Family Worship Guide
“Grace” (1918)
The leadership at Westminster is committed to serving and enabling godly families in their pursuit of truth, obedience, and sanctification. We believe that the family is God’s design for people everywhere. Because of this, we are excited to offer you this resource to assist you in family worship. Look for a new guide every week.
Family Worship Guide
Scripture Reading:
#1. Then he said to them, “Go your way. Eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions to anyone who has nothing ready, for this day is holy to our Lord. And do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.” (Nehemiah 8:10)
#2. for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me [Paul] his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began (2 Timothy 1:7-9)
Prayer of Praise to God: Refer to the verses above and hymn below.
Hymn: O for a Thousand Tongues
O for a thousand tongues to sing my great Redeemer's praise,
the glories of my God and King, the triumphs of his grace!
My gracious Master and my God, assist me to proclaim,
to spread thro' all the earth abroad the honors of your name.
Jesus! the name that charms our fears, that bids our sorrows cease,
'tis music in the sinner's ears, 'tis life and health and peace.
He breaks the power of cancelled sin, he sets the prisoner free;
his blood can make the foulest clean; his blood availed for me.
To God all glory, praise, and love be now and ever given
by saints below and saints above, the Church in earth and heaven.
Reading of the Law: And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked (1 John 2:3-6)
Silent Confession of Sin/Confession of Sin: Almighty and most merciful Father, we have erred and strayed from Your ways like lost sheep. We have followed too much the devices and desires of our own hearts. We have offended Your holy laws. We have left undone those things which we ought to have done, and we have done those things which we ought not to have done, and there is no health in us. O Lord, have mercy upon us, miserable offenders. Spare those, O God, who confess their sins. Restore those who are penitent, according to Your promises declared to us in Christ Jesus our Lord. And grant, O most merciful Father, for His sake, that we may hereafter live a godly, righteous, and sober life, to the glory of Your holy name. Amen.
Reading of the Gospel: Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of his inheritance? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in steadfast love. He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. (Micah 7:18-19)
Heidelberg Catechism: Lord’s Day 18
Question #46
Q. What do you mean by saying, “He ascended to heaven”?
A. That Christ, while his disciples watched, was taken up from the earth into heaven and remains there on our behalf until he comes again to judge the living and the dead.
Question #47
Q. But isn’t Christ with us until the end of the world as he promised us?
A. Christ is true human and true God. In his human nature Christ is not now on earth; but in his divinity, majesty, grace, and Spirit he is never absent from us.
Question #48
Q. If his humanity is not present wherever his divinity is, then aren’t the two natures of Christ separated from each other?
A. Certainly not. Since divinity is not limited and is present everywhere, it is evident that Christ’s divinity is surely beyond the bounds of the humanity that has been taken on, but at the same time his divinity is in and remains personally united to his humanity.
Question #49
Q. How does Christ’s ascension to heaven benefit us?
A. First, he is our advocate in heaven in the presence of his Father. Second, we have our own flesh in heaven as a sure pledge that Christ our head will also take us, his members, up to himself. Third, he sends his Spirit to us on earth as a corresponding pledge. By the Spirit’s power we seek not earthly things but the things above, where Christ is, sitting at God’s right hand.
Prayer of Thanksgiving: Thank God for our Pastors, Ruling Elders and Deacons and for our musicians.
Prayer of Supplication: Pray for families with small children and for our seniors members.
Bible reading and commentary:
Read: 1 Corinthians 11:17-34
Some in Corinth are treating the Lord’s Supper as an opportunity for selfish indulgence, amplifying the divisions between rich and poor. Paul’s strong language and stern warnings remind us that our worship of Christ must honor his sacrifice for us.
The text reflects patterns of sin that blind us, even in worship. Self-centeredness can turn the Lord’s Supper into one that is the worshipper’s “own” (vv 20-21). And it is easy to humiliate those for whom Christ has died while we should be “proclaiming the Lord’s death” (v 26). Such sins are so serious that they call forth the Lord’s judgment and discipline (vv 29-34).
Yet the text also reminds us that the gospel has power to pardon sin and transform hardened hearts. Fulfilling the Old Testament promise of a “new covenant” (Jeremiah 31:31-34), Jesus has secured our forgiveness by giving his body and blood for us (1 Corinthians 11:24-25; Luke 22:17-2). When we “remember” him through the Lord’s Supper, we recall this great act of covenant love and we proclaim that we need the power of the Lord’s death to nourish us “until he comes” (1 Corinthians 11:26), just as we need food (“the bread”) and drink (“the cup”) to nourish our bodies. Only through such power are we able to give the highest honor to the least privileged (“those who have nothing”, v 22) and to put the good of others before our own (“wait for one another”, v 33).
Even the most challenging portions of this text reflect gospel principles. The warning of verse 27 presupposes a desire to honor (not profane) Christ’s work by reflecting his worth as we participate in the Lord’s Supper. In fact, when we examine ourselves (v 28) and judge ourselves (v 31) in light of Christ’s saving work, we will find courage to repent more deeply than we otherwise could. Even the Lord’s discipline will not lead to condemnation (v 32) but to assurance that we are beloved children (Hebrews 12:5-11; Proverbs 3:11-12). Stern warnings and severe discipline indicate that our Savior desires our good even more than we do.
When we contemplate our worship service, the liturgy reflects how God saves his people. Our service begins with a divine call to worship in which God invites us into his presence. Then we invoke his name in prayer; sing a hymn to him which is a method of conversing with God. We then read the law and confess our sins; this is examining ourselves before the Lord’s Supper. The gospel is then pronounced and we confess our faith, again a type of self-examination. Then another song is sung, the pastoral prayer is next followed by the sermon in which we are, as one brother has put it, brought down by the law and lifted up by the gospel. A communion hymn is sung, then the Lord’s Supper. Since we have already examined ourselves and realized our need for a savior, the Lord’s Supper then can be a joyful celebration of what Jesus has done for us and continues to do for us as he intercedes for us at the Father’s right hand. To reiterate, the entire worship service is a time to solemnly consider our sinfulness and need for Christ but the Lord’s Supper is a gift that should bring heartfelt joy to a redeemed sinner. Then we conclude the service with singing and the benediction (a good word). Hallelujah and Amen!
Closing Hymn: The Gloria Patri
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen, amen.
Closing Scripture: For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers (Eph. 1:15-16).
The Lord’s Prayer (together): Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done; on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.