In many respects the Holy Spirit’s call to worship was a call to be faithful amidst persecution in a hostile world. There is simply no Christianity worthy of the name without it. . Bible passages such as Acts 2:42-47 indicate the indispensable centrality of worship in the lives of Christians. Corporate worship is clearly essential, and the Bible warns us against minimizing it(Hebrews 10:19-25). We are called by God to Worship. I will attempt to trace a few significant developments in the Church’s worship and sacramental life.
A two-fold thrust has characterized most Christian worship throughout history. On the one hand, Christians took from synagogue services such important features as hymns, scripture readings, prayers, sermons, etc. Secondly, the unique feature of Christian worship, the one added by Jesus himself, the only “order of service” specifically commanded by Jesus, is Communion. In some places in early Christian centuries, these two components were kept clearly separated. The first part of the Sunday service (the one with components from synagogues) included both baptized and unbaptized people. Some of these people were just learning to be Christians (the initiation and instruction period prior to baptism sometimes took as long as three years!) These Christians-in the-making were known collectively as the Catechumenate(from the Greek work “katecheo,” “to instruct”). Unbaptized persons were dismissed after the first part of the service. The second part was for baptized Christians only; it centered around the Lord’s supper. By around the sixth century, when much of society was already “Christianized,” these two parts of the worship service were combined.
From the very beginning, worship was seen not as entertainment led by some people (clergy, etc.) but as participation. Our word “liturgy” (referring to the order of service) is from a Greek word meaning “work of the people.” However, in the later middle Ages a distorted view saw clergy as the chief actors, and the congregation as spectators and recipients. The Reformation (with its emphasis on corporate hymn singing, etc.) sought to restore the participatory nature of worship. However, in many Christian circles today, the notion of worship as a “show” with people in the pews as spectators and judges is still alive and well. No, let’s put it this way: prevalent, but unhealthy…and unbiblical!
Baptism has been regarded almost universally as the sacrament of admission to the Church and to the Lord’s supper. It conveys forgiveness of sin and new life in Christ with Christ’s people. Since the New Testament primarily deals with missionary situations involving adult converts, it stresses the baptism of adults. However, passages such as Act 16:33 imply that children were baptized too. By the second century, writings refer to the baptism of infants without challenge, and nothing in the first century contradicts the notion the notion that infant baptism was practiced. In contrast, nowhere in extant writings is a dedication rite for infants (in place of baptism) mentioned. A theologian named Tertullian (who was associated at one point with the distorted teachings of Montanism; in the third century expressed his doubts about the wisdom of baptizing infants. But his very words assure us that infant baptism was the common practice. According to a noted scholar, Dr.Joachim Jeremias, in his book, Infant Baptism in the First Four Centuries, it was not until c.AD.330 that we have clear evidence of a case of Christian parents letting their children grow up unbaptized. While it seems that infants of unchurched parents were not baptized (at least there is no current evidence of such a thing), clearly it was the prevailing practice to baptize children of believers as well as adults.
It was much later…in the 1500’s that the first significant attack on infant baptism arose. Perhaps it is no accident that at this late challenge arose in the heyday of a philosophy sometimes known as Renaissance Humanism. This kind of humanism stressed the great importance of individual understandings, feelings and decisions. This humanistic philosophy was probably a much more important factor in the re-baptism movement of the 1500’s than the Scriptures were, because the scriptures tell of some amazing things that God can do with infants, and even the unborn. In any event, it is safe to say that at least 90% of all the Christians who ever lived were baptized as infants and/or believed infant baptism to be Biblically and theologically valid.
Holy Communion was, from the very beginning, an integral part of worship. In the West at least, it was celebrated every Sunday by virtually all churches from the days of the Apostles through and including the Lutheran Reformation of the 1500’s. Acts 2:46 tells us that the early Christians gathered daily in the Temple. That’s how important worship was to them! In the Temple they no doubt prayed, sang psalms, heard the scriptures (Old Testament, of course), etc. But in their homes they broke bread, which very likely means celebrating the Eucharist (Communion). That was what was unique about Christian worship. That was what Christ commanded that could not be shared with everyone in the Temple. Often Christians risked their lives to gather on the Lord’s Day (Sunday)…not simply for individual prayer and meditation, but to share corporately in obedience to Christ’s command regarding Communion: “Do this in remembrance of me.”
The theology of Communion is highly complex in its development. Not all Christians believe the same things about it, other than that Christ commanded it. By the 9th century it was being suggested by some that bread and wine become the Body of Christ, i.e., are no longer bread and wine at all, except in outward appearance. To affect this miracle, a priest is essential. Here’s the way it was put in its official formulation, at the Fourth Lateran council in 1215: “The Body and Blood of Christ are truly contained…under the appearance of bread and wine, after the bread has been changed into the body, and the wine into the Blood, through the power of God. Only the rightly ordained priest can perform this sacrament. “But regardless of one’s views of the sacrament, Christ commanded it…and its blessings are immense.
