Private/family worship "duties"

[nwink]

WCF 21.6 Neither prayer, nor any other part of religious worship, is now, under the gospel, either tied unto, or made more acceptable by any place in which it is performed, or towards which it is directed: but God is to be worshiped everywhere, in spirit and truth; as, in private families daily, and in secret, each one by himself; so, more solemnly in the public assemblies, which are not carelessly or willfully to be neglected, or forsaken, when God, by his Word or providence, calleth thereunto.

We all realize the silliness of the attitude "I'm just not a good Christian because I didn't do my 'quiet time' today"...or the self-righteous attitude of thinking you're a good Christian because you can check the 'quiet time' box off your to-do list for the day.

Obviously, that attitude is silly and wrong, but wouldn't the other extreme be wrong of not considering private and family worship to be some of the duties of a Christian?

When the Puritans and others refer to private and family worship as "duties," what exactly do they mean by that word? Common sense says, "Yes, we need to spend time in worship of God each day," but how do we derive this understanding of these being "duties" from Scripture?

This is somewhat of a new thought for me, so some explanation and thoughts would be helpful.

 

[seajayrice]

Fulfilling ones duty does not make one more Christian, just more obedient.

Deu 11:19 And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.
Jos 1:8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.

 

[Jack K]

Regular prayer and meditation on the Scriptures is a Christian duty. The Bible affirms these things. Having a daily quiet time is not, but for most people it is a good way to accomplish regular prayer and meditation on the Scriptues.

Likewise, regularly teaching one's children about God and leading them in worship is a duty, biblically. But setting aside a particular time for family devotions is not. Again, though, it's a wise move in most families if you hope to actually accomplish good teaching and family worship.

We plan time for things that matter to us. We schedule what's important.

I don't read the confession as requiring me to check off my quiet time and family devotions on the "done that" list each day. I read it as echoing the Bible by saying that the worship of God should infuse our whole lives and be something we eagerly make time for as a part of our regular routines, not just something special we do once a week. Many Puritan writers can give us great wisdom in applying that with diligence. They would point out that planning these things into our daily schedules is the best way to make sure they happen. They are right.

Yet, when my schedule changes or I sense the kids need something different, I feel free to alter the schedule or omit things without feeling that I've cheated God. As with any joyful activity we plan for, the joy can be lost if we get overly rigid about keeping the schedule.