Transfigured from Glory to Glory: Part Two

Re-enchanting Worship: A Survey of Sacrificial Worship in the New Testament

Introduction

In the New Testament, worship continues to be sacrificial at its core, though it is transformed from the physical, bloody sacrifices of the Old Covenant to spiritual offerings mediated by the Holy Spirit. 

As this chapter will explore, the sacrificial nature of worship remains central, now expressed in prayers, praise, and the offering of our lives as living sacrifices. Through the Spirit’s mediation, these offerings ascend into the heavenly realms as a sweet-smelling aroma before God. We will survey the Gospels, Acts, Epistles, and conclude with the Book of Revelation, which apocalyptically reveals the heavenly liturgy that undergirds and shapes earthly worship. This essay will also critique modern trends such as seeker-sensitive and emotionally-driven worship, which depart from the New Testament’s emphasis on sacrificial worship.

Jesus and the Transfiguration of Worship in the Gospels

The Gospels do not present a radical transformation of worship, but rather a profound transfiguration of Old Testament worship through the person and work of Christ. The term "transfiguration" is key here, as it captures the essence of how Jesus relates the worship practices of the Old Covenant to the new realities of the Kingdom of God. Much like a language is translated, keeping its essence intact while being expressed in new forms, so too does worship in Christ retain its sacrificial nature while being transfigured into a new covenantal context.

From the beginning of His ministry, Jesus proclaims that the Kingdom of God is at hand (Mark 1:15). This is not a call to discard the old forms of worship but to recognize that they find their fulfillment in Him. The sacrificial system of the Old Testament, centered around the temple, pointed forward to Christ as the ultimate sacrifice. As He offers His life on the cross, Jesus becomes the once-and-for-all atonement for sin, fulfilling the sacrificial requirements that had previously been mediated through the blood of animals (Hebrews 10:1-14).

In John 4:24, Jesus tells the Samaritan woman, "God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." Far from abolishing external forms of worship or dismissing the need for sacrifice, this statement points to a worship that is now mediated through Christ and mediated by the Holy Spirit. It signals the shift from worship being tied to a specific location—like the temple in Jerusalem—to worship that is now centered on Christ, who Himself is the true temple (John 2:19-21). The external forms remain, but they are now translated and rooted in Christ's sacrifice.

Thus, New Testament worship remains sacrificial in essence, but it is now bloodless and mediated through the Spirit. The external form is preserved in the liturgy of the church, which continues the pattern of offering, consecration, and communion that was established in the Old Covenant. As Hebrews 13:15 notes, "Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess His name." This offering of praise is still a sacrifice, but one that is translated by the work of the Spirit in light of Christ’s completed work.

The early church understood this continuity of sacrificial worship, now centered on Christ. As Saint Maximus the Confessor writes, the worship of the church on earth is not disconnected from its Old Testament roots but is instead united with the heavenly liturgy, where the church participates in the eternal offering of praise before God's throne. Through Christ, the liturgical actions of the church—confession, prayer, praise, and the Eucharist—are transformed into spiritual sacrifices that ascend to God, much like the smoke of the sacrifices in the Old Covenant. Maximus explains, "What we do on earth through the Spirit is a reflection of the heavenly realities." The sacrifice remains; it is now simply translated into a new form that fits the new covenantal reality.

This idea of worship as a transfigured, rather than transformed, practice also pushes back against the idea of overly individualistic, emotional worship often seen in modern contexts. New Testament worship, while personal in the sense that it engages the whole person, is still corporate, structured, and rooted in the church’s liturgical life. The Spirit mediates and translates our earthly offerings—confession, prayers, praises, and the Eucharist—into heavenly realities, ensuring that worship remains connected to its sacrificial essence. Worship is not merely an inward, emotional experience but continues to involve the external, communal offering of the church’s liturgy, centered on Christ and His work.

In this sense, Jesus does not discard Old Testament worship but transfigures it into the language of the new covenant, where He is the true temple, the high priest, and the ultimate sacrifice. Worship in spirit and truth is not the abandonment of form, but its fulfillment in Christ, who enables His people to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Him. This is the heart of New Testament worship: it retains the sacrificial nature of Old Testament worship, translated through the mediating work of Christ and empowered by the Holy Spirit.

Worship in the Early Church: Acts and the Epistles

The Book of Acts provides insight into the worship practices of the early church, particularly the centrality of the Eucharist and prayer. Acts 2:42 describes how the early Christians “devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.” The phrase “breaking of bread” refers to the Eucharist, a practice that continues the sacrificial nature of worship in a new form. Just as Christ offered Himself on the cross, the church now participates in this sacrifice through the Eucharist, where believers partake of Christ’s body and blood.

