Is your Worship merely noise?

"Therefore be zealous and repent. Behold I stand at the door and knock, if anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come into him and dine with him and he with Me. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne." (Rev 3:19-21)

Hi Guys
There are many Scriptures that are commonly misquoted and taken out of context. There is a saying amongst those who seriously study the word " a text without a context becomes a pretext." This Scripture quoted above is one such Scripture. How many of us have shared the Scripture above in regard to the unsaved? This Scripture, in actual fact, pictures the Lord seeking entrance into His own church for the purpose of renewed fellowship.

How sad and tragic that our Lord Jesus would have to stand outside of our lives, outside of His own peoples heart and church and knock continually and be ignored, be left standing outside the door. How many times in the world have we been going about our business in our own houses and suddenly realize that there is someone standing on our doorstep? If you have been in your own house and see someone standing at your door as you passed, you quickly open the door and apologize and ask the person how long they have been standing there. Would it not be tragic if there is the person of Jesus standing outside of the innermost parts of our hearts and His knocking goes unheard? How is it that we cannot hear Him? It clearly says that He is knocking. Perhaps the things of the world, the cares of the day have dulled our hearing?

It is interesting that in the very next chapter (how many know that there are no actual chapters in the Bible and that they were added to make it easier for the modern reader) actually two sentences later the letter continues and says "After these things I looked and behold a door standing open in Heaven." This is the same door brothers and sisters. This is the door that the Lord wants you to open, come with me and see what the Scripture says lies beyond the door that the Lord wants you to open today, right now. ...........

"Immediately I was in the Spirit and behold a throne set in heaven and One sat on the Throne.
Oh brothers and sisters, we are in the very throne room of God, we have stepped into the innermost sanctuary of the mighty God of all creation. Can I suggest to you that in this place you will fall on your face? That the awe and the majesty and the trembling power of that place will completely take you over and you will cry "Holy holy holy . Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come."

When we, as "living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever," we will find ourselves "Casting down our crowns before the throne saying You are worthy Oh Lord to receive glory and honor and power for you created all things and by your will they exist and were created."

For too long we, as people of God, as the called out people have only entered into "His courts with thanksgiving and into His courts with praise." And while there is great emphasis in ancient Israel for worship of joyful abandon and gladness, this was not the only "mood," of worship. Even prior to Jesus manifesting Himself on the earth there was a worship of awe and of reverence where one could barely lift their heads. The power would fall, the shekinah glory of the living God would fall with such a "Holy heaviness," that one could barely lift their heads.

If we are to move to a different place in God, as individuals and as a called out people, we must answer the knock at the door of our hearts. In order to hear that knocking we must abandon the "cares of the world. Instead of seeking the gold of the world, we must turn our eyes to the treasures of heaven and its throne room. If we are to hear God, we must become silent before Him. We are moving into a time where it will be vital to be intimate with Him. There is a time for shouting and praising God, but if we are ignoring the knocking, then we must stop shouting. If our lives are not reflecting the Glory of God, if we are not becoming like His Son, daily, then all of our shouting and praising God will just be so much noise. How tragic for the church of the living God if, when He looks down, He does not see praise but just a group of people making a noise.

Dear Lord and Father, in the name of our precious Lord and Savior Jesus, we repent this day and ask that you forgive us. We have had a form of Godliness, we have had a reputation of being alive, but now we want nothing more than to reflect the glory of the throne room of heaven. We want to enter into this place, this place of most intimate worship that compels us, necessitates us to fall to the floor and cry Holy, Holy, Holy, Holy are you Lord in all the earth and we worship you. And when, for practical purposes, we get back to our feet, then let us be changed by the very presence of you in the most intimate parts of us. And from the very core of our being let that change radiate outwards, let us take that change, that power, that presence back out into the world of darkness and let that light so shine before men who dwell in darkness that they run to you. Fire in our hearts from the throne room of heaven. Living coals received into supernatural hearts, hearts prepared to receive such coals. No longer does the coals of fire burn our lips but it burns at the very center of our beings. Oh Lord I hear you knocking, the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords is knocking on my door? I can scarcely believe how honored I am, how privileged I am that you would knock on the door of one such as I.
"2Sa 9:8 And he bowed himself and said, What is your servant, that you should look upon such a dead dog as I?" Lord you restored everything to Mephibosheth, a lame man in hiding, and invited him to dine with you every day, I ask that you would restore us, your people, to the banqueting table of your presence and I thank you that your banner over us is love.

