I find it interesting to talk to people when they return from Christian conferences.
I usually ask questions about the talks they heard, the seminars they went to, and of
course- the worship. Usually people have
tons to say about the messages and seminars, but their response to the worship
seems shallow at best.
Me: How
was the worship at the conference?
Them: It
was great!
Me: What
was great about it?
Them: The
music was so good.
Me: What
was so good about the music?
Them: I
just… liked it. It was exactly what I
needed to hear.
Me: Interesting…
what did you like about it?
Them: I
already told you, didn’t I?
Me: …
I don’t think so…
You get the idea. Awkward conversations like this one
demonstrate the importance of why we as worship leaders need to be intentional
in designing our worship services. Services can be done well in terms of musical
excellence and sound quality, but in some cases they are severely lacking in
content and vision. Worship leaders
should wrestle with worship content as much as the pastor wrestles with the
sermon text. The songs our congregations
sing leading up to a sermon should be preaching truth to our hearts as well. Worship songs also have the power to inform
and transform us because the Word of God is living and active (Hebrews
4:12). Here are some questions I wrestle
through when planning a service:
1. | Is the
worship centered on God and His character? Corporate worship is a powerful
opportunity to redirect our hearts towards our creator and redeemer. John Witvliet describes worship as being “the
celebrative response to what God has done, is doing, and promises to do.” Our worship should be a celebration of God
and His glory!
2. | Does
the worship bring knowledge and understanding about biblical doctrine? The
greatest doctrine we can offer people in our services is the Good News of the
Gospel. Mike Cosper states the gospel
beautifully in his book “Rhythms of Grace”:
“The gospel story is the
worship story. Worship was God’s idea as he initiated creation. Just when it
looked as though sin had corrupted worship beyond repair, he rescued it by
sending his Son and making a way through him to worship the Father again. The
Son, in turn, sent his Spirit, who awakened corpses, like you and me, and put a
song in our hearts that we’ll be singing with every breath from here to
eternity” (p. 26).
Our doctrine in worship today is often in danger of
being too lackluster or too lofty. Songs
that lack in doctrine usually leave us itching for deeper truth. Songs that are cram packed with too much doctrine
leave us scratching our heads as we try to keep up with the complicated lyrics. John 17:3 states “And this is eternal life,
that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have
sent.” As worship leaders, we want to walk
off the stage confident that above all, our congregations have heard about the One
True God and his plan of salvation through Jesus Christ.
3. | Is the
worship evangelistic? Our worship must be done in a way that clearly
presents the gospel to non-Christians.
If you bring a non-Christian friend to Church with you, by the end of
the service they should clearly comprehend what Christ did to reconcile us to
God. Our worship must strike a balance
between being familial (within the family of God) and missional (presenting the
gospel to unsaved people).
4. | Is the
corporate worship corporate? This one
isn’t as simple as it sounds. You may be
thinking, of course our worship is corporate! We sing songs together, we talk during the
greeting time, we have fellowship after the service, etc. As believers we sometimes tend to view
corporate worship the same way we view our personal time alone with God. We close our eyes, zone out other things
going on, and fix our hearts on the Lord.
Is that such a bad thing? Colossians
3:16-17 charges us to sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God and to one another. Not only should we be singing together, we
should be singing to one another. As a participant in corporate worship: (1)
the worship team should be leading me into worship, (2) as I sing, the lyrics should
be engaging my own heart with biblical truth, and (3) the body of Christ ought
to be singing psalms and hymns into my own heart! Don’t sell yourself short in worship by only
singing to yourself… there’s a lot more going on!
5. | Is the
worship service emboldening Spirit-led transformation? Worship is meant to change and sanctify us. According to John 17:17, God’s means of grace
in sanctification is His Word. Authentic
worship engages “spirit and truth” (John 4:24b). As worship leaders, our vision is to make
known the glory of God in Jesus Christ in people’s minds and hearts. Penetration of the mind may lead to an
“Ah-ha” intellectual moment, but no heart change or motive to live differently. Penetration of the heart, however, is
supernatural. Ezekiel 36:26-27 says that
a change of the heart is a work of God by the Spirit. Heart change involves transformation, a
renewing of the mind, and a gospel-empowered conviction to change. That’s what we want to see God do through our
worship together.
