Sincere Reverence, Joyful Informality and Genuine Humility
A.W. Tozer emphasizes the importance of humble reverence, joyous informality, and genuine humility in the church, warning against the dangers of ambition and promoting a culture of serving others.
A.W. Tozer emphasizes the need for sincere reverence, joyful informality, and genuine humility within the church community. He expresses disappointment that many come to church without a true sense of God's presence, advocating for a humble reverence that acknowledges Christ among them. Tozer also highlights the importance of joyous informality, urging congregants to embody the joy seen in revival movements, and to esteem others above themselves, fostering a spirit of service rather than ambition. He warns against the absurdity of ambition within the church, likening it to competing for leadership in a lifeboat during a crisis.
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I also long in the tender mercies of Christ that among us there may be the following: . . . 3. A feeling of humble reverence. I am disapointed that we come to church without a sense of God or a feeling of humble reverence. There are false religions, strange religious cults and Christian cults that think they have God in a box someplace, and when they approach that box they feel a sense of awe. Of coure, you and I want to be saved from all paganism and false cultism. But we would also like to see a company of people who were so sure that God was with them, not in a box or in a biscuit, but in their midst.
They would knnow that Jesus Christ was truly among them to a point that they would have a sense of humble reverence when they gathered together. 4. An air of joyous informality. The great English preacher who was pastor for many years of Westminster Chapel in London, G. Campbell Morgan, left his church and went down to Wales where the Welsh revival was going on under Evan Roberts earlier in this century. He stayed there awhile and soaked up the glory of it. I read the sermon that he preached to his congregation afterward, and it was as near to scolding as that great preacher ever got.
He said to them, "Your singing is joyless, your demeanor is joyless, and you do not have the lift or joy that I saw in Wales." He urged them that they might get into a place where that sense of joyous informality might be upon them. 5. A place where each esteems others better than himself or herself. As a result of that, everyone should be willing to serve, but nobody would be jockeying for position. Nothing is quite so bitterly humorous as ambition in the church of Christ. It would be as though a man who was on a lifeboat being saved from certain salty death in the ocean depths should become ambitious to become captain of the little boat on its way to save those on board.
It is as though a man were to enter a disaster area where an earthquake had hit and people were dying and would fight for a high position there. The church of Christ is no place for the ambitious or the lazy. . . .
Sermon Outline
- I. A Feeling of Humble Reverence
- A. The absence of humble reverence in the church
- B. The presence of humble reverence in true worship
- II. An Air of Joyous Informality
- A. The contrast between joyless and joyful worship
- B. The importance of experiencing the joy of the Holy Spirit
- III. Genuine Humility
- A. The danger of ambition in the church
- B. The importance of esteeming others better than oneself
Key Quotes
“Nothing is quite so bitterly humorous as ambition in the church of Christ.” — A.W. Tozer
“The church of Christ is no place for the ambitious or the lazy.” — A.W. Tozer
“Your singing is joyless, your demeanor is joyless, and you do not have the lift or joy that I saw in Wales.” — A.W. Tozer
Application Points
- We should strive to cultivate a sense of humble reverence in our worship and daily lives.
- We should prioritize serving others and esteeming them better than ourselves, rather than competing for position and status.
- We should seek to experience the joy of the Holy Spirit in our worship and daily lives.