WATCHWORD:
23 But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way. 24 For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.” John 4:23-24
Meditation:
Christian Character
Over the years, I have attend two Lutheran churches, both follow the same liturgy, the same lectionary, sing some of the same hymns, and, of course, pray to the one and only God. However, in one, we have had women pastors, while in the other, there was no way that that would happen! Does that difference in the rules impact my worship of God Almighty? No, not in any way! Has a woman preaching in the worship service impacted my worship of God Almighty? No, not in any way!
I believe that every Society must have its rules. Christ himself founded a church, and there was a certain focus and structure. But that is the beginning of an evolving problem. If a given church communicates to the outsider that God works almost exclusively through the machinery/structure they have erected, and then rejects all other machinery which does not bear their label, we can’t be surprised if such exclusiveness results in losing membership in the pews. What is created under those circumstances is a small ‘g’ god, a small god, an inadequate god. Then, their efforts to encourage people to join their union are going to fall short.
In the history, growth and expansion of the Christian church, we went through a time when the Roman Catholic organization, or union, enforced their own set of beliefs. It was that structure that drove Martin Luther into conflict with the Pope and the Catholic Church, triggered when he nailed his 95 Theses to the door of All Saints Church in Wittenberg. This was the start of the Reformation, providing alternative worship with a degree of freedom.
Philips (Your God is too Small) concludes his message on this topic with this: “No denomination has a monopoly of God’s grace, and none has an exclusive recipe for producing Christian character. it is quite plain to the thoughtful person that the real God takes no notice whatever of the boxes we create; “the spirit bloweth where it listeth” and is subject to no regulation of man. Such is the Holy Spirit.
To me, where the rubber hits the road for each one of us, beyond all the superficial structure that church organizations may put in place, is our personal worship of the Lord God, the creator God, whose Spirit dwells within each of us. Amen? So be it.
The Voice of the Spirit:
1 Dear Lord and Father of mankind,
forgive our foolish ways;
reclothe us in our rightful mind,
in purer lives thy service find,
in deeper reverence, praise.
2 In simple trust like theirs who heard
beside the Syrian sea
the gracious calling of the Lord,
let us, like them, without a word
rise up and follow thee.
5 Breathe through the heats of our desire
thy coolness and thy balm;
let sense be dumb, let flesh retire;
speak through the earthquake, wind, and fire,
O still, small voice of calm!
Prayer to Worship in Spirit:
Dear Lord Jesus, I love and worship You for all that You have done for us, and Lord I long to worship You in spirit and in truth, just as You told the woman at the well. Thank You for making me in Your own image, and for all the many blessings and benefits that You have bestowed on me. Lord, I want to surrender to You completely. To present myself as a living sacrifice before You each day. To take up my cross daily and present myself to You as my spiritual act of worship, for You alone are worthy, You alone are the Lord. Open my eyes to see You more. Open my ears to hear Your still small voice, and open my heart to worship You more and more so that I may grow in grace and in a knowledge of my Lord Jesus Christ, in Whose name I pray. Amen. (from the Knowing-Jesus.com Prayer Room)
