© Copyright Robert D. Hosken, M.Min., D.Min. 2006
"Therefore I urge you, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service. Don't be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what is the good, well-pleasing, and perfect will of God." This text, Rom. 12:1-2, is one of the central passages on worship in the New Testament. The Analytical-Literal Translation uses the phrase "intelligent, sacred service"1 and the KJV uses "reasonable service"2 for logikin latreian in the Greek instead of "spiritual service." The root word "service" is latreia in Greek, and Strong's Dictionaries define it thus: "ministration of God, that is, worship: - (divine) service," and is derived from "latris (a hired menial); to minister (to God), that is, render religious homage: - serve, do the service, worship (-per)."3
So we see here that the original meaning of latris in classical Greek pertained to the labor of a hired menial, i.e., practical service, but by the first century latreia had taken on a wider meaning, including ministry to God. And St. Paul indicates with the adjective logikin that in addition to being spiritual, it must be carried out intelligently and reasonably. The German Luther Bible translates logikin latreian here as "vernünftiger Gottesdienst"4 and the modern usage of "Gottesdienst" means "worship service" such as on Sunday mornings. But the underlying meaning is "God's service," so true worship is serving God, and serving God is true worship. Therefore worship that does not entail service or ministry is not true worship. In contrast to latreia, the word eidololatreia means idolatry or the worship of images, false gods. In 1 Cor. 10:14 Paul commands us, "flee from idolatry." In Gal. 5:20 he lists idolatry as one of the "works of the flesh" and in v.21 warns "that those who practice such things will not inherit the Kingdom of God."
Question:
1. Which Greek word means service or worship to God alone, and how does this word relate to practical ministry?
Also, Paul urges believers to "put to death" the earthly traits, including "covetousness, which is idolatry" (Col. 3:5). Thus we see something deeply embedded in our fallen human nature that fights against and resists the worship of the one true God: any passion or pastime, hang-up or hobby demanding our ultimate allegiance or constant attention is idolatry. Greed (covetousness) is a form of idolatry, the passion for acquiring material things that replaces our passion for God. Today's materialism and consumerism, driven by captivating advertising, shoves aside worship of the one true God and replaces it with laboring to acquire shiny new cars, expensive toys and electronic gadgets. Paul warns us: ruthlessly kill that desire to acquire; put it to death: it is idolatry! God alone is worthy of our latreia, our worship and service!
Even religion, when it degenerates into mere formalism, becomes the enemy of true worship. Jesus said in John 16:2, "the time comes that whoever kills you will think that he offers service (latreia) to God." This is exactly what took place with Israel (Rom. 9:4-5), "whose is the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service (latreia), and the promises; of whom are the fathers, and from whom is Christ as concerning the flesh, who is over all, God, blessed forever. Amen." (See also Heb. 9:1 and 6.) The Jews were totally convinced that they alone practiced true worship and thus were absolutely certain that they were serving God by crucifying Jesus, persecuting Paul and putting to death other early Christians. Today, Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists sincerely believe they are serving their gods when they persecute and kill Christians. Can our response be to simply call for religious tolerance?
In their book The New Tolerance, Bob Hostetler and Josh McDowell write - "Today's doctrine of tolerance ... goes far beyond the dictionary's definition of tolerance. Webster's defines tolerate as 'to recognize and respect [others' beliefs, practices, etc.] without sharing them' .... But that's not what the word means any more ... The new tolerance is defined as the view that all values, beliefs, lifestyles, and truth claims are equal."5 Western relativistic pseudo-tolerance, the half-hearted teaching that "any god will do, just as long as you are sincere," is no match for the zeal of violent religious extremism. Some world religions have very little tolerance of any worldview other than theirs, while they violently insist that all other worldviews should tolerate them. If you have a football game where one side insists on rules that permit it to score goals while the other side must go no farther than mid-field, guess who is going to win? But this isn't just a game. Tolerance must be reciprocal, or not at all. Christianity teaches peace, love for one's enemies and patient, steadfast faith under persecution, but it does not teach relativism, that any god will do. Such pseudo-tolerance is also idolatry. True latria-worship belongs only to God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Question:
2. How can our worship (latreia) of God transform into idolatry (eidololatreia)?
(One or several of the following answers may be correct.)
If we believe that we must practice toleration of all religions because all gods and religions are equal, that is idolatry.
If our desire to obtain material things crowds out our desire for God, that is "greed, which is idolatry".
If our religious rituals, Bible reading, laws and rules do not leave room for true service to God and our neighbor, that is idolatry.
If we believe that any denomination or confession that teaches any definition of Christ is acceptable, that is idolatry.
