The Kingdom of Heaven is Like.... OR Why Do We Worship?

Russian icon, The Kingdom of Heaven

In today’s Gospel reading in Matthew, Jesus tells a parable about what the kingdom of heaven is like.  It is mentioned six times.  The kingdom of heaven is like…yeast in making bread…the kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field….the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of pearls….the kingdom of heaven is like a net cast into the sea ...

How would you describe what the kingdom of heaven is like? 

I am sure many of you have been to other churches, & have experienced other denominations styles of worship.   Perhaps you have also been to other religion’s worship services.   

Well, no matter what world religion, or denomination of Christianity, every single one of them has worship, in one form or another! 

Worship is universal! 

But why do we do it?  Why do we worship? 

Anthropologists, sociologists and psychologists have noted the “religious instinct” seems to be inborn and hard wired in us humans.   It has been present since the beginning of humanity.   Evidence of religious artifacts & activity have been found by archeologists as old as 30,000 years, probably even older. 

It is an interesting thing.  For here we all are, in worship together, here and now this very morning! 

And in researching this very topic, it was also very interesting that there are multitudes of articles, books & resources on HOW to worship, WHAT to worship, WHERE to worship, different styles of worship and so forth, but very little on why we worship. 

And so I ask you, why do we worship?  

More specifically, why do YOU worship?   What is the reason? 

Do you worship primarily to feel moved?   Do warm emotions arise when you worship God?   Do you worship primarily to "get something out of the service"?   It is true, we often benefit from what happens when we gather together for worship.  

But, are we here for God, or for ourselves?   Certainly God doesn’t need our worship in order to be complete.  Perhaps it is us, us humans that need worship.    

For in worshiping, we ever so briefly participate in and get to taste a slice of the kingdom of heaven. 

In Christianity, more specifically in Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodox and Anglicanism, worship is liturgical.

And what does the word “liturgy” mean?  It is a Greek word.  It actually means “the work of the people”.   And it is true!  This type of worship service is done by all of us.  Not just a few up front with people in the pews observing.   

When I was in seminary, I played bass in various churches.  I was able to observe many different styles of worship from the point of view of being part of the music for worship. 

One church I played in regularly was the Roman Catholic Chapel at Holy Names College in Oakland.  And as you know, Catholic mass is very, very similar to an Anglican / Episcopal worship service.  Very liturgical!

The Music Minister / Director would pray with us before the service started.  During the mass, I observed the people, the music, and the priest all involved in the service.  It was, is a very beautiful & participatory type of worship!

And on Sunday evenings, I played at another church across the Bay, a UCC Church, for “The Jazz Service”.  It was actually pretty cool music wise.  The drummer was an ordained Presbyterian minister, and an accomplished jazz drummer.  The pianist was a UCC minister, and the singer also a seminarian, like me.  We called ourselves “The Master of Divinity Quartet”! 

As I played Sunday after Sunday for this Jazz service, I noticed a few things… 

First, I noticed the people mainly observed.  They did not participate, like in a liturgical service.  The worship service, or liturgy was unfamiliar to them.  So they sat back, observed and listened…to the prayers, to the music, and to the sermon. 

Fast forward many years later …when I was deployed to Arabia.  As the

Communion at a worship service in Arabia

Protestant Chaplain at the airbase where I served, I had to lead three different worship services every Sunday, each a completely different worship style. 

The first service of the day was what was called The Contemporary Service.  It had a rock band, used PowerPoint to project the words of songs on a screen.   This service seemed to attract a lot of young airmen.  One thing they did a lot thru the service was to stand and hold their arms up, like they were praying to God and experiencing the Holy thru the music.

The second service of the day was the Gospel Service.  Now this service was a

Gospel Service at Seven Sands Chapel, Arabia

very musical, hand clapping, foot stomping, shaking the rafters style of worship!    It actually was very liturgical, in its own way.  The people  were very involved.  The music was incredible, a band with professional level musicians and a huge Choir.  When I would preach, they did not want me behind a pulpit.  They liked me to preach extemporaneously.  There were lots of “Amens!”, &“Preach it’s!” &“Alright Now’s!”  throughout the service.   There were many lay ministers who lead prayers, helped with worship, led the altar calls & more.  I had a blast leading that service! 

And later in the evening, The Liturgical Service.  And as you can guess, it was pretty much like an Episcopal worship service. It was much more calm and inward than the other two services, with Holy Eucharist.  Our musician was an AWAC pilot who volunteered played piano for us.  Many of the senior leaders attended this service.

So many different styles of worship….so many ways to experience the Holy & worship God!  

And so I ask you again, why do we worship?  Why do we do this? 

