Called to Worship: The Biblical Foundations of Our Response to Gods Call

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Called to Worship: The Biblical Foundations of Our Response to Gods Call

3.83 of 5 stars 3.83 · rating details · 18 ratings · 7 reviews

IS HOW WE WORSHIP TRULY BIBLICAL? There's only one way to find out: see what the Bible has to say. And that's exactly what Called to Worship is all about. From Genesis to Revelation, every book in the Scriptures gives instruction and insight into God's plan for worship. With this book, you'll learn from Biblical heroes and ordinary people. Compare Old and New Testament pra...more

Hardcover, 361 pages

Published June 9th 2009 by Thomas Nelson Publishers (first published February 29th 2000)

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Feb 03, 2010 Deborah Boutwell rated it 4 of 5 stars

It takes you through the entire Bible showing how God intended from the beginning for us to worship Him. I’ve really found this book useful as I prepare for the event. One of the great things is that I can jump around in the book or read it straight through.
When I started Called to Worship, I started at the beginning…which of course meant that I started with what worship is based on how God created worship in Genesis. Worship is defined as “reverence offered a divine being…act of expressing such...more

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Sep 27, 2009 logankstewart rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: christianity, from-publishers, nonfic, own, 2009-read

Called to Worship, by Vernon Whaley, is a book that offers a biblical basis for worship. The book is formatted into three parts: Old Testament Worship, New Testament, and Worship in Heaven. From these, Whaley dives into giving thoughtful examples of worship, frequently siting Scripture and other published works. (The cited works are enough to warrant an Appendix of sorts, including a bibliography and a section of Notes.)

I found this book easy to read, but challenging to apply. To me, the book fe...more Called to Worship, by Vernon Whaley, is a book that offers a biblical basis for worship. The book is formatted into three parts: Old Testament Worship, New Testament, and Worship in Heaven. From these, Whaley dives into giving thoughtful examples of worship, frequently siting Scripture and other published works. (The cited works are enough to warrant an Appendix of sorts, including a bibliography and a section of Notes.)

I found this book easy to read, but challenging to apply. To me, the book felt like I was reading a summary of the Bible with worship-tinted glasses on, which is definitely not a bad thing. Whaley starts off the book with a picture of what Eden was like, when life was perfect and worship of God was complete. Sadly, this did not last, and soon the "Worship Wars" began. The rest of the book deals with the aftermath of the Fall and how Man must fight to worship Yahweh. From Genesis to Revelation, familiar Scripture is analyzed and worship is encouraged.

I can easily recommend this book if you are looking to set your heart on worshiping God. Finishing the book left me desiring to serve Christ better, to live a life full of worship and glory to God. Whaley encourages us to read, pray, sing, and give glory to God in all that we do. While Called to Worship is not a substitute for the Bible, it is a great companion to read to get a feel of what worship could be like.

You can find this book on Amazon. I'll end with two of my favorite quotes from the book.

"The worship battles we face today are often driven by self-interest. Unwilling to accept new, exciting venues for the expression of worship, many folks just stir up conflict....Such personal preferences result in disagreement between brothers and sisters, pastor and parishioners, and their differences of opinion prohibit their worship of God."

"Authentic worship requires a regular worship routine. Abraham was a builder of altars...You need to meet with God at a special time in a previously appointed place that is free of distractions from the world around you,...giving him your undivided attention. He deserves no less." (less)

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Sep 27, 2009 Debbie rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: christian, non-fiction

Frankly, your time would be better spent in searching the Bible for what it says on worship rather than in reading this book. I've done such a study, and it profoundly changed my life.

My first problem is that Whaley rarely pointed out Scriptures where God tells us how He wants to be worshiped--and there are plenty of them. After all, don't we want to know what GOD wants?

Instead, much of "Called to Worship" was the author's paraphrase of a Bible story (adding in motives that are not in the Bible...more Frankly, your time would be better spent in searching the Bible for what it says on worship rather than in reading this book. I've done such a study, and it profoundly changed my life.

My first problem is that Whaley rarely pointed out Scriptures where God tells us how He wants to be worshiped--and there are plenty of them. After all, don't we want to know what GOD wants?

Instead, much of "Called to Worship" was the author's paraphrase of a Bible story (adding in motives that are not in the Bible and I often didn't think correct) with a small section at the end drawing lessons that he felt that Adam & Eve, Cain and Abel, Abram, Moses, Joshua, Gideon, Samuel, Saul, David, Solomon, Elijah, Jehoshaphat, and Job demonstrated about worship.

