Chapter Resources, Book Suggestions, Discussion Questions, and Endnotes

Each chapter of the Worship Primer for Pastors and Planners includes discussion questions, suggestions for further reading, and end notes from the text. The appendix of seminary MDiv curricula is at the end. Download the entire resource PDF here.

Introduction

Discussion Questions

• Why do we do what we currently do in worship? What is our history?
• What is the purpose of the corporate worship service? 
• Are we achieving that purpose with our current liturgy? How do we know? Do we evaluate the service beyond surface issues of technology and flow?
• In what ways do worshipers actively participate in our worship service? Is it just by singing songs?
• How can we foster more active participation? Prayers? Interpersonal interactions? Interactive sermons?
• Bottom line: Are people transformed by an authentic encounter with God as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit? How do we know?

Endnotes

¹ Constance Cherry, The Worship Architect: A Blueprint for Designing Culturally Relevant and Biblically Faithful Services, 2^nd ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2021), 263.

² In this manual the term corporate worship is used to mean the primary worship experience for the gathered church, usually on a Sunday or perhaps Saturday. 

³ Ronald Edward Man, “Dallas Seminary Worship Education for Future Pastors” (D.Min. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 2009), 83–85, accessed September 27, 2021, https://app.box.com /s /851l8ysts5j66i2kyk6u. Man’s research revealed that “once [pastors] are out serving churches in pastoral roles, they suddenly find that they no longer have the luxury of taking a neutral stance on worship matters. They are often expected to demonstrate a principled mind, a stout heart, and a steady hand in guiding their churches through troubled worship waters…. [However,] even among those who had the required worship course, the great majority stated that they did not feel adequately prepared by their seminary training for facing worship issues in their pastoral ministries.”

⁴ Marva J. Dawn, A Royal “Waste” of Time: The Splendor of Worshiping God and Being Church for the World (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1999), 9.

⁵  Cherry, The Worship Architect, 263.

Chapter 1: Keep the Main Thing the Main Thing: Worship Is the Primary Function of the Church

Discussion Questions:

For Further Reading

Cherry, Constance M. The Music Architect: Blueprints for Engaging Worshipers in Song. 2^nd ed. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2021.

Cherry’s landmark book provides foundational guidance for any worship planners. If you only read one more book on worship after this, this is the one. 

Davis, John Jefferson. Worship and the Reality of God: An Evangelical Theology of Real Presence. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2010. 

Davis helps us understand how we can understand and experience the presence of God in our worship services. The church needs “a fresh manifestation of an ultimate reality that can recapture the imagination with a Presence that is more compelling than anything [the world] can manufacture” (17). 

Dawn, Marva J. A Royal “Waste” of Time:  The Splendor of Worshiping God and Being Church for the World. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1999.

Dawn focuses on how our worship can be crafted to impact our Postmodern culture. What makes the Christian community unique in our culture? “If our worship of God will ultimately serve the world around us, then we dare not give its participants any less than the fullness of God, the faithfulness of God’s people, and the future of God’s story” (36) 

Rienstra, Debra and Ron Rienstra. Worship Words: Discipling Language for FaithfulMinistry. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2009.

The Rienstra’s reinforce the importance of words in worship, from lyrics to song introductions, our words must be well thought-out. “We can expect worship led by the Spirit to both ‘bless and disturb’ us. Language in worship should not only please and uplift us, serving as a means of God’s comforting grace, but also challenge and transform us, serving as a means through which God works out our salvation in us” (38).

Webber, Robert E. Ancient-Future Worship: Proclaiming and Enacting God’s Narrative. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2008.

Webber’s goal is to help restore God’s narrative to the center of our worship, examining ancient biblical patterns of worship to see how they can reinvigorate our worship today.

Chapter 1 Endnotes

¹ I respond to this suggestion by pointing out that the goal of salvation is not just so people can go to heaven and avoid hell. That is a very human–centered view. I remind them that the ultimate goal of God’s grace shown to any human is to give glory to God. The Apostle Paul writes in 2 Cor. 4:15, “So that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.” Many of us know the Westminster confession’s answer to the very first question, “What is the chief end of man?” “The chief end of man is to glorify God, and enjoy him forever.” The goal of our salvation is not simply to go to heaven, as wonderful as that is, but rather it is so that God receives more of the worship which he is due. 

