Today’s church is all about the worship and inspired preaching. If it is not, then people will find another place where the worship satisfies their own tastes and the preaching is pleasing to their ears. Worship can be very emotional and awe inspiring can move you and even bring you to tears because of the sheer beauty of it. Today when talking about worship, that usually involves music and a worship team or in some cases a choir or an individual leading from the front. The talent in many churches is really quite astounding and some of them have sales and many products for sale to show for it. Music can also be done poorly and yes it does not quite feel the same when the wrong notes are hit, or the musicians are not in sync and the harmony just isn’t there.
For the most part worship in the church is about feelings. We all know that the Holy Spirit is only present if the performance is right on, and it feels good. Obviously, that is not true and as we will see, the Holy Spirit’s presence is questionable at most churches, whether it feels good or not. One time I was at a church that played a Rolling Stones song as their call to worship. They did not call it a call to worship but probably just wanted people to know they were just like them, which is ludicrous. I find it interesting that if a song feels good in a hand raising church, the hands will go up and the eyes will be closed, but if you listen to the words, they are empty. But when a song is sung with powerful words but doesn’t feel like the other, hands are not raised. Don’t get me wrong I love worship music, but the words are important to pay attention. Years ago, I had the young people in our church bring in some of the secular music they were listening to and I said read the words out loud. Some of it was shocking and they responded with I don’t really listen to the words, but you actually need to listen to the words. As far as worship songs and hymns, you have to listen to the words. I have a huge playlist of music that I have bought over the years but there are songs I no longer listen to. It doesn’t matter what the genre is, a hymn or a worship song, the words can be wrong in both. Doctrine and theology tend to come out in song.
This blog really isn’t about the genres of music in the church but about the hearts of those who sing them. Music is not wrong, but it can be wrong. For instance, Psalm 150:1 “Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet, praise him with the harp and lyre, 4 praise him with timbrel and dancing, praise him with the strings and pipe, 5 praise him with the clash of cymbals, praise him with resounding cymbals. 6 Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord.” But we also see, 1 Chronicles 13:7 “They moved the ark of God from Abinadab’s house on a new cart, with Uzzah and Ahio guiding it. 8 David and all the Israelites were celebrating with all their might before God, with songs and with harps, lyres, timbrels, cymbals and trumpets. 9 When they came to the threshing floor of Kidon, Uzzah reached out his hand to steady the ark, because the oxen stumbled. 10 The Lord’s anger burned against Uzzah, and he struck him down because he had put his hand on the ark. So he died there before God.” Later we would find out why. 1 Chronicles 15:3 “It was because you, the Levites, did not bring it up the first time that the Lord our God broke out in anger against us. We did not inquire of him about how to do it in the prescribed way.” 14 So the priests and Levites consecrated themselves in order to bring up the ark of the Lord, the God of Israel. 15 And the Levites carried the ark of God with the poles on their shoulders, as Moses had commanded in accordance with the word of the Lord. 16 David told the leaders of the Levites to appoint their fellow Levites as musicians to make a joyful sound with musical instruments: lyres, harps and cymbals.” Don’t think this is just the Old Testament; God is different in the New Testament. Acts 5:4 “You have not lied just to human beings but to God.” 5 When Ananias heard this, he fell down and died. And great fear seized all who heard what had happened.” Both he and his wife died.
Notice great fear of God seized the church. As I said most worship is a feeling and if it felt good, many think the Spirit of the Lord was surely in this place, but were the spirits tested to make sure what you felt was the Spirit of God. A song void of truth could be sung and other gospels preached and taught, which means the Spirit of God surely isn’t in this place, even though it felt good. For example, I just listened to part of a song called “It is Well with my Soul” sung by a massive choir with full orchestra and absolutely beautiful. Yes, you can sing this song or listen to it and say it is well with your soul, but is it really? Now this example really isn’t fair because those singing it belong to a cult called the Mormons. I can guarantee you it is not well with their souls but that is a whole other subject. The sad part is many churches are singing this but are no different than the Mormons because they follow a different jesus and teach other gospels, but most would not call them cults like the Mormons or Jehovah’s Witnesses. But they are similar because they also have their own handbooks of beliefs, rules and regulations and have modified scripture.
