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The Fundamentals of Worship – MP3 Series
This is an 8 message series on “The Fundamentals of Worship.” Its subtitle might well be, “Worship: It’s Not About Me!” I wanted to make these MP3s available now. Hopefully soon, I will also make the outlines available as well as re-record lesson one. For more information about the artwork we are using, go to the bottom of this page.
1. Worship: No Other God!
The most fundamental aspect of worship is the object and reason for worship – an eternal, all-powerful and self-revealing God! (The audio of this lesson is being re-recorded. The original was lost due to a recording equipment failure.) Download a PDF outline of Lesson 01 here (some may need to right mouse click and select “Save Link As”).
2. Worship: High and Lifted Up!
“In the year that king Uzziah died, I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.” (Isaiah 6:1, KJV) In this second message on The Fundamentals of Worship, we focus on why God is worthy of our worship. In passages such as this one in Isaiah, God is praised as Holy! In the Hebrew language, this word meant “separate, distinct, unique, not ordinary, set apart from all others.” It refers to God’s nature as well as His character. To hear more click here. Download an outline in PDF format of Lesson 02 here.
3. Worship: We Bow Down!
Today we are talking about what happens when we truly worship God. How often folks confuse certain practices or actions with worship… like singing, praying or preaching. Certainly these can be expressions of worship. However, worship is what the heart and mind of the worshiper is expressing toward and about God. To hear all the details, click here.
4. Worship: Our Sacrifices and Offerings
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship.” (Romans 12:1) A large part of worship in the Old Testament consisted of sacrifices and other offerings. At least eight different Hebrew words are translated by the English words sacrifice and offering. And they appear over 750 times between Genesis and Malachi! Those sacrifices which were for sin were types of the death of Jesus Christ for our sins. But what about all those other offerings and sacrifices — do they have fulfillments in the Christian life as well? Click here to listen.
5. Worship: Learning from Jesus
6. Worship: Learning from the Early Church, Part I
The churches of Christ are part of an ongoing 200+ year old historical movement in the United States called the “Restoration Movement.” Its goal was (and is) to reproduce a church like the New Testament church. This morning we are looking at the worship of the early church. Before we jump into a discussion of its specific practices, we need to consider some fundamentals. This lesson both contrasts and compares worship in the Old Testament Jewish “church” and the New Testament church. To hear more, click here.
7. Worship: Learning from the Early Church, Part II
What was the earliest church like? As we read the first 6 chapters of Acts, we encounter some very impressive qualities: devoted, reverent, committed, joyful, prayerful, sacrificial, and worshipful. These qualities show up in the various things the church did, including their worship. Starting in Acts and extending through the rest of the New Testament, we note that the Christians were singing, reading, teaching, praying, celebrating the Supper, and giving to meet needs. This is the pattern we try to replicate in our congregation every week. To hear more about the early church’s worship, click here.
8. Worship: Learning from the Book of Revelation
In our final lesson on The Fundamentals of Worship, we want to visit the last book of the Bible, and learn about worship from the Revelation of John. Now, normally we think of Revelation just in terms of prophecy, the future and the end of time. You may be amazed at how much it speaks about worship as well! To hear the complete lesson, click here.
The artwork we are using is part of a larger painting called, “The Christian Martyrs’ Last Prayer”. Painted in 1883 by Jean Leon Gerome, it imagines early Christians worshiping even as they await death in the Roman arena. We have linked the title and artist’s name to Wikipedia should you want to know more.
