02 Jan Becoming Worshipers

Becoming Worshipers Overview

In this powerful sermon on “Becoming Worshipers,” Pastor explores the profound difference between praise and worship, revealing how many believers never progress beyond praising God for what He does to truly worshiping Him for who He is. Drawing from Genesis and the account of Adam and Eve, he demonstrates how sin created a barrier of fear and shame that causes us to hide from God’s presence, just as Adam did after the fall. The pastor shares miraculous testimonies, including a woman healed of heart disease who received a complete transformation simply by entering God’s presence. He emphasizes that true worship requires vulnerability, stillness, and intimacy with God – moving beyond our comfort zones to experience His presence in deeper ways. Using Moses as an example, he shows how while Israel knew God’s acts, Moses knew God’s ways through intimate worship. The message challenges believers to stop being distracted when God’s presence draws near and instead embrace the holy intimacy that worship brings, preparing hearts for the miraculous things God wants to do in this season.

Becoming Worshipers Outline

• 0:00 – Prophetic Word for 2023: Pastor shares God’s promise of special miracles coming in this season
• 2:30 – Understanding True Worship: Distinguishing between praise as response and worship as intimate encounter
• 8:45 – Overcoming Distractions in God’s Presence: Why people get uncomfortable when God’s presence becomes intimate
• 12:20 – The Power of Being Still Before God: Learning to listen and receive rather than always doing and talking
• 18:30 – Miraculous Testimony of Heart Healing: Woman receives new heart through encounter in God’s presence
• 25:15 – Israel’s Acts vs Moses’s Ways: Moving beyond knowing what God does to knowing who God is
• 32:40 – Adam’s Fall and Hiding from God: How corruption causes fear and distance from God’s presence
• 38:20 – Becoming Vulnerable in Worship: True worship requires laying down pride and becoming open before God

Scripture References

Psalm 46:10 – Be still and know that I am God, Jeremiah 33:3 – Call unto me and I will answer, John 4:23-24 – True worshipers worship in spirit and truth, Psalm 103:7 – Moses knew God’s ways, Israel knew His acts, Genesis 3:4-11 – Adam and Eve hide from God’s presence, Romans 8:19 – Creation awaits sons of God to manifest

Key Takeaways

• True worship goes beyond praising God for what He does to encountering Him for who He is.
• God wants us to be still and listen, not always busy with noise and distractions during prayer.
• Miraculous healings happen when we simply enter God’s presence and let Him be God.
• Like Moses, we can know God’s ways through intimate worship, not just His acts like Israel did.
• Sin causes us to hide from God’s presence, but worship requires vulnerability and openness.
• The fall corrupted creation, but restoration is coming when sons of God manifest His glory.
• Every believer must learn to become a worshiper, moving beyond religious activity to intimacy.

Becoming Worshipers Notes

Pastor begins this transformative message by sharing a prophetic word about 2023 being a year of special miracles that will cause the world to take notice of God’s power. He observes that as he has been teaching on worship, the congregation is opening up more and receiving from God in greater measure during worship times.The core message centers on the crucial distinction between praise and worship. Praise is our response to what God does – thanking Him for healing, provision, answered prayer, and His mighty acts. However, worship transcends this response to focus on who God is in His character, nature, and being. Many believers never progress beyond praise into true worship because it requires a level of vulnerability and intimacy that makes them uncomfortable.Using a powerful illustration from his own ministry, Pastor recounts how a man became agitated during a time of stillness in God’s presence, unable to simply be quiet before the Lord. This demonstrates how our culture has conditioned us to need constant noise and activity, even in prayer. He challenges this mindset by asking what music Jesus used when He prayed, emphasizing that the Savior went out quietly before the Father.The most striking testimony involves Jean, a woman on the heart transplant list who couldn’t walk from her car to the church without assistance. During a prayer service, she was simply slain in the Spirit without anyone touching her. As Pastor walked past her prostrate form, God spoke to him saying “I’m giving her a new heart right now.” Moments later, she jumped up completely healed, running around the auditorium and returning the next week to testify about carrying 50-pound grain sacks on her farm.Drawing from Psalm 103:7, Pastor explains that while Israel knew God’s acts, Moses knew His ways because Moses spent intimate time in God’s presence. This distinction is crucial for believers who want to move beyond surface-level Christianity into the depths of knowing God personally. Worship creates this intimacy where God can reveal His heart, purposes, and character to us.The Genesis account of Adam and Eve’s fall provides profound insight into why people struggle with intimate worship. Before sin, Adam walked with God daily in the cool of the day, having nothing to ask for since everything was perfect and complete. Their fellowship was pure intimacy where God simply shared His heart and revealed His creation. However, after disobedience, corruption entered and Adam hid from God’s presence, saying “I was afraid because I was naked.” This nakedness represents vulnerability, and worship requires us to come before God without pretense, pride, or self-protection.Pastor explains that corruption affects all creation, which now groans waiting for the sons of God to manifest and bring redemption. Even the beautiful sunsets we admire are corrupted versions of God’s original creation. One day, everything will be restored to its pre-fall glory when Christ establishes His kingdom.The message concludes with a call for believers to become true worshipers who aren’t content with distant relationship but press in for greater intimacy with God. This requires overcoming the fear and shame that cause us to hide from His presence, instead embracing the vulnerability that allows God to transform us from glory to glory.

Frequently Asked Questions