Moving the Soul through Worship

Glenn Plastina

The ultimate goal in every act of worship is the glory of Christ. Every time I see thousands of young people who abandoned their lives to God in worship—like in the recent Movers and Shakers in Christ Concert ’05—I cannot help, but praise God. It was a tremendous experience with the Lord—similar to the previous “sacred revolutions” that inspired our young people to worship and commit their lives to Jesus. There are many “workings” of God that happened when God’s people worship him in Spirit and in truth.

Primarily, when God’s people worship, it is a celebration. In the Old Testament, we have many records of celebrations, feasts, and thanksgivings for the sole purpose of worshiping God, the source of life and salvation. God is worthy to be celebrated. While living as pilgrims in this world, we delight in existing through the love that comes from him. There is no reason for us to be ashamed to shout and give him praise as the book of Psalms declared. David himself “danced before the Lord with all his might” (2 Sam 6:14). He was criticized and despised by his wife who watched from afar. But David is resolved to worship. “I will celebrate before the Lord. I will become even more undignified than this, and I will be humiliated in my own eyes” (21b-22). Is this a classic example of two groups of people in any worship events: the “movers” and “watchers”?

When God’s people worship, Christ is lifted up. This doesn’t mean that when we fail to worship God, God is not exalted. Far from that, for God is already glorious in himself even when people fall short in acknowledging him as Lord. When God is lifted up among his people, it only means he becomes the sole focus to be magnified before the people. This is where the danger comes in when the worship leaders try to protrude in between, trying to attract people to themselves instead of Christ. There is nothing bad to excel in the worship ministry with God’s gift; only use it in proper way, not for personal benefits and prestige. The worship leader’s primary duty is to usher—not push, manipulate, and control—people into the presence of God. Hence, the leader must allow the Spirit of God to work through him or her for lifting up Christ in the midst of his people is impossible apart from God’s Spirit.
When Christ is lifted up, his glory is revealed, the wayward child returns home. As Christ was hanging with an open arm, any repentant children were also longing to be embraced by God’s mercy. Sad to say, many young people love Christ, but they hate the church. Many youth preferred to be “un-churched” than to enter into the “narrow” church door to be ostracized, ridiculed, belittled. Just watch how members react when young people with tattooed-arms, nose-rings, and dyed spiky hair enter the church hall. Unchurched young people are not innocent not to notice the attitudes of the church goers towards them, except for some who overcame their prejudice, self-righteousness, and pride with Christ’s love.

When the church begins to function as a country club rather than a hospital for sick and sinners, many young people will remain outcasts to the local churches. What the unchurched young people need is “healthy relationship” not conspiracy of kindness. They do know if you come to them with string attach or you want to use them for statistical purposes on how many Bible study groups, attendees, and decisions made. Strange though, these young people don’t need who’s “covering” the ministry was made. All they need is the “covering of Christ’s blood”—not some metaphysical presumptions and territorial borders. It is the cross that remains an open arm of God for them. I still believe, God is raising new worshipers and leaders who will embrace these lost and lonely. These new breed of ministers seek God’s approval, not the “covering” of some spiritual hierarchy or cultic personalities. Christ alone will be lifted up.

When God’s people worship, the Church, the body of Christ, is edified. Some Christians remains skeptical to the “new worship” because the songs are short, shallow, and simplistic. The decibel-level is also loud and high, fast and heavy. But to others, these worship songs are more personal, intimate, singable, and direct to the point. Young people love to shout and sing “my God, my Lord, our Savior, and our King” rather than talk “about God” in third person. Because of the powerful and personal touch of God’s Spirit, these songs become instrumental in reaching out where the young people are. They don’t need a Christianese Dictionary to be able to sing these songs. But they do remember what the songs express and assures them that the Christ they worship is the one who set the captives free and loves them unconditionally. Through worshiping Christ, hearts and lives were united, churches were healed.

When God’s people worship, communities are reached out. We are living in a time where Christian ministry is ground-breaking and more innovative. This is the time where the youth were hungering for God. This new generation has a different music, culture, and worldviews. They also look at the church and its mission to seek the lost from a different angle. They are not traditional; they dare to be different, to be “fools for Christ” (1 Cor 4:10). Their power of corporate worship is not established by the volume of the sound—or the lack of it—but by the dynamic force brought by the Spirit of God. But the bottom-line of these all is not the differences, but Christ seeking the lost and healing the wounded. For them, Jesus conquered death—he is the real “hero” of faith; he is alive and still moving stones that closed the people’s heart to God. They celebrate the “livingness” of Christ Jesus.

Through God’s grace, we have eternal life in Christ alone. It is only appropriate that the center of Christian worship is God—not ourselves. We celebrate Jesus in worship because he is alive and well. We can live through him and we will dwell in eternity with him. No matter who and where you are, God can reach and move you to worship. Whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Our ultimate destiny and reason of existence is to glorify God for everything was created for his purposes and for his pleasure.

