WorshipGod09 – Day 1 – Part 2

Wow.

wow. wOw. WOW.

First, this place is amazing. Thank you Bob Kauflin and Sovereign Grace for hosting this tremendous event.  Thank you for being so humble and friendly and sharing the love of God – it is felt thruout.

Second, worship this evening was absolutely amazing.  I joked with my friend Pat before the start of worship tonight that leading worship to a room full of  nearly 1600 worship leaders at a worship conference is kinda like shooting fish in a barrel, isn’t it?  Well, yeah…sorta…but boy…what a blessing to be standing praising the Father with 1600 people who really WANT to.  I’m not sure I’ll get all the songs, but from what I remember, a few are from what Bob posted earlier this week

• Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing

  

This is my FAVORITE hymn. They rocked it. Great…first song and I’m already crying.

• The Father’s Love

How wonderful the Father’s love, the Father’s love for us. That He would send His only son, to come and rescue us. He has saved us, called us blameless. Guides now and will sustain us. Oh how wonderful the Father’s Love.

• All I Have is Christ

Hallelujah. All I have is Christ. Hallelujah. Jesus is my life

• Greater Than We Can Imagine

From Psalms

PIPER.

Dr. Piper said so many things that blew my mind.  As @WarwickFuller said on Twitter:  “John Piper has my mind. It blew off while he was talking. If found, please return.”

Dr. Piper not only blew my mind, his message text was my favorite verses in the Bible – Romans 3:25-26:

25whom God(A) put forward as(B) a propitiation(C) by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in(D) his divine forbearance he had passed over(E) former sins. 26It was to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

He asked a few key questions:

1. What was the problem God is solving by sending His Son? – He wants to demonstrate his righteousness, the problem is that His righteousness needs showing, but something is veiling it.
2. What created that problem? He has passed over so many sins – look at David and Bathsheba
3. Why is that a problem?  Rom 3:23.  It essentially called God’s righteousness into question, it looks as though God agrees with the low value of His glory, if God were to just overlook sin.
4. How will he be then just and the justifier? The death of His Son.

Our worship should always have the flavor that God never wronged anybody.  He could have just as easily sent us all to HELL, instead he gave us Jesus to bring us LIFE. So therefore, there is a deeper goal for the sending of His Son — namely the vindication of His glory.

…but isn’t God demanding to be worshiped the demonstration of an ego-maniac?

This is instead LOVE because the only eternal happiness for men is a happiness focused on the glory of God in the face of Christ – therefore He must preserve and uphold His glory.

The world doesn’t get this because it means the end of self-exaltation and the birth of exultation in the exaltation of God.

…yeah…take a minute there with that one.

I exult in God’s exaltation.

Therefore, what is your mindset?

When you look at God, the cross, Christ…yourself?

Therefore, I cease to be my foundation for my salvation.

If God’s glory in the face of Christ is the basis of your joy – it can never fail.

It can NEVER fail. Take another minute or two with that one.
Where then is our hope based? If it’s on us…it’s faulty…if it’s on God thru Christ it is unshakable.

Hopefully, I didn’t massacre a great sermon by chopping it up so much.

For now…I need to get some sleep. My mind needs to be blown again by Dr. Piper at 9am.

-M