How do Christians worship God?

To most people, the word "worship" suggests attending a church service at a specific place on a specific day, and participating in rituals that include singing hymns and reciting prayers, being led by a minister or priest who is often dressed in ceremonial robes. Some forms of this "worship" had their origins in pagan ceremonies, and are paralleled in many of the present world religions, such as Hinduism and Buddhism.

How does the true God require His people to worship Him?

In the Old Testament books containing accounts of people worshipping, the Hebrew word translated into the English word "worship" is "shachah"- meaning "to depress; to prostrate oneself in homage to royalty; to bow down; to crouch; to fall down flat." Here are some examples...

"And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my lord unto his servant?"
Josh.5:14

"And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God. And all the people answered, Amen, Amen, with lifting up their hands: and they bowed their heads, and worshipped the Lord with their faces to the ground."
Neh.8:6

"O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker."
Ps.95:6

"Exalt you the Lord our God, and worship at his footstool; for he is holy."
Ps.99:5

In the New Testament, the English "worship" is translated from the Greek "proskuneo" meaning "to prostrate oneself in homage". Here are some examples...

"And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, frankincense, and myrrh."
Mat.2:11

"And saith unto him, all these things will I give you, if you will fall down and worship me."
Mat.4:9

"And as they went to tell his disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, All hail. And they came, and held him by the feet, and worshipped him."
Mat.28:9

"And thus are the secrets of his heart made manifest; and so falling down on his face he will worship God, and report that God is in you of a truth."
1Cor.14:25

"And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God."
Rev.11:16

"And I John saw these things, and heard them, and when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which showed me these things.
Then said he unto me, See you do it not: for I am your fellowservant, and of your brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God."
Rev.22:8-9

In summary, to lie prostrate on the ground, face down, with arms extended and palms of the hands facing upwards, at the feet of a ruler was a sign of total subjection to his higher authority, in acknowledgement that he had absolute control of your life and your destiny. Thus, to worship God is to acknowledge His rulership over you and to accept that you are His servant.

Under the Old Covenant that God made with Israel through Moses, one had to go to Jerusalem to worship before God’s altar in the Temple. No other place was acceptable to God. As he began preaching the Gospel, Jesus Christ debated this point with the Samaritan woman at the well in Sychar.

"The woman said unto him, Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and you say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.
Jesus said unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour comes, when you shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.
But the hour comes, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeks such to worship him.
God is Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth."
John 4:19-24

This is the crucial point to understand: under the New Covenant, the emphasis is on the spiritual. The physical aspects of the Old Covenant worship have ceased. There is no Temple in Jerusalem. The Temple veil was torn in two at the moment Christ died, showing that we can now go directly before God’s mercy seat. Christians are indwelt by God through the Holy Spirit, the very closest of relationships.

God requires us to worship Him in spirit. What does that mean? Put simply, God requires nothing less than our total surrender to Him. Our minds must be totally subject to His will, our lives totally at His disposal.

"For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh."
Phil.3:3

We can do no less than follow the example of Jesus Christ

"Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:"
Phil.2:5-7

The word "servant" is translated from the Greek "doulos", meaning "a bondservant; someone in subjection to another; literally, a slave". Jesus Christ, in order to save mankind, agreed to go from God to slave. Remember what He did on the night of the Last Supper...

"Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he was come from God, and went to God;
He rose from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself. After that he poured water into a basin, and began to wash his disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded."
John13:3-5

Jesus performed the task usually reserved for the lowest ranked slave in a household as an object lesson to us of humility and unconditional service to our fellow man...

"You call me Master and Lord: and you say well; for so I am.
If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.
For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you."
John 13:13-15

Paul called himself "the slave of Christ". See Rom.1:1; Gal.1:10; Tit.1:1.
James called himself "the slave of Christ". See Jam.1:1.
Peter called himself "the slave of Christ". See 2Pet.1:1.
Jude called himself "the slave of Christ". See Jude1.
John called himself "the slave of God". See Rev.1:1

Christians are the slaves of Christ

"What? Know you not that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit which is in you, which you have of God, and you are not your own?
For you are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s."
1Cor.6:19-20

A slave is at his master’s beck and call. Christians have been called to serve.

The words translated as "serve" and "service" come from the Greek "latreio" meaning "ministering to God; rendering religious homage; worship".

How do we serve God? Paul made it very clear in Romans 12, 13 and 14. If you have the same attitude as Christ, you will present yourself each day to God to be used as He sees fit. Yours will be a daily sacrifice.

"I appeal to you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect."
Rom.12:1-2 RSV

Read the rest of this chapter and Chapters 13 and 14, and it will be quite clear what God requires of His servants, and it should come as no surprise that we are commanded to serve our fellow man, since that is what Christ did and taught. Read the "Sermon on the Mount" in Mat.5,6 and 7. Read 1Pet.2,3 and 4. Read all the instructions on how to live and serve others in all the gospels and epistles, and ask for Christ’s help to do them.

Let us not kid ourselves. Christianity is a way of life which demonstrates a special relationship with God brought about by a change of mind. A Christian cannot have a private arrangement with God that excludes his fellow man, made in God’s image.

"Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God.
Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be."
Jam.3:9-10

By serving their fellow man, forgiving and praying for their fellow man, Christians are truly demonstrating that they are the sons of God, and serving Him in spirit and in truth.