² Robert Schaper, In His Presence: Appreciating Your Worship Tradition (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 1984), 15–16.

³ Robert E. Webber, Worship Old & New (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1994), 85.

⁴ Franklin Segler and Randall Bradley, Christian Worship: Its Theology and Practice, 3^rd ed. (Nashville, TN: B&H, 2006), 8.

⁵ John D. Witvliet, s.v. “Worship,” in The Oxford Handbook of Evangelical Theology, ed. Gerald R. McDermott (New York, NY: Oxford, 2010), 310.

⁶ Ronald Edward Man, “Dallas Seminary Worship Education for Future Pastors” (D.Min. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, 2009), 83–85, accessed July 20, 2022, https://app. box.com/s/ q9wlnk3cagxgzyq4qch7.

⁷ Harold M. Best, “Authentic Worship & Faithful Music Making,” paper presented at the American Choral Directors’ Association National Convention (Chicago, IL: February 27, 1999), 4. Accessed July 20, 2022, https://www.andrews.edu/sem/inministry/uploads/ 2015summersyllabi/authentic–worship–harold–best.pdf.

⁸ Robert E. Webber, Who Gets to Narrate the World? Contending for the Christian Story in an Age of Rivals (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press: 2008), 16.

⁹ Best, “Authentic Worship,” 3.

¹⁰ Marva J. Dawn, A Royal “Waste” of Time: The Splendor of Worshiping God and Being Church for the World (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1999), 192. Dawn offers 15 additional reasons not to split worship into multiple styles in her chapter entitled “Worship Is Not a Matter of Taste” (186–193).

¹¹ Dawn, A Royal “Waste” of Time, 2.

¹² Robert E. Webber, Ancient–Future Worship: Proclaiming and Enacting God’s Narrative (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2008), 29.

¹³ Webber, Ancient–Future Faith, 39–40.

¹⁴ John D. Witvliet, “Series Preface” in Christian Worship Worldwide, edited by Charles E. Farhadian (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2007), xvii. 

¹⁵ Frank C. Senn, “Teaching Worship in Seminaries: A Response,” Worship 55.4 (July 1981), 332.

¹⁶ William H. Willimon, Worship as Pastoral Care (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1979), 20–21.

¹⁷ Ronald P. Byars, Christian Worship: Glorifying and Enjoying God (Louisville, KY: Geneva Press, 2000), 3.

Chapter 2: Biblical Foundations of Christian Worship

Discussion Questions

1. Which verse or passage of Scripture has formed your understanding of the concept of worship? Why did you select that passage, and what does it specifically contribute to your own worship philosophy? 
2. Put the following sentence in your own words: God is both the object and the subject of our worship. How can you make this statement meaningful in your congregation?
3. Consider the theme of an upcoming sermon. Which of the names of God would fit that idea? How can you introduce that name in the context of the worship liturgy?
4. Examine the lyrics of several recent songs sung in your church. What is the overall balance between communicating God’s immanence (nearness, intimacy) and God’s transcendence (holiness, ‘otherness’)? If there is a lack of balance look for a few songs that emphasize the weak end of your spectrum. 

For Further Reading

Chapter 2 Endnotes

¹ Robert E. Webber, Ancient–Future Worship: Proclaiming and Enacting God’s Narrative (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2008), 31; Harold Best, Unceasing Worship: Biblical Perspectives on Worship and the Arts (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Books, 2003), 21.

²  Harold M. Best, “Authentic Worship & Faithful Music Making,” paper presented at the American Choral Directors’ Association National Convention (Chicago, IL: February 27, 1999). Accessed September 27, 2021, https://www.andrews.edu/sem/inministry/uploads/ 2015summersyllabi/authentic–worship–harold–best.pdf.

³ Harold Best, Unceasing Worship: Biblical Perspectives on Worship and the Arts (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press: 2003), 25.

⁴ Best, Unceasing Worship, 23.

⁵ Nathan Mitchell, “The Amen Corner: Being Good and Being Beautiful,” Worship 74, no. 6 (November 2000): 557–58.

⁶ Much of the material in this section is taken from:

Robert E. Webber, ed., The Biblical Foundations of Christian Worship, vol. 1, The Complete Library of Christian Worship (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1993). The entire seven–volume library is an excellent resource for the study of Christian worship. 

