Come to the Altar

Someone recently suggested to me that one reason people are pretty uptight about what happens in the one hour worship service is that this is the only time they really give consideration to God in their life. I doubt that's true for everyone. But, there might be a nugget of truth in it. Do we believe when we enter the church building that we have entered a holy sanctuary? Do we believe God is present MORE in the assembly than he is at home with us? Do we think God is paying more attention to what we do and the way we do it when we enter the front door of the building? Do we consider that time of worship a type of formality that demands specific dress codes, specific type of behavior and thou-shalt-talk-thine-holy-speech, certain types of prayer? Is it the case that we actually become different people for one hour on Sunday mornings? Our vocabulary, dress, demeanor, and attitudes are all adapted to the "appropriate" standards? Does God call us onto the stage to do all the acts right? Has anyone ever worshiped right? I mean ... have you ever spent the hour so full of God's glory that you didn't think about a hundred other things going on in your life? Do you think God requires the total shutdown of the brain? Another friend of mine thinks that many of our problems 'down at church' have to do with archetecture. We step into that building and suddenly the rules of life all change. Sorry but I don't think that's how God wants us to approach His throne. With reverence, yes. With a dress-code and learned religious language? No. Elijah sat in the cave and said, 'God, kill me now. I hate my life.' Job cried out to the Lord in most unformalistic ways. Moses offered excuses to the Almighty. Jesus wept. Authentic time at the altar demands an authentic person. The truth is you are never away from the altar. Your renewed-in-the-spirit life keeps you at the altar 24/7. Isn't that Paul's point about sexual sin in 1 Corinthians? You're holding a whore in one hand and the Holy Spirit in the other!!! We've all brought the Spirit of God with us into places He never needed to be. When you wake up in the morning, take the Spirit by the hand and let him lead you through the day close to the altar of God. Then when Sunday arrives you won't be a strange person in strange clothes talking strange talk in a strange place. It'll be more like ... family. Warm and personable and familiar.