Lately in both my scripture reading and research the theme of idolatry has kept popping up. I even preached on it a few weeks ago. Thinking of yesterdays post, and discussing what is appropriate in worship the idolatry thread popped up in my mind.
We need help defining what is sacred, especially in modern worship. This very issue is part of the larger conversation of idolaty. Note these verses from Isaiah 44 (NLT)
Is. 44:9 How foolish are those who manufacture idols.
These prized objects are really worthless.
The people who worship idols don’t know this,
so they are all put to shame.
Is. 44:10 Who but a fool would make his own god—
an idol that cannot help him one bit?...............Is. 44:14 He cuts down cedars;
he selects the cypress and the oak;
he plants the pine in the forest
to be nourished by the rain.
Is. 44:15 Then he uses part of the wood to make a fire.
With it he warms himself and bakes his bread.
Then—yes, it’s true—he takes the rest of it
and makes himself a god to worship!
He makes an idol
and bows down in front of it!
Is. 44:16 He burns part of the tree to roast his meat
and to keep himself warm.
He says, “Ah, that fire feels good.”
Is. 44:17 Then he takes what’s left
and makes his god: a carved idol!
He falls down in front of it,
worshiping and praying to it.
“Rescue me!” he says.
“You are my god!”
Is. 44:18 Such stupidity and ignorance!
Their eyes are closed, and they cannot see.
Their minds are shut, and they cannot think.
Is. 44:19 The person who made the idol never stops to reflect,
“Why, it’s just a block of wood!
I burned half of it for heat
and used it to bake my bread and roast my meat.
How can the rest of it be a god?
Should I bow down to worship a piece of wood?”
Part of the reasoning behind this verse is the absurdity of creating an idol out of an ordinary material, consuming part of it for everyday use and then making something sacred out of the rest. Israel even had issues with worshiping God outside of the perscribed places of worship. Since the beginning we want to play lightly with the things of God.
One of the places that critics of modern worship have a valid point is the desacrilization of worship. But most of these critics also maintain what I consider to be a "high-brow" view of worship. Worship is a contextual activity, different from culture to culture. This means we have to understand what might be sacred in our culture now. How can our spiritual sensibilities be truly offended?
Worship takes us to a different place. Worship is a proleptic activity, meaning that we take a future promise and bring it into our world. The things of our ordinary world just don't make sense. Part of new expressions of worship means finding new ways to define and celebrate sacred things. Christian worship defies the idea of what is valued in the world and instead uplifts kingdom values. We must be able to actualize what is sacred in contemporary church culture and then express it.
Idolatry happens when we attempt to allow our world to define Gods world. It happens when we let the mundane thrive in worship. When we want worship that doesn't stretch us outside what confines a nonimagined world, a world that just "fits" instead of a place of thriving we have idolatry. To limit our worship limits our belief in the world that a loving God has created.
Our method might change, but the message never does.
