Ushers, God's front line Commanders

The idea of ushers being God’s front line commanders is embedded in the role they play in the church and the task that God has assigned to them.  In the Old Testament, it seems that the Praise and Worshippers/Choir, the Priests who blew the trumpet or the musicians were the front line soldiers.  When there was a battle, God instructed his servant, the prophet, to put the singers ahead of the military.  In most instances, they even went ahead of the ark of the covenant of the Lord, which was the visible representation of Jehovah (Read Joshua 6, 1 Chronicle 15).  By offering praises to Yahweh, they acknowledged his supremacy and omnipotence.  In the midst of the praise offered by the singers and musicians, God moved miraculously in the midst of his people.  He crushed their enemies or caused confusion among them in such a way that at times they turned against each other and destroyed themselves.   Those were the days when the Children of Israel were conquering physical land...the land promised to them.  However, since Acts 2, the genesis of the church, we are no longer conquering physical territories.  Our struggle is spiritual...it is about conquering the hearts and minds of mankind.  Paul calls it a “ministry of reconciliation” in 2 Corinthians 5:18.  We are called first and foremost to reconcile man to his Creator.  Man has sinned and needs to be made right with God. However, the enemy, Satan, tries to stop us from having this encounter.  He comes to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10) but, God has given the keys of the kingdom to the church.  We are called to wage a war against Satan and his forces that blind the eyes of man (John 12:40, 1 Corinthians 4:4) from receiving the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ.  The main battle therefore takes place in the local church where the Word of God is preached and the Sacrament of grace is administered.  It is a battle, not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places (Ephesians 6:12).  Hence, when people come to the church, they come in order for their lives to be transformed.  Satan, the enemy is not happy and attacks the church in various ways.  Said attack would take place on a Sunday morning during Worship Service.  Agents of the enemy could try to intrude into the house of God in order to hinder the Word of Grace from being preached.  It could be done in the form of distraction, disturbance, lack of concentration, sleepiness, confusion, disorganization, and the list could go.  For said infiltration to take place, these agents have to pass through the doors of the church.  When they try, they encounter the ushers...God’s front line commanders.  If the ushers have spent time in prayer and are trained to spot unusual things, they are able to arrest the situation or seat the individual where the impact would be minimal on the worship service.  A couple of years ago, I was a part of a church were a lady came in and was escorted to the front seat in front of the pulpit.  She was “an agent” of the devil and her mission was to distract the pastor in the delivery of the Word.  She sat inappropriately with her miniskirt and was a real source of distraction.  God by his grace still allowed the message to be preached with conviction and at the end of the service, this lady made a decision to follow Christ.  She later confessed about her mission to the church.  As God’s frontline soldiers, ushers have been strategically placed in the local church to arrest these kinds of situations while at the same time making the church an inviting place in which the Spirit of God can transform lives.  What a task!

Another key fact that ushers need to understand is that people do not come to church by chance.  It is the Spirit of God that leads people to the house of God (whether they were invited by a relative or a friend).  When they come, the first person they encounter is the usher.  A godly smile, handshake, and word of encouragement set the arena for a divine encounter.  The ushers lead people into the house of God to meet their Master, the King of kings and the Lord of lords, to commune with him and to have their sins forgiven.  What an honor and a privilege to usher someone into the church...the kingdom of God.  That is the task that God has assigned to this wonderful group.  They are strong enough to raise the blood-stained banner of Christ and stop any infiltrators from the kingdom of darkness controlled by Satan, yet gentle enough to usher God’s wonderful children into his presence with a smile.