Corporate Worship
What style of music is best?
9MarksMassive battles have been fought over this issue. Churches have split. Pastors have been fired. Countless Christians have taken up arms against each other in order to defend their answer to this question.
Yet at the end of the day, the style of music a church sings is relatively unimportant. What matters most is what we sing, not how.
That said, at least four further points can be made:
Who should lead the church musically?
9MarksHow important is the style of music a church sings?
9MarksThe style of music a church sings is relatively unimportant.
What opportunities is a pastor missing by not praying a pastoral prayer of intercession every Sunday?
9MarksWhen a pastor does not lead a prayer of intercession, he misses the opportunity…
Which is better in church gatherings: pre-written or spontaneous prayers?
9MarksSome people prefer pre-written prayers, because it gives them the opportunity to carefully think through how they want to lead the congregation. Other people worry that pre-written prayers will “quench” whatever the Spirit might do in the moment. Here are several thoughts on the prayers for which you have the opportunity to plan:
What are some guidelines for leading a church in prayer?
9MarksWho should lead the church in prayer?
9MarksWhy 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 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:
