Does God Care How We Worship?

by J. Ligon Duncan III

Does God care how we worship? For thousands of years, believers have answered with a resounding yes! Ever since the days of Cain and Abel, God has emphasized right worship, and it\x27s clear that careless worship can have serious consequences.

Worship consciously regulated by God\x27s Word is a distinct characteristic of the Reformed church. Yet today many churches do not understand that both the Old and New Testaments have much to say about appropriate worship before God. Ligon Duncan lays the foundations of the regulative principle in worship, providing full biblical support as well as historical context. He also answers Is this \x26#34;right worship\x26#34; essentially European? Is it flexible to different churches and contexts? Is it really still applicable today?

Originally published in Give Praise to A Vision for Reforming Worship (P\x26R Publishing, 2003). Content has been edited for this new format.

Genres: Theology, Ecclesiology, Church, Christian, Faith, Spirituality

88 pages, Paperback

Published March 6, 2020

About the author

Ligon Duncan is the Senior Minister of the historic First Presbyterian Church (1837), Jackson, Mississippi, President of the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals, Chairman of the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, Convener of the Twin Lakes Fellowship, and Adjunct Professor at Reformed Theological Seminary. He served as the 32nd Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in America (2004-2005), the youngest minister ever to fill that post.

Reviews

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

There is much wisdom and food for thought in this little book. Highly recommended!

“Read the Bible, preach the Bible, sing the Bible, and pray the Bible (corporately).”

[Colby Savary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Concise and very practical look at why the regulative principle of worship is the most Biblical and founded in scripture and how to best go about using it to form worship services. A really encouraging read and helpful as a new music director for my church! Duncan is very clear in his writing with lots of good personality shining through as well!

[Dakoda Kilzer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book works through the regulative principle, which is the idea that God provides specific instructions for corporate worship in Scripture. Mainly, the regulative principle says corporate worship requires (and is potentially limited to) the reading of Scripture, preaching of Scripture, singing of Scripture, praying of Scripture and the sacraments (the Lord's Supper and Baptism). Ligon Duncan argues there is flexibility within this structure, but variance historically leads to issues that hurt the church and its congregation. Duncan explores the following texts to prove that God cares how we worhsip: Colossians 2, 1 Corinthians 14, the Israelites & Golden Calf, and Christ's interactions with the Samaritan woman and Pharisees. Overall, the book is a little bit too academic, but it helps the church-goer think through corporate worship.

[Rachel Winkler · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great introduction to and explanation of the regulative principle of Reformed worship! Very short and easy read, but Duncan packs a punch into very few words. I especially enjoyed the first half of the book grounding the reader in the second commandment as a foundation for understanding that how we worship is of utmost importance.

[Rachel Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short and helpful in considering the importance of what the Bible says about how we are to worship.
“Divine revelation must control our idea of God…the only way that God’s revelation can remain foremost in our thinking about God is if God’s revelation also controls our worship of God.”

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent. A concise defense of the regulative principle of worship.

[Jonah Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ligon is so winsome, and clear. His aim is to show that the Reformed Regulative Principle of Worship is not limiting, contrary to modern evangelical thought, but actually freeing. Can any given circumstance or element be permitted in worship (drum or guitar solo/screens, lights, smoke machines)? Man would say, as long as it is worshipful. But who gets to decide what is worshipful? Only the one being worshiped. God himself prescribes the way in which he is worshiped-that is, in Spirit and in Truth (John 4), and not with strange fire (Leviticus 10). God’s revelation given to us in his sacred word frees the worshiper from the imagination and devices of men, and thus, from all the various idolatries flowing out of the hearts and minds of men.

There is more meat in these 88 pages than some worship books have in 200+, and unlike the others, for this little book, you don’t have to spit out any bones. You’ll want to digest all of it, savor it, and come back for seconds as you navigate the theology of worship for your congregation.

[Salvador Blanco · Rating 5 out of 5]

Concise, but every sentence carries purpose. Wonderful introduction to the regulative principle (we don't just let what God forbids inform our corporate worship. One needs positive warrant from scripture, 14-15).

Favorite quotes:

"How we worship determines whom we worship" (29).

"We become like how we worship" (59).

"Corporate worship dictates the quality of worship in all of life and compels our carefulness (64).

"The regulative principle is designed to secure the believer's freedom from the dominion of human opinion in worship" (66).

"There is a god we want and the God who is, and the two are not the same" (72).

"Christian corporate worship is Father-focused, Christ-centered, and Spirit-enabled" (Eph. 1:3-14) (ibid).

"Praise decentralizes self" (76).

"Read the Bible, preach the Bible, pray the Bible, sing the Bible, and see the Bible" (77).

[Chris Land · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yes, God does care about how He is worshipped. This book is a short yet simple guide into how we should worship the Lord.

[Jamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

**SPOILER ALERT** Yes, God does care how we worship. I love a good regulative principle read! Grateful for Dr Duncan's writing!

[Cody Hamilton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dr. Duncan shows the reliability of the regulative principle of worship in this work. His thoughts are direct, well stated, and gracious. Though short in length, this book contains a well formed and powerful argument.

