We as human beings have a tendency to label everything.  Maybe that is our way of getting a handle on a concept that otherwise may be vague.  The danger in labeling is that it may not always be accurate.  A one word term cannot fully describe something that is multifaceted. 

 Categoring has certainly crept into the world of Christian worship.  Some have gone so far as to label the turmoil that has arisen from differences in worship categories as “worship wars.”  That unfortunate term may have derived from the fact that churches who once worshipped in a certain way for years find themselves with a new pastor or worship leader who wants to change to a different category of worship.  In some cases, the change is absolutely needed while in others it may not be. 

While I do not like categoring worship, it has already been done so let me share a few categories and then suggest a better way of categoring or defining what true worship is.  In recent years, worship has been labeled either traditional or contemporary.  Combining elements of both is called blended.

 A minister of music friend of mine attended a worship conference and learned that categoring worship as familiar or unfamiliar was better than traditional or contemporary. He went on to share that the reason some don’t sing in church anymore is that the songs are simply unfamiliar.  If one is used to familiar songs and then unfamiliar ones are introduced, he doesn’t sing simply because they are unfamiliar.    

Worship can also be liturgical and non-liturgical.  Worship styles differ between ethnicities and geographical locations.   Worship in rural churches sometimes differs from that in city churches.  Some worship is loud and expressive while some is quiet and subdued.  They are all different, but remember different doesn’t mean better.  It means different. 

Let me submit that the only important way to categorize worship is this way:  Spirit led or flesh driven.  Flesh driven worship, no matter its “category,” is dead.  While some styles of worship may touch various individuals on an emotional level, if it is flesh driven, it does not touch them on a spirit level, but more importantly, does not touch God.

 Jesus said in John 4:24, “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.  (NASB)