What does spiritual worship look like?

God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in Spirit and truth. (John 4:24)

Spiritual worship. What is that? What does it look like? Is a solumn hymn more “spiritual” than a chorus with guitar and drums? If I wear a hat to church does that make me more spiritual than a woman without one?

Adam in innocence knew God was to be worshiped yet by nature did not know how to act in worship. This is true of all mankind. Everyone all over the world has a sense of God and that He ought to be worshiped, but the external how comes out as varied as there are people groups.

Charnock points out that what Adam could not see with his sound eyes in innocence, we cannot see with eyes dimmed by sin. Just as Adam had to be told by God what mode of worship is fitting, so do we. At the root of worship, it is first impossible to honor God as we ought unless we know Him as He is. We cannot know Him as He is without a divine revelation from Himself; only God can acquaint us with His own nature. Even at that, when God did reveal Himself, and did give His people the external mode of worship He desired, they warped it with their own inventions, making gods, or inventing ways of worshiping Him, such as with golden calves.

Today’s arguments about the externals of worship are hardly ever rooted in Scripture. In fact, every one that I can think of is based on tradition, cultural norms, or preference. One pastor dresses casual saying that he gets far too warm in a suit and tie and is distracted from the task at hand. Those who take issue with this are accustomed to “Sunday-go-to-meeting” clothes, and of course cannot find a Bible verse to support their preference. Some prefer “old hymns” to modern choruses, perhaps not realizing that some of those old hymns are based on the tunes of “bar room music” and were once the objects of strong objection. The Bible says “Make a loud noise . . .” but those with sensitive ears object to loud noises. It goes on and on.

I can see the validity of Charnock’s point. We don’t know by nature how to act in worship. We need to know who God is, how He thinks, what He wants from us. Even then, we cannot agree on how we should express our homage to Him.

The solution, I’m thinking, is not trying to find a common ground, or even moving to a church of like-minded people (if that exists), but to treat our modes of worship the same way we are supposed to respond to our differences in spiritual gifts — appreciate and enjoy the diversity. Just as our gifts combine to make a strong body, our modes of worship should unite us into a joyous orchestra, not split us down the middle.