The Inward Aspect of Worship
Finally let us consider the ways in which worship changes the worshiper within. We conduct worship services in order to release each person into uninhibited expression of praise and worship. Many saints are introverted in their expression of worship, in much the same way as many husbands are reserved in their expressions of love toward their spouses. One of the clear goals of our worship services, therefore, is to see these introverted worshipers released in their expression of love and adoration to the Lord.
We recognize that all saints worship differently, according to the unique nature of their own personality, but it is pleasing to the Lord when we are totally liberated to worship Him according to our true nature. When someone is very inhibited in a worship service but very extroverted while watching a ball game, I am not convinced they are being true to their personality in the worship service! According to the Lord’s prayer, we should strive for worship “in earth, as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10 NIV84). The unique quality about worship in heaven is that it is totally free of any pride, inhibition, sophistication, or pompous dignity. Let us pray that the Lord will release us into that dimension of freedom even in this life.
Worship services also teach and reinforce spiritual truth. The apostle Paul stated it in this way: “Teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs” (Colossians 3:16). Because many of our choruses are taken from the Bible, we are actually memorizing the Scripture when we sing them. In this manner we and our children are learning the Word of God. Also, many of the hymns we sing are rich with theological and devotional meaning. It is safe to say that the songs we sing are teaching our children the practical theology of the church.
Our songs of worship also provide the worshiper with the means to express heart-felt attitudes that are otherwise difficult to express. Most of us are not poets, nor are many of us fluent speakers. Many Christians have difficulty putting into words the depths of love and emotion they feel toward the Lord. But in our hymnals we have recorded the words of men like Charles Wesley who were particularly gifted in expressing themselves with the pen. Thus we can echo the words of the hymn-writer, who has provided our feelings with a vocabulary of choice words and an enhancing melody. The song becomes a meaningful expression from my heart to the Lord.
Another very important reason for worship is to birth a heart for holiness in each individual. In this regard we learn an important principle from Psalm 115:4-8. That portion describes the false gods of the heathen, saying they can’t see or smell. It adds that “Those who make them will be like them” (v. 8 NIV84). The principle is this: We become like that which we worship. Therefore, as we worship the Lord we are changed into His very likeness!
Second Corinthians 3:18 is a beautiful verse describing this process: “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory” (NIV84). When we worship with an uplifted countenance we truly reflect the Lord’s glory. It is then that we are changed little by little, becoming more like the God we worship. “Worship doesn’t change me,” you might say. “I go out the same as when I came in to the church.” If worship doesn’t change your life, the reason is simple: You haven’t unveiled your face before God! To unveil your face you must relinquish your inhibitions, your “charismatic sophistication,” or whatever other hindrance may beset you and pour out your heart to the Lord with tears of repentance and contrition. That is true worship and that will change your life!
First John 3:2 gives us a tremendous promise: “But we know that when he appears we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is” (NIV84). Isaiah saw the Lord in worship, high and lifted up, and he was never the same again. Daniel saw the Lord in worship and fell as one dead. The apostle John saw the Lord and fell prostrate in worship. You are promised that when you see the Lord in worship, you shall be like Him! If you will draw close to the all-holy God you will inevitably be changed.
Another clear purpose for worship is to inspire a life of worship in each believer. It is relatively easy to get excited about worship in the midst of the congregation, but too many operate at that level alone. They worship only when they feel inspired to do so. But God is not satisfied with merely spontaneous worship. The Lord is seeking those who will be worshipers seven days a week. You see, there is a difference between one who worships and a worshiper. It is not so much how enthusiastically you worship on Sunday that matters; it is how enthusiastic a worshiper you are on Monday! In 1 Chronicles 9:33 we read that the Levitical singers ministered before the Lord twenty-four hours a day. For us New Testament Levites, this is the pattern.
Some people wait for the worship leader to push their “worship button.” If he doesn’t lead out in the right song at the right time, they just will not enter in. Let us determine to follow God’s Word, to stir ourselves to continually offer up the sacrifice of praise (see Hebrews 13:15). Worship in the congregation is practice time—out in the world we discover if we learned the lesson! Are we in fact becoming true worshipers? If so, it will be manifest in a life that is dedicated continually as a living sacrifice before the Lord.
Praise Prepares
In conclusion, a final purpose for worship is that through worship God is preparing us for the new thing He is wanting to do. Luke 1:17 reads, “to make ready a people prepared for the Lord” (NIV84). God is preparing people; He is preparing you and me, the church of Jesus Christ. Once we are prepared to receive it, the Lord will surely send His new move. And praise prepares.
Psalm 50:23 says, “He who sacrifices thank offerings honors me and he prepares the way so that I may show him the salvation of God” (NIV84). Worship softens ow hearts and sensitizes our spirit to the Spirit of God. Then, when the Spirit moves we are prepared to follow, no matter how unorthodox or unexpected the new way seems to be. We must be attuned to the gentle prompting of the Spirit in order to follow Him and worship fine-tunes our heart to the Lord. If we are accustomed to gazing steadily upon His face in worship, then when He moves we’ll notice. May we be the kind of people whose hearts are so prepared through worship that we are ready to move with God!
With a clearer understanding of why we worship, our services will not drift aimlessly but will move forward incisively toward the goal set before us. Our goal? To be worshipers. Why? To minister to the Lord and to one another, to experience His glorious presence and to remain sensitized to His voice. This is the call of the Spirit to the church today. Are you hearing His voice?
