On Fri, 04-29-05 10:32 am
Philip Yancey, whose writings I find to be somewhat uneven – he is either deeply profound and moving or somewhat trite and boring; but, then, who is not? – has nailed an important point on Christianity Today’s website.
In an article entitled “A Bow and A Kiss,” Yancey decries the recent equivalence of worship with music. Hopefully, the following quotes will prompt you to read the article in full:
How did it happen that the word worship became synonymous with music?”
For several months my church went on a hunt for a “worship pastor,” and a parade of candidates auditioned with their guitars and backup groups. Some of them prayed, yes: “Lord, just, you know, really be here tonight with us, just let us know you’re here.” None showed much knowledge of theology, and assuredly none led us toward anything like awe. Worship today means loudly filling every space of silence.”
Redman continues exploring the borderland between friendship and fear, for authentic worship encompasses both. It is the proper response when a holy God extends to flawed human beings an invitation to intimacy.”
Please read the whole article. It’s an important corrective to an unfortunate drift away from experiencing God.
DrMr,
In all the time I have spent in church, I have always associated “worship” with music because that is the only context in which I heard the word mentioned. I remember when it hit me for the first time about a year ago that worship isn’t about the music. I was reading casually (not studying) in Genesis 22 where Abraham was taking Isaac to sacrifec him, and stopped when I read:
22:4 Then on the third day Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place afar off. 5 And Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey; the lad and I will go yonder and worship, and we will come back to you.”
I couldn’t get past that passage. They went to worship? It sounds funny now, but I thought “It didn’t say anything about musicians going along on the trek”, and that is when I realized that there was something I had not been told in church about worship. I was really curious after that and set out to find what worshiping is apart from music.
It was interesting what Mr. Yancy said at the end of his article: “In the Hebrew Old Testament, the primary word for worship means “to bow down in reverence and submission.” And in the New Testament, the most common Greek word for worship means “to come forward to kiss.” Between those two—or combining both—lies our best approach to God.“