No tabernacle?...No temple?...Denied!

Once in the promised land and when the temple was constructed, the temple-worship was a continuation of the tabernacle-worship.

When Jerusalem was attacked and the temple destroyed, the Isrealites were forced to make changes to the way they worship.

With no sanctuary, no cult, no focus point, the Isrealites had to find some other way...

The torah.

They gave this book the central role, its laws and scriptures THE most important thing.

Synagogues are not mini version of the original temple, these were just meeting places for fellowship, praying and reading the torah.

This continued until Jerusalem was theirs once again and the temple was rebuilt. The temple served its purpose the same as the 1st until it was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD.

Worship was forced to change with times and situations, however it's centre and heart did not.

In the western world we have seen many changes in our attitude to worship and some of these changes have been widely recieved as positive and some not so (stupid dancing with ribbons!).

This is the end of my study on WORSHIP. I have no idea what to look at next, if anyone still reads this (welldone!) and has any ideas or something they wanna study & learn with me, then drop a comment and let me know!

Love you X

Tabernacle

During the patriarchal time (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph) worship is mainly informal.

There are no set patterns of worship.

There is no fixed location for worship.

Patriachal worship is spontaneous.

Worship truely begins (for the Isrealites) after God's act of deliverance, the Exodus.

The passover is not only a way of remembering, but also an act of worship.

At mount Sinai God revealed the ways in which worship should be expressed.

Sacrifice played an important role in Isrealite life and then also gave them a focus point to offer these sacrifices . . . the tabernacle.

Now this gave the people a very visual impression of God. The tabernacle was a portable temple and shrine that could be packed up and moved from place to place.

The main thing I want to stress to you at this point in the exodus story is that God showed them the way by a cloud and fire. The Isrealites didn't know who long they would be staying in one place or when it would be time to leave.

They may set up camp and stay for a couple of hours, or months.

They were totally dependant on God.

Love you X

Change

Worship wasn't invented by Matt Redman or even Graham Kendrick!

Worship isn't a recent invention.

It dates right back into the Old Testament.
To understand what the New Testament teaches us about worship, we have to first understand the Old Testament.

Many people find the OT hard to understand or struggle with how to relate it to living in 2008. Especially when it talks of the temple and sacrificing. But these seemingly unhelpful rules and instructions are at the heart of ancient views of worship.

So even though OT worship seems far from our 2008 christian worship, this is why it's important to start here. Patterns and values that are birthed in OT laws can be seen in our services today.

Again, we need to make sure that we don't treat this OT worship as a single absolute.

There are different forms used to express worship.

Obviously, the OT spans a large period of time and of course during the 39 books, worship wasn't static.

It changed.

It developed.

It grew.

This is mainly down to God's progression of revealing Himself to His people.

_DEVELOPMENTS IN OLD TESTAMENT WORSHIP_

Patriachal period = Sacred places

Exodus/Settlement in Canaan = Tabernacle

Monarchy = Temple

Exile = Synagogues

Restoration = Second temple

Love you X

Lost in translation

There is one verse in the Old Testament that uses all 3 Hebrew words that we've looked at.

The 3 windows into worship captured in just one verse.

2 Kings 17:35

It's interesting to see how different translations handle this verse.

"When the LORD made a covenant with the Isrealites, He commanded them: Do not worship [yare] any other gods or bow down [hawah] to them, serve them [abad] or sacrifice to them." NIV

In principle the words could all be translated "worship"_ "Do not worship . . . or worship . . . or worship . . .", even though this would be translated correctly, it is flat and misses the point. Alternatively, the RSV doesn't translate ANY of the words as "worship".

This passage is most deffinately about worship. Yeah sure, it's about what NOT to do. But what we should NOT do for other gods, we SHOULD do for the one true God.

The main thing to remember is that submission, service and reverence aren't alternatives of different forms of worship, but different angles of a single, complete activity.

WORSHIP.

Love you X

Our God is an AWESOME God

The NT equivalent to 'yare' is 'sebomai'.

'Sebomai' occurs 10 times in the NT.

It means 'to revere', 'to be devout', 'to worship'.

[Matt 15:9 / Mark 7:7 / Acts 16:14]

This is another tie between OT & NT, creating continuity.

Worship as reverence of God.

Reverence involves awe.

Our God is an AWESOME God!

Love you X

Reverence & Fear

Our 3rd biblical view on worship is 'fear' or 'reverence' of God.

The Hebrew word is 'yare' and is found over 300 times in the OT. In most cases this word is translated to 'afraid' or 'fear'.

In 80% the object of fear is God.

This 'fear' isn't terror or dread, but awe and respect.

This 'fear of the LORD' is consistant with a way of life that is connected to an inner attitude of reverence towards God.

This way of life is an expression of worship.

Love you X

EVERYTHING is spiritual

Now, in the new testament there are 2 Greek words that convey the same message as 'abad'.

They are 'latreuo' and 'leitourgeo'.

