“There is a vast difference between someone who comes to worship and someone who comes worshipping.”
You may have heard it said before that worship is not an event to be consumed, but a lifestyle to live and I believe that to be true. Paul taught us in his definition of worship in Romans 12:1 that worship is more than singing and more than our brief gathering on the weekend as the church.
Romans 12:1 – Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.
Worship is in fact us presenting our whole lives to God, not just the time in which we gather as the church. This realization of this can determine whether we are a worship consumer or a worship contributor when the church does come together to sing.
Paul instructed us not only to come and sing, but before we come to sing to dwell in the “word of Christ”. Paul was encouraging us to richly inform ourselves of who God is and the great things that he’s done.
Colossians 3:16 – Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
Dwelling richly on the Word of Christ, the message of the Gospel, the truth of God every day of our lives is what prompts us to do more than sing, it compels us to worship. It causes us to embrace the truth that worship is indeed a lifestyle to live and not an event to be consumed. It’s the difference between someone who comes to worship and someone who comes worshipping. It’s the difference between someone who sings for a few minutes on Sunday and someone whose very life sings the gospel. It’s the difference between someone who comes expecting to receive and someone who comes as a sacrifice. It’s necessary to walk in the Word if we truly want to worship.
Our times of worship together as the church are beautiful times of encouraging one another, teaching one another, admonishing one another, and challenging one another. If we all dwell richly in the word of Christ we will all come worshipping. Our day by day dwelling in the word of Christ, our lives lived in worship compound together in those special moments that we share as the gathered church and unifies into a powerful offering. Our times of worship together become a place of overflowing.
As a Worship Pastor the greatest thing I can do in order to lead worship successfully on Sunday is to dwell richly in the word of Christ and proclaim the truth of the gospel in the things I say and do everyday. Dwelling richly in the word of Christ will fuel the “why” and the “how” in which I lead on Sundays. The same goes for all of us. It doesn’t matter if you’re a worship leader, musician, or someone singing in the congregation dwell richly in the word of Christ and don’t just come to worship this week. Come already worshipping. Come drenched in the gospel of Jesus, come in the power of the Holy Spirit, come with your life singing, come eager to respond together, come as an offering, and let’s lift up our hearts and our songs together “with thankfulness in [our] hearts to God.”