Awe & Joy
As I step into leading worship through music for our church (and Adam shifts to lead our Student Ministry), it feels appropriate to share a bit of my heart on the subject. I define worship as: seeking to be overwhelmed with awe and filled up with joy in Jesus. Because bringing glory to Himself is God’s highest aim in all things, and because we glorify God as He intended through all-of-life worship, this is no small matter to consider.
So, what do I mean by awe and joy?
In our previous study of Genesis, we encountered the word “worship” three times in our ESV Bibles. In all three cases, the word means “to bow.” Two of these are in the story of Abraham sending his servant to find a wife for Isaac. It’s worth re-reading Genesis 24 for a great picture of biblical worship (awe and joy!). When the Lord acts to provide miraculously, the servant can’t help but bow in reverence before the Lord. This is what I mean by awe.
In musical worship, we are to consider God’s perfections in character and His power in acting on our behalf, and this should cause our hearts (if not our bodies!) to bow. He is majestic and righteous and holy, and this brings us to our knees. This is, of course, the universal response of everyone in the Bible to a vision or manifestation of God’s presence. We also know from Philippians 2 that, in the end, “every knee [will] bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Yet, while the worship of God may begin with overwhelming awe in His presence, it necessarily moves toward joy. When we consider the magnitude of the holiness of this great God, it first humbles us, then fills us with joy at the prospect that this same God would offer up his only Son as a sacrifice for our forgiveness and to grant us access to His presence. Abraham’s servant continues, “’Blessed be the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken his steadfast love and his faithfulness toward my master’” (Gen. 24:27). You can hear the awe and joy in the servant’s words!
So, my simple challenge is to seek these things in our musical worship, and throughout our Sunday morning worship gatherings, and in all of life. Seek to be overwhelmed with awe and filled up with joy in God’s presence.
**For our Christmas season, I am seeking a cellist, a violinist, and all interested vocalists. We have some special plans for December!
So, what do I mean by awe and joy?
In our previous study of Genesis, we encountered the word “worship” three times in our ESV Bibles. In all three cases, the word means “to bow.” Two of these are in the story of Abraham sending his servant to find a wife for Isaac. It’s worth re-reading Genesis 24 for a great picture of biblical worship (awe and joy!). When the Lord acts to provide miraculously, the servant can’t help but bow in reverence before the Lord. This is what I mean by awe.
In musical worship, we are to consider God’s perfections in character and His power in acting on our behalf, and this should cause our hearts (if not our bodies!) to bow. He is majestic and righteous and holy, and this brings us to our knees. This is, of course, the universal response of everyone in the Bible to a vision or manifestation of God’s presence. We also know from Philippians 2 that, in the end, “every knee [will] bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Yet, while the worship of God may begin with overwhelming awe in His presence, it necessarily moves toward joy. When we consider the magnitude of the holiness of this great God, it first humbles us, then fills us with joy at the prospect that this same God would offer up his only Son as a sacrifice for our forgiveness and to grant us access to His presence. Abraham’s servant continues, “’Blessed be the LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who has not forsaken his steadfast love and his faithfulness toward my master’” (Gen. 24:27). You can hear the awe and joy in the servant’s words!
So, my simple challenge is to seek these things in our musical worship, and throughout our Sunday morning worship gatherings, and in all of life. Seek to be overwhelmed with awe and filled up with joy in God’s presence.
**For our Christmas season, I am seeking a cellist, a violinist, and all interested vocalists. We have some special plans for December!
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