Life Changing Experience
Originally scheduled for November 27
There is a
certain benefit to visiting other churches, particularly when you
are on vacation and can’t get to your home church anyway. Look at it
this way:
·
You get to see the good stuff that other people have thought of. It
might be simply mechanical things, or good way to arrange the
worship service and of course you get to hear a different voice
speaking to you about Christ.
·
You also get to see those things which are not perhaps quite as
good. It’s still true: nothing is ever a total loss, it can always
be used as a bad example. It’s worth asking about these things,
because you might find they have a good reason for doing it the way
they do.
One such
church — we’ll call it the “Life Changing Experience Church” — was
very proud of the fact that during communion they played hard rock
Christian choruses as loudly as possible. Whatever it was we were
supposed to think of in communion was then unthinkable.
Now, there is
a traditional argument about music during communion. Those who
prefer to have music during communion would argue with you this way:
·
Music may guide your thoughts. You may be listening only to the
melody of an old and familiar hymn, but your mind knows the words.
If it’s the right hymn, it produces the right thoughts.
·
Chosen wisely, music promotes reverence — the attitude of awe
towards the awesome God.
·
It’s usually serious music, which promotes serious thought.
Those who
propose that no music should be played will bring to your mind the
thought that silence focuses the mind inward; the hymn could in fact
be a distraction. We cannot settle this issue within the simple
communion meditation message. But it is fair to ask whether or not
primal scream rock ‘n’ roll is what we want to do.
The matter is
relatively straightforward. We can ask ourselves what does the
Scripture require of us in terms of our attitude towards communion.
·
We are to take it “in a worthy manner.” This is serious business;
we are to take it seriously.
·
In so doing, we are to examine ourselves. Look into our own lives
and ask what Christ would have us change.
·
And in our contemplations we must always remember that communion
promotes the unity of the body of Christ. We must test our thoughts
with this.
Leave the
music to the musicians; let those who worship focus on Jesus Christ.
