Worship
1 - Beginner
What Happens When We Worship?
Jonathan Landry Cruse
For those who have been in the church a while and wonder why we as Presbyterians do what we do in worship, this is a magnificent introduction that is pastoral and comprehensible. It’s the book I recommend everyone who wants to understand Reformed worship ought to read.
1 - Beginner
Understanding Family Worship: Its History, Theology, and Practice
Terry L. Johnson
A short, helpful book laying the groundwork to convince readers that family worship is not only biblical, but that it ought to happen. Johnson also deals practically with the struggles and challenges of doing family worship.
2 - Intermediate
Worship in the Early Church
Justo Gonzalez and Catherine Gonzalez
This is my favorite overview of the history and practice of worship in the early church. Although there are bigger and more comprehensive books out there (The Oxford History of Christian Worship comes to mind), this is the better read, and is more enriching for the reader. It is also written with doxology in mind. An excellent resource for the person who finds themselves asking, “What was it like to worship in the early church, and how different was it from our worship today?”
2 - Intermediate
Worship: Reformed According to Scripture
Hughes Oliphant Old
In this book, Hughes Oliphant Old does a wonderful job of laying the ground work for Reformed worship. Although his views on the regulative principle are not quite in line with my own, I am still indebted to this book.
2 - Intermediate
Give Praise to God: A Vision for Reforming Worship
edited by Phil Ryken
An excellent edited volume with contributions from some of my favorite writers, including old professors like Ligon Duncan and Derek Thomas, where they heartily defend Reformed worship, and also argue eagerly for the regulative principle of worship, which needs to be appreciated and understood by all who would worship God in Spirit and in truth.
3 - Advanced
Reformation Worship: Liturgies from the Past for the Present
edited by Jonathan Gibson and Mark Earngey
Only for the most devoted and eager, this book includes wonderful essays in the beginning related to worship and the Reformation that may be worth the cost of admission alone. The remainder of the book includes liturgies from the period of the Reformation. The appendix of the book contains a lot of resources, including the elements of worship in various churches. If you have ever wondered what Calvin’s Genevan service looked like in comparison to Bucer’s, this book is the gold mine you’ve been waiting for.