welcome [] · welcome greetings! i am so excited that you have chosen to go on this journey through...

WelcomeGreetings! I am so excited that you have chosen to go on this journey through True Worshipers. You have already put yourself in a place to grow closer to God by becoming a True Worshiper in your choice to go through this study. Whether you are going through this study on your own or in a group I want to encourage you to really open yourself up to the leading of the Holy Spirit. No matter where you are in you spiritual walk, it is my hope that through this study you will take one more step closer to being the True Worshiper that God desires.

These weeks ahead may not be easy, but they will be healthy for us all. Any change of wrong behavior, poor attitudes or bad habits feels awkward at first. I know this first hand. But unless we can see what’s holding our worship down and take some consistent steps forward we are not going to seek what really matters to God. I am praying more than anything else that in various ways during these weeks that God will show himself to you in new ways. May this study cause us all to become the True Worshipers that God desires for us to become.

A big thank you for everyone who made this project come together. And a special word of appreciation to all the unsung heroes who are Small Group facilitators and hosts out there creating environments for hundreds to belong, grow and serve. Keep up the great work serving the King!

John

using this GUIDE

1. Notice that in each lesson there are seven sections:

• Big IDEA - This will give you the overall theme for each lesson.

• share IT - These are some questions to help your group get to thinking about the lesson and to make connections relationally.

• read IT - We want everyone to be opening the Bible together each week. These passages should get you thinking about the theme of each lesson.

• watch IT - There will be an 8 to 12 minute video teaching by one of the staff at Northside Christian Church. Videos can be found on the Northside Christian Church, Springfield, MO page at YouTube.com

• note IT - This one is pretty obvious, but just in case. Place to take notes from the video lesson.

• discuss IT - Questions to discuss as a group or to reflect on personally.

• do IT - Activities to do as a group and/or suggestions for putting the lesson into practice.

2. If you are facilitating/leading or co-leading a small group, use this workbook as a guide, not a straightjacket. If the group responds to the lesson in an unexpected but honest way, go with it. If you think of a better question than the next one in the lesson, ask it.

3. Use the praises and prayers section at the end of this guide to record your group's prayer requests and praises. Then you will have them to pray through each day of the week.

4. Enjoy your small group experience!!!

group INFO

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True worshipers MATTER

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TableOF

CONTENTS

Seeking what

matters to God

WORSHIP & REALITY

True worshipers RECEIVE

WORSHIP & OUR INABILITY

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True worshipers EDIFY

WORSHIP & Maturity WORSHIP & Music WORSHIP & PERSEVERANCE

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True worshipers SING

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True worshipers KEEP SINGING

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True worshipers EXALT

WORSHIP & HUMILITY

4SESSION

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True worshipers GATHER

WORSHIP & COMMUNITY

WORSHIP & THE PRESENCE OF GOD WORSHIP & ETERNITY

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8SESSION

True worshipers ENCOUNTER 9

True worshipers ANTICIPATE

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True worshipers MATTER

WORSHIP & REALITY

Big IDEA

SHARE IT

God is seeking people who will be devoted to worshiping Him personally and passionately.

Describe the best music concert you’ve ever attended. What did you like most about it?

Read ITJohn 4:1-42

watch ITWatch video of lesson 1.

Corey Scott

1

Note IT

Discuss IT1. Bob Kauflin states in True Worshipers that the worship of God is “never irrelevant” and “never unimportant,” and that there’s “nothing more foundational to our relationship with God and to our lives as Christians (p. 21).” How would you view the importance of worshiping God compared to other pursuits and interests in life?

2. While it is true that worship begins with God, we too often display a mindset that suggests worship is about us. We allow preferences and conveniences to dictate whether or not we give God the praise He deserves. How have you personally seen this reflected in your own life? How can you specifically let Christ correct this?

3. Jesus altered the Samaritan woman’s understanding of worship. How is He altering your understanding of what God is seeking in you as a worshiper?

