Introduction

Posted on 11/10/2014 by Jason Ministries

Worship — what comes to mind when you hear or see the word? Do your thoughts gravitate towards words such as adoration, exaltation, jubilation, and praise? Or, do you possibly consider words such as admire, idolize, or even respect? Do you think of rock stars, Hollywood celebrities, idols, perhaps church, or how about God? How do you define worship?

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines worship as:

(noun) reverence, homage or honor paid to God // ceremonies or services expressing such reverence; public worship // an utterly devoted admiration for a person; ‘Your (His) worship’ (esp. Br.) a courtesy title used to (or of) certain magistrates, officials, etc.

As we have discussed in our worship series The Joshua Project, by defining worship as a noun (person, place, thing, or idea), Merriam-Webster is indicating that the word has physical characteristics, variables, substance — belonging. But the word “worship” can also be defined as a verb. In the Life Application Study Bible (NIV) the definition states, “to express praise and devotion.” This definition reveals activity . . . involvement . . . choices being made.

So, which is it? Is worship something physical, tangible, and full of substance, or is worship an activity; something we choose to participate in? Worship actually is both; the blending of two definitions — the noun and the verb. The best example of this mixture of two definitions is in the Hebrews’ view of worship.

In the book Called To Worship: The Biblical Foundations of Our Response to God’s Call, by Vernon M. Whaley, we read that the Hebrew word used for worship is shachah, which means “to kneel, bow, prostrate yourself, or throw yourself down in reverence.” But there are four other very closely related words that Mr. Whaley says broaden the Hebrew description of worship; words that reveal the heart of their worship. These four words are: shabach, “to shout out to the Lord”; yadah, “to worship with raised hands”; tehillah, “to sing impromptu, spontaneous songs of praise”; and halal, “to celebrate God foolishly and boast about His attributes.” His attributes being faithfulness, goodness, love, mercy, etc. (see Galatians 5:22-23). Can you see the blending of the noun and the verb? If not, allow me clarify further.

A parasol, or umbrella, is a thing which is used as a protective covering. A parasol is designed to protect us from the harmful affects of the sun’s rays. This compound word originates from the Latin words “parāre” (meaning to prepare for or against) and “sol” (meaning sun). So a parasol prepares you to be protected against the sun.

An umbrella is usually designed to keep us from getting soaked when it rains. The origins of this compound word stems from the Greek prefix “ómbros” (meaning shaded or shadow) and the French suffix “elle” (meaning little). So an umbrella is basically a “little shadow.” Its association with being a protective canopy against the rain stems from the French variation of the word parasol (parapluie). The suffix “pluie” (which originates from the Latin word “pluvia”), simply means rain. Thus, a parapluie, or umbrella, prepares you to be protected against rain. But the parasol, or umbrella, can only protect us if we take hold of them . . . open them up . . . make use (verb) of their physical properties (noun). It is the same for worship.

Worship — true worship — is the covering that shields true believers from God’s perfect and pure holiness and allows us to linger in His presence. Worship — true worship — prevents true believers from being distressed when God tests their faith (a.k.a.: rain and storms). But again, worship can only do this if true believers take hold of it . . . open it up . . . make use (verb) of its matter (noun).

In this new series, Parasol of True Worship: Your Divine Covering, we will look more closely at how a parasol, or umbrella, is made. We will then compare those pieces to various aspects or actions of worship, so that we who have become true believers can better understand how to incorporate worship into our daily lives. Doing so will allow us to understand more completely how to linger in God’s presence, better endure hardships, and shine the light of God’s divine love to the lost and dying world that we live in. So join us as we examine our “parasol of true worship,” and together we’ll take hold of it . . . open it up . . . and make use of its colorful and varied substance.

Parasol of True Worship: Your Divine Covering by J.Scott Harden is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Based on a work at jasonmin.wordpress.com.
Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at http://www.jsnmin.org/.

The Joshua Project by J.Scott Harden is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Based on a work at jasonmin.wordpress.com.
Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at http://jsnmin.org/.

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If your church or organization would like to talk with J. Scott Harden about a speaking engagement, or a writing project, please get in touch with Mr. Harden through Jason Ministries‘ Twitter account or Facebook page.

Part 2

Posted on 08/20/2014 by Jason Ministries

In our last post we began looking at Psalm 118, and breaking down how worshiping God through our fears and hardships unleashes the power of God in our lives. In this post we will proceed in our in-depth look at this special Psalm, and hopefully continue to reveal proof that encountering our fears and hardships with an attitude of worship will allow us to become conduits of God’s power. But first, recall with me the story of Joshua and the battle at Jericho.

In the book of Joshua we find the story of how God used the praises of His people to destroy the heavily fortified city of Jericho. Joshua, who has recently been appointed by God to be Moses’ successor, has officially begun his role as judge and ruler of the fledgling nation of Israel. And now that God has finally given the nation of Israel the “green-light” to enter Canaan — their elusive “Promised Land” — they must overcome a city reputed far and wide to be impenetrable.

