Worshipping In Ignorance – Second Commandment

Worshiping in Ignorance?

The Second Commandment

Exodus, 20.4, 5; Deuteronomy 5.8, 9

“You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them…

Ignorance in worship limits God.

I have no doubt that many people have, at best, an imperfect understanding of what they’re doing in worship. For most, worship is either a kind of cultural inheritance – “we’ve always done it this way” – or a way of satisfying their own sense of what feels right for them. They may recognize that the worship of God proceeds through different stages – from praise to preaching, for example. And they may have very settled preferences concerning the “style” of worship that best suits them. But they wouldn’t be able to tell you whether or not their worship is complete. Nor could they explain the rationale behind what they do in worship, why, or why it appears where it does in the service. Imagine trying to do a job on the basis of “well, this is what I’ve always known” – whether or not it had any relevance to your employer’s expectations – or “this is what feels right for me.” Of course, that’s absurd. Employers know what they want, and their ability to produce goods and services is limited by workers who don’t understand their jobs or don’t do them with the kind of conscientious devotion their job descriptions demand. It’s the same in worship. God has expectations for our worship, expectations which are designed to magnify and honor Him and to expand our experience of and relationship with Him. We may as well be idolaters as worship God in ignorance, because the practical effect – limiting God – is the same.

What might you do in order to make sure you aren’t worshiping God in ignorance?

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001,2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.