⁷ Larry W. Hurtado, At the Origins of Christian Worship: The Context and Character of Earliest Christian Devotion(Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1999), 97.

⁸ Robert E. Webber, Worship Old and New (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1994), 19.

Chapter 3: Historical Review of Christian Worship

¹James F. White, A Brief History of Christian Worship (Nashville, TN: Abingdon, 1993), 13.

² See Hughes Oliphant Old, The Patristic Roots of Reformed Worship (Zurich: Theologischer Verlag, 1975).

³ Larry W. Hurtado, At the Origins of Christian Worship: The Context and Character of Earliest Christian Devotion (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1999), 39–40; White, A Brief History of Christian Worship, 15–16; Paul F. Bradshaw, Daily Prayer in the Early Christian Church: A Study of the Origin and Development of the Divine Office (Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock, 2008), 25.

⁴ Hurtado, Origins, 41.

⁵ Didache 8.

⁶ Ignatius, The Epistle of Ignatius to the Magnesians 9; Didache 14;  James White, A Brief History of Christian Worship (Nashville, TN: Abingdon, 1993), 31.

⁷ Justin Martyr, First Apology 67, trans. Marcus Dods and George Reith, accessed April 5, 2022, https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0126.htm.

⁸ Justin, The First Apology 67.

⁹ White, Brief History of Christian Worship, 43.

¹⁰ Tertullian, De Corona 3.

¹¹ Apostolic Tradition 8.

¹² White, Brief History of Christian Worship, 43.

¹³ Justin Martyr, First Apology 66.

¹⁴ Irenaeus, Against Heresies 5.2.3.

¹⁵ Leonard Vander Zee, Christ, Baptism, and the Lord’s Supper: Recovering the Sacraments for Evangelical Worship (Downers Grove, Il: InterVarsity Press, 2004) 164.

¹⁶ Dom Gregory Dix, The Shape of the Liturgy, new edition (UK: Bloomsbury Academic, 2005), 595–96.

¹⁷ Dix, Shape of the Liturgy, 595–6.

¹⁸ Dix, Shape of the Liturgy, 597.

^[1]9 Vander Zee, Christ, Baptism, and the Lord’s Supper, 166.

²⁰ Augustine, Treatise on the Gospel of John 80.3.

²¹ Augustine, Treatise on the Gospel of John 26.12. 

²² Vander Zee, Christ, Baptism, and the Lord’s Supper, 168.

²³ Vander Zee, Christ, Baptism, and the Lord’s Supper, 168.

²⁴ White, Brief History of Christian Worship, 77.

²⁵ White, Brief History of Christian Worship, 78.

²⁶ For an excellent but simple breakdown of these two competing philosophies I recommend Vander Zee’s book, noted above, pp. 68–72.

²⁷ Laurence H. Stookey, Eucharist: Christ’s Feast with the Church (Nashville, TN: Abingdon, 1993), 46.

²⁸ Quoted in Stookey, Eucharist, 107

²⁹ White, Brief History of Christian Worship, 105–06.

³⁰ White, Brief History of Christian Worship, 104–ff.

³¹ Charles Garside, Zwingli and the Arts (New York, NY: Da Capo Press, 1981), 47.

³² Huldriych Zwinglis Sämtliche Werke 2.350.2–6, quoted in Charles Garside, Zwingli and the Arts, 45.

³³ Robert E. Webber, Worship Old and New (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1994), 112.

³⁴ Bard Thompson, Liturgies of the Western Church (Philadelphia, PA: Fortress Press, 1961), 160.

³⁵ James F. White, “Anabaptist Worship” in Twenty Centuries of Christian Worship, vol. 2 of The Complete Library of Christian Worship, ed. Robert E. Webber (Nashville, TN: Star Song, 1994), 78.

³⁶ Robert E. Webber, Worship Old and New (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1994), 112–13.

³⁷ Steven Meyerhoff, “Pioneer of Reformed Worship: Celebrating the 500^th Anniversary of Martin Bucer,” Reformed Worship 21 (September 1991), https://www.reformedworship.org/ article/ september–1991/pioneer–reformed–worship–celebrating–500th–anniversary–martin–bucer.

³⁸ Stanley Niebrugge, “A Reformed Theology of Worship” in Twenty Centuries of Christian Worship, vol. 2 of The Complete Library of Christian Worship, ed. Robert E. Webber (Nashville, TN: Star Song, 1994), 289.

