Worship
William Temple, the widely regarded and brilliant Archbishop of Canterbury from 1942-44 wrote:
“Worship is the submission of all of our nature to God.
It is the quickening of conscience by His holiness,
Nourishment of mind by His truth,
Purifying of imagination by His beauty,
Opening of the heart to His love,
And submission of will to his purpose.
And all this gathered up in adoration is the greatest of human expressions of which we are capable.”
I heard part of this quotation on a Ravi Zacharias program, and looked it up based on the wonderful opening line.
I compare this to what passes for worship: a performance by a band (however well intentioned), dry ice (to approximate incense?), colored lights, three or four songs that perhaps the congregation will know, volume, and some swaying movement. All these elements do not prevent worship nor do they guarantee it.
How can we create the conditions for the description above?
“Worship is the submission of all of our nature to God.
It is the quickening of conscience by His holiness,
Nourishment of mind by His truth,
Purifying of imagination by His beauty,
Opening of the heart to His love,
And submission of will to his purpose.
And all this gathered up in adoration is the greatest of human expressions of which we are capable.”
I heard part of this quotation on a Ravi Zacharias program, and looked it up based on the wonderful opening line.
I compare this to what passes for worship: a performance by a band (however well intentioned), dry ice (to approximate incense?), colored lights, three or four songs that perhaps the congregation will know, volume, and some swaying movement. All these elements do not prevent worship nor do they guarantee it.
How can we create the conditions for the description above?
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