Transforming the Church

Since the birth of the Church, there have been catalysts that have helped transform the Church in every generation. From Paul to Clement, Ignatius, Polycarp, and Perpetua; from Tertullian to Augustine, Jerome to Origen, from Justin Martyr to John Chrysostom, from Athanasius to Ambrose, from Thomas Aquinas to Francis of Assisi to Joan of Arc, from Thomas a Kempis to Catherine of Siena and Teresa of Avila, from John Wycliffe to John Hus to John Calvin and John Knox, from Martin Luther to Ulrich Zwingli, from William Tyndale to John Wesley, from George Whitefield to Jonathan Edwards, from Charles Finney to D.L. Moody, from William & Catherine Booth to Billy Sunday to Billy Graham to Bill Bright, from William Seymour to Martin Luther King, from Aimee Semple McPherson to Jack Hayford, from Oral Roberts to John Wimber, from RW Schambach to Rod Parsley and TD Jakes, from Pensacola to Toronto, from megachurches to microchurches, simple churches, and house churches! The Church, the Body of Christ, is ever-changing, constantly growing, evolving, moving forward, and transforming into the Image of Christ.

God uses men and women as catalysts to spur us forward. Every generation adapts to meet the needs of the culture and society around it.

Today it's our turn! What are we going to do? Are we going to sit idly by waiting and watching to see what happens? Or will we become the catalysts God will use to transform the Church for the next generation? With or without us, transformation is coming.

The principles and foundations of the Church will never change. The mission of the Church will never change. But the methods must change! The language of the Church must change, the structure of the Church must change. It is our job, our responsibility, yes, our duty to become the catalysts of transformation in the Church today. We cannot wait for the next generation to rise up. By then, it may be too late.

What is transformation?

To follow up on last week's post, we move to the subject of "transformation." When we say "catalyzing transformation," what exactly does that mean?

Well last week, we looked at the scientific definition of "catalyst." So, let's look at the scientific definition of transformation. In genetics, the term transformation means "the genetic alteration of a cell resulting from the direct uptake and incorporation of foreign DNA from its surroundings through the cell membrane." In biology, the term means "any change in an organism that alters its general character and mode of life; post-natal biological transformation or metamorphosis."  A more general definition is "the act, state or process of changing, such as in form or structure; the conversion from one form to another."

This is intriguing. transformation is the process of changing form, or shape. That is the literal definition from the Latin. But another word previously mentioned is the word "metamorphosis," which comes from the Greek "metamorphóō," which means "to transform or change shape." Once again, in biology, the process of metamorphosis involves the abrubt physical development or transformation of an organism from one embryonic or larval state into another form or structure. Caterpillars and butterflies tend to the most common example, but certainly not the only one.

In chemistry, transformation is the conversion of a substrate to a product. In other words, a transformation is the result of adding a catalyst to a chemical substance. The evidence is a new form or structure. When the Apostle Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 5.17, that in Christ, we are "new creations," he was talking about transformation.

As catalysts of transformation, we are called to help ignite the spark that produces change in people's lives. We are the one thing that may help bring about life-change. True, permanent, life change.

What is a catalyst?

Scientifically, a catalyst is an agent which, when added to an existing compound, creates a chemical change in its composition, thereby creating a new substance.

Understanding this definition leads us to what it means to be a catalyst in the Church. A catalyst is a person or program, that when added to an existing church environment, creates a change, a transformation, in the very fabric of its being, thereby creating something brand new.

That's exciting! It means that the ministry of a catalyst is constantly changing. It's about finding ways to improve what's already there.

The Apostle Paul was a catalyst. The Church existed before Paul. In fact, Paul's original mission was to eliminate the Church. But then something happened... he met Jesus! He had a life-altering encounter with the Son of God and his life's mission changed dramatically. And when Paul the catalyst was added to the existing structure of the Church, a new thing was born. The Church was no longer just for Jews. It expanded to the Gentiles. It became more organized. Paul established the systematic theology of the new sect called "the Way." So much so that it could no longer be identified as a sect of Judaism; it became its own living, breathing thing, the Church of Jesus Christ.

Paul's ministry launched the fledgling church into the international spotlight. He utilized every avenue available to him for one purpose: to execute the mission and expand the Kingdom of God. Arguably, Paul's ministry was so influential that the Church as we know it today might not even exist had he not been the catalyst he was.

The question for you today is: are you willing to be the catalyst God wants to use today? It will take a lot of pushing against the current, patience, determination, streamlined focus, and a crystal clear understanding of your identity, but if you are willing, God is looking for a new catalyst.

