Worship Is For God’s Glory!

Jeremiah Burroughs view on the nature of corporate worship is one of the clearest explanation I have ever read on a book. A worship that is worthy of God. Burroughs is arguing that worship is for God’s glory, plain and simple. It’s not to make myself look better, and it is certainly not supposed to be a performance that elicits praise from those around us. It is so easy for us to be captivated by ourselves and what others think of us that Burroughs once again provides a helpful reminder to make worship about God’s glory, not ours. At first I was a little nervous to read centuries ago book but I find it quite easy to read and the message is as relevant today as it was when it was written. Perhaps more so. It is living proof of the timeless nature and value of the living Word.

Burroughs takes as his text Leviticus 10:3 which reads, “Then Moses said unto Aaron, it is what the Lord spoke saying, ‘I will be sanctified in them that come nigh Me, and before all people I will be glorified.’ And Aaron held his peace.” He narrows in on the phrase “I will be sanctified in them that come nigh me.” I know that God will be sanctified in those who draw nigh to Him. There are these two things in the point: if I do not sanctify God’s name, God will sanctify His name in a way of justice. If I do sanctify His name, then He will sanctify His name in a way of mercy towards me. When I worship every Sunday morning I need to realize that the God that I am worshipping is the same God in Leviticus 10. The importance of corporate worship really came alive through Gospel Worship. I believe that corporate worship exists to draw the whole congregation into praise of God. Jeremiah Burroughs exposes the natural tendency in man to depreciate the holiness of God in how we worship.

My brethren, I beseech you, learn this lesson this morning. Learn to account the duties of God’s worship as great matters. They are the greatest things that concern you here in this world, for they are the homage that you tender up to the high God, as you heard, and those things wherein God communicates Himself in choice mercies. (pg.70)

What underlies Burroughs’ thoughts here is something that deserves further consideration. There is something fundamentally different about the time of corporate worship than there is in all of life-worship. Even Jesus said that when two or three are gathered in his name, he is there among them. And the whole NT is unanimous that the gathering of the saints is very important.