³⁹ James F. White, “Quaker Worship” in Twenty Centuries of Christian Worship, vol. 2 of The Complete Library of Christian Worship, ed. Robert E. Webber (Nashville, TN: Star Song, 1994), 85.

⁴⁰ White, Brief History of Christian Worship, 108.

⁴¹ White, “Quaker Worship,” 85.

⁴² G. Thomas Halbrooks, “Baptist Worship” in Twenty Centuries of Christian Worship, vol. 2 of The Complete Library of Christian Worship, ed. Robert E. Webber (Nashville, TN: Star Song, 1994), 82.

⁴³ Darrell Todd Maurina, “Congregational Worship” in Twenty Centuries of Christian Worship, vol. 2 of The Complete Library of Christian Worship, ed. Robert E. Webber (Nashville, TN: Star Song, 1994), 83–85.

⁴⁴ James F. White, “Roman Catholic Worship from the Council of Trent to Vatican II” in Twenty Centuries of Christian Worship, vol. 2 of The Complete Library of Christian Worship, ed. Robert E. Webber (Nashville, TN: Star Song, 1994), 72.

⁴⁵ Martin Luther, The Babylonian Captivity of the Church 2.7.

⁴⁶ Martin Luther, The Large Catechism V.8.

⁴⁷ Vander Zee, Christ, Baptism, and the Lord’s Supper, 174.

⁴⁸ Quoted in P. F. Palmer, Sacraments and Worship: Liturgy and Doctrinal Development of Baptism, Confirmation, and the Eucharist (Westminster, MD: Newman Press, 1957), 157.

⁴⁹ John Calvin, Theological Treatises, ed. and trans. J. K. S. Reid (United Kingdom: Presbyterian Publishing Corporation, 2000), 166.

⁵⁰ Calvin, Institutes 4.17.19.

^5[1] Immanuel Kant, Religion and Rational Theology, ed. and trans. by Allen W. Wood and George Di Giovanni (Cambridge, U.K.: Cambridge University Press, 1996), 209.

⁵² White, Brief History of Christian Worship, 144.

⁵³ Webber, Worship Old and New, 117

⁵⁴ Webber, Worship Old and New, 117.

⁵⁵ Webber, Worship Old and New, 117.

⁵⁶ White, Brief History of Christian Worship, 145.

⁵⁷ White, Brief History of Christian Worship, 142; Webber, Worship Old and New, 109.

⁵⁸ Webber, Worship Old and New, 109.

⁵⁹ John D. Witvliet, Worship Seeking Understanding: Windows into Christian Practice (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2003), 166.

⁶⁰ Charles G. Finney, Lectures on Revivals of Religion (New York, NY: Leavitt, Lord, and Co., 1835), 161–62.

⁶¹ Charles G. Finney, Lectures to Professing Christians (New York, NY: John Taylor, 1837), 254.

⁶² Many rightly claim that there is dialogue carried in the singing of lyrics directed from God and to God. While songs can certainly facilitate some of the divine–human dialogue, in many contemporary free churches there is still little sense of that dialogue. The overwhelming majority of God’s spoken word comes through the sermon and not from the reading of Scripture, and the people rarely articulate any words outside of the songs.

⁶³ Charles G. Finney, “On the Lord’s Supper” (sermon, Oberlin, OH, April 1, 1846), accessed June 30, 2017, http://www.gospeltruth.net/1846OE/460401_lords_supper.htm.

⁶⁴ Finney, “On the Lord’s Supper.”

⁶⁵ Webber, Worship Old and New, 122.

⁶⁶ Webber, Worship Old and New, 123.

⁶⁷ Although the Constitution tried to implement vernacular texts slowly, once the gate was opened, the use of the local languages flooded in.  In section 36 we read, “Particular law remaining in force, the use of the Latin language is to be preserved in the Latin rites. But since the use of the mother tongue …frequently may be of great advantage to the people, the limits of its employment may be extended…. It is for the competent territorial ecclesiastical authority … to decide whether, and to what extent, the vernacular language is to be used; their decrees are to be approved, that is, confirmed, by the Apostolic See.”

