DAY THIRTY-THREE

GOD'S PRESENCE IN THE NEW TESTAMENT

Today's Main Idea:

God revealed Himself in New Testament times through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.

Harland shares several New Testament expressions of God's Presence. Review them with me again...

1. Jesus was the Word of God who physically dwelt on the earth.

2. Jesus was and is the exact image of God, for He is God.

3. Jesus' life and words gave testimony of God.

4. Jesus and God are one and the same.

5. Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to remain with us.

6. The Holy Spirit came upon and empowered His people; He is present in us.

I like what Harland said at the end of today's study....

"There is no doubt: we were made to enjoy God's presence both now and throughout eternity. God has given us the invitation and the means--Christ in us, the hope of glory--to do just that." (p. 146, workbook)

Praise God today for allowing us the freedom, joy and blessing to be able to be in His presence and enjoy Him forever!

Blessings,

Ken

DAY THIRTY-TWO

God's Presence in the Old Testament

TODAY'S MAIN IDEA:

God revealed His presence in Old Testament times in many different ways.

Harland shares several observations from the Old Testament -- take a look again...

1. God was present before the heavens and the earth existed.

2. God was present with Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden.

3. God made His presence known through His creation.

4. God's presence was in the cloud and pillar of fire that led the Israelites in the wilderness.

5. God revealed His presence to Moses in the burning bush.

6. God was present in a cloud at the dedication of the temple.

7. God was present with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the fiery furnace.

8. God was present in the holy of holies inside the temple.

I'm sure that you could also think of many other times in the Old Testament in which God was present with His people. It's comforting to know that God wants to have a continual relationship with us...daily, moment by moment. "God manifested His presence as He willed in order to impact His chosen people and reveal Himself to the ungodly. God wanted His people to have a clear revelation of Him and to respond with worship." (p. 143, workbook)

Do you respond to God when He clearly shows up and reveals Himself to you? I guess, same as the people in the Old Testament, we sometimes don't respond. Even so, God still wants an intimate relationship with each of us. Praise Him today for His pursuing you and desiring this special, intimate, endless relationship that He wants for each of us for all eternity!

Have you ever experienced an unusual encounter with God? If so, please tell me. I would love to praise the Lord with you!

Blessings,

Ken

WEEK SEVEN: DAY THIRTY-ONE

PRESENCE

"Each of us was created by God for relationship with Him,

but we can only enjoy that relationship by God's grace.

God's great love for us, demonstrated in Christ Jesus,

initiates our response.

The only reasonable and adequate response is our expression of worship.

And as we worship,

God has promised to be present."

TODAY'S MAIN IDEA:

God has promised to be present when we worship.

Harland discusses three dimensions of God's Presence:

God's awesome presence-

Our God is omnipresent...He's everywhere...present in all places at the same time.

Psalm 139:7-8

⁷ Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?

⁸ If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.

God's abiding presence-

God is truly loving, tender, understanding and intimate with those who call upon Him as Lord.

Psalm 139:9-10

⁹ If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,

¹⁰ even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.

Harland says that the Bible is very clear that God is serious about abiding with us in an intimate relationship. Isn't that wonderful? Give Him praise for this today!

God's amazing presence-

This is God's response to His followers as they call out for His intervention.

"From Abraham to Nehemiah to Mary, to the individuals whose stories we've heard and seen in our own generation, God's amazing presence is a proven reality.

As we worship, we can expect Him to respond.

Praise God today for His presence that is always with us!

Blessings,

Ken

DAY THIRTY

AN EVERYDAY EXPRESSION

It's the end of our sixth week....keep on keeping on!....

My friend, if you're behind don't fret, just keep working at your own pace--getting the most of of the study as you can.

TODAY'S MAIN IDEA:

We worship God by serving Him in our everyday lives with reverence and awe.

Worship is to be a lifestyle.

Serving is a part of our worship to God!

Missional Clarity – Why are you Here? (Pt. 3)

John 13 gives us a rich example of what serving God looks like –in a nut shell it involves serving others in the name of Jesus Christ. In John 13 we see a humble picture of Jesus teaching all eternity what serving others looks like. There are several powerful lessons that can be learned from Christ’s example:

1. He knew who He was and where He was going.

2. He “showed them the full extent of His love.”

3. Serving others is the place of fulfillment.

4. He didn’t expect to be fully appreciated for what He was doing.

Bottom line: Serving God will lead you to becoming the person God created you to be. If you want to experience missional clarity (why are you here) you need to Accept, Embrace, and Serve God.

