AGE-INTEGRATED WORSHIP
Age-integrated worship is the practice of keeping the entire family together in worship, rather than sending the children off to "children's church" and other age-segregated classes.
How could a former youth minister come to such a seemingly radical conclusion (by today's standards)? First, consider the following 7 Bible passages.
Deuteronomy 31:12-13
"Gather the people together, men and women and little ones, and the stranger who is within your gates, that they may hear and that they may learn to fear the LORD your God and carefully observe all the words of this law, and that their children, who have not known it, may hear and learn to fear the LORD your God as long as you live in the land which you cross the Jordan to possess." (NKJV)
Nehemiah 8:1-3
Now all the people gathered together as one man in the open square that was in front of the Water Gate; and they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses, which the LORD had commanded Israel. So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly of men and women and all who could hear with understanding on the first day of the seventh month. Then he read from it in the open square that was in front of the Water Gate from morning until midday, before the men and women and those who could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law. (NKJV)
Ezra 10:1
Now while Ezra was praying, and while he was confessing, weeping, and bowing down before the house of God, a very large assembly of men, women, and children gathered to him from Israel; for the people wept very bitterly. (NKJV)
Joel 2:15-16
Blow the trumpet in Zion, Consecrate a fast, Call a sacred assembly; Gather the people, Sanctify the congregation, Assemble the elders, Gather the children and nursing babes; Let the bridegroom go out from his chamber, And the bride from her dressing room. (NKJV)
Matthew 18:1-5
At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me." (NKJV)
Matthew 19:13-15
Then little children were brought to Him that He might put His hands on them and pray, but the disciples rebuked them. But Jesus said, "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven." And He laid His hands on them and departed from there. (NKJV)
Ephesians 6:1-4
Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. "Honor your father and mother," which is the first commandment with promise: "that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth." And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord. (NKJV)
All of these scriptures suggest that children were present during the Biblical worship of God's people. In the Old Testament, clear commands were made to include children in gatherings to hear God's Word. Children were also present when Jesus taught. Finally, in Paul's letters, which were intended to be read aloud to the churches (see Colossians 4:16), Paul gave instructions directly to children, strongly implying that they were present in the meetings of the early church. Indeed, if we were to ignore current church practices, and base our conclusions completely on the teachings of the Bible, I do not see how we could come to any other conclusion than to have children and adults together in the meeting of the church.
Beyond this strong scriptural support, I also believe that we can clearly see in the world around us that the fragmentation of our families is one of the most pressing issues in our society today. In a world where divorce, jobs, schools, sports, and other activities actively pull families apart, I believe that the last thing the church needs to do is to contribute to the disunity and fragmentation of the family.
I also believe that it is a fallacy to suggest that children do not get anything out of "big" church. By joining "adult" church, children develop a progressive understanding of prayer, worship, teaching, and experiencing Christian community. I believe that the best perspective is to consider church time to be family time: our family with the family of God--our spiritual family of brothers and sisters.
In closing, as a former youth minister, let me make it perfectly clear that I do NOT condemn all youth ministers in the church today! What I have described here is my Biblically-based convictions regarding what is best for Christian families and the church as a whole. Youth ministers, however, have a vital role to play in a society where many children live in split homes and non-Christian homes, and need someone to reach out to them. Youth ministers have an enormous mission field before them. The picture the Bible paints for Christian parents, however, is that of integrated whole-family worship. Holding my family to the plain teaching of the Bible, I have chosen for us to worship together as a family whenever we are able, and I encourage churches today to emphasize family ministries, rather than age-segregated ministries, whenever possible.
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