Heavenly Chaos Part 6

~ Open in Prayer ~

Icebreaker
• Are you excited for Easter?
• Have you joined Pastor Hope’s Inner Circle?
• Is journaling part of your daily routine?

Message Review
What is the goal of this series? The goal of praise and worship is not just liberty or for a miracle or to have good worship but to usher in the presence of God. The presence of God has protocols. We have great worship and praise but when you abandon protocols you won’t get the benefit of a King. Jesus is not a religious figure; He came to bring the Kingdom of heaven into the earth. He’s not a religious figure He is political figure. The Bible is not a religious book it is a book of keys to the kingdom, and these are the keys that Jesus taught. David wrote most of the book of Psalms in the bible and spoke of the courts of God. Let’s dig in a little more to learn about the protocol to entering in…

Let’s Talk About It!

Read Psalm 145:1-2
1 I will exalt you, my God the King;
I will praise your name for ever and ever.
2 Every day I will praise you
and extol your name for ever and ever.

Praise and worship are not meant to be a 30-minute event. There are things God can do in the assembly that He will not do when we are alone. There are dynamics when we come together in agreement. But truly praise and worship should be a daily lifestyle. A lifestyle of thankfulness to God, being mindful of Him all the time. When you talk about praising God you are basically talking about boasting about God. Praise is bragging and declaring about the goodness of God and who He is to YOU! When you stand in a King’s court, and you declare who He is He must become who you declare Him to be. There is a part of praise that is retrospective, from one generation to another generation. Our faith is always one generation away from extinction. What does that mean? We must testify about the goodness of God in all things that He has done in our lives. If anyone has issues with praising and thanking God, they do not have the correct focus. Do we live a life of ongoing worship? Do you share the goodness of God with others on a regular basis in and out of church?

Read Psalm 150:2
Praise Him for His mighty acts;
Praise Him according to His excellent greatness!

This psalm is a prophetic praise. The root word of excellence is “excel” and the word excel means “to go beyond”. So that means can you put a praise on credit? Can you praise Him for His ability next time to go above and beyond what He did last time! Do you believe God can exceed what He did for you’re the last time? Are you expectant for Him to blow your mind with His goodness?

Read Psalm 65:4
Blessed is the man You choose,
And cause to approach You,
That he may dwell in Your courts.
We shall be satisfied with the goodness of Your house,
Of Your holy temple.

There are very few people who are truly content. Contentment is not lack of ambition. It means there is no inner-deficiency or unmet hunger or longing. All of them are met and filled and Internally I’m satisfied. Just like a shark must be in the water because it is his environment. The falling star is a dying star because it is leaving its environment. It’s interesting of the number of ancient cities that are still standing but no one has ever found “Eden” which is also called paradise. Pastor believes Eden is not a place it is an environment which is the “presence of God”. The rebellion against God that Adam did it separated him from the presence of God. When you remove it from the environment it thrives in means it will immediately begin to die. Our contentment and satisfaction is connected with our time in the presence of God. Do you spend time in God’s presence on a regular basis?

Read Psalm 84:2
My soul longs, yes, even faints
For the courts of the LORD;
My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.

Better is one day in your court than 1000 anywhere else.  If we can get in the court of God just one time! When you get in God’s personal space there is no way you won’t be impacted.

Read Isaiah 1:12
“When you come to appear before Me,
Who has required this from your hand,
To trample My courts?

This is where the church world rests right now. You can experience some amazing worship with great production but never entered the courts. Instead, we just sang songs and trampled the courts along the way. We don’t get to enter God’s space OUR way.

Read Malachi 1:6-8
“A son honors his father,
And a servant his master.
If then I am the Father,
Where is My honor?
And if I am a Master,
Where is My reverence?
Says the LORD of hosts
To you priests who despise My name.
Yet you say, ‘In what way have we despised Your name?’
“You offer defiled food on My altar,
But say,
‘In what way have we defiled You?’
By saying,
‘The table of the LORD is [a]contemptible.’
8 And when you offer the blind as a sacrifice,
Is it not evil?
And when you offer the lame and sick,
Is it not evil?
Offer it then to your governor!
Would he be pleased with you?
Would he accept[b] you favorably?”
Says the LORD of hosts.

Read Malachi 1:10-11
“Who is there even among you who would shut the doors,
So that you would not kindle fire on My altar in vain?
I have no pleasure in you,”
Says the LORD of hosts,
“Nor will I accept an offering from your hands.
11 For from the rising of the sun, even to its going down,
My name shall be great among the Gentiles;
In every place incense shall be offered to My name,
And a pure offering;
For My name shall be great among the nations,”
Says the LORD of hosts.

God is addressing an attitude in the book of Malachi.

Read Psalm 100:4
Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
And into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him and bless His name.

This is the court progression. Praise is not spectator it is participatory. We are to exult His name together. When we come together God is magnified. What does a magnify glass do? It does not make the object bigger; it gives the perception that it is bigger. So, our praise should be so big that others who do not know God should see how Great He Is!!! If somebody walks in our church on Easter Sunday must see your praise and see that He must be a great God. He may not know the God we praise but when they see our church and every ministry, they should know that we serve a GREAT GOD!!!!
How often do you thank God for all He has done in your life? Do you praise Him daily?

Prayer Focus and Requests
Ask your members if they have any prayer requests or praise reports. Remind one another that better is ONE day in His courts than a 1000 anywhere else.

Scripture References
Psalm 145:1-4
Psalm 150:2
Psalm 65:4
Psalm 84:2 & 10
Isaiah 1:12-13
Malachi 1:6-8
Malachi 1:10-11
Daniel 3:16-19
Daniel 3:24-25
Psalm 100:4
Acts 2