After a guest at our church has visited 2-3 times, I often hear the following: “You aren’t like most Baptist churches I have been too.” I always trust that’s a compliment, but nonetheless, I understand what they mean.
Most Baptist churches don’t stand every time the Bible is read, or prayers dedicated to adoration, confession, and supplication, or have a minister declare to you that your sins are forgiven through Christ. Most Baptist churches don’t have call and response readings or recite the ancient Creeds of the church every week.
Why are we doing all these things? Do we secretly want to be Presbyterian? I assure you, we do not. We do these things for several good reasons.
First, we order our worship according to Scripture. If the Bible tells us to commit ourselves to the public reading of the Scriptures: we do it. If the Bible tells us to confess our sins in prayer to God, we obey it.
Second, the church is an institution, established by God, for the formation of Christians, and the liturgy of the church forms us. Why do we stand whenever the Scriptures are read? Because, when the King of Heaven and Earth speaks, we stand at attention, ready to hear his Law and Gospel. Why do we recite the creeds? Because we’re teaching you the basics of true doctrine.
The shape of our worship service ought to be the shape of our lives. We are being conformed into the image of Jesus Christ, and that conformation happens on a seven-day schedule. The very act of assembling with the gathered church on the Lord’s day gives structure and form to our lives.
To be clear: you are not made a Christian by attending to these rituals. You are made a Christian by faith alone in the shed blood of Jesus Christ. Nonetheless, liturgies teach and shape. And we want our liturgy to shape us into easily recognizable New Testament Christians.