Sermon Dan
Neary
Worship
& Liturgy 101
More than one sermon here.
According to George Barna:
·
45% of
American adults say that they attend church in a typical weekend, not including
a special even such as a wedding or a funeral
·
58% of
Republicans compared to 46% of Democrats
·
50% of
men compared with 40% of men
·
53% of
married people versus 37% of single adults
With
this many Americans in church on a given Sunday, and with 53% of Americans
reporting that “religion is very important in their lives,” our country leads
the way among developed nations according to a University
of Michigan report.
I suppose it is debatable whether or not we might
classify the
45% of
American adults… that is stronger than I might have expected. Upon a bit more
digging, I realized that there’s a difference between asking people about
church and actually counting heads… another researcher compiled church
attendance stats and found the number to more like 18% (14% in our state, 15%
here in King county). That makes a little more sense… I suppose if a pollster
asked any of you if regularly attend church you would, of course, say yes… but
I know that just over half of you are actually here on any given Sunday. We can
also be suspect of the 14% number because those who count church attendance
notoriously miss entire categories of churches (independents for example).
45% or
14% or somewhere in between… the point is that there are a lot of people in
church today… somewhere close to 1 million in our state alone.
Now take a moment and think about the diversity of
worship experienced by these 1 million people in our state.
·
Size
·
Building
·
Formality
·
Music
·
Bible
·
Communion
·
Leadership
·
Gender
·
Age
·
Race
·
Organization/Polity/Denomination
·
Some
dance, some wave banners, others burn candles and swing incense
·
Participation
·
Some
will not have coffee and treats after service
Some of
the differences are doctrinal, others cultural, others are simply style. With
all of this diversity we could conclude that there is one right way, and every
one else has it wrong… or there might be something different going on here.
Now we know that there are those “one right way”
people. I’ve met some of those “one right way” people; I’ve met some of them
right here… and as they left they told me that they were off to find a church
that did it right. Sometimes it is something that we’re doing that is wrong
(music style, position on women in leadership, theology), and sometimes it is
that we leaving some right thing undone. I’ve met some “one right way” people… who
knows, maybe one of you is a “one right way” person and it just so happens that
we hit your idea of the “one right way” (we’ll eventually miss you by the way…
one of these days, I am sure of it, we’ll disappoint and you’ll be off looking
for some place that really does it the “one right way”).
Obviously…
I’m not a “one right way person.” There are all sorts of right ways, and
personally I can enjoy a lot ways of worshiping as the church. I like this way,
a lot, but it isn’t the only way.
By the
way, here’s a weird aside… I’m amazed by how many pastors that I have had tell
me something like, “I would not attend my church if I wasn’t the pastor.” I’m
around a lot of pastors, mostly due to my work at
Like I said, I’m not a “one right way” kind of guy…
and I hope that we’re not a “one right way” kind of church. I think we are on
solid theological ground when we embrace diversity of style and format in
worship.
We have
a high regard for Scripture; we are a Bible believing, and Bible studying, and
Bible honoring church. We look to the Bible as our rule of faith and conduct.
Has it
ever struck you as odd that the book that defines our religion doesn’t come
with a worship manual? Wouldn’t you think that a book like this would have a
simple set of instructions… a sort of how-to when it comes to a worship
service? Has it ever struck you as odd that there isn’t, stuck somewhere in
here between Matthew and Revelation, a New Testament Book of Worship Order?
Now
there are a number of places that emphasize the importance of coming together
for worship
23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. 25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. [1] (Hebrews 10)
The New
Testament holds rich resources in regard to:
·
Preaching
and Teaching
·
Singing
·
Corporate
Prayer
·
Baptism
·
Communion
·
Leadership
·
Church
Discipline
But
there is no simple description of how we ought to conduct a worship service.
It turns
out that Jesus, upon establishing the church, didn’t leave specific worship
instructions… he didn’t leave tablets inscribed with commands… but He did leave
with a promise. He left promising that we would receive something far better
than a book of order; He left promising the ongoing leadership of God Himself.
Jesus left with the promise that the Holy Spirit would lead us.
So as
cultures change, preferences change, even as technology changes, the Holy
Spirit leads us in our worship. Diversity in worship styles and format is a
work of the Holy Spirit… leading us in all in diverse, yet genuine, acts of
worship. Without the constraints of trying to find the right way to worship,
we are free to find a right way.
So for
us, we have endeavored to find a right way
·
Honors
God
·
Inspires
His People
·
Utilizes
Gifts and Resources
·
Welcomes
Seekers
We take opportunity from time to time to talk about
various parts of the service, but I can’t remember a time when I have ever gone
through piece by piece with an explanation of what it is that we’re trying to
accomplish. What is the point of this liturgy, or order of service?