Some good points made in this reply. On any given Sunday there will be people who enter in or do not. I was just taking it one step further, so to speak." I believe that the vast majority of what is going on in worship is "courtyard worship." Some of the congregation are entering into His courts(which of course is better than not) but not "behind the veil," for lack of a better phrase because of course the veil was ripped in two when Jesus was victorious on the cross.

There is a general corporate blessing in worship, then there is a specific, intimate corporate blessing. The kind of blessing that if you are not in a good place with the Lord you will not want to be there or you will want to fall on your face and get it dealt with.

Americans are very good, by nature and temperment, at joyous celebration and "jumping up and down," but very quiet intimate worship seems to be more of a struggle, I believe, because of the vulnerability involved and the neccecity and realization that we are utterly dependent upon God. This is a harder struggle for a people who celebrate "Independence," and who admire "self made men." ............appolus

I completely agree Danielle. There is something very powerful about silence in a worship service. There is expectancy in silence. In a dialogue, one speaks and the other listens, then the other speaks while the other listens. Why would it be any different with our Lord??

There has been a failure of the priestly ministry to be expressed in our midst that we have lost even the desire to experience the glory of God. We have grown content with so little, content with merely ‘good’ meetings and expecting no more. An expectation must first be rekindled in us, an expectation that the glory of God can actually fall from heaven like fire—men brought down on their faces, awe, gasps, hands clasped over mouths and deep breakings.

I love this quote. This captures a lot of what I was trying to convey. It must be a puzzle to that great cloud of witnesses that Gods people here on earth would resist entering such a glorious place of transformation.

Excellent link to "Night and days on my Knees." Perhaps the Lord will hear His remnant from Heaven and honor them with a final revival before the great falling away occurs(unless we are already in the middle of the great falling away)

Hi Danielle.....First of all, praise God that you were healed in the name of Jesus. May your healing bring Him glory and honor. He is still in the miracle working business and I praise Him for it.

Secondly, you make an excellent point in your post. Its potentially tragic that "Pentecostals,' for lack of a better phrase, could be going through the motions of raising hands and even dancing and so on and it has become merely form and function. The Lord does not care about what we say or how we worship on the outside, He is only interested in why we do and say things. Its the attitude of the heart that counts. If it is genuine, you will be changed. If you can stand in a church for twenty years waving your hands and jumping up and down but you never become more like Jesus, then I would have to seriously question the purpose and the motive and the genuiness of your worship. It is impossible to spend time in the throne room and not be changed.

One groan in the Spirit is worth more than a thousand words from Shakespere........Frank

Dear Danille...............He will be found by those who seek Him. I wrote this recenly Danielle

"O my God, my soul is cast down within me." (Psalm 42)

Are you downcast today? Has the troubles of life, the trials of circumstances mounted up and overwhelmed you? Are you wandering in a spiritual wilderness? Perhaps you even feel abandoned by God?

Psalm 42 was written by the "Sons of Korah," a musical family descended from the priest who had led a rebellion against Moses and Aaron(Num 16). The family of Korah had been the premier worship leaders for hundreds of years after this incident. It is comforting to know that even after such a rebellion against the will of God that there was restoration for this family and they were used mightily by God. When this psalm was written, the psalmist was in exile far from the Temple in Jerusalem. The temple of course has been the center of worship and where the shekinah glory of the living God was experienced by the multitudes of worshippers. Now the psalmist was deeply longing for this experience, to worship in the presence of God. Do you deeply long for it today?Has the multitude of your troubles somehow separated you from the presence of the living God?Is the only water you are experiencing right now the tears that fall in the shadows of the night, the darkness of your situation? The psalmist uses an unusually expressive term "As the deep pants for the waterbrooks so my soul longeth after you, oh my God." God bless you today if your "soul thirsts for God, for the living God."

