We Have Seen His Glory: A Vision of Kingdom Worship (Calvin Institute of Christian Worship Liturgical Studies | CICW)
Digital Logos Edition
Overview
We Have Seen His Glory sounds a clarion call to worship in light of the coming kingdom. Ben Witherington here contends that Christian worship cannot be a matter of merely continuing ancient practices; instead, we must be preparing for worship in the kingdom of God when it comes on earth. The eight chapters in this thought-provoking book each end with questions for reflection and discussion—ideal fare for church study groups.
- Presents theological explorations of Christian living
- Addresses major questions in practical theology
- We Have Seen His Glory: The Day Is Coming and Now Is
- Glorifying the Creator and Redeemer: Revelation 4–5
- Worship as Sabbatical
- The Legacy of Judaism
- Glorifying God in a Bolder Way
- Illuminating the Good News
- Work and Worship: Labors of Love?
- Doxology: The End and Aim of All Things
Top Highlights
“Worship is the ultimate ethical act on earth, the most important act on earth because it is the ultimate fulfillment of the Shema, the Great Commandment, and indeed the First and Second Commandments.” (Pages 7–8)
“To fully grasp the import of this, we must remember the social context. Worship of Jews and Samaritans was ethnocentric and patrilocal. It was temple-centered and priest-controlled. It focused on literal sacrifices, and it was a smelly, noisy, messy process. Jesus is inaugurating a worship without temples, priests, and literal sacrifices, all of which are said to be fulfilled by and in Jesus. He is the new temple of God, where God’s presence dwells (see John 2). He is the Passover lamb who takes away the sins of the world (see John 1). And he is the priest who will offer himself as the perfect sacrifice in Jerusalem on Golgotha’s heights, a theology spelled out in great detail in the book of Hebrews.” (Page 8)
“Why is God worthy of such worship? Because he is the Creator God who made all creatures for just such a purpose. John Knox once said, ‘It is the chief aim of humankind to love God and enjoy and adore him for ever.’ The most important act on earth is worship. It completes the intended life cycle of all creatures great and small. The chief end of humankind and human history is not the salvation of all persons. I will say that again: Salvation is not the point and goal of human history. That is but a means to the ultimate end, which is the proper worship of God by all creatures.” (Page 18)
“First, true worship requires that we be in the Spirit at the appropriate time for worship (e.g., the Lord’s Day). Second” (Page 18)
A solid meditation on the theocentric focus that is at the core of worship. Worship is about God and for God, touching the whole of our lives. Witherington’s book is really a series of biblical reflections on this theme. Read, enjoy, and then take a moment to delight in the God Witherington draws us to behold.
—Darrell L. Bock, professor of New Testament, Dallas Theological Seminary
In a day when the worship of the triune God has been trivialized, marketed, and squandered for human consumption, Ben Witherington provides a proper theological frame for understanding the majesty, power and awe of Christian worship. No one who reads this book can ever be satisfied with a consumer, spector-sport approach to Christian worship.
—Timothy C. Tennent, president, Asbury Theological Seminary
- Title: We Have Seen His Glory: A Vision of Kingdom Worship
- Author: Ben Witherington III
- Series: The Calvin Institute of Christian Worship Liturgical Studies
- Publisher: Eerdmans
- Print Publication Date: 2010
- Logos Release Date: 2015
- Pages: 176
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
- Subject: Public worship
- ISBNs: 9780802865281, 0802865283
- Resource ID: LLS:WHVSNKNGDMWRSHP
- Resource Type: Monograph
- Metadata Last Updated: 2022-10-19T17:03:53Z
Ben Witherington III (PhD, University of Durham) is Jean R. Amos Professor of New Testament for Doctoral Studies at Asbury Theological Seminary. A prominent evangelical scholar, he is also on the doctoral faculty at St. Andrews University in Scotland. Witherington has written over forty books, including The Jesus Quest and The Paul Quest, both of which were selected as top biblical studies works by Christianity Today. His other works include The Indelible Image, Women and the Genesis of Christianity, The Gospel Code, A Week in the Life of Corinth and commentaries on the entire New Testament. He also writes for many church and scholarly publications and is a frequent contributor to Patheos and Beliefnet. Witherington is an elected member of the prestigious Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas, a society dedicated to New Testament studies. He is a John Wesley Fellow for Life, a research fellow at Cambridge University and a member of numerous professional organizations, including the Society of Biblical Literature, Society for the Study of the New Testament and the Institute for Biblical Research. He previously taught at institutions like Ashland Theological Seminary, Vanderbilt University, Duke Divinity School and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary. An ordained pastor in the United Methodist Church and a popular lecturer, Witherington has presented seminars for churches, colleges and biblical meetings around the world. He has led numerous study tours through the lands of the Bible and is known for bringing the text to life through incisive historical and cultural analysis. Along with many interviews on radio and television networks across the country, Witherington has been seen in programs such as 60 Minutes, 20/20, Dateline and the Peter Jennings ABC special Jesus and Paul—The Word and the Witness