Joshua is not concerned, though, for God has given Him thorough instructions on how this foe will be defeated. Read with me these words from Joshua, chapter six:

“Then the LORD said to Joshua, ‘See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men. March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days. Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams’ horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets. When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have all the people give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the people will go up, every man straight in.’” (Joshua 6:2-5)

Joshua, paying strict attention to God’s instructions, does just as he has been told. The Israelites also follow Joshua’s lead, just as they were told, and together a nation declared the glory of God and watched a massive fortress fall to ruin. Israel, under Joshua’s leadership, realized an eternal truth concerning God — namely His faithfulness to His people — and as they acknowledged this truth and applied it to their lives they found themselves in the presence of God and worshiped their way right past a very formidable obstacle and into the land God promised would be theirs. (You can read this entire account in Joshua 5:13-6:27.)

You see, just as we have discussed before in The Joshua Project (and other articles on true worship), when we acknowledge a characteristic of God and allow that divine characteristic to become apart of our lives, then we can become true worshipers of God. Worshipers that not only express praise and adoration to our holy Creator, but who also are channels that can be used to present God’s glory to this lost and dying world. Still not convinced? Let’s return to our psalm.

Verses six through nine of this chapter read as follows, “The LORD is with me; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? The LORD is with me; He is my helper. I will look in triumph on my enemies. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes.”

Our wordsmith is revealing more about why he might have been in anguish — about why he needed God’s help to set him free. He had apparently misplaced his trust, for a time, in humanity. Was it one person? Was it his national leader? We don’t know, but he obviously found himself in a bad situation where someone powerful turned on him and pursued him in some manner. Read with me these next few verses — oh, what they reveal!

“All the nations surrounded me, but in the name of the LORD I cut them off. They surrounded me on every side, but in the name of the LORD I cut them off. They swarmed around me like bees, but they died out as quickly as burning thorns; in the name of the LORD I cut them off. I was pushed back and about to fall, but the LORD helped me. The LORD is my strength and my song; He has become my salvation.” (Psalm 118:10-14)

Whoever this powerful person was — this penman’s enemy — he proved able to entrap and surround our writer with an army. An army that has allied with other nations to destroy this man. Yet, this lone individual sees himself as the real victor. Why? Because God is with him, and our sovereign Creator is holy, omniscient, righteous, and able to defeat any mortal power with just a simple breath or word. Our psalmist is not afraid because God is his source of strength, his object of worship (a.k.a.: his “song”), and his access to salvation. After all, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31b)

Do you see the confidence our author has in God’s eternal love for him? Do you see how he has applied that to his own life by resting in this truth? In our final post we will conclude our in-depth look at Psalm 118. We will also look at another example of God’s faithfulness proved through the obedient worship of his faithful, and we will continue to experience how God’s power was released through our psalmist’s worship.

Experiencing Hardship? Try True Worship! by J.Scott Harden is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Based on a work at jasonmin.wordpress.com.
Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at http://www.jsnmin.org/.

Article 6

Posted on 06/25/2012 by Jason Ministries

When I was seventeen years old, I surrendered to God’s calling on my life to become a minister of the Gospel of our Lord, Jesus Christ. I immediately began pursuing my calling, by leading music for various worship services and camp meetings. Occasionally, I would even perform vocal concerts for a variety of Christian focused youth events, but it wasn’t long before I felt God tugging again at my spirit. Leading me to believe He had more in store for me — something broader than my scope was able to see then. Shortly, thereafter, The Joshua Project began to dominate my every thought.

The Joshua Project, from inception, has always been about true worship. For only true worship could move the various Christian denominations out of their misunderstood practices and into the very presence of El Hakkadosh (The Holy God), El Shaddai (The God Who IS Enough), Adonai (The Lords and Masters), Jehovah (I AM The One Who IS), Yahweh (The Self-Existing One), Elohim — Devine Creator! One thing kept me from seeing this come to fruition, though, and that was my own lack of understanding.

God has had me on a journey. A journey that now, after twenty-nine years, I am just realizing I will never finish until I see Jesus, face-to-face. I also realize that what God has given me knowledge of, where true worship is concerned, I must begin sharing with the masses. Because to wait until my heart and mind know all there is to know about true worship is to have waited too long. So my blogging began, and The Joshua Project entered into the public eye for the first time in 2010.

If you have read my blog posts, I trust you have grown to understand that true worship is your ultimate goal. The very reason God created you and all that is around you. If you haven’t yet read The Joshua Project, then allow me to encourage you to do so. Until all of humanity realizes why God has created them, and until all of us who are called by His name understand just how to become a true worshiper, there can never be a resolve to our most common and central issue — our need to be restored to God.

In the second article of The Joshua Project, we began looking into what worship really was and we came to realize that the word “worship” was both a noun and a verb; an object and an action. Upon looking further into the word “worship” I presented a formula for applying the true essence of worship into our daily lives. The formula was revisited throughout that series on true worship and I also applied it to our current study of knowing God’s names, in the very first article.

The formula is based on the understanding of God’s three most essential attributes:

– God is faithful
– God is hope
– God is love

A proper understanding of these three attributes of God, and our acknowledgment of those attributes in our lives, will produce the actions that equal true worship.

You see, it’s when we grow to know God that His sovereignty and holiness are revealed. Once revealed, we can see our short comings, our sins, in light of God’s perfection and come to understand our need for restoration to God through a relationship with His son, Jesus Christ. When all of these things come together, true worship begins to happen. That is why at the beginning of this series on knowing God’s names I posted this version of the above formula:

(Knowing God’s names + learning and understanding the meanings of God’s names = worship)

It is essential for us to know God. To know not only God’s attributes, but the very names that invoke those attributes into our lives. We will focus the remainder of this article on the greatest of all of God’s attributes — love.

