Prophetic Worshippers- IHOPKC

Exploring Presence Worship
This is the word of the Lord… 'Not by might (force, efficiency) nor by power
(human ability), but by My Spirit,' Says the Lord of hosts. – Zech. 4: 6
I. HOW I ENCOUNTERED THE HOLY SPIRIT (His Person and Power)
A. It happened in Buenos Aires, during the winter of 1991, while I was sentenced to
my ‘bible college bed’ (for 2 weeks—fighting extreme fever, not able to move at all).
When I asked the Lord why this was happening to me, I heard a voice from within: “If
you give ME room I will completely revolutionize your life”.
B. During those weeks, Andrea (who later became my wife), gave me a skinny book
titled: Good Morning Holy Spirit. My soul burned as I read the book—it was the first
time I heard about the person of the Holy Spirit in such a direct way—I began
engaging HIM as a Person. I was transformed, and so was my worship.
C. Why am I sharing this? Because the ministry and fellowship of the Holy Spirit is the
secret to “presence worship”.
 Main GOAL of this Teaching: to provide a better understanding of the term
“presence worship” and about the ministry of Holy Spirit in worship.
II. THE MEANING, PURPOSE AND IMPACT OF PROPHETIC WORSHIP
A. Before we dive into “Presence Worship” we need to define “Prophetic Worship”.
What comes to mind when you think about the term prophetic worship? I believe that
within the House of Prayer paradigm we have touched certain dimensions of
prophetic worship, but there is much more the Lord wants to give us.
B. In the days of Samuel, when Saul approached a company of prophetic worshipers
he experienced a life changing encounter with the Holy Spirit.
C. What we read below demonstrates the power of Prophetic Worship and provides
clues to the kind of training Samuel gave to his generation (the forerunners of the
tabernacle of David).
After that you shall come to the hill of God… and it will happen, when you
have come there to the city that you will meet a group of prophets coming
down from the high place with a stringed instrument, a tambourine, a flute,
and a harp before them; and they will be prophesying. Then the Spirit of the
Lord will come upon you, and you will prophesy with them and be turned
into another man. – 1 Sam. 10:5-6
D. What Saul found was way more than “sincere worshipers” adoring Yahweh. He
came across an irresistible heavenly atmosphere—Saul encountered the authority
and power of the Holy Spirit moving in (their) worship. That’s what changed him.
E. Based on this biblical event and others we’ll study, as well as drawing from 20
years of experience in worship leading (doing it right and wrong)—in different venues,
nations and cultures, here is my definition of prophetic worship:
1. Prophetic Worship is the ability to carry and release the presence of God. It
is what happens when [prophetic worshipers] usher the tangible
testimony of Jesus into the room and impart the power of the Holy Spirit
to the congregation.
2. Prophetic worshipers are carriers of God’s presence, like a walking
convergence between heaven and earth―a connecting link between the
Throne Room and the earth realm.
F. Corporate prophetic worship goes beyond having a “song service”. It may start
with a devotional or celebration feel, turn into warfare and proclamation, but can
eventually become PRESENCE WORSHIP (if we take the time to keep ascending in
worship).
G. It builds into a divine encounter between the Bridegroom God and His Bride―we
get to experience God—feel His touch, hear His voice and behold His face. And the
Lord also gets what He wants: intimate fellowship with His people.
H. At times, PRESENCE WORSHIP can turn into GLORY WORSHIP. (I have witnessed
glory worship only a few times in my life—when God comes and no person can
remain standing, because the weight and AWE of God’s glory is pushing you down).
I. I’m convinced, however, that we will see increasingly more GLORY WORSHIP as we
approach the end of this age.






