Scott Aniol

Scott Aniol is the founder and Executive Director of Religious Affections Ministries. He is Chair of the Worship Ministry Department at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, where he teaches courses in ministry, worship, hymnology, aesthetics, culture, and philosophy. He is the author of Worship in Song: A Biblical Approach to Music and Worship, Sound Worship: A Guide to Making Musical Choices in a Noisy World, and By the Waters of Babylon: Worship in a Post-Christian Culture, and speaks around the country in churches and conferences. He is an elder in his church in Fort Worth, TX where he resides with his wife and four children.

Author Archives: Scott Aniol

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

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

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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

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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

Bible movie reflections

Bible movie reflections

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Did you see The Bible movie produced for the History Channel? I confess to you that, being fully immersed in New Testament studies for going on two years now, my interest is peaked. Especially after reading some of the reviews, like the one I saw this morning which reads something like, “Hollywood Finally Got It… Continue Reading

Christ removes the shadows to reveal the reality

Christ removes the shadows to reveal the reality

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This entry is part 5 of 5 in the series The Building Blocks of Worship You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

I have been arguing that the basic building blocks of worship have existed ever since creation, were codified in the Mosaic system, and are actually pictures of heavenly reality. I have suggested that these building blocks follow this flow: (1) God reveals himself and initiates a relationship with his people; (2) God forms the boundaries of… Continue Reading

Shadows of reality

Shadows of reality

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This entry is part 4 of 5 in the series The Building Blocks of Worship You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

Last week I suggested that the establishment of the Jewish sacrificial system, tabernacle, and priesthood was a codification of worship elements that had been instituted in the Creation/Fall events. However, what the tabernacle also reveals is that these essential worship elements were not simply instituted at Creation, but are in fact representations of the essence… Continue Reading

Constructing Hebrew worship

Constructing Hebrew worship

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This entry is part 3 of 5 in the series The Building Blocks of Worship You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

In this series I have suggested that the building blocks of worship were established in the first few chapters of Genesis. To review, those building blocks are as follows: (1) God reveals himself and initiates a relationship with his people; (2) God forms the boundaries of the relationship with his commandments; (3) the nature of worship… Continue Reading

Distorting the building blocks of worship

Distorting the building blocks of worship

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This entry is part 2 of 5 in the series The Building Blocks of Worship You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

Last week I suggested that the basic building blocks of worship worship established in the creation/fall events: (1) God reveals himself and initiates a relationship with his people; (2) God forms the boundaries of the relationship with his commandments; (3) the nature of worship consists in this relationship of communion between man and his Creator; (4)… Continue Reading

The building blocks of worship

The building blocks of worship

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This entry is part 1 of 5 in the series The Building Blocks of Worship You can read more posts from the series by using the Contents in the right sidebar.

Synthesizing an essential definition of worship is a perennial problem. Many have tried, several have given us very helpful definitions, yet few are fully satisfactory. Part of the problem is trying to develop an understanding of worship that encompasses the essence of worship regardless of religion but that also incorporates a particularly biblical/Christian flavor as well. One… Continue Reading

Why else are we in this mess?

Why else are we in this mess?

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I suggested last week, springing from Kevin Bauder’s excellent article, that one of the reasons worship is in such trouble today is that pastors who should be the primary leaders of worship are often ill-educated in matters of worship and music. I suggested that while pastors used to give careful attention to the leading of… Continue Reading

Culture doesn’t just change

Culture doesn’t just change

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I received an email a few days ago asking what I thought about a few particular contemporary Christian songs. The individual mentioned that he thought that hymns have always been simply reflections of whatever music existed in the current culture, and that these songs were no different. I’ve copied my reply to him below in… Continue Reading

Why are we in this mess?

Why are we in this mess?

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One of the most frequent questions I get as I travel the country or through email is why I think worship has so many problems today. The simple answer is sin–worship has always had problems because worshipers are sinners. But there are, I think, specific reasons for the current problems we face today, problems that we should… Continue Reading

The road from interpretation to application

The road from interpretation to application

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Last week at the Annual Evangelical Theological Society meeting, the theme of the meeting was “Creation Care.” This is not a subject that I find particularly interesting, but in the final plenary session, Doug Moo made a point that was quite helpful and that applies to areas that I am certainly interested in. In the… Continue Reading

The problem with defining worship in any way by physical response

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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

Inward affirmation that our worship is acceptable to God?

Inward affirmation that our worship is acceptable to God?

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There is an interesting conversation taking place in response to my post last week about “authenticity” in worship. The question revolves around affirmation from God that our worship is indeed acceptable. The question is, if we choose to do something in worship, and God affirms in our hearts that it is acceptable to him, how… Continue Reading

Authenticity

Authenticity

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There is a cry today for authenticity in worship. This comes in several different forms, but most commonly it relates to worship and music style compared to the prevailing culture and an individual Christian’s tastes, and it is usually used as the foundation for arguments that every generation needs their own songs and that people… Continue Reading

An argument for weekly Table observance

An argument for weekly Table observance

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We are having some enjoyable discussions this week about the meaning and significance of the Lord’s Table in Christian worship. I have been suggesting that part of what the Table pictures is the communion we have, not only with Christ, but also with other believers because of our unity in Christ. This is why I… Continue Reading

Christian fellowship as part of corporate worship

Christian fellowship as part of corporate worship

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Yesterday I suggested that some kind of expression of union between brothers in Christ should be part of corporate worship, particularly as part of the observance of the Table, which is a celebration of our union with Christ and each other through him. I suggested that in the early centuries this was a kiss of… Continue Reading

A biblical defense of the handshake chorus

A biblical defense of the handshake chorus

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OK, so I’m not really going to defend the handshake chorus as it’s practiced today. But I did want to address the importance and tradition of expressing fellowship among believers in the context of a worship service. Those with a more God-centered philosophy of church services (as opposed to a seeker philosophy or one more centered… Continue Reading