How Will You Worship Tomorrow?

Mark's account of Jesus' crucifixion is a hard one for me to read. To me, one of the most powerful scenes in all of Jesus' 'trial' is when the soldiers place a crown of thorns on the Son of God's head and then proceed to beat Him over the head with a reed. The pain, the humiliation; it's all there. I can't ever read this passage without becoming overwhelmed by the thought of how much Jesus suffered for me.

Normally when I read this account (perhaps during communion on Sunday morning), I think about Jesus' suffering, and rightly so. But recently, something else caught me eye...something I've never really noticed before about this passage.

"Then they struck Him on the head with a reed and spat on Him; and bowing the knee, they worshiped Him." (Mark 15:19)

They worshiped Him? That can't be right. Worship is sacred. Worship is something you do to someone you adore. Worship is holy. Worship is meaningful. Worship is commanded by God. These people, the ones killing and torturing Jesus, certainly they weren't participating in the same act I do every week.

Worship has been a huge topic in my mind this year. The different acts of worship, what makes something worship, how exactly you worship, when you're not worshiping, etc. Something that I don't generally spend my time dwelling on, though, is vain worship.

These soliders were down on their knees, doing the physical signs of worship, but were they truly worshipping the Lord? Of course not! They were mocking Him. And while we aren't in the same situation today (to actually be crucifying Jesus), can we not do the same thing?

Worship involves a mindset. What makes my worship holy and meaningful and precious to God is the attitude I have when I go into that sweet communion with Him (an attitude that wants to worship Him in both spirit and in truth). Sitting in a church building from 9:30 to 11:30 is not worship. Bowing our heads (sometimes) and getting our Bibles out (usually) is not worship. I can say and do all of the physical things that dress my Lord up in purple and make Him my King, but if I'm not in the mindset of worship, it's vain. By making jokes or scribbling on my bulletin, I can be the one mocking my Lord. By continually living in sin, I can be the one beating Jesus with my own reed. By perpetually denying the invitation to return to my Savior, I can be the one spitting on my Lord and the blood He shed for me.

Worship is so precious to our Father, but, without the right mindset, we aren't pleasing Him at all. If we're just going through the motions, we're making a mockery of His name-- just like the Roman soldiers did to Jesus.

Joshua told the Israelites to "choose you this day whom you will serve" (Josh. 24:15). Each week before we go to worship our Maker, let us consider those words in a different context. Let us choose, on every first day of the week, how we will worship. And let us purpose to worship with a humble, thankful, and obedient heart.

"But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him." John 4:23

Are You in a Denomination?

Let me tell you a little hypothetical story:

Robert and I have decided that we want to buy a house. But wait! There aren't a lot of houses around us that are in our price range, and the ones that are don't fit the criteria we need. So, we're going to build our house. Since we will be the ones building it, we will decide what goes into it. We will decide the dimensions and layout and organization.

Now, Robert and I just bought a house and therefore this story is absolutely fabricated. We won't be moving any time soon! BUT, let me ask you a question: based on that hypothetical story, how many houses do you think Robert and I are building?

You may say, well Emily, that's fairly obvious. You said you would build your house, singular.

Why then, friends, do we think that Jesus built multiple churches? He said clearly in Matt. 16:18,

"And I say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it."

Church-singular. It-singular. The Holy Spirit guided the writers of the New Testament, and even the verb tenses matter! Even the plurality of words matter! Surely we all believe that the Holy Spirit (which is a distinctive member of the GOD-head) could clearly and concisely say what needed to be said, thus He could have recorded the words 'churches' and 'them'. Or, do we believe that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, minced His words? We have full confidence in the perfect nature of Jesus Christ, and in the truth of His words. Why, then, do we wrestle with denominationalism?

I recently attended a campaign in Talledega, AL in which Cliff Goodwin preached a series of lessons combating the false doctrine from the Baptist Manual. Here are a few quotes from him that I believe are worthy of meditation:

"There are so many who are so calm and so quick to say, 'Just join the church of your choice.' No. Go to the church of Christ's choice. He died for one. He died for His church." 

"Jesus has never been one among many (denominations). He has been King of kings and Lord of lords, and His church has been one."

While the singularity of the words may not be enough for some, think about what Paul wrote to the Corinthians who were struggling with a similar issue:

"For it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those of Chloe's household, that there are many contentions among you. Now I say this, that each of you says, 'I am of Paul' or 'I am of Apollos' or 'I am of Cephas' or 'I am of Christ'. Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?"            1 Cor. 1:11-13

Cliff said the following in response to these verses:

"If it were a sin 2000 years ago (and it was) for believers to align themselves under the name of an inspired apostle (Paul), how are we to believe that is it less than sinful today for people to align themselves under uninspired men such as John Calvin, Martin Luther, John Wesley (etc.)." 

Please, friends, let us all consider the church that we are a part of. Only one offers salvation. The Lord only adds us to one (Acts 2:47). And that one? It isn't the one I choose and it isn't the one you choose. It is the one that Christ died for; the one He established. Let us search the scriptures daily and make sure that we are members of the church that belongs to Christ.

