Stuart Townend on Corporate Worship: seminar given today at Oak Hill College
The "A.R.T. of Corporate worship"
A. ADORATION
1) The need for both objective and subjective
a. Objective reflection on the character and work of God
b. Subjective emotional response to those truths
c. Great to have had in the last 30 years more songs that have an emotional subjective element... these have caused us getting excited about the experience of worship, but the danger is that my experience of worship becomes the focus of the song, rather than the songs really being the act of worship by reflecting upon the character of God.
2) Truth in songs
a. Teaches us theology
i. More people learn their theology through songs than through sermons
ii. More likely you leave church humming a song than reciting the sermon!
iii. So we must ask the question: what sort of picture do our songs teach us about God?
iv. Full range of the characteristics of God: not just his love, but also his justice, his holiness etc.
v. Look at 3 months worth of your songs sung in church: are you choosing songs that reflect the breadth of the character of God
b. Gives a solid foundation for living
i. Do your songs reflect the reality of the world in which we live?
ii. Look at the life of Paul... the truth speaks into the troubles of life.
1. For I know that these present sufferings..
2. Consider yourself dead to sin but alive to righteousness
iii. Songs must put the reality of the different experiences of life in the perspective of the reality of the character and promises of God.
iv. Cf Psalm 22. The struggle between the present circumstances and the knowledge of God. “Am I going to believe God’s promises or give way to the difficulties of circumstances?”
v. Jesus’ instruction sending out the 72... Luke 10:20... they are hugely excited about the experience that they have: Jesus says their joy should be grounded in the reality of the gospel not experience.
c. Tells the story
i. Faith is not routed in dislocated ideas, but in history. We have a story to tell, and so there must be songs that tell the story.
ii. Too few songs tell the story.
iii. Story telling songs are great in evangelistic circumstances: non-Christians can sing “From the squalor of a borrowed stable” but cannot sing “I love you Lord” without lying.
3) Leading Congregational Worship
a. Remind people of the basis for entering in.
i. Not our feelings
ii. The basis is what God has done in Christ, and who
God is.
iii. We want to undermine the idea, “I couldn’t come to church today because I was in a mess, and I need to clean myself up before I can enter God’s presence”. No! We come to him to be cleaned up.
b. Must start with truth-declaring songs. We mustn’t try and set a ‘vibe’ with a song, but have the truth set the mode.
c. Must encourage an expectancy that God will be revealing himself as we come together to worship.
4) In personal Worship
a. Thanksgiving
i. True worshippers of God habitually give thanks to God. Idolators are those who “neither glorify him as God or give thanks to him.” (rom 1:21)
ii. Appreciation: not merely saying thankyou to God, but reflecting and exploring the goodness of what he gives
iii. Declaring God’s goodness to others (Ps 40:3)
Talking more openly with others about our thankfulness towards God for his work in our lives
5) Worship in Spirit
a. Worship is not dependent upon place or ceremony (John 4)
i. We can think about rituals or things that we do that ‘create’ worship
1. “Must be quiet and reflective”
2. “We must really be ‘going for it’ in song
3. Lifting hands in great emotion
ii. Going into the ‘sanctuary’, the ‘holy place where he dwells’
b. Worship is a response of the heart
c. Worship is on God’s terms and not ours
i. The danger of a consumeristic ‘this is my worship preference’ approach to worship.
ii. Those who lead worship are called to please God and serve the people, not just serve God and please the people.
iii. This means that we will sometimes do things that will displease the congregation, but please God.
d. Worship is Spirit-led and Spirit empowered
R. REVELATION
1) God is a God of self-Revelation
a. Revealed in Creation
b. Revealed in Christ
c. Revealed in Word
d. Revealed in our lives
e. The danger is that we so rely upon the means of revelation (songs, scriptures etc) that we do not look to the Spirit of revelation to use those means that he would reveal the Father and the Son.
2) Looking for God’s revelation..
a. In our preparation: praying for God’s help as we put the song together
i. Matt Redman, prefers the term “Lead worshipper” rather than “worship leader”. The Holy Spirit is the “worship leader”.
ii. Thinking and praying through the journey of a service that would flow and allow the Holy Spirit to be working.
b. In our leading: the need to be flexible to what the Spirit is doing, so that we can follow what the Spirit is revealing to his people
c. From God’s people.
i. In a context where others may lead in prayer or prophecy, being ready to be flexible as to how to move on from there with songs rather than thinking that their contribution is a diversion from the journey the Spirit is taking people upon.
T. TRANSFORMATION
1) Unconsciously: the experience of worship affects us – we come out of church experiencing and being more patient, more Christlike.
2) Renewing of minds. (Romans 12:1-3)
3) Sharpening of our consciences
4) Preparation to receive the word of God, so that when the preacher stands and preaches, our hearts are ready to receive.
Other comments in the Q&A
- Important to realise that ‘worship leading’ is delegated responsibility from church leadership. There is a need for the elders to have knowledge and responsibility for what goes on in the Sunday service, so that if the worship leader gets a phonecall over Sunday lunch saying “why did we sing that song?” the worship leader can say, “the pastor said it was fine, so you need to speak to him.”
- Really important to work with the musicians you have rather than try to ‘create a sound’ that you may not have.
