They brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. As he went along, people spread their cloaks on the road. When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen: “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!” He replied, “I tell you, if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.” (Luke 19:35-40)

Let us begin by loosely labeling three styles of worship. Even without any description, you should — loosely — know what they mean. The first kind is found in mainstream, traditional, historic and orthodox churches. We can call it formal worship or funeral worship (FW). When you enter a church and you see the members behave like they are holding a funeral for God with a group of awkward people at the front dressed up like cartoon ghosts but pretending to be angels, as if they are aching to return to Catholicism, that is FW. It is also found in traditional liberal churches. The second kind is found in contemporary churches, as well as some traditional churches. It is popular in charismatic congregations, but it is also accepted in contemporary cessationist cults. We can call it modern worship (MW). The third kind is biblical worship (BW). By this we refer to the kind of worship that is found in the Bible and that is approved by God. Our text presents one example of biblical worship.

Of course, FW and MW can include characteristics that overlap with BW, but BW remains on its own so that it can be discussed as the standard. There are variations within FW and MW. Some FW people believe that God is barely alive instead of totally dead. Or they believe that God is very much alive, but he does not do anything that he promised because he is a sovereign liar. Once in a while, both FW and MW people even accidentally worship God in spirit and in truth. Whether FW or MW, there are severe flaws in the way people worship, flaws that they seem reluctant to admit. In any case, the one we truly care about is BW. And the reason we can speak loosely is because we have only one purpose that does not demand much precision, and that is to consider some of the criticisms that FW make against MW.

All four Gospels report this incident (Matthew 21:1-16; Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:28-40; John 12:12-19). The people praised God in a way that Jesus approved. They praised God for miracles. Their words were simple. They were emotional. They were loud, and physical. And they probably maintained a refrain for an extended period. The text is one example, but we see the same characteristics in some of the other portions of Scripture where people worshiped God in a way that he approved. However, we see FW attack MW for these very things. This is important: I am not defending MW. There are too many variations in MW for me to dissect in order to attack this or defend that in a short piece. Rather, I mean that FW expose themselves by the criticisms that they make against others. I am pointing out that FW are so full of themselves and out of touch with God that when they attack MW, they are acting like the Pharisees who told Jesus to rebuke his own disciples for praising him excellently. They are like those who hated Jesus and murdered Jesus in order to protect their own traditions and interests, and not like those who welcomed Jesus and worshiped Jesus. The event revealed the hearts of men. And FW expose themselves as haters of God rather than lovers of God when they echo the same attitudes that caused their spiritual ancestors to kill the Son of God, so that they can keep their religion. If we were to accept the FW standard, then the people that Jesus approved did everything wrong. What is excellent praise? What is true and right worship? The text answers us.

It is good to praise God for miracles, prophecies, healing, prosperity, and all kinds of blessings, and to expect more of these things from him. It is proper to see him as one who does these things, and to praise him because of these things. There are other reasons to praise God, but this reason is not wrong — it is a reason that Jesus approved. They were not seeking signs and wonders instead of Jesus. They have already seen them, and they are praising God and welcoming Christ because of these miracles. They perceived that God cannot be separated from his power, just as he cannot be separated from his love or wisdom. To praise God for what he is and what he does is to praise God. What if you praise God for his holiness, and someone accuses you of seeking his holiness instead of seeking God himself? It is just as stupid to criticize those who worship God for his miracles and for his benefits. The truth is, the critics are the ones whose hearts are divided about the person of God and the blessing of God – I do not think this way at all – and they expose themselves when they attack others. Obviously, the people were not seeking signs and wonders so that they could believe in Jesus. They already believed in him, and welcomed him. But Jesus was against those who are like our cessationists, who would refuse the things that the word of God plainly teaches but demand signs to prove them, and then still refuse to believe when miracles occur.

It is good to praise God with simple words, or what FW would call “shallow” theology. Shallow or not, anything that is true theology is good theology. Simple, or even shallow theology, is not the same as false theology. Admittedly, if we never exhibit richness in our prayers and praises, then something is amiss. Anti-intellectualism stalls spiritual progress. But regardless of how much knowledge we have gained, it is never too shallow to shout, “Oh God, I love you and I praise you!” five hundred times — if you mean it five hundred times. In fact, it is shallow theology to despise this. If some people are too shallow in their worship, we can also say that the FW are too stuck-up — stuck-up against God! — in their weekly funeral procession for Jesus. It is important to attain a deep theology, because God revealed his mind with much richness and wisdom, and because it is sometimes needed to address more complicated issues. But many people are motivated by a wrong spirit, and they pretend to be experts when they lack aptitude or development. They pursue theological knowledge to support their religious pride and to feel superior. This is vanity. Theology ought to be an act of worship, but this is the opposite of worship. It is better for people like these to remain simple for a while, so that their character and knowledge can grow together.