My youngest son is named Daniel, as most of you know he has Down Syndrome. He also had other troubles which required more than one major surgery. One night as I drove home from the hospital, I was suddenly overwhelmed with the magnitude of the situation. It all just came crashing down on me and I wept, uncontrollably. And in the midst of my wracked sobs, the presence of the Lord filled the car and His hand lifted my chin up and He said to me "Frank, why is your soul so downcast, put your trust in me."

There is a term amongst shepherds called "casting." It refers to a sheep on its back. If a sheep falls onto its back, it does not have the ability to get upright again. The blood will begin to drain from the sheep's legs, and the weight of its body will press down upon its lungs and it will begin to suffocate. It will slowly die. Perhaps you feel like your on your back today? You do not have the ability to get up again. The situation and circumstances are outwith your control. You do not feel the presence of God, you feel alone and isolated, the joy is gone and you have lost you "song in the night." Let me tell you what the shepherd does when He comes upon a "downcast ," sheep. First of all He begins to rub their legs to bring some of the blood back,get the circulation going a bit. Then He takes one hand and grabs the two back legs, then the other hand and grabs the two front legs and hoists the sheep up and over His head and around His neck. He then carries the sheep until it has recovered and only then does He put it back down on the ground.

This is a perfect illustration of what the Lord will do for those who cry out to Him. The sheep that are "downcast," on their backs are found not because they are silent, but because they cry out with all the strength left in them so that the shepherd might hear them. If you are downcast today brothers and sisters, cry out to the Lord with all the strength that you have left in you. Remember the days when you "used to go with the multitude:I went with them to the house of God, with the voice of joy and praise." I pray that today is the day that your joy returns, that you will have your song in the night. Even in the midst of darkness, may your joy be complete in Him. The good shepherd of our souls who would take your chin this day, very gently and say "why so downcast," my child, "put your trust in me," see now I will lift you from this place and put you on my back awhile for when you walk with me for "my yoke is easy and my burden it is light and you will find rest for your souls.".......................Frank

Wow......excellent quote

Hi Danielle....I have sent out the last two quotes from you to my e-mail group at my church, including your own comments on the last one. I then added my own comment which was as follows...........

One second in the presence of God is instantly addictive. As someone who was addicted to alcohol, drugs, cigarettes, sex and food, Gods presence blows everything out of the water. It is because of His presence I forgive my fellow man. It is because of His presence that I love when I am hated. It is because of His presence that I gladly suffer trials and tribulations. If it was just His word, then it would be an enduring philosophy that would still tower above all other human philosophies, but it would ultimately fail because of the weakness of my flesh and the limitations of my spirit. If it was just the word of God it would be by my might and by my power which is finite, but it is not by my might nor by my power but it is by His Spirit whom He has revealed to me experientially. We must worship Him in Spirit and in truth. How do I teach another that? I cannot. I cannot teach a man how an apple tastes. It is only by tasting himself that he will know. Lord may we have apple tasting worship.........................Frank

HI Danielle....yes similiar testimonies, same Savior too :) If you go to http://appolus.blogspot.com you will find more of my writings that touch on the very point you made. Especially read "We are the Temple," and "Intimacy) Here is a quote from "We are the Temple"
In the Old Testament, God poured out fire from heaven and we were touched by His presence. Two thousand years ago, He sent an all consuming fire to walk the earth. And although our Lord Jesus returned to His rightful place at the right hand of our Heavenly Father, the fire of our life came and dwelt in the very midst of our new hearts. If we will take the fire of our hearts and cover it with the lens of the Holy Spirit, then the fire will be magnified and we will send up a beam of light that searches the heavens. And our heavenly Father says this, "I will be found by those who search for me."............Frank

Hi Danielle....There are two distinct realities. There is the reality of this world and there is the reality of the Spiritual. One wars against the other. One is darkness, one is light. The reality of this world is instantly accesible. When you open your eyes in the morning your are "in the world." You can see it, touch it, smell it and hear it. Gods reality is a hidden treasure. Men try to change themselves with the reality of this world because most times that is all they know. This world cannot change your core being. Its the other reality that does that.