Paul made it very clear when he said, 1 Corinthians 15:2 “By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.” Today the church is filled with people worshipping in vain who feel very good about their worship before God and feel that He must be very pleased, but He is not due to the rebellion of the church. We read yesterday Zechariah 7:11 “But they refused to pay attention; stubbornly they turned their backs and covered their ears. 12 They made their hearts as hard as flint and would not listen to the law or to the words that the Lord Almighty had sent by his Spirit through the earlier prophets. So the Lord Almighty was very angry. 13 “‘When I called, they did not listen; so when they called, I would not listen,’ says the Lord Almighty.” God is not listening. Amos 5:21 “I hate, I despise your religious festivals; your assemblies are a stench to me. 22 Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Though you bring choice fellowship offerings, I will have no regard for them. 23 Away with the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps.” Isaiah said something similar. Isaiah 1:2 “Hear me, you heavens! Listen, earth! For the Lord has spoken: “I reared children and brought them up, but they have rebelled against me. 3 The ox knows its master, the donkey its owner’s manger, but Israel does not know, my people do not understand.” Think about what you read above with David. Isaiah goes on to say “7 Your country is desolate, your cities burned with fire; 12 When you come to appear before me, who has asked this of you, this trampling of my courts? 13 Stop bringing meaningless offerings! Your incense is detestable to me. New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations— I cannot bear your worthless assemblies. 14 Your New Moon feasts and your appointed festivals I hate with all my being. They have become a burden to me; I am weary of bearing them. 15 When you spread out your hands in prayer, I hide my eyes from you; even when you offer many prayers, I am not listening. Your hands are full of blood!” Isaiah 59:1 “Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. 2 But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear. 3 For your hands are stained with blood, your fingers with guilt. Your lips have spoken falsely, and your tongue mutters wicked things.” We will talk more about the lips tomorrow.
Just because the singing feels good, doesn’t mean that it is. The reality is that part of the service should be set aside until God’s people return to Him. Many are being deceived with the worship we see today, especially once you find out God is not pleased or even listening. What he is looking for is a pure and repentant heart, not what is coming out of your mouth. Many will say but I said Lord, Lord and I sang with all my heart. Romans 10:9 “If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. 11 As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” But Jesus said, Matthew 7:21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” This is why it is so important to test the spirits and make sure you are following the right Jesus and are part of the true gospel. If you go to church, more than likely you are not.
Right now, it would be wise to skip the worship part of church and just focus on returning to God by turning from wicked ways. That means turning from the denominational and independent distinctives such as Catholic, Pentecostal or Baptist, etc. True worship is giving your life wholeheartedly to God not just during a baptism or at an altar. This means truly worshipping Him with your life, every day and not just on Sundays. Yes, people gather and should continue to gather but church is not a time slot on a Sunday morning, it is every day. Worship is so much more than the songs we sing. 1 Chronicles 16:29 “Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; bring an offering and come before him. Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness.” Your offering is your life and we worship God even when life does not feel good. Because of the desolation of the church, the church should be crying out to God for relief from our enemies. Psalm 77:1 “I cried out to God for help; I cried out to God to hear me. 10 Then I thought, “To this I will appeal: the years when the Most High stretched out his right hand. 11 I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago. 12 I will consider all your works and meditate on all your mighty deeds.” 13 Your ways, God, are holy. What god is as great as our God? 14 You are the God who performs miracles; you display your power among the peoples. 15 With your mighty arm you redeemed your people, the descendants of Jacob and Joseph.” Psalm 29:2 “Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness.” Psalm 96:9 “Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness; tremble before him, all the earth.”
Next time you are gathered to worship, think about the fact that you may be just singing to yourself and those around you.
