Praise and Worship As It Pertains To Leadership
We must follow God's ordained plan and pattern for spiritual leadership in the church if we expect God's anointing to come upon the praise and worship service.
PASTOR AND OTHER MINISTERING ELDERS
The pastor and the elders of the church must provide the spiritual leadership, authority, direction and pattern for an effective praise and worship ministry in the church. It is good when the pastor and other elders and ministers actively participate in all of the praise and worship from the moment the service begins. By doing so, they become an example and encourage the congregation to fully participate. If the ministers come in late, by their actions they seem to place little value upon the time of praise and worship in the church service, and many in the congregation will take on the same attitude.
The pastor and other ministers also need this time to properly prepare their hearts for the anointing to be released for effective ministry to the people.
It is also important for those in the five-fold ministry to avoid other distractions and give themselves completely to discerning the flow and moving of the Holy Spirit for that particular service.
The musicians and worship leaders are to be appointed by the Pastor of the church and they will be ministering under their authority. Hopefully the praise and worship Leader and musicians will be led by the Holy Spirit and follow the leading of the pastor or one of the other ministers who are gifted in this area. ( Sometimes this can be a problem)
A biblical example of this is found where King David appointed some of the Levites as musicians to minister before the Lord.
WORSHIP TEAM APPOINTED BY DAVID
So there was a ministry team appointed by David when he was returning the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem.
1 Chronicles 16:4 says, And he appointed some of the Levites to minister before the ark of the LORD, to commemorate, to thank, and to praise the LORD God of Israel.
Leadership authority was given to Asaph as the chief musician.
1 Chronicles 16:5 say's Asaph the chief, and next to him Zechariah, then Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, and Obed-Edom: Jeiel with stringed instruments and harps, but Asaph made music with cymbals...
A choir leader was also appointed for the proper reception of the Ark of the Covenant.
1 Chronicles 15:22 Chenaniah, leader of the Levites, was instructor in charge of the music, because he was skillful.
1 Chronicles 15:27b David was clothed with a robe of fine linen, as were all the Levites who bore the ark, the singers, and Chenaniah the music master with the singers.
Instrumentalists were also appointed for the proper preparation to transport the Ark of the Covenant for service.
1 Chronicles 25:6 All these were under the direction of their father for the music in the house of the LORD, with cymbals, stringed instruments, and harps, for the service of the house of God. Asaph, Jeduthun, and Heman were under the authority of the king.
WORSHIP LEADERS – THEIR MINISTRY GIFTINGS AND TRAINING
Often those whom God has chosen as the worship leaders will have the gifting, ability to minister and flow prophetically. Here me when i say this that music is often used to release not only the Gift of prophecy but also the other Revelational gifts into action which are the word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, and the discerning of spirits.
1 Chronicles 25:1a Moreover David and the captains of the army separated for the service some of the sons of Asaph, of Heman, and of Jeduthun, who should prophesy with harps, stringed instruments, and cymbals.
1 Chronicles 25:3 Of Jeduthun, the sons of Jeduthun: Gedaliah, Zeri, Jeshaiah, Shimei, Hashabiah, and Mattithiah, six, under the direction of their father Jeduthun, who prophesied with a harp to give thanks and to praise the LORD.
The calling and responsibility of ministering unto the Lord in music should never be taken lightly. Those who lead in the praise and worship services, whether vocalists or instrumentalists, should have intensive training and practice to become skilled musicians to be able to discern the flow of the Holy Spirit in the services.
1 Chronicles 25:6,7 All these were under the direction of their father for the music in the house of the LORD, with cymbals, stringed instruments, and harps, for the service of the house of God. Asaph, Jeduthun, and Heman were under the authority of the king. So the number of them, with their brethren who were instructed in the songs of the LORD, all who were skillful, was two hundred and eighty-eight.
One who leads praise and worship must be anointed by God for this special and important ministry in the church. It is a gift and calling from the Holy Spirit which must be respected and cultivated.
