Taking or Following?

In November, my introduction to this topic of the worship service began this way:

Do you see that there is a certain flow, a certain direction to the movement?  Coming in, receiving, and going back out changed.  It’s kind of like a hospital, a restaurant, or even a gas station.  We come in with a need, we receive what is offered (healing, nourishment, a fill-up for the car), and we go out again, strengthened to continue our life.  The purpose of this order in our worship service is basically the same: we come to church needing to know God, we receive the Word, we worship, and we go back out into the world strengthened, knowing God better and ready to serve Him.

We have come a long way over the months as we looked at the worship service, from coming to worship God as we are, to hearing His word proclaimed in a variety of ways, to responding in love, faith, and renewed commitment!  We came in with a need, we received what was offered, and now we are ready to go out again, strengthened—and known by God!—to continue our life.  We are ready to see how we can take our renewed hearts and spirits out into the world to share with others.

In the Presbyterian Book of Order, this final movement is called “Bearing and Following the Word into the World.”  First, we take (bear) the word (Word) with us out into the world, the word that we have received during the proclamation.  During the service, the Word begins to hide itself in our hearts and minds and spirits, like a seed, so that we must carry it out with us. What are some specific ways we can express during the service to show that we intend to integrate this Word into our daily life?

To sing a hymn of going into the world is the most basic way that almost everyone does this in almost every church.  We can also be asked to make an act of commitment to discipleship such as being reminded of our Christian education opportunities following the service or the small groups that meet each week.  What are other ways you think of?

But we also follow the word (Word) out into the world. The Word goes before us and leads us as we go.  During the worship service, this is a time to recognize those leaving our fellowship for further education, national service, or career change.  It can be a time of commissioning those who are following the leading of Jesus to go into the world to do short- or long-term missionary service or for those who have been led to get involved with specific corporate and/or personal acts of evangelism, compassion, justice, reconciliation, and peacemaking.

The service concludes then with a formal dismissal which may include a charge to the people to go into the world in the name of Christ.  It includes words of blessing, using a Trinitarian benediction or other words from Scripture, such as the benediction in 2 Cor. 13:14:  May “the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.”  This is one that I use most often.

I hope that you have begun to see that as we understand how and why we order our weekly worship service the way we do, it begins to inform our personal spiritual formation and inspires us to acts of service for each other and our community.