Worship Services

What is a Worship Service?

Twice every Sunday, the church gathers together to meet with her God – that is the essence of worship. We worship because God calls us to in order to maintain a relationship with His people. God has given us the Bible as His Word, and from there we hear Him call us to meet with Him in worship. We gather in order to honour, praise, and glorify Him. We do this because God is our Creator and our Saviour. At the same time, we receive from the Lord wonderful gifts – forgiveness of our sins, peace with Himself, and His continued care over our lives.

Receiving God’s Gifts

God gives gifts to us especially through the preaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ. As we listen, we hear from the Bible all about God’s gifts, how he has sacrificed His own Son to save us from our sin, how He has sent His Holy Spirit to give us faith and even live in our hearts. As well, we hear God’s will explained in the preaching so that we understand how we are to live as Christians, as God’s holy people.

Worship Service Tour – Enter in!

Let’s take a walk through a typical Sunday morning worship service. Before you enter the church building, you will be met by a friendly family at the front door. They are designated “door greeters and hosts”. They will greet and welcome you and give you a handout (called a liturgy sheet) that explains a bit about the worship and also information as to what is happening in church. Inside, an usher can help you with a hymn book and Bible (NKJV) if needed, and also help you to find a seat. You can sit anywhere you like.

You are welcome to wear anything that is comfortable, while at the same time respecting others and showing honour to God. Our members wear anything from neat casual clothing to business and formal attire. You will notice that most people are dressed up. Please don’t mistake this for elitism or snobbery. All we are trying to do is to show honour and respect to the Lord God as much as we can.

Confession of Trust and Divine Greeting

At 9:30 AM, the deacons, elders and minister file into the auditorium. The service formally begins when the minister, on behalf of the congregation, confesses the church’s trust in the Lord alone, using a verse of Scripture. The minister then responds on God’s behalf by extending God’s greeting of peace.

Praise the LORD!

In response to God’s greeting, the congregation sings a song of praise.

We use a song book which contains the 150 Psalms of the Bible put to music as well as 85 hymns based mostly on texts of Scripture. There’s nothing quite like taking up the psalms inspired by the Holy Spirit and singing them back to God in praise. As much as possible we want to keep the Word of God on our lips as we praise Him!

Reflecting on the 10 Commandments

After praising the LORD in song, we then listen to God again through the reading of His law, the 10 Commandments. The 10 Commandments show us how God wants us to live. They act as a mirror for our lives and a standard of perfection to strive for.

“Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night. That person is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither— whatever they do prospers.” Psalm 1

As we listen and compare our lives to God’s law, we realise every week how our lives do not match up. Our sin is made clear to us and we are humbled before the Lord.

But the amazing thing is we are not led to despair! Instead we are driven into the arms of our Saviour Jesus Christ! In the prayer after the law, we publicly confess our sins and then seek forgiveness for them in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross. Because God has promised forgiveness, we do not go away dreading or doubting, but we continue our worship in humble confidence that we stand right with God again. It’s a beautiful moment- our guilt has been cleared away! Even more, we are given the Holy Spirit to help us fight against sin and to show how thankful we are to Him. In the end, the law shows us how to be thankful to God!

“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death.” Romans 8:1,2

Taking in God’s Word

We then read a portion or two of Scripture that is related to the “text” of the sermon. The morning sermons are based squarely on one text of Scripture. After singing a song to prepare our hearts and minds for the hearing of the gospel, we then set to work listening to the preacher explain God’s Word from the selected text.

Each sermon is about 35 minutes in length. It takes up the most time in the worship service for one key reason – because God wants us to be instructed by the preaching of His Word (Romans 10:14-17).

You won’t see any visual aids nor will you hear a lot of personal anecdotes or funny stories. But you will hear a Bible passage explained, the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ proclaimed, and how we Christians should live outlined. As we listen, the Holy Spirit makes us understand and believe God’s Word, and then helps us to live it out each day.

After the sermon is over, the congregation responds with a song of praise chosen in connection with the message of the sermon. After singing, a prayer of thanksgiving is offered to the Lord.

Offering of Thanks

Once the prayer is concluded, the congregation again responds to the gospel message by bringing a thank-offering to the Lord. Yes, this is indeed a financial gift dedicated to the Lord, but please do not misunderstand this as a payment for the service or even as support for the minister. Not one penny of the offering goes to support the minister – that is done by the voluntary contributions of the members on their own. The offering is given to show your thanks to the Lord for His salvation as just proclaimed, and all the monies are distributed to the poor and needy, whether in the congregation, the community, or the world. The offering is accompanied by a song of thanksgiving.