What's the Point of Worship?

A friend of mine recently expressed that he found worship unhelpful and personally meaningless.  I applaud his honesty.  Many Christians sometimes find themselves reflecting on their experience of corporate worship, and facing up to the fact that it sometimes seems meaningless.  If this is the case, then we are likely also to ask what is the point of going to church, since it seems mainly about worship.

There are several issues, and space here is limited, so I will not attempt to address them all, or even any of them in great depth.  In many traditional churches, we use the term worship to define our meeting together.  Sometimes we refer to the meeting as a ‘service’.  Personally, I find both terms unhelpful, and I have resorted to usually simply referring to them as meetings.  The Bible provides a pattern for the meetings of the early Christians, but both what we have inherited, and more contemporary versions, often seem distinct from the biblical record.

In a gathering of several churches that follow the traditional inherited model, I asked what they thought the main purpose was for most churches.  Their answer was “to worship God”.  I think this was a misunderstanding of the first item in the catechism.  What it states in answer to the question, “What is the chief end of man?” is “… to glorify God and to enjoy him forever.”  The Catechism continues to explain that we can discover how to do this from the scriptures.  But “glorifying God” certainly does not mean a church-based activity, while “enjoying God forever” might give us a better insight into what worship is really about.

One core aspect of worship is the acknowledgement of our relationship to God. He is above all things, and we depend upon him for our very breath.  In the Hebrew scriptures (OT) we see worship expressed in cultic form both as far as false gods are concerned and what took place in the Tabernacle and Temple.  But we also see that God disdains worship that is merely external and formal but that lacks sincerity (see Isaiah 29:13, and Psalm 51:16,17).

This finds an echo in the conversation about worship that Jesus had with a Samaritan woman.  He told her, “… a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshippers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”  (John 4: 23, 24) While mind and heart may be involved in worship, it is essentially a spiritual exercise.  That can only happen where there is a spiritual relationship with God.

God certainly is not egotistical, loving to hear himself praised.  Nor does he suffer from low self-esteem.  So, worship is not about making God feel good.  It is an expression about how God makes us feel, as we benefit from his love, grace and mercy.  This is not the same as putting ourselves as the focus of worship.  It is aa response to whom we have discovered to be experientially.  If our worship delights God, it will be because we genuinely express our enjoyment of him.  In much the same way, when I tell my wife that I love her, it is so that she knows how much she means to me.  Of course, she might know that already, but expressing how I feel about her is not only right, but also good.

My first real experience of worship took place on two occasions linked to an Operation Mobilization Convention in 1963. Together with a few teenage Christian friends, and an Austrian Christian woman, we had driven from Hastings to Chigwell and met with several hundred other Christians passionate about making Jesus known.  On the Sunday morning we had crowded into a large tent for worship.  As we celebrated communion together, I was overwhelmed by the wonder of Jesus’ sacrificial love.  I felt moved to sing ‘When I survey the wondrous cross’.  I had got no further than the third word when some 500 voices joined mine as together we expressed how thankful we were for this ‘love so amazing, so divine’.  In that moment, it felt as if heaven and earth had met together.

That evening, as we were driving back home, we listened to Songs of Praise on the car radio.  This was a programme of gospel hymns, every Sunday evening.  Suddenly, as I listened to these wonderful hymn, I found I could not help praising God. ‘Hallelujahs ‘and ‘Praise the Lords’ pored out of me uncontrollably.  Since that day there have been many occasions when singing old hymns or new songs I have felt that spiritual engagement, and truly worshipped.  But there have been many times also when singing an old hymn or new songs has failed to elicit a response from my heart.  The form might be there, but the worship was missing.

Our meetings are often designed to meet certain expectations.  This is true whether we have what is sometimes called a hymn sandwich, or whether we open the meeting with 45 minutes of the latest Christian songs.  But if worship leaders have failed to understand the real nature of worship, and if the Spirit of God is not moving in the lives of the congregation, it is likely to be worship in name only, and some may wonder, what is the point?

In chapters 10 to 14 of his first letter to the church at Corinth, Paul has much to say about our meetings.  He exhorts love to be shown and selfishness to be set aside.  He encourages all to exercise their gifts but also urges that the meetings are conducted in an orderly way.  In 1Corinthians 14:26 he describes a meeting in which various people participate in different ways, just one of which might be with a hymn.  But he also emphasises that there is a purpose for these meetings.  It is for the spiritual growth of the members of the congregation.  If there is no clear purpose to all that takes place when we meet, it will also leave some wondering, “What is the point?”

As I have always sought in my ministry to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable, I want to leave you with two suggestions.  For those planning to conduct church meetings, make sure that there is a sense of purpose to it all, and that elements that are meant to be worship allow time and room for the Holy Spirit to evoke a response to truth that might make the worshippers feel something of heaven on earth.

My second suggestion is a little mischievous.  If the purpose of the service is not clear or if the worship does not truly engage with your soul and spirit, enquire of the worship leader(s), in an appropriate time, place and way, what they had hoped to achieve.  Be honest, but be loving.  Perhaps, if those who lead meetings were lovingly challenged, there would be fewer people going home disappointed, and more getting excited about God and our wonderful Saviour.

From the Diary

Thank you for your prayers.  It was good to be taking the Family Service for Goodwood Evangelical Church last Sunday.  I’d found it strange that the theme to which I felt led was more adult than children, and had wondered how I would adapt some parts.  When I arrived, I discovered that there were no children expected that day! School Assembly on Monday was on ‘Wisdom’ and I needed wisdom in several special meetings in the week.  Sadly, for reasons beyond my control, I was unable to hold a choir practice in prison.  Please pray that this coming Tuesday we will not suffer from the same problems.

As we move through Advent, we remember a second coming is promised.  May we all be found ready.

Barry

2^nd December 2017