Love can be defined in many ways, as worship can be. The Hebrews had two main words for love, “ahavah” and “chesed.” Ahavah was used when defining love on a human level, such as between a man and woman, or a parent and child. Chesed was used when defining love on a higher plain; a covenant love, such as between a sovereign and subjects.

The Greeks translated “chesed” as “agape,” which in English is translated as “loving-kindness” or “steadfast-love.” The attributes of this higher love are listed in 1 Corinthians 13:4-10: patience, kindness, without envy, without pride, without rudeness, isn’t selfish, isn’t easily angered, forgets offenses, is righteous, truthful, protects, trusts, hopes, perseveres and is always faithful. These attributes of love are seen as part of God’s character throughout Scripture, especially in Galations 5:22-23 when the Apostle Paul lists the fruit of God’s Spirit, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control . . .” No wonder Paul revealed to us, in 1 Corinthians 13:13, that above all of God’s attributes the greatest is love. In fact, Scripture reveals that God, more than anything else ascribed to Him, is entirely, 100 percent love. The Apostle John discussed this in detail, in the fourth chapter of his first letter.

So let’s simplify this all important attribute of God, as we did in the second article of The Joshua Project. Not because godly love is some how trivial — No! Because it is so very crucial to our growing into the true worshipers of the Almighty. We need to be able to ingest this information and apply it to our every day lives. Having said this, understand with me that love can be simply defined as a strong affection, a strong desire, or a strong devotion. Knowing this, we can now apply this definition of love directly to God’s character and say God IS a strong affection toward us, God IS a strong desire toward us, God IS a strong devotion to us. This was revealed to humanity through the incarnate Lord, Jesus Christ; if we can truly grasp this truth and trust it (have faith in it), if we can truly have confidence in the fulfillment of God’s love through Christ’s sacrifice and resurrection (have hope in it), if we can truly live a life of love (have a strong affection, strong desire, strong devotion to God) then we can truly worship God in our daily lives.

(Knowing God IS love + acknowledging that God IS love and applying His love in our lives = worship)

I’ll close with this excerpt from chapter four of 1 John:

Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love . . . If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.

Remember, it is essential for humanity to know God; to be restored to God. Come, and let’s get to know Chesed, Agape — Love!

His Name Is . . . by J. Scott Harden is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at https://jasonmin.wordpress.com/.

Article 3

Posted on 04/23/2012 by Jason Ministries

Robert “Bob” Hartman, is possibly one of the greatest songwriters to have graced Contemporary Christian Music over the last 40 + years. His ability to take a passage of Scripture from the Bible, or to take a strong lyrical story based on biblical content, and apply that to a melody that is both enjoyable and awe inspiring is uncanny.

Robert’s songs are rarely so simple that you can disconnect your mind from what your ears are hearing, as a parent would be able to do with their child’s nursery music. No, Bob’s music commands your ears to take heed and listen. If music can make human ears stand at attention, then that is what takes place when one hears a Bob Hartman song. If you are unfamiliar with Bob Hartman’s name, you will most likely recognize his band’s — Petra!

Hartman originally was a member of the Christian rock band known as Rapture, but after the band’s break up in the early ‘70s and a move to Fort Wayne, IN, to attend classes at the Christian Training Center, Robert began to form the Christian rock band we know today as Petra.

Of all the songs that Hartman has penned, I think it is Adonai that stands as my all time favorite. It’s from Petra’s 1985 album Beat the System, and it helped to make that project one of the biggest Christian rock albums recorded at that time and the third-biggest Christian album of the 1980s (trailing only Amy Grant’s Age to Age and Sandi Patti’s Songs From the Heart). Allow me to share the lyrics of this Christian rock masterpiece with you:

Verse 1:
This thirsting within my soul
Won’t cease ‘till I’ve been made whole.
To know You; to walk with You.
To please You in all I do.
You uphold the righteous,
And Your faithfulness shall endure.
Chorus:
Adonai, Master of the earth and sky.
You, alone, are worthy — Adonai!
Adonai, let creation testify;
Let Your majesty be magnified in me.
Adonai, You are an endless mystery — Adonai!
Verse 2:
Unchanging, consuming fire;
Lift me up from mud and mire.
Set my feet upon Your rock;
Let me dwell in Your righteousness (repeat chorus).
Bridge:
When the storms surround me,
Speak the word and they will be still.
And, this thirst and hunger
Is a longing only You can fill — Adonai (repeat chorus).

Words escape me, as I try to describe how these lyrics call my soul to worship the Creator of heaven and earth. Hear them sung, and you will be hard pressed to deny your spirit’s desire to leap for joy and shout, “Praise Adonai!” But, why? What is it about this song — this lyric — that makes it so special? I believe it’s power to move the human spirit lays in the name “Adonai.”

“Adonai” is a Hebraic name for God (Elohim/Deity), and is the emphatic plural of the title “Adon.” Adon, which means “Lord” or “Master,” is generally the title given to men of authority or angels but at times was also used when referring to Yahweh. So, since Adonai is the plural form of Adon, its meaning is interpreted as “Lords” or “Masters.” When the emphatic plural is formed in Hebrew using a singular possessive ending (example: “my Lords” or “my Masters”), it always refers to God. Our Creator, the triune God, was recognized by the Hebrews as the “Lord of Lords” (Adonei ha’adonim) or Lord Yahweh — Adonai Adonai!

