Christian Worship - More Than Music

Christian worship is often thought of as the music portion of a church service - people singing songs to God, heads back, eyes closed, and hands raised in the air as they sing. Christian worship happens when we sing to God, whether in church or alone - in our cars or in the shower. If our desire is to please the heart of God, it is worship, no matter where the location or how many are involved.

Music affects our emotions and the lyrics can swell our hearts, causing us to become lost in the experience. Christian praise and worship music is a great tool for helping us feel closer to God. It's not uncommon for people to even pick a church because of the style of its worship music. Often people will emerge from a service saying, "The worship was wonderful today," or "The sermon was great, but I was really moved by the worship."

You may be surprised to realize that the entire service is about worshipping God!

Christian Worship - Showing reverence and gratitude to God
Another picture of Christian worship is showing reverence and gratitude by bowing down before God, as in this passage from Nehemiah:

"Ezra praised the LORD, the great God; and all the people lifted their hands and responded, 'Amen! Amen!' Then they bowed down and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground." Nehemiah 8:6

Both singing and bowing down are acts of worship, but they are only part of the picture. Christian worship is so much more than that!

Christian Worship - It's all about the position of our hearts
Christian worship begins with discovering and admitting what we have been worshipping in our lives. All of us worship something, whether we know it or not. We may not physically bow down to it, or offer it songs of praise and adoration, but whatever we devote most of our time and attention to is often what we worship. Consider this Merriam-webster definition of worship: "Reverence offered a divine being or supernatural power; also: an act of expressing such reverence; a form of religious practice with its creed and ritual; extravagant respect or admiration for or devotion to an object of esteem."

Seen in that light, it's easy to see that we can worship God, we can worship money, or power, or a rock star, or we can even worship a lifestyle. Worship is more than an act of reverence. It is an attitude of the heart.

Christian worship is clearly of interest to God. He knows we have an inner need to worship, so He asks us to worship Him. He, being God, can handle the weight of being worshipped; humans cannot. People who are worshipped by others can often be influenced to think more highly of themselves than they ought. The Bible makes it plain that there is only one God worthy of our worship:

"Fear the LORD your God, serve him only and take your oaths in his name. Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around you for the LORD your God, who is among you, is a jealous God and his anger will burn against you, and he will destroy you from the face of the land." Deuteronomy 6:13-14

Do you love God? Are you thankful for what He has done for you through His Son Jesus Christ?

"Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness." Psalm 29:2

You can follow the admonition of Psalm 29:2 by turning away from what you formerly worshipped and acknowledging the lordship of Jesus. Let the life you live be an act of worship to Him. Whether you are called to be a preacher, a singer, a writer, a software engineer, a salesperson, or a truck driver, you can do everything for the glory of God. When you do, you are engaging in Christian worship.

The Bible says that one day, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord (Philippians 2:9-11). He alone is worthy of our worship and praise. One day, both those who choose to worship Him and those who have refused His free gift will acknowledge that He is Lord above all. When that day comes, only those who have chosen Him will go on to live with Him in eternity. According to Scripture, those who have denied Him will spend eternity with Satan and the fallen angels who are condemned already.

Do you know Jesus as your Lord? Why wait? Discover, while you still can, that the Jesus Christ who gave his live for you is worthy of being your CEO, your life director, your all-in-all. All you have to do is believe that Jesus died and rose three days later. Then ask Him to forgive your sins and save you. Millions have already made that choice - you'll never regret it!