Worship

As read on Weds 16 April 2008...

This is an attempt to do something rather unProtestant: rather than rely on the scripture alone as my guide, this is a product of reflection on practice, tradition, and indeed reflection itself. That is not to say this is not informed by the Bible, I am just choosing a separate approach than say, a word, verse, chapter, or book study. Careful consideration has been made to the validity if these remarks based on the story of God and His work and contradictions with this story have been carefully avoided or edited. I promise. Rather than exposition on the Bible, this is a contemplation, a gathering of thoughts manifested into a piece resembling rambling prose, hopefully sounding more lyrical, as if poetry as written without attention to established meter and form…
This I submit as personal worship, a prayer in long form, to be shared with my brothers and sisters with the intent on bringing us together in worship of the Lord God Almighty- who, perfect in community, seeks to make us more like Himself.

Worship is something that we as a species share among the generous plurality of human culture. It is something that comes easy to us as humans. For those of us who participate in a faith based on the revealed work of The One Who Is, one should rightly say that it is the focus of our lives, as we understand what is meant and what has been done for us by Jesus. For those who believe in other religions, they too have important obligations to worship their appropriate deities, forces, or demigods, etc. Worship to some extent can be seen in most peoples’ lives, even if does not have the marks of what we would assume it to look like (division of sacred and profane, religious ethics, hallowed ground, on and on). Even outside of religious tradition, human beings are known to give strange amounts of attention to seemingly inconsequential items, persons, behaviors, or cuts of jeans. Worship, in fact, exists in some way shape or form even after religion is supposedly destroyed by overwhelming human intellectual and physical effort: for example you can see the veneration of the working class ideal in Soviet culture as a substitute for religious expression. Thus, like breathing, drinking, eating, parenting, playing, and fighting, worship comes rather naturally for us.

In ancient Israel, it was important to present various sacrifices to God in order to fully account for the transgressions of a people. Songs and poems were written to reflect on what God had done for His people. Temples were built in an attempt to give God a house that He did not really need in the first place. Israel was capable of worshipping its God, but over the years, it would also attempt to cover its bases by worshipping too well, outside of the guidelines given to them by a jealous God. This paragraph may seem out of place, except to preface the next section as a parable of the church…

A statement that is thrown around a lot in Asbury is profound in its simplicity: Worship is the central action of the people of God. As I was thinking about this statement, I started to wonder if that is true in my own life, if that is true in the life of the body, and even if that is true or not. I realize tat my own life should resemble a dance of sorts, a fine and elegant performance where I am expected to know the steps and conventions to a tune I know very well form weeks of rehearsal, with a partner I am intimately connected with on every level. In actuality, my life does resemble this to an extent, but the steps are broken, the tune fades in and out because of a faulty sound system and my partner knows way more about me than I do about Them. Expectations aside, the fact that I wish to learn these things is pleasing to my Partner: and that same Partner wishes for the dance to look more like a square dance than a tango, so that my broken steps are helped along by other dancers. As I drag this metaphor out, I see that there is much in my life I must give over in worship to the Lord including said metaphor.

Now if I may be permitted to be a little provocative. How does worship fit into the life of the body? It is strange that something hat should be so integral in the life of the believer is so compartmentalized and treated as if it does not really fit everywhere, which it does. What have we done?
We profit in vulgarity from expressions of loving God, making a venture/enterprise where it is difficult to identify authentic expression from crass commercialism.

We separate Praise from Worship in an attempt to assign labels where none are needed.

We pretend to have authority over what is “appropriate” for worshipping the God that created the people from whom culture, expression flows.

We hand over our money to get Him off our backs- as if that is what God truly wants from us, as opposed to ourselves as living sacrifices.

We expect worship to be a service given to us by individuals who have a “better relationship with God” than we do, generally content to allow them to do the work that Jesus entrusted all who believe in Him with, as if the sons of Levi, the priestly caste, were even necessary in the kingdom inaugurated by Christ.

Brothers and sisters, worship for us as a body is a service to God by His loving community and perhaps hopefully by extension a service to God’s good creation, who screams like a new mother needing an epidural for Him to return. To be blunt: leaving worship in the sanctuary is tantamount to denying the call of the church, as if your salvation and baptism is only truly active within the four walls of the church building. Fortunately, grace abounds and it is that same perfect grace that allows to worship and allows constant reconciliation between us and He Who maintains the air for our voices to vibrate.

Worship is available at all times in all places, to everyone. God really loves when we give Him things. He even likes it when we give sin over to Him, in confession. God is thankful and blessed when we allow our actions to be founded in moving through his will. It is possible to make worship an attitude, a mindset, a motivation, dare I say…a lifestyle. Truly I tell you, the kingdom of God is near and present in this life. And in this kingdom, we worship the only King worthy of any attention and His kingdom’s borders do not exist unless we decide to erect their walls in our own minds.

I do not wish to sound as if this is an ideal that I myself have achieved. In fact, I am only coming out of the first realizing step. But I wanted to encourage you, my brothers and sisters, to walk along together, in service to each other and to Him, in worship. God grants us the ability to fully love each other, and because of the work of Jesus, to have full communion with Him. Such a precious gift is worthy of the highest worship. Finally, as we sit together at the precipice of a new era of cultural understanding, new questions, few answers, and general unrest and injustice across the world, may we take part in that most ancient form of Christian worship: the Lord’s Supper. This tradition, inaugurated by Christ, is a reminder of whom we worship, why we worship Him, and especially a reminder that we are called to worship Him together. Some appropriate scripture:

Luke 22:14-30
When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, "I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God."

After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, "Take this and divide it among you. For I tell you I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes."

And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me."

In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you. But the hand of him who is going to betray me is with mine on the table. The Son of Man will go as it has been decreed, but woe to that man who betrays him." They began to question among themselves which of them it might be who would do this.

Also a dispute arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest. Jesus said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors. But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves. For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves. You are those who have stood by me in my trials. And I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me, so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel

May we break bread together to remember and celebrate. May we give our lives in worship to the one who gave His. May His grace be known and magnified by our love for Him and for each other.