Supercharge Your Worship Experience

[0:00] What do you get excited about? Tell me, what are some of the things you get excited about? Church. Okay, great. Awesome. That's where I was going. That's the Sunday school answer, by the way.

[0:12] Alright, now what do you get excited about? Christmas. Yes, a lot of people. Family and presents and food. We get excited. Do you prepare for Christmas? Of course you do. Some of you prepare for Christmas all year long.

[0:27] What else? What? Cookie exchange. Yes, I tasted some last night. They were good, so you know what to expect.

[0:39] Music. Yes, we get excited and we look forward to music. What else? Grandkids. Yes, you love to have them and you love to send them home.

[0:54] What about Alabama versus Auburn? Football game. Somebody says amen. Ooh. What about Super Bowl? Super Bowl Sunday?

[1:05] Yeah. Well, some of you get excited about Super Bowl Sunday. And to think about all of these things you get excited about. Do you ever think about that feeling?

[1:17] It's hard to stay still. You're looking forward to it. And I remember Christmas expectation. You know, it's Christmas Eve. And you're like, oh, you just can't wait.

[1:28] And you get up so early before the sun even comes out. You know, you normally do that on Christmas morning. You don't get up early during the rest of the year, right? But you prepare for it. Well, this morning, we're going to be looking in the book of Acts, chapter 10, verses 24 to 33.

[1:45] And we're going to walk a little bit in Cornelius' shoes. We heard a little bit of Cornelius last week. And look at what if we came into this time of worship with the same amount of preparation that we spend on Christmas.

[2:12] Or those of you who do Super Bowl parties, you make sure there's enough nachos and chips and cheese and dip. And you go and you prepare. What if we prepared to hear God's Word, to see one another, to worship together with the same level of expectation in everything else that we get excited about?

[2:36] Do you think it might revolutionize our worship? I think it would. And so let's take our Bibles this morning and let's turn to Acts, chapter number 10 and start with verse number 24.

[2:51] Now, this passage that we are in, we started last week. We're going to continue it next week. The Bible says, And he is sharing God's Word.

[3:31] And he goes to Samaria. And with miracles and sharing Jesus, many in Samaria come to know the Lord as their Savior.

[3:44] As did many of the Jews. We know that 3,000 people were added to the church on the day of Pentecost. These were Jews. And they received the Holy Spirit at that time.

[3:56] And then, Philip in Samaria, the Samaritans trust Christ as their Savior. They receive Jesus. Peter comes by and he lays hands on them and they receive the Holy Spirit.

[4:13] You remember what Jesus told Peter? That he would be given the keys to the kingdom. He wasn't given the keys to the kingdom as the first pope. He was given the responsibility of opening up the gospel, opening the door to the gospel to the entire world.

[4:32] He did it for the Jews on the day of Pentecost. He did it for the Samaritans when he went there with Philip. And then what we see in chapter 10 is Peter opening up the door to the gospel to the Gentile world.

[4:48] And are you not happy? Because you and I, I'm not a Jew. And because you and I are Gentiles, we thank Peter that he was willing to get beyond his religious and cultural prejudices and biases and be willing to pivot when God changed the program on him and said, OK, I'm going to go in this direction now and I'll bring the gospel to people that normally I would feel dirty just being around.

[5:22] And that is where we are today. But I see in today's section is a subtext. And we're going to look at the excitement and the enthusiasm that Cornelius and his family and his friends had toward receiving the message of God.

[5:46] Not only is it the gospel going out to the Gentiles, but it's also their enthusiasm and excitement at receiving the message that Peter was going to come and bring them.

[6:00] Verse 24, And the following day they entered Caesarea. Two days before this, three days before this actually, Peter had the vision, the sheet held up by the four corners with the animals in it.

[6:18] They were all unclean animals being lowered. God said, Peter, get up, kill and eat. Three times Peter said, and then Peter said, No, Lord, I've never eaten anything unclean.

