There comes a time in the life of ever believer that God Himself, calls the believer to Worship; not a service, not a program, not even an experience or a song but a position in Him which is a pre-set arrangement that He has in you that will reflect the character of His continued posture of Worship. You see true Worship is always a response to a revelation. John 21-24 says it like this "Believe me, woman, the time is coming when you Samaritans will worship the Father neither here at this mountain nor there in Jerusalem. You worship guessing in the dark; we Jews worship in the clear light of day. God's way of salvation is made available through the Jews. But the time is coming—it has, in fact, come—when what you're called will not matter and where you go to worship will not matter. 23-24 “It's who you are and the way you live that count before God. Your worship must engage your spirit in the pursuit of truth. That's the kind of people the Father is out looking for: those who are simply and honestly themselves before him in their worship. God is sheer being itself—Spirit. Those who worship him must do it out of their very being, their spirits, their true selves, in adoration." (The Message Bible).
In this economic famine that the United States is passing through is a perfect example of how the believer should be operating from a different perspective than that of the world. We are all in the world and most of us are experiencing some affects of the world’s famine, but our response to the famine is different than the worlds. We don’t operate by the world’s customary standards or norms when God is in the equation. We are instructed to “present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is the good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” (Romans 12:1-2 KJV).
Let’s look over the call of worship in the church setting and the approach that necessitate how we operate for effectiveness in the spirit. Since, true worship is a response to a revelation then the church has to take it’s role seriously. Our words, actions, motives, attitudes and songs should bring the fullness of our glorious Jesus into what ever setting we are in and burst into flames a fresh fire and heart-felt response by everyone. Revelation is the result of true worship with the underlining tendencies of obedience and devotion to the will of God while aligning your will with His will. William Temple wrote: To worship is to quicken the conscience by the holiness of God,
To feed the mind with the truth of God,
To purge the imagination by the beauty of God,
To devote the will to the purpose of God.
What’s Your Thoughts on the Call To Worship?
Monday, May 11, 2009
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
TARP: For The believer
TITHING…
I was encouraged to begin this blog by a friend who thought others would benefit and be interested in hearing / reading some Christian studies as well as take part in the study via blogging.
I was in my office last week and I was reading the bible prior to the start of my work day and a friend of mines came into my office. We begin to have a conversation about tithing, a topic that I was studying. His perspectives on tithing caught me totally off-guard and we began to dialog far into the morning. His perspective was “tithing is strictly under law the Old Testament and we are under grace, therefore, tithing is not mandatory and giving should be from the heart.”
This was interesting to me because I hadn’t heard this perspective in over 20 years and particularly from a Christian. My spiritual teaching and training was grounded in tithing and giving offerings. The sacrifice of such is considered as a part of our walk with God. The community of Christians that I am affiliated with believe in the same.
As we quickly near the end of the first quarter of 2009, we’ve heard much talk about the “the Bailout Plan, the Rescue Plan, the Stimulus and the TARP. As our new President, Bracka Obama and his designated leaders make attempts to get control of this economical crisis; many have lost faith in the government and its ability to manage, delegate and spend dollars that they have been trusted with.
As a result, of the economical crisis that our nation faces, banks, corporations, small businesses and agencies are suffering and churches are not exempt. Faith fuels tithing, offering and service which are major components for the sustainability of the church. When one or any of those components shrinks it make an impact.
My biblical study of Malachi 3: 7-12 is to enter into and interrogate the text by asking the right questions.
Today’s Questions: Should tithing and giving be from the heart? Does God expect people to tithe today? Do you believe that church service / church work can be substituted in the place of tithing? What are your views and scriptures references on Tithes, offerings and giving? Distinct
I was encouraged to begin this blog by a friend who thought others would benefit and be interested in hearing / reading some Christian studies as well as take part in the study via blogging.
I was in my office last week and I was reading the bible prior to the start of my work day and a friend of mines came into my office. We begin to have a conversation about tithing, a topic that I was studying. His perspectives on tithing caught me totally off-guard and we began to dialog far into the morning. His perspective was “tithing is strictly under law the Old Testament and we are under grace, therefore, tithing is not mandatory and giving should be from the heart.”
This was interesting to me because I hadn’t heard this perspective in over 20 years and particularly from a Christian. My spiritual teaching and training was grounded in tithing and giving offerings. The sacrifice of such is considered as a part of our walk with God. The community of Christians that I am affiliated with believe in the same.
As we quickly near the end of the first quarter of 2009, we’ve heard much talk about the “the Bailout Plan, the Rescue Plan, the Stimulus and the TARP. As our new President, Bracka Obama and his designated leaders make attempts to get control of this economical crisis; many have lost faith in the government and its ability to manage, delegate and spend dollars that they have been trusted with.
As a result, of the economical crisis that our nation faces, banks, corporations, small businesses and agencies are suffering and churches are not exempt. Faith fuels tithing, offering and service which are major components for the sustainability of the church. When one or any of those components shrinks it make an impact.
My biblical study of Malachi 3: 7-12 is to enter into and interrogate the text by asking the right questions.
Today’s Questions: Should tithing and giving be from the heart? Does God expect people to tithe today? Do you believe that church service / church work can be substituted in the place of tithing? What are your views and scriptures references on Tithes, offerings and giving? Distinct
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
