The Practice of Worship

There are many in our community who have become frustrated with the changes their churches have made in worship. This is understandable. Frankly, there is much being done today that is labeled “worship” yet is completely foreign to the Bible.

This leads us to an important question:

Does God accept all forms of worship, even if said worship is directed towards Him? Even a cursory examination of the scriptures should dispel this notion immediately: Cain’s worship was rejected (Gen. 4.3-5) as was that of Nadab/ Abihu (Lev. 10.1-2), Uzziah (2 Ch. 26.16-20) and the Christians in Corinth (1 Cor. 11.17-22, 27-29; 14.23). All these sought to worship God their way, and faced serious consequences.

At the Jamestown church of Christ we worship the way the Bible describes the Christians in the N.T. doing so:

• Singing (Eph. 5.19-20)
• Prayer (Acts 2.42)
• Scripture and Teaching (Acts 2.42)
• The Lord’s Supper (Acts 20.7)
• Contribution (1 Cor. 16.1-2)

Singing

In Ephesians 5.19-20 Paul calls his fellow Christians to address “one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart”. (cf. Col. 3.16). Nine times in the N.T. music in the context of worship is mentioned, and in exactly ZERO of those times mechanical instruments of music are mentioned. For this reason, we at Jamestown align ourselves solely with God’s word and offer acapella singing to the Lord in worship. Musical instruments certainly attract the attention of people. We choose to do what pleases God.

Prayer

We offer prayer to God during our worship services. The early Christians in Acts 2, including the apostles of Jesus, clearly demonstrate this as an essential aspect of worship: “And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.” (v.42). We pray in worship because we choose to do what pleases God.

Reading and Teaching God’s Word

From the previous quotation in Acts 2 we also see the early Christian’s devotion to reading and teaching from God’s word. When the Christians of Troas worshipped, Paul spoke with them (Acts 20.7). Timothy was told to devote himself to “the public reading of scripture, to exhortation, to teaching” (1 Tim. 4.13). A church that isn’t speaking from God’s word isn’t truly interested in knowing or doing God’s will.

The Lord’s Supper

In Acts 20.7 and 2.42 we read of Christians gathering together to “break bread”, or to participate in the memorial Jesus instituted the night He was betrayed (Luke 2.14-23). We engage in this every first day of the week, just as the early church did. God’s word records that Christians met every first day of the week (1 Cor. 16.2), and so we partake of this memorial every week.

Contribution

Paul instructed the Corinthians to offer of their means as a part of their worship (1 Cor. 16.1-2). These funds are described in the N.T. as being used to help needy saints (1 Cor. 16.1-4; 2 Cor. 8), fund the work of the local church, and support evangelists/elders as necessary (1 Cor. 9.6-18; 2 Th.3.9; etc.).

Some malign this sort of worship as boring, lifeless or out-of-touch. Others, who treat worship as a marketing method, seek ways to be more “appealing”, accounting for many of the “innovations” (i.e. corruptions) introduced over the centuries. If our worship was “for us”, then these arguments might have some sway. But it is not, so they do not.

We choose to worship as God has said to worship Him.