Have you noticed that churches have been offering different service times for their audiences on Sunday and they list them as "traditional" or "contemporary"?
Some places even advertise "come as you
are" and a "casual" environment in which to worship God. You can
wear anything from cowboy boots to t-shirts and drink anything from espresso to
Red Bull while you watch other people offer a surrogate form of worship
to God.
Why do churches feature different styles of worship? One website suggests: "offer worship services of varying styles so that everyone can attend a service that meets their personal preferences."
I've got a simple (and perhaps, a seemingly uneducated) question here - since when do my preferences determine my worship to God?
Churches are scrambling to offer services that "keep up with the times" and make people feel "comfortable" when approaching God in worship - which is actually not even what is being accomplished. How can you even attempt to unify a congregation around a common cause when you are catering to so many different tastes, preferences, and styles?
In Acts 2:42, we read that the disciples from the early church in Jerusalem "continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers." They were unified by a clear purpose, a clear doctrine, and clear practices. This group, though several thousand strong, did not have to be placated with entertainment, food, and their own styles of worship. Their common bond and strength was through Christ!
When I approach God in worship, I have to be humble enough to realize it is not about me! How haughty and proud it must be to God to tell Him that you can't trust in what He has prescribed for worship - that it is "outdated" - and that it needs to be personalized to our desires in order for us to want to be there.
How ridiculous is it for people to think in their minds (and with their actions) that coffee and doughnuts (or food in general) has to be provided in order to get someone to come to worship? Have they considered the way that Jesus said God wants to be worshipped, and who He is? "God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." (John 4:24)
While we're catering to different tastes, backgrounds, music styles, fashion preferences, and building designs, we are forgetting that God is Spirit and doesn't care about all of that. He wants our hearts dedicated to Him with our lives and a reflection of that through our worship!
When we worship God, we must come before Him desiring truth and recognizing that He is holy. Let's not worry about "traditional" or "contemporary"...and focus on "TRUE"!
---Author Unknown
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