Study: Looking into God's Word, Pt. I

I. The Necessity of Study

We continue our study of the ways in which we can plug into the divine power source that brings transformation. As we have seen, the first and most fundamental way is worship. But writers on spiritual growth also promote the study of Scripture as a key transformational practice. For example, Donald Whitney writes: "Regardless of how busy we become with all things Christian, we must remember that the most transforming practice available to us is the disciplined intake of Scripture" (1991, p. 25).

Richard Foster concurs that "one of the central ways God  uses to change us is study" (1988, p. 63). He says that Christians may participate in worship and yet never be changed, but the mind is renewed by applying to it the truths of Scripture that will transform it.

John H. Westerhoff shares this view that "the central activity is discipline of the divine reading or praying of the scriptures. The scriptures provide us with a doorway into an experience of God and a test of that experience. The scriptures are a Christian's primary means for developing a relationship with God" (1994, p. 70).

Going farther back, John Chrysostom, the great fourth-century preacher, expressed the need for reading of Scripture. He described all the pressures and stresses of everyday life, which sound very similar to distractions that we face today. And then he concludes that these troubles are the very reason we need to study Scripture:

Therefore we have a continuous need for the full armor of the Scriptures.... We must thoroughly quench the darts of the devil and beat them off by continual reading of the divine Scriptures. For it is not possible, not possible for anyone to be saved without continually taking advantage of spiritual reading. (Stevens, 1993, p. 135)

Just as our biological life needs certain nutrients to survive and thrive, even so our spiritual life needs to be nourished in order to survive and develop. Worship is to our spiritual life what water is to our body. We can survive for a brief period without it, but to be deprived of it for long periods of time will cause us to waste away and die of spiritual thirst. Worship is a basic necessity for spiritual survival.

To continue this analogy, Bible study is like eating food. We can maybe survive for long periods of time without it, but eventually we become spiritually malnourished and anemic, and eventually we will suffer from spiritual scurvy. Consistent Bible reading and study will provide us with the basic nutrients and spiritual vitamins that we need to grow and become stronger in faith.

In the Bible, the Word of God is compared to the physical nourishment of milk and meat. Consider Hebrews 5:11-14:

About this we have much to say that is hard to explain, since you have become dull in understanding. For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic elements of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food; for everyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is unskilled in the word of righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, for those whose faculties have been trained by practice to distinguish good from evil.

The Word of God can be described as "milk" because it deals with fairly basic beliefs and concepts. The readers of this letter were still stuck in their spiritual infancy, and these basic teaching were all they could comprehend. The writer would like to move on to more substantial teachings, especially the high priesthood of Christ. He describes these teachings of God as "meat" because they involve deeper and more advanced understanding of God. The study of God's Word is not optional if we wish to grow into the image of Christ; it is a necessity if we wish to flourish spiritually. Similarly, 1 Peter 2:2 says: "Like newborn infants, long for the pure, spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow into salvation."

Another passage that stresses the importance of God's Word for our spiritual well-being is 2 Timothy 3:16-17:

All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.

This passage stresses the transformative power of Scripture. It turns us away from spiritual hindrances and roadblocks and steers us on the path of righteous conduct. It transforms our character and our conduct.

Sociological research has also supported the role of study in our spiritual growth. In the early 1990s, the Search Institute conducted a survey of 11,122 people in 561 churches in six denominations to determine the primary contributors to spiritual maturity. The surprising finding was that "the area of church life that has by far the most influence on faith maturity and growth in faith is Christian education" (Roehlkepartain, 1993, p. 24). Christian education refers to programs and events designed to nurture faith in people, usually centered around the study of Scripture in a group setting.

