Happiness (click here for Teacher's Edition)

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Ideas for Teaching from the Book
Christ’s Ideals for Living

by O. C. Tanner

Worship

Worship in Silence hath often been refreshing to my Mind, and a Care attends me that a young Generation may feel the Nature of this Worship…In pure silent Worship, we dwell under the Holy Anointing, and feel Christ to be our Shepherd.

Here the best of Teachers minister to the several Conditions Of His Flock, and the Soul receives immediately from the Divine Fountain, that with which it is nourished…

I feel tender Desires that we who sometimes meet in Silence, may never by our Conduct lay Stumblingblocks in the Way of others, and hinder the Progress of the Reformation in the World…

In real silent Worship the Soul of faith on that which is Divine…

If Christ is our Shepherd, and feedeth us, and we are faithful in following Him, our Lives will have an inviting Language, and the Table of the Lord will not be polluted. 1

Worship may be contrasted with self-interest. Much of what we do is motivated by self-interest, as it should be. Some would claim that this is the motive for all human activities. There are good arguments against such a claim, and one of them is worship. Here man finds fellowship with God and feels a responsibility to Him. Here he is seeking to know better, not his own self-interests, but the will of the Highest, and then for will-power to carry out that will.

It is true that some people have a stronger motive of self-interest than others. For some, friendships are not so much a privilege, as an advantage; marriage is not the loss of egoism, but its satisfaction; a vocation is not for the service it can give, but for the returns offered. Self-interest as such is not wrong, but many people refer to self-interest, consciously or otherwise, as the basis for all their decisions. It is the fulcrum on which all their major decisions turn. Worship shifts the center of gravity over to another basis entirely. Here the desire is not self-interest but His interest, His will, His purposes, so that vocation and friends and marriage are lived in fulfillment of the Highest. And no service nor sacrifice is too great if it be His will.

Worship is what Emerson said of prayer; it is "the contemplation of the facts of life from the highest point of view. It is the soliloquy of a beholding and jubilant soul. It is the Spirit of God pronouncing his works good." 2

207. The Ideal of Worship from Scripture

From the New Testament:
A. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:20)
B. But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
God is a spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth. (John 4:23-24)
C. Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in Heaven.

Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, [that they may have glory of men]. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:  That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.  And when thou prayest, thou shall not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the comers of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.  But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.  But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.  Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before  ye ask him.

After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.  Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread.  And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.  And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:  But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.  Moreover, when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.  But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in secret: and thy Father, which seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly. (Matthew 6: 1-18)

D. And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. (Luke 4: 16)
E. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. (James 5: 16) [p.410]
F. Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: (l Peter 1:22)
G. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. (Colossians 3:16)
H. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. (Romans 12:2)
I. Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift. (Matthew 5:23-24)
J. And it came to pass, that he went through the corn fields on the sabbath day; and his disciples began, as they went, to pluck the ears of corn.
And the Pharisees said unto him, Behold, why do they on the sabbath day that which is not lawful?
And he said unto them, Have ye never read what David did, when he had need, and was an hungered, he, and they that were with him?
How he went into the House of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and did eat the shewbread, which is not lawful to eat but for the priests, and gave also them which were with him?
And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath: Therefore, the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath. (Mark 2: 23-28)

From Other Latter-day Saint Scripture:
K. And that thou mayest more fully keep thyself unspotted from the world, thou shall go to the house of prayer and offer up thy sacraments upon my holy day;
 

For verily this is a day appointed unto you to rest from your labors, and to pay thy devotions unto the Most High; Nevertheless thy vows shall be offered up in righteousness on all days and at all times; But remember that on this, the Lord's day, thou shalt offer up thine oblations and thy sacraments unto the Most High, confessing thy sins unto thy brethren, and before the Lord.

And on this day thou shalt do none other thing, only let thy food be prepared with singleness of heart, that thy fasting may be perfect, or, in other words, that thy joy may be full. Verily, this is fasting and prayer, or in other words, rejoicing and prayer. (Doctrine & Covenants 59:9-14)

L. And the inhabitants of Zion shall also observe the Sabbath day to keep it holy. (Doctrine & Covenants 68:29)

M. And he commanded them that they should observe the sabbath day, and keep it holy, and also every day they should give thanks to the Lord their God. (Mosiah 18:23)

208. The Ideal of Worship In Christ's Life

The practice of worship in the life of Christ is told by the incident in the temple when He was twelve years old, and when He made his first return to Nazareth following His baptism. The account reads: "And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up; and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read."

