The Christ Hymn
“Lex
Orandi, Lex Credendi, Lex Vivendi.”
Rather loosely translated: “the
way we worship, is the way we believe, is the way we live.”
I
bring up this Christian principle
—because we find in Paul’s letter to the Philippians one of the earliest
Christian hymns—likely commonly used in worship.
He
wants the people in Philippi to understand how they are to live together
because of what they believe… and to do so he reminds them of The Christ
Hymn—he points them to how they worship.
It would be like, if I was writing a letter to a community that needs to know
they are loved, and I just couldn’t give words to that reality
—and I was swept into that familiar song, “Jesus loves me this I know.”
(Play)—Prayer
“the way we worship, is the way we
believe, is the way we live.”
The Way we Worship
Paul
sings a song about Jesus being so deeply in love with the world, that he would
accept all humiliations,
to re-unite God and the Cosmos, the Creator and the Creation.
He gave up his grip on Godhood
So he would have no advantage.
Emptied himself of all except humanity,
Becoming Mortal
Showed us true servanthood
and true humility
Died a death like ours
Even an execution
alongside criminals.
And God lifted him up
Saw fit to offer him favor.
Gave him the name
at which all knees bow in honor
“Jesus is Lord”
the confession of every tongue
With this worship all worlds
—top to bottom
and everything in between
Give Glory to God!
Paul
is singing the whole story:
—Birthed in a manger,
washed his disciple’s feet,
crucified by Rome.
The Whole story:
—Resurrected on the 3rd day,
women find the empty tomb,
worshipped by the disciples,
ascended to the right hand of God.
He is our Resurrected Lord!
The Way we Worship is the way we Believe
Because
we worship a Resurrected Lord who is exalted by his self-emptying…
we believe that the values he embodies ennoble us all
and we can trust his promises to us are true.
-We are all members of a common humanity… rivalries and schemes of supremacy
are always suspect.
-Service of others is a sign of Godliness… so selfish ambition and boastfulness
ought to be abandoned.
-The sick and dying are not neglected by God… their dignity and worth is
never in question.
-When we look into the eyes of criminals, even capital cases—the image of
God is still there!
Believe
and, trust, as well, that the Holy Spirit is at work, already active
inside of you, enabling you to will and work for God’s good pleasure.
The way we worship, is the way
we believe, is the way we live.
Up to this point the whole thing is
fairly academic… but what does all this look like in our daily lives? What does
emptying and exultation look like?
Perhaps
it looks like the landlord who gives their renter leeway in the midst of the
pandemic… for they are recognizing their common humanity.
Perhaps
it looks like grocery stockers who are putting in all that extra effort to
ensure stores are safe… service is saintly.
Perhaps
it looks like Paul’s suffering and imprisoned and holding onto hope and
humanity—after all he’s writing Philippians from jail…
—or it looks like our own suffering and sickness, our own captivity and
imprisonment… and our own hope and dignity found in Christ and upheld by our
siblings who seek justice.
Perhaps
it looks like a person struggling to discern the right path and following the gentle
yearnings of their conscience and the promptings of the Spirit, even when it is
hard… for they trust it is the Spirit’s doing.
The way we worship,
is the way we believe,
is the way we live.
He gave up his grip on Godhood
So he would have no advantage.
Emptied himself of all except humanity,
Becoming Mortal
Showed us true servanthood
and true humility
Died a death like ours
Even an execution
alongside criminals.
And God lifted him up
Saw fit to offer him favor.
Gave him the name
at which all knees bow in honor
“Jesus is Lord”
the confession of every tongue
With this worship all worlds
—top to bottom
and everything in between
Give Glory to God! A+A
