Clear the Stage

“These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” — Isaiah 29:13
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters… to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.” — Romans 12:1
“They followed worthless idols and became worthless themselves.” — Jeremiah 2:5

There are some songs that find us at just the right time. The lyrics speak life into the season or circumstance we’re in. No doubt, the Holy Spirit uses them to press into us a truth about Him that He wants us to grasp.

Clear the Stage by Jimmy Needham was, and still is, one of those songs for me. I love it. It’s a bold call to take an honest look at the worship in our own lives…

Are we honoring Him with our lips while our hearts are far from Him?

When I first heard this song, I was in a concentrated season of sanctification, learning what it means to bring worship to the Lord in all that we do. Up until that point, the word “worship” had been synonymous with singing to Jesus. But Jesus was beginning to reveal something deeper: worship is so much more than the songs we sing on Sunday. He wants more from us than just a Sunday performance. In fact, He isn’t interested in a sanctuary stanza if our lives don’t bring Him glory daily.

Are we doing His work, reading His Word, loving His people? Are we a living sacrifice every day as a response to a bone-deep gratitude for the ultimate sacrifice of His son?

Have we replaced the worship of abiding in His presence every day with false idols—things that promise comfort but deliver chaos?

Jimmy’s lyrics pose questions, and if your answer is “no” to the one above, he urges you to get to that place-whatever that looks like for you.

“Clear the stage and set the sound and lights ablaze
If that’s the measure you must take to crush the idols
Jerk the pews and all the decorations, too
Until the congregation’s few, then have revival
Tell your friends that this is where the party ends
Until you’re broken for your sins, you can’t be social
Then seek the Lord and wait for what He has in store
And know that great is your reward, so just be hopeful.”

“Take a break from all the plans that you have made
And sit at home alone and wait for God to whisper
Beg Him please to open up His mouth and speak
And pray for real upon your knees until they blister
Shine the light on every corner of your life
Until the pride, lust, and lies are in the open
Then read the Word and put to test the things you’ve heard
Until your heart and soul are stirred and rocked and broken”

“Anything I put before my God is an idol
Anything I want with all my heart is an idol
Anything I can’t stop thinking of is an idol
Anything that I give all my love is an idol”

“We can sing all we want to
And still get it wrong
Worship is more than a song.”

Yes. Dear Lord. Yes.
This is it. Stop what you are doing. Forget about your plans. Your social life. The busyness. The performance. Get alone with Jesus. Ask Him to shine the light on every corner of your life and break your heart for what breaks His.

Give God the space and time to speak to you and reveal your idols. He will. And then, like Gideon, tear them down and build a proper altar in their place. True worship is the only remedy for idolatry. He is the only one worthy of our adoration and praise.

True worship is a heart posture motivated by a desire to honor God, one that prioritizes His will in all aspects of our life every day. It can be seen in our speech, our actions, our priorities, our relationships, and our spiritual fruit.

I’m probably going to step on some toes right now—including mine.

Are we lifting others up with the same hands we’re lifting in church? Are we sharing the gospel with others as loudly as we sing in the sanctuary? Are we using our bodies to honor God Monday through Saturday, not just Sunday? When we leave church on Sunday, are we kind to our waitress? And our families?

If we are not, we are getting worship all wrong.

Can I encourage you to clear the stage of your life of distractions, remove the idols that pull you away, and make room for the only one worthy of your devotion? Will you lean into the life of worship over the performance of worship?

He will meet you there, and great will be your reward.

Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men –Colossians 3:23

Ardently His,

Jenifer

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