Worship as response to God's Love and Faithfulness

[morbo3000]

I'm picking apart modern congregational songs to try and understand the frame of mind of the congregational singer and the song-writer.

These are some of the themes:
1. Worship and praise. Descriptions of God's attributes, giving him glory and honor.
2. Response to his love and faithfulness
3. Prayer for divine presence.

I'm trying to understand #2 and #3

Specifically, what does God's love and faithfulness look like? Those songs only make sense if someone has an experience of love. And an experience of faithfulness. These seem to be revelations. Especially the love one. We all know how worship songs can often replace "God" and "Jesus" with boyfriend, or girlfriend, and the songs still make sense. What is going on in the brain of someone who is "experiencing" the "love" of God.

#3 seems like it's the prayer for #2 to happen. A lot of songs are saying "come to me... I want to experience you... I want to be in your presence."

None of these seem biblical. Though I could be out to lunch on that. I know the church throughout history has tried to interpret Song of Songs as the relationship between God and the church, but that really doesn't hold up to good hermeneutics.

I don't see a problem with congregational songs being prayers. We've always called it "worship songs," and then been critical when they don't seem worshipful. That's solved by calling them prayer songs. But I just don't understand the epistemology.

[Homer]

Good post Jeff!

You wrote:

I'm picking apart modern congregational songs to try and understand the frame of mind of the congregational singer and the song-writer.

These are some of the themes:
1. Worship and praise. Descriptions of God's attributes, giving him glory and honor.
2. Response to his love and faithfulness
3. Prayer for divine presence.

Something in my many years that I notice is there seems to be nothing in modern songs that is oriented toward our brothers and sisters, as indicated by the Apostle:

Colossians 3:16 (NASB)

16. Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

Ephesians 5:19 (NASB)

19. speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;

Many of the old songs were full of exhortation and encouragement. As in:

Hold to God's Unchanging Hand

Time is filled with swift transition,
Naught of earth unmoved can stand,
Build your hopes on things eternal,
Hold to God’s unchanging hand.

Refrain:
Hold to God’s unchanging hand,
Hold to God’s unchanging hand;
Build your hopes on things eternal,
Hold to God’s unchanging hand.

Trust in Him who will not leave you,
Whatsoever years may bring,
If by earthly friends forsaken
Still more closely to Him cling.

Covet not this world’s vain riches
That so rapidly decay,
Seek to gain the heav’nly treasures,
They will never pass away.

When your journey is completed,
If to God you have been true,
Fair and bright the home in glory
Your enraptured soul will view.

Powerful words, a sermon actually. Much today is mush. The words are difficult for me when God is spoken of as a lover. But many old songs are timeless; how many modern ones will be sung 50 years from now? Not many I suspect.