1. Welcome to Baptist Board, a friendly forum to discuss the Baptist Faith in a friendly surrounding.

    Your voice is missing! You will need to register to get access to all the features that our community has to offer.

    We hope to see you as a part of our community soon and God Bless!

Worship

Discussion in 'Baptist Theology & Bible Study' started by Hope of Glory, Jan 27, 2006.

  1. Hope of Glory

    Hope of Glory New Member

    Joined:
    Nov 29, 2005
    Messages:
    4,807
    Likes Received:
    0
    How would you define worship?

    I don't care how you break it down, I'm just curious as to your answers. (And, the definition doesn't simply have to relate to worship of God.)
     
  2. Craigbythesea

    Craigbythesea Active Member

    Joined:
    Oct 21, 2003
    Messages:
    5,534
    Likes Received:
    21
    Assuming that you are speaking of the verb rather than the cognate noun, I would define “worship” as it is defined in the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary:

    transitive senses
    1 : to honor or reverence as a divine being or supernatural power
    2 : to regard with great or extravagant respect, honor, or devotion
    intransitive senses : to perform or take part in worship or an act of worship
    synonym see REVERE

    synonyms REVERE, REVERENCE, VENERATE, WORSHIP, ADORE mean to honor and admire profoundly and respectfully. REVERE stresses deference and tenderness of feeling <a professor revered by generations of students>. REVERENCE presupposes an intrinsic merit and inviolability in the one honored and a corresponding depth of feeling in the one honoring <reverenced the academy's code of honor>. VENERATE implies a holding as holy or sacrosanct because of character, association, or age <heroes still venerated>. WORSHIP implies homage usually expressed in words or ceremony <worships their memory>. ADORE implies love and stresses the notion of an individual and personal attachment <a doctor adored by her patients>.

    I find that there is much confusion today among Baptists regarding the word “worship” and that many Baptists use the word very carelessly and inaccurately. A good example is their misapplication of the word to practices of veneration in the Roman Catholic Church.

    Note: The UBB Code for underlined text does not function on this board. I included the code, however, in order to as accurately as possible quote my source.

    [​IMG]
     
  3. Hope of Glory

    Hope of Glory New Member

    Joined:
    Nov 29, 2005
    Messages:
    4,807
    Likes Received:
    0
    I'm leaving it as an open ended question for this very reason. You may define the verb, the noun, true worship, or whatever you wish.
     
  4. partialrapture

    partialrapture New Member

    Joined:
    Jan 1, 2006
    Messages:
    87
    Likes Received:
    0
    Genesis 22:5 And Abraham said unto his young men, Abide ye here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and worship, and come again to you.

    This was as I am sure you know the sacrificing of Isaac. In one sense worship can be defined as obedience.

    God Bless, my brother, His Word in your heart.
     
  5. Craigbythesea

    Craigbythesea Active Member

    Joined:
    Oct 21, 2003
    Messages:
    5,534
    Likes Received:
    21
    :rolleyes:

    There is absolutely nothing in the 22nd chapter of Genesis or any where else in Genesis that even remotely suggests that “worship can be defined as obedience.” Abraham’s obedience was not an act of worship! The worship spoken of in Gen. 22:5 is the act of offering up Isaac as a burnt offering on the mountain in the land of Moriah. God told Abraham to do this, and Abraham was obedient and went to the land of Moriah and went up on the mountain and was preparing to worship God by offering up Isaac as a burnt offering, but God honored Abraham’s obedience and “the angel of the LORD called to him from heaven and said, ‘Abraham, Abraham!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ He said, ‘Do not stretch out your hand against the lad, and do nothing to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.’” And God provided a ram so that Abraham could worship Him without killing Isaac.

    [​IMG]
     
  6. mnw

    mnw New Member

    Joined:
    Jan 8, 2006
    Messages:
    1,221
    Likes Received:
    0
    My partial definition of worship:

    The proper recognition of who we are and and who God is and the proper response.

