How We Worship

Christ Church Twin Cities 

A Church in the Confederation of Reformed Evangelical Churches

 

     One of the most common questions we address is why we worship the way we do. We are delighted by this question, since worshipping the Triune God is the most important thing any Christian can do. Believing this, we have put a lot of time and thought into why we worship the way we do.

 

     The questions arise, in part, to the fact that we have a structured liturgy. In many circles today, the use of liturgy summons a host of evils to be avoided. It’s too Roman. Too recited. Too read. Too repetitious. Too boring.  Added to these complaints is that many liturgical churches no longer uphold Biblical doctrine when it comes to church discipline.

 

      In building a case for a liturgical service, there are a number of things to address. The largest is that nearly all churches have a liturgical service of some sort. Unless the entire service is random, it has a liturgy – or an order of service. Do you sing at set times? Pray at set times? Have the sermon at a set time? Then you have a liturgy. The word itself is harmless.

 

     As you read through our order of worship, you no doubt noticed the frequent responsive readings, occasional passages of corporate reading, of kneeling and even little footnotes after certain sections. If you looked at the overall structure, as in where section markers went, you noticed that our service follows this pattern:

 

             -Call to Worship

             -Confession / Purification Offering

             -Consecration / Ascension offering

             -Communion / Peace Offering

             -Commission

 

     More than just an alliterative structure of C’s, our worship service is structured after the order of sacrifices in a Jewish worship service.  Looking at several passages where people enter the presence of God to worship, they follow this pattern. God calls His people to worship and so they approach with gladness.  They recognize they are sinful or impure in the sight of God and must purify themselves before offering their worship to God and God is gracious and forgives them. At this point, the worshipper offers his sacrifice – animals in the Old Testament, verbal praise in the New – and God receives it and speaks to them. Then YHWH feeds His people at his table. Finally, He commissions them to go into the world and declare his name.

 

     Examples of this worship structure include the dedication of the Tabernacle in Leviticus 9, the dedication of the Temple in II Chronicles 5-7, and John watching the events in Revelation 4-22 – wherein there is a threefold repetition of the consecration offering with the bowls, trumpets and the seven plagues.

    

     It is a dance which takes time to learn, but it is the dance which God has ordained for his people. He leads us in this dance and we follow. And like dancing, we do not do it in drudgery! We seek to enthusiastically learn the steps and worship with joy.

 

     Some other elements of interest:

 

     Why does the pastor wear a robe?

 

     Why do you sing Psalms?

 

     Questions about the Lord’s Table

 

     Communion Questions:
     Communion as a reminder to God

     Can children take communion? The Lord’s Supper is observed as the climax of our Lord’s Day worship service. We invite to the Lord’s Table all those who are baptized disciples of Jesus Christ and are under the authority of Christ and His body, the Church. By eating the bread and wine with us as a visitor, you are acknowledging to the elders of this local church that you are in covenant with God and an active member of a congregation in which the gospel is faithfully confessed, taught, and believed. You also acknowledge that you are a sinner, without hope except in the sovereign mercy of God, and that you are trusting in Jesus Christ alone for salvation. If you have any doubt about your participation, please speak to the Leader before or after the service. As it specifically applies to children, we permit them to come to the Table without requiring them to prove their faith as they are truly baptized into Christ and ought to be nourished as such. However, we do not mandate paedo-communion. Here are some thoughts on why we allow it.