Vintage21 Church Worship » Responding to God

A Lesson We’re Still Learning

Matt Stevens — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 21:31:38 +0000

Today’s post comes from a conference called Verge in Austin, Texas. Pastor @Nate_Williams and I traveled here to learn more about “missional communities”, or how to live as the church. The teaching has been challenging on some levels, and on other levels affirming to how we are seeking to live out the gospel at @V21Church. To watch online, visit verge2010.org.

A bonus of attending conferences is being able to worship through singing in an environment that is not @V21Church. As much as I love worshiping with my church family, it’s difficult to turn off the radar of responsibility while there. I have no complaints- my job is an honor and a joy- but it is enjoyable to attend a conference where I can worship through new songs with a musical style or approach that is unfamiliar, without thinking about the logistics of the service. Being away, among believers from all over often reminds me that I’m a child of God who has received immeasurable mercy, and his movement is much larger than my small brain comprehends or selfishly tries to compartmentalize.

Just as I’m able to worship God at Vintage21 while dealing with the responsibility of the role of leadership, it’s impossible at conferences not to think about the experience of worship, the methodology of the bands leading and not consider Vintage21 in light of it. During some songs I sit back and watch, listen, think and dream. Just like the teaching at conferences, the music is challenging on some levels and affirming on others.

What God has done with music at Vintage21 is unique and real. We have gone through phases of methodology, but thankfully our focus has always centered on glorifying Jesus. We’ve developed methodology not as a carbon copy of what other churches do or what the Christian music industry defines as “worship music”, nor have we defined ourselves in reaction to the shortcomings of christian culture. In addition, the musicians of V21 can be defined in one word: humble. They do not seek their own glory but that of Jesus Christ’s. I am honored and thankful to be at @V21Church, and praise him for each musician.

But…

When I attend other conferences or churches, there is something illuminated at Vintage21: our reluctance to worship God with abandonment. Is it fear? Pride? Ignorance? Before you dismiss this accusation with the thought, “It’s just the way I worship – don’t judge me”, go with me for a moment. Consider whether or not there is pride, fear, or unconfessed sin. Ask yourself whether or not the revealed glory of Christ, the good news of the Cross, and the freedom, mercy and forgiveness compels you to respond in the way you do. Or, are you practicing worship first by what makes you comfortable, and second by what God is worthy of and/or calling you to?

I’m not calling for an awkward environment where non-believers are confused and unwelcome by our practices. But we should be challenged – I am challenged and convicted – and the result of prayer, repentance and humble seeking will not leave us in the same place.

This is an ongoing issue at @V21Church among both the musicians and congregation, and will be a prominent topic next week as we prepare to worship together on Sunday, February 14th.

Know this, Vintage21: I love you deeply, and am driven not by a certain model or method, but a desire to see you free from sin, pride and fear. Praise God that He will draw us out of these.

Responding To God: Proclamation

Matt Stevens — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 16:13:22 +0000

Growing up, my father was not often an expressive man. His love was one of action; faithfully working a job where he was unappreciated, underpaid, under a boss of little integrity, all to provide for his family. It was a given that he would be at every game, every meet. He was not a man of many words (unless I was on the field, then he definitely had his fair share to say!), but spent the majority of evenings watching television and reading. Even without a ton of conversation, it was a guarantee that every night, he would say these words:

“Matthew, I love you.”

It was a proclamation of who he was, lest I wonder what was going on in his thoughts regarding me, or what his priorities were. This had a profound impact; never have I doubted my father’s love. Had he assumed I gathered from his faithfulness in providing for the family or showing up to cheer me on, I can’t say for sure his love would have been clear. He could have been written off as a workaholic or man living vicariously through his son’s athletic achievements. His daily proclamations secured his love in my mind.

