Systematic Theology 2

(ST 6540)
TTGST - Fall, 2011
 Lecture 10:
Sacraments and Worship
TTGST - Fall, 2011
 General Outline

I. Baptism

II. The Lord’s Supper

III. Worship
I. Baptism
 A. Institution of Baptism
1. Commanded by Christ
a. Always accompanies the command to make disciples
(Mt 28:19)

2. Practiced by the church

a. Universally practiced in the early church beginning
on the day of Pentecost (Ac 2:38, 41)
b. Subordinate to the gospel, without which it would
have no meaning.
c. Anyone could baptize who knew the name of Jesus,
not limited to the Apostles (Mt 18:20)
 B. Meaning of Baptism
1. Identification with Christ
Name of Christ was pronounced over the baptized, and the
baptized also called upon the name of the Lord (Ac 22:16);
therefore baptism “in the name of Jesus Christ” (Ac 2:38; cf.
8:16) signifies ownership:
a. The baptized openly confessed in repentance and faith his
submission to the lordship of Jesus (Rm 10:9).
b. The death of the old life and the resurrection to new life in
union with Christ is at its heart (Rm 6:4; 1Pt 3:20).

2. Identification with the church

a. Death and resurrection with Christ refer not only to union
with Christ but to a unity of Christ composed of many
members (1Co 12:12; Rm 12:4-5).
b. The new convert were identified outwardly with the
fellowship of believers (Ac 2:41).
 C. Effects of Baptism
The significance of baptism underscores the inward response
toward God, namely faith, which is the foundation for other
realities to be strengthened in the experience of the believer as
follows:

1. The blessings of faith (Ac 22:16)

2. Union with Christ (Rm 6:3-4; Gal 3:27)
3. Possession of the Spirit (Ac 2:38)

“Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a

removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good
conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ” (1Pt 3:21).
D. Subjects of Baptism

See Grudem pp. 969-80

II. The Lord’s Supper
 A. Institution of the Lord’s Supper
1. Commanded by Christ
a. Christ commanded it, and showed it by his example.
b. It fulfills the Passover and all previous sacrificial rites.
From now on, the disciples were to remember Jesus and
his perfect, final sacrifice given for them (Mt 26:26-29;
Mk 14:22-25; Lk 22:17-20; 1Co 11:23-26).

“And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke

it and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body, which is given
for you. Do this in remembrance of me.’ And likewise the cup
after they had eaten, saying, ‘This cup that is poured out for
you is the new covenant in my blood.’” (Lk 22:19-20).
 A. Institution of the Lord’s Supper
2. Practiced by the church
a. Paul claims the Lord’s authority for delivering a tradition:
“For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you”
(1Co 11:23).

b. The church immediately after Pentecost was “breaking

bread” in fellowship:
“And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching
and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the
prayers.” (Ac 2:42; cf. 20:7, 11)
 B. Meaning of the Lord’s Supper
1. A remembrance of Christ’s death
a. The significance of the elements is not an reenactment
of his death (RC), nor the act of elevating or breaking
the bread, nor a sacrifice offered on behalf of both the
living and the dead (RC/EO).
b. The elements signify something that is done for us.
“This is my body which is for you” (1Co11:24; Mk 14:24)

The church in remembering Christ is thanking him for his

complete salvation, hence the word eucharist (Mt 26:27; Lk
22:17, 19; 1Co 11:24).
 B. Meaning of the Lord’s Supper
2. A present fellowship with Christ
He who invited the disciples to share the Last Supper continues
to be the real Host at each communion service. An invitation to
share a meal is an invitation to fellowship of life. More than
that Jesus gives himself as the very substance of that meal.
Three major views on the nature of Christ’s presence:

a. Roman Catholic—transubstantiation
The literal body and blood of Christ are present in the
elements of bread and wine as soon as the priest utters the
formula of consecration “This is my body.”
 B. Meaning of the Lord’s Supper
Arguments against transubstantiation:
1) Disciples did not think they were literally eating his body
and drinking his blood.
2) Christ used similar metaphors: “I am the door.”
3) Use of metaphor is obvious in this ceremony/context: “this
cup is the new covenant” (Lk 22:20).
4) Drinking literal blood would be abhorrent to a faith
community (Lv 3:17; 7:26-27; 17:10-14).
5) The elements in the Passover (analogous to the Lord’s
Supper) were interpreted symbolically and never identified
with the realities represented.
 B. Meaning of the Lord’s Supper
b. Lutheran—consubstantiation
The body and blood of Christ are present “in, with, and under”
the elements of bread and wine without their transformation.

