Core Ministry: Worship - The Liturgy

The Liturgy is the form of our worship service. We gather into a community each Sunday as Jesus gathered disciples into a community. "Liturgy" means the work of the people, so we are participants in worship rather than an audience. We emphasize "actions" since full, active, conscious participation in the actions of the liturgy reminds us of the life and mission of Jesus Christ. This is a description of our worship:

The Gathering

• We gather with an Entrance Hymn, a greeting of God's welcome, a Hymn of Praise, the Prayer of the Day and the Kyrie prayer for the church and the whole world. "Kyrie" is the Greek word for Lord, whom we address in our prayer.

The Word

• We read the Scriptures to hear the Good News of God.
• We hear the Scriptures preached which interprets the meaning of Jesus' life and words as expressed in the readings. We joyfully respond with the hymn of the day to echo that message in the readings and sermon. We follow with the Apostle's Creed or Nicene Creed.
• We pray for the the greater Church, the people of the world, and those who suffer or are in need. Worshipers can add their own prayer concerns. We then wish each other God's peace.
• We gather an offering for the poor. This becomes one of the ways we offer a part of ourselves to God. We then sing our thanks and our praise to God.

The Meal

• We begin by sharing peace with others located near us.
• We set our table with bread and wine (a choice of wine or grape juice), proclaiming Jesus Christ. We ask the Holy Spirit to unite us as one Body in Christ so we might proclaim God's salvation to the world. We pray the Lord's Prayer.
• This is the table, not of the Church, but of the Lord. It has been made ready for those who love him and who want to love him more. So, come, you who have much faith and you who have little, you who have been here often and you who have not been for a long time, you who have tried to follow and you who have failed. Come, it is our Lord who invites you.
• We eat and drink, united with God in Christ, with one another, and with the Church's mission in the world. We become participants in Jesus' sacrifice on the cross and his message of action and love in the world.

The Sending

• We hear God's blessing as we leave in peace.
• We are sent out in mission to the world to speak the words of good news, to care for those in need, and to share what we have with the poor and hungry.

More detail is available from this transcript of our Narrative Eucharist service explaining our worship experience.

Christ Lutheran Church
3401 S. Dixon Road
Kokomo, IN  46902