Gaining Faith Through Worship


Our faith should be growing every day. Did you know that worship helps our faith grow? How? During worship we:

Acknowledge God owns everything. Function confidently, knowing He's in control. Understand that He gives and takes away and love Him regardless. Express thanks no matter the situation. Sing and speak praises to Him in rough times just as in the good times. Are quick to obey; Bold to witness. Are quick to submit to Him and others. Are quick to forgive, and to ask forgiveness. Use our spiritual gifts; and the authority of His Name to accomplish things in our lives, and for others. Realize that worshiping Him includes our behavior and attitude as well as our prayers and singing.

"Worship" is really an act of faith! It requires trust on our part to say, "God I give my life totally to You. I give you permission to lead me where You want me to go, to do what You call me to do. I trust you to guide my thoughts, my relationships, my job, my things, my wallet, my future."

You see, God has given each of us a measure of faith. I picture faith like a muscle: if we use it, it grows bigger and stronger; if we don't it just sits there and doesn't accomplish much.

So what happens when we worship Him? Our faith grows! When we quote and pray Scripture verses to God, it encourages us. When we proclaim our faith (belief and trust) in Him, we confirm it to ourselves. We chase doubt away by reviewing His truths. We replace fear with trust.

Sacrifice is also a part of worship. Like bringing our tithes and offerings as part of the "worship service" on Sunday is intentional, so is worshiping Him through times of adversity. It's easy to praise, obey and submit when things are going smoothly.

But when tough times come, when our faith is being tested, worship is a sacrifice. Worshiping in those times especially grows our faith.

If worship is an act (or a lifestyle) of faith, who needs it to grow? Does God need our thanks and praise? He's God anyways. He will do what He will do regardless if we worship Him or not.

No, it's we who need to worship Him.

Certainly, our Creator is jealous for our adoration. He deserves our worship but unlike us humans who need words of affirmation and pats on the back, God doesn't need our worship to grow or function or stay encouraged. We do. Does God feel any better while we worship Him? Oh, He's pleased in watching us bolster ourselves up, but the exercise is for our benefit, to grow our faith!

As you walk with Him, and especially as end times approach, you'll need bigger, stronger faith. I encourage you to go deeper with God and grow your faith!

There are many ways to worship; it's definitely not a spectator's sport. Worship corporately with other believers at church; try it with a small group too; carve out time to worship Him privately every day; and live your life as constant worship to Him. Your faith will grow through worship.

Avoid godless chatter, because those who indulge in it will become more and more ungodly. 2 Timothy 2:16

How much less man, who is vile and corrupt, who drinks up evil like water! Job 15:16

To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted and do not believe, nothing is pure. In fact, both their minds and consciences are corrupted. Titus 1:15


But if you do warn the wicked man and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his evil ways, he will die for his sin; but you will have saved yourself. Ezekiel 3:19


Slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil. Romans 1:30

Better is open rebuke than hidden love. wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses. Proverbs 27:5-6

Seldom set foot in your neighbor's house? too much of you, and he will hate you. Proverbs 25:16-17

A righteous man is cautious in friendship,but the way of the wicked leads them astray. Proverbs 12:26

He who walks with wise men will be wise, but the companion of fools will be destroyed." Proverbs 13:20

Do not be deceived: "Evil company corrupts good habits." Awake to righteousness, and do not sin; for some do not have the knowledge of God. 1 Corinthians 15:33

Now I urge you, brethren, note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you have learned, and avoid them. For those who are such do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly, and by smooth words and flattering speech deceive the hearts of the simple." Romans 16:17

Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers ..." Philippians 3:2

But we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you withdraw from every brother who walks disorderly and not according to the tradition which he received from us." 2 Thessalonians 3:6

Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God." 2 Corinthians 6:14

A scoffer seeks wisdom and does not find it, but knowledge is easy to him who understands. Go from the presence of a foolish man, when you do not perceive in him the lips of knowledge." Proverbs 14:6