I personally get emotional — spiritually moved — over this particular name of God, but I also realize that most Americans, really most contemporaries of the western hemisphere, don’t quite grasp just how powerful a title like “Lord” or “Master” is, due to our democratic societies. So very quickly, I want to help you grasp just what this truly means. We’ll begin by defining “Lord.”

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a “Lord” as:

(noun) someone or something having power, authority, or influence: lord of the sea | lords of the jungle. A master or ruler: our lord the king.

(verb) act in a superior and domineering manner toward someone (lord it over).

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a “Master” as:

(noun) 1 – a man who has people working for him, esp. servants or slaves: he acceded to his master’s wishes. A person who has dominance or control of something: he was master of the situation. 2 – a skilled practitioner of a particular art or activity: I’m a master of disguise. A great artist, esp. one belonging to the accepted canon: the work of the great masters is spread around the art galleries of the world.

(adjective) 1 – having or showing very great skill or proficiency: a master painter. Denoting a person skilled in a particular trade and able to teach others: a master bricklayer. 2 – main; principal: the master bedroom.

Here, in these two definitions for “Lord” and “Master,” we see four key attributes to understanding why God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit is Adonai.

First, our Lords, our Creator has power (Deuteronomy 8:17-18), authority (Matthew 28:18), and influence (Psalm 2:7-9; Jeremiah 28:14) over all of His/Their creation (Psalm 89:7-11). Yahweh is the ruler over all of it. Whether we accept His authority, or not, doesn’t matter — God is our Lord — Adoneinu!

Second, God is sovereign, superior, and does dominate over all (2 Chronicles 20:5-6; Psalm 89; Proverbs 8:15-17). Just because we are in a time of grace, and are not seeing God’s righteous wrath displayed in the way mankind saw it displayed in the Old Testament, does not mean that Jehovah isn’t in control. It doesn’t mean He is inferior, or weak — God is the Lord of Lords — Adonei ha’adonim! Which brings us to our third attribute, we are called by the triune God to serve Him.

Almighty God’s mercy allows us to choose to serve Him (Joshua 24:14-15; 1 Peter 4:1-11), for now, but make no mistake — there is coming a day — Yahweh will reveal the truth of His dominance, His control, and all of His majesty will be revealed (Philippians 2:9-11; Revelation 20:11-15) to all of His creation! It’s on that day that every man, woman, and child will bow before their Creator and proclaim Him/Them as Lords, Masters — Adonai!

Lastly, our fourth attribute, God has great skill and proficiency over all people, places, and things. Creation is our Creator’s testimony of this fact (Genesis 1-2; Psalms 19, 40:7-11, 139:13), as is man’s ability to learn and improve his physical state (Exodus 4:10-12; Leviticus 1-27). For it is by Jehovah’s skill in creating and His ability to teach that empowers the creativity and ingenuity of humanity — God is the Lord Yahweh — Adonai Adonai!

Selah (Pause/Reflect).

Praise, Almighty God — Adoneinu — You are the master of the earth and sky. Only You, Lord God, are worthy of being called “Master.” Devine Creator — Adonei ha’adonim — let all of creation testify, and let Your majesty be magnified in the spirit of humanity; be magnified, especially, in me. Lords, Masters — Adonai — You are an awesome, majestic, endless mystery. Adonai Adonai!

If you want to use these lyrics, please contact the authors, artists or labs.

Article I

Posted on 03/05/2012 by Jason Ministries

Contemporary Christian music (a.k.a. CCM), which stems from the Jesus Movement of the late 1960s, has introduced many talented performers/singers over its 40+ year history. And like any of the other industry genres, there are only a few artists whose music has stood the test of time. Carman is one of those artists. Though he’s now primarily seen and heard on the Trinity Broadcasting Network (a.k.a. TBN), Carman’s music is still known for its varied styles and strong Gospel message.

When he was touring, Carman (full name: Carman Domenic Licciardello) was a charismatic sight to behold. His concerts were incredible experiences; more like a rock-n-roll, Billy Graham Crusade than a church event. After each concert, hundreds of people would work their way down to the counseling area to accept Christ; often as many as 5,000 in an evening. Amazingly, admission to a Carman concert was usually free and an offering generally was taken.

Carman could fill the largest of stadiums, too, and did. In fact, Carman holds the record for the largest Christian music concert ever. It took place in Dallas, Texas, at the famed Texas Stadium (former home of the Dallas Cowboys). But more than that, if you take the mega stadium acts that played the famed landmark (Pink Floyd, U2, Madonna, The Jackson Five, Paul McCartney, Garth Brooks, Metallica, et al.) you’ll see that, as the newspapers noted, the one act that drew the highest attendance in Texas Stadium’s history was Carman, with 71,132 in attendance.

