Tuesday, December 13, 2005
Intro to Christian Worship 3: Covenental Worship
From Day 3 of Intro to Christian Worship:
A good theology of worship, according to Dr. Witvliet, is covenental, Trinitarian, and inculturated. We’ll be unpacking those three themes throughout the coming week. Today, we discussed covenental worship.
Witvliet identified three purposes of worship in the world’s religions. First, some people worship using meditative contemplation. This kind of worship involves a cognitive process that brings us into God’s presence.
Others worship by accessing an emotional state. This is highly subjective and person-centered.
However, Christian worship, grounded in the Bible, is covenantal. “The God of the Bible, the God of Israel, the God of Jesus, does not just long for us to contemplate, but to be in a relationship, to interact. It’s the main metaphor that runs throughout scripture – that God speaks to us and we respond.”
We turned to Joshua 24, which exhibits a theology of personal encounter. God addresses the people through the words of Joshua: “The people hear Joshua’s voice and perceive it as God’s word.”
The people adamantly respond: “We will serve the Lord!” It’s a strong statement of commitment.
This kind of worship is covenantal and conversational – God speaks to us, we respond, and we speak to each other. This is different from a contractual relationship. “God chooses to relate to us not merely through an impersonal divine contract, but through a promise-based relationship. In worship, God equips us to enact a promise-based relationship, not just to fulfill a contractual obligation. It’s the Gospel!”
Related Resources:
-Audio File of this lecture
-Worship as Covenantal Speech: a framework for worship
-Towards a Theology of Worship, John D. Witvliet (from prologue to The Worship Sourcebook)
“Worship – Taking a Closer Look,” John D. Witvliet, Reformed Worship
“The Former Prophets and the Practice of Christian Worship,” in Worship Seeking Understanding, John D. Witvliet
Interdisciplinary Application • Leadership • (0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink