I was talking with my Dad about the Together for the Gospel statement, specifically about article IV. This article affirms “the centrality of expository preaching in the church” and denies that “God-honoring worship can marginalize [sic] or neglect the ministry of the Word as manifested through exposition and public reading”. With his usual insight Dad followed the logic of this denial to its conclusions. If we say worship cannot neglect expository preaching or the reading of the word then we are saying that worship must contain expository preaching as an element. No such claim is made for any other potential element of worship, so we are left with the conclusion that worship is expository preaching. For example, according to this denial, the singing of worship songs plus expository preaching equals worship but the singing of worship songs alone does not. So, while the singing of songs is a good thing by itself it cannot qualify as worship.
Really?
I’m not elucidating this as well as my Dad did, but I think the implication is clear once it has been pointed out. Read Article IV again. Does it or does it not effectively make the terms ‘worship’ and ‘expository preaching’ (or ‘public reading of scripture’) synonymous or, if not synonymous, does it not at least say “if X does not contain expository preaching as a component, X is not worship’? Is this true? Is this biblical?
not sure of all the arguments but I can understand the link between the word and worship. Worship of God must be based on knowledge of God. True knowledge of God must be based on God revealing himself. God chooses to reveal himself through his word (the scriptures and Jesus). Worship without the word is meaningless…an attempt by humans to grasp God based on their own thoughts….worship in spirit and truth is what God desires.
Might you be confusing ‘woership’ with ‘worship songs’? To me, they are not the same thing. Worship is much broader than mere singing of songs and choruses. So, expository preaching fits into a much broader ‘worship picture’, as it were. ood blog! Well done! Priory
Did my message get through? Not altogether up on this blog business.
Anonymous and Priory: I wrote this post as a break from a lot of hard work, so it’s possible that I didn’t make myself clear. I wasn’t myself advocating any particular view of worship but rather I was challenging the T4G statement on worship. I have long been an advocate of the idea of ‘worship’ being much broader than the singing of songs. I have also pushed the practice of reading the Scripture as an act of worship. I certainly agree that our worship must be informed by scripture. Furthermore, I do believe that expository preaching and the public reading of scripture are acts of worship. I would go so far as to say that our worship is our very life offered up to God, and any more restrictive definition is too narrow.
However, what I tried to argue in the above post was the the T4G statement made expository preaching the core of worship. You can gather together and eat a meal, or you can sing songs, or you can do a dance, or you can pray – but if you don’t also have some expository preaching then you’re not worshipping.
This is what I feel the T4G statement implies, and I don’t agree with it.
at some stage we have toput down the rule book and drive the car. Some here are equating talking about God as actually worshiping God. I don’t thinkso-my wife I am sure has often heard me talk about love and intimacy BUT I am fairly certain that she prefers the actions of intimacy over the theory.
Lets quit beating about the bush and take off our shoes and worship.
We all accept and believe that living the christian life is worship in some way BUT atsome stage we must get in there with God and open our hearts and lay our heart before HIm and fall at HIs feet
Come on LETS DO IT not talk about it.