“The Worship Wars”
John 4:1-42
John 4:23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
Some of you may be asking yourself about my selection of the title to today’s message. Let me explain to you where God led me this week as a prepared my heart and mind for this sermon. I’ve been at this a long time, and I am not alone in what I am about to say, so here goes. There has never been a time in my recollection when there was more diversity of opinion about what constitutes Biblical worship. The problem as I see it is that it is difficult for us to separate tradition from truth. We focus on forms and not facts. We confuse message and methodology. As a matter of fact the methodology has become the message in many places. One fact that is certain is that men by nature are worshippers. F. W. Robertson wrote that: “Again, it is not a thing which man can decide, whether he will be a worshiper or not, a worshiper he must be, the only question is what will he worship? Every man worships - is born a worshipper.” If Robertson is right and I believe that he is then it is incumbent upon us to define true worship and dedicate ourselves to worship! What is the real truth about worship? This is an age old question. Men have been trying to answer this question for thousands of years. Wars have been fought and many have perished literally and spiritually in the worship wars. Even in our time we are still seeking the truth about this subject. There has never been a time when there was more diversity of opinion on this subject than right now! Dr. Elmer Towns writes that: “Worship is like a car to get us from where we are . . . to where God wants us to be. Transportation and communication are imperative, the mode or vehicle is not imperative. While it is imperative that we worship God, as long as we do it biblically, how we do it has second importance. Worship is like a car that gets us into the presence of God. Some worship God in cathedrals with the rich traditional organ tones of Bach, Chopin and the classics of Europe. They travel in a Mercedes Benz. Some worship God in simple wooden churches with a steeple pointing heaven-ward and sing the gospel songs of Charles Wesley or Fanny Crosby. They travel in a Ford or Chevy. Some worship God with the contemporary sounds of praise music with a gentle beat. They travel in a Corvette convertible. Some worship God to the whine of a guitar and the amplifiers to the max. They travel on a Harley, without a muffler.” This morning I want to share some truths about “The Worship Wars” that I trust will clear up the confusion and bless your life.
First there are:
I. Traditions in Worship
A. Determined by culture
For many, culture is the deciding factor in the traditions of how they worship. There are great differences between how we worship in the America’s as opposed to Europe, or Asia or Africa. Even in our part of the globe there is much diversity between North and South America. I personally have made several trips to Mexico and I can assure you that culture has a huge impact on how they worship compared to us. In Mexico young people grow up listening to the sounds of the guitar, not the piano or organ therefore it would not make sense to use an instrument that is foreign to their ears to try and reach them. They hardly ever start on time and they may sing for an hour before the preacher is invited to speak. I have been in services in Mexico that lasted 3 hours and no one complained! I have friends who go to Haiti regularly and tell me of worship services lasting 4-5 hours and that after walking 2 hours to get to a meeting place out in the hills. The Samaritan woman in our text worshipped very differently than the Jews based on the differences in her cultural background.
B. Determined by consumerism
From the founding of our country till World War II we were a nation of producers. Farming and manufacturing were the primary occupations for most Americans. After WWII leading up to today we have become a nation of consumers who are served by a large part of our population. Less than 25% of Americans are now involved in manufacturing and less than 5% are “down on the farm.” This has brought about tremendous change. Whereas people used to choose a church based on doctrine, name and denomination they now make that choice based on things like user friendly access, participatory services, experiential involvement, electronic amplification, contemporary music, options of worship time and choice of different worship experiences. Elmer Towns
Reformed Pastor Michael Horton, in his book, "A Better Way: Rediscovering the Drama of God-Centered Worship writes:
ILL - We are repeatedly told these days that music is the most important thing we do in worship. In fact, "worship" usually means singing or enjoying the singing of others. "Let’s just take some time now to worship" is roughly translated, "Cue the praise band."..some have argued that a weekly service need not include the preaching of the Word, as God can speak through a variety of other instruments: drama, liturgical dance, poetry, and so on. Repeatedly worship is reduced to matter of consumer tastes."