Moreover, the FW do not exercise deep theology in their worship. They think they do, but it is mostly deep unbelief and tradition, not deep truth. Give me their hymnbooks. Locate the best songs. For many of them, we can tear apart their theology until it resembles nothing more than dishonest atheism. But FW people would not notice the errors in them, because unbelief is the way they think all the time, and those hymns often express the zenith of their thinking in distilled form. They represent the culmination of their faith. Yet when they are sung, we hear them heralding the wretchedness of sin in men rather than the righteousness of Christ in us. We hear them worshiping sin, sickness, poverty, suffering and defeat. But isn’t there a God around somewhere? Apparently, he is the one doing all these terrible things to them in the first place. God and Satan have joined hands against them, and when there is any relief, any healing, any prosperity, it most likely comes from Satan. No wonder they are depressed. No wonder they require constant therapy, often from non-Christians. It is so that they can find respite from their deadly theology.

Imagine if Jesus walks into the church and listens to that. Wouldn’t he say, “Wait, you people know I did something about all of this 2000 years ago, right? I mean, with a little faith, you didn’t have to put up with these things even before I came. But I made everything better, even easier, not worse. My disciples didn’t tell you? Nobody preached the gospel all these years? Ah, I assumed you were Christians. This sounds more like a study group for Confucianism or Buddhism. I think Vincent gave me the wrong address.” They would say, “Can’t you see this is a funeral for the God who has ceased? We are worshiping you and we demand order! Shut up so we can reverence you some more! Or do you want us to crucify you again?” Jesus whines, “No! Please, no! You are so boring and pretentious I want to puke! I have said that the church is to be a light on a hill, but you have made it a den of losers. This worship is torture. Let me out!” If you think that this is ridiculous and Jesus would not react this way, you would be correct. The Jesus we know from Scripture is much less lenient toward unbelief and defeat. He would probably remove the light from that congregation, as he has done to thousands of traditional churches. Do not mistake God’s patience as his approval. How long will he tolerate your unbelief? How long will it be, before the ax strikes at the root of the tree?

It is good to praise God with emotional outbursts. We can make room for different temperaments. Some people are more excitable. Some people are more calm. Then there are people who act very dignified when the truth is that they are too arrogant before the Lord. Certainly, we cannot say that emotional displays are wrong in worship, unless someone is being emotional for its own sake or to attract attention to himself. But you see, if everybody is praising God with joy and dancing, and you are the only one sitting down with that forlorn look on your face, then you are the one attracting attention to yourself. You are the one out of order. Even if you hate God so much, you can at least be polite. Stand up and lift your hands to support the people around you who are worshiping God with their whole hearts. Perhaps the spirit of faith and gladness will fall on you too.

There is no need to shout or dance every time you worship God, but it is not wrong to shout or dance, if this is how you sincerely express yourself at the time. In fact, there is no need for emotions when you shout or dance. You can shout by faith. You can dance by faith. Even when you feel nothing, you can rejoice because of what the word of God says about God and about your redemption. If it comes from faith, it is a sincere expression. And the corresponding feelings would come once you begin by faith. This is the same as how healing comes from the word of God. Of course, when all sickness has disappeared and you are feeling well, you can praise God with joy and sincerity. This is proper, but anybody can do that. The one who walks by faith and not by sight, or not by feelings, can praise God for his healing because of what the word of God says even when he is looking death in the face, and then the healing comes. This is the model of faith that Abraham left us, and God counted this faith for physical healing as righteousness (Romans 4:16-22).

