Welcome
This is my
format for the Welcome to Sunday worship
- · Doxological Greeting
- · Welcome visitors
- Fill out the Welcome Card
- Don’t be shy—reach out to the members
- Exhortation
- Post-service Fellowship
- · Who We Are
- · What to Expect
- · Short prayer for visitors
Welcoming
the congregation to worship affords good ministerial opportunities. First, it
sets the tone for the worship service. This is well illustrated by the way that
that radio talk show hosts or late night talk show hosts energize their
audiences at the start of the program. The worst welcomes are the dull, lifeless,
and unconsidered “Good morning” utterances, which are designed to elicit the
obligatory response, “Good morning.” The congregation does so with equal
dullness.
In contrast, our first words to the congregation should be inspirational
and doxological, perhaps something like, “Blessed be the God of Abraham, Isaac,
and Jacob who has gathered us together in the name of his Son Jesus, who was
crucified, buried, and risen from the dead in power and great glory.” The creative
worship leader should prepare the welcome in advance, crafting a welcome that
is appropriate for the People of God.
While worship leaders should formally welcome everyone, the emphasis
should be on welcoming visitors.
Visitors are often a bit unnerved by their unfamiliarity with a church. Worship
leaders should speak words to reinforce visitors’ decision to attend and put
their minds at ease. Be sure also to give a word of exhortation, encouraging
visitors to grow spiritually or to get involved with the congregation, etc. Alert
them to after worship fellowship opportunities.
Part of any welcoming is asserting to the visitors who the congregation
is. Baptist theology teaches that the local congregation is nothing less than
the People of God. The descriptor needs expansion. I suggest a four-point
expansion, each reinforcing sermonic points. The first two points might recall
the previous week’s sermon, and the latter two might anticipate the sermon to
be preached that day. Here is the “Who We Are” segment for one of my service in
a sermon series on Philippians:
·
Who we are: First Baptist Church, the People of
God
o
A people that has been granted the privilege of
participating and sharing in the Gospel of Christ
o
A people that has been filled with a joy
unspeakable, so that whether we are in chains for the sake of the gospel, or
defending and confirming it, our joy overflows
o
A people united in Christ so that, despite the
diversity of our backgrounds, perspectives, and cultures, we stand firm as one,
contending for the gospel
o
A people confident that he who began a good
work in us will be faithful to complete in until the day of Christ
The “Who We Are” segment not only introduces the congregation to the
visitors, but it also casts a vision of the congregation’s identity, which is
exhortational.
The Welcome should inform the congregation of anything
unusual that has been planned. If it is a Communion service, make note of it; likewise,
announce special speakers or musicians, etc. I often joke that we will not be
handling snakes today.
The Welcome usually takes 3-4 minutes, and should be
concluded with a very brief prayer for the visitors.
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