Carman’s ability to cover any style of music, from Gospel/R&B to Rock-a-Billy, from ballads to Hip-Hop, made him appealing to all walks-of-life. The name “Carman” assured listeners that his albums would take its listeners on a journey that wasn’t just an all-American cultural trip through popular musical styles, but was also a deep walk into all things theological. Take the song Yahweh, as an example. It’s from Carman’s 1983 album Sunday’s On The Way:

Verse 1:
Call thy walls salvation,
Call thy gates praised.
There’ll be no moon to light the nights,
No sun to light the days.
For God shall be thy glory,
An everlasting light.
The Lord shall reign forever,
In power and in might.

Chorus:
His name is Yahweh.
The Lord is one. (repeat)
Alpha and Omega,
Beginning and The End.
The Word, Who reigns forever.
Yahweh. Redeemer. Friend.

Verse 2:
His people shall be righteous,
They shall possess this land.
The branches of His plantings,
And the works of His hands.
For from a small beginning,
A mighty nation grows.
And in the fullness of His time,
The whole wide world will know (repeat chorus).

There, in simple melody, is a lyric so full of the truth of who our Creator is — Yahweh! Hear this song and you’ll have these words embedded in your mind. Meditate on them and you’ll grow in this lyric’s basic truth; Yahweh, is everything humanity needs and so much more. Let’s look deeper into the meaning of the name “Yahweh,” one of the three primary names of God (Elohim/Deity).

First, before we can understand the names of God, we must understand the nature of Hebrew names. Hebrew names are not meant to be just formal titles used to identify one person from another, as they are in our western culture. No, they are actually sentences within themselves. It’s very similar, in fact, to how Native-Americans named their children. You know, names like “Crazy Horse,” “Sitting Bull,” “Black Hawk,” etc. which weren’t exactly complete sentences, like the Hebrew names were, but descriptions of the individual’s perceived character traits. Our Creator’s name, Yahweh, is a full sentence and it’s the shortest sentence in any language. So, what is this short sentence? What does the name “Yahweh” mean, in English? The answer is, stated simply — “I AM.”

Let’s look back into the Old Testament book of Exodus when the Almighty first declared His name to be Yahweh — I AM. In Exodus chapter 3, Moses is seen on the mountain of God talking to the angel of the Lord, who is speaking from a bush that appears to be burning, but it’s not being consumed. It’s here that God tells Moses that He has chosen him to return to Egypt and command Pharaoh to let the Israelites go free. To which Moses immediately begins his argument with God that he can’t go for various reasons, one of which is Moses doesn’t know God’s name. We pick up in verse 13-14:

Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is His Name?’ Then what shall I tell them?” God said to Moses, “I AM Who I AM [Ehyeh-Asher-Ehyeh]. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM [Yahweh] has sent me to you.’”

Many scholars believe that Yahweh, actually spelled YHWH in the Hebrew language, is the third person singular form of the ancient Hebrew verb “haya,” which means in English “to be.” The basic driving force of this verb describes a state of existence. As the third person form of haya, the name “Yahweh” literally means “He [God] is,” or “He [Elohim] exists.” It’s a description of who God Almighty, is. He is “The Self-Existing One.” Ponder that thought for a moment (selah/pause). He is “The Self-Existing One.” How’s that for a name!? God is “The Self-Existing One.” It blows the mind a bit, doesn’t it? God reveals to us in His name, the name “Yahweh,” that He always has been and always will be. God (Elohim/Deity) was not created or birthed, but exists. Allow me to reiterate this truth — God (Elohim) has always existed, and will always exist. Truly awesome!

Every name of God revealed to the Hebrews, as you will see throughout this study, was to reveal some portion of Himself and His nature to mankind. And in doing so, our Lord, Yahweh, calls us to be in awe of Him, of Who He is — to worship Him.

If you will recall from our study on worship, known as The Joshua Project, we learned that God has laid out a formula for calling His own into worshiping Him. The formula is simply this: if we will come to know the attributes of God, and also acknowledge those attributes in our lives, then God will produce the actions in us that equal true worship.

(Knowing the attributes of God + acknowledging and applying the attributes of God in us = true worship)

The same becomes true of knowing and understanding the meaning of God’s various other names. God (Elohim) is the Lord, Yahweh — “I AM.” The Self-Existing One. This name of God describes who He is, and discovering who the Almighty is will call us — even move us — to worship Him!

(Knowing God’s names + learning and understanding the meanings of God’s names = true worship)

When God revealed His name to mankind, it was not merely so we could know what to call Him (i.e. give Him a formal title), but it was to reveal to us all something about Himself, His nature, and His attributes and thus call His creation to worship Him, The Self-Existing One.

Once more, everybody — selah!

If you want to use these lyrics, please contact the authors, artists or labs.

2011 in Review

Posted on 01/15/2012 by Jason Ministries

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2011 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

A San Francisco cable car holds 60 people. This blog was viewed about 2,200 times in 2011. If it were a cable car, it would take about 37 trips to carry that many people.

Click here to see the complete report.

New Feature — Periodically throughout this blog site you will see the following image: Simply click on the image and you will be directed to the appropriate video for that section of text.

Thank you for visiting Jason Ministries, and be sure to look for us on your favorite social media site.

2010 in Review

Posted on 01/03/2011 by Jason Ministries

The stats helper monkeys at WordPress.com mulled over how this blog did in 2010, and here’s a high level summary of its overall blog health:

Healthy blog!

The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads This blog is doing awesome!.

Crunchy numbers

A Boeing 747-400 passenger jet can hold 416 passengers. This blog was viewed about 2,100 times in 2010. That’s about 5 full 747s.

