New 6 month model of DNA for the Baby Boomer generation
Sean Carnochan, of Holy Trinity Wester Hailes, Edinburgh
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True worship is to be vulnerable and at the mercy of the one you are worshipping. In Hebrew and in Greek, the original languages of the bible, the word ‘worship’ has many meanings. In the Old Testament, the word ‘worship’ that has the meaning to physically bow or fall prone on the ground before another in complete worship, is used a great many times. For example, we read in Exodus 34:8 that ‘Moses made haste to bow low towards the earth and worship’. This is a good illustration of the body demonstrating the heart of the worshipper. Vulnerability was intended by Moses and he physically demonstrated this by his posture. To bow low, or be prone before someone is to become defenceless before them. By doing so you lose sight of the one you worship, you are therefore unable to react in defence should you be struck. You are completely at another’s mercy in surrender - and surrender starts with the heart.
Let’s have a deeper look at worship from a Christian perspective. I like the definition made by Archbishop William Temple when he said that worship is:
‘The submission of all our nature to God
The quickening of our conscience by his holiness
The nourishment of the mind with his truth
The purifying of the imagination by his beauty
The opening of the heart to his love
The surrender of the will to his purpose’
The first and last lines contain a concept that is both challenging, and fundamental to worship; and that is surrender and submission to God. This is the essence of the Christian life. Part of the process of becoming a Christian is giving your life to Jesus. This means that you give up all rights you had to your own life. This was the first act of surrender in your Christian walk. However, human nature being what it is, we have a tendency to want our own way and are constantly striving to take control. This is why we must constantly surrender to God. We know what God wants from us, we have a handbook that contains instruction, advice and guidance. We have a conscience that helps with our moral choices. And as Christians, we have direct access to Father God, who will tell of His heart for us.
God is goodness. His loving-kindness is boundless and intense. God longs for us to become who He created us to be. Each one of us has a unique identity that He wishes to bring into fulfilment by His love. However, the degree to which we can receive the good things from God depends directly upon our willingness to open our hearts to Him – on our willingness to be obedient and seek intimacy. But this definition goes further, there is a sense of being active in seeking God to nourish and purify our innermost self. God is seeking those who will worship Him in spirit and in truth (John 4: 23-24). When we worship in this way we draw into a one-ness with God. When, as William Barclay said: ‘The spirit, the immortal and invisible part of man, speaks to.… God, who is immortal and invisible.’ It is then, when we are open and vulnerable, that God ministers to us. Worshipping in spirit and in truth also means coming to God as you truly are. Giving Him your grief, anger, frustration and lack of understanding is an act of worship. God knows what is in your heart, but He cannot help you if you will not open it to Him.
