In We Have Seen His Glory Ben Witherington sounds a clarion call to worship in light of the coming eschatological kingdom. Witherington believes that Christian worship cannot be a matter of merely continuing ancient practices, but rather must be an activity in which we are preparing for the coming kingdom of God in the new creation on earth. Thus Witherington's approach is forward driven, towards an eschatological understanding of worship. Witherington states, "Suppose we envisioned Christian worship in light of the eschaton rather than in light of what already has gone before in the past, rather than in light of the kingdoms gone? (ix)" By stating the question this way, Witherington challenges two definitively separate approaches to worship. First it challenges all consumer "does the church minister to me" approaches to worship, but also counters the recent trend of churches looking to the past for guidance in formulating their worship. While this debate will not soon be settled, Witherington's work is a welcome contribution for examining how we form our worship in light of Christ's pending return. Containing eight chapters, each with review questions at the end, this book is ideal for church study groups, or even courses on the Theology of Worship, New Testament Studies, or New Testament Theology.
