It has been pointed out that Abraham told his servants that he and Isaac would go to the mountain to worship and would come back to them (Gen. 22:5). It is argued that worship has a beginning point and an ending so that it involves a time and a place. From what took place on the mountain, it is clear that the form of worship had to do with the offering of a sacrifice. The necessity of climbing the mountain was not in order to worship but in order to offer a sacrifice. I may go to my favorite place of prayer and come back from that place. When I come back, I don’t stop praying the rest of the day. I will continue to pray throughout the day. That particular form or concentrated closet time with God in prayer may end, but worship does not end. Similarly, for Abraham to “come back” from the mountain does not imply the end of worship, thanksgiving, and praise. It merely suggests that both would go to the mountain to sacrifice and that both would return from offering the sacrifice. Many other sacrifices and venues of worship could be continued throughout the day. This would be similar to Christians coming together to eat the Lord’s supper. Neither we nor Abraham quit worshipping when we finish the particular form of worship that has a beginning and end. Similarly, you and I may start singing songs of praise and end the singing. Such worship has a beginning and an end, but to suggest that worship ends when the singing ends is not true. Therefore, Abraham’s example does not support the practice of coming to worship and leaving from worship.
Another significant observation about Old Testament examples of worship and the fallacy of using them to justify the modern practice is that the Israelites knew nothing of what we think of as “congregational worship.” The tabernacle was the center of sacrificial worship offered by each family. Israel worshipped at home. Both their weekly Sabbaths and their annual feasts were observed in the home (Lev. 23:3,21; Exodus 12:1-28, 46-47). While there were exceptions on yearly occasions, the rule of worship and teaching centered around the family just as it had during the Patriarchal period (Deut. 6:1-12). The period of exile into Babylon because of sin can be traced back to the father’s failure to teach their children in the home. Deuteronomy 32:45-47 reads,
“And Moses made an end of speaking all these words to all Israel: And he said unto them, Set your hearts unto all the words which I testify among you this day, which ye shall command your children to observe to do, all the words of this law. For it is not a vain thing for you; because it is your life: and through this thing ye shall prolong your days in the land, whither ye go over Jordan to possess it.” Prolonging their days in the land of promise would be attributed to teaching their children the words of this law. When John, the forerunner of Christ, came to prepare their hearts for Jesus, part of the restoration had to do with “turning the hearts of the fathers to the children” (Luke 1:17, cf. Eph. 6:4). This restoration is still needed.
Two things God allowed because of hardened hearts but did not authorize were the government of kings in Israel and the building of the temple. If you were interested in returning to the “old paths,” you would not go to the kings of Israel or to the temple. Peeling that layer aside, you would return to the fathers in the home. In fact, the pattern of human rule and worship established during the days of the kings of Israel brought perpetual grief.
Furthermore, to illustrate the kind of worship that God wants under the new covenant, one only needed to contrast it to the corporate worship under the leadership of priests who served in the temple. The conversation that Jesus had with the Samaritan woman gives a distinctive contrast between the nature and place of worship under Judaism and that of Christ. She said, “Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when neither in this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, shall ye worship the Father. Ye worship that which ye know not: we worship that which we know; for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth: for such doth the Father seek to be his worshippers. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:20-24). The sacrifices and feast days observed by Jews were observed in a physical location and the sacrifices involved the physical animal brought to a temple priest to slaughter on behalf of the individual worshipper. Even after the restoration of all things through Christ, people have returned their focus on the physical. I still hear people quoting Psalm 122:1 at the beginning of a public worship service where David said he was “glad when he heard, “Let us go unto the house of Jehovah.“ The house of God is not Jerusalem’s temple or a church building! At first glance, we may dismiss such as rare occasions of immaturity, thinking someone will surely bring the truth to light. But, how is this association going to be corrected when the shepherds of spiritual Israel make the same mistake. One “elder” of a church organization corrected me for allowing my three-year-old to scream after the “amen” was said, being chased by another child. I didn’t realize how serious this was until I was told that I could never be considered a “deacon” in the church because I did not encourage proper behavior in the house of God. I was afraid to ask for an explanation but had to know what biblical teaching would support such a thought. You guessed it – 1 Tim. 3:15. I meant no disrespect, but I burst out in laughter. After his insistence, I felt like crying. Please, don’t conclude that I have stereo-typed all elders this way. Fortunately, I have known faithful men who are skilled in the Word. Yet, there are many more who are either ignorant or cowards because they allow such statements as though they were harmless.