In sum, the answer is Yes. God does care how we worship.

[Blake Laberee · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful concise handling of the regulative principle of worship.

[Austin Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great little book! Dense, it was a challenge not highlighting every page. Great primer for the regulative principle for worship. Read, preach, pray, sing, and see the Bible!





Presby?

[Parker James Lipetska · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yes

[Matthew Tam]

Verbose, but the content is well worth pondering that it makes it hard not to recommend. The first part offers decent evidence on using Scripture as the basis for our worship. The second part gives doctrines and ideals grounded in Scripture which reinforce this idea and how the application of the practice looks like.

A book of admonishment and encouragement.

[Christian Barrett · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is all about the Regulative Principle. Essentially Duncan presents it, and argues for why he believes that Christian worship to is to be totally based off what the Bible prescribes. For someone who is interested in understanding this principle this would be a good starting point, but it is not exhaustive by any means. Duncan does not take any objections or questions, thus this book only gets 3 stars. If he would have spent some time looking at objections made to the Regulative Principle I think it would have strengthened his argument. Nonetheless a quality read and I have a better understanding of it now.

[Ivan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read the Bible, preach the Bible, sing the Bible, pray the Bible.

[John-Jennifer Divito · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Does God Care How We Worship?, Ligon Duncan summarizes the Regulative Principle of Worship (RPW) in the Reformed theological tradition and applies this principle to how Christ's churches should worship according to God's Word today. Duncan's booklet is actually an edited version of his two chapters in the larger work Give Praise to God: A Vision for Reforming Worship, edited by Philip Graham Ryken, Derek W.H. Thomas, and J. Ligon Duncan III. For those not familiar with the RPW or those looking for a brief review of its main features, this brief treatment will help you to navigate essential questions on Christian worship.

I am thankful for Duncan's biblically grounded study. He succeeds in proving that the RPW is drawn from Scripture and is not simply a historical development of the Puritans. His regular appeals to God's Word will cause the thoughtful reader to see why Reformed believers care so deeply about worshiping God rightly, countering the inaccurate perception that we are too concerned with minor matters in the worship of Christ's churches.

As an overview on the RPW, Duncan's treatment is both easy-to-understand and informative. While he doesn't get into many of the "weeds" of intramural Reformed debates on the RPW, such concerns would quickly distract the reader from recognizing the central and foundational truths upheld by the RPW. At the same time, I was pleased to see Duncan briefly critiquing John Frame's approach by maintaining the distinction between corporate worship and "all of life" worship. Worshipping as the church gathered together on the Lord's Day is different than worshipping as Christians throughout the week, and Duncan explains this well throughout his book.

Therefore, I commend this booklet as a helpful introduction and defense of the RPW. My hope is that Duncan's work will lead to an increased appreciation and adoption of the RPW as well as a deeper study of what it means for God's people to worship Him acceptably with reverence and godly fear, for our God is a consuming fire (Heb. 28:28-29).

Let me end this brief review and recommendation with Duncan's own words explaining why the RPW is so important for Christ's church:

"The key benefit of the regulative principle is that it helps to assure that God—not man—is the supreme authority for how corporate worship is the be conducted, by assuring that the Bible, God's own special revelation (and not our own opinions, tastes, likes, and theories), is the prime factor in our conduct and approach to corporate worship" (16).

[Jonathan Meijering · Rating 5 out of 5]

"True piety manifests itself in humble obedience to God's Word in our expression of worship and thus urges us to worship that is wholly in accord with Scripture."

This short but dense book sets forth the 'regulative principle' which argues that we must worship God in the way that he has revealed himself and the way he has commanded us to worship Him in His word. The answer to the question in the title of the book is an emphatic yes and the author argues this by highlighting things such as the second commandment, Israel's repeated idolatry and Jesus' explanation of new-covenant worship as well as his rebuke of the Pharisees.

An example of wrong worship in the New Testament which Duncan mentions (there are many examples) is Matthew 15:1-14 in which the Pharisees misuse God's commandments and add to it by referring to their own man-made laws, to which Jesus responds, among other things, by quoting Isaiah 29:13:
"This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far away from Me. But in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men."

True worship is done "in spirit and in truth" (John 4:23-24). The way you might simplify worshiping in truth is to "worship the God who is, not the God you want". But how can we as creatures know the Creator when he cannot fit in our small minds? By faith in God's own revelation which is why "...the Bible is to be our rule for how we worship God, because the Bible is our rule for how we are to think about God—and how we worship in turn impacts our concept of God."

"But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word." (Isaiah 66:2)

The person that God longs for is the person who is humble and contrite (poor) in spirit, the one who recognizes and admits to God that he is needy, sick and sinful and these words from Isaiah are reflected in Jesus' first words in the sermon on the mount:
"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 5:3)

[Ryan Hawkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

A helpful little book defending the Reformed regulative principle of worship. In the first half, Duncan shows that God, from Old to New Testaments, does care how we worship. In the second half, he then gives a bunch of biblical foundational realities that would lead us to accept the regulative principle.

