CHAPTER IX THE KINGDOM: THE LAWS OF WORSHIP "I am the Lord thy God. . . . Thou shalt have no other gods before Me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God. Thou shalt not take the Name of the Lord thy God in vain. Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy. . . . The Seventh Day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath Day and hallowed it." Exodus 20:2-11. "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. 1. Chronicles 16:29. "Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together." Hebrews 10:22-25. "Hallowed be Thy Name. Thy Kingdom come. done on earth, as it is in Heaven." Matthew 6:9-10. Thy Will be This study of the Law of Christ's Kingdom, begun in the previous chapter, extends through Chapters VIII, IX, and X. The general outline of the study is continued through the three chapters, showing the different aspects of the Law as it was discussed by Christ. A study has already been made, in Chapter VIII, of the Laws of Law itself, and of the Social Laws of the Kingdom. In Chapter X, there will be a study of the Laws that are personal in their nature and application. In this Chapter IX, the study is concerned with the Laws of Worship and of Religious Services. This entire chapter is occupied with this one aspect of the General Law of the Kingdom. The continued outline has, therefore, in this chapter, but one main division, which is numbered as follows: III. The Laws That Apply Between Man and God This chapter, as already suggested, deals with that portion of the Sermon on the Mount in which Christ laid down anew the principles that define Man's duty directly "Thy Vows Are toward God. In this portion of His Sermon, upon Me, O God: I Christ gave no new Law; neither did he modify the Old Law in any essential manner. The thing He did was this. He translated into terms that were better suited to immediate practical application certain principles of the Ancient Law, as it was given to Moses. The Law itself will Render Praises unto Thee" Psalm 56:12 was not changed; but its requirements were emphasized, more than ever, as binding upon the hearts of men. These are the Laws that regulate worship and religious services. The Laws here considered define the right attitude of life toward God, and its right expression directly toward Him. The Way of Life has already been given by Christ. He taught, as seen in Chapter IV, that a saved life has a receiving side and a responding side. The outlet of a renewed life in man has two channels. In one direction, life flows out horizontally in helpful service to men. In the other direction, life rises vertically upward in the praise and worship of God. Besides these two outlets of life, there is no way of giving expression to a saved life. There is no other way to "work out your salvation with fear and trembling," as Paul has suggested. With the former of these outlets of life, Christ has already dealt in His discussion, in the previous chapter, of Man's duty to Man. With the latter outlet of life, as expressed directly toward God through worship and religious services, Christ was concerned in that part of His Sermon which is now under consideration. The Laws of Worship, as Christ analyzed them, are concerned with three central topics of duty. These topics are, the general principle of sincerity in worship, the regulations of the external forms of religious exercises rendered as worship to God, and the inner motive of all religious performances, which is a supreme devotion of the heart to God, and to His Son Jesus Christ. To these three topics are attached the Laws that apply directly between Man and God. (A) The Principle of Sincerity in Man's Relations to God The first Law of all relations to God calls for Truth and Sincerity. God requires those principles first in all dealings with "For We.. Him. Faith must be correct and sincere. Love must be correct and sincere. Works must be correct and sincere. Worship must be correct and sincere. "God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and truth." Correctness, according to the truth of God, and singleness of purpose to exalt His glory must characterize all acceptable worship. "Take heed that ye do not your righteousness before men, to be seen of them: else ye have no reward with your Father which is in Heaven." This basic Law of Religion touches the motive of religious performances. After Truth, and indeed as a part of Truth itself, this Law requires Sincerity. The two things stand together. The spirit that would seek through worship and religious services to secure the praises of men annuls the favor of God. Such worship is not worship. At least, it is not worship of God. Man must be sincere when he comes into the presence of God: for "the Lord looketh on the heart." Sincerity is essential to all true worship. Sincerity is, in fact, as the subject was treated by Christ, the first Law of Worship and of all religious services. (B) The Laws That Regulate the External Forms "Worship God" See Note 2 below Matthew 6:2-18 Sincerity is the first principle of all worship. From that first principle, Christ advanced, in the next part of His Sermon, to the Laws that regulate the external Forms through which sincere worship finds an expression. The three Forms of worship which the Lord considered in this Sermon are AlmsGiving, Prayer, and Fasting. These three Forms are more than representative: they include all direct expression of the inner spiritual life toward God.2 These Forms of worship, Alms-Giving, Prayer, and Fasting, have appeared in the religious life of all Christian ages. They have their equivalents in the Christian life 1. Three Forms of of today. Alms-Giving, as the term was Worship to God used in Christ's day, would now cover all the services of charity, and all the regular and special support of the Kingdom, which may be rendered by contributions of money, or of other things of material value. Alms-Giving in that day combined the two modern ideas of personal charity and of general benevolences. Prayer meant the same then that it means now. Fasting was then sometimes personal, and sometimes social, being participated in by a congregation, or by an entire community. As it was divinely appointed, Fasting involved an abstaining from food for a time, as a means of intensifying humility before God and prayer to Him, the end being to secure (usually to regain) Divine favor, or to obtain Divine guidance. 