I define worship as the right response of our whole lives to God’s revelation of Himself. That is a definition that I have Frankensteined from some of the most helpful definitions I have heard over the years.
In Romans 12, Paul tells that all of life is a spiritual act of worship lived in response to the mercies of God. This means that right worship does not begin with us, it begins with God. God reveals Himself to us, and we must respond.
God created us worshipping, but sin broke that perfect response of worship. Sin did not stop our worship, it distorted, and warped our worship - making us worship everything and everyone besides God (This is a concept I learned from Harold Best in his book, Unceasing Worship). But right worship is living our whole lives in worshipful response to God.
In Romans 3, Paul tells us that no one seeks God. Again we see that right worship is only our response to God’s revelation of Himself. So if we are merely responding, how does God reveal himself to us? There are many ways, here are five:
Through Jesus. We see the glory of God in the face of the Son. 2 Corinthians 4:6
Through His Spirit. The Spirit leads us into all truth. John 16:13
Through His Word. All scripture is breathed out by God. 2 Timothy 3:16
Through His Church. We are His ambassadors on earth. 2 Corinthians 5:20
Through His Creation. The heavens declare the glory of God. Everyone is without excuse. Psalm 19:1, Romans 1:20
Why does any of this matter? Why should it be important for worship leaders to be people who deeply know, believe, treasure, and study the person and work of God? Because every one of us is a worshiper, and every one of us is a theologian. Professor Gordon D. Fee says,
“Show me a church’s songs and I’ll show you their theology.”
As worship leaders we do not lead songs, we lead people. We are in fact singing theologians.