Worship or
Entertainment?
by Paul Smithson
It seems that many
people today have lost sight of what worship is all about. Many assemble
in the name of the Lord to be entertained by everything from rock music
to circus animals and side shows. What is the purpose of the church’s assembly?
Is it to offer up worship directed toward God or to provide entertainment
directed toward the people?
The
word “worship” in our Bible is translated from terms that literally mean,
“to kiss the hand in token of reverence, to bow down before, or humbly
beseech.” When Christians come together in their assembly it should be
to worship God. Jesus declared, “True worshipers shall worship the Father
in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers.
God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth”
(John 4:23-24). This statement tells us there are two things involved in
properly worshiping God. First, our worship must be “in spirit,” i.e. our
worship must be offered sincerely from the heart. This is not, however,
the only requirement of acceptable worship. Jesus also stated that our
worship must be “in truth,” i.e. as the truth directs. In His word, God
not only tells us to worship, but also gives us divine directions as to
how we must worship Him.
In reading the New Testament we find five acts of
worship in which the first century Christians involved themselves. They
came together to study and hear God’s word proclaimed, to pray, and to
sing. When meeting on the first day of the week they also ate the Lord’s
Supper and contributed money for the Lord’s work (cf. Acts 2:42; 20:7;
Ephesians 5:19; 1Corinthians 11:23-29; 16:2). These acts of worship are
all spiritual in nature. Many today have left this pattern and have turned
the Lord’s church into something more social than spiritual. Instead of
assembling to worship God in the way God directs, the emphasis is on entertaining
the audience.
