Why do we applaud in church?

Imagine sitting in a court room. You are the defendant. You are guilty beyond a shadow of a doubt of the crime for which you are accused and for which you will be receiving the death penalty. The representative of the jury stands while the whole courtroom waits in silent anticipation until the verdict is read: “We find the defendant ‘Not guilty’”. Instantly the courtroom, filled with your friends and family bursts into an uproar of shouts, applause and cries of celebration. The accuser, his argument rejected, is struck dumb.

Now imagine a wedding. Two people being joined together forever. The fervent prayers of the parents are being fulfilled as they see their children joined with a lover who will serve and protect them faithfully. All the fears of the past are wiped away as the pastor declares before the whole community that these separate people are now one flesh, forever united in a bond of love. The whole community of witnesses bursts into applause as the bride and groom exit, beaming with joy for how they have been loved beyond words. The whole community begins to party with music and a feast!

Imagine serving for years as a slave under and oppressive master. Your body shows the scars of beatings and your heart weighs heavy with the total lack of any hope of deliverance. Suddenly, a sound resonates clear and high through the whole countryside. It’s the blast of a trumpet declaring the that Year of Jubilee has come. No longer will you serve the wicked and oppressive master. You are free. The chains that bind your hands and feet fall off and immediately you begin to shout, dance and sing.

Imagine that you are slowly dying of a mysterious disease. Every day your body becomes more and more weak. Every moment, you feel life slipping from you and darkness overtaking you. All the time you feel choked, unable to breathe, and limp with no strength to even lift your head from the pillow. Then at the moment when all hope is lost, the healer comes into your hospital room. He takes a mysterious elixir from his bag and gives you a drink. Immediately, you feel your strength returning. Immediately your lungs fill with air. Immediately, you leap from the bed and begin to shout. You embrace the healer and shower him with kisses.

Imagine the whole nation suffering under a severe dictatorship. For years the government has been an instrument of corruption and oppression. Food is scarce. The police, a tool of the oppressor, randomly arrest people who simply disappear. The nation stands in a constant state of war with every able body forced to fight and die in service of the unjust ruler. One day, there’s a mighty battle. The just and rightful king has returned. He throws down the old government and sets up a new government that will last for all ages which brings peace and prosperity to not only the whole nation,  but the entire earth. As the king takes his throne, and the crown is laid upon his head, the whole earth begins to shout and rejoice that the old era is gone and new era is dawning.

We applaud in our worship services because we have been declared innocent. We have been betrothed. We have been set free. We have been healed. The King has returned.

Psalm 103

Of David.

¹ Praise the LORD, O my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.

² Praise the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits-

³ who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases,

⁴ who redeems your life from the pit
and crowns you with love and compassion,

⁵ who satisfies your desires with good things
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

⁶ The LORD works righteousness
and justice for all the oppressed.

⁷ He made known his ways to Moses,
his deeds to the people of Israel:

⁸ The LORD is compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger, abounding in love.

⁹ He will not always accuse,
nor will he harbor his anger forever;

¹⁰ he does not treat us as our sins deserve
or repay us according to our iniquities.

¹¹ For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his love for those who fear him;

¹² as far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

¹³ As a father has compassion on his children,
so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;

¹⁴ for he knows how we are formed,
he remembers that we are dust.

¹⁵ As for man, his days are like grass,
he flourishes like a flower of the field;

¹⁶ the wind blows over it and it is gone,
and its place remembers it no more.

¹⁷ But from everlasting to everlasting
the LORD’s love is with those who fear him,
and his righteousness with their children’s children-

¹⁸ with those who keep his covenant
and remember to obey his precepts.

¹⁹ The LORD has established his throne in heaven,
and his kingdom rules over all.

²⁰ Praise the LORD, you his angels,
you mighty ones who do his bidding,
who obey his word.

²¹ Praise the LORD, all his heavenly hosts,
you his servants who do his will.

²² Praise the LORD, all his works
everywhere in his dominion.
Praise the LORD, O my soul.

He raises the poor from the dust

Who is like the LORD our God,
the One who sits enthroned on high,

who stoops down to look
on the heavens and the earth?

He raises the poor from the dust
and lifts the needy from the ash heap;

he seats them with princes,
with the princes of their people.

He settles the barren woman in her home
as a happy mother of children.
Praise the LORD.

