Posted June 1st, 2006
Luke 18 records the Lord Jesus teaching on the nature of justification by telling the story of the Pharisee and Tax Collector. Pharisees were the respected religious leaders of Jesus' time. They lived outwardly moral and pious lives that many of us wouldn't come close to matching. In fact, Jesus never condemned the righteousness of the Pharisees, he even told his disciples that "unless [their] righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, [they] would not enter heaven." (Matt 5:20) The problem with the Pharisees was their motive for obedience. In Luke 18 Jesus explained how the Pharisee exalted himself by focusing on his moral life. In start contrast, however, Jesus praises the tax collector (a social outcast because of moral failures, perhaps think of a prostitute today) because instead of focusing on his works, he focuses on God's mercy as he begs "God, be merciful to me." This is the biblical "sinner's prayer" and it expresses the terms that God requires people to come to him on in order to be saved. We must acknowledge that nothing we have or do can ever allow us to stand before a holy God. Only God's mercy can save us from God's justice, and these two intersect only at the cross.
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Posted June 1st, 2006
All believers should be able to identify with the heart cry of this song. Have you ever felt like your mind was spinning amidst a thousand thoughts? When you retire to your prayer closet do you find it hard to suppress the onslaught of worries that constantly barrage your mind? The long list of to dos and responsibilities you have each day? Take heart believer, that the Lord is able to conquer even your craziness and replace it with a peace that surpasses comprehension (Philippians 4:7) . God has the power to draw us away from ourselves to Himself with one sovereign word. That is the essence of true worship - turning away from our preoccupation with self.
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Posted June 1st, 2006
This great Trinitarian hymn comes from Gadsby's hymnal and does not have an author listed. It could be from the compiler of the second supplement, J C Philpot. As we sing this song we address each member of the Godhead, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, addressing each one with praises and petitions appropriate to His function and role within the trinity. We declare that the Father reigns over all things in majesty from His heavenly throne room, ask the Son to shed His Word in our hearts and in the world, and show us His loving, sympathetic heart. We ask the spirit to work out our faith and fill us with peace - not just any peace, gospel peace.
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Posted June 1st, 2006
There is a great need for modern worship songs about Jesus' second coming. Most older hymnals have a section about the second coming but hymns there usually focus on the judgment Jesus will render there. But for those who belong to Christ, this coming will be a truly joyful time. Believer, Jesus is certainly coming back for you. Let that truth settle deep in your soul and move you to worship Him with your voice and your life. When you are tempted to despair, remember 1 Peter 4:12-13: "Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation."
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Posted June 1st, 2006
This powerful hymn from Isaac Watts ascribes wisdom, power, and majesty through song to the Lord our God. It looks ahead to the eternity in heaven that we will spend extolling and enjoying God in worship. In verse one we are exhorted to bring our humble praise before our King. Verse two declares that because of His love, God is preserving and will preserve us safely until we reach our final home. Then in verses three and four we look forward to the time when we will meet saints and angels around Jesus' throne and praise Him with everlasting songs. Perhaps Watts was thinking of Revelation 5:11-13: "Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, 'Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.' And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, 'To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.'"
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Posted May 27th, 2006
I put this together sometime ago, when I was sharing my vision for worship with Luke. Tell me what you think. I would love to read documents of some of you out there that have tried to do a similar thing.
Key Worship Music Convictions: Grace Church of Columbia
God-Centered Orientation: The service in general, and the songs in particular, should point people to God, not self.
Gospel Focus: The service and songs should remind participants of the gospel—that they are sinners saved by the life, death, and resurrection of Christ.
Theological Richness: Songs should not only be doctrinally true, but theologically rich. Preference will be shown to modern hymns, and shallow, repetitive songs will be avoided.
Historical Connection: The great hymns of the faith should be sung, either with their original tunes or with modern revisions of them, allowing today’s worshippers to be connected to their brothers and sisters of the past and their depth of expression.
Modern Expression: The best of today’s worship songs should also be used, allowing for modern expression of ancient truths, while still preferring God-centered, gospel-focused, and theologically rich songs.
Indigenous Style: The “feel” of worship music should suit the place in which the church is found, allowing...
