Biblical theology worship paper
All people carry out a form of worship, whether to Supreme Being or a person. Theology and worship attribute all forms of worship to God as he is the redeemer and maker of everything. Christians have their own way of worship as their part of the faith. Christians define worship as both an attitude and action of granting their God the adoration, reverence and homage. In worship, Christians express God as Holy, good, just, sovereign, loving and powerful. According to the bible, not all worships are acceptable to God. For a person’s worship to be acceptable to God, they ought to live a life that pleases God. Looking, for example, the worship of God offered By Cain and Abel, the evil deeds of Cain, led to his sacrifice not being acceptable to God. This paper seeks to look at theology and worship as it tries to bring light on the theme of worship, lessons learned from the Old Testament, the New Testament and the trinity theology about worship, and worship in eschatology and the importance of worship communities.
The theme of worship in the Scripture
As Peterson described, the theme of worship is far more central and significant in the scripture. The theme of worship, including why people should worship God, unacceptable ways of worship, and worship styles, are vividly expressed in the Old and the New Testaments. Worship in the bible is well suited to convey the biblical understanding of reverence, honor and praise to God. The people in the bible carried out worship, referring to supernatural power. Their acts insinuated a process or an instance where they expressed their vulnerability by taking part in a religious act or ritual. Bowing down is used 110 times in the bible to express the willingness for a human being to express their vulnerability to human beings, idols or God as a way to worship. For example, in Genesis 18:2, when Abraham rushed to meet his visitors, he bowed low to the ground. While this can be attributed to expressing respect, bowing down is taken as a way of worshiping. Again, in worship, human beings express their respect to whom they attribute their worship. However, not all forms of worship are acceptable to God. God is said to be a jealous God as so does not accept any form of worship that is not attributed to him. Looking, for example, in Exodus 20:5, God commands that his people shall not bow down to pagan gods or worship, for He is their God, and He is a jealous God. In the book of Psalms 29:2, the psalmist gives out guidelines for proper worship for the God of Israel. According to the psalmist, people should ascribe to God and glorify his name in the splendor of his holiness. The psalmist continues to tell people that they should worship God by bowing down.
Contrary, the New Testament testifies the goodness of God through blessing Him as a form of worship. To worship in the New Testament refers to falling and worshipping something or someone. This type of worship is entirely attributed to God or Jesus Christ only. For example, the man that was born blind in John 9:38, when Jesus healed him, he said Lord, I believe and fell and worshipped him. Worship is also done in the New Testament exclusively to be attributed to God, or the Holy Trinity; God the Son, God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. When the devil tempted Jesus, he clearly stated that one must only worship God and serve him only. This consents to Old Testament teaching of worship, where God proclaims that He the only one to be worshipped, not together with idols as he is a jealous God.
Further, the scripture explains the nature of worship that is to be attributed to God. Jesus Christ, in the New Testament, addressed the wayward Samaritan woman. Jesus said, “Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth for this is the kind of worship that the father seeks” Jesus further says, “God is spirit and his worshippers have to worship in spirit and truth. However, in the book of revelation, John seems to have put together spirit and truth to mean in the effect of the spirit of truth. Thus believers worship God truly with the help of the spirit of truth who sacrifices and illuminates them using the truth of God’s word. This illustrates the encounter of God and human beings in true worship.
The places of worship are also clearly outlined in the scripture. In the Old Testament, God’s chosen people built a temple for him in which his people would worship and offer him sacrifices. This illustrates the Holiness attributed to the temple and sacrifices offered to God. Prominent people in the bible also build a temple for God. For example, as Abraham was journeying through Canaan, he builds at an altar called upon God’s name. After God revealed himself to Jacob at Bethel, he set up a pillar of stone and returned to build an altar. Looking at the New Testament, the scripture portrays the human body as God’s temple upon which God is centrally worshipped. In the Old Testament, the physical temple, where people would go to worship, is not given much significance New Testament. Thus, Christians are expected to carry their bodies as the temple of Christ, where they worship God in truth and spirit. Thus they should stay away from sinful ways, which could make their worship not acceptable to God.
