World Without End

Worship and Eschatological Vision: Advent

The wife and I are spending the next couple of weeks with family for the holidays and then I am flying to Denver to do production for a youth conference.  While at home, we attended the church my Father pastors and I grew up attending.  it isn't the type of church you expect to hear an Advent message at (it is very low church), but Christian time was a prominent theme during the sermon.

A few comments back, someone asked how do we bring people into an idea of faith being a salvation narrative.  It would be easy for us to simply say, "We live in God's story", so you need to act like it....but that won't do it.

One of the reasons I love Advent is that it provides both an "anamnesis and proleptic" time of the Christian year.  We are looking back to the birth of Christ and what that meant for the Jews and we look forward to the return of Christ and the eternal life to come.  This morning, we spent time thinking about the eternal creation of God, of heaven and hell.  While I will disagree with my Father on some points, this message really needs to be spoken to the congregation. Christian time means mentioning creation and ending, and then putting that ending back into proper prospective.

Advent is the perfect time to begin teaching these truths.  It is a season even those people who don't like more creative worship enjoy special direction.  This is the time to direct people through prayer, scripture reading, song and corporate confession to the story of God.  Don't just mention Christmas, but mention 2nd Coming.

Glory be to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit;
As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be

Worship and Eschatalogical Vision: What Story are you telling?

This week I have posted about Worship and Eschatological Vision.  The idea of our worship involving the end of time might be frightening.  But I think it is part of the Christian story we tell in our worship.  We don't tell our story, but we tell Gods.  If you are having questions about that...then we might have serious problems.

But what story do you think you are telling?  Does your worship promote embrace or escape?  Is it full of personal experience or Gods action?

As a worship designer, I ask these questions constantly.  The quote that I love is from an article I read way to much, Robert Jensen's "How the World Lost It's Story".

"If, in the post-modern world, a congregation or whatever wants to be "relevant", its assemblies must be unabashedly events of shared apocalyptic vision. "Going to church" must be a journey to the place where we will behold our destiny"

I am sure that I have even used this quote during this blogs short lifespan, but it causes me to ask questions.  Here are a few--

1.  Am I comfortable even talking/thinking about the end in worship?
2.  Do I feel that I am just attempting to make myself feel safe, or am I speaking of whats to come?
3.  Will people be able to look forward to fulfillment in the worship that has been designed?

These are just a few...what would your questions be?