Aims in Worship Service

1. The Upward Aim: We want the worship to please and glorify God.

In the drama of worship . . .

Fake Worship Real Worship

Prompter = God

Performers = worship leaders

Audience = the congregation

In the drama of worship . . .

Fake Worship Real Worship

Prompter = God Prompter = worship leaders

Performers = worship leaders

Performers = the congregation

Audience = the congregation

Audience = God

Aims in Worship Service

1. The Upward Aim: We want the worship to please and glorify God.

2. The Inward Aim in Worship: We want to provide an edifying and meaningful worship experience for the worshipers.

3. The Outward Aim: We want our worship to attract unbelievers to Christ.

1 Corinthians 14:25

Worship must be intelligible to unbelievers . . .

So they will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, “God is really among you!”

Three Worship Styles

1. Traditional Worship

2. Contemporary Worship

3. Blended Worship

The Case for Blended Worship

1. Traditional and contemporary worship services tend to separate (isolate) the generations from each other instead of keeping them together as God desires.

Multi-Generational Ministry

Multi-Generational Ministry

I am writing to you, dear children, because your sins have been forgiven on account of his name. I am writing to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I am writing to you, young men, because you have overcome the evil one. I write to you, dear children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know him who is from the beginning. I write to you, young men, because you are strong, and the word of God lives in you, and you have overcome the evil one (1 John 2:12-14).

The Case for Blended Worship

2. Blended worship builds character more than traditional and contemporary worship.

The Case for Blended Worship

3. To me it is a crying shame to see so many young people leaving the church because traditionalists are so unbending about their worship preferences and to see so much great worship material from the past being thrown away by people with a passion to be relevant to youth culture.

KEYS TO MAKING BLENDED WORSHIP WORK

1. People in the congregation need to accept the sociological fact that now, more than ever, the younger generations are different than the older generations.

Industrial Revolution1760

Technological Revolution

Five Generations

Seniors Before 1946

Boomers 1946-1964

Busters 1965-1989

Gen X 1990-1999

Millennials 2000 and after

Traditional Worship Contemporary Worship

Reserved Expressive

Quiet Loud

Formal Informal

Dressing Up Being casual

More cognitive than emotional More emotional than cognitive

Minimal use of technology Maximum use of technology

Organ / piano / orchestra guitars / drums / synthesizers

Hymns Contemporary songs

Sing about God Sing to God

Little repetition Much repetition

Etc. Etc.

2. People in the congregation need to know how to distinguish between what is truly biblical and what is just cultural.

KEYS TO MAKING BLENDED WORSHIP WORK

3. People in the congregation need to accept the fact that God really can be glorified, His people really can be edified, and the lost really can be attracted to Christ through traditional, contemporary, or blended worship.

KEYS TO MAKING BLENDED WORSHIP WORK

Multiple Choice

1. A-men!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2. A-men (a concession)

3. No way, Jose!!!!!!!!!!!!

4. People in the congregation must learn how to “Think JOY” as they seek to resolve worship style issues.

KEYS TO MAKING BLENDED WORSHIP WORK

Think JOY

• Jesus first

• Others second

• Yourself last

Others Ahead of Self

Philippians 2:3-4 - Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

Think JOY

• Jesus first

• Others second

• Yourself last

Are you a yoj?

5. Tolerate the worship preferences of others and work at maintaining church unity.

Ephesians 4:2-3- Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.

KEYS TO MAKING BLENDED WORSHIP WORK

A Reasonably Good Worship Experience

My preferences Acquired tastes Tolerate