God desires for churches to be a place that welcomes both believers and pre-believers. But are modern churches today sacrificing the move of the Holy Spirit and the revelation of Jesus Christ by keeping worship services as seeker-friendly as possible?
Every church leader must desire to build up spirit-empowered and excellent worship services. But often we find excellence and professionalism to be inhibitions to the move of the Holy Spirit. Many believers think that just because we put programs, time limits and coordinators to worship and the preaching of the Word of God, we stop God from moving the way He wants to.
To understand how programs fit into the powerful move of God within churches, we must understand that God is not necessarily a "burst-whenever-you-want" kind of God. 1 Corinthians 14:40 tells us, "But all things should be done decently and in order."
God is a God of order. When God created the world, instructed Noah to build the ark, taught Moses how the tabernacle was to be made and commanded Solomon to construct the temple, He was always very orderly and specific. So the presence of a time limit to preaching doesn't necessarily mean that God cannot move. It is actually even a manifestation of God to move in an orderly and systematic way.
God values both power and form. He allows culture to thrive, experience to build up, miraculous works to manifest, but He does so in a way that adheres to sound system and order. Mystical and spontaneous do not always automatically mean spirit-filled. When God moves in the spiritual, He moves within the parameters and laws that He set up Himself.
Often people think that just because the pastor preaches a canned message and worship time has a format, our experience with God is limited. Sure we cry less, manifest less and see fewer signs and wonders, but even those things can be anti-God's move as well.
So how do we maintain a healthy balance of power and form? It all lies in who is at the center of our worship service experiences. And there is no center and no foundation that is stronger than Jesus Christ. Ephesians 2:19-20 says, "So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone."
When a worship service is Christ-centered, there is no stopping the move of the Holy Spirit. Jesus has always and will always be the way to experiencing God's presence and move both individually and corporately.
