What is the difference between entertainment and worship?
Question:
Good day, Minister,
My question to you is, can you kindly explain the difference between true worship and Christian concerts using sufficient Bible passages? I have friends in various denominations who attend concerts organized by various so-called Christian bodies, where gospel singers are invited to perform and do all sorts of things. After talking with them, I believe they simply attended those events to be entertained and not to worship God. However, they say they went to worship God, and nonetheless, the event was entertaining.
Should the focus of worship or its process be entertaining? Is there a biblical authority for these concerts? Can someone claim to worship God and, in the process, also be entertained?
Thank you, and I await your response. I am looking forward to your detailed response.
Answer:
As mentioned in "Worship or Entertainment?" worship is something we give to God in the way that God specified. "But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth" (John 4:23-24).
Jesus charged the Jews with worshiping God in their rituals, but without their hearts (Matthew 15:8). It can happen to Christians as well, such as in not decerning Christ's death during the Lord's Supper (I Corinthians 11:27-30). God desires sincere worshipers (Matthew 22:37-38).
However, worship also requires truth. It doesn't matter how sincere I am if I'm not worshiping God in the way He requires. Here again, the Jews failed by substituting their own things for God's worship (Matthew 15:9). God is the object of our worship, and He tells us how He wishes to be served. God doesn’t have to accept anything man may happen to send His way – God doesn’t need man’s worship. Man cannot tell his Master what God will accept (Isaiah 29:16).
The concerts masquerading as worship fail in the latter. God didn't ask for them, but people like and want them. Ask your friends if they are willing to worship God in the simple way God requires or if they would give worship up because they don't find it entertaining enough. They may claim it doesn't matter, but clearly, they highly value their entertainment.
Response:
Thank you for your timely response. A key point that I have noted is that "sincerity of heart is useless if it doesn't tally with God's command."
