We hope to see you in one of our assemblies sometime soon. Our Sunday service is our simple, yet sincere worship of the Creator of the universe.
As our Creator, God has expressed His desire for acceptable worship. His Son, Jesus, taught “true worshipers” will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship Him. God is in spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:23-24). Even 2,000 years later, our worship must continue to be “in spirit” (with the proper attitude) and “in truth” (with the proper actions).
As the works of God’s hands, we must remember that acceptable worship always revolves around Him. We show Him reverence by respecting His Choices of the channels of praise. Jesus’ ancient question continues to be a relevant one: “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?” (Luke 6:46).
When God’s Word is allowed to govern our actions and attitudes, we can worship confidently with cheerful enthusiasm.
Singing
Singing has always been a key element of worship for disciples of Christ. Scripture tells us that two things occur as we raise our voices in song. First, God is magnified as we “offer up a sacrifice of praise, the fruit of our lips that acknowledge His name” (Hebrews 13:15). Second, we speak “to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs” (Ephesians 5:19) in order to “stir up one another to love and good works” (Hebrews 10:24). The only instruments we use are our hearts, just as the first Christians were instructed (Colossians 3:16). We hope you’ll join us in singing as we praise our Father in heaven and seek to spiritually revitalize each other. As always, if you ever have questions about why we do what we do, all you have to do is ask.
Prayer
The earliest disciples “devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer” (Acts 2:42; 4:24-31; 12:12). We unashamedly and absolutely believe in the power of prayer. A precious part of our assemblies is time to devoted to lifting our hearts together to God and confidently drawing near to His throne of grace (Acts 4:24; Hebrews 4:16).
Through prayer we praise our Father in heaven (Matthew 6:9). thank Him for the many good gifts He has provided (James 1:17), humbly confess our shortcomings (1 John 1:9), and ask that God would be present and active in the lives of those who need His special care (1 Timothy 2:1-2). “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God” (Philippians 4:6). We take that encouragement seriously.
Preaching
The early church heard the proclamation of God’s Word in their assemblies (Acts 15:30-32; 20:7-11). The messengers were devoted to preaching “the whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27; 2 Timothy 4:1-2). In our assemblies, you won’t hear political speeches, secular psychology lectures, or shameless sales pitches for money. Our time together is devoted to God and His Word — nothing more, nothing less.
When we reverently listen to gospel preaching, we bow our hearts before God’s living voice in Scripture, and we encourage you to do the same. Open your Bible. Seek out the answers to your questions. Be like those in Acts 17:11 who “received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so”. as you discover Truth, take thoughtful, positive action in your pursuit of the Creator. Dedicate yourself to God and your hope will come to rest in “the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and give you the inheritance among all those who are being sanctified” (Acts 20:32).
The Lord’s Supper
On the eve of His crucifixion, Jesus gathered with His apostles and instituted a simple memorial of unleavened bread and fruit of the vine (Matthew 26:26-29). These two elements represent His crucified body and shed blood given for our redemption.
His will was that those men — and all disciples to follow — would “do this in remembrance of Me” (Luke 22:19). Under the guidance of the apostles, the first believers gathered on the first day of the week to remember the sacrifice of their Savior and celebrate His triumphant resurrection from the dead (Acts 2:42; 20:7).
The Lord’s Supper is a unifying spiritual communion for God’s family. Each first day of the week we remember together and publicly proclaim what Jesus did for us on the cross (1 Corinthians 10:16; 11:26-28). As we reflect, we examine and re-dedicate ourselves to Him and His great cause for which He paid the ultimate price.
Giving
Every Sunday, our members have the opportunity to contribute to our collective work, following the example of first-century Christians (1 Corinthians 16:1-2). Contributions are used for the spiritual growth of this church and for the support of men around the world who are preaching the gospel.
Announcements
The Blacktown church of Christ is a family. Family members “rejoice with those who rejoice and week with those who weep” (Romans 12:15). At the end of our assemblies, we take a few moments to communicate the needs and prayer requests of our family members. While obviously not a part of worship, one of our privileges as Christians is to “loft the drooping hands and strengthen the weak knees” of our brothers and sisters in Christ (Hebrews 12:12-13). Communication is vital in a family so that no one is left behind or faced with enduring hardship alone.
If you have a need we would love to pray for God to help with your needs too, just let us know what you wish us to pray over.
You’re Invited
If you ever have questions about who we are or what we aim to accomplish as a congregation, please do not hesitate to ask. We will do our best to give you a Bible answer for our beliefs and practices.
We hope to meet you in person sometime soon!