Let me close these thoughts with a quotation from Richard Foster, who stresses the importance of study for spiritual growth:

Many Christians remain in bondage to fears and anxieties simply because they do not avail themselves of the Discipline of study. They may be faithful in church attendance and earnest in fulfilling their religious duties, and still they are not changed. I am not here speaking only of those who are going through mere religious forms, but of those who are genuinely seeking to worship and obey Jesus Christ as Lord and Master. They may sing with gusto, pray in the Spirit, live as obediently as they know, even receive divine visions and revelations, and yet the tenor of their lives remains unchanged. Why? Because they have never taken up one of the central ways God uses to change us: study. (1988, pp. 62-63)

Bible study is one of the primary ways in which we draw closer to God and come to know him better. I have heard a story of a five-year-old girl named Karen who was caught by her mother going through a Bible storybook and circling the word "God" wherever it appeared on the page. Trying to restrain herself from scolding the child for defacing the book, her mother quietly asked, "Why are you doing that?" Karen answered matter-of-factly: "So that I will know where to find God when I want him."

We find God through his Word. We hear the voice of God speaking to us through his Word. In future posts, I will describe some of the ways in which we can feed on God's Word so that we can continue to grow.

Reflection Questions:

1. What role has Bible study played in your spiritual life? How does it provide you with spiritual nourishment?

2. What pressures or distractions keep you from giving attention to God's Word? How can you resist those so that you make Bible study a priority?

3. How does your church promote the study of Scripture: Sunday School, Bible studies, discipleship training, retreats, workshops, youth ministry, Vacation Bible School, men's groups, women's groups, new-member classes?

Sources:

Foster, R. J. (1988). Celebration of discipline: The path to spiritual growth (Rev. ed.). San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco.

Roehlkepartain, E. C. (1993). The teaching church: Moving Christian education to center stage. Nashville: Abingdon Press.

Stevens, R. P. (1993). Disciplines of the hungry heart: Christian living seven days a week. Wheaton, IL: Harold Shaw.

Westerhoff, J. H. (1994). Spiritual life: The foundation for preaching and teaching. Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press.

Whitney, D. S. (1991). Spiritual disciplines for the Christian life. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress.

Worship: Looking Up to God, Pt. III

IV. Corporate Worship

We have seen that worship is an ongoing activity but that we can also have special times of private worship. These facts don’t rule out the need to gather with other believers in corporate, public worship. In this post, I want to focus on the time of worship and the components of worship.

A. Time

Immediately after receiving the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, the first Christians met together daily to worship Christ together (Acts 2:46). Corporate gatherings marked the life of the church from its very beginning. Eventually, the early Christians developed the practice of meeting together on the first day of the week to celebrate Christ’s resurrection, which occurred on the first day of the week (Acts 20:7, which probably refers to Sunday night). By meeting on the first day, Christians were expressing their confidence that the risen Lord was present with them, as he had promised in Matthew 18:20.

Even in the early church, some Christians felt this was an optional or unnecessary practice, especially during times of persecution. Consequently, the writer of the Letter to the Hebrews admonished them to keep meeting together (Heb 10:24-15). Through the centuries, Christians have felt that meeting together in worship was such a high priority that they would even risk their lives to do it. From the Roman Christians who worshipped in the catacombs to the Chinese Christians of today who worship secretively in houses, Christians have always met together to celebrate God’s love, even at the risk of their lives. Richard Foster has noted that the strong emphasis on corporate worship sets Christianity apart from the religions of the East (Foster, 1988, p. 163).

Why do Christians view corporate worship as so necessary for their spiritual growth? For one thing, meeting together strengthens our faith. When we are in physical proximity to each other, we kindle each other’s faith and love for God. At times, I may come to worship with a low spirit, feeling distant from God, but my brother’s or sister’s enthusiasm may spark a flame in me. And at other times I may do the same for the other. Martin Luther said: “At home, in my own house, there is no warmth or vigor in me, but in the church when the multitude is gathered together, a fire is kindled in my heart and it breaks its way through” (Foster, 1988, p. 164). Isaac Pennington says that, when people are gathered for worship, “they are like a heap of fresh and burning coals warming one another as a great strength and freshness and vigor of life flows into all” (Foster, 1988, p. 172). Marjorie J. Thompson explains the need for corporate worship:

While a worshipful attitude should permeate one’s entire life, the role of common worship is crucial. We delude ourselves if we imagine we can live the spiritual life in total isolation from Christian community, for it is impossible to be Christian in solitary splendor. To be Christian is to be joined to the Body of Christ. The central and visible way in which the church expresses this reality is by gathering in the Spirit to receive and respond to God’s living Word (1995, p. 56).