In 2010, there were 16 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 17 posts. There were 41 pictures uploaded, taking up a total of 4mb. That’s about 3 pictures per month.

The busiest day of the year was January 26th with 63 views. The most popular post that day was Welcome to Jason Ministries.

Where did they come from?

The top referring sites in 2010 were facebook.com, twitter.com, stumbleupon.com, slashingtongue.com, and refzip.com.

Some visitors came searching, mostly for heart of worship, worship, worship god, the heart of worship, and worship hands.

Attractions in 2010

These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010.

Welcome to Jason Ministries September 2009
2 comments

Article VI, part 2 July 2010
1 comment

Article III, part 2 April 2010

About Jason Ministries September 2009
2 comments

Introduction January 2010

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Conclusion, part 2

Posted on 08/22/2010 by Jason Ministries

As we wrap up The Joshua Project, I pray that the words resonating deep within you are these:

“I’m coming back to the heart of worship and it’s all about you — it’s all about you, Jesus. I’m sorry, Lord, for the thing I’ve made it; when it’s all about you — it’s all about you, Jesus.”

Our last post concerning “The Heart of Worship” may have described what occurred in Matt Redman’s church, but it also describes what must occur throughout the whole body of Christ. We, as believers, must return to true worship. Just as Joshua allowed himself to be used by God to bring this state of true worship back into the hearts of the people of Israel, so too do we and our spiritual leaders need to allow God to do the same in the church today.

In closing, let’s recap briefly what we have covered:

– Article 1 took us through the five megathemes (as laid out in The Life Application Study Bible [NIV]) of Joshua’s life. Each megatheme (success, faith, God’s guidance, leadership, and conquest) became an illustration of how Joshua’s life was indeed a life of true worship.

– Article 2 had us come to the understanding that “worship” is both noun and verb; that “worship” is tangible as well as something we must participate in. The blending of these two sides of worship was accomplished through a formula — a formula that required the attributes of God (faithfulness, hope, and love) and our acknowledgment of those attributes to produce the actions that equal worship.

(attributes of God + acknowledgment and application of God’s attributes in us = worship)

– Article 3 tackled the arduous task of setting our attitude of worship right. A right attitude of worship is an understanding that it’s 10 percent God’s call in our lives and 90 percent how we will respond to His call in our lives, as a right attitude of worship is ours to choose or reject.

We had to also come to understand that to have the right attitude of worship requires both a preparation for and a response to worship; remembering also the five orders of worship (confession, gathering, giving, rejoicing, and studying) which help us prepare for and respond to worship, whether individually, corporately as a family, or corporately as a church body. A review of the three ways in which to prepare for and respond to worship was laid out as well: the physical, the mental, and the spiritual, all noted as important to fulfilling God’s purpose in each of our lives.

– Article 4 was a celebration of faith, obedience, and peace. All three of which lead us to learn how to experience real joy in our lives, even while in the midst of the hardest of trials and tribulations. An acronym of J.O.Y. — Jesus, Others, and You — was laid out to help explain that only in God’s presence can we receive true joy, and giving of ourselves in submission to Christ’s will and serving others is what ushers us into God’s presence.

– Article 5 revealed to us our real purpose for existing — to worship our Creator and to glorify Him among all of His creation. We examined the eight reasons we as human beings need to seek out our purpose and worship God daily:

1 – It connects the Creator to His creation
2 – It focuses our attention on God
3 – It testifies of God’s goodness and mercy
4 – It reflects God’s glory to the nonbeliever
5 – It maintains joy in our lives
6 – It reminds us of God’s sovereignty
7 – It allows all of creation to fulfill its purpose
8 – It helps us to rightly respond to God’s calling

– Article 6 brought us back to the heart of worship — God Almighty! It also revealed another key element of worship, our obedience to our Creator’s call of worship. We studied twelve ways that we could begin to develop the discipline of being obedient to God, the Father, in our daily worship:

1 – Through the reading and studying of Scripture
2 – Through prayer
3 – Through the playing and singing of songs
4 – Through the family
5 – Through our physical health and rest
6 – By physically working and laboring for God
7 – Through our love and faithfulness to God
8 – Through sacrifice and trust
9 – Through the fear and respect of our Creator
10 – Through celebration and rejoicing in God
11 – By being a peacemaker
12 – Through our individual and corporate worship of God

There you have it — the roof to our temple of worship has been set into place. God’s worshipful dwelling has been built to completion. Now it’s up to you to invite Him in; He wants to, you know.

As lyricist and composer Will L. Thompson penned, “Softly and tenderly Jesus is calling; calling for you and for me. See, on the portals He’s waiting and watching; watching for you and for me. Come home, come home; you who are weary, come home. Earnestly, tenderly, Jesus is calling; calling, ‘oh sinner, come home.’” God, the Father, longs to be given full residency in our heart of worship; that temple of our soul. Let Him in, won’t you? Allowing God back into the center of your worship is, after all, what your heart was purposed for.

Congratulations to those of you who have returned your heart and focus back to God. You are now ready to journey on in life as Joshua did — as God’s true instrument of worship!