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Posted May 20th, 2006
I suggested recently to David and Eric that we begin posting our Sunday "orders of service" to promote discussion and provide ideas. Here is ours for tomorrow:
Grace Church of Columbia: Grace Gathering
Sunday, May 21st, 2006, 10:00 a.m.
Call to Worship/Welcome/Announcements: Lamentations 3:21-26
Opening Song: Jesus, Everlasting King (Isaac Watts, Matthew Smith)
Confession of Sin/Assurance of Pardon: Confession of Sin 2.2.68 from The Worship Sourcebook
Leader: God blesses those who are merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
God's People: But we have often presided as harsh judges over the lives of others. We have been quick to place blame on anything or anyone but ourselves. We have avoided obligations to care for or to help people in need.
Leader: Lord, please show us your mercy.
God's People: Lord, have mercy upon us in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.
Titus 3:4-7
Songs of Meditation: Thy Mercy My God Is The Theme Of My Song (John Stocker, Sandra McCracken)
Only Hope (Charles Wesley, Randall Goodgame)
Scripture Reading: Colossians 3:1-17
Song of Prayer: Be Thou My Vision (Eleanor Hull)
Offering
Corporate Prayer: 4.4.17 from The Worship Sourcebook
Lord Jesus, you are our living head. Teach us to be your body here on earth—your hands, your feet, your eyes, and your compassionate heart....
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Posted May 5th, 2006
Kevin said “So, brotherhood, what do you think is the impact (good or bad) of groups like MercyMe?” First off let me say that I don’t know any Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) “stars” personally. I don’t know their character, their commitments, or even if they are genuine believers. But I do have an opinion about the public face I see of these stars. Interviews I’ve heard on the radio or read in magazines often grieve me. The Lord has given these men and women a platform to share about the character of God, His mercy to them, and most importantly the gospel to a lost and dying world. Instead, what I normally hear is what their favorite foods are, what the last movie they watched was, why they shaved their head, why they choose the clothes they do, etc. And the article on MercyMe shows the increased trend to make references to Jesus more veiled to draw people in who might not know right away that they are listening to music whose supposed aim is to glorify the Lord. What I see of how CCM musicians compose themselves on the stage also grieves me. Again, I don’t know their character...
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Posted May 5th, 2006
I wanted to add a couple things to this idea of clinging to traditions. Ferguson refers to tradition both in terms of our words and our activities. I find it amusing that churches who often consider themselves non-liturgical (not following a liturgy or specific service order rooted in tradition) and free from stuffy traditions of the past quickly manufacture their own new liturgy. Many worship leaders essentially pray the same thing using the same 10 words between songs or at certain points in the service. Over time Christians can develop their own mannerisms, way of speaking, way of using words, and ways of doing mundane things like driving. I’m not kidding. I have witnessed the affects of a church that developed their own complete sub-culture that was totally disconnected from the culture around them. And you know what? People were repelled from Christ because they felt they wouldn’t be accepted unless they started wearing a tie and using certain words in their speech.
His exhortation to make sure we aren’t clinging to meaningless tradition in our words hits home to me most in our practice of public (and private) prayer. I have...
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Posted May 5th, 2006
Sorry that it has taken so long to post a response to this! Hopefully the previous article from Sam Storms won’t be too far out of the minds of Doxologue readers. Chuck Colson’s original article can be found here, and the response by Sam Storms can be found here.
First, it seems apparent to me that Colson’s demeanor both in his writing and in his own description of how he responded to a worship leader is not Christ-like. The very first sentence in his article is a sweeping generalization that he can’t stand any contemporary worship music or worship leaders. He also declares that “Draw Me Close” has zero theologically content – a statement that can’t be true and is inflammatory. Colson’s defiant shout against the worship leader because he didn’t like the kind of singing that was going on does not display the humility and love of Christ. If the song or leader was leading people into unbiblical ideas about God or leading them into sinful behavior I could see justifying this kind of public retaliation.
Colson says “I'm convinced that much of the music being written for the church today reflects an unfortunate trend—slipping across the line from...
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Reformed Praise is a music ministry dedicated to providing songs for corporate worship which are rich in theology, diverse in musical style, and centered on the gospel of grace, that our praise might be informed by Biblical truth.
