By Mike Riley
The greatest activity we can spend time doing is worshipping God. Worship is not repeating hasty, routine petitions or listening to mood-inducing music. Worship is the experience of being “lost in wonder, love, and praise,” as Charles Wesley wrote — It’s awe that inspires adoration.
When my wife and I first saw the awe-inspiring Grand Canyon, it left us virtually speechless. We gazed in awe at this magnificent spectacle and thought, “This is a glimpse of God’s majesty.” However, our awe by itself was not worship.
Our reaction is different when we come face to face with Jesus in the Scriptures. Awe changes into adoration as we behold Him in all His majestic beauty. Let’s for a moment consider what grips our soul by His majesty:
- His unsullied purity — “Which of you convicts Me of sin?” (John 8:46).
- His unrivaled wisdom — “No man ever spoke like this Man!” (John 7:46).
- His unbounded pity — “When He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion” (Matthew 9:36).
- His overwhelming majesty — “He was transfigured before them” (Matthew 17:2).
As we see Jesus in the Gospels, our awe changes to adoration. Let us bow in worship and exclaim along with doubting Thomas — “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28).
Finish then Thy new creation,
Pure, unspotted, may we be;
Let us see our whole salvation
Perfectly secured by Thee;
Changed from glory into glory,
Till in heav’n we take our place,
Till we cast our crowns before Thee,
Lost in wonder, love and praise. —Charles Wesley