In spite of the Bible’s command to meet together and in spite of the benefits of meeting together, a Gallup Poll in 1989 showed that 70% of church members thought they could be good members without going to church (Hinson, 1991, p. 23). The excuses people give for not worshipping on Sunday led one church to have a special “No Excuse Sunday.” Here is how they promoted it:

To make it possible for everyone to attend church next Sunday, we are going to have a special “No Excuse Sunday.” Cots will be placed in the foyer for those who say, “Sunday is my only day to sleep in.” Murine will be available for those with tired eyes… from watching television too late on Saturday night. We will have steel helmets for those who say, “The roof would cave in if I ever came to church.” Blankets will be provided for those who think the church is too cold and fans for those who think the church is too hot. We will have hearing aids for those who say, “The pastor speaks too softly,” and cotton balls for those who say he preaches too loudly. Score cards will be available for those who wish to list the hypocrites present. Some relatives will be in attendance for those who like to go visiting on Sunday. There will be 100 TV dinners for those who cannot go to church and cook dinner also. One section will be devoted to trees and grass for those who like to seek God in nature. Finally, the sanctuary will be decorated with both Christmas poinsettias and Easter lilies for those who have never seen the church without them.

B. Components

The early church met in homes (Acts 2:42, 46), and their corporate worship occurred in the context of a communal meal (Linton, 2005). Based on the evidence in the New Testament, Dennis Smith concludes that “we should imagine Christian meetings taking place at table most if not all of the time.” In fact, he argues that the entire worship service took place in the dining room (Smith, 2003, pp. 177-179, 200-202). Sharing meals together was a central activity of various social groups in the first-century world, and the Christians also found special meaning in that practice.

First, these meals recalled Jesus’ customary practice of sharing meals with his disciples and others (Mark 2:15-17; 6:35-44; 14:3-9; Luke 5:29-33; 7:36-50; 11:37-52; 14:1-14; 22:7-23; John 12:1-8). Second, they provided a foretaste of the coming kingdom, which Jesus described as a banquet (Matt 22:1-14; 25:1-13; Luke 12:35-48; 13:22-30; 14:15-24; 15:11-31; 17:7-10). Third, they reminded the disciples of Jesus’ postresurrection appearances during meals (Mark 16:4; Luke 24:13-35; 24:36-49; John 21:9-14). For these reasons, the early Christians called their meal gatherings “the Lord’s supper” (1 Cor 17-34). The Greek word for “supper”, deipnon, means “banquet” or “feast.” The Christians had a full meal when they gathered together.

The ancients thought that eating a meal together created a social bond among the diners, and the same was true of the Christians. The Lord’s Supper symbolized the fellowship and unity that existed among the believers. According to Robert Banks, the meal “deepened those relationships in the same way that participation in an ordinary meal cements and symbolizes the bond between a family or group” (1994, p. 83).