“Softly and Tenderly” by Will L. Thompson, pub.: 1880, Copyright: Public Domain

Conclusion, part 1

Posted on 08/08/2010 by Jason Ministries

As we are wrapping up our journey through The Joshua Project, I pray that those words of true worship are resonating deep within you. So much so, that your whole being simply wants to cry out and make it known to all who have ears to hear that God is God! That Jesus is Lord! And, that we must worship Them — the entities of the Trinity, which includes the Holy Spirit — worship Them in spirit and in truth, physically as well as spiritually, with our whole heart and in all that we do. We must daily worship our triune Creator.

Matt Redman, the author of “The Heart of Worship,” seems to resonate with this truth. In an article published by crosswalk.com, Matt talks about the circumstances that brought him to write such simple and yet profound words. Contributing writer David Schrader relates Matt’s story: “The song dates back to the late 1990s, born from a period of apathy within Matt’s home church, Soul Survivor, in Watford, England. Despite the country’s overall contribution to the current worship revival, Redman’s congregation was struggling to find meaning in its musical outpouring at the time.

‘There was a dynamic missing, so the pastor did a pretty brave thing,’ he [Matt Redman] recalls. ‘He decided to get rid of the sound system and band for a season, and we gathered together with just our voices. His point was that we’d lost our way in worship, and the way to get back to the heart [of worship] would be to strip everything away.’

Reminding his church family to be producers in worship, not just consumers, the pastor, Mike Pilavachi, asked, ‘When you come through the doors on a Sunday, what are you bringing as your offering to God?’ Matt says the question initially led to some embarrassing silence, but eventually people broke into a-cappella songs and heartfelt prayers, encountering God in a fresh way.

‘Before long, we reintroduced the musicians and sound system, as we’d gain a new perspective that worship is all about Jesus, and He commands a response in the depths of our souls no matter what the circumstances and setting. The Heart of Worship simply describes what occurred.’”

“The Heart of Worship” may simply describe what occurred in Matt’s church, but it also very simply and aptly describes what needs to occur throughout the whole body of Christ — a return to true worship. Joshua was able to bring this state of true worship back into the hearts of the people of Israel, and I’m hopeful that this study on worship will do the same for the church today.

The roof to our temple of worship has nearly been set into place. God’s worshipful dwelling has almost been built to completion. In our next and final post, we’ll recap briefly what we have covered thus far.

Song Story: Matt Redman’s “The Heart of Worship” by Matt Redman and Contributing Writer David Schrader. Copyright © 2010, Crosswalk.com. All rights reserved. Article Images Copyright © 2010 JupiterImages Corporation.
Crosswalk.com is a proud member of the Salem Web Network, a subsidiary of Salem Communications Corporation.

Article V, part 2

Posted on 06/13/2010 by Jason Ministries

In our last post we were discussing the first three of eight specific reasons why we needed to glorify and worship God daily. The first reason being that glorifying and worshiping God connects us to Him. Second, we need to glorify and worship God because in doing so we focus our attention away from ourselves and towards God. Thirdly, our need to glorify and worship God testifies of God’s goodness and mercy.

The fourth reason for glorifying and worshiping God is to reflect His glory to the lost. Much in the same way our worship is our testimony of the Father’s goodness and mercy to nonbelievers, so is it also a reflection of His glory. Remember, Paul instructed us to “live as children of light,” but what is the source of that “light”? It’s God’s light, God’s glory shining from Himself through us and into a dark, dark world. Even Jesus, God’s Son, taught this about Himself in John 8:54-55a, “If I glorify myself, my glory means nothing. My Father, whom you claim as your God, is the one who glorifies me. Though you do not know him, I know him.” Jesus, in worshiping the Father, reflected God’s glory into this sinful world, and even though people didn’t comprehend what they were experiencing was of God, they could still see the “light.” Odd thing about light — it’s blinding to some and illumination for others, and the more we as true worshipers allow ourselves to reflect God’s glory, the more like Him we become (2 Corinthians 3:18).

Reason number five: we need to glorify and worship God because doing so maintains joy in our lives. Again, as we learned in our article on “joy,” only in the presence of God can we experience true joy (Psalm 16:11); and when the justified are in His presence, they can’t help but to glorify and worship the God of mercy and grace. Look with me at Psalm 5:11-12:

But let all who take refuge in you [God] be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you. For surely, O Lord, you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favor as with a shield.

Do you want to live rightly, with God’s blessings on your life? Do you want to be filled with real joy and have your eyes shine with it? Then do as the psalmist says above and take refuge in God; love everything about Him and then, as he also wrote in Psalm 19, verse 8, God will in turn cover you (clothe you, as we were intended) with His glory and you will be blessed.

The sixth reason we need to glorify and worship God is because it reminds us of God’s sovereignty. Just as many psalms declare the goodness and mercy of our Creator, they also emote of His awesome power and sovereignty. You can see it themed in Psalm 22: 25-28, as the psalmist states, “dominion belongs to the Lord.” You can read of it in Psalm 73:27-28 and Psalm 103:19-22, but I truly like the way it is written in Psalm 71:16-18. Read with me:

I will come and proclaim your mighty acts, O Sovereign Lord; I will proclaim your righteousness, yours alone. Since my youth, O God, you have taught me, and to this day I declare your marvelous deeds. Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, O God, till I declare your power to the next generation, your might to all who are to come.

