Let Worship be Worship and Evangelism be Evangelsim

     How do we distinguish between worship and evangelism? Marva Dawn provides a helpful analogy in her book A Royal “Waste” of Time The Splendor of Worshiping God and Being Church for the World. She writes about how she would tell a group of people all about what a wonderful person her husband, Melvin, is. She would tell them that he is a gifted and compassionate elementary school teacher, a wonderful gardener, and a patient listener. She would tell that that she loves him very much and how her love for him and his love for her has changed her life; how the relationship she shares with him has transformed her life and fills her with joy and hope.

Such an interaction is very different from the conversation and time she spends with Melvin when she returns to their home. In those times Marva tells Melvin all about her day and listens to him as he tells her about his day. She is in awe of him. She shares her life’s stories with him and immerses herself in his life and his love. They also share times of loving silence. Marva simply enjoying being in the presence of her beloved.

The first example, of Marva telling others about her husband and her love for him, is an example of evangelism. This is the work of the whole people of God, sharing their experience of God as they have come to know him in the crucified and risen Jesus Christ. Evangelism is primarily introducing Christ to people who do not know him in a way that he is good news to them and to their lives. This work is not unlike how Marva would introduce Melvin to a crowd who has never met him.

The second example, of Marva enjoying time and sharing herself with Melvin when they are together, is an example of the dynamic of worship. Worship is for the whole people of God, the baptized disciples, who know Christ and are seeking to live lives that are faithful reflections of his good news for the world and the coming reign of God. It is the people of God coming into God’s presence as a community to offer themselves completely to the service of God in praise, confession, word, prayer, and sacraments.

While evangelism and worship certainly overlap one another, neither should be overly burdened with the other. They each have their own integrity. The church would be much better off if we understood this and became faithful practitioners of both.

People who are not regularly fed on the word and table of Christ cannot be expected to live in the world as faithful evangelists. In like manner, seekers who respond to the good news will not receive the nurture they need if they are not formed by regular participation in worshipping God through word and table.