A few years ago I was at a MORE Conference out at Stairway Church – I was looking forward to hearing from Graham Cooke whose teaching about prophecy I have always appreciated. As usual, each day session of the conference began with worship in the morning and then again prior to the afternoon and evening sessions.
I was seated in an allocated place for pastors. Seated in the row behind me were several pastors whom I had come to know over the years, two of whom lead significant churches in Melbourne. They are wonderful brothers. It was good to be able to worship without having to organise anything! Well into the morning worship I could hear one of these pastors singing behind me – not because of the sound volume of his voice, but because he was not in tune, musically speaking. He was really out of tune, and his singing really began to stand out. And he was going for it, too. As that first worship session wore on, the out-of-tune singing of this man began to distract me, not that I am any great singer myself! But, at least, I can hold a tune. This man could not. It was so distracting because I got so focused on him being out of tune, instead of being focused on the Lord.
Well, we got into the first sessions with Graham Cooke and what a refreshing blessing he was. I put the worship session behind me. After lunch we began with worship once again. The same thing happened. My brother behind me was singing out of tune again – but even more loudly and passionately out of tune now. Others were distracted, too. Some even turned to find where the off-kilter noise was coming from. We were some way into that worship session and I was getting annoyed.
Then the Lord spoke to me so clearly!
“Milton, stop listening to your brother’s voice … listen to his spirit!” It was a gentle rebuke, as clear as could be. I stopped singing and began to listen to this man’s spirit singing through his voice. It took a few moments … but then, all at once, I heard coming from deep within this man, the most beautiful worship. It is difficult to describe. It was a magnificient, glorious sound. My ears and soul were filled with the rich beauty of his worship to the Lord. It became a sweet, sweet fragrance to the Lord that I was experiencing even as it was ascending to the throne of God. I sat down in awe, and so humbled, and so convicted … I wept, overcome by the sheer beauty of what I was hearing.
Somewhat recovered by the third song I again stood to worship; and I became suddenly aware of the sanctified spirits of hundreds of saints worshipping in that place, it was like a thunderous, sweet and magnificent reverse waterfall flowing upwards to God in a worship torrent – this time I was really, properly engaged and part of that upward flowing waterfall. The love and passion for Jesus was just so thick in the atmosphere … this is the worshipping church!
I think I began to understand at a much deeper level what Jesus had said to the Samaritan woman that day at Jacob’s well …
John 4:23-24 (NIV, modified)
”Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24 God is spirit, and His worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth."
Note carefully that the definite article – “the” – in that first verse is not in the ancient text and that the reference to “spirit” is not about the Holy Spirit. Otherwise, what Jesus said would not make a whole lot of sense. (Sometimes translators, such as in the NIV, allow their theology to add things to the text, and thus, render it incorrectly). The point is, as Jesus was alluding to, of course, (if you carefully meditate on the context of the whole passage) only a sanctified spirit can produce the kind of true worship that God is seeking, whether that be in song, music, or any other kind of worship expression. The flesh and soul just cannot get close. So, why do we focus on that so much?
I sat with that brother at afternoon tea the next day. He told me of his experiences of imprisonment and torture in Vietnam where the local police burned down his church – twice - and then his house, because he kept gathering the church together to pray, worship and listen to the Word of God preached. He had been savagely beaten, many times. His dear wife had been killed in one raid before he finally escaped and made his way to Australia.
I understood once again that out of the spirits of the persecuted saints comes a unique kind of worship that, other than God and the angels of heaven, few ever get to hear.
More valuable than anything the wonderful Graham Cooke had to say over those three days of conference, was the humbling experience of learning from this Vietnamese saint who really knew how to worship, and offer acceptable sacrifices to the Lord.
I was privileged.
God is far more concerned with the worship music and singing offered up from a contrite and truly thankful heart and devoted spirit, than the best Pavarotti or Dame Kiri Te Kanawa noise performances we can possibly achieve.
I have often wondered since whether the Samaritan woman who met Jesus at the well that day, may well have begun to worship in a way that irritated the other religious folk of her village – because of who she was. But to God it would have been a song from out of her new spirit … the song of the soul set free.
Psalms 95:1 (KJV)
“O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.
I cannot wait to hear the worship of the saints when we gather again for worship in a real place in real time.
Get (your spirit) Ready!
You are loved.
Ps Milton