Now I
hope not to insult anyone’s intelligence. Many of you know precisely what we’re
trying to accomplish with each part of the service… just bear with me.
Prelude
& Preparation
Our hope
for the moments prior to service is that we would take time, individually, to
prepare ourselves for worship. Some of us have already been here for a while;
some for a couple of hours setting up, or rehearsing… others have been in
classes or other activities here on the campus. Aided by music from the organ
or piano (or both), it is good to get here early and prepare: focus, clear,
relax, pray, worship.
Welcome
We
always begin our service together the same way… greeting one another with the grace
that has been given to us freely by our Lord, Jesus Christ. It certainly isn’t
that I have any power to impart grace to you… but rather our aim is to remind
one another that we are here today enjoying the grace of Jesus.
Announcements
This is
an important part of our congregational life. It is good to know just what is
going on. It is important to read the bulletin, both the shell and the insert. The
shell is intended to feature items that are of broad interest to all the
Call to
Worship
This
portion of our service is intended to bring us to focus together. It is intended
to remind us that we are here for one primary purpose, and that purpose is to
honor and worship God. We usually approach this as a corporate reading, and it
is usually either Scripture or based on Scripture.
We
follow our call to worship with prayer and then the Chapel Singers call us to
worship with a prepared piece. From the very beginning we’ve set a tone that is
participatory and, with really no preparation required by most, as well as
polished and prepared. We want everyone involved, and a lot of people are
involved with prepared parts of the service.
Repentance
Early in
the service we take time to pause and confess our position before God. In
repentance we remember that we fall far short of God’s holiness. And again, we
do this together, remembering that we all stand shoulder-to-shoulder at the
foot of the cross… none of us are anything apart from God’s mercy and grace.
The
prepared prayers come from a number of places; Christian wrote most of them,
some are borrowed from other authors, and a few of you have even contributed
here. You shouldn’t be shy about offering ideas for these various parts of the
service. We’re happy to take your suggestions, we may not always use each
suggestion, but we appreciate the input.
After we
pray together, we take a few minutes for silent, individual repentance.
·
Sometimes
the silence is the best part. We live such noisy lives. Sometimes it is just
good to be in the presence of God and our friends with all the volume turned
down. There’s something powerful in silence that nourishes our spirits.
·
This is
a good time to ask God to help us overcome sin. Asking for forgiveness for
specific wrong acts, or even good acts that were left undone.
·
Sometimes
I go back and linger on specific lines of the prayer we prayed together.
Assurance
Having
come through a time of repentance, we turn to the Scripture for assurance of
our salvation through Christ. It is right that we confess our sins, but we need
not linger in the guilt and pain. We have assurance that Jesus is our savior;
we are His! These passages of Scripture are intended to remind us of the power
of God’s good work in and for us.
Response
That
leads us to praise and thank God. This little piece of a hymn that we use here
in transition is an opportunity to rejoice in this assurance of forgiveness and
salvation.
Worship
in Song
The
celebration continues in singing, focusing on God’s character, power, and work
in our lives.
16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. [2] Colossians 3
Here
we’ve chosen a sort of middle-of-the-road, blended approach.
·
We sing
a hymn, or two, because of the rich theology found there. We also are happy to
preserve tradition.
·
We don’t
do drums and electric guitars; they just don’t work in this room and don’t
blend with the service format.
·
We
generally sing some old songs, and we sing some new songs. Old songs have a way
of reminding us of God’s faithfulness over time, and new songs remind us that
His blessings are new and fresh each day.
·
We allow
for the kinds of things that we read in scripture: standing, clapping, and
raising of hands… but we don’t demand any sort of posture, as long it is
appropriate and respectful.
I said
that one of the reasons we sing hymns is that we’re happy to preserve
tradition. I heard an interview with a famous church historian, Jaroslav
Pelikan, recently on the occasion of his recent passing. Pelikan said pointed
out that tradition is often thought of as something for the sake of past
generations, but tradition is really for the sake of future generations. It is
how we pass on our values to the next generation. He went on to say that there
is really no way to get away from tradition, since if we set aside good
traditions, they will generally just be replaced with crummy tradition in the
years to come.
Proclamation
Then we
come to proclamation. We want to be a Bible centered church. We use Scripture
throughout the service; here we focus on an Old Testament and a New Testament
passage that generally ties to the theme of the sermon.
We
intentionally look to members of the congregation to read.
·
It
underscores that we are all people of the Bible. It doesn’t take a degree or
some ecclesiastical license to interact with Scripture.
·
It gives
us opportunity to see and get to know each other. It is good for the
congregation to see and hear each other, and it is good for each of you to get
a view from here every once in a while.