In the same sense, as followers of Christ we should proclaim who we are, what is going on in our thoughts, what our priorities are. Jesus Christ is the head of the church (Ephesians 5:23), the foundation (1 Peter 2:4-8), and “we are members of His body” (Ephesians 5:30). Yet, this truth is not a given in the minds and hearts of every church gathering on a Sunday. Several months ago, one of the pastors of @V21Church visited a large church where the name of Jesus was not mentioned in the songs, the sermon, anywhere, not even once. With rampant individualism and spreading pluralism, it’s likely that people would not assume the head of that church is Jesus Christ.

“Show me a church’s songs and I’ll show you their theology.” (Gordon Fee). Prior to the visit mentioned above, this quote struck me pretty hard. As I took a fine-tooth comb to the lyrics of songs, they were seemingly strong in their theology, but the name of Christ was surprisingly absent from most titles and lyrics. Even songs that were about Jesus seemed to shy away from saying His name. If Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, as He claims in John 14:6, then every service should be about Him, and it’s His name we praise. He is our reason for celebrating, for gathering, for living. Since that moment, it’s become a goal to lift up the name of Jesus over and over. As my friend Thad said the other day, “There’s just something about that name.” Without it, our ritual acts of gathering, preaching, singing, taking communion, giving are left wide open to interpretations. If you come to @V21Church, you’ll know where we stand: Jesus is the One and Only.

Responding To God: Sacrifice and the Heart

Matt Stevens — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 18:10:37 +0000

One frustrating thing about fatherhood is not having more time with my daughter. While my wife is my sweetheart, my bride, and my true love, there is a special place in my heart for our little girl. It’s indescribable to those without children, and deeply understood to a parent, so there will be no attempts to shed light on this love. However, while time with my daughter is highly valued, oftentimes my mind is elsewhere when we are playing. I’ll realize that minutes have gone by, during which time my mind has been thinking about a new song we’re working on, a big decision, or what is on the agenda for the next day. Although she doesn’t understand yet that her dad is not present with her in mind and heart, it makes me feel awful upon snapping out of my daydreaming. Someday she will understand when I am not completely present, and what will that communicate to her? Surely not love, but a heartless obedience to the role of fatherhood. And that breaks my heart. It’s not that I don’t love her, but in those times, I’m not loving her.

The same is true of churchgoers. While we may think showing up and being there on Sundays is enough for God, it’s not. He’s no fool, and our heart cannot be hidden from him. This is the found in Genesis 4, the account of Cain and Abel. Both men had been blessed by God, and presumably had been taught to respond with an offering. Both men brought offering, but God’s response was not the same to the offerings…

“And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had no regard.”

- Genesis 4:4-5.

There is a place for obedience in worshiping God, but at the heart of sacrifice is the heart. God doesn’t need our offerings; in reality it’s not even “our” offerings! Everything belongs to God, and we are blessed as stewards. For us to come as Cain did, simply fulfilling a duty is insulting to God. As if we’re doing him a huge favor, giving up our precious time to be there! In addition, our tithes are not doing God a favor they’re his to begin with! Our tithes should come from a joyful obedience, the emphasis being on joy. From the faith of our hearts, given to us by God, comes joy. That joy is in realizing that through Jesus we have salvation and redemption when we deserve death and separation from a Holy God. “I once was lost, but now am found, was blind but now I see.” You may not be joyful when you hear that, and you’re not alone. Hearing the Good News doesn’t always bring me joy, but the fault of that lies in my heart – I’m not listening or have become too self-focused. Yet, when we’re not living in such prideful existence, the reality of the Cross is transforming! The unbelievable trade we receive should bring a joyful desire to give everything to God! But we are self-focused and don’t desire to give, because we don’t have joy, because we hear the message of grace and are not changed, because we are too self-focused. And round and round we go. I pray that God mercifully breaks us of this pattern.

The heart issue at the heart of sacrifice is perhaps the biggest problem in Western churches today, certainly at @V21Church. People do not sing, do not tithe, and do not pray because their hearts are elsewhere. They believe their greatest act of worship is the sacrifice of their time, and even with that comes a demand to be “fed”, or inspired. God is neither fooled or satisfied. When he examines our hearts he sees that the love he has poured out, leading to His Son’s death on the cross, is ultimately yawned at by us. Yeah, we’ll show up to church, we might even give some of our money, but our hearts are not in it. An empty sacrifice to the supreme act of love.

