Worship (Heb. generally shâjâh, “bow”, “worship”; âtsab ; segid; Gr. generally latréia, “service”, “worship”; latréuí‡, “serve”, especially in relation to external forms of worship; proskunéin , “to prostrate”, “to kiss” ; proskunéí‡, “to render obedience”, “to prostrate”). Attitude of humility, reverence, honor, devotion and adoration that adequately indicate the relationships between created beings and their Creator, particularly in their presence. The Bible teaches that such worship is due only to the one true God (Exo 20:1-5; 34:14; Mat 4:10; Act 10:25, 26). Angels, although they are heavenly beings, are not to be worshiped (Rev 19:10). A strict monotheism must characterize the worship of those who honor the true God, the Creator of heaven and earth (Deu 6:4, 5). Furthermore, since God is “spirit” (Joh 4:23, 24), man is prohibited from worshiping him through material representations (Deu 4:12, 15-19).
Source: Evangelical Bible Dictionary
See prayer.
Digital Bible Dictionary, Grupo C Service & Design Ltda., Colombia, 2003
Source: Digital Bible Dictionary
(Heb., shahah, bow down, bow down; Gr., proskyneo, bow down, bow down). The honor, reverence and homage given to superior beings or powers, be they men, angels or God.
When surrendered to God, worship implies an acknowledgment of divine perfections. It can be expressed in the form of direct speech, as in worship, thanksgiving, or in service to God; it can be private or public.
In patriarchal times there was private prayer (eg, Gen 18) and the public act of building an altar (eg, Gen 12:7). Moses established the basis of Israel’s public worship and gave it its center point in the tabernacle (eg, 1Sa 1:1). The temple ritual, which originated in the tabernacle, was conducted by the priests assisted by the Levites. In the synagogues, the emphasis was more on instruction than on worship. The Jewish Christians, as long as they were allowed, continued to worship in the temple and the synagogue, even though for them the entire sacrificial and ceremonial system had ended with the death and resurrection of Jesus. Public Christian worship developed on the model of the synagogue. It seems that from the beginning believers met in homes for private fraternal gatherings; the occasion was the day of the Lord (Joh 20:19, Joh 20:26; Act 20:7; 1Co 16:2). Christian public worship consisted of preaching (Act 20:7; 1Co 14:9), reading of the Scriptures (Col 4:16; Jam 1:22), prayer (1Co 14:14-16), singing (Eph 5: 19; Col 3:16), baptisms and the Lord’s Supper (Acts 2:41; 1Co 11:18-34), offering to charity (1Co 16:1-2), and sometimes prophesying and speaking in tongues.
Source: Hispanic World Bible Dictionary
(prostrate).
Only God is worshiped, Mat 4:10, Luc 4:8.
– The Eucharist is the greatest adoration. See “Mass”, Eucharist”.
– We do not adore the Virgin and the Saints, but rather “honor” them, “venerate” them, because they are friends of God, and we ask them to pray for us, because they are already with God: (Luke 23:46, Stg 5:16, John 2, Rev 8:3-4.
– The images, statues and paintings remind us of God, Jesus, the Saints, but we do not “adore” them. See “Images”, “Saints”.
Christian Bible Dictionary
Dr. J. Dominguez
http://bible.com/dictionary/
Source: Christian Bible Dictionary
Act by which reverence, respect, honor, love and obedience to God is expressed. In the OT, the word shachah is used to indicate this attitude, with the connotation of “bowing down”, “kneeling”, “bowing down”. In the NT the term is proskusneo, which is to revere a person. Usually the worshiper lowers “his head to the ground” (Exo 34:8) or prostrates himself on the ground (Job 1:20; Ps 95:6), for which the word “bow down” is often used as equivalent to a . (Exo 20:5; 2Ki 5:18). But the physical act of bowing the body can have another meaning, such as supplication to a person (Gen 23:7-12), or simple reverence before a king (1Sa 24:8-9). For there to exist an attitude of the heart that recognizes in the object of the a. the character of sovereign lord and owner, as in Ps. 99, where one begins by acknowledging the greatness of God: “Jehovah reigns…. he is sitting on the cherubim…. Jehovah in Zion is great and exalted above all peoples,† and so on. And then the a . is claimed: † œExalt the Lord our God, and prostrate yourselves before his holy mountain †.
Abraham, as well as the other patriarchs, built altars to God, special places of a. (Gen 12: 8) where he worshiped Jehovah. The A. it is done in private (2Sa 12:19-20) or in public. By extension it is designated as a. to the rituals that accompany the act in public. After Moses, the a. The public revolved around the †¢tabernacle, with very elaborate rites that arose after the liberating experience of the exodus, in which a priestly class, that of †¢Aaron, directed the cult. After the construction of the †¢temple, the Aaronic tradition followed, with the changes that arose from the very fact that there was then a special place in the territory, †¢Jerusalem. David designed many aspects of the †¢temple liturgy, and organized worship, especially with the participation of musicians.
