Saturday, January 11, 2020

We Become What We Worship

Image result for john piippo new york city
One day, when I was a boy, I carried one of my Elvis album covers into the bathroom. I propped it up next to the mirror, adjusted my face to look like Elvis, and did my best to comb my hair into the King's likeness. 

We become what we worship.

Psalm 135:15-18 reads:


The idols of the nations are silver and gold, 
made by human hands.
They have mouths, but cannot speak, 
eyes, but cannot see. 
They have ears, but cannot hear, 
nor is there breath in their mouths. 
Those who make them will be like them, 
and so will all who trust in them.

The objects of our worship captivate us. They influence us, in outward appearance and inward desires. 

N. T. Wright writes:

“One of the most basic laws of the spiritual life is that you become like what you worship; and if you are worshiping the true God, the creator of all things, the one in whose image you are made, you should be developing as a wise, many-sided human being, not letting one aspect get out of proportion as though God were only interested in the ‘spiritual’ side, meaning by that not only the non-bodily but also the non-rational. Of course, those who live in a world that has overemphasized the body, or the reasoning mind, may find that they need to redress the balance in other ways than the one Paul stresses here. When you look at the worshiping Christian, what you should see is a whole human being, with every aspect united in giving praise to God.” (NTW, 1 Corinthians [For Everyone], 191)

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My two books are:

Leading the Presence-Driven Church

Praying: Reflections on 40 Years of Solitary Conversations with God