That's the part of this week's Epistle text that jumps out at me. I'm not preaching on it, but I keep thinking about it. All 3 texts this week this deal with membership and involvement with the community of believers, and sometimes this issue is not as clear as we think.
I have a member of the church who is part of the extended family that makes up about 1/3 of our active membership. This guy is single, lives close by, almost all of his family comes to worship on Sunday morning, and he does not. For whatever reason, he's never been interested in worship or any other church involvement -- until 3 years ago when he was nominated to serve on the trustees. Many thought he wouldn't agree to it, but he did. He shows up to meetings, knows what he's doing, gets things done, and is basically one of the most important members of that committee. He's enjoyed his role as a member of the trustees, but his term is ending this year. With charge conference coming up in November, I'd like to get him on another committee so he continues to serve in some capacity. People tell me he's good with finances, so that's a possibility. If he's not on a committee, I doubt he'll ever set foot in our building.
Can this man's involvement in committees be considered a "spiritual act of worship", even if its his only act of worship? Can someone be an active, faithful member without ever participating in corporate worship? Is it possible that corporate worship "isn't for everybody"? Or should we seek to bring him in to Sunday morning worship? If we do, why are we doing so? Is he currently fulfilling his membership vows? Is he fulfilling those vows more or less than someone who comes to worship on Sunday and never does anything else?
These are questions to which I have no clear-cut answer. I'd love to hear what all 3 people who read this blog think.
Let me give you my two cents on some of your questions man!
ReplyDeleteCan this man's involvement in committees be considered a "spiritual act of worship", even if its his only act of worship?
I really do not think that this can be considered a spiritual act of worship, especially in light of the text in Romans. It's about giving your whole self to God, and if the only part of himself that he is giving is his committee skills, then I think that he is lacking.
Can someone be an active, faithful member without ever participating in corporate worship?
An active faithful member of what? What exactly is worsihp? I whole-heartedly believe that being an active part of corporate worship is imperative to a healthy spiritual life. When I was exegeting this passage, it says that Paul is writing about giving both our individual bodies to Christ as well as our corporate bodies..and it sounds like he is not allowing the church the ability to include him as part of their coporate self.
Is it possible that corporate worship "isn't for everybody"? Or should we seek to bring him in to Sunday morning worship? If we do, why are we doing so?
I do not think that this is possible. Humans want to belong. Humans want to be around other people. It is possible that the corporate worship offered at your specific location may not be for everybody, or even the guy in question, but I do think that corporate worship of some kind is a desire for everybody (even if it's not Christian worship).
Is he currently fulfilling his membership vows? Is he fulfilling those vows more or less than someone who comes to worship on Sunday and never does anything else?
Prayers, presence, gifts, service, and witness. The five wonderful vows...I can't say for sure if he is fulfilling them or not, but it does not seem that he is. He is fulflling an act of service by serving on a committee, but is he praying for the church? Is he present in the being of the church? If he was attending worship, would he actually be "present" in the service? Is he fully using the gifts God has given him? And what is his witness saying to the world? Based on what little I know, I would say that he is in need of some vow renewal and trying to figure out if he really wants to live by the vow that he made. If he fulfilling his vows any less than just somebody who attends...absolutely not! But maybe in that case there is a bigger issue that people need to be aware of, they need to realize that these are VOWS...these are a covenant, and they should be living by them!