Worship: Are We for Real?

By Glenn M. Plastina
(This article appeared in Baguio Herald February-March 2005 Special Edition)

If worship is all about God, why is the body of Christ still waging war on worship? Worship is supposed to be all about God, but in most cases, worship is actually not all about God. It is also about cultural differences, personal preferences, and varied interpretation of the Scriptures in matters of worship and practice. Worship became a major source of disunity among local churches—not to mention that it is also an indicator to discriminate others who do worship differently. The fact is, only Christians fight over worship. Churches were divided, disheartened, and disillusioned that their own way of worship is the best way in adoring God. Sometimes, it is easy to throw stones than offer bread in worship wars. But it should not be. Let’s be real this time.

God is seeking true worshipers. If we are for real, then we must understand that worship is not about warring between Evangelicals and Pentecostals, traditional and radicals, brothers and sisters, young and old. True worshipers seek, understand, and practice the truth found in God. I believe mature worshipers have high tolerance level when it comes to differences in worship styles. Some contemporary worshipers ridicule those who do traditional worship, unaware that they themselves are creating a tradition for the future. While tradition is not evil, when it becomes an end in itself, it fell short to what true worship is all about. True worship—in all its primitive and modern ways—can be glorifying God. It is not static, but dynamic.
We must remember that there are many words used in the Bible for worship. Each word—in Hebrew or Greek—bears significant distinction and manifestation from bowing to prostrating and falling flat to the ground, kneeling, dancing, singing, shouting, jumping, whispering, silence, and the like. To look for one way of worship in the Bible is to look for ridiculousness. Why? Precisely, it is because worship is more than just a style. While people do worship in various manners, it is more than outward appearance.

Worship is the utmost response of the whole person to the revealed presence of God. In the Bible, when the person is overwhelmed with the presence of God, style is not an issue anymore. What matters now is the heart before the holy God. It is not about what type of song we sing, even though worship involves singing also. Certainly, the Bible tells that songs for worship are diverse (Eph 5:19). Hence, worshiping God is, indeed, dynamic. If we insist that the way the Western world do worship is the superior—or perhaps the best—way, we deprived ourselves of worshiping God for real. We try to mimic others who we are not. This is not to say also that we are to disregard and reject what the West brought to us, but it is for us to seek for more meaningful way of worshiping God. It is still great to worship God and sing with our own native languages—even in native melody!

I’m also concerned with the prevailing attitude on worship we have here in the Philippines. Filipinos are very particular with experience. And yet, when many of us became Christians, it seems that worship becomes an abstract idea. It is akin to becoming a “thing” in the mind; it has lost its personal and intimate touch. When worship becomes a matter of the mind, a mere idea, or a concept, then it is long way off from being Christian. There is more indication in the Scriptures that worship is more personal and intimate—though not individualistic; worship is not just a thing that happens between and person and an abstract idea from above. There is even more support to the physical involvement of the body in the biblical worship. Hence, worship involves “heart and hand” so to speak. It is not just lip service. We need to regain our heritage in worshiping through the cultural gifts that God has bestowed to our local churches.

I do not subscribe to the notion that worship is more of what we do rather than what we explain. While it is true that we cannot fathom the mystery involved in Christian worship—for God is the mystery of the world—it is healthy for us to understand why and how we do worship. The content of our worship must not be separated from our practice. Both are essential. Of course, worship is not just what comes from our mouth, we should worship because it is an outflow of our hearts; not because we are obliged, but it is our delight to commune with God.

I’m proud to be a Filipino Christian for God has given us rich cultures. I don’t think that being a Filipino and a Christian is a conflict—being a Christian is not even in contrast to be a contemporary person. As a Filipino, I can worship God in diverse and dynamic ways. As long as we find way to redeem our cultural identity and heritage—in music, arts, language, etc.—we can be authentic Christians. The more I stay in the Cordilleras, the more I appreciate the unique and distinct cultural values that can promote authentic Christianity in this particular setting. Even in our Music for a New Generation ministry, we encourage new Christian artists to excel in modern and relevant way of reaching the youth, as well as for some to blend the ethnic elements of Cordilleran music for God’s glory.

John 4:23 says, “Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.” It is long overdue. When are we going to learn that the true worshipers do not need to dwell in what has been given by others, but to cultivate our vernacular songs of worship, customs, way of communicating the Gospel, and cultural heritage? When are we going to realize that our ultimate destiny is to worship God forever with other fellow Christians who do not even practice the way we do worship in local churches? You and I are going towards that eternal celebration of God’s presence. Thank God. We are destined to worship him forever as a family.
With that hope, our past and present worship experiences become more exciting and meaningful. Yes, worship in heaven is a celebration! Are we not then to celebrate his presence? Celebration can be reverential as long as we have the right heart and spirit to come before God as his children. As children are not pretentious before their father, we can be real before God.