    Obedience I would class as a part of worship:

    In Psalm 29:2 and many other passages we are commanded to worship the Lord. You cannot have worship without obedience and for that reason I would say obedience is a part of worship.
     
  7. Tom Butler

    Tom Butler New Member

    Joined:
    Dec 20, 2005
    Messages:
    9,031
    Likes Received:
    2
    I read somewhere that worship is simply telling God the truth about Himself.

    Tom B
     
  8. Artimaeus

    Artimaeus Active Member

    Joined:
    Nov 30, 2002
    Messages:
    3,133
    Likes Received:
    0
    Strong's Greek Dictionary

    G4352
    προσκυνέω
    proskuneō
    pros-koo-neh'-o
    From G4314 and probably a derivative of G2965 (meaning to kiss, like a dog licking his master’s hand); to fawn or crouch to, that is, (literally or figuratively) prostrate oneself in homage (do reverence to, adore): - worship.

    I have heard people extrapolate from this and include everything even remotely related to being Christian. They will say that it means everything we do, think, say, and feel. The truth is that worship must be directly pointed at God, directly praising Him, directly glorifying Him, directly blessing Him and whether it is a literal prostration or a figurative one or both it is still bowing before Him. Everything else may result from that worship but it is not worship. Obedience, works, loving your neighbor, etc. is not worship but the product of having worshiped.

    When we go to worship God on Sundays and sing songs that tell other people about Jesus but the song is not directed at Jesus, it is not worship. "Jesus Loves Me" is a great song to sing at church but it is not a song of worship.
     
  9. gb93433

    gb93433 Active Member
    Site Supporter

    Joined:
    Jun 26, 2003
    Messages:
    15,549
    Likes Received:
    15
    That was the custom then.
     
  10. Artimaeus

    Artimaeus Active Member

    Joined:
    Nov 30, 2002
    Messages:
    3,133
    Likes Received:
    0
    [​IMG]My point was that worship must be directed at the object of worship and not merely a demonstration of submission which could be pointed in any number of directions.
     
  11. PastorSBC1303

    PastorSBC1303 Active Member

    Joined:
    Aug 21, 2003
    Messages:
    15,125
    Likes Received:
    1
    I would encourage you to do a study on the word worship found in the Psalms. It will prove very helpful.

    Worship in the Pslams means to bow oneself, to prostrate oneself.
     
  12. Texican

    Texican New Member

    Joined:
    May 9, 2005
    Messages:
    3
    Likes Received:
    0
    Worship is doing what God tells us to do, the way He tells us to do it... for His glory.
     
  13. Brother Ian

    Brother Ian Active Member

    Joined:
    Jul 27, 2005
    Messages:
    1,065
    Likes Received:
    0
    Worship, in its purest form, is response to Truth.
     
  14. npetreley

    npetreley New Member

    Joined:
    Oct 20, 2002
    Messages:
    7,359
    Likes Received:
    2
    Worship is singing "In all I do, I honor you", after which you zone out through a sermon and then go home and live however you want.

    Oh - you were talking theory, not practice? ;)
     
  15. PastorSBC1303

    PastorSBC1303 Active Member

    Joined:
    Aug 21, 2003
    Messages:
    15,125
    Likes Received:
    1
    Al Mohler has an excellent 3 part series on worship on his website right now. The 2nd part was posted today and the final part will be tomorrow. I would encourage you to read it.

    http://www.albertmohler.com/
     
  16. Salamander

    Salamander New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 2, 2005
    Messages:
    3,965
    Likes Received:
    0
    So it's ok to worship doing a square dance and or breakdancing?
     
  17. PastorSBC1303

    PastorSBC1303 Active Member

    Joined:
    Aug 21, 2003
    Messages:
    15,125
    Likes Received:
    1
    Salamander, lets just save each other trouble and agree to disagree.
     
Loading...