Day 10 - May Our Church Be a House of Prayer
He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a den of robbers.” Matthew 21:13
In our Reformed theological tradition, we tend to do only things in worship that are commanded in scripture. Some traditions allow things that are not forbidden. Our theological stream believes it is safer to do only what is commanded. For that reason, we do not use incense, have excessive ceremony, or add extraneous things to our worship. Instead, we do things commanded in scripture, such as pray, sing, hear the scriptures read and preached, give, greet one another, confess our sins, and celebrate the sacraments. In both our contemporary and traditional services, these things make up the heart of our worship.
Jesus reminded us that prayer must always be central to our time together. When he cleansed the temple, he quoted the Old Testament verse from Isaiah that said that God’s house was to be a “house of prayer” (Isaiah 56:7). Of all the things done when the people of God gather, central among them is prayer.
There is a benefit to corporate prayer. When we gather in worship, we bring our common prayers before God. We pray about things we all believe to be important. Our morning prayers of intercession tend to include prayers for the church around the world, our nation and community, world problems and conflicts, and those with illness or special needs. If we are paying attention, we feel the Spirit of God among us when we pray together.
Jesus promised his presence in worship. He said that where “two or three” were gathered together in his name, he would be among them (Matthew 18:20). Today pray that when we gather for worship, people will sense God’s presence. This is not an unrealistic expectation. When we go home after worship, we feel better because we have been among the people of God. There is an inner peace we feel. This is not simply because we have been among friends. It is the presence of the Holy Spirit that we have experienced. He is present in our music, our singing, our preaching, and our prayers.
Today pray that God’s Spirit will indwell our worship.