This is the fifth in this series. Here is the first.
Lessons from Jesus
Pastoral Prayer
Sermon
Let me talk a little bit about the Pastoral Prayer before I get to our two sermons. Right before the prayer I read a quote. It might be something that Jonathan Edwards wrote, or John Piper or one of the Puritans or Tim Keller. I've previously posted some of the quotes that I have used on this blog. The purpose of the quote is to focus everyone's mind on one thought. And it's that one thought that I pray about in one way or another. I will, then, also include some other items in this prayer. I have thought about the Pastoral Prayer and whether we should continue to include it. But I still think it has a place in our worship. First, remember our worship is a conversation with God. Prayer has a key place in that. And this also models prayer before the people. Believers will not flourish without devoting themselves, in some way or other, to prayer. Having a Pastoral Prayer is a reminder of the importance of prayer. And, especially for new Christians and for the kids, hearing someone pray is one really good way to get a handle on what this praying thing is about. (That assumes, of course, that the person offering up the prayer has a handle on prayer himself!)
We have two sermons. The first, Lessons from Jesus, is oriented to the children. So, when we arrive at this point of the service I ask the kids to join me up front where we sit on the rug. I take something from the Gospel Reading that immediately precedes this and relate it, in some way, to their lives. For one thing, this helps them to learn to listen to the Gospel Reading which will lead to their becoming increasingly engaged with the rest of the service as they get older. More than that my goal is to talk to them about Jesus. This is brief, but it is not 'cutesy'. These children need to understand how to follow Jesus just as much as the rest of us. And 'cutesy' won't cut it. I talk about what happened in the text. So, one recent Sunday, because it was in the Gospel Reading, I talked about being persecuted as a Christian. That seems very appropriate because at some point in their future they will more than likely face a kind of persecution that I never have.
After the Pastoral Prayer I preach the Sermon. That there is a sermon in a worship service should surprise no one. So, there isn't much to say here, except to explain what it is. A sermon is another place in the service when God gets to talk. The sermon is God talking to His gathered Church. I know that there are all these qualifications and conditions and all the rest that folk will want added to that stark statement, but refining the statement will have to wait for another time. There is, however, something to be said for making stark and unrefined statements, and just letting them sit there. I think that this point is important because there's a big difference between listening to some guy who might be a bit better educated or who might even be a bit more pious, and listening to God. Remember, worship is a conversation.