[6:30] I've never broken the Old Testament Levitical law. He said, I won't do it. And God said, do it because what I have considered clean, don't you call unclean. And he was willing.

[6:41] He allowed the Gentiles that Cornelius had sent two days before. He said, come on, you guys come in. Let's eat, spend the night, and I'm going to go with you the next day. We find that in chapter 11 that Peter, not only with the envoys from Cornelius, but he takes six other Christians with him to go to Caesarea.

[7:06] And so the following day they entered Caesarea. It was about a 30-mile journey north to Caesarea from Judea, and about a two-day journey walking.

[7:21] Now Cornelius was waiting for them and had called together his relatives and his close friends. As Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him, fell down at his feet, and worshipped him.

[7:35] But Peter lifted him up, saying, Stand up, I myself am also a man. And as he talked with him, he went in and found many who had come together.

[7:49] So we ask ourselves the question, how can we supercharge our worship? Let's begin with prayer. Father, this morning I ask that your Holy Spirit would be prompting, your Holy Spirit would be moving amongst us this morning, and that you would move in our hearts and minds to realize that you're in control.

[8:13] And just this opportunity that we have to be together is so profound that you would love us so much.

[8:25] You sent your son Jesus to die on the cross in our place, and that you have chosen to have a relationship with us, the God of this world, the creator of the universe, that we can meet with together.

[8:40] Lord, we thank you for this opportunity, and teach us today. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. So what do we learn? What are we going to be learning this morning?

[8:51] We're going to be learning that it pays to prepare yourself and to be enthusiastic about receiving the message of God.

[9:01] So the question is, how can we supercharge our worship? The first way is by actively anticipating God's presence when we come together.

[9:16] Anticipate meeting God. it's like going on that first date with that special someone. You look forward to it.

[9:27] You think about it. You prepare yourself. You know, you take a shower. You put on your best clothes. Sometimes, if you could look back and remember, you probably changed three or four times before you found the right outfit.

[9:41] And you put on the smell good. And you were so looking forward to being with them. we see a level of that excitement in Cornelius and his family when it comes to hearing the message from God that Peter, God's envoy, would be bringing.

[10:00] So actively anticipate God's presence. And so we see the model for us in verses 24 through 27. Now, Cornelius, what was his position here?

[10:13] What was his where was he? What does verse 24 say? Cornelius was what? He was waiting. He was waiting for them.

[10:25] And he had called together his relatives and his close friends. Verse 25, as Peter was coming in. So Peter comes to the gate. They announced themselves.

[10:35] And probably even before Peter and his entourage comes into the house, Cornelius was so expectantly waiting on the message from God and the messenger from God that he goes out and meets him.

[10:53] So we have spiritual readiness. We have Cornelius prepared to hear. Cornelius was waiting on them. And what did Cornelius do while he was waiting?

[11:07] Was he twiddling his thumbs? No, you can talk to me this morning. Come on. We're family. What was he doing? Was he twiddling his thumbs?

[11:18] Was he just biding his time? Now, there were no cell phones. There was no email and there was no texting in Cornelius' days. Some of you might come as a surprise to you.

[11:30] Especially you who are probably under 20. So what was he doing? He was inviting people. He was preparing and he knew that something special was going to happen.

[11:44] So what he did was he got his family. He got his loved ones to come. But he also probably sent out people to the neighbors. into the neighborhood. And he said, something awesome is going to happen here at my house in a couple of days.

[12:00] I want you guys here. Now, were they trickling in? No, they were already there. They got there early.

[12:10] They got there early for the special event. He says, Cornelius was waiting for them. he had called together his relatives and his close friends.

[12:22] So we had some spiritual readiness. But also, we see some reverence here. Verse 25, as Peter was coming in.

[12:34] Peter hadn't even made it through the door yet. as Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him and what is his attitude toward Peter?

[12:52] And I don't mean a psychological attitude. His position, he fell down, pipto in the Greek, he literally laid himself at Peter's feet.

[13:07] He fell upon him, if you will, and he worshipped. Now, that word worship might be a little confusing if we ascribe it to worshipping a god.

