“If we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection…” Romans 6:5It is interesting to see how many of us view the same Lord, but with very different lenses.
About a month ago I had the opportunity to walk along something called the “stations of the cross.” As I walked down this path lined with gazebos I gazed into old wooden images that once depicted Christ at various points in his life. At one point in the journey I came to a pebble stoned wall where people had left plaques thanking Maria (Mary). This made me think long and hard as I gazed from one area to the next. My heart was unsettled.
It reminded me of a time when I was in Greece visiting a church. As I walked in, I immediately noticed men and women bowing down to the pictures inside and kissing them. Initially I thought they are worshiping the pictures! Now I’m not so sure.
Worship
This year I have been introduced to many other dimensions of worship. I have experienced times where just remaining quiet before the Lord was crucial, times where I meditated on one verse or one word, times of sharing in complete silent prayer with a group, times where being in a smoky pub was more comfortable for others than meeting in a church… times where I have had to contemplate what true worship is and what it looks like.
True worship is not about what you do or you do not do- rituals, or no rituals, charismatic or traditional… it is humbly wanting to honor and surrender to the Lord out of complete reverence for Him… sometimes taking on a different form than what we are familiar with.
No matter where we are in the world worship will always look different because of cultures, understandings, backgrounds, and so on. One style is not better than the other- just different. However, with any act of worship it is crucial that we all realize it is the One and Only true living God that we are worshiping- Him alone- nobody else, or nothing else- just Him. The things that we use to honor Him can be helpful, just as long as we recognize it is He that we are worshiping, not anything or anyone else.
“Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.” John 4:24
1 comment:
Beautifully written and introspective! I thought I'd share with you what my pastor always teaches. We did a study on worship for several months. He always says that "authentic worship is first and foremost a life that is lived and secondly, a song that we sing (Romans 12:1-2). Relevant worship is indigenous in nature. Worship takes the form of the culture that the gospel penetrates. It is not merely an event or a service, but a lifestyle of praise and joyful service to God. Worship is the fuel and goal of missions. Because missions is temporal and worship is eternal, missions will eventually cease and worship will continue throughout eternity. Therefore it is our joy to engage in a lifestyle of worship. When this happens we can experience authentic corporate worship that is glorifying to God, encouraging to worshippers and aromatic to those who do not yet follow Christ."
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