Did you comprehend that? You are sovereign, O God! Let me live as long as possible so I can declare it to as many as possible. Imagine, if we all prayed that prayer and lived it, what life would be like.

Seventh, our need to glorify and worship God allows all of creation to fulfill its purpose. Most of us recognize Psalm 19:1 when we hear it, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.” Some may recognize the words penned in Psalm 66:1-4:

Shout with joy to God, all the earth! Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious! Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies cringe before you. All the earth bows down to you; they sing praise to you, they sing praise to your name.”

But how can the heavens declare anything? How can the skies proclaim God or the earth sing of His glorious name? Simple. You and I must do it. Humanity is the voice of creation. The heavens, the skies, the earth, the oceans, and all of the creatures on the earth and in the oceans (Psalm 69:34) are the visual portion of this huge and very corporate worship service known as life. Mankind, we are the voice ringing out in sweet songs of praise and adoration to our Creator, our Giver of life. If we don’t fulfill our purpose and remain vocal with our worship of God the Father, then God will give our job over to His other creations (Luke 19:40). (I really don’t think God prefers “rock” music when He is used to hearing choirs of angels. All right; a bad pun, I’ll admit it; and no slant is being made regarding contemporary Christian music, either, but do you seriously want to be showed up by a bunch of stones?)

I love the words Bob Hartman, guitarist and songwriter for the Christian rock group Petra, wrote for the song “Somebody’s Gonna Praise His Name.” The song was released on the album On Fire, and the lyrics of the chorus read like this, “Somebody’s gonna praise His name. Somebody’s gonna call Him Lord. It’ll either be you and me, or it’s gonna be a rock or tree. Somebody, somewhere is gonna praise His name.” To which he says at the end, “And it’s gonna be me.” Bob Hartman and the rest of Petra seem to know their purpose and have acted on it. Will you join them?

Lastly, the eighth reason we need to glorify and worship God is to rightly respond to God’s calling on our lives. Again, our calling, God’s perfect will for humanity — our purpose, more than anything else under the sun — is to glorify and worship Almighty God. The apostle Paul, in his first letter to the church in Thessalonica, stated, “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). “Be joyful,” “pray continually,” “give thanks in all circumstances” are all acts of worship. Each is a crucial key to unlocking and revealing God’s glory in our lives; revealing the Father’s will for mankind — worship. God’s will is not so much about what you will do with your life physically. God’s will isn’t about whether you should or should not be in a particular profession, though living by His statutes may clearly dictate a profession to you and keep you from choosing another. It’s about living your life glorifying and worshiping your Creator.

Look with me at 1 Corinthians 10:31, which says, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” Paul, at this point in his first letter to the church at Corinth, was dealing with an issue of whether people should or should not eat meat that had been sacrificed to a pagan god. Paul explained that if that meat was eaten simply because of hunger, then there was no harm; but if it was eaten and caused them or someone weaker in the faith to get caught up in idol worship, then it was wrong. There was an attitude involved here (remember we discussed having an attitude of worship in Article 3); a motivation. Now, let’s apply this same attitude/motivation to our overall purpose of worship. No matter what you choose to do for a living, do it with the sole motivation of glorifying God, but if your career choice prevents this for some reason, then you should choose another and do so quickly. If we live our lives in fellowship with our Creator (1 John 1:3-4) and worship Him, then His overall will for us to glorify Him will guide us in correctly choosing our spouse, friends, job(s), food, anything and everything. Choosing to live our lives glorifying God is choosing to be holy (set apart). This is why we are urged by both Paul and our Lord, Jesus Christ, throughout the New Testament to worship God rightly. In doing so, we can finally experience our purpose and become true worshipers of God (Matthew 25:14-30; Ephesians 4:1-6; 2 Thessalonians 1:11-12).

Let’s quickly review our eight reasons for seeking out our purpose and worshiping God daily:

– Connects the Creator to His creation
– Focuses our attention on God
– Testifies of God’s goodness and mercy
– Reflects God’s glory to the nonbeliever
– Maintains joy in our lives
– Reminds us of God’s sovereignty
– Allows all of creation to fulfill its purpose
– Rightly responds to God’s calling

How was that for simple, yet complicated? I know it will take self-discipline and maybe even the discipline of God and other believers to get us to where we really can live out our purpose of worshiping God daily, but the concept is still really quite simple. Our physical limitations and our imperfections are what make it seem so complicated.

Joshua didn’t easily accomplish his worship of the Father either. Each one of these eight reasons for seeking out and worshiping God can be found in Joshua’s story, but none were devoid of struggle. Read over the book of Joshua, if you haven’t yet. Look back over Article 1 and re-examine the five megathemes to see how often the eight reasons listed above appear; take note of the struggles each opportunity for worship brought about in each of the five megathemes.

If I could somehow sum up this whole article in one sentence, it would be this: the dawn of forever is when you place your faith in Christ, but abundant life begins when you fulfill your purpose and become a true worshiper of God.

Three walls have now been erected; onward we go to constructing the fourth and final wall in our temple of worship.

Somebody’s Gonna Praise His Name lyrics and music written by Bob Hartman (Based on Luke 19:40; Psalms 69:34, 148:9). Copyright © 1988 Star Song Music.
If you want to use these lyrics, please contact the authors, artists or labs.

Jason Ministries ®

Teaching the Church its Purpose – True Worship

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