The Worship of Worship

Everyone worships someone or something. Of course, not everyone worships God, but everyone worships something. Everyone is a worshipper.

Christians often seek to worship God in “spirit and in truth,” using songs of praise and various kinds of music. But have you noticed just how popular worship music has become? It seems as though almost every Christian band is recording a worship album these days.

I think it’s great because I’m all for any attempt to honor and glorify God, and worship music is a fantastic way to do that. But I also believe it’s important to keep worship in its proper perspective.

Not long ago, I saw a television program—an infomercial, if you will—for a worship product. The program featured the testimonies of people who claimed to have found new meaning in their lives through worship music. One man talked about his drug addiction and how he had been delivered from it because of worship music. A couple whose marriage was in shambles described how listening to worship music saved their marriage. Another person who had lost a loved one talked about how worship music helped make it possible to cope with the loss.

As I was watching this, I thought, Now wait a second. We’re putting the cart before the horse here. Worship music doesn’t free a person from the power of an addiction. God does. Worship music doesn’t save a marriage. God does. Worship music doesn’t heal a heart broken by grief. God does.

Worship music is a vehicle through which we honor and praise God. It’s designed to bring us into the presence of God. It was God who worked in the lives of those people on the infomercial. We want to be sure and give glory to whom the glory is due!

We need to make sure we are worshipping God, not worshipping worship, because when you get down to it, everyone worships someone or something. There is some passion, some god with a small “g,” or some belief system that drives us in life. It might be pleasure seeking. It might be materialism. It might be certain religious rituals. Or it might be bowing at the altar of self, but we all worship something or someone.

The Bible tells us that God “has set eternity in hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” In other words, God has uniquely “wired” human beings to worship. It’s been built into us. But the idea is to worship the true and living God.

Jesus said, “God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24 NIV). But it is important for us to know that there is a right and wrong way to worship God.

When we watch shows like the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards, we see certain people suddenly thanking God and referring to their blessings when we normally wouldn’t expect them to. Their lives tell a different story, in some cases a story of rebellion against God. And we wonder what’s going on.

We see this happen with political candidates as well. They are careful to include the phrase “God bless America” in their speeches, and talk about how important faith is in their lives. We see news clips of them attending church services and carrying Bibles. But my question is: How do they live and vote? Do they seek to follow Jesus in their political lives, or do they simply use religion as a way of attracting voters?

An amazing story in the Old Testament shows us this is nothing new. As the story opens, Moses had led the Israelites out of the bondage of Egypt. They had seen miracle after miracle as God intervened on their behalf and provided for them. Now God instructed Moses to go up to Mount Sinai and receive His commandments. But while he was away, the Israelites talked his brother Aaron into making them a golden calf that the people could worship. Aaron went along with the plan and soon called for “a festival to the Lord” to worship before this golden calf.

It’s amazing how some people can do something the Bible clearly warns against, and then somehow rationalize it and think it is ok, even good. By doing their “religious stuff,” the people felt they were free to do what they wanted. They had earlier given God his worship; now it was time to party.

So here they were, dancing naked before a golden calf in this so-called “festival to the Lord,” when Moses came down from the mountain. In an attempt to explain, Aaron offered Moses one of the lamest excuses ever recorded:

“Do not be angry, my lord,” Aaron answered. “You know how prone these people are to evil. They said to me, ‘Make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.’ So I told them, ‘Whoever has any gold jewelry, take it off.’ Then they gave me the gold, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf!'”(Exodus 32:22-24 NIV)

We might smile at this and even feel a little smug, but is this really so different from going to church, lifting our hands in worship, and then going out and breaking God’s commandments left and right?

Make no mistake about it: there is a right way and a wrong way to worship.

Let’s not get the cart before the horse, and let’s not worship worship.

Let’s fulfill the purpose for which God made us. To know, glorify, and worship Him in spirit and truth.

That’s what Jesus told us to do.

Note: This article is excerpted from Greg’s forthcoming Baker book called “Walking With Jesus.”