Based on the cultural practices in Jewish and Greco-Roman settings, early Christian gatherings may have followed this format:

1. Blessing and breaking of bread
2. Meal (which was a full banquet with courses)
3. Blessing and sharing of the cup
4. Singing (Eph 5:18-20)
5. Teaching, discussion, and sharing of spiritual gifts (Acts 20:7, 11; 1 Cor 14:26)
6. Prayers

Ronald Allen and Gordon Borror (1982, pp. 69-70) provide a fuller list of New Testament “givens” for the worship service, drawn from Don Hustad’s Jubilee: Scripture readings (1 Tim 4:13; Col 4:16); homily (Acts 20:7); a confession of faith (1 Tim 6:12; Acts 8:37); singing (Col 3:16); prayers (Acts 2:42); congregational Amen (1 Cor 14:16); collection (1 Cor 16:1-2); physical action (1 Tim 2:8); thanksgiving (Luke 22:19); remembrance (1 Cor 11:25); the anticipation of Christ’s return (1 Cor 11:26); intercession (John 17:1a, 9b); the kiss of peace (Rom 16:16; 1 Cor 16:20; 1 Thess 5:26; 1 Pet 5:14).

One may notice that the way most of us worship in America today is very different from the way the early church worshipped. The time is different: Sunday morning instead of Sunday night. The setting is different: buildings and rented spaces instead of homes. The format is different: a token meal in the middle or end of the service instead of a full meal at the beginning; a sermon instead of discussion; sitting in rows instead of around a dining room or table; passive observance of a performance instead of participatory contributions to the gathering. Why have things changed so much?

After several centuries, Christianity became legalized and, under the sponsorship of Constantine, Christians began building basilicas for their gatherings. The church left the home, and since their buildings did not contain kitchen and dining facilities, the Lord’s Supper was transformed into a token meal that included just the bread and cup. Sometime between AD 360 and 370, the Council of Laodicea banned Christian gatherings in private homes. And the Lord’s Supper was transformed from a joyous celebration of fellowship into a somber ritual of mourning.

The way we worship corporately today is the result of centuries of historical and cultural developments. That does not necessarily mean that the way we do worship today is wrong. Although I prefer the house church setting for worship in the context of a meal, I can also worship God in a building or rented space as I sit in a row facing the front listening to musicians perform and preachers preach. Why? Because as I wrote earlier, worship is not about me. It is about giving glory to God. Therefore, I can find meaning in worship regardless of the setting, format, structure, or custom.

V. Conclusion

Let me close these thoughts on worship with a quotation from Robert Webber (1982, pp. 11-12). He described worship as “a meeting between God and his people”:

In this meeting God becomes present to His people, who respond with praise and thanksgiving. Thus the worshiper is brought into personal contact with the one who gives meaning and purpose to life; from this encounter the worshiper receives strength and courage to live with hope in a fallen world.

Reflection Questions:

1. What blessings do you receive from corporate worship that you do not receive from private worship?

2. How does the style and structure of the worship service affect your ability to worship?

3. What draws you to gather with other believers in worship?

Sources:

Allen, R., & Borror, G. (1982). Worship: Rediscovering the missing jewel. Portland, OR: Multnomah Press.

Banks, R. (1994). Paul’s idea of community (Rev. ed.). Peabody, MA: Hendrickson.

Foster, R. J. (1988). Celebration of discipline: The path to spiritual growth (Rev. ed.). San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco.

Hinson, W. H. (1991). The power of holy habits: A discipline for faithful discipleship. Nashville: Abingdon.

Linton, G. L. (2005). House church meetings in the New Testament era. Stone-Campbell Journal, 8, 229-244.

Smith, D. E. (2003). From symposium to Eucharist: The banquet in the early Christian world. Minneapolis: Fortress Press.

Thompson, M. J. (1995). Soul feast: An invitation to the Christian spiritual life. Louisville, KY: Westminister John Knox Press.

Webber, R. (1982). Worship, old and new. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.

Next topic: Study: Looking into God's Word

Worship: Looking Up to God, Pt. II

III. Private Worship

Worship is both a private and a public activity. It is both personal and corporate. In this post, I want to describe how worship takes place in private, personal settings.

During Jesus’ time, worship was generally viewed as limited to specific times, specific places, and specific rituals. Jews viewed God’s presence as restricted to the innermost room of the Temple, and only one person, the High Priest, could enter that place once a year on the Day of Atonement.

