quotations about worship
All praise from all nations should be rendered unto the Lord.
CHARLES HADDON SPURGEON
The Treasury of David
Worship is the language of belief.
SABINE BARING-GOULD
The Origin and Development of Religious Belief: Christianity
The great end for which you are to worship here is, that you may worship everywhere.
WILLIAM ELLERY CHANNING
Perfect Life
It is better that God be worshipped imperfectly than not be worshipped at all.
ALEXANDER SEVERUS
attributed, Day's Collacon
If there is no laughter, Jesus has gone somewhere else. If there is no joy and freedom, it is not a church: it is simply a crowd of melancholy people basking in a religious neurosis. If there is no celebration, there is no real worship.
STEVE BROWN
Approaching God
Worship is about God. It's not about us. It provides us with a way to thank and praise God, but it also works to remind us of who God is, his power, his glory.
ALANNAH FRANCIS
"How to tackle feeling uncomfortable during worship", Christian Today, February 22, 2016
The dullest observer must be sensible of the order and serenity prevalent in those households where the occasional exercise of a beautiful form of worship in the morning gives, as it were, the keynote to every temper for the day, and atunes every spirit to harmony.
WASHINGTON IRVING
"Christmas Day"
So long as the word God endures in a language will it direct the eyes of men to worship; it is with the Eternal as with the sun, which, if but its smallest part can shine uneclipsed, prolongs the day, and gives its rounded image in the dark chamber.
JOHANN PAUL FRIEDRICH RICHTER
attributed, Day's Collacon
When it comes to worship we need to forget about everyone else. It's not a competition. If we feel that we're becoming easily distracted, then closing our eyes as many of us do during prayer can help us to focus on God and forget about what's going on around us. We shouldn't be forced into worshipping in a certain way but just as we open our hearts to the Lord, we can also open our arms to him too.
ALANNAH FRANCIS
"How to tackle feeling uncomfortable during worship", Christian Today, February 22, 2016
Worship is the earthly act by which we most distinctly recognize our personal immortality; men who think that they will be extinct a few years hence do not pray. In worship we spread out our insignificant life, which yet is the work of the Creator's hands, and the purchase of the Redeemer's blood, before the Eternal and All-Merciful, that we may learn the manners of a higher sphere, and fit ourselves for companionship with saints and angels, and for the everlasting sight of the face of God.
HENRY PARRY LIDDON
Sermons Preached Before the University of Oxford
Performance worship is now the norm. I fear this is the case with practically all evangelical megachurches and their emulating congregations, which now includes a growing number of desperate mainline congregations, as well. We also see it in the hip, edgy, urban emergent congregations that tout their return to liturgy, but still find themselves enslaved to commercial entertainment forms. Yes, performance worship has killed worship.
JONATHAN ALGIER
"Performance Music: Worship?", Patheos, March 13, 2017
It's time to boycott the worship industry because money shouldn't drive what churches sing. It's an industry, for goodness sake. It must make money, and it must keep strategizing ways to bring in even more. So it doesn't give us what we really need, as good church music does, it gives us the entertainment that we've come to crave. While congregational song was once crafted by pastors, theologians, and poets, the worship industry has made worship in its own green image, giving us only the most marketable "artists" and music. And like all good marketing does, it appeals to the least discerning parts of us. So instead of looking for beauty and artistry, we've let ourselves get hooked on the mundane.
JONATHAN AIGNER
"It's Time to Boycott the Worship Industry", Patheos, February 18, 2016
What matter whether the substance of worship is flesh or word, and what difference? The essential point is that it be godly beings lifting up that which is godly toward that which is God -- wondrous beings lifting up that which is wonder toward the Source of All Wonder.
JONAH C. STEINBERG
"The Cosmic Mystery of Sacrifice", The Huffington Post, March 31, 2017
One of the fundamental purposes of man is to worship God. One sees that in a person's constant drive and need to have to worship something or someone. The problem is not that man is not inclined to worship, but that man is often misdirected to worship the wrong thing.
PATRICK MABILOG
"4 misleading concepts on worship", Christian Today, February 5, 2016
It's an abomination. The whole thing. The performance. The slate of worship options. The rock star worship leaders. The insipid psychologizing sermon series that substitutes relationship advice or moral lessons for the power of the gospel. The living room sanctuaries. The imprecise and careless language. The cute marketing campaigns. The illusion of connecting people with God, while disconnecting them from the brothers and sisters out in their communities.
JONATHAN AIGNER
"Worship Quote of the Week: Robert Johnston on Pointless Modern Worship", Patheos, March 26, 2017
Simply put, worship is an it-is-well-with-my-soul experience.
ROBERT WEBBER
Signs of Wonder: The Phenomenon of Convergence in Modern Liturgical and Charismatic Churches
Remember: He WANTS your fellowship, and He has done everything possible to make it a reality. He has forgiven your sins, at the cost of His own dear Son. He has given you His Word, and the priceless privilege of prayer and worship.
BILLY GRAHAM
Hope for Each Day: Words of Wisdom and Faith
Christ-centered worship is crucial for all, most especially for worship leaders. It's time we balance our perspective worship leaders. Yes, God is calling true worshippers who worship in Spirit in truth, but He is not looking for perfect worship leaders to be our bridge to God. We already have that in Jesus Christ. The only job worship leaders have is to point people to Christ.
PATRICK MABILOG
"Why we should stop looking for perfect worship leaders", Christian Today, February 11, 2016
Our worship is more than just obligatory ritual, it is REAL and necessary.
EBONY F.
"Why Inspirational Hip-Hop Is My New Gospel", Blavity, March 31, 2017
Worship may take many forms. Down through the centuries, Christians have worshiped by singing antiphonally in Greek, chanting in Latin, singing lustily in German, plaintively crooning Celtic melodies, shouting in the wild, primitive harmony of the "Sacred Harp" hymnal, clapping hands and swaying to a rhythmic spiritual, praying with hands raised and eyes lifted or with hands folded and eyes closed. Worship has taken many forms reflecting the complexity of human experience. The outward form of worship is not of primary importance. What matters in worship is whether God is pleased with the worship we offer him, and whether or not we focus our attention on Jesus' presence in our worship.
DAVID WICK
"What worship involves", Spencer Daily Reporter, March 9, 2017