'Latreuo' is found 21 times in the NT and means 'to serve' and 'to worship'. All of the uses of the word 'latreuo' are where service is offered not to other humans, but to God. [Luke 2:37 / Acts 26:7 / Phil. 3:3 / Hebrews 12:28]

The 2nd Greek word 'leitourgeo' is found only 3 times in the NT [Acts 13:2 / Romans 15:27 / Hebrews 10:11] (serving / ministering).

Worship, then, is the expression of service of God not only in religous gatherings, but in every area of life.

This is why if you one of the early christians about how spiritual they were, they wouldn't understand what you were talking about. It's not about what they did on the sabbath, but ALL THE TIME. There is no difference between church-life and life-life.

Everything is spiritual.

In Hebrew, the word for spirit and the word for breath is the same ['ruwah'].

Everything is spiritual.

This meaning of worship can be linked to how we call meetings 'services'.

But we gotta make sure our 'services' really are 'service' of God.

Love you X

Abad

So after looking at the first biblical word and the comparisons between 'hawah' and 'proskuneo', we can start to appreciate 1 part of the essence of worship:

WORSHIP involves humble submission to God.

The next biblical word group shows another side of worship.

Worship involves work or service.

The Hebrew term is 'abad', this word is found 289 times in the OT. Its meaning can be translated 'to work', 'to do', 'to perform', 'to serve' and 'to worship'.

It is most frequently translated as 'to serve' (125 times). The phrase 'to serve the LORD[Yahweh]' is used 56 times.

It is through this phrase we gain another aspect of worship (Exodus 3:12 / Deut. 10:12 / Isaiah 19:21).

The term 'abad' is frequently used during God's instructions for His people on sacrificial rituals and apperatus to enable them to serve (worship) in an appropriate manner.

Love you X

Inward & Outward

Next we look at a New Testament Greek word _ 'Proskuneo'. It is a verb to describe the action of prostrating, or to fall down in adoration.

As well as this outward physical display, it also has an inward attitude of reverence and humility.

'Proskuneo' is the most common word for worship in the new testament [John 4:20-24 / Revelation 5:14], just like 'hawah' is in the old testament.

This adds to the continuity between the OT and NT.

Both these words are about INWARD attitude reflected in an OUTWARD gesture.

Love you X

Bow down

The most commonly used Hebrew word is 'hawah', from the phrase 'hishtahawah' which means 'to bow [down]', 'to do obedience', 'to pay homage' and 'to worship'.

Of the 170 old testament uses of the word 'hawah', about 75 are translated as 'worship'. Around the same number translates 'bow down', 6 times as 'pay honour' and once as 'pay homage'.

BOWING DOWN was a physical response, an action. It was a mark of respect, you bowed to kings.

It was also an act of submission.

So as a word for worship, 'hawah' gives us the idea of honouring God and expressing sumbission to Him.

Love you X

3 words

If we wanna seriously understand worship, we need to look at what the bible says about it.

To know where we are going, we have to know where we have been.

The first step is to look at the original meanings behind the word 'worship'.

Originally the bible wasn't written in english (what?! but Jesus was a christian from oxford!), the Old Testament was written in Hebrew and the New Testament in Greek.

In the old testament we see SO MUCH history soaked in worship (in all forms). A lot of this helps us to understand what worship is and how we should offer it.

There are 3 main Hebrew words used in the old testament for worship. Unfortunately the lack of expression in the english language means that they all translate to 'worship'.

In basic terms the 3 words break down to Submission, Service and Reverence.

These 3 words link in very well to the Greek words used in the new testament. This is another way (along with theology and prophecy) that the OT and the NT tie together and are consitant.

Each of these key words highlights a different dimension (or focus) that together make up worship as a whole.

Love you X

#3

God ENABLES our worship_

It's through God that we are able to worship.

God accepts this worship because of Jesus' sacrifice, He even delights in it [Romans 12:1 / Philipians 4:18].

Worship, first and foremost, is for God's pleasure and not ours.

The brilliant (and yet ironic) thing is that when we get this right, when we worship God for the right reasons and on His terms, we can truly enjoy Him and the whole worship experience.

Love you X

#2

God REQUIRES our worship_

The relationship between God and His people (under old & new covenants) is established by God and on His terms.

In the old testament the law is given at mount Sinai to Moses to worship God in His 10 commandments [Exodus 20:1] and mentioned elsewhere [Exodus 23:25 / Deut. 6:13].

In the new testament there is just as much focus on worship as a requirement [John 4:22-24 / Romans 12:1 / Hebrews 12:28].

So worship is not only required, it's our duty (regardless of how we feel).

It's about Him, for Him.

Love you X

#1

God DESERVES our worship_

Worship is the right response to who God is and what He has done.
This reason is expressed in the Psalms (98, 100, 104 & 111).

We worship God in His greatness, superiority and goodness.

We worship God for His acts as a creator and redeemer (Rev. 4 & 5).

Love you X

There's no 'I' in worship . . .oh crap!

Biblically, worship is about responding in the right way to God.

In such a self-centred world, where self-fulfilment and self-satisfaction drive our activities and determine our responses. We need to remember that worship is primarily about God.

