Worship is
the reverent adoration, honor,
and submission given to God.
In the Bible
it involves both the heart attitude
and outward actions of
praise, prayer, obedience, and sacrifice.
True worship is directed exclusively to
the one true God
and, in the New Testament,
is also offered to Jesus Christ as Lord.
The Bible uses several key words for worship:
These words show that biblical worship includes both inner reverence and outward acts of submission and service.
In the Old Testament, worship was centered on the tabernacle and later the temple. It included:
Worship was both corporate (at the sanctuary) and individual. It was always directed to the LORD (YHWH) alone. Any worship of idols or other gods was strictly forbidden and called idolatry.
The New Testament shifts the emphasis from a physical temple to worship “in spirit and truth” (John 4:23-24). Key developments include:
True worship flows from a heart transformed by the gospel and empowered by the Holy Spirit.
Biblical worship typically includes:
Worship is both an event (gathered worship) and a lifestyle (daily worship).
Worship is the proper response to who God is and what He has done. Because God alone is worthy of worship, any worship directed toward created things (idols, angels, humans, or self) is idolatry. The Bible consistently teaches that God alone is to be worshiped — and that Jesus Christ, as the divine Son, rightly receives the same worship.
Worship is not primarily about music or a worship service — it is the total response of a person’s life to the worth and majesty of God. Because Jesus is Lord, the New Testament calls believers to worship Him with the same reverence and obedience given to God the Father. True worship always exalts God and transforms the worshiper.