Worship…to quicken the conscience by the holiness of God; to feed the mind with the truth of God; to purge the imagination by the beauty of God; to open the heart to the love of God, and to devote the will to the purposes of God. – William Temple
Worship is an integral part of what we do as a church body and part of the reason why the church exists. It is, at least partly, through engagement in worship that we are built up and equipped until we all reach unity in the faith and grow into Christ-like maturity, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of God (Eph. 4:12-13). Worship includes our fellowship and our singing and making music. More than that, however, it is the entire experience of gathering, praising, being exhorted by the word, participating in community, and engaging together in the ordinances of the church. It is a striving after holiness. It is a desire for humility. It blesses God, and it should bless us as well.
Are you participating in corporate worship? That question takes on new meaning as we (at least as it now appears) begin to slowly inch our way out of a year under the shadow of this pandemic. As the numbers of those infected drop drastically in our state, and as many receive their vaccinations, we are beginning to see many of you return to corporate worship physically. I am thankful for that. I know that some still feel leery of returning due to underlying health issues. That is understandable. We will continue to provide our livestream indefinitely for you and our homebound. But may I say this to those who have become comfortable worshipping from home? Barring any major setbacks with the virus, the time to return to corporate worship is approaching. Livestreamed worship is a wonderful option when no other option exists, but it is not corporate worship in its truest sense. Corporate worship was intended to be experienced together, with our brothers and sisters in Christ. The sacraments (Baptism and the Lord’s Supper) were intended to be experienced together, as the corporate body of Christ.
We are exhorted by Scripture to gather together, that we may encourage one another and spur each other on to love and good works as we see the Day of the Lord approaching. Hence, we are called to “not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing” (Heb. 10:24-25). If you are remaining at home for worship because you are at high risk related to the virus or due to other physical limitations or health-related concerns, by all means, continue to join us via livestream. You are a part of the local body at LifePoint. However, if you remain at home on Sunday mornings because doing so has become easy and more relaxing, may I gently call on you to consider when you will return to corporate worship? You may be waiting for the mask mandate in the state to be lifted. That is understandable. When it is lifted, will you join us again? You are missed, and I am looking forward to the day when we, as an entire church family, will be able to gather together again corporately in relative freedom and safety.
This past Sunday we celebrated twenty-four baptisms. Whether you worshipped with us from home or here physically, I hope you were blessed by the experience. You probably also noticed that we are starting to get a bit crowded in the worship center. We are working on some solutions to this issue, but please do be aware that when you return to corporate worship here, you will need to become comfortable again being in close proximity to others.
Enter through his gates with thanksgiving in your hearts, and into his courts with praise. God meets with us when we gather together corporately to worship his great name. Let’s meet together (live or via livestream) with joy.
Grace and peace,
Pastor Jym