[13:25] That is not what Cornelius was doing. He knew that Peter was not a god. Proskuneo, the word in the Greek, means to kiss.

[13:39] A good analogy of that would be a dog licking its master's hand. I'm so excited to see you. And dogs licking your hand because he's so excited.

[13:53] That was Cornelius' attitude toward the messenger of God. Not that he was licking Peter's hand, but he was so reverently waiting and expectant because he knew that Peter was the messenger and that Peter would bring a word from God.

[14:14] And so Cornelius fell down at his feet and he was, another definition of that word, proskuneo, is to fawn over.

[14:26] Have you ever fawned over anything? All you need to do with fawning, those of you who see clips of people at a Beatles concert back in the 60s, you had ladies fawning over them.

[14:46] The same thing with a football player that's just so known all over the United States, and when people meet them it's like, I'm meeting an idol, I'm meeting a football god, and they fawn over them, I want your autograph.

[15:05] And so this was the attitude that Cornelius had toward the messenger of God. How did Peter respond?

[15:17] Peter knew he shouldn't have received any of the praise or the worship. He said, don't fawn over me, give God the glory, stand up, I myself am also a man, and as he talked with him, he went in, and I'm sure it warmed Peter's heart to see the crowd.

[15:43] And it warms my heart when I see a crowd, especially when this place is filled. Why? Well, it does to you as well. It's exciting to see so many people come together for the same reason, for the same purpose.

[16:00] So we ask ourselves the question, what would it take for us to come together on Sunday morning, first day of the week, the same day that the early church came together, or that the disciples came together to worship God, because it was the day that Jesus rose again from the dead?

[16:26] What would it take for us to come here with that same level of expectancy and preparation, enthusiasm, and excitement that we are going to hear from God today?

[16:47] today. And I want you to know that on Sunday mornings before I preach, I pray that God would get me out of the way, and that he would be the only one that you hear from.

[17:03] Because church is not about a personality. Church is not about coming to hear a world class preacher.

[17:14] preacher. Now, those churches that have what we would consider an inspiring world class preacher that can keep people spellbound for 45 minutes to an hour, that would be nice.

[17:28] I wish I could do that. But what would it take for us? If you look in your bulletins, I have put together something that if we tried, it might prepare us, because you do realize that we prepare for things that we're excited about.

[17:56] I've known people who were so excited about yard sales that all week long they're looking in the newspaper, and I've known people who literally have a piece of paper, and they list out the yard sales, and they say, you go to this one, you go to that one, because I think they have some things that we really need, so we've got to be there before they open up, and they have their maps, and they are fully prepared.

[18:33] prepared. So we prepare for what we are excited about. The same thing holds true for other areas of our life as well.

[18:44] What if we prepared all week long to come together? So here's what I've put together. Start each day of the week with prayer. I mean, just start every morning.

[18:57] God, show me what you want me to know today. God, show me how you want to live your life through me today. Who do you want me to reach?

[19:08] Dedicate a few moments every morning, preparing yourself to begin the day with a spirit of anticipation already leading to the time of corporate worship together.

[19:25] Engage with God's Word. It's important, I believe, if you just take a verse and pray through that verse.

[19:37] Get a pen and paper and just write down just sins to forsake, promises to claim, examples to follow, commands to obey, something new you learned about God through that verse or portion of scripture.

[20:02] And then all week long, reflect on what God is teaching you throughout the week. So that's the week long preparation. What about Saturday night preparation?

[20:15] Well, set aside some quiet time Saturday evening. Prepare yourself. Some of you have times of devotion with your family, with the children or as a couple.

[20:30] Take that Saturday evening as a time to prepare yourself for the worship the following morning. This can help calm your mind. This can help you focus as well.

[20:43] And just expectantly, I remember, was it last week we went to Natchitoches? It was last, you know, time, I've slept since then, I'm sorry. Last week we were invited to go up to spend the day in Natchitoches and watch a Christmas.

