In the Bible Christianity is described in multiple ways. We have warfare, a race, a pilgrimage, abuilding, and a body all of which are to be conquered, seized, and gained. Believers are to advance in love, faith, knowledge, hope, purity, holiness, gifts, grace, discipline, and usefulness. At the center of all this is the act of worship. In reviewing Joshua 18:1-3, we discover some requirements for worship. There are those things that we are able to do. There are things that we already know we should do.
There must be a unity within the church to occur. This is not an arbitrary term when we speak of unity. This is a definite requirement. All those who claim to be church members, in fact, all those who claim to be Christians should be present as the body of Christ. This means we must put out some effort to rise on Sunday morning, get dressed, and bid services scheduled. We are admonished in Hebrews 10:25 not to avoid the assembling together as some would. Not only must we be present physically, we must be present in spirit. Attending a worship service is not a fellowship gathering. It is not a place in which we catch up on the latest community gossip. It is a place in which we have our own spirits, attuned for the single purpose of worship by putting forth an enthusiasm that is genuine with expectation. This also includes that we must be present for the Holy Spirit to work in our lives. It is ours to put forth a spiritual perspective. When we come to the dinner table, we have the expectation to be filled so that our bodies can be nourished. When we come to church service, we must have a similar expectation so that our spirits can be nourished.
Let us remind ourselves of the purpose for worship to occur. We gather at the church building as a community of believers joined together for one common purpose. Even though we don’t use the word edify frequently in our conversations, it is the most appropriate word to use when speaking of believers gathered together in service. We don’t come as individuals alone. We gather together to edify or build up, magnify, enrich, improve the health of the body of Christ. We may have the victory of Christ gained on the cross, but we don’t always have success in our individual and communal life. The reason is that we don’t apply the effort to edify. It is also our responsibility to verify the truth that comes from the pulpit, the words we sing, and the understanding of Scriptures we hear. We must verify why we are doing it. We have a reason to be gathered together. We have a purpose to fulfill. We must also clarify our own understanding of the Word of God. Even the dullest of sermons can have some nugget of truth that we can absorbed into her spirit. Worship is a learning experience as well as a giving experience. It is a recognition of the Almighty Creator.
Ours is to recognize freedom of worship whether it be in the free environment of America or even in a hostile communistic country. No oppression and no freedom can rob us of what happens in our heart, of what happens in our minds. We gather together and are never satisfied with the way things presently are. This might include the need for healing, reconciliation, salvation, or training. The growing church is a congregation of people who are never satisfied with the status quo. On the opposite there are those people who are slothful, weary, even in remiss for not understanding and applying what true worship is. The body of Christ can never, never become accustomed to the postponement that the world would impose on us. We can never delay a response to God’s Spirit. Every minute of every day is an opportunity to glorify God in his service. Should we ever allow ourselves to be distracted to worldly matters, we might find ourselves in the muck and mire of lacking belief. Yes, it may be easy to become discouraged. But we must never give up our convictions. We must never allow ourselves to be turned back into self-serving ways of life. If we are truly worshiping, we are very conscious of what we are doing.
Christian Writer 