081116A - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Title: 081116A


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081116A
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Ephesians 43
endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in
the bond of peace.
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Ephesians 44-6
There is one body and one Spirit, just as you
were called in one hope of your calling one
Lord, one faith, one baptism one God and Father
of all, who is above all, and through all, and in
you all.
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The Unity of the Spirit

• Undenominational (One Body)
• Living by the Word (One Spirit)
• Spiritual Kingdom (One Hope)
• Authority of Word (One Lord)
• Absolute Truth (One Faith)
• True Salvation (One Baptism)
• True Worship (One God Father)

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John 424
The hour is coming, and now is, when the true
worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and
truth for the Father is seeking such to worship
Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him
must worship in spirit and truth.
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Proverbs 1412
There is a way that seems right to a man, but
its end is the way of death.
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Psalms 57
But as for me, I will come into Your house in
the multitude of Your mercy In fear of You I
will worship toward Your holy temple.
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Psalms 956
Oh come, let us worship and bow down Let us
kneel before the Lord our Maker.
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Psalms 969
Oh, worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness!
Tremble before Him, all the earth.
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Hebrews 1228
Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom
which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by
which we may serve God acceptably with reverence
and godly fear. For our God is a consuming fire.
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Ecclesiastes 1213
Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter
Fear God, and keep his commandments for this is
the whole duty of man.
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Luke 646
But why do you call me Lord, Lord and do not
do the things which I say?
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Matthew 721
Not everyone who calls me Lord, Lord shall
enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does
the will of My Father who is in heaven.
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Identifying The Church Jesus Built
Is there such a thing as FALSE worship?
Our worship can be Vain
Matthew 157-9 Hypocrites! Well did Isaiah
prophesy about you, saying These people draw
near to Me with their mouth, And honor Me with
their lips, But their heart is far from Me. And
in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines
the commandments of men!
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Identifying The Church Jesus Built
Is there such a thing as FALSE worship?
Our worship can be Vain Self-Imposed
Colossians 220-23 ...according to the
commandments and doctrines of men? These things
indeed have an appearance of wisdom in
self-imposed religion, false humility, and
neglect of the body, but are of no value against
the indulgence of the flesh.
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Identifying The Church Jesus Built
Is there such a thing as FALSE worship?
Our worship can be Vain Self-Imposed Ignorant
Acts 1722-23 Men of Athens, I observe that you
are very religious in all respects. For while I
was passing through and examining the objects of
your worship, I also found an altar with this
inscription, TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Therefore what
you worship in ignorance, this I proclaim... 
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Identifying The Church Jesus Built
The Current Assault On Scriptural Worship
Churches are aging. Even among mega-churches
with their modern technology and huge number of
members, whole generations are now missing. In
order to reach the 18-35 year olds, churches need
to incorporate alternative worship services into
their ministries that meet the unique needs of
the emerging generations. In a conversational,
narrative style, author Dan Kimball guides church
leaders on how to create alternative services
from start to finish.
Emerging WorshipCreating Worship Gatherings for
New Generations Written by Dan Kimball
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Contemporary Worship

• Alan W. Walworth, Journal of the American Academy
  of Ministry (Fall 1992)
• Keep the mood and tempo of worship upbeat
  Discard churchy anthems and hymns Provide
  sermons with catchy How To titles. Encourage
  casual dress and informal ambience. Drive the
  beat of worship with percussion, conclude songs
  with a flourish of high notes and loud dynamics
  (no one feels compelled to clap after slow or
  soft music) We dont allow any music in our
  church to which you couldnt roller skate. The
  new model for efficiency and friendliness and
  enthusiasm is Walt Disney World.

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A Fifty Year Old Trend

• A.W. Tozer, The Root of the Righteous, 1955, pp.
  32-33
• For centuries the church has stood solidly
  against every form of worldly entertainment For
  this she got herself abused roundly by the sons
  of this world.
• But of late she has grown tired of abuse and has
  given over the struggle. She appears to have
  decided that if she cannot conquer the great god
  Entertainment she may as well join forces with
  him and make what use she can of his powers.

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A Fifty Year Old Trend

• A.W, Tozer, The Root of the Righteous, 1955, pp.
  32-33
• So today we have the astonishing spectacle of
  millions of dollars being poured into the unholy
  job of providing earthly entertainment for the
  so-called sons of heaven.
• Many churches these days have become little more
  than poor theaters where fifth-rate producers
  peddle their shoddy wares with the full approval
  of evangelical leaders who cant even quote a
  holy text in defense of their delinquency.
• And hardly a man dares raise his voice against
  it!

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Walt Disney World Worship

• Contemporary Style
• 1. Music - driving beats, pulsating rhythms and
  loud dynamics.
• 2. Upbeat mood messages must be simple,
  positive, enthusiastic, humorous, anecdotal.
• 3. Informal atmosphere casual, relaxed, fun.
• Contemporary Format
• Performance Music, Dramatic Productions

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Walt Disney World Worship

• Brochure from the Bellevue Community Church in
  Nashville, TN Top 10 Reasons
• People dress for comfort
• We have cool music (no people in polyester
  singing sadly)
• Youll have fun (we didnt listen when they told
  us church was supposed to be boring)
• Promotes a ten-week How To sermon series called
  Mastering Your Emotional Monsters

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Walt Disney World Worship

• Highland Park Church in Nashville, TN
• Our Pastor uses easy-to-understand language,
  not Church-Talk and does not preach at
  you or spit, scream and yell
• We focus on 90s problems without being boring
• state-of-the-art video, graphics, and drama in
  comfortable theater seats
• youll love our free coffee, soft drinks
  doughnuts
• How-To sermon series entitled Energize Yourself
  with topics about how to have job satisfaction,
  overcome disillusionment, be happy, improve your
  home, manage your time, and be a friend.