I liken it to the detector you have to go through at the airport. There is two detectors, one of them you only have to take of your shoes and belt and perhaps take the loose change out of your pockets, inconvienent but ok. How many people would go through a detector if you had to get naked? This is the only way to enter thr throne room. You stand naked before God. At best, this is uncomfortable. So people try various ways to avoid this, it cannot be avoided. Then people try and fix themselves before entering, this cannot be done either. This is why we have to "humble ourselves, in the sight of the Lord, and He will raise us up." Sanctification is a throne room experience. It is achieved the same way that our justification or our salvation happened, by nothing that we do. "Of fooilsh Galatians, who has bewitched you? Will you now finish in the flesh what you started in the Spirit?" So, noisy worship is most times second best. It is mostly trying to "work," for your sanctification. Yet, we have to come just as we are, warts and all. There is a direct correlation to the grace you experience to the level of transparency that you have before God. And here is a news flash to all of us .......He knows everything anyway :) Yet, like Adam and Eve a lot of us are still hiding from Him. So, when in Reveleation Jesus is "Knocking on the door," then this is akin to God in the garden saying "where are you ?" Only this time it is more tragic because, despite our nakedness, we are covered by the Blood.....................Frank

Hi Danielle ....Youe wrote ..

"Yes, two realities – an earthly and a heavenly. We seem to live our lives so woefully unaware of the heavenly reality; that there is a whole other realm, full of glorious activity. We receive an answered prayer from heaven and dismiss it as coincidence. The Spirit of the Living God speaks to our heart and we assume we just had a good thought. I believe our earthly realm is invaded by heaven much more often that we realize. What intensity of worship, awe and wonder would be produced in us if we could just learn to see with spiritual eyes?"

Here is something I wrote that goes along with that, it is entitled "The miracle is in the Timing."

Psalm 46:1 "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in time of trouble. Verse 5 "God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God shall help her at the turning of the morning.

We all know and have heard that God is never late, roughly translated that really means "God, why do you seem to make me wait until the last second?"

In the early and mid-nineteenth century, there came a diverse group of people who came to be known as "higher critics." These people would take a "scientific," look at Scriptures and study it in the "cold light of day." What really happened was that these men attempted to take the "super," out of the supernatural so that they would be left with nothing more than a historical document judged on what could be explained. If it could not be explained, it was rejected as fable. One classic example of this was the crossing of the River Jordan by the Israelites. We all know that God commanded the priests to put their foot into a spring swollen river with the Arc aloft on their shoulders and He told them the river would dry up and thus they could pass over.

Higher critics discovered that some miles up river from the point at which the Israelites crossed, that there had been, at one point, possibly even in that time frame, a massive landslide which would have dammed up the river for a period of time. These Godless men, in their own act of faith, would cry "ah ha, we have our natural explanation." Isn't it amazing that in their zeal to discount a miracle working God that they missed the obvious. The miracle of the timing. Even it if is true that there was a massive landslide up the river that dammed it up, what are the odds that all this took place to perfectly coincide with the priests putting their foot in the water? What about the walls of Jericho? An earthquake? Perhaps. What are the odds of an earthquake occurring at the exact second the Israelites, under exact instructions from God, gave a great shout?

Last year, a handicapped friend of mine, a brother in Christ, was in the midst of an emotional and financial crisis. A few of us got together and decided that we would all chip in some money, it amounted to several hundred dollars. The real problem was going to be how to get the money to him without knowing that it came from us. So we decided that his best friend should take the money over in an envelope and put it in his letterbox. If he happened to be in, there would be no need for an explanation as to why he was there. Well, he was not in and the money was put in the letterbox. Day after day I waited for a call or a reaction from my friend. We believed that this provision from God could perhaps snap him out of his depression. Well, I had several conversations with him, and a couple of breakfasts and nothing. I was quite disappointed that God could bless him and that he would say nothing about it. About three weeks after the money was put in the letterbox, I got a call from my friend. The first thing he asked me was if I knew anything about money in his bookbag, to which I honestly said no. He then went on to explain that the previous night, about four in the morning, he had gotten up and cried out to God. He was in a desperate financial position and told God if He could not do something for Him, then he was lost.

