Singing

Singing

Questions for Discussion

1. What differences exist between worship in the OT and worship in the NT?

2. What is the difference between worshipping in spirit and worshipping in truth?

3. Give an example in the Bible of worship that was rejected because it was not in spirit.

4. Give an example in the Bible of worship that was rejected because it was not in truth.

5. What activities were a part of the New Testament church’s assemblies for worship?

At a well outside the small Samaritan village of Sychar , Jesus began a conversation with a woman of Samaria . (See John 4. ) As the conversation progressed, she realized that Jesus was a prophet. “Our fathers worshipped in this mountain,” she said, “but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.”

There are two matters that Jesus made clear in his response to the woman. First, he affirmed the correctness of the Jewish practice of going to Jerusalem to worship. “You worship that which you do not know; we worship that which we know, for salvation is from the Jews.” Moses had made it clear that every male Israelite must assemble at a place of God’s choosing for the celebration of the three feasts, the Passover, the feast of weeks and the feast of tabernacles. (Deut 16:16 ) The choice of Jerusalem was confirmed when Solomon erected the first Jewish temple on a hill in Jerusalem .

The second thing that Jesus made clear was the coming change in worship authorized by God. “But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers.” (Notice that it is “in spirit and in truth” not “in Jerusalem ” that the true worshipers shall worship.) In the Old Testament the place of worship was important. Often Israel had worshipped at the shrines of false gods rather than at the place which God had chosen. In the coming age, the place would no longer matter. True worship could be any place. It would require of the worshipper that his offering be in spirit and in truth. There are many other changes in worship between the Old Testament and the New Testament besides the matter of place. What is not different is that God has always required that worship be in spirit and in truth.

There is no doubt concerning God’s displeasure with Israel in the Old Testament. Almost from the day that Moses led them out of Egypt there are instances of God afflicting the people because of their failures. The major source of God’s displeasure seems to stem from their failure to properly worship and honor God.

At Mt. Sinai , while Moses was on the mount receiving the Ten Commandments from God, the people, under the leadership of Aaron, were making a golden calf. When Aaron had made the calf he said to the people, “This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt !” (Exodus 32:8 )

Notice that they do not state that they are worshipping a different god. They have only made a calf apparently to help them in their worship. They are still worshipping the God who brought them out of Egypt . They have only made a “minor” adjustment by fashioning an image to help them in that worship. People are still making images and such to “aid” them in their worship. It is no more right to do it now than it was at Mt. Sinai !

Another example of Israel ’s failure in worship is seen at the ascension of Jereboam to rule over a divided Israel . He was concerned that his people would return to Jerusalem to worship and then decide to reunite the kingdom. In order to prevent such from happening he constructed places of worship at Bethel and at Dan. The people would not need to go all the way to Jerusalem to worship. They could stop on the way. Bethel was closer and God could be worshipped there. The problem was that God had chosen Jerusalem as the place where His people were to worship. The altar at Bethel was not approved by God. Not only was the altar not approved, God sent a prophet from Judah to cry out against the altar and the worship that Jereboam had instituted. The false worship that Jereboam instituted continued to be a point of contention between God and Israel until finally God sent the Assyrians to destroy them as a nation. Samaria was sacked and the people taken as captives to Assyria .

Meanwhile, in the southern kingdom of Judah , matters were not much better during the reign of most of the kings. Matters reached the height of insolence to God when Manasseh constructed an altar in the valley of Ben-hinnom and sacrificed his son. He even put a carved image of an idol he had made in the house of God. (See 2 Chron 33:1-9 .)

God would not tolerate failure in worship. The Babylonians were sent by God to attack and destroy Jerusalem . Many of the people were killed in the attacks and others were taken as captives to Babylon , including Ezekiel and Daniel. The city of Jerusalem was destroyed and the temple demolished.

