The Third Commandment: "Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy."
"What does this mean? We should fear and love God, and so we should not despise his Word and the preaching of the same, but deem it holy and gladly hear and learn it."
Luther's Small Catechism
"Secondly, and most especially, we keep holy days so that people may have time and opportunity, which otherwise would not be available, to participate in public worship, that is, that they may assemble to hear and discuss God's Word and then praise God with song and prayer....
Places, times, persons, and the entire outward order of worship are therefore instituted and appointed in order that God's Word may exert its power publicly."
The Third Commandment: Luther's Large Catechism.
Sorry it took so long for me to get to this. This post was a bit harder for a different reason than others. It was difficult for me because it has been self-evident since I came into The Church 38 years ago, 2 months before my 18th birthday. I am a modern. I am learning to speak and present "postmodern" but I will always remain a modern. As an 18 year old beginning the experience of regular worship, it was not about how it moved me (though it did); nor about what I "got out of it" (though I did); but rather because it was TRUE. Gospel Truth that powerful demanded a response. And public worship of The One was the appropriate response. So I am old enough (as I write this on my birthday) to not "get" the postmodern (Gen X, Gen One / Next, Gen 3) calculation and processing, "Should I go to church tomorrow or not? Why yes? Why no?"
But I am also a realist. Somewhere along the way worship became like Cod Liver Oil. For those who are not 56 or older, Cod Liver Oil is exactly what it sounds like, and it tasted exactly as you'd expect. My parents did not ladle it down my throat while I held my nose. Actually I used it for turtle bait. It was that nasty. But many remember holding their nose and taking a ladle full as quickly as possible to get it down. Why this torture? It was good for you. So you did it no matter how nasty it was. For many in the older generations worship has become like Cod Liver Oil. (It is that way for the younger generations too, but they simply choose NOT to drink it.) Many go to worship because "it's good for you" whether or not they feel they really got anything out of it.
Not everything in postmodernism is bad. "Because it's good for you" is a reason to go to worhsip, but not the only reason. Worship should never have become that, and never needed to. It certainly does not need to be that today.
The worship wars rage on - only the form and tactics of battle have changed. I read a blog recently about worship in which the writer was bemoaning and criticizing the tendency of churches to offer multiple worship services. He was arguing that different worship services appeals to the consumer mentality of worshipers, which should be avoided, and that different styles separates and even polarizes the congregation into different worshipping bodies. I laughed (it was not a merry laugh) and thought, "OK, let's do ALL services as contemporary praise and worship services then." To which he would doubtless have responded, "No, not that. That is not what I meant." LOL, no doubt. (He provided an example on youtube of his "right" way to do worship. <sigh>)
Chris Tomlin is correct. "You and I were made to worship. You and I were born to love (God)." Worship IS the appropriate response to an Almighty, All-loving, Creator and Savior. John Calvin wrote that the purpose of life is "to glorify God, and to enjoy God's presence forever." Amen.
I close with a quote (loosely rendered) from Dr. Leonard Sweet's "Aqua Church" that changed the direction of my ministry and drove me to the Doctor of Ministry program in Preaching.
"I will put The Living Water into any container from which people will drink. The Living Water never changes. Containers can change all the time."
Worship is a VERB. "Just do it." (Sorry. It slipped.)
Rev. Dr. Robert C. Castro (Bob)
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