How do we worship?
At
Mountain View, expect a warm welcome from a group of people who are glad you're
with us. We won't embarrass you, call on you or single you out. God
commanded that our worship be meaningful and dignified, following the pattern
that He set out in the Bible. What should you expect, then?
Expect a simple, uncomplicated and moving worship
that follows the New Testament pattern.
New Testament Worship: Simple, Uncomplicated and
Moving
Among early Christians we read about in the New Testament, worship was something
that all believers participated in every Sunday, not something they
watched. On the first day of EVERY week they would eat the Lord’s Supper
and hear preaching (Acts 20:7; I Corinthians 11:23-29). They would share their
mutual responsibilities by sharing their prosperity, and we find no other
examples or commands of collections other than this (I Corinthians 16:1-2). No
church hierarchy could tell them how much money to give. They had no “church
organizations” clamoring for their money and telling them how much to "tithe,"
but they each member in the New Testament “purposed in their own hearts” (II
Corinthians 9:6-7). In their assemblies they would all sing
(Ephesians 5:19) and all would pray while various men of the assembly would lead
them (I Corinthians 14:15-16). No one person performed the worship, but each
worshipped his or her God as commanded by Jesus Christ. It was
simple but powerful, because each person had a responsibility to worship in
spirit and in truth.
God commands that we worship "decently and in
order" (I Corinthians 14:40). God didn't make worship a time to be
entertained, a time to hear a church orchestra or a powerful orator. God
gave us worship as a time to thoughtfully and prayerfully turn our hearts and
our minds to ways in which we can better serve Him, serve our fellow man and to
serve each other.