This perspective on worship was displayed by the Samaritan woman who said to Jesus: “Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you say that the place where people must worship is in Jerusalem” (John 4:20). She was referring the temple that was built on Mt. Gerizim by the Samaritans as a rival to the Jerusalem temple. Since she recognized that Jesus was a prophet, she wanted him to settle this interreligious dispute.

Instead, Jesus challenged her to expand her understanding of worship: “But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:23-24). Worship is not a matter of external ritual but of internal fellowship with God, which can take place at any time in any place.

After his death and resurrection, Jesus poured out the Holy Spirit on the church. Now, every person who surrenders his or her life to Christ receives the Holy Spirit as a permanent possession. Because God’s own Spirit dwells within his people, we can turn within and commune with God at any moment.

Other passages of Scripture suggest that our entire lives are to be characterized by an attitude of worship. Paul says: “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thess 5:17). He also suggests that every word and act should express worship for Christ (Col 3:17). Worship of God is not restricted to one hour on Sunday morning when we meet together in a building. Worship occurs any time our thoughts are centered on God’s greatness and any time we say or do something to bring glory to God’s name.

This attitude of ceaseless worship was exemplified in the life of Brother Lawrence, a fifteenth-century French monk. He discovered the secret of what he called “the practice of the presence of God.” Whether he was cooking in the kitchen, washing the dishes, or scrubbing the floors, he had learned to maintain a constant awareness of God’s presence with him (Foster, 1988, p. 162). His devotional book about this topic has inspired countless Christians through the centuries to look beyond the mundane activities of everyday life to experience the presence of God with them.

Private worship also occurs in moments of solitude when we turn away from the distractions of outer life and focus on the presence of God within. I have already written about this in a previous post. Our private prayers should always begin with praise for who God and thanksgiving for what he has done.

We will also find that certain places evoke an attitude of awe toward God. Paul wrote that “ever since the creation of the world his eternal power and divine nature, invisible though they are, have been understood and seen through the things he has made” (Rom 1:20). This “general revelation” that we receive through creation makes us aware of God’s greatness and goodness, and so we respond in worship. Athanasius rightly said: “No part of creation is left void of the Word of God” (Chase, 2011, p. 3). Even Calvin confessed that “nature is God” (Chase, 2011, p. 42).

According to Diogenes Allen, “we can better understand and admire God’s power, wisdom, and goodness as we increase in our knowledge of the world’s order, harmony, and beauty—God’s glory” (1997, p. 111). Allen shows that saints of the past such as Basil of Caesarea, Bonaventure, and Julian of Norwich “emphasized contemplation of nature as a way to increase our knowledge and love of God” (1997, p. 109). Bonaventure, for example, suggested meditating on the following seven properties of creatures:

•         Origin
•         Magnitude
•         Multitude
•         Beauty
•         Fullness
•         Activity
•         Order.

Similarly, John Scotus Erigena regarded the whole world as a theophany, a manifestation of God, in which the God of light illuminates and enlightens matter. Richard of St. Victor taught that “the visible, material things of creation lead those who are contemplative to the invisible, spiritual things of God” (Chase, 2011, pp. 32-34). Elizabeth Barrett Browning wrote that “Earth’s crammed with heaven,/ And every common bush afire with God;/ And only he who sees takes off his shoes;/ The rest sit round it and pluck blackberries” (Aurora Leigh, Bk. vii, 1:821).

