The Theology of Worship

FAITH BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY THE THEOLOGY OF WORSHIP: A COMPARISON OF TRADITIONAL AND CHARASMATIC WORSHIP SUBMITTED TO MR. ANDY STEARNS IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF T-HI 820 HISTORY OF DENOMINATIONS BY NICHOLAS T. PAYNE MARCH 2, 2015 CONTENTS INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................................... 1 WORSHIP IN THE TRADITIONAL CHURCH ........................................................................... 2 WORSHIP IN THE CHARISMATIC CHURCH .......................................................................... 4 WATER AND OIL ......................................................................................................................... 6 CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................................. 10 APPENDIX A: MISPLACING CHARISMA by: Matthew Sigler .............................................. 11 BIBLIOGRAPHY ......................................................................................................................... 15 iii 1 THE THEOLOGY OF WORSHIP INTRODUCTION The issue of worship has been a hot topic since the worship wars of the 90s. This has been particularly true in regard to contemporary Christian music. Over the years individuals and churches have struggled to make decisions about what styles of worship music are appropriate for the worship of God. The primary discussions have revolved around the morality of worldly styles of music and the issue of associating with sinful actions of the world. The primary difficulty with this issue is the fact that it is impossible to consistently and accurately discern the morality of music based entirely on the style of the music. The purpose of this paper is to take a different approach to the issue of worship as a whole. This paper will take a broad look at the purpose of worship in most traditional churches and compare it to the purpose of worship in the Charismatic church. First, there will be an explanation of worship and an examination of historical and theological backdrop of both styles of worship. The rest of the paper will then address the issue of the adoption of Charismatic and contemporary forms of worship within churches with a traditional theology of worship. The thesis of this paper is to show that contemporary worship is not acceptable in the church. Evidence will be provided to show that there is a disparity between a traditional theology of worship and a contemporary or Charismatic form of worship. WORSHIP IN THE TRADITIONAL CHURCH The “modern” understanding of traditional worship has its beginning with Martin Luther. During the Reformation Luther desired to return to true worship. His goal was to break down the ritual of the Roman Catholic Church and establish a form of congregational worship. He desired to “put singing in the mouths of the people.”1 Thus it was not without reason that the fathers and prophets wanted nothing else to be associated as closely with the Word of God as music. Therefore, we have so many hymns and Psalms where message and music join to move the listener’s soul, while in other living beings and bodies music remains a language without words. After all, the gift of language combined with the gift of song was only given to man to let him know that he should praise God with both word and music, namely, by proclaiming through music and by providing sweet melodies with words.2 Therefore, it was established that the focus of worship would be on God’s Word. This became one of the central factors that stand as the foundation for traditional worship. The second factor that is foundational to traditional worship is the expression of worship. Congregational worship should be directed to God. Worship is a response to God that results from a presentation to the truths of God’s Word. Truth about God must be Bible-based. God is known in two ways: by His character and by His works. One or both of these should be present in congregational worship music as truth to which a believer can respond. The Bible is our only absolute source of truth about God. Therefore, scriptural truth about God should be the content of congregational worship music… Subjective truth about man or his problems is not appropriate for congregational worship, because it is truth about God that moves us to worshipful responses. Personal experiences or other subjective expressions of God are not as sure and true as biblical truth. “Martin Luther’s Worship Reforms,” Conservative Christianity, Worship, Culture, Aesthetics - Religious Affections Ministries, accessed February 28, 2015, http://religiousaffections.org/articles/articles-on-worship/martin-luthers-worship-reforms/. 1 Martin Luther, Luther’s Works, Volume 53: Liturgy and Hymns (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1965), 320. 2 2 Believers should be careful not to choose music with subjective content. Instead, the content should be about or to God.3 Furthermore, worship must focus on one’s affections toward God. In congregational worship, one should avoid a sentimental emotionalism. This does not mean that congregational worship should not be emotional. To the contrary, worship should be a deep expression of the worshipper’s emotions. Yet these emotions must be an expression of the worshipper’s affections and not passions or shallow emotions generated from the music. Because the very nature of worship is spiritual response to truth, the music used should develop deep affections for God, not simply emotional passions. Those affections will result from the way the text is written as well as the composition of the music itself. If the text has no solid, concrete basis for the music and if the musical style communicates emotional, sentimental feelings, it is not appropriate for congregational worship.4 Worship should be full of affection, and full of adoration, reverent, and joyful. Scott Aniol defines worship in this manner: “Worship is a spiritual response to God as a result of understanding biblical truth about God.”5 3 Scott Aniol, Worship in Song A Biblical Approach to Music and Worship (Winona Lake, Ind: BMH Books, 2009), 174. 4 Ibid. 197. 5 Ibid. 30. 3 WORSHIP IN THE CHARISMATIC CHURCH The Charismatic view of worship tends to turn the traditional view on its head. While the focus is still on God, the purpose is inverted. Worship’s benefit for man is emphasized and therefore worship become pietistic and experiential. “Worship is God’s gift to us for our blessing more than His. His objective is not the securing of our adulation, but our discovery and realization of advancement in His intended purpose for our fulfillment.”6 Worship for the Charismatic becomes a functional sacrament. Charismatics believe it during is the experience of worship that God pours out his grace upon mankind. “Charismatic Christians consider ‘praise and worship songs’ to be, in effect, sacramental, bringing worshippers into the presence of God.”7 Worship is not only a means of reaffirming man’s relational dependence upon, submission to, and obedience before God; it is the means (through grace) to reinstating man’s partnership with God in ruling the earth—one that begins in a present practical, yet partial, realization—and will succeed after Christ’s coming unto a complete and full realization.8 Theologically, Charismatic worship is tied heavily to their views on the Holy Spirit. They believe that after salvation, one is baptized with the Holy Spirit. This is evidenced by various signs usually used in worship: …some Pentecostals speak of a special experience for the believer after conversion when the love of God is felt for them in a unique way. Adoption terminology is used, conveying the view that there comes a time in a Christian’s H. Robert Rhoden, “The Essence of Pentecostal Worship,” Enrichment Journal, March 2003, http://enrichmentjournal.ag.org/200303/200303_018_essence.cfm. 6 Gene Veith, “Charismatic Sacrament, Charismatic Liturgy,” Cranach, accessed October 8, 2014, http://www.patheos.com/blogs/geneveith/2013/12/charismatic-sacrament-charismaticliturgy/. 7 8 Rhoden, “The Essence of Pentecostal Worship.” 4 life when they ‘come of age’ and experience the ‘Spirit of sonship’ in a new way. However the Pentecostal consensus nowadays holds that this experience is associated with the reception of the enabling power of the Holy Spirit in the life of Christians.9 For this reason, Charismatic Pentecostals seek to create a worship service that is sentimental and emotional in order to create an atmosphere where these signs and wonders can manifest. Worship is the primary means for establishing an atmosphere (a) for the transforming entry of God’s presence; (b) for the clear entry of God’s Word; (c) for the loving entry of God’s Spirit; and (d) for the dynamic entry of God’s works of power.10 The largest contributor to this atmosphere is, by design, popular modern styles of music. The reason that this music is designed into the worship of Charismatic churches is the same reason it is desired by many Christians in more traditional denominations. Popular styles of music, like rock music, have the ability to feed and drive the emotions. This is in opposition to more traditional styles of music. More traditional styles of music tend to rely on the musician to feed their own emotion into the music. The contrast in modern sentimental music is due to the driving force of the music. Ecstatic worship takes place when the object of the exercise is to achieve a warm, happy feeling, perhaps great excitement, and even a sense of God’s presence through the earthly, physical aspects of worship such as music and movement.11 Joe Towns, “Holy Spirit Baptism: What Pentecostals Believe,” Talking Pentecostalism, accessed March 1, 2015, http://talkingpentecostalism.blogspot.com/2007/05/what-is-pentecostalbaptism-in-spirit.html. 9 10 Rhoden, “The Essence of Pentecostal Worship.” 11 Peter M. Masters, Worship in the Melting Pot (London, Eng.: Wakeman Trust, 2002), 23. 5 WATER AND OIL For the last few decades, many conservative and traditional churches theologically have begun to adopt the form that had been a distinctive of Charismatic churches. Why is this a problem? One can begin to answer that question with the help of an article penned by Matthew Sigler. Matthew Sigler is a music minister in a Wesleyan Church and earned his degree in liturgical studies from Boston University. He writes from a Charismatic perspective about the issue he sees with noncharismatic churches adopting the form of contemporary worship without the theology.12 Many forget (or don’t know) that “contemporary” worship was inextricably linked to the Charismatic Movement of the 1960’s and 70’s. This connection forged a musical style that was rooted in a particular understanding of the Spirit in worship. Specifically, the singing of praise and worship songs was understood sacramentally. God was uniquely encountered, by the Spirit, in congregational singing.13 Sigler shows the tie of the Charismatic movement with contemporary worship. He explains that the two ideas were inseparable. Sigler then discusses what happened when “mainline” churches began to adopt the form of Charismatic worship. Now return to the scene I described above. What’s missing? The answer is found in looking at what happened when “praise and worship” was adopted by mainline denominations. During the 1990’s many mainline congregations began to import the songs, sounds, and some of the sights (like hand raising and clapping) of the praise and worship style. In many cases, what got lost was the robust pneumatology behind this approach to worship. In other words, many mainline “Misplacing Charisma: Where Contemporary Worship Lost its Way” will be reproduced in an appendix at the end of this paper, as its full content is an important starting point for understanding the thesis of this paper. 12 Matthew Sigler, “Misplacing Charisma: Where Contemporary Worship Lost Its Way,” Seedbed, accessed October 8, 2014, http://seedbed.com/feed/misplacing-charisma-contemporaryworship-lost-way/. 13 6 churches brought the form, but didn’t bring the theology of praise and worship into their congregations.14 The crux of Sigler’s article states that the contemporary form of worship loses its purpose without the theology of worship tied to the Charismatic movement. One’s view of the Holy Spirit is essential to having a complete understanding of Contemporary worship. The result was that the songs themselves and the style itself became the focus. Particularly in mainline congregations influenced by the Church Growth Movement, “contemporary worship” was a technique for reaching out15 In this author’s words, the result was that the music or the experience itself replaces Holy Spirit when the contemporary form is adopted by traditional churches. This is easily observed when the discussion of contemporary worship is brought up in debate. When asked about their reasoning for choosing contemporary music for worship, one will usually give one of just a few answers. They may say, “It is all about preference; I don’t like old (traditional) music.” They may say something along the lines of “It (traditional music) just doesn’t do it for me.” These are just some of the observational signs that the form of Charismatic worship has in essence developed a form of pietism in traditional churches. Pietism says that God is a God “out there,” but if you please Him enough (through faith, devotion, good works, discipline, or any number of other requirements), you can feel God in you, transforming you.16 Even without the Charismatic theology of the Holy Spirit, churches and Christians that have adopted contemporary worship have developed a desire for the experience of worship. In 14 Ibid. 15 Ibid. “The Problem with Pietism: Why Nondual Mystics and Awestruck Atheists Get It Right,” Mike Morrell, accessed October 8, 2014, http://mikemorrell.org/2012/02/the-problemwith-pietism-why-nondual-mystics-and-awestruck-atheists-get-it-right/. 16 7 other words, they want worship to be something that happens to them instead of something being done to God. If one would ask many Christians today how they know a worship service has been successful, they would, if they answered honestly, base the success on the feeling experienced during worship. This is functionally no different than Charismatic worship. This is the primary issue of contemporary worship. It is effectively inseparable from the Charismatic theology. However, the purpose of worship is to set one’s affections upon God. The benefits for the believer are secondary and are in no regard a part of the actual purpose of worship. This is in effect the primary crux of this paper and an answer for the thesis. Contemporary worship is not acceptable for the worship of God because it generally leads to the displacement of God as the focus of worship. This focus is replaced with one that centers on the worshiper and his experience. This is the natural effect of contemporary worship as a result of the nature of the music and form used itself. Contemporary worship ignites the passions and the emotions of the worshiper, creating an energetic and ecstatic atmosphere. This contemporary worship “may lead to a worship hedonism that is another form of idolatry—worshiping the experience instead of God.”17 Instead, worship should focus on setting one’s affections upon God. Worship should be characterized by the desire to give God the glory in response to the truths taught in his word. Music should be filled to the brim with doctrinal truths about God praising him for what he has done, not what feeling what we want to experience. The order of what happens with music is important. Worship occurs when believers hear and understand truth while the music helps express the response. If a person is simply caught up with the spectacle of the music, he is not worshiping “The Rise of the New Pietism,” WorshipLibrary, accessed October 8, 2014, http://www.worshiplibrary.com/blog/the-rise-of-the-new-pietism/. 17 8 the Lord. Instead, he may actually be worshipping his emotions and/or the music itself.18 Can someone worship God appropriately with contemporary styles of worship? Technically that is possible, yet that is not the natural expression of contemporary worship. In any honest and objective observation of contemporary worship, it is difficult to find a congregation where the group overall is putting the experience or the act of worship above the one being worshipped. It does not take a trained musician to recognize music that is intended to stir the passions. It may not be wrong in and of itself, but it is certainly not appropriate for congregational worship. Such music inherently bypasses the intellect and runs straight for the passions. It is not deeply felt affection resulting from understanding biblical truth; it is emotionalism, pure and simple.19 The true issue of contemporary worship does not lie in its morality. The issue of whether a certain piece of music is inherently immoral or moral is a difficult question to answer, and the blanket statement that all popular rock music is immoral is not necessarily true. But it is true to say that those styles of music speak directly to the emotions and ignite the passions of those involved. It is clear to see that that these styles of music are not appropriate for the congregational worship of a God that desires our affections. It is clear that our emotions in worship should derive from a personal understanding of God’s truth and not be based on a sentimental atmosphere of worship. Music cannot really move the soul. It only moves the emotions. Valid worship starts in the minds. If it bypasses the understanding, it is not true worship. If it is overwhelmed by physical things, such as the skillful and moving performance of orchestras, it is compromised and spoiled.20 18 Aniol, Worship in Song A Biblical Approach to Music and Worship, 201-202. 19 Ibid. 201 20 Masters, Worship in the Melting Pot, 23. 9 CONCLUSION Worship is to be centered on God. The purpose of worship is to set one’s affections upon God and to give him praise and adoration. Although the worshiper does receive many benefits from his act of worship to God, these are not the purposes for worship. With a brief look at the Charismatic theology of the Holy Spirit and its designed use of contemporary worship, one can began to clearly see that as far as congregational worship is concerned it is almost impossible to have one without out the other being not far behind. In regards to worship they naturally support each other. In this form of worship, the focus of the worship becomes the experience of the believer. This is not acceptable in the worship of God. First and foremost the issue of contemporary music in worship is not a question of the music’s morality, but a question of the music’s function. …the problem is not with music that elicits emotional response. All music does that. The concern involves how certain musical forms elicit emotional responses and exactly what kind of responses they arouse. God-honoring congregational worship music will cause a believer to understand biblical truth, and aid him in his expression of deeply felt affections for God.21 Although not included in the scope of this paper, it is valuable to state that the issue with worship in the church today is not limited to the issue of contemporary worship. In fact, contemporary worship, in the opinion of this author, is just a small sign of a tremendous issue in the church. This issue revolves around both the focus of the self in culture, and the lack of musical understanding of congregations and their pastors. This issue would be a valuable study for anyone wanting to take this topic further. 21 Aniol, Worship in Song A Biblical Approach to Music and Worship, 202. 10 APPENDIX A: MISPLACING CHARISMA: WHERE CONTEMPORARY WORSHIP LOST ITS WAY By: Matthew Sigler The lights are dim, candles are lit, the music swells as the lead vocalist goes up an octave for the climactic end of the song, and throughout the room dozens of college students raise their hands as they sing with abandon. It’s a powerful moment in the worship service. Then the song stops. The students drop their hands open their eyes. In front of me two of the girls who had their hands raised a few seconds earlier are having a conversation about their afternoon plans. Then the music starts up again, they end their conversation, close their eyes, and throw their hands up in the air again. You may have witnessed a similar scene. For certain, nearly every congregation struggles with full participation in the service at times. And it’s not that I expect the people near me to act like no one is around them during worship. The ease with which these students seemed to turn “on” and “off” their engagement did get me thinking about another change in contemporary worship. Many forget (or don’t know) that “contemporary” worship was inextricably linked to the Charismatic Movement of the 1960’s and 70’s. This connection forged a musical style that was rooted in a particular understanding of the Spirit in worship. Specifically, the singing of praise and worship songs was understood sacramentally. God was uniquely encountered, by the Spirit, in congregational singing. Several important aspects of this theology of congregational song are worth highlighting. First, a premium was placed on intimacy with Jesus in congregational singing. This emphasis was largely due to the influence of John Wimber and the Vineyard movement of the late 1970’s and 1980’s. Though he was not the first to say so, Wimber emphasized that the Church needed to 11 sing songs “to God” and not “about God.” Lyrically, this was manifest in the frequent use of the personal pronoun, “I.” Just scan through the catalogue of songs published by Vineyard Music during the 1980’s and see how many of them emphasize the importance of the individual engaging the second Person of the Trinity in the lyrics. While the intimacy motif wasn’t new in the Church, it was an important development in what would become known as “contemporary worship.” Second, the dominant paradigm for congregational song was the “temple” metaphor. Charismatic congregations appropriated their understanding of the temple layout as a “map” for worship. Such services began with singing songs (typically upbeat) that focused on the praise of God—Scripture verses like Psalm 100 served as an anchor point for this framework. As the series of songs progressed, perhaps briefly interrupted with scripture and prayer, the flow of the service was understood to follow a metaphorical progression from the “outer courts” of the temple toward “the holy of holies.” Songs identified with the “holy of holies” were often slower, cyclical in construct, and emphasized intimacy between the singer and Jesus. This approach to worship is reflected in the way many referred to the music in these services as “Praise and Worship”—“praise” being synonymous with the “gates/outer courts” and “worship” was the term used primarily for songs corresponding to the “holy of holies.” While not every congregation that practiced this approach to worship would have articulated their theology of worship exactly this way, it certainly was the dominant understanding of Charismatic congregations at the time. Lastly, it’s important to point out that this theology of worship, while undergirded by “praise and worship” songs, understood the entire time of singing (the pauses, instrumental solos, spontaneous prayers, raising of hands, shouting, etc.) to be part of the progression from praise to 12 intimacy. The songs themselves are only a part of the complete picture of what is occurring in a Charismatic praise and worship service. Something much deeper is understood to be going on in worship. Now return to the scene I described above. What’s missing? The answer is found in looking at what happened when “praise and worship” was adopted by mainline denominations. During the 1990’s many mainline congregations began to import the songs, sounds, and some of the sights (like hand raising and clapping) of the praise and worship style. In many cases, what got lost was the robust pneumatology behind this approach to worship. In other words, many mainline churches brought the form, but didn’t bring the theology of praise and worship into their congregations. This is a gross generalization, but I think it explains some of the dislocation that occurred during the “worship wars” of the 1990’s. The result was that the songs themselves and the style itself became the focus. Particularly in mainline congregations influenced by the Church Growth Movement, “contemporary worship” was a technique for reaching out—the concept of “praise and worship” as sacramental/encounter was diluted at best. For sure, many of the popular artists within contemporary worship today come from Charismatic traditions and it is not impossible to find evidence of Charismatic theology in mainline churches. But the scene I described above, I think, is a result of what happened—or didn’t happen—when mainline churches adopted praise and worship music. In many cases the external features remain (the raising of hands, etc.) and are often associated with contemporary worship songs themselves. These expressions can be “turned off” and “turned on” with the start and stop of each song. Rather than connected moments shaped by a broader understanding of worship as an encounter with God by the Spirit, worship songs often exist as an entities in and of themselves. 13 Contemporary-styled congregations would do well to examine their own understanding of the Spirit’s activity in each part of the service. Regardless of how local congregations understand the role of the Spirit in worship, all congregations can benefit from a perspective that considers every facet of the service as part of our worship to God. 14 BIBLIOGRAPHY Aniol, Scott. “Why Else Are We in This Mess?” Conservative Christianity, Worship, Culture, Aesthetics - Religious Affections Ministries. Accessed October 8, 2014. http://religiousaffections.org/articles/articles-on-church/why-else-are-we-in-this-mess/. ———. Worship in Song A Biblical Approach to Music and Worship. Winona Lake, Ind: BMH Books, 2009. Bauder, Kevin. “Why Pastors Should Be Learned in Worship and Music.” Artistic Theologian. Accessed October 8, 2014. http://artistictheologian.com/journal/at-volume-1-2012/whypastors-should-be-learned-in-worship-and-music/. Burk, Denny. “The Girl Who Lost Her Faith Listening to CCM.” Denny Burk. Accessed October 8, 2014. http://www.dennyburk.com/the-girl-who-lost-her-faith-listening-to-ccm/. DeWaay, Bob. “How Pietism Decieves Christians.” Critical Issues Commentary, no. 101 (July 1, 2007): 7. Luther, Martin. Luther’s Works, Volume 53: Liturgy and Hymns. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1965. MacArthur, John. Strange Fire: The Danger of Offending the Holy Spirit with Counterfeit Worship. Nashville, Tenneessee: Thomas Nelson, 2013. “Martin Luther’s Worship Reforms.” Conservative Christianity, Worship, Culture, Aesthetics Religious Affections Ministries. Accessed February 28, 2015. http://religiousaffections.org/articles/articles-on-worship/martin-luthers-worshipreforms/. Masters, Peter M. Worship in the Melting Pot. London, Eng.: Wakeman Trust, 2002. O’Gieblyn, Meghan. “Sniffing Glue.” Guernica / A Magazine of Art & Politics. Accessed October 8, 2014. https://www.guernicamag.com/features/meghan_ogieblyn_7_15_11/. Percy, Martyn. “Sweet Rapture : Subliminal Eroticism in Contemporary Charismatic Worship.” Theology & Sexuality, no. 6 (March 1, 1997): 71–106. Rhoden, H. Robert. “The Essence of Pentecostal Worship.” Enrichment Journal, March 2003. http://enrichmentjournal.ag.org/200303/200303_018_essence.cfm. Sigler, Matthew. “Misplacing Charisma: Where Contemporary Worship Lost Its Way.” Seedbed. Accessed October 8, 2014. http://seedbed.com/feed/misplacing-charisma-contemporaryworship-lost-way/. 15 “The Problem with Pietism: Why Nondual Mystics and Awestruck Atheists Get It Right.” Mike Morrell. Accessed October 8, 2014. http://mikemorrell.org/2012/02/the-problem-withpietism-why-nondual-mystics-and-awestruck-atheists-get-it-right/. “The Rise of the New Pietism.” WorshipLibrary. Accessed October 8, 2014. http://www.worshiplibrary.com/blog/the-rise-of-the-new-pietism/. Towns, Joe. “Holy Spirit Baptism: What Pentecostals Believe.” Talking Pentecostalism. Accessed March 1, 2015. http://talkingpentecostalism.blogspot.com/2007/05/what-ispentecostal-baptism-in-spirit.html. Veith, Gene. “Charismatic Sacrament, Charismatic Liturgy.” Cranach. Accessed October 8, 2014. http://www.patheos.com/blogs/geneveith/2013/12/charismatic-sacramentcharismatic-liturgy/. “WORLD | From Christian Radio to a Church near You | Warren Cole Smith | Aug. 19, 2014.” WORLD. Accessed October 14, 2014. http://www.worldmag.com/2014/08/from_christian_radio_to_a_church_near_you. 16