1 John 2:20,27 But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you know all things.
But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will in Him.
The praise leaders cannot lead people where they have not been living themselves. Intense praise and worship must be a daily part of the leader's personal life and devotion.
John 4:23,24 But 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.
To be a leader within the body of Christ, a person must be a mature believer and not a novice. His or her wisdom, experience and skilled spiritual leadership will encourage the total participation of the body.
They must be able to motivate and lead people.
They must be sensitive to follow the anointing and leadership of the Holy Spirit while being alert and sensitive to how the congregation is responding.
They must recognize and submit to the pastor and other spiritual eldership within the church. Especially when flesh starts showing up!
A worship leader must be a person of proven character, whose personal life and integrity is above reproach. As a humble servant of God, his/her actions will always call attention to God and never seek to bring glory to themself.
They also must be faithful and punctual in the fulfillment of this God-given responsibility. ( Faithful and Committed)
THE MUSICIANS
Often musicians, called by God to play a certain instrument as a part of the worship team, are given supernatural ability to play that instrument.
This does not minimize, however, one's responsibility to be trained and to practice faithfully to develop the necessary skill to be counted worthy of one's calling.
All three types of musical instruments (stringed, wind and percussion) were used in praise and worship.
Psalms 150:3-5 Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet; – praise Him with the lute and harp! Praise Him with the timbrel and dance; – praise Him with stringed instruments and flutes! Praise Him with loud cymbals; – praise Him with high sounding cymbals!
Even as with the praise and worship as was recorded in the Old Testament, much is added to the dimension and quality of the praise and worship service by using additional instruments as God provides the talent, the instruments and the space for their use.
The leader may choose to add as many instruments as practical while maintaining a proper balance of types of instruments and ratio to the size of the stage or pulpit of the congregation.
The instrumentalist must be sensitive and alert to the direction of the leader. Much practice is necessary to be in unity, harmony and balance with the other instruments.
The instruments must support the lyrics by their volume without calling attention to themselves or drowning out the voices of the worshipers. (Drummers ....this is not a time for a SOLO)
The instrumentalists must be sensitive to the move of the Holy Spirit as “skilled musicians.” By so doing, they can release the anointing of God into manifestations of the Spirit during the praise and worship service.
The instrumentalists must be sensitive to flow as one in harmony and unity of sound.
2 Chronicles 34:12 During King Josiah's reign as they were repairing the Temple....the men did the work faithfully. Their overseers were Jahath and Obadiah the Levites, of the sons of Merari, and Zechariah and Meshullam, of the sons of the Kohathites, to supervise. Others of the Levites, all of whom were skillful with instruments of music...
THE CONGREGATION
It is the privilege and responsibility of every believer to enter fully into the praise and worship service.
Hebrews 2:12 Says: “I will declare Your name to My brethren; in the midst of the congregation I will sing praise to You.”
Each one of us must prepare his/her heart and be in the attitude of praise and worship upon arriving at the church or assembly of believers.
An attitude of anticipation and expectancy should draw us to each praise and worship service.
Punctuality or being on time shows our respect and love for God. We should not want to miss one moment of the time we will be spending in His Presence.
As there is a progression of “entering in” from the gates, the courts, the outer and inner courts, we could be left behind and not fully experience true worship unless we take the time to move step by step into His Presence. We should plan to arrive early and prayerfully prepare our spirits and get them quiet and ready to minister unto the Lord in the fullest experience and expression of praise and worship.
Many find great value in a time of prayer prior to the beginning of the praise and worship service. From the first note of the music, we should be in the attitude of joyful anticipation, an intensity of spirit and an expectancy to experience the Presence of God as never before.
We must press in with our spirits and sing and praise God with our whole spirit, soul and body. We should totally lose ourselves in His Presence. Our love for God should be expressed by ministering unto the Lord with all of our energy, our voices, our bodies and our whole hearts.
Psalm 138:1 I will praise You with my whole heart; before the gods I will sing praises to You.
