I’ve been more and more inspired lately by the idea that we (the Church) are the “priesthood of all believers”. Church is NOT where a couple professional pastors serve the spiritual consumers…but instead a place where we all have a part to play in serving each other and the world! We are the body of Christ, and every body part is critically important.
In the same way, worship is not the same thing as a concert. At a concert, the few (on stage) perform for the many (in the seats). But in worship, the many (in the seats and on stage) perform for the One (The Almighty). Every single voice matters. Every single heart matters. God hears it all…and it matters.
But here’s the conflict: Many modern churches are not set up for this. In fact, many sanctuaries/auditoriums communicate the exact opposite. The chairs all face the big stage while a few professional pastors speak into microphones while being projected onto huge screens. This is not wrong, of course, but sometimes I wonder if our physical environment undermines our message.
Is it even possible for someone to teach about the priesthood of all believers while their face is on a jumbotron? Or, as Shane Hipps so eloquently talks about, does the medium overpower the message?
And so wrestling with all this, we tried a little experiment last weekend at Willow. Our band never got up on stage, but instead lead worship from the middle of the community. We also worked hard to use the screens mostly for lyrics (instead of showing video of the band). It was awkward, beautiful, nerve-wracking, and exciting. The experience was met with mixed reviews, but it certainly got our community talking about worship and participation and “who’s the focus of our gatherings, anyway?” I’m really thankful to the Willow leadership for being open to this idea and THE GREATEST PRODUCTION TEAM IN HISTORY for making it happen!
Check out one of the songs (featuring willow creek’s most mediocre guitar player)…
Hey Aaron-
Hasn’t the anabaptist movement been using the priesthood of all believers for 500 years? You should check out the great Mennonite and Church of the Brethren Churches in the Chicagoland area. That’s one of their main ideals.
Blessings
Comment by Lizzy — October 7, 2010 @ 6:55 pm
Aaron,
I’m sorry that my wife and I missed this creative service. We were serving little 2-year olds in Promiseland. So glad their parents WERE able to be a part of this upstairs.
What a great way to put all the focus on God, and for the congregation to come together worshipping Christ in full unity. Very unique and creative idea!
Keep up the GREAT work, Aaron and all of Willow! You all are amazing. When Willow rocks, so does the congregation rock towards Christ and His holy ways.
Comment by Greg — October 7, 2010 @ 7:57 pm
Hi Aaron,
thanks for this post! here in our church (Brisbane, Australia) we’re always trying to find ways to engage our congregation more and more. Thanks for the challenge! (LOVE the video!!!)
be blessed!
Bec
Comment by bec — October 8, 2010 @ 1:09 am
Lizzy,
you’re absolutely right! In fact, I grew up in a Plymouth Brethren assembly in Carpentersville, IL. They taught me a lot…
thanks!
aaron
Comment by aaronieq — October 8, 2010 @ 9:04 am
Aaron – I was at the 9am on Sunday. IMHO the experiment was a great success. As a man who struggles with lust, I am a huge fan of having only the lyrics on the screens, the images of the women on stage on the screen on serve as a distraction or temptation for me. Not that they are doing anything wrong, it’s my brokenness that causes the struggle. I only wished Willow would either make lyric sheets or another screen with only the lyrics available for me and my fellow strugglers.
Comment by Anonymous — October 8, 2010 @ 11:51 am
I really enjoyed having the worship team roam around the church. So often we feel like an “audience” and that makes you guys entertainers. I loved the feeling of being part of the worship team. It was really exciting! Thanks for being innovative and challenging!
Comment by Eileen — October 8, 2010 @ 12:01 pm
Interesting concept! Thanks for sharing.
Comment by Barry Westman — October 8, 2010 @ 12:22 pm
Aaron – I LOVE it. I always found it so distracting at Willow having the faces behind the lyrics. I got focused on figuring out how they coordinated their wardrobes etc.
I think it’s great you all & WCCC leadership were willing to give this a try. No small undertaking – but your thoughts are so true to my heart & soul… Priesthood of all believers… we are ALL pastors…
Comment by Jackie Reitsma — October 8, 2010 @ 2:54 pm
i heard rob bell say that a friend of his who’s an architect told him that when he looks at mars hill’s sanctuary, it tells him that the “action is somewhere else”.
i thought this was really great.
Comment by Ben Comerci — October 8, 2010 @ 6:14 pm
Fabulous idea and execution, Aaron. The whole concept of getting the congregation participating more is catching on. (Of course it’s nothing new–as Lizzy notes, above–but perhaps a new generation needs to be reintroduced to how the Church has worshiped for hundreds of years.) Our lecture series at Judson last Monday covered this very concept. Here’s a summary of the teaching, courtesy of worship leader Ryan Flanigan, who serves in the South Bend area. Keep up the good work! http://www.reformworship.com/
Comment by Warren Anderson — October 14, 2010 @ 10:46 pm
Sounds like you are asking some great questions….way to push the envelope and take a risk. I can feel the shift in the community just from watching the video.
Comment by Joe Liu — October 25, 2010 @ 8:19 am