Priorities in Worship

Obviously worship is supposed to be God-centered, but sometimes people focus on the preacher, the worship leader, or even the congregation.

Years ago we were members of a large church in California. The pastor is an author and well-known defender of the Christian faith. The first three Sundays we attended, I could not remember what he looked like because his message was so biblical, so Christ-centered, that all I could think of was the Lord and my relationship with Him.

We soon discovered that if this pastor was going to be away and a substitute would preach in his place, attendance fell. At first I wondered about that, but began to understand. It was easy to boast that “we go to ____’s church.” Occasionally I still do it, probably because people react by putting me on a pedestal along with this preacher. I know better. It is okay to respect the pastor, but that is not what church attendance and worship services are about.

I’ve noticed the other dangers too. A charismatic worship leader gets more attention than the One toward whom he attempts to direct our worship, or a congregation enjoys their love and fellowship so much that their worship and attention on God is overshadowed.

Colossians 1:19 says, “He (Jesus) is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He might have the preeminence.”

Jesus came in “the image of the invisible God” so that we might know God and have access to Him and eternal life. In worship, we should enjoy a fresh awareness of who God is and what He has done in revealing Himself and in offering His plan of redemption to us. Worship ought to focus primarily on the grandeur of God, not the abilities of the preacher, the talents of the worship leaders and musicians, or the delights of our love for one another.

God has given my local church godly and dedicated leaders. I’m supposed to respect them, but whether they do well or not, worship isn’t about them. The body of Christ in our church is a grand group of people who love the Lord and one another, but I must attend church functions with an even greater desire to meet with God as I enjoy being with my Christian family.

The practical part of this is easy. Guard my heart. When I’m in church, am I evaluating the people up front? Or is my focus on God? Am I looking around for those I want to greet later, or looking up at the One who made it possible for me to belong to this Body of His?

Of course I will not neglect respect for leadership, nor will I neglect fellowship with other believers. I just need to always put first the One who is “worthy to receive glory and honor and power” and who said, “You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.”