Theologian A.W. Tozer has challenged the minds and hearts of many Christians with his considered insights into understanding God. Let the following passage soak in:

“The history of mankind will probably show that no people has ever risen above its religion, and man’s spiritual history will positively demonstrate that no religion has ever been greater than its idea of God. Worship is pure or base as the worshiper entertains high or low thoughts of God.

“For this reason the gravest question before the Church is always God Himself, and the most portentous fact about any man is not what he at a given time may say or do, but what he in his deep heart conceives God to be like.

“We tend by a secret law of the soul to move toward our mental image of God. This is true not only of the individual Christian but of the company of Christians that compose the Church. Always the most revealing thing about the Church is her idea of God.” (A.W. Tozer, The Knowledge of the Holy, New York: HarperCollins, 1978).

In the same book, Tozer distills this message to the very immediate experience of the individual: “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” Brad Gray of Walking the Text ministry helps us to unpack the above statement by asking, “Why is that the most important thing about us?” He answers: “Because it impacts everything we do!”

Note: Check out Brad’s excellent video series, The Sacred Thread, designed to help us understand the context of biblical times to aid us in understanding the Word of God better. Go to www.thesacredthread.tv.