Worship in the New Testament

When we see worship in the Gospels, we always see it as a response to something Jesus did. Individuals responded to his miracles or his teachings by praising and worshipping him. In the Book of Acts, worship becomes something done in community. The members of the Church gathered together to worship, expressed by eating together, sharing, and singing together. Then Paul and the other apostles further develop the worship of the Church in the epistles by providing some guidance and organization. They taught the Church that worship had to be organized and in order. Finally, in the book of Revelation, we see this beautiful image of worship in heaven. We see angels and 4 creatures, and 24 elders worshipping the Lamb of God seated on the throne. This worship is expressed in song and by laying their crowns at his feet.

What does this teach us about our worship?

Our response to God's goodness and mercy should be to worship Him. We should worship Him when we acknowledge His righteousness, His holiness, His majesty, and His love. Every time we receive anything from Him, we should worship. And every day is a miracle.

Second, our worship should not be done alone. We should worship in community. We should gather with other saints to lift up His name. There is something about worship that is magnified when we come together. We join with other believers and our worship somehow becomes even more powerful.

Third, our worship must be organized and orderly. Disorganized worship is not worship, it's chaos. God inhabits the praises of His people, but if our praise is in disarray, then He can't enjoy it.

And finally, our worship must be genuine humility. When we worship Jesus, it's not about us, or our achievements. We must take all of our accomplishments and ambitions and lay them at His feet. This simple act of humility enlarges His glory and majesty.

Today, let's join the heavenly chorus and give Him all power, and majesty, and dominion, and blessing, and honor, and glory! Take some time to worship Him now.

Worship in the Old Testament

Worship in the Old Testament had 3 characteristics.

1) It was sacrificial.

We read about Abraham's sacrificial worship in Genesis 22. He went up a mountain to sacrifice his son, Isaac. Isaac, the promise of God. Isaac, the thing he loved most. How often do you give God worship that hurts? We must learn to give sacrificial worship.

2) It was organized.

The whole book of Leviticus provides us with God's instructions on how to worship. Each type of offering had a specific way you had to give. There were specific directions that had to be followed or your worship was not accepted. Later on, in 1 Chronicles 23-26, we see King David organizing the temple worshippers in specific ways. We read about how he organized the Levites, the temple guards, and even the musicians. There were specific roles and even shifts. David did not leave anything to chance. We have got to learn to organize ourselves when we worship. We can't just throw things together and call it worship because it's for God. Worship should be organized.

3) It was honest.

The psalmists wrote songs that were honest. Every psalm was not about how wonderful it was, how life was so perfect. Sometimes they wrote songs about pain and frustration. Sometimes they wrote about despair. They simply worshipped God honestly. Here are some examples: Psalm 3, 10, 12, 13, 42, 43, 70, etc. A brief overview of Psalms shows us that many of them were written in times of trouble. Yet, they wrote, in spite of my suffering, my struggle, whatever it is that I'm going through right now, I'm still going to worship God. Why? Because He is worthy of my praise. When enemies surround me, He is worthy of praise. When storms come against me, He is worthy of praise. When the mountains tremble and the earth shakes, He is worthy of praise. Whatever it is you're going through, He is worthy of praise. We can worship Him in our moments of struggle, and express our emotions. He can handle it. No matter what I'm going through, He is still worthy of my worship.

The Old Testament teaches us that our worship should be sacrificial (it should cost me something), organized (not just thrown together), and honest. It's not all "sloppy wet kisses;" sometimes I'm angry. Yet He is still God and worthy of worship.

Back to the Beginning

Every so often, electronic devices require a reboot. Experts recommend it at least once a week. Our relationship with God is very much the same. What is the purpose of the reboot? It helps to get rid of any lingering apps running in the background as well as resetting the communication lines within the circuit board. Again, this same concept applies to our souls. After a while, our worship can become stale and slow. We begin to function with less communication in our spirits and run through the motions as if this is something we always do without even thinking about it. And it is at that moment that we must reboot - go back to the beginning. We must, to use biblical terminology, restore our "first love." That's what this is about - reminding myself and reminding you, to go back to the beginning. Remember when you fell in love with Jesus, how easy it was to worship? When you didn't care about anyone else, or what anyone thought about you. When you raised your hands and your voice, even when others stared. When you sang and cried every single time. When you just wanted to be with Him, all day, every day. Remember?

Take a moment and reboot your spirit. Right now. Wherever you are. Just worship Him. Embrace Him. Allow Him to whisper in your ear and love you.