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The Essence of Worship
Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis. This excerpt is taken from the chapter that encourages church leaders to focus their energies on the essence of worship, rather than the form. THE ESSENCE OF WORSHIP The authenticating, inner essence of worship is being satisfied with Christ, prizing Christ, cherishing Christ, treasuring Christ. You can see how this definition of the essence of worship is free from Sunday worship services. It encompasses all of life that flows from the heart. But it is tremendously relevant for understanding what worship services should be about. They are about "going hard after God." When we say that what we do on Sunday mornings is to "go hard after God," what we mean is that we are going hard after satisfaction in God, and going hard after God as our prize, and going hard after God as our treasure, our soul-food, our heart-delight, our spirit’s pleasure. Or to put Christ in His rightful place—it means that we are going hard after all that God is for us in Jesus Christ, crucified and risen. — John Piper, BROTHERS, WE ARE NOT PROFESSIONALS: A PLEA TO PASTORS FOR RADICAL MINISTRY. Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 2002, p. 236. ISBN 0-8054-2620-5. [Several other WORSHIP QUOTES by John Piper can be found at www.wqotw.org/WQOTW_index.htm; plus, chapter one of this new book is currently available at www.desiringgod.org. Take a look at http://www.desiringgod.org/store/index.cgi?cmd=view_tmpl&tmpl;=bbro_ch_1.html.] Have a great week, Chip Stam Director, Institute for Christian Worship School of Church Music and Worship Southern Baptist Theological Seminary Louisville, Kentucky www.carlstam.org www.sbts.edu |