Praise Him with stringed instruments (Isa. 38:20).

What is worship?

Without going into great detail here, there are several Hebrew and Greek words in our Bible that tell us what worship is. The primary meaning in the whole of scripture is to humble oneself through the accompanying act of prostrating ourselves. The second and often attached meaning is service. Simply put, we serve whatever we worship in life. Other words carry meanings of reverence, devotion and honor. For the believer though, it is important to realize that worship is about our relationship with God. A relationship that God desires involving communion, intimacy and sincerity of heart.

What is praise?

Worship and praise have different functions, but the same goal - to exalt Christ. The biblical word praise actually means to boast. We are to make our boast, not in our goodness, but in God and His salvation, provision and spiritual victory. Praise carries with it the idea of celebration, exciting music, and has the dual function of edifying the body by encouraging and reminding one another of the greatness of Christ while pointing all glory heavenward.

Who is the God of our worship?

In one sense, no amount of writing will exhaust the subject of worship to an infinite God. However, in another sense it is remarkably simple. What you believe about God is the most important thing about you! We are created for God's glory - to exalt His name - to make much of Christ and His Word.

If we are to worship, we had better know the God of our worship. All our worship hangs on what we make of Christ. There are two "Gods" in this world. There is the God who is and there is the god who we think is or should be. We need to be very careful when representing the true and the living God and we need a balanced view of how we portray God in worship. Some people like to emphasize God's power, wrath and justice, reverence and holiness. Some people prefer to dwell only on His humanity, love, gentleness, meekness and friendship. Both are true of God, but worship must fully declare all the attributes of God, not just those we find appealing. This of course is why the word of God is authoritative in all we declare.

What will be the evidences of the exaltation of Christ in our Church? How will we know worship is taking place?

• First - Recognition of God. The preeminence (focus on exaltation) of Christ and the Word of God is essential. We make a conscious choice to worship and not be distracted by other things.
  
  
• Second - Recognition of who we are before God. This will lead to the confession and purifying, (sanctification) of our hearts. Being in His presence will invariably change us as we are filled by the Spirit. We must be real before God.
  
  
• Third - Recognition of God's desire. There will be the burden placed on our hearts for those things that are on God's heart, which leads to intercession. His heart becomes part of the fabric of our being and we begin to pray according to God's will, for the salvation of the lost.

The Holy Spirit enables us to worship Christ to the glory of God the Father (1Cor. 12:3; John 16:13,14; Phil 2:10,11). John Piper says, "We exist to spread a passion for the supremacy of God in all things for the joy of all peoples."

What are biblical expressions of Worship/Praise?

• Raising hands (Ps. 28:2; Ps. 119:48; 1 Tim. 2:8; Ps. 134:2)
• Kneeling (Ps. 95:6; Eph. 3:14; Phil. 2:10)
• Shouting (Ps. 5:11; Ps. 47:1)
• Clapping (Ps. 47:1)
• Dancing (Ps. 105:4; Ps.149:3)
• Singing (Ps. 21:13; Ps. 66:23; Ps. 104:33; Mk. 12:30 - this is not just O.T. stuff; Deut. 6:4; Heb. 8,9)

What is the job of a worship leader/worship team/musician?

• Play skillfully (Ps. 33:2,3)
• Stay out of the way (John 3:30)
• Maintain order (1 Cor. 14:40)
• Give people the time to see the Lord (Lev. 10:3; Ps. 46:10)
• Utilize many forms of worship (as above)