Lutheran
Worship Presentation
Confirmation
Class Outline
Lutheran Worship
is:
- 1.
Historical--In many ways, we worship just like the
early Christians did. We sing hymns, pray, and read the
Bible, and tell the stories of Jesus. This connects us
with all of the Christians who have gathered for 2000
years. Even Jesus sang hymns.
2.
Liturgical--literally it means "work of the people." We
do not come to worship to be entertained, but rather to
fully participate in praising God for all that we are and
have. We participate in the singing, praying and proclaiming
of the word. Our worship service is a set form which closely
resembles that of the Roman Catholic, Episcopalian, and
Greek Orthodox churches. For this reason, these three church
bodies are called Liturgical Churches. Part of the
Liturgical tradition is the Church year, which divides the
year into certain seasons. A new church year begins with the
1st Sunday in Advent and ends with Christ the King
Sunday.
3.
Traditional--Through the years, certain traditions
have risen which aid in our worship. These may change
through the years, and are not "written in stone" They tend
to reflect the culture of the surrounding area. Examples of
tradition are: Advent wreath, Pastor's and choir wearing
vestments, Christmas Eve Candlelight Service, Annual
Celebrations, etc.
Structure of
the Worship Service.
Part One of the Worship Service
CONFESSION:
Notice that this is not included within the Service in the
LBW. It is optional part of the beginning. On festive
Sundays, Christmas and Easter, it is not included. God does
not need our confession, we do. In confession, we remember
that God has washed away all of our sin in our Baptism. We
need to be reminded, that even though Godhas won the war,
there are daily battles still to be fought,and we are still
sinners needing God's forgiveness. In confession, we state
that we cannot by our own power free ourselves from sin and
death, but are wholly dependent upon God's grace. Luther
says that in confession we return daily to our
baptism.
Biblical
Reference:
I John 1:5-10 (Letter of John, not the Gospel) Some of this
Scripture passage makes a good Litany for confession of
sins. Psalm 51:1-9 is a good confession of sins.
The Sign of the
Cross:
Our posture for prayer, singing, and kneeling, are shared by
many religions around the world. The sign of the cross is
unique to Christians. The beginning and end of the service
are opportunities to make the sign of the cross, and people
are encouraged to do so.
Encourage children to make the sign of the cross--and
say: In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the
Holy Spirit, Amen as the first thing they do in the
morning and the last thing they do at night. This way, they
remind themselves that they belong to Jesus.
ENTRANCE
HYMN:
This is the first corporate act of the service. It calls and
invites all members of the congregation to join in praise
and adoration of our God. It helps set the tone for the
day.
APOSTOLIC
GREETING
The Pastor calls and we respond, just as God initiates
action and we respond. This is a pattern throughout the
Liturgy. This greeting was used by the Apostles (12
disciples of Christ). 2 Corinthians 13:14.
THE ENTRANCE
RITE
In ancient Rome, the bishops and Pastors would go around to
each church. They made such a long procession, that the
entrance rite was sung while they processed into the large
churches.
KYRIE: This is
a Greek word meaning Lord. KYRIE ELEISON is Greek for
"Lord have mercy." In the Roman rite, the congregation
sings, "Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord have
mercy." Our Kyrie in the LBW is taken from the Greek
Orthodox Church, which makes our worship
ecumenical!
The Kyrie may be a
Litany related to the theme of the day, to a prayer for all
people, or a responsive reading. People may say "Lord Have
Mercy" as a response to the Litany. The Kyrie may also be
sung--using a verse or two of a song asking for mercy. Hymn
96 would work very well.
Biblical
Reference:
Luke 17:11-15; Luke 18:35-43
HYMN OF
PRAISE:
In the LBW we have two:
1. Gloria: In this song we give thanks and praise to
God for the incarnation, which means God becomes human in
the form of Jesus. The Gloria echos the angels' song of the
first Christmas.
Biblical Reference: Luke 2:13, 14; Rev.
15:3-4
2. This is the
Feast: In this song, also known as "Worthy is
Christ" we give thanks and praise to God for the
resurrection of Jesus. A lot of this hymn is taken from the
book of Revelation. We remember that Christ is victorious
over sin and death.
Biblical Reference: Rev. 4:9-11; 5:8-14
The Hymn of Praise
may be any hymn praising God and God's actions on our
behalf. They may come from our LBW or other sources. An
example of the range of songs one could use is: "The Lord
liveth! And Blessed be the rock!"
PRAYER OF THE
DAY: This prayer is a bridge to the next part of the
service. It also sets the tone for the day. It is related to
the prescribed lectionary readings for the day. These may be
found on LBW pages 13ff.
Part Two of
the Worship Service
PROCLAMATION OF
THE WORD:
1.Old Testament Reading: We read of God's dealings
with
the chosen people, Israel. We see his love and gracious acts
to them. This reading often is related thematically with the
Gospel reading.
2.Psalm--The Psalms were ancient Israel's Hymnal.
The
Psalm for the day usually is a comment upon the Old
Testament Lesson. We chant it in much the same way as the
Israelites did.
3. 2nd Lesson--This Lesson is usually a letter from Paul
or
one of the Apostles from the New Testament. This is read
very much like it was in the early Christian church. These
readings may be consecutive from Sunday to
Sunday.
The Gospel
Verse: The people stand during this verse.
Biblical Reference: John 6:66-69. Lenten Verse: Joel
2:13
4.Gospel
Lesson: The high point of the Lessons is the gospel
lesson, which is usually a story about Jesus. The people
stand to show respect and honor for this reading. The Pastor
goes to the midst of the congregation to read, reminding us
that God dwells in the midst of the people through Jesus
Christ.
