More Than a Song
by
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WHAT IS WORSHIP?
“Yours, Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.”
1 Chronicles 29:11 NASB
What is worship? How would you define it?
Depending on the church or denomination you attend or grew up in, the answer that comes to mind may differ from person to person.
If you google the definition of worship, the first term that pops up is this: “the feeling or expression of reverence and adoration of a deity.”
Yes, we worship the Lord because of our reverence and adoration of Him, but worship is not a feeling one experiences. There are many expressions of worship, but worship in itself is an action. We worship God because we love Him. Love is not an emotion either. Love is an action. We worship God in the way we choose to live our lives. Worship is a lifestyle.
You may have a true encounter with the presence of God during a worship service that brings up emotions, and that is awesome. You do not have to hide those emotions. Emotions are a good thing. The Holy Spirit may have revealed something to you that brought those emotions to light. I connect with God during the praise and worship segment of a service often and tend to find myself weeping, but I also have a tendency to walk out of the same service and immediately forget about what God revealed to me and go back to living life as I did previously. You cannot rely merely on an emotional experience, because emotions are feelings and feelings change in an instant.
There may be days when God feels distant, and there may be days when we simply do not feel like worshipping. That is why we cannot rely merely on our emotions. It is in the midst of the dry seasons when we should press in the most, because those moments are tests that prove our faith in the Lord. “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.” (James 1:12 NASB)
The Old Testament was originally written in Hebrew and actually has more than just one word when referring to worship. One of the words the Old Testament writers used was “ʿāḇaḏ” (aw-bad) which means “to work, to serve.” “Then he called for Moses and Aaron at night and said, “Rise up, get out from among my people, both you and the sons of Israel; and go, worship (āḇaḏ) the LORD, as you have said.” (Exodus 12:31 NASB, emphasis added)
Serving is an expression of worship.
Another Hebrew word for worship is “šāḥâ” (shaw-haw) meaning “to bow down.” “And I bowed down my head, and worshipped (šāḥâ) the LORD…” (Gen. 24:48a NASB, emphasis added)
When we pray, we normally choose to bow our heads, and when we are in awe of God, sometimes we bow down with our faces to the ground. To bow down is another expression of worship.
The New Testament was originally written in Greek and also has several different words for the term worship. One of the Hebrew words the New Testament writers used was the word “doxa” (dox-ah) which means “glory or praise.” “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory (doxa), both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.” (2 Peter 3:18 NASB, emphasis added)
Giving God praise and glory is also an expression of worship.
The most common word used when the Bible mentions worship is “proskyneō” (pros-koo-nay'-o) meaning “to pay honor or respect to a higher authority.” “God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship (proskyneō) in the Spirit and in truth.” (John 4:24 NASB, emphasis added)
Again in Luke 4:8, “Jesus answered him, “It is written,‘You shall worship (proskyneō) the Lord your God and serve Him only.’” (NASB, emphasis added)
Honoring and respecting God is yet another expression of worship.
Similar to the previous term, is a Hebrew word “proskynētēs” (prahs-koo-nay-tace) which refers to true worshipers versus a religious external worship “thrēskeia” (thrace-kI-ah). For example, the Pharisees thrēskeia the Lord meanwhile Paul proskynētēs the Lord. “But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship (proskynētēs) the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers.” (John 4:23 NASB, emphasis added)
When we worship the Lord, if it is merely for ourselves to be glorified, that is not true worship. That is religion. Whereas when you live your life to honor and give God glory, that is true worship. Being a Christian was never intended to become a religion. Christianity is about having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
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About the Book
What is worship?
When you hear the word worship, what comes to mind first?
What does it mean to truly worship God?
In October of 2019, I was wolunteering at my church’s middle school weekend retreat. during some downtime, I asked a few of the girls what has been their favorite part of the retreat thus far. The majority of them said “worship”, meaning the praise and worship segment of the service. There was nothing wrong with their answer, but it got me thinking. Do these students know what it really means to truly worship the Lord? Do they know why they lift their hands, or are they doing it merely because it is just a common action in our church? Do they know that worship is more than just a song?
My prayer is that everyone who chooses to read this book will discover a new found desire to worship the Lord as well as be encouraged and challenged to strengthen their daily walk with the Lord.
About the Author
Jessica is a wife, a mother of two, a photographer, a follower of Jesus Christ, and now a Christian-living author. She received her bachelor’s degree in Journalism with an emphasis on Photography along with a minor in Biblical Studies. She worked on the newspaper and yearbook staff at her college as a photographer, photo editor, and occasional opinion columnist. She won several awards for her photographs while in school. This book is her first published work. She has served in children’s and student ministries ranging from infants to junior high students within her church for two decades. Her passion is encouraging and challenging fellow Christ-followers in their relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ.