Romans 12:1-2 is packed with theological and practical implications. As I was preaching from this text yesterday so many thoughts came to mind. Here is one I did not share yesterday, but I feel is worthy of consideration.
At the end of verse one we are commanded to offer ourselves as a living sacrifice...this is our "spiritual"act of worship (NASB, NIV, and ESV). Another translation says,this is your "reasonable"service. The word used here is, λογικὴν. After doing a short word study I found it is best translated, "to be carefully thought through, thoughtful λογικὴ λατρεία a thoughtful service (in a dedicated spiritual sense)" and on a related note, a λογικός=one endowed with reason (Arndt,Danker, & Bauer,A Greek-English lexicon...). So what is the implications of this word?
If our worship is to be informed or carefully thought out it does have implications for our modern worship. I am convinced that God is not nearly as concerned about the style of worship as we seem to be. Rather, He is concerned much more with the content of our worship than we seem to be. When we offer ourselves as living sacrifices we don't offer ourselves ignorantly, like animals brought to the slaughter, but intelligently and willingly. This is the worship that pleases God. In ancient religion people often thought that all they had to do to please their god was offer a sacrifice, without regard to their own attitude or sincerity in doing so, Hos. 6:6 and Mic. 1:6-14 speak against this. We can be guilty of the same if we are not careful. How often do we sing words on a screen or in a book or along in the car and have no idea what we are singing? How often are we more concerned about how we are moved emotionally, rather than how we have pleased God with our hearts and words? We have to be cautious that we do not change the worship of God into the entertainment of ourselves.
The worship God calls for is a lifestyle of submission. It is the way we live, not just what we do on Sunday morning. In our corporate worship, it should be informed, thought out worship. God is not nearly as concerned about how well we sing, as much as He cares about what we sing. The words we sing must be true, it must go beyond an emotional reaction to a certain form of music.
Different styles appeal to different people, there is nothing wrong with that. Some like traditional, some modern, some southern gospel, some more of a rock feel, some more of a subdued style. All styles can bring God glory and bring us to the throne of grace. My concern is not the style, but that we as worshipers consider what we sing, what we pray, and what we hear and accept.
Why do our worship leaders practice with the musicians and ensure the words are correct on the screen? Because they know God deserves our best. Why do I examine the meaning of the words theologically? Because I know I will give an answer to God as a leader within the congregation (James 3:1). I am blessed to worship with a people that are seeking the Lord and His will above their own.
So next Sunday as you prepare to come to worship, do more than worry about your clothing and hair. Prepare your mind and heart to worship. Consider the words that are prayed, the words that are sung, the words that are proclaimed and the great God we worship. Let us have an informed (by the Word and Spirit), thought out (for He is worthy), spiritual style of worship. Let us worship the Lord with all of our hearts, minds, and souls.
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