IRREVERENCE IN WORSHIP
1 Corinthians 11:2-16
INTRODUCTION: Beginning here and continuing through Chapter 14, Paul deals with issues regarding public worship. This is an important point – what Paul has to say he says in the context of public worship. Simply put, worship is aligning ourselves with God. Worship is all about God, not us! So, as Paul instructs the church concerning worship, he is in reality, instructing the church to be more God centered, and less self centered. To achieve worship that is God centered, we must deal with our own attitude, and conduct while worshipping. Here in this passage, Paul is teaching that in order to have God centered worship, we need to accept and understand the issue of authority. Paul lays out 6 principles to help us understand the issue of authority in worship
I Principle #1 – Partnership and Order in the Universe – 1 Cor 11:3
A The church at Corinth seemed to misunderstand the issue of Authority, and we seem to misunderstand the issue of authority
B Submission is a mutual co-operation and commitment that avoids chaos
C Christ is the head or authority of EVERY man.
1 Man is subordinate to Christ
D In turn, man has an authority over woman
1 Not an issues of superiority
2 Both man and woman are equal in God’s sight
3 Man and woman are an essential partnership
a Both have an interdependent relationship
b God ordained the relationship between man and woman
c God does not se “sexes”
Galatians 3:28 (NIV) Gal 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
4 Issue has NEVER been
a Ability and worth
b Competence and value
c Brilliance and advantage
5 Issue has always been function and order
a Christ submitted himself to God the Father
b Christ was equal with God
c For the purpose of Salvation God the son (co-equal) submitted himself to God the Father
E We serve God by submitting
1 Submitting to Him
2 Submitting to each other
II Principle #2 – Avoiding Embarrassment and Dishonor to each other – 1 Cor 11:4-6
A Men with covered heads
1 Issue in question is rebellion instead of worship
2 Men in the Old Testament followed the example of Moses
a Moses covered his head because of the glory of God
b OT men covered their heads when they thought they were in the presence of God
3 Men in the church came uncovered, signifying that they had regained the image of God, lost through sin, yet restored through Christ
2 Corinthians 3:13-18 (NIV) 2Co 13 We are not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face to keep the Israelites from gazing at it while the radiance was fading away. 14 But their minds were made dull, for to this day the same veil remains when the old covenant is read. It has not been removed, because only in Christ is it taken away. 15 Even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts. 16 But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.
18 And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
4 Some believers were adopting to cover their heads in rebellion
REBELLION AFFECTS EVERYBODY
REBELLION RESTRAINS WORSHIP AND FELLOWSHIP
B Women without the veil
1 Issue here was exposing ones self and thereby attracting attention
2 Women would normally have been veil in society.
3 Since EVERY woman was veiled, no one took particular notice.
4 When a woman was unveiled, it was a sign of a loose woman outside the church
5 The issue inside the church was
a Exposing self in such a way as to attract attention from others
1) Attention that was directed towards God
2) Attention that should have been directed towards God
b Bringing or permitting the custom and attitude of the world to find its way into the church
The issues of rebellion and worldliness are detrimental to the church from their very roots!
WHY WE REBEL …
We rebel because we perceive personal injustice.
We rebel because we perceive personal prejudice
We rebel because we perceive personal requirements
WHAT WE ARE ACTUALLY SAYING IS THAT WE REBEL BECAUSE WE DO NOT LIKE THE WAY SOMETHING IS GOING. IN OTHER WORDS – WHAT IS HAPPENING DOES NOT FIT MY LIFESTYLE – IT’S NOT THE WAY I THINK, IT’S NOT THE WAY I DO THINGS
PROBLEM WITH REBELLION IS THAT SOMETIMES IT HAPPENS IN AREAS WE THINK JUST THE OPPOSITE OF!
Let me give you a “for instance”. How many of you have said, or say, “Our youth are the church of the future”. I would take that to mean that you believe that the future of the church will rest with our young people. So, how is it that when we focus an evening on our young people. We announce it. We ask you to support it – because we are preparing the “church of the future”, you don’t show up. All that is is rebellion!
Pastor should spend that time on them
I am not a Christian movie person
I need more than that.
