FULFILLMENT of Biblical Prescribed Worship

FULFILLMENT

This chapter is a presentation of the biblical evidence that points to Jesus Christ as the fulfillment of all the Old Testament forms and ceremonies of worship including the tabernacle, temple, and ceremonial sacrifices.  Thus worship should be Christo-centric with the dominant motif being the presence of Christ among His assembled people.



Do you remember the excitement you felt as a child when Christmas approached?  Presents, a colorfully decorated tree, and stockings by the fireplace were all part of the excitement of the holiday.  As the years pass your appreciation expands beyond the surface festivities to the spiritual reality commemorated at Christmas.  What an empty celebration it would be without the incarnation of Christ!  This miracle of divine incarnation changed the world.  The advent of Christ also dramatically changed worship.  The shift from the old phase of the covenant to the new brought about an altered approach to worship.  In this you will see how the advent changed and fulfilled the meaning of worship.  It is this worship under the new covenant in which you and I and all who calls themselves Christian now are called to participate.

            CHRIST IS THE FULFILLMENT OF OLD TESTAMENT WORSHIP

Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of all the Old Testament forms and ceremonies of worship.  They were shadows that pointed ahead to Christ.  But they were incomplete and only found fulfillment with Christ’s coming to dwell with His people.  In Christ the meaning and practice of worship was made clear.

A.  Fulfillment of the Tabernacle

     If you had lived during the days of Moses, you would have worshiped at the tabernacle.  This tent-like sanctuary accompanied God’s people in their wilderness wanderings. Contemporary Christians no longer need to worship at the tabernacle because Jesus Christ fulfilled it – the worship of the tabernacle was but a picture of what Christ came to do.  The pre-existent second person of the Godhead came to earth in human form.  The Gospel of John describes this incarnation:  “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” (1:14).  The Greek verb for ‘dwell’ (skenoo) is used in the Greek Old Testament (Septuagint) I the noun form for the ‘tabernacle’.  It can be translated ‘tabernacled.’  Christians no longer need to erect the tabernacle because Christ has come to tabernacle among us.  Whereas the tabernacle was a sign of God’s presence with His people before the time of Christ, now that Christ has come the sign is no longer necessary. God has come in the flesh to dwell with His church.

B.  Fulfillment of the Temple

     Likewise, God’s people need not erect another temple on Mount Zion.  The body of Christ became the new temple eliminating the need for a physical temple of stones.  Jesus explained this one day as He addressed the Jews in the Jerusalem temple.  He had driven the money changers and animal merchants from the temple area. This precipitated a demand, "Then answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things?  Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.“ (John 2:18, 19).  The Jews, taking the statement as a literal reference to Herod’s temple, were incredulous.  Construction had begun on that temple in 20 B.C. and continued for forty-six years.  It still was incomplete.  So who did He think He was to claim the ability to destroy and rebuild that massive structure in three days?  John adds a footnote to explain Christ’s statement?  “But he spake of the temple of his body.” (John 2:21).  Christ was using a veiled figure of speech that showed His incarnate body on earth was the new temple of God.  He had come to fulfill the temple.

     What happened when the incarnate body of Christ ascended from planet earth?  There was still no need to revive the physical temple.  Because those joined to the crucified and resurrected Christ became the Body of Christ, the church.  “ye are the temple of the living God” (II Corinthians 6:16).  Paul describes the new temple of the church in terms of Christ, “In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit. ” (Ephesians 2:21, 22).

     The temple in Jerusalem had long been a focal point for worship.  But then Christ came He taught that the focal point would change.  He told the Samaritan woman at the well, “Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.” (John 4:21).  The hour of Christ’s death and resurrection marked a transfer from the temple as the place for worship.  God’s people no longer need an earthly temple on Mount Zion in Jerusalem.  They can come through Jesus to the heavenly Jerusalem in joyful assembly (Hebrews 12:18-24).  Nor is there ever a need to restore an earthly temple on Mount Zion.  Even in heaven, John said, “And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.” (Revelation 21:22).  Christ has brought fulfillment.

To restore the temple would be to offer new reason for confidence in the flesh, to build again the wall of partition and to destroy the unity of the people of God.  No man can lay another foundation:  Jesus Christ is the true, the final, the real temple.  He is the glory of Israel, and to him must the gathering of the nations be. 1

     This theological truth has a practical implication for present worship.  Christian worship should not be building-centered.  How futile it is to identify buildings with true worship.  To become building-centered is to revert to an inferior, old covenant kind of worship.  Christians are given freedom to worship in many different styles and forms of building. Climatological and sociological setting can determine the style of building. Some Christians live in nations where it is not possible to erect their own building for corporate worship.  But these believers can still exhibit the classical marks of the church:  proper preaching of the word, proper administration of the sacraments, and proper exercise of church discipline.  Even without a “church” building they can experience the presence of the living Christ who promised “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” (Matthew 18:20).  A church should be bound together by more than a building.  The true temple is not made with bricks and stone and lumber.  It’s made of people united to Jesus Christ who assemble for worship on the Lord’s day.

C.  Fulfillment of the sacrifices of the Old Testament ceremonial law

     Christ did enter the Jerusalem temple on the festival days of Passover (John 2:15ff.), Tabernacles (John 7:2ff.).  But there is no evidence that He ever offered ceremonial sacrifices in the temple.  This was unnecessary because He was the fulfillment of them.  Christ Himself was the spotless Lamb of God, the Passover lamb which was sacrificed (I Corinthians 5:7).  He was our High Priest who entered the most holy place to make a once-for-all sacrifice with His own blood for the sins of His people (Hebrews 9:11-10:18).

