In response to what God has done for us in Christ, we are to present our bodies to him as “a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God” ( Romans 12:1). Christ’s unique sacrifice secures for believers all the blessings of the new covenant and enables them to serve him wholeheartedly with consciences cleansed from sin ( Hebrews 10:11 – 22). The New Testament describes Jesus’ death as “a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood - to be received through faith.” Only by this sacrifice can the wrath of God be averted ( Romans 2:5). The sacrificial system was given to Israel to enable cleansing from sin, consecration to God’s service, and expressions of gratitude to God ( Leviticus 1 – 7). God strictly forbade bowing down and serving aspects of the creation or other gods every temptation to idolatry and unfaithfulness was to be removed ( Deuteronomy 5:8 – 9). But God required a lifestyle of total allegiance from his people as a whole: service was meant to be expressed in everyday obedience ( Deuteronomy 10:12 – 13).
The ministry of priests and Levites was a specialized form of service to God. God later instituted through Moses a complex system of sacrifices and ceremonies so that Israel could serve God as his holy people ( Exodus 19:5 – 6).įor example, the Passover was a particular “service” to be observed in remembrance of the Lord’s saving work at the time of the exodus ( Exodus 12:25 – 27). The parallel expressions “offer sacrifices to the Lord”( Exodus 5:3) and “hold a festival” ( Exodus 5:1) indicate that some form of ritual service was immediately in view. Worship as Service to GodĪnother group of biblical terms often translated “worship” literally means “serve” or “service.” The people of Israel were saved from slavery in Egypt so that they could serve the Lord ( Exodus 8:1). It also involves responding to the Spirit he gives to transform hearts and lives ( John 3:5 – 8). New covenant worship involves acknowledging Jesus as the one who finally and fully reveals the truth about the Father and his purpose for Israel and the nations ( John 14:6). The Father is seeking “true worshipers” who “will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth.” This fulfills the pattern of worship that God gave Israel under the Mosaic law. In John 4:20 – 24, a Samaritan woman inquires about the appropriate place to worship God, leading Jesus to speak more fundamentally about the way to worship acceptably. Such worship involves praying to him, calling on his name, and obeying him. “Bending over to the Lord” now means responding with repentance and faith to the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ ( Romans 10:9 – 13). The New Testament uses this terminology to show that Jesus Christ is worthy of the homage and devotion due to the Lord God of Israel ( Matthew 14:33, Revelation 5:8 – 14). But the gesture was meaningful only if it was motivated by a genuine desire to acknowledge God’s majesty and holiness and to live under his rule. In such contexts it could be a formal way of expressing devotion to or dependence on God ( 2 Chronicles 7:3 – 4, Nehemiah 8:6). Bending over before the Lord as a gesture of homage or grateful submission became associated with sacrifice and public praise in Israel.
The book of Psalms contains many different expressions of worship, including lament, repentance, prayers for vindication, songs of thanksgiving, and praise. Sometimes people expressed homage to God with prayer or praise ( Exodus 34:8 – 9) and sometimes with silent acceptance or submission ( Judges 7:15). Combined with other gesture-words, this term came to be used for the attitude of homage that the gesture represented. The most common word for “worship” literally means “bend over” or “bow down.” It describes a gesture of respect or submission to human beings, to God, or to idols (e.g., Genesis 18:2, Exodus 20:4 – 6). Worship as Homage or Grateful Submission to God Three groups of words throughout the Bible convey aspects of what we commonly call “worship.” New Testament writers use these and related terms in a transformed way to show how Jesus has fulfilled for us the pattern of worship given to Israel. What he has revealed in Scripture should control and direct our worship. However, since certain expressions of worship are unacceptable to God ( Genesis 4:3 – 5, Revelation 9:20 – 21), it is important for us to know what pleases God and how he wants us to respond to him. Worship is a dominant theme from Genesis to Revelation because the God who created all things and redeemed us in Christ is worthy to receive all honor, praise, service, and respect (e.g., Exodus 15:1 – 18, Revelation 4:11).
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