Uplifting Worship Series

Pastor Stephen Trail, from Sage, Arkansas, describes a family, which enjoyed an annual vacation. However, at the start of each vacation, when they were only a few miles from home, mom would wail, “Oh my goodness! I think I left the iron on.” And every year they would turn around and go back, but not once was the iron ever plugged in. Mom was just dominated by the fear that her forgetfulness would cause all their earthly possessions to disappear in a fire. This was a family ritual for about 14 years.

Then, one year, the family was headed out of Chicago for Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, and sure enough, mom gasped, “I just know I left the iron on.” Her husband didn't say a word. He just pulled over onto the shoulder of the road, got out, opened the trunk, and handed his wife the iron” (Stephen E. Trail, The Crown Prince of Chaos, May 23, 2016, www.sermoncentral.com).

That man brought some order to the chaos, so the family could enjoy their vacation.

Our chaotic world is also in desperate need of order. Fear dominates the minds of many people, but that’s where the church can help. The church, in her public worship services, can bring some order to all the chaos and show the world a better way. If you have your Bibles, I invite you to turn with me to 1 Corinthians 14, 1 Corinthians 14, where the Bible shows us how our worship can edify people in a chaotic world.

1 Corinthians 14:26 What then, brothers? When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for building up (ESV).

When the believers came together in Corinth, everyone wanted to star in the worship service, sometimes two or three at a time, as we shall see. They tripped over each other, trying to impress each other with their spiritual gifts.

But the Bible makes it very clear here. Worship is not about an exhibition of one’s gifts and talents. It is about the edification of others. God wants you to use your spiritual gifts to build people up, to strengthen them, to increase their potential.

In the late 1990’s, Matt Redman was leading the worship band at his home church in Watford, England (near London). They were creating new and influential songs, which impacted contemporary worship around the world.

“Yet,” Redman recalls, “there was a dynamic missing. So the pastor did a pretty brave thing.” Mike Pilavachi, pastor of Soul Survivor decided to get rid of the sound system and the band for a season. He told the church that they had “lost their way in worship, and the way to get back to the heart would be to strip everything away.”

Initially, Matt remembers, ‘unplugging’ just led to an embarrassing silence. But eventually the congregation rediscovered their own voices, singing unaccompanied, offering up heartfelt prayers and encountering God in a fresh way.

By the time they felt sufficiently ready to reintroduce the musicians and sound system, the church had found a new perspective on worship: that it’s all about Jesus, and that it demands a response from the heart.

Matt’s song ‘The Heart of Worship’ simply describes what occurred: When the music fades, all is stripped away, and I simply come Longing just to bring something that’s of worth that will bless your heart. I’m coming back to the heart of worship, and it’s all about You, Jesus (Aaron Lewendon, Heart of Worship: The Story Behind the Song, www.eden.co.uk, April 27, 2013, www.eden.co.uk/blog/worship/heart-of-worship-the-story-behind-the-song-p11688).

When we come together for worship, we must remember what it’s all about. We must remember that it’s all about exalting Christ to edify one another. So how do you do that in the context of the worship service? Well, let’s read on.

1 Corinthians 14:27-28 If any speak in a tongue, let there be only two or at most three, and each in turn, and let someone interpret. But if there is no one to interpret, let each of them keep silent in church and speak to himself and to God (ESV).

Only two or three tongues speakers should speak in a single worship service, one at a time, with interpretation.

1 Corinthians 14:29-32 Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others weigh what is said. If a revelation is made to another sitting there, let the first be silent. For you can all prophesy one by one, so that all may learn and all be encouraged, and the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets (ESV).

Only two or three prophets should speak, also one at a time, with discernment and self-control.

In the First Century Corinthian Church, worshippers acted in an ecstatic frenzy when they claimed to have a word from God. They believed that the Holy Spirit took complete control when they spoke in tongues or prophesied, eliminating any personal control. However, the Bible makes it very clear here: “the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets” (vs.32). In other words, you don’t lose control when the Holy Spirit empowers you to speak. On the contrary, you retain control. After all, a part of the fruit of the Spirit is self-control (Galatians 5:22-23), so you’re able to subject yourself to yourself to regulate the time and manner of your prophetic utterances.