Worship and the Glory of God

So we see in Romans 1 the appropriate response of redeemed and renewed humanity to the
greatness and glory of God: to honor Him and give Him thanks, to worship the Creator.

In Revel. 5 we see God in His glory as the central focus of all the created order; and we see
worship as the fitting preoccupation of all citizens of heaven.

In John 4 we see what God seeks from us whom He has made: our worship.

The chief end of God is to glorify God-- to manifest and display His perfections and His glory.

The chief end of man is likewise to glorify God, through worship. Worship is mankind's highest
goal and loftiest endeavor. He was created for that above all else.

IV. THE CHIEF END OF THE CHURCH

That a rather breathtaking panorama which Scripture lays out for us. But we need to take deep
breath and move on to talk about the church.
For not only is the chief end of God to glorify God, and the chief end of man to glorify God in
worship -- but likewise the chief end of the church is to glorify God through worship.

A. Disclaimers

Now, lest that sound a little arrogant, for a worship pastor to come in and say "worship is the
ultimate goal of the church"-- after all, you might go to a C.E. conference and hear that C.E. is the
most important thing the church does; or a preaching seminar and hear that the exposition of the
Word is the top priority for the church; or a youth leaders' rally and be told that youth ministry and
outreach is the lifeblood of the church; or an evangelism training course where you are told that the
church is here primarily to fulfill the Great Commission, etc., etc.

Let me respond by pointing out several things:

1. Going back to Dr. Piper's statement: "Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is.
Missions exists because worship doesn't."

a. Remember that this statement is in a book on missions, a book on missions by a man who is
very passionate about missions.

b. Also remember that Dr. Piper is a preacher, a senior pastor, not a worship pastor!

2. We must also realize that worship in the sense we are speaking of it is far broader than the
Sunday morning worship service. It is perhaps a misnomer to call someone a "pastor of worship",
because worship is something which is so big (as we have seen) that is encompasses and
permeates our entire lives-- everything we are and do. Paul said, "whatever you do, do all to the
glory of God" (1 Cor. 10:31; cf. also Romans 12:1).

So it's not a question of what department of the church is more important than any other;
but rather, what's it all for? What's our common purpose as a church? What is our
ultimate mission, our goal?

B. The Great Commandment Greater Than the Great Commission

1. The Great Commission
Many churches hold that the mission of the church is found in the Great Commission, as Jesus'
words to His disciples recorded in Matthew 28: 19-20 are called, where He says "Go therefore
and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son
and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you." Such churches
rightly see that the Commission not only includes the work of evangelizing the lost, but also of
discipling believers and teaching them to obey the commands of Christ. This understanding of the
church's ultimate purpose and reason for existence is reflected in many of these churches' mission
statement, such as these examples of actual such statements:

1. "Our Mission: To cause God great joy by sharing His love with others
as we have seen it in Jesus Christ."

2. "Our Mission: Developing fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ."

3. "[First Church] exists in order that we may glorify the Lord God
through the means He has established in His Word: Evangelism
(introducing people to Jesus Christ) and Edification (building believers to
maturity in Jesus Christ)."

4. "For God's glory, [Second Church] is committed to developing
disciples in our area and throughout the world so that in all things Christ
might have the preeminence."

5. "To the glory of God: to win, build, and equip disciples of our Lord
Jesus through loving, Bible centered ministry at home and abroad."

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