Click to see an amazing intro of Jesus
He stepped up on the stage and blew the crowd away. You could say he brought the house down.
Nobody had an inkling of what he was about to do before he did it. He is a comedian. He’s supposed to be funny; he’s not supposed to be serious. But what he did was no comedy act – he was dead serious and it brought thousands to their feet in solidarity with his message.
The comedian is Steve Harvey and his message was given to an arena full of spectators there for a good time. For a reason I do not know, he decided to present how he would introduce Jesus if he ever got the chance. His presentation drew a spontaneous standing ovation, in the middle of his intro, from those in attendance. Because the crowd knew that is what we owe Jesus – a standing ovation.
I won’t attempt to describe his presentation – you have to see it to believe it. So please take a little break right now and click on the photo to watch the video.
His introduction got me thinking about how we worship during church meetings. Oftentimes we can be quite reserved during praise and worship times. We might be struggling with feelings of unworthiness, shame and guilt. We might simply be feeling a little bummed out. We might be angry or upset about something. Whatever the reason, we can sometimes disengage and not really ‘enter into’ corporate worship.
In light of this I thought about how I would respond if I had had the opportunity to be at an event where Mother Theresa was introduced. It wouldn’t matter how I was feeling, I would give her a standing ovation. Who she is and what she has done demands my utmost respect and admiration – and how we typically express that admiration when in an audience is to give a standing ovation. I am sure you would respond in the same manner.
Our response to Mother Theresa wouldn’t be based on what we were feeling – it’s irrelevant. Our response would be based on the honor that is due her. Our response would be based on what she is worthy of. We would step out of whatever negative mindset we may be in to give an appropriate response to being in the presence of someone worthy of honor.
Now, let’s apply that same thinking to times of praise and worship during church meetings.
Is Jesus worthy of our worship? Yes.
Is the purpose of our worship to honor God for who He is and what He has done? Yes.
Should how we feel have any impact on whether or not He is worthy of our worship? No.
In light of this I think Steve Harvey’s introduction of Jesus could be played before every church worship time – to help us focus on the fact that our worship is in response to who God is, and has nothing to do with what we are feeling at the time.
King David understood this. He would speak to himself to remind himself that worship is about God’s worthiness, not his. “Praise the Lord O my soul!” He would exhort himself to praise the Lord even when he didn’t feel like it. I think that is the heart the Lord wants us all to have; to choose to step out of ourselves and give the Lord the honor due His great goodness and His good greatness.
Let’s remember Steve Harvey’s profoundly powerful exhortation, “Get up on your feet! Put your hands together and show your love for the second coming of the One and Only!”
Let’s choose to wholeheartedly give the Lord the honor, glory and worship due His name, which has nothing to do with who we are but everything to do with who He is and that He has chosen to pour out His love on those who are so unworthy.
Yes, get up on your feet and praise the Lord O my soul – all that is within me praise His holy name!
Psalm 103:1, 2
“Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise His holy name. Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits…”
Psalm 106:1
“Praise the Lord. Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever.”
Psalm 147:1
“Praise the Lord. How good it is to sing praises to our God, how pleasant and fitting to praise Him.”