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Walt Disney World Worship

• Director of Programming Performance Arts for an
  Arizona church, writing in the Journal Worship
  Leader
• Recommends that churches establish creative
  groups to
• help research songs, dramas, and other forms of
  communication to keep services exciting.

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Walt Disney World Worship

• Dan Chambers, Showtime, pp. 32-35
• Pentecostal Peter Pan
• Dazzling Entertainment
• Wrestling Match The Good Fight
• Tightrope Walking Preacher
• Saturday Night Live Skits
• Man in a Bear Suit

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No Authority

• Christ is the head of the church.
• Not one scripture can be found to show that the
  early church used an entertainment format.
• Sin is lawlessness (1 John 34).
• An entertainment worship format is SINFUL.

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Idolatry

• 2. Reinforces A Man-Centered View of Worship
• Chambers, p. 41 Worship must primarily be to
  God, about God, and for God. A persons worship
  will be God-centered only when confessing Gods
  infinite worth, expressing gratitude and devotion
  to Him, and declaring adoration for Him.
• True worship will only happen when a person
  looks beyond his own personal tastes and
  interests and focuses on God His holiness, His
  power, His wisdom, His sovereignty, His goodness,
  and the wonders of His working in nature and
  history.

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Idolatry

• 2. Reinforces A Man-Centered View of Worship
• Chambers, p. 42 when a parent gives a child
  who is throwing a tantrum exactly what that child
  wants regardless of how well-intentioned the
  parents response may be, in the end it simply
  reinforces the childs inappropriate behavior.
• Rather than giving in to the modern
  generations demand to make worship more fun and
  emotionally stimulating, churches need to teach
  them what it really means to worship God.

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Irreverent

• 3. Diminishes the Sense of Awe Reverence Needed
  in an Encounter with God
• Heb. 1228-29
• Therefore, since we receive a kingdom that
  cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which
  we may offer to God an acceptable service with
  reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming
  fire.

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Irreverent

• 3. Diminishes the Sense of Awe Reverence Needed
  in an Encounter with God
• When God manifested Himself with thunder and
  lightning at Mt. Sinai
• all the people who were in the camp trembled.
  
• Exodus 1916

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Irreverent

• 3. Diminishes the Sense of Awe Reverence Needed
  in an Encounter with God
• When Isaiah witnessed Gods majesty he cried
  out,
• Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man
  of unclean lips, and I live among a people of
  unclean lips For my eyes have seen the king, the
  Lord of hosts.
• Isaiah 65

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Irreverent

• 3. Diminishes the Sense of Awe Reverence Needed
  in an Encounter with God
• When Job was confronted with the majesty of God,
  he confessed his lack of under-standing and
  worshiped, saying,
• I retract and I repent in dust and ashes.
• Job 421-6

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Irreverent

• 3. Diminishes the Sense of Awe Reverence Needed
  in an Encounter with God
• When Peter witnessed a miracle which validated
  Jesus identity as the Messiah, he fell on his
  face and exclaimed,
• Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O
  Lord!
• Luke 58

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Irreverent

• 3. Diminishes the Sense of Awe Reverence Needed
  in an Encounter with God
• When Moses encountered God in the burning bush
  at Mt. Horeb, he was told to stay back and take
  off his sandals because he was standing on holy
  ground.
• Exodus 31-6

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Shallow

• 4. Cannot Adequately Convey The Deep Truths
  Necessary For Maturity In Christ
• Entertainment and deep content are completely
  incompatible. One or the other must go. Sesame
  Street cant teach advanced math!
• Only one format can fully convey the deep truths
  of Christianity verbal discourse.
• Hebrews 511 Concerning him we have much to
  say, and it is hard to explain, since you have
  become dull of hearing.
• Acts 207, 20, 32 Psa. 11997-100 Acts 1711

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A Marketing Scheme

• 5. Uses Worship As a Tool to Fill Pews
• Often proponents of the contemporary format will
  argue that unless the gospel is re-packaged to
  accommodate the tastes, interests, and desires of
  the modern worshiper, the church cannot hope to
  move the hearts of these people.
• This belief is not simply unbiblical It
  is antibiblical! Romans 116

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A Marketing Scheme

• 5. Uses Worship As a Tool to Fill Pews
• 1 Timothy 63-5 If anyone teaches otherwise
  and does not consent to wholesome words, even the
  words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the
  doctrine which accords with godliness, he is
  proud, knowing nothing men of corrupt minds and
  destitute of the truth, who suppose that
  godliness is a means of gain.

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Bribery

• 6. Supports Satans Assertion that Man Must be
  Bribed to Worship God
• Job 19 Does Job fear God for nothing?
• At the end of the book, when Job falls before
  God a broken man and worships with no expectation
  of having his life and possessions restored, he
  shows that true worshipers have always worshiped
  God regardless of whether or not they receive any
  economic, physical, emotional or social payoff
  and they always will.

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So Why Not?

• No Authority
• Idolatrous
• Irreverent
• Shallow
• A Marketing Scheme
• Bribery

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Identifying The Church Jesus Built
Conclusion

• Hypocritical worship done for men, not God
• Vain worship following the doctrines
  commandments of men
• Ignorant worship without realizing sin no
  excuse
• Self-imposed worship according to our own
  ideas about religion

Not all worship is acceptable worship!
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Have You Obeyed The Gospel?
Hear The Gospel (Rom. 1017) Believe That Jesus
is the Son of God (John 824) Repent of Your
Sins (Acts 1731) Confess That Jesus is the Son
of God (Rom. 109-10) Be Baptized for the
Forgiveness of Sins (Acts 238) Live Faithfully
Until You Die (Rev. 210)