This analysis consents with David Peterson’s view of worship. In the Old Testament, those who were seen as pure in heart that God chose to build him an altar or a temple. In the New Testament, Christians are advised to stay away from sin or anything that would make their worship not acceptable to God. The scripture in the New Testament views the body as the temple of God. Again, those who worship God in truth and spirit would see the kingdom of God. This depicts the hope Christians have, which is attributed to their form of worship. Again, Christians were created to worship, and all creation is attributed to him. Therefore, the scripture is intimately linked with all emphases of biblical theology, such as creation, sin, covenant, the redemption of people of God and the future hope.
Worship as portrayed in the Old Testament, New Testament and the Trinity
If worship is centered in God and God is Trinity, worship, as portrayed in the scripture, is Trinitarian. Worship in the scripture is portrayed in Trinitarian’s dynamics in that God the Father seeks worshipers, God, the son, leads worshipers and God the Holy Spirit empowers worshippers. In the book of John 4:7-26, when Jesus met the Samaritan woman, he emphasized that God seeks worshippers more than the worshippers seek Him. This teaches Christians that God initiates true worship in them by confronting them with His love. Thus, in this aspect, worship is the Christians’ response to the love that God manifests in them. Looking at John 4, true worship is tied to the relationship one has with God, and it is attributed to father in spirit and the truth. This does not mean the son’s exclusion as seen in John 17; the preponderance of the father does not mean that we cannot ascribe honor and praise to the Son and the Holy Spirit. Glorifying the son depicts glorifying the son. Thus, the worship of God depends on the activity of the son and the Holy Spirit. Thus God cannot be glorified as the father without Christ and the Holy Spirit. It is only through Christ that believers can get a clear image of the father. As Christians’ body is the temple of God, God is more interested in the state of the heart the elaborate act of worship.
Moreover, Christian’s worship of God is tied to Christ’s event since it is through the incarnation, death and resurrection that Jesus offered Christians ways to catch a glimpse of God. Worship of God in truth and spirit becomes possible to Christians only through his reconciling ministry. He reconciled humanity to God by destroying sin, thus opening the way for a new covenant. Thus without the reconciliation of Christ, Christian’s worship would have been idolatry since we would they would be worshipping a self-constructed image of God outside the revelation of God himself in Christ. The New Testament also teaches of Jesus as the one who stands in the presence of God on behalf of the believers. According to Hebrew 7, Jesus is portrayed as the high priest and the mediator through whom Christians have access to the father. Thus, Christ mediates God’s blessings and salvation upon Christians and also mediates Christians worship to God; worship of God is the Christians’ participation in Christ’s perfect worship.
Additionally, the Holy Spirit empowers worshippers. Worshipping is closely linked to the presence and activity of the Holy Spirit. Through the spirit, Christians can approach the father, as Paul says in Rom 8:15. Christians manifest themselves as people of God by enabling the power of the Holy Spirit. Thus for Christians to serve God right, they must be born of the Devine spirit as this would clean the heart and renew the mind hence giving Christians a new capacity to know and love God.
Consequently, the Old Testament teaches Christians the importance of worship in pulling the non-believers towards. For example, after Isaiah experienced God’s presence in his worship, he was ready to be sent and speak to God’s people about salvation. “I saw the Lord seated on a high lofty throne and his robe filed the temple, my eyes have seen the king, the lord of Hosts. The voice of the Lord said, who should I send? Who will go for us? And I said: here I am,” Isaiah 6:1-8. On the other side, psalms teach believers about celebration and proclamation. David had experienced God rescuing him and refreshing him, and thus he could not be silent about it. He had to celebrate. Again, upon seeing David sing in worship of God, they too joined him in the worship. This depicts God’s true worship in truth, and spirit spreads to the people around, hence changing their ways to follow Christ.
