One of the reasons Christians have such different opinions about what we do in a worship service is that many just don’t really know what the Bible teaches on the subject. We take our previous experiences in church meetings and add them to our own particular tastes in music or style, or what we think will appeal to outsiders, and then cook up the kind of gathering we want. As if our regular meeting time as a local church can be anything we want it to be.
The truth is that we do have quite a bit of freedom in our worship gatherings, but it is not true that we can do whatever we want. The Bible is very clear on what we must do in our gatherings and especially on who they are for.
The earliest gatherings of the church described in the Scriptures show the believers getting together to do a number of things, but there are some important general points we also see that ought to be maintained. Consider the following description of the church’s gathering together from Acts 2:41-47:
“So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls. And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.”
Who we’re cooking for
One thing we notice is that the gatherings seemed to consist primarily of believers in Christ and were geared more toward believers than for outsiders. The passage begins with the mass conversion of thousands after Peter’s anointed sermon at Pentecost. And these converted souls then begin gathering regularly.
Verse 44 shows us that it is primarily those who believed who are practicing togetherness and generosity.
What is also clear is that these regular gatherings were not isolated or disconnected from day-to-day life in community. The large gatherings of the first followers of Jesus in the temple were simply a larger concentration of what was naturally occurring as they “broke bread in their homes”.
When the gospel saves a sinner, it does not simply reconcile the sinner as an individual to God. It also reconciles the sinners to each other. The gospel forms the church.
But the worship gathering for the early church was not a “one stop shop” for religious consumers. It wasn’t the place for a believer detached from regular Christian community to sort of drop in and get his pick-me-up. A weekly dose of teaching, prayer, encouragement and fellowship.
The early Christians saw each other throughout the week too—and shared life together. So the weekly worship gathering was an extension of and a focus for the ongoing life of the Christian fellowship.
We might think of it as a natural crescendo to the regular rhythm of their life as a body. It serves as a culmination of their “day by day” life together and as a place where they gather momentum to go back into their “day by day” life together.
So the worship service is first and foremost for gathering together worshiping Christians, not for assembling an audience of seeking or spectating non-Christians.
This does not mean that non-Christians should not be invited to the service or that no effort should be made in the service to speak to them. In 1 Corinthians 14, Paul spends a fair amount of time explaining that what we do in our gatherings should be intelligible and understandable to “outsiders.” But his very use of the word “outsider” should help us see that the worship service is not primarily for them.
The work of evangelism can be done in a worship service, and it should be, as the service should center on the proclamation of the gospel. But the evangelism of the lost is largely to take place outside the walls of the church—as the community of believers live their lives on mission to spread the gospel and to bear witness to the gospel’s power.
The biblical recipe
The weekly worship service is for the gathering together of the local church body. But what are some biblical elements of this gathering? What is the church to do in its worship service?
We see some of these elements in our passage. For example:
To be sure, these activities were a part of the community life of the church outside of the worship service, but they were also integral parts of the gatherings as well—so we must ensure they must be integral parts of our gatherings too.
This is an extract from Gospel Shaped Worship – part of the Gospel Coalition’s Gospel Shaped Church curriculum. Find out more about the series here.
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Jared C. Wilson is assistant professor of pastoral ministry at Spurgeon College, author in residence of Midwestern Seminary, general editor of For the Church, and director of the Pastoral Training Center at Liberty Baptist Church in Kansas City, Missouri. His books include Your Jesus Is Too Safe, Gospel Wakefulness, The Imperfect Disciple, and Supernatural Power for Everyday People. He lives outside Kansas City with his wife, Becky, and their two daughters.
