Act of Worship

            A few years ago, a prominent church in the United States came under controversy for beginning their weekly worship gathering with a secular song. The scrutiny was not as much because the song was secular but because of its questionable lyrics, which include, “Baby, you turn me on.” Like many of you, growing up, it became clear to m...

A recent popular worship song has caused great controversy among worship leaders and churches. Cory Asbury’s “Reckless Love” has sparked debate far and wide. Arguments made both for the use of the word, reckless, are: 1)      it is a metaphor; 2)      from a human perspective, God’s love is reckless because it does not make sense; 3)     ...

A recent popular worship song has caused great controversy among worship leaders and churches. Cory Asbury’s “Reckless Love” has sparked debate far and wide. Arguments made both for the use of the word, reckless, are: 1)      it is a metaphor; 2)      from a human perspective, God’s love is reckless because it does not make sense; 3)     ...

A recent popular worship song has caused great controversy among worship leaders and churches. Cory Asbury’s “Reckless Love” has sparked debate far and wide. Arguments made both for the use of the word, reckless, are: 1)      it is a metaphor; 2)      from a human perspective, God’s love is reckless because it does not make sense; 3)     ...

A recent popular worship song has caused great controversy among worship leaders and churches. Cory Asbury’s “Reckless Love” has sparked debate far and wide. Arguments made both for the use of the word, reckless, are: 1)      it is a metaphor; 2)      from a human perspective, God’s love is reckless because it does not make sense; 3)     ...

A recent popular worship song has caused great controversy among worship leaders and churches. Cory Asbury’s “Reckless Love” has sparked debate far and wide. Arguments made both for the use of the word, reckless, are: 1)      it is a metaphor; 2)      from a human perspective, God’s love is reckless because it does not make sense; 3)     ...

A recent popular worship song has caused great controversy among worship leaders and churches. Cory Asbury’s “Reckless Love” has sparked debate far and wide. Arguments made both for the use of the word, reckless, are: 1)      it is a metaphor; 2)      from a human perspective, God’s love is reckless because it does not make sense; 3)     ...

A recent popular worship song has caused great controversy among worship leaders and churches. Cory Asbury’s “Reckless Love” has sparked debate far and wide. Arguments made both for the use of the word, reckless, are: 1)      it is a metaphor; 2)      from a human perspective, God’s love is reckless because it does not make sense; 3)     ...

A recent popular worship song has caused great controversy among worship leaders and churches. Cory Asbury’s “Reckless Love” has sparked debate far and wide. Arguments made both for the use of the word, reckless, are: 1)      it is a metaphor; 2)      from a human perspective, God’s love is reckless because it does not make sense; 3)     ...

A recent popular worship song has caused great controversy among worship leaders and churches. Cory Asbury’s “Reckless Love” has sparked debate far and wide. Arguments made both for the use of the word, reckless, are: 1)      it is a metaphor; 2)      from a human perspective, God’s love is reckless because it does not make sense; 3)     ...

A recent popular worship song has caused great controversy among worship leaders and churches. Cory Asbury’s “Reckless Love” has sparked debate far and wide. Arguments made both for the use of the word, reckless, are: 1)      it is a metaphor; 2)      from a human perspective, God’s love is reckless because it does not make sense; 3)     ...

Commonly referred to as Communion, the Eucharist, or even the Great Thanksgiving, the Lord’s Supper is one of two ordinances of the church and, thus, must be considered a serious and sacred act of worship. I recently had a conversation with another worship leader who said to me that the Lord’s Supper is not an act of worship. I was stunned, to say the least. If Communion is not an act of worsh...

Throughout my ministry, I have had some form of the following question: is it okay to use the music of ungodly composers and song-writers in your ministry? This question could certainly be asked of other Christian artists and creators such as authors and preachers. The question is likely not derived from thoughts of their work but rather their lives. In my experience, it has been asked out of a ge...

I was recently asked what my church’s hymn to contemporary congregational music ratio is. I keep a running chart and continuously update it so I knew the answer to that question; yet, it was apparent to me that the person asking did not understand the meaning of the words, hymn and contemporary. Most people would likely assume contemporary to mean in a modern style. Contemporary, however, denote...

Singing in Judeo-Christian worship has been essential for centuries. Even before the church-age, the Israelites utilized singing as a proper mechanism by which to worship God. It is surely not the only element in corporate worship, but it is important, nonetheless. As a worship leader, I have observed the worship practices of many congregations of God’s people. In my close workings within variou...

It is essential that Christians believe in many aspects of Jesus Christ; yet, one of the most fundamental is his resurrection. Christ’s resurrection from the dead is essential to not only salvation (Rom 10:9) but also to the way God’s people live their lives. Nevertheless, there are ways we often exercise practical denial of Jesus’ resurrection. By practical denial, I mean to imply not a lit...

In both Greek and Hebrew, the biblical words used for worship do not equate to music. Biblical worship refers to either 1) an attitude or a posture or 2) a service rendered. Abraham reveals the first use of the word in the Bible when he says, “. . . I and the boy will go over there and worship . . . ” (Gen 22:5 ESV). In essence, it could be said that music is but a small part of worship. Worsh...

For centuries, the church has utilized familiar tunes with variations of text in congregational worship. Those who have studied church music and hymnody are likely familiar with the crossover between texts, tunes, and meters. Only in recent years has it been common to associate a particular tune with only one set of text, e.g. Amazing Grace with the NEW BRITAIN tune; yet, there are marvelous benef...

Sunday, February 25, I interviewed a missionary to Africa, during his recent visit to West Texas. We discussed missions in general and his specific calling to a nomadic unreached people group.

The Apostle Paul tells believers to abstain from every form of evil (1 Thess 5:22). While the ESV reads, “form,” other translations read, “appearance,” e.g. the KJV, BRG, GNV, AKJV, and TPT. In the English language, form and appearance have two disparate meanings and implications. Paul’s instructions here are often stretched in manifold directions to fit one’s theological interpretatio...

In recent years, discussions of patriotism and nationalism have penetrated the boundaries of society and moved into the walls of the church to the point where falsely marrying the church to one side of the issue or another now regularly occurs. As a pastor and a worship leader, I desire to see all things through the grid of God’s glory; this includes the issue of patriotism and nationalism, whic...

Perhaps you have had heated conversations (with believers or non-believers) on seemingly controversial theological topics. As unified and loving Christians, a difficult aspect to our faith is learning how to handle disagreements. A few months ago, my commentary centered around orthodoxy and how we determine what is orthodox. I made the point that the older I get, the less orthodox items there are,...

[1] Many would say accept rather than receive. I choose the word, receive, for theological reasons. What is the best method of evangelism? I was raised in an evangelical Baptist church that not only believed in evangelism but also practiced it, and we utilized various methods of evangelism. A plurality of acronyms and methods were fed into my brain from an early age. One I remember is the FAITH me...

In this episode, Dr. Jones discusses the difficult of hearing from God and recognizing his voice. There are practical elements involved, but the discernment is usually up to the individual. How does God speak to you? Jonathan discusses these matters in this episode.

Many believers are raised being taught to tithe. What is the true meaning of the word, tithe, though? Dr. Jonathan Michael Jones examines the meaning of the word and discusses the difference in Old Testament and New Testament giving.