At the close of His life, there is this account of worship and the first administering of the sacrament:

And wheresoever he shall go in, say ye to the goodman of the house, The Master saith, Where is the guest chamber, where I shall eat the passover with my disciples?

And he will shew you a large upper room furnished and prepared: there make ready for us.

And his disciples went forth, and came into the city, and found as he had said unto them: and they made ready the passover. And in the evening he cometh with the twelve…

And as they did eat, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and brake it, and gave to them, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.

And he took the cup: and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them: and they all drank of it.

And he said unto them, This is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many.

Verily I say unto you, I will drink no more of the fruit of the vine, until that day that I drink it new in the kingdom of God.  And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives.3 (Mark 14: 14-26)

Worship and prayer were everyday experiences in the life of our Savior. He instructed His disciples in both prayer and worship, saying, "For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them." (Matthew 18:20).

209. The Ideal of Worship In Our Lives

Worship means many things, but there is a generally accepted factor about it that is common to all: It unifies life and gets it together after the splintering experiences of the week. It is like climbing to a high place where one can gain his bearings. Values get sorted out and put into their proper places. The precious things of life are lifted up and distinguished from lesser interests. So that from an hour of worship one gains insight and perspective with which to see once more a finer pattern of life, saying with the blind man Jesus healed, "…one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see." (John 9:25)

One does not hold his faith alone. It is true that one may gain his clearest thoughts of God in solitude. Yet not all the thoughts are there. One needs to share in worship if one's religion is to grow in depth and breadth. One cannot learn much about our physical world except by communion with others who tell of its several parts. And while one can learn of God, perhaps best in private prayer, one also learns much about God from others.

Some know God as one who forgives, some as a Companion and Ally in some great cause; another as One who joys and sorrows with our lot; another as One who helps to solve life's difficult problems. It is in worship that shared experiences of God enlarge our vision and strengthen our faith in Him. So in testimony meetings one learns much about God through the experiences of other people. Latter-day Saints are, to quote Paul: "…able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge…" (Ephesians 3: 18-19)
 

Thou Life within my life, than self more near,
Thou Veiled Presence infinitely clear;
From all illusive shows of sense I flee
To find my center and my rest in Thee.4
       --Eliza Scudder, 1871 (see all stanzas of hymn)

In the Church there is opportunity, through the week, on Sunday, quarterly and semi-annual conferences for a worshipful and rewarding relationship with our Father in heaven. Ralph Waldo Emerson said this of worship:

It is certain that worship stands in some commanding relation to the health of man, and to his highest powers, so as to be, in some manner, the source of intellect. All the great ages have been ages of belief. I mean, when there was any extraordinary power of performance, when great national movements began, when arts appeared, when heroes existed, when poems were made, the human soul was in earnest and had fixed its thoughts on spiritual verities with as strict a grasp as that of the hands on the sword or the pencil or the trowel. 5
 

210. The Ideal of Worship In Quotations from Church Leaders

The following is part of the dedicatory prayer of the Kirtland Temple, given by Joseph Smith:

…Seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom, seek learning even by study and also by faith; organize yourselves, prepare every needful thing, and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God; that your incomings may be in the name of the Lord, and your outgoings may be in the name of the Lord, that all your salutations may be in the name of the Lord, with uplifted hands unto the Most High -- And now, Holy Father, we ask thee to assist us, thy people, with thy grace, in calling our solemn assembly, that it may be done to thine honor and to thy divine acceptance; And in a manner that we may be found worthy, in thy sight, to secure a fulfillment of the promises which thou hast made unto us, thy people, in the revelations given unto us; that thy glory may rest down upon thy people, and upon this thy house, which we now dedicate to thee, that it may be sanctified and consecrated to be holy, and that thy holy presence may be continually in this house; And that all people who shall enter upon the threshold [p.414] of the Lord's house may feel thy power, and feel constrained to acknowledge that thou hast sanctified it, and that it is thy house, a place of thy holiness. And do thou grant, Holy Father, that all those who shall worship in this house may be taught words of wisdom out of the best books, and that they may seek learning even by study, and also by faith, as thou hast said. -(Doctrine & Covenants 109:7-14)