Recently a worship leader said to me: “Face it. Bob, for the first 1,500 years of Christianity, it was taught the presence of God was in the Eucharist. The Reformers moved the presence of God from the Eucharist to the Word. Today, the new revolution in worship is locating the presence of God in music.”
Perhaps this is why worship in many contemporary churches amounts to 30 minutes of music-driven activity. It raises the question anew: Where do we encounter God’s presence in worship?
Biblically, the concept of God’s presence is first located in creation. God is everywhere and is identifiable in all things for those who know how to see. Through the tabernacle and temple, we learn God is intensely present through sign and symbol, since the place of worship was to be “q dwelling place for God.”
In the New Testament, the full presence of God was humanized in Jesus of Nazareth (Col. 2:9). And Jesus himself said, “Where two or three come together in my name, I am with them” (Matt. 18:20). So we experience Christ’s presence in the gathering of his people.
For this reason many new churches are being built with circular seating (emphasizing the body gathered rather than a distant nave or platform as focal point). This makes the community more aware of the presence of Christ with his people when they worship in his name with God-given gifts.
Inhabiting the furniture
There are also three pieces of furniture that speak of God’s presence: the baptismal pool is a reminder that we have been baptized into the death and resurrection of Jesus.
The pulpit symbolizes God’s presence in the Word. The Word was brought into being by the Holy Spirit who now brings God’s presence to us in the reading of Scripture and preaching.
And then, at the table, through bread and wine the presence of God takes on a vital and personal intensity. We recall his victory over the powers of evil and are empowered by his presence to live in his victory for us.
Thus, the assembled people, the baptismal experience, the Word and Eucharist, are the primary symbols of God’s presence, but there are other symbols of God’s presence in worship. We sing, we pray, we give tithes and offerings, we confess our sins, we affirm our faith in creeds, and we offer testimony to God’s grace in our lives. In all these ways. God is made present to the assembled people.
God’s presence is made known in music, to be sure. But to experience God in fullness, the presence of God should be observed through multiple means: water, the Book, bread and wine, and of course, sound, taste, smell, and sight.
—Robert WebberProfessor of theology, Wheaton CollegeWheaton IL 60187
Leadership Spring 1999 p. 35