Arguments against transubstantiation:

They do well to deny the Roman Catholic idea of the
sacrament as a continuing sacrifice. But their emphasis on a
literal physical presence of Christ (using physical objects)
dilutes the biblical emphasis on receiving Christ by faith alone.
 B. Meaning of the Lord’s Supper
c. Calvin/Reformed—Spiritual Presence
The Lord’s Supper is not a mere memorial but a means of
grace. When we take the Lord’s Supper, Christ is present in the
Spirit. The physical body of Christ is in heaven, not on earth.
The Christian “feeds on” Christ (Jn 6:53–58) in such a way that
partaking the symbols of his body and blood benefits the
believer to “partake ” of Christ in his redemptive presence by
faith.

This interpretation is congruous to Paul’s teaching:

“The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in
the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a
participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread,
we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one
bread.” (1Co 10:16-18)
 B. Meaning of the Lord’s Supper
3. An anticipation of Christ’s return
More than just looking backward, there is a forward look to
Christ’s return, because the present spiritual fellowship is not
the final fellowship but merely anticipatory of the fuller, more
direct fellowship with the Savior.
“Truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine
until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”(Mk
14:25)
“For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you
proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.” (1Co 11:26)

NT teaching of the Lord’s Supper is not characterized by the

solemnity of a funeral, but were full of exultation in
anticipation of Christ’s coming as well as the present
enjoyment of his person through the Spirit.
 B. Meaning of the Lord’s Supper
4. A fellowship of believers
This implied unity of the believers (from our unity to Christ in
the ceremony) was the point of neglect addressed by Paul.
“ The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in
the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a
participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread,
we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one
bread. ”(1Co 10:16-17)
“So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there
remember that your brother has something against you, leave
your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to
your brother, and then come and offer your gift” (Mt 5:23-24).
There can be no genuine experience of fellowship with the
Lord at his table until all divisions, social or otherwise, are
reconciled and fellow believers are received as equal
participants in Christ.
III. Worship
 A. Definition of Worship
It is a sincere giving of devotion to God with a deeply satisfied
heart in the power of the Spirit.

“ . . . worship the Father in spirit and truth” (Jn 4:23)

“Because your steadfast love is better than life,
my lips will praise you.
So I will bless you as long as I live;
in your name I will lift up my hands.
My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food,
and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips,
when I remember you upon my bed,
and meditate on you in the watches of the night;
for you have been my help,
and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.” (Ps 63:3-7)
 B. The Trinity in worship
Worship is
1. Directed toward the triune God, the source of our existence
“Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor
and power, for you created all things, and by your will they
existed and were created.” (Rev 4:11; cf. Jn 1:3 ; Ps 104:30)

2. Mediated through Christ who made worship is acceptable

“. . . by the new and living way that he opened for us through
the curtain, that is, through his flesh.” (Heb 10:20; cf. 1Pt 2:5 )

3. Enabled by the Spirit who testifies with our spirit

“For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the
Father.” (Eph 2:18; Rm 8:15-16)
 C. Time and place of worship
1. Time
The established time of worship came to be the first day of the
week (Ac 20:7; 1Co 16:2).
2. Place
• Temple—Even as Christ had done (Mk 14:49), the early
Christians were frequenting it praying and teaching (Ac 2:46;
3:1; 5:42).
• Synagogues—Saul sought to purge the synagogues of those
that believed on Christ (Ac 22:19).
• homes—’house to house,’ house of Mary, upper room (Ac 2:46;
5:42; 12:12). Church buildings appear at the end of 2nd century.
 D. Forms of worship
NT does not provide a standard liturgy, or a list of events to take
place in worship. But Paul exhorts the church to do everything
“decently and in order” (1Co 14:40).

