An Explanation of the Worship Practices at King’s Church 

Introduction

At King’s we believe that the whole of scripture is instructive for how we should worship. We look at the Old Testament and the New Testament for examples of how God’s people were commanded to worship and to look at what God’s people did throughout the Bible’s story. We also look to the traditions of our fathers in the faith for example and instruction. Though we do not believe tradition to be on the same level as Scripture, we consider the examples of old saints to be helpful in our own services. Contrary to popular belief, the Bible gives us a lot of examples of how to order our worship. We practice what is known as Covenant Renewal Worship. This means we believe that we are called to come into God’s presence on a weekly basis to remember and renew God’s covenant promises to us.

What the Old Testament Teaches Us 

Since Adam’s fall, man’s approach to God has been through sacrifice. It is not possible for sinful man to be received by a holy God apart from an atonement for sin (Heb 9:22; Lev 17:11). Since the coming of Christ and his sacrificial atonement on the cross, animal sacrifices have ceased, because they were all a foreshadowing of what would come. That is, they foreshadowed Christ and taught about him. Now that he has fulfilled the types, there is no longer an ongoing need for a sacrifice. Sacrifice is still required for atonement, but the need is satisfied by the once-for-all sacrifice of Christ. As Jeffrey Meyers has put it, “The way of sacrifice has not been abrogated; animal sacrifices have.” Language such as that found in Heb 13:15 indicates that all worship is sacrificial in some sense. Old Testament worship revolved around animal sacrifices. This teaches us about worship. Since the coming of Christ, the requirement for animals to be sacrificed has ended, but the sacrificial system still shows us how to worship. This is the fact that most Protestant churches have missed, and it has led to confused patterns of worship which do not reflect a proper approach to God and do not teach men about our covenantal relation to him. Thus the church has been deprived of an important device by which they might better know their God and be able to please him in worship.

A Note About Liturgy 

Many churches today, particularly those in the Baptist and Charismatic traditions, but also many in the Reformed camp, reject the use of liturgy. They follow what they call “non-liturgical” orders of worship. What they mean by this is anybody’s guess, but what they seem to mean is that each pastor/congregation should just make up his/its own order of worship as he/it sees fit. Rarely (if ever) do you find a church with no order of worship at all. Even if it’s just “welcome the people, sing three songs, have a sermon, go home,” it is nonetheless an order and, thus, a liturgy. The Greek word from which we get “liturgy” occurs several times in the NT, notably in Acts 13:2 where the church in Antioch is seen “ministering” to the Lord, and in Heb 9:6 where it is used to describe the rituals prescribed by God in the OT and attended by the priests. It is also used in Rom 12:1 where it describes the appropriateness of the Christian presenting his body as a “living sacrifice” (Paul calls this our “reasonable service” and the word “service” translates latreia or “liturgy”). 

So the question is not “should we have a liturgy when we gather for worship on the Lord’s Day?” but rather what should our liturgy look like. In other words, does the Bible give us guidance for liturgy, or are we just supposed to make it up to suit our own ideas and tastes? Together with a growing number of churches in the Reformed camp – including most of those in the CREC – we at King’s believe that the Bible does give us the appropriate pattern for corporate, Lord’s Day worship and that it is found in the sacrificial worship models of the Old Testament. That being said, it really is a pattern, rather than a rigid instruction manual. Scripture shows us what elements should be present in Lord’s Day worship. The specific details can, will, and should vary, but the pattern is important. Furthermore, not only is it important to include all the elements, there is a sequence that is likewise revealed. 

Translating Old Testament Patterns to New Testament Practices 

There are three major sacrifices in Old Testament worship, observed in a specific order: 

▪ The Purification Offering: In this offering, the people’s sins were cleansed. 

▪ The Ascension Offering: (also called the “whole burnt” offering) In this offering, the animal to be sacrificed was cut up, washed, rearranged, and placed on the altar to be burned. 

▪ The Peace Offering: In this offering, the people experienced the rest that comes from trusting in the promises of God and celebrated their fellowship with Him. 

The sacrifices correspond to 3 key elements in NT worship. These are elements that we are sure to incorporate into each service. 