In her famous essay “Forms of The Implicit Love of God,” the French philosopher and mystic Simone Weil includes “love of the order of nature” as one of the ways that a person becomes aware of God. She describes how God woos us through contemplation of nature: “The soul’s natural inclination to beauty is the trap God most frequently uses in order to win it and open it to the breath from on high” (Weil, 1951, p. 103). She describes nature as a labyrinth that leads us to God:

The beauty of the world is the mouth of labyrinth. The unwary individual who on entering takes a few steps is soon unable to find the opening. Worn out, with nothing to eat or drink, in the dark, separated from his dear ones, and from everything he loves and is accustomed to, he walks on without ever knowing anything or hoping anything, incapable even of discovering whether he is really going forward or merely turning round on the same spot. But this affliction is as nothing compared with the danger threatening him. For if he does not lose courage, if he goes on walking, it is absolutely certain that he will finally arrive at the center of the labyrinth. And there God is waiting to eat him. Later he will go out again, but he will be changed, he will have become different, after being eaten and digested by God. Afterward he will stay near the entrance so that he can gently push all those who come near into the opening. (Weil, 1951, p. 103)

John Eldredge profoundly describes an experience like this when he was a young boy of six or seven. As he wandered through the landscape of the farm, he sensed that, through the music of life sung to him by crickets, katydids, cicadas, and bullfrogs, he was being romanced by some unseen lover (Curtis & Eldredge, 1997, pp. 14-16).

Worshipping God in the cathedral of nature expands the self beyond one’s own petty concerns. It draws our attention away from the orbit of our own self-centered desires. It calms the emotions and pacifies the mind. I have had this experience standing on the south rim of the Grand Canyon overlooking that great chasm carved out over the ages. I have experienced the presence of God in the deafening roar of Niagara Falls while riding the Maid of the Mist. I have sensed something greater than myself while standing in stunned silence with my parents in the yard of our house as we watched the Northern Lights spread their shimmering, multicolored curtains across the night sky. I have seen God’s power and majesty as a young boy watching the midnight sky lit up by the heat lightning from a massive thunderstorm rolling in from the prairies of Illinois. I have come to know the greatness of God while standing on the tower on Clingman’s Dome in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

In these moments of transcendence generated by nature, we join in praising God with creation: “Praise the Lord!/ Praise the Lord from the heavens; praise him in the heights!/ Praise him, all his angels; praise him, all his host!/ Praise him, sun and moon; praise him, all you shining stars!/ Praise him, you highest heavens, and you waters above the heavens!.... Praise the Lord from the earth, you sea monsters and all deeps,/ fire and hail, snow and frost, stormy wind fulfilling his command!/ Mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars!/ Wild animals and all cattle, creeping things and flying birds!” (Ps 148:1-4, 7-10).

St. Francis of Assisi also joined in creation’s praise in his famous canticle “Brother Sun, Sister Moon”: “Praised be You my Lord with all your creatures, especially Sir Brother Sun…. Praised be You my Lord through Sister Moon and the stars…. Praised be You my Lord through Brothers Wind and Air…. Praised be You my Lord through Sister Water…. Praised be You my Lord through Brother Fire…. Praised be You my Lord through our Sister, Mother Earth…. Praised be You my Lord through Sister Death….”

Worship is not a purely private experience. Worship with others is also necessary, as I will show in the next post.

Reflection Questions

1. How would it change the way you live to understand that worship is a ceaseless activity?

2. How do you worship God in private?

3. When and where have your thoughts been lifted up to God by the contemplation of nature?

Sources:

Allen, D. (1997). Spiritual theology: The theology of yesterday for spiritual help today. Lanham, MD: Cowley.

Chase, S. (2011). Nature as spiritual practice. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans.

Curtis, B., & Eldredge, J. (1997). The sacred romance: Drawing closer to the heart of God. Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

Foster, R. J. (1988). Celebration of discipline: The path to spiritual growth (Rev. and exp. ed.). San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco.

Weil, S. (1951). Waiting for God. Translated by E. Crauford. New York: Putnam.

Next Post: Worship: Looking Up to God, Pt. III

Worship: Looking up to God, Pt. 1

In the last post, I discussed the role that spiritual disciplines play in opening our souls to God. By practicing the spiritual disciplines, we draw closer to God and depend on him every moment of our lives so that he can use his power to transform us into the likeness of Jesus.