C. Determined by color
Now I’m going to throw something at you that may “rattle your cage” and folks there is no way around what I am about to say. We need to acknowledge that in America skin color and ethnicity have played a pivotal role in the development of traditions in worship and still do. This is not true just across the South but can be found all over the country and even within the fellowship of denominations. There are churches all over America that are populated by folks of the same race or national origin. Even within FWB’s we have churches that are made up of Cuban, Hispanic, Russian, Korean, American Indian and even some African American FWB believers that are not affiliated with the NWFWB. Here is a startling statistic; The number of Korean language churches has grown from 200 in 1980 to approximately 4,000 in 1995. The presents of minorities and immigrants in America is forcing many churches to change their expressions of worship and even the face of worship. Again, the woman who met Jesus at Jacob’s well was a victim of extreme prejudice on the part of the Jews of that day as evidenced by her surprise that Jesus would even speak to her in verse 9.
John 4:9 …How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.
Second, there must be:
II. Truth in Worship
A. The importance of the Scripture
All Christian worship, public and private, should be an intelligent response to God's self-revelation in his words and works recorded in Scripture.
D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
If worship is in fact our response to revealed truth then no wonder the woman at the well had so many unanswered questions. Being a Samaritan, her Bible consisted of the first five books written by Moses but none of the other books of the OT. To worship God in truth is to have all the truth not just parts of it!
Hebrews 1:1 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,
2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;
2 Peter 1:19 We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:
20 Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.
21 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.
B. The importance of our spirit
The effectiveness of worship is not measured by atmosphere. That means the credibility of true biblical worship is not measured by how fast the songs are sung, or how deeply we meditate in solitude. It is not measured by a new plexi-glass pulpit; or the new trend of using no pulpit at all. It is not measured by raising hands, affirming the Apostle's
Creed, or congregational applause. It is not measured by responsive readings from both Old and New Testament, viewing multiple translations of the Bible projected on the screen, or listening to an expositional sermon based on a proper interpretation of the text. True worship is always measured by the response of the believer's heart to God. They that worship God must give Him the "worthship" that is due to Him.
ILL - A man went to church with an angel as guide. The church was filled, but oddly, there was no sound. The organist played, but no music could be heard; the choir’s lips moved, but no song came forth. The pastor went through the motions of preaching, but the man heard nothing. He asked the angel, "Why?" The angel’s reply: "This is the service as God sees it. When there is no heart in it, there is no sound." Then in the back pew he heard a child pray, "Our Father, who art in heaven ..." The angel said, "You are hearing the only part God hears, that which comes from the heart."
[W.B. Knight, Treasury of 2000 Illustrations, p 447]
C. The importance of the Sovereign
Notice in verse 23-24 that two things are self-evident. God is a Spirit and He is seeking true worshippers. As God is a Spirit, so He both invites and demands a spiritual worship. It is in worship that we “know” God in a deeper, fuller, richer, way. She had talked simply of “worship”; our Lord brings up before her the great OBJECT of all acceptable worship - “THE FATHER.”
Philippians 3:10 That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;
Warren W. Wiersbe writes: “Worship is the believer's response of all that he is - mind, emotions, will, and body - to all that God is and says and does. This response has its mystical side in subjective experience, and its practical side in objective obedience to God's revealed truth. It is a loving response that is balanced by the fear of the Lord, and it is a deepening response as the believer comes to know God better.”
Bro. Roy Thomas used to say: “There is room in the heart of every man that only God can fill.” In the final analysis worship is not about God finding us but about us finding Him.
Acts 17:27 That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us:
ILL - There was an elderly Christian whose advancing years had taken their toll on her memory. As her health faded the time came that she could recite but a single verse (2 timothy 1:12) "I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I’ve committed unto HIM against that day". Even these words slowly slipped away from her memory until only a few days of her life remained and friends would hear her repeat just seven words. "that which I’ve committed unto him" Finally as the hour of the women’s death neared and her memory was all but gone, voiced a single word repeatedly, it was all she could remember. "HIM! HIM! HIM!" Here is the key to our praise, when we come together to worship, when we are giving thanks in the presence of others, or when we are expressing our faith through praise let it all focus upon HIM.