Augustine (354-430) was a leading formulator of the doctrine of the sacraments in the western church. He stressed their centrality in the life of the church, emphasized their conveyance of grace, and held that they are necessary for salvation. Lastly specific patterns of worship can vary widely, but certain common components go back to the Jewish synagogue and to the Upper Room, where Jesus commanded Communion for his Church It is important to maintain these components in proper balance.
God's Blessings and this Ministry!
A two-fold thrust has characterized most Christian worship throughout history. On the one hand, Christians took from synagogue services such important features as hymns, scripture readings, prayers, sermons, etc. Secondly, the unique feature of Christian worship, the one added by Jesus himself, the only “order of service” specifically commanded by Jesus, is Communion. In some places in early Christian centuries, these two components were kept clearly separated. The first part of the Sunday service (the one with components from synagogues) included both baptized and unbaptized people. Some of these people were just learning to be Christians (the initiation and instruction period prior to baptism sometimes took as long as three years!) These Christians-in the-making were known collectively as the Catechumenate(from the Greek work “katecheo,” “to instruct”). Unbaptized persons were dismissed after the first part of the service. The second part was for baptized Christians only; it centered around the Lord’s supper. By around the sixth century, when much of society was already “Christianized,” these two parts of the worship service were combined.
From the very beginning, worship was seen not as entertainment led by some people (clergy, etc.) but as participation. Our word “liturgy” (referring to the order of service) is from a Greek word meaning “work of the people.” However, in the later middle Ages a distorted view saw clergy as the chief actors, and the congregation as spectators and recipients. The Reformation (with its emphasis on corporate hymn singing, etc.) sought to restore the participatory nature of worship. However, in many Christian circles today, the notion of worship as a “show” with people in the pews as spectators and judges is still alive and well. No, let’s put it this way: prevalent, but unhealthy…and unbiblical!
Baptism has been regarded almost universally as the sacrament of admission to the Church and to the Lord’s supper. It conveys forgiveness of sin and new life in Christ with Christ’s people. Since the New Testament primarily deals with missionary situations involving adult converts, it stresses the baptism of adults. However, passages such as Act 16:33 imply that children were baptized too. By the second century, writings refer to the baptism of infants without challenge, and nothing in the first century contradicts the notion the notion that infant baptism was practiced. In contrast, nowhere in extant writings is a dedication rite for infants (in place of baptism) mentioned. A theologian named Tertullian (who was associated at one point with the distorted teachings of Montanism; in the third century expressed his doubts about the wisdom of baptizing infants. But his very words assure us that infant baptism was the common practice. According to a noted scholar, Dr.Joachim Jeremias, in his book, Infant Baptism in the First Four Centuries, it was not until c.AD.330 that we have clear evidence of a case of Christian parents letting their children grow up unbaptized. While it seems that infants of unchurched parents were not baptized (at least there is no current evidence of such a thing), clearly it was the prevailing practice to baptize children of believers as well as adults.
It was much later…in the 1500’s that the first significant attack on infant baptism arose. Perhaps it is no accident that at this late challenge arose in the heyday of a philosophy sometimes known as Renaissance Humanism. This kind of humanism stressed the great importance of individual understandings, feelings and decisions. This humanistic philosophy was probably a much more important factor in the re-baptism movement of the 1500’s than the Scriptures were, because the scriptures tell of some amazing things that God can do with infants, and even the unborn. In any event, it is safe to say that at least 90% of all the Christians who ever lived were baptized as infants and/or believed infant baptism to be Biblically and theologically valid.
Holy Communion was, from the very beginning, an integral part of worship. In the West at least, it was celebrated every Sunday by virtually all churches from the days of the Apostles through and including the Lutheran Reformation of the 1500’s. Acts 2:46 tells us that the early Christians gathered daily in the Temple. That’s how important worship was to them! In the Temple they no doubt prayed, sang psalms, heard the scriptures (Old Testament, of course), etc. But in their homes they broke bread, which very likely means celebrating the Eucharist (Communion). That was what was unique about Christian worship. That was what Christ commanded that could not be shared with everyone in the Temple. Often Christians risked their lives to gather on the Lord’s Day (Sunday)…not simply for individual prayer and meditation, but to share corporately in obedience to Christ’s command regarding Communion: “Do this in remembrance of me.”
The theology of Communion is highly complex in its development. Not all Christians believe the same things about it, other than that Christ commanded it. By the 9th century it was being suggested by some that bread and wine become the Body of Christ, i.e., are no longer bread and wine at all, except in outward appearance. To affect this miracle, a priest is essential. Here’s the way it was put in its official formulation, at the Fourth Lateran council in 1215: “The Body and Blood of Christ are truly contained…under the appearance of bread and wine, after the bread has been changed into the body, and the wine into the Blood, through the power of God. Only the rightly ordained priest can perform this sacrament. “But regardless of one’s views of the sacrament, Christ commanded it…and its blessings are immense.
Augustine (354-430) was a leading formulator of the doctrine of the sacraments in the western church. He stressed their centrality in the life of the church, emphasized their conveyance of grace, and held that they are necessary for salvation. Lastly specific patterns of worship can vary widely, but certain common components go back to the Jewish synagogue and to the Upper Room, where Jesus commanded Communion for his Church It is important to maintain these components in proper balance.
God's Blessings and this Ministry!
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