PUTTING AN END TO WORSHIP WARS - Elmer Towns

So the old phrase "the church of your choice" no longer means your doctrinal choice.
Like buying a sweater, "the church of your choice" is a church that reflects your style of life and
your way of worshiping God.
While these motives are negative factors in our churches because they minimize the
doctrines taught in the Words of God, there is one plus. More non-church people are coming to
our worship services than in previous years. When people search out churches where they find
meaning or where their life's goals are supported, consumerism has resulted in an open door for
evangelism.
STYLES OF WORSHIP AND MINISTRY
Historically, there have been two basic worship styles in the Protestant Church since the
Reformation-"high church" and "low church." To describe them functionally we might refer to
them as the liturgical worship service and the congregational style of worship.
Liturgical worship usually follows a printed order of events that include the Invocation,
Doxology, the Lord's Prayer, choir anthems, responsive reading of Scripture, choral response to
the pastoral prayer, the Gloria Patri and the singing of "Amen" at the end of each hymn. Many
believe the atmospheric worship of the Liturgical Church service expressed New Testament
Christianity. Historically, there have not been many voices to challenge the credibility of this
worship, but now there are some contemporary voices asking questions about its validity.
The second type of worship has been an expression of the common people in church
groups that did not come out of the main stream of the Reformation, that is, the Brethren of the
Common Life, Anabaptists, Mennonites, Moravians, Puritans, Pilgrims and others. After the
Reformation this second worship tradition would be followed by such groups as the Methodists,
Congregational, Baptists, and Brethren.
These groups were usually led by pastors without professional education who preached
extemporaneously without a written manuscript. The preaching was emotional, persuasive and
filled with illustrations and the idiomatic language of the common people. "Sweaty preaching"
by "plowboy preachers" called for revival and renewal, and, in response, there were tears at the
mourners bench. Singing of gospel songs expressed deep emotion. The services included
testimonies, prayers from the laymen and, in some groups, shouts of "Amen" or "Hallelujah!"
SIX WORSHIP PARADIGMS
Defined by worship styles, six worship types or paradigms can now be identified within
the Protestant Church 1 : (1) The Evangelistic Church that focuses on winning the lost; (2) The
Bible Expositional Church that emphasizes teaching the Word of God; (3) The Renewal Church
that focuses on excitement revival and touching God; (4) The Body-life Church focusing on
fellowship (koinonia), relationships and small groups; (5) The Liturgical Church, which is still
operational; and (6) The Congregational Church that expressed the people, also still operational.