We’re continuing in our series of invitation—an invitation to celebrate the ministries of Shepherd of the Hills, an invitation to become involved in a ministry at Shepherd, and an invitation to invite someone to join you in fulfilling service to our Lord through these ministries. Today our subject is worship.

We have been using as a guide through this series the Nine Marks of Active Membership found in our Book of Order. All Nine Marks are listed on the bulletin insert. The obvious mark relevant to today’s topic is the second one, Taking part in the common life and worship of a particular church.

At first glance, it appears that today’s task epitomizes the classic problem of "preaching to the choir." After all, you’re here! You are "taking part in the common life and worship of a particular church." So, let’s move on, recite the Profession of Faith, take up an offering, sing a song and head home. Not so fast—and not so enthusiastic! There are some things to consider about our worship. And there is the matter of invitation. Did anyone invite someone today to the "common life and worship" of our church for this day?

In thinking about our worship this week I began to wonder, what would an alien from another planet observe and report about what and how we worship? I know, it’s science fiction, but imagine with me for a moment an alien comes to earth to observe and report on the activities of earthlings. What might he report about our worship?

One thought that came to mind is an image from the movie, Wayne’s World. I have to admit, first of all, I’ve never seen the movie. However, I’ve seen the scene…and the subsequent playing it out in various other ways in our society. In the movie Wayne and his friend (whose name I don’t remember…it’s been a while and I didn’t see the movie!) see a beautiful woman and begin to bow down with arms outstretched in her direction saying, "We’re not worthy! We’re not worthy!" It’s been played out since the movie in various scenarios—fans toward athletes of their favorite teams, for example. "We’re not worthy! We’re not worthy!" What do you suppose an alien would report after observing that?

Speaking of sports, I began to imagine an alien observing and reporting something like this: (picture of Bronco atop scoreboard) "Human beings gather in places of worship which include images of the gods being worshiped. (Picture of John Elway being carried off the field) Their worship includes heroic figures about whom legendary stories of marvelous feats are told over and over again. (Picture of banner noting Super Bowl victory) They have special banners and symbols that remind worshippers of significant moments in their history. (Picture of packed Invesco Field) Thousands gather for worship in large buildings called "stadiums," some outdoor and some indoor. (Picture of running broncos outside Invesco Field) Statues and images are used to express characteristics of the gods they worship. (Picture of crowd doing the wave) Strange rituals are used to help the humans express their worship.

At about this point is where you say, "Preacher, you’ve moved from preaching to meddling." So, let me be clear. I’m not saying being a fan of some sports team is a bad thing. In fact, I will confess to leaping out of my recliner and raising my hands over my head when Todd Helton hit that game winning homerun in the bottom of the ninth to beat the Dodgers a couple of weeks ago. I’m not saying being a fan is a bad thing. I am challenging all of us to think about who or what has our heart regarding worship…and how we express it. I would not be the first person to make some connection between sports and religion. Author Robin Gunston, presenting an essay on "The Future of Sport" at a 2004 conference of the World Future Society wrote this: "The loss of core values in society due to the waning influence of the church creates a spiritual vacuum into which sports may move. ‘Religiosport’ could develop as major sports replace conventional religion. Religiosport will have its shrines (stadiums), costumes (uniforms), services (games and events), rituals (chants and songs), high priests (star athletes), and piety (fan loyalty)." I’m not the first, and, for that matter, Robin Gunston is not the first, to see parallels with religion and sports.

So, again, let’s be clear: I am not saying being a fan of a team is a bad thing. I am saying that God alone is worthy of our worship. The one, true God, the God of the Bible is the only one worthy of our worship. I’m not interested in making that mistake again. I’ve told you before that my priorities about this were screwed up when I was playing baseball in college. Then, baseball was my god. It was the focus of my time and energy, it dictated my behavior, it was the attention of my devotion. And, as is the case with all other gods, I found baseball to be a fickle, unreliable, ultimately unsatisfying god. Baseball was not worthy of my worship. Only God is worthy of our worship, worthy of our heart’s devotion.

