What the service means

The Service of the Word, the first part of the Divine Service, features:

• Confession and Absolution, where God hears and forgives our sins through the pastor whom He’s sent to us.

• Hymns of praise and humility such as the Kyrie and Gloria in Excelsis.

• Psalms fitting for that day’s readings, such as the Introit and Gradual.

• The Old Testament lesson, which is connected especially to the Gospel for that day.

• The Epistle, which is sometimes part of the day’s theme as at Christmas or Easter and sometimes is a continuous reading of a New Testament letter.

• The Gospel, which always centers on the words and works of Christ Himself and interprets the other two readings.

• The sermon, where the pastor explains and applies one or more of the Scripture lessons.

• The Offering and Offertory, where we bring gifts to support the church’s work.

• The Prayer of the Church, where we ask God for His blessings and mercies on all.

The Service of the Sacrament, the second part of the Divine Service, features:

• The Preface and Proper Preface where the pastor’s chanting and our song ask God’s blessing on the congregation and retell what God has done, especially in that season’s focus.

• The Sanctus (“Holy” in Latin), where we sing the ancient song from the Jerusalem temple and the welcome that the crowds sang when Jesus came into Jerusalem to welcome Him as He comes in Holy Communion.

• The Lord’s Prayer, which Jesus taught us Himself.

• The Words of Institution, which Jesus used to establish the Lord’s Supper in His Church.

• The Agnus Dei (“Lamb of God” in Latin), which John the Baptist used to describe Jesus as God’s Sacrifice for our sins.

• The Distribution of Communion, where we receive Christ’s Body and Blood.

• The Nunc Dimittis (“Now Depart” in Latin), the song that elderly Simeon sang after he saw the child Jesus – we sing it after we have received Jesus in Holy Communion.

• Prayers after Communion that it would bless our lives.

• The Benediction, where the pastor gives the same blessing to the congregation that the ancient Israelite priests gave thousands of years ago (Numbers 6).