“Worship is a lifestyle,” we in Christian circles hear
often, in sermons, conference keynote addresses, chapel messages, books, blogs,
and Tweets. The ubiquitous nature of the phrase renders it cliché, which is
unfortunate, because when we pass over that statement and the concept behind
it, we miss something important about the Christian life.
To help us rethink this concept, let us turn to an
admittedly ubiquitous passage of Scripture, but hopefully, because it is Scripture,
we will not be tempted to dismiss as cliché. It is a few verses from the Gospel
of Matthew, chapter 22, beginning at verse 36:
[A Pharisee asks Jesus] “Teacher, which is the great
commandment in the Law?” And [Jesus] said to him, “You shall love the Lord your
God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is
the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your
neighbor as yourself.”
These few verses serve as foundation for how to live the
Christian life. And, if worship is indeed a lifestyle, then these “greatest
commandments” are also a foundation for how to worship.
Practically speaking, this makes sense. Upon hearing the
word “worship,” most people first think of a corporate gathering engaged in
singing. I think there is a reason why this is the first mental image to
appear: it follows from the first great commandment. When a local body of
believers gathers in corporate worship (both in an institutional local church
setting, or in a non-church setting such as a conference, school, camp, and so
forth), they are directly expressing their love to God, at least with their
hearts. Let all with heart and voice
before His throne rejoice, the hymn says.
What about souls and minds? I propose that there are other
spiritual disciplines that directly follow from those facets of the commandment.
For souls, consider the disciplines of private prayer and Scripture reading.
For minds, I think of hearing a sermon, participating in a Sunday school class
or Bible study or small group, and other concentrated forms of developing your
understanding of the Bible and theology.
Now the second great commandment Jesus
mentioned, “love your neighbor as yourself.” How might that be a guide for
worship?
Through a lifestyle of worship, to return to our earlier
term. Both the Old Testament (e.g., Jeremiah 29:7, Micah 6:8) and the New Testament
(e.g., Matthew 25:40, Romans 12) speak to loving one’s neighbor (the parallel
passage to Matthew 22:36-39 in Luke 10 is the parable of the Good Samaritan,
which gives the definition of “neighbor”). We would be disobedient if we
stopped at the first great commandment – if we stopped worshipping when we
headed to lunch after church on Sunday. Our worship must progress to the second
great commandment and indeed, to the Great Commission. This second great
commandment is the foundation for the relationship between worship and justice
– a significant discussion for our time.
The phrase “worship is a lifestyle” may be cliché,
but hopefully we will not dismiss the concept behind it, and I think Jesus’
words can provide us with a helpful guide for living a life of worship.