Camp Rules for Life

Growing up, I attended a congregation that did not go to any huge Christian camps. Instead, our preacher and youth minister took a group of about 100-125 of us to the campus of Freed-Hardeman University where we were able to spend a week with the people that were in our own youth group.

There are so many memories that I could share with you from my years at "Freed Camp". Every year from the time I was in 3rd grade, that first week in June at Freed Camp was a staple. And looking back, I can still envision the piece of paper that Mr. Tim gave to us regarding the camp rules. After all, we had to know what to/not to pack. 

Thinking back, these are the rules that helped shape my life. As a pre-teen, I didn't understand some of them. As a teenager, I didn't especially like some of them. But now, as a twenty-something, I respect and appreciate them so, so much.

1: No electronic devices. Period. We couldn't even bring portable CD players/mp3 players for the 3 hour bus ride up there! Don't even ASK to bring some kind of personal gaming device. Nothing was allowed that would promote time alone. The entire week centered around getting to know and getting invested in the people around you. And if you thought that meant only the people you regularly hung out with, you were mistaken. Preteens spent time with teens, annoying boys spent time with girls that had cooties, teenagers spent time talking to the junior counselors and counselors, and everyone had an age-appropriate Bible class that required interaction. 

One of the problems I see with young people today is that they aren't forming relationships within their youth groups. In order to grow and thrive, you need those relationships. You need to form deep, spiritual bonds with people so that they can help you remain faithful during a very difficult time. Plus, forming bonds with people of every age, and even with people with personalities you might not normally want to--you are learning how to function in Christ's body. As adults, we are very aware that there are certain groups of people we feel more comfortable sitting or conversing with, but as the body of Christ, we are called to all be in fellowship. Learning how to get along at such a young age (when getting along with anyone for an extended period of time is tough) will be such a benefit later in life. 

2: No immodest clothing, at all. No spaghetti straps, no shorts that didn't go down to your knee, no white t-shirts going to or from the pool, no low-cut shirts, nothing tight, nothing see-through. There are two instances that vividly stick out in my mind in regards to "camp attire". Every year before camp I would have to go to Old Navy and stock up on boys gym shorts, because they just don't sell girls shorts that are long enough. But, if you were going to play walleyball or raquetball or basketball or anything else (and you were going to play--group activities were mandatory, even if you weren't athletic), then you wanted shorts. And, unless you wanted to be sent back to the dorms to change, you had to be wearing something appropriate. The other instance that stands out in my mind was when my preacher called out some teen girls and made them go change their shirts. They were pretty low cut shirts, but they had something under them. Still, he said that it drew attention to them and he was not going to have that. All these years later (probably about 10), I still remember that conversation and I still think about it when I get dressed. How important to have people who will challenge young people to dress in a way that reflects their Savior!

Aren't these great regulations for all us to continue practicing? I simply won't wear things that I wouldn't have been able to get away with at camp. Why? Because if I couldn't wear them there, and I wouldn't want for teenagers to wear them now, why would I promote that on my body? Why would I wear something I wouldn't be comfortable with every single person copying? 

3: Spiritual things come first. Every morning we would get together and have some "wake-up" songs by Lonnie (and you better be on time if you don't want to be singled out!), then we'd all go to breakfast together, then we would all come back and have a devotional. After the devotional, we would break up into Bible classes that lasted about an hour. After our Bible class, we came back together and had another devotional, and by that time it was time for lunch. Our entire morning was spent praising and learning about God. After lunch, we had group activities that always had a spiritual application thanks to Lonnie. Then, it was time to play sports or do crafts for a couple of hours, then we would go swimming (separately, of course). After swimming we had dinner (and you had better take modest clothing or else you would not be permitted back into the dining room), and after dinner we had about 30 minutes to shower and then be back for yet another devotional. The majority of every day was spent focusing on the spiritual, as it should be.

What a great lesson for life! What percentage of your day is spent focusing on the spiritual? Maybe Sunday's the majority is spiritual emphasis, but what about Monday through Saturday? How much time are we devoting to prayer? How often do we praise God through song? How many times do we get out our Bibles and study from His word? I know that I can learn a great deal by looking back at the schedule I kept when I was at camp. In my adult life, I definitely need to do better. 

4: You do not act silly when you are praising God. When it was time for devotionals to start, we would have periods of 20 or 30 minutes where we just sang praises to God. During those in between moments when it's oh so tempting to cut up or laugh or yell out the number that you want...we just couldn't. Those moments were precious, because we were offering the fruit of our lips to God. It wasn't a time to joke around or act up. It wasn't a time to sleep or nod off. It was a time to focus. 

I am so thankful that I was taught at such a young age that when it comes to praising God or worshipping Him, it is a time of reverence. In an age where everyone wants to be entertained and "get something out of" worship, what a great thing to acknowledge why you're there--it's not for selfish reasons at all. 

5: Respect your elders. This wasn't a suggestion. If someone older than you came in the room and you had a seat on the couch or in a chair, you got up. If a counselor of any age told you to do something, you did it. There was no such thing as usurping authority, because the threat of making your parents come get you was real (and even happened on occasion). 

In the church today, there are countless people who disrespect the elders. Jesus Christ has given authority to specific ones in the church (and it's His body, so we don't really get a say on whether we like it). Yet some people bash the elders, completely disregard what they say/ask, and speak ill toward them. I wish I could say, "Respect your elders. This is not a suggestion." If they show you something in your life that you need to change, change it. Don't act like the 13-year-old who doesn't think her shorts are too short and defiantly states she isn't changing. Have a heart that wants to submit. 

There are so many other things that I could tell you that I learned from my time at camp. Instead I will close with two valuable lessons that I learned:

 Spiritual people are more attractive. Everyone knows that the camp atmosphere produces severe crushes for young people. The thing is, at a camp like the one I went to, no one was really drawn to or attracted to the person who cut up during class or zoned out or was rude. Instead, the boys in the youth group who were the most sought-after were the ones who would lead prayers or songs. The ones who always brought their Bibles and would talk to you after Bible class to share what they'd learned. 

Why aren't more people interested in dating/marrying spiritual people? Why are spiritual people not the most attractive outside of the camp setting? I am so, so thankful that I learned that lesson so many years ago, otherwise I may have been tempted to go to Freed-Hardeman and find a "man" who slept during chapel or skipped all the devotionals or slacked off in Bible class or refused to be a leader at the Henderson 5:45 student-led service. 

You have a responsibility to those younger than you. I can remember being a 3rd through 7th grader and how fun it was to hang out with the "older kids". I'm sure we were annoying and I'm sure we didn't add much of anything to their camp experience. But wow, did they make mine that much more enjoyable! I remember hearing Mr. Tim talk about how if the older didn't invest in the next generation, the youth group would fall apart. 

I wish this lesson could be taught to every single member of the Lord's body. Take responsibility for those younger than you, because they are the future of the church. If you're 80, teach those that are 60 what they can do to fill your shoes, etc. etc. 

What kinds of things did you learn as a child that you are so thankful to have learned? 

Lord's Supper and Giving--why together?

When I was growing up, it was hard for me to distinguish the Lord's Supper from the time we are giving our contribution. After all, the two very separate things were usually only separated by a prayer---and since the bread and the cup are separated by a prayer, too, it was difficult for my young self to discern between the two very different things.

As I grew older, I realized they were separate, and I wondered why we kept them together all the time. Do we have to? Is it commanded? Is it a tradition that we simply cannot change? I know that the answer to all of those things is no, but recently I've decided that I like that they're together. Today, I'd like to share the reason with you.

First let me say this: I know that MY feelings don't really matter in worship. When I come to worship God, I'm coming to do just that--worship God. Not gratify myself; not invoke some sense of worthiness within me. No, I am coming to honor God and that is that. So whatever my preferences are, well, they really don't matter. I get that. However, I'd like to explore this thought of Lord's Supper and giving because it helps me to worship my God better, and maybe it will do the same for you.

As I said in a recent post, my husband recently concluded a gospel meeting where he talked in depth about the trial, crucifixion, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Since that time, dozens of thoughts have been pouring into my head. Perhaps the greatest thing (and a surprising thing to me!) I took away from his lessons was a greater appreciation for giving back to the Lord as is commanded for us to do on the first day of the week (2 Cor. 9).

You see, this past Sunday as I sat in worship, I took the Lord's Supper as I am privileged to do every Sunday. I reflected on my Savior dying on a cross for my sins. I thought about His beaten, mangled body and the blood that flowed out from Him. Though the images that came before my mind were heightened because of the lessons I'd heard from my husband only a week before, it was something similar to the things I'd been doing every week. Then, like nearly every Sunday before, it was time for me to give. Like always, only a prayer separated these two very separate forms of worship, yet because they were so close together together--it had a profound impact on me.

How can you not be a cheerful giver when you think about all that Christ has given for you? How can you be a penny-pincher in regards to the money you are a steward of, when Christ held nothing back for you?

Philippians 2:5-8 gives us a glimpse into the sacrifices Jesus made:

"Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being made in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross."

If you have been correctly taking the Lord's Supper (and we know we can take in incorrectly--1 Cor. 11:27), then you have been examining the death of Jesus and remembering all that He did for you. Coming off of such a somber moment, how can you not readily and cheerfully give back to the One who gave all for you?

Oftentimes we get distracted--maybe we have to find our checkbook, a child is being restless, or we've been sitting there so quietly that we just let our minds relax. Whatever it is that you think about during the time that you are giving back to God, I urge you to let your thoughts continue on what Jesus has done for you. It was such a rewarding experience for me. It humbled me, and made me feel that much closer to God in what I was doing. Knowing God didn't spare anything, it made me want to give absolutely everything I could to Him--holding nothing back.

I know this isn't earth-shattering. I'm sure this is something you've done for years and years. For me, though, it can become routine instead of purposeful. It can be a no-brainer at times--dropping a check into the collection plate. I urge you to remember, during those quiet moments, what God has done for you. It will be so much easier for you to give cheerfully, and thus worship Him more acceptably. After all, isn't that what it's all about?