James B. Jordan notes that the early Christian emphasis on the Eucharist is not a departure from Old Testament sacrificial theology but its fulfillment. The Eucharist becomes the new form of sacrifice, a bloodless offering that carries the same theological weight as the sacrifices in the Temple. The Spirit takes our offerings of bread and wine, our prayers and praises, and transforms them into spiritual sacrifices that ascend before God as a pleasing aroma.

Paul’s letters also develop this theme of spiritual sacrifice. In Romans 12:1, Paul exhorts believers to “present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” Here, Paul redefines sacrifice in light of Christ’s ultimate offering. No longer are animals brought to the altar; instead, the believer’s whole life becomes a sacrifice. Robert Webber points out that this redefinition of sacrifice is foundational to Christian worship, where every aspect of life, from corporate worship to daily actions, becomes an offering to God.

Similarly, in Hebrews 13:15-16, the writer encourages believers to “offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, the fruit of lips that acknowledge His name.” The idea of “sacrifice” is retained, but it is now applied to acts of worship like singing, praying, and confessing Christ. These are the new sacrifices, bloodless yet spiritually potent, transformed by the Holy Spirit into offerings acceptable to God.

The Book of Revelation and the Heavenly Liturgy

The Book of Revelation provides an apocalyptic vision of the heavenly liturgy, where the worship of the church on earth is mirrored and completed in heaven. Revelation 4-5 depicts a grand scene of worship around the throne of God, where the heavenly beings cry out, “Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty” (Rev. 4:8). The twenty-four elders fall down before the Lamb, offering bowls of incense, “which are the prayers of the saints” (Rev. 5:8). This imagery reveals that the prayers and praises of the church on earth ascend before God as a fragrant offering, much like the smoke of the sacrifices in the Old Testament.

Peter Leithart and other liturgical theologians argue that the heavenly liturgy described in Revelation serves as the blueprint for Christian worship. Just as the sacrifices of the Old Testament were offered on the earthly altar and transformed by fire into a pleasing aroma before God, so too are the prayers and praises of the church in the New Covenant. The Spirit takes these offerings and transforms them, making them part of the eternal liturgy that takes place in heaven. Christian worship on earth is always in union with the heavenly worship, a participation in the eternal praise offered to God by angels and saints.

Dionysius the Areopagite, an early Christian mystic, further elaborates on this concept by describing worship as a hierarchical ascent toward God. In his Celestial Hierarchy, Dionysius argues that worship is the means by which the church on earth is drawn up into the divine presence, where it joins the angels in their ceaseless praise of God. For Dionysius, worship is an act of spiritual ascent, where the Spirit guides the church into deeper communion with God.

Critique of Seeker-Sensitive Worship

The New Testament’s emphasis on sacrificial worship stands in stark contrast to modern trends such as seeker-sensitive worship, which prioritize emotional experience and personal fulfillment over sacrificial offering. In many contemporary churches, worship is often framed as an opportunity to connect with God on a personal, emotional level, rather than as an act of sacrifice and consecration.

Sadly, this mindset fosters a consumer mindset rather than a sacrificial one. True worship is about formation, not entertainment. Worship, in the New Testament sense, is meant to form believers into the image of Christ through the practices of prayer, praise, and the Eucharist. When worship becomes focused on personal experience or emotional satisfaction, it loses its formative power and becomes shallow.

True worship is not about making people feel comfortable but about offering something valuable to God. Worship is not a product to be consumed but a sacrifice to be offered. In the New Testament, worship is always directed toward God, not toward the self, and it requires the active participation of the believer in offering spiritual sacrifices.

Conclusion

Worship in the New Testament retains its sacrificial nature, though it is transformed from the physical sacrifices of the Old Covenant into true, spiritual offerings of praise, prayer, and good works. The Holy Spirit mediates these offerings, transforming them into a pleasing aroma that ascends to God, much like the sacrifices of the Old Testament. The Book of Revelation reveals that this earthly worship is always in union with the heavenly liturgy, where the prayers and praises of the church are joined with the ceaseless worship of angels and saints.

In contrast to modern trends that emphasize emotional experience and personal fulfillment, New Testament worship calls for sacrifice, consecration, and formation. As the church continues to offer spiritual sacrifices in Spirit and truth, it must resist the temptation to turn worship into entertainment and instead embrace its true calling as a royal priesthood offering sacrifices acceptable to God.