WELCOME (15minutes)
Choose one of the following icebreakers:
(If you have first-time guests, begin with a round of introduction and warmly welcome the new visitors.)
- FREEZE FRAME
Invite the people to quietly move around the room and await your instructions. As they are walking the leader calls out the name of a sport, for example, golf, soccer, rugby, swimming, parachuting, polo, basketball, horse racing etc. When they hear the name, they must stop immediately and hold a still ‘freeze frame’ illustrating or acting out the sport. Take a photo of the most life-like or descriptive ‘freeze frame’ in each round for future display. You can play variations to the game by shouting out emotions, job titles or even animals.
- DRAW
Give everyone a piece of paper and a pencil. Allow 5 minutes to draw a picture that conveys who they are without writing any words or numbers. At the end of 5 minutes, the leader collects the pictures. Show the pictures to the group, one at a time, and have them try to guess who drew it. Each artist can then explain how their work expresses who they are.
Transition to Worship:
Our God is an awesome God. He is kind, tender-hearted, and merciful. Our Father loves us with an everlasting love and He is always concerned about our welfare no matter how we feel or what we have done. Today, bless the Lord. Lift up your praises to the One who is the living God; our God who is our Father. Amen.
WORSHIP (20 minutes)
You may use the following suggested worship songs:
1) Awesome In This Place – Hillsong (D)
2) Did You Feel The Mountains Tremble (D)
3) Build My Life (D)
4) O Praise The Name (D)
Be sensitive to the prompting of the Holy Spirit to wait upon the Lord for the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Encourage the release of the gifts of the Holy Spirit - words, visions, tongues and interpretation of tongues - to minister to the people who are present.
Transition to Word:
Eternal God, You are mighty and strong. Honour, glory and power belong to You, the One sitting at God’s right hand on the throne. You are the Lamb forever and ever. Your word is the foundation of Your throne. Speak and instruct us we pray, in Jesus’ name. Amen!
WORD (45minutes)
Memory verse of the week: John 16:33 (NIV)
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
Sermon Title: The Heart of Worship
By Senior Pastor Daniel Khong on 29 Feb – 1 Mar 2020
Scripture Passage: Deuteronomy 10:8 (NKJV)
At that time the Lord separated the tribe of Levi to bear the ark of the covenant of the Lord, to stand before the Lord to minister to Him and to bless in His name, to this day.
Introduction
Last weekend, SP Daniel challenged FCBC to return to the heart of worship. Often, we see worship as part of the church’s program or just about singing songs to praise God. Worship is more than singing songs to God, more than music, more than a part of the church service’s program. The truth is that all of life is an act of worship.
Romans 12:1-2 (NIVUK)
1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is your true and proper worship. 2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.
We need to examine ourselves whether our worship is pleasing to God. What exactly is worship?
How can we return to the heart of worship? What should be the focus of our worship?
SP Daniel shared 3 aspects of focus when we worship God:
- God’s Manifest Presence, Not Our Presents
- God’s Pleasure, Not Our Preferences
- God’s Purposes, Not Our Plans
Discovery and Understanding Questions:
Q1. What is the difference between God’s omnipresence and God’s manifest presence? Why should we desire God’s manifest presence in our worship?
A1.
a) God’s omnipresence means God is present everywhere all at once but that does not mean He will manifest His presence everywhere. God’s manifest presence means He makes His presence clear to His people. In Deut. 10:8, the ark of the covenant represents God’s manifest presence among His people. This shows us that God desires to be with His people.
Deuteronomy 10:8 (NKJV)
At that time the Lord separated the tribe of Levi to bear the ark of the covenant of the Lord, to stand before the Lord to minister to Him and to bless in His name, to this day.
Exodus 3:1-6
1 Meanwhile, Moses was shepherding the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian. He led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a blazing fire from within a bush. Moses saw the bush ablaze with fire, but it was not consumed. 3 So Moses thought, “I must go over and see this marvelous sight. Why is the bush not burning up?” 4 When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called out to him from within the bush, “Moses, Moses!” “Here I am,” he answered. 5 “Do not come any closer,” God said. “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” 6 Then He said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.”
b) We should not be satisfied only with the omnipresence of God but we should desire the manifest presence of God so that we can encounter Him and experience the awesomeness of His presence in a very tangible way.
Q2. How can our worship bring pleasure to God?
A2. Often, our desire during a time of worship is for us to be ministered to. Rather, a key part of our worship should be for us to minister to God instead. Worship is not about us; worship is about God.
Deuteronomy 10:8 (NKJV)
At that time the Lord separated the tribe of Levi to bear the ark of the covenant of the Lord, to stand before the Lord to minister to Him and to bless in His name, to this day.
