But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him (John 4:22-23).
Worshipping the Lord as a community, binds us together because corporate worship brings the many into one. Individuality is left behind and the body becomes prominent and though many, we become one. True worship is saying the same thing about God that He says about Himself, and it springs from recognition of who God is and what He has done.
In scripture, when believers faced insurmountable obstacles, the first thing they did was to acknowledge our creator God. They remembered His power. Our corporate worship, which builds community, is based on recognition of who God is. It is recorded in the book of 2 Chronicles that Israel experienced an attack of epic proportions. They were unable to respond militarily, but when they sought the Lord, He mightily supplied the answer. Let us follow these series of scriptural events:
So they rose early in the morning and went out into the Wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: believe in the Lord your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper.” And when he has consulted with the people he appointed those who should sing to the Lord, and who should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army and were saying: “Praise the Lord, for His mercy endures forever.” Now when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated. (2 Chronicles 20:20-23)
As Judah worshipped the Lord, they were all of one mind and purpose, marching against the enemy with the Praise Team in the lead. There is no doubt that Judah’s sense of community was heightened that day as the Praise Team was drafted into the army and the army became a battalion of praisers. They were bound into one through the results of their unifying worship as the Lord fought for them. We are also bound together every day through our worship as the Lord fights our battles.