5. Sermon: The
pastor works with the lessons and tells how they apply to us
in our daily life. He usually preaches on the Gospel text,
but may also preach on the OT or NT lesson.
Our Response:
Now, the congregation responds to all they've heard in word
and song.
(Because God has...Therefore, we...)
6. Hymn of the
Day: The most important hymn in the service. This is our
response to God's Word. The hymn usually is related closely
to the Gospel lesson and the sermon or theme for the
day.
7.The Creed:
We have the option to use either of two historical and
traditonal statements of what we believe.
A. The Apostle's
Creed: A personal statement of belief. Tradition
ascribes this creed to the Apostle's. We do know that it is
very early and was handed down through the years. It was
primarily used at Baptismal services. It appears in written
form in the 2nd century and reaches it's final form in
750.
B.The Nicene Creed: uses "we" statements to confess what
the church believes. It was written about 325 AD but evolved
through several of the 4th century ecumenical councils to
its present form.In this creed, we are responding to God's
mighty acts and we are reminded of the faith into which we
are baptized.
8.The Prayers:
We respond to God's love by speaking to him, and expressing
our concern for the whole church, for all people in the
world, and for people in our congregation.
The Sharing of the
Peace:
This is the bridge between the proclamation of the Word and
Communion. We express our forgiveness for each other, and
our unity as we prepare for the meal.
Part Three of
the Worship Service
The
Offering:
This is a good way in which we can respond to God's love.
Because God has first loved us so much, we now respond by
giving to God our time, our talent, and our possessions. We
realize that they are only a gift from God to be used by us
to share God's love to the world. In the offertory prayer,
we are reminded that God is the source of all good
gifts.
The Offertory
Response
Biblical Reference: Psalm 51:10-12
THE SACRAMENTAL
MEAL: (Three different terms used.)
Eucharist:
Greek word for "thank you."
Communion: It means feeling a part of, feeling as one
with,
communicating with God and each other.
Lord's Supper: Recalls Jesus' last supper and the
New
Covenant that he made with us.
1. The Great
Thanksgiving:
These are among the oldest words in the liturgy. We lift our
hearts to give attention to God. We give him thanks
(Eucharisto).
2. Preface:
We praise God for his mighty acts. These words change with
the seasons of the church year. These are in our own
words.
3. Sanctus: Latin for "Holy." The congregation
responds to hearing of God's mighty acts by singing Holy,
Holy, Holy which Isaiah and Revelation say is sung by
all the angels in heaven and will be also sung by all
creatures and people here on earth. The Hosanna reminds us
of the supreme sacrifice of God, the death of his Son on our
behalf. This is the song the people sang when Jesus entered
Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, beginning the events leading to
Jesus death on the cross and his resurrection.
Biblical reference: Isaiah 6:1-3; Rev.
4:5-8
4. The Words of
Institution remind us of God's saving acts
throughouthistory. It recalls Jesus' last words and asks the
Holy Spirit to be with us in our celebration.
Biblical Reference: I Corinthians
11:23-26
5. The Lord's
Prayer is our table grace before the meal.
Biblical Reference: Matthew 6:9-13
6.Communion:
When receive the bread and wine, God forgives our sins and
refreshes us for our daily life. We believe that Jesus is
truly present in these elements.
In Communion, we
look three ways:
We look
backwards:
to Jesus' crucifixion. We sing Agnus Dei, Latin for Lamb
of God, to remind us that Jesus died and was raised from
the dead for us. He freed us from the prison of sin and
death. We also remember all the times that Jesus ate with
people, Zaccheus, Mary and Martha, the feeding of the
5,000, and the breakfast on the beach after his
resurrection.
Biblical References:
Matthew 26:20-30; Luke 24:13-35; Luke 19:1-10.
We look at
today:
We believe that Christ is truly present with our
bread and wine, and that he comes into our hearts
today.
We look
forward:
to the great promised feast. The Feast when we are in
heaven and when Jesus comes again. Both Isaiah 25:6 and
the marriage supper of the Lamb as described in
Revelation give us glimpses of what this feast will be
like.
7. Post-Communion
Canticle: The Congregation responds to the gift of
Christ in the holy meal by thanking and praising him. Then,
since the service and meal are ended, we know what to Do;
tell everyone what he has done! Let all of the world rejoice
and bear his name!
Biblical Reference: Psalm 98; The Nunc Dimittis:
Luke 2:29-32.
8. The
Benediction:
A.The Trinitarian blessing: God, Son, Holy Spirit is from
the 11th Century.
B.The Aaronic blessing, which we use, is from Numbers
6:22-27.
The sign of the cross may be made at this
time.
9. The
Dismissal: We depart to bring Christ's joy and love to
the world by serving him. Our response to the whole Service
of Word and the Sacrament is "Thanks Be To God!"
Some Miscellaneous
Notes
Note how much of our
Worship service is based on Scripture! Our words are not
just empty, they come from God's own Holy Word. The
Liturgical Service is Scripturally based.
Rubric--This word
comes from the same root word as ruby, and means red.
Rubrics are instructions written into the liturgy for the
worship leaders. The Psalms contain rubrics, instructions to
the song leaders. Look in the LBW and read the rubrics that
occur during the service.
- Take a look at
page 120 at Luther's service of Holy
Communion.
- Look at Morning
Prayer, page 131, and Vespers page 142.
- Take a look at
the 3-year Lectionary, written out on page
13.
- Look at other
services in the LBW, such as Marriage, Funeral,
etc.
- Look at different
indices in LBW: Metrical, Authors, Composers.
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