Often I think about how the worship leader describes him or herself. Even in the idea of resumes and job applications. I remember reading one once where the leader in question noted the distinct ability to bring people to the throne of God quicker and better than others.....
There are several things troubling about that statement, but one has stuck out the most in the last few months. What action are we doing in Christian worship that makes it distinct from any other religion? Attributing qualities to God, or praising his character with our devoted actions? These are elements of worship, but they are just that....elements. Ultimately, the gathered qualities of worship are what make it Christian worship. Yes-our worship is Triune and Yes-our worship is pointed towards the distinct eternal worldview of the Christian. In the end, all worship is eschatological in nature (and yes, I know that I can get to the end of the world in two steps), and this is what makes it distinctly Christian.
In this manner, the throne room language becomes very important. I say this because we shouldn't escape in worship. Often we might hear something like this, "Just prepare yourself for worship in any way that is comfortable to you". Somehow, in the last century, we have understood worship as an individual action. But historically that wasn't the case. Worship was seen as an earthly reality of the company of heaven. When we want to "go to the throne room", we want worship to be a pragmatic event and take us out of this world. We want to set boundaries on our home, sinful as it may be, and be taken out of it.
Instead, I want to challenge you to this. Think of worship as the realization of the Kingdom of God on earth. In worship, we grab hold of the reality that Christ gave us and we pull it down to earth. We remember Revelation 21 when we find out that the home of God will be on the redeemed earth with His people. Yes, worship is a beautiful vision of the Triune God. But worship is what also gives us the eyes to see the reality that He is in this world through the incarnation of Jesus Christ. In worship, through our devotion our tears are wiped away (Rev 7:17 and 21:4), and grace remakes us.
This is a great post. I hope to talk more about this with you in person. next week, let's hang.
Posted by: Drew Causey | July 01, 2010 at 10:55 AM