"Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, let us draw near to God..." Hebrews 10:19, 22 (NIV)
God's design for worship is that it be an experience that is personal, one-on-one and face-to-face. That is the kind of God He is and He created us for that single purpose. I love how the Catholic catechism states, "The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy him forever." It couldn't be better said than that. As we draw near to God in worship it is important that we understand correctly the difference between the vehicle, the destination and the response.
First of all, worship is not the destination. His presence is the destination in worship. One disturbing trend I see in modern worship is that we sometimes seem to make worship the end. Worship is not the goal. His presence is. Worship is merely our response to Him. We need to take great care that the focus of our worship is Him and nothing else. We need to get over our fascination with worship and direct our attention and awe back to Him where it rightfully belongs.
Second, worship is not the vehicle that gets us into God's presence. It is very clear in Hebrews 10:19 that the only way to his presence is through the blood of Jesus. Nothing less and nothing more. Jesus' blood is the vehicle that gets us to the destination which is God's presence. Another disturbing trend is that worship has become the vehicle to the presence of the Lord. Worship is not something we do to get there. It is what we do because we are there. It is important to understand that. Remember, the blood of Christ is the only way to his presence.
This puts worship in its proper perspective. The blood of Jesus opens the way for us to the presence of God and worship is our natural response. The reality is that worship is not something we do, it is who we are. May you be filled with a deeper desire for more of His presence in your life.
Read more articles by David Good or search for articles on the same topic or others.
