Message to Worship Team 25/06/20

Worship and Warfare

1. The Call to Both Worship and Warfare

· Every Believer is called to be a Worshipper

“But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.

God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."(Jn.4:23-24)

· Every Believer is also called to be a Soldier….Engage in a Spiritual battle..personal and corporate

“You therefore must endure hardship as a good soldier of Jesus Christ.

No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier” (2Tim.2:3-4)

· What is the difference between a Worshipper and a Performer?

The Difference……Who is the audience that you are playing for?

Whose approval are you looking for?

2. The Old Testament Battles of Israel give insights to Spiritual Warfare

2Ch 20:12  O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You."

2Ch 20:13  Now all Judah, with their little ones, their wives, and their children, stood before the LORD.

2Ch 20:14  Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, in the midst of the assembly.

2Ch 20:15  And he said, "Listen, all you of Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and you, King Jehoshaphat! Thus says the LORD to you: 'Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God's.

2Ch 20:16  Tomorrow go down against them. They will surely come up by the Ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the brook before the Wilderness of Jeruel.

2Ch 20:17  You will not need to fight in this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the LORD, who is with you, O Judah and Jerusalem!' Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, for the LORD is with you."

2Ch 20:18  And Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem bowed before the LORD, worshiping the LORD.

2Ch 20:19  Then the Levites of the children of the Kohathites and of the children of the Korahites stood up to praise the LORD God of Israel with voices loud and high.

2Ch 20:20  So they rose early in the morning and went out into the Wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, "Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: Believe in the LORD your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper."

2Ch 20:21  And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed those who should sing to the LORD, and who should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army and were saying: "Praise the LORD, For His mercy endures forever."

2Ch 20:22  Now when they began to sing and to praise, the LORD set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated.

2Ch 20:23  For the people of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir to utterly kill and destroy them. And when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, they helped to destroy one another.

Key Principles in the Battle

1. God Uses Worship and Spiritual Warfare to Change Spiritual Atmospheres

· What is an Atmosphere?

An atmosphere is the surrounding environment or influence …they affect our experience of life

Atmospheres can be natural or spiritual

Atmospheres are built intentionally

Examples of Atmospheres: Romantic, tender, energetic, hostile, heavy, tense, polluted, destructive,

· What is a Spiritual Atmosphere?

A spiritual atmosphere is the surrounding spiritual environment or influences exerting upon people

They can be demonic…causing heaviness, fear, anxiety, anger, control, uncleanness, hopelessness, oppression, unbelief,

This is caused by the presence and ongoing activity of demonic spirits

They can be Godly and life giving….causing joy, praise, worship, dancing, faith, encounters, miracles

The Holy Spirit brings great freedom .

Spiritual atmosphere can be life giving because of the manifest presence of the Holy Spirit

· Now it happened on a certain day, as He was teaching, that there were Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting by, who had come out of every town of Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was present to heal them. (Luk.5:17)

· ….the house, the house of the LORD, was filled with a cloud, so that the priests could not continue ministering because of the cloud; for the glory of the LORD filled the house of God.(2Chron.5:13-14)

2. Our Warfare is against Unseen Spiritual being

· Eph 6:12  For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

· Unseen spirit beings Oppress people

They afflict peoples mind, emotions, bodies, relationships, finances

They are united in a common purpose…to destroy

They work together

They deploy strategies to keep people in bondage

They manipulate the areas of our lives that are not yielded to The Holy Spirit

People are unaware what is happening to them., in them , and through them…”Just me”

· Unseen spirit beings Resist The Kingdom of God Manifesting

Daniel experienced resistance to breakthrough for 21 days (Dan.10)

There was an unseen spiritual warfare to resist God’s provision breaking through

Demons resist us receiving revelation, salvations, healing, deliverance, miracles, blessings

In the last days the warfare against people will increase

In particular there is always spiritual warfare against Worship and the worship team

They are real and they resist you!

The opposition to Jehoshaphat was overwhelming and it was empowered by demons

3. Jesus Has All Authority and Power

· “And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” (Mat.28:18)

· Jesus is in charge…he has absolute authority in heaven and earth over demons and circumstances

· He has chosen to limit the exercise of that authority to working with and through people

· We must learn how to arise in faith and prayer to see His presence and power manifest in the earth

· He has given man responsibility for the earth….we must play our part

· Religion is passive…waiting for God to do things…faith is active…presses in for God to move

· Jehoshaphat received Divine Strategy to win the Battle

4. We must Submit to His Strategies to Win

· What is Strategy?

