Ever see someone fall asleep in church? It can be pretty funny.
An evangelist friend of mine tells the story of an old man who fell asleep in church. The man’s mouth was wide open with his head tilted back. All of a sudden a fly flew into the man’s wide-open mouth. Naturally, this was an unexpected surprise which awoke the narcoleptic gentleman immediately. He gagged very loudly right in the middle of the preacher’s sermon and upon spitting out the fly also had the misfortune of spitting out his dentures!
That’s not the worst part of the story. Certainly this occurence by itself would disrupt any service, but the situation grew even more bizarre.
When the man’s false teeth left his mouth they landed in the center aisle of the church - which was hardwood. No carpet. Upon impact, his ivories shattered into several pieces. He jumped from his pew and began to collect the evidence of his misfortune.
I’m sure you know what affect this had on the rest of the congregation.
Church is the hardest place to keep from laughing when you get tickled and know you’re not supposed to laugh.
The man tried his best to pick up the pieces and as far as anyone knows he never fell asleep in church again!
There’s a church service recorded in scripture where I dare say it would have been hard to fall asleep.
It was on the Day of Pentecost, the birthday of the church. Fifty days after the resurrection of Jesus and ten days after His ascension to heaven, the Holy Spirit began indwelling believers just as Jesus promised.
It was an exciting occasion!
I believe church ought always to have an element of excitement! I don’t believe church has to be boring to prove the true spirituality of our worship. On the contrary. Where the Holy Spirit is, there will be genuine enthusiasm, dynamic power, and no one will fall asleep!
Let me give you at least three qualities that made the church on Pentecost a place where you wouldn’t have taken a nap. These same three qualites ought to exemplify church worship today.
1. THERE WAS "CONTROLLED COMMOTION".
From the rushing mighty wind to the tongues of fire to the multiple foreign languages being spoken, there was a lot of interesting and stirring activity!
Simon Peter had to tell some of the onlookers that the church members weren’t drunk! (v. 15) They were "under the influence" all right, but it was the influence of the Holy Spirit!
As the scripture commands us in Ephesians 5:18 - "Be not drunk with wine...but be filled with the Spirit."
When believers get filled with the Spirit things will get exciting!
Out of control? Never! Exciting? Yes, definitely!
What is necessary for this type of church worship?
a. Reliability on the Holy Spirit and His leadership, even if He takes us where we didn’t plan to go.
Of course the Bible teaches orderliness in the church:
I Corinthians 14:40 - "Let all things be done decently and in order." "For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints." (1 Corinthians 14:33)
But the Bible also allows for some spontaneity in our worship services. Jesus said, "God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth." (John 4:24)
Worship God in truth yes, but don’t neglect to worship Him in spirit. Jesus said we "must" worship God in both categories simultaneously. An imbalance to either extreme causes problems.
If you worship in "spirit" but leave out the "truth", worship becomes subjective to human whims.
But if you worship in "truth" and leave out the "spirit", worship becomes lifeless and worthless to God and man!
It doesn’t do us any good to attend church Sunday after Sunday and not have our hearts stirred as well as having our minds renewed. Worship services that instruct but don’t inspire; or inspire but don’t instruct; are both likewise incomplete and inadequate.
Also, to have a worship service of "controlled commotion"...
b. The preaching of the Word of God must be central.
Peter quoted Old Testament scriptures profusely in his sermon. It so impacted the hearers that they were asking "what shall we do?" (verse 37)
Peter’s sermon was so powerful and the atmosphere so Spirit-filled that the apostles didn’t have to give an invitation at the end of the service for folks to make a faith commitment to Jesus.
In order for this dynamic to occur there has to be a willingness on behalf of the church to let the word be proclaimed in its purity and power.
Sure we need to adapt our message to the needs of the 21st century. But the message will not be palatable to everyone.
Do you think it went down well with some of the Jews when Peter told his Jewish listeners they had taken Jesus, "and by WICKED HANDS HAVE CRUCIFIED AND SLAIN" Him? (verse 23)
I recently read an interview of Chuck Colson. He said when he first got out of prison for his Watergate cover-up crimes and professed to be born again that a lot of folks were mad at him.
