Worship and Service

WHAT is your concept of worshiping the Lord? Attending a church service at which you sing hymns, read Scripture, recite prayers, listen to a sermon, and partake of holy communion? All of these practices can lead to worship, but Isaiah shows that true worship goes beyond that (Isaiah 58:6-7, 9-10).

In Isaiah’s day, there were apparently plenty of religious people, but not many responsive people. They “afflicted their souls” with fasting, “delighted” to know God’s ways, inquired about “the ordinances of justice,” and enjoyed their worship services (Isaiah 58:2-3). But little if any of their piety translated into action. Yet they expected God to answer their prayers and bless them. Through Isaiah, God said that true worship is not just a weekly ritual, but a daily lifestyle. It may begin in a house of prayer, but it ends up in the public square.

What might that “public-minded” worship look like in today’s world? What would it mean for believers as they respond to the hungry, the homeless, the prisoner, the wage-earner, the debtor, the poor, and the hopeless? There is no easy answer, but one fact is clear: as Isaiah told the people of his day, God cannot be expected to shower good things on His people as long as they withhold good things from others (Isaiah 58:8-9, 11-12).

So what starts with worship ends in service. Today that means that the church gathered for worship on Sunday becomes the church scattered for service on Monday through Saturday. Building believers leads to believers rebuilding their communities. Worship and service form a seamless robe.

Courtesy of Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Commentary
Unless otherwise noted, Scripture taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®, ESV © 2016 by Crossway Bibles.
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