Boring Worship

Recently, I heard an acquaintance -- someone I like, if he happens to come across this -- say that he had recently started attending a new church. Smiling broadly, he said that the church's worship was boring -- and that he loved it.

I am not completely without sympathy for the thought. It is unfortunate that many Christians seem to value enthusiasm more than orthodoxy, and boredom seems to be regarded as a far greater sin than unsound teaching or practices to the many. Those of us with concerns about doctrinal lapses are accused of nitpicking, but lulls in the worship experience are inexcusable.

Thus, admiring worship practices that value biblical standards more than energy levels is an understandable reaction. Christian worship is an expression of fealty to God, not to the values of our entertainment culture.

Yet, our reactions may take us too far, and they deserve challenge. We should not forget that the church, in worshiping, is proclaiming the most momentous news known to man. We do not have to work to generate excitement over mundane matters; rather, our proclamation addresses the God of creation and redemption, the reality of sin, justice, mercy, and forgiveness, life and death, heaven and hell. Nothing can be of greater importance.

That the Triune God who created all things planned and accomplished my eternal redemption through the death of the Son is mind boggling truth that cannot bore anyone that understands it. If our proclamation of such news makes the glorious mundane, perhaps we are doing it wrong.

Further, while we do have an account of a worshiper falling asleep in worship in the Book of Acts, one nevertheless cannot say that the preaching of the New Testament is boring. In fact, it addressed lives so vigorously that it was used of God to spark dramatic conversions while also resulting in vehement denunciations. Both believers and unbelievers responded vigorously to Christian proclamation.

I am thankful to be part of a tradition that rightly upholds faith in a sovereign God -- sovereign over all things. Belief in divine sovereignty does not justify a seeming fear to be interesting, nor does the over wrought emotionalism of some rightly result in a stoic response. The Bible is a gripping book that confronts us with momentous realities, both joyful and painful. Our worship should reflect that.