Good morning. It is a wonderful day to give praise to the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, our God who is Father, Son, and Spirit. I would like to lead our thoughts on this worship day to consider the question of holiness in worship.
Our immediate question for our thought today is whether or not we have lost some of our sense of holiness when we gather for the purpose of bringing worthy worship to our God?
Personally, I feel as though the idea of holiness in worship may have drifted some distance from the central place that it held not that long ago. There was a time, well within the memories of most of us, when coming together for worship held an assumption of holiness. What I mean is that every aspect of worship was holy because it was being presented to God. This required a specific kind of attitude. I am not sure that this “attitude of holiness” was always altogether appropriate and on the mark, but it was certainly present. The attitude I speak of was reflected in how the worshipper might dress, or whether the worship area was an appropriate place for friendly talking, or even whether children in the area of worship were required to sit still and be quiet. An intention of holiness was certainly at the heart of the music that was selected and sung by the congregation. To be sure, there were times when behaviors that were thought to be in keeping with an attitude of holiness in worship may have crossed the line into nothing more than a false piety pushed forward by tradition. But an effort at what was deemed to be an atmosphere of holiness was considered right and valuable.
One of the beliefs shared in various religious practices around the world is the importance of sacred times and spaces, and this was and is true of both the Jewish and Christian faiths. The Hebrew tradition has sacred days and seasons, like Passover and the Day of Atonement, that recall and celebrate what God has done in Israel’s life. These were and are thought of as “holy days.” Likewise, there were certain places that were considered to be sacred and therefore holy. When God first comes to Moses on mount Horeb he tells him, “Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.” Exodus 3:5 Why was that ground holy? Because God was present, and wherever God is present there is holiness.
For the earliest Christians, the first day of the week was a reminder and celebration of Jesus’ resurrection, and Sunday became the “holy day” of worship in the early church.
We should recollect the basic definition of holiness, but there is a problem with that…it is exceedingly difficult to define “holiness” without using the word “holy.” Most definitions of holiness are simply: “the state of being holy.” The Hebrew word qados, and the Greek word hagios are the words that are translated with the English word holy. Both of those words are derived from their root meaning “to be divided and/or to be made separate.” The idea of holiness always contains the purpose of being set apart due to special form and purpose, and the status of that which is “set apart” is one of unusual and/or incredible purity.
True worship, as we have often alluded to in these thoughts for the day on Sundays, must always celebrate the nature of God while expressing appropriate adoration on the part of worshippers. Is it possible to reflect on God’s nature, the truth that He “is” love (1 John 4:7-8) without a heart of holiness?
We often consider God’s command in “1 Peter 1:16 “Be holy, because I am holy.” It would seem that while this is God’s intention for us in all places, it would make sense that this is especially important when we are gathered with Him for the purpose of worship.
I am not suggesting that the songs that we often sing in our worship are not adequately “holy.” I think that the holiness of the song has far more to do with what is present in the heart of the worshippers than with the style or type of music. Neither am I suggesting that we should all go back to suits and ties and Sunday dresses when we gather for worship. Similarly, I think that what is present in the heart and spirit of a person is far more important than what we have chosen to temporarily cover ourselves. But I do wonder if our more casual approach to life and to worship may have cost us by drawing us away from an awareness and intention of holiness as we come together with God in worship?
No matter how you are dressed today, whatever songs we sing, and whatever the place(s) in which we are gathered to bring worship to our God, we should consider what it means to be “set aside in holiness” as we offer to God our heart of worship. Perhaps holiness in worship can be most succinctly described with the thought, “This worship is for you, my Lord. It is my best and my dearest, it is from my heart.”
Vern