Worship and the Glory of God

a. First, it should be clear by now that there is no higher activity than worship for created beings.
Worship is not a means to anything else. We don't worship at church to grow our numbers, to
make people feel better about themselves, even to teach believers or evangelize the lost. Not
primarily. We worship to actively cherish and savor the glory of God, and when we do that, we've
arrived at the purpose of our existence.

b. Secondly, if worship is the highest goal, than other Christian activities should serve as means to
that all-encompassing goal. In fact, they must serve as this if they are to be honoring to God and in
line with His purposes.

2. The Means to the End

So, as Piper puts it, "Missions exists because worship doesn't."

But not only that: Sunday School exists because worship doesn't-- not to the fullest extent possible.

Youth groups exist because worship doesn't.

Evangelism teams exist because worship doesn't.

Small groups exist because worship doesn't.

Discipleship programs exist because worship doesn't.

Preaching exists because worship doesn't.

The ultimate goal of all these activities is to build more and better worshipersto the glory of God!
Evangelism activities to win more worshipers, and edification activities to build better ones.

Only worship is purely vertical in its focus; all these other ministries necessarily focus on people.
But our goal in working with people is to point them towards God, towards worship!

3. All Roads Lead to Worship

But again, this is not special pleading for the inherent superiority of the worship department of the
church. Quite the opposite-- rather it means that every pastor has worship as the goal of his
ministry! The pastor of worship and music should perhaps be called something like "pastor of
corporate praise," so as not to confuse things, because not only his goal is the worship of God's
people, but every staff person's goal!! The children's and youth pastors have the ministry of
developing young people into worshipers; adult ministries pastors should seek to teach adults to
prize God and His glory above all things, and to worship Him above all other pursuits; the pastors
in charge of missions and evangelism have the ministry of seeking to multiply worshipers for God;
the preaching pastor has the responsibility of publicly cherishing the glory of God and expounding it
and inviting others to share in the wonder of wholehearted, and whole-life, worship.

Every pastor, every staff member, everyone in ministry should have an ultimate vertical purpose to
his or her ministry: a purpose of seeking to reflect and demonstrate and display the glory of God in
the lives of people; a purpose of building into others (as they seek to also build into their own lives)
a preoccupation with God, a loving of Him with all the soul, heart, mind, and strength; a cherishing
of Him and His glory in lives of worship.

That kind of purpose should be conscious and explicit for everyone involved in ministry,
regardless of what that ministry may look like in its particulars. All of ministry, as well as all of life--
as we have seen-- must have that overriding, single-minded purpose if we are to be what we have
been created and redeemed to be.

Ministry is the work of seeking, in the power of the Holy Spirit, to build more and better
worshipers of God.

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