A Commitment to Biblical Worship
Scott Aniol April 30th, 2008
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The first priority of Religious Affections Ministries is the ultimate authority of the Bible in every area of faith and practice. This means that when it comes to discerning what kind of worship is acceptable to God, God has the prerogative to determine what is acceptable to Him. Therefore, we must look to the Bible to make such decisions.
This may seem like an obvious point, but unfortunately many churches today are market-driven — not Bible-driven — in their worship. They ask unbelievers — not God — what kind of worship would be acceptable to them.
It is my desire to encourage churches to make the Bible the supreme authority for all they do, especially with regard to worship.
This commitment also demands that the Bible be the guide over lesser authorities. To say that the Bible is the supreme authority for a Christian is not to deny the existence of lesser authorities. The Bible reveals government, parents, elders, and husbands to be real authorities in a believer’s life. But these lesser authorities must fall under the supreme authority of the Bible.
The same is true for authorities in other areas, like the sciences. We can, and should, look to authorities in areas of mathematics, physiology, chemistry, anatomy, and geology to help us determine reality in those areas. But any time any scientific authority contradicts the Bible, we reject their statements. The Bible is the supreme authority over such legitimate, lesser authorities.
When it comes to worship and music, authorities in areas of aesthetics, musicology, sociology, ethnomusicology, and cultural analysis may provide us with helpful expertise as we discern how each of these issue relate to our worship. But each of these legitimate, lesser authorities must fall under the guidance of the ultimate authority, the Word of God.
This commitment to biblical authority also demands that we not limit its scope to those issue it explicitly addresses. The Bible is not an encyclopedia of prohibitions, but rather a collection of narratives, letters, poetry, and prophesy which reveal to us principle by which we can come to God-pleasing conclusions. For instance, instruction in Scripture that forbids adultery also forbids things like internet pornography, something the Bible doesn’t specifically address. Or instruction against murder forbids abortion, even though the Bible doesn’t explicitly address it.
The same applies for issues related to worship that the Bible does not address explicitly. Although the Bible is not a textbook for aesthetics, musicology, or culture, we must derive implications from the text that have direct bearing on these issues.
In these ways, it is my wish to stimulate believers to be entirely biblical in their understanding and practice of worship.
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