Worship (5)

Worship "Outside The Camp"Good News Community Church

June 29, 2008Timothy Chan

Class Outline

❖6/1 - God: The Author of Worship

❖6/8 - Act of Worship: Biblical Models

❖6/15 - Worship in Community (part 1)

❖6/22 - Worship in Community (part 2)

❖6/29 - Worship "Outside The Camp"

Feedback for Daily Worship Practice

Feedback for Daily Worship Practice

• Was it easy? hard?• Did you gain any new insights about worship?

about God?

"Easy" Worship?

• Original title for today's talk was "Worship is not easy"

Hindrances to Worship?

• When do you find it hardest to worship God?• Name one thing or circumstance that could hinder

you from worshiping God?

For Real: a "Drive-In Church"!!!

• June 9, 2008: small church in Marietta, GA offers drive-in church service ... probably not the "community" Jesus had in mind

Source: http://www.ajc.com/search/content/metro/cobb/stories/2008/06/08/Drive_In_church_service.html

Hindrances to Worship

• Usually the toughest hindrances to worship come from an incorrect understanding of worship, or when we compartmentalize our life to make worship "easy" and "convenient" and "less challenging"

Hindrances to Worship

• Fear of God's Holinesso Ex 20:18-21 全體人民都看見打雷、閃電、角聲

和冒著煙的山；人民看見了，就顫抖，遠遠地站著。他們對摩西說：“求你和我們說話吧，我們必定聽你的話，不可讓　神和我們說話，恐怕我們死亡。”摩西回答人民：“不要懼怕，因為　神降臨是要試驗你們，叫你們常常敬畏他，不至犯罪。”於是，人民遠遠地站著，摩西卻走近　神所在的幽暗之中。

o They were unwilling to pay the price of their lives to draw near to God; but they pay the price of losing intimacy with God

Hindrances to Worship

• Worldliness and idolatry -- did not deal with sinso 2 Kings 14:35,40-41 耶和華曾經和他們立約，又

吩咐他們說：“你們不可崇敬別的神，不可跪拜他們，不可服事他們，也不可向他們獻祭。 ...” 可是他們沒有聽從，仍然照著他們起初的習俗去行。這樣，這些民族一方面敬畏耶和華；另一方面又繼續服事他們的偶像。他們的子子孫孫繼續照著他們的祖先所行的去行，直到今日。

o If worship does not propel us into greater obedience, it is not worship. ... To worship is to change." -- Richard Foster, "Celebration Of Discipline" (1978), p. 173

Hindrances to Worship

• Individualistic mysticismo Col 2:18-19,23 不要讓人奪去你們的獎賞，他們

以故意謙卑，敬拜天使為樂；迷於自己所見過的；憑著肉體的意念，無故地自高自大；不與頭緊密相連。其實全身都是藉著關節和筋絡從頭得著供應和聯繫，就照著　神所要求的，生長起來。 ... 在隨著己意敬拜，故作謙卑，和苦待己身等事上，似乎是智慧之言，其實只能叫人放縱肉體，再沒有任何價值。

o Individualistic worship can become self-actualization; we should avoid such sayings as "Jesus as your personal Savior"

Hindrances to Worship

• Consumerism -- wanting to "get fed"o Heb 5:12-13a 到這個時候，你們應該已經作老師

了；可是你們還需要有人再把　神道理的初步教導你們。你們成了只能吃奶而不能吃乾糧的人！凡是吃奶的，還是個嬰孩 ...

o "Only babies complain about not getting fed ... when someone in a church says, 'I'm not getting fed' my thought is, 'Then you BETTER be a baby.' ... The people who complain about not getting fed are never the baby Christians, but always the older, supposedly more mature Christians." -- Vince Antonucci, www.vinceantonucci.com

Hindrances to Worship

• Legalistic ritualism -- relying on human meanso Phi 3:2-4a 你們要提防那些“狗”，提防作惡的，

提防行割禮的。其實我們這些靠　神的靈來敬拜，在基督耶穌裡誇口而不倚靠肉體的人，才是受割禮的，雖然我有理由可以倚靠肉體。

o Col 2:8,11 你們要謹慎，免得有人不照著基督，而照著人的傳統，和世俗的言論，藉著哲學和騙人的空談，把你們擄去。 ... 你們也在他裡面受了不是由人手所行的割禮，而是受了基督的割禮，就是除掉你們的罪身。

o The error is putting confidence in rituals and human achievements rather than in Christ

Hindrances to Worship

• Empty ritualism -- meaningless worship actso Isaiah 29:13 主說：“因為這子民只用言語來親

近我，用嘴唇尊崇我，他們的心卻遠離我。他們對我的敬畏，只是遵從傳統的吩咐。

o The error is going through the motions of "worship actions" but not understanding why, and those worship actions are divorced from the heart and from the life

o The biblical Hebrew word for "heart" can mean one's whole life

Worship and Life

• Recently worship renewalists want people to (rightly) reject the narrow focus that worship only happens on Sundays or in church, but promote "worship as a lifestyle"

• "Worship as a lifestyle" creates its own problems:o It implies worship is an individualistic, inwardly

focused activityo "The word 'lifestyle' connotes a choice. We pick

options that suit us best and compile a style of life from our choices. But worship is not an option. It is a command of God." -- Maggi Dawn, quoted in "Worship Leader" magazine, Sep/Oct 2003, p. 20

Worship and Life

• In fact, we already worship all the time, whether we like it or not!