(written by Andy Stevens)

God reveals His presence to us through prayer, worship, His Word and through others.

"As we draw near to God, we must come with a pure heart in response to who He is and what He has done... He wants us our voice to proclaim adoration, appreciation, desperation, and expectation, but also every day demonstrating a lifestyle of worship--a life that is being transformed by His Word." (p. 131, workbook)

Have you expressed love to Him by showing kindness and generosity to others today?

Go out, rejoice, and share His love to others in tangible ways.

God bless,

Ken

DAY TWENTY-NINE

WORSHIPING TOGETHER --

THE CORPORATE WORSHIP SERVICE

Today's Main Idea:

Four key parts of the worship service

and one special element of worship

can help us to express our worship.

Harland tells us today that "music fulfills a specific, God-ordained purpose in worship: it proclaims God's power, presence, and Word--preparing the hearts of His people to receive Him." (p. 125, workbook)

As you study worship and then take a look at the main points in worship (used by many denominations), you can see similarities. Dr. Robert Webber, author and teacher of worship, summed these down to four major or distinctive parts:

1. The Coming In

We sing at the beginning of our worship services because music and musicians were created to precede the power, presence, and Word of God. Not only is singing done in this part of the worship service, but also praying and reading of Scripture.

2. The Table of the Lord

The table of the Lord is given as a visible reminder of God's eternal sacrifice in Christ Jesus. The Lord's table must never become a ritual or just a tradition. Harland tells us that it is a vital and crucial worship expression. The shed blood and broken body of our Lord will never lose its power.

3. The Proclamation of the Word

Music should never replace the Word of God. The Word should always be an important part of our worship--both privately and corporately.

4. The Going Out

Harland tells us that this is crucial because this is the part of our worship in which we have listened to the Word and are now to go out into the world

and live and share it with others.

Tell me your thoughts on today's bible study.

Ken

DAY TWENTY-EIGHT

THE TRUE WORSHIP LEADER

Today's Main Idea:

God created singers and musicians to be "lead worshipers,"

but the pastor is the true worship leader.

Singers and musicians play a crucial part in preparing the people to express their hearts in worship and receive the power, presence, and Word of God. (p. 123, workbook)

Harland shares: "The model God gave us for worship includes a major role for the singers and musicians. But the true worship leader (in each of the scriptures listed in today's bible study) is the one who presides over the whole event.

As in the Old Testament, the "one who presides over the worship service today should be the spiritual leader of the congregation." (p. 123, workbook)

"The pastor is to the worship service what the mother of the bride is to the wedding ceremony. When she stands, we stand. When she sits, we sit. When she leaves, we follow. In the same way, members of the congregation take "worship cues" from the pastor. When the pastor is a worshiper and understands his role as worship leader, there is great freedom in worship."

(p. 124, workbook)

Singers and musicians have a very specific purpose in worship:

to prepare the hearts of the people to receive the Word of God.

I invite you and encourage you to pray daily for your pastor, Bro. Phillip. In fact, all of the pastors would appreciate prayers each day. However, it is a tremendous responsibility to be the senior pastor; a calling that has much accountability as well as rewards. I am blessed to be able to serve with Bro. Phillip. He is my friend, my brother in Christ and my pastor and I consider it a blessing to be able to lift Him up in prayer daily. I encourage you to do the same.

Have a tremendous day worshiping the Lord in all that you do!

Bless you, my friend.

Ken

DAY TWENTY-SEVEN

EXPRESSING WORSHIP THROUGH MUSIC

Today's Main Idea:

God created music and musicians to precede and proclaim His presence, is power, and is Word; and to prepare His people to receive Him.

As we begin this wonderful Tuesday together, I praise God today for His creativity. I thank Him for music and people, like you, that He bestowed tremendous musical gifts and talents to be used for His glory, honor and praise. As we experience music each day, never forget that music was created for worship! Really -- music was created by God and for God's glory, praise and adoration.

Harland shares this:

1. God created music and musicians to precede and proclaim His presence, His power, and His Word; and to prepare His people to receive Him.

2. God created music and musicians to lead His people as they celebrate, thank, and praise the Lord.

"God did not create and appoint musicians to worship for the people but to lead the people as they worshiped!...He set the musicians in place to lead the people in their own expression of worship." (p. 121, workbook)

Worship is a great gift from God. Music and musicians serve a crucial purpose in our worship expression.

God created you for worship,

and He loves to hear your unique expression of praise.

Give the Lord a song from your heart today. Praise Him with words and melody in praise.

Blessings,

Ken