Church is people, organization and gathering. Christians are the church, we organize into local churches, and it is right and good to say, “I’m going to church today,” when you are headed to a worship service. But what is God’s design for our gatherings? Well, the first facet of his blueprint for worship in the Bible is to welcome sinners. Romans 15:1-7 has five important principles that define a distinctively Christian way to welcome people.

Why did God send his Son Jesus into the world? What was the rationale behind Jesus coming to Earth as a servant to humanity? It seems appropriate to conclude that he did it for numerous reasons, not just one. And there’s one reason in the Bible that may surprise you. It’s part of God’s Biblical blueprint for worship services. Jesus was born in a manger, lived a flawless human life, and died on a cross so that we would sing. Romans 15:8-13 provides us five instructive words about the kind of singing he wants from us.

While it would be an overstatement to say that there are precise and comprehensive instructions in the Scriptures for exactly how and when churches should worship together, God has given us a blueprint in the Bible. One obvious part of our order of service is prayer. The Lord wants us to pray in church. Here are five observations about 1 Timothy 2:1-7 to give us direction for those prayers.

God’s design for our worship involves giving him the first and best of our income as an act of devotion. That doesn’t mean we need to pass the plate in our worship services, because we can give in a variety of ways, but it does mean we should have a time set aside in church to acknowledge our giving. And 2 Corinthians 9:7 states, “For God loves a cheerful giver.” He doesn’t want us to be even the slightest bit sad or sorry when we give, but to take great pleasure in it. How can we do that? 2 Corinthians 9:6-15 contains three principles that will help us be cheerful in our giving.

In the Christian church, there’s a long history of debate about the nature of communion, but all churches think that it was ordained by Jesus to be done with regularity in worship services. It’s not wrong to take communion elsewhere, like if you end up homebound and someone brings you it, but communion is first and foremost to be taken in your local church at the worship gathering. That’s God’s design for it. Matthew 26:26-28 describes three reasons Jesus wants us to participate in the Lord’s Supper.

About the practices of the early church, Justin Martyr wrote, “And on the day called Sunday, all who live in the cities or in the country gather together in one place, and the memoirs of the apostles or the writings of the prophets are read, as long as time permits.” Since the beginning of the church, Christians have gathered for worship and one of the things they did was read the Scriptures out loud. That’s part of God’s blueprint for our gatherings. Here’s three reasons why we should read the Bible in church, and three reasons to considering standing when we do it.

Why do you obey God? What causes you to live for Him? What is it that gives nourishment to your heart so that your heart directs your will to do the Lord’s will?  What compels you to live for Christ? Though the Bible gives us many motivations, the primary one is the Gospel. Romans 1:8-17 articulates three reasons why preaching is the primary event in Christian worship services. It’s God’s design for the church.