ.

God’s existence and His nature being good bring Christians to confidence in Christ thus opening their hearts to Holy Spirit revelation and illumination.

If the church of God is going to have steadfast devotion to seeking the Lord’s intervention for Holy Spirit anointed services she must have a conviction that the worship service is called forth by God. He calls the body of Christ to be diligent in her preparation for congregational worship.

In 1 Chronicles 22:19 we read of King David talking to his leaders and telling them to help his son, Solomon in his overseeing the building of a place for public worship. David’s “…orders…” were, “Now devote your heart and soul to seeking the LORD your God. Begin to build the sanctuary of the LORD God, so that you may bring the ark of the covenant of the LORD and the sacred articles belonging to God into the temple that will be built for the Name of the LORD."

After the temple was completed, Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the whole assembly of Israel and prayed a prayer of dedication. (2 Chronicles 6:12) When Solomon had finished praying, the glory of the Lord filled the temple. (2 Chronicles 7:1) Another place where we read of the glory of the Lord filling the tabernacle is in Exodus 40:34-38. The glory of the Lord is a term describing the wonderful presence of God making Himself known to His people. In other words, Divine approval had rested on the temple service.

In order for the church to understand the importance of the congregational worship service, referring to the moment the church doors are open to the moment they are closed. Christians must understand the significance of the temple in the Old and New Testament. Temple is first used for the tabernacle which is called “The Temple of the Lord.” (1 Samuel 1:9) The word temple is generally used in Scripture for the house erected for the worship of God.