⁶⁸ “Sacrosanctum Concilium,” https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ ii_vatican_ council/documents/vat–ii_const_19631204_sacrosanctum–concilium_en.html, accessed September 5, 2022. Although the title makes it sound dry, the Introduction and chapter 1 of Sacrosanctum are incredibly inspiring reading for any pastor or worship leader in any denomination wanting a deeper understanding of worship theology. 

⁶⁹ Webber, Worship Old and New, 125. Examples of resulting new service books are the Lutheran Church’s 1978 Lutheran Book of Worship, and the Episcopal Church’s 1979 Book of Common Prayer. Many new worship resources were published by the Presbyterian and United Methodist churches, culminating in the the Presbyterian Book of Common Worship (1993), and the United Methodist Book of Worship (1992),. 

⁷⁰ Consultation on Common Texts, “The Story of the Common Lectionary, accessed September 28, 2021, http://www.commontexts.org/history. These American denominations include the American Baptist Church, Christian Reformed Church, Moravian, Lutheran, Episcopal, Presbyterian, Disciples of Christ, United Methodist Church, and United Church of Christ.

⁷¹ Lester Ruth and Lim Swee Hong, A History of Contemporary Praise and Worship: Understanding the Ideas that Reshaped the Protestant Church (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2021), 311–312.

⁷² Judson Cornwall, Let Us Worship (Plainfield, NJ: Bridge Publishing, 1983), 143.

⁷³ Ruth and Lim, A History of Contemporary Praise and Worship, 312.

⁷⁴ Ruth and Lim, A History of Contemporary Praise and Worship, 312–13.

⁷⁵ White, Brief History of Christian Worship, 157.

⁷⁶ White, Brief History of Christian Worship, 158.

⁷⁷ White, Brief History of Christian Worship, 158.

⁷⁸ Webber, Worship Old and New, 132–33.

⁷⁹ “Sacrosanctum Concilium,” 11.

⁸⁰ Randy Sly and Wayne Boosahda, “The Convergence Movement” in Twenty Centuries of Christian Worship, vol. 2, The Complete Library of Christian Worship, ed. Robert Webber (Nashville, TN: Star Song, 1994), 134–140.

⁸¹ For more information on the Convergence Worship movement visit https://convergencemovement.org/about/.

⁸² Webber, Worship Old and New, 93.

⁸³ White, Brief History of Christian Worship, 10–11.

Chapter 4: Theological Foundations of Worship

¹ George Savran, Encountering the Divine: Theophany in Biblical Narrative (New York, NY: T & T Clark International, 2005), 5–6.

² Marva Dawn, Reaching Out Without Dumbing Down: A Theology of Worship for This Urgent Time (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1995), 174.

³ The Roman Catholic Church observes seven sacraments: Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Reconciliation, Anointing of the Sick, Matrimony, and Holy Orders.

⁴ An excellent discussion of this concept is in F. Russell Mitman’s book Worship in the Shape of Scripture. F. Russell Mitman, Worship in the Shape of Scripture (Cleveland: Pilgrim, 2001), 43–ff.

⁵ For examples of reading Scriptures in the early church see 1 Timothy 4:13. Paul writes much about the early celebrations of the Lord’s Table in 1 Corinthians 10–11 as well as the writer Luke in Acts 2.

⁶ Constance Cherry, The Worship Architect: A Blueprint for Designing Culturally Relevant and Biblically Faithful Services, 2^nd ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2021), 68. Cherry’s book is an extremely valuable resource and is an assigned text in over 150 colleges and seminaries.

⁷ Eugene M. Boring, “The Voice of Jesus in the Apocalypse of John,” Novum Testamentum 34, no. 4 (October 1992): 334–359. Boring’s appendix lists every speaking voice or group of voices in John’s Revelation. Deeper analysis of his listing reveals that nearly every time the four living creatures speak, they speak as a group (Rev 4:8, 11; 5:9, 12, 14; 19:4). The only time they speak as individuals is in Revelation 6 when each one in turn tells John, “Come,” before a seal is opened (Rev 6:1, 3, 5, 7). None of the creatures ever calls out to a multitude as the voice does in 19:5. Similarly, whenever the twenty–four elders speak, it is often as a group, giving praise to the One on the throne. Only twice does an individual elder speak, and he speaks only to John (Rev 5:5; 7:13). An individual elder never calls out to a multitude. Furthermore, whenever John is in the proximity of one of the living creatures or elders when they speak, he clearly identifies the source. It would break his previous pattern if he did not likewise identify the speaker in Revelation 19:5. 

If we examine where Christ is located, according to the writer of Hebrews, Jesus is “seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven” (Heb. 8:1; see also Heb. 12:2; Matt. 19:28). While in Revelation 4 John describes the elders’ thrones and the living creatures surrounding God’s throne, Hebrews describes Jesus in closer proximity to the throne than any of them. The voice that John heard was almost certainly that of the Son of God seated at God’s right hand.

⁸ Cherry, The Worship Architect, 86.

⁹ Eugene Peterson and Peter Santucci, Eat This Book: Study Guide (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2006), 30–31.

¹⁰ More on this in chapter 7. An excellent resource for training this team is Max McLean’s book Unleashing the Word: Recovering the Public Reading of Scripture (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2009).

¹¹ Ludwig Ott, Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma (Gastonia, NC: TAN Books, 1974), 399.

¹² Ott, Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma, 412.

¹³ Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1994), 996.

¹⁴ Robert E. Webber, Worship Old and New (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1994) 80.

¹⁵ John Jefferson Davis, Worship and the Reality of God: An Evangelical Theology of Real Presence (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2010), 92.

¹⁶ Grudem, Systematic Theology, 999.

¹⁷ Cherry, The Worship Architect, 118. 

¹⁸ Cherry, The Worship Architect, 132.

¹⁹ Cherry, The Worship Architect, 130.

²⁰ James K. A. Smith, Desiring the Kingdom: Worship, Worldview, and Cultural Formation (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2009), 207.

²¹ Smith, Desiring the Kingdom, 197.

²² Cherry, The Worship Architect, 132.

²³ A recommended resource for discovering other benedictions (or prayers, confessions, creeds, etc.) is The Worship Sourcebook (Grand Rapids, MI: Calvin Institute of Worship, 2013).

²⁴ Robert E. Webber, Worship Is a Verb: Eight Principles for Transforming Worship, 2nd ed. (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1996), 15–16.

²⁵ Michael Horton, A Better Way: Rediscovering the Drama of God–Centered Worship (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker, 2003), 24.

²⁶ George Savran, Encountering the Divine: Theophany in Biblical Narrative (New York, NY: T & T Clark International, 2005), 5.

²⁷ Ronald P. Byars, Christian Worship: Glorifying and Enjoying God (Louisville, KY: Geneva Press, 2000), 27.

Chapter 5: Introduction to Christian Time

¹ Philip H. Pfatteicher, Journey into the Heart of God: Living the Liturgical Year (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013), 288.

² Pfatteicher, Journey into the Heart of God, 296.

³ Robert E. Webber, Worship Is a Verb: Eight Principles for Transforming Worship (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1992), 161.

⁴ Robert E. Webber, Who Gets to Narrate the World? Contending for the Christian Story in an Age of Rivals (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press: 2008), 16.

⁵ Robert E. Webber, Ancient–Future Time: Forming Spirituality Through the Christian Year (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2004), 15.

⁶ Bobby Gross, Living the Christian Year: Time to Inhabit the Story of God (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Books, 2009), 16.

⁷ Pfatteicher, Journey into the Heart of God, 21.

Chapter 6: The Interaction Between Worship and Culture

¹ As of the writing of this book, The Chapel is in the process of separating into six independently governed churches.

² Lutheran World Federation, “Nairobi Statement on Worship and Culture: Contemporary Challenges and Opportunities” (Lutheran World Federation, 1996), accessed October 3, 2022, https://worship.calvin.edu/resources/resource–library/nairobi–statement–on–worship–and–culture–full–text/.

The Nairobi statement is from the third international consultation of the Lutheran World Federation’s Study Team on Worship and Culture, held in Nairobi, Kenya, which completed its work in January 1996. This resource should be required reading for anyone responsible for planning worship.

³ David Mathis, “Let’s Revise the Popular Phrase ‘In, But Not Of,’” DesiringGod, August 29, 2012, https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/lets–revise–the–popular–phrase–in–but–not–of.

⁴ Jill Ford, “Worship as Counter–Cultural” (Doctoral thesis, Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies, Jacksonville, FL, June 2020), 56.

