Thesis (M.C.S.)--Regent College, 2001. / Abstract and vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 183-191).

Thesis (M.C.S.)--Regent College, 2001. / Abstract and vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 183-191).

Project (D. Min.)--Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, 1987. / Bibliography: leaves 128-130.

Project (D. Min.)--Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, 1987. / Bibliography: leaves 128-130.

ABSTRACT FAR AND NEAR: CHRISTIAN WORSHIP OF THE TRANSCENDENT AND IMMANENT GOD OF WONDERS Charles Thomas Lewis, Jr., Ph.D. The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2015 Chair: Dr. Bruce A. Ware "Far and Near: Christian Worship of the Transcendent and Immanent God of Wonders" examines the rhythm of transcendence then immanence represented in divine worship encounters and significant prayers recorded in Scripture. With the objective of determining how transcendence and immanence shapes modern worship services in Southern Baptist churches, this dissertation also documents the goals, values, and objectives that may influence how worship pastors in Southern Baptist churches select and sequence elements to be included in their corporate worship services. Chapter 1 establishes the propensity of the modern church to bypass the transcendence of God while rushing to embrace God's immanence. Chapter 2 discusses the age of immanence and individualism--two modern mindsets permeating religious thinking and corporate worship of many Christians in modern times. This chapter also discusses the residual effects of the loss of focus on God's transcendence--the centralization of man coupled with the displacement of God from his rightful place of centrality in worship. Using the findings of the Worship Design Project 2014, chapter 3 is an empirical documentation of worship praxis and design by worship pastors in the most attended Southern Baptist churches in the United States. Chapter 4 discusses the biblical historical grounding of transcendence including God's transcendent holiness, aseity, sovereignty, constancy, omnipotence, omniscience, omnipresence, and timeless eternality. Chapter 5 considers how God's immanent attributes are rooted in and flow from his transcendent characteristics. Chapter 6 is a Christological reflection on how Jesus Christ--God immanently with us--remains transcendent in relationship to his creation and his church. Chapter 7, the central focus of this dissertation, uses biblical data to demonstrate the rhythm of transcendence then immanence represented in divine worship encounters and prayer. Chapter 8 addresses the implications of properly balanced and ordered transcendence and immanence for modern worship service planning and design in the free church tradition. The thesis advanced in this dissertation is that, in divine-human encounters, the Bible demonstrates a repeated pattern of conceptualizing and understanding God in his transcendent otherness both prior to his immanence and as the framework within which his immanence can only be rightly understood and experienced.

ABSTRACT SUFFERING, SOUL CARE, AND COMMUNITY: THE PLACE OF CORPORATE LAMENT IN EVANGELICAL WORSHIP Ann Marie Ahrens, Ph.D. The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2017 Chair: Dr. Esther R. Crookshank This dissertation examines the biblical foundations of corporate lament practices beginning with the worship of ancient Israel as found in the Psalms, and their continued use by Jesus in his prayers, the gospel writers, and in the epistles of Paul, Peter, and John in the Revelation. It concludes with case studies and recommendations for the inclusion of lament practices in modern corporate worship. Chapter 1 is a chronological literature review beginning ca. 1980, which demonstrates the increase in worship resources, particularly in the last decade, that focus on corporate lament practices. Resources are categorized as follows: (1) biblical and theological studies; (2) practical theology; (3) psychology and soul care; (4) liturgical resources for lament; and (5) corporate worship and the use of the arts. Scholarly and non-scholarly sources are included. Chapter 2 examines the language and theology of lament in the Old Testament, with specific focus on the Psalms. J. L. Austin’s “Speech Act Theory” is also discussed and applied the lament Psalms in order to broaden the understanding of the rich dialogical nature of Israel’s corporate worship practices. Chapter 3 examines the prayers of Jesus and how his use of the lament Psalms serves as a model for modern believers. Chapter 4 applies Rebekah Eklund’s typology of “echoes and extensions” of the lament Psalms in the writings of Paul, Peter, and John in the Revelation. The goal is to demonstrate that use of the lament Psalms continued after the coming of Christ. Chapter 5 contains a summary of conclusions and undergirding premises for the use of lament Psalms in modern corporate worship. The chapter concludes with foundational considerations for implementing these premises into corporate worship practices. Chapter 6 includes four contemporary case studies in which the Psalms of lament are used to pray through and process times of tragedy and suffering. These case studies include personal, corporate, devotional, and pastoral care examples. The chapter concludes with a brief examination of parallel studies and suggested areas for further study.