Why Should Worship Leaders Study Theology
Before getting into the study of this post, a worship leader must ask him or herself this question: ”Why would I, as a Christ-follower and a leader of His people, not study theology?” Part of our personal and ministerial walk as followers of Christ because of His salvation in us, (“not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit . . .”) causes us to yearn to be with the Lord, to learn from Him through His written revelation to us! When our heart’s desire becomes that of which “we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him,” (2 Corinthians 5:9) it is not relegated to our “personal” walks with the Lord, it permeates all of life, including what we do in “ministry.” And such a huge part of what we do as ministers and in our personal walks is rightly knowing and interpreting His word and rightly applying it to our lives and in the instruction and leading of His people in the churches we serve! As we lead and instruct our people about the Biblical understanding of worship, we must remind ourselves of this sobering thought of God, held in Scripture, “Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment.” (James 3:1) We are in fact teaching and leading people into further Biblical truth by our exhortations, liturgies, song choices, relationships, team devotionals and prayer times, etc… This must be done with the utmost of care for those whom God has called us to Shepherd!
Our first role in following Christ is to glorify and honor God in all of life (Romans 12). The same is true in our worship ministries! Growing in our theology causes us to grow in our walks with Christ! Thereby it causes us, by His revelation of Himself, to know more fully His divine character and His holiness. The result of this is a continuous posture of thanksgiving and humility which the Lord, in turn, says He will bless! “Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time.” (1 Peter 5:6) The more our relationships grow with the Lord, we begin to more deeply understand, reflect on, and respond to verses such as Psalm 13:6, “I will sing to the Lord, because He has dealt bountifully with me.” And Psalm 63:7, “For You have been my help, and in the shadow of Your wings I sing for joy.” As we further grow in the area of being in awe of God and who He is and what He has done for us, it cultivates a right response to Him in our worship, and thereby we become examples in our gatherings of how this should look and sound! Therefore we model the first and foremost part of our worship services, exalting God!
The edification of the believer is a vital part of what we are called to do! But the flock under our care needs to understand why we gather! The theology of our meetings causes the local body to rightly understand its role in the picture of God’s ordained plan for all people. We are not gathering for the sake of gathering like other organizations in the world. Our primary purpose, as already mentioned, is to glorify God. But our people must understand what Scripture says about our gathering together. Again, this falls to us to rightly teach what God says about our fellowship. The more we understand the theology of our gatherings, the more we can encourage our people to lean into consistent patterns of faithfully engaging with God in our worship services. “And let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging on another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.” (Hebrews 10:24–25) How do we do this? It happens in person! This is written prior to any “online” platform or digital “anything.” Therefore we have to understand the importance of a physical gathering that Scripture is describing! One of the main factors in correct theology is when Scripture justifies other Scripture. In this case, what is another reason this passage in Hebrews is so vital? It echoes what Jesus says in John chapter 13. “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” This is one example of our responsibility to spend time learning what God says! We cannot teach what we do not know!
Jesus Christ and His saving work is the thread of all Scripture! We are called to “go ye therefore and make disciples!” We are called to do this in every context of our lives. There is no area where the Gospel is excluded! None! It is the eternal bedrock for all we are and all we do! So we better know how to articulate it, teach it, and encourage others to tell it! We can articulate the Gospel or we can articulate it better! We should always opt for the latter! The chances are very probable that in each and every service we minister, there will be an unbeliever! Our opportunities to share the Gospel are limited in our services, which beseeches us to tell it well, whether through song, prayer, spoken word, Scripture reading, exhortation, etc… The study of God’s salvific plan allows us to witness, proclaim with boldness, teach, and exhort it in the ways in which Paul desired: “that I may make it clear in the way I ought to speak.” (Colossians 4:4) “and pray on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in proclaiming it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.” (Ephesians 6:19–20)
Rightly dividing the truth of God’s Word through the power of the Holy Spirit gives us a solid standing in our ministries! We study theology because we desire a closer walk with Jesus, because souls are at stake, and because teaching godly living to our church members and visitors has ripple effects on other people and to future generations in our families. God is everything to everyone who believes! Our theological study and understanding of God’s continual revelation to us will cause us to glorify Him, encourage people and grow them in their faith, and reach people with the Gospel! We should study theology because the mission that we have been called to is the most important in all of human history!
