Wednesday, January 8, 2014

Common Questions about Worshiping Jesus Part Five

In the final portion of this series I list four commonly asked questions relating to worshiping Jesus.  You will notice aspects of worship that we routinely think of as a part of our respective music ministries.


1.  Why are many church worship services boring and not like the worship we find described in Revelation?


In Revelation we see such things as singing, musical instrumentation, brilliant lighting, and visual imagery incorporated in the worship of Jesus.  Elsewhere in scripture we also see that the worship of God includes God's people bowing and kneeling (Psalm 95:6), clapping and shouting (Psalm 47:1), and raising their hands (Neh. 8:6; Psalm 28:2, 63:4, 134:2, 141:2, 143:6, Lam 3:41, I Timothy 2:9).  In comparison, many churches today seem committed to being as boring as possible. Others seem just as committed to doing the latest cool thing and you may wonder who they are actually worshiping.


Nonetheless, in being reconciled to Jesus we are also reconciled to his people and made part of the church.  So it is our responsibility as Christians to find a congregation of people who are devoted to real Jesus-directed worship and join them.  While the style of architecture and music may be important, what is most important is that you connect with both Jesus and his people.  But remember, worship is about Jesus, not about us.


2.  Is singing all that there is to worship?


Not at all.  Coming together with God's people to proclaim the wonder of Jesus is important.  But probably the most sincere worship is how we live our life after we leave the church building.


In Isaiah 1 the Lord became angry at Judah.  They were going to church, singing songs, spreading their hands in prayer, even giving tithes.  But the Lord wouldn't receive their adoration.  The rest of their life wasn't glorifying to him.  They needed to do whole life worship and not just a few hours one day a week.  So God commanded them to remove the evil of their deeds from before his eyes, cease to do evil, learn to do good, seek justice, correct oppression, bring justice to the fatherless, and plead the widow's cause as acts of true worship (Isa. 1:16-17).  Serving people in the name of Jesus and in the character of Jesus is the most satisfying form of worship ever.


3.  Why does God need all that praise?


Worship isn't about meeting God's needs. Worship is first of all about direction for our lives.  Worshiping God means honoring or valuing him above everything else.  Someone who worships Jesus will refuse to give honor to anything that dishonors Jesus.  They will not purposely do things that don't promote his character and honor.  Worship is also about devotion or relationship.  From the beginning, God made us like himself (Gen. 1:26-28).  He made us for relationship with each other and with him.  When we build the relationship between God and ourselves, then we are doing worshipful things.  Because we were made for worship, God allows us to worship him both for his glory and our good.  Through the worship of God we are liberated to live freely and joyfully without worshiping people and things that would make us miserable.


4.  Why does God jealously require that we worship only him?


God is like a home in a tough neighborhood.  The loving parents in the home tell their kids to finish their homework and to do their chores.  There are others in the neighborhood who would never make their children finish their homework and do their chores.  Instead they would allow or even encourage their children to sin and spend their time drinking, doing drugs, having sex and making trouble.  The reason godly parents ask for exclusive obedience and worship is not that they have insatiable egos that need constant stroking, but that they are the only ones who really love the kids, who want to give good things to them for the kids' deepest pleasure.  Likewise, God is a jealous God who wants only the best for us, his children, and his jealousy is nothing but his love seeking our good.  Hence, Exodus 20:3-5: "You shall have no other gods before me. . . . You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God."


This concludes this five-part series about why we should worship Jesus.  I pray it has been a blessing to you and that you have been able to share it with your music department.  Please feel free to contact me with any comments you have.  God gets the glory?

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