Draw Near to God Through Jesus Christ By Faith

The theology of worship from the book of Hebrews is that Christian worship is drawing near to God through Jesus Christ by faith, and therefore it cannot be touched; not that there will be no physical involvement in earthly worship, for there is no such thing as disembodied worship. But the physical involvement or feeling is not the essence of  worship, and therefore Christians today must not define worship by some kind of physical expression or always expect a sense-experience in worship. Worship for the Christian is at its essence metaphysical, for as he worships he participates spiritually through Jesus Christ in the worship of the heavenly Mount. To borrow a phrase from Paul, Christians worship by faith, not by sight (2 Cor 5:7).

Yet the admonition for corporate worship in Hebrews is rooted in a hope that one day worship as a metaphysical reality will become a physical one: “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near” (10:24-25). “The Day” (τὴν ἡμέραν) serves as “an anticipation of the ultimate, eschatological assembly of God’s people portrayed in 12:22-24. Put in another way, local congregations or house-groups may be viewed as earthly manifestations of that heavenly assembly already gathered around God and Christ.”¹

On that Day the metaphysical and the physical will be one; when God the Judge shakes the earth (physical) and the heavens (metaphysical), only the “things that cannot be shaken [will] remain. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.”

© 2011, Scott Aniol. All rights reserved.

Scott Aniol

Scott Aniol holds a bachelor's degree in church music from Bob Jones University (Greenville, SC), a master's degree in musicology from Northern Illinois University (DeKalb, IL), and has studied theology at Central Baptist Theological Seminary (Plymouth, MN) and Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary. He was ordained to to the gospel ministry by First Baptist Church (Rockford, IL) in April of 2004. As the executive director of Religious Affections Ministries, Scott speaks on the subjects of music and worship at various churches and conferences. His most recent speaking engagements include the Preserving the Truth Conference, Central Seminary’s Foundations Conference, International Baptist College, and Bob Jones Seminary. Click here to read and/or listen to important talks from Scott Aniol. Curriculum vitae

Endnotes:

1. Peterson, Engaging with God, 247. [↩]

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