Why We Worship.
(Read 1 Corinthians 1:18-25). I tell my catechumens there are only two
religions on earth.
ONE religion is based in the Law, what people do or don’t do to please
God (or some higher being or beings). This is almost always done for their
personal benefit. They believe that by doing some actions or avoiding other
actions, their God(s) will smile on them and give them peace, enlightenment,
balance, good health, success, happy marriages, kids, and other such
temporal and eternal benefits. A tidy eternal return on investment!
Now - I realize that this is a broad oversimplification, but I’ve never
heard or read anyone able to correct that idea, whether they are Muslim,
Mormon, Mason, Moonie, Jew, Jainist, Jehovah Witness, or other
anti-Christian group.
When any non-Christian religion is examined, it always falls in the
category of Law. If you do enough good (according to our list) and avoid
enough evil, you may possibly evade damnation and even perhaps get our
version of a blissful afterlife. When non-Christians view Exodus 20, they
see a list of “Thou shalt nots” and use it as rules in their game of life to
see if they have followed the rules adequately to collect riches and
rewards. Again, with one authentic exception, all religions in the universe
are LAW.
The OTHER religion (singular) is based in the Gospel. The Gospel is
the Good News of forgiveness we have in the cross of Christ. It does not
say “do”, it proclaims “done” – Christ has purchased and won me from all
sin, death, and the power of the devil by being my Substitute in life and
death.
This is the heart of authentic Christianity.
“My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.”
Or as a hymn for Lent proclaims, “Not what these hands have done can save
this guilty soul… not what I feel or do can give me peace with God.” It
goes on to sing of Christ’s work, blood, and love alone – these save us by
grace thru faith.
We love God because He first loved us (1 John 4), and Christians
believe that God smiles on us NOT because we have done anything or avoided
anything, but rather due to His grace and peace alone.
The non-Christian looks at the cross as utter foolishness! That God
would become fully human, be utterly humbled, and then condemned by those He
came to save? For Christians, that (message of the cross) is the power of
God to save.
When it comes to proof of who is right, religions of Law always demand
external things on their own terms. There must be some feeling (burning in
the bosom), experience (Jewish miracle; ritual), or inside or outside wisdom
(Gnostic, Greek, Easternism) to confirm a change of faith. Their version of
god fits what they WANT to believe: obey the rules of the religion, and you
will be blessed in some way.
Christ crucified is a trap and a barrier to them; it goes counter to
“natural religions”.
So, keep in mind here the idea of two opposing religions of works and
grace as they apply to not just physical life, but also your spirituality.
Why DO you worship?
That sounds a little funny, but it is a very serious question that is
debated inside Christianity as well as outside. What is the purpose of
Christian worship?
The Old Sinful Man in us all views Church as Law. We do this to please
God; or our parents, or pastor. When folks don’t go to church, they are
made to feel guilty about their failure to participate, put in to the
collection plates, and other LAW ideas and legalistic events. So if life
isn’t going well, they feel if they just “get back to church” or maybe "get
back to God" that things will go well for them again and life will be
skillful. And, if life is great, why bother going to church until God is
mad at us again?
As Luther said: the Law always accuse and condemns us, it does not
bring us to God. It does not bring a lasting relationship with God, nor
does it move people to faith.
A variant of that Old Adam version of “worship for God’s benefit” is
“worship for OUR benefit”. Sunday becomes a collection of “how-to” lectures
on steps to take to have a good marriage, successful business, or elect ‘our’
politicians to do the Lord’s business. The goal of such churches is a
change in behavior, not faith, eternal life, and salvation.
These are the sorts of misleaders Jesus was chasing out of God’s House
(John 2) with zeal. Temple activity had degraded to not only moral teaching
to get-right-with-God which is very bad, but it had sunk to an activity to
line pockets of merchants and the ruling class. When church exists for no
more than fundraising, it’s not worship. It's not even church.
Then there are churches labeled “Christian” that teach worship is ONLY
about “giving glory to God” or worship is a “how-to” about teaching morals
so God will finally be pleased with our level of sanctification and bless us
for our obedience with earthly or eternal treasures. They are based in the
Law, and so the cross of Christ is often ignored, or even absent. Unless it
is Good Friday. Maybe. Then it may show up to fuel a guilt trip.
We’re back to the question. But not for them. Why do YOU worship? If
we gather with the goal of learning only to better obey the Ten
Commandments, we are like every other religion on earth and multiculturalism
is true. If worship is only about giving glory to God, then we would do
better to set up a theater and find secular music that pleases our ears,
makes us feel good, and adapt some of the words. If you’re here in God's
House only because you want to obey God’s Law with great zeal, you stand
condemned by God to hell for your imperfect actions and evil motives.
