H.B. Charles Jr. - On Worship: A Short Guide to Understanding, Participating in, and Leading Corporate Worship

2022 by
H.B. CHARLES JR.

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Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version), Copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

All emphasis in Scripture has been added.

Some of this material has been used previously on the authors blog, https://hbcharlesjr.com/.

Edited by Cheryl Molin

Interior design: Ragont Design

Cover design: Erik M. Peterson

Author photo: Derrick Wilson

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Charles, H. B., author.

Title: On worship : a short guide to understanding, participating in, and leading corporate worship / H.B. Charles, Jr.

Description: Chicago : Moody Publishers, [2022] | Includes bibliographical references. | Summary: On Worship casts a vision for the biblical principles and practices of worship. Pastors and leaders will learn what the Bible teaches about worship and why it is so important to be thoughtful about its practices. Youll also learn how to think practically through preparing and executing corporate worship services so that you can lead your congregation to worship wholeheartedly in spirit and truth-- Provided by publisher.

Identifiers: LCCN 2022000958 (print) | LCCN 2022000959 (ebook) | ISBN 9780802419941 (paperback) | ISBN 9780802498861 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: Public worship. | BISAC: RELIGION / Christian Rituals & Practice / Worship & Liturgy | RELIGION / Christian Ministry / Pastoral Resources

Classification: LCC BV15 .C4155 2022 (print) | LCC BV15 (ebook) | DDC 264--dc23/eng/20220128

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022000958

LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2022000959

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To my father, H.B. Charles Sr., and my mother, Ellen L. Charles, who taught me to live, serve, and worship to the glory of God

Friend,

Thank you for choosing to read this Moody Publishers title. It is our hope and prayer that this book will help you to know Jesus Christ more personally and love Him more deeply.

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I pitched the idea of writing this book. I thought it would be a book I could write quickly and then move on to other projects. I overestimated myself and underestimated the subject. Worship is not about worship. It is about God. Christianity is truth-driven. Therefore, preaching and teaching are essential to our faith. But the goal of our pursuit of truth is proper worship, not merely proper understanding. When done correctly, theology leads to doxology.

To be honest, this little book was hard to write because of the breadth of the subject and its depth. I have written previously on preaching and pastoring. I believe I have a biblical philosophy of these ministry subjects. After more than thirty years of experience in pastoring a church and preaching each week, I feel comfortable writing about those subjects. Who, truly, is competent to write about worship? And if writers feel confident that worship is a subject they have thoroughly mastered, should we be reading what they think?

I grew up in church. My father was the pastor, and my mother was the minister of music. I was at church every time the doors were open. And believe me, they were open a lot. The cool kids sat in the overflow section. I sat right up front, near the deacons, in front of the musical instruments. At an early age, I accepted that I had no choice but to attend church and participate in the services. So I tried to make the most of my sentence by paying attention to what was going on. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ gripped my heart and has not let me go.

Throughout my life, I have participated in countless worship services. The services have always moved my heart. But I did not always understand what we did or why we did it. As a result, much of my spiritual journey has been refining my worship to fit biblical principles. Pastoring for three decades has intensified this process. Many in the church are like me. The details of our stories are different, but for all of us, our upbringing ran ahead of our convictions. Tradition rather than truth governed worship. We had an experience without understanding.

This book is written to help church leaders and members think through biblical principles and practices of worship. On Worship is not a theological treatise, biblical study, or comprehensive handbook on worship. (For more thorough treatments of the subject, check out the reading suggestions at the end of this book.) Like my previous books, On Preaching and On Pastoring, this book is more like a compass than a road map. It seeks to point you in the right direction.

The two previous books were written directly to pastors. However, I have written this book in hopes that a wider audience will also find it helpful. The chapters are short and the book is divided into three sections. First, we will talk about the what and why of worship. Then we discuss the practice of worship. Finally, I will offer some counsel to those who lead worship. I pray you will find this work beneficial, whether you are a pastor-teacher, worship leader, or lay member. I pray that On Worship will help you grow in your understanding, leadership, and offering of worship to the glory of God.