In the Old Testament, the worship law was given as a part of the Sinaitic Covenant, the purpose of which was to make Israe1 a kingdom of priests and a holy nation (Ex. 19: 6). With the covenant, God desired that Israel would carry out the role of mediating the nations with God (the role of priest) by living a sacred life among the worldly nations (the role of a holy nation) Then from where were the Israelites able to get the power to perform these roJes? The major source of power for that life was given through worship that continued to remind the Israelites of the history of salvation done by God throughout their history. As they heard how God saved the Israelites from Egypt and how he fed them for 40 years in the desert, they praised the great salvation carried out by God. Through these activities the Israelites were ab1e to experience God who saved them not onJy in the past but also now, and thus, based on that experience, they gained the power to live the life of witnesses in the wor1d. In a word, God, by commanding worship 1aws, intended to provide “ a context for equipping Israel" toward effective and powerful centripetal witness. In this sense, the major purpose of worship is to train and equip God’ s people so that they can contrib ute to the expansion of the kingdom of God. When this goal of worship is well achieved, the church as the agent of the kingdom ministry will grow naturally. Then what are the ways of making the worship that nurtures kingdom witnesses? Of course the ways would vary according to the context where worship is done. So I would like to provide just brief and basic suggestions toward that goal. First, we need to consider the needs of worshipers. The worship that ignores the needs of attendees will be ignored by the people in return. On the other hand, the worship that satisfies the needs of congregations would lead many people. Secondly, it is necesary to make worship to be oriented toward witness. When we say the term “ worship that is oriented toward witness," it means the worship that attracts non-believers and the worship that empowers congregations to become effective witnesses. Thirdly. we should try to make worship dynamic. Dynamic worship is possible when it is opened towards the work of the Holy Spirit who leads worship with flexi-bility and dynamics. Fourthly, we have to recognize the importance of praise in worship. Effective worship leaders do their best in selecting and developing hyrnns that would touch the heart of people. Finally, we need to consider the emotional dimension of people. Wise worship leaders do their utmost to give good impressions to attendees and, in particular, to newcomers in their worship. To effectively bring about dynamic church growth, we need to continue to study detailed methods and develop them with a view of the big picture of “ witness-oriented worship."

• 안승오(영남신대, 선교학) | Seung-Oh An