III. THE ANOINTING TO MOVE ANGELS AND DEMONS
Now the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the
LORD terrorized him... whenever the evil spirit from God came to Saul,
David would take the harp and play it with his hand; and Saul would be
refreshed and be well, and the evil spirit would depart from him. – 1 Sam.
16:14, 23
A. How can we worship like King David did? How can we change spiritual
atmospheres, move demons away and bring in angelic armies by simply playing?
What was the secret of David’s powerful worship?
B. The Bible reveals a significant event in David’s life―it happened the day Samuel
visited his house:
Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers,
and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came powerfully upon David. – 1
Sam. 16:13 (NIV)
C. The secret to David’s worship was the person of the Holy Spirit―the authority,
power and presence of the third person of the trinity. David’s music (because of the
anointing of the Spirit) caused the atmosphere to change―a wind began to blow and
brought ONE soaring on its wings:
He opened the heavens and came down… He mounted the cherubim and
flew; he soared on the wings of the wind… Out of the brightness of his
presence bolts of lightning blazed forth – 2 Sam. 22:10-13 (NIV)
D. These are not just fancy poetic words; it is the reality that David experienced when
the Lord came down… he witnessed the power and glory of God bringing freedom
and defeating his enemies (2 Sam. 22:14 -20).
E. This is what is like, when the heavens open through prophetic worship—the wind
of the Spirit begins to blow and the Lord Himself soars upon His wings—He rides on
the wings of the Spirit (Ps. 104:3), shines the brightness (light) of His glory and causes
our hearts to burn with holy passion.

IV. MOVING IN THE SUPERNATURAL REALM OF THE SPIRIT
A. The Holy Spirit taught David to minister worship in an effective way. Thanks to this
amazing Teacher, David learned to move in the supernatural—a dimension that
(according to Paul) the natural man cannot perceive nor understand:
“But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for
they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually
discerned.” - I Cor. 2:14
B. The ways of the “anointing” will not make sense to the natural mind. They must be
discerned “spiritually”. One of our goals (as prophetic worshipers in development) is
to discern the person and work of the Holy Spirit in worship. We must learn to follow
Him and move in the supernatural. Listen to what Jesus revealed:
“It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I
speak to you are spirit, and they are life” – John 6:63
C. We can learn all the mechanics of worship, have the latest gear, the best band and
sound amazing… but unless the Holy Spirit is active and tangible in our music and
spoken words, it will profit nothing (in terms of bringing life to people in the room).
D. Yes, of course, we minister before the audience of ONE. Our worship still counts
(God loves and enjoys every expression of worship). Plus, our faithfulness adds up, we
can grow in meekness, intercede for others, get eternal rewards, etc. And yes, God is
forever worthy to receive all the praise, and even demands excellence in music (Ps.
33:3 “play skillfully”), but all those relevant subjects are NOT my point here.
E. Here is my point: Jesus deeply loved the disciples—they were his friends, his
faithful followers—He taught them about the Kingdom for 3 ½ years, he showed them
how to live (according the Sermon of the mount), he promised them eternal rewards,
and even breathed the Holy Spirit over them in (John 20:22), nevertheless… right
before ascending to heaven He announced: But you shall receive power when the
Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and
in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. – Acts 1:8
F. In short, you can only become an effective ‘witness’ of the person, work, and
presence of Jesus through the power (anointing) of the Holy Spirit.

Be it preaching, worship ministry or any other ‘public ministry’ that is done in the
name of Jesus. He has to come “upon” you and flow from “within”—that is, power
from on high and rivers of living water flowing from within (Acts. 2 / John 7:37).
V. THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE FIRST 24/7 WORSHIP CENTER ON EARTH
A. It’s very likely that the musicians (Samuel trained) end up ministering in the
tabernacle of David. And it’s clear that both (David and Samuel’s company of
prophetic worshipers) moved in the power of the HOLY SPIRIT.
B. Here at IHOP, we often use the phrase “night and day prayer and worship in the
spirit of the tabernacle of David”. Let us never forget, how the authority and power of
the Holy Spirit moved through the founder and forerunners of “the Tabernacle of
David”. Let us always remember, that the same man that wrote “One Thing I Desire”
was inspired by his friend the Holy Spirit.
C. So important was the Holy Spirit to David that the day he repented from the
worst mistake of his life, he was not worried about losing the kingdom, or his wealth,
or his influence over Israel… no… here is what concerned David the most:
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do
not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take Your Holy Spirit
from me. - Psalm. 51:10-11
D. The presence of the HOLY SPIRIT was the most valuable asset David had. Without
the Holy Spirit he was lifeless. (Plus, he saw what happened to King Saul when the
Spirit of God departed).
VI. THE SPIRIT OF PROPHECY AND THE TESTIMONY of JESUS
“See that you do not do that! … Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is
the spirit of prophecy.” - Rev. 19:10
1. First, “the testimony of Jesus” as a strong tangible presence of the Son of
God in the room. You can feel the Lord is manifest in the room.
2. Second, “the testimony of Jesus” as the declaration of His beauty and
majesty through the music and singing of prophetic worshipers.