Isaiah, chapter one, provides a good illustration of worship that was rejected because it was not in spirit. The worship described was in truth, but was not acceptable worship. Listen to the words of Isaiah: “’Hear the word of the Lord, you rulers of Sodom ; give ear to the instruction of our God, you people of Gomorrah . What are your multiplied sacrifices to Me?’ says the Lord. ‘I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed cattle. And I take no pleasure in the blood of bulls, lambs, or goats. When you come to appear before Me, who requires of you this trampling of My courts? Bring your worthless offerings no longer, incense is an abomination to Me. New moon and Sabbath, the calling of assemblies – I cannot endure iniquity and the solemn assembly. I hate your new moon festivals and your appointed feasts, they have become a burden to Me. I am weary of bearing them.’” (Isaiah 1:10-14 )

The people of Israel are addressed as “ Sodom ” and “ Gomorrah .” God’s displeasure with Israel is thus compared with his earlier displeasure with the cities destroyed by fire and brimstone in the days of Abraham. The crimes differ, but the resulting anger of God is similar. It is their worship that had offended God.

All of the worship matters, the animal sacrifices, the incense, the feasts and holy days, all were legislated by God at Mt. Sinai . The forms were correct. The heart was wrong. The people “went to church,” but God did not accept their worship. Their rituals had become empty, devoid of devotion to God. They went through the motions of religion, but their hearts were not being offered to God. Getting the sacrifices and feasts right did not make up for their failure to devote themselves to God’s rules in their daily lives. They had failed to worship God in spirit.

A similar instance is found in the sacrifice of Cain recorded in Genesis, chapter 4 . Abel offered a sacrifice that is described as “the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions.” Cain’s sacrifice is simply described as “the fruit of the ground.” God rejected Cain’s worship.

In Leviticus, chapters one through seven , instructions are given concerning the sacrifices to be offered by Israel . There are detailed instructions for animal offerings, for grain offerings and the offering of oil. All of these were acceptable sacrifices to offer to God if the instructions were followed.

There is no evidence that Cain’s offering was rejected because it was not a blood sacrifice. There is evidence that it was rejected because it was inferior in quality. The writer of Hebrews tells us: “By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain.” (Heb 11:4a ) Abel’s sacrifice was “better.”

Worship of God “in spirit” addresses the quality of the worship offered. When God is worshipped in spirit, the worshipper is filled with adoration and a desire to please his Creator. Worship is neither perfunctory nor mechanical. It represents the best that the worshipper has to offer. Cain failed to offer his best. Abel’s sacrifice was better.

When God offered Cain an opportunity to worship properly, Cain chose another path. Rather than correct his own mistake in worship, he chose to eliminate the one against whose worship he had been compared. Eliminating Abel did not make Cain’s sacrifice acceptable. It simply compounded his problem.

There are numerous instances in the Bible where worship is rejected because it does not follow the pattern given by the Lord. Worship that does not follow the pattern does not meet the test of worshipping God in truth. Truth means that the worship is consistent with the rules laid down by God. Since God’s word is truth, worship is not left to the imagination of the worshipper. The content of worship is defined by God. Without the word of God as a basis for the worship offered, it is unacceptable to God.

At Mt. Sinai , God gave instructions to Moses for building a tabernacle. The nation of Israel assembled at the tabernacle for worship. About 500 years later, the temple, built by Solomon, became the focus for their worship and replaced the tabernacle.

There are no detailed instructions for worship prior to the time of Moses that have survived. The most detailed description is of an experience of Abraham recorded in Genesis 15 . There the patriarch is told of specific animals that were to be sacrificed.

Through Moses, God gave very specific instructions to the nation of Israel concerning worship. There was a pattern based on specific commands of God. The physical arrangements are spelled out in detail in the book of Exodus. After giving instructions for the furniture to be placed in the tabernacle, God said, “See that you make them after the pattern for them, which was shown to you on the mountain.” (Ex 25:40 ) After giving instructions for the alter that stood outside the tabernacle, God said, “You shall make it hollow with planks; as it was shown to you in the mountain, so they shall make it.” (Ex 27:8 ) After speaking of the utensils for the tabernacle, the garments for the priests and the anointing oil and the fragrant incense for the holy place, God said, “They are to make them according to all that I have commanded you.” (Ex 31:11 ) Finally, the work was all completed. “So the sons of Israel did all the work according to all that the Lord had commanded Moses. And Moses examined all the work and behold, they had done it; just as the Lord had commanded, this they had done. So Moses blessed them.” (Ex 39:42-43 )

Not long afterward, Nadab and Abihu, sons of Aaron, came into the tabernacle to burn incense on the altar before the Lord. They “took their respective firepans, and after putting fire in them, placed incense on it and offered strange fire before the Lord, which He had not commanded them. And fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord.” (Lev 10:1-2 )

They had specific instructions concerning the incense that was to be used. There is no indication of any failure in that regard. The incense was to be offered every day. They came in fulfillment of their duty. The fire for burning the incense was to be taken from off the altar that stood before the tabernacle. (Lev 16:12 ) (It might be noted that the material in Leviticus has no chronological order. The instructions would have been given prior to the carrying out of the command.)

