What is Worship…Really?

Hey everyone! Let’s talk about worship. It’s a word we use a lot, and it evokes this sense of reverence and devotion, right? But what does it really mean? How does the way we often do worship today compare to what we see in the Bible? I want to focus in particular on how worship is about talking to God, not just talking about Him.

Biblical Worship: A God-Centered Response

In the Bible, worship is fundamentally a response to God’s character and His mighty acts. It’s all about acknowledging His worthiness, and bowing down before His holiness. When I say “bowing down,” that can be literal, but it’s also a picture of our hearts and lives being surrendered to Him. It’s about engaging in a conversation with God, not simply making observations about Him. Here are some key aspects of biblical worship:

• God-Centered: This is HUGE. Worship is directed solely towards God. He’s the audience, the focus, and the whole reason we worship! It’s about talking to Him. Check out these verses:
  • Psalm 96:9: “Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness; tremble before him, all the earth.”
    • Commentary: This Psalm calls all the earth to talk to God in worship, emphasizing His holiness and majesty. It highlights that worship is not a casual thing, but an awe-filled response to who God is, a direct address.
  • Revelation 4:11: “You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being.”
    • Commentary: This verse from Revelation gives us a glimpse of heavenly worship, where God is directly addressed and declared worthy to receive all glory. It reminds us that worship is about speaking to God, recognizing His supreme power and creative work in a conversation with Him.
• A Response: Worship isn’t something we just drum up on our own; it’s a response to God’s self-revelation. We worship because He has shown Himself to us! Think about it: through His Word, His creation, and ultimately, through Jesus, He’s made Himself known. Our worship is our verbal and heart-felt response back to Him.
• Whole-Life: This is where it gets really practical. Worship isn’t just for Sundays in church. It’s a lifestyle of honoring God with our thoughts, words, and actions – it’s a continuous dialogue with Him. Paul says it like this:
  • Romans 12:1-2: “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 your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”
    • Commentary: Paul urges believers to offer their whole lives as a sacrifice to God. He connects this to “true and proper worship,” showing that worship is about how we live every day, and that our lives should be a continuous conversation with God.
• Varied in Expression: The Bible shows us that worship can look like many different things. It’s not one-size-fits-all! And all of these are ways of talking to God:
  • Praise: Psalm 150 – “Praise the Lord! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens! Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his excellent greatness! Praise him with trumpet sound; praise him with lute and harp! Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe! Praise him with sounding cymbals; praise him with loud clashing cymbals! Let everything that has breath praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!” – This is talking to God with music and voice!
  • Thanksgiving: Psalm 100:4 – “Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!” – This is talking to God with gratitude!
  • Adoration: Psalm 29:2 – “Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness.” – This is talking to God about His splendor!
  • Confession: Psalm 32:5 – “I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” and you forgave the iniquity of my sin.” – This is talking to God about our failures and receiving His grace!
  • Prayer: Acts 2:42 – “And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.” – Prayer is talking to God!
  • Sacrifice: Hebrews 13:15-16 – “Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.” (In the Old Testament, this was often literal, with animal sacrifices, but in the New Testament, it’s more about offering our lives as a “living sacrifice.”) – This is talking to God with our actions and our very lives!
  • Singing: Ephesians 5:19 – “addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart,” – Singing to God!
  • Giving: 2 Corinthians 9:7 – “Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” – Giving as a response to God, a form of thanks-giving and talking to Him with our resources!
  • Obedience: Deuteronomy 10:12-13 – “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways and to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments and statutes of the Lord, which I am commanding you today for your good?” – Obedience is talking to God with our actions, showing we are listening and responding to His voice.

Worship Today: Shifts in Focus

Now, while many churches today really do want to honor God in their worship, we’ve seen some shifts in what gets emphasized, and we need to be careful to ensure we are talking to God and not just performing:

• Entertainment-Driven: Sometimes, it can feel like worship is more about the experience than the God we’re there to worship. There’s a focus on creating an emotional high or a super captivating performance, which can kind of shift the focus from God to how we’re feeling. We can get so focused on the music that we forget to talk to God with it.
• Me-Centered: Even with good intentions, some worship music and practices can end up focusing on our personal needs, desires, and experiences, rather than the majesty and glory of God. You might hear this described as “horizontal” worship, where we’re singing to each other, rather than to God. Even when we sing about our needs, we should be expressing that to God in prayerful worship.
• Form Over Substance: We can get really caught up in the style of worship (you know, contemporary vs. traditional), and forget that God is after sincerity and truth in our hearts. He wants our hearts to be engaged in a conversation with Him, no matter what the music sounds like or what the service looks like. Jesus says this:
  • John 4:23-24: “Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”
    • Commentary: Jesus emphasizes that true worship isn’t tied to a particular place or style, but to the attitude of the worshipper’s heart. We must worship in “spirit” (with our whole being engaged in talking to God) and in “truth” (according to who God really is).
• Passive Participation: In some settings, worship can become a spectator event. We kind of just watch a performance, instead of actively participating in giving praise to God ourselves. Worship is not a performance we watch, but a conversation we enter into.

The Heart of True Worship

So, how do we get back to the heart of biblical worship? How do we make sure our worship is really pleasing to God? How do we make sure we are talking to God?

• Vertical Focus: This is key: prioritize direct engagement with God. Let our words, our songs, our actions be directed to Him, acknowledging His worthiness.
• Authenticity: Let’s worship with sincerity and honesty. God wants genuine gratitude, love, and reverence from us, expressed directly to Him.
• Balanced Expression: Let’s embrace a variety of ways to talk to God in worship, both when we’re together and when we’re alone.
• Life Transformation: And this is the big one: let worship shape our lives. Our conversation with God should lead us to greater obedience and service.

Worship isn’t just a Sunday morning thing; it’s the heartbeat of a life devoted to God. It’s about connecting with Him, honoring Him, and living in response to His incredible love. When we worship in spirit and in truth, we align ourselves with God’s purpose and we experience the fullness of His presence – all through a vibrant, ongoing conversation with Him.