Shaped by the Gospel: Christ-Centered Worship in the Church

By Drew von Neida

The word “gospel” is used widely today, but not always rightly. Many churches speak of “gospel-centered” services while simultaneously shaping those services to meet the felt needs and desires of the surrounding culture. The result? A gathering that may be culturally impressive, emotionally stirring, and numerically successful. Yet, spiritually shallow and doctrinally compromised.

There is a critical distinction we must recover: culture-shaped gospel services aim to revive cultural satisfaction, while Bible-shaped gospel services aim to grow the church in Christlikeness. One is centered on the expectations of man; the other on the exaltation of Christ.

1. Culture-Shaped Gospel Services: Popularity Over Purity

Culture-shaped services often build their structure and tone around attracting and retaining the crowd. The primary goal is to grow in number, and the methods are designed accordingly. Sermons are shortened and softened. Music mimics popular trends. Reverence is replaced with relatability. The service becomes a production. Entertainment dressed up as worship.

The focus shifts from what God desires to what people want. Biblical convictions give way to strategic branding. The sermon becomes a talk. The pulpit becomes a stage. And the message becomes man-centered, crafted to make attendees feel uplifted but rarely convicted, encouraged but rarely transformed.

“For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions.”
—2 Timothy 4:3

These culture-driven gatherings often boast of being “alive” because of their size and energy. But revival is not measured by attendance. True revival produces repentance, not just relevance.

2. Bible-Shaped Gospel Services: Christlikeness Over Crowd Appeal

In contrast, a Bible-shaped service is not crafted around what is appealing to unbelievers but what is honoring to Christ and edifying to the saints. Its goal is not cultural satisfaction, but spiritual sanctification. It is structured not by trends, but by truth.

A Bible-shaped service reflects the priorities of the early church:

“And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.”
—Acts 2:42

This kind of service is centered on the Word, saturated with prayer, grounded in reverence, and focused on God’s glory. It may not be flashy. It may not be trending. But it feeds the soul, equips the saints, and exalts the Savior.

Ephesians 4:11–13 gives the aim of faithful gospel ministry:

“…to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain… to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.”

The goal is Christlikeness, not crowd size. It is spiritual growth, not platform growth.

3. The Root Difference: Who Defines Success?

At the heart of the divide between culture-shaped and Bible-shaped services is this question: Who defines what makes a service successful? If man defines it, then numbers, excitement, and innovation will guide the service. If God defines it, then faithfulness, holiness, and biblical fidelity will guide it.

God’s evaluation of gospel ministry has never been rooted in popularity. In fact, biblical ministry often leads to opposition, not applause:

“Woe to you, when all people speak well of you, for so their fathers did to the false prophets.”
—Luke 6:26

“Am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God?… If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.”
—Galatians 1:10

True gospel service does not pander to the culture, it confronts it. It does not entertain the sinner, it calls him to repentance. It does not aim to be liked, it aims to be holy.

4. Recovering a Christ-Shaped Vision for the Church

If we want churches that are truly gospel-shaped, we must begin with this foundational conviction: The gospel is not a product to be marketed but a truth to be proclaimed. Services must be designed around what Scripture prescribes. Not around what culture applauds.

This means:

• Preaching expositional sermons that explain and apply God’s Word.
• Prioritizing corporate prayer and biblical singing, not mere emotional stimulation.
• Calling people to repentance and faith, not vague self-improvement.
• Structuring our worship with reverence, clarity, and order, not spectacle.

We must resist the pressure to reinvent the church in the image of the world and instead return to the timeless model given in Scripture. The aim is not cultural revival. It is Christlike renewal that has a result of bringing revival to a community.

What Shapes Your Worship?

The church does not need more relevance; it needs more reverence. It does not need a service that reflects the culture, but one that reflects Christ.

Let us ask ourselves: Is our gospel service shaped by the culture’s expectations or by the Bible’s commands? Are we growing in size or in sanctification? Are we drawing attention to ourselves or directing attention to Christ?

A culture-shaped gospel service will pass away with the world. A Bible-shaped gospel service will endure, because it is rooted in the unchanging glory of God.

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly… teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness.”
—Colossians 3:16

May our services reflect this glorious aim; not to make people feel better, but to make them more like Christ.

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