My friend then told me that for a couple of months now, he had not been opening his mail, it was too depressing. He would grab the mail (he walks on crutches) and throw it into his bookbag and not open them. That morning , spurred on by his prayer, he decided to open his mail and face the "bad news." What he got instead was a blessing that blew him away. He just kept saying "Frank, I just prayed the prayer a few hours before and here is this envelope with hundreds of dollars in it." My reply was "praise God :) What really struck me was two elements of the story. His reaching the end of himself and crying out, and the timing. Three weeks earlier would have been too early, that morning(although it can be explained in natural terms) was right on time by the grace and miracle of a loving God.

Several weeks ago my family and I were in St Louis for a weekend getaway. On the Saturday night we decided to go to the Symphony and as we drove there I got a phone call. It was from "Mary," (not her real name) This is a lady that works at one of the Doctors offices I go to. She works behind the desk and is a Christian woman. Her husband does not keep very well and they struggle because of that. Over the years I always visit with her as I check out. We talk about the Lord and what is going on in our lives. I had been in a few weeks before my St Louis weekend and as usual, had asked her how things were. She sighed and told me things were just the same. I tried to encourage her as I always do and made her laugh before I left.

She was now on the phone (she has never called me before) telling me that she was convicted. The last time I was in she told me that things were just the same, well, she said, that was not true. She had been given a washing machine for free , blessed by the Lord, and had not told me about that. The Holy Spirit had convicted her to call and tell me that and put it right. Now, most people in the world would think that this was weird(including my wife) but I perfectly understood, having came under conviction myself many times and knowing how it feels until you do as your told.

When she hung up, the Lord said to me "Frank, I want you to give her $200." I thought, fine, I can do that. When I got back from the weekend, I thought about how I could give her the money without her knowing it was from me. I had a plan, but for whatever reason it did not work out. Well, about four weeks had passed since my weekend and still I had not given her the money. I thought about just walking in there and giving it to her, but in the back of my mind I was not sure how she would receive it, there was every possibility that she would be offended.

Well, my high blood pressure medication ran out. I tried to call in my refill but found out that my six months supply was up and I would now have to visit the Doctor to renew the prescription(something that I usually complain about) My appointment was set for that day at 4.00. I went to the bank and got the money and put it in an envelope. I got there punctually(five minutes early) and "Mary," was not there. I asked the other lady where Mary was and she told me that I must have just missed her as she knocks of at 4.00. My spirit dropped a little but then she came walking out of the back door on her way out. I said hi and asked her if I could talk to her for a minute outside in the hallway. She went out and sat down and I signed in. I went out and joined her. I asked her if she remembered the phone call she made and the conviction that she told me about, she smiled and said "of course." Well, I said to Mary, you will understand me when I tell you that I am under a similar conviction, the Lord wants you to have this , and I handed her the envelope.

She peeked into the envelope and her eyes filled up and she began to cry. She just kept shaking her head. With difficulty she told me that the previous evening, her and her husband had sat at their table and had to decide which bill not to pay. She barely had the gas money that morning to get to work. Her and her husband prayed fervently, for the first time in a long time, about their situation.

She put her head back against the wall and looking upwards told me that she was in no position to even try and refuse this. She was blown away that God had answered her and her husbands prayer so immediately (she did not know that I had messed around for several week) She could not wait to get home and share this with her husband. Higher critics could explain this in the natural, but the supernatural is God talking to His people, directing them and of course, His perfect timing.

