“The Christian life begins when a Copernican revolution takes place when I remove myself from the center of the universe and recognize that God alone reigns there (Matt. 16:24; Rom. 12:1–2). Nowhere should this revolution be more obvious than in the worship of the church.”
-Terry Johnson, “God-Centered Worship,” Tabletalk Magazine
Dear Christian,
The historic Christian worldview—distinguished by its God-centeredness—unites biblical worship and biblical discipleship. In the life of the flourishing Christian, one cannot exist without the other. Fifteen years ago, Johnson’s insightful quote above was written to awaken the church to the God-centered nature of biblical worship. However, today many churches continue to struggle to produce worship services which assert this truth amidst pressures to conform to an increasingly secular, self-centered, and subjective-minded culture. Addressing these concerns, Cultivating God-Centered Worship exists to equip leaders and laypersons to realize the historic Christian worldview in the twenty-first century church.
As an introduction to existing and forthcoming material on this site, during the pandemic of 2020-21, I am producing several short teaching videos to be featured on the home page. I hope each of these will encourage and challenge you toward the building of God-centered worship. New videos and articles will be released to subscribers via email. If you would like to subscribe, please enter your email address in the column on the right. Welcome, and I look forward to sharing with you in the months ahead.
Soli Deo Gloria,
Shawn Eaton, D.M.A.
THEOLOGY
“I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices; my flesh also dwells secure.” (David, from Psalm 16:8-9)
What is the most essential aspect of Christian theology as it pertains to biblical worship? That it is God-centered. In Reformed theology a robust biblical understanding of who God is serves as the central reference point to which all other aspects of theology are related. In this video, Shawn Eaton teaches three ways in which holding high views of God is foundational to biblical worship:
- The Significance of High Views of God: Our theology drives our doxology, and doxology (our worship) drives the way we live.
- The Privilege of Holding High Views of God: Christians who have a God-centered worldview take great pleasure in pleasing God in worship and being set apart for His glory.
- The Responsibility toward High Views of God: Christians must have a transcendent, high, and exalted view of God if we are to worship God as He desires and please Him with our lives.
PHILOSOPHY I
Are you living the Christian worldview? According to a 2018 George Barna Poll, only twenty-three percent of those identified as born again Christians in the United States hold a biblical world- and life-view. If the Church ever needed to realize the Christian worldview in the lives of our members, it seems now is the time. As worship is king of the spiritual disciplines, it has historically been the central activity of spiritual formation for the body of Christ. In this video, Dr. Eaton introduces key ingredients for cultivating God-centered worship—worship that employs the three biblical functions of the heart and engages God in ways appropriate to who He is.
PHILOSOPHY II
Wasn’t the Enlightenment, or Age of Reason, a good era in the development of Western culture? By these names, one would think so. Indeed, many helpful scientific discoveries were made during the period. However, a strict reliance upon rationalism and science in the pursuit of truth brought with it a dramatic shift in the worldview of Western society, one that still continues to unfold today. Deistic thought was ultimately responsible: the idea that God created the world, endowed it with natural laws, and then separated himself from it. In this video, Dr. Eaton teaches the core ideas that shifted Western culture from a God-centered to a man-centered society.
PHILOSOPHY III
One of the primary challenges that modern-day Christians face is that the secular worldview which permeates American culture is continually working to move Christ from the throne in our lives and push him to the periphery. The good news is as James K. A. Smith writes: Christian worship is the imagination station the church needs to be leveraging to keep our lives centered upon God and His kingdom. In this video, Dr. Eaton presents five steps that pastors and church leaders can implement to cultivate God-centered worship and encourage the realization of the historic Christian worldview in the twenty-first century church.
- Employ biblical principles in corporate worship along with teaching the biblical message.
- Keep God the central agent of worship.
- Plan worship for God and His glory.
- Foster a God-fearing atmosphere.
- Gain an historic Christian understanding of beauty and meaning in the arts.
WORLDVIEW AND AESTHETICS
Do you have a blind spot in your worldview? As Nancy Pearcey writes, the Enlightenment changed the nature of beauty and aesthetics in the arts. Today, beauty and meaning in the arts are seen by many as “subjective,” relative to personal preference. It is this type of thinking that makes qualitative judgments regarding the arts off-limits. Yet, Scripture speaks of God’s high standards for the arts. In this video, Shawn Eaton discusses the popular, classical, and Scriptural views of beauty. If the Church is to worship according to biblical principles, it must recover its understanding of the true nature of beauty, for beauty is rooted in the very nature and character of God.
Follow this link to read Dr. Eaton’s article, “Worldview and Aesthetics in God-Centered Worship”: http://www.godcenteredworship.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Worldview-and-Aesthetics-in-God-Centered-Worship, Revised, 2021.pdf
WORLDVIEW AND MUSIC
The magisterial Protestant Reformers held to the doctrine of sola Scriptura, the belief that Scripture alone, as the Word of God, is the only source sufficient to guide the Church in all matters of Christian faith and practice. Standing on the authority of God’s Word, these men held to a unity or cohesion of truth as revealed through Scripture (special revelation) and Creation (general revelation). Such understanding of truth is essential to the Christian worldview, which was instrumental in the establishment of Western society and culture. Central to this worldview are two aspects of God’s being—that He is both transcendent (far above us; infinite in majesty) and immanent (near us, sustaining Creation). Until the later part of the eighteenth century, the Church employed this understanding as one of the foremost patrons of the arts in Western society. However, due to radical shifts in worldview, the Church no longer takes such a vital role in the formation of culture; and contemporary values diminish the arts as an autonomous vehicle of expression. Yet, there is hope for a revitalization of the arts. Join Shawn Eaton as he teaches how God’s truth may inspire the Church anew in crafting music for corporate worship—that we may reclaim the Christian worldview as the keystone of Christian culture.
Follow this link to download Dr. Eaton’s article, “Worldview and Music in God-Centered Worship: Reclaiming the Keystone of Christian Culture.”