Worship
Thank you for taking the time to find out about the kind of worship to God that we value at Christ Community Church!
We believe that worship of the one and only true God YAHWEH consists of people who are overwhelmed and humbled by who Jesus is and what He has accomplished on the cross.
Worship is for Jesus and about Jesus rather than for our entertainment or about us. This eliminates the common notion of a “Hollywood Style” of Christianity which promotes worship as consisting of: a stage show in a dark room with flashing lights and fog machines, music that is so loud you can't hear the congregation worshipping together, a preacher who presents a feel-good message with lots of jokes, an entertaining choir, the latest religious fad or a mere social club experience. These things tend to promote an environment in which a person can easily become passive rather than participating in corporate worship.
We believe that God's Church should meet to worship Jesus Christ rather than to be entertained! True worship occurs when everyone in the congregation participates by gazing at the beauty of Jesus together. The following Scriptures capture what corporate worship should look like:
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the father through Him.* (Colossians 3:16-17)
“Instead, be filled with the Spirit. Speak to one another with Psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.* (Ephesians 5:18b-21)
At C.C.C., we value coming together from all walks of life to celebrate and share what God has done in our lives during the week! We cherish an environment of authenticity where everyone is free to share and participate in the worship of our God. We don’t “go to church” because we are God’s church!!
The Kind of Worship Of God That We Value:
1. Worship that is Christ-Centered
We want every part of our worship to be focused on Christ and His accomplishments rather than human talent or achievement. “And He is the Head of the body, the church; He is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything He might have the supremacy.” (Colossians 1:18) You will notice that every so often we partake of bread and a cup of grape juice. This is called “Communion” or the “Lord’s Supper.” The bread is symbolic of Christ’s human body that is the perfect sacrifice for our sins. The cup is symbolic of His blood that He shed on the cross to free us from being slaves to sin. Communion is open to all those who have genuinely repented of their sin and, by God’s grace, put saving faith in Christ and what He has accomplished on the cross. Communion is the heart of Christian worship and we encourage everyone to examine themselves and confess their sins to God before partaking. “For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup , you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself.” (I Cor. 11:26-29)
2. Worship that is Spirit-Led
Our worship of the Lord cannot be confined to our preconceived ideas or human plans. Worship is spiritual and we must learn to be sensitive to God’s Spirit and how He is leading us to worship at any given moment. We must allow the Holy Spirit to transport into the experience of God’s very presence through Jesus Christ. “God is spirit, and His worshippers must worship in spirit and in truth.” (John 4:24)
3. Worship that is Grounded In Truth
Every part of our worship must be grounded in God’s Word. Our worship flows out of the truth of who God is and what He does. Our minds engaged with truth should be the guide of our worship rather than our emotions. Our emotions must flow out of our mind’s understanding the gospel of Jesus Christ. “It is not good to have zeal without knowledge, nor to be hasty and miss the way. (Proverbs 19:2)
4. Worship in which the Congregation Participates
We believe that true corporate worship consists of God’s people publicly sharing prayers, songs, Scriptures, words of encouragement and words that God has laid on their hearts rather than the pastor or worship team putting on a show. During our worship you will notice that some people as they are moved by the Holy Spirit might spontaneously speak out a prayer, song or Scripture. The Bible instructs us to use the spiritual gifts given to us by God as we gather together as Christians. “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your heart to God.” (Colossians 3:16)
5. Worship that is Enjoyable
God created us to worship Him so it is so enjoyable for us to worship God. We delight in God because He first delights in us! God is glorious and beautiful and so we worship Him because we want to not because we have to! “They feast on the abundance of Your house; You give them drink from Your river of delights.” (Psalm 36:8)
6. Worship that is Sacrificial
God is still worthy of our worship even when we don’t feel like it and so we will bring a sacrifice of praise to Him! You will notice that there are offering boxes in the back of our sanctuary to put money in. We do this because we believe that everything we have comes from God. We believe that God has called us to be good managers of our time, talents, and resources. Part of being a good manager of what God gives us, is sacrificially giving to support the building of God's kingdom and the spreading of His gospel. “Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” (II Corinthians 9:7)
7. Worship that is Biblically Expressive & Passionate
*Scripture Reading, Teaching & Listening - “Ezra opened the book. All the people could see him because he was standing above them; and as he opened it, the people all stood up. 6 Ezra praised the LORD, the great God; and all the people lifted their hands and responded, “Amen! Amen!” Then they bowed down and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground……8 They read from the Book of the Law of God, making it clear and giving the meaning so that the people could understand what was being read.” (Neh 8:5-6,8)
*Scripture Meditation - “I meditate on Your precepts and consider Your ways. I delight in Your decrees; I will not neglect Your word.” (Psalm 119:15-16)
*Standing - “Stand up and praise the LORD your God, who is from everlasting to everlasting.” (Nehemiah 9:5)
*Singing - “Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel among you.” (Isaiah 12:6)
*Lifting Hands - “Lift up your hands in the sanctuary and praise the LORD.” (Psalm 134:2) “I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer without anger or disputing.” (I Timothy 2:8)
*Clapping - “Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy.” (Psalm 47:1)
*Shouting - “God has ascended amid shouts of joy, the LORD amid the sounding of trumpets. Sing praises to God, sing praises…” (Psalm 47:5-6)
*Dancing - “Let them praise His name with dancing and make music to Him with tambourine and harp.” (Psalm 149:3)
*Silence - “Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” (Psalm 46:10)
*Bowing - “Come let us worship and bow down in worship, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker.” (Psalm 95:6)
*Lying Prostrate - “… 'Praise the LORD your God.’ So they all praised the LORD, the God of their fathers; they bowed low and fell prostrate before the LORD and the King.” (I Chronicles 29:20)
*Trembling - “Worship the LORD in the splendor of His holiness; tremble before Him, all the earth.” (Psalm 96:9)
*Crying - “Streams of tears flow from my eyes, for Your law is not obeyed.” (Psalm 119:136)
*Joy - “…You fill me with joy in Your presence, with eternal pleasures at Your right hand.” (Psalm 16:11)
*Flags & Banners - “We will shout for joy when You are victorious and will lift up our banners in the name of our God.” (Psalm 20:5)
