Mission Our Worship, Part 4: Proclamation of the Word

​Welcome to Part 4 of our blog series “Mission Our Worship.”  We are spending time looking at each part of a worship service, and then considering how we can do mission activities related to that part of worship.  Here’s a quick re-cap:

​Call To Worship:  God not not only calls us to worship, but is calling us throughout the week to serve our neighbors.  Be intentional and mindful of what God is calling you to do, and with whom God is calling you to be in relationship.

​Adoration:  In worship we spend time in adoration of God, for who God is and what God has done.  Chief among these is praising God as Creator.  In adoration of the Creator, we can protect and care for God’s creation!

​Confession:  This element of worship is all about recognizing how and where we have fallen short of the call and responsibilities that God has given to us.  Likewise, engaging in Christian mission is also about knowing and understanding the social injustices present in the world, and how we have participated in that brokenness.  We do this with a sense of humility and repentance, knowing that God forgives a repentant heart and empowers us to make the world a more just and compassionate place.

​Today we will discuss the section of worship that is all about Proclaiming the Word.  For many of us, in our weekly worship services this begins with someone offering a prayer asking God to help us hear and understand the the Bible text(s) for the day.  Then, someone reads one or more passages from the Bible, followed by someone giving a sermon explaining what the passage is really about, and what difference it makes in our lives.

​At first glance, the way to “mission our worship” here seems pretty obvious:  we should go out and “preach the gospel” to people in the community!  Certainly this has been a form of mission in the Church for a LONG time.  We even read stories in the Bible where Jesus is seen doing this, as well as the Apostles.  We also have seen (or heard of) evangelists and preachers of more modern times who stand on a street corner, or on a college campus, or at a festival, and “proclaim the gospel” to the passers by.  Typically (or perhaps, stereotypically) it is a message of judgement and shame more than one of hope and compassion.  I would even venture to guess that most of us don’t feel equipped, or interested, in taking part in that kind of mission of proclamation.

​Instead, allow me to give you another model of how we can “mission our worship” when it comes to the proclamation of the Word.  Jesus once said, “When two or three are gathered in my name, I am there with them.”  (Matthew 18:20) We count on that being the case when it comes to reading and understanding the Bible.  When a group is gathered and is studying a passage together, we get the benefit of everyone’s different perspectives and different experiences that shape who they are and how they see the world.  Therefore, if we study the Bible with people who are different from us, the experience and understanding of the text becomes even richer!

​At Asheville Youth Mission, many of our summer groups participate in Bible study sessions with our neighbors who are living on the streets.  At Church of the Advocate, for instance, youth groups bring a reading and artistic interpretation of a Bible passage to their Monday morning Bible study.  Then they engage in conversation with 

​neighbors who are experiencing homelessness and poverty to discuss what everyone sees in the text and what it means in their lives.  At Haywood Street Congregation, groups participate in a worship service with a mix of ​​community members- some poor and some not, ​some experiencing

homelessness and some not.  Through a discussion style sermon, everyone gets to share what they see in the text and what it has to do with the world today. ​What are the opportunities in your community to discuss the Bible with people who are different from you?  Do agencies and ministries in your area have Bible studies or open style worship services in which everyone, 

no matter their socio-economic status, is allowed to participate?  When we are able to both speak and listen, reflect and learn from each other, the Spirit speaks quite loudly.  And when the Spirit is at work, lives are transformed.

Next up, Response To The Word– Saying what we believe.  Stay tuned!!

​Bill Buchanan is a pastor, husband, father, and avid college basketball fan.  He’s the Executive Director of Youth Mission Co.