I don’t think any of us would disagree that corporate worship is a place of encounter.
Sure, we gather for community. But we don’t just gather for community. Sure, we gather to hear God’s Word. But we don’t just gather to hear God’s Word. We gather because the Spirit has promised to come where His people are gathered.
Heaven and earth collide. In corporate worship we meet with the living, real presence of God.
But how do we know if we’re encountering the real thing?
- Are we encountering the risen Jesus?
- Are we encountering heightened emotion?
- Are we encountering a peaceful atmosphere?
- Are we encountering “great worship”?
I believe the answer lies in what we begin to crave Monday-Friday. Over time, the habit of worshiping in church every week should produce a new desire. We crave more that which we spend time doing.
The more I wake up early to work out, the easier it gets. Matter of fact, I actually want to. A day doesn’t feel complete unless I’ve gotten my running in. Believe me, a year ago I wasn’t saying that.
The more I get into a habit of binge watching Netflix, the more I want to do that. It’s a routine that is hard to break.
The more I get into a routine of eating late at night, the more I want to stuff my face, always regretting it the next morning.
I love how James K.A. Smith says it in You Are What You Love:
If our loves are absorbed with material things, then our love is a weight that drags us downward to inferior things. But when our loves are animated by the renewing fire of the Spirit, then our weight tends upward.”
He goes on to say:
This is why worship is the heart of discipleship. We can’t counter the power of cultural liturgies with didactic information poured into our intellects. We can’t recalibrate the heart from the top down, through merely informational measures. The orientation of the heart happens from the bottom up, through the formation of our habits of desire. Learning to love (God) takes practice.”
What are our worship services producing in our hearts? What does the habit of corporate worship produce in our people?
Pastor and Worship leader, don’t miss this. Your planning and programming meetings carry more influence than you may think.
Is the Form Forming Us?
Sometimes I wonder if our worship services are only making us dissatisfied – too dependent on music and massive, sensational experiences. It’s like we become addicted to professional leadership, talent and high energy – to the point that our attention spans can’t handle anything else.
Do we crave “great worship” more than we crave a great God? Do we talk more about the worship experience than we do the perfections of our Savior?
Are we encountering the risen Jesus or simply a man-made experience?
A Hillsong United worship night is a great experience, no doubt. But does it set you up for success when you get back to your home church? Of course, the worship experience there won’t compare to your Sunday morning band.
Does Chris Tomlin’s Worship Night in America help you seek God on Monday morning when it’s time to read Ecclesiastes and pray in the chaos or quietness of your home?
The form has a tendency to form us.
Are our modern worship experiences preparing us for true discipleship or disappointment?
I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with big events and grand experiences with God. I can remember camps, conferences, and concerts where I met with Jesus. I’m grateful for those. I enjoy Hillsong United. I can get down at a Chris Tomlin worship night.
Their music has helped my spiritual life in many ways.
But as a worship leader, it makes me nervous to lead with myself. It makes me nervous to connect people to my talent, charisma, and leadership to the exclusion of developing a walk with Jesus where they learn how to feed themselves.
I’m not sure how helpful this is, but these are my honest, raw thoughts on leadership.
Lead people to Jesus. Teach them how to feed themselves the Word of God. Teach them how to worship in quietness and simplicity. Prepare them so they know how to respond when trials strike.
You might not look that impressive, but you’re making disciples and preparing people for a true encounter with God.
How are you working this out in your church? Are you forms spiritually intentional or simply cultural?
Let’s talk it out in the comments!
[ois skin=”Beyond Sunday 2″]
“Worship is no longer worship
when it reflects the culture around us more than the Christ within us.”
AW Tozier
Absorbed in and by culture (pop culture too), any one of us is capable of re defining worship to suit our dysfunctional tastes. Multiply us by the thousands as an industry begs to have our support for its survival (Contemporary Music Movement) and you have the impetus for articles like this one to keep flowing.
“15 Don’t love the world or anything that belongs to the world. If you love the world, you cannot love the Father. 16 Our foolish pride comes from this world, and so do our selfish desires and our desire to have everything we see. None of this comes from the Father. 17 The world and the desires it causes are disappearing. But if we obey God, we will live forever.” (I John 2:15-17)
All we are waiting for is a level of scriptural integrity to flood our churches and flush out the copy-cat entertainers. This is proving to be a “not gonna happen” because the infection is severe and the money is big.
So we keep writing articles like this one, waiting for honesty and Godly bravery that will replace our side-shows with worship of the biblical variety.
I like that quote from Tozer. However, I also think we can have both. We can reflect the culture in a healthy, indigenous way that reaches people AND reflect the Christ within us.
I guess it is very easy for us to fall into the habit of routine, great voices, great band and getting the keys right. At times, we may get into the routine knowingly, or even worse unknowingly.
At times as a team leader, I wonder whether I focus too much on the excellent singing bit than the spiritual growth of the team or vice versa. How do we strike this balance?
Watching clips of the underground persecuted church, it seems worship to them has nothing to do with what we emphasize in the west. Sound quality , lights, atmosphere , harmonies, clothing etc… are not even in their minds, but what seems to matter is God’s protection, provision and presence daily . I wonder if we got it all wrong, I wonder how deperate we are or I am for the living God ! Let us turn from our ways and seek His face !!
Gloria, I always like to draw attention to the spiritual in the midst of the practical. When you root your excellence in what it accomplishes for your church spiritually, it draws your attention away from just great performance to powerful ministry.
Do we crave worship more than we crave a great God?
Can an utterly famished man crave food but not have the desire to have his hunger filled? Good food serves a more pleasurable way to satisfy hunger, however hunger is what creates the pursuit of food. Chris Tomlin, Hillsong United and Sunday worship create an atmosphere for the one already seeking to intensely seek God. However, to the one who is not hungry for God, a Christian concert can be quite a painful and tortuous experience.
the word of God says those that worship me should worship me in truth and in spirit.
Most worship leaders have met always ask me that josh how do u worship God when something troubles you. and i always give a respond that if you don’t understand and know the God you serve then how will that thing troubling you go..
in my church i see the joy in their face each time am to worship God , you hear them say when josh starts worshipping God is like i don’t have a problem, or the say i hardly feel troubled but i feel am connected to God..
so been spiritual and cultural rely on the way the worship leader wants it to be.