Jewish Antecedents:
Worship at the temple and esp. the synagogue had its influence
on the early church’s pattern of church worship including prayers
of praise and thanksgiving, the response of the word of God with
the practice of charity toward poorer members of the community
(Maxwell, An Outline of Christian Worship).
 D. Forms of worship
1. The Word
As Israel’s worship began with hearing God (Dt 6:4; Lk 4:16-22), so
church worship began with listening to the word of God through the
apostle’s teaching (Acts 2:42; 20:7ff.; 2Tm 4:2).

a. The Apostles were determined not to let any service take priority
over the ministry of the Word (Ac 6:4)
b. Paul charged Timothy to be ‘devoted to the public reading of
Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching” (1Tim 4:13), because
through the Word . . .
• the obedience of faith came (Rm 10:17; Jn 17:20).
• lives were transformed (Jn 17:17; 15:3).
• church grew qualitatively and quantitatively (Ac 6:7; 12:34; 19:20).
 D. Forms of worship

2. Prayer
They “continued steadfastly in prayers” (Ac 2:42) in homes (2:46)
or in the temple (3:1), and Paul gives exhortations/instructions
for prayers for the individual and assembled believers (Eph 6:18;
Phil 4:6; Col 4:2; 1Th 5:17; 1Tm 2:1-2, 8).

Four primary words used to describe prayer (Phil 4:6; 1Tm 2:1)
a. Supplications –petition for a definite need
b. Prayer—generally for reverent worshipful address to God
c. Intercessions—in the interest of others, esp. governor, king.
d. Thanksgiving—gratitude that makes every prayer complete.
 D. Forms of worship
3. Praise/hymns
• The creative spirit was active in song in the NT following the
OT Psalter.
• The last two of the “psalms and hymns and spiritual songs”
(Col 3:16; Eph 5:19) were products of the church’s own
spiritual experience
• These were used to glorify God and edify believers by
“speaking to one another” (Eph 5:19).
• Generally accepted examples of early Christian hymnology
are: Eph 5:14, 1 Tim 3:16, Col 1:15-20, Phil 2:6-11, Heb 1:3.

Tertullian: During Christian love feast ‘each is invited to sing to

God in the presence of the others what he knows of the holy
Scripture or from his own heart’ (Apology 39).
 D. Forms of worship
4. Credal formulas
Another aspect of worship in the early church was the recital of
credal formulas.

Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness:

He was manifested in the flesh,
vindicated by the Spirit,
seen by angels,
proclaimed among the nations,
believed on in the world,
taken up in glory. (1 Tim 3:16)

The confessions entailed short simple sentences probably of the

lordship of Christ (R. Martin, Worship in the Early Church, 53).
 D. Forms of worship
5. The offering
Without action and deed, love in tongue only is a sham (Ja 2:15-
17; 1Jn 3:17-18). Therefore the gathering of the church was the
occasion for collecting the offering (Ac 4-5; 1Co 16:1-2).

a. The motive
The Christian giving can only be a response to God’s grace—
i.e., self-giving Christ is the inspiration for stewardship (2Co 8:9).

b. The measure
The giving of substance was natural consequence of self-sacrifice
in worship. Paul notes that the believers “gave themselves first
to the Lord and then by the will of God to us.” (2Co 8:5).
 D. Forms of worship
5. The offering
c. The manner
More important than the amount is the spirit in which we
exercise stewardship.
“Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not
reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful
giver”(2Co 9:7).

d. The method
The Scriptures teach that we practice stewardship in a systematic
manner, not impulsively: “On the first day of every week, each of
you is to put something aside and store it up, as he may prosper”
(1Co 16:2).
 D. Forms of worship
5. The offering
e. The reward
Faithful giving has many promised results:
• the plight of others is relieved
• causes recipients to glorify God in thanksgiving
• prompts their prayers for the generous givers (2Co 9:11-14)
• promotes genuine koinonia among the people of God
• increases the giver’s ability for further giving
• fruit abounds to the giver’s account with God (Phil 4:17; 2Co
9:10)
 E. Two kinds of worship
1. Formal worship
This worship in the narrow sense is public, corporate worship of
weekly gathering to celebrate the resurrection on the Lord’s Day.

2. Life as worship
More important than the formal worship is this worship in the
broad sense, our daily walk. It includes the aspects of sacrifice and
holiness, as we seek to live godly lives. When we glorify God, it is a
living sacrifice; it is true worship.
“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to
present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God,
which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world,
but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you
may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and
perfect.” (Rm 12:1–2)