Jehovah alone should be worshiped (2Ki 17:35-36, Mat 4:10; Rev 14:9-11). The angels obedient to God do not accept being worshiped (Rev 22:9). You should not worship a man (Acts 10:25-26). The A. it is done in the “fear” of God (Ps 5:7), “in the beauty of holiness” (Ps 29:2), and with joyful singing (Ps 66:4) and praise (2Ch 7:3), making sure it is done from the heart (Isa 29:13). Similarly, the word ‘serve’ can point to the a. (Exo 3:12; Deu 4:28). Except in extreme cases, it could not be done. to God “empty-handed” (Deu 16:16). Therefore, the a. it included a sacrifice or an offering (Gen 8:20; Deu 26:10). The people of Israel went astray, devoting themselves to the a. of false gods (2Ch 7:22; Jer 22:9), adopting their violent and unseemly ceremonies and customs (1Ki 18:28-29). They worshiped “the work of their hands” (Jer 1:16), which is idolatry, an abomination (Deu 7:25; Deu 13:12-16; Deu 27:15). As opposed to an a. ritualist or traditionalist of the Jews and Samaritans, the Lord Jesus said that God looks for sincere worshipers, who do so “in spirit and in truth” everywhere (Joh 4:21-24). The Lord Jesus accepted to be surrendered to. (Mat 14:33; Jua 5: 22-23), thus giving a sign of his deity. The angels surrender to. to the Lord Jesus (Heb 1:6).
The original Jerusalem church, having the †¢temple, went on for a time meeting in a certain corner of it. It is generally accepted that the early church custom of meeting on the first day of the week (Acts 20:7, 1Co 16:2) was intended to a. But many Christian Jews continued to observe the Sabbath and the traditional holidays. Very soon, however, the Gentile Christians decided to get together to do their a. public on the first day of the week (Acts 20:7; 1Co 16:2), which was called “the Lord’s day” (Rev 1:10), in commemoration of the resurrection of Christ.
NT does not give details on how the a was performed. public. We do know, however, that the breaking of bread was celebrated at their meetings (Acts 2:46); the Word of God was read (Col 4:16; 1Th 5:27); it was prophesied (1Co 14:1); tongues were spoken and interpreted (1Co 14:4-6, 1Co 14:13, 28); there were prayers (1Co 14:14); “psalms and hymns and spiritual songs” were sung (Col 3:16). A day will come when “all the earth” (Ps 66:4) and “all nations” (Ps 22:27; Ps 86:9) will worship Jehovah (Phil 2:10-11). †¢Prayer.
Source: Christian Bible Dictionary
tip, LEYE The worship of God has been described as “the honor and adoration that are rendered to Him because of what He is in Himself and what He is to those who give it to Him.” It is assumed that the worshiper has a relationship with God, and that there is a prescribed order of service or worship. The Israelites had been redeemed from Egypt by God, and for this reason, as a redeemed people, they could come to the place appointed by Him to worship in accordance with his instructions. Thus, says the psalmist: “Come, let us shout joyfully to the Lord; let us sing with joy to the rock of our salvation… Because Jehovah is a great God, and a great King above all gods… Come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before Jehovah our Maker. Because He is our God; we the people of his meadow, and the flock of his hand” (Ps. 95: 1-7). In OT times worshipers could not enter the divine sanctuary. They could only enter the courtyard outside of it. Even the high priest could only enter the holy of holies only once a year, with blood. Otherwise, the priests themselves were confined to the sanctuary, unable to pass through the veil. All this has changed now. Redemption has been accomplished, the veil has been rent from top to bottom, God has opened wide access to Him, and worshipers, like priests, are free to enter the holy of holies. God has been revealed in the advice of the love of him as Father, and the Holy Spirit has been given. Therefore, the language of the Psalms is no longer adequate to give expression to Christian worship, due to the intimacy of the relationship into which the believer has been brought. In the millennium, “the people” will not have access in this same sense. The true figure for the Christian attitude is that of the priest, not that of the people. Those who worship God must worship him in spirit and in truth, and the Father seeks such as will worship him (Jn. 4:24). Their delight is in what he is. They rejoice in God, and love him, glorying in him (Rom. 5:11). Worshiping “in spirit” means worshiping according to the true nature of God, and in the fellowship power of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, it is in contrast to worship consisting of forms and ceremonies, and to the religiosity of which the flesh is capable. To worship “in truth” means to worship God according to the revelation that He has given in grace of Himself. Therefore, “now” it would not be worshiping God in truth to worship him “simply” as “great God”, “our Maker” and “great King above all gods”, as in Ps. 95. All this is true of Him. But He has been pleased to reveal Himself under another character to His own, as Father. They thus enter his presence with a filial spirit, and with the awareness of the love that has given them a place before him in Christ, as his children according to his good will. The awareness of this love, and of God’s willingness to have us before Him in Christ, is then the source from which our worship as Christians springs. The Father and the Son are known, it being the Father’s will that all honor the Son as revealer of the source of love, and the Son leads hearts…