The Altar of “I”
By Fr. James Cloud
A young man entered a beautiful cathedral which was so ornately decorated that the very sight of it could make the hardest of sinners cry in repentance. He made his way down the aisle of the church and found it surprisingly empty except for a solitary worshipper bowing before a peculiar looking altar in prayer. As the young man approached this ornately dressed man in a solemn posture of prayer he quietly tapped him on the shoulder and asked what this altar configuration meant. The “righteous” man rose slowly and piously stated, “My friend, this is my altar.” Puzzled, the young man looked closer at the altar. Instead of the cross, the “righteous” man had been praying before an altar with the letter “I” upon it where the cross should be.
There are times in our Christian walk that we see men and women who come to church and expect personal biases of worship or style to be reflected in the service in which they attend. All the while they gripe, complain, and/or cause division within the church because it doesn’t fit in with their personal worldview of Christendom.
These people are usually the best dressed, well mannered, and “righteous” of the church. They love to walk in and feel as if they are GETTING something from God, rather than GIVING something to God. They have needs and, by golly, if the church isn’t exactly the way they think it should be, they throw a royal fit and throw a spiritual tantrum on the church floor.
We have people who sit in church and feel that since we live in the 21st century, Theology, Doctrine, Dogma, and even the Lord God Almighty must change with the times. They pride themselves on good deeds while neglecting the deeper matters of salvation, faith, and repentance.
St. Peter warned of this time of moral relativism, doctrinal “sugariness,” and religion worship. Let’s take a look at this closer:
2 Peter 2:1-22
1But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. 2Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. 3In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.
4For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them into gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment; 5if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others; 6if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; 7and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men 8(for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)— 9if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue godly men from trials and to hold the unrighteous for the day of judgment, while continuing their punishment. 10This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the sinful nature and despise authority.
Bold and arrogant, these men are not afraid to slander celestial beings; 11yet even angels, although they are stronger and more powerful, do not bring slanderous accusations against such beings in the presence of the Lord. 12But these men blaspheme in matters they do not understand. They are like brute beasts, creatures of instinct, born only to be caught and destroyed, and like beasts they too will perish.
13They will be paid back with harm for the harm they have done. Their idea of pleasure is to carouse in broad daylight. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their pleasures while they feast with you. 14With eyes full of adultery, they never stop sinning; they seduce the unstable; they are experts in greed—an accursed brood! 15They have left the straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam son of Beor, who loved the wages of wickedness. 16But he was rebuked for his wrongdoing by a donkey—a beast without speech—who spoke with a man’s voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.
17These men are springs without water and mists driven by a storm. Blackest darkness is reserved for them. 18For they mouth empty, boastful words and, by appealing to the lustful desires of sinful human nature, they entice people who are just escaping from those who live in error. 19They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity—for a man is a slave to whatever has mastered him. 20If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning. 21It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them. 22Of them the proverbs are true: "A dog returns to its vomit," and, "A sow that is washed goes back to her wallowing in the mud." (NIV)
This warning from St. Peter is quite plain and very relevant to the current church climate. Many priests and pastors say, “How can we entice people to come to our church?” Some have gone the way of Balaam and claim to be enlightened in their own wisdom and claim the teachings of the “Jesus Seminar” which deny our Lord’s miracles, Virgin Birth, Resurrection, and even the Sermon on the Mount! They pander to the liberal revisionists within their churches who claim to bring “truth” while they are damning their souls to everlasting fire. Others put on “holy” shows, practice soft Christian psychology instead of doctrine and dogma, have yoga (which is Hindu prayer postures and “Om” is a Hindu deity) classes within their churches, and a myriad of other “extracurricular” activities within the walls of God’s Church.
So why are we in this predicament? It rests solely upon the “self.” Ss. Paul and Peter along with many other Early Church Fathers knew that it was self-sacrifice, denial of the flesh, fasting and prayer and worthy worship that God was and is pleased with. We have attempted to make God into our image and thereby negate His Majesty, Eternality, Immutability and Splendor. We do not have the luxury of going to church and telling God what we expect from Him. We have gotten it into our heads that somehow God is subservient to us. I want to show you another who had such thoughts…
Isaiah 14:12-15
12How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! 13For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: 14I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. 15Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. (KJV)
Interesting how things repeat themselves in the grand scheme of things. When we claim to deserve something from God and expect Him to do our will, we are guilty of the same sin as Lucifer was in the beginning. In addition, we fall to the same sin in the Garden. “Eat the fruit and you shall be like God.”
So what do we need to do to get ourselves out of this spiritual and deadly rut? Repent. Pray. Seek GOD’S WILL and not our own. Does that music minister offend YOUR sensibilities because they want “worship” in the church? Pray for them and yourself to have greater understanding. Does the church expect “Holiness?” I hope so. If not, find another place of worship. St. Peter told you why.
Don’t worship religiosity; worship God “in spirit and in truth.” There were others who worshipped denominational mechanisms, they were known as the Pharisees. Lets look at what our Lord told them…
St. Matthew 23:1-34
1Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: 2"The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. 3So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. 4They tie up heavy loads and put them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.
5"Everything they do is done for men to see: They make their phylacteries[a] wide and the tassels on their garments long; 6they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; 7they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them ’Rabbi.’
8"But you are not to be called ’Rabbi,’ for you have only one Master and you are all brothers. 9And do not call anyone on earth ’father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. 10Nor are you to be called ’teacher,’ for you have one Teacher, the Christ.[b] 11The greatest among you will be your servant. 12For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
13"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.[c]
15"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.
16"Woe to you, blind guides! You say, ’If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’ 17You blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes the gold sacred? 18You also say, ’If anyone swears by the altar, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gift on it, he is bound by his oath.’ 19You blind men! Which is greater: the gift, or the altar that makes the gift sacred? 20Therefore, he who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it. 21And he who swears by the temple swears by it and by the one who dwells in it. 22And he who swears by heaven swears by God’s throne and by the one who sits on it.
23"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. 24You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.
25"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.
27"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean. 28In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.
29"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous. 30And you say, ’If we had lived in the days of our forefathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets. 32Fill up, then, the measure of the sin of your forefathers!
33"You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell? 34Therefore I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town.
Do you think, after reading this, that God approves of worshipping at the altar of “I” and religiosity? I pray not. God loves you so very much and has wondrous plans for your life, but you must “choose this day whom you will serve.” The choice is yours. I am a definitely Pro-Choice…you have the right to be wrong. Scripture says to count all men as liars, but God’s Word as truth.
So as I close today, are you that person bowing in the empty cathedral of self-righteousness? Or are you going to be a catalyst for change and worship God for who He truly is? “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
Amen.
