Understanding

our Worship
An Explanation of Liturgy at TCPC

Tates Creek Presbyterian Church 3900 Rapid Run Drive Lexington, KY 40515-1800 (859) 272-4399 www.tcpca.org

Worship at Tates Creek Presbyterian Church seeks to embody the gospel that inhabits the core of our Christian faith. We do this by leading the worshiper through three phases rejoice, renewal, response. We enact these elements according to our first value, A corporate worship that reflects both the transcendence and immanence of God. While there is occasion for variance (particularly communion Sundays), the following is a typical Sunday at TCPC Rejoice We Declare the Praises of God. Worship begins, first and foremost, with our praises of God. While all of worship is praise enacted in different forms, the first phase is set aside to celebrate God in all His glory. Prelude Although the call to worship is the official opening act, the prelude serves a vital role in worship. It is a time for the worshipers to prepare their hearts for the weighty task that is before them. We come to worship distracted by the concerns of life both noble and sinful. The prelude affords us a moment of transition so that we are duly prepared to properly enter into worship. The prelude sets the stage for the service as well. Listen intently to the music and you will detect the theme of the liturgy that day. Call to Worship The Call to Worship is traditionally the first element in a Christian service, serving as the moment of consecration. While it is indeed true that all of life is worship, at the same time, God calls his people into a weekly rhythm of holy (set apart) worship. The call to worship serves as our entrance into this sacred time. It marks that significant moment in our week where Gods people, as strangers and aliens in a world that largely ignores this call, gather together to answer the call. Hymn of Rejoicing After we receive the call, it is now time to sing our praises to God. This Hymn is typically majestic and grand, celebrating different attributes of God. The hymn is also accompanied by the pageantry of the choir processional. This ritual is used in just about every significant occasion. (From the procession at the beginning of weddings to the procession at the end of Star Wars!) A ceremony with a procession naturally turns any service into an important and reverent occasion. Invocation Having sung our praises to God, the minister, on behalf of the people, now invokes (calls upon) the presence of God. We ask for God to join us in worship, to lead us in worship, and to be pleased with our worship. Often the invocation will include the congregation praying in the manner God asked us to pray, calling upon Him through the Lords Prayer. Gloria Gloria is Latin for glory, and is used as a congregational response to the invocation. We have beseeched the Lord to visit us with His glory and now we recognize that God has heard our prayer and is with His people. The only fitting response is to cry glory! Celebrating the Work of God The phase of rejoicing concludes by praising God for what He is doing within our congregation. This is the part of our

service set aside to celebrate baptisms, professions of faith, new members joining the church, or occasionally a brief testimony from one of the members or ministries of TCPC. Renewal We Receive the Grace of God We have declared the praises of God and now it is time to receive the grace of God. Whether the prophet Isaiah within the throne room of God, or the Apostle Peter at the feet of Jesus, when humanity is confronted with the presence of God, the immediate impulse is to cry out for mercy. Similarly our phase of rejoicing gives way to a time of penitence through the phase of renewal. Old Testament Reading True renewal begins with a confrontation with Gods truth from His word. We rest upon the Scriptures alone as our convicting voice. The Old Testament reading is chosen according to the theme of the liturgy. Confession of Sin The truth of Gods Word leads us to tell the truth about ourselves. This may be the most honest moment of our week as we humbly confess our sin and shame. It is important for this to be done both corporately and individually; therefore, typically there will be a litany or prayer of confession that the congregation says together, followed by a brief season of silence to allow the worshiper a contemplative moment of private confession. Assurance of Pardon A broken and contrite heart God will never reject. Our posture of confession is always met with Gods posture of grace. Just as the Bible was used used as the source of our conviction, it also serves as our only voice of pardon. The minister proclaims to the penitent community words of grace from Gods Word as a means of assuring Gods people of His unshakable pardon. Greeting of Peace When Gods grace overwhelms a sinner it always overflows to others. Thus the phase of renewal does not end individually but corporately, as we enact the ancient ritual of greeting each other with the peace of Christ. This is much more then a time to welcome each other; it is the profound moment of our week, in the midst of a fractured world of hatred and violence, where we bear witness as a community of peace. The worshipers greet each other with the words of Christ after His resurrection, which then became the customary greeting of the apostles and early church, Peace be with you. Hymn of Renewal The phase of renewal comes to its conclusion as we celebrate Gods mercy in singing. The hymn of renewal is a song that centers upon Gods grace and love. Response We Embrace the Call of God Gods grace always calls forth a response. Therefore the phase of renewal yields to the phase of response. This last phase of worship is spent with Gods people committing themselves again to the God who has shown Himself faithful again.

 Confession of Faith Our first response comes in the form of creed typically the Apostles Creed. This serves as the Christian pledge of allegiance as we declare week after week the words of orthodoxy. We commit ourselves again to the ancient truths that serve as the foundation of Christianity. This is also a commitment to the past as we recite words that have been on lips of Gods people throughout the centuries, a commitment to an ecumenical spirit as we join with all Christians worshiping around the world in this common creed, and a commitment to the world as we bear witness to the world through bold proclamation of what is true. Doxology Having responded to God with a common confession of faith, we now respond to Him with the Churchs most customary praise the doxology. This brief and familiar song has been adopted by Christs Church as the most fundamental response of praise to the Triune God. Giving of Tithes and Offerings Our next response is the response of Christian giving. This is much more than the time in the service where we collect money to pay the bills. This is an act of worship. In response to the One who has eternally given to us, we now give to His beloved institution. This is a costly act of commitment, as we sacrificially give of our finances as a demonstration of Christs Lordship over our entire life. This moment is incredibly formative as well, as it shapes the worshiping community into a community of selfless sacrifice rather than self-consumption. Anthem It is not just financial offerings that we give to God during this time but offerings of beauty as well. While the offering is collected, our choir offers up to God beautifully composed music. This is not merely entertainment for the congregation, but art dedicated to God over which He smiles. New Testament Reading The second Scripture reading is the text that supplies the content of preaching. These are the central words that God has for us in worship, providing the theme for the liturgy and the essential application for the congregation. Preaching of Gods Word While it is clearly evident that worship at TCPC is rooted in a conviction that there are many crucial elements to Christian worship, and that it is not merely a time to come hear an expert speak, the preaching of Gods Word does take prominence and is given the most time out of all the other elements. This is the significant moment of worship when God speaks to His people. Of course the preacher is not God (and our worship intentionally pushes back on the celebrity preacher culture that exists in our day), but we do believe this time is a unique means of grace, where Gods Spirit, working in and through the proclamation of His Word, speaks to His people. So the formative power is found in the Word and Spirit, not the preacher. This conviction leads us to a form of preaching known as expository preaching. Sermons are not the thoughts and talking points of a gifted communicator, but the exposition and application of the Bible.

Hymn of Response We respond to the preaching of Gods Word in song. This final hymn is chosen as a fitting application, not just to the sermon, but to the entire theme of the days liturgy. Commission and Benediction The phase of response concludes with a final call to commitment. Gods people are sent back out into the world in submission to His commissioning. Worship is decisively missional. Not only do the different elements of our liturgy bear witness to a Kingdom of God in the midst of the kingdom of this world, but the worshipers then go out into the world as bearers of what they have just enacted. Worship is a means to weekly restore and prepare us for the call of God. But we do not respond to this commission in our own strength. The minister raises His hands and pronounces Gods benediction over the congregation, sending them forth with the blessing and assurance of their Heavenly Father. Postlude Worship concludes with the organ postlude. The prelude and postlude serve as the bookends of holy worship, marking the boundaries of this sacred time.