Guess what – worship is not about you, its about God. And if God is going to work in the lives of our youth, he would like to have us involved in it, not rebelling against it!
WHY WE BRING WORLDLINESS INTO THE CHURCH …
We think we can entice others into the church
We think the church is behind the times
I don’t like what’s happening in the church
GUESS WHAT – THE GOSPEL IS WHAT ULTIMATELY BRINGS US INTO CHURCH, THE CHURCHES METHODS, MAY NEED SOME HELP, BUT THE MESSAGE DOESN’T, AND CHURCH IS ABOUT GOD’S WANTS, NOT OURS!
THE BIGGEST TRUTH TO GET HOLD OF IS THAT WORSHIP IS ABOUT GOD, NOT ME!
UNTIL WE GET A HOLD OF THIS TRUTH – WE WILL ALWAYS WANT TO EXERCISE OUR RIGHTS IN A WORSHIP SERVICE, OR REBEL AGAINST A WORSHIP SERVICE!
III Principle #3 – AUTHORITY AND THE ORDER OF CREATION
A When God created man God gave man authority
Genesis 1:28 (NIV) Ge 28 God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground."
Genesis 2:18-22 (NIV) Ge 18 The LORD God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him."
19 Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the beasts of the field and all the birds of the air. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. 20 So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds of the air and all the beasts of the field. But for Adam no suitable helper was found. 21 So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and closed up the place with flesh. 22 Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.
1 Suitable helper
a A corresponding helper
b An appropriate helper
c An equal helper
B I have authority because I am under authority
1 Jesus knew this – “not my will, but yours”
2 Those Jesus met knew this
Matthew 8:9 (NIV) Mt 9 For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ’Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ’Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ’Do this,’ and he does it."
3 Creation bears this out
a God created equal partners
b God gave man the authority over creation
c God gave man authority over his knowledge
Genesis 2:15-16 (NIV) Ge 15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
16 And the LORD God commanded the man, "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden;
d Sin entered into the world when the woman removed herself from under the authority of the man and sought to be an authority in and of herself.
C In order to worship, we must be under God’s authority, asking what does God want from me as a worshipper
1 How many churches are in chaos because we will not come under the authority of God in worship.
2 Paul will late lay out some of the things God expects in worship
3 Let me lay out a few briefly
a Chapter 11 – When you come for the Lords Supper come ready to participate, or suffer the consequences
b Chapter 12 – We all have gifts – great and small, but the goal of our gifts is to be a body, not a maverick
c Chapter 13 – If you are not coming to worship with love first, don’t bother coming in with anything else
d Chapter 14 – Emphasis the gifts that give the greatest result for the will of God and the cause of Christ
1) We will have all eternity to increase our spiritual edification and maturity in Christ
2) We will only have till the rapture to fulfill the great commission
3) Which is more important?
IV Principle #4 – RECOGNIZE OUR ESSENTIAL PARTNERSHIP IN WORSHIP – 1 COR 11:11-12
A The only reason authority is the way it is in the church is because God ordained it that way
B Ultimately both men and women are from God
C Both men and women owe their allegiance to God
D Both men and women must be faithful to the place God has given them
E Worship is not my thing
F Worship is not your thing
G Worship is our thing directed towards God
V Principle #5 – USE COMMON SENSE IN WORSHIP – 1 COR 11:13-15
A Result of allowing worldliness and rebellion to enter the church is to draw attention away from God and towards us.
B Result of allowing ourselves to get caught up in the trivial is to expend our time, attention, and passion away from the work God has given us.
VI Principle #6 – DON’T CONTEND OVER CUSTOMS AND PREFERENCES
A If there is no violation of Scripture, then acceptance is the rule
1 Key – is it directed in a worshipful way towards God
B Customs and preferences are just that, and should not be legalized by those holding them
C Customs and preferences are just that, and should not be trivialized by those not holding them.
Ultimately, it comes down to worship. Worship is a time of direction towards God, seeking to honor, praise, esteem, and focus on Him. It is a time when all of our attention should be directed upward. Our greatest concern needs to be that our activity worshipful towards God, not is someone else’s worship like ours. The form of worship is not the issue, the act of worship is.