Technically worship, as we know, is an act of religious devotion & veneration.  A feeling or an expression or experience of reverence.  But mostly, worship is about adoration.  And as we know, adoration, "to adore" is about love.  

And so at its root, worship is really about love.   For God is love.

We worship, so we can experience what the kingdom of heaven is like!  

(How we worship, well, that is for another sermon!) 

We worship, to love.  To feel love.  To express love.  To experience love.  To communicate love! 

And that.... is what the kingdom of heaven is like! 

Amen!   

Invocations

At the Change of Command ceremony, 129th Rescue Wing

Have you ever called upon God to be present?

Over the many years I have served as a chaplain in the Air Force Reserve, the Air National Guard, and the Army Guard, deployments, etc. I have done literally dozens, if not hundreds of invocations.

And what is an invocation you may ask?

An invocation is a short prayer invoking, or calling upon God (or a deity, or the spirits) to be present.  It is done for blessings, protection, and other "good things".  And every religion in the world has invocations of one sort or the other.

At just about every military ceremony, a chaplain gives the invocation at the beginning of the ceremony, usually done right after the posting of the "colors" (flags), and the National Anthem.  

Giving an invocation at the 944th Fighter Wing, Luke AFB

Now it might seem strange.  Why do we do such a thing?  These are secular ceremonies.  Why does it include an invocation?

Changes of Command, Retirements, Airman or NCO of the Year, Luncheons, Staff meetings, promotions, awards, Dining In's, and more...all ceremonies & events that nine times out of ten have an invocation.

Well, the military may be "secular", but it has many aspects of religion & spirituality.  Think about it.  If you were taking command of a large unit, and might be called to deploy and go to war, would you not want God's blessing, wisdom and protection?

A few invocations I've done over the years especially stand out in my memory...

One invocation, or prayer that I did was with the air crew of a large refueling aircraft, a KC-10, that was about to go on a mission flying over Afghanistan.  The pilots and crew and I stood in a small circle and prayed.  They were going into the danger zone.   They could be shot down.  (Thankfully, all came back safe and sound.)

Rehearsing a ceremony with General Petraus

Another, I did the invocation for a change of command ceremony at the base in Arabia where I was deployed.  We were in a Muslim country.  Many of the the military air force people of our host nation were present, and very high ranks.  And there I was, up front, a female American chaplain blessing the occasion!

And another, at 1 am, when General Petraeus flew in to promote our newest
captains.  Again, at my deployed location at an airbase in Arabia.

When I was assigned to Luke AFB many years ago, it seems that I was called to be part of many retirement ceremonies.   So many in fact, it really got me thinking.  My "retirement" was still many years off, but I began contemplating,  what will it be like when I leave the military and retire?  How, and in what ways do I want to remember my years of service?  Will I have made a positive impact?  And so on.

Well, I am still serving, 24 years now.  I don't do very many invocations anymore.  Usually I have my chaplain team give them.  But last weekend we had a change of command of the Wing Commander, which calls for the Wing Chaplain to do the invocation.  And so I did, (see photo above, in blue uniform).

[By the way, for you non military types, a "wing" in the Air Force is an echelon of command, about 1400 people or so.  A wing can be as large as 5000 people, depending on the mission of the wing.  The Wing Chaplain, is the chaplain in charge, like a Rector or Senior Minister, and is usually the rank of Lt Col.]

One last story, this one I will never forget. It's quite humorous.  This was way back when I was in the Arizona Army Guard, and a brand new chaplain.  One of the first sergeants asked me to do an invocation at his NCO meeting, it was his first meeting as the First Sergeant.   Of course I was happy to do so.  Afterward, he asked me to pray for him, and asked for my business card.  I was so new, I did not have cards printed as yet.  So I wrote my name and number down on a piece of paper.  He put it in his wallet.

Chaplains and first sergeants work closely on many issues.   Usually it is the First Sergeant that calls the chaplain when there is an emergency with one of their people. So it is important that they have each other's numbers.

A couple of weeks  later, I was home.  The phone rang.  I answered the phone, and a female voice asked me, "Are you Laura Adelia?"  I said yes and asked who this was.  She responded with another question,  "Are you really a chaplain?"  I

As an Army Chaplain (the early years)!

said yes, and again asked who I was speaking with.

She told me she had found my name and number on a piece of paper in her husband's wallet, and was checking up on him! 

Wow, I thought, I bet no male chaplain has ever dealt with that one!

A few months later, at the unit's Christmas party, in walks the First Sergeant with his wife.  I said hello, and she was so embarrassed she would not look at me!


Let us pray...