Last time we were together, we looked at what the Bible had to say concerning the Kingdom of God—the church. The most natural follow—up to a discussion about the church would be to discuss worship. So this evening we are going to examine what the Bible has to say on the subject of worship in the New Testament church. We’re looking at the doctrine of the Bible—the teaching, the instruction—that is contained in God’s Word on this matter.
Jesus said that those who would worship God “must worship Him in spirit and in Truth,” John 4, verse 24 [“God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and Truth.”]. That is the general instruction that is contained in the New Testament regarding worship in the Christian age.
Now, God has always desired and commanded that man worship Him. He has had different types of worship, although there are some similarities, but the nature of the worship that God has directed has been different in each age. For example, in the Patriarchal Age, worship was done within the context primarily of the family. In the Mosaical Age, the Jews’ worship centered primarily at first in the tabernacle, and then in the temple in Jerusalem, and it was based upon a system of sacrifices and ceremonies.
In the Christian Age, the age in which we live, worship is mainly by the church, according to that general instruction that we quoted a moment ago from John 4:24, “in spirit and in Truth,” but more specifically, according to the pattern that is given in the New Testament. Our worship must be worship that is spirit-centered—that is, simple and heartfelt. And it is to be done with decency and in order, as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 14, verse 40 [“Let all things be done decently and in order.”].
Our worship in the church today is related to God’s nature—His being our Creator. All of worship is grounded in the fact that God is and that He is worthy of our worship. He is “adorable” [worthy of adoration], one writer said. Now that’s not “adorable” like a little kitten or a little puppy. He deserves ouradoration. He is worshipful [worthy of reverence, great love, devotion].
We worship God because He made us and sustains our lives, Acts 17, verse 28 [“for in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also His offspring.’”].
We worship God because He is our Heavenly Father, Matthew 6, verse 9 [“In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your Name.”].
We worship God because He seeks our worship, John 4, verse 23 [“But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and Truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.”].
We worship God because of His holiness, because of His greatness, because of His love and righteousness, Revelation 22, verse 9 [“Then he said to me, ‘See that you do not do that. For I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren the prophets, and of those who keep the Words of this book. Worship God.’”].
And we worship God because He has commanded us to worship Him, John 4:24 [“God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and Truth.”].
In a manner of speaking, through worship we “bridge the gap” that exists between ourselves and God. In worship, we commune with God. We are the “finite,” bowing down our hearts before the “infinite” and eternal God of the universe. Using the means that He has given us, we praise Him, we adore Him, we magnify and glorify His Name.
Now there is so much to say on this matter of worship. We could spend several class periods just discussing and analyzing what is involved in the act of worship. We need to do that sometime! I have been working on a series of sermons on the subject of worship, and I’m going to get those ready one of these days! Part of the problem I’m having is not because of a lack of material. There’s so much material that it’s hard to know just exactly how to put that together in a meaningful way. I think we could probably do a two-year series on the subject of worship.
Let’s look at the CONCEPT OF HOLINESS. An understanding of the concept of holiness is essential to an understanding of our worship.
In the Old Testament form of worship, the objects for worship were consecrated, or set apart, for that specific purpose and that purpose only. In other words, they were made holy. There was a holy place, speaking of the tabernacle and the temple, and a holy of holies. Those areas of both the tabernacle and the temple were not used for any other thing. They were not used for public gatherings. They were not used for any purpose except for the prescribed purpose of worship, and that specifically as God had set forth. They were holy places. The Jews had holy days. They had holy furniture and holy vessels. They had holy sacrifices. They had ceremonial holiness, they had spiritual holiness, and they had ethical holiness. Again, the idea here is that these things were for that specific purpose.
Now, as New Testament Christians, what about us? We are to “be holy,” as Peter said in 1 Peter 1, verses 15 and 16 [“but as He Who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, ‘Be holy, for I am holy.’”]. We are a “holy priesthood,” 1 Peter 2, verses 5 through 9 [“you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture, ‘Behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect, precious, And he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame.’ Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, ‘The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone,’ and ‘A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.’ They stumble, being disobedient to the Word, to which they also were appointed. But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His Own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him Who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;…”].
