我們知道我們在星期天都做些什嗎?Do We Know What We’re Doing onSundays?
作者: Jordan Kauflin 譯者: Maria Marta
假如我問你:「你每個周日參加教會聚會時都做些什麽？」你會如何回答？「我們喝咖啡，聊天，唱歌30分鐘，讀一段認信告白，聽講道，領聖餐……」換句話說，你向我描述你所參與的具體行動。
「為什麽你要做你在每個周日教會聚會時所做的事呢？」 假如我這樣問你，會怎麽樣？ 換句話說，這些行動背後的目的是什麽呢？你能回答嗎? 更重要的是，你能講出上帝所說的，你每周定期參加的教會集體敬拜的目的嗎？
就像沒有明確目的地的旅程，或沒有真正目的的行為那樣，沒有「為何我們要聚會集體敬拜上帝」這種知識作指導的集體敬拜，會讓我們一周複一周的崇拜事奉處於漫無目的的瞎轉當中。 但知道我們為何做我們所做的事，不僅有助於我們做正確的事，在過程當中真正尋求主， 還能加深我們的期盼：在我們的敬拜中，上帝如何與我們相遇。
在聖經中，上帝至少給我們「教會要聚會」的三個理由。
首先也是最重要的是，我們之所以每個星期天都聚會，是因為上帝創造我們為敬拜者，祂邀請我們唯獨敬拜祂。
這恩慈的邀請有它的根源，源於上帝啟示祂自己的真理。我們不可能正確敬拜我們不認識的神。因此，上帝的自我啟示在我們的聚會中至關重要。
上帝藉著祂的話語啟示祂自己，祂的道成文字
(inscripturated Word，即聖經) 啟示道成肉身(Incarnated
Word)，即耶穌基督。這就是為什麽在我們的聚會中聖經和耶穌必須突出的原因。我們需要上帝的自我啟示，而這啟示是以耶穌的位格和工作為中心。
對我們來說，任何沒有意識和直接使人轉向耶穌的經歷上帝的經驗，都會落入依靠我們自己、我們的情緒、我們的恩賜來到上帝面前的危險當中。外來的噪音越多，這些依靠變得越重要。我們不能假設好音樂、出色的事奉、我們說話的質量容許我們敬拜祂。因為只有藉著耶穌基督，我們才能得到上帝的稱許。
上帝的真理要求回應。我們聚在一起注目，但這種注目會有效果。我們不但透過我們的歌曲，也藉著獻上自己來回應祂 (羅十二1 - 2)。我們對真理的回應不僅是必要的(雅一22-25)，更是我們所渴望的。上帝不僅僅想我們研究祂; 更想和我們建立關系。
我們聚在一起複述救贖的故事
在整部聖經中，上帝告訴祂的子民複述祂為他們所做的事。對以色列人來說，他們必須回憶他們從埃及被拯救出來 (申八章)。詩篇告訴我們「不可忘記他的一切恩惠」 (一0三2) 和「要將耶和華的美德和他的能力，並他奇妙的作為，述說給後代聽。」 (七十八4) 聖餐和洗禮這兩個聖禮是賜給我們的記號和印記，提醒我們上帝的應許和工作。
這種記憶將我們固定在唯一重要的故事裡，一個使所有生命都有意義的故事——救贖的故事。很久以前，教會領袖們已經認識到，基督徒每周複述福音，對他們如何看待上帝，如何與上帝互動，如何生活都有重大影響。參加福音塑造的敬拜，可培養人在救贖故事中開展思考和生活訓練的能力。每個星期天，當我們堅持對上帝是誰，祂做了什麽，我們該如何回應等問題重述一遍時，我們也在培養自己如何在生活中實踐的能力。
我們聚在一起彼此建立
在教會歷史上，在教會的各種禮儀當中，其中一個重大的錯誤出現在參與方面。隨著時間的推移，上帝的超越性與榮耀變得如此突出，以致於任何建立會眾和鼓勵他們參與的想法都在事情之重要性上消失了。改教家們試圖恢復新約聖經的崇拜圖景: 集體的、賦予生命的、建立人的。這是人參與的敬拜，而非牧師執行的中保/調解性質的任務。
上帝呼召我們所有人參與建立基督的身體。上帝賜給我們每個人恩賜，作為敬拜者，我們蒙呼召使用這些恩賜來建立別人，尤其是在我們的主日聚會上(徒二42-47;
林前十二12-31; 十四3-5, 12, 17, 26; 帖前五11; 弗四11-16)。主日崇拜事奉絕不僅僅是達到目的一種手段——「加油」，然後進入開展事奉的真實世界。這相當於作為基督徒我們如何生活的一個示範。上帝牧養我們，向我們啟示祂自己，在那一刻我們通過彼此服事來回應。所以，教會聚會代表和類似於被上帝改變了的團體。我們的聚會看起來應該有別於世界，因為我們是上帝創造的屬天團體的圖畫。
充滿恩典的邀請
每個周日我們所做的事的細節可能由於不同的宗派、文化、時期而有所不同。但我們所做之事背後隱含的意義，都是上帝對祂聚集的教會的充有恩典的目的。祂每個星期天都邀請我們每一個人在祂的榮耀中注視祂，在敬拜中作出回應，複述祂藉著耶穌所成就的一切，並藉著聖靈賦予能力的事工，參與建造基督的身體的工作。多好的機會啊！
Rev.