[21:08] I have a whole day of Christmas. So there were lights, there were all kinds of things going on, we ate some awesome meat pies at Atlassian's, and you know what?

[21:19] Friday night I was so excited, I was looking forward to going with the kids, with the grandkids, spend the day together and we always love going up there, Catherine and I have been up there a number of times, plan on going back, but I was so looking forward to it that I laid out my clothes Friday night.

[21:43] And that brings me to the next, plan your Sunday morning in advance to avoid rushing around. It might include laying out your clothes, how many of you have ever on Sunday morning, guys, you're probably more guilty of this, honey, where's this?

[22:07] I thought this was clean, but I can't find it. Am I the only one that's ever done that? Yeah, no, you're not, no, I'm not, no, I'm not.

[22:18] So how about Saturday night? You go, honey, I can't find this favorite shirt that I, how about if you do that on Saturday night, so Sunday morning it's all laid out and you don't have to be late because you couldn't find, or how about preparing breakfast and organizing anything you need to bring or that you need to have for lunch?

[22:39] Now you say, pastor, that's just so practical. Well, so, so Saturday night preparation. What about your Sunday morning routine?

[22:50] What does the devil love to do to families on Sunday morning? Cause chaos, make you late, get your mind on, I mean, your, your, your well goes out on Sunday morning and you can't take a shower.

[23:10] Don't tell me that hasn't happened to you. We have one of the, well, they're going up in price, so hopefully the service gets better. Some of you say, man, we live in the same neighborhood, that we have no water often or our water is, I don't think our water should be brown, do you?

[23:30] So anyway, stuff happens. So prepare as much as you can, be as in control of what you have control over. And so prepare yourself on Sunday morning, but wake up early enough on Sunday mornings to have a, you notice, notice the way I wrote this, wake up early enough to have a peaceful morning without rushing.

[23:59] Wouldn't be nice to have a peaceful morning? Use this time for personal devotion, for prayer. And very often what I do is I have a little speaker in our bathroom and I'll just have it play worship music on Sunday morning to prepare myself as I'm getting ready.

[24:20] Have a nutritious breakfast. Because if your stomach is grumbling and you're thinking about, I can't wait for that roast because I am so famished.

[24:35] So eat a nutritious breakfast so you're not thinking about lunch by 10, 15 in the morning. I know, I'm very practical. And if possible, now this might be a chore for some of us, if possible, arrive at church a bit early.

[24:53] You know, sometimes church on Sunday mornings is like opening the gate at an event. Like, where is, there's nobody here and all of a sudden, five minutes later, the place is full.

[25:07] Have I gone from preaching to meddling? Oh well. But use this time to prepare your hearts. I know that we talk and we visit with one another, but it's not a bad thing.

[25:23] We're not coming to a funeral after all. But I think we should be preparing our hearts, preparing our minds to gather together. So when Peter gets into Cornelius' house, what does he see?

[25:38] He sees that he found many who had come together, and I'm sure they were waiting in anticipation for the message.

[25:52] They were anticipating actively God's presence and God's message for them. what about next? What do we see next? Verses 28 and 29.

[26:04] Then Peter says to them, verse 28, you know how unlawful it is for a Jewish man to keep company with or go to one of another nation?

[26:16] Now you're thinking, Peter, that was a bit, come on, that was a bit thoughtless. I don't think so, because consider his audience.

[26:32] His audience already knew that for a Jew to be in their presence would have made them uncomfortable. They already knew that.

[26:42] They already knew that this is the most unusual thing for a Orthodox, for a Jew that follows the Old Testament, to be in our house.

[26:57] So what I think what Peter did was, he just kind of, before everything started, he goes, okay, let's get one thing straight. Normally, I wouldn't have done this.

[27:10] So he says, you know, why did he say you know? We use you know as a filler all the time. We did this, you know, and it's like, no, I don't.

[27:22] But I think Peter knew that they knew. You know how unlawful it is for a Jewish man to keep company with or go to one of another nation. But God, but God has shown me that I should not call any man common or unclean.

