Aerobic worship?

This week I would like to raise the issue of movement in worship. There is quite a lot of discussion regarding movement in the worship service but most of it centers on the idea of dance in the service and whether or not dance has a place. One commonly hears cited Psalms (“Praise the Lord with dance”), 1 Samuel (David dancing with all his might before the Lord), and Exodus 14 (Miriam dancing with the maidens, celebrating the Lord’s great Red Sea victory). However, this post is not an entry concerning the acceptableness to God of this practice during the Lord’s Day worship of God’s people.

What I would like to bring before the people of God is the practice of kneeling, standing, prostrating oneself, and bowing. First off, I find it very interesting that sitting is not a position of worship mentioned in the Bible (correct me if I’m wrong). I’ve heard of services when the church was in its infancy as well as in some current mid eastern countries where the people stand for the entire service, two or three hours. Though I have facetiously titled this post “aerobic worship”, I do want to challenge the audience to consider why we often sit in our services. Is it because of the tiredness of our weary bones that we want to have some time to be still on a Sunday morning? Would we rather be in bed, sleeping in after a hard workweek? I must admit that often, following a full, busy, and tiring week of teaching, I would just as much, not answer the alarm on my phone, and sleep to 9:00 am, not withstanding my two children waking up before me. Of course, I would rather do this every day but making a living and supporting my family get in the way of this. Back to reality, why do I get up? Is it not because my Savior has redeemed my life from destruction and the pit and that I desire to respond to His great mercy? Is not because He saved me to glorify and worship Him? Is not because He has given me a most holy calling and purpose in my life? I rise early because I am His and I desire to seek His will, no matter how imperfectly I accomplish that task.

Let me suggest that we might have “movement” in church for those same above-mentioned reasons. Movement can characterize an outward expression of inward desire and thought (though it can also be done for self-righteous reasons, or to impress others like in the case of the Pharisees). Do we not as a redeemed people seek to honor Him through submission to His word and His will? Should we not cry out to Him for mercy in those moments of deep darkness of the soul, struggle of conscience, and hardness of heart when we feel at ease and content, not realizing the true depth of the depravity of our hearts? Might I suggest that moments in the service where confess the wickedness of our hearts, where we offer our hearts anew to Him in the offering, and when we beseech His throne of grace for mercy on our own behalf or the behalf of others could be moments for kneeling or prostration in deference to God. Consider the earthly practice of bowing. Bowing, nodding the head, or tipping the hat are all symbols of this act though used by different peoples in different periods of time. Though acts of reverential acknowledgement or even submission are disappearing from society (being replaced completely by a handshake or other egalitarians gestures), motions of respect and reverence display a surrender of will and a submission to greater authority. How perfectly they are suited to the worship of our God. Standing, too, can be a sign of respect in a service but it must be considered alongside its counterpart, sitting. In ancient times, those who sat were those of wealth, royalty or means. Their sitting communicated an arrival of position, stature or money. Consider Christ as “He sat down at the right hand of God”, having conquered His enemies. He sat because He had conquered death, sin and the grave. He had arrived in the fullest sense of the meaning of the word. Standing, therefore, denoted respect for those who had attained (those sitting). This is also seen in the chivalrous practice of standing to give a lady or elderly person a seat, honoring them by sacrificing what was rightfully yours. In our culture today, sitting communicates observation and even evaluation. Audience members sit as they enjoy a performance, watch a movie, or take in a show. In consideration of the topic, submission and the worship, sitting is more easily recognized as a posture of entertainment and not one of worship, while bowing, kneeling, prostrating oneself, and even standing are seen as more evident responses to the character of God. Maybe, when we come to recognize our “seating with Christ in the heavenly realms” upon His return, sitting will have its place. But for now, we must acknowledge our Lord’s majesty, holiness, and goodness which should nourish in us a desire to fall before Him, crying holy, holy, holy. Let us give Him the honor due His name!