"Feel The Song"
February 20, 2005

The New Testament Lesson: Luke 7: 36 - 50

To call people to connect their emotions into their worship

We have embarked during this Lent on a journey to explore the meaning of our Slogan “Where God’s Love is Lived                1. Last we took as our starting place the startling nature of God’s love
        2. God loves us with steadfast love of an incredible depth.
        3. That love has nothing to do with our great qualities
        4. It rests on God’s divine nature.
        5. This week, we turn to our response reading Luke 7: 36 - 50

I.  Presbyterians don’t use their feelings in worship very well!
   A. Don McCloud’s rant on In the Garden and Old Rugged Cross
        1. When I was in seminary, I took Reformed Worship from Dr. Mcleod
        2. He was a crusty Scottish Presbyterian from Canada; I loved him!
        3. But one day, he made a direct attack on me (well not direct.)
            a. He began a rant that involved mushy and overly sentimental songs
            b. He started to name names: In the Garden, The Old Rugged Cross
            c. He admonished us: “Never use hymns with sloppy theology!”
        4. The trouble was that he had named some of my favorite songs
            a. I had grown up with those songs-- dear to my heart.
            b. They empowered my believing and inspired my call.
        5. Dr. Mcleod, if you can hear, “I’m Sorry!” but I’ll use them anyway!
            a. I have to admit that he is correct about the theology.
            b. But he is wrong about their appropriateness in worship.
   B. Presbyterians in many cases need to learn to use their worship emotions
        1. We are great in using our minds.
            a. We are comfortable with the high concepts of God’s nature
            b. We require an educated clergy (almost to a fault!)
            c. We can think through any issue with ease.
            d. But do we feel the presence of God?
        2. I am not a Presbyterian by birth; I chose it!
            a. My First Christian experience was in the free church tradition.
            b. There, I learned that emotions were essential to worship.
            c. Reformed worship took a bit of mental adjustment for me.
        3. But I have come to believe we have some improving to do!
   C. Surprisingly, church music in moving in the direction of emotionalism!
        1. The worship choruses are geared not to the mind but to the heart.
        2. That is the reason that we often sing the same words repeatedly.
            a. don’t repeat words because we think people didn’t get the message
            b. It’s because we want the song to get into your heart not your head
        3.  Such music does not promote a concept; they try to inspire a feeling!
        4. I think that’s the right way to go.  Jesus even said so!

II.  The Two debtors and the point to Simon.
   A. The point is clearly made in this passage from Luke.
        1. Jesus goes to the house of a famous and important man: Simon.
            a. When Jesus arrives, Simon omits all the traditional courtesies.
            b. Doesn’t wash his feet or welcome him with a kiss as an equal.
            c. Jesus kindly and humbly ignores this breach of courtesy
        2. During the dinner, a women of the streets comes in
            a. She recognizes Jesus as the one who freed her from guilt.
            b. unintentionally performs all the acts Simon omitted.
            c. When the righteous men grumble, Jesus tells a story.
        3. The point of the story is so simple, even the Pharisees get it. (sort of)
            a. There are two debtors. both owing big debts that they can’t pay.
            b. One debt is so large it’s a wonder he owed it without credit cards!
            c. So which of the two is more grateful?  The one owing more.
        4. The point is not that the woman is a bigger sinner!
            a. The point is that she is responding to the mercy of God!
            b. She realizes she has been given a gift she didn’t deserve.
            c. And the response is seen in acts of great love!
   B. The question before us is simple, how much love do we feel?
        1. The measure of our worship is not how theologically correct we are.
            a. Orthodoxy has always been a question.
            b. Throughout the entire history of the church we have fought over it.
            c. The reality is that God is beyond human comprehension anyway.
        2. But, worship, honoring God, adoration, is a matter of emotion!
            a. It comes from the heart!
            b. It is generated as we recognize and realize that God has released us.
            c. Our guilt is gone: we’re forgiven!
            d. God has proved His steadfast love through the gift of Jesus!
            e. We did nothing to deserve it!

III.  We need to make better use of our hearts in worship.
   A. Offering love is dependant on receiving love.
        1. In Tuesdays with Morrie, Mitch Abrams quotes his friend as saying “The most important thing is life is to learn how to give out love, and how to let it come in.”
            a. That is a very perceptive statement.  But it’s backward.
            b. The first thing we do is to let love come in.
            c. Then we are in a position to let it come out.
        2. The problem with Simon was that he had not let love come in.
            a. He had to earn his way into heaven.
            b. He actually convinced himself he was deserving of paradise.
            c. So, because love hadn’t come in, he had none to give out!
        3. I started with God’s love for us, because that is the source of our love.
            a. In our competitive society, we think we have to deserve love.
            b. But God’s love is given freely.
            c. When we let it come in, we’ll be able to respond.
            d. Friends, let God’s love enter your heart!
   B. Then, when you come to worship, you’ll have love to return!
        1. Worship is all about offering God our hearts.
            a. It is adoring God for God’s goodness.
            b. It is expressing our devotion to God.
            c. It is telling God of our love!
            d. Those are all feeling words!
        2. We just finished Valentine’s Day.
            a. A wonderful opportunity to show those we love that we do!
            b. And what is the symbol for Valentine’s Day?
        3. Did any of you see a card with the picture of a head?
            a. Nickie Gumble talks about loving his wife on the Alpha Tapes.
            b. she’d be disappointed if he came home after a long trip and said:
            c. Hello, Pipper.  It’s good to see you.  I love you with all of my head.
        4. Similarly, God wants every part of us involved in worship.
        5. We need to learn how to offer our hearts!

Friends, What do you feel when you think of God?  Jesus?  Salvation?  Are you more grateful than you can express?  Does love well up inside of you?  As the unknown woman testifies to us, that’s the only right response!

Last year at this time, there was a lot of hype about the Passion of the Christ.  It was an emotionally draining experience for me.  People all around me were weeping.  Why?  Because we dearly love this man who sacrificed himself for your salvation.  Realizing what he went through made a great impact.  Do you know that movie changed lives.  One man even confessed to a murder in order to make right his relationship with God.  That’s what emotion does for us.  A dozen accurate sermons could have been preached to him on the need to confess, but it was the emotion that motivated the change.

Today, let us open our minds and our hearts to the one who loves us, who died for us that we might be forgiven and reconciled and live with him forever!

And as you go from this place, may you walk in the way of Christ Jesus and May God always find you faithful!