Others will defend the corporate worship of the organization by pointing to Paul’s activity at the temple each Passover and his keeping of a Jewish vow. Once again, these things were not done because he felt obligated to fulfill his responsibility as a Christan and be in good standing with God. The sacrifice of Christians is the “continual” sacrifice of our bodies dedicated to God. The Hebrew writer writes, “By him, therefore, let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name” (Hebrews 13:15). The sacrifice we offer is a “living sacrifice,” which is our spiritual service” (cf. Romans 12:1). If going to a mountain to offer a sacrifice was Abraham’s worship to God, then our worship is continually offering our bodies as living sacrifices. Is this a duty fulfilled when we give our time to an hour or two at a church building? Of course not! But, if we think in terms of worship consisting of a time to start, a time to end and a place to go to accomplish it, that is the only conclusion to reach.
To clarify, worship is a way of life – a holy and spiritual life (Romans 12:1). For example, singing is an expression of worship but as James 5:13 teaches, this is not limited to a gathering of Christians. While I used to think that Colossians 3:16 and Ephesians 5:19 was applied in congregational singing, nothing in the context would support this conclusion. The only explanation offered in support of it is the fact that Paul wrote to the church in Ephesus. The assumption made is that Paul is writing to a congregation and therefore, these passages apply to congregational singing. Of course, this conclusion supports the idea of “going to church” or “going to worship” and that the appointed time and place is when the congregation assembles for that purpose. The same problem that exists in churches, today, is the same problem that ancient Israel faced – making God real in the home by continual references to Him and praise of Him. Singing is an expected form of worship, but it is not limited to a gathering of the whole church (Acts 16:25). My wife and I sing and pray together throughout the week. We also sing and pray by ourselves. We do not have to get together to worship any more than we have to gather with other Christians to worship. But, like the earlier illustration of cattle, it is what we do because of who we are and who we serve. Meeting with brethren or the entire group of Christians in our area is not arranged so we can worship.
Another tidbit of information regarding singing is that Colossians 3:16 and Ephesians 5:19 define singing as “singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord,” the emphasis is on “speaking to yourselves,” and “teaching and admonishing one another.” If singing is a congregational action to praising God, is it also congregational action of edifying saints? If so, we have to gather to worship God as well as gather to edify one another. Unfortunately, this is the extent of spiritual activity for some people.
Therefore, the particular forms of singing or praying is not particularly designed for the gathering of the saints. Singing describes a form of encouragement, instruction, and praise that is descriptive of a lifestyle typical of one who is set apart for God’s exclusive purpose (“holy”). The meeting of Christians may correctly be described from the outside as occasions for worshipping God. Yet, the Christians do not think of going to worship any more than they would think of going to sacrifice. Hear this distinction well because we are not denying that worship takes place when brethren gather together. We are only saying that the gatherings of New Testament Christians are not said to take place in order to worship God. For this reason, the early saints did not erect church buildings for places of worship. How silly would that be if they don’t gather to worship? Further, if church buildings were not owned and operated by an organization for worship, then no one would refer to their gatherings as “worship services,” either.
To sum up what goes on when gathered together, a gathering that is specifically designed for the purpose of ‘worship’ is without New Testament precedent. There is no question that the church worshipped God together because God’s people are worshipful people. Whether they were together or not together, they praise God. A cow is going to chew the cud because it’s a cow. It doesn’t have to gather with the herd to do it. In the same way, just because Christians praised God when they were gathered together doesn’t mean they had to gather to accomplish it. They praise him when walking down the road. They praise him in the business meetings, food courts, games, and outside their courtyard, etc. ‘Worship’ is not an umbrella term for what goes on when Christians gather in a church building.