Finally, there is:
III. Transformation in Worship
A. It convicts us
True worship is measured by the transformation of the worshipper because he/she has been in the presence of God. It is measured by repentance because the worshipper has faced his/her sin and asked forgiveness. It is measured by new insights about God that deepens the daily walk with God. True worship upsets the way we have lived, and demands more sacrifice from the worshipper. True worship never allows us to remain the same person we were before we came into the presence of God.
William Temple wrote that: “To worship is to quicken the conscience by the holiness of God, to feed the mind with the truth of God, to purge the imagination by the beauty of God, to open the heart to the love of God, to devote the will to the purpose of God. All this is gathered up in that emotion which cleanses us from selfishness because it is the most selfless of all emotions - adoration.”
B. It changes us
True worship involves change and it also includes that which never changes. We must be careful that we don't get the two mixed up. It is we who change because we have been in the presence of an unchanging God. He doesn't adapt Himself to us, we adapt ourselves to Him
(which is usually a very shallow expression) because we yield to Him, we obey Him, we magnify Him and we lift Him up. The unchanging nature of worship doesn't mean we never change our forms of worship, nor does it mean we never re-arrange the order of service. Because worship is a response to God, and He never changes; then, there are certain "self-evident truths" in worship that cannot be manipulated. It is imperative that God be worshipped, our music beat is not imperative, nor is the atmosphere of the room. It is imperative that we worship Him in truth (John 4:23), which is the substance of worship. It is not imperative whether methods of communicating truth be a Bible expositional sermon, a devotional message, an evangelistic presentation of the gospel or a pastor's exhortation to godliness. It is imperative that we worship Him in spirit (John 4:23) which is the sincere expression of our hearts. It is not imperative whether we express it with reverently bowed head, raised hands of praise or shouts of "Hallelujah."
ILL - A parable is told of a community of ducks waddling off to duck church one Sunday to hear their duck preacher. After they waddled into the duck sanctuary, the service began and the duck preacher spoke eloquently of how God had given the ducks wings with which to fly. He pounded the pulpit with his beak and said, With these wings, there is nowhere we ducks cannot go! There is no God-given task we ducks cannot accomplish! With these wings we no longer need walk through life. We can soar high in the sky!
Shouts of Amen!¨ were quacked throughout the duck congregation. The duck preacher concluded his message by exclaiming, With our wings we can fly through life! WE......CAN.....FLY!!!!¨ More ducks quacked out loud AMENS! in response. Every duck loved the service. In fact all the ducks that were present commented on what a wonderfully convicting message they had heard from their duck preacher...and then they left the church and waddled all the way home.
APPLICATION
Too often we waddle away from worship the same way we waddled in...Unchanged.
The worth of true worship is that it is life changing!
C. It challenges us
All true worship of god leads to service for God! When we look at Isaiah chapter 6 there is a perfect example of what happens when a man meets with God in worship. After the prophet’s confession and cleansing we read:
Isaiah 6:8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me.
ILL - A.W. Tozer (1897-1963) God wants worshipers before workers; indeed the only acceptable workers are those who have learned the lost art of worship. . . . The very stones would praise him if the need arose and a thousand legions of angels would leap to do his will.
I’ll say a hearty amen to this statement and would add that where you find true worshippers you will find workers for the Lord!
In closing: Since we are by nature worshippers and all men will worship something or someone its essential and urgent that we worship the right thing in the right way for the right reason. Are you worshipping God my friend and are you worshipping Him in the way that He himself has prescribed, in spirit and Truth?
Acknowledgements: There are many quotes from Elmer Towns book: “Putting An End To Worship Wars”