[27:44] So we need to realize that enthusiasm, that enthusiasm, enthusiastically following God's plan and God's purpose is worship's expression.

[28:00] So when we come together enthusiastically prepared to hear the word of God, to enjoy one another's presence, that's an act of worship in and of itself.

[28:12] And that's how worship is expressed, because we are excited about it. The same way we get excited about going with the family, with the grandkids come over, the same way we get excited about Black Friday deals, and Black Friday shopping, the same way we get excited about whatever, it's how we express it that shows how valuable it is for us.

[28:42] We see that God was having Peter break down barriers, just like we said last week, just like we learned last week.

[28:53] Only God could have broken down the barrier of Peter's religious and social prejudices and tradition to the point where Peter would have been willing to go and to step foot inside a Gentile's home.

[29:20] See, Peter didn't come to this casual decision, or Peter didn't come to this decision casually. It took God changing his mind about tearing down that wall and being willing to go to people that he would not normally go to.

[29:39] Someone that Peter would have considered dirty or unclean. And this, what I see is this revolutionary act, if you will, was fueled by Peter's enthusiasm to accomplish God's mission.

[30:00] To give you a little bit of an idea of what it must have been like for Peter, I have been, as I've been dealing with the public for a number of years in the places that I've had to go, I have been in many homes that were nasty.

[30:30] I have been in homes, excuse me, that the moment I walked through the door, the putrid odor was so overpowering, and some of you who have done the job know what I'm talking about, so overpowering that I had to swallow a little bit of, you ever vomit in your mouth?

[30:52] Yeah. I have been in homes where the flooring was missing in spots and I could see the ground. And you look over and you see plates and pots and dishes that haven't been washed in so long, there's mold growing on them.

[31:13] And you walk down the hallway and you look to the side and you see the bathroom that is so nasty, there's black stuff in the tub because it hasn't been washed and cleaned and people are still taking a bath in that stuff.

[31:27] I've been in homes where there were hundreds of roaches crawling on the ceiling and every once in a while one of them would drop. all I wanted to do was go out and just take a shower.

[31:46] And I say that for this reason. That's the way a religious Jew would have felt walking into your home today.

[31:58] Does that surprise you? It may or may not surprise you, but that's the way a Jew would have felt because if a Jew would have walked into your home or mine, they would have had to go and bathe and present themselves to the priest to be considered clean because they became unclean by walking in your house because you're a non-Jew.

[32:20] And so that is the level of change that God brought to Peter to bring the gospel.

[32:34] to a marginalized group that Peter would have never considered going to. And so we have to realize that just us being together is so revolutionary because God broke down and tore down the walls of Peter so that he was willing to go to Gentiles.

[32:58] So he says, it has not been lawful for a Jew to set foot in a Gentile home. But God has shown me. And how do you think this made his listeners feel?

[33:13] Because they knew what he was saying to them when he started off like this. But imagine the excitement when they heard. God said, you're not unclean.

[33:23] all of a sudden, we've got a devout Jew who's now a follower of the Messiah that says, we're not unclean.

[33:34] We're not dirty. And we're not beyond hope. So he says, God has shown me that I should not call any man common or unclean.

[33:45] In verse 29, what we see here is Peter saying, therefore, I came without objection.

[34:01] Peter would not have said that before the sheet was lowered and God changed his entire kingdom view. God took Peter and changed his prejudices and biases.

[34:14] He flipped them upside down and God says, I'm changing the program. Gentiles are not to be considered unclean. He says, you need to go to them and present the gospel.

[34:30] He says, without objection. Your Bible might say gainsaying. That's an archaic English word that simply means without objection, without argument.

[34:41] So he says, I didn't argue with God. I didn't object. He said, so I just simply came as soon as I was sent for. He came the very next morning.

[34:53] So then he asks, for what reason have you sent me? Now, well, Peter, I think you knew. I think you know what reason. I think Peter wasn't prepared to just jump in and he gave them the question or he asked them the question.

