Changing Lives Through Preaching and Worship

ARTICLE TOOLS

Find similar articles E-mail this page

Spontaneity offers no innate advantage over liturgy. Liberty is where the Spirit is, not where the preacher has thrown away his notes.
—Paul Anderson

A woman who was visiting a liturgical service kept punctuating the pastor's sermon with "Praise the Lord!" Another woman finally turned around and said, "Excuse me, but we don't praise the Lord in the Lutheran church."

A man down the pew corrected her. "Yes we do; it's on page 19."

The conflict between form and freedom is not new, and we have both sides in our congregation. Some wish we would throw out the liturgy so we could be free to "move with the Spirit." Others are tired of innovations and want to return to the good ol' days when they knew what was happening and could follow the bulletin play by play.

Is it possible to have the best of both worlds? Yes! Order and ardor can be happily wed. The issue is not structure or freedom, but Spirit. God has no preference for formless spiritualism or Spiritless formalism—he rejects both. Spontaneity offers no innate advantage over liturgy. Liberty is where the Spirit is, not where the preacher has thrown away his notes.

Protestants have traditionally been better workers than worshipers. Pastors may spend fifteen hours on sermon preparation and fifteen minutes throwing the service together.

But God wants worshipers above anything else. Jesus told the Samaritan woman, "He seeketh such to worship him." Karl Barth wrote, "Christian worship is the most momentous, the most urgent, the most glorious action that can take place in human life." If we agree, then worship must not be "the things we do before we get to the important stuff."

One glimpse into heaven reveals that it is of eternal significance. The whole book of Leviticus was written to ...

Like the preview? To read this complete article and 20,359 more in the archive—JOIN NOW! Easily find high-quality, well-researched materials that provide a Christian perspective on topics ranging from headlines to history. Start using this invaluable tool TODAY for preparing your Bible studies, presentations, class lectures, sermons, meetings, and more.
It's easy and quick to join: 2-for-1 Deal. Two powerful resources for 1 great price! A 1-Year Membership to CTLibrary & a 1-year print subscription to the magazine of your choice! Enjoy your first 7days online FREE! Only $49.95 1-Year Membership Plus your first 7 days are FREE! You won't be charged until after your free trial. Only $49.95 1-Month Membership Includes automatic renewal each month. Only $9.95 1-Year for Print Subscribers Special offer if you are currently a print subscriber to Christianity Today, Leadership journal, Books & Culture or Christian History & Biography. Only $29.95 first year Brought to You by Christianity Today Int'l		FREE e-Newsletter! Even if you're not a member you can take advantage of the free "Christian News & Research" twice monthly e-newsletter! Sign up today for the FREE e-newsletter!   Note: Members also automatically receive this free e-newsletter.