Many years ago, the word ‘worship’ was almost synonymous with singing, with Christians gathering together to praise God. Thankfully, our understanding of worship has grown to encompass much more than that. I don’t mean simply all the other things we do when we’re gathered together as a body either, like Bible reading, prayer, preaching, communion, and other such good things. I think we’ve also grown to understand that worship is what we do with all our lives. Our daily work, when offered to God in faith, is worship; the way we conduct ourselves in marriage and parenting and household chores and so on can also be worship. All those things, when done for the Lord in faith, are part of our worship of God. Real worship is so much more than singing praise, it is a whole life of worship lived for the glory of God.
But have you ever considered that evangelism is also part of worship? We definitely know it’s worship when we gather together as Christians and speak and sing about God’s glory and his great acts of deliverance of his people. But have you also thought that when we go outside the church, when we’re scattered across our communities and schools and workplaces, that when we speak well of God there, that that is also part of our worship? Evangelism is part of worship because it’s part of a life well-lived for the glory of God. Evangelism is part of proclaiming the goodness and glory of God to a world that doesn’t know him yet! It’s speaking the name of Jesus in places where he is as yet unknown. It’s proclaiming that he alone is worthy of our worship – and calling people to abandon their idols and worship only God!
When God called Moses he said, “I have raised you up for this very purpose, that I might show you my power and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.” (Ex 9:16). Moses saw a nation delivered. Our New Testament calling as a church is even greater than his, as it is through evangelism that the whole world will finally be called to know, love and worship God!
The flip side to this is that if we don’t share the gospel we are withholding worship from God! That would be a scandal, when God is worthy of all our lives, all our speech, and definitely worth talking about wherever we go.
Prayer: Lord, I love worshipping you in church. Help me to worship you with all of my life, and to proclaim your name in everyday life to those around me.
