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A
Theology of
Worship
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As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be one [relational wholeness] in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. John 17:21
Jesus’ Table Fellowship rings out in a clear tone of grace to make the primacy of relationship together primary in our worship gatherings! Only from his table do the secondary and substitutes easily fall into their proper place in front of the veil, and we emerge free to be involved in the intimate and equalized relationships with God and each other without the veil. All that Jesus embodied keys us to relationship together on God’s whole terms, and our compatible response of relational trust and submission with our whole person, nothing less and no substitutes. This is the new life together in wholeness we are saved to and for which the Spirit is present and actively transposing with us in reciprocal (not unilateral) relationship. As those who have relationally joined with Jesus behind the veil, let us no longer give primacy to the secondary substitutes of ‘what to do’ for worship. We are keyed to rise and emerge with Jesus to compose the new sanctuary together with him with no veil, which is the family of God, constituted in the original score, the Trinity. It is therefore imperative that we enter into and live in his intimate presence ‘singing’ the new song to our Lord with hearts transposed from off-key referential language to the key of Jesus’ relational language, the native tongue of the Word from God. The issue of the veil is not only theological but inseparably functional. The fact of the veil and our relational position to it are critical for defining who we are in relation to God (our ontology) and for determining what and how we are with God (our function in relationship). Without clarity about the veil, our identity—and thus our song—strains for its primary definition and thus our function becomes occupied in secondary matters in search, simulation or illusion of what is primary. Accordingly, lack of clarity of the veil makes worship ambiguous, and lacking in relational significance. Worship, as commonly understood, can and often does take place in front of the veil, but this relational position renders our worship to a Secondary Sanctuary. Jesus challenges us to more than this. By God’s relational response of grace, those who have relationally joined with Jesus behind the veil experience redemptive change for whole understanding of God, of who, what and how they are, and of worship, and, therefore, emerge as whole persons without the veil reconciled in the primacy of relationship together with the whole of God for the relational significance of worship in the new sanctuary. Worship with the veil removed is irreducibly and nonnegotiably the integrating focus and the integral relational convergence of our (both individual and corporate) reciprocal relational response and vulnerable involvement of our whole person in relationship together with the whole of God—nothing less and no substitutes. Worship is the chorus for the new song composed in the qualitative image and relational likeness of the whole of God, sung only in this relational key and this qualitative tune—to be one in the whole of God. The following song emerges for the new song to the Lord:
‘Singing’ the New Song[1]
Sing the new song to the Lord Sing the new song to our Lord —the veil is gone the veil is gone [embrace the whole of God] Note: [ ]s are hummed (or the like); no words aloud, no instruments played
Sing the new song to the Lord Sing the new song to our Lord —you are holy you are whole —we’re uncommon we are whole [embrace the whole of God]
Sing the new song to the Lord Sing the new song to our Lord —you compose life in your key —life together intimately —no veil present distance gone [embrace the whole of God]
Sing the new life with the Lord Sing the new life with our Lord —you are present and involved —we be present now involved [embrace the whole of God]
Sing this new song to you Lord Sing this new life with you Lord —the veil is gone the veil is gone [embrace the whole of God]
[embrace the whole of God]
[embrace the whole of God]
[1] Composed in the key of Jesus with the Spirit and sung with Paul (2 Cor 3:16-18), Kary A. Kambara and T. Dave Matsuo, 2011.
©2011 Kary A. Kambara top of page home
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