in reverence to God. An example of
this is found in Genesis 22:5
“And Abraham said to his
young men, “Stay here with
the donkey; the lad and I will
go yonder and worship, and
we will come back to you. ”
In the New Testament, it is mostly
defined as ‘proskuneo’ a Greek word
which alludes to ‘kiss like a dog licking
its master’s’ hand; to ‘fawn’ or ‘crouch’;
prostrating in homage. In John 4:23,
Jesus used ‘proskuneo’ to describe the
kind of worship that the Father seeks
for which reason it is appropriate that
we focus on this definition - since it is
the kind of worship that the Father
seeks!
What does the symbolism of kissing like
a dog licking its master’s hand portray?
Dogs (domesticated ones) depend
on their master’s for their livelihood
and are very loyal animals. One way
they show appreciation is by intensely
licking the master’s hand almost as if
they want to drill a hole in the palm!
It is a very exclusive and intimate act,
through which they basically declare
openly and unreservedly that they
belong to the master ‘hook, line and
sinker’. The passionate licking of
the hand is a way of declaring that
‘this hand is my source of living and I
acknowledge it; I depend on it; I live
for it; I will die for it.
Similarly, God requires a deep and
passionate response from us in our
worship, which further suggests that
worship from God’s point of view
involves the complete surrender
(lifestyle) of the believer in an
honest, unreserved and intimate
way. Notwithstanding the ‘hidden’
origination from the inner man (spirit)
worship must also be expressed
outwardly. Yes, even though it is
God focused, it must be expressed
for all to see. The bible is replete with
commands like ‘clap’ and ‘shout’ Psalm