WORSHIP NOTES Volume 12, No. 4 (April 2017) For the past two-and-a-half years, our church’s Worship Choir has embraced a theme verse: The LORD is my strength and my shield; in Him my heart trusts, and I am helped;My heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to Him.(Psalm 28:7) Our pastor’s wife painted this verse onto a long wooden plaque, which hangs […]
“with my song I give thanks to Him” Read More »
WORSHIP NOTES Volume 12, No. 3 (March 2017) Phrasing in music is what rounds out musical thoughts, and enhances the beauty, balance and symmetry of the music. IN NATURE In nature, we find beauty, balance and symmetry. And beautiful objects are often not square, but rather curved and rounded off: IN ART In art, beauty, balance and symmetry are also important elements:: IN ENGLISH In English, sentences are rounded off with
Phrases: Musical “Sentences” Read More »
WORSHIP NOTES Volume 12, No. 2 (February 2017) I know of no church or denomination that does not desire to be biblical in its worship (no one is seeking to be unbiblical!). The question is what our “biblical” worship will look like. And this is where it gets tricky, because the New Testament gives us very little in terms of direct instruction or guidelines for what our worship services should
BIBLICAL OR CULTURAL? Non-Negotiables and Negotiables in Worship Read More »
WORSHIP NOTES Volume 12, No. 1 (January 2017) “The meaning of the universe is God going public for the glory of God.”(John Piper) CREATION’S PRAISE Then shall the trees of the forest sing for joy before the LORD,for He comes to judge the earth. (1 Chronicles 16:33) The heavens declare the glory of God,and the sky above proclaims His handiwork. (Psalm 19:1) Let heaven and earth praise Him,the seas and
The Worship of All Creation Read More »
WORSHIP NOTES Volume 11, No. 12 (December 2016) O Source of all good, what shall I render to Thee for the Gift of gifts,Thine own dear Son, begotten, not created,my Redeemer, proxy, surety, substitute,His self-emptying incomprehensible,His infinity of love beyond the heart’s grasp. Herein is Wonder of wonders: He came below to raise me above,was born like me that I might become like Him. Herein is love: when I cannot
WORSHIP NOTES Volume 11, No. 11 (November 2016) As we enter this season of Advent and Christmas, I decided I could do not better than to offer these meditations on the Incarnation from figures down through the centuries. I hope your spirits will be refreshed anew as you meditate on these words. A number of them are quite suitable for use as readings, responsive readings and prayers in Christ services;
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WORSHIP NOTES Volume 11, No. 10 (October 2016) We usually think of the Reformation of the 15th Century in terms of doctrinal renewal. The Reformers were not seeking to bring new or original truths to the Church; rather they were zealous to bring back to the Church the biblical/apostolic teaching concerning salvation, which had been largely lost to the Church. Hence their emphasis on justification by grace alone, through faith
The Reformation of Worship Read More »
WORSHIP NOTES Volume 11, No. 9 (September 2016) Last month we looked at the importance of theology for worship (that is, a biblical understanding of worship). This month we want to look at it the other way around and consider the importance of worship for theology. In any of our biblical study as believers, whether it be in Bible school, in seminary, in Sunday School, or in our own private study, it
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WORSHIP NOTES Volume 11, No. 8 (August 2016) The Bible is a collection of writings by authors inspired by God over the course of many centuries. These writings are of different genres: historical books, books of poetry and prophecy, letters, etc. And the Bible is not arranged thematically like a textbook would be. The work of a theologian is to draw, from the different parts of the Bible, its teachings
WHY STUDY THE THEOLOGY OF WORSHIP? Read More »
WORSHIP NOTES Volume 11, No. 7 (July 2016) Trick question: Who was the first Apostle in the New Testament? Answer: The Lord Jesus. The writer of Hebrews in 3:1 calls Him “the Apostle and High Priest of our confession.” With these two terms He summarizes the two-way mediation of Christ that He has dealt with in chapter 1 and 2: the Son’s revelatory ministry seen in chapter 1 (mediating
SENT: The Apostle of our Confession Read More »
