A brief survey of the parts of the DIVINE SERVICE, the chief worship service among Lutherans, can be found here.
Receiving Good Things from God
The Athanasian Creed teaches us that true Christian worship can be recognized in two ways. First we worship the God who is triune, that is, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The second way we recognize Christian worship is that it is centered on Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God. Our worship is “Divine” because it is Christ-centered.The Lutheran Confessions teach us about the “Service” of Divine Service: “The service and worship of the Gospel is to receive good things from God” (Apology, IV, 310). In the Divine Service, God, who calls, gathers, and enlightens the whole Christian church on earth, comes with His gracious gifts to serve us.
People often think that worship is about what we do for or toward God. The reality is quite different. In the Divine Service God is providing his service for us. In the reading, the preaching, and the proclamation of his Word, in his Sacraments of Holy Baptism and Holy Communion, God comes to us. The work we do in worship is to receive the gift of God’s grace and respond.
Our Lord speaks and we listen. His Word bestows what it says. Faith that is born from what is heard acknowledges the gifts received with eager thankfulness and praise. Music is drawn into the thankfulness and praise, enlarging and elevating the adoration of our gracious giver God. Saying back to him what he has said to us, we repeat what is most true and sure.
Dr. Norman Nagel
from the introduction of Lutheran Worship
[still one of the best concise descriptions
of the Divine Service, bar none]
Because
of our sin, we cannot come to God, but God must come to us. This is
what takes place in the Divine Service. Through the Word and Sacraments
God speaks to his people. He reminds us of our sinfulness and failure to
love completely and he then forgives us and assures us of the grace we
have in Jesus Christ.
This grace is central to
our lives as Christians and we must treat it with all reverence and
respect. It was not of our doing and it is not ours with which to
tamper. Therefore worship is not a matter of novelty or entertainment,
much less a matter of attempting to please the masses. For this reason
hymns are chosen to round out our worship that are doctrinally sound and
theologically significant. Hymns, like the liturgy, must reflect this
Christo-centric “God coming to man” theology or else they are unfit for
the service. May our worship always be pure and always emphasize this
Biblical Christo-centric attitude.
FAITH uses the language of the Church that God gave to us in His Word. Some of the language is 5000 years old, some 2000, and some is today's language of Faith. We use a variety of services from the hymnal (LSB).
The Divine Service at FAITH is authentic! God gives to us His gifts of eternal life in the language of the bible and we give thanks for His gifts with the same God-given language. He is the author of our faith in the work of Christ (John 8:28).
The Divine Service at FAITH
The Divine Service at FAITH is both traditional and contemporary. Traditional in that God's Word creates the timeless culture and language of the Church; Contemporary in that Faith's services effectively communicate the Gospel.FAITH uses the language of the Church that God gave to us in His Word. Some of the language is 5000 years old, some 2000, and some is today's language of Faith. We use a variety of services from the hymnal (LSB).
The Divine Service at FAITH is authentic! God gives to us His gifts of eternal life in the language of the bible and we give thanks for His gifts with the same God-given language. He is the author of our faith in the work of Christ (John 8:28).
