BJ Not BK

What are we to do together as Christians when we come to worship God publically? How do we know this?

Are you asking what are we to do when we worship publicly as a congregation or publicly as various denominations?  

Various denominations usually don't do much public worshiping together so I will assume it is as a congregation.

The Bible does not give orders of worship, how a bulletin should be formated, setting up committees, it doesn't specify hymns to sing or translations to read.  It doesn't even speak about size of congregation (in terms of how big or small it should be), building design, etc.

But if you look at the Bible you will find that the believers met frequently, Jesus said to remember Him in the Lord's Supper, they sang, they prayed, people were baptized, they read scripture, the tended to the poor and to widows, and there was preaching.  We also learn the qualifications for leaders.

We also know from scripture that God calls people to Him at specific places, in specific times, and to specific cultures for sharing His gospel.  The principals never change, if they do they are not of God, but the methods vary greatly.  

If you read any of the letters of Paul you can see that he frequently changed his methods to reach those around him...he never asked the gentiles to be circumcised, to follow the feasts, in order to worship God or to be saved and he never did things around the Jews that would cause them to stumble.

The real question is do we love Jesus?  Do we realize how great our sin was/is without Him?  Do we realize how complete His payment on the cross was?  

If we do then we are not given into the easy believing that we have our ticket nor are we given in to moral, legalistic, teaching.  

Knowing the life the Jesus led and the death He died in it's true form, allows us to fully submit ourselves to Jesus not out of fear or guilt but out of fear, love, and worship and this is where you truly see God glorified, lives changed, people saved.

The good news is just that.....News of the good things Jesus has already done, not good advice or a list of things we have to do, methods we have to adhere to, types of music we have to sing.  

I like your list of activities to be included in public worship, because you used the Bible to make your list. What about adding things to corporate worship that are not found in the Bible?

Good question...like guitars for instance?  You can't find a guitar mentioned once in scripture but I have been to worship services where a guitar was played with and without the singing of a hymn and it was beautiful.  This is a method of worshiping God, a personal preference of that worship leader to incorporate that instrument into the worship service.

Well, we are commanded to worship God together in song, and with instruments. The "element" of worship is music. This element is not optional, is it? But, how each local congregation implements musical worship of God will vary, yes? Certainly other principles also apply here, such as doing all things with order, decency and for edification.

What about adding announcements and times of greeting and hello in the midst of the worship service? Can this be found in God's Word? What about a separate "kid's sermon" where the children are called up front and taught? What about a liturgy that defines how the elements of worship are to be arranged in order in the service?

"What about adding announcements and times of greeting and hello in the midst of the worship service? Can this be found in God's Word? What about a separate "kid's sermon" where the children are called up front and taught? What about a liturgy that defines how the elements of worship are to be arranged in order in the service?"

Our primary tasks are to worship God and to share Jesus through the reading and preaching of scripture - this is a principal.  How we reach age groups, demographics are all methods.  So you don't really see anywhere in the Bible how to run a successful youth group but you do see Jesus command us to share the gospel with all nations and all people.    

I suppose this would fall under Paul's "be all things to all people.."  You could group the children together in "big church" for an hour or so and I see nothing wrong with that or you could host a separate service geared at the way 4 year olds think, designed to share the gospel and worship God in a way that 4 year olds can process.

I don't see anything wrong with any of the above items you mentioned as we are called to worship, to gather, to fellowship - principals and how we go about this are our various methods.

Do you ever wonder why Jesus didn't give us specific details?  Could it be 1.  We have complete freedom in Christ.  Each of us has unique talents and personalities that can worship God in varying ways in truth and spirit and 2.  Jesus didn't want us to become legalistic in our worship of Him.  We are to worship Him out of love not out of guilt or a sense of duty.

Yes, we are completely free in Christ, no longer slaves to sin. We are now slaves of righteousness, free to live lives of genuine love toward God, which Christ defined as glad obedience to all that He has commanded. This is true love toward Christ. And, yes, Jesus did not want us to become legalistic in worship toward Him, as you say "out of a sense of guilt or duty." But, it often appears to me that those who seek to obey God's Word in how we worship Him are immediately grouped as legalistic by many in the church today. Jesus did give us specific details in His Word on how He wants us to worship Him, and seeking to obey Him in this should be admired and extolled, not mislabeled as legalism. Seeking to honor God in the details was not so important to Nadab and Abihu.

I would argue that we are ransomed slaves to Christ not to righteousness.  We are already righteous and holy if we are covered by the blood of Jesus.  

We are not legalistic if we obey God.  Legalism comes in when people get principals and methods confused, the point of the post.  

Jesus says to read your Bible.  Legalism says you must only read NIV or only read ESV or only read KJV these are methods.

Romans 6: "15 What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! 16 Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? 17 But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, 18 and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness. 19 I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification."

Slaves to righteousness, defined as "obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed."

And, slaves of God, as well. (Romans 6:22) Bondservants, right?