Toward Better Worship on Sunday...

Recently, I wrote (make no mistake...a rebuke) about the wrong emphasis on attractional ministries in the church and the shameful lack of sound doctrine being proclaimed...an incessant fear of offending and a desire to be "liked" by those facing a Christless eternity. I poked fun at our remarkable budgets that reflect the import of high attraction based worship services (smoke machines, dance, puppets, sand artists, basket weaving, set design, production based services...you know the drill...I know the drill).

Recently, I received some feedback as to the tone of my challenge and I would like to address that here, for all. I believe that we are called to rebuke the church if there is error and I do believe, in many cases, we have made a mockery of worship. And if that's the case, we should all be ticked about it.

“He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.”
(Titus 1:9 ESV).

Because worship must be theologically informed and Biblically robust, wrong concepts in worship are insidious and contrary to sound doctrine and should be rebuked by leaders. If you lead, you better get used to the call to rebuke the church. Its often the loving thing to do. The word for rebuke carries the force of "setting a value upon; to assess a penalty; to allege as a crimination; hence, to reprove, chide, censure, rebuke, reprimand, Matt 19:13; Luke 23:40; in N.T. to admonish strongly, enjoin strictly, Matt 12:16; Luke 17:3." Let us not shrink back at this gracious ministry of correction that God gives His church through leaders."

So, why the rebuke with regards to public worship?

First, worship needs to be defined before we can critique our forms. Because the entire Word of God is a call to worship God with our entire life, numerous texts could be chosen, but for the purpose of this blog, I'm going to use Romans 11:36-12:1. In this text, Paul has reached a climatic point in his exposition of the gospel and now, with simple clarity gives us the purpose for which we have been saved: to worship Jesus with our lives!

“For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.”
(Romans 11:36-12:1 ESV)

Three foundational principles are found in this text that will help us to define worship. (1) Jesus is the object of our worship. Anything else is idolatry. Everyone worships something. Worship means ascribing absolute worth, assigning absolute, universal, and preeminent value... "for from him (Jesus) and through him (Jesus) and to him (Jesus) are all things (nothing has value apart from Jesus, nothing takes priority over, has glory over....) to him (Jesus, and Jesus only) be glory forever. You worship whatever you ascribe worth to. You worship that which you think is of supreme value. For some, it’s the family. For others, it’s work, play, sex, ministry (all forms of idolatry). JESUS alone is to be the one that we place supreme value, glory, honor, adoration, and praise.

(2) The second point is that true worship is an act of "presenting" yourself. The word for present is the word paristemi, and it carries the force of presenting yourself into one’s presence, offer, yield, dedicate; provide, send; prove (Ac 24:13); intrans. (pf., plpf., 2 aor. act.; all midd.) stand by, be present, stand; come; stand before; stand together (Ac 4:26). Worship means coming and staying in the presence of what we love, adore, ascribe supreme worth to...worship means that we stand before God, both gathered (as in corporate settings) and scattered (as a lifestyle).

(3) The third is that worship is about sacrificing...we present ourselves to the object of our worship (that which we ascribe absolute) value to...and we sacrifice our life...time, money, resources, gifts...

So here's the bottom line. We come together and we humbly bow in the presence of the Trinitarian God, praising and ascribing worth to Jesus. We receive the joy of His life giving presence and we rejoice...and sacrifice. This is a way of life...we do it when we shop, or when we mow the grass, run, gather around the supper table, converse, drink Starbucks coffee... and we do it when we come together on Sunday. Worship is our center of gravity...our worldview that Jesus is everything. Worship guides our life, leads us in the use of resources, transforms us and makes us like Jesus. In short, worshipping Jesus is life lived in His presence for His glory and our joy. Everything else is idolatry.

(So back to my rant on some issues that face an attractionally based worship service)

To begin with, thinking of worship as something that has a foundational purpose of "attracting" the lost is misguided at best (and I have failed here many times...) and at worse, a form of idolatry. If we are constructing "shows" so that on any given Sunday, unregenerate, lost people will "be attracted", how can we call that worship?

I submit that expressions of life lived out in the presence of God, by definition cannot have the lost as the focus. So any decision on how to worship should begin and end on Jesus, his glory, and those who adore Him with their life. If we are sitting around a table with worship teams and the question is "what will our lost culture like and enjoy?" aren't we starting at the wrong place?

Additionally, forms or expressions of worship should be a response to being in His presence and receiving revelation from God... "Worship" (really expressions) should follow receiving God, His revelation. With that in mind, shouldn't our expressions of worship follow God revealing Himself to us in His Word by means of the Holy Spirit? This is the pattern in His Word...People draw near to the object of their worship, Jesus. God reveals Himself to them...and the result is they are overjoyed...and sing, dance, rejoice, praise, adore....

In our own community, we are making a shift in this regard. Expressions of corporate worship follow the exposition of the revelation of almighty God (His word by His Spirit).

And this brings me to the final point of that very aggressive blog. Preaching/teaching the Word is to be PREEMINENT in the corporate worship setting. Expressions of worship are secondary! Read here that Preachers/Teachers should preach for A LONG TIME....without apology or a sense that they need to entertain, attract. Good and faithful preaching is the center.

This should be reflected in the time allocated, resources allocated (preaching is free), space allocated....PREACHING/TEACHING the Word is PREEMINENT (see the next blog) in the corporate worship setting. This isn't about gifts and who has the most time in front of people. It has everything to do with our gathered worship times done in the right way.

So here are some closing thoughts...

1. Everything comes back to Jesus. You can't say His name enough, lift up His gospel enough, praise His eternal glories enough...

2. Plan a service for those who worship Jesus...the very term "worship" demands this...seeker aware is missional and very appropriate...but you plan your services for those who worship Jesus. You do not plan your service for idolaters. Aaron might have led the very first seeker sensitve service. How do you like molten hot gold with your scone?

3. God doesn't need help in being attractive. John 6:44 makes it clear that God attracts. We worship.

4. Preach the Word well and long....preferably first. 1 Timothy 5:17 indicate that this is central and it should be reflected across the board.

5. Avoid narrative preaching on Sunday. Preach the text expositionally, disciplining yourself to stay tethered to the grammatical-historical exegetical process. There are problems with narrative preaching. The loud siren song to tell stories in narrative preaching often indicates a subtle move away from propositional truth in favor of relativism, as if transformation were possible without information. You cannot teach someone how to employ a M50 machine gun without some facts and propositions. You cannot teach surgery, history, anything without some facts. Our faith as revealed by God (through words and propositional statements no less) and is rooted in facts that we must learn and love. Propositional truth informs us of our fallen state, the infinate glories of Jesus, of His penal substitution, our need to repent....propositional truth keeps us from error. We need it and we can't get there with a clever story. THIS IS NOT TO SAY THAT THERE IS NO PLACE FOR US TO TEACH BY TELLING STORIES...JUST DON'T MAKE THAT YOUR MANNA ON SUNDAY.

6. Stop spending so much money on your forms or expressions of worship. You need to be heard so get a good sound system. You need make it available so find away to put it online. You need instruments. Fine. You need printed words somewhere so people can participate. Fine. But our Sunday budgets should reflect an overall budget process that places a clear and highest value on elevating Jesus in worship and living sent and on mission (what the church lives out incarnationally as it scatters)...worship should cost very little in terms of cash and a great deal in terms of heart.

“preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.”
(2Timothy 4:2 ESV)

In the grip of His grace and always seeking understanding by His Word and Spirit...

J