Tag Archives: Edwards

Roots of Evangelical Worship: Early American Revival

Roots of Evangelical Worship: Early American Revival

Along with German Pietism, revival in early America contributed to what would become distinctive Evangelical worship. American democracy itself had both positive and negative effects for Christianity and its worship. On the positive side, the new world provided freedom for the new colonists to worship according to their convictions rather than state mandate, which is why… Continue Reading

Charity and its Fruits by Jonathan Edwards

Charity and its Fruits by Jonathan Edwards

Although I have been writing this series of posts intermittently for two years now, I have yet to recommend a book by the man who inspired the name of this ministry. Jonathan Edwards’ book Religious Affections is indeed a book you ought to read. But that’s not the book I want to recommend now. In… Continue Reading

Edwards, the imagination, music, and the sacraments

Edwards, the imagination, music, and the sacraments

Jonathan Edwards has some fairly well-developed theories of art and aesthetics that can inform discussions of Christian aesthetics today. In particular, Edwards discussed the importance of the imagination, which he saw as a sign of the work of the Holy Spirit since it helps believers perceive spiritual reality. Here is a relevant passage from Experiencing God:… Continue Reading

Congratulations to Ryan Martin

Congratulations to Ryan Martin

Ryan Martin, regular contributor to Religious Affections Ministries, has successfully defended his dissertation. His Ph.D. will be conferred officially on May 11, but (for what it’s worth) he can already claim to be Dr. Martin. As with most dissertations, Ryan’s title was long and convoluted: “‘A Soul Inflamed with High Exercises of Divine Love:’ Affections… Continue Reading

The Chief End of God and the <i>Missio Dei</i>

The Chief End of God and the <i>Missio Dei</i>

This entry is part 2 of 5 in the series Worship and the Missio Dei You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

Edwards’s discussion of “Ends” presented last week provides a framework for determining both God’s chief end and his mission. Using Edward’s categories, God’s chief end constitutes his absolute ultimate end, and the missio Dei is the highest consequential ultimate end that serves as God’s primary means to his chief end. Where worship and redemption fit… Continue Reading

Ultimate and Subordinate Ends

Ultimate and Subordinate Ends

This entry is part 1 of 5 in the series Worship and the Missio Dei You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

There is a lot of talk today about the Missio Dei–the mission of God. God is a sending God, the principle states, and the church–including its worship–is but part of that mission. Worship, therefore, serves mission. This series will evaluate this claim and articulate a biblical relationship between worship and mission. There is perhaps a no… Continue Reading

The problem with defining worship in any way by physical response

I’ve been teaching recently about the differences between Jonathan Edwards and Charles Finney. In most ways, these men, their philosophies, theologies, and practices are polar opposites. But if you study what these men wrote, you can’t  help but notice what appear to be similarities in what they said. And the deeper you look, the more… Continue Reading

How Can We Conserve Biblical Worship? Part 3

How Can We Conserve Biblical Worship? Part 3

Conservative Christians will be committed to worship forms that foster ordinate affection toward God. Commitment to the Regulative Principles of Worship solves the question of what we will include in our corporate worship, but it doesn’t necessarily address how we will do it. Conservatives have always recognized that while the Bible clearly prescribes what elements… Continue Reading

Why trying to emulate Edwards may actually be emulating Finney

I’ve been doing some reading recently from both Jonathan Edwards and Charles Finney. In most ways, these men, their philosophies, theologies, and practices are polar opposites. But as I studied, I couldn’t help but notice what appear to be similarities in what they said. And the deeper I looked, the more apparent it became that… Continue Reading

A Well-Known Calvinist Repudiates the Charismaticism and Worldly Worship of "New Calvinism."

A Well-Known Calvinist Repudiates the Charismaticism and Worldly Worship of "New Calvinism."

“The new Calvinists constantly extol the Puritans, but they do not want to worship or live as they did. One of the vaunted new conferences is called Resolved, after Jonathan Edwards’ famous youthful Resolutions (seventy searching undertakings). But the culture of this conference would unquestionably have met with the outright condemnation of that great theologian.”… Continue Reading

Correcting Categories, Part 9 – the Church Today

Correcting Categories, Part 9 – the Church Today

Today, the influences of Modernism, Revivalism, and Charismaticism in the Church’s understanding of the purpose and function of music in worship cannot be overestimated. First, because of Modernism, most Christian fail to understand the nature of emotion in human spirituality and worship. Most Christians see no fundamental distinction between a response of the affections and… Continue Reading

Correcting Categories, Part 5 – Biblical Anthroplogy

Correcting Categories, Part 5 – Biblical Anthroplogy

My goal in this series is to help believers apply the Bible to their musical choices in life and worship. My contention is, however, that believers today approach the issue of musical choices with certain errant foundational presuppositions that need to be corrected before they can rightly apply the Bible in this area. So my… Continue Reading

Correcting Categories, Part 4 – Dissecting Emotion

Correcting Categories, Part 4 – Dissecting Emotion

My goal in this series is to help believers apply the Bible to their musical choices in life and worship. My contention is, however, that believers today approach the issue of musical choices with certain errant foundational presuppositions that need to be corrected before they can rightly apply the Bible in this area. So my… Continue Reading

Men Without Chests

Men Without Chests

The following are quotes from the first chapter of The Abolition of Man by C. S. Lewis: “Until quite modern times all teachers and even all men believed the universe to be such that certain emotional reactions on our part could be either congruous or incongruous to it—believed, in fact, that objects did not merely… Continue Reading

Apollo vs. Dionysus

Apollo vs. Dionysus

A music theorist whom I have found very helpful is Manfred Clynes. Clynes argues that music communicates through its natural connection with emotion. I can best explain Clynes’ theories at this point by quoting from “Music Hath Charms . . .” by Iaian D. Edgwater in Biocultural Approaches to the Emotions edited by Alexander Laban… Continue Reading