We get many questions concerning our desire to only do worship music.
People seem to think that we don’t have a heart for evangelism. They
assume, like we used to, that worship music is irrelevant to the unsaved
person. Hence, it troubles them that we don’t do music that is more
palatable to the world for the purpose of evangelism. I assure you, these
worries are unfounded, for our heart for the “lost” is as HUGE as ever!
Here are a few thoughts we have concerning this topic and some things
God has been challenging us with.
Have you ever heard the term “worship evangelism?” That is what our
band is specifically called to. So, when we say the term “worship,” we are
referring to a lifestyle NOT to a music style. God has been showing us
many scriptures that have led us to believe that a lifestyle of worship is
the best form of evangelism. John 12:32 simply says that Jesus will draw
all men unto Himself as He is lifted up from the earth. Psalm 40 quotes
David saying, “God gave me a new song, a hymn of praise to our God, SO
THAT many would fear and put their trust in the Lord.” Acts 15:16-17
refer to God’s desire to restore the Tabernacle of David (intense worship
in the church) SO THAT all men might find the Lord.
You may be thinking, well, what about The Great Commission to “go into
all the world?” It seems clear to us that this verse calls us to go and
make “disciples.” The word “disciple” requires that the verb “go” be
defined by a long-term commitment or relationship, not just by the
converting of an unbeliever. So, to base a ministry on simply converting
the unsaved would not allow for the fulfillment of The Great Commission
(to make disciples), since making disciples would require a greater
investment of time to allow for the building of relationships. Even in
Acts, when the Lord added daily to the church those who were being
saved, He was doing so to a church that was built on relationships, and on
the meeting of people’s basic needs. The church at that time was a
strong community of believers all united with one purpose, one goal and
with one Lord.
You may also wonder, “what about Jesus – surely He preached mostly to
the lost.” Yes, Jesus did preach to the lost, but His first priority was
those closest to Him. He was committed first to James, John and Peter,
then His disciples, then His family and friends, Mary, Martha, Lazarus and
others, then the church where He was found each Sabbath and on many
other occasions, and finely to those lost who gathered on the hillsides
and lakesides. Somehow, in our passion to win the lost, we have
seemingly forgotten what 1 Timothy 3:4-5 says concerning leaders in the
church and the need for them to manage their families properly as a
prerequisite to leading in the church. Surely, the same would go for the
rest of us, and surely the same should be expected of us in the handling
of our church “family” before we “go” into the world.
Furthermore, it is clear that the world today has a picture in their mind of
who God is. That picture is ALWAYS based on what the church looks like.
Therefore, if the church looks like division and dissention, that is exactly
what people think of when they think of God. They feel, and rightly so,
that if God can’t take care of His own people’s problems, how would He
be able to take care of theirs? What we are suggesting is that the only
hope of reaching the world with Jesus is if we, the church, will truly follow
the path of 1 Chronicles 7:14, humbling ourselves, praying, seeking His
face, and turning from our wicked ways. Then, just as always before, all
nations will turn and see that the Lord is the on true God, and our nations
will be “healed.”
All these thoughts center around the fact that God has given
SONICFLOOd a renewed heart for His church. He is making it clear to us
that He wants to win the lost through His church - more specifically
through you and me - and not so much though BIG evangelistic events as
through one on one relationships. Think about it. If I go into a bar or
club and sing "Christian" songs and then share my testimony, some will
get saved. The question then comes, "who will follow up and help these
baby Christians to stay strong?" If there are no relationships established
with those people, the seed will most likely be snatched up and they will
fall away. We call that "Lone Ranger Evangelism." I used to think since
the church wasn't doing its job to evangelize, that I would go out and do
it myself - "lone rangering it." But, that is not God's heart. Then I
thought that at least the church needed to be having BIG evangelistic
services. But that is not the key either. I do believe there should be
some specific outreach events in the church, but the primary reason for
the church's existence is to worship the Lord and to love one another.
That is what we were created for, and it is “by our love for one another”
that “they” will know that we are His!!!!
What God is helping us in SONICFLOOd to see is that if we will come
together in the church and pray and worship Him in unity, (very rare with
denominations and huge divisions) than he will heal our land. As we, His
people, worship Jesus as with ONE VOICE, His Holy Spirit will convict
hearts without us having to say but a few words. This will NOT happen if
we try to convince people with our neat songs and clever preaching (1
Corinthians 1:17). It will though, as we come together, seeking God's
heart (VERY IMPORTANT). Then He will show us His heart, which is to
love and save the lost.
But, to reach out to the lost is NOT to have a BIG outreach service or
concert - that is HYPE! To reach out to the lost is to live a lifestyle of
worship in our neighborhoods, our grocery stores and at our places of
work and to live the lifestyle of abundant life and unity the world so longs
to be a part of. This is the hardest thing and yet the most important!!!! I
used to think that being in ministry full time exempted me from
ministering to my next door neighbor. I am still working on this, but have
realized that this is the most vital part. It is where REAL ministry takes
place - through RELATIONSHIPS and ONE ON ONE.
SONICFLOOd's vision is to help the church get back to its original focus -
worshiping God. Through worshiping God, we will get closer to God. By
getting closer to God, we will see His heart. By seeing His heart, we will
want to be like Him. Being like Him is living as Jesus did. Jesus walked in
holiness in His life, and He loved and healed people, taking away their
brokenness. In the same way, He has anointed us to preach good news
to the poor, freedom to the captives, sight for the blind, and liberty for
the oppressed (Luke 4:18-19). When we share this good news with
people AND put it into action by loving and healing them, they will want
to know where that love and healing comes from. Then we can introduce
them to the source, the one true God, His wonderful Son, Jesus, and His
powerful counselor, the Holy Spirit. Then they will do the same for
someone else, plus we will have a new, loyal friend. SIDE NOTE: Loving
people is not something we must do, it is something that must come
natural. We must pray that God will cause us to grow in our compassion,
seeing the lost as He so often did. He will then help us to see angry and
"evil" people as the hurting, pain-filled people they really are. Then we
will be moved with His compassion, and we will WANT to love them, not
have to TRY to love them. This does not come easy.
Remember: God wants to reach the lost through HIS PEOPLE. That's it.
If he wanted to reach people through TV, He would have already done it.
TV's can't touch and they can't love. Only people can. Love is the
greatest commandment – love God and love others (Matthew 22:37-39).
Period. Love covers sin and love builds bridges instead of walls. The
biggest problem with technology is that people can now work, shop, and
communicate without ever being face to face - that's called separation,
and that is why Jesus died - because you and I were separated from our
awesome God through sin. Jesus didn't die to take away our sins. He
died to bring us back to God. Sin just stands in the way of that. God
wants to BE WITH us (Zephaniah 3:17). This verse is the greatest picture
of God in the entire Bible. It shows us He didn't send Jesus because of
His hatred for sin but because of His absolute crazy LOVE for us!!!! See,
God loved us FIRST – that is why we are compelled to LOVE Him. It is this
love that will draw others to Jesus, just as it did us.
