Simple Worship
Exodus 20:22
-last week we finished our study of the ten commandments
-God is still giving instruction to Moses
-Moses will not come down from the mountain until the end of chapter 31
-God will continue to give instruction about building the tabernacle
-In this passage today God gives instruction about building an altar where they can make sacrifices to God
Altars were very common in the bible
(the first altar in history)
Gen 8:20 KJV - And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar.
Gen 13:18 KJV - Then Abram removed [his] tent, and came and dwelt in the plain of Mamre, which [is] in Hebron, and built there an altar unto the LORD.
Gen 35:1 KJV - And God said unto Jacob, Arise, go up to Bethel, and dwell there: and make there an altar unto God, that appeared unto thee when thou fleddest from the face of Esau thy brother.
An altar was usually just stones they would stack together to make a place to offer a sacrifice to God
When Paul was at Mars Hill he came across several altars to false gods
Act 17:22 KJV - Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars' hill, and said, [Ye] men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious.
Act 17:23 KJV - For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you.
In the book of Revelation when John saw the throne of God he also saw an altar before the throne where the prayers of the saints are brought
Rev 8:3 KJV - And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer [it] with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.
Even today many churches call the front of the church the altar some even build a place where people can come and pray
Notice if you will that God repeats the second command to Moses before he gives him the instructions on how to build an altar
in verse 23 he says You shall not make gods of silver to be with me, nor shall you make for youselves god of gold.
Israel did not need a god of gold or silver, because they couldn't truly represent God
Paul said that idols are nothing
1Cr 8:4 KJV - As concerning therefore the eating of those things that are offered in sacrifice unto idols, we know that an idol [is] nothing in the world, and that [there is] none other God but one.
After God repeats this second command to Moses he gives instruction for building the altar, because there is a connection between the two
Notice how simple the altar is to built
it is to be built out of unhewen stones verse 25, they are not to carve the stones at all. And they are not to build it up high where steps are required to reach it.
If they used tools on the stones they would be tempted to carve them some elaborate way and it would take the focus off of God and worship which is what the altar was all about
Matthew Henry point out that the beauty of Holiness does not need mans paint
The altars were not to be built up high because the people who worshiped pagan gods thought the higher they got to worship the closer they were to God
Num 22:41 KJV - And it came to pass on the morrow, that Balak took Balaam, and brought him up into the high places of Baal, that thence he might see the utmost [part] of the people.
There was altars were also a place of sexual immorality which explains the last part of verse 26, yet Jehovah God was more concerned about the elevation of their hearts, not their altar
If they were not careful, and if they refused to follow Gods instructions on building the altar, the altar itself could become the idol
It happened in Jeremiahs day when the people trusted and worshiped the temple more than God who met them in the temple
Jer 7:3 KJV - Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place.
Jer 7:4 KJV - Trust ye not in lying words, saying, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, [are] these.
It even happens today when people worship a building, tradition, or ritual more than the living God or when people think they have to go to a certain place to get close to G
Now that we understand why God was so specific about building the altar and keeping it very simple I want to share with you how we can apply this in our lives and keep our worship to God simple
First there are a couple of common misconceptions that we need to clear up
Worship is not about a place
Turn to the gospel of John chapter 4,
This woman tries to get into a debate with Jesus about the place of worship, where the right place was
Jesus corrected her, its not about a place its about the place of the heart
Some people have the misconception this lady had, when they think that worship is about physically getting to a certain place. Even as nice as our church building worship is not about the place
God told them not to build steps going up to a high altar because we don't need to climb to a high place in order to get to God. Christianity is all about Jesus climbing down the steps from Heaven to become a man that he might reach us where we are.
This was why God repeated the commandment against idols, because idols can only be at one place at one time, and that didn't represent the true and living God
God has promised us that he is able to be present in all worship services
Mat 18:20 KJV - For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.
Its not about a crowd
Some focus on the crowd, and think that the more people present make for a better worship experience
Jesus said where two or three are gathered together he is in the midst
when the early church met together at first it was 11 disciples and the woman then there was 120 on the day of Pentecost
Three things that simple worship is about
You
They built altars to bring a sacrifice and offer it God. The offering of the sacrifice was an act of worship and was more important than the altar is was being offered on.
Today because of the cross of Jesus Christ no blood sacrifice is required. Instead we are asked to bring ourselves.
Rom 12:1 KJV - I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, [which is] your reasonable service.
1Cr 3:16 KJV - Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and [that] the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
We are a key component to simple worship. We don't need grand pianos, pipe organs, electric guitars, fancy cathedrals with steeples that reach into the clouds in order to worship God.
Our bodies are the temple of the spirit of God and we need to present our bodies to God as a living sacrifice.
One that is ready to go where he sends us, say the words that he gives us, and do what he instructs us.
Even in the Old Testament God told the people that he was more interested in their obedience to him .
1Sa 15:22 KJV - And Samuel said, Hath the LORD [as great] delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey [is] better than sacrifice, [and] to hearken than the fat of rams.
God
Jesus said you must worship in Spirit
the Spirit of God is a necessary element in worship, this includes the condition of our heart, Christ has to be in our heart
If the altar was elaborate it would have taken the focus off of God and in the minds of the people even replaced God. We can go to some fancy church buildings to worship and its even possible to get our focus on the building and miss seeing God.
Where two or three are gathered Jesus said I am there in the midst
this morning I mentioned the letters to the seven churches in the book of Revelation and in that same letter to the church of Laodicea Jesus said, “Behold I stand at the door and knock.”
The church was meeting together, the church was rich, but they didn't have the spirit, Jesus was standing on the outside of the church knocking to get back in.,
meetings without the spirit are just a formality its religion but no relationship, its ritual but no connection with the living God. worship through the spirit is about us connecting with God through His Son Jesus
Simple worship requires that we sacrifice ourselves, that we invite God by assembling together in his name and also that we focus on the truth
Truth
Jesus also focused the lady at the well to the truth. Worship in spirit and in truth
I read an article a couple of weeks ago in Leaderhip magazine by a pastor of a very large church. They had the Sunday morning worship services down to an orchestrated science. The church had hired the best singers and band members that they could find and they put on a really good show every time they met together,.
But one day God brought the pastor under conviction. He went and told the board and said that if it didn't change he could no longer serve as their pastor. This church had over ten thousand members. The board went with the pastors leadership and replaced the worship band and singers and turned the whole focus of the church around, the didn't want it to be a show anymore. Week after week they lost members until they had lost a third of their membership.
Its not always the popular thing to do, buts its the right thing when we elevate truth above everything else in our worship services
Some churches spend 30 minutes on singing 15 minutes on announcements and they want the sermon to be about 15 minutes
In the worship that Jesus brought our attention to truth was a key element, not location, tradition or ritual but truth
Jhn 17:17 KJV - Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
Only Gods word has the power to bring the necessary conviction upon the hearts and souls of men and women
Hbr 4:12 KJV - For the word of God [is] quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and [is] a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Going back again to the letter to the seven churches, in the letter to the church in Philadelphia, which was the letter without any rebuke in it Jesus said, “I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.”
There was an emphasis in this church on the word of God both in profession and in action
In closing,
God instructed the Israelites not to build a fancy altar with carved out stones because it would have become a distraction to simple and true worship. Let's guard our own hearts and not allow ourselves to become distracted by traditions, denominational titles, rituals, and even buildings
its about us presenting ourselves to God worshiping in spirit and in truth
I know as well as you do that we live in complicated world but we as believers need to get back to the basics of worship that Jesus menioned. It doesn't require anything fancy, just our bodies , the spirit and truth
Lets pray