One state senator from Maryland came up to him and called him everything in the book after Colson spoke at a prayer breakfast. He told Colson he was a fake, claiming to be a Christian solely for the sympathy it would evoke. He told Colson he was sure he wouldn’t last.
Four years later that same man came back to a prayer breakfast sponsored by the same organization and apologized to Colson. He said that what had really angered him was that some of the things Colson said in his sermon stepped on his toes. He had since turned his life around by recommitting himself to Christ.
We cannot dilute the Word of God because it may offend someone. They will not be convicted and changed by lies. The truth is the thing that sets us free - whether that truth is easy to swallow or not.
This doesn’t mean we have to be purposely offensive and harsh. Its just that sometimes love must be tough.
2. The second quality of a wide-awake church is PEOPLE OF DIVERGENT BACKGROUNDS COMING TOGETHER AS ONE.
When the story begins you have the disciples of Jesus in "one accord" and in "one place". But that was the easy part.
It’s fairly easy to get together and worship with folks like yourself.
Ever tried worshipping with folks who are different in some way? Now that takes the Spirit of God.
Our son Brandon, who is presently on a short-term missions trip in Africa emailed us about his first experience in an African church. They had drums (and weren’t afraid to use them), clapped their hands and sang and spoke in French as well as their tribal language.
He said that even though he didn’t understand a lot of what was being said that the worship impacted him in a positive way because he knew they were praising the same God he loved, only it was in a different language and a different way.
Can you imagine what it was like at Pentecost when folks from at least 16 different locations came together for a cultural and linguistic encounter?
Our oldest daughter Brooke is in Spain visiting with her boyfriend and his family, who are missionaries there. I picked up the old textbook I had in high school Spanish class recently so I can be prepared if they get married and move to Spain in the future.
Believe me, I forgot a lot of my two years of high school Spanish!
But on the day of Pentecost the disciples were miraculously gifted to speak languages they hadn’t even studied in high school.
That says to me that God will make a way for us to build a church with folks from different backgrounds if we will let the Holy Spirit fill us and lead us!
Rich folks worshipping with the poor. Black folks worshipping with the white. Educated folks worshipping with the uneducated. Northerners worshipping with southerners. Easterners worshipping with westerners. Hispanics worshipping with Asians. Older folks worshipping with younger folks.
Martin Luther King Jr. said it was a shame that the most segregated hour in America was Sunday morning at 11 AM. He was right. But we’re not just segregated by color.
If someone comes into a lot of churches today and looks different or dresses differently church members keep their distance. Anybody outside their little circle of friends threatens them.
That doesn’t happen when the Spirit of God fills us!
But let me hasten to the last but not least QUALITY OF A CHURCH THAT KEEPS YOU AWAKE:
3. THE GOOD NEWS IS CLEARLY, CONSISTENTLY, AND OPENLY SHARED!
What was the purpose for the gift of tongues? So folks from around the world could hear the gospel in their own language.
Jesus had told his disciples in Acts 1:8: "But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth."
What is our purpose as a church? To proclaim the good news that Jesus died for our sins, was buried, and rose again the third day. And all who place their trust in Him for salvation have eternal life!
Peter proclaimed "...that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved." (verse 21)
Those who were saved on the Day of Pentecost were baptized and joined with the other disciples in spreading the good news even further!
Sadly, surveys today indicate that only one in four Christians even believe that they have a responsibility to witness to others.
If we are not careful we can neglect the most important part of Spirit-filled worship - the part where we expand the church by sharing the gospel!
There’s an oft-quoted story that illustrates what I’m talking about.
Several years ago there was a celebration at a municipal pool in New Orleans. They threw a party at pool-side to celebrate the first summer in memory without any drownings in any of the New Orleans pools. Two hundred people gathered in honor of the momentous occasion, including about 100 certified lifeguards. But as the party was breaking up and the four lifeguards on duty began to clear the pool, they found a fully dressed body in the deep end. They tried to revive Jerome Moody, 31, but it was too late. He had drowned surrounded by lifeguards celebrating their successful season.
The Spirit-filled church never neglects to share the gospel. And where there’s an atmosphere conducive to the new birth - there is excitement. Everybody stays awake!