4. Bob Kauflin explains in True Worshipers that music “was never meant to be the heart” of worshiping God. Do you agree? Why or why not?

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5. Psalm 107:32 says, “Let them extol him in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders.” While worship is personal, it is not to be restricted solely to a private event. Worship is to be public and communal as well. Have you ever experienced barriers or inhibitions in the corporate expressions of worship? If so, what do you feel is the root cause of those barriers? Can they be overcome?

6. In the final quote in the video, Frankland wrote, “But much of worship concerns wanting to please Him, and I believe He loves us when we try” (His Story, Our Response; page 20). What are some ways that you can try to become a True Worshiper this week? Share those things with the group, and pray for one another.

Do IT• Consider the way that is most natural for you to worship God. What is the setting like? What is the style and approach? Are there postures of worship that are more natural to you?• Write down at least three ways you can worship personally and passionately that are outside of what comes most natural.

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• Pray that God would help you to choose to “own your own worship” even when the environment is not conducive to your preferences.

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More NOTES

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True worshipers RECEIVE

WORSHIP & OUR INABILITYallen tyger

Big IDEA

SHARE IT

Worship is first an act of receiving, then an act of giving. Before we can worship God, we must first understand how much He has given us.

• What is the most memorable gift you have ever received? Why was it so memorable?

• Have you ever received a Bible as a gift? Who gave it to you? Was it a significant gift?

Read ITPsalm 119:9-16 Psalm 119:49-56 Psalm 119:105-112 Psalm 119:169-176


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Note IT

Discuss IT1. What in the video stuck out to you? Did Allen say anything that surprised you, taught you or that you disagreed with?

2. Have you ever thought of worship being an act of receiving? If so, how has it shaped your worship? If not, why do you think this is such an uncommon way for us to think of it?

3. Many think that the sermon is a Word thing and worship is a Spirit thing. How is that inaccurate? How are they connected? (I.e. How is the sermon a Spiritual thing, and the worship a Word thing?)

Read 2 Timothy 3:16-17 aloud in 2 different versions of scripture (ESV, NIV, NLT, MSG etc.). 4. Of all the ways these verses describe the Word of God being used, which ones are most common? Which are most uncommon?

5. In this context, what do you think verse 17 means? How does this apply to our worship?

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Read Hebrews 4:11-16 aloud.6. How can the author end this passage talking about confidence in approaching God after explaining how powerful and convicting the Word can be? What’s in between conviction and confidence in these verses?

Do IT• Discuss with your group how you can encourage one another to make the Word worship.

• Challenge each other to read the Word this week and thank God everyday for the gift of his Word.

• Share your daily routine for reading the Word with your group (or listen to how others regularly get into the Word).

• Challenge your group to read Scripture together (maybe Psalm 119).

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True worshipers EXALT

WORSHIP & HUMILITYCorey Scott

Big IDEA

SHARE IT

In worship, we relate to God primarily through the posture of humility.

• What is the most humbling thing you ever did to serve someone else?

• What prompted you to act in that way?

Read ITRead John 13:1-20


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Note IT

Discuss IT1. Why is it that we can be so easily offended when someone asks us to serve them in some way that we think might be “beneath” us?

2. In True Worshipers, Bob Kauflin states, “To worship God is to humble everything about ourselves and exalt everything about him.” Do you believe that this kind of humility is even possible, or is it just the unreachable ideal for the Christian? Why do you think this is so?

3. What are some ways that you have shown gratitude for what Jesus has done for you? Make sure someone in the group writes down everything mentioned. You’ll use this for the “Do It” section.

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4. As mentioned in the session, Jesus said in John 14:15, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” Verse 16 goes on to say that a result of this kind of obedient love is that God will send the Holy Spirit to dwell within us forever. Why do you feel Jesus makes such a strong connection between love and obedience? Is it possible to have one without the other?

