RE-SPONSE Worship 101ಮಾದರಿ

DAY 2: PARADIGM SHIFT

One of the major contributions of the scientific revolution over the past 500 years is the shift it has helped us make in our understanding of the cosmos. It has confirmed for us that our world is not the centre of the universe. All of the planets in our solar system (including Earth) revolve around the sun.

Around 250 years ago the French Revolution introduced another shift in how we see our world. But this time, it took culture in the opposite direction. Since then, we’ve come to believe that MAN is the centre of all things. Everything has become about ME. And this has affected the way we read the Bible, do Church and approach worship.

The design of our solar system reminds us that the SUN is at the centre of life.

And the Bible reminds us that Christ, the SON, is at the centre of God’s plan for every human life.

Generations of truth-seekers have discovered in the Gospel Christ’s invitation to knowing God personally and intimately. These people have become believers and worshippers, finding in Scripture – and especially in the Psalms – rich vocabulary and imagery for responding to God in prayer and praise.

Maybe you’ve wondered – is there a reference for us as a new generation of believers that can help us worship authentically? There is. And we find it in the principle that Jesus taught us – that God’s will should be done on earth AS IT IS IN HEAVEN.

One of the places in Scripture that gives us an open window into the kind of worship that God enjoys is found in Revelation chapter 4 – it describes worship ‘in heaven’. We read about the light, colour, movement, energy, shouts of surprise and joy, participation, and response. Worship in heaven is so interactive; there are no spectators; nobody is standing, watching, and wondering; everybody is engaged.

And it’s here, seeing what worship is like in heaven, that we are reminded that true worship is truly Christ-centred.

In the throne room, nobody is concerned with their own preferences in worship ...

No one is clinging to a cultural reference as the standard of worship by which these actions need to be considered condemned or condoned ...

Worship is simply the natural response of the human heart to the revelation of Christ …

Everyone in the throne room is simply in awe of who Jesus is ...

And their response is telling us: this is worship.