Articles
THE UZZIAH SYNDROME
Many today want to worship in a way that strictly pleases them. Their theory is that if it is
something they can do sincerely and to honor God, even if it is not found in the Bible, then God
will accept it. This is erroneous thinking. I call this the Uzziah syndrome.
Uzziah was, in general, a good, God-fearing king of Judah. In fact, 2 Chron. 26:4 reveals
that in the early part of his reign, he “did what was right in the sight of the Lord.” The very next
verse reveals that “as long as he sought the Lord, God made him prosper.”
But one day he “transgressed against the Lord his God” (2 Chron. 26:16). What horrible
thing did he do? Murder someone? Steal? Commit adultery? Worship idols? No, what he did was
worship God his way. He entered the temple to burn incense to the Lord. I’m convinced that he
was sincere and that he wanted to honor God. He just decided to do it in a way God had not
authorized. The law of Moses had stipulated that only priests from the tribe of Levi could burn
incense in the temple (2 Chron. 26:18). No one had the right to presume it could be done any
other way, not even the king. As a result of his disobedience, Uzziah was stricken with leprosy (2
Chron. 26:19ff).
The point for us today is that God has specified how He wants us to worship. It is not up to
us to change it because we feel like it. And it will not matter how sincere we are if we worship in
ways God has not authorized.
Remember this: “Great” worship without God’s will is genuinely worthless.
Edd Sterchi, Sept. 26, 2004
via Harrisburg church of Christ, Harrisburg, IL
One of the greatest joys a Christian has in his or her life is that of coming together with the
saints to worship our heavenly Father together. “I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to
the house of the Lord” (Ps. 122:1). But let’s be sure that our worship is always found to be “in
spirit and truth” (Jn. 4:24), and always watchful, so as not to fall guilty to the Uzziah syndrome!
~P. Mowrer