A strategy is a carefully designed plan or method

A Strategy is a plan for conducting a war or winning a game

· God has a strategy for every situation

In a church service God’s strategy could involve:

A particular flow of songs, a particular song that brings breakthrough, a prophetic song or message, a sudden movement of the Spirit, an altar call, a testimony, a faith action

· Spiritual sensitivity and Prompt response are needed

We must be sensitive to the direction and strategy of the Holy Spirit in a Meeting

When The Holy Spirit begins moving and manifesting His Presence we must be able to flow quickly together

Eg Quickly respond, choice of right song, energy level, warfare, tender worship, stillness,

This requires we develop personally in own prayer life, our walk with God and team play

Jehoshaphat submitted to God’s winning strategy

5. Strategy flows Through a Chain of Command

· What is a Chain of Command?

An intentional structure that ensures every task has one person responsible for it performance

An intentional structure that allows instructions to be passed from one person to another

An intentional structure that allows strategy to be implemented

An intentional structure in which each rank is accountable to the one directly over them

· The Whole Church is ordered and structure by God for Spiritual Warfare and for blessing

It is ordered so that the Kingdom of God can manifest and expand.

Every team, team is ordered and structured by the Senior Leaders for Spiritual warfare

This is especially needed in the Worship Team who are called to bring heaven to earth

Every role in the church is delegated…it is an extension of their authority and mandate

Jehoshaphat instructed every person what Gods strategy was

6. Each Person Must Become Aligned

· What does Align Mean?

To position yourself with or against a team or group in their purpose

To join with others in a cause

To move yourself into right relationship and positioning in a team

To become a Team player, who follows the instructions of the coach so the team can play

7. Each Person Must Yield to the Rank Positioned Over Them

· What does Rank Mean?

Rank refers to your personal positioning in an organisation or military formation

Rank is a line of soldiers standing together is close order

Hold Rank = To march together in unity in a designated military formation for battle

= To be a Team player

Break Rank = To behave in a way different from the group you are part of and expected to support

= To fail to follow the instructions given by a rank over you

= To openly disagree and become critical of the leader of group

= To cease being a Team Player and become a Lone Ranger

Breaking rank leads to confusion, chaos and disunity ….and ultimately to defeat and failure

· King Davids Mighty Men could all hold rank….they were united to make David King

1Ch 12:33  of Zebulun there were fifty thousand who went out to battle, expert in war with all weapons of war, stouthearted men who could keep ranks;

· Joels EndTime Army will all hold Rank

Joe 2:7  They run like mighty men, They climb the wall like men of war; Every one marches in formation, And they do not break ranks. (with an undivided heart Ampl. )

8. What Does Yield Mean?

· Yield. = To choose to give way to the leadership of another, or to submit to another

· Submit. = To position yourself under the leadership of another in order to win a victory together

It is a demonstration of heart humility

It is a choice to lay down your own opinion, or preference and to follow the lead of another

We can choose to yield to the Holy Spirit (This is Maturity and is also called Humility)

To become a Team Player we must practice yielding to Holy Spirit as a lifestyle

Resist. = To position oneself against

It is a demonstration of hidden heart pride…my way

We can choose to be led and controlled by our flesh. ( Our feelings, opinions, preferences, mindsets)

This manifests by our resistance to the leader and to people that we work with

That resistance can be active (visible) or passive (hidden resistance and reluctance)

All Authority in the Kingdom of God is relational in nature and is for the purpose of serving and building

9. Each Person Must Flow in Unity with the Team

· What is Unity?

To function in harmony with others ….eg Musical harmony

Unity is an issue of the heart …..of humility and yielding to serve

Disunity is a fruit of pride, of striving …seeking to impose our opinion

· Unity means following the direction of the leader and fully participating with the team

Stay engaged…listen to instructions and follow them

· What causes Disunity?...it is always an Issue of the heart!

Unresolved offences in our heart

Pride in our heart…..pride in our gift, skill, experience, position

Selfish Ambition in our heart…wanting to promote ourselves

Unresolved sin in our heart and life

Lack of personal prayer

· Unity and Faith release Blessing

When we function in harmony with others then God’s presence and blessing is able to flow freely

The greater the degree of Gods presence, the more essential unity becomes

· A Song of Ascents. Of David. Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity!

It is like the precious oil upon the head, Running down on the beard, The beard of Aaron, Running down on the edge of his garments.

It is like the dew of Hermon, Descending upon the mountains of Zion; For there the LORD commanded the blessing—Life forevermore. (Ps.133:1-3)

· All the people flowed with Jehoshaphat directions as one man

10. All of these Principles are also seen in Joshua’s Great Victory at Jericho

· God used worship and spiritual warfare to shift the spiritual atmosphere

· Joshuas Warfare was against unseen spiritual beings

· Jesus has all authority….He has the right to command

· Joshua submitted to Jesus strategy

· Joshua communicated the strategy to all the people

· All the people yielded to Joshuas direction and positioned themselves

· All the people flowed and acted as one man

· The supernatural power of God was manifested to give them the total victory