Rhythms of Grace Quotes

“Worship isn’t merely a yes to the God who saves, but also a resounding and furious no to the lies that echo in the mountains around us.”
― Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel

“We do not go to church to worship. But as continuing worshipers, we gather ourselves together to continue our worship, but now in the company of brothers and sisters.5”
― Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel

“Liturgy that immerses the people of God in the rhythms of grace doesn’t merely train them for gospel-centered worship; it trains them for gospel-centered lives.”
― Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel

“The first thing we need to acknowledge when we gather with God’s church is that the whole thing—from the entire creation to the very thought of gathering to worship the Creator—was God’s idea.”
― Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel

“Whoever dubbed the debate over musical style a “worship war” failed to realize that worship is always a war. The declaration that there is one God, that his name is Jesus, and that he has died, has risen, and will come again is an all-out assault on the saviors extended at every level of culture around us. We’re”
― Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel

“Worship is an opportunity afforded through the mercy of Jesus, who met all the requirements of the law and leaves us liberated from the burden of getting it right in order to stand in the presence of God.”
― Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel

“Whoever dubbed the debate over musical style a “worship war” failed to realize that worship is always a war.”
― Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel

“Throughout history, worship has been a wonder-filled response to the God who made a way to rescue us.”
― Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel

“Concert Hall versus Banquet Hall My friend Isaac Wardell, a pastor of worship and founder of Bifrost Arts, asks whether we think of gathered worship as being more like a concert hall or a banquet hall.6 If it’s a concert hall, we show up as passive observers and critics, eager to have the itches of our preferences and felt needs scratched. A banquet hall, by contrast, is a communal gathering. We come hungry and in community, ready to participate and share the experience with one another.”
― Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel

“Not long ago, I attended a gathering with a congregation other than my own, and I thought my ears were going to bleed. The moment the preservice music began, the congregation collectively shuddered and stood cringing under the instrumental blast for the next thirty minutes, until the sermon began. We hoped that the volume would modulate downward after the sermon, but it didn’t. The preacher left the platform and the onslaught continued. I couldn’t resist the temptation to pull out my iPhone and use an app to check the sound levels. While the app surely isn’t the most accurate measurement, it measured sustained levels well over 110 decibels, which can be damage-inducing. (By contrast, our sound engineers at Sojourn are trained to keep sustained volume at about 90 decibels or below, at which they have varied levels of success.) The irony of this, of course, is that I was in a traditional service, and the instrument in question was a roaring pipe organ.”
― Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel

“Worship in the local church (and the whole of the Christian life) exists between two worlds. We live in the light of the resurrection, but we live in a darkened world that awaits its fullest renewal in the return of Jesus and the restoration of all things. In the “already” of redemption and the “not yet” of consummation.”
― Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel

“Participating in God’s glory-sharing life, then, happens in two contexts: scattered and gathered. Worship scattered is the Spirit-filled life of the Christian in the world, and worship gathered is the meeting of God’s people to remember, encourage, and bless one another.”
― Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel

“the gospel is far more than an entrance exam or a gateway; it is the center point for all of the Christian life.”
― Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel

“There is no more emphatic protest against the pride and the despair of the world than that implied in Church worship.”
― Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel

“Christian worship is the strongest denial that can be hurled in face of the world’s claim to provide men with an effective and sufficient justification for their life.”
― Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel

“Worship isn’t something other, external, compartmentalized, or confined. It is life with God, lived unto God for his glory and our pleasure.”
― Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel

“Theologian John Witvliet defines worship as “the celebrative response to what God has done, is doing, and promises to do.”
― Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel

“God’s glory and perfection are inexhaustible. We can’t say enough about how glorious he truly is. The greatest gift he can give us is a revelation of himself. Exalting anything else would be cruel.”
― Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace: How the Church's Worship Tells the Story of the Gospel