Worshiping God, God’s Way

A Biblical Perspective of the Origin of Worship

Steven E. Urspringer

• Publisher: Wipf and Stock
• Year: 2021
• Print ISBN:
  9781725268746
  9781725268739
• eBook ISBN:
  9781725268722
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Biblical Criticism & Interpretation

Worshiping God, God's Way: A Biblical Perspective of the Origin of Worship explores the theology behind what Jesus called "true" worship in John 4:24. The book carefully highlights the emergence from the praise movement which began in the 1980s, to today's contemporary theology which uses the catchphrase, "everything we do is worship."

Part One

Definition of Worship

Chapter 1

Humanity’s Assignment

Then Jesus told him, “Go away, Satan! Because it is written, ‘You must worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’”

—Matt 4:10

In Matt 4:10, Jesus, prior to entering the work of his ministry, announces that worshiping God, and the service that accompanies it, is humanity’s assignment; to be worshipers who serve is the call. Many of us have found God’s various service assignments for our lives. Equally important is the discovery of the ministry of worship. To be called a worshiper sounds simple, but is it? Like the mission of service, which comes from heaven’s designated plan, worshiping God, God’s way, begins with a heavenly design. Do we know what that is?

Today, there is a widespread belief among Christian communities that say every portion of our lives is an expression of worship. The common phrase, “Everything we do is worship,” permeates church gatherings everywhere. Contrary to this catchphrase, not everything we do in daily life, regardless of our intention to serve God, is an act of worship. It would be less stressful to simply ignore this notion. Nonetheless, having encountered God, knowing him personally, we cannot forgo our responsibility to present his word accurately.

Being students of scripture, we accept the fact that we are on a life journey with him, and there will always be something new to learn, regardless of age or past religious experience. An early example of this is found in The Book of Job, chapter 47 (the last chapter). Job comes to the realization that the process of knowing God is ongoing. He says, “I had only heard about you, but now I see you.” God responds by saying that his servant Job delivered his word accurately, and because of this, all of Job’s prayers would be answered and his friends would be blessed. It is for this reason that an effort is made to deliver God’s word accurately when studying worship. Undoubtedly, all of us want our prayers to be answered, as well as our family and friends to be blessed. Therefore, when studying God’s word, fastidiousness is important, which is a big word that means “being correct.” We can know the truth about worship because heaven’s dictionary is in our hands, we only need to be diligent. For those of us who are drawn to worship, heaven’s perspective is an asset. The goal is to be aligned with worship as it is in heaven, worshiping God, God’s way. So, we start from the beginning.

Chapter 2

The Origin of Worship

Searching out the origin of worship must begin with referencing the word’s etymology in the dictionary, which comes from what is known as Old English. In the Old English language, the early spelling of worship was “Worth-Ship.”1 This simply means to honor someone or something in some form or fashion. This earthly explanation of worth-ship, now worship, is a sliver of a thought, far from the heavenly description that we read about in scripture. The worth-ship that comes out of respect of another man’s riches, talents, or accomplishments is ashes compared to worship that is offered to the one and only creator, God.

God is worthy of it all, but the definition of worship in today’s vernacular does not make room for God’s full supremacy. Modern language, combined with Christian doctrine, as well as postmodern traditions, have created a theology of worship. These doctrines have born within the Christian community a belief system that misrepresents heaven’s presentation of worship. Over the centuries, the word worship has lost its identity. In place of its heavenly designed response to God’s awesome power and greatness, we follow an outline, a prescribed service labeled worship.

In the book of John, chapter 4, Jesus brings to our attention a new/old concept: True Worship. The word that Jesus uses in John 4 is not worth-ship according to old English. What Jesus describes is derived from heaven itself, giving us a picture of our worship heritage, a heritage born not of this earth. The verse that establishes this heritage is found in the following scripture. It begins in the book of Neh.

You alone are the Lord. You made the heavens and all the stars. You made the earth and the seas, and everything in them. You preserve them all, and the angels of heaven worship him. (Neh 9:6)

Before the heavens and stars, the earth and the seas, angelic beings worshiped God in heaven. Nehemiah reveals the origin of worship. Worship was taking place as God was in the process of creating the universe. The universe was in a state of change, yet worship was a constant. Worship was activated at a time when the earth was not yet in existence. This leads me to believe that the act of worship is firmly rooted in heaven’s culture, older than creation itself. This is far from a manmade effort to satisfy an earthly spiritual need. Heaven-designed worship is much more elevated than a religious service entrenched in a selected, human perspective of common liturgy, modern or emerging church theology. In The Book of Neh, the word worship is the same word used throughout the entire Old Testament, and it is the same word that Jesus uses in the book of John chapter 4, with the additive of the Greek language. Not only is the word used at the beginning of creation, it describes worship in The Book of Rev at the end times. That is why I say, worship is a constant.

The act of worship that is found in the heavens, God is looking for, waiting for and craving from his creation, even today, right now. We know by reading Heb 13:8 that God is the same yesterday, today and forever. Like God himself, worship is relentless. The word itself does not change, nor can it be altered to suit a philosophy or theology, lifestyles, or worldviews. Worship can be called true when it is presented to God according to his blueprint. This heavenly designed blueprint of worship can be found throughout scripture and examined through the definitions that God offers to us in his word. It is these words that define for us the act of worship itself, what it is, when it happens, and with whom. When we understand heaven’s vocabulary, we are most likely to worship God, God’s way. The key is to see worship through God’s eyes, seeing his perspective as we cultivate our terminology of worship.

1. Cornwall, Let Us Worship, 48.

Chapter 3

Worship, the Word

When reading God’s word, various themes are present. In these themes, the predominant thread is worship. Angelic hosts cry out, “Worship him! Worship him!”

All the while, people are saying, “We are! We are!”

When reading the historical journey of the Hebrew nation, we see the people of God replace the act of worship for something else, something manmade. God makes it clear, yet their eyes are murky. When it comes to true worship, there is a blind spot in the human spirit, hindering people from grasping what God is wanting. Here lies the problem.

In the Old Testament, the act of worship was familiar; still, their stubborn hearts ruled them. Failing, they worshiped God in a way that pleased themselves. People, whether they consciously know it or not, have their own personal theology about worship. A woman once said to me that the church where she attends worships God in many ways. That said to me, everyone does it according to their own personal twist. It reminded me of the people of Israel—a past generation of children found in the wilderness. Worship traditions are passed on to each generation. This generation today is developing a new tradition of worship based on self-acceptance and personal preference.

Not only is the word worship misused, it has evolved into a product born out of a world of social media. People say, “That is the way worship is: it is many things, you have to accept it for what it is.” No! You do not have to accept anything not found in heaven’s fields.

The phrase “Worship and Praise” has found its place in nearly every home in America: it’s being broadcast on the airwaves, used in television marketing, and in advertising. It is heard or seen on every screen, hanging on the walls of our homes and on the screens in the palm of our hands. On every continent, in each country of the world, we have watched as Christians stand behind microphones singing worsh...

Table of contents

• Title Page
• List of Abbreviations
• Introduction
• Part One: Definition of Worship
• Part Two: Stories of Worship
• Conclusion
• Bibliography