The foundational and primary spiritual discipline is worship. Throughout the Bible, we find that more than anything else, God desires our worship. God created us to love him, and worship is the means by which we express our love for God. Ephesians 1:12 says that we are created to "live for the praise of his glory." Therefore, the top priority of the church is not pastoral care or counseling, helping the needy, changing unjust social structures, or evangelizing the lost. Worship is job one of the church (Miller, 1994, p. 34). These other important activities flow out of the church's worship to God. Apart from worship, they lack power and meaning.

Most believers recognize that worship is the most crucial spiritual discipline. The church growth expert Herb Miller once carried out a survey in hundreds of churches to determine the activities that made people feel close to God. He asked people to mark on the survey all the activities that helped them experience intimacy with God. It is no surprise that worship was checked more frequently than any other item (Miller, 1994, p. 33).

In spite of the priority of worship, many Americans neglect worship. Since the 1950s, the Gallup Poll has reported that about 45% of Protestants and 50% of Roman Catholics attended church in any given week. Their 2010 poll showed that 43.1% of all Americans reported weekly or almost weekly church attendance.

The statistics may actually be more dismal than that. Dave Olsen's American Research Project, using actual head counts rather than self-reporting, found that only 17% of the American population attended a Christian church on any given weekend in 2007, down from 20.4% in 1990. His research showed that 51 million Americans worshipped on a given weekend in 1990, and the same number held true for 2006. But during that time, the American population increased by 51 million people! Although worship helps connect people with God, many Americans apparently do not see the need for it. 

To encourage us to practice regularly this important spiritual discipline, I am going to explain the meaning of worship and then offer some ideas about how we can practice it in both private and public settings.

I. The Meaning of Worship

The primary Hebrew word used for "worship" in the Old Testament chawah (always found in the form hishtahawah), which originally meant to prostrate oneself to the ground (Neh 8:6). In the Ancient Near East, bowing down or lying down was a customary way of showing respect and humility to a superior (Gen 18:2; 23:7, 12). For example, on the Black Obelisk, King Jehu is depicted as bowing down on his knees with his forehead to ground before Shalmaneser III. This word is used 170 times in the Old Testament, referring mostly to worship of God (Ps 29:2; 95:6), gods, or idols (Yamauchi, 1980, pp. 267-9).

The primary Greek word used for "worship" in the New Testament is proskuneō, which means "to bend the knee." It is used to translate hishtahawah 148 times in the Septuagint. Both of these terms suggest that attitudes of submission, humility, and dependence are integral to the act of worship. In worship, we recognize that God is greater than ourselves and deserving of our respect. Our English word "worship" derives from the Anglo-Saxon term weorthscipe, which means "to attribute worth" (Watson, 1978, p. 179). When we worship, we acknowledge that God is worthy of our praise and love.

A more comprehensive definition is provided by Ronald Allen and Gordon Borror: "Worship is an active response to God whereby we declare his worth. Worship is not passive but is participative. Worship is not simply a mood; it is a response. Worship is not just a feeling; it is a declaration" (1982, p. 16). William Temple offered an eloquent description of worship:

Worship is the submission of all our nature to God. It is the quickening of conscience by his holiness; the nourishment of mind with his truth; the purifying of imagination by his beauty; the opening of the heart to his love; the surrender of will to his purpose—and all this gathered up in adoration, the most selfless emotion of which our nature is capable and therefore the chief remedy for that self-centeredness which is our original sin and the source of all actual sin (Watson, 1978, p. 181).

Perhaps the most fundamental fact about worship is that it is primarily for God's sake, not for our sake. We often think of worship as something that serves our needs. We often take a self-centered, consumer-oriented approach to worship. And so we go church-shopping and church-hopping to find the worship experience that best meets our needs. We evaluate worship services just as we do a restaurant or a movie. We say, "What did you think of the service today?" We evaluate the sermon on the basis of whether it was interesting or entertaining or moving. We evaluate how well the musicians played and the singers sang. We complain if the music was too loud or too soft, too fast or too slow.