Nadab and Abihu died because they disobeyed the plain command of the Lord. One might argue that God had not forbidden fire from other sources. That argument would be true, but it did not excuse what the two sons of Aaron did. They offered “strange fire which the Lord had not commanded.” In worship we are to do what God has commanded. What He has not commanded is excluded by the principle of not being included. They were not punished for disobeying a negative command. They were punished for going beyond what God had commanded, an improvisation in worship. God specifies the limits of worship. We cannot go beyond that which He has authorized. If worship is to be in truth it must remain within the boundaries that God has erected. Much of modern worship is as “strange fire” before the Lord. It involves things which God has not commanded. A couch in the tabernacle might have been comfortable, but it was excluded as something not commanded.

Another story of interest is found in 1 Samuel, chapter 13 . Saul and the army of Israel were faced with an invasion of the army of the Philistines. A day had been appointed for Samuel, the priest, to come and offer a burnt offering and a peace offering to the Lord. When Samuel was late in appearing, Saul, the king, took it upon himself to offer the sacrifices to the Lord. “And it came about as soon as he finished offering the burnt offering, that behold, Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him and to greet him.”

Samuel said, “What have you done?”

Saul began explaining his dilemma. The soldiers were getting restless. Some were deserting. Saul felt that he would soon be left nearly alone to face the Philistines and some action was necessary. “So I forced myself and offered the burnt offering,” he said.

God punished Saul for his presumptive sin. While God had not prohibited a king from offering sacrifices, He had expressly given that responsibility to the sons of Aaron. Because offering sacrifices was a responsibility given to the sons of Aaron, it was a sin for anyone else to usurp that authority. It was not necessary that God list everyone who did not have a right to offer the sacrifices. It was sufficient that He had specified those whom he wanted to carry out that duty.

A similar example is found in 2 Chronicles, chapter 26 . The following story is told concerning King Uzziah. “But when he became strong, his heart was so proud that he acted corruptly, and he was unfaithful to the Lord his God, for he entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense.”

The temple was the proper place to offer the sacrifice of incense. There is no indication that the wrong incense was used. The problem lies in the king usurping the authority to make the sacrifice. Priests, descendants of Aaron, were the ones whom God had appointed for the task. The king was the wrong person. God struck him with leprosy immediately. He hurried out of the temple, a leper, and continued as a leper to the day of his death.

There is a long story told in 1 Samuel of how the ark of the covenant came to be taken from the tabernacle in the days of Eli, the high priest, and eventually came to rest in the village of Kiriath-jearim , in the house of Abinadab. In 1 Chronicles, chapter 13 , David came with all Israel to take the ark from the house of Abinadab up to Jerusalem . They loaded the ark on a new cart pulled by oxen. Ahio and Uzzah drove the cart with Ahio in front and Uzzah following behind. “When they came to the threshing floor of Chidon, Uzzah put out his hand to hold the ark, because the oxen nearly upset it. And the anger of the Lord burned against Uzzah, so He struck him down because he put out his hand to the ark; and he died there before God.”

David was angry with the Lord. “How can I bring the ark of God home to me?” he asked.

There are detailed instructions in the writings of Moses for moving the ark of the covenant and all the other furnishings of the tabernacle as well as the tabernacle itself. The furnishings were to be covered by the priests and the Levites were to carry them. The ark of the covenant had four rings on the four corners. These were installed so that poles could be slid through the rings and the ark picked up without touching it. The Levites were to carry it on their shoulders in such a fashion. (See Exodus 37:5 and Numbers 4:5-15 for detailed instructions.)

The Philistines had taken the ark of the covenant in battle. They sent it home to Israel on an oxcart. Perhaps David was familiar with that and decided that an oxcart would serve his purposes well. He was wrong. Uzzah died because David did not follow God’s instructions.

