WHAT IS ASAPH?
In these last days as God restores the Tabernacle of David, He is again appointing us as ASAPHs to gather together and worship Him in His presence, before His glory. Isaiah 58:8 promises that “the glory of the Lord shall be thy re-
reward” (Hebrew ASAPH)
The scriptures make it quite clear that evil powers hover over nations, cities, households and even individuals. Various forms of spiritual warfare can be waged against these evil forces.
In the example illustrated by the events in the Book of Joshua, Chapter 6, the children of Israel under Joshua’s leadership were led to march around the city of Jericho until the time came to shout triumphantly before the Lord. The priests led in worship, playing the trumpets as Joshua directed and a great battle was won.
In the battle, the children of Israel had become, by their shouts and the sound of the trumpet, a Re-reward,” a gathered people who had the power to destroy the enemy. All they had to do was shout together. As they did this, the walls came down and the enemy was defeated.
The word “re-reward” has the meaning in the Hebrew “to gather in order to destroy or consume.” This is the same Hebrew word for the name ASAPHs, who was the man appointed by King David in I Chronicles 16:37 “to minister before the Lord continually.” He was responsible for those appointed to minister before the Ark in the Tabernacle of David.
In these last days as God restores the Tabernacle of David, He is again appointing us as ASAPHS to gather together and worship Him in His presence, before His glory . Isaiah 58:8 promises that “ the glory of the Lord shall be thy re-reward”
(Hebrew ASAPH).
As God’s people gather to worship Him,, they have the power and authority which comes from God’s glory being released, to be a destroying and consuming force against the enemies of God.
Therefore, it is with this spirit and by the name we have chosen to call our Praise and Worship Seminars and Conferences… ASAPH.
(Excerpt by the Late Dr. Mark Bethel)
Fellowship Pastor Kersch Darville: The Presence of God
Webster’s Dictionary defines worship as to: adore, idolize, esteem worthy, reverence, homage, etc… Yet truly defining worship proves more difficult because it is both an attitude and an act. All true worshipers must worship God in “spirit and in truth.” That is, true worship takes place on the inside, in the heart or spirit of the worshiper (cf. Psalm 45:1; 103:1-2). Worship pleasing to God must be unfeigned and transparent, offered with a humble and pure heart (Psalm 24:3-4; Isa 66:2). The true worship of God is essentially internal, rooted in the knowledge of and obedience to the revealed Word of God.
Ever since “the fall” of mankind in the Garden of Eden in Gen. 3; mankind has not only desired to worship God again but also experience the power of His presence. In the fall mankind lost the presence of God and power from within which was previously experienced through the Holy Spirit in his life. Most of mankind today because of sin fine it difficult to grasp the need to worship God or the reason for doing it.
Therefore, the question for most is why worship? Worship is about focusing on the benevolence of God i.e., who He is, as our sustainer, our keeper, owner provider and maker of all Creation.
It is important for mankind to recognize that God esteems worship because in His imminent presence he is able to answer those who call upon him for forgiveness of their sins (Psalm 99:8). It was this intimate presence of a holy God that prompted heartfelt praise and worship (Psalm 99:3) and the keen desire for holy living among the people of Israel (Lev 19:2).
In Psalm 63 we see David a psalmist and King using 3 metaphors to convey this desire for Gods help and to gain back the presence of God in his life.
We see him saying in,
Vs. 1 “You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I ‘thirst’ for you…in a dry and weary land.
Next he says,
Vs. 3 “Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you…”
Finally he says,
Vs. 5 “I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you.
The Psalmist uses the aforementioned metaphors thirst, life and food to describe his deep passion and desire for God’s presence. He discloses an overwhelming desire to have God’s presence in his life in order for him to be sustained.
To further illustrate this point we can see in Exodus 33:15 the extreme importance that Moses also placed on the presence of God as the impetus or inducement to set him apart from others to achieve his God given goals and destiny in life:
Then Moses said to him, “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. 16 How will anyone know that you are pleased with me and with your people unless you go with us? What else will distinguish me and your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?”
It is important for us to realize that all God’s work throughout history has been to get His presence back into man’s environment as indicated in Romans 8:19-21 (NRSV):
19 For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God; 20 for the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.
And, finally God’s greatest desire and Man’s deepest need is to share an enduring Spirit-to-spirit relationship with God. Romans 8:22-23 (NRSV):
22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; 23 and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies.
ASAPH (Always sanctified, Always praising Him) is an environment and culture in which mankind needs to adopt in order to get back into the presence of God…
Pas. David Knowles: Understanding Worship and Giving
Most Kingdom Citizens have both mentally and spiritually separated worship and giving. Based on scripture in the Old and New Testament both Giving and Worship are interconnected. Giving is and always has been an integral part of worship.
As set out in the Old Testament the law giver Moses when the children of Israel came to the temple to worship, they could not come without a gift.
The greatest worshiper known to us, King David, penned in Proverbs 3:9-10 “9Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the first fruits of all your crops; 10 then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.”
Jesus seated at church was at the offering box and drew reference to a widow’s offering: Mark 12:41-44 “41 Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. 42 But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents. 43 Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44 They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”
Both worship and giving begin first with our heart, then ourselves and our substance