You see, we don’t have consecrated vessels for our worship, as they did in the Old Testament. We don’t have a consecrated place for our worship, as they did. Oh yes, we have this very nice building and we are glad to have it, but we can worship God anywhere, even in a hotel! Imagine that! We [John Phillis and his wife] worshiped God last Lord’s Day in a large white and orange tent set up in a camp ground beside Camp Richardson. We don’t have these holy places.
How does this compare to our worship as New Testament Christians? Well, it is us, you see, who are to be holy. No, we are not talking about being sinless, or perfect in the sense of perfection. We are talking about setting ourselves apart for a particular purpose or function. As Paul says, we give our bodies as “living sacrifice.” [Romans 12:1—“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.”] So our bodies are to be consecrated, set apart. Paul says our bodies are to be holy, 1 Corinthians 6, verse 19 [“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit Who is in you, Whom you have from God, and you are not your own?”]. Our way of life is to be holy, 2 Peter 3, verse 11 [“Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness,…”]. And as “priests,”—no, not of the ancestry of Aaron, but we are nonetheless “priests” in the Christian age or dispensation as God’s children—we are to offer holy worship to God. How do we do that? Well, we do it with our bodies, don’t we! So our bodies must be consecrated and must be holy.
Our worship is to be characterized by holiness, by reverence, in the outward manifestations; that is, the things that we do outwardly. Yes, some aspects of our worship are overt acts, things that we do outwardly. We sing the words. We form the words with our mouths and the words come out of our mouths. In the case of our hearing-impaired brethren, they form the words with their hands. We partake of the Lord’s Supper. We eat those emblems, we eat the bread, and we drink the cup. Those are the outward manifestations.
Also, we must be holy in the inward spiritual experiences. Worshipping in spirit involves being involved “knowingly,” understanding what it is that we are doing. So both areas of our worship—the outward manifestations and the inward spiritual experiences—must be holy.
Our worship should be a strong emotional experience. Now, don’t misunderstand me! I didn’t use the word “emotionalism.” I said a strong emotional experience. In other words, it needs to be “felt.” We need to “feel,” which is part of the understanding of what we are doing. We can go through the acts of worship in a rote and mechanical way without any understanding or emotion at all. But we must have a strong emotional experience that draws us closer to God and expresses our true feelings, the true feelings of our heart, to Him in ways that He has commanded us to worship.
So the concept of holiness is absolutely necessary to our understanding of true worship.
Our day of worship in the Christian age is THE LORD’S DAY. The New Testament teaches that we should assemble as the local church on “the first day of the week” [Acts 20:7—“Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them and continued his message until midnight.” ].
We know that the Jewish day of worship was the Sabbath day, or the seventh day, the last day, of the week. But since we are no longer under the Law of Moses, we do not worship on that day. The Sabbath, you’ll recall, was a sign of the covenant that God made between Himself and the children of Israel, Exodus 31, verses 13 through 17 [God said, “Speak also to the children of Israel, saying: ‘Surely My Sabbaths you shall keep, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the LORD Who sanctifies you. You shall keep the Sabbath, therefore, for it is holy to you. Everyone who profanes it shall surely be put to death; for whoever does any work on it, that person shall be cut off from among his people. Work shall be done for six days, but the seventh is the Sabbath of rest, holy to the LORD. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death. Therefore the children of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, to observe the Sabbath throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant. It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel forever; for in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day He rested and was refreshed.’”]. We are no longer bound by that covenant.
We know this, but let’s be reminded. Let’s look at Hebrews, chapter 8, verses 6 and 13. The writer says in verse 6, “But now He” (that is ‘Christ’) “has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises.” Then look at verse 13: “In that He says, ‘a new covenant,’ He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.”Then in Colossians, chapter 2, verse 14, Paul says, “having wiped out the handwriting of requirements,” (that’s referring to the old law), “that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.”
