Selected Scriptures

February 14, 2021

Lord’s Day Worship

Sean Higgins

The sermon starts around 16:55 in the audio file.

Or, Worship That Takes Root Downward and Bears Fruit Upward

Series: Our Worship #7

Introduction

There is a great phrase that occurs a couple times in the Old Testament related to God’s intentions to regrow His people (2 Kings 19:30; Isaiah 37:31). He promises that they will “take root downward and bear fruit upward.” The Lord says He will provide them with stability, as with deep roots, and with productivity, as they see extending branches of fruits. Another way to say this is that God intends to bless them.

Blessing is a one of those religious words that is frequently used and regularly undefined, like a cloud, visible in the sky but far away and with vague edges. To be blessed has the idea of to be given something good, to be blessed has the idea of receiving someone’s favor, to be blessed has the idea of being made happy, or joyful, as some Christians like having a distinction. I think we can make a case for an agricultural analogy that blessing is roots and fruit, and I make that connection from Psalm 1.

The first word in the inspired songbook of Israel is “blessed.” The one who is blessed doesn’t listen to the liberal media and propaganda machine trying to tear everything down in their misery. The blessed man instead loves the law of the Lord and meditates on it day and night. The psalmist then explains that that man will be “like a tree planted,” with roots deep and fed by “streams of water,” such that he is unlike the wicked man who is blown around like chaff. The blessed man with is also like a tree “that yields it fruit in its season,” “in all that he does, he prospers.” To be blessed by the Lord is to take root downward and bear fruit upward.

This life of Word-delight and Word-deliberation leading to blessing obviously isn’t limited to a church service on Sunday; the meditation is “day and night,” all day and all the days. But there is something about God’s assembly re-membering, with all the parts back together, rejecting the counsel of the wicked and the cynicism of the scoffers, rejoicing in the fear of the Lord that makes wise and makes fixed and steadfast and anchored as well as fruitful and productive and prosperous. This is a living and active process, a three-dimensional process. It is also a cooperative process, and ”sinners (will not stand) in the congregation of the righteous” (Psalm 1:5).

This morning as we finish this round of refreshed consideration of our Lord’s Day corporate liturgy I want to remind you that as we bless (declare our praise to) God He blesses (shows His favor to) us. Here is the end of the series, with an emphasis on the end of our service.

There are a few clarifications to make about things I have said in this series, and a few considerations about things I haven’t really touched on yet, and then we’ll get to the final blessing of liturgy.

A couple weeks ago we considered our worship in song, and while I don’t really expect that you will hear every qualification, some of the qualifications are actually important. I think it is surprising how much modern effort is put into defining worship as singing, and how much time and budget is spent toward the music ministry, while there is no New Testament command to sing. There is no command to the church to sing. But, there are numerous commands in the Old Testament to sing, and it is a necessary consequence of our Word-filled, Spirit-filled hearts.

> Sing praises to the LORD, O you his saints, and give thanks to his holy name. (Psalm 30:4)

> Sing praises to God, sing praises! Sing praises to our King, sing praises! For God is the King of all the earth; sing praises with a psalm! (Psalm 47:6-7)

As an assembled church we sing, as a good and necessary wa[...]