Eschatology and worship
Eschatology reveals the end times. After living a life that is pleasing to God, Believers expect to see God and savior Jesus Christ with whom Christians would spend eternity. Thus eschatology is a major part of the Christian storyline as it expounds on the world’s Christian view. From the scripture, worshiping is rooted in history and real historical events as God’s story is based on past, present and future events. Thus, the fact that eschatology explains the end times urges Christians to strengthen their faith in God. Events such as the rapture, the day of the Lord, the second coming, the millennium, and the eternal state all reveal to Christians why they should be firm in their worship. Worshiper’s hope is centered on the future. Thus, through understanding the details of eschatology, Christians learn their future, which is a source of hope the scripture needs Christians to have.
Further, understanding eschatology changes believer’s lives as their present actions impact their future. For example, looking at the words of Paul in 2nd Timothy 4:7-8, he says, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge will award to me on that day and not only to me but also who have loved his appearing. Thus despite what believers go through in their present through worshipping God in spirit and truth, there is the hope of being crowned at the end. Again, eschatology presents a purifying effect on the believer. It gives the believers a reason to live sensibly, righteously and Godly because they are waiting for the second coming Jesus. In the present life, where the world is full of evil, and people seem to be physically decaying and dying, those who worship God in truth and spirit hope to resurrect and restore everything. This encourages Christians not to focus on their present life and what they have lost but to anchor their faith in God as they would be resurrected and restored. Lastly, eschatology serves as a warning to non-believers and those who do not worship the true God of their impending judgment. They risk burning in the fires of hell for eternity. Therefore an understanding of eschatology helps worshippers to live a life of pleasing God to avoid the adversity of the impending judgment when Christ comes back.
Sin and humanity
The scripture describes human beings as sinful. Because of Adam, humanity befell into sin. Thus, human beings are born of sinners and, by nature, are sinners. Thus, why Jesus Christ had to die on the cross to reconcile humanity with God, through the death of Jesus, Christians can repent and reconcile themselves with God. Thus, believers are encouraged to proclaim that they are sinners as they sin through their thoughts, words, what they have done and what they have failed. Their life is by the grace of God and not because of their righteousness. Thus, they should proclaim that they are sinners and repent to reconcile with God.
Gatherings
According to the scripture in Mathew 18:20, God is amongst worshippers when they are gathered in a way he is when they are not gathered. Thus gatherings bring the presence of God among his people. Just as the way people are different from one another, so is their talents and gifts. The church needs the collaboration of everyone to glorify God. Lastly, the scripture teaches Christians how to treat one another, depicting the need for one another in Christian life, creating a congregation. Congregational worships today are built on community work in the proclamation of the scripture. However, the scripture’s teachings should lead people into community service and service to the poor without being compelled to do so. Thus, congregational worship today should be bound on the teachings of scripture and how to worship God in truth and spirit as this would illuminate God’s Glory from his believers to non-believers. As discussed earlier, God’s true worship is based on human actions toward other people and not what is proclaimed by word of mouth.
Reflection
I belong to a worship community that meets twice a week. The community is centered on worshiping God through service to one another and proclamation of God’s deeds upon our lives. We visit people’s homes and preach to them about the goodness of God as we have witnessed it. The community also participates in community work like conserving the environment, helping the poor and orphans. From this, many people have joined our community, and many non-believers have witnessed God through us and started believing.
My congregation, as portrayed in Biblical theology of worship, teaches that it is through the believer’s action that they can worship God in truth and spirit; we try to express deeds that express Godliness in us. Without living a life of pleasing God, one cannot worship Him properly. Again, we are not afraid to preach to the people about eschatology. People need to have hope for their Godly lives on earth. Those who do not believe in God also need to be aware of their impending judgment and that they risk burning in the fires of hell.