Responding To God: Confession

Matt Stevens — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 14:48:58 +0000

Some think of confession as an honorable thing “a well-dressed businessman steps valiantly into the police office, looking manly even as he steps through the miniature swinging gate, and says ‘I confess. I’m the guilty one.’” The police are tempted to break out into applause, as this man clearly is a good and honorable person. In actuality, the confession we’re talking about looks more like this:

Chunk is afraid, hopeless, and without honor. He confesses everything to the Fratellis. As embarrassing as his actions are, can you imagine what it’s like to be confronted by God? We can try, but it’s no use; every analogy we imagine involves his creation, and he is holy, separate, other. Thankfully, we’re not left to our finite imaginations. We see in scripture that confrontations with God involve a fearful response, followed by a confession. Unlike Chunk’s confession, this is simply recognition of the truth. In the fantastic book Recalling The Hope of Glory, Allen Ross describes it this way: “At the outset there must be a personal acknowledgment, verbal or mental, of who this God is and of who we, the worshipers, are.” In John 20:28, when the risen Jesus confronts him, Thomas exclaims “My Lord and my God!” His prior demands, theories, and pride vanish the instant Jesus speaks, and all of Thomas is worshiping God in that moment. It’s humbling but true: all of our faculties are meant to worship God, to recognize him as Lord and Creator and we as his created worshipers.

This reaction is easily swept aside in our day-to-day worship, not to mention the corporate gatherings of the church. This is due to pride. We will worship God, but desire to appear respectable and maintain control. We’ll confess on our terms, in our timing, and in a manner comfortable to us. However, God is unwilling to share his glory with anyone, meaning he doesn’t budge on the whole “I AM” claim. In our pride we respond, “Yes, you are, but I AM just a little bit.” And praise the merciful, loving Father, who instead of wiping us clean off the face of existence, patiently draws us to himself, and effectively burns the pride away. At some point, we will each realize that it doesn’t matter what we want, what we are comfortable with. All that matters is God’s glory!

Don’t miss this part of worship- confession is not simply a step to make sure we’re in good graces with God. At each moment of our lives, our thoughts and actions should be supported with this foundation, “God is God, and I am not.” If we overlook or minimize this, we are holding onto control that we are not capable of maintaining as created beings. This could be a major reason for the issues we’ve had as a church in corporate response and individual faithfulness - many of us are trying to worship God from a heart that loves itself more. If we do not confess Jesus as Lord, both verbally and in our actions, no song we sing will be worship.

Responding To God: Bowing Down

Matt Stevens — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 15:29:57 +0000

In the youthful days of college I was a hurdler and sprinter. Our high school coach was a distance runner, and although he was a great coach he didn’t have a lot to offer for sprinters. During freshman year of college, the coach at that university knew a good bit about hurdles but was not a very good coach, so I remained self-taught. Before sophomore year I transferred to James Madison University. The coach there was a different story- he specialized in sprints and hurdles, and had coached a five-time All-American hurdler. We began with him telling me to forget virtually everything I knew as a hurdler. This was difficult, because for years my mind and body were trained a certain way. But the technique was wrong, and no matter how many races I had won, the competition would soon begin blowing by me as they ran with correct technique.

We are in a similar place as the Church. Not in the sense of competing, but our knowledge and belief of worship is small. Somewhere along the way, we’ve strayed down a path of equating worship with singing songs in a service. Whether it’s the fault of church leadership, the Christian music industry, or humanity in general doesn’t matter. Here we are, and we must forget a great deal about what we “know” and what we are familiar with. Say it with me now:

Worship is more than singing.
Worship is more than singing.
Worship is more than singing.

The Bible does not define worship by singing; why should we? In fact, the Bible doesn’t define worship in toto*, but instead gives us examples of people’s responses to God. Today we’ll take a look an Old Testament word often used for worship, “shachah” which means “bow oneself down to the ground”.

