Genuine worship is transforming. When one encounters God, one changes. You should never go into a worship service, and come out the same person. We call this spiritual formation … being formed by the impact of the word, fellowship and the sacraments.
Take a look at these passages from 1 Corinthians:
Now about spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be ignorant…There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men. Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines…If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it … Since you are eager to have spiritual gifts, try to excel in gifts that build up the church … When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church. (1 Cor. 12: 1, 5-11, 18, 26; 14:12, 26).
Four things to notice about God’s agenda to transform us in worship:
1. The Spirit gifts believers to enact change. People with wisdom gifts help make me wise. Knowledge gifts help me know. Encouragement gifts give me courage. Healing gifts make me well. The dynamic context created by the Spirit (as He determines) does not leave things the way they are, but rather is found to edify (build up) the believers. Clearly, God’s desire is to see us changed by means of this Spirit-infused, corporate, interactive involvement.
2. The Spirit gifts YOU…everyone, not just a few. When we gather as a body, EVERY other person (not just the worship performers on the platform) has something for my growth. And, “all of these must be done”. It is God’s will, His declared intention, that you be an effective change agent when we gather.
3. We adapt to a corporate emotion, rather than cling to our own emotion. We may encounter others who are mourning, and begin sharing their sorrow. Or, someone may be experiencing great news, and we rejoice with them (perhaps rising from our jealously that they’ve got good news happening, and not us!). In short, we sacrifice our emotional state to instead identify with that of others in the body. Our feelings are transformed.
4. We ought to be eager to enter into these moments of change! It’s not enough to enjoy the music, enjoy the message, enjoy our personal devotional time, and enjoy our latte at the Commons. It’s no wonder that sometimes we aren’t that eager to enter into this individualistic type of experience. Our eagerness comes from desiring the gifts that edify others, and entering boldly into one another’s lives to angage in the ministries of transformation.
Tomorrow is Sunday. What is your expectation? That you will come out of our gatherings as a different person? That God will use you to transform another? Genuine worship, in the Spirit, calls for no less. Let’s be eager to enter in!