Praise must come from faith, whether with emotions or without emotions, and whether in shallow theology or deep theology. Without faith, the deeper the theology, the greater the condemnation. And it seems that most of those who urge deep theology in worship, and who look down on others for their shallow words, have no faith. They think they have a lot of faith, but it is not the kind of faith that Jesus taught his disciples. It is nothing more than human tradition and willpower that they count as faith. People argue about a long list of things when it comes to worship, but the most essential issue is faith. Sing the Psalms, don’t sing the Psalms. Use instruments, don’t use instruments. Stand up, or sit down. Dance, or fall down. Protestants with Catholic robes, or without Catholic robes. Make it like a rock concert, don’t make it like a rock concert. When there is no faith, it does not matter who wins the debate, because everyone loses. Worship God by faith. Praise the Lord with sounds of victory in whatever situation. Paul and Silas praised God when they were beaten and jailed. Then God sent an earthquake that shook the very foundations. All the doors flew open and all the chains came loose. This is biblical worship. Do that first, and then after we drop you off at daycare, you can have an all-out street brawl about whether you can find Jesus in that tiny cup of grape juice.

It is good to praise God with loud shouts and physical expressions. This is seen throughout the Bible. There is no need to defend this, and there is no way to attack it. It is only a matter of whether or not we accept the authority of Scripture, and that is a matter of whether or not we are Christians in the first place. We can be loud, or we can be quiet, but loud is not wrong. There is shouting for the sake of shouting, and that is not worship. But then there is thunderous and triumphant praise toward God, and that is glorious. If even trees know to clap their hands, those who refuse to clap their hands are wrong. If even stones would cry out like these people, those who refuse to shout praises to God are worse than rocks. We ought to ordain the rocks and put them on our pulpits instead of manufacturing more seminary drones.

It is good to praise God with the same refrain over and over again. You do not need to do this, but it is not wrong. The people likely did not agree on a long series of hymns as Jesus arrived, but mainly repeated the words as recorded, even if our text could be an abridged version. Some Christian theologians have accused charismatic worship of practicing hypnotism or brainwashing because the people keep singing the same words! This is their “apologetics” and “cult-watching” at work. If you are against chanting “Jesus is Lord!” or “The Lord reigns!” or “Praise the Lord, for his mercy endures forever!” five hundred times together with your brothers and sisters, then you are the one who is defective. Just writing this makes me want to do it right now. Yet the defenders of the faith harden their hearts. Brainwashed? Brainwashed with what? With truth? With words of faith and worship? Doesn’t the issue depend on what words we are repeating? Or can’t we even praise God with the same words more than two or three times in a roll? Four times, and you are a cult! Ten times, and you are in a trance, man! If the words are wrong, then we should not sing them even once. But if the words are good, then why does it matter how many times we repeat them? Too many theologians have been brainwashed by Satan.

All four Gospels note the Pharisees’ disapproval of the crowd’s behavior (Matthew 21:16-18; Mark 11:12-18; Luke 19:39-46; John 12:9-11, 17-19). Although the religious elite despised the common people (John 9:34), they were the ones who had lost contact with God. Anyone who had faith rose above them and exceeded the theological leaders in their place with God. A perspective that condemns simple, sincere, and exuberant worship of Jesus is a false religion. The religious elite anoint themselves as the guardians of the faith, but they are the ones who would demand the Lord himself to stop people from offering proper worship. Do not fall into this trap. Never allow knowledge to become an excuse for high-mindedness, to become a license to condemn those who sincerely worship God just because they are more shallow or boisterous. When they judge worshipers that God approves, they have ceased to be worshipers themselves. Worship does not need to be complex and technical to be excellent. Certainly, it does not need to be dignified. If some are too shallow, then instead of saying that their worship is illegitimate, why don’t you teach them? However, if you lack the same liberty to shout and dance, to sing and chant, to speak words of triumph and celebration, and if all you have to offer is your cynical attitude, then it would be better to shut your mouth and learn from the people first. They are the better worshipers. Whatever they lack, you are much worse.

When religionists are obsessed with an agenda to destroy their enemies, they often forget the most obvious things, such as the Bible that they claim to defend. They fail to see that their criticisms apply against the Bible, or against God himself. In the end Jesus and the outcasts end up on the same side, while the scholars and critics end up on the outside looking in. They are constantly making judgments, but always end up condemning themselves. Look at our text again. Is the worship in your church ever like this? Or is this the kind of worship that your church condemns? Does your church stand with the common people who worshiped Jesus, or with the high-minded people who murdered Jesus? Perhaps you have never considered the question, but once you think about it, the answer should be clear, because the differences are obvious. It might shock you to realize that for so long you have gathered with religious frauds that would stand against Jesus, and would have murdered him just like the Pharisees you read about in the Bible. You are amazed that you stand with those who hate God so intensely, but who dare to speak in his name. Perhaps you are ashamed that you are even one of the more vocal ones, finding every opportunity to attack those who, unlike you, worship God in spirit and in truth. And all this time you thought that you were doing God a favor.