Worship of God by “shachah”

The people of Israel after hearing the Lord had visited (Exodus 4:31)
Moses when the presence of the Lord passed by (Exodus 34:8)
King David mourning the death of his son (2 Samuel 12:20)
Jehosophat and the people of Judah and Jerusalem after God’s word came, on the brink of a huge battle (2 Chronicles 20:18)
The Israelites in response to Ezra’s reading of the Law (Nehemiah 8:6)
Job after calamity was brought upon his whole life (Job 1:20)

This may seem irrelevant to our worship of God today (can you imagine stepping into the aisle of a worship service and laying face down!) but this should not be. Arguably, this is the most appropriate physical response when faced with God. These people bow down in worship when God makes His presence known in a big way or when they are in utter despair. A dramatic response to a dramatic revelation or need.

There have been several times in my life when I lay prostrate before the Lord – when my wife was bedridden with morning sickness while pregnant with our daughter, when my daughter was an infant and I was at my wit’s end, and when the Spirit of God spoke to my heart from Scripture or in regards to a major decision. In each of these cases, I had no words, no perceived brilliance, nothing at all to bring to the table. Which is exactly the reason bowing down is relevant, and should be a regular part of our worship, whether alone or in a corporate gathering. This is a whole-body response, representative of laying our hearts, minds, treasures down before God, when words no longer suffice.

______________________________

*there’s never an excuse to use a latin phrase in our day and time, but this one cracks me up, mainly because of Ben Stiller’s hilarious use of “in toto” during Mystery Men.

Responding To God: Introduction

Matt Stevens — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 14:38:17 +0000

Tuesday evening’s presentation on worship was naturally frustrating for some. There were no concrete instructions given, no simple, step-by-step program to respond to Him in an appropriate manner. It’s seemingly desirable to receive the simple way, but the request usually comes as a result of our self-centered, comfort-seeking selves, which is an insult to God.
Our approach to Jesus is similar to the crowd and disciples in John 6.

He provides, we praise. (6:11-14)
We seek, but for our own gain. (6:25-27)
We demand concrete requirements to fulfill. (6:28)
We require miracles, affirmation, and proof in order to believe. (6:29-31)
When Jesus doesn’t act how we want him to, we complain (6:60) or leave. (6:66)

Tuesday night was a call to John 6:29: “Jesus answered them, ‘This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.’” His somewhat vague answer is freeing us from a works-based mentality while also calling us to a life of Christ-belief and Christ-following. As Pastor Nate often says “Jesus gave his life for us; he gets it all.” My intent on Tuesday was the same intent of Jesus in John 6:29 – there is no works-based system of worship, otherwise we’ll compartmentalize worship to a certain day, time, place and set of actions. Just another appointment on the ol’ iCal.

However, it is our desire at @V21Church to be people of scripture, so we study the Bible and the events, words, and actions found therein. Over the next few weeks, we’ll look at reactions of people when faced with God. The first post in this series was going to be about a response of singing, since that is the most prominent and popular response of the gathered body of believers. However, before we even get to that, there’s an important point to be made, illustrated by Isaiah 6:5:

“And I said: ‘Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!’”

When we truly encounter God in an apprehensible manner there is a humble, immediate and reaction of an overwhelming nature. A new understanding is formed of just how holy God is and just how sinful we are. John, who was close to Jesus in the time of his ministry, and who had seen Christ risen, fell down “as though dead” (Revelation 1:17) when he had his vision on the island of Patmos! Therefore, before asking the question “What does a proper response to God look like”, to even be able to respond, we must see who we’re responding to. Otherwise, we’re dancing around like the priests of Baal in 1 Kings 18:20-40* in an attempt to make God act.

Have you seen God? Have you felt his presence? Have you met Jesus? Do you realize who he is? If it feels like your worship well is dry**, ask God to show himself. Then, keep your eyes open! We’ll respond when we see him.

*This is an awesome story, by the way. If you’ve never read it, do it now- Elijah is a freakin’ Segal.

**Sorry for the youth pastor-esque comment.