5. What is one step you could intentionally take this next Sunday morning to humble yourself within the worship service?

Do IT• As mentioned in number 3 of the “Discuss It” section, compile all the ways that the members of your group show gratitude for what Jesus has done for them. Send that list to each individual in the group (via email, paper copy, Facebook group, etc.).

• Use this as an think tank for ways that you can creatively demonstrate gratitude to Jesus. Commit to trying one method a day for the next week. At your group’s next meeting, share the results of living every day with gratitude.

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More NOTES

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4SESSION

True worshipers GATHER

WORSHIP & COMMUNITYJohn presko

Big IDEA

SHARE IT

Human beings are made to worship someone or something. As Christians, we are called to thank and praise God together in community.

This community worship is central to what God is doing on the earth.

• When you think of a worship gathering, what do you think of?

• Share one of the most memorable worship gatherings you have attended.

Read ITPsalm 111 Psalm 35:18 Psalm 34:1-3


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Note IT

Discuss IT1.John mentioned that there are over 90 words that connect Christ with the church. What word do you most connect with?

2. Name some of the negative perceptions of community worship.

3. What is your biggest struggle when it comes to community worship?

4. What benefit do we gain by worshiping together in community?14

5. Showing up on time and praying before you arrive were mentioned as preparation for community worship. Let’s help each other out. What things are you doing or could you be doing to help you be more prepared for worship on Sunday mornings?

6. Hebrews 10:25 (NLT) says “And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.” How can we best encourage others to attend church regularly?

7. How can we be the biggest encouragement while at church?

Do ITTake some time to pray together specifically for: • Corey Scott, Worship Minister • Wayne Bushnell, Lead Minister • Praise Team, singers and musicians • Tech Team - camera, lighting, sound and computers

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True worshipers EDIFY

WORSHIP & MATURITYKevin punch

Big IDEA

SHARE IT

God is seeking true worshipers, who serve each other in the church as an act of worship, because God has gifted and empowered us to serve.

• When you were a child, what did you want to grow up to be?

Read ITEphesians 4:11-16 Romans 12:4-8


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Note IT

Discuss IT1. Why do many people consider worship and service to be two separate activities?

2. How does God use our serving to help the church become more and more like Jesus?

3. What are the excuses or barriers we use to keep us from serving?

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4. How has God gifted you to serve within the Church?

5.Why is it important to rely on God’s power in our service?

6. What happens when people choose not to serve in the church?

Do IT• If you are currently serving in a ministry, share where you are currently serving and how your ministry is helping people become more like Jesus.

• If you are not currently serving in a ministry, share where you would like to serve, helping people become more like Jesus.

• We want to do everything we can to help you plug into a ministry at Northside, but the first step is up to you. We need to know that you are interested in serving at Northside to start the conversation about the best place for you to serve. You can take the first step today by signing up at www.NorthsideChristianChurch.net/next-steps/contribute-to-ministry-Form

• In addition, you can download a spiritual gifts assessment to help you identify the unique ways God has gifted you to serve in the church.

• As you think further on this chapter’s content and how it helps you in being a true worshiper of God, remember to respond directly to God in prayer. Consider expressing the following thoughts and requests in your own words:

Thank you for the vast and startling variety of gifts and abilities you’ve bestowed on the local congregation you’ve placed me in. What a

privilege it is to see the effects of blessing, serving, encouraging, helping and strengthening one another. Father, help me be faithful to edify others in ways that you have gifted and called me to do. Keep showing me all I can do to serve those around me, and how and when and where. Help

me make the most of these opportunities, and use me to build others into Jesus Christ, the source of every blessing and the fountain of all grace.

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WORSHIP & MUSIC

6SESSION

True worshipers SING corey scott

Big IDEA

SHARE IT

True worshipers will open their mouths and sing because it makes them more like Jesus, and reveals a deeper devotion to Christ.

• What’s one of the most memorable and impacting songs you could sing?

• Are you willing to give your group a sample of the song?

