Who (or What) Are We Worshiping?: A Short-Form Series on Christian Worship

Last month, I wrote about how worship is bigger than music and encompasses our whole life. This understanding is encapsulated in this description by Harold Best: “Worship is the continuous outpouring of all that I am, all that I do and all that I can ever become in light of a chosen or choosing god.”1 One of the key implications of this description is that we are always worshiping. God created us as worshiping beings from our very first breath. We are never neutral or static, but are continuously pouring ourselves out in worship to either God or an idol we have erected. We are always actively drawing closer to God or pulling away from Him. Though it may at times seem as though we are stuck in neutral, in reality our only option is drive or reverse. We are either moving further up and further in, as C.S. Lewis put it, or further down and further out.

In my experience, a common phenomenon among Christians is to approach their faith like a profession. They feel like they “clock in” when they get to church on Sunday morning and “clock out” when they leave. While at church, they worship God and draw near to God because they are “on the clock.” Yet when they leave the physical building they clock out with their hearts, minds, bodies, and spirits—going about their lives as if God is now absent or simply doesn’t exist. Maybe they will clock in for 20 seconds to say a blessing over a meal or do a 15-minute devotion before bed, but otherwise the subconscious mindset is, “I won’t do anything really bad, so I won’t fall away from God this week. Then when I am ready to clock in to worship on Sunday morning, I’ll be right where I left off when I last clocked out.” But God is not our employer nor is our Christian faith a job. If we never stop worshiping, then we are always clocked in, always moving either towards God or away from him towards an idol.

When you read the word “idol,” you may think of some ancient wooden carving or golden statue such as the infamous golden calf from Exodus 32. However, much like worship, the concept of an idol is far broader than images or icons. An idol is anything we worship, anything we pour ourselves out towards other than the one true God. Idols can be man-made gods such as found in classical pagan worship. Idols also can be people such as political or religious leaders. Idols can even be our own desires for health, wealth, power, pleasure, and/or influence. One of the most insidious forms of idolatry is when we take a good, beautiful, and righteous thing and elevate it to a higher position than God. When we prioritize something as virtuous as family, friends, church, or patriotism over God, we set up an idol in our lives. Christians must remember we are continuously pouring out worship so that our worship belongs to God and God alone every hour of every day. Anything else is idolatry.