How much does God really mean to you? What we truly prize, we truly praise. And that’s precisely what should be taking place in the worship of God. In true worship, we are expressing how much God means to us (Psalm 29:2; Matthew 4:9-10). Our prizing of Him simply must express itself in praise. We express our adoration, awe, awareness, and appreciation of all God is and does through the avenues authorized in His word (John 4:23- 24). Yet it is far too easy to get away from what worship should be all about. We can take the worth out of worship and greatly depreciate its expression and beauty by falling prey to some common misunderstandings. In last week’s bulletin article, three such misunderstandings were noted. In this article, two more will be examined.
“The Pep Rally View.” With this approach, the primary purpose of worship is “to make me feel good.” It is commonly expressed by such statements as “I just didn’t get anything out of worship today.” And it is imperative that the atmosphere be “Ra Ra” (emotionally charged) in order for people to get something out of it. No one would deny that worship should be done with enthusiasm and passion (see last week’s article), or that the one worshiping is blessed by expressing true worship to Him. But that’s precisely the problem with the misunderstanding being discussed. God somehow gets lost in the shuffle. This approach tends to reinforce a man-centered, self-serving view of worship (cf. Matthew 15:7- 10; Colossians 2:23). Worship must primarily be to God, about God, and for God. We simply must do a better job of informing people that, however much God’s name may be mentioned in our assemblies, worship becomes man-centered when its focus becomes the “experience” of the worshipers and worship is employed as a means for attempting to manipulate divine power for the attainment of human goals. In true worship, we pant, long for, and thirst for Him! (Psalm 42:1-2; 63:1-5). And only m Him can we find the satisfaction our souls earnestly crave.
“The Show Time View.” With this view, worship is all about the “show.” Like the circus, worship is intended to be the “greatest show on earth.” This concept primarily sees worship as entertainment and performance. Without such an emphasis in today’s visually oriented society, we are told by some, folks will be bored to tears. Again, please get the point. Certainly we should desire to give God our best in worship, and Scripture plainly defines what that involves (cf. John 4:23-24; 1 Corinthians 14:15). But in the scheme of things, giving God our best can quickly lead to becoming spiritual “show offs” if we do not keep our hearts in the right place and actually give God priority of place in worship (cf. Matthew 6:1-18). Some questions are well worth considering. Does the worship as entertainment view really foster the awe and reverence that should be present toward God? Or does it foster awe or toward those who have leading roles in the worship assemblies? Doesn’t the entertainment approach often seem to be a bribe to encourage people to assemble? Doesn’t this concept of worship actually work to undermine the power of the gospel to change people’s lives? It appears that m this view we erect idols in the form of performers while merely giving God a back seat at the show. All of these misunderstandings do have a bit of truth in them. But the devil is a master at twisting truth, isn’t he? Let’s NOT take the worth out of worship!
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