     The crucifixion is the very embodiment of the fulfillment which Christ brought to all the ceremonial law.  Imagine that you are sitting on a hill outside the walls of Jerusalem.  In the distance you see the silhouettes of three men hanging on wooden crosses.  The sky becomes progressively darker.  The ground beneath you begins to rumble.  You know it’s the beginning of an earthquake so you hasten to escape through the narrow streets of the city.  Coming toward you are some of the temple priests, excitedly crying, “It’s ripped, it’s ripped in two!”  The massive temple curtain dividing the holy place from the most holy place has been torn by an invisible force.  The Bible states, “And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;” (Matthew 27:51).  All three synoptic Gospels record this dramatic event.  The historians Tacitus and Josephus, as well as the Talmud, refer to it.  That massive sixty-by-thirty foot curtain, as thick as the palm of a man’s hand, had been supernaturally torn by God the Father.  He synchronized it to occur simultaneously with the death of Christ.  This event demonstrated that the entire Old Testament ceremonial system of priests and sacrifices had been fulfilled by Jesus Christ.  “Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh;” (Hebrews 10:19, 20).

     Christ our High Priest has now made all Christians part of the new spiritual priesthood able to enter the most holy place and offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Christ (I Peter 2:5).  New sacrifices have replaced those of the old ceremonial law.  What kinds of new sacrifices does God expect of His priests?  He desires the sacrifice of self.  “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.” (Romans 12:1).  He desires the sacrifice of monetary gifts which are “an odour of a sweet smell, a sacrifice acceptable, well pleasing to God.” (Philippians 4:18).  Sacrifices of praise pleased the Lord.  “By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.” (Hebrews 13:15).  Likewise we are reminded, “But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.” (Hebrews 13:16).

     Jesus Christ is the fulfiller of all the Old Testament forms and ceremonies of worship.  How does this affect present-day worship?  It means that the nature of worship is to be Christ-centered. The liturgy of church services should point to Christ and reflect the fulfillment He brought.  Several New Testament hymns celebrate Christ’s nature and work (Philippians 2:6-11; Colossians 1:15-20; I Timothy 3:16).  Prayers are now offered in Christ’s name (John 15:16; Ephesians 5:20; Hebrews 13:15).  Confessions of faith acknowledge Christ’s Lordship (Philippians 2:11; Romans 10L9; I Corinthians 12:3).  Baptism is performed in Christ’s name (Acts 2:38; 22:16) and signifies union with the crucified and resurrected Christ (Galatians 3:27, 28; Romans 6:2-6; Colossians 2:12).  The Lord’s Supper is centered on the death and promised return of the resurrected Christ (I Corinthians 11:26-29).  Even the weekly day on which we meet for worship points to Christ.  The Lord’s day reminds us of Christ who was resurrected on the first day of the week (Matthew 28:1; Acts 20:7; I Corinthians 16:2; Revelation 1:10).  So the nature of New Testament worship is Christ-centered.  The hymns, prayers, confessions of faith, sacraments, and Scripture readings all point to Christ the fulfiller of worship.  Is this true in your church?

                                WORSHIP HAS AS ITS DOMINANT MOTIF

             THE PRESENCE OF CHRIST AMONG HIS ASSEMBLED PEOPLE

Christians are commanded to assemble together, “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.” (Hebrews 10:25).  The context shows that this is referring to the corporate worship assembly.  It takes place as believers draw near to God unto the most holy place by the blood of Jesus (Hebrews 10:19-22).  So Christ is present in our assemblies as He promised.  “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” (Matthew 18:20).  Although He is not physically present (Mark 14:7), He is present in a special way in the worship assemblies of His saints.  So private “worship” on a golf course or lake, or in front of a radio or television set, can never be a satisfactory substitute for corporate assembly.  The reality of Christ’s spiritual presence give a special dimension to corporate worship.  It is the highlight of the week for the Christian.

Worship has as its dominant motif the presence of Christ among His assemble people.  Several practical implications follow.  Worship services should be arranged to as to cause Christians to be aware of Christ’s presence with them.  This awareness is not simply a subjective emotional feeling.  The reality of Christ’s presence is rooted in the promise of our faithful Lord.  The service of worship can be arranged so as to lead worshipers to an awareness of this promised divine presence.

Worship services should also be evangelistic in the sense that Christ’s presence is noticeable to an unbeliever entering a service.  The New Testament refers to a non-Christian entering a Christian assembly with the result  “and so falling down on his face he will worship God, and report that God is in you of a truth. “ (I Corinthians 14:25).  Could a non-Christian entering the Sunday morning worship service of your church come to this conclusion?  You might use this as a suggestion for daily prayer this week.  Pray that believers and non-believers might be aware of the divine presence of Christ in the Sunday morning worship assembly of your church.  You might not only add this to your daily prayer list but make it a special matter for prayer in the minutes of silent preparation before Sunday’s service.  How thankful Christians can be for the reality of the divine presence in corporate worship assemblies!  “Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.” (Psalm 95:2).  May this truth also more us to increased anticipation for the divine appointment that occurs each Lord’s day!