Recently I have been made aware once again about a great
failing on the part of some church leaders. Somewhere along the line some have
forgotten our purpose. Some have forgotten that worship is about God and not
about those who worship him. Now, I'm not saying that people aren’t important,
but I am saying that just perhaps we need to re-evaluate the focus of why we
gather together.
There is a great small book titled, "Showtime! Worship
in the Age of show Business", by Dan Chambers. Mr. Chambers takes a look
at some of the modern worship practices in comparison to what God's Word
indicates worship should be. You might be surprised at the extent to which some
churches will go to "pack the pews".
I guess in itself that's not new, people in general have
short attention spans. Many today need something to keep them in their seats
for the 30 to 60 minutes they sit together with the crowd in their church
buildings. We see this in our modern "entertainment" mentality is
Television programming. They have to change the image every second of so or
people get bored. They have to push the envelope of what is accepted or
outrageous to keep people tuned in to their programs. Sadly, this has
influenced some who plan worship assemblies.
Again this is not new. Several years ago while we were in
Michigan I saw a church advertising in the News Paper that they would be having
"Belly Dancers for Jesus" at their church, urging everyone to come. I
can't question the motivation of the Belly Dancers themselves, but it sure
seemed to me that the church was focusing on the dancing rather than Jesus.
What have our churches come to when we have to bribe, promise entertainment or
trick people to come and worship with us? What does that say for us as a people
when we need those things?
There is an
old, old song titled, "Give me that Old Time Religion," what has
happened to that concept in our world. What does that say about our society
when just worshipping God is not enough? Jesus said in John 4:23-24: "But
the time is coming, indeed it's here now, when true worshipers will worship the
Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship
Him that way. For God is Spirit, so those who worship Him must worship in
spirit and in truth."
"True Worshipers," worshiping in Spirit and Truth
indicates it is something we need to do, not have done to us! The idea of
Worship carries with it the concept of bowing down before the one being
worshiped. It is not about us it is about offering ourselves to Him. Our songs
or prayers; our messages should center on God and our love for and service to
him.
If you are "going to church" (as the accepted
concept is used), with hopes that it will "be interesting enough to keep
you awake," or "exciting enough to make you feel good," then
just perhaps you are going about it wrong.
Russ Lawson
