Did we miss the boat with “Praise and Worship?”

Did we miss the boat with “Praise and Worship?”

We hear a lot about praise and worship.  That phrase has come to be synonymous with music of a style, volume, and tempo that pleases us.  If it is the kind of music that we can “get into”, that moves us in some way, we label it as praise and worship.   That understanding is, I think, foreign to the New Testament.   I am not advocating one style of music or another.  I have been blessed with a profound lack of musical talent.  My preferred style of sacred music is Gregorian chants.  This is not about hymns vs. choruses; it has nothing to do with organs and/or guitars.

In John 12:23 Jesus says, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.”  We would do well to pay attention and understand what Jesus meant when He was talking about His glorification.  Antecedent to that statement about glorification some Greeks had come to Phillip because they wanted to “See Jesus”.  In John’s Gospel, to “see” was more than a visual encounter.  It meant to place faith in Jesus as the Messiah.  We must not miss this point.  A group of Greek non-Jews, perhaps converts to Judaism, had come to the conclusion that Jesus was in fact the Messiah; they were placing their trust in Him.  This is a momentous moment, it is so powerful and so important that the Greeks fade into the background and we hear nothing of them.  Instead we find Jesus talking about His glorification.  The context is critical.  The good news of faith in Jesus crossing barriers and ‘outsiders’ committing themselves to Him is the occasion of Jesus’ glorification.  It is not perfect four-part harmony of a song written in the1800’s; it is not a praise chorus that repeats a catchy phrase, seemingly endlessly.  It is outsiders becoming followers. 

This is not an anti-music harangue.  Music is wonderful and powerful and needs to be a part of every disciple’s life.  But we have made the mistake of thinking that apex of praising the Lord is in a sing along or a concert.   In Jesus’ mind the apex is what we would call evangelism.  At the confession of faith the very angels in Heaven join in the celebration and the glorification of the Son. 

But Jesus points out that there is a cost to this glorification.  The cost is high.  In this same context He tells the disciples that if you keep your life you will lose it.  And of Himself He alludes to His death on the cross.  The Gospel message that results in the glorification of the Son is expensive.  At times it has meant missionaries leaving family and home and never returning.  It has called followers to die, in some cases their blood, as a witness to their faith becomes the seed of the Gospel.  It calls churches to reorient their ministry to focus on reaching the lost rather than serving their own whims.  To die to self is an extraordinarily high price to pay to glorify Christ.  So was being lifted up on the cross. 

Maybe we need to realize that music is, relative to the cross, not a very big deal.  In that realization, focus on efforts to present the Gospel to non-believers and when they come to faith, no matter the cost, we will know we have glorified the Son.