[35:10] How prepared are you to hear what I have to tell you? Why did you call me? Why did you send for me? Peter didn't just talk about sharing the gospel with the world.

[35:29] So let's be a church that doesn't just talk about God's mission. Let's be a church that demonstrates going and sharing the gospel with those who need to hear it.

[35:42] So anticipate, actively anticipate God's presence when we come together. Realize that enthusiasm is worship's expression.

[35:54] You have absolutely no qualms about yelling and screaming at the TV when your team scores a point. You have no qualms about being excited when you find a 75% off deal at Walmart.

[36:10] Walmart. Don't sit on your hands when you come and worship the God of the universe and think that you're being reverent. I think God likes a little bit of enthusiasm.

[36:24] I'll hear at least one amen for that because I think God's heart is grieved when he sees us have more excitement for worldly things than we have for him. So anticipate realize that enthusiasm is worship's expression and then we continue verses 30 through 33.

[36:43] And so what Cornelius does in response to Peter's question so why did you call me here? What Cornelius does is he recites the vision or he recites the visitor that he had.

[36:55] So Cornelius said four days ago remember he said it took two days, day and three quarters for the trip. So Cornelius sent his messengers on a four day round trip.

[37:10] So four days ago I was fasting until this hour and at the ninth hour I prayed in the house and behold a man stood before me in bright clothing probably shown as in different passages this term has been spoken of as brighter than any cleaners could ever get your whitest whites.

[37:37] And in my mind I see this angel glowing in bright raiment so bright the angel appeared so bright that Cornelius was afraid.

[37:50] This is not natural. So in bright clothing and said Cornelius your prayer has been heard and your alms are remembered in the sight of God. Send therefore to Joppa and call Simon here whose surname is Peter he is lodging in the house of Simon a tanner by the sea when he comes he will speak to you.

[38:12] So we see here is in verses 30 through verse 32 we see Cornelius excitement for seeking the truth. What does the angel tell him?

[38:24] He says God has heard your prayer. God has seen your offerings to the poor and God has received it and he has accepted it but there's something that we need to understand.

[38:42] There are many people who get confused here and think that it was Cornelius's prayers and his offerings that got him right with God.

[38:53] the truth is our works are never the basis for being right with God.

[39:06] Our works are simply the demonstration that we are right with God or that we are getting right with God. And so the angel is saying God has received what you've done and so he sent someone.

[39:25] So there are not people across the world who just worship and automatically be right with God because Jesus said I am the way the truth the life no one comes to the father except through me.

[39:43] And so if you believe that people can get to heaven no matter what religion they have then you're calling Jesus a liar. So if someone I don't know that I would actually tell someone this face to face I'm telling you right now but they say you know what people can be a Buddhist and still get to heaven.

[40:05] Well you're calling Jesus a liar. Well you know people just you know if they just pray and and they are sincere then God will accept them into heaven.

[40:18] you're calling Jesus a liar because Jesus says no one comes to God except they believe that I am the son of God that I died on the cross in their place and that I paid the full payment for their sin.

[40:32] Having said that people will ask well what about the people in the midst of deepest darkest jungle. people in the God.

[40:50] That a searching God will always send the message to a seeking sinner. We've had missionaries who said they've come to a tribe in the deepest darkest jungle and they were welcomed this doesn't always happen obviously but they were welcomed because they said we knew that the being would send someone to tell us about who he is.

[41:18] so if someone is seeking and truly seeking God I believe God will figure out a way to get them the truth of the gospel.

[41:31] So don't believe that just because Cornelius was praying he was fasting and he was giving to the poor that that made him right with God. Otherwise why would he need Peter to come and give him the message of the gospel.

[41:45] We're going to see next week that what Peter delivers. So he says so Cornelius is reciting what he is what he saw and sin therefore to Joppa called Simon here whose surname is Peter verse 32.

[42:02] He's lodging in the house of Simon of Tanner by the sea when he comes he will speak to you. I will send you my messenger who will come to you with my message.