What happened to the old law? Is it still binding? No, it’s not! Christ nailed it to the cross. We no longer live under that law or that dispensation. Thus, as part of this new and better covenant, there is a new day of worship. That day is the Lord’s Day, the first day of the week. That is the Christian day of worship. That day is significant for a number of reasons.
First of all, Jesus rose from the dead on the first day of the week, on the Lord’s Day [Mark 16:9—“Now when He rose early on the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven demons.” Luke 24:1—“Now on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they, and certain other women with them, came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared.”].
Jesus met with His disciples after His resurrection for the first time on the first day of the week [John 20:1, 19, 26—“Now the first day of the week Mary Magdalene went to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb…Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, ‘Peace be with you’…And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, ‘Peace to you!’”].
It was on the Lord’s Day, the first day of the week, that the Holy Spirit came upon the apostles. That was the Day of Pentecost [Acts 2:1-4—“When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”].
It was also that same day—the Day of Pentecost, the first day of the week—that the church was born. We know this because the Day of Pentecost was always on Sunday. It was 50 days after the Passover. The Passover fell on a Saturday. The 50th day then would always be a Sunday, Leviticus 23, verses 15 and 16 [“And you shall count for yourselves from the day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering: seven Sabbaths shall be completed. Count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath; then you shall offer a new grain offering to the LORD.”]. [Acts 2:1—“When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.”]
The Gospel was preached for the first time on the Lord’s Day [Acts 2:22-36 — Peter’s sermon to the Jews assembled there on the Day of Pentecost].
That day is called “the Lord’s Day,” Revelation 1, verse 10 [“I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet,…”].
We also see that the early Christians considered the first day of the week to be a special day of worship. For example, the Christians in the ancient city of Troas came together on the first day of the week to break bread, Acts 20, verse 7 [“Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them and continued his message until midnight.”]. We know that the reference to “breaking bread” is a reference to the Lord’s Supper. Likewise, the disciples in Corinth gathered on the first day of the week, 1 Corinthians 16, verse 1 and 2 [“Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given orders to the churches of Galatia, so you must do also: On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come.”]. Also, we might keep in mind that Christians were admonished not to absent themselves, not to neglect, that special weekly gathering, Hebrews 10, verse 25 [“not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.”].
Let’s look now at the ITEMS OF WORSHIP. We are barely going to scratch the surface. It is my intention to stick to these lessons we’re working on here on Wednesday nights and stick to one night for each one. We could spend weeks on each one of these five items of worship if we chose to do that. But now, let’s be reminded of these things:
First of all, God has always expected man to worship Him in the way and in the manner that He has prescribed, the way that He wants to be worshipped.
For example, we look at Cain and Abel in Genesis 4, verses 3 through 7 [“And in the process of time it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground to the LORD. Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat. And the LORD respected Abel and his offering, but He did not respect Cain and his offering. And Cain was very angry, and his countenance fell. So the LORD said to Cain, ‘Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.”]. What was that conflict between those two brothers about? What was the conflict that resulted in Cain rising up and killing his brother? It was over acceptable worship. We learn that from the text in Genesis, chapter 4.
We are also enlightened on this matter in the New Testament in Hebrews 11, and verse 4. God had respect for Abel’s sacrifice, but not for Cain’s. The Hebrew writer says that Abel’s was “a more excellent sacrifice,” [“By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks.”]. What was the sacrifice about? It was about worship to God. God had prescribed a certain way that they were to worship Him. One brother got it right; the other brother got it wrong!
So all the way back to the beginning, we see that God has prescribed the manner, the nature, the character of worship, and His expectation was that man would follow what He had prescribed.
