Why should a church devote extended time to corporate prayer?
9MarksA church should devote extended time to corporate prayer:
Why should a worship service contain these different kinds of prayers (praise, thanksgiving, confession, intercession)?
9MarksWhat are the different kinds of prayer a church’s gathering should include?
9MarksIn the Bible, we find prayers of praise to God, prayers of confession, prayers of thanksgiving, and prayers that lift up specific requests to God (Ps. 111; Ps. 51; 1 Cor. 11:24; Phil. 4:6). There’s no verse which says that a church gathering must contain four distinct times of prayer, each of which covers one of these four different postures. But we believe it’s prudent to do so for the sake of being deliberate about each, and for the sake of teaching the congregation how to do the same:
Is it appropriate to conduct member meeting activities inside the worship service?
9MarksThe New Testament gives the local congregation final authority in matters of discipline (Matt. 18:17; 2 Cor. 2:6) and doctrine (Gal. 1). This means that there are times when the church as a whole should welcome in new members, remove members who move away, carry out church discipline, elect elders and deacons, and decide on other serious matters.
There are a couple reasons why this business should not be done in the context of a regular worship service.
Is there ever a right time to give announcements during a worship service?
9MarksWhenever you do them, announcements feel awkward. They interrupt the flow of worship. They inject mundane matters like church potlucks into the middle of praising God for his holiness and grace.
So where do you put them? This is certainly a judgment call—there’s no biblical teaching on this. And every place has certain advantages and disadvantages. That said, placing announcements at the very beginning of the service, even before the call to worship, seems to least disrupt the service.
Should churches that don’t baptize infants have “infant dedications”?
9MarksWe would discourage it. Infant dedications have no Scriptural warrant. God nowhere commands Christians to have a public ceremony in which they dedicate their infants to him, nor is there any hint of such a practice in the New Testament.
Plus, there’s the danger that young Christians will interpret the event almost mystically, as if the child receives some type of special “coverage” or “force field” upon dedication.
How can a church meaningfully integrate the ordinance of baptism into church gatherings?
9MarksDoes the whole idea of church “services” contradict the fact that the church is “a people,” not an event?
9MarksWe don’t think so…
Is it appropriate to include non-members in leading church services?
9MarksGenerally speaking, we don’t believe so. Exceptions occur, as with guest preachers. But churches should generally use only members to lead church services because:
Who should lead church services?
9MarksGenerally speaking, elders or spiritually trustworthy men who are on their way to being elders should lead services.
Practically speaking, how can a pastor plan services?
9MarksWhen planning services, each pastor should do whatever works best for himself. That said, here is the broad outline of how one pastor does it (Mark Dever, senior pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, DC).
What’s the goal of service planning?
9MarksThe goal of service planning is to craft a unified service that clearly communicates the gospel, makes the sermon the centerpiece of the service, and impresses people with the glory of God.
Why should a pastor or elder plan church services?
9MarksA pastor or elder should generally plan church services because the whole service is part of the teaching ministry of the church, which is entrusted to the elders (1 Tim. 3:2; 1 Thess. 5:12-13).
What does the New Testament say that churches should do when they gather?
9MarksThe New Testament says that when churches gather they should read the Bible, preach the Bible, pray the Bible, sing the Bible, and see the Bible.
True or false: God only cares that we worship him, not how we worship him.
9MarksAnswer: false.
Some Christians think that as long as we’re sincere, we can worship God however we want. But throughout the Bible God shows us that he cares deeply about how he is worshiped, not only that he is worshiped.
