LEADERSHIP AS WORSHIP
I’ve learned a lot these last seven weeks about leadership. I’ve learned how Jesus led, which even still penetrates every aspect of it. I learned leadership from the examples of many men of God in the Bible. I’ve learned to lead through prayer, through integrity, through having a distinct life in Christ that others want to follow, and by listening to the Holy Spirit’s words in me. But I never saw all of that as worship in and of itself.
Worship comes from and Old English word, “weorthscripe, which literally means, “worthiness”. Webster’s defines it as the obvious, “reverence offered to a divine being or supernatural power”, or simply worship is “extravagant respect or admiration for or devotion to an object of esteem”. This is very close to the definition of “devotion” I studied several weeks earlier, where I defined it in my own words as “what I have a private extravagant admiration for”. Devotion was what equaled my character, as to you can tell who I am but what I worship. I believe you can turn that around, and say you can tell that I do worship by who I am.
Is there any doubt in our minds that Jesus worshipped? How about Joseph, or Moses, or David, or Paul? We never doubt that they worshipped the one true God, and not just because the Scripture says in various places that they worshipped, or sang a psalm. Just by watching their lives, you could tell that they worshipped God. Joseph forgave his brothers who tried to destroy his life. Moses humbly and selflessly led an entire nation through the desert for 40 years. David plead for God to spare the kingdom and punish him instead. Paul was tortured again and again so that others might have a chance to hear the gospel. You think that’s not worship? It’s like song so popular a few years back;
I’ll bring you more than a song
For a song in itself
is not what you have required
You search much deeper
within through the way things appear
You’re looking into my
heart
I’m coming back to the
heart of worship where it’s all about You.
Jesus does look into our hearts, and finds our private admiration for him. All those things the legends of faith went through wouldn’t have meant a thing if God hadn’t been the one they were doing it all for. You can’t lead just for the sake of leading, or it’s empty. Worship is a humbling act, whether bowing to a king, or screaming to a rock star, it speaks clearly “You are greater than I”. Jesus lived by treating others as better than him, putter their needs far before his own. Who knows if he always felt like it.
Psalm 150 gives an outline, if you will, or the what, where, how, when, and who of worship. The “what” is obvious, “Praise the Lord!” The “where” is “in His sanctuary”, which is a sacred place, a holy place, such as inside church. Then it says “Praise Him in His mighty firmament!” which is the visible arch of the sky, which would be outside church. So whether you in church or not, praise Him! How?
“With the sound of a trumpet”- clearly for all to hear, and with victory (the shophar)
“With the lute”- or “psaltery”, which is a container, so with what you own or possess.
“With the harp”- Israel’s national instrument, it literally means the sound “twang”. So it’s worship with what you listen to.
“With the timbrel”- is a tambourine, a simple instrument. It praising with what you play with.
“With a dance”- or with physical activity. Life is a dance, and dancing is a wonderful way of human expression.
“With the stringed instrument”- KJV read that as “organ” which is the unity of all instruments. We can praise with unity.
“With the flute”- just means flute. Use your every breath to praise God.
“Praise him with the loud cymbals” and “with the clashing cymbals”- “Loud” means more like intelligent sound, or to obey. It’s preaching, it’s pragmatic. But the “clashing”, that means high sounding, or an acclimation of joy. It’s the romantic sound.
Every aspect of life can be put under one of these categories, as David was trying to get across, “just praise and worship with your very life, every facet of it.” It’s the separated life, where we no longer live for ourselves, but for Someone so much higher and more worthy than us. And that’s the life that when the world sees it, they both hate it and want it. We have to have that worship and extravagant adoration for God deep in hearts before it can seep out into our everyday lives. That’s when it becomes more than a show, and you’ve come back to the Heart of Worship.
But let’s not forget this paper is focusing on
leadership. Naturally, I’d imagine that any Christian leader would want those
he’s leading to develop a lifestyle of worshipping the true and living God. But
you can’t lead anyone to a place you haven’t already been. Look at Jesus own
teaching in Luke 6:39-45. Jesus asked “Can the blind lead the blind? Will they
not both fall into a ditch?” What he’s saying is can someone who hasn’t walked
the path before (or true worship in their hearts, in this case) show someone
else how to? No, Jesus say they will both fall into a ditch, which literally
translated means they will both, teacher and student, be brought under the
judgment of God and fall into extreme poverty. In verses 42 and 43 he ask
another it another way; “And why do you look at the speck in
your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me remove
the speck that is in your eye,’ when
you yourself do not see the plank that is
in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then
you will see clearly to remove the speck that is in your brother’s eye.”
After studying out the Greeks meanings of the words here, this is the “Jeremy Translation” I came up with, that I feel more clearly states what Christ was saying. “Can I have the authority in your life to forcefully remove this little stumbling block in you life?” when you yourself have a gigantic wall up in your own life! Quit pretending like it’s not there! First take care of your own issue, so you can, without distraction, help your friend remove his small stumbling block.”
What’s in your heart is what comes out, good or bad. Richard Foster in the book “Celebration of Discipline” talks about the unguarded moment, when our defenses are down and what’s really in our heart comes out, in either our words or our actions. If Jesus is in your heart, Jesus will be seen. If you are in your heart, then you will be seen, and that’s not pretty (verse 45). “Mouth” in this verse means, “edge of a sword”, because what we say cuts one way or the other. Words never fall flat, they either take a swipe for the good, or a stab for the bad. It’s a powerful weapon. If the Holy Spirit, the sophia discerning word is in our hearts, then we can have the wise words to say when we need them. This is also true in prayer, and let the Holy Spirit guide us in how we should pray for those we lead.
Still,
I haven’t reached yet how is leadership worship in and of itself. It comes down
to one simple thing. In one word, motivation. What do I mean? Well how do we
lead? Influence, we already know that. It’s by people seeing our lives, like we
just talked about. When the pressure comes we don’t ever give up on the life
we’ve devoted ourselves to, and those we influence see the true life of joy and
the glory of a man fully alive, as we pray for them, focusing on the good in
their lives and not the bad. We provide for their physical, spiritual, and
emotional needs. We lead them though the wilderness, we supply for them in
times of famine, we pray that they not be hindered by our screw-ups, and were
willing to give our lives to get the Word of God through to them. Or we just
get down on our knees and wash their feet. Look at that. Is that just
leadership, no. That is love.
Maybe that is really worshipping God is spirit and in truth. By loving what he created and loves. I watched a dog run around a pond the other day, and was awestruck by the wonder and love he had for God’s creation around him. By frolicking and jumping and rolling around in it, he was so purely worship God, just by loving and cherishing what God gave and entrusted to him.
Leading as a
servant is mandatory. Leading someone out of heartfelt love for him or her...
that is worship.
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