Under the Mosaic system, we see in Exodus and into the Book of Leviticus that a great deal of time and a great amount of detail was provided by God to Moses regarding the way that He desired to be worshipped. The instructions were very specific. They were very detailed. It began with a specific place, the Tabernacle. The priests, those who would administer the worship, were to wear specific clothing that God had directed, down to the very smallest detail. There were very detailed instructions regarding the furnishings and each item. Whether it was the candle stick or the laver or the altar, God gave instructions about how it was to be made, what it was to be constructed of, and then what its purpose was. God gave instructions even regarding the types of offerings: This offering will be made for this; this offering will be made for that, etc. God’s instructions were very specific, very detailed.
And how serious was God about all of that? Well, we have insight to that in Leviticus, chapter 10, when the two sons of Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, introduced strange fire. What happened to them? They were consumed! They hadn’t followed God’s instruction, you see. [Leviticus 10:1-3—“Then Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it, put incense on it, and offered profane fire before the LORD, which He had not commanded them. So fire went out from the LORD and devoured them, and they died before the LORD. And Moses said to Aaron, ‘This is what the LORD spoke, saying: “By those who come near Me I must be regarded as holy; And before all the people I must be glorified.”’”]
So for us in the Christian Age, John 4, verse 24, provides the general instruction. They that worship God must worship Him “in spirit and in Truth,” [“God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and Truth”]. We’ve talked a little bit about the “spiritual” part, that is, knowing and understanding what we are doing. But the “Truth” part means that we must worship Him according to the pattern that He has given in the New Testament. Oh yes, He’s given a pattern, just like He gave to Moses, a pattern that is recorded for us in Exodus and Leviticus. Concerning the New Testament pattern, Paul, speaking to Timothy, says that we must “hold fast the pattern,”2 Timothy 1, verse 13 [“Hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me, in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus.”].
What are the items of worship? What are those specific “acts” of worship, as we refer to them sometimes?
First is the Lord’s Supper, or as we refer to it, “communion.” We know that this was instituted by the Lord Himself the very night that He would be betrayed. It was on the evening when He and His apostles had gathered together to eat the Passover meal in the upper room [Matthew 26:17-29; Mark 14:12-25; Luke 22:7-20]. He would take two simple elements that would have been a part of that Passover meal there on the Passover table, those being unleavened bread and the fruit of the vine. The bread, of course, represented His Body, and the fruit of the vine represented His Blood. There is so much deep meaning in what He did on that occasion and in the emblems that He chose. It is a “memorial feast.” His purpose is to commemorate His suffering and His death, His sacrifice for our sins.
Let’s look at 1 Corinthians, chapter 11, beginning with verse 23. We have the accounts of Him instituting the Lord’s Supper recorded for us in the Gospels. If there is a “guide-book,” a “tutorial” about what the Lord’s Supper is, its purpose, its meaning, and how it should be observed, it is right here. Paul wrote this to the church in Corinth because they were abusing the Lord’s Supper. So this is an instruction he provides to them to straighten them out and to give them a proper understanding! He says, “For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread;” (there we see the setting—the night He was betrayed) “and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, ‘Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.’ In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.’ For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.” So this is a memorial—a proclamation.
Now look at the specific instruction here that Paul provides regarding the observance of this: “Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.” [1 Corinthians 11:27]. We may get a little twisted up here with this word “worthy,” or “worthy manner.” We will never be “worthy” of the Body and Blood of the Lord, in the sense that we “merit” that. What Paul is referring to here is doing it without the proper understanding or without the proper application of what is going on here. Verse 28, “But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.” So we are to discern, we are to recognize, we are to understand that what we are doing in eating the unleavened bread and drinking the cup—the fruit of the vine is a representation of the Body and Blood of Jesus. We are to be reminded of that Body and Blood, of the terrible suffering that He took on for us. Verse 30, “For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep.” What’s the result of a lack of understanding or doing so without the proper understanding of the Lord’s Supper? “Weak and sick.” So we must understand, we must appreciate, we must have an awareness of what it is that we are doing! The night He instituted the Lord’s Supper, Jesus told His apostles that He would not eat of this until He ate it anew in the Kingdom, and that is, of course, a reference to the church. Is Jesus with us on the Lord’s Day? Is He in our midst as we worship and partake of His Body and His Blood? Oh yes, He is!
