I’m in lofty territory. My devotional book is about worship; the theme for the Bible class I teach is the glory of Christ. As I read and study, I’m challenged to make these incredibly truths applicable to ordinary life.
The book defines true worship as: “the celebration of being in covenant fellowship with the sovereign and holy triune God, by means of the reverent adoration and spontaneous praise of God’s nature and works, the expressed commitment of trust and obedience to the covenant responsibilities, and the memorial reenactment of entering into covenant through ritual acts, all with the confident anticipation of the fulfillment of the covenant promises in glory.”
That is a mouthful! I know that God wants my worship, but human as I am, I tend to ask, “Is there anything in this for me” and if not as blunt and selfishly as that, then “What practical purpose does worship serve in the life of a Christian?”
That second word is significant: celebration. Remembering the last birthday, or wedding, or anniversary, or home team victory, or personal win produces a faint hint of the emotional delights of what God gives us in the celebration called worship. Before, during and after these lesser events, my heart is elevated and that ‘bright mood’ or whatever way it can be described, affects everything. I’m more cheerful with myself and others, more energetic, joyful, eager to get at things. Reading this definition makes me realize that true worship is that too.
I’m sad about the times I’ve wasted opportunities to worship by falling into rote, routine and ritual. For me, those modes are not only boring but produce the opposite mood. Instead of celebrating, I’m (at the least) in a hurry for it to be over. When I’m not celebrating, those other ‘C’ words so easily come into play—complacent, complaining and critical.
With this book and the study of Christ’s glory, my heart easily fills up with worship. As I read 1 Timothy 3:16 this morning, its truths put me in celebration mode. “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up in glory.”
God came to earth and took on human flesh. Jesus is fully God, yet fully human. He knows what life is like for us, knows our temptations, sorrows, limitations and struggles. While He did not sin, He knows our battle against it. I’m awed by his willingness to leave the “glory He had with the Father” to do this.
At the same time, I cannot imagine the affront to His senses as He experienced this world with its sights, sounds and smells. For Jesus, coming here was no holiday. Compared to the perfections of heaven, earth, even at its best, would be to Him an ugly, noisy, smelly place.
I know that in a small way only. A couple years ago we took a short trip to southeast Asia and experienced a culture totally unlike the ‘glories’ of living in our homeland. While we wanted to be there, we didn’t anticipate great culture shock, but shocked we were. At the same time, the people we were involved in that place certainly celebrated that we came.
Our trip was a small thing. Jesus coming into our world is a big thing. God manifested in the flesh; that is glory. He did that because He loves me; that is glory. Just thinking about it has me in a party mood—I’m ready to celebrate!
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