• At any moment, everyone on earth is worshiping and serving something or someone

• Moreover, the Bible rarely mentions worship in an individualistic context, but almost always in a corporate contexto 1 Peter 2:9 然而你們是蒙揀選的族類 (race) ，是君尊的祭司 (priesthood) ，是聖潔的國民(nation) ，是屬　神的子民 (people) ，為要叫你們宣揚那召你們出黑暗入奇妙光明者的美德。

Worship and Life

• Corporate worship and corporate service and corporate edification are not just confined to Sundayso 1 Cor 10:31 所以，你們或吃喝，或作甚麼，一切都要為　神的榮耀而行。

o Heb 3:13 趁著還有叫作“今天”的時候，總要天天互相勸勉，免得你們中間有人受了罪惡的誘惑，心裡就剛硬了。

Worship and Life

• One of the main purposes of corporate worship is a rehearsal to prepare us to worship in the world

• The word "liturgy" refers to corporate worship acts; it's derived from two Greek words, "laos" and "ergon," meaning "people" and "work": liturgy is "the work of the people"o "... all liturgy is related to mission, to what

happens in our world not just on Sunday but also on Monday through Saturday. The church exists for the sake of the world." -- Rodney Clapp, "A Peculiar People" (1996), p. 115

o Is 6:8b “ 我在這裡，請差遣我。”

Worship "Outside The Camp"

Heb 13:11-16 那些祭牲的血，由大祭司帶進聖所作贖罪祭，祭牲的身體卻要在營外焚燒。所以耶穌也是這樣在城門外受苦，為的是要藉著自己的血使人民成聖。那麼，讓我們也出到營外到他那裡去，擔當他的凌辱。因為在這裡我們沒有長存的城，我們卻是尋求那將要來的城。所以，我們要藉著耶穌，常常把頌讚的祭品獻給　神，這就是承認他的名的人嘴唇的果子。你們也不要忘記行善和捐輸，這樣的祭是　神所喜悅的。

Worship "Outside The Camp"

• The book of Hebrews was written to Jewish Christians who are considering going back to Judaism to avoid persecution from non-Christianso They wanted easier religiono They wanted legalistic ritualism

• "The point of Hebrews 13:12-16 is loud and clear: Christians, move toward need, not comfort!" -- John Piper, www.desiringgod.org

Worship "Outside The Camp"

• "Outside the camp" is a place of uncleannesso Lev 16:27-28 那作贖罪祭的公牛和作贖罪祭的公

山羊，牠們的血既然被帶進去為聖所贖罪，牠們的身體就要搬出營外去；牠們的皮、肉和糞都要用火燒掉。那燒祭牲的人要洗淨自己的衣服，用水洗身，然後才可以進營。

• The sacrifice of Christ was offered outside of the holy city of Jerusalem, so paradoxically it's Christ's "unholy sacrifice" which sanctifies uso "The death of Jesus ... marks the abolition of the

necessity of holy places for sanctification" -- Eugene Peterson, "Engaging With God" (1992), p. 245

Worship "Outside The Camp"

Heb 13:11-16 那些祭牲的血，由大祭司帶進聖所作贖罪祭，祭牲的身體卻要在營外焚燒。所以耶穌也是這樣在城門外受苦，為的是要藉著自己的血使人民成聖。那麼，讓我們也出到營外到他那裡去，擔當他的凌辱。因為在這裡我們沒有長存的城，我們卻是尋求那將要來的城。所以，我們要藉著耶穌，常常把頌讚的祭品獻給　神，這就是承認他的名的人嘴唇的果子。你們也不要忘記行善和捐輸，這樣的祭是　神所喜悅的。

Worship "Outside The Camp"

• The God-pleasing sacrifices of Christians are:o Sacrifice of praise (Heb 13:15)o Sacrifice of deeds (Heb 13:16)

• "承認 " in Heb 13:15 is homologeo, which has the meaning to acknowledge publicly, freely, and openlyo "Our writer's concern .. is to exhort believers to

acknowledge Christ in the world, in the face of opposition and suffering" -- Eugene Peterson, "Engaging With God" (1992), p. 246

Worship "Outside The Camp"

• "The place of Christian service or worship is in the uncleanness of the world, where there is unbelief and persecution" -- Eugene Peterson, "Engaging With God" (1992), p. 245o Matt 10:16 現在，我差派你們出去，好像羊進到狼群中間；所以你們要像蛇一樣機警，像鴿子一樣純潔。

Conclusion

• Worship in the world is not supposed to be easyo Vital worship is challengingo Vital worship is full of "tension"

... between Sunday and rest of the week ... between "in the world but not of it" ... between "victory already won" and yet

attacks from Satan and worldliness• "Worship is a way of seeing the world in the light of

God." -- Abraham Joshua Heschel, in Samuel Dresner (ed.) "I Asked For Wonder" (1983), p. 20

1. God reveals Himself to us...

2. ... and we engage with God and respond to God ...

3. ... as we minister to God with one another ...

4. ... and we are compelled to be changed and to engage in subversive changing of the world