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The origins and evolution of worship
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The origins of worship begin in the Old Testament with the observance of the Sabbath and Passover. God gave the Ten Commandments, built a temple to house them, and ruled over Israel from the Holy of Holies inside the temple. The Holy of Holies could be entered once a year on the first Day of Atonement. But the temple that was built on earth was made a type and shadow of the heavenly temple. (Hebrews 8:5) 

 

The earthly temple had sacrifices for the sins of the people and a high priest who entered the holy of holies once a year on the first day of atonement, a type of what Jesus, the substance of the heavenly temple, would do. Thus, the scapegoat sacrificed for the sins of the people showed that Jesus would be sacrificed, and the high priest entering the Holy of Holies on the Day of Atonement showed that Jesus would enter heaven, where the true temple is. When Jesus ascended into heaven and cast Satan out of heaven to earth, he fulfilled the prophecy of the Day of Atonement (Revelation 12:9).

 

On the Day of Atonement, which was observed in the earthly temple, the high priest would lay the sins of the people on a goat that would be sent to a demon named Azazel to die in the wilderness. But this was to show what Jesus, the substance of the heavenly temple, would accomplish. Jesus, the substance of the heavenly temple, became a high priest, entered into heaven, and cast Satan from heaven down to earth. And he came into the body of the saints by the Holy Spirit and made them into a new temple, fulfilling the prophecy of the Feast of Tabernacles (1 Corinthians 3:16).

 

After completing the Day of Atonement, Israel cut down a tree from the mountain and built a tabernacle out of it, and dwelt in it and read the Scriptures, which is the Feast of Tabernacles. Thus, when the Holy Spirit came into the bodies of the saints and made them into a temple, he fulfilled the prophecy of the Feast of Tabernacles and thus fulfilled the Old Testament law. Jesus fulfilled all the services (sacrifices) for the forgiveness of sins by fulfilling prophecy in the order of the feasts observed in the earthly temple: Sabbath, Passover, Unleavened Bread, Feast of Weeks, Feast of Trumpets, Day of Atonement, and Feast of Tabernacles. Therefore, the sacrifices (services) for the forgiveness of sins no longer need to be observed.

 

[Hebrews 10:18] For sins and trespasses have been forgiven, and there is no longer any need for sacrifices to take away sins.

 

Because Jesus fulfilled all the law, the New Testament saints did not observe sacrifices (worship) such as the Sabbath and the Day of Atonement. They only practiced the Lord's Supper, which Jesus commanded them to celebrate, and baptism, which was a profession of faith. New Testament believers did not observe sacrifices for the forgiveness of sins because they believed that all sins were forgiven through baptism.

 

[Acts 2:38] Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

 

Thus, baptism and the Lord's Supper are the only ostensible legacies of the early church. The early church, which began as a single religion, split into the Eastern (Jerusalem) and Western (Rome) churches around AD70, and the dispute over the Lord's Supper began. The Eastern Church celebrated the Lord's Supper after fasting until 3 p.m. on January 14, the day Jesus died, while the Western Church celebrated the Lord's Supper after fasting from 3 p.m. on January 14, the day Jesus died, until Sunday, the day he rose from the dead. Their dispute lasted 200 years before the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD decided to hold the Lord's Supper on Sunday. Believers in the Western Church believed that on Sunday, the day Jesus was resurrected, they would also be resurrected. As a result, they set aside every Sunday as a special day and celebrated the Lord's Supper on that day, which became the Sunday service. In the Bible, Jesus' supper consisted of readings, prayers, and songs. In the second century, the Lord's Supper was a simple meal with no special rituals. But around 300, the Lord's Supper transformed into the ritualized form of the Mass, with the addition of sermons, hymns, and prayers. Today, worship in all churches, including the Church of God, began with the Catholic Mass, and the Mass is an evolved version of the Lord's Supper.

 

To recap, the origins of worship began with the laws of the Old Testament, such as the Sabbath and the Day of Atonement, which were observed in the temple. However, as Jesus fulfilled the law in the order of the feasts, New Testament believers did not observe sacrifices for the forgiveness of sins. They believed that they were forgiven of their sins through baptism, so they did not observe the Day of Atonement. Thus, the only rituals left by Jesus are baptism and the Lord's Supper. However, in the Western church, the Lord's Supper was celebrated on Sunday and turned into an organized form of worship with the addition of hymns, sermons, and prayers.

 

The baptism Jesus left behind is the Old Testament equivalent of circumcision. But true baptism must be a spiritual baptism that washes away the sins of the heart, not the sins of the flesh. Baptism, by itself, only convicts of sin, but true salvation requires the cleansing of the heart through the Holy Spirit. Nor does drinking the wine of the Lord's Supper provide forgiveness of sins. The Lord's Supper is an act of conviction, but true remission of sins requires the Holy Spirit of Christ to come upon us and wash away the sins of the heart. Therefore, baptism and the Lord's Supper are merely outward ceremonies. Just as Israel in the Old Testament forsook righteousness, righteousness, and God because they were preoccupied with outward ceremonies, so we forget our inward sins when we focus on baptism and the Lord's Supper. Salvation is not gained through outward rituals, but through the washing away of iniquity from the heart. Therefore, the divine and soothing worship that the saints should observe is not baptism and the Lord's Supper, but good deeds and acts of love, such as washing away the sins of the heart and loving one's neighbor as oneself. 

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