Somewhere along the way, the church stopped asking how God wants to be worshiped and started asking what people will show up for. We have spent decades perfecting an experience God never commanded.
Not because our doctrinal statements changed. They often haven’t. Not because we quit using the word “worship.” We use it constantly. The problem is that we have artfully redefined it. We have traded reverence for relevance, awe for atmosphere, and the fear of God for the pursuit of an experience.
We have taken the holy assembly of God’s people and run it through the machinery of the entertainment industry until it comes out looking suspiciously like every other product competing for people’s attention.
I recently saw someone sincerely ask what is actually wrong with scenes like this. Bright lights. Smoke. A frontman pacing a stage with a microphone. Thousands of people with hands in the air. Music pounding through the room.
What’s the biblical objection?