And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. And the angel said to them, "Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger." And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,
"Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!" (Luke 2:8-14)
It is especially interesting to me that the very first thing the angels did to herald the coming of the Christ was to sing. What is your response this Christmas to the announcement that the Lord is come? Gather with us this Saturday evening at 6:30 PM to sing His praise. Here are the songs we will sing together to celebrate the birth of Jesus:
1. Hark, the Herald Angels Sing by Jeremy Camp
2. Joy to the World (You Are My Joy) by Rend Collective
3. O Come, All Ye Faithful by Big Daddy Weave
4. All is Well by Northpoint Worship
5. Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus by Red Mountain Church
One of the Advent stories I love most is the story of Simeon in the Gospel of Matthew. We don;t hear about this one much around Christmas but it's a beautiful story of a faithful man who believed the promise that God would deliver Israel in his lifetime. God had promised Simeon that he would see the Savior with his own eyes before he died, and Simeon had been waiting a long time to see that promise fulfilled. Little did he know, that day when he walked into the temple to worship like so many days before, that his wait would finally come to an end...
And
he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in
the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said,
"Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace,
according to your word;
for my eyes have seen your salvation
that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
a light for revelation to the Gentiles,
and for glory to your people Israel." (Matthew 9:27-32)
As we celebrate the Advent season together as a church, rest in the peace that comes from knowing we worship a faithful God who keeps His promises, even if it means waiting a lifetime to see it. And if He kept His promise to come the first time, we can know with all certainty that He will come again and make all things new in His Kingdom!
Here are the songs we will sing in worship to our faithful God this week:
Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!
For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations. (Psalm 100:4-5)
We have more reason to be thankful than any other people alive! As we gather this Sunday to sing our praises to our faithful God, let the full weight of His goodness and mercy fuel your worship and allow gratitude to well up inside you to the point of overflowing in exuberant praise!
Here are the songs we will sing together this Sunday in our corporate worship gathering...
and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream. (Amos 5:23-24)
There is a kind of worship that God hates. Regardless of the style of music, regardless of the presentation or production, regardless of the excellence of its execution... He will not listen. You can have the the most reverent traditional services with suits and ties, organists, choirs, and sing only hymns, only from actual hymnals. You can have the most exciting, professional sound and lighting designed to engage the audience. You can sing all the best new contemporary worship songs with the best musicians and singers available, and everyone in the building can be singing along enthusiastically at the top of their voices with all the sincerity they can muster. He will not listen or regard it.... IF your heart is not right before Him.
When we get caught up in the trappings of worship -- no matter which side of the debate you find yourself on -- and disregard the things that are important to the heart of God, then we would be better unplugging the amps and putting away the hymnals. Burn the drums AND the choir robes. God is not interested in what style of worship you prefer; He is interested in what kind of person you have become at the heart level.
I often wonder what the underground church in China would think about our hang-ups about worship styles, about sound systems, and whether the lighting is right. I wonder if the persecuted believers in Sudan, Iraq, Iran, or Syria would shake their heads in disbelief at the time and energy we waste arguing about the form our worship takes rather than serving the God we are supposed to be worshiping no matter the style of expression!
Here are the songs we will be singing together in our gathering this week. Listen to the lyrics and the truths expressed in each song, even if you don't like the music. Ask God to give you a heart of worship that transcends the material and taps into the eternal. You'd be amazed at what might happen if we came together around a common confession of faith and ignored the differences of opinion.
"Though
you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you
believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled
with glory..." (1 Peter 1:8) I came across this verse reading through Peter's first letter to Jewish believers scattered in the Dispersion in the early days of the church. Like modern believers, many of them never saw Jesus in person, and would not see Him until He returns at the end of the age. In spite of that, and in spite of the difficulties and persecution they endured for this Jesus they had never seen yet believed in and loved more dearly than their own lives, they had "joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory"! Think about those words describing their joy: inexpressible (too great and deep and rich to ever be adequately summed up in any language a human could utter) and filled with glory (overflowing with the greatness of who God is and His manifest presence in their lives). Wow! Does that describe our joy? Is that the kind of worship we bring to our gathering on Sunday morning? It can be... if we take the time today to set aside a moment to drop everything and just worship Him! Here are some songs we will sing together in our gathering Sunday. Begin praising Him now with these songs of adoration and praise...
