Pentecostal Worship

WORSHIP

by Bo Sullivan

(PLEASE READ THE SCRIPTURES, - THE HUNGRY WILL)

To some people why does a worship service have to be such an energetic release? Have they gone mad, or do they have a solid biblical foundation on which they base their beliefs for the way that they worship God? Let’s look at the issue in detail, and as you read this try to keep an open mind about this terrific old-fashioned method of worship.

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SHOUTING

We’ll begin with the most questioned of all acts, SHOUTING. Why do people engage themselves in seemingly obnoxious shouting and carrying on? The answer is found in many books of the Bible. Notice the word "SHOUT" in the following scriptures:

(Ezra 3:11-13; Lev. 9:24; Psa. 5:11; 35:27,28; 47:1; 132:9,16; Isa. 12:6; 42:11,12; 44:23; Jer.31:7; Zeph. 3:14; Zech. 9:9; 1Kings 1:40)

God shouts - (Jer. 25:30; 1Thess. 4:16).

God rejoices and sings with joy - (Zeph. 3:17).

Read (Pro. 11:10), I shout everytime I think how the old, wicked, fallen, corrupt nature has died in Christ.

Psa.100:1 making a joyful noise qualifies as a shout, to make a noise is to shout.

Some would say, "yes, but did not God mean this just for those in the Old Testament?" No, the Lord himself said, "For I am the Lord, I change not . . . " (Mal. 3:6). See also Heb. 13:8; Psa. 102:27.

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WORSHIPING WITH LOUD VOICES

Besides heaven being rich, beautiful, peaceful and safe it will be filled with worshipers with loud voices. Will you feel out of place in heaven? (Rev. 5:11-14; 7:9-12; 14:2,3; 19:1-6).

The Bible is the actual word of God, so when you get to the nitty gritty of things God is commanding this (Matt. 4:4; Luke 4:4).

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PRAISE

The Bible has plenty to say about praise. (Matt. 21:16; Rom. 15:11; Heb. 13:15; 1Pet. 2:9; Psa. 100)

One Hebrew word for praise is "Halal" which means, to shine; hence to make a show; to boast and thus be clamorously foolish; to rave; to celebrate; to stultify or cause to appear stupid or inconsistent.

The word "appraise" comes from the root word "praise". When you appraise something, such as an old coin, it means to judge it’s value. Therefore, the true meaning of worship is "to declare the value of God." The person who exhibits no praise doesn’t consider God worth the effort for them to invest their time, talents and energies, which God gave them and can remove them just as easy.

No Praise = no value of God.

Some Praise = some value of God.

A little Praise = a little value of God.

A lot of Praise = a lot of value of God.

Much Praise = Much value of God!

Notice the word "lips" in each of these scriptures: (Psa. 51:14,15; 63:3-5; 71:23; 119:171; Heb. 13:15)

The above scriptures have already laid a strong foundation for us when we address the next question commonly asked, "why pray verbally aloud in public?"

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PRAYING ALOUD

(Psa. 35:18; 22:22,25; 26:12; 34:3; 55:17; 66:8; 68:26; 107:32; 108:3; 109:30; 111:1; 116:14,18; 149:1; 1Tim. 2:8; Matt. 18:19; Lk. 1:10; Acts 1:14; 4:24; 12:12; 21:5; 2Cor. 7:14; Zech. 13:9)

Does Matt. 6:5,6 condemn this kind of praying? If it does it contradicts 1Tim. 2:8; Acts 4:24; 12:12; and Acts 21:5. We know THE BIBLE DOES NOT CONTRADICT ITSELF. If we are to take this passage to condemn public praying in church and else where, then everytime a person stands to lead a congregation in prayer and prays out loud for all to hear, he sins. But notice how verse 5 reveals how the hypocrite loves to pray in public to be seen of men. This He plainly condemns. Verse 6 tells us to go in our closets to pray. The Greek word for closet is "tameion" which means storehouse, or room for privacy or retirement. Now look at Matt. 6:21, your heart is where your treasure (storehouse) is. Your closet is your heart and your closet should be with thy Father which is in secret. Verse 6 tells us to pray in our closet (heart), shutting the door "of our lips", praying to our Father in secret; this is how we obey the commands to pray everywhere all day long without ceasing (Lk. 18:1; 1Thess. 5:17), without being hypocritical about it. Can you imagine obeying 1 Thess. 5:17 for one day verbally out loud? This would give you no room for any conversation other than praying to God. However, it’s been proven time and time again that one can pray from the heart without ceasing.

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RAISING HANDS

Let’s move on to another practice found in worship, the raising of hands. The Lord said we were to lift up holy hands in 1Tim. 2:8. Related scriptures to "hand raising" are Psa. 63:4; 119:48; 134:2; 141:2; Heb. 12:12; Lam. 2:19; 3:41.