What are the parts of the liturgy?
Invocation
Every service begins “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” These are the same words spoken at your baptism. They are a reminder that we enter God’s presence to worship him because we were made his children through baptism.
Confession and Absolution
In every service we humbly confess our sins to God and then gladly hear his proclamation that each and every one of them has been forgiven. It’s included in every service because we can never hear those amazing, comforting words too often.
Song of Praise
In response to the forgiveness given so freely to us, we join our voices in a song of praise to God.
Prayer of the Day
We pray the appointed prayer for that Sunday of the church year. The prayer fits with the theme for the day.
First Lesson
The first lesson is usually taken from the Old Testament. Many times we will hear about a prophecy that was fulfilled by Christ in the gospel for the day.
Psalm of the Day
For 3,000 years believers have worshiped God by singing and reciting psalms.
Second Lesson
The second lesson is usually taken from the Epistles – the part of the New Testament after the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Typically they apply God’s Word specifically to the believer’s life.
The Alleluia
A short song of praise to God prepares us to hear the gospel.
The Gospel
The entire service revolves around the gospel. We stand to hear the words of Christ our King, just like people stood in the presence of royalty in ancient times.
Sermon
The pastor preaches a message based on one of the lessons or the gospel for the day. The sermon teaches how God’s word applies to our Christian life.
Confession of Faith
After the sermon we proclaim what we believe – what the Christian Church has always believed. To do that we use the words of the Nicene and Apostles’ Creeds – both of which have been used in the Christian Church for almost two millennia.
Prayer of the Church
We join to pray to God about specific joys and troubles in our church and in the Church around the world. This is followed by the Lord’s Prayer.
Lord’s Supper
The Lord’s Supper is offered on the first and third Sundays of the month. We, united with our brothers and sisters in the faith, approach God’s altar to receive the body and blood of Christ for the forgiveness of our sins and the strengthening of our faith.
Benediction
We then receive the same blessing that God gave to the ancient Israelites.