True Worship

by Vaughan Roberts

What is the nature of true worship? What are we actaully doing when we meet together for 'church' on Sundays? And how does that connect with what we do the rest of the week? Vaughan Roberts answers these questions and more, as he brings readers back to the Bible in order to define what worship is and isn't, and what it should and shouldn't be. While we may struggle to define worship by arguing about singing hymns with the organ, versus modern songs with guitars and drums, or about the place of certain spiritual gifts, Roberts suggests we are asking the wrong questions. For true worship is more than this, —it is to encompass the whole of life. This book challenges us to worship God every day of the week, with all our heart, mind, soul and strength.

Genres: Christian, Theology, Nonfiction, Christian Living, Church

106 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2001

About the author

Vaughan came to faith as he read through Matthew’s Gospel for himself as a teenager. After studying law at Cambridge University and a brief spell doing student ministry in South Africa, he moved to Oxford to study Theology at Wycliffe Hall and has lived in the city ever since. In 1991 he joined the staff of St Ebbe’s Church to lead the student ministry and since 1998 he has been Rector. He is also the Director of the Proclamation Trust, an organisation that encourages and equips Bible teachers. In his spare time Vaughan writes books and plays cricket and golf.

see also Vaughan Roberts' sister Clare Heath-Whyte

Reviews

[Tracey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book draws from the Bible as its authority, which I thought was great. It helps explain that "worship" is not synonymous with "singing" or a type of music. It helped me to understand that worshipping God is not something that should be done only on Sunday morning, but that the best way to worship God is with our lives, by being living sacrifices for God.

[Matthew Orr · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very helpful and challenging read that speaks of worship as being more than songs - rather, it’s us offering all of ourselves in response to the sacrifice that Christ has made for us and the forgiveness that we’ve undeservedly received as a result. Really great book to help us understand why the Lord’s Supper is significant and why sung worship is still important even though it isn’t the absolute definition of worship itself.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m so glad I read this practical little theology book! It challenged me to think more deeply about what it means to worship God and about what we do when we gather at church as believers. I really don’t think I have thought about these topics to the extent they deserve, and I hope thus book will continue to sharpen my thinking and shape my actions moving forward.

[Andrew · Rating 2 out of 5]

Roberts crucially responds to some very deceptive ideas about Christian worship, including the confluence of faith and emotion, worship as a means for our justification, and isolationist behaviors of worshipers. This is all very helpful. However, what is unhelpful are the prevalent logical and symantec inconsistencies when he discusses the premise that church gatherings are not primarily for worshiping God, but rather for Christians encouraging each other. He regularly forgets to clarify that while, yes, we no longer worship God to obtain justification, we still worship him out of response to the gospel. His writing seems to point to the idea that we don’t need to worship God in gatherings because we’re already justified, even if that worship is not intended to be our means of justification but rather a response to its being done and therefore an act of sanctification. This quote is a good example:

“When we meet together as believers, we
do not need to offer anything to God to
improve our relationship with him. The New
Testament does refer to sacrifices that we offer
as Christians. They include giving praise, and
the offering of our lives to God. But none of
those sacrifices secure a relationship with God;
they do not achieve atonement. They are
simply responses to the one perfect sacrifice
Christ offered for us.” pg. 35

The sacrifices he mentions from the New Testament and in that last sentence are precisely acts of worship, they just happen to be in response to justification not the means of it. Robert’s spends pages advocating that worship is not the prime objective of church meetings, simply because we’re already justified, but he doesn’t acknowledge that the things he then advocates churches do in those meetings (i.e. encourage one another) are still acts of worship.

Overall a decent book, but just a heads up to the pitfalls of the apparent views of this book.

