worship births mission…
The next day their rulers, elders, and scribes assembled in Jerusalem, 6 with Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family. 7 When they had made the prisoners [Peter and John] stand in their midst, they inquired, "By what power or by what name did you do this?"
(Acts 4.5-7).
Peter and John were in a tough situation. Their master had been crucified and they were in danger of the same fate. Here they were in front of the religious leaders who had brought about Jesus’ death. They could have chosen to answer cautiously, guardedly. Instead Peter declared, “Let it be known to all of you, and to all the people of Israel, that this man is standing before you in good health by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead.” (Acts 4.10).
Someone has written, “Reticence can be as harmful as unguided speech, and it is not always what Christians say, but what they don’t say, that misrepresents the things of God.” If we say nothing about these things, people will assume that they are not important. Worse still, if we remain silent when we have an opportunity to speak for Christ, we are virtually denying Him.
Why are some bold and others reticent when it comes to sharing our faith? The answer lies partly, but not predominantly in temperament and personality. Our witness is tied to our worship — our devoted submission and praise for the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. We talk and share experiences about the things and relationships that we value the most. If we truly place God on the highest place in our lives; if we are filled with a love for Jesus; and if Kingdom issues are very real to us— then we will testify easily and naturally to the truth, forgiveness, and freedom that we have found in Christ.
Consider C.S. Lewis’ observation from his Reflections on the Psalms (pp. 94-95):
The world rings with praise—lovers praising their mistresses, readers their favourite poet, walkers praising the countryside, players praising their favourite game—praise of weather, wines, dishes, actors, motors, horses, colleges, countries, historical personages, children, flowers, mountains, rare stamps, rare beetles, even sometimes politicians or scholars. I had not noticed how the humblest, and at the same time most balanced and capacious, minds, praised most, while the cranks, misfits and malcontents praise least… Except where intolerably adverse circumstances interfere, praise almost seems to be inner health made audible… I had not noticed either that just as men spontaneously praise whatever they value, so they spontaneously urge us to join them in praising it: “Isn’t she lovely? Wasn’t it glorious? Don’t you think that magnificent?” The Psalmists in telling everyone to praise God are doing what all men do when they speak of what they care about most.
Let’s pray for ourselves and other women and men to have a fresh vision and experience of Jesus and the reality of His Kingdom come. A present vision that inspires our worship, fills our souls with a devout love for Him, and which will then organically overflow to others in personal testimony. We cannot just rely on the great spiritual experiences of our past. We need the Holy Spirit’s presence and activity each day as we read the Bible, praise, pray, and go about our daily lives. Otherwise we shall find ourselves preoccupied with things of secondary importance.
Beloved, please take a moment to reflect upon your own "praise life…” Has it become routine? For those of us responsible for worship gatherings, has our own "well" run dry because praise has been reduced to a production preoccupied with numbers, the most current “playlist,” and the reaction of others? Could it be that our personal witness is muted by the absence of our own vibrant praise encumbered by a transactional faith that reduces praise to “what we got” rather than “Who He is?”
There is no way around it — the mission of the Church is intrinsically connected with the worship of the Church. A small God who exists only to please us will always lead to anemic mission — the witness of "nice.” And the painful truth is: “nice” is hardly going to command attention and transform lives.
