BLIND WORSHIP
Greetings in the name of Jesus:
Jesus said to the Scribes and Pharisees in Matthew 23:19 " Which is more sacred to you, the offering, or the altar which makes the offering sacred?" I want for us to think about our answer to that today as we talk about spiritual blindness.
Once again I am starting to write as the Holy Spirit gives me what it is I should say. It only stands to reason that we as children of God should not enter into our worship of God blindly, that is not knowing what the intent is behind those we worship with or the purpose behind the organization we are supporting as we come to worship. Today in almost every case we can walk into a church which is declared to be evangelistic no matter what the creeds and doctrines are that they follow and find almost the exact same service and music as those other churches in the community that they will refuse to worship with. It is in some cases very hard to even find the difference between them until you ask the questions about what makes them different. It is at that point that we can find millions of excuses why fellowship is impossible.
That causes me to ask the question of why is it? In many different cases, I have heard of missionaries in foreign lands have had to combine their efforts and ministries in many cases to reach the people by joining forces to create hospitals and help facilities where it was impossible for one small group to achieve the goal alone. That kind of relationship is what the early church enjoyed with sister churches who also preached the Good News of Jesus Christ I do have to wonder about how blindly we go to a particular worship place each week never receiving anything new or fresh that would make us choose them from a different brand of church. We seem to have been lulled into a sleep when it comes to what and why we believe in Christ, and that made me want to begin to dig a little more into just what Jesus meant when He asked the question about the offering and the Alter.
Jesus was dealing with a kind of opposite problem with the Scribes and Pharisees because they were all getting so caught up in their creeds and laws that they were completely forgetting about their worship of God, while today we have become so much alike on the outside that no one can tell what our real beliefs are. In many cases, those who are seeking to find God in our worship are being tricked in a way because they see, and hear, but they do not understand. In many cases today I believe the general public is getting a religious formula made up to appeal to the masses of people who are not watching or who are not necessarily looking for the real truth. What we are allowing the service to give them is a form of Christ with words of Praise and glory, but without any real challenge in their lives to change. Our worship has become a slick way of entertainment and participation, and then a pat on the head about how much God loves us, but no real calls for a committed life in Christ that would demand change in our daily lives. The real problem is do we actually know what we believe or are we accepting what we are told is the truth? It is a question worth thinking about, and I hope you will. May you richly bless God through your life in Him.
THE UNWORTHY SERVANT
Jesus said to the Scribes and Pharisees in Matthew 23:19 " Which is more sacred to you, the offering, or the altar which makes the offering sacred?" I want for us to think about our answer to that today as we talk about spiritual blindness.
Once again I am starting to write as the Holy Spirit gives me what it is I should say. It only stands to reason that we as children of God should not enter into our worship of God blindly, that is not knowing what the intent is behind those we worship with or the purpose behind the organization we are supporting as we come to worship. Today in almost every case we can walk into a church which is declared to be evangelistic no matter what the creeds and doctrines are that they follow and find almost the exact same service and music as those other churches in the community that they will refuse to worship with. It is in some cases very hard to even find the difference between them until you ask the questions about what makes them different. It is at that point that we can find millions of excuses why fellowship is impossible.
That causes me to ask the question of why is it? In many different cases, I have heard of missionaries in foreign lands have had to combine their efforts and ministries in many cases to reach the people by joining forces to create hospitals and help facilities where it was impossible for one small group to achieve the goal alone. That kind of relationship is what the early church enjoyed with sister churches who also preached the Good News of Jesus Christ I do have to wonder about how blindly we go to a particular worship place each week never receiving anything new or fresh that would make us choose them from a different brand of church. We seem to have been lulled into a sleep when it comes to what and why we believe in Christ, and that made me want to begin to dig a little more into just what Jesus meant when He asked the question about the offering and the Alter.
Jesus was dealing with a kind of opposite problem with the Scribes and Pharisees because they were all getting so caught up in their creeds and laws that they were completely forgetting about their worship of God, while today we have become so much alike on the outside that no one can tell what our real beliefs are. In many cases, those who are seeking to find God in our worship are being tricked in a way because they see, and hear, but they do not understand. In many cases today I believe the general public is getting a religious formula made up to appeal to the masses of people who are not watching or who are not necessarily looking for the real truth. What we are allowing the service to give them is a form of Christ with words of Praise and glory, but without any real challenge in their lives to change. Our worship has become a slick way of entertainment and participation, and then a pat on the head about how much God loves us, but no real calls for a committed life in Christ that would demand change in our daily lives. The real problem is do we actually know what we believe or are we accepting what we are told is the truth? It is a question worth thinking about, and I hope you will. May you richly bless God through your life in Him.
THE UNWORTHY SERVANT
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