4MAT Book Review:
The Great Commission to Worship
Luke Cramer
EVAN 525: Contemporary Evangelism
2
1. The Great Commission to Worship is a step by step guideline to understanding the
relationship between worship and evangelism. When one reads this book, they will be
encouraged to look at the Great Commission not only as a commandment, but as something
that God desires. This book will help one’s relationship with the Lord, by understanding what
worship truly is, and also a “how-to” guide to worship by the act of evangelism. First the book
will make one rethink what worship truly is, causing one to have a clean slate of thinking. Then,
the book will explain the basics of evangelizing and the result it will have on others’ souls, as
well as your own relationship with God because of this new way of thinking about the
relationship of evangelism and worship. Whaley and Wheeler write concerning this relationship
“…there is a huge disconnect between the biblical understandings of worship and evangelism. If
not addressed in an honest manner, this false dichotomy will continue to stifle influences of the
church in a world that is seeking spiritual answers” 1. Once the relationship of these two topics is
addressed and explained, the authors move slowly into the act of evangelistic worship. This
book can be a great guide into understanding the logistics of just what God desires from
believers in the obedience of evangelism. The relationships with other people are a direct result
of our relationship with God. This book will explain the importance of our vertical relationship
with God, and how that affects our attitude of horizontal relationships with the people we are
evangelizing to. The book ends with great insight on common insecurities of an evangelist. The
authors offer different methods to reproduce evangelical Christians and what the church is
doing wrong in this area. The goal of a new disciple should be to be equipped to evangelize. It is
1 Vernon Whaley & David Wheeler, The Great Commission to Worship (B&H Publishing
Group, 2010), 9
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not a mark of a “mature” Christian. The authors state “The common fallacy is that spiritual
maturity can be achieved by education alone without incarnationally sending Christians back
into their communities and workplaces to become reproducing worshippers.”2 The Great
Commission to Worship is a book designed to redefine misconceptions of the relationship
between evangelism and worship. Once that relationship is described this book is also a guide
for new believers in the mission they are called to do here on Earth by glorifying God by sharing
about him.
2. In this book I read the simple phrase “Humility is the first prerequisite for Great
Commission worship” 3. This phrase immediately convicted me and caused me to think of my
brother Joe. He is 24 years old and does not follow Jesus. He lives with me and almost every day
we talk about Jesus, the Bible and anything spiritual or religion related. He always says that he
has no problem with God, but he “hates Christians”. He does not want to go to church, he
doesn’t want to live righteously, and he doesn’t desire to know Jesus because he sees a church
full of imperfect people attached to Jesus. Humility is always something that I pray for and ask
God for when I talk to Joe. I heard a quote when I was younger in a Sunday morning service, the
pastor said “are people offended by the Gospel or are they offended by you?”. I never want to
be the reason why someone can’t see the beauty of Jesus. I want to live my life in the way that
people see me and desire to have what I have. My brother sometimes will call me arrogant or
snide because of my immovable belief in Jesus. It breaks my heart to ever think that my attitude
2 Vernon Whaley & David Wheeler, The Great Commission to Worship (B&H Publishing
Group, 2010), 169
3 Ibid., 54
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or conversation might be preventing him from submitting to Jesus. I try to love my brother the
way Jesus loves, but he always thinks I have an agenda. This book really opened my eyes to the
way in which we evangelize. Evangelism is not just reciting the gospel and waiting for decisions,
its dwelling with people, weeping with those who weep. I pray to be a humble herald of Gods
great news.
3. The thing that bothered me most about this book was the lack of joy and happiness
discussed when it comes to evangelism. Neither word “joy” nor “happiness” is even in the
index. Luke 15:7 says “Just so I tell you there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who
repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.” Evangelism is a
command I understand that, but shouldn’t we focus more on the joy we see when someone we
know goes from death to life. The authors write “There is the obvious call to glorify God with
unyielding allegiance, but it is not complete unless that message grows beyond the immediate
circle of self to include loving one’s neighbor” 4. My question would be how much to love our
neighbors? Do we love because it’s a command? Or do we actually love people? Growing up my
parents could make me shake my brother’s hand after a fist fight and say “I love you” but I
didn’t mean it. Worship to me is showing God how much I love Him, and one of the best ways I
know how to love God is loving these people He made with all that I can. The Great Commission
to Worship really motivated me to get to work, but it did not stir up my affection for lost people.
