Sermons

“On Worship – Part One: Community”

Psalm 111; I Corinthians 11:17-34a – Rev. Rebecca Littlejohn

Vista La Mesa Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), La Mesa, California – August 16, 2015

Holy God, bless the speaking and the hearing of these words, that we might worship with true and deep discernment of the body of Christ in our midst. We pray in the name of Jesus, Amen.

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about worship lately, specifically our worship service here at VLM. In the worship committee, we’ve been talking about the way we approach worship, and we’ve decided to do some experimenting with the order of our worship service, once I get back from my trip to Indianapolis next month. So I decided that over the next three weeks, I’m going to use the sermon time to think through some of what is important about worship. I’m not going to try to cover it all; rather, I’m just going to lift up some aspects that I think are important for us to hold onto.

The three questions I will be addressing over the next few weeks are: Whom do we worship with? What is the primary nature of the content of our worship? And probably most important, Whom do we worship? So we’ll be talking about Community, Word and God. As with all preaching, it is my hope that this is just the beginning of a conversation, and more honestly, not even the beginning, but just a few brief thoughts interjected into a conversation that’s been going on for centuries. But I hope that you will join in too, at least in your own mind, by thinking through what worship means to you and what you think is most important about it.

You might think saving God for last is putting off the hard part, but here’s what I know about today: Our theme is Community, which means we have to face the terrible reality that when we’re part of a church, we’re agreeing to worship with other people. This has, as evidenced by the passage we just heard from First Corinthians, always been something of a problem. “In this matter I do not commend you!” writes Paul. The difficult in this particular situation is that though the Corinthians were worshiping together, they were not really functioning as church. They had some pretty serious socio-economic divisions within their community, and they were acting them out in dramatic fashion whenever they got together. Those who had a lot would bring food and wine, and sit there and eat and drink in front of their fellow worshipers, without sharing. Meanwhile, as Paul noted, others were going hungry.

Not only are you not acting like the Body of Christ, Paul told them; you are actively breaking apart the body of Christ by behaving like this. If your worship is not sensitive to the needs – spiritual and bodily – of all those gathered, it is not worship of Christ. Did you hear that? Not only do you have to sit near those people, you have to be sensitive to their needs! And oh, the ramifications of this teaching!

What this means – and I probably should never admit this out loud, but I’m going to – what this means is that your worship experience here is almost always going to be compromised. Christians have found ways from early on to organize ourselves broadly by worship style. We will never stand up for four hours here like the Orthodox church. There won’t be any slaying of the Spirit or snake-handling. Chanting is unlikely, as is speaking in tongues. If you have found your way here, it is most likely at least partially because worship of a mainline Protestant of the predominantly White variety is what works best for you. And yet – no matter how much we strive to get ourselves into groups of people more or less like ourselves, it turns out even those people aren’t quite as much like us as we’d prefer. Even they have different tastes, different favorite songs, different cultural references and ideals.

You’re probably already aware of this, but I’m going to bring it up because we need to step back and recognize how astounding it is: there is a thing in the church in our day known as “Worship Wars.” Worship Wars. Churches fighting over how to worship. Churches splitting over how to worship. Church people being dismissive and insulting to one another over how to worship. If we weren’t so used to the idea, we might see how scandalous that is.

If we’re going to gather for the Lord’s Supper, Paul tells us, we must discern the body. That is, we must be present with one another in ways that are respectful and mindful of everyone’s needs. We must recognize that even amongst our relatively-speaking-to-the-whole-world homogeneous gathering here there is great diversity. So here is the thing each of us must always remember: Not every portion of every service is necessarily for me. I may hate that particular song, but it may be exactly what someone else needs. I may despise standing up that much, but someone else may be unable to worship sitting still the whole time. This sermon may not speak to me, but it may have almost saved someone else’s life. I may not want to share the burdens of my heart during Joys & Concerns, but that may be the only reason someone else is here. And that diversity of experience is precious in God’s sight. The grace and love with which we embrace those differences is a direct reflection of the presence of Christ in our midst.

The thing about worshiping in community is that if we can get past ourselves, if we can set aside our selfish need to have the service cater to us exclusively, there is incredible grace there for all of us. What a joy it is to be part of a faith community that welcomes musicians based on both talent and enthusiasm. What a blessing it is to be part of a worship gathering where mistakes are smiled at rather than frowned upon. What a privilege to be part of a community that stretches across five generations or more, with meaningful relationships rather than polite tolerance. It is no accident that I’m preaching on community the same day as our Flock Potluck. It is easier to appreciate the aspects of a worship service that are someone else’s favorite if you care about that someone else as a beloved child of God.

Here is something else that’s true about worshiping in community: It means that we don’t have to do it all, all on our own. There are burdens too heavy for any of us to carry alone. When we gather before God to offer our broken, messed-up lives as an offering, it helps to know we’re not the only one going through hard times. It helps to be reminded that God weeps with us by the sharing of our sorrows with the body of Christ. We are relational beings. Our relationship with God is strengthened by our relationships with other people who are also seeking God. When we worship together with a community, our spiritual journey is enriched by perspectives we hadn’t yet seen and gifts we do not have.

Sometimes our worship community stretches even farther than normal. Last week, we worshiped in community with our brothers and sisters from the Community of Disciples of Christ in the Congo. Would it make sense for us to worship like that all the time? Well, I had a great time, and I’d love to dance every Sunday, but that’s not really who this church is, as far as I can tell, so probably that’s not going to happen. But once in a while, it’s important to remember that the body of Christ doesn’t end at our doors, or our national boundaries, or even the shores of the ocean. And when we incorporate that boundless reality into our worship, our understanding of the body of Christ is deepened.

“Examine yourselves,” Paul commands, “and only then eat of the bread and drink of the cup.” Are we here for worship with an open heart to all that it means to be part of the body of Christ? When we passed the peace, did we truly make an effort to reconcile ourselves with all those we’ve been holding in contempt? Did we ask for reconciliation with God? Worshiping as a community keeps us accountable. No one else can confess your sins for you, but we can remind each other of the abundant mercy of God that makes confession a relief instead of a trial.

Worshiping God in isolation is easy; it’s just me and God and we get along great. But when we try to do it surrounded by other people, it’s a reminder that our worship is not just what we do in song and prayer, but how we live our lives. And that is why the presence of those other people is such a vital part of our faith. For if our faith isn’t connected to the rest of our lives, it is meaningless. Our love for God must connect to love for God’s people, or it is false. Worshiping as a community isn’t easy, but it’s a much more effective tool for transforming our hearts toward Christ. May we all be filled with patient grace and wonder at the rich diversity of God’s beloved people, as we praise our Creator with glad and grateful hearts! Alleluia and Amen!