Romans 12:1-2 (NIVUK)
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is your true and proper worship.
Q3. What is God’s purpose for the Levites in bearing the ark of the covenant of the Lord?
A3. It was to stand before the Lord to minister to Him and to bless God’s people in His name. In other words, our purpose in worship is to bring blessings to others; how we can serve others.
Application Questions:
Break into smaller groups, share, pray and minister to one another.
Q1. In what ways have we fallen short in our worship of God?
Q2. How can we return to the heart of worship?
Transition to Works:
Let’s continue to put our heart, mind and strength to reach out, win souls and make disciples. Let us pray for our pre-believing friends and seek to reach out to them by connecting with them and inviting them to our cells, to church and to our XFXZ.
WORKS (15minutes)
Give CG Members some time to share on their prayer walk. As they prayer-walk, encourage and challenge them to include their neighbours as their Bests. Get the CG to do the following:
1. Continue to Connect
a) With CG Members
1. Hold your CG Members accountable to go into live streaming or download the service message to listen to it.
2. Occasionally you may wish to arrange for the CG to meet to view live streaming together. Note: This should not replace your weekly CG gathering. [Currently FCBC encourages CG gatherings to continue as much as is possible. CG gatherings should be a time of spurring members on to faith & good works. Seek ways & means to help each other, especially those who are impacted by COVID-19 either directly or indirectly.]
3. The CG can continue to connect with their members who are quarantined, on Stay-Home-Notices, or suspected to be exposed to the virus & hence cannot attend the CG.
a. Synchronize prayer times together.
b. Discuss devotional thoughts through WhatsApp.
c. Create a CG hashtag - Post uplifting messages, sermon videos and notes, or even bookmark pretty verse images that you like on Instagram by leaving these in your cell group hashtag as a comment. Everything that has been tagged with your cell group hashtag will be available for the entire group to see!
d. Video call each other. [Note: This is not meant to be a replacement for CG gatherings.]
b) With Pre-Believers
1. Continue to encourage evangelism. Evangelism need not take a back seat with live streaming or COVID-19. Either as an individual or as a family or as a CG, you can still invite your pre-believer friends/Bests/3x3 contacts (depending on their comfort level) to join you in watching the live stream service. You should still try to continue connecting with them & spur your CG members to do so.
2. When the salvation altar call is made during live streaming, use the link (response form) screened over the live stream for those who have responded or want to respond, to fill in. The link is:
• For English live streaming - www.fcbc.org.sg/connectwithus
• For Chinese live streaming - www.fcbc.org.sg/zh/connectwithus
Please encourage your pre-believer contacts to fill up the response form or you can help them fill it up. When filling up the form, try to provide as much of the information needed as possible.
3. If your CG is not running a XFXZ Group, check with your G12 leader to see if you can exercise the option of inviting your/your CG members' pre-believers contacts to the XFXZ run by the other CG/s in your Tribe/Team. Encourage your CG members to do so.
4. Be sensitive to, and meet the needs of those impacted by COVID-19 – e.g., offer them masks, alcohol swabs if they need them and don’t have them; prepare meals to send over to those on Home Quarantine Order or Stay Home Notices, etc. [While you are doing this make sure you also do things to protect yourself so you don’t get infected.]
2. XFXZ Group (幸福小组)
Press on with the consolidation of your BESTs. Continue to build relationships and inform them about the live streaming of our services. Give them the link and encourage them to go into the live streaming. Or you may wish to invite them to view the live streaming at your home. Challenge them to get baptized and sign them up for the next baptism. To download baptism forms, click on this URL link: www.fcbc.org.sg/pastoral-care/baptism
[Baptism services are temporarily suspended. But submission of baptism forms is still open.]
3. XFXZ Wave 3 – (Launched on Wednesday, 19 Feb 2020)
Continue to make as many connections as possible and pray for all our potential BESTs. Fix a time to synchronize prayers daily for your Bests and for your XFXZ sessions.
4. 3x3 Prayer
Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal the strongholds that bind the people. Ask Him to set up divine appointments for us to minister His power over them (words of knowledge, healing, helps, etc.). Pray for one another to have boldness, courage and obedience to follow through.
5. Consolidation of New Converts
Assimilate them! Let them have a sense of belonging with our faith community! Connect with them via phone calls; meet up with them over a meal; make home visits; introduce them to cell members and invite them to fellowship with our faith community in cell groups and through live stream services.
Announcements:
Please visit https://www.fcbc.org.sg/bulletin/ or our FCBC App for more details.