God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
John 4:24
I’ll open with this statement: We don’t need more or better musicians and singers; we need worshippers. Agree or disagree? Here’s a scenario you may or may not be familiar with:
You’re in church. The music is playing. And I mean, it’s playing. It’s loud. It’s rhythmic. People are clapping and swaying. People are shouting. They’re jumping. Some are even running. Everyone seems to be enjoying themselves and are ‘expressing themselves.’ Now, do we have here a picture of Spirit-led worship and praise or flesh-fed fanaticism? While we may not agree on the answer, please understand that the catalyst behind all this is the music.
This is what I know: we cannot coax the Spirit of God into ‘making an appearance.’ We cannot expect that by making the music louder or faster that the Spirit will come. The way we invite the Spirit’s presence is not through the flesh or worldly methods. Since when do we don’t need dimmed lights, laser shows, or smoke machines in our churches or even at concerts? These are things that we think we need for ourselves--but the Spirit of God doesn’t need any help. We invite His power and His presence by simply exalting Jesus; it's what the Spirit invites us to do.
Worship and praise are not entertainment, or a show. We do not show up at church to perform. We don’t even need people with a just a passion for music per se or who just enjoy being on the platform. Unfortunately, the platform has become a stage in some churches. The truth is we need worshippers. People with that unique blend of a passion for the Lord’s music and a love for His Word. Why a love for His Word? David the psalmist fills the one-hundred and nineteenth psalm with his love for the Word. We would like to believe that our worship leaders and teams have this blend, but this may not be the case. People who truly know how to lift up His name.
So let’s turn the lights on and just bask in His by praising His name.
That’s the word! Take it with you. God bless you.