This question has divided Christians for centuries. Some have placed more importance on saving one’s soul over doing good works. But being saved and following the example of Jesus are two sides of the same coin. You cannot separate one from the other.

Martin Luther didn’t want the Letter of James in his New Testament because there is a great emphasis on works. Luther believed strongly that salvation was achieved only by faith alone. He found that in Paul’s Letter to the Romans.

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When I was a teenager and attending church camp, a creative Methodist minister preached on this very question. He said to picture a lovely garden where everything is perfect. The flowers are all beautiful, the deer are running through the woods, people are spread out on the lawn have a really fun picnic. The children are all playing on the swings and laughing. The birds are singing. Everything is in just right. For that minister, that was “heaven.”

Then he said, picture that entire beautiful pastoral environment enclosed in a giant glass bubble. Now, picture people outside the giant glass bubble lying on top and looking in. That’s hell. That image has always stuck with me.

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Worship, or liturgy, is built on tradition. Much of what we do in our houses of faith has roots in history. Even the self-described non-denominational or non-liturgical churches perform actions done thousands of years ago.

Singing in church has roots in the ancient Hebrews singing the Psalms. Processions down church center aisles finds its tradition in early Christianity parading from one location for reading of Holy Scripture to a second location for the breaking of the bread.

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