Worship is for the Church (The Good News for the Unchurched)

In response to last weeks question of the week are worship services for believers or unbelievers, I have asked a few pastor/friends of mine to share their thoughts on the matter. This response comes from worship pastor and friend, Adam Wood and I'm so excited for him to be joining the conversation.____________________________________________________________________________________Let me frame this post with a definition of Christian worship. Worship is the act of ascribing our ultimate value to the triune God in a way that leads the believer to remembrance, submission, and transformation. To put it simply, worship is the act of responding to Who God is and what God’s done in such a way that involves the whole person.I realize that this is an exclusive definition.  Not in a night club V.I.P. way, but in a way that excludes those who do not know God. Human experience shows us that all people worship something. We are wired to ascribe value to something—to orient our lives around something we deem worthy. That said, in order for someone to ascribe ultimate value to God, the prerequisite is that he or she has “eyes to see” and a heart to respond to Who God is and what He’s done.Bottom line—Christian worship is for the church.Bottom-er line—Christ’s church is light of the world.Though they cannot explicitly worship a God they do not know, non-believers can, should, and do attend Christian worship services. Corporate worship gatherings serve as the front door for non-believers to hear and respond to the gospel. Our worship services ought to be a beacon of the truth about Jesus Christ for Christians and non-Christians alike. The best things our church’s worship can do as a beacon to non-Christians are:1. Proclaim the transforming truth of God 2. Surround them with living examples of that transformation (i.e. your Christian worshipers!).Too often, it seems like we miss mark by giving non-believers what we think they want (watered-down sermons, ambiguously-worded worship songs, pseudo-universalist pep talks, etc…too harsh?)—rather than what we know they need—the gospel. Let us not sacrifice proper Christian worship on the altar of hyper-contextualization.If we’re supposed to actively cooperate with God in reconciling the world to Christ, let’s worship with all our hearts and with all the depth of truth that God has revealed. We’re pointing people to the true God, half-truths won’t do. Pulling punches for the sake of crowded pews (or padded chairs if you’re non-denominational) only short-sells people starving for the truth.Let’s give non-believers what they need—the Truth. So when they come to our worship services, let’s worship like those who have heard it, who have believed it, and who have been transformed by it. Maybe they’ll see us responding to this great God with all we are and then respond in kind. Christian worship may be the coolest tract Christians have.______________________________________________________________________________________Adam is a worship leader and young adult minister at Shiloh Terrace Baptist Church in Dallas where he lives with his wife, Amy. You can contact Adam or find more about his music, ministry, and ramblings at www.thelazarusblues.com.