From the
Scripture, we move to a creed. These creedal statements serve two purposes:
·
They
remind us what we believe
·
They
proclaim to a visitor something of what we believe
We use
the Apostles’ Creed as our sort of home base creed. It is one of the oldest,
and simplest, statements of Christian faith. We use other historical creeds,
like the Nicene Creed. Sometimes we pull from our denomination’s creedal
statements (the AG statement of 16 fundamental truths)… and a few we wrote
ourselves, like the one we used today.
Sermon
Today’s
sermon is out of the ordinary. Usually our sermons are textual, or exegetical,
meaning that we typically go to a specific passage of Scripture for the base of
a sermon. An occasional topical sermon like this is just fine… but for me a
topical approach tends to me more about socializing than edifying. We certainly
want to be relevant, and I hope that you find practical use of the sermons… but
for us we find it best to look to Scripture as our base and source rather than
the newspaper, or current events, or television shows, or movies.
We
generally preach in series. The discipline of preaching in series helps us deal
with topics that we might not choose if we were only thinking topically. When
the series is based on a section of the Bible, which is our general rule, the
series also helps us to see the big ideas contained in the books or extended
passages of the Bible.
Another
thing that makes us unique is that we share the preaching. Now part of that is
just practical. My work and ministry at
On a
personal, side note… this is one of the reasons I like going to church here. I
like my preaching just fine, but I’m glad that I’m not the only one I have to
listen to. An opportunity to sit with you and benefit from the good preaching
of others makes church personally enjoying for me. I think if I preached every
Sunday this would feel much more like a job.
Intercession
This is
just a fancy name for prayer-and-share… prayer requests and praise reports. It
is family time. Our time to rejoice with those who rejoice, and bear one another’s
burdens in prayer. It is not at all uncommon that prayer requests get answered
right in the context of our little church (job, housing, help, and advice).
Offering
You must
be tired of hearing me say it; the offering is an extension of our worship. We
do have bills to pay… but the point of the offering is worship. We honor God
through our giving. Many of you are obedient with your tithes, the scriptural pattern
of giving 10% of your income to God through these offerings in church. I
believe this to be a good practice; Laurie and I tithe. Others follow other
patterns, and there are some who clearly do much more than tithe.
Beyond
our tithes that fund the ongoing work of our ministry here, there are other
opportunities to give. This church has done well in meeting needs for
missionaries and other special projects.
Chapel
Singers
While
the offering is collected, the Chapel Singers bring an anthem. Here again,
there’s a blended approach; the Chapel Singers prepare ancient works as well as
contemporary works from a wide range of styles. And sometimes it takes a lot of
work; that is a good thing because we all ought to bring our very best to God.
Once the
Chapel Singers are finished, and the offering is collected, we pray. Thanking
God for ability to give and asking His blessing on the continued work of His
church. Some pastors pray before the offering is taken; I chose to pray once it
received… I just like to avoid that awkward moment of feeling like I’m praying
for one last opportunity to make people give. That just isn’t the point here.
Benediction
To close
the service I like to briefly preview what is coming next week and invite
people to fellowship after the service. Then there is a benediction that is
meant to remind us of God’s blessing as well as remind us of God’s charge to
live these Christian lives and be his witnesses.
Response
Then the
congregation responds together in one last time of signing praise. We’ve landed
on the traditional doxology; we used to mix it up from time to time… I’m
thinking about mixing it up again.
Postlude
Fellowship
Once we
sing that last amen in the Doxology, the formal service is over… but we know
that the service isn’t over. Treats are important! The time we share together
over a cup of coffee is an important part of the service.
There’s
more… but we’re running out of time (which is another whole way we think about
the service, the way we use time)… so I’ll have to pick up some of these other
topics in coming weeks.
Communion
Baptism
Focus
·
God:
Father, Son, Spirit
·
Bible
·
Service/Elements
·
Leadership
·
Congregation
·
Tradition
But what of a So
What?
Again…
another important part of our service. We want the sermons to have a practical take
away… something that hits home.
Take into account that everything we do here is
intended to have meaning… so work to make it meaningful to you. Sometimes it is
easy just to go through the motions,
I know because I find myself just going through the motions from time to time.
God
saves us to enjoy Him fully… not only for eternity, but here and now. He saves
us to be part of His people… and the first work of His people is to acknowledge
Him, to love and worship Him. So fully engage in every opportunity presented in
our services:
·
Prayer
·
Repentance
·
Assurance
·
Worship
·
Learning
·
Sharing
·
Giving
·
Receiving
Give your all… and receive everything that God has for
us as we come together to worship Him.