solemness or joy during worship

I believe it depends on how the Holy Spirit is moving in the service. There is a place for solonm services and then there are time to be joyful.

 

Yes, each congregation has both the right and responsibility to administrate the gifts ccording to their knowledge of Scripture, Overall Personality of the Congregation, ethnicity, and available talent...

I personally am not comfortable in a church where I have to sit on my hands.

But, the solemn assembly is a mode of worship...

And, I like Cathedral Pipe Organs played well...

And, the Old Hymns sung with feeling denoting faith in the truthfulness thereof...

God has given us a great deal of Liberty to Manage our local Church Services in a way that 'we' are able to Worship Him...

Mike Sr.

 

Yes!

Mike

 

I've been in many meetings where it might start with great joy! Singing, improvised dancing, jumping, shouting praises unto God, etc....

And then we come to a point where God changes the entire mood, and for a long while we are all exceedingly reverential in our worshipful adoration and love for God.

In a good service God will be the one in control of things, not men. There may of course be certain things that are planned...nothing wrong with that...but God should have the freedom to decide what occures during those times.

And of course God should always be allowed to completly change everything if he so desires.

Many times those are the most wonderful meetings of all.

In~His~Grace~

Mike

 

In a good service God will be the one in control of things, not men.

So true Mike! This is the way it ought to be.

 

If you stand in front of something stunningly beautiful, do you not stand as if in a dream, jaw slack, eyes just drinking it in.....

 

Briony-Gloriana,

Agree!

Mike

 

In my Anglican Church, we have a good combination of solemnity and easy flowing freedom of expression. Yes, there is a prescribed order in the Prayer Book (Order of Service), but this does not preclude that the Holy Spirit is not free to move upon the congregants.

If I enter the pulpit in a dull mood, I assure you it will not be a pleasant service of worship. The service must flow and include a time of deep reflection combined with some humour and independence. The read prayers call for interaction and responses from the congregation, and times for the people to be offering their own prayers, so, in that sense, calls for interaction between the vicar's lead and individual approaches to God.

I also enjoy services that appear to be free of ritual. I say appear because many Baptist Churches also follow a routine....open with doxology, prayer, reading of scripture, pastoral prayer, announcements, offering, hymn, sermon, hymn, prayer.....with minor variations.

Enter into the holy place with reverence and awe before God, regardless of style.

Cheers,

Jim

 

I wonder why people associate dancing, jumping about, general disorder, and rockin' music with vibrancy? The most empty and hollow services I have been to are those types of service. The most vibrant services I have been to are those where the word is spoken, sung, preached, and proclaimed.

 

Yes..i understand what you're saying. The Churches I have been to that worship this way, I got the feeling that they were doing the singing, dancing, and other things to raise the excitment for those in attendance. It made others feel good..and they seemed play off of to move the level of excitment higher each time. If the church had only preaching one Sunday with no extra flash, those that left would ask, "what was wrong with everyone this morning?"

Do some need flash to go to church? If so...who is this for? Is it for them or GOD? I thought these services were worship services. When we worship...its all about God. Why is it that we must FEEL anything.

Now that is not to say good preaching can move us...and does. Yet if we are there to worship..and to give glory to Him...why must it be us that FEELS? What does worship mean?


In Christ..James

 

I attend a Lutheran Church Missouri Synod church. The services are very formal. The congregation doesn't seem very joyful during the service. The choir usually sings traditional music. They tried songs that are more contemporary, but I could tell by looking at the pastor's face that he could barely stand them, and he's younger than I am. After the service, I asked a member of the congregation about it. He said that's about are contemporary as they will get because the pastor was adopted by an older, very conservative Lutheran couple when he was a kid.

 

JArthur001...

You "got the feeling" people were joyful for those reasons? Is "I've got a feeling" a reliable way to judge others?

What if you are wrong about what is the actual motivation of their heart for being so joyful?

Mike

 

IMHO, it is important that christians celebrate and rejoice in the Lord during the service whether it is a formal or informal service.

Our Bible study lesson this morning was in Duet. 14 & 16 where God told the Israelites to celebrate and rejoice after the tithes, sacrifices and offerings were presented at the place of worship. They were to rejoice while feasting on the tithes and sacrifices along with those of their housholds and with the Levites.

 

drfuss,

You better believe it!

If you cant get joyfull over what God has done on our behalf, what CAN you get joyful about?

People have no problem getting all excited because their favorite football team just scored the winning touchdown, but they are against being joyfull about what our great and mighty God has done on our behalf and the victory that is ours because of it.

I wonder how they react when they read all those psalms...the ones encouraging all of that dancing and shouting joyfully unto the Lord Gods people were enjoying.

That was the Israelites, and we as born again christians have so much MORE to shout and dance about they they did!

Shouting praises to God,

Mike

 

You "got the feeling" people were joyful for those reasons? Is "I've got a feeling" a reliable way to judge others?

What if you are wrong about what is the actual motivation of their heart for being so joyful?

Mike </font>[/QUOTE]Nope...I happen to be right in this case. The churches i talked about...3 of them...grow for a while....now are so left of center no one goes there but the world. The last repost i heard from to of one....they do not have service on sunday nights....they may close their Christain school..the pastors stop using the word SIN when he preaches..no more mens bible study. but on the good side....they now play basketball on monday night.

here is a good clue to go by. if you want to look like the world...if you want to act like the world...and you want to change to make others think your like the world chances are...your be like the world.

 

Jarthur001,

Wow.

It sounds like their are problems in those places that are much deeper than having exuberant praise time with worship.

God bless,

Mike

 

C said

I agree, wholeheartedly!

It is _not_ frenzy that denotes life...

It is the careful application of the Power of the Word of God...

Some of the most powerful and precision instruments move slowly...

At the same time, IMHO, there is nothing that precludes the above from being honestly accompanied by exhuberant expression...


And, as our Anglican friend has stated...

Even the best sermon offered monotonically & boringly can still be a rather 'dead' service....

At least I *think* that was a part of what he was getting at!?

Mike Sr.

 

e-Sword OT "Joy" {KJV} [Using Partial Words]
- 102 Times in OT
- 69 Times in NT

"Solemnly"
- 36 Time in OT
- 0 Time in NT

"Revere"
- 8 Times in OT
- 6 Times in NT

Anyone think of any other root words?

Looks like about a 2 to 1 Ratio

So,
Praise 30 Min (Announcements don't count!)
Worship 30 Min (Announcements don't count!)
and a Solemn sermon for 30 Minutes!

Mike Sr.