The Apostle Paul in his letter to the Romans, suggests that our lives should be lived as worship to God. (Romans 12:1)
And so over the years I’ve come up with a definition that I think, in broad terms, captures what worship is all about. Worship is anything that we say or do that pleases or brings honor to God.
In a religious context we have often narrowed our definition of worship to the music we sing to God in our religious gatherings. This certainly has the potential to be God-honoring worship, but for many of us it has become nothing more than a religious ritual and the offering of lip-service to God.
How often do we really think about what we are singing to God during our gatherings of “worship?” How often do we actually sing what we mean, and mean what we sing?
The reality is that we often sing things that we don’t really mean, and we make promises to God that we have no intention of keeping. I can’t help but think that God is not pleased with it all.
It doesn’t take long to read through the Scriptures and realize that God is not as concerned with what you say you will do, as with what you actually do.
Imagine how pleased my wife would be with me, if I told her how incredibly much I loved her; that I loved her so much that I was going to bring her flowers every single day to show her how much I loved her, and I reiterated my love and my promise over and over again… only I never actually brought her flowers. At some point don’t you think she would have the right to be upset?
In the Old Testament, in Amos 5 there is an example, where God calls the people of Israel out, for continually bringing him religious sacrifices of worship but failing to really get what it’s all about. Listen to the Message translation and see if it doesn’t strike a chord:
21-24"I can't stand your religious meetings. I'm fed up with your conferences and conventions. I want nothing to do with your religion projects, your pretentious slogans and goals. I'm sick of your fund-raising schemes, your public relations and image making. I've had all I can take of your noisy ego-music. When was the last time you sang to me? Do you know what I want? I want justice—oceans of it. I want fairness—rivers of it. That's what I want. That's all I want."
David Ruis captures it well, speaking of this passage:
"There is something God is looking for beyond the activity of worship, beyond the expression alone. Detached from a lifestyle engaged in the righting of wrongs, it’s all [just] noise. Worship given that does not come from a community that cares for the poor, rejects injustice and embraces generosity turns something meant to be sweet into something very sour. It distorts a beautiful melody into something discordant and mutates even the most well-intentioned act of worship into a gift that God will not receive – a sacrifice he completely rejects. Yet we can convince ourselves that God is pleased if we do not learn to see with His eyes, hear with His ears and retune our senses to what moves and delights His heart."
See if we’re really to have integrity in our worship, then somewhere along the line our words need to translate into action, we actually need to share our food with the hungry, clothe the naked and satisfy the needs of the oppressed and marginalized.
James says that faith without works is dead. He goes on to say that “real religion, the kind that passes muster before God the Father, is this: Reach out to the homeless and loveless in their plight, and guard against corruption from the godless world.” (James 1:27)
Romans 12:1
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is true worship.”