4 Vernon Whaley & David Wheeler, The Great Commission to Worship (B&H Publishing
Group, 2010), 22
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4. The first step of action I would take in my own life and ministry would be to
remember Gods call for me. I know that statement is vague but it is as simple as knowing that I
am called to be missional all the time. From the moment I was saved I was called to be
missional. In chapter 8 the authors write “Make no mistake about it, from Genesis to Revelation,
God has actively pursued fallen men and women first to be redeemed and then to join Him on
mission as Great Commission Worshippers to proclaim eternal hope to a lost world.” 5 God has
redeemed me and it is up to me now to evangelize in His name. Sometimes in my own life I find
myself not wanting to share my faith because I am struggling in my walk with Christ. I am
working on being sanctified and trying to grow closer to God and am not satisfied. Because of
my dissatisfaction and anger at myself, I stop sharing my faith. In my own life and the lives of
people I’m ministering to I need to remember that the only qualification for evangelism is
redemption. I have been set free so I am now invited to Jesus’ mission of saving souls and
sharing the greatest news ever to happen.
The second action step that I intend on applying is my energy in horizontal relationships.
I was so convicted reading this book and especially chapter 7 about horizontal relationships.
Sometimes in my ministry I focus only on God and unbelievers. Obviously when it comes to
evangelism the focus is unbelievers, but this book showed me how important it is to have
harmony with all people because unbelievers are watching. In chapter 7 it says “Let’s not fool
ourselves into thinking that the testimony we have around other people is unimportant. People
are watching how we act and react to the normal ebb and flow of life. In fact, unsaved people of
5 Vernon Whaley & David Wheeler, The Great Commission to Worship (B&H Publishing
Group, 2010), 122
6
all cultures largely base what they understand about Christ by observing the testimony we as
worship-evangelists have at the workplace (or school), with our friends, and around our
families” 6. Unsaved people are watching me all the time. That is very nerve wracking but also
very exciting. The way I treat my family, or coworkers, or my brothers and sisters in Christ can
lead to people being curious of the Christ-like love I can share to all people. My friend always
says “people don’t need you to preach a sermon they need you to live one”. Specifically in my
life I need to start getting along better with my family. I know some of my friends from
highschool, or even some of my extended family know that my immediate family and I don’t get
along so well. I hope to start to change my relationship with my family for the better and people
around can see that and it could lead to conversations about Jesus.
My last action step I plan to apply in my ministry is to not stop doing ministry because
my lack of education. I have seen many people in ministry take breaks from teaching or making
disciples or sharing the gospel because they are currently in Bible College. I do not want Bible
school here at Liberty to slow me down. I hope that God will use this schooling to catapult me
into the mission field. We will never be “good enough” as Christians. We will never have enough
knowledge, never know the Bible well enough, never have good enough outreach ideas, but I
am sufficient in Jesus. I notice sometimes in my own life I’m focused mostly on education
because I know in the long run it will help me in evangelism. I could spend hours on end
listening to apologetics seminars and youtube videos to sharpen my axe for any wild ball
question someone could ask me. Chapter 9 talks about the myth that we tell ourselves that we
6 Vernon Whaley & David Wheeler, The Great Commission to Worship (B&H Publishing
Group, 2010), 113
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are unqualified to share the gospel. Sharing the gospel is not an advanced trait of a mature
Christian. Personally in my own ministry I think when I disciple high school students I need to
keep focusing to tell them to share the gospel and share their faith. So many times I meet with
students or go through the Bible with students and we are always trying to reach the next level
of spirituality. We never are satisfied to just go out and share the gospel with people. Also, we
need to pray for people to have the opportunity to share the gospel with. Discipleship is great
and learning new things and growing in sanctification, but the Great Commission is very clear
that we will not be mature in our faith and really pleasing God until we are telling people about
the love of Jesus. Also in my own ministry when it comes to school is to not let theology
become an idol for me. There is no greater joy than to see people go from death to life in the
saving grace of Jesus. I need to keep that first.
1. Vernon Whaley and David Wheeler, The Great Commission to Worship (Nashville, TN,
B&H Publishing Group, 2010),
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