[Michael Liebler · Rating 5 out of 5]

What do you think of when you think of the word worship 🤔? Is there a church involved ⛪️? Is there music 🎶? Are there hands raised in the air 🙌🏼?
•
Did you know that the church is not a place that we should go to worship God? Rather, it’s a place we should go to continue worshipping Him 💫!
•
Worship means showing love for Christ by living for Him in all areas of life . And this cannot be limited to certain buildings or designated “holy places” 😇.
•
If we want to meet with God, we do not need to go to any temple on earth 🛐. Instead, we are simply to trust in Christ, who offers us direct access to His Father in Heaven ⬆️.
•
True worship is the offering to God of all that we have and are 🤲, in grateful response to Christ’s offering of Himself for us ✝️.
•
This book is riddled with scripture and insightful teaching on worshipping God with our lives. I recommend it 👍🏼.

[Olanma Ogbuehi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick review. A good starter looking at what the bible classifies as Christian worship and how Christians should practice this as a whole life activity in response to God's mercy towards us, flowing from gratitude. Worship is all that we do in life, motivated by knowing Christ as our Lord and Saviour. A helpful reminder for someone who is part of a music team in church. Good to refute the things that worship is not! The worship leader is not a priest responsible for bringing people into God's presence in a special way (contrary to popular belief). This applies to contemporary music styles as much as to traditional organ music or even chanting or exclusive psalmody. Church is not place to obtain liver shivers by engaging in modern or ancient liturgies.😊

Makes me want to go a bit deeper, so will pick up Peterson's book, "Engaging with God" again.

[Neil Richardson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truly mind-expanding book on the nature of true worship. Why do we meet together as believers in Christ? What happens when we’re not doing that? Roberts argues powerfully that “we do not meet to worship God so much as to encourage one another that we might be equipped to worship God better with the whole of our lives.”

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. I learned a lot and it helped me to gain good perspective on what biblical worship is. I think we humans can get very focused on one part and miss the full picture of what worship is. We also don't think seriously about what is being said by people leading worship and a number of incorrect statements can lead to incorrect beliefs.

[Sylvain Coquerel · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author challenges our view of worship.
Through a careful analysis of different biblical texts he presents a view of worship that invades your whole life rather than just one day.

A very encouraging yet challenging read.

[Rachel Svendsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. It focuses on how worship is so much more than singing a song in church.

[Josue · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book is full of very important truths to keep in mind.

A few things were concerning. For example, Roberts could have been more clear when he says that Jesus came to put an end to religion. Truly, Jesus put an end to physical sacrifices and mediating priests, but He did not put an end to pure and undefiled "religion" (cf. James 1:27).

Elsewhere (I can't find the exact page number), He seemed to present a false dichotomy between glorifying God and edifying others. I believe we glorify God *as* we edify others. The same false dichotomy is slightly evident between worshiping God and serving others (though he clarifies elsewhere that everything we do is worship). Thus my goal when gathering with my church family is always to glorify and worship God *as* I edify the church. I'm pretty sure Roberts agrees; he just could have made it more clear.

There were a couple other concerns I had, but as a whole this was an excellent book.

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

By the end of this book, I was very encouraged. A very good little treatise on what biblical "worship" actually is, and how corporate gatherings of the church fit into that. The book does a very good, concise job of giving music its true place in the church, rather than what many contemporary churches have made it.

[Jeni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clear, practical & reasoned view. This is how the church is supposed to "worship," and it's not something we do in a special building on Sunday. Everyone in ministry should read this at least once, and perhaps annually as a reminder that the music, liturgy and even sermon are not what we are called to do as the "kingdom of God." Don't go to church; BE the church.

[Garrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an exceptional book on worship, starting with the understanding that all of life is worship and then digging into what corporate worship is all about. I'm happy he spends a good amount of time on the Lord's Table, something that too many worship writers ignore or brush over. Very minor complaint is the author is a bit nitpicky at times. Overall, a great book.

[Jacky · Rating 4 out of 5]

V. clear and succinct book on Christian worship, with helpful theological guide on expanding worship from the church to every aspect of our lives. Good to pick up if you've just been saved, or have never understood the concept of 'true worship'!

[Elvendork · Rating 5 out of 5]

http://indekerk.be/2013/06/14/true-wo...

[Jonathan Huggins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good intro book for readers who have never thought much about why Christians worship the way we do.

[Lori · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good reminder of the nature of Christian worship. It's not about us.