▪ Confession and absolution 

▪ Consecration (ministry of the Word; see Heb 4:12, the Word cuts us up) 

▪ Communion (culmination of worship in the Eucharist meal) 

These 3 elements have bookends around them: 

▪ Call to worship (God commands us to draw near) Lev 1:1-2; cf. Rev 1:10; 4:1 

▪ Commissioning (God sends us out to live for him) Num 6:22-27 

To sum up: Our worship consists of 5 basic elements which unfold in a particular order, as follows: 

▪ The Call to Worship 

▪ The Cleansing 

▪ The Consecration 

▪ The Communion 

▪ The Commission 

This is the pattern of worship that we have adopted for Lord’s Day Services at King’ Church. 

Questions and Answers about our worship practices 

Why do you do readings all together with one voice?

One of the worship practices we see in the Bible is that during times of worship the people would speak in one voice. This is seen in the Old Testament: Exodus 24:3 the people commit with one voice to obey. Another example is in Deuteronomy 27: the Israelites are told to conduct a service where there is a prescribed reading with pre-written responses. Another Old Testament example is when God sends fire to commission the Temple of Solomon, all the people said in unison: “For he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.” -2 Chronicles 7:1-3. In the New Testament we see the host of heaven speaking with a single voice in Revelation 5:11-14. We want to be a small reflection of the heavenly pattern of worship. It also corresponds to singing. Singing is all the people speaking in one voice, readings are a way of doing the same thing. 

Why doesn’t the congregation remain seated for the whole service? 

We believe that God has created and redeemed the whole man. The Bible teaches that God is not merely the God of our spirits or souls (our inner self), but that he has redeemed us, body and soul. Our physical beings are not irrelevant, so physical posture is not irrelevant. Sitting, standing and kneeling are appropriate postures for different parts of the Lord’s Service. For example, the Bible clearly reveals that standing is an appropriate posture for people to hear and listen to God’s Word (Dt 27:12-13; Neh 9:3; cf.John 3:29) and to bless the name of God (Neh 9:5). Likewise, the Bible indicates kneeling is a proper posture for times of prayer, especially prayers of repentance (Ezra 9:5ff). Sitting is a proper posture for a meal (Lk 22:14; 24:30). Therefore, during the worship service, we stand to sing and recite God’s Word. We kneel to confess our sins and stand again to hear the pronouncement of God’s forgiveness. When we come to the Lord’s Table, we are seated at rest to enjoy the triumphal, covenant meal together

Why does King’s Church use set prayers and readings? Doesn’t the lack of spontaneity stifle the Spirit of God? 

We believe that the Holy Spirit works in and among his people continually as they devote themselves to God and learn from his holy Word. Spontaneity does not necessarily equate to spirituality. God’s Spirit can guide a man just as readily in his study as he can while in the midst of the congregation. In fact, most churches believe this or their pastor would not spend any time preparing his sermon. If I stand up in worship and make up a prayer as I go along, why would that be any more likely to be a Spirit-guided prayer than if I diligently labor the day before to write a prayer that will be appropriate to a particular part of corporate worship while trusting God to guide me as I prepare the prayer ahead of time? It would seem that the person insisting on spontaneous prayer is the one more likely to be limiting the work of the Holy Spirit. The same principle applies to corporate readings and responses during worship.  The pastor and elders work hard to prepare the spoken and sung elements of worship so that they accurately reflect the teachings of God’s Word and are appropriate to the various segments of the Lord’s Service. The words of the leader and the congregational responses are drawn from the Scriptures, so that the congregation is worshipping God with language that God has given to his people. If Jesus is truly the Word of God, and man is designed to think God’s thoughts after him and worship God in spirit and in truth (see John 4:23, 24), then it is most appropriate for God’s people to use the language of Scripture as much as possible during the Covenant Renewal service on the Lord’s Day. Moreover, having the readings and the prayers written out and placed in the hands of the congregation before worship starts, allows the congregation to speak with one divinely-directed voice in praise and adoration of our holy and merciful God.

Conclusion

If you have any questions about the various aspects of our worship service please feel free to speak with our pastor. We are always seeking to conform ourselves to God’s word and desiring to be shaped by it. Our worship practices are a major part of this, and we are excited to bring along any who are interested in growing in faithfulness to God’s word.