We must worship - Rector's Rambling for September 27, 2015

Worship. We must worship.  It is a simple statement.  We must worship.  But it contains a powerful truth that cannot be avoided.  Human beings were created to worship.

Worship is to show reverence and adoration, expressed in private or corporate actions.  Worship is what we do here at St. John’s this morning; showing reverence and adoration (love) to the Good God who created us and redeemed us through His Son, Jesus Christ.  Of course, we do it here formed by the Prayer Book tradition which is theologically precise, biblically sound, and beautifully expressed in word and action.  Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi is the Latin expression that what we pray is what we believe (literally The Law of Prayer is the Law of Belief).  The Prayer Book helps us to stay on track in our worship of our Lord.

Unfortunately, our urge to worship can also be distorted, as all good and natural desires can be, through the destructive effect of original and actual sin.  We can be drawn to worship that is misdirected, whether in be in a religious context or not.  Within the Church we are sometimes drawn only to worship that makes us feel a certain way, rather than objectively worshipping Him.  By turning it primarily toward our own desires and feelings we risk the danger of de facto worship of our own self.

And in our actions and beliefs in the world we can be mistakenly drawn to worship that which is not God.  How many people in their actions are worshipping money and possessions, holding them up and reverencing that as the ultimate good?  What about power and prestige?  And of course there is the cult of personality of those of a religious, personal improvement, or political nature that tries to whip up a type of devotion that can fall into worship.

The remedy, of course, is to stay on course and to worship the true God, and to do so regularly.  This is done in daily prayer at home AND in regular Sunday attendance at Church.  And there is also the opportunity to worship and receive Communion on weekdays as well.

Worship the one, true God in our Lord Jesus Christ, and do so faithfully!