[42:18] so we see excitement in seeking the truth verses 30 to 32 but all too often what we see I believe in churches across America is no excitement no enthusiasm and no energy.

[42:40] I cannot please God. I have a quote from Herschel Ford. Herschel Ford many years ago was a pastor of First Baptist El Paso later became an evangelist and this is what he said.

[42:53] He said I wish that preachers could always have that kind of audience. He was speaking of Peter and the house of Cornelius. if you come to church saying oh what's the use the preacher cannot do much for you.

[43:12] If you come to criticize and find fault he cannot help you. But if you come believing that God has given him a message for you if you listen with an open mind God can use the preacher to bring a blessing to you.

[43:30] He goes on to say even a mighty man of God has little power in a congregation whose hearts are not open and receptive to the truth.

[43:44] I like what he says next because I so relate to this. But even a poor preacher can preach a good sermon when the people are praying for him and when their hearts are ready to receive God's word.

[43:57] That to me that is the whole crux of our faith. You know you don't need a Billy Graham or a David Jeremiah or you don't need a you fill in the blank.

[44:14] All we need is someone and that someone could be you just opening up God's word or reciting God's word because the message comes from God.

[44:28] it's not about the messenger. It's about the message. And so Peter comes in he says don't worship me I'm just a messenger.

[44:39] God's the one that should receive the glory. And the angel says go ask for Peter this is where he's staying when he comes he will speak to you.

[44:54] And so verse 33 so I so I sent to you he's telling Peter this he said so the moment the angel left he said I sent to you immediately and you have done well to come.

[45:09] Now therefore notice what he says now therefore we are all present before God the whole house full we are here gathered together present before God to what hear all the things commanded you by by God we're here to hear you we're here to hear what God has to say and what God told you to say so imagine how our worship would be revolutionized if we prepared all week long if we were all prayed up and we were all expecting however poor the sermon might be you know a person who is panning for gold might go weeks and get nothing but they get so excited over that little nugget and they think they have won the lottery if you will and so even if you leave and you have one nugget of exciting truth that

[46:27] God delivers to you through the message through the messenger it was worth it and I always and I've always found that if we come and I've gone to conferences I've gone to classes thinking that you know what I won't I won't get anything out of this you know what I didn't get anything out of it but if I came expecting something and sometimes I got something from a fellow participant because they said something so you know what I've done this and I and I said you know what maybe we'll try that and we learn from one another as well so how would it change our worship if we came so expectantly that we prepared all week long Saturday night we laid out our clothes Sunday morning we got up early we put on worship music we asked God please teach me something today God I want to meet you I want to worship you with my fellow followers of Christ how will that change us and I'll leave us with this is your worship a religious activity or is your worship enthusiastic praise for the

[47:48] God of the universe that transcends space and time and loves you so much that the God of this universe in Jesus Christ was born as a baby walked everywhere he went and when he was 33 years old or there abouts allowed himself to be beaten have his beard pulled out to have a thorn bush made into a crown and have the thorns mashed into his head going beneath the skin and against the skull and allowed himself to be nailed to a cross for you and for me so that we could experience a new life that's the God we're here to worship and that's the

[48:54] God that owes more enthusiasm than Walmart on Black Friday or more enthusiasm than fill in the sports team on Super Bowl Sunday we owe him more excitement than we give to anything of this world let's pray father thank you so much for loving us for for giving to us the hope that you've given us in Jesus Christ father we pray this morning that you would revolutionize our worship and that we might learn something from this Gentile family this Cornelius that they were so excited and so prepared to hear the messenger to hear your messenger that they came they gathered together early they were waiting with anticipation because they were actively anticipating you being there among them and hearing from you so lord we pray that coming together will be something we look forward to starting on monday morning starting on sunday afternoon that we would look forward to the following time that we have together so father we pray that you would completely revolutionize our worship and our anticipation our excitement to be with you and to be with one another as well so thank you father we pray in jesus name amen