• What makes this song so important to you, personally?

Read ITLuke 6:43-45 Psalm 150


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Note IT

Discuss IT1. What are some of the excuses we give as to why we won’t sing in worship?

2. Even if singing comes fairly natural to you, what are some barriers that can keep you from singing praises to the Lord?

3. Read Hebrews 2:10-12. Even though this verse is quoting Psalm 22:22 (an extremely Messianic Psalm), Who is doing the singing? (Hint: a Sunday School answer will work here!). Why is it so important that we see Jesus as a singer?

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4. As Bob Kauflin said, “Passionless praise is an oxymoron.” Have you ever praised God without passion? If so, what was the reason for the lack of sincerity? What have you discovered to help overcome this?

5. Since Jesus said that “out of the abundance of the heart, his mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45), would you agree that refusing to sing is an indication the individual’s devotion to Christ might be less than expected? Why or why not?

• Sing. In your small group, choose a song of praise you can offer to God together.

• Find ways to sing to God throughout the week. Don’t let Sunday morning be the only time you sing. Sing in the car. Sing with your kids at bedtime. Worship in the shower. Worship while you do yard work. Be creative.

• Sing on Sunday mornings with the fellowship of believers. Commit Psalm 107:32 to memory and put it into practice each Sunday. “Let them extol him in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders.”

Do IT

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More NOTES

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True worshipers KEEP SINGING

WORSHIP & PERSEVERANCEALLEN TYGER

Big IDEA

SHARE IT

We worship because we put our trust and hope in God’s power to save us and the lost. We persevere, and our worship matters because a

hopeless world is watching.

• What for you is the largest distraction in church? Is it usually something that is at church (music, lights, the people next to you, etc.) or something that you bring with you (busy schedule, anxious thoughts, etc.)?

• Why do we tend to let distractions keep us from worship? How do you combat distractions in worship?

Read ITActs 16:16-40


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Note IT

Discuss IT1. Would someone want to share the thoughts they had during those few questions at the end?

2. Was there anything in the video that stuck with you, surprised you or that you disagreed with? If so, what and why?

3. Allen said one of the reasons we persevere in worship is because a hopeless world is watching. How does this motivate you to worship differently?

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4. In the story of Paul and Silas’ prison escape, how did their worship share the hope and trust they had in God?

5. How could you apply this principle to your everyday worship (outside of Sunday morning)?

6. Clouded worship applies to Sunday morning as well. What can you do to prepare yourself for Sunday morning distractions?

• Ask this question: How can our small group help you when you don’t feel like worshiping?

• Spend some extended time in prayer. Pair up with someone of the same gender (or a spouse) and pray for each other’s specific distractions in worship. Give your group time to pray for each other.

Do IT

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More NOTES

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WORSHIP & THE PRESENCE OF GOD8SESSION

True worshipers ENCOUNTER

John Presko

Big IDEA

SHARE IT

God’s presence has always been a distinguishing characteristic of his people and our response to God’s presence uniquely defines us as God’s people.

• Share a time when you felt the presence of God, an encounter with God.

• What emotions do you remember experiencing?

Read ITHebrews 12:18-29 (NLT)


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Note IT

Discuss IT1. In True Worshipers Bob Kauflin writes, “Our worship isn’t only about God; it involves God”. What personal involvement do you regularly expect from God when you gather with the church to worship him? What about in your daily life?

2. How many times have you been with others in your church and wondered if God was even there? Should we expect any evidence that he’s there? If so, what does that evidence look like?

3. John mentioned that no worship leader, preacher, musician, special object or even being in the mountains closer to the stars can bring us into the presence of God, but only Jesus leads us into God’s presence. Have you ever allowed anything to take that place in your worship?

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4. If true worshipers encounter God, is there anything we can do to help or hinder that encounter?

5. Hebrews 12 which we read earlier contrasts two covenants by using Mount Sinai and Mount Zion. Mount Sinai being impersonal and terrible in which Moses was terrified and trembling and then in contrast Mount Zion is a place of relationships. What has made the difference in these two covenants?