We should not become so lost in the Spirit where we are not following and flowing with the God-ordained praise and worship leader. We must be sensitive to flow and move with the anointing of the Holy Spirit.
Do not allow yourself to be distracted by your thoughts, or the actions of others.
The songbook or words on a screen are only to help us to know the words and to sing together. Once these are observed, do not continue to focus your attention on them when it is no longer necessary.
Sometimes it is helpful to close your eyes so that you can totally forget about everything else and concentrate on the Lord.
(The worship leaders, however, should keep eye contact with the congregation at all times.)
SINGING IN THE SPIRIT
By following the worship leader and the leading of the Holy Spirit, there are times when the praise will move into a musical expression of praise not only in dancing and shouting but in “tongues.” At this time, we may become aware that the Spirit may give us the ability to sing in tongues and the Lord will be in the midst of it as we sing “in the spirit.”
1 Corinthians 14:15 What is the result then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding.
When this happens, release yourself into a free flow in your “heavenly language.”
The Holy Spirit will provide not only the words but also the melody, as we are sensitive to Him.
Be sensitive to the Holy Spirit. Often He desires to give a “spiritual song” to the body. If God wants to minister in this way through you, receive whatever authority may be required by the leadership of the group you are in before giving it. *(This is important )
It may begin in tongues and then move into your understanding. It may come as prophecy. However it comes, God will give the words and the melody. New songs of praise are often given to the body of Christ during these times.
THE VOCAL GIFTS OF THE SPIRIT
Often there is a pause in the time of praise at the end of a song which gives an opportunity for a message in various kinds of tongues, the interpretation of tongues, or prophecy.
One should receive permission from those who are in authority or recognition from those which may be required by the leadership before giving the message God has given them. It should be given in a way which can be clearly heard and understood by the whole congregation.
In fact, the Corinthians had a superabundance of speaking with tongues in the public assembly. It seemed that when these Corinthians came to church, all of them wanted to speak in tongues at the same time. It is interesting to note, however, if everyone is speaking in tongues all at one time, the entire church congregation cannot be edified or built up, for no one would understand what is being said (1Cor. 14:2-19).
Therefore, Paul instructed the Corinthians that in public meetings only two or three people should speak, and another should interpret (1 Cor. 14:27). Also, if there wasn't an interpreter present, they should keep silent in the church (1 Cor. 14:28).
Paul didn't say that the Corinthians had received the wrong gift. They had received the right gift, but they were just so thrilled and exuberant that they wanted to talk in tongues all at once. They needed instruction on how to use this gift.
You see, if we are all praising God, it is fine for all of us to praise God in tongues altogether and all at the same time. But it would certainly be wrong if everyone started talking in tongues while the preacher was trying to preach or teach. And it would not be right for someone to spend an hour speaking in tongues without any interpretation. The speaker would be edified, but the listener wouldn't get anything out of it.
That's why the Bible said it is better to speak a few words with our own understanding so we can teach others than it is to speak ten thousand words in tongues, unless we speak with tongues and interpret what we've said so that all may be edified.
This was a problem in the Corinthian Church when people were speaking in tongues in 1 Cor 14 verses 27-33 He says, "How is it then, brethren? Whenever you come together, each of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification. {27} If anyone speaks in a tongue, let there be two or at the most three, each in turn, and let one interpret. {28} But if there is no interpreter, let him keep silent in church, and let him speak to himself and to God. {29} Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others judge. {30} But if anything is revealed to another who sits by, let the first keep silent. {31} For you can all prophesy one by one, that all may learn and all may be encouraged. {32} And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets. {33} For God is not the author of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.
We Need To Respect the Silence
Every pause or silence during the time of praise and worship is not necessarily a signal that a message should be given. We need to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit and again let Him have His way.
The silence may have come because of the intensity of the Presence of God which we have entered in as we worshipped Him. To speak at this time would be an interruption of what God wants to happen at that moment.
Habakkuk 2:20 But the LORD is in His holy temple. Let all the earth keep silence before Him.