You remember how you secretly gloated when your Pentecostal neighbor died of cancer. You felt vindicated. But when someone else testified that God healed him of paralysis and he could walk again, you made fun of him and tried to discredit him. You inherited this from your spiritual forefathers, for the ones who murdered Jesus also wanted to kill Lazarus (John 12:9-11). Regardless of what Scripture says, you steel yourself and refuse to believe. Now that you think about it, you never prayed for your neighbor. You never helped him. You never asked God to do a miracle for him. You only argued with him. What kind of person would behave like that? Now you fear for your soul. You fight your “worship war,” as it has been called. Those on the other side do not fight you — they just worship. You go cult-hunting and do your “apologetics.” Your neighbor did not have your degrees from human institutions. He could not use seminary words like you. He knew only the Scriptures and tried to explain things to you from the word of God, but you rebuffed him. Still, when he heard that your daughter was gravely ill, he prayed to God for her and rejoiced with tears when she recovered. What kind of person was he? He was a follower of Jesus. And you? You are nothing like him. You are just an arrogant, useless fool. And now you are afraid. Or am I too optimistic? You could harden your heart even more and forever seal your fate.

The FW claim that their form of worship is reverence, but it is their tradition and not the Bible that defines their reverence. Since their tradition is man-made, and the tradition is either made by them or accepted by them, in reality they reverence themselves. They worship themselves. They seethe with indignation when others worship the true God, and this is why they criticize other people’s form of worship, complaining about things that often correspond exactly to biblical worship. They do not worship God. They speak from the outside looking in. As God said, they draw near to him with their lips, but their hearts are far from him.

All the Gospels, and especially the Synoptics, foreshadow God’s judgment against the religious system that subverts true worship (Matthew 21:12-13, 18-19; Mark 11:13-17; Luke 19:41-46; John 12:31-32). Jesus cursed the fig tree, saying, “May you never bear fruit again!” And the tree withered from the roots. He foretold that the system would cease forever, and also predicted the destruction of the temple. The Bible says that when David brought the ark of the Lord, “he danced before the Lord with all his might” and “with shouts and the sound of trumpets” (2 Samuel 6:14-15). When Michal saw this, “she despised him in her heart” (v. 16). She mocked, “How distinguished the king of Israel looked today, exposing himself to the servant girls like any vulgar person would!” (v. 20). “Vulgar” — that is how everybody else must look to FW people. This must be how they see me. David replied, “I am willing to become even more undignified than this, even to be humiliated in my own eyes!” (v. 22). What was God’s verdict? The Bible says, “And Michal daughter of Saul had no children to the day of her death” (v. 23).

Man-made religious tradition thinks that biblical worship is degrading. They have a dignified alternative. Everyone is respectable. No one is embarrassed. God deserves the solemnity of a funeral. Who says? Looking at the Bible, it seems he wants some noise. It looks like he wants some participation from everyone, not just from the awfully ordained drones. It looks like he wants some variety, like spiritual songs and melodies, like tongues and prophecies. And it looks like he wants some miracles, like healing the sick and casting out demons, and even greater works. Do you know what is truly degrading? What is truly degrading is a fruitless religious tradition that makes lofty claims about itself, that polices everybody else, but that does not know anything about worshiping God except to stop others from doing it. What is truly obscene is a church that casts out the Holy Spirit in the name of Jesus when the people gather. What is truly vulgar is a church that is under the curse of God to remain forever barren, a church that produces no converts, that speaks no prophecies, that performs no miracles, but that just preaches a lot of ethics and politics. What is truly humiliating is a group of stuck-up religious frauds that teach from a book that talks about a God who forgives all our iniquities and heals all our diseases, when the whole congregation is stricken with sin-consciousness and everybody is rotting away with disease and reliant on medicine, dying of depression and poverty, all the while claiming that their suffering is the gift of God. Oh, that is disgusting. I tell you, if we do not speak up, the stones will throw up.