As for the positives:

The best take-away from the entire book is when he described the regulative principle as “Read the Bible, preach the Bible, pray the Bible, sing the Bible, see the Bible” (77). If one just aims to do that in their services, then they will do well. I will remember this, and as I plan services in the future, each one will be taken into consideration. (By “see the Bible” he is referring to the sacraments as visible words.)

I also loved how he proved that the *how* really matters. How we worship influences how we view God, and so it influences *whom* we worship—a profound point. On this, he said brilliantly, “Often we hear, and agree with, the dictum that “we become like what we worship,” but the Reformed understanding of worship teaches us that it is also true that “we become like *how* we worship” (59).

Finally, I loved his last five adjectives he used to describe worship this way: simple, biblical, transferable, flexible, and reverent.

As for the negatives:

The biggest negative was his section on the NT in the first half. He expounded the OT really well, giving great insights into some of the famous OT stores about *how* to worship, but he didn’t do as well in the NT. He could’ve, it seems to me, mentioned a lot more texts that would’ve been compelling here. Instead, his arguments from Jesus and then Paul in Collosians and Corinth weren’t too convincing—and ironically, it was because they weren’t tethered to specific words and verses, but more just broad principles he found in the texts.

Moreover, I thought his writing was not the best. A lot of parenthesis, confusing at times. Not that it makes this book not worth reading. But it is unfortunate because I can see people not finishing it because it’s pretty tough to read at times.

Overall, though, a good book. I’ll remember the positive principles listed above. They are very helpful.

[Pig Rieke · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Ligon Duncan’s Does God Care How We Worship, the pastor answers his query with an overwhelming affirmation of “Yes!” While this truth has been regularly forgotten and recovered in the history of Israel and the Church, Duncan does well to remind his readers of this truth. While many Christians would agree with the author’ thesis in theory, in practice the inventions of man reign. There is a reason that many Christians speak of churches in the same way they do ice-cream. God’s word has been neglected as the criteria for the Sunday assembling of the saints. By God’s grace may Duncan’s book be used to remind Christians that their corporate duty is to “read the Bible, preach the Bible, pray the Bible, sing the Bible, and see the Bible.”

[Samuel Kassing · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short introduction to and defense of the "the regulative principle of worship (RPW).

I don't know if it would convince anyone who wasn't already convinced of the RPW but this is a good positive construal of the RPW. Duncan isn't rude or needlessly denigrating to others.

The book is two chapters long and both chapters were taken from a longer festschrift for James Boice.

Overall this is a quality book that seeks to show how the RPW is grounded in exegetical and Biblical theology and has pastoral concerns at its heart.

I'd recommend it to someone who is looking to understand the RPW.

[Jono Spear · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75. A short introduction to the regulative principle—read the Bible, sing the Bible, pray the Bible, preach the Bible, and see the Bible. I was happy to see very early in this book Duncan state that corporate worship is a subset under the doctrine of the church, so I expected at least an explanation of the doctrine of the church to start. But it didn’t really come until the latter half, and even then, it was about one page. To be fair, this book isn’t meant to be an ecclesiology book, but I think it would have made his argument much more substantial. Regardless, there are lots of great insights on the content and form of worship and how it should be regulated by Scripture itself.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

This small book covers the basic principles of corporate worship - what does God think about it, what does he command, what limitations does he put on it? This book takes a high view of the Scriptural text and outlines the Biblical requirements for worship.

Duncan gives a strong case that worshipping God in our own ways is a form of idolatry and gives a strong positive case for Biblical worship. Not a certain style or with a long list of specifics, but basic Biblical principles that can guide appropriate worship in a variety of cultural contexts, pleasing to God and honoring to His Name. I recommend this book to anyone involved in the planning or leading of worship services.

[Ashley Tegart · Rating 4 out of 5]

A helpful look at the biblical basis for the regulative principle of worship! I wish it had been longer as I think some points could have used more detail. But I really appreciated the basic premise.

[Joon Park · Rating 5 out of 5]

God honoring book on church worship. Recommend for all Christians. “Read the Bible, preach the Bible, pray the Bible, sing the Bible and see the Bible.”(sacraments). “Corporate worship manifesto then should be sola scripture and soli deo gloria!”

[Parker · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent and accessible argument for the Regulative Principle.

[Brian Pate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good defense of the regulative principle in worship, though I wish he had spent more time on explaining what it is (and what it’s not).

[Steven Robertson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent discussion of the regulative principle of worship.

[Aaron Cannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Duncan dives into the theology of worship and faithfully looks to Scripture in every single page for what worship ought to look like. In the first half of the book, he aims to prove that God does care how we worship (sorry if that is a spoiler). In the second half of the book, he tries to explain what Biblical worship should look like.

Overall, the book was very Biblical but also very academic and dry. It was filled with truth though it seemed he did repeat himself a lot (both a good and bad thing). I found the first half of the book helpful, once I got through it. The second half also had good principles though some of his arguments either weren't clear or almost seemed contradictory (probably because it wasn't always easy to follow). Definitely a good and helpful book but don't expect it to be the easiest read.