Psalm 113:5-9

I’m praising the Lord today for his character. He is not like anyone or any ‘god’ ever conceived. He is not absent and  impotent like so many deadbeat dads. He’s not deaf to the cries of the poor or the barren. He is a Father who is ever-present and who works to maintain justice. I’m thankful for how He has chosen and blessed me to be a servant in His kingdom. He has saved me from my idolatry in order to do good works by faith in Christ, works that have been prepared for me to accomplish in advance. I’m thankful for how He’s given children to my friends who were barren. I am thankful for how He’s rescuing the needy from the ash heap to set them up with princes.

Praise the LORD.
Praise, O servants of the LORD,
praise the name of the LORD.

Let the name of the LORD be praised,
both now and forevermore.

From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets,
the name of the LORD is to be praised.

The LORD is exalted over all the nations,
his glory above the heavens.

Psalm 113:1-4

A lesson for kids about worship

These are my notes for my talk at the Freedom School this morning.

I want to share a few bible verses from the book called Psalms which tell a story about what it means to worship God. This is a story was written by King David, (like David and Goliath) who was a strong warrior and also a harp player (which is kind-of like a guitar) who wrote hundreds of worship songs. David loved God so much, but he also made a lot of big mistakes in his life and did a lot of sins that would make you really ashamed. But even though David was a sinner, he knew that God was going to forgive his sin. That’s why David wrote this story in a song that we have here in the bible. Let’s read it one phrase at a time.

For the director of music. Of David. A psalm. I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry.

The first thing that David did was cry out to God for help. He knew that he was in big trouble. He was so scared but he waited for God to rescue him. What kind of waiting is this?

Is it like waiting to see the doctor?
Is like waiting for school to end?
Is it like waiting for Halloween or Christmas?

Hangin’ with Mr. Baker: my morning with The Freedom School

The Freedom School is a pre-K through 6th grade school that my church has created. Their principle, Timothy Baker, asked me to come in today and do a chapel with the kids about worship. There is also a small worship team made up of 6th graders that I met with to teach them a few of the songs I’ll be doing this morning. The worship team meets at 7:45, and the first chapel is at 10:30, so I now have hijacked the receptionist’s computer to write a blog post to kills some time.

Here’s a quote lifted from their website of what the school is all about:

The Freedom School is a Christian elementary school with grades Pre-K through fifth grade, committed to a racially and culturally diverse educational environment where both Christian and non-Christian young people from a diversity of backgrounds can obtain a quality education together under the grace of Jesus Christ and the authority of the Scriptures.

We do this through a challenging, Christ-centered, elementary education. We welcome all, as we intentionally partner with the urban poor, immigrant, and refugee.

I was just wondering what I would do if a child actually came into the office needing something, and lo and behold, in walks a kid with a stomach ache. I went to get Mr. Baker who asked him, “Have you had any breakfast today?” The child said, “No, but I had some chocolate yesterday.” These are the things you learn in elementary ed; I would have given him some Pepto and sent him home. It’s a good thing that I don’t work here.

I am here to do my job: lead some worship. I will be also sharing a little bit from Psalm 40 about what worshiping God is all about. It’s cool to try to take a subject as massive and complex as the worship of the one true God and boil it down into something that a child can understand. It’s a good thing that Jesus reminded us over and over of the importance of children and child-like faith otherwise big people might exclude kids from the process. (Unfortunately, a lot of churches do exclude kids from worship. Bummer.)

When I get back to my office, I will post the notes from my talk on worship.

Do you feel God’s presence?

Right now, as I am writing, I don’t really feel God’s presence. By that I mean that I don’t emotionally, empirically, or intuitively feel that the divine Creator is close to me at this moment. Sometimes, I feel that he is surrounding me like the air. Sometimes, I feel like he is listening or watching, but far off. Sometimes, I feel like a practical atheist because the spiritual world is nothing but my imagination. Thankfully, I can look to the Word of God to tell whether God is present or not.

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

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

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

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

Psalm 139:7-10

If you ever feel like it’s up to you to worship God enough that He will draw near, then remember this promise. If you ever feel like God’s presence is only for the super-Christians, then remember this promise. If you are ever tempted to believe that God’s presence is dependent on the quality of your song, sermon, or worship experience, then remember this promise.

It’s grace that gives me the freedom to admit that I feel pretty far from God right now. I don’t have to pretend that I am like the high priest of God who has a special password to God’s presence. By God’s grace, He opens our eyes sometimes to see how close he is all the time. Open my eyes, Lord, this evening.