Second, prayer is a part of God’s pattern of worship. Prayer has been practiced throughout man’s entire relationship with God. We often characterize prayer as us talking to God and, of course, in the Christian Age, we do this through our Intercessor, Jesus Christ.
Jesus prayed often and He taught us about prayer and how to pray. For example, we see that “model prayer” there in Matthew, chapter 6, verses 5 through 15 [verses 9-13—“In this manner, therefore, pray: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your Name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen”]. Then that great prayer of passion that He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane recorded in Matthew 26 [verse 39—“He went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, ‘O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I Will, but as You Will.’”], and John 17 [verses 1-5— “Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: ‘Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him. And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ Whom You have sent. I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.’”].
The early church often prayed, Acts 2:42 [“And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.”]; Acts 4:24 through 31 [“So when they heard that, they raised their voice to God with one accord and said: ‘Lord, You are God, Who made heaven and earth and the sea, and all that is in them, who by the mouth of Your servant David have said: ‘Why did the nations rage, And the people plot vain things? The kings of the earth took their stand, And the rulers were gathered together Against the LORD and against His Christ.’ For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, Whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done. Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your Word, by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the Name of Your holy Servant Jesus.’ And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the Word of God with boldness.”]; and Acts 12:12 [“So, when he had considered this, he came to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose surname was Mark, where many were gathered together praying.”].
Several characteristics of prayer should be noted:
First, prayers must be offered in faith, James 2:5-8 [“If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, Who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe (have faith) and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.”].
Prayers must be offered in sincerity, in humility and in fervency, 1 Corinthians 14:15 [“What is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing with the understanding.”], and James 4:6 [“But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: ‘God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.’”].
And prayers must be offered with understanding, 1 Corinthians 14, verse 15 [see above].
Jesus said that we should avoid “vain repetition” in our prayers, Matthew 6, verses 7 and 8 [“And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words. Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.”].
So, one of the things that the early church did when they came together was to pray, Acts 2, verse 42 [“And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.”] and 1 Timothy 2, verse 8 [“I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting…”].
Third, singing is a part of our worship. In this regard, there is only one kind of music that is commanded, or directed, by God to be acceptable worship to Him, and that is vocal. We see Colossians 3, verse 16 [“Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”] and Ephesians 5, verse 18 and 19 [“And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord…”].
This is an area of controversy among much of the religious world. Those who look at the church of Christ from the outside often identify us as being those who are sometimes called “water Christians” because of our insistence on what the Bible teaches regarding baptism for remission of sins. And we’re also characterized, or identified, because we do not use an instrument of music as part of our worship. Here’s another area that would be rich in study, an area that we could spend a lot of time on. I know I don’t have to convince you of this, but we may listen to the arguments, or discussions and comments, of people, and we may not always know how to respond to them. The Scriptures teach us.
One of the most effect ways that I have found is to simply point out what the Bible does have to say about the area of music as part of worship. Point out these Scriptures: Colossians 3:16, Ephesians 5 [see Scriptures above] and so on, and look and see what it says. And of course the argument will come back saying, “Well, God didn’t say not to use a mechanical instrument of music.” Well, there are a lot of things that God didn’t say!
The Bible teaches that when God commands anything in any one area, He excludes everything else in that area. What did he tell Noah in the long ago when He instructed him concerning the building of an ark? He told him to build it out of gopher wood. He didn’t eliminate all the other types of wood so that Noah would be sure to understand. When God said, “build the ark out of gopher wood,” that meant “build it out of gopher wood!” No other kind would be acceptable. Noah understood that! [Genesis, chapter 6 — the account of Noah and the ark.]
And, what about the Lord’s Supper? We just spoke about the Lord’s Supper—the emblems, the elements, that are a part of that. We looked at the Scripture that talks about what they are. This attitude, or approach, that some would take—“Well, God didn’t say…” I don’t mean to be “flippant” about the Lord’s Supper, but God didn’t say that we couldn’t use cheese crackers and Gatorade on the Lord’s Table! He didn’t have to! He told us what to use and thereby eliminated everything else!