Christianity is based in something wiser than our fallen nature’s
wisdom and stronger than our strength. It is based entirely on the blood of
Jesus Christ which cleanses us from ALL sins. We sin when we treat worship
as something we do for God or as something we do to make us feel better
about ourselves. God's Word says those ideas are clearly bad. God's Word
also tells us clearly what is good.
THE PURPOSE OF CHRISTIAN WORSHIP IS TO RECEIVE THE GIFTS OF CHRIST
CRUCIFIED.
It is not by the Law (our own reason and strength) we believe in Christ
or come to Him. The Holy Spirit calls us by the Gospel thru the channel or
means of grace which are the spoken or written Holy Word of God as well as
the Sacraments of Holy Baptism and Holy Communion. We are kept in faith by
these same things: God's Word and His Sacraments.
God’s miracle was not to use an avenging warrior type Messiah who does
wonders and gives political powers – it is His Son lifted up on the cross,
the Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world. God’s wisdom was not
to use fallen human logic of laws and hidden understanding for us to gain
more members or eternal life – it is the message of the scandal of God as
the Suffering Servant Who paid the debt we owe for our sins and could never
pay.
God used the cross so He would not nullify His holiness. God’s holy
purity demands perfect righteousness, and only the Son of God has the power
to totally purify humanity of all sin forever, making us justified by His
grace.
God tells us the preaching of the Cross is the power to salvation.
Faith is not created by threats or arguments – you can’t quarrel someone
into heaven. Mechanical rituals do not endow people with faith.
Only the power of the Holy Spirit proclaiming the message of
Christ-crucified can bring a soul to faith OR keep them. That’s why
Lutheran worship [hymns, liturgy, preaching] is filled with quotes from the
Bible and it centers on Christ, not us. It is not fuel for a guilt trip.
It is fuel for the journey of eternal life: our 24/7 day to day -- and
on-the-way to see and be with Jesus forever.
It is God opening our lips so we can praise Him. It’s God “making
haste” to deliver us. We sing from Psalm 95 about the God of our salvation.
Our toungues sing the glorious battle of Christ against death, devil, and
damnation, and His victory on the cross. Give God glory? It is already
His. The best we poor sinners can do is reflect it dimly and praise Him for
it.
God also gives His gifts to us in tangible bread and wine, offering
forgiveness we can taste, life and salvation we receive by mouth rather than
by ears and eyes.
The hymns, liturgy, and preaching DO work to change us – but not merely
to obey the Ten Commandments and live moral lives (the 'narrow sense
sanctification' we have been talking about in Adult Bible Class). The
Gospel changes our attitude to be like Christ, humbly serving God and people
because of Christ’s love poured into us. It is like the sap returning to
the trees in our yards and greening the leaves. It gives life.
Hymns, liturgy and preaching DO make us feel good – and thank God they
do, since emotions can be a great gift from God. But not merely emotions
because of our slippery-slope of goodness which comes and goes. Our
feelings are based in the righteousness of Christ which is perfect and
unchanging, not an emotional frenzy or danceable tune.
God's holy Word tells us that morals and feelings are an OUTCOME of
focusing on Christ-crucified in worship, not the goal. The Law, when it is
authentically preached, WILL crush us. The Ten Commandments can be seen as
an indication of God’s love in us by our New Adam, rather than the list of
do-and-don’t the Old Adam wants it to be. The Law is replaced by the
Gospel. As the Collect says, we, who of ourselves have no strength, are
kept both outwardly and inwardly by the power of the Gospel as we fix our
spiritual eyes (and indeed all our senses) on Jesus, the Author and
Perfecter of our faith.
For the authentic Christian, worship is not seen as some thing we MUST
do. Worship is what we will really WANT to do. We hunger and thrirst after
Christ's righteousness, not our own, and God is serving us in the Divine
Service. Genuine Christians go to church with zeal because it means
receiving God’s gifts of Christ-crucified -- and we as God’s children are
close to Him in His House.
May the gift of salvation, proclaimed in Christ-crucified: direct your
life, bring you joy every day, strengthen every moment, give wisdom beyond
the world, and keep you firm in God's gift of faith forever. Amen.
Introit-Psalm 25:15, 142:1, 5-7; Gradual -Hebrews 12:2
Exodus 20:1-17, 1 Corinthians 1:18-31, John 2:13-22
Pastor Michael Harman
St. Peter LCMS - Newell, IA
Vacancies at 1st-Fonda and Immanuel-Pomeroy
I hope to post LSB-B Reminiscere tomorrow.
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