Has God told you to do something ? Are you holding back for some reason? Is it possible your holding back the blessing of God? The last two stories all rely upon two things, Gods people following His instruction to the letter, and their complete dependence upon Him. Perhaps you have reached a crisis point today? Will you call upon the Lord who is your refuge and strength and who is a very present help in time of trouble? Do you know that God is in your midst and you shall not be moved? God will help you at the "turning of the morning." This means "at the break of Dawn." You have heard the phrase "things are always darkest just before the dawn," then praise the Lord we serve a God that brings the light into the darkest of situations. No matter what you face today, no matter how dark your situation, there is a God who cares and is working behind the scenes. Cry out to Him today, trust Him today and if the Lord has called you to do something, please do it no matter if it makes sense or not, trust in Him, He is the morning sun that rises in the heart of even the darkest of circumstances. Put your foot in the water with the Lord Jesus elevated above your circumstances and see if your river will not dry up, just test Him and see if He will not make a way where there seems to be no way. .................In the beauty of Holiness....................Frank

BrokenOne wrote:
This morning in church I was sitting in my usual spot (creature of habit that I am). There was a young woman sitting on the row behind me that I hadn’t seen before. That’s not particularly unusual since I attend a large church. I said hello, she said hello. The service started and out of the corner of my eye I noticed a lot of movement so I turned my head a bit and this woman was dancing and raising her hands to God. When the song service was over and we spent a few minutes greeting each other, I turned and we greeted each other again and she had such a big smile on her face. I thought how wonderful to see the joy of God on the face of the saints.

But then when the service was almost over, when the pastor was giving the altar call for salvation, this woman went up there. I found myself thinking, “but she was praising God, she seemed so full of joy. How can this be?” I thought she was worshipping the Lord and she didn’t even know Him.

This has been bothering me all day….and I don’t even know if I can exactly put my finger on why it’s bothering me so much. I guess I expect the lost to act lost, but what do you do when they act saved?

I feel the same way I have the same questions myself so your not alone. I always get concerned when kindergarten kids go up to get saved and then baptized! Not saying that the Lord can't save a child, but it always bothers me. When adults have a hard time acknowledging their sin, how does a child recognize they need a savior?

John Macarthur has a CD of the month he sends our for free, it is a Q&A about contemporary Christian music. Since the CD is offer is free of charge, i am sure it would be OK to email you the CD?

HI guys
I am travelling in Croatia, so hi from Croatia. I AM just catching up with the posts and they are of course a blessing to me. I was reading Danielle post about the dancing lady who goes forward to be saved. We, as a body, are living in exile. We are actually living in captivity, we are dwelling in Babylon. We have become like the world and the children that are born into this Christian world of captivity, know nothing of Jerusalem. WE are still a poeple of God, but we have raised our children in the world. The things of GOD are not HOLY, but wholly familiar. To raise hands and dance used to be considered cutting edge worship, especially to those coming out of denomitaionalism. Now it has become something cheap and expected. Worship leaders tell people to raise their hands, is this not nonsense. If I raise my hands it is because I can do nothing more than surrender in the presence of the Living God. Reformation is coming brothers and sisters, I know this because if it does not we will surely die. It is time to fall before the Living God and cry out to Him who is glorious in Holiness. To Him who sits upon the throne and is majestic. I had a vision the other day and I will share it when I return to the States, it is entitiled "THE iNDESCRIBABLE King. A glorious revelation of Jesus which only makes my heart burn all the more for the people of Go to return from captivity.....God bless you brothers and sisters. May we all become members of the fellowship of the burning heart. When was the last time your heart burned with the presence of God? Tragically this question would be over the head of most of what passes for Christianity who are lost in the noise of the world, how sad that a lot of that noise can be heard on a Sunday morning, it may be a noise that makes overtures to God, but God will only have your heart and all of it, or nothing..................Frank

I used to show off in Church as to how much I worshiped God. I sat in the front row, stood for the entire worship service hands lifted making my noise and then go out and sin like the devil. After a couple of years of that, I went on a fast and finally told the congregation that I was being a hypocrite, fraud, and all I was doing was acting. Yeah, at one time my worship was noise, but today my worship is quieter. I believe worship should not be an outward noise, rather an inward state of being. A person who is walking in the Spirit and Truth is a true worshiper. He does not need arms to lift up to heaven, nor legs to jump around on, he only needs to have a heart that is willing to obey God and stand for His Truth. He may be a complete failure (as I am) as far as God is concerned he is righteous, and thats all that matters. If God be for us, who can be against us.

Hi crsschk
I am glad that you were blessed by the "timing." God always seems to be right on time and He knows how to stretch His people........................Frank