Worship in Spirit and Truth!
Day 37
WORSHIP IN SPIRIT AND TRUTH!
· EVERY ASPECT OF OUR LIVES IS WORSHIP TO THE LORD
GOD’S WORD: Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. (Romans 12:1-2, NIV)
REFLECTION-DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. How does “my view of God’s mercy” shape my heart for worship?
2. What is involved in “offering my body as a sacrifice” to the Lord in a holy and pleasing manner?
3. Is real worship more of a religious “event or a lifestyle”?
4. What is spiritual transformation, where does it begin and how does it occur?
GOD’S WORD: Jesus declared, “Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.” (John 4:21-24, NIV)
REFLECTION-DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. ow How does the most traditional understanding of worship focus on “special places, times and rituals”?
2. WhaWhat does it mean to worship “in spirit”?
3. What does What does it mean to worship “in truth”?
· FOLLOWERS OF JESUS GATHER FREQUENTLY TO WORSHIP THE LORD
GOD’S WORD: While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.” Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it anew with you in my Father’s kingdom.” (Matthew 26:26-29, NIV)
REFLECTION-DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. What was the meaning of Jesus’ explanation when he first introduced them to the Lord’s Supper or the Holy Communion?
2. What is the deepest significance of believer’s sharing the “bread” of Communion together?
3. What is the deepest significance of believer’s sharing the “cup” of Communion together?
4. Do I personally sense the presence of Jesus when we share the Communion of His body and blood?
GOD’S WORD: Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. (Acts 2:46-47, NIV)
REFLECTION-DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. How frequently did the earliest Christ-followers meet together?
2. Where were the two major gathering places for the earliest Christ-followers?
3. What are two biblical meanings for the expression, “breaking bread together”?
4. When have I most powerfully been caught up in a spirit of “praise” in worship gatherings with other Christ-followers?
5. What do many, who have not yet come to Christ, find most appealing about Christian worship gatherings?
GOD’S WORD: On the first day of the week we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight. (Acts 20:7, NIV)
REFLECTION-DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. What has been the most universal “meeting day” for Christ-followers through centuries?
2. What has always been the “central purpose” of their gathering together in most Christian traditions?
GOD’S WORD: Now about the collection for God’s people: Do what I told the Galatian churches to do. On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made. (1 Corinthians 16:1-2, NIV)
REFLECTION-DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. How is the customary frequency of the earliest Christ-followers’ meetings together reflected in this passage?
2. What is my best understanding of why Christ-followers take up tithes and offerings in their worship gatherings?
· GATHERINGS OF JESUS’ FOLLOWERS ARE TO BUILD UP THEIR FAITH AND FAITHFULNESS
GOD’S WORD: Therefore, my dear friends, flee from idolatry. I speak to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say. Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf. Consider the people of Israel: Do not those who eat the sacrifices participate in the altar? Do I mean then that a sacrifice offered to an idol is anything, or that an idol is anything? No, but the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be participants with demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in both the Lord’s table and the table of demons. Are we trying to arouse the Lord’s jealousy? Are we stronger than he?
(1 Corinthians 10:14-22, NIV)
REFLECTION-DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. How do I understand the observance of Holy Communion as a “participation in the blood and body of Christ”?
2. What is the significance my being “one loaf or one body” together with all other Christ-followers when I participate in the Communion?
3. How might I personally become guilty of partaking from both “the Lord’s Table and the table of demons” at the same time?
GOD’S WORD: And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
(Hebrews 10:24-25, NIV)
REFLECTION-DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
1. How can I personally help to make my congregational worship gatherings more encouraging and inspirational?
2. How do Christ-followers get into the habit of neglecting the worship gatherings of the community of believers?
3. How can we best “encourage one another” to be faithful in attendance and zealous in participation in the worship gatherings?
4. How can I best prepare myself privately for more meaningful participation in my worship together in the congregation?
5. How can I best use my worship together with others to enhance the quality of my private worship and overall spirituality?