“The sacred writings…
are able to make you wise for salvation
through faith in Christ Jesus.”
(2 Timothy 3:15)
Jesus is the Word of God incarnate who makes God known to us (John 1:1-18). The Scriptures, as the written Word, testify to Jesus and to the salvation and eternal life that are found in him (Luke 24:27, 44). Eternal life is knowing God (John 17:3), and we know God in Jesus Christ as he is revealed in the Scriptures. By his Word, God reveals himself to us, and he reveals how we are to relate to him. Apart from God revealing himself to us, we would have no hope of knowing him truly—we would be in the dark. But God’s Word dispels the darkness of our ignorance. “For God, who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness,’ has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:6).
As the worshiping community, the earthly temple of the living God, the church is “built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone” (Ephesians 2:20). The church—God’s people in the world—relies on the testimony of Scripture concerning Christ for its life with God. So, from the earliest days of the church, we have been “devoted… to the apostles’ teaching” (Acts 2:42). We need not only the apostolic writings of the New Testament, but the apostolic perspective on the Old Testament, to live the life of faith together as God’s people. That is to say, the Gospel of Jesus is essential to the church’s worship.
The Word (along with the Sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper) is a “Means of Grace,” a means by which God communicates his gracious love and goodwill toward us. The Gospel Word, especially, is at the root of all the things God might use to save and sanctify us. Sinners have a difficult time believing the reality of God’s being and goodness and love. And the church is populated by sinners. God knows our faith is weak, so he tells us what he knows we need to hear. “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17). Without the Word of Christ, you don’t have faith, you don’t have worship, you don’t even have a church at all. But God wants a church where people come to believe and worship. So he speaks to us. And he repeats himself. And he calls us to rehearse and remember his revelation regularly.
So the Christ-centered Word is the chief and foundational element of worship in the Christian church. From beginning to end, every element of worship is born of the Word and bears the Word. It reveals something about God and about our relationship with him when he calls us to worship, to confess our sins, to bring our offerings, to minister the peace of Christ to each other. God gives us his Word to make our own, to shape our prayer and song and confession. God speaks to us in the readings and preaching of his Word. God speaks to us through the Sacraments, which are nothing apart from his Word. God sends us forth with the blessing of his Word.
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly” (Colossians 3:16). Amen.
Why is the special revelation of the Scriptures necessary for salvation and a relationship with God? Why do people—including Christians—need to hear the Gospel regularly? How would you describe your own need for the Christ-centered Word? How would you summarize the Gospel message of the Scriptures? Do you try to approach hearing the Word in worship with a certain mindset or attitude? What are some ways that you, personally, might participate in the ministry of the Word in worship?