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. Ephesians 4:29

He who conceals his hatred has lying lips, and whoever spreads slander is a fool. Proverbs 10:18
Do not set foot on the path of the wicked or walk in the way of evil men. Avoid it, do not travel on it; turn from it and go on your way. Proverbs 4:14-15
It is better to heed a wise man's rebuke than to listen to the song of fools. Ecclesiastes 7:5

The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned. 1 Corinthians 2:14

A perverse man stirs up dissension, and a gossip separates close friends. Proverbs 16:28

Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. Galatians 6:10

Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies. Psalm 34:13

For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these. 2 Timothy 2:2-5

Away from me, you evildoers, that I may keep the commands of my God. Psalm 119:115-116

Do not associate with a man given to anger; Or go with a hot-tempered man, Or you will learn his ways And find a snare for yourself. Proverbs 22:24-25

Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness. 2 Corinthians 6:14

Many will follow their sensuality, and because of them the way of the truth will be maligned.2 Peter 2:2


Friend deceives friend, and no one speaks the truth. They have taught their tongues to lie;
they weary themselves with sinning. Jeremiah 9:5

Therefore come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you. 2 Corinthians 6:17

Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. Psalm 1:1

As you enter the concert hall, the house lights are off. You stumble to your seat amid the overflowing crowd of young people. There is a hum of conversations all around, and the atmosphere is charged with a palpable excitement. Then suddenly the stage is bathed in a blue light, and smoke fills the front of the auditorium, closely followed by an explosive guitar riff as the band begins to belt out a number at a level of decibels that is guaranteed to cause hearing damage to every person in the building. The auditorium is still in darkness, but all around you young people are on their feet, jumping and waving to the thumping beat.

No, you are not at a rock concert. This is a church service at a large city church whose congregation is predominantly young people. What you are experiencing is what they call worship.

Apart from practical concerns of possible injury from trying to find your way in the dark, almost certain hearing damage from the noise, and the question of how anyone over the age of 30 could possibly relate to this, the whole scenario raises some very serious spiritual questions.

Firstly there is the issue of the darkened auditorium. What does darkness have to do with worship? Are we not children of the light, walking in the light, and worshiping a God who is in the light? Is there darkness in heaven?

Then there is the noise. At some point the pastor stands up and says that "heaven is a noisy place." This is certainly true - a hundred million angels all declaring the glory of God "in a loud voice" is certainly not quiet! However, heaven is not a closed auditorium where sound reverberates off every surface, nor does it have amplifiers turned up as far as they can go without exploding! Just how does causing long-term hearing loss to every person present glorify God? What's more, any older person who has the courage to venture in is likely to experience physical pain from the volume of the music - does a total lack of concern for them bring honor to the Lord Jesus Christ?

Even more concerning is the question of focus, which is totally on the stage and the musicians. What is being worshiped here - regardless of what words are put to it - is not God, but the music, the musos, and the experience. How does this offer the people in attendance anything different from what they could have received at any rock concert? The Gospel is not about us, yet here the whole atmosphere tells the audience that it is all about them and their having a good time.

When will God's people learn that noise does not equate to anointing? When will we learn that we do not have to imitate the world, but rather that we are to be radically different from the world? When will we learn that worship is not about us, but about God? When will we learn that indulging our senses does not bring us into God's presence? And where are the prophets who would be bold enough to cry out, "This is not the way!"?

This is not suggesting that the Church should be stiff and starchy and never sing anything but old hymns. It is not the style of music that is the problem, but the presentation and the focus. If the focus of the worship is the music and the experience rather than the Lord, then it is false worship regardless of whether the style is rock or baroque.

Church, wake up! We are not here to compete with the world on the world's terms. We are here to counter the spirit of the age with a vastly different spirit. We are not here to call young people to sign up for a free rock concert every week - how difficult is that? - but to call them to a costly commitment of service to the Lord Jesus Christ. We are not here to indulge our flesh, but to manifest the glory of the Lord. Church, it's time to stop trying to be the word, and start being the Church of the living God.