Luke 17:11-19
Passionate Worship: How, Why, and the Heart of
Worship
James Sledge May
12, 2013
Many
of you are aware of the ongoing discussion about whether to have some sort of
second worship service here at Falls Church Presbyterian. Any decision is a
ways off, and I mention it only because of something I’ve observed whenever
this topic arises at any church. Very often, the moment the subject comes up,
people immediately zero in on style.
“We
need a contemporary service,” say some. “The last thing we need is a
contemporary service,” says others. And the debate over various styles is
engaged. This has been played out in so many congregations in recent decades
that the term “worship wars” was coined to speak of this battle over styles.
And in such arguments, the entire focus seems to be on the “how” of worship.
When
the friend and colleague, from whom I borrowed the idea for this sermon series,
preached on “Passionate Worship,” he told the story of a new church that began
in 2001. It was well funded with denominational grants and used an old,
existing church building that cost them very little. And so they poured money
into creating an incredible worship experience that rivaled a rock concert.
They had top of the line, professional-grade audio and visual equipment, along
with the same caliber of stage lighting.
The
church opened with much fanfare, with videos and song lyrics projected onto
three screens, including one at the back that was just for the members of the
praise band. There were 50 members on the roster the day it opened, and it had
doubled in size within the year.
My
friend Steve was not directly involved in this church until recently. He was part
of a denominational, administrative commission charged with closing the church.
Following a final worship service attended by seven people, my friend and others
packed the last remaining bits of all that fancy audio and video equipment and put
them in storage.
No scandal or malfeasance had torn the
place apart, no huge trauma or conflict. If there was an easy explanation for
the church’s demise, it was likely to be found in its preoccupation with the
“how” of worship.*
In
our gospel reading this morning, we hear about worship from a totally different
perspective. Ten lepers approach Jesus hoping he will heal them. Jesus tells
them to go and show themselves to the priests. Only priests could certify that people
unclean because of leprosy had become
clean. And so when Jesus sends these
lepers to the priests, it is a promise a healing. And indeed, while on the way,
their skin condition disappears. (In the Bible, leprosy doesn’t refer to the
chronic disease behind leper colonies. It is a term for all sorts of rashes and
skin conditions. Even clothing and structures with mold had leprosy.)
All ten of these lepers exhibit a
significant amount of faith. They believe Jesus can heal. They do as he tells
them without hesitation, without questioning why they should head to the priest
when there is as yet no evidence of healing. But when they are healed, one
forgets about going to the priests and runs back to Jesus, praising God with a loud voice, worshiping
as he goes. And he throws himself at Jesus’ feet, thanking him, worshiping him.
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Some
of you may remember the old “Wayne’s World” skits from Saturday Night Live later made into feature films. Mike Meyers plays
Wayne and Dana Carvey, Garth, two slackers who do a local access cable show
from the basement of Wayne’s parents. When they meet rock stars they idolize
such as Aerosmith or Alice Cooper, they fall down, repeating over and over,
“We’re not worthy, we’re not worthy.” In other words, they worship.
Wayne
and Garth are ne’er-do-well losers who do not know how to do much of anything
right, and so their worship looks a bit ridiculous. It is all about the “why”
of worship. They are in the presence of one they adore and idolize, and they
lose themselves, make fools of themselves, in worship.
Something similar happens with the tenth
leper. When he falls at Jesus’ feet, looking a bit like Wayne and Garth, the
story adds, And he was a Samaritan. A Samaritan; in other words, a foreign,
ne’er-do-well loser. No doubt the other lepers who went on to see the priest
knew much better than he did “how” to worship the right way. But this
Samaritan, this foreigner, understands the “why” of worship. And Jesus says to
him, “Get
up and go on your way; your faith has saved you, made you whole.”
Our English translation obscures it a
bit, but something bigger happens to this fellow that the “heal” or “made
clean” that happens to all ten. When he gets caught up in the “why” of worship,
losing himself in gratitude, praise, and thanks, then Jesus says he is saved, whole.
___________________________________________________________________________
How
we worship does matter. All worship has a style, and certain styles fit some
congregations better than others. But as that church my friend helped close
discovered, the very best “how” is not what makes worship work. A church can do
the “how” better than anyone else, but without the “why,” it is little more
than a performance, a show, a rock concert in the case of that church that
closed. Because “why,” not “how,” is the heart of worship.
If
people are thinking about trying church, they will likely go to a place with a
style that’s comfortable. But it is the “why” that makes a difference in
people’s lives. When people experience the presence and love of the Living God,
a presence that inspires them to offer themselves in praise, worship, thanks,
and self-giving, transformation is possible. And even those who do not
understand what is going on in the “how” of worship can sense the “why.” They
may not be able to name it, but they recognize that the people in the pews are
not simply at a show, a performance, or a concert. They are offering themselves
to God in worship that is full of heart, that is passionate worship.
And
when passionate worship combines with radical hospitality, the topic of last
week’s sermon where people go out of their way to reach out and invite and
welcome, acting as hosts who see the needs of strangers and guests as more
important than their own, then something amazing and magnetic begins to come to
life. Christ is truly present. His love is truly shared. And new life, life
saved or made whole, is truly possible.
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