RETHINKING OUR PRIORITIES - Part 1 Our Bible - A Needed Return

Sep 28, 2026

Rethinking Our Priorities explores the Church through Scripture, beginning with “Our Bible” and outlining themes such as a needed return, the basic divide, and critical tactics. It then moves to “Pentecost,” addressing the present hour, the local church, the pulpit today, personal witness, and inner experience. The book also examines public worship, including reverence, hymns, Sunday evenings, and contemporary perils, presenting spoken lectures intended to prompt reflection and guide ministers and church members toward God’s mind.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryReligion & Spirituality

FormatPDF

Pages264

Reading Time11 h 5 min

AccessFree to download

A "Letter of Introduction"

Contents

Part One: Our Bible

Part Two: Pentecost

Part Three: Public Worship

RETHINKING OUR PRIORITIES 0.500 Other Books by J.Sidlow Baxter... Awake My HeartExplore the BookGod So LovedGoing DeeperHis Part and OursMark These Men The Strategic Grasp of the BibleStudies in Problem TextsA New Call to HolinessDoes God Still Guide?His Deeper Work in UsOur High Calling RETHINKING OUR PRIORITIESThe Church:Its Pastor and People Heart-to-heart talks with ministers,music directors,leaders,and workersin our evangelical churches. by J.SIDLOW BAXTER RETHINKINC OuR PRIORITIES◎1974 by The Zondervan Corporation Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 73-22698 Third printing 1976 All rights reserved.No part of this publication may be reproduced,storedin a retrieval system,or transmitted in any form or by any means,electronic,mechanical,photocopy,recording or otherwise,without the prior permissionof the copyright owner. Printed in the United States of America Contents A“Letter of Introduction” A Reminiscence PART ONE: OUR BIBLE A Needed Return ………… The Basic Divide ………… Some Big Issues.. . The King's Seal .. Critical Tactics ………………… Where Are We Now?………… PART Two:PENTECOST The Present Hour …………… The Local Church .. The Pulpit Today.. · Personal Witness .. . Inner Experience ………… PART THREE:PUBLIC WoRSHIP Reverence, Please! .. . Concerning Hymns ………… Sunday Evenings ·· . Newfangled Perils. · Another Peril Today.· Preach the Wordl.. . .. .. . . 13 . ……………25 ………………………37 …………………49 …………………61 …………………73 · ·· .· ..101 . …………………11l …………………………123 ………………………133 …………………143 . . .. .155 .. . . .167 ……………………181 . . . .201 .. .. .223 ……………237 https://archive.org/details/rethinkingourpri0000jsid_I9v8 # A“Letter of Introduction” Dear Pastor,Music leader,Officeholder,Church member:Neverdid I let a book slip through the press to the public with morediffidence.It is not easy to write things which may severely dis-please.There is in each of us an inborn self-protectiveness whichprefers the “safety of our own skin”;and some of you may thinkthat I should be“skinned alive”for things written in part three ofthis book,i.e.,my critique of public worship in the evangelicalchurches of America.Those of you who are my brethren in theministry may find provocative jolts,also,in part one;but I am braveenough to hope you will! Maybe those of you who are not ministers or song leaders orpublic servants of the churches may think there is not much foryou in parts one and two,but in reality there is,for I want you toeavesdrop on what is said to our ministers.Who knows?Perhapsas a result you may want to give a copy of the book to yourminister! I am comforted to think that all of you who know me or mybooks will know that I am not a disgruntled old grumbler “agineverybody.”I love my brethren in the ministry and my fellowevangelicals too well for that.But I am concerned deeply to seesome wrongs put right for the sake of the cause which is supremelydear to all of us.Perhaps I should add that these pages are spokenlectures now in print,not a set treatise.I hope that an incidentalrepetition here and there may be kindly excused on that account.Also,the form of presentation is not meant for scholars(I do nothave enough erudition for that),but for Christian ministers ingeneral,and,indeed,for all who have Christian concerns at heart. In some things wherein you may differ from me it could be thatI myself(strange thought!)am wrong;but naturally I hope you willagree that in the main what I say is both true and needful.Under-neath all else is my fervent desire that these chapters may effectivelyexpress His mind and purpose whose we are and whom we seek toserve.May God Himself guide your thinking,if and as you read.Heaven's crown of “Iovingkindness"be ever yours. J.SIDLow BAXTER

FAQs

Who is the intended audience for the book, according to the introduction?

It is written for pastors, music leaders, church members, and Christian ministers in general, with an invitation for those outside ministry to read and share it.

What is the structure of the book as shown in the table of contents?

The contents are organized into Part One: Our Bible, Part Two: Pentecost, and Part Three: Public Worship.

What themes are highlighted in Part Three: Public Worship?

The table of contents names topics including reverence, hymns, Sunday evenings, and multiple perils, along with the call to preach the Word.

Sep 28, 2026

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