11. Samuel 16:7. 2See Revelation 22:9; Isaiah 29:13-17; Ezekiel 33:30-32; Zephaniah 2:11; Matthew 15:7-9; Psalm 116:12-14. Preaching might be thought of as a fourth Form of worship, since preaching services involve worship. However, such activities of the Church are composite exercises, combining the above Forms of worship with definite elements of spiritual services rendered to men. of Treating the Laws of Worship Religion decays rapidly. Fomulæ of response are subject to the deadening laws of habit. Alms-Giving, Prayer, and Fasting may easily fall, on the one hand, into mere 2. Christ's Method perfunctory routine, or, on the other hand, into empty and even ostentatious public display. In either case, the supposed act of worship loses its vital character, and fails of its appointed purposes. Such a fate had befallen much of the worship in the time of Christ. His problem, and that of His Kingdom, was to restore vitality and sincerity to the worship of God. In His efforts to accomplish this end, Christ, in dealing with the three Forms of worship, Alms-Giving, Prayer, and Fasting, followed a fixed order of treatment. His method was simple, but very effective. He gave first the common practice of that day as respects the particular Form of worship then under consideration. After giving the common practice, He next gave the proper Form, and the proper spirit, in which that particular type of worship should be rendered in order that it might be made acceptable to God. "It is More Blessed To Give Than To 1. The Law Regulating Alms-Giving. Christ discussed first the Law that regulates Alms-Giving. This Law He linked at once with the foregoing Law of sincerity. Introducing the principles of this Law, Christ said, "When therefore thou doest alms, sound not a trumphet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have received their reward." That was the customary way of giving alms in the days of Christ, Who doubtless had seen the performance many a time. The entire scene, as He described it, was a 1. Common Practice display of insincerity. When alms were in Alms-Giving given, a great public display of the performance was made, with the blowing of trumphets, so that all the community might know that alms were being given. The giving was hypocritical: for it was not intended that God should thereby be glorified. The purpose of the noise was merely to attract attention to the giving. The motive which animated the giver was a low desire for the applause of men. The results sought after were always attained. The trumphets attracted attention to the hollow giving. Men gave their applause, which was equally hollow. Then the alms-givers made their exit from the scene, with the hollow joys of a smug complacency. And the curtain fell! 2. Proper Method and Spirit of Alms-Giving But Christ insisted that such a scene of hypocrisy should never be staged by the child of God. The exact opposite, in deed, and motive, and result, must be striven for by every one who would worship God in the Giving of Alms. Christ gave great emphasis to this truth. "But when thou doest alms," He said, "let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: that thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father Who seeth in secret shall recompense thee." That is the simple Law of AlmsGiving, if the exercise is to have religious merit as an act of worship, glorifying God. This Law is simple; but it is imperative: for the secret motive of every approach to God must be both correct in truth and sincere in spirit. 3. Advantages of Secrecy in AlmsGiving The element of secrecy in Alms-Giving has several advantages. The secrecy of the deed is a safe-guard to the sincerity of its character as an act of worship to God. The motives for secrecy point in two important directions. The sincere alms-giver does not desire to exalt himself. Furthermore, knowing that the sensibilities of the poor and unfortunate are very delicate, the sincere giver of alms desires to render service without giving offense. Such motives, in the nature of the case, must be sincere. They lift the soul up into the very presence of God. Such giving is as a sweet savor unto the Lord. The results are inevitable. The Heavenly Father, Who is pleased with sincerity in all things, has always a suitable recompense for the soul that is sincere in giving. Right giving is always an act of the spirit, an act that reaches out toward God. Such giving is never a matter for public advertisement. If God, Who needs no sounding of trumphets to attract His attention, recognizes the act as sincere, then that is all that the soul of the true giver desires. The reward will be forth-coming: for God never forgets. These are the underlying principles in the Law of Alms-Giving. 2. The Law Regulating Prayer. Prayer requires that Prayer should requirement applies alike to the Method and to the Substance Likewise, the Law of also be sincere. This |