Jesus told his disciples, “For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them” (Matthew 18:20).  The gathering together of believers in Jesus Name is one of the most common structures of worship. However, it is missing a most exciting and important theological lesson from Scripture: God’s Presence.

The church has always believed not only that God is everywhere but also that he is made intensely present to his church at worship. God is there in the gathering of the assembly, in song, in Scripture reading, in prayer, and especially at bread and wine.

The presence of God is experienced through what is practiced at the gathering, but it is actually most visible in the people gathered.

…the gathering of baptized people is therefore not a convocation of those who are privileged, elite, and separate, but of those who have accepted what it means to be in the heart of a needy, contaminated, messy world.

The people gathered are the visible presence of God in the world.  The way we act, treat one another, speak into crisis, and seek God’s will –  these are the signs of us being God’s presence.  Worship then, is not done at church but what the church – a gathered people – do with each other in the World.  The sending part of Worship recalls our mission, connects it to the story of God, and empowers us as God’s chosen people.  Jesus’ last words to His disciples were words of sending: “Therefore go and make disciples…”(Matthew 28:19-20).

We should adopt practices of Gathering and Sending in our communal contexts (aka our Church).  This means being intentional with the opening and closing of services or events.  I believe following the blessing God gave Moses that the priests would proclaim to the Israelites (Numbers 6:22-27), consisting of placing the Name of the Lord on them and then God would be the one doing the blessing is one such intentional way to embrace gathering and sending.  This practice, the benediction, the blessing, and the sending are moments in which we place the Name of the Lord on His people and His Spirit empowers them to live the mission and be the Church.  So lets start by asking questions about how we can implement times of blessing and acknowledgement of the gathered in our current opening and closing practices.  When someone enters your home?  When someone sits beside you at church?  When you invite someone to lunch (hint hint)?  How can you intentionally recognize God’s Presence today?

May Our God bless us always, whom we name Father, Son, and Holy Spirit!

The Grace of the Lord Jesus, the Love of God our Father, and the Friendship of the Holy Spirit be with you all,

-Lars

1 Webber, Ancient-Future Worship: Proclaiming and Enacting God’s Narrative, p. 133

2 Williams, Rowan, Being Christian: Baptism, Bible, Eucharist, Prayer (Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2014). p. 6

Originally posted on my old blog on May 20, 2016