Can we all agree?

I had this theory about corporate gatherings for worship.  It strings together a couple ideas and scriptures.  Hopefully you can follow me on this.

First we start in Leviticus, chapter 9.  Moses gets the leaders of Israel together and lets them know that the “Lord will appear to us today.”  He had all these specific instructions (from God) for a whole list of sacrifices and offerings that had to be prepared and performed just right.  He says, “This is what the LORD has commanded you to do, so that the glory of the LORD may appear to you.”  So they do it all and they do it all just right and here’s what happens:

…Then Aaron lifted his hands toward the people and blessed them. And having sacrificed the sin offering, the burnt offering and the fellowship offering, he stepped down. Moses and Aaron then went into the Tent of Meeting. When they came out, they blessed the people; and the glory of the LORD appeared to all the people. Fire came out from the presence of the LORD and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown.

In the Old Testament they offered to God offerings of their harvest and livestock.  But then Jesus came and died once for all and was the “final sacrifice” therefore doing away with the sacrificial system.  In Romans 12:1, Paul talks of a new kind of sacrifice.  It says in view of God’s mercy, offer your bodies as living sacrifices.  Also, we read this in Hebrews 13:15 – Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that confess his name.  Again, redefining the idea of sacrifice.

Jeremiah 29:13 says: You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

Ok, now skip back to the Gospel.  Jesus says in Matthew 18:19 that if two of us on earth agree on anything it will be done by God in Heaven.  Right after that He says that any time two or more are gathered in His name, he will be there with them.  To gather “in His name” can also be described as gathering for the purposes of Jesus.

Now I’ll tie it all together.

What if… What if we all agreed, once we met together in a time of corporate worship, that we would all seek God with all our heart?  What if we all agreed to offer ourselves together as living sacrifices?  What if we all agreed we’d meet together NOT for ourselves, or for our benefit, but in order to submit ourselves together for Jesus’ purposes for us?  What if we all agreed to offer a sacrifice of praise? Would God, just like in Leviticus, show up to consume our offering?  Would God reveal Himself to us?  Would we fall facedown to the ground?  Would fire come down from Heaven?

This also begs the question of HOW.  How do we know we are gathered for that purpose?  How do we know we all agree?  I’m not sure.  But I do wonder.  What if we all were in agreement.  What if we were all humbled before God together and we sought him with contrite hearts and broken spirits?  Might God just allow us to see His glory?  Might God just open our spiritual eyes to see Him clearly?