So the question to ask—even of the "choir" gathered here in participation of the common life and worship of our church—is this, Are our hearts where they should be regarding worship? Imagine if you were God, would you be pleased with the worship being offered? I’m not talking styles here, but attitude. Does God have your heart, your devotion, your attention, your worship? Is worshiping God a priority in your life? When you’re on vacation and Sunday morning comes, do you find yourself aching to worship, to find a church somewhere nearby that you can attend and worship? Does God have your heart in worship? Only God is worthy of our worship.

When it comes to worship, therefore, we need both a more narrow and a broader definition of worship.

First, a more narrow definition of worship. I’ve already alluded to it. Only God is worthy of our worship. We might be passionate about a sport and a team, an actor or a music group, but those are not what we worship. Our weeks are not predicated on how the Broncos played on Sunday, or whether or not the Rockies make the playoffs. Our identities are not tied up in a won-loss record, a division championship, a playoff appearance. Those are fickle, fleeting things. Narrowly defined, our worship is directed only to the Lord, our God, the God of the Bible.

Then, a broader definition: Our worship of the Lord God involves more than what occurs in the sanctuary on Sunday morning. This is our corporate worship, when individuals professing faith in Jesus Christ gather together as one body to offer our worship to God. But worship is more than this. How we live in the "in-between times" of our corporate worship is an expression of our heart’s deepest devotion. How we live our lives in the "in-between times" of our corporate worship is an expression of our individual worship.

Reflecting on this topic of worship for today, My eyes caught sight of a book I’d recently purchased but had not yet begun to read, The Dangerous Act of Worship by Mark Labberton who is senior pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Berkeley, California. The first attraction to my eye toward buying the book in the first place was the title, The Dangerous Act of Worship. Hearing Labberton speak at the conference I was attending further attracted my attention. Then, noting that John Ortberg endorses the book and writes the Forward for the book sealed the deal. My interest piqued again on Friday, I began reading the book. In his Forward, Ortberg points out that Labberton challenges us to go deeper in our understanding of worship, going beyond discussions about music and styles and preferences—which are symptoms of an inadequate, too narrow understanding of worship. Ortberg writes, "The prophet Micah said a long time ago that the divine requirements for human life are not rocket science. Do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly before your God. Worship is the humble walk…But apart from doing justice and loving mercy, worship means no more than a child’s ‘thank you’ means if it is accompanied with a selfish unwillingness to share what she claims to be thankful for." Then, Labberton himself introduces the topic by writing, "Worship turns out to be the dangerous act of waking up to God and to the purposes of God in the world, and then living lives that actually show it," (underline mine).

So, a broader definition of worship is needed. Worship is much more than our corporate worship on Sunday morning. It’s how we live our lives and what that reveals about who or what we really worship.

In preparing for this sermon, I made the mistake of a too narrow focus of worship. I focused on only one mark of active membership being relevant to the topic of worship. "Participating in the common life and worship of a particular church." But if we take seriously Labberton’s challenge of the "dangerous act" of worship, we would have to add, at the very least, the ninth mark as well, "Working in the world for peace, justice, freedom, and human fulfillment." A narrow definition: God alone is worthy of our worship; and a broader definition: Worship is more than our corporate worship on Sunday morning, it’s how we live our lives in fulfilling God’s purpose of peace, justice, freedom and human fulfillment in the world.

We’re going to use one of our praise songs to help grasp this narrow and broad definition of worship, Here I Am to Worship. The praise team will help lead us. As we sing the song, I want you to especially focus on singing the song to God. Let the words be a sincere expression of the praise you’re offering to God.

Now, like most praise songs the words are fairly easily learned. In fact, that is one major purpose to praise songs—words easily grasped so that the worshiper can focus his or her attention on offering their worship to God. Let’s sing the chorus again and this time, rather than needing to see the words on the screen, find a focus point that helps you sing the song to God. Perhaps it’s the image on the screen, perhaps it’s the cross, perhaps it’s with your eyes closed and imagining a scene that directs you to God’s holy throne. Let’s sing the chorus again, offering together our praise and worship to God.

There’s one other aspect of this song. It doesn’t resolve. It ends kind of hanging in air, as if one more line needs to be sung or played to bring resolution. Well, that line is how you live your lives this week. You bring resolution to our Sunday morning worship through the dangerous act of worship that continues throughout the week, worship that is directed to God alone.