Everybody grab up a prayer missal and a robe! It’s time to be priests! This week we’re going to talk about liturgy, literally. I mean, we really are.
So let’s begin with a simple question: What images does your mind conjure up when you hear the word “liturgy?” Do you think of candles? Or priests? Or NSEW (North, South, East, West)? You know, the sign of the Cross…..
Well, I went to Greek Orthodox Mass one time and was supposed to evaluate their worship service. I must admit, for a kid who attended a Southern Baptist Church 9 months before I was actually born it was very strange. Although when I walked in with my Bible, the greeter asked me why I brought a Bible with me. I told her that I always bring a Bible to church. She looked at me confused for a moment, then said, “First time here, huh?” I admitted to her that I was not Greek Orthodox and was there to evaluate their service. She responded with, “That’s ok. We’ll convert you by the end.” and gave me a little smirk.
As I said, the elements of the service were very strange to me, very formal, and the incense made my sinuses go into overdrive. I’m glad that even Greek Orthodox churches have the requisite pew Kleenex boxes. I digress…..
I watched the priests and listened carefully and after a few minutes I understood what was going on, even though I understood very little of what was being said. (Their worship service is in Greek if you didn’t know.) I didn’t feel like I had been smacked in the face by the Holy Spirit, but I did resonate with the formality and reverence of the ritual.
See, Greek Orthodox churches have a set “liturgy,” or order of their worship services. The liturgy dictates the “how”, “why” and “what” of their worship services. Now, some of us who are all about spontaneity in worship might say that liturgy is stifling and too structured. But I would challenge you to evaluate your worship services. At our church we follow the unwritten Baptist liturgy: Opening fast praise song, greeting & announcements, another fast song that is somehow linked to the sermon content, a medium speed song that is more spiritually deep, followed by an introspective and emotionally-driven power ballad that “gets our hearts ready to hear from God.” (As if that was not possible before we sang that song) Then we have “special music” along with the offering, the sermon, a hymn of response, then a farewell from the pastor. Then we beat it as fast as possible to beat the Methodists to KFC.
And in the context of that structure we do EVERY week, I feel like I have a lot of freedom. Go figure. I guess that freedom in worship is a matter of personal perspective……. (You can tweet that if you want.)
But we’re not here to analyze worship service structure. We’re here to look at our next word, leitourgein (le-tur-gi-ine). This word is literally defined as ritualistic or cultic service (reference). So apparently the liberals are right, Christianity IS a cult. And you know what? I’m stinkin’ proud to be part of this cult! This word for worship is used very practically to describe the actual actions we DO in a worship service.
Check out Acts 13:2-3:
While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off.
So basically, these guys were worshiping (leitourgein) as God spoke to them as set out Paul and Barnabas on a mission. I would say that’s a pretty big deal. But here’s what I want us to see today; The men listed in Acts 13:1 were doing specific acts of worship. They were having a church service. And that’s when God spoke to them. So for all of you who think that an invitation for people to respond to God is old and outdated and people don’t respond IN the service, I would say that this is good evidence that God DOES speak to us and call us out IN the context of an organized and structured service.
Now that I’m off my soapbox, here’s the big question: What did this organized worship service look like? I mean, we’re all about being the 1st Century church in modern times, right? I mean, this service surely involved at least one pair of skinny jeans, a Taylor guitar and some Chuck Taylors. We all know that the early church were really the first hipsters, they were Christians before it was mainstream. How awesome is that?
Here’s what I think they did: Acts 2:42-47. They were praying, reading the Scriptures, eating together, listening to Bible teaching and having fellowship. (and singing some Hillsong United) The point is this: all of these actions, even singing Hillsong United songs, are part of worship. They are the “stuff” of worship. They are the actual structured actions we are supposed to do in response to God’s revelation of Himself.
So the question of the week is simple.