If you have ever attended a Church of God in Christ worship service, a Baptist service, a Roman Catholic mass, or an Orthodox service, you know that there are many different ways that people show forth their praise and worship of God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. A question to ponder… Do these different forms of worship all honor God? Are there any benefits of one style of worship over another. Does the style of worship in any way reflect or influence what one believes or teaches about God? For that matter, what really is the most important thing that happens in a worship service?
Let’s start with what is common in every one of the above-mentioned worship services. The people gather to give God thanks and praise for all that God has done, is doing, and will do for them in the future. The people gather to pray for themselves and for others. The people gather to hear God’s Word read and explained. All these actions honor God.
In some, but not others, people confess a common set of beliefs by confessing together a statement of what they jointly believe the Bible teaches. This is called a creed, from the Latin word credo, which means ‘I believe’. Another practice found in some churches and not in others is a rite called Confession and Absolution. Here, the people confess their sins before God and are assured that their sins are forgiven. Another practice in this category is an altar call, where people are invited to come forward and accept God’s gift of salvation. Laying on of hands for prayers for healing or for ordination is also done in some churches. Finally, most churches tend to follow a basic outline for their service, with some being more fixed and traditional, while others are less formal. This list is not exhaustive, but fairly complete.
In the above list, often the reason a church does some, but not others of the above has to do with their unique understanding of the teachings of Christ. For example, a church that believes in synergism (we do our part, God does His part when it comes to our being saved) would practice an altar call, where one that believes in monergism (God works faith, and man is saved by God alone) would not practice an altar call.
Again, churches that see agreement in what God’s Word teaches as being important, might use a creed, where a church that puts the emphasis on personal faith, and an acceptance of differing points of view on what the Bible teaches may feel that any doctrinal creed is somehow man-made, even if both sides agree that what is in the creed is what the Bible teaches. One thing is clear, a creed tends to exclude people rather than welcome them.
Churches that see the church as something which exists within the context of time and history, yet being at the same time an eternal unchanging kingdom tend to follow a historic liturgy, while others see the church simply as those believers gather together for worship in the here and now.
I could talk about communion practices and confession and absolution but since these have been covered in a previous article, I will just affirm that the use of these practices is very much determined by that churches beliefs are.
But perhaps the biggest difference is about what worship actually is, and who is the most important actor in a church service: God or man.
Most churches see the worship service primarily as the work of the people, man’s service to God. The word liturgy comes from two Greek words which actually means the work of the people. These churches see worship primarily as a good work, people perform as both the fulfilment of an obligation towards God, and a necessary act that they might grow in the Lord. Again, the work the pastor does is primarily his leading and teaching of the congregation.
The word used in the Lutheran Church for worship is Divine Worship. We teach that the main thing happening in worship is NOT what we are doing, but what God is doing. God, through the mouth of the pastor, is forgiving sins. God through the mouths of the people in the congregation, through hymns, liturgy, and creeds, teaches divine truths. It is God, through the Scripture reading and sermon that is growing and strengthening the faith of the people. God acts as both host and meal in the Sacrament of the Altar. It’s all about God, and His service to us. We of course respond to all that God is doing in worship and praise. We turn to Him with our prayers for each other, for our nation, and for the world. But this is done in response to all that He is doing for us in worship.
One final question. Does the style of worship really matter? If, by your practice you are teaching something that is not true, and that goes against the Word, then yes. If you use a song in church that is popular, but part of what it says goes against the Word, it should not be used.
Lex orandi, lex credendi (Latin: “the law of what is prayed [is] the law of what is believed”), sometimes expanded as Lex orandi, lex credendi, lex vivendi (Latin: “the law of what is prayed [is] what is believed [is] the law of what is lived”), is a motto in Christian tradition, which means that prayer (or worship style)* and belief are integral to each other and that liturgy (how you conduct your worship)* is not distinct from theology. It refers to the relationship between worship and belief. As an ancient Christian principle, it provided a measure for developing the ancient Christian creeds, the canon of scripture, and other doctrinal matters. It is based on the prayer texts of the Church, that is, the Church’s liturgy. In the Early Church, there was liturgical tradition before there was a common creed, and before there was an officially sanctioned biblical canon. These liturgical traditions provided the theological (and doctrinal) framework for establishing the creeds and canon. (taken from Wikipedia, phrases in parentheses marked with an asterisk were added by me for clarification). If this is true, even the style of worship effects your beliefs, which effects how you live your life. I believe this Latin phrase does teach a valid truth.
If you have any questions about anything in this article, feel free to contact me, Rev. Randolph Schnack, at (307) 343-2314.
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