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Urbana 2000 Webcast
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Urbana 2000 Convention Lifestyle and LiturgyWe all know what we mean by "lifestyle." It's how you spend your time and money, where you go, what you do, with whom you do it, how often, and perhaps with what kind of attitude. When we use a word like "liturgy," however, you might get a little confused - or even worried. Well do not fear! Most simply and accurately put, "liturgy" means "the acts of the people." Do not be intimidated by this word. It just means "what we Christians do when we get together to worship." There are formal and informal liturgies, of course, but what makes them liturgies is not their level of formality, but that they are the actions that God's people take together to worship him. There are two primary ways that scripture sees worship. There's the worship of how we live our lives, and there's the symbolic acts of worship in which we participate. Both are important, and they relate to each other. But they are not the same. Romans 12:1-2 is often quoted when describing the kind of worship that encompasses our entire lives. True worship in this sense means being transformed into being like God instead of like the world around us. This happens through the choices we make, how we use our resources, in our personal character, etc. This kind of worship is extremely important to God. His first commandment to his people in the Old Testament was that they'd have (i.e. worship) no other gods before him (Deuteronomy 5:6-7). Their allegiance was to be to him first and foremost. In the ministry of Jesus, we see that the greatest commandment remained to love God with all of one's being (Mark 12:30). Choosing to worship God in our actions, choices, and relationships with each other is also one of the chief purposes of the church. 1 Peter 2:4-9 shows that God's church is to be a holy and royal priesthood. In fact, we are to be living stones that compose a house of worship. Our lifestyles (individually and corporately) are to reflect our allegiance to and worship of the one true living God. God calls us to a lifestyle of worship - but our acts of liturgical worship are also inherently valuable to him. It is in liturgical acts of worship that our souls are re-aligned with the truths of who God is, who we are before him, how he views us, and how we see (or at least should see) him. Scripture gives us many examples of liturgical worship. Many words that are translated into words like "worship," "praise," and "bless" in English language Bibles actually mean or imply physical actions (e.g. bowing down, singing, etc.). Worship, it becomes clear, involves not only our whole being as in our lifestyles, but also our entire selves as in our physical bodies. Worship also involves our emotions and our intellect. In Isaiah 29:13, God complains that Israel worships him with their lips, but their hearts are not in it. In John 4, Jesus says that true worshippers worship in spirit and truth. It is in liturgical worship that we express with our hearts and minds that we love and need the great God of all the earth. It is in liturgical worship that we experience a profound taste of the heavenly realms - where God himself dwells. It is also in liturgical worship that we vow an allegiance to God that is then applied in our lifestyle (and if it is not applied, then our acts of liturgical worship become empty or even offensive to God - see Psalm 50). When we encounter God's spirit in times of singing, praying, and hearing from God's word, it motivates us to live lives of obedience that bring glory to God (and it moves us to tell others about how good he is, too). At the same time, when we trust and honor God and experience his care and protection in our lives, we are motivated to sing, pray, and hear from his word. Trusting God daily leads to intense liturgical worship, and encountering God in our liturgical worship motivates us to give our lives to him everyday.
Matt Frazier
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