I read an article today about worship that made me really frustrated. So I started to write, and it ended up just being a rant. Usually that's not that productive. (But I promise you, it's a good rant! :) )

But what I thought would be better is to talk a bit about worship: what it is, and what it is not. It's a hot "buzzword" in churches, and I thought it might be helpful to offer a working definition of worship, and some of its practical implications.

What Worship Is

Worship is, for lack of a better phrase, a "two-way street". It is firstly God's action - He speaks to us His Word and we hear it (Romans 10:14-17). Then we are motivated by that Good News to respond with thanksgiving and praise (1 Peter 2:9-10). In the regular life of the church, this should happen every time a congregation gathers publicly for worship. It's the event we often call "going to church". I have come to prefer the phrase "corporate worship". It's worship because the purpose is to hear the Word and respond to it, and it's corporate because it's done in a group - corporately. (And it's not "going to church", because the church is not a building. The church is a people. Maybe a better phrase is "going to meet with the church for worship", or if that's too wordy, maybe "meeting for worship".)

Romans 12:1 speaks of another side of worship, that is, worship in a more individual context. There are varying English translations of this originally Greek word; sometimes the word "service" is used. The context is that of sacrifice: in the OT, how people worshipped was they brought animal sacrifices. Since Jesus was the once-for-all sacrifice on our behalf (Hebrews 9:24-28), we no longer bring physical sacrifices. Rather, our "sacrifice" is spiritual in nature: a sacrifice of praise, which is acknowledging God with our mouths (Hebrews 13:15). So in a sense, worship (service, sacrifice) is always happening in the life of a Christian as God brings His Word to mind through the Holy Spirit and then the Christian serves others in God's name in all facets of life.

But it is corporate worship that generally gets the focus in congregational life, and for good reason. It is the place where we are encouraged by hearing the Word explicitly proclaimed and gathering together with other Christians to respond. So though the complete definition of worship includes all of life, the narrow definition of "worship" refers to this corporate gathering of the church. And that's what I'm dealing with in this post.

What Worship is Not

However, the word "worship" is also used in wrong or incomplete ways.

I believe the primary way in which it is mis-used is to simply equate it with music. So you'll hear something like this: "We'll go to church, and there we'll have a time of worship, and then announcements and preaching". This is using "worship" synonymously with "music". My response is, "it's all part of worship". (That's why I also much prefer the phrase "music team" over against "worship team", since the "worship team" includes all aspects of worship leadership and service - pastor(s), musicians, ushers, tech people, etc. I could even argue that "worship team" includes the whole assembly of people gathered together - we're all on the same team.)

Or you'll hear something like, "the worship was great today!" Again, meaning, music only. Not that we don't want to strive to have good music - but that's not the whole picture of worship.

It's true that music is a part of worship. Most songs would fall into the realm of "praise", where the words of the song indicate some kind of response to God's mercy. This is fine. But it's also an incomplete picture of worship. If you define worship as only music, you miss on the first part - God's action. That's kind of a big deal.

Worship is also not an industry. (And this is where this article really hit me - it really showed the "industry" side of things.) Or rather, perhaps I should say, worship should not be an industry. Quite frankly, it is an industry, and this is not a good thing. We have big-name "worship artists" (basically rock stars), CD sales, tours, ticket sales, promotions, awards, and much much more. This is a twisting of worship into something that should not be.

I'm fine with the stars, CDs, tours, and concerts. Just don't attach the word "worship" to market them, or call the event "worship". At best it based on the imcomplete meaning of worship equaling music. At worst it's flirting with idolatry. Seriously, $15 tickets to a "worship experience" with a special front-row VIP price of only $30 so you can be closer to the artist's shredding guitar solos? (Sorry, I'm getting off on my rant. I'll stop.)

So What?

So why spend this time talking about what worship is and is not? Because it has profound implications for what we do as the church of Jesus. I don't have time to get into all of it right now, but let's start with some simple implications.

If the goal of our corporate worship is to try to mimic culture, produce rock stars, sell CDs, or become part of an industry, we've missed the point. The point of worship is to hear the Word of God, receive His gifts, and say (and sing) thank you for them. It's not just music, though music is a gift and a powerful way to respond (whether with pipe organ, piano, guitar, voices, drums, whatever). It's also not an industry, divorced from the life of the local church.

At Concordia, we have different styles of music in worship. We have different ways of responding. Some people don't like drums, and some don't like organ. (Yet we realize these are personal preferences, not commands of God. In the 14th century, the pipe organ was considered "the devil's instrument".) And besides, worship does not equal musical style. Have I said that enough yet? :) ) But one thing is in common: our corporate worship life is centered in Jesus: in receiving His gifts, and responding to Him with thanksgiving and praise.

So I would encourage you, come to worship to be served by Jesus - to receive His gifts - and then to be free in response in song and prayer, and in serving others. Don't simply "go to church" (you are part of the church all the time) - come to meet with the church for worship. Don't come to see rock stars (there aren't any here). Don't come because we're cool (we're not). Don't come because we have a wicked awesome facility, smokin' sound system and laser light show (we don't). Come because Jesus has much to offer you, and it is an encouragement both to you and to others to gather together to receive it, and to join with others in praise.