I am pleased to say Forgotten Songs: Reclaiming the Psalms for Christian Worship (B&H), edited by Richard Wells and myself is now available. At Amazon you can see the table of contents as well as preview the book quite well. The preface and conclusion will give you a feel for the aim of the book. …
Here is another excerpt from Brueggemann’s sermon on Psalm 100 [“Psalm 100,” Interpretation 39 (1985): 65-69]. In this section he is making the point that worship along the lines called for in Psalm 100 is a summons to reorient life in light of the reality that God is our Creator and Shepherd. To sing in …
I have plenty of differences with Walter Brueggemann, but his sermon on Psalm 100 is very rich [“Psalm 100,” Interpretation 39 (1985): 65-69]. The following quote makes a profound point about praise and has helped me see more of the importance of praise. To praise is to reject alternative loyalties and false definitions of reality. …
Anyone who has been reading this blog (both of you) over the last year or so will have noticed a focus on the role of the Psalms in worship, both corporate and private. This arose from developments in my own life which corresponded with and were enhanced by a project I led at Union University, …
I have already listed Peter Hitchens’ book, The Rage Against God, as one of the best books I read last year. I had meant to comment much more on the books contents which are rich on a variety of topics and levels. One point made often in the book is the power of poetry and …
In my last post I mentioned Andrew Blackwood’s book, The Fine Art of Public Worship. He has a good chapter on the public reading of Scripture, a historic part of Christian worship rooted in Scripture which is sorely neglected today. Much needs to be said on this aspect of worship, but here I will simply …
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My copy of this book, The Psalms as Christian Worship: A Historical Commentary by Brucke Watlke and James Houston, just came today, and already I am hooked. This is a significant book in so many ways. In general Waltke provides exegesis of key psalms and Houston provides a history of reception and interpretation. Together they …
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I recently came across the article by this title written by Clowney for Moody Monthly back in 1979. It is a wonderful, powerful piece (only 3 pages) on the importance of singing in the Christian life, the Psalms and Christ. It is primarily a meditation on the fact the New Testament shows us Jesus singing …
Continue reading ‘“The Singing Savior,” by Edmund Clowney’ »
Relevance is a big topic in the church these days. Of course we ought to be relevant, but the issue is how such relevance is defined. Doug Wilson in his A Primer on Worship and Reformation provides a good distinction between proper and improper irrelevance. “There are at least two kinds of irrelevance. One is …
Justin Wainscott, pastor and poet, has penned a powerful poetic challenge to much of what is typical in evangelical worship today. If you do not already read his blog, I recommend it to you. Indictment on Evangelical Worship M. Justin Wainscott, © 2007 Set the stage and dim the lights, Create my mood; abuse my …