Worship by the Book (Paperback)

~ Rev. Mark Ashton (Author), (Author), Timothy J. Keller (Author), D. A. Carson (Editor) "To construct a theology of worship turns out to be a difficult task..." (more)
Key Phrases: blended worship, confessional response, corporate worship services, New Testament, Old Testament, Grand Rapids (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

A how-to book on corporate worship for the twenty-first century: how to be authentic and contemporary without being glitzy or faddish.

From the Back Cover

"What is at stake is authenticity. . . . Sooner or later Christians tire of public meetings that are profoundly inauthentic, regardless of how well (or poorly) arranged, directed, performed. We long to meet, corporately, with the living and majestic God and to offer him the praise that is his due."—D. A. Carson

Worship is a hot topic, but the ways that Christians from different traditions view it vary greatly. What is worship? More important, what does it look like in action, both in our corporate gatherings and in our daily lives? These concerns—the blending of principle and practice—are what Worship by the Book addresses.

Cutting through cultural clichés, D. A. Carson, Mark Ashton, Kent Hughes, and Timothy Keller explore, respectively: · Worship Under the Word · Following in Cranmer’s Footsteps · Free Church Worship: The Challenge of Freedom · Reformed Worship in the Global City "This is not a comprehensive theology of worship," writes Carson. "Still less is it a sociological analysis of current trends or a minister’s manual chockfull of ‘how to’ instructions." Rather, this book offers pastors, other congregational leaders, and seminary students a thought-provoking biblical theology of worship, followed by a look at how three very different traditions of churchmanship might move from this theological base to a better understanding of corporate worship. Running the gamut from biblical theology to historical assessment all the way to sample service sheets, Worship by the Book shows how local churches in diverse traditions can foster corporate worship that is God-honoring, Word-revering, heartfelt, and historically and culturally informed.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Zondervan (September 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0310216257
• ISBN-13: 978-0310216254
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #109,000 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

33 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Follow the Book, February 10, 2003

By	Michael Thompson (Twelve Mile, IN USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

"Sooner or later Christians tire of public meetings that are profoundly inauthentic, regardless of how well (or poorly) arranged, directed, performed. We long to meet, corporately, with the living and majestic God and to offer him the praise that is his due." (D.A. Carson)

OK, my knee-jerk reaction to this book was, "Finally, some THOUGHTFUL words on worship!" But let's face it, books on evangelical worship are a dime-a-dozen these days with little new being said and a lack of thoughtfulness (not sincerity). As for books on worship and the theology of worship: the standard has been significatly raised.

Not so with this book! Dr. Carson's introductory essay alone is worth this book. But, there is a lot more that it offers: following some insightful remarks by the editor (Carson) there are three theoretical/applicable studies written by Mark Ashton (Anglican -- Cranmer), R. Kent Hughes (Free Church), and Timothy J. Keller (Reformed).

Each writes from their own tradition (as a pastor), providing a semi-apologetic and a passion for the approach. Further, each writer includes sample services to help show what each tradition "looks like" in practice.

I recommend this to:
1)those tired of reading the same old stuff on worship
2)those unfamiliar with the theology of worship (this is a good intro)
3)those unfamiliar with different doctrinal/denominational traditions
4)church elders and leaders who plan worship
5)those desiring more...

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Learn How To Worship By The Book, April 23, 2005

By	Tim Challies (Oakville, Ontario) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Too often, when Christians discuss worship, they go little further than arguments about styles of music. The "worship wars" that have plagued the modern church are a prime example of this. Many churches have fallen apart and many Christians have been deeply hurt over styles of music. Churches that have sought to be progressive and contemporary have often done away with hymns, throwing away hundreds of years of Christian tradition in the process. Other churches have refused to sing any song written in modern times, indicating an irrational bias towards days gone by. In the process worship has come to be nearly synonymous with music. Church services are often structured around a time of worship, led by a worship pastor, and this is followed by a time of apparently non-worshipful teaching led by a teaching pastor.

These worship wars are a terrible distraction, for as believers who have access to the New Testament we know that worship extends far beyond music. Worship is to encompass all of life rather than only select parts. Worship by the Book is an attempt by four men, D.A Carson, Mark Ashton, Kent Hughes and Timothy Keller, to unravel the meaning of worship as well as to suggest ways that corporate worship, done as the church gathers together, can be most meaningful and most faithful to Scripture.

The book begins with an essay by Carson entitled "Worship Under the Word" in which he builds a framework around which each of the other authors will write. The heart of the essay is a lengthy definition of worship and a twelve-point examination of this definition. It is an unusually long and detailed definition of worship, yet one that for precisely those reasons is exceedingly useful.

Following Carson's introduction, each of the three co-authors is given one chapter to provide insight about worship within their tradition. The first of these is Mark Ashton, who is vicar of the Round Church at St. Andrew the Great in Cambridge, England. His essay is entitled "Following in Cramner's Footsteps" and he proposes that the Anglican Church recover the principles Cramner used to draft the Book of Common Prayer. He suggests each aspect of a worship service needs to meet three criteria: is it biblical, is it accessible and is it balanced? Despite coming from a tradition that seems far removed from mainline evangelicalism, I suspect the bulk of believers with agree with most of what he writes, at least until the final paragraphs where he writes about infant baptism and presumptive regeneration. I was a little bit concerned about a vague, underlying spirit of pragmatism that seemed to lie under the surface of some of what he wrote. Within the sample services, for example, is an outline of a guest service in which they have dumbed-down their Bible translation, opting for the Good News Bible in place of the New International Version. Despite this, there was much within his essay that was of practical value.

The second essay was written by Kent Hughes, pastor of the College Church in Wheaton, Illinois. At the heart of Hughes' essay, "Free Church Worship," were his six distinctives of Christian worship: it is God-centered, Christ-centered, Word-centered, consecration, whole-hearted and reverent. I especially appreciated his emphasis on reverence, as this is sorely-lacking in many contemporary churches. He closed with some useful thoughts on music in corporate worship.

The final essay was written by Timothy Keller, pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian Church (PCA) in New York City. Keller is seen as a trend-setter within the Presbyterian Church of America, so I looked forward to his essay which was entitled "Reformed Worship in the Global City." Keller contrasted and compared contemporary worship and historical worship and proposed a middle-ground, but not one as simple as an even distribution of elements from each. His essay was built around an examination and defense of the Reformed worship tradition. He examined its variety, sources, balance, core, traits and tests. I particularly enjoyed his explanation of the service structure at their church and the cycles of praise, renewal and commitment.

While it was generally a strong essay, it seemed to come apart a little at the end. The author wrote about the importance of including unbelieving musicians in the worship team as a way to evangelize them, arguing that God's common grace given to musicians brings as much glory to Him as do believers using their talents in His service. I much preferred Kent Hughes' take on this same issue. In the previous chapter he wrote "Musicians must see themselves as fellow laborers in the Word and must lead with understanding and an engaged heart. Those who minister in worship services must be healthy Christians who have confessed their sins and by God's grace are living their lives consistently with the music they lead. The sobering fact is that over time the congregation tends to become like those who lead." I was also a bit disappointed by the content of the bulletin inserts of Redeemer Church that were included within this essay as they seemed to favorably quote Mother Teresa, writing that the most important need of the poor is to be wanted.

Despite a few small missteps, I found this book fascinating and convicting. I would encourage any pastor or worship leader to buy this book and to read it through at least a couple of times. It will provide valuable insight into planning worship services that will lead believers into a time of worship that goes far beyond the music. Worship like these men describe is becoming increasingly rare. I hope this volume can help many churches recover worship that is done by the Book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pastors Should Read This Book, August 18, 2008

By	Joel S. Frady (USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book would be valuable for most Pastors to read because of its wisdom on the subject of worship. So often, the focus of the Pastor is on preparing and preaching the sermon. While this is a critical part of the worship service and should not be neglected, all of the essayists point to the need for well-planned services from start to finish. God-exalting, Christ-centered, Bible-based services are a worthy goal. This book should challenge Pastors, especially those from a free church background, to plan worship services in a more thoughtful way. The book is practical, with sample worship service outlines from different traditions. Highly recommended for all who want to honor God in corporate worship.