⁵ Timothy J. Keller, “Reformed Worship in the Global City,” in Worship by the Book, ed. D. A. Carson (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2002), 197–98.

⁶ Anita S. Stauffer, “Culture and Christian Worship in Intersection,” International Review of Mission 84, Issue 332–33 (January 1, 1995).

⁷ Alexander Schmemann, For the Life of the World: Sacraments and Orthodoxy, rev. ed. (Crestwood, NY: St. Vladimir’s Press, 1973), 7–8.

Chapter 7: Planning Effective Worship Services

¹ For example, “All Creatures of Our God and King” contains the lyrics “All creatures of our God and King/Lift up your voice and with us sing/O Praise Him, Alleluia.” In addition to having phrases directed to our God and King (, the song also encourages one another to “Lift up your voice and with us sing.”

² Constance Cherry, The Worship Architect: A Blueprint for Designing Culturally Relevant and Biblically Faithful Services, 2^nd ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2021), 6–8.

³ An excellent resource for this topic is the book Selecting Worship Songs: A Guide for Leaders by Cherry, Brown, & Bounds. It is brief yet thorough and very practical.

⁴ I also ran into the not–so–small problem of submitting a song suggested by my pastor to this song evaluating team, which denied its appropriateness. I had to break it to the pastor that we would not be doing the song. That decision came back to haunt me in my dismissal a year later! You’ll need to balance a song’s weaknesses against who is promoting it.

⁵ John Jefferson Davis, Worship and the Reality of God: An Evangelical Theology of Real Presence (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2010), 12.

⁶ The formal term for this is lex orandi, lex credendi, or the “law of praying [is, constitutes, or establishes] the law of believing,” attributed to Prosper of Aquitaine (c. AD 390–c. 455). The words people pray or sing shape what they believe about God. A good source for exploring this concept is Maxwell E. Johnson, Praying and Believing in Early Christianity: The Interplay Between Christian Worship and Doctrine (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2013).

⁷ An ideal range for both men and women is between A at the lowest and D at the highest.

⁸ This can lead to a discussion about how to project lyrics on the screens. Many churches which now livestream will put only two lines on the screen at one time in a letterbox at the bottom of the screen. This breaks up the flow of a song’s lyrics. I prefer, if possible, to project an entire verse or chorus so that people can process the flow and meaning of the entire section. This takes them beyond just singing words from a screen to seeing and communicating thoughts and ideas. Whichever format you use, be sure the lyrics to be sung are visible on the screen at least one to two seconds before the people sing them. They must see them visually and process them mentally before they sing.

⁹ You can find the Revised Common Lectionary online at https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu; or https://www .lectionarypage.net

¹⁰ See Barker’s YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/user/barnabury.

¹¹ An excellent resource for training this team is Max McLean’s book Unleashing the Word: Recovering the Public Reading of Scripture (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2009). Members of this team were auditioned and then required to read McLean’s book, especially the parts on preparation for reading. I would gather the team at regular intervals for mutual critique and idea–sharing.

¹² Lester Ruth, Flow: The Ancient Way to Do Contemporary Worship (Nashville, TN: Abingdon, 2020), 38.

¹³ Robert E. Webber, Worship Old and New (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1994), 74.

¹⁴ John Jefferson Davis, Worship and the Reality of God: An Evangelical Theology of Real Presence (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2010), 99.

¹⁵ Gary A. Furr and Milburn Price, The Dialogue of Worship: Creating Space for Revelation and Response (Macon, GA: Smythe and Price, 1998), 5.

Chapter 8: Effective Liturgy in Traditional Churches

¹ A good resource for discovering the answers to these questions is David DeSilva, Sacramental Life: Spiritual Formation Through the Book of Common Prayer (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2008). Part two on Holy Eucharist: Nourishment for the New Life covers many parts of the liturgy such as Lord’s Prayer, Prayers of the People, Great Thanksgiving, sending out.

² “Sacrosanctum Concilium,” 7, accessed March 20, 2017, http://www.vatican.va/ archive/hist_councils/ ii_vatican_council/documents/vat–ii_const_19631204_sacrosanctum–concilium_ en.html#_ftn8.

³ “Sacrosanctum Concilium,” 7.

⁴ Lex orandi, lex credendi, or the “law of praying (is, constitutes, or establishes) the law of believing,” is attributed to Prosper of Aquitaine. A good source for exploring this concept is Maxwell E. Johnson, Praying and Believing in Early Christianity: The Interplay Between Christian Worship and Doctrine (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2013). 

