Trending
In our culture when one hears the word "worship" we often think of the emotion we experience as we close our eyes, lift our hands and sing in the most sincere and beautiful voice we possibly can.
Personally, that is how I often worship, apart from the beautiful voice part. Ask anyone standing close to me on a Sunday morning and they will quickly attest to the fact that I have a terrible singing voice! But since we know we are "to worship in spirit and in truth" (John 4:24) and "make a joyful noise unto the Lord," (Psalm 98:4) it really doesn't matter how beautiful my voice is or is not. God simply tells us to express His greatness with every ounce of our being. So, I sing loud because I love to sing and I love my Savior, Jesus.
While worship is a rich concept in the Bible there's not one main Hebrew or Greek word that corresponds to our word "worship," rather there are lots of different terms.
As we examine the scriptures, particularly the New Testament, it becomes clear that worship extends far beyond what happens as we sing at church on Sunday morning. The Apostle Paul wrote, "Whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." (1 Cor. 10:31) and "I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship." (Romans 12:1-2)
This means the sacrifices we offer in the new covenant are not burnt offerings of old but rather submission in every area and aspect of our lives to the glory and for praise of God. Which means it includes ALL of life; all of our affections, actions, obedience and even our relationships which certainly include corporate worship. This is the time(s) of praising God and edifying one another, together. Why is this important?
For years my personal definition of worship has been "one's sincere response to God's goodness and grace." While I think that is a good definition, it's not great.
Recently, I have grown to love David Peterson's definition of worship as "engaging with God on the terms that He proposes and in the way that He alone makes possible." I love that word "engage" because it reminds me worship is so much more than my personal response to God, but rather it is something we actually do better together. Remember the word "engage" is defined as "to participate or become involved in." That is why corporate worship is such an important part of a Christian's life.
Corporate worship is an opportunity for us to edify, to build up and to encourage each other. You might be somewhat surprised to discover in scripture God isn't the only one we address during times of corporate worship.
Paul writes to the Ephesians, for example, "Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord." (5:19) When we sing on Sunday morning, or read scripture, or pray -- we're communicating not only to God but also to one another. This is vital because we need to be reminded of so many of the great truths and themes in scripture we often and too quickly forget, such as God created us, God is perfectly just, we've sinned against Him and that Jesus died as our substitute on the cross.
Sure, we can hear these truths from a sermon, but it helps our hearts to hear them also from the singing voices around us. Yes, we are to give attention to God and the wonderful richness of the words we're singing, but we also cannot forget about the people we're encouraging with our voice, even if it's a bit off tune.
Remember, worship is knowing that God is far more concerned about the condition of your heart than the sound of our voice.
Finally, a little hint from me, your voice always sounds better when you're surrounded by others.
-- -- -- --
Finding Faith is written by area pastors. This week's column comes from Rev. Tim Boger, senior pastor of Big Woods Bible Church in Lock Haven.