6. As we seek God’s presence, why is it always important to stay mindful of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ on our behalf?

7. John highlights three attitudes that will help us in pursuing God’s presence: desire it, expect it, and be ready for it. How has God begun to build all three of those attitudes in your inner life?

• Read Psalm 63:1-8

• Spend a few minutes writing out your heart in each of these areas:

What is my Desire for you God?

What do I Expect You to do in my life?

I will be Ready for you to show up by...

Do IT

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WORSHIP & ETERNITY

9True worshipers ANTICIPATE

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wayne Bushnell

Big IDEA

SHARE IT

No worship gathering in this life will ever rival the splendor of what’s to come. We should live with anticipation

for worship in heaven. That anticipation for worship in heaven should impact our decisions in the immediate.

• Share with the group something that you are eagerly anticipating.

• Share the emotions you have and are experiencing in your anticipation. • What are you anticipating about worship in eternity?

Read ITRevelation 7:9-12 (ESV) Revelation 22:1-9 (ESV)


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Note IT

Discuss IT1. (If this question wasn’t used at the beginning ask) What are you anticipating about worship in eternity?

2. Name some of the negative perceptions we might develop concerning worship in heaven.

3. What benefit do we gain now by talking and thinking about worship in heaven?

4. How should our knowledge of worship there (in heaven) affect our view and/or our approach to worship here (on earth)?

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5. Wayne said there is a war for your worship taking place right now. In what ways is that happening?

6. Make a list of 10 ways our small group could worship God right here right now. (this list should reveal the many ways we worship God beyond singing)

7. In Revelation 22:3 the NIV says, “His servants will serve him”, the ESV says, “God’s servants will worship him”. (The Greek word can be used in both those ways). Why is it that worship and service are so closely related?

• Set aside time to take communion together as a small group.

One of the most significant things we do in our worship here on earth that we will also do in heaven is communion.

We are commanded to celebrate the Lord’s supper until he comes (1 Cor. 11:26). Even as we feast at his table and proclaim the Lord’s death that reconciled us to God, our eyes are on the future wedding feast. We’re among those who have loved his appearing” (2 Tim. 4:8) because we recognize that our is in heaven. Every person who has trusted in Christ will be an honored attendee at the marriage supper of the lamb. One day men and women of every background, ethnicity and nation will be eating, laughing, singing, and partaking in the Lord’s supper together to remember the blood that was shed for each and everyone of us.

Jesus said in Mark 14:25 “Truly I tell you, I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”

Communion is a meaningful part of our worship that is both “already” and “not yet”. We already commune with Jesus in communion but not yet to the extent we will in his full presence. There, He will eat with us! There, he will drink with us! In the meantime, his presence is with us, ministering to us, as we remember his death, his burial and his resurrection.

• Pass out the prepackaged communion bread and juice. Take out the bread and hold it, prepare the juice to drink and hold it. • Read 1 Corinthians 11:23-29. • Pray. • Eat in remembrance of his body. • Drink in remembrance of his blood. • Read the responding in prayer section below then sit quietly as each person prays silently. • Then have someone close in prayer.

Do IT

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• Responding in prayer As you think further on this chapter’s content and how it helps you in being a true worshiper of God, remember to respond directly to God in prayer. Consider expressing the following thoughts and requests in your own words:

Thank you for the coming day when all those who have trusted in Christ will be in your immediate presence—when we become like you, as

face-to-face we see you as you really are. What amazing love— that we can forever be called your children, worshiping in full light of your presence,

reigning with you forever! I praise and thank you, Almighty God, for deliv-ering us from the domain of darkness and transferring us to the kingdom of your beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

Yours, O Lord, is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever and ever! Amen.

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Praises and PRAYERS

welcome [] · welcome greetings! i am so excited that you have chosen to go on this journey through...

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