Theology of Worship Part 10: The Structure of Worship—The Historic Fourfold Oder (The Gospel Order)

Act of Worship

An important element to consider in especially the planning of worship is the threefold aspect of content, purpose, and style.[1] Through the order the church employs and the narrative told within such an order, the story of God should be told as a dialogue between God and his people. Through artistic elements and centered around the text of Scripture, leaders of worship have the responsibility of leading the church in honoring worship of the living triune God.

Content includes the material of the Christian worship gathering and the mode in which it is exercised. At a fundamental level, the content of worship is the story of God. The gospel must be proclaimed in Christian worship and not only echoed back to God but told between believers so as not to neglect the horizontal aspect of worship (not only vertical).

Moreover, the purpose of worship (broadly speaking) is the glory of God so all occurrences within the worship gathering should serve such a purpose. Filler material, often disguised as spiritual activities (e.g. prayer, speaking and teaching theological truths about congregational songs, etc.), should be erased from worship gatherings as they do not serve an intentional purpose.[2]

Content and purpose are nonnegotiable. Style is the only negotiable element of the three discussed here but only to an extent. Style is negotiable insofar as context and culture allows it to be. Leaders of worship should make every effort to ensure the enhancement and conductivity of God’s people to worship. If style impacts the ability of the local church to worship, stylistic elements should be reconsidered. Style is not about leaders’ (or congregants’) preferences. Style is merely a tool to worship God.

When content, purpose, and style are intentionally contemplated, the church’s worship is built upon a stable foundation. This chapter will examine all three elements with the aim of deliberate planning for leaders of worship.

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[1] In his book, Planning Blended Worship, Robert Webber includes structure, but this text considers the three mentioned here as an overarching part of structure.

[2] That is not to say that those elements cannot exist but rather that leaders of worship should be careful that every word and action employed in the gathering subsists for the sole purpose of worship.