Jordan Kauflin is a staff pastor at Redeemer Church in Arlington, Va.
本文原刊于Tabletalk雜誌。
Do We Know What We’re Doing on
Sundays?
by
Jordan Kauflin
If I
asked you, “What do you do at the weekly Sunday gathering with your church?”
what would you say? “We drink coffee and talk, we sing for 30 minutes, we say a
confession, we hear a sermon, we take communion. . . .” In other words, you
would give me a description of particular actions you participate in.
But
what if I were to ask you, “Why do you do what you do at the weekly Sunday
gathering with your church?” In other words, what is the purpose behind the
actions? Could you answer? More importantly, could you describe what God says
is the purpose of the weekly rhythm of gathering with your church for corporate
worship?
Like
a journey without a clear destination or a habit with no real purpose,
corporate worship that is not informed by knowledge of why we do what we do
puts us at risk of wandering aimlessly through our services Sunday after
Sunday. But knowing why we do what we do helps us not only to do the right
things but to truly seek the Lord in the midst of them. It also deepens our
expectation for how God is going to meet us in our worship.
God
gives us at least three reasons in Scripture for the church to gather.
WE
GATHER TO RESPOND TO HIS REVELATION
First
and foremost, we gather each Sunday because God created us as worshipers and He
invites us to worship Him alone.
This
gracious invitation has, at its source, the truth of who God has revealed
Himself to be. We can’t rightly worship someone we do not know. Therefore,
God’s revelation of Himself is vital in our gatherings.
He
has revealed Himself through His Word, and His inscripturated Word reveals the
incarnate Word, Jesus Christ. This is why Scripture and Jesus must be
preeminent in our gatherings. What we need is God’s revelation of Himself, and
this revelation centers on the person and work of Jesus.
For
us to come to any experience with God without a conscious and direct turn to
Jesus risks reliance upon ourselves, our emotions, or our gifts to come before
Him. This becomes increasingly important the more extraneous noise there is. We
cannot assume that good music, the excellence of our service, or the quality of
our speaking allows us to worship Him. The only way for us to be commended to
God is through Jesus Christ.
These
truths demand a response. We gather to behold, but this beholding should have
an effect. We respond to Him not only with our songs but by offering ourselves
(Rom. 12:1–2). Our response to truth is not only essential (James 1:22–25) but
to be desired. God doesn’t simply want us to study Him; He wants to have a
relationship with us.
WE
GATHER TO REHEARSE THE STORY OF REDEMPTION
Throughout
the Bible, God tells His people to rehearse what He has done for them. For
Israel, they were to recall their deliverance from Egypt (Deut. 8). We are told
in the Psalms to “forget not all his benefits” (103:2) and to “tell . . . the
glorious deeds of the Lord” (78:4). The sacraments of the Lord’s Supper and
baptism were given to be signs and seals that remind us of God’s promises and
work.
This
remembering roots us in the only story that matters, the one that makes sense
of all of our lives—the story of redemption. Long ago, church leaders
recognized that Christians’ rehearsing the gospel each week has a powerful
effect on how they view God, how they interact with Him, and how they live
their lives. Participating in gospel-shaped worship trains people to develop
the discipline of thinking and living in the redemptive story. Each Sunday as
we consistently walk through who God is, what He has done, and how we are to
respond, we are training ourselves in how to do this in our lives as well.
WE
GATHER TO EDIFY ONE ANOTHER
One
of the significant mistakes in the history of the church and its various
liturgies was in terms of participation. Over time, God’s transcendence and
glory became so emphasized that any thought of edifying the congregation and
encouraging them to participate was lost in the weightiness of the event. The
Reformers sought to bring back the picture of New Testament worship: communal,
life giving, and edifying. It is the people’s worship, not a priest performing
mediatorial tasks.
God
calls all of us to participate to build up the body. God has given each one of
us gifts, and as worshipers, we are called to use them to edify others,
particularly in our Sunday gatherings (Acts 2:42–47; 1 Cor. 12:12–31; 14:3–5,
12, 17, 26; 1 Thess. 5:11; Eph. 4:11–16). The Sunday worship service is never
merely a means to an end—a “fill-up” to then go out into the world where real
ministry takes place. It is rather a demonstration of how we are to live our
lives as Christians. God ministers to and reveals Himself to us, and we respond
in that moment by ministering to each other. The church assembled, then,
represents and resembles the changed community of God. Our gatherings should
look distinct from the world because we are a picture of the heavenly community
that God is creating.
A
GRACE-FILLED INVITATION
The
details of what we do each Sunday can vary according to denomination, culture,
and season. But underlying what we do are God’s grace-filled purposes for His
gathered church. He invites us each and every Sunday to behold Him in His
glory, to respond in worship, to rehearse all that He has accomplished through
Jesus, and to participate in the work of building up His body through
Spirit-empowered ministry. What an opportunity!
Rev.
Jordan Kauflin is a staff pastor at Redeemer Church in Arlington, Va.