Several things happen in authentic Christian worship. Each of them can be, and should be, a moment of truth.
There is the gathering. When people come together for worship, it is based on the common understanding that Jesus Christ is the way and the truth and the life. Meeting with other people in his name testifies to a belief in the truth as it is revealed in Jesus. The assembly supports this.
Private prayers of preparation before entering into corporate worship accord with the fact that God knows the intentions of our hearts. We commit ourselves to him and ask for the grace to worship him in spirit and in truth.
Hymn singing reinforces our understanding and love of God and the gospel. The texts that are sung in the music of the church should always be true to the doctrines of Holy Scripture. Many times I have been moved to tears as I have rejoiced in the truth as I have sung a hymn text that expressed the majesty and beauty of the Christian faith.
Churches that recite the historic creeds of the Christian faith discover that they share a common confession of truth with all believers everywhere. Reciting a creed can have the same effect as the singing of a hymn to God, encouraging reverence, and strengthening faith.
The teaching ministry of the church in sermons and small group Bible studies is for the purpose of teaching the truth. The Bible is true, and the church’s teaching ministry explains the meaning and relevance of Holy Scripture, showing the way to fellowship with God.
Corporate confession of sin and the declaration of forgiveness are moments of truth. God desires truth in the inner being of our hearts. In confession there is no room for pretense, only truth before an all-knowing God. In confession of sin, fellowship with God is restored.
The Lord’s Supper is an act of remembrance, witness, thanksgiving and anticipation. In receiving the bread and the cup, believers are reminded of the truth of the gospel, that Christ Jesus died for our sins according to the scriptures. We bear witness together to our faith in him. It is a Eucharist, or thanksgiving, for his sacrifice. The Lord Jesus also said that his people should think of his second coming every time they receive communion.
From the very beginning of the church in the first century these have been expressions of Christian belief. They are moments of truth. They are encounters with Jesus who declared himself to be the truth.
“We know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding so that we may know him who is true. And we are in him who is true by being in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.” (1 John 5:20)
Pastor Randy Faulkner