For some reason, we think the worship service is about us. We evaluate the worship service as if it were a performance put on for our entertainment and pleasure. This point reminds me of the story about the family who was returning home after the worship service on Sunday. The father was complaining that the sermon was boring, the music was too loud, and the service was too long. His little son spoke up and helpfully offered, "Yes, but it wasn't too bad a show for a quarter, was it, Dad?"

We often forget that worship is not intended primarily for our benefit. In worship, we focus our attention on God to give him our devotion and affection. R. Kent Hughes suggests that too often, the question we ask ourselves after attending a worship service is, What did I get out of it? Instead the question should be, What did I give to God? Hughes reminds us that we gather together to worship God, not to get a lift for ourselves (Hughes, 1991, p. 106).

The philosopher Kierkegaard offered a profound reminder about worship: "In the theater, the play is staged before an audience who are called theatergoers; but at the devotional address, God is also present. In the most earnest sense, God is the critical theatergoer, who looks on to see how the lines are spoken and how they are listened to."

When we focus on our own needs and desires instead of on God, we are tempted to use our disappointment with the church as an excuse not to develop the discipline of worship. If we applied the same strict standards of entertainment to other aspects of life as we do to the church, we might never go to a restaurant or see a movie or attend a ballgame. For example, here is a list of eleven excuses for giving up attending sports events (source unknown):

1. Every time I went, they asked for money.
2. The people I sat next to didn't seem friendly.
3. The seats were too hard and not comfortable at all.
4. I went to many games but the coach never came to call on me.
5. The referees made bad decisions that I couldn't agree with.
6. The game went into overtime and I was late getting home.
7. The band played numbers I'd never heard and it wasn't my style of music.
8. It seems the games are always scheduled when I want to do other things.
9. I suspect that I was sitting next to some hypocrites. They came to see their friends and they talked during the whole game.
10. I was taken to too many games by my parents when I was growing up.
11. I hate to wait in the traffic jam in the parking lot after the game.

Now, I am not saying that we do not receive any personal benefits from participating in worship. Of course we do. When we focus on God and give him glory, we receive a sense of personal blessing because we are fulfilling God's intention for us. We were designed by God to worship and love him, and we receive a feeling of satisfaction when we do that. As we fulfill God's intention for us, we feel right with him and at peace with ourselves and others.

Herb Miller identified ten benefits of worship (1994, pp. 34-36):

1. Worship dispels loneliness.
2. Worship brings hope.
3. Worship counters self-centeredness.
4. Worship reminds us of important values that we tend to forget.
5. Worship strengthens courage.
6. Worship gives us the opportunity to express thanksgiving.
7. Worship brings us a sense of forgiveness.
8. Worship renews our faith.
9. Worship calls us out of what we are to what we are yet to become.
10. Worship is a form of corporate prayer that brings positive change to people.

Whenever we fulfill God's will for us, we will be blessed. But that should not be our primary motivation for worship. We worship God because he deserves it.

In the next post, I will discuss worship as a private practice.

Reflection Questions:

1.    What role does worship play in your spiritual growth?

2.    How often do you critique worship experiences in terms of how they benefit you?

3. What can you do to keep your focus on God in worship?

Sources:

Allen, R., & Borror, G. (1982). Worship: Rediscovering the missing jewel. Portland, OR: Multnomah Press.

Hughes, R. K. (1991). Disciplines of a godly man. Wheaton, IL: Crossway.

Miller, H. (1994). Connecting with God: 14 ways churches can help people grow spiritually. Nashville: Abingdon Press.

Watson, D. (1978). I believe in the church. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans.

Yamauchi, E. (1980). חוה. In Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament
(Vol. 1, pp. 267-9). Chicago: Moody Press.