This is the second part of a series I drafted while visiting overseas workers in the month of January. In my first post I offered a challenge to the SBC regarding our support of the IMB. This post gets at an entirely different issue upon which I reflected in the international context.
A colleague and I were recently overseas and on the Lord’s day we gathered with a group of believers who meet in a … [Read More]
An Open Letter to Closed Communionists: A Report from the Field, Part 2
How to Prepare for Corporate Worship
My local church, the First Baptist Church of Durham, has a cool ministry that I thought I would pass on. Every Thursday our assistant pastor, Eric Campbell, posts a brief worship guide titled “Preparing for Worship” at our church’s website. This document tells the congregation who will be preaching that coming Lord’s Day and from what text. It also lists other individuals who will be leading in worship in various ways, the hymns that will … [Read More]
Worship for the Twenty-First Century: The Way Forward, Part 3
(Note: You can read the earlier installments in this series here and here.)
Thirdly, I believe authentic worship will also advance the Lord’s glory. In Revelation 5:8-14 you find another aspect of worship. Sometimes in our modern context, it alone is described as worship. Sometime, people will say, “Well, we’re going to worship (sing), and then we will hear the preaching.” That is theologically incorrect. Preaching, in my judgment based upon Scripture, is the high point of … [Read More]
Worship for the Twenty-First Century: The Way Forward, Part 2
(Note: You can read the first installment in this series here.)
Not only does authentic worship acknowledge God’s sovereignty, but authentic worship will also affirm a biblical Christology. In other words, authentic worship will not jus be Theo-centric. We are not Jewish rabbis. We are not merely Hebrew worshippers. We are Christians. And therefore, authentic Theo-centric worship must always be authentic Christo-centric worship as well. And, that is what you find when you study the book … [Read More]
Worship for the Twenty-First Century: The Way Forward, Part 1
When you come to the book of the Revelation, you find in chapters 4 and 5 a single vision of two parts. In chapter 4 the focus is upon the worship of God the Father, the Creator. In chapter 5 the focus is upon God the Son, the Redeemer. We are taught both by creation and redemption that God has the right to do with this world as He chooses, and that such a God … [Read More]
Worship and Ecclesial Purity
This is the second in a five-part series on a theological framework for worship. I began with a post on theological integrity. This week we focus on ecclesial purity. My former students will note that I’ve changed the nomenclature for this part of the framework to be more all-inclusive of matters related to worship as the people of God.
“Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord,” the psalmist asks, and, “Who shall stand in … [Read More]
Theological Integrity in Worship
In the past months I’ve had some things to say about worship, some in a general sense and a series on the problems associated with what I call “Disney-World” Worship. Yes, I have been a bit of a curmudgeon in the process. I appreciate those who have interacted with me both on the blog, via email, and some in person. Next comes a series of posts describing something of a theological framework for worship, focusing … [Read More]
A Curmudgeon Weighs in on Evangelical Worship: Disney World Worship, Part 3: The Sovereignty of Technology
Disney World is dependent on technology. Consider what a trip there would be like if Disney World went “unplugged.” I doubt your “dream vacation” would be so dreamy without all the rides, gadgets, and experiences brought to us by advances in technology. And Bruce Ashford wouldn’t be able to see his dream come true of doing the Castle Package at the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique if Disney World didn’t build itself on the wonders of technology … [Read More]
On The GCR Declaration, Part 5
This is the fifth article in a series on the GCR Declaration in anticipation of next week’s SBC Annual Meeting in Louisville, Kentucky. As you read, please remember that while Between the Times is a group blog that includes a number of Southeastern Seminary professors, these articles (and every article I write) represent my own personal opinions. I speak only for myself, so please avoid imputing my views to any of my fellow contributors unless … [Read More]
The Return of the Curmudgeon: Disney-World Worship (Part 2): Musical Disproportionality
I’ve taken a few weeks off on the worship posts, for reasons I need not explain. I now pick up the series where in a previous post I observed similarities between Disney World and worship, noting that there are some not-so-flattering ways in which Disney World reminds me of certain aspects of evangelical worship. In this post I consider some of the ways in which we face problems related to the use of music in … [Read More]
