God is Purging the Church - Worship in the End Times Part 3

God is Purging the Church 

The Old Testament saints associated holiness with consecration and separation. Holiness seems to be the defining element of God’s character that best represents who He is as someone separated from all other created beings. It captures the sum attributes of His flawless character and distinctly separates Him from all others.

God dwelt in the Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle, a place only the high priest could enter with caution, and then only on special days. God’s presence made the place where He resided in the Tabernacle consecrated and holy. Wherever God is present, the place is sanctified or made holy. Holy Spirit inhabits us when we are born again, imparting His righteousness to us, giving us the right to be in His presence. However we are still commanded to be holy in our conduct and godly character (1Corinthians 3:16,1 Peter 1:16 Amplified).

We must allow God’s work in our lives that separates us from the world and its values. The born-again experience opens the door to righteous living, which is where the power of God operates through us to establish His Kingdom. God is purging and cleansing His Church in preparation for the greatest outpouring of His Spirit the world has ever seen.

God is eternally and infinitely holy whether we praise Him or not but the fact that He allows us to is the greatest privilege in life. We are told that He inhabits the praises of Israel or His people. ‘You are holy, enthroned in the praises of Israel’ (Psalm 22:3). This Scripture associates God’s holiness with praise and suggests that when we praise Him, He makes Himself at home. The Hebrew word ‘inhabiting’ carries the idea of living with someone in a marriage relationship. It also has the connotation of presiding as a judge. Praise invites God not only to inhabit our lives intimately as would a marriage partner but also to judge the way we live. Holiness is not a works program on our part to please God, but a yielded life of obedience to His word and Holy Spirit.

Prophecy
‘As the church becomes more intimate in worship to God, the revelation of His holiness and all the ramifications of it will profoundly affect the Church. As we become more aware of His holiness, we become more aware of our sinfulness and His grace that enables us to stand in His presence and worship Him. This will lead to times of repentance in our church meetings that will flow out of worship. A thorough cleansing will purge the Church of sin and iniquity and believers will start to walk in a place of righteous living that they have never experienced. All this will be initiated through the presence of God in our midst, with an undeniable work of the Holy Spirit touching the hearts of men and women everywhere’.

Praise is our expression of wonder, awe, admiration, and gratitude for all that God is and all that He means to us. It is simply our response to His perfect, flawless nature. We are commanded to worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness (Psalm 29:2). This is not referring to a state of perfection, but righteous living.

It is knowing God and His ways gained through time in His Word that makes us joyful and full of praise. The four living creatures cried out ‘Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty who was and is and is to come’ (Revelation 4:8). They worshiped what they were seeing and experiencing––a holy God. We also worship what we see, but unlike heavenly creatures, we can see God only by faith as we spend time in His Word, in prayer, and in worship.

Praise helps you become like Him, being transformed into His image in His presence. In this way, it can be claimed that praise and worship are possibly the most powerful, life-transforming activities in Christendom. Praise doesn’t change God, but it does change us to become more like Jesus (2 Corinthians 3:18).