Adult Class: September-November 2006
The Church
Lesson 8
Worship In The Church: Activities
We saw that worship is an obvious fact of life in the church, and our worship is based upon the very nature of God. Christian worship has been practiced on Sunday since the beginning of the church. The gospel writers do not take great pains to identify time, yet all four of them note that Jesus rose from the dead on “the first day of the week.” It was on the first day of the week that the risen Jesus met with His disciples (John 20:19, 26). It clearly was the practice of the church to meet on the first day of the week (Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:1-2). This day has been called “the first day of the week” or “the Lord’s Day.” The literature of the early church shows that all churches in every part of the world met on Sunday. When they met, they participated in the same five activities.
The Lord’s Supper—1 Corinthians 11:17-34.
This element was the centerpiece of early worship assemblies. Participation in the Lord’s Supper involves the mutual sharing of bread and fruit of the vine. Within the pages of the New Testament there are many images that apply to this activity. Each of these images helps us to know something about what is being conveyed in this action.
In every place where the story is told how Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper, the idea of thanksgiving is front and center. The prayers for the bread and fruit of the vine involve thanksgiving to God for the salvation that is ours through Jesus Christ. The meal is specifically called the Lord’s Supper, showing that it is a meal with Jesus—in a real sense He is here among us when we partake. In 1 Corinthians 10:16-17, it is called fellowship or communion, showing that it is a sharing together in Jesus’ sacrifice and its benefits to us all. The church members are bound together in the mutual celebration of this action. The most common image applied in our experience is that of memorial, as we remember the event in the upper room, the last supper of the Lord and the institution of this worship. Typically, we fix upon the remembrance of Jesus’ sacrifice, but the memorial aspect involves the entire events leading to His crucifixion. Along with this, there is anticipation of His return. Because of this, the communion is not a sorrowful commemoration of the judicial murder of a righteous man, but the joyous expectation of His triumphant return for His people. Finally, the supper recalls the covenant meal involved in so many Biblical covenants. This gives us an opportunity to renew our allegiance to Jesus. The theology and symbolism of the Lord’s Supper is rich through these images and helps us to focus entirely on God during this brief event.
Prayer—Acts 12:12
Public prayer has been a feature of the worship of God since creation. Prayer is to be a part of every Christian’s life (1 Thessalonians 5:17), but public prayer is not merely private prayer overheard by the congregation. It involves a representative of the people, speaking to God on their behalf. For this reason, public prayer demands careful thought and preparation.
Christian prayer is addressed to God in the name of Jesus (John 15:16). This means that prayer is done with respect to Jesus, according to His will, and is an act of worship to Him. The close “Amen” is a relic of synagogue practice, since it literally means “may it be done.” When the church speaks the “amen” at the end of the prayer, it shows that the prayer is a corporate act.
Singing—Ephesians 5:19
Singing in worship has many functions: preaching about Christ, confessing our faith in Jesus, enjoying the indwelling Spirit and word of Christ (Colossians 3:16), offering a spiritual sacrifice (Hebrews 13:15), praising God, mutually edifying each other, and engaging the whole person in worship (heart, mind, emotions).
It is the words that makes singing Christian worship—the musical notes are merely a method of keeping us united so that our singing is done “decently and in order” (1 Corinthians 14:40). The universal testimony of the early church is that Christian singing was without any instruments, although both pagan and Jewish worship had prominently featured instruments. It is worth noting that Paul, who knew the Psalms very well, drew on the common phrase “sing and make melody with a harp” when he very carefully commanded the Ephesians to “sing and make melody with your heart.” It seems clear that he deliberately chose a spiritual instrument (heart) to offer spiritual worship.
Giving—1 Corinthians 16:1-4
The readiness to give is a hallmark of Christians. It is not merely a matter of relieving needs but of expressing the grace of God through the church. Giving is an act of fellowship, of service, of blessing others and of demonstrating the proof of our faith. We are responsible to God as stewards of His blessings and we will give account for the use of the material goods He has entrusted to us. The contribution in the church has only two Biblical functions: the relief of the poor and the preaching of the gospel.
Reading and Preaching the Word of God—Colossians 1:28
It is in the church that the word of God is made public. In weekly worship the Scriptures are declared and Christ is proclaimed. Jesus, Himself, taught the Old Testament Scriptures and related His saving ministry to the ancient revelation of God (Luke 24:27, 44-45). Those who seek to unfold the word of God to listeners undertake a very serious responsibility, and one that will command the strict attention of God (James 3:1). The Holy Scriptures involve the revelation of God’s will and the explanation of that revelation so that it can be applied to daily life by all the worshippers of God.
Worship is a serious matter and must be approached in that way. These elements of worship allow us to offer sincere expressions of praise and submission to God through Jesus Christ. By participating in these activities, we place ourselves firmly in the mainstream of Christian theology and practice all the way back to that night in the upper room when Jesus broke the bread and offered the cup, then took up the cross for us.