So when it comes to the music that is acceptable to God in worship, it is the human voice. He didn’t need to eliminate the harp and the lyre or anything else. His instruction was specific!
We might notice, too, that church history reveals to us that it was hundreds of years later that the mechanical instrument of music was first introduced into worship and then under a great deal of protest! Of course, now you wouldn’t see that because of the great use of instruments. In fact, some have full-scale orchestras these days.
Fourth, let’s now look at preaching and teaching God’s Word as a part of our worship.
Jesus gave the great commission, “Go into the world and preach the Gospel to every creature” — “teaching them to observe.” [Mark 16:15—“And He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature.’” Matthew 28:19-20—“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.’ Amen.”]
Well, we see that the apostles did that, and the early disciples did that, like Phillip and others. But we see, too, that this was done by the early church, Acts 2:42 [“And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.”]; Acts 5:42 [“And daily in the temple, and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.”]; and Acts 20, verse 7 [“Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them and continued his message until midnight.”]. Paul encouraged Timothy to preach the Word and the purpose or reason, of course, is for the benefit of reaching the lost [2 Timothy 4:2—“Preach the Word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.”].
Sometimes people will say “we’re just wasting our breath preaching first principle sermons in a worship assembly, because everybody there is already a Christian and already saved.” I say not necessarily so! We have many visitors to this congregation every week. We don’t know the condition or situation of those visitors. So you will continue to hear periodic first principle sermons, sermons about baptism, about obedience, etc., coming from this pulpit. But moreover, the teaching and the preaching is to keep the saved saved, to admonish, and to exhort the brethren.
Fifth, and finally, giving is included in God’s worship pattern.
The early church gave liberally [Acts 2:42-44 [“And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common…”]; and Acts 4:32-35 [“Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul; neither did anyone say that any of the things he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common. And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all. Nor was there anyone among them who lacked; for all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of the things that were sold, and laid them at the apostles’ feet; and they distributed to each as anyone had need.”].
The church at Corinth was commanded to give on the first day of the week, 1 Corinthians 16, verses 1 through 3 [“Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given orders to the churches of Galatia, so you must do also: On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come. And when I come, whomever you approve by your letters I will send to bear your gift to Jerusalem.”]. Here is another argument that people sometimes use about the frequency of our worship, or doing various parts of our worship, and so on. “It doesn’t say every first day of the week.” Well, it doesn’t have to say every first day of the week!
We are to be “good stewards” says Peter in 1 Peter 4, verse 10 [“As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.”], and as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 4, verses 1 and 2 [“Let a man so consider us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful.”]. And we must remember that we will give an account one day of our stewardship, Romans 14, verse 12 [“So then each of us shall give account of himself to God.”].
Something to remember about our giving is this: God did not give a specific amount. The instruction is to give.
There are five “p’s” that we might remember on this matter of giving. We can see them in 1 Corinthians 16, verse 2 [“On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come.”].
The giving is to be periodic—“on the first day.”
The giving is to be personal—“each one of you.”
It is to be provident—“lay by in store.”
It is to be proportionate—“as he has prospered.”
And it will then be preventative—as Paul said, “so that there will be no collections when I come.”
So giving is very much a part of our worship. I would say that if I were to pick one of the five areas of worship that maybe is least like worship to us, it may be the giving. Not to find fault with anyone who may say this, but we sometimes hear the men around the table say, “this is a convenient time.” Well it is a convenient time, but we need to guard against the thought that this is just an incidental thing that we are doing, or that there’s really not much to it. Maybe some of our behaviors in the auditorium during the time of the giving suggest that that’s what we think about it. For many of us, we’re thinking about other things. We’re doing other things. That collection plate comes by and we drop the check in or put that dollar bill in and never give it another thought. Remember, we worship in spirit and we must understand what we are doing! God has given us an opportunity to give back to Him and to be reminded of the rich blessings that He has given us. We should consider how He has provided for us and think about our proportional giving.