A Final Word on Worship – Abiding Principles from the Ceremonial Laws: The Ceremonial Laws in the New Covenant (7)

A Final Word on Worship

Abiding Principles from the Ceremonial Laws: The Ceremonial Laws in the New Covenant (7)

The worship of God is a mystery which only those who know Him can penetrate.

And he answered them, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.” Matthew 13:11

How unlike the view of worship which we find in Scripture is the practice of worship as we encounter it in many churches today. These days every effort is made to eliminate anything in worship which might seem strange or unintelligible—or even, offensive—to those who are either not believers or not members of our church. “Seekers” must be made to feel right at home, within a recognizable context and culture, among people “just like them,” where a splendid time is guaranteed for all.

This is not the view of worship represented in the ceremonial laws of the Old Covenant or in the teaching of Christ and the Apostles. Worship involves coming to God, Whom to know is eternal life. Worship is to be done in Spirit and in truth, neither of which is the possession of the unsaved. In the Spirit and truth of God, we who have the mind of Christ have been translated into the Kingdom of God’s dear Son, and we are gaining understanding into the mysteries and secrets of His Kingdom that people beyond the pale of faith simply cannot fathom.

Our worship should reflect the “worth” of the One we seek—His majesty, greatness, fearsomeness, power, goodness, generosity, sovereignty, immanence, redeeming grace and mercy, and steadfast love and faithfulness. We will use words and forms which we reserve for God alone, because He only is worthy of such words and forms. We will assume postures and perform ceremonies that we do nowhere else. We will scorn and guard against introducing anything into the worship of God which He has not ordained or which we might import from the surrounding culture. We perform mysteries which we warn the unworthy against partaking, for their own benefit and well-being. And we guard one day of the week for the Lord and for resting in Him, and in which we cease from our own occupations and recreations in order to renew our Covenant with God.

The worship we offer to God should appear to those who do not know Him, not as a warm and friendly experience they’d like to repeat, but as an awful, even fearsome venturing into the presence of a Being they do not know, but will have encountered in a new and certain way, through the secrets and mysteries they observe by the people of God in worship (Ps. 50, 1 Cor. 14).

That, at least, is the idea. This is how the Old Covenant ceremonial laws and the New Covenant teaching of Christ and the Apostles would have us pursue the work of worship. The extent to which we do is a measure of our faithfulness as stewards of God, entrusted with His mysteries, for the praise of the glory of His grace.

For a fuller study of the pattern of worship revealed in Scripture, order the book, The Highest Thing, by T. M. Moore, from our online store. These studies and brief essays will help you to see how the pattern of sound worship, which began in the Law of God, comes to complete expression in the rest of Scripture. Pastors, we’re getting ready to start the next season of The Pastors’ Fellowship. Write to me today at tmmoore@ailbe.org for information about how you join in these online discussions. Our theme for the coming series is “The Worldview of God’s Law.” There is no charge for participation, but you must reserve a place for these monthly gatherings. Subscribe to Crosfigell, the devotional newsletter of The Fellowship of Ailbe.

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