Closely related to latreia is the Greek word leitourgia, which by the first century had come to mean "divine service" in its New Testament usage. In Luke 1:23 the KJV translates it as "ministration" as it relates about Zecharias after he had seen the Angel: "And it came to pass, that, as soon as the days of his ministration (leitourgia) were accomplished, he departed to his own house."6 But as Bruce Winter points out in his book Seek the Welfare of the City,7 the word leitourgia was used in ancient Greece to mean service to the politeia, to society in general. Strong's Dictionaries define it as "public function (as priest ['liturgy'] or almsgiver): - ministration (-try), service."8 Thus we see that the term also has a definite sense of public service or practical ministry to meet human needs.
This is clearly indicated in Rom. 15:27 - "Yes, it has been their good pleasure, and they are their debtors. For if the Gentiles have been made partakers of their spiritual things, they owe it to them also to serve (leitourgeo) them in fleshly things." Paul teaches us here that because the Jews have provided the Gospel of Christ ("spiritual things") to all the nations, the Gentiles have a debt, a social obligation, to provide materially for the Jerusalem church (v. 25), where Paul was about to travel in order to deliver the offering he had collected in Macedonia and Achaia (v. 26). We see the same usage in 2 Cor. 9:12 - "For this service (leitourgia) of giving that you perform not only makes up for lack among the saints, but abounds also through many givings of thanks to God." So leitourgia includes providing very practical, material help.
Question:
3. (a) What did leitourgia mean in ancient classical Greek? (b) What meanings of this word are found in the New Testament?
Accompanying this practical aspect of leitourgia is a self-sacrificial aspect. Worship under the Old Testament involved sacrifices of animals, but under the New Testament it involves the sacrifice of oneself. Acts 13:2 illustrates this - "As they served (leitourgeo) the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, 'Separate Barnabas and Saul for me, for the work to which I have called them.'" Notice how fasting, the self-sacrifice of foregoing food, accentuates worship. But even more powerful illustrations of self-sacrificial worship are found in Phil. 2:17 - "Yes, and if I am poured out on the sacrifice and service (leitourgia) of your faith, I rejoice, and rejoice with you all" and speaking of Epaphroditus in v. 30 - "because for the work of Christ he came near to death, risking his life to supply that which was lacking in your service (leitourgia) toward me." Here Paul indicates he himself is ready to become a sacrifice in service to the faith of the believers at Philippi, and that Epaphroditus had already risked his life in service to them.
The priestly aspect of this word is shown in Rom. 15:16 - "that I should be a servant (leitourgos) of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles, serving as a priest the Good News of God, that the offering up of the Gentiles might be made acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit." The author of the letter to the Hebrews also writes that Jesus is "a servant (leitourgos) of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle" (Heb. 8:2), and that "now he has obtained a more excellent ministry (leitourgia), by so much as he is also the mediator of a better covenant" (v. 6). In Heb. 9:21 we read how Moses "sprinkled the tabernacle and all the vessels of the ministry (leitourgia) in like manner with the blood." This was a figure or foreshadowing of Christ offering His own blood: "But now once at the end of the ages, he [Christ] has been revealed to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself " (v. 26b). Finally and very powerfully the author of Hebrews writes: "Every priest indeed stands day by day serving (leitourgeo) and often offering the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins, but He [Christ], when He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God" (Heb. 10:11-12). Thus we see both in the letter to the Philippians and the letter to the Hebrews that the ministry of liturgy (leitourgia) is much more than performing rituals: the minister must be ready and willing to sacrifice himself.
Question:
4. The word leitourgia originally had the meaning "service to the politeia" (society), but then in the first century aquired the extra meaning "service to God", i.e., it meant both practical ministry and material help, and together with that service to God. Here is a list of its locations in the New Testament:
The noun leitourgia - Lk. 1:23;
2 Cor. 9:12;
Phil. 2:17 and 30;
Heb. 8:6 and
Heb. 9:21.
The verb leitourgeo - Acts 13:2;
Rom. 15:27;
Heb. 10:11.
In which places is it used in the sense "service to God", and in which places in the sense "Social Ministry of the Church"?
Endnotes:
1. Analytical-Literal Translation, (www.e-sword.net, 2004).
2. King James Version, op. cit.
3. Strong’s Hebrew and Greek Dictionaries, op. cit.
4. German Luther Bible, (www.e-sword.net, 2004).
5. Hostetler, Bob and McDowell, Josh, The New Tolerance, (Carol Stream, Illinois, Tyndale House Publishers, 1998), 125.
6. King James Version, op. cit.