Is It Worship? by Samuel J. Niccolls

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Aug 26, 1873

Is It Worship?

By Samuel J. Niccolls

In our English Bible there is a word in frequent use which seems to be almost obsolete in our common speech. This is not so because time has changed the meaning of the word or substituted a more fitting one; but rather because the sentiment expressed by it seems to be wanting, or is, at least in a very large degree, latent. It is the word, “worship.” The Old-Testament saints speak of going up to “worship” the Lord. All their religious acts were acts of worship to their glorious and invisible King. When the psalmist would arouse the hearts of God’s people, he sings of the joys of the sanctuary, and cries, “O come, let us worship!” In the New Testament, the frequent use of the same term sets forth very clearly the idea that the chief purpose in a religious assembly was to worship God, through the means of his appointment. That God is worthy of our worship, and that he has made it obligatory on all to render him the homage and praise due his name, are truths no right-minded man will question. But it is painfully obvious that there are many notions current among professing Christians, and manifest in their practices, which are directly at variance with these Scripture doctrines. The language we use ordinarily and unconsciously may generally be taken as a true expression of our ideas or sentiments. Judged by this rule, we cannot say that the prevailing idea of a religious assembly on the Sabbath is one of worship. Were some visitor from another world to join the crowd gathering to some well-known church, he would infer from their conversation that they were going to hear Mr. A or B preach. How he preached and the effect of his sermon are the great topics of discussion on their return. It would sound strangely or savor strongly of religious “cant” to speak of the worship of God. Even the minister, who ought to know better, favors the idea that men go to church for instruction and entertainment, rather than for worship.

Praise is part of the public worship of God. But instead of saying, “Let us worship God by singing to his praise,” the common introduction is, “Sing the —— hymn,” and when the minister sits down to arrange his papers and read over his notices, the choir sing that hymn—to the congregation. It would be a misnomer to call this an act of worship. It is only a preparation for the sermon. The lamentable truth is that the greater portion of those who attend church do not think of it or speak of it definitely as going up to God’s house to worship him. If the idea of worship were clearly in our minds, the term would be oftener upon our lips. Corresponding to this is the great and growing neglect of public worship. It is one of the dark signs of the times that there are multitudes who never enter the sanctuary, or who go only at rare intervals from curiosity or courtesy to a friend. It bodes no good to a land, when its people forget God or refuse to worship him.

Perhaps one cause of this growing evil is to be found in Christian churches themselves, where the prevailing idea has been that men are to come together to hear certain statements and explanations about the gospel, and to have their moral sentiments cultivated and elevated, instead of assembling to praise God for the gospel, and to hear humbly and believingly its messages of grace, pardon, and life. If the church itself obscures the idea of worship in the services of the sanctuary, what wonder that the world forgets its God or goes heedlessly after folly!

It is to be feared, also, that the idea of worship in the family is being banished from many households. Indeed, the public and private worship of God are so vitally connected that whatever affects one acts with almost equal power on the other. The household that gathers, morning and evening, around the family altar to worship God, will not be among those who neglect the sanctuary, or mistake the nature of ordinances. But, alas, this busy world, with its urgent cares, drives many a family away from its domestic altar; and long-continued neglect at last deadens the feeling of worship. Nothing is more necessary and important than a revival of the spirit of worship. It is indispensable for the right cultivation of our moral nature. It gives the inspiration for all moral and spiritual greatness, by making us feel our relation to the Infinite and Eternal. We need also to have it quickened and aroused to overcome the materialism of the age, which threatens to turn us into a godless, dissolute, and frivolous people. This work of revivals must begin with the church.

Ministers need to show, in all their ministrations, that they are engaged in solemn acts of worship. If they so act as to make their hearers feel that they are in a lecture room, instead of the house of God, what wonder that the people act accordingly? There must also be a more intelligent appreciation on the part of those who frequent the house of God as to the nature and purpose of public worship. Let Christians earnestly consider that they come together to render homage and praise to their God and Redeemer, and to hear him speak, in his appointed way, the messages of his love, and the old joy and ardor of worship will come back to the church.

Sweet experience will take up the language of the ancient psalm: “I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the Lord,” and happy multitudes will cry, “We will go into his tabernacle; we will worship at his footstool.”—Rev. Samuel J. Niccolls.