This is the fourth and final post on how worship is our primary pillar. It fuels our fellowship, our discipleship, and our mission.
Worship is our giving of glory to God in response to seeing the glory of God.
How then, can we glorify God through mission in response to beholding God’s glory?
MISSIONS EXISTS BECAUSE WORSHIP DOESN’T
This phrase was coined by John Piper in his book, Let the Nations Be Glad. And it helps us to keep in mind the goal – the mission – of missions: the global worship of the only God. In the book of Revelation, we get a glimpse into this global worship of God:
“After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!'” (Revelation 7:9-10)
This is the picture Jesus had in mind when He told the disciples, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19)! Jesus sends us on mission to the nations so that people from every nation will one day worship Him. Worship is the great goal of mission.
MISSIONS EXISTS BECAUSE WORSHIP DOES
That being said, understanding this goal – the global worship of God – does not provide adequate fuel for mission. Look no further than the prophet Jonah as an example. God sent Jonah on mission to the people of Nineveh, and Jonah ran the other way. Eventually, God did use Jonah to accomplish His purpose of bringing them to repentance, but Jonah wasn’t rejoicing over their salvation. Here’s his response: “This is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster” (Jonah 4:2).
You see, Jonah completely understood what God was doing – because God is a gracious God who desires all nations to turn from sin and worship Him, He sent Jonah to Nineveh! But this fact didn’t motivate Jonah to go.
The motivation we need must be deeper than just understanding God’s agenda. We need hearts that are motivated by a personal love for God’s glory and fame. We need hearts that have been so caught up in God’s glory, as we receive God’s love and grace through the cross of Christ, that our one desire becomes giving glory to Him.
It’s true, missions exists because worship doesn’t. But only those who have seen God’s glory and respond with hearts of worship themselves will be motivated to carry out God’s mission. If your heart isn’t invested in the mission of God to save worshipers for Himself, don’t run the other way, and don’t obey with a begrudging heart. Take a step back, look to the cross, see God’s glory, receive God’s grace, know His love – and then go and make disciples of all nations!