We're all familiar with this...
But what's going on here?
I think the answer to this question describes some of the differences we see in philosophies of worship in our churches today.
Let me explain...
I recently read Louie Giglio's book, The Air I Breathe, in which he describes what he believes to be true worship. In this book, he talks about the excitement displayed in an audience during a concert or a crowd at a game. He says:
"Some of the purest forms of worship are found outside the walls of the church and have no reference to the God of all creation. All you have to do is drop in on a concert at the local arena or go to a sporting event at a nearby stadium to see amazing worship...the same expressions of worship that God desires and deserves."
Someone taking Giglio's point would argue that such an audience is doing what they were naturally created to do: worship.
Natural conclusion: we need that type of excitement, expression, and abandon in corporate worship. If an audience can worship a rock artist with that much passion how much more passionately should we worship our God?
Here's my problem...
I agree with Giglio that worship is natural to the human being. I also agree that when audiences attend a concert, they tend to act in a way that agrees with their nature.
But I also believe that unregenerate man is naturally sinful. I have a hard time seeing unregenerate man's expression of worship (whatever he/she may be worshiping) and saying it is "the same expression of worship God desires and deserves."
Should our corporate worship include emotion? One hundred times, YES!! But will we express it in the same way? Probably not. (Psalm 51:17; Psalm 29:2)
So...should our worship look like this...
or like this...
or is there a better way?
These are some of the things that have been occupying my thoughts over the past couple days. It helps to write them down.
Any ideas? What should our worship look like?
Stephen, I completely agree with you, and I'd like to read that book. Watching the videos he's made, something always seems to be. . . niggling that it's wrong. Describing his attitude toward worship makes the pieces fall into place.
ReplyDeleteAs songleader at my home church, I've often wondered the same: Is there a better way to worship? Something that doesn't have the carefree, let-go-of-it-all attitude that is often in CCM, yet lacks the deadness that often accompanies our singing. I like the way you often do it in chapel--explaining some of the theology of the song before we sing it.
We should sit down and chat sometime (and let me know if there's a better way to comment). I've enjoyed what I've read of your blog thus far.
-Thomas Christensen
The7words@live.com
Thomas,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your thoughtful response. To be fair, I was not attempting to represent Giglio's entire view on worship from that one quote, I was simply commenting on something I read that was thought-provoking. He has some good things to say; as always you have to read prayerfully and with discernment.
Glad to hear you've been able to serve as songleader at your church! I'm sure that's been a profitable experience for you. It would be fun to chat sometime!
The problem with this comparison is that the term "worship" means completely different things in both of these scenarios. The phenomena occuring at the rock concert cannot be validly compared to the phenomena of Christian worship.
ReplyDeleteIn his description of the "worship" at the rock concert, Giglio is clearly using a simple Merriam Webster definition that can be reduced to one or two words, i.e. adoration or praise. This cannot be translated into Christian worship, which means something almost completely different. When we consider that by worship Giglio actually doesn’t mean worship at all, rather he means praise and adoration, then it seems on the surface that we could learn something from the behavior at the rock concert. Perhaps our praise should be more unbridled, enthusiastic and genuine. However, this premise meets with several problems. He is impressed with the worship at the concert primarily because of unbridled physical expression, yet physical expression is only one aspect of Christian worship. Our heart and spirit are of primary importance, and they are the source from which all our physical worship expression should flow.
Perhaps the crowd does adore the artist. However, this scenario is suspect. Their worship is a façade of relationship. How can we compare the unfulfilling and relationally damaging lack of interaction between pop star and fan with the worship of Triune God? (Read Kenneth Myers book, All God’s Children and Blue Suede Shoes in which he deals with the perceived yet non-existent relationship between pop star and fan.) Our definition of worship must be something like dialogical, relational, interaction with redemptive God based on his work of enabling us and revealing himself. How can we compare that to the impersonal act of a fan adoring a rock star?
I think someone, somewhere once said something along the lines of, “We admire that which we want to become.” Giglio’s admiration of the relational facade and unfulfilling adoration of the consumers in the audience at the rock concert reveals a great deal, and his failure to properly distinguish between praise and worship proper leaves him with little credibility on the topic.
