November 2004 Archives

Wendy Fisher

Sing to the Lord, all the earth; proclaim his glory day after day! Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples. For great is the Lord and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods. I Chronicles 16:23-25

At the worship conference we attended last week, Leith Anderson, the senior pastor of Wooddale Church gave a room full of pastors and worship leaders an assignment. “Along with the other people at your table,” he said, “Create a list of every attribute of God you can think of…and then create a list of everything God does—all of his actions past, present and future.” A flurry of activity ensued, words were called out, Bible passages were recited, four or five voices fired off descriptions of our amazing God while Pastor Steve, our recorder, tried breathlessly to keep up. And yet, even after all of that, when our time was up we felt like we had barely scratched the surface.

“Now consider those lists,” Leith continued. “This is a being worthy of worship!”

His point was this: worship is not about us. Worship is about God. Only a being who is perfect, holy, gracious, just, merciful, eternal, faithful, all-powerful, all-knowing, and sovereign (just to name a few) is worthy of worship. Likewise, only a being who has created, made covenants, parted waters, inspired Psalms, healed diseases, withstood temptations, calmed storms, resurrected, and redeemed is worthy of worship. Personally, I doubt any of us qualify. I know I sure don’t.

But still, it is so easy to make worship about us, isn’t it? About how we feel? About what we think? About our agendas? And really this shouldn’t come as a huge surprise. After all, this is the human struggle. It has been with us since the beginning and it is with us still: the desire to be our own gods. The desire to be the center of the universe. The desire for control. The desire to eat from any tree we want, forgetting that even our eating is not about us. As the apostle Paul reminds us, “Whatever you do, whether you eat or drink, do it all for the glory of God” (I Corinthians 10:31).

Do you come to church on Sundays for the glory of God? Do you sing as one gathered around his throne, throwing down your crown in utter adoration for this the supreme being? Do your prayers abound in praise and supplication to the one who shines light into darkness…even the darkness inside of you? Do you give your offering as if the money is moving directly from your hands to God’s? When Scripture is read, do hear it as a holy transaction between the God of love and your very own soul? And when the message is preached, do you receive it as God’s timeless truths communicated for your here and now? Do your conversations during the fellowship time speak of what God is doing in your life?

Let’s be people of God-centered worship. People who expect him, who wait on him, who glorify him. Let’s be people who truly do “forget about ourselves and concentrate on him and worship him.” Who knows, it might even be a relief. Because, truly, it’s not about us. It’s about the only one who is worthy of worship—the one who draws us into his presence and promises that he will changelessly show up. The only one who deserves center stage. The only wise God, forever and ever. Amen!

Jeff Fisher

If you’ve looked at the articles in this newsletter, you have probably noticed a theme. We are focusing on the theme of worship. Worship is clearly a hot topic of discussion in nearly every church - and for good reason. Worshipping God is the ultimate purpose for which we were created. It is the highest calling of the Christian life. The reason we have three different articles on worship is that there are different ways of thinking about and engaging in worship. Hopefully, the clear underlying theme in every one of these articles, though, is that worship must be entirely God-centered.

If you’re only going by the titles to determine which articles to read, this one may seem the most appealing. This article is saying that worship is about what you get out of it. We like to think in terms of “what’s in it for me?” That’s the only reason we buy things or pay attention to things or give time to even think about things. There has to be something in it for us. If the benefits don’t outweigh the cost, then I will choose not to participate in whatever is calling for my attention. The same perspective can happen in worship. Even if we would never vocally say it that way, when it comes to worship, our actions and attitudes toward worship can communicate, “What’s in it for me?” And if that is the question you want answered, then this is the article for you. Only the answer may be different than you want or expect.

The danger we want to steer away from is making worship human-centered and not God-centered. So this forces us to ask the question, “How is getting in worship God-centered?” It would seem that giving to God is more God-centered than getting from God. At least that is the way we talk about it with other people. You are more others-focused when you give to them rather than get from them. But the same is not true for God. This is clearly evident from Romans 11:35, “Who has ever given to God, that God should repay him?” The implied answer is no one has ever given anything to God, because you can’t give to God. 1 Corinthians 4:7 tells us why: “What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it?” We can’t give to God because everything we have has first been given to us by him. Everything we have we have received from him. You can’t give him anything he doesn’t already have. In Acts 17:25, Paul says to the people in Athens, “And he (God) is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all people life and breath and everything.” God doesn’t need anything. And God is the one who gives everything. So, biblically speaking, it is impossible to give to God, because he already has it all (Psalm 50:12). [Though, see Pastor Steve’s article about how we do “give” in worship].

We actually put ourselves above God if we think we can give something to him that he hasn’t already given to us first. That would mean that we have something that God doesn’t have. But that can’t be. So that means for worship, it is the one who comes to God to get rather than presumes to be able to give to God who enters into true worship. The way we must approach God in worship is to humbly come before him with empty hands, saying, “I have nothing to give to you. I need you to fill me up. I need you to satisfy me.” And that’s where we see what’s in it for me.

What do we get from God in worship? It’s not a good feeling. It’s not a psychological boost. It’s not comfort. It’s not ease. It’s not everything exactly the way I like it. It’s not even blessing and joy and strength (though those are definitely elements of what we get). What we get when we engage in true worship is God himself. We experience his presence. We sense his touch. We drink deeply from the wellspring of life that he is. It’s not about the things he gives. It cannot be about the things he gives. As soon as it becomes about the things he gives, it becomes about us. If we want the blessings of God without having to deal with God himself, then we are far from truly worshiping him. But if we come to worship to get him and not to try to give to him, then we have truly entered into worship. In worship, God gives himself to us. And that is the best possible thing we can get. Everything else we do in worship flows from this original and essential outpouring of love and joy and delight.

This is totally God-centered because we acknowledge that the best possible thing we can get and the only thing we should desire to get is God. And however God’s presence impacts our lives at that moment, we are willing to receive it, because we trust that he will do what is best for us.

Worship is our response to God’s revelation of himself to us. The way to respond is to come thirsty for more of him. Thirsty – not because you’re parched from not drinking from the wellspring of life, but thirsty, because you have tasted and seen that the Lord is good – and you want more of him, and you know you need more of him. So next time you come to worship, come to get. Come to get God.