Author: David Ellis

Don: What does technology bring to the interface between God and Man? It is argued that the printing press made the Reformation possible by taking away control of information from the priest, who hitherto not only controlled access to God but also stood in the role of God himself. The church was the gateway to…

Don: God told Adam to fill the earth and subdue it: God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. God blessed them; and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth, and subdue it; and rule over the fish…

Don: Technology is the application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes. How does technology affect society, and what is the result with respect to worship and faith? Technology and its impacts have been with us from the beginning of time. Scripture tells of the first application of technology in history, the sewing of fig leaves…

Don: In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gave some instruction regarding personal worship. He addressed three elements of worship common to all religions, everywhere and in all ages: Prayer, alms-giving, and fasting: “Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is…

Don: The concept of fatal worship was outlined by Paul, who contrasted it with true (or what we have been calling authentic) worship: For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within…

Don: How can we know that our worship, corporate or individual, is authentic? We know from the story of Cain and Abel that true worship centers on God and his creative works while false worship centers on our own efforts. But, since God extended his grace to the murderer and false worshipper (Cain) anyway, does…

Don: What is the relationship between the senses and worship? A look at worship across time and cultures reveals great variability in the employment of the senses in worship. Some churches today display no pictures, flags, banners, flowers, posters, musical instruments; just a pulpit facing rows of sterile pews. Their colors are muted. There is,…

Jay: Does corporate worship get in the way of Big W Worship? Does it impede The Great Commission Jesus gave the disciples after his resurrection: [T]he eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had designated. When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some were doubtful. And Jesus came up and spoke…

Jay: We seem still not to have resolved issues concerning “corporate” vs. personal worship and ritualized, doctrinaire “small-w worship” vs. non-time-bound and non-culture-bound “Big-W Worship.” Is big W Worship possible in a corporate setting? If so, could churches facilitate it? We ended last week with a mention of God’s “peculiar people”—something which is part of…