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Calvary Baptist Church

Worship Principles

Worship is about revealing the person of Jesus Christ and giving Him the adoration that is due. We don’t want to gather trying to impress crowds with our talent, our technology, or our creativity, but to passionately worship the God who saves.

At Calvary, our aim in our worship gatherings is to be…

1. Worshiping the Lord in spirit and in truth. Worship is about God, not us, He is the audience. (Exodus 15:1-21; 20:3-5; 2 Samuel 6:14-16; Psalm 5:7; John 4:23-24; Revelation 4:11; 5:12)

2. Lifting high the name of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the focus of our worship because He is the focus of the Father’s work. (Colossians 1:15-20; John 4:22-26; John 12:32; John 14:6);

3. Leading God’s people to lift their hearts and voices to Him, giving Him praise and thanks in music and lyric (Nehemiah 12:45-46; Psalm 66:1-4; Psalm 95:1-2);

4. Preparing hearts to hear the Lord speak through the proclamation of Scripture. God’s Word (the Bible) is the basis of everything we do in worship (singing, praying, giving, preaching, etc.) because God works by His Word. Preaching is the primary form of the Word in our worship because this is the model Jesus and His disciples left us and because we are commanded to preach the Word until Christ returns. (Psalm 95:6-9; Matthew 28:19-20; Luke 4:43; Romans 10:14-15; Acts 2:41-42; 2 Timothy 4:1-2)

5. Emphasizing fresh and contemporary expressions while retaining traditional elements that recognize the richness of our heritage in the faith (Deuteronomy 32:7; Psalm 33:3; Isaiah 46:8-9; Matthew 13:32, Ephesians 5:19; Revelation 5:9)

6. Pursuing excellence in worship, knowing that God is worthy of our best. (Exodus 12; Deuteronomy 17:1; Psalm 33:3, 1 Timothy 4:14-15; Hebrews 11:4)

7. True worship is more than Sunday. As followers of Christ, we should never neglect gathering together, however, genuine worship is an everyday matter. We are to give our entire lives over to God as living and holy sacrifices. That means we worship God in how we live, work and play every single day of our lives. (Hebrews 10:24-25; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 10:31 )

The Biblical Elements of New Testament Worship:

  • Preaching (2 Timothy 4:2)
  • Prayer (1 Timothy 2:1)
  • Reading Scripture (1 Timothy 4:13)
  • Singing and music (Colossians 3:16)
  • Financial giving (2 Corinthians 8–9)
  • Ordinances of Baptism and the Lord’s Table (Matthew 28:19;1 Corinthians 11:17–34)