WHAT IS TRUE WORSHIP UNDER LAW AND GRACE?

Pastor Art Watkins of Coden Bible Church (Coden, Alabama)

June 8, 2018

During the ministry of Christ men still worshipped God according to the Law of Moses for it was still binding on all men until it was abolished by the cross.

Under Moses there was a prescribed time of worship. They worshipped God on the Sabbath days, the holy days and the 7 Feast days according to Lev. 23.

Under Moses there was a prescribed method of worship. By offerings and sacrifices. 1 Chronicles 16:29: Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come before him: worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.

Under Moses there was a prescribed place of worship. In the city of Jerusalem and in the Temple called the house of God. Psalms 5:7: But as for me, I will come into thy house in the multitude of thy mercy: and in thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple.

Psalms 138:2: I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.

Jeremiah 26:2: Thus saith the LORD; Stand in the court of the LORD'S house, and speak unto all the cities of Judah, which come to worship in the LORD'S house, all the words that I command thee to speak unto them; diminish not a word:

This was the way men worshipped God under Moses and during the time of Christ. But, in the book of John the Lord said this would all change.

In John 4 there is a conversation recorded between the Lord and the woman at the well and the subject of worship came up. It says in John 4:20-24 that the woman said to Jesus: Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

What the woman said about worship was true at that time; that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. But, the Lord said the hour was coming that men would no longer worship God in Jerusalem, or in the ways they worshipped him in Jerusalem. He said the hour was coming when men would worship God in spirit and in truth. That was a prediction that worship was about to change and it did at the cross. The cross brought an end to the way men worshipped God, for by the cross the Law of Moses was abolished. Ephesians 2:14-15 says: For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace. All of the ordinances of Moses Law were abolished, including the ordinances concerning the way, time and place that men worshipped God. This is what the Lord was alluding to in John 4 when he said: The hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. That hour came at the cross when the Law of Moses and its ordinances concerning worship changed.

Today, there is no longer a special place of worship as it was under Moses Law. We worship God any place and anywhere we are. There is no longer a prescribed time to worship God. We worship God at all times and in all places. There is no prescribed way to worship God such as offering sacrifices or with the first fruits of our crops. We do not worship God in the flesh because we worship in him in spirit.

In Acts 17:24-25 Paul said: God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things.

Paul said God does not dwell in temples and buildings made with hands and so he is not worshipped in temples and buildings. He also said, neither is he worshipped with men’s hands. This is what the Lord was saying to the woman at the well in John 4. The way men worship God today has changed. It changed when the cross abolished the Law of Moses. We now worship God in spirit and not with hands. We now worship God any place, anywhere and not in a prescribed place or building. We now worship God at all times and not at a prescribed time during the week or year.

What does it mean to worship God? Most people define worship today as it was defined under the law. They think we still worship God in buildings and temple. They think we still worship God on a certain day during the week such as Friday, Saturday or Sunday. They still think we worship God in a prescribed way with our hands, lips, eyes, candles, smoke, music, standing and kneeling and bowing in a building on a special day during the week. The Lord defined worship in Matthew 4 where he said: Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. The word worship means to reverence, adore, glorify, honor, magnify and exalt. The way we worship, honor, exalt, magnify, adore and glorify God according to Jesus is by serving him.

We worship God by serving God. How do we serve God? By doing what he says with the right motive and by love. For example, when a Christian witnesses to a lost person they are serving God and by serving God they worship, glorify and honor God. Therefore, witnessing with the right motive, in love, is an act of worship for it glorifies and honors and magnifies God, Christ and the gospel. When and where should we witness? Any time, any place and at all times and all places.

When a believer gives money to support the work of a ministry that preaches the doctrines and gospel of grace, he is serving God and by serving God he is worshipping, honoring and glorifying God.

When we do those things God tells us to do in his word with the right motive, in love, in the spirit and not the flesh, we are serving God. By serving God we worship him. We do not worship God in a building on a prescribed day of the week. We worship him every day seven days a week, no matter where we are and we do it by serving him.

This is why we do not call our church meetings, “worship services” for it gives people the impression that worship is confined to a certain building on a prescribed day of the week and unless you come to that building on that day you are not worshiping God. This is a hangover from the Law when people did meet in a building to worship God on a prescribed day of the week. This is also why we do not have what they call, “worship leaders” in our church. We worship God when we serve God and we do it without so called “worship leaders” another contemporary invention of the present-day pseudo charismatics.