He asks the reader to trust his often very speculative take on how he thinks God wants to be worshiped instead of looking for what God stated on the subject. (For example, the Garden of Eden supposedly demonstrates that perfect worship is that which is done all alone and totally secluded from all distractions.)

Another thing that distressed me were statements Whaley made in chapters 2 and 3 which directly contradict Scripture. For example, his statements strongly imply he thinks God has no control over Satan and that God couldn't protect Adam and Eve from Satan's influence any more than a father can protect his son from hearing a man cussing in public. He also says that Satan always had dominion over the earth (rather than Adam), that Satan existed "before Creation" (so he isn't created?), that suffering and the curse on the earth came from Satan's actions (instead of Adam's), that all of the resulting suffering was outside God's plan and completely harmful (he needs to read "If God Is Good" by Randy Alcorn). And, finally, that God lost to Satan--not the war in heaven, but the war on earth.

The author made some statements throughout the book that he later contradicted with a verse he quoted or a statement he made, and I sometimes was unsure just what he believed. I was very concerned about what someone not firm in Bible knowledge would think he was saying. (And, frankly, if you're familiar with the Bible, you won't learn anything new about worship from this book.)

The later sections of "Called to Worship" looked at books of the Bible (like Psalms, Proverbs, the epistles, etc.) and were better because the author stuck with actual Scripture. The only two chapters of this book that I felt were good were those studying how Jesus worshiped since Jesus is both God and the perfect worshiper.

The book was written in a very conversational style and was like a bunch of mini-sermons loosely focused on worship. While I did agree with some of the points he made, it was because I knew of verses that specifically state the point rather than because of the example he gave.

So, as I said above, your time would be better spent in searching the Bible for what it says on worship rather than in reading this book. (less)

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Sep 20, 2009 Mike rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-read-in-2009

“Called To Worship”, by Vernon M. Whaley, is an essential for any Christian Library. This wonderfully scripted inspirational book is the inspirational book for all inspirational books. Whaley, take Scripture and uses them to explain worship. He breaks down the Bible into easy to understand terms, allowing the reader to understand and gain understanding through God’s Word. God wants us to worship Him through true worship. Whaley uses this knowledge of the Bible to help the reader learn how to ef...more “Called To Worship”, by Vernon M. Whaley, is an essential for any Christian Library. This wonderfully scripted inspirational book is the inspirational book for all inspirational books. Whaley, take Scripture and uses them to explain worship. He breaks down the Bible into easy to understand terms, allowing the reader to understand and gain understanding through God’s Word. God wants us to worship Him through true worship. Whaley uses this knowledge of the Bible to help the reader learn how to effectively and affectively worship.
This book is broken down into three parts: Old Testament Principle of Worship, where we learn from those who lived and loved God with blind faith. We see the errors in our ways through these stories from the Bible, so that we can hopefully not make the same mistakes. We also learn that many in the Bible even seeing the miracles God showed, took Him for granted and fell victim to false worship. God shows that He loves us and wants us to worship Him with all our hearts.
Part II deals with New Testament Principles of Worship, where we see how the Gospels are used to teach us and keep us faithful in our worship. Finally Part III deals with Worship in Heaven, the perfect worship.
As I opened this book and started reading the Forward, I felt a connection and ever holding feeling come over me. I felt this book was going to be somehow different. Called To Worship does just that. It calls us to worship God in its truest form. Only by our use of the Bible can we gain a better understanding of exactly how to worship correctly. His Word is there for us to read and learn from, so let’s make it a point to worship correctly. Whaley uses his experiences along with scripture to captivate the reader and acknowledges that each of us needs to find his or her own personal way to worship fully and wholeheartedly. This book keeps the reader captivated throughout.
I highly recommend this book for inclusion in every library. It’s a wonderful study guide and can and should be used in conjunction with the Bible for any study of worship.
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Dec 06, 2009 Scott Asher rated it 3 of 5 stars

While I was very excited to get a copy of this book and after slogging through the first half of the book it (for the most part) lived up to my expectations. The book reads like a survey of the Old and New Testaments with Whaley’s Principles of Worship (summaries at the end of each chapter,) connecting the Biblical stories to the Principles that he wants the readers to take away. These Principles do a good job of reminding the reader the worship is how we act in response to interaction with God....more

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May 25, 2011 Melvin rated it 3 of 5 stars

Highly recommended. I am currently taking his course - Biblical Foundations of Worship. A lot of work!!! But amazingly rewarding!!

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Sep 30, 2012 Troy Holt rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is an awesome book, It has a lot of info on worship from Genesis to Revelation.

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