If we are not careful, worship becomes about us.

"I didn't feel it tonight"

"I didn't get anything out of worship today"

Now of course worship involves me - I'm a participant - but it's not about me or for me.

There are 3 main biblical reasons for worship (and they are ALL God-focused)_

Love you X

Understanding Worship

We all do it (in one form or another).

Sometimes we enjoy it. Sometimes we don't.

Sometimes we feel like it. Sometimes we don't.

So why bother?

Worship is a topic that always starts a debate, violent attack or divide of a church. Worship is an individuals time with God. We all have our preferences, our opinion on the right or wrong way to worship.

'Worship wars' start when my idea of worship isn't the same as someone else in the congregation.

Is this what it's all about?

If the focus is on how we worship then maybe we've missed the point. Maybe we need to look at what worship is, or why we do it.

Love you X

Theories of atonement

This would probably be better titled 'angles of atonement', as christians thoughts on the cross have come from many different perspectives and we (as humans) will never fully understand what Christ did for us.

Here are 3 angles (that carry some truth) . . .

1# The cosmic angle_ on the cross Jesus defeated satan. An early church metaphor phrases it this way. 'Jesus was the bait and the cross was the hook which reeled in our enemy'.

2# The human angle_ The cross reveals us. It rips us and opens us up. All self-justification ends here. We have executed the son of God. To quote Baldrick [fair enough, he's talking about the scarlet pimpernell, but you get the idea!] "he's here to save us! . . . and you've killed him!"

When I survey the wonderous cross,

on which the prince of glory died,

my richest gain I count but loss,

and pour contempt on all my pride.

This same cross reveals the depths of God's love at the same time.

3# The divine angle_ The cross is God's work for Himself before it is His work for us. In the cross He justifies His justice and His mercy.

Love you X

Story of SALVATION

The control of the entire bibles narative can be traced back to the exodus story.

2 things happen in Isreal's deliverance.

First, God's people are set free from slavery to pharoh and the Egyptian gods.

Second, they are set free from the wrath of God.

When the final plague falls upon Egypt, God provides a substitute for the Isrealites. A lamb (clean) is sacrificed and the blood marks their houses, so that the angel of death passes over.

Salvation, then is to be delivered from both bondage AND the wrath of God.

Then in the new testament we see Jesus comes to bring the final exodus. He frees us, not from Egypt or Rome, but from satan and sin. When Jesus lifts the judgement of the law from us, He takes away satan's power to accuse us and hold us in bondage.

Jesus also comes to set us free from the wrath of God.

He is our passover lamb [1 Corinthians 5:7]

His blood protects us.

God now freely forgives sinners through His son.

Love you X

Centre of the New Testament

At the heart of the new testament we find not the ethic of Jesus, or the example of Jesus, or the wisdom of Jesus, or even the suffering service of Jesus, but the CROSS.

All 4 gospels move lead us towards the final week of Jesus.

All preaching in the book of Acts focuses on the cross (and the ressurection/reign of Jesus).

In 1 Corinthians 2:2, Paul tells the Corinthians that he determined to "know nothing While I was with you except Christ and Him crucified".

Hebrews presents Jesus as our great high preist who hasn't gone into the temple in Jerusalem, but heaven itself. Not bringing sacrificial animals blood, but His own blood to atone for sin.

Peter calls slaves to follow the example of Jesus based on the servant in Isaiah 53. (1 Peter 2:21-25)

In 1 John 4:10, John writes "This is love; not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins".

The book of Revelation shows the lamb who was slain as the LORD of the universe. His blood purchased us for God.

Love you X

He chose the cross

The crucifiction and the cross is seen as offensive (for several reasons) . . .

The cross is 'culturally' offensive, it was not talked about in polite conversation. The very idea that a god, immortal and eternal, could be crucified is madness.

It is also 'historically' offensive. Christians claim that a jewish peasant, executed under Roman law, is the LORD and saviour of the world. He alone deserves the term 'christ', not ceaser.

Thirdly, it's 'philisophically' offensive. Rather than the cross just being an illustration of divine love, it is the basis for divine love. The cross shows God's universal love and forgiveness.
The cross shows Jesus' total submission.
Through His death we gain life.

Fourthly, it's 'morally' offensive. To put it simply (thank goodness!) you cannot save yourself.
To look upon this broken, bleeding, peirced, mangled messiah is hard, and some turn away or deny Him. But it's through faith in the crucified Jesus that we are saved.

With all these offences, why did the early christians glory in the cross?

Why did they hold up this bloody instrument of torture?

Rob Bell commented upon the weirdness of the idea of the cross in modern day church. He says that essentially we are displaying a horrible torture/execution device on the wall or roof of our churches. Like bowing down at the foot of the guillotine. Like displaying the lethal injection table in our church. Like wearing a golden minature AK47 around our necks!

Seriously though, it is not the cross itself we display, but the meaning behind it. Much like how Jesus lived and taught, it was never about what was said or heard, but the hidden meaning.

Christianity isn't blatant.

It isn't easy to look at.

We have all gotta do some searching.

Love you x