Ancient-Future Worship: Proclaiming and Enacting God's Narrative Paperback – April 1, 2008

This was the first book of the late Robert Webber that I read. I was in the process of doing research for a course that I was scheduled to teach on the history of Christian worship. Webber's book was a true eye-opener. His thesis that we tell God's story in worship was unique and one that I had not considered. The more I read, the more sense it made. I was particularly impressed by the idea that worship is both a remembrance of what God has done in the past and an anticipation of what He will do in the future.I also found Webber's fairly brief discussion in Chapter 4 of how the telling of God's story in worship gradually was lost to be insightful and fascinating. In this chapter he traces the degeneration of worship from its fulness in the early centuries of the Christian era through the Roman Mass, the Reformational liturgies, the revivalistic services of Methodism and American frontier worship, down to the truncated worship we find today in those churches that have reduced the elements of worship to half an hour of singing praise choruses (or even worse, Christianized rock) followed by a time of "teaching," in which the former is typically a mini-concert and the latter is little more than a therapeutic message with scant emphasis on the Gospel. (I would have liked to have seen him expand on all this in greater detail.)Chapter 7, in which Webber discusses the Eucharist, is also quite insightful. In it he shows how the Table of the Lord not only remembers the redemptive work of the Son at Calvary, but also anticipates the redemption of all creation and the eternal banquet in the New Heavens and the New Earth. He also argues for why the Holy Supper should be an integral part of the worship service, celebrated weekly rather than occasionally, and should not be a tacked-on "meal" with no obvious connection to the rest of the service.For these and many other reasons I would highly recommend "Ancient-Future Worship." For those looking specifically for an evaluation of "contemporary-style worship" based on these and other insights, I would recommend my book Spiritual Anorexia: How Contemporary Worship Is Starving the Church.

I chose this book to study how to use the old applications to the "now" living usage. I liked it because it made me think "why" I do or think the way I do and I'm I on the right track. I would recommend it to anyone that wants a fresh idea of how to apply the "Word" to your daily life. We need to not think the "Word" only applied to the people of the ancient times, but it still applies to our living times of today. Nothing is out of date that was written. We just need to re-think that, though our lives are of modern times, the principles still apply today. Just think of everything said in todays terms. It really isn't hard. Be open minded. Don't add in things that aren't there, that isn't being fair to yourself or others.

The origination of the historical liturgy is traced and the meaning of it is explained clearly. The idea of creation - incarnation-anticipation in the liturgy in the life of Christians is helpful. This book is a good overiew for people who are new to liturgical theology and worship.

Maybe one of, if not the best book by Webber - at least in the Ancient-Future series. The others are all above par, but this one is concise, readable, and points toward worship as a retelling of the story and message of God. Worship is proclamation and remembering in behaviors, Word, and sacrament.

I've given several of this copies book away to friends, worship leaders, fellow pastors. Reading this book was refreshing and encouraging. Webber balances historical realities, Scriptural realities, and practical realities perfect in this book. There is nothing I wish this book was that it is not.

Weber does a wonderful job of starting the reader on a journey to recapturing their place in the story of God. Worship is not about singing or preaching or even the table. Rather worship is about God. Our singing, proclaiming and Eucharist all remember what God has done, point to what God is doing in the world, and to what God will do ultimately when His kingdom is fully consummated.If you want a look into what it might be like to come back to a worship that isn't about "me" but about God this is a wonderful place to start.

If one is seeking to go deeper into the Christian faith, this book provides a way. Thoughtful Evangelicals will find this book both insightful and edifying.

This is a great book on worship