Altar Call –
Opelika-Auburn News
Walter
Albritton
July 26, 2015
What the Ark
can teach us about worship
The study of Jewish history
leads eventually to the Ark of the Covenant. And surprisingly, the story of the
ark offers valuable insights into the nature of authentic worship. To explore
that subject let’s begin with King David for whom, most of the time, the
worship of almighty God was serious business.
David reverenced holy things.
The lessons of Hebrew history were not lost on him. He understood the sacred
place of the Ark of the Covenant in Israelite worship. His sense of timing was
superb; he realized when the time had come for the ark to be moved to
Jerusalem.
While David did not have the
wisdom of his son Solomon, he did have the common sense to learn from his
mistakes. After failing in his attempt to move the ark, he took great care to
move it successfully the second time. No stone was left unturned. He made sure
the right people, the Levites, would carry the ark in the prescribed manner – on
their shoulders using poles that extended through the gold rings on the ark. We
can imagine David saying to the leader of the Levites, “Don’t even think about
loading the ark on a wagon again!”
David prepared a special
place for the ark. A sacred symbol, it deserved a place of honor. It would not
be stuck in a corner and pulled out for special occasions. A designated place
elevated its significance to the Israelites.
The arrival of the ark
called for a celebration. David assembled all Israel in Jerusalem for a
carefully orchestrated time of worship. While they had no bulletins to pass
out, they did have an “order” of worship. Their worship was not haphazard or
spontaneous. They did not invite the audience to request favorite songs. Gifted
musicians were asked to play all kinds of musical instruments. Kenaniah, “the
head Levite,” was chosen, because of his exceptional skill, to prepare choirs
to sing “joyful songs.” David pulled out all the stops and made it a memorable
day for the people.
What may we learn from this?
First, that it is good to
have reverence for holy things in our houses of worship. We need to recover a
sense of the sacred that is largely missing in today’s culture. While we no
longer designate a sacred place for a historic relic like the Ark of the
Covenant, we can consecrate a special place for holy things such as the communion
table, the altar, the Bible and the cross. We can teach our children to share
our reverence for holy things in a holy place. We can choose not to eat
spaghetti and play basketball in the same space used to house the sacred
symbols of our faith. As much as we enjoy the “casual” flavor of our culture,
there may be a line beyond which we should not go.
Second, that worship can be
consistently awesome and exciting when planned well. Casual worship can be
tempered with historic liturgy that reminds us of our spiritual heritage. While
liturgies can become tedious, a simplistic pattern of singing and preaching may
not provide people with all they need to feel connected to the universal
“Church Militant.”
The recitation of a creed may seem obsolete but it
helps us remember who we are and why we have gathered to worship almighty God.
We may be cheating worshipers if we offer a steady diet of “new” songs and
never offer the thrill of singing the great old hymns of the faith. The church
that serves God best may be the one that offers authentic worship in both
contemporary and traditional styles – and remains open to other innovative
styles of worship as the Spirit leads. We should never forget that our God is
always “doing a new thing.”
Third, that authentic worship will help people hear
God’s call to serve him in the common life. David helped people “connect” the Ark
of the Covenant with daily living. True worship inspires us to “go forth” from
worship to honor Christ in all we do. Worship is not an end in itself. True
worship will inspire us to love and serve God – and to love the people for whom
Christ died. It will motivate us to
serve God in deeds of love and mercy, through giving, praying and praising God
with both our lips and our lives. Creative “doing” will flow out of authentic
“being.”
Authentic worship is participatory; it is not a
“spectator sport.” Worshipers should
share fully in singing, prayer and praise – not simply watch and applaud gifted
people perform on a stage. The audience must be engaged by worship leaders to
the point that they “feel” they are worshipping, not watching a performance. True
worship creates an atmosphere in which people can passionately praise God, then
open their hearts to receive the inspiration, comfort and guidance that God
provides when his people gather to praise him for his chain-breaking mercy. + + +