Thanks for your comments, Andrew. That makes sense. And I guess that's at the heart of what makes me uncomfortable with Giglio's philosophy of worship. It's as if he sees the world's outward expression of "worship" as what the church needs in it's true worship of God. I think true worship involves so much more. As you said, a real relationship with God looks different.
ReplyDeleteMy two cents...
ReplyDeleteI personally think Giglio's point is well taken.
When I arrive home after a day of work, my greatest delight is to see the unbridled joy on the face of my youngest son as I walk in the door. His face brightens, he gives a delighted squeal, jumps up and down, claps his hands, and runs--arms thrust upward--to give me a hug.
Now, not every moment in my relationship with my son is like that. There are times of instruction, times of correction, times when he cries and times when I comfort him. Yet I wouldn't sacrifice the moments of unbridled joy for anything, nor will I do anything to "tone it down" or "make it more respectable".
Going back to one of your earlier comments, sure my son is a sinner. But that does not make his response to my arrival automatically sinful.
Do you get where I am going with this analogy? For so long have we rejected any spontaneous manifestation of unbridled joy in our corporate worship services, that we react in fear to the slightest deviation from that which is pictured in your second image. We know how to couch our fear in unbelievably intellectual terms, but it remains fear. Fear of what people will think of us...fear of being called "charismatic"...fear of making a fool of ourselves...
But perfect love casts out all fear, and when my son sees me walk through the door and expresses his delight in my presence in such a spontaneous and heart-gladdening way, there is nothing but love.
Would that, in our churches, we had the same freedom to express our love for our Father, together with our brothers and sisters, with the same unencumbered enthusiasm.
But we don't, and it's our loss.
Methinks there is another factor to consider in the differences between the sporting event and the "corporate worship" event. In the sporting event something is happening and, other than the basic rules of the game, it is unorchestrated. It the worship event the name of the game is preparation, professionalism, performance and, ironically, authenticity.
ReplyDeleteBy its very character a worship event (the word "service" troubles me) cannot be unprepared and unorchestrated. The question is - can it be enthusiastic? If we take the character of "enthused" as either God within (en + theos) or burning within (en + thusia) it would seem there should be some degree of expressed awe in worship.
The problem lies, I believe, in the game. For the sports enthusiast, the game is taking place in the corporate event. For the God enthusiast, the game is taking place in the lived-life between the corporate events. Thus, if we want to explore enthusiasm in worship, the analogy ought not be a comparison of a worship event and a sports event, but a comparison of the after game gatherings where people review what happened and talk about their players and maybe even hold rallies to encourage loyalty to their favorite team. Like tennis...or maybe football...fans, it would be instructive to listen to their enthusiasm after their team has won.
Let me belabor this just a bit more with a recent experience. Our pastors and wives were gathering for a dinner. I had just received a text message from a boy who has been struggling big time (and I mean struggling big time) with the issue of bondage to law. The text was one of those where-did-that-come-from moments. The truth of "dead to the law" had dawned on him with the corresponding truth of law of liberty and law of love.
I fairly bounded into the cluster of early arrivals at our pastoral event. Enthusiastically I said, "I have just see a God thing!" At the same time I came up to one of my pastor friends, put my arm across his shoulder, hugged him and said (not calmly) "It is sooooo cool to see God work!"
Oh for a picture of the shocked look on the face of all present. I should say, a good shock, not one that reflected fear for my sanity. One of the folks said, in good humor, "Ahem. My brother, there's a good AG church down the road."
I tell that to say this, Imagine the looks on the faces of those gathered for a worship event if they had been observing (really observing like a sportsman watches his team) the great game of life and God's involvement in it through the week. Our problem is not, in most cases, wrong doctrine. It is event-oriented worship instead of life-oriented worship.
Thanks Andrew, for your comments! I like your illustration about your son much better than Giglio's because your son's demonstration of joy reflects a real, deep relationship with his father where that of a crowd at a concert probably does not.
ReplyDeleteI'm with you on the point that often we are afraid to show due emotion in worship because we don't want to look charismatic. We have to understand that the charismatic movement does not hold the market on emotions.
Thanks!