Later, in 1 Chronicles 15 , David made a second attempt to bring the ark up to Jerusalem . This time they obeyed God’s instructions for moving the ark and they successfully brought the ark up to the place David had prepared for it. It would have been far better if David had read the instructions first. Just so, we need to read God’s instructions for worship before attempting something that may or may not be successful in the eyes of God.

In reading the New Testament, there are six things we find the church did in their assemblies. Preaching, praying, fasting, singing, giving and communion were all a part of the early church’s meetings together. Sometimes these activities occur together, sometimes separately. They are worship because they involve a sense of awe in the presence of the Creator and they involve an offering of devotion to Him. Some have referred to these activities as “acts of worship.” Others have chosen to use the description “avenues of worship.” These are the things that are appropriate for New Testament worship. If done properly they are activities in which worship may occur. If done improperly, they do not, in themselves, constitute worship. Worship must be in spirit as well as in truth.

Notice that we have distinguished between Old Testament worship and New Testament worship. That distinction rests on the fact that we are to devote ourselves to the apostles’ doctrine, not the doctrine of Moses. (See Acts 2:42 .) Worship is based on the shed blood of Jesus, not on the shed blood of animals. Any attempt to justify worship activities by reference to things done in the Old Testament fails to properly distinguish between the old and the new covenants. It fails to take into account the remarks of Jesus to the woman at the well near Sychar (found in John 4 ). It also fails to consider the change in covenant predicted in Jeremiah 31 made clear in Hebrews 8 .

Preaching

The church began with a sermon from Peter on the day of Pentecost following the ascension of Jesus. That sermon is recorded in Acts 2 and resulted in the baptism of about 3000 believers who repented. Other sermons recorded in Acts are: a sermon from Peter in chapter 3 , a sermon from Stephen just before he was stoned in Acts 7 , another sermon from Peter to the first Gentile converts in Acts 10 , a sermon from Paul on his first missionary journey in Acts 13 , a sermon from Paul to the philosophers of Athens in Acts 17 , a sermon from Paul in his own defense at his arrest in Jerusalem in Acts 22 and, finally, a sermon from Paul before King Agrippa in Acts 26 .

While none of these examples are in a congregational setting they all show the importance of preaching in God’s plan for redeeming the world. There are several passages of scripture that address the matter of preaching in the assembly of Christians.

First of all there is the example of Paul at Troas in Acts 20:7 . “And on the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul began talking to them, intending to depart the next day, and he prolonged his message until midnight .”

Second there is Paul’s exhortation to Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:1-4 . “I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires; and will turn away their ears from the truth, and will turn aside to myths.” It is evident that this is preaching that is done in the church. The reference to people who will not endure sound doctrine accumulating teachers in accordance to their own desires makes it plain that it is the church that is under consideration. Paul’s instructions to Timothy are to persist in preaching God’s word in spite of what people might want instead.

A third reference is taken from 1 Corinthians 14 . There Paul discusses the proper uses of the gift of prophecy and the gift of tongues in the assembly. In both cases, there is a concern that God’s message be preached in words that the congregation may understand.

A fourth reference is found in 1 Timothy 2. In 1 Timothy 3:15 Paul wrote that he was writing to Timothy “so that you may know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which the church of the living God.” In chapter 2, verse 11-15 , he wrote, “Let a woman quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness. But I do not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet. For it was Adam who was first created, and then Eve was created. And it was not Adam who was deceived, but the woman being quite deceived, fell into transgression. But women shall be preserved through the bearing of children if they continue in faith and love and sanctity with self-restraint.”

In this passage it is made plain that the men are to do the teaching in the assembly rather than the women. Paul’s argument for this arrangement is based on the creation and on the beginning of sin. Thus it was not first century culture that dictated the view that the teachers in the assembly should be men. It was a part of God’s plan from the creation. Just as the men, generally, were to do the teaching, it was the duty of women, generally, to be the child-bearers. This does not mean that every woman must bear children any more than it means that every man must be a teacher. There are different roles for men and women and teaching and child-bearing are examples of those differences.

A fifth reference to preaching in the church is taken from Paul’s letter to Titus, chapter 1, verse 5 . “For this reason I left you in Crete , that you might set in order what remains, and appoint elders in every city as I directed you.” The instruction to “set in order” implies instructions that will make clear God’s arrangements. Preaching is implicit in this instruction to Titus.

The other activities for worship will be considered separately in the following chapters.