Purity in Corporate Worship

Corporate worship is when the body of Christ, His church, is worshiping together; praising God through song, for who He is and what He’s done according to the scripture. Practically it looks quite different depending on the church you attend. I do not want to get trapped in the comparison of the differences, but I will highlight a few to show you how I experienced them and the form of which I now understand to bring the most glory to God. 

As of late, many churches have added physical elements to what they define as worship. It's now common to experience a darkened sanctuary, an array of stage lights and music louder than the congregants singing. I understand why these elements are initially appealing; as a new attendee it's perhaps easier to sing if it feels like no one can see you, the stage lights are distracting you from your imperfect voice and the loud music ensures that you can attempt to sing without the fear of being heard. That was how I experienced it. Worship that is packed full of special effects also creates an emotional experience independent of the attendee’s emotion before God. If you’ve experienced a typical concert you understand the rush of adrenaline that overtakes you due to a ground shakingly loud bass, dramatic lights or the awe of an excellent singer. But if we strip all this away, what is left of the worship service? Are you truly awed with the work of Christ and God’s great mercy? Or is your emotion coming from other sources? 

These flamboyant stage effects are minor in comparison to the lack of truth present in the lyrics of popular worship songs of the day. I would challenge you to think critically about what a song is saying. How much of the lyrics are praising God? Or is the song focused on how God makes YOU feel? Are doctrinal truths proclaimed about salvation? Or is it about what YOU need from God? There are countless examples of self centered worship songs or songs that neglect or misinterpret doctrine which I could warn you from, but I will simply encourage you to always be actively thinking about whether or not a song proclaims biblical truth about who God is and what He’s done. 

Both the stage effects and the lyrics of worship have shifted from being focused on God, to being focused on the consumer. That is backwards. Worship is not about you. Not in the slightest. Not at all. It was revealed to me how much of my previous worship was self centered when I first attended a reformed church. These are the differences that were foreign to me: the lights were at full brightness for the whole service, there were no stage lights, the musicians were average and the songs were lengthy hymns with complicated words that I didn’t yet understand. The first thought I had was that I didn’t enjoy it. It took a few weeks for me to realize that that is not the point! Our hearts are not in the right spot to worship God if we are more focused on the experience we have rather than the glory due to God, our Creator, Saviour and Redeemer! Who cares if you sound like a distressed chicken or if people see you and judge you for praising with your whole heart?

When God changed my heart towards corporate worship I started focusing on fulfilling the command to worship in spirit and in truth, rather than focusing on how it made me feel. I wasn’t a great singer, I was self-conscious, but I began to sing anyway, for others to hear. And when the whole congregation is more focused on praising God and lifting up their voices to Him than about how they sound or look or feel, it is glorious. Hundreds of imperfect voices coming from imperfect people to praise their Maker. It not only gives God the glory due, but encourages and affirms the other congregants. How wonderful to be praising God together!

So what is the purest form of worship? It does not exist here on earth, when we are sinful and distracted. But we can actively pursue what is commanded in worship by always returning to the scripture. 

Habakkuk 3:17-19 → Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation. God, the Lord, is my strength…

Psalm 28:7 → The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him.

Romans 12:1 → 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.

Colossians 3:16 → Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

Hebrews 13:15 → Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. 

Hebrews 12:28-29 → Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.

Since we have received the kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us focus and worship Him who cannot be shaken as well. I was shaken when my worship didn’t have moody lighting or excellent singers, but these are things that fade. If you praise God for blessing you with temporary worldly things like financial stability, good health and happiness, (or vines, fields and flocks?), will you continue to praise Him when all that remains is God alone and His salvation? As you grow in spiritual maturity you will also come to value the songs that have rich theology and doctrine, and become much more aware of how selfish or even omissive of God most popular lyrics are. Biblical lyrics not only keep us focused on truth, but teach us about who God is and the glory of Christ’s sacrifice. 

There is nothing wrong with good singers or excellent musicians, let us praise God with the talents He has given us! But strive to keep your focus on God and why we praise Him, rather than how. Do not become distracted. Corporate worship must be holy and reverent, evoking awe and thankfulness, and focused on God and God alone. If you continue to pursue God by reading the scriptures and through prayer, you will be drawn nearer to Him and more fully understand the glory He deserves. The more you know God the more you will understand how grand He is and how insignificant we are. I hope this positively affects your worship and draws you nearer to Him.