By Not Known
Heaven is a place of global worship. Believers from every corner of humanity unite
to declare their adoration to the one God and Saviour (Rev 7:9-10).
We have a taste of this on earth as we share in worship with other Christians. I have
worshipped with the incredible exuberance of percussion, dance and song in Kenya
and Nigeria; heard the deep harmonies of unaccompanied singing in the highlands of
Papua New Guinea and in Vanuatu; sat through some rather stuffy services in
Scotland and Ireland; participated in international worship in Salzburg; led a
Sabbath-eve home Communion with converted Jews in Vancouver; sat in very large
USA congregations, and worshipped in an Australian farm paddock with an upturned
fuel drum for a pulpit and sheep as the choir.
Our business and holiday travels are a good opportunity to make the effort to
worship with other believers and sample their ‘style’. (We do make the effort to go
to church when we are away from home – don’t we!)
It is good for us to taste the worship styles of other believers. It challenges our
ideas about what is ‘proper’ in church services and helps us rethink and re-appreciate
what we do at home, It also reminds us that Christ is present in all
cultures, above all cultures and that all worship is culturally formed.
Some things stay the same in true worship, whatever the culture and worship style.
Heaven’s worship sets the lead here. True worship is focused on God, not the
worshippers or the worship team. True worship gives God his worth for who he is
and for his great works of creation and salvation. True worship has a centrality of
God’s word as songs, prayers and words are shaped by what God says in the Bible.
True worship expresses the gospel, for it is the whole basis of our approach to God.
What of us at ORPC? Let’s appreciate our distinctive worship style, present it as
well as we can and be open to appropriate changes. Let us especially come to
services of worship with worshipful hearts as we seek to give God his worth.
Let’s also make the effort to share and enjoy the worship styles of other Christians
and including those of other cultures. As we do this me are blessed in the present
and prepared for that grand heavenly scene when every voice will sing God’s new
song (Rev 5:13).