Franklin Segler (in Christian Worship) says that “Worship defies definition; it can only be experienced.” But he goes onto say how the more we understand worship, the better we will experience worship.
When looking at a Biblical definition of worship, I found some interesting surprises. I never realized there are actually several different Greek and Hebrew words that got translated into the English word worship. I have honestly been intrigued by this study and have been digging deep into this lesson specifically. I want a better understanding of what it means to worship God.
As we discussed in the last lesson, there are many examples in the Bible of singing praise to God. But, there are very few regarding singing worship to God. Obviously these are very closely related, but a deeper look at worship shows us that singing is only a small part of what worship is all about.
In all the original words that got translated to worship, the ones used most often really give the picture of “bowing down in reference.”
Let’s look at a few of those examples. In 2 Chronicles 29, there is a great passage about how Hezekiah restores worship in the Temple. This passage goes through the whole process of burnt offerings and how they incorporated music into the time of worship. Then in verse 30, it says,
King Hezekiah and the officials ordered the Levites to sing praises to the Lord with the words of David and Asaph the seer. So they sang praises with joy, and bowed down and worshiped.
Another great passage on worship is Psalm 95:1-6.
Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord,
Let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation.
Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving,
Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms.
For the Lord is a great God
And a great King above all gods,
In whose hand are the depths of the earth,
The peaks of the mountains are His also.
The sea is His, for it was He who made it,
And His hands formed the dry land.
Come, let us worship and bow down,
Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.
In that Psalm we are told of God’s greatness and that our response should be to worship and bow down. In a very similar format, I love the way the song “Cannons” (by Phil Wickham) presents this. The chorus of that song says,
You are holy, great and mightyThe moon and the stars declare who You are
I’m so unworthy, but still you love me
Forever my heart will sing of how great you are
In that chorus, the first two lines declare God’s holiness. Then, in light of His holiness, we immediately recognize that we are so unworthy to be in His presence. But since He continues to love us, we must worship Him and declare that “forever my heart will sing of how great you are.” I love that message.
We see the word worship in the New Testament referring to “bowing down” as well. In Matthew 2:11 we read about the wise men coming to see baby Jesus. It says,
After coming into the house they saw the Child with Mary His mother; and they fell to the ground and worshiped Him.
Revelation is another good example. It is filled with pictures of heavenly worship. Revelation 4:10-11 says,
The twenty-four elders will fall down before Him who sits on the throne, and will worship Him who lives forever and ever, and will cast their crowns before the throne, saying, “Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power.”
Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.This verse has led us to the quote, “Worship is a lifestyle.” That is completely true. We should worship God through every area of our lives. However, I want to point out that the Greek word translated to worship in this passage is a completely different word than the ones translated to worship in all of our other examples in this lesson. The first word means more of “bowing down in reverence.” This word translates more to mean “habitual service” or “duty”.
I’m not saying there is anything wrong with this; I just want to clarify the differences between these two definitions of worship. Our lives should be filled with habits of service to God. The way we go through our daily lives, the way we treat our families, the way we act at work, or the way we respond when people upset us, are all ways to offer our bodies as living sacrifices to God. We must be thinking about Him all the time.
The reason I wanted to point out this difference is because a lot of people say that “worship is a lifestyle” and, without meaning to, they belittle the other definition of worship. Yes, I hope we are serving and worshiping God all throughout the week. But, we must take time to stop, rest in His presence, focus our heart’s affection, focus our mind’s attention, bow down, and worship Him.
Let me point out too that you can’t have one of these types of worship without the other. If you come on Sundays to “worship” but ignore Him the rest of the week, you’re not truly worshiping Him. It’s just a show. And, if you think you can “worship” Him throughout the week, but never come to church, you’re missing a big part of His plan for you.
This study honestly surprised and challenged me. I expected to find more examples in the Bible of singing worship to God. But, the main thing that I was reminded through this study is that singing is just one way to express our worship. It has to go much deeper than that.
Worship is a lifestyle and should be reflected in every area of our lives.
Worship is also an action of reverently bowing down in His presence. It must include times where we stop our hectic activity, rest In His presence, focus our heart’s affection and our mind’s attention completely on Him. Singing, while it’s definitely not the only way, is a powerful tool to help us do just that.
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