No Chairs

I love my job. No two days are alike. I sometimes get to play “The Bible Answer Man.” People will often call with a bible question, or in some cases, they’ll send an email, as in this case:

Dear Pastor:

My granddaughter asked me a question I could not answer: How did Jesus, when he died on the cross, die for our sins? I can understand how he forgave those at that time, but what has that go to do with the sins we commit today? In the Old Testament, things were pretty nasty with the worshiping of false idols and such and God wiped out a bunch of people, so I can understand Jesus forgiving their sins. But I just cannot connect how that has any thing to do with us today. I read my bible and cannot find the answer.

Thank you. –Jim

Well, Jim may have read his bible, but he apparently missed the book of Hebrews.

Hebrews 7:24-25

²⁴ But because Jesus lives forever, his priesthood lasts forever. ²⁵ Therefore he is able, once and forever, to save those who come to God through him. He lives forever to intercede with God on their behalf.

There is a phrase in Revelation that says “… the lamb of God who was slain from the foundations of the world,” indicating perhaps that Jesus was always God’s perfect plan. God didn’t put the Old Testament sacrifices and the tabernacle in place and then look down and say, “Clearly this isn’t working. I guess I’ll have to try something else.” No. Jesus was always Plan A.

Hebrews 10:11-12

¹¹ Under the old covenant, the priest stands and ministers before the altar day after day, offering the same sacrifices again and again, which can never take away sins. ¹² But our High Priest offered himself to God as a single sacrifice for sins, good for all time. Then he sat down in the place of honor at God’s right hand.

What one piece of furniture will you not find in the Old Testament Tabernacle? A Chair.

Hebrews 8:1

Here is the main point: We have a High Priest who sat down in the place of honor beside the throne of the majestic God in heaven.

Hebrews 1:3b

…When he had cleansed us from our sins, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven.

A long time ago, my wife and I were in Alaska on the Kenai Peninsula in a little town called Soldotna just a few miles outside Anchorage. There we were able to “tour” a little Russian Orthodox Church. Our host for the “tour” was a white-bearded priest, who, to our delight, had an opinion on just about everything, and was not afraid to voice it. On entering the small sanctuary, one could not help but notice the ornate icons lining the church which, the priest was quick to point out, they do not worship. In fact, the more he talked, the more it was evident that this priest was a genuine Jesus person.

However, the first thing we noticed was not the icons. Nor was it the ornate chandelier. The first thing that caught our attention was that there were no pews. No chairs. None. Why? After all these many years, I couldn’t remember the reason our host gave for the absence of pews, so I had to look it up. Here’s what I found:

There are no pews or chairs in most Orthodox Churches. We stand during worship services out of reverence and humility before God. The absence of rigid pews gives us freedom to move about the Church and feel at home. We are free to venerate icons and light candles, as well as to bow and do the prostrations necessary at times during worship.

While their formality in liturgy and worship might be somewhat foreign to us, I think these Russian Orthodox congregants have got something right: theirs is a participatory worship, a worship in which there is no room for sitting down. Our worship, too, must reflect this idea that our job is not done. There is no room for sitting down. We must remove the obstacles that hinder us from moving about the room, so to speak. We must get on with the work God has called us to.

We are not Jesus. His work is done, and he has apparently earned the right to sit down. But nowhere does he call us to sit. Our work is not done. Nor is the work of the Holy Spirit done.

Am I calling for the removal of the pews from our sanctuaries? No. Nor am I suggesting removal of the chairs from your office. But I am suggesting that we remove the obstacles that might prevent us from saying yes to ministry opportunity. Let’s remove the ‘pews” that get in the way of being all that God is calling us to be.

Two questions:

1)      What are the chairs we need to jettison as a church in order to make room for the Holy Spirit to work in us and through us?

2)      What pieces of furniture do you need to remove from your life in order to go about doing the work God is calling you to, to truly worship him in Spirit and Truth.

Today, if you walk by my office you will likely see me sitting at my desk, but you need to know… on the inside, I’m standing up.