⁵ An excellent resource for these brief instructions is Kevin J. Adams, The Gospel in a Handshake: Framing Worship for Mission (Eugene, OR: Cascade Books, 2019). He uses the term frames in the sense of preparing participants for the actions of worship. The frame, as with a work of art, is not the action itself but enhances the meaning of the action.

⁶ Glenn Packiam, Discover the Mystery of Faith: How Worship Shapes Believing (Colorado Springs, CO: David C. Cook, 2013) 18.

⁷ Winfield Bevins, Ever Ancient, Ever New: The Allure of Liturgy for a New Generation (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2019), 17–18.

⁸ James K. A. Smith, Desiring the Kingdom: Worship, Worldview, and Cultural Formation (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Publishing, 2009), 40.

Appendix A

Review of Top U.S. Seminary Master’s Degree Curricula (Fall 2024)

All degrees include core courses such as Greek, Hebrew, Exegesis, OT and NT surveys, Hermeneutics, Preaching, Theology, Spiritual Formation, Pastoral Care and Counseling, Biblical Leadership and Management, Missions and Evangelism. All programs require some hours of electives, however, few schools offer master’s-level courses in the area of worship. Some schools offer an M.A. or MDiv. with concentrations in worship. This survey is for the Fall 2024 session (updated September 2024). 

School	Degree	Course/worship requirements
Asbury Theological Seminary	MDiv.	96 hours. Required course is WO 510: Worship Leadership in the Church. 24 hours of specialization or elective courses may also include worship.
Baylor University Truett Seminary	MDiv.	87 hours. No worship course required. Students must take 15 hours in one of nine possible areas of specialization, one of which is Music Leadership and Worship.
Biola University Talbot School of Theology	MDiv. in Pastoral and General Ministries	79 hours. No worship course required or offered as elective.
Dallas Theological Seminary	ThM (4-year Master of Theology)	120 hours. 91 core hours required, and 24 of the remaining 29 hours to be selected from one of 22 ministry emphasis disciplines, one of which results in a Master of Arts in Media Arts & Worship.
Denver Seminary	Master’s level degrees	MDiv., ThM., and M.A. degrees require 79 hours with no worship course required or offered. No concentration in worship is offered in any Master’s-level degree. Declaring no concentration allows 18 hours of electives which may include some in worship.
Fuller Theological Seminary	MDiv.	120 quarter hours (equivalent to 80 semester hours). A concentration in worship is one of 8 possible programs requiring 24 quarter hours. All others require on course in worship.
Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary	MDiv.	90  hours.  No course on worship required. 2 electives allowed.
Knox Theological Seminary	MDiv.	90 hours. Required course is AT704: Worship.* Also requires 21 elective hours, none of which include worship courses.* From the course description: Students will gain a theological and biblical foundation for worship, as well as practical helps in planning and leading worship services that are excellent in quality, contextually relevant, transformational, and balanced in joy and reverence.
Liberty University Rawlings School of Divinity	MDiv.: General Degree	75 hours including 12 hours of electives (4 courses) to be selected from one or two of 20 disciplines, one of which is worship.
Moody Theological Seminary	MDiv. Pastoral Studies	72 hours. No worship course offered or required as elective.
Reformed Theological Seminary	MDiv.	106 hours. One worship course required. PT5300: Worship (2 hours), a well-rounded course. 10 hours of electives do not include courses in worship.
Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary	MDiv. Preaching and Pastoral Ministry	82-88 credit hours with 12-18 hours of electives, 4 of which are related to worship (MUS 6673: Music for Worship, PHI 6520: Christianity, Culture and the Arts, PMN 6545: Ministry of Worship, WOR 7510: Introduction to Christian Worship). SBTS also offers an MDiv. with a concentration in worship ministry.
Southern Baptist Theological Seminary	MDiv.	84 hours. One worship course (40200: Introduction to Christian Worship) is required. 21 elective hours may include other worship courses or all may be used to complete a graduate certificate in Biblical Worship
Trinity Evangelical Divinity School MDiv.	MDiv.	90 hours. 1 required worship course PT6280: Christian Worship (2 hours). 4 hours general electives do not include worship courses.