Rejoice in Worship - Creating Awareness of Our Wesleyan Heritage as Experienced Through the Sacramen

Our Lord Jesus Christ commanded us to observe Baptism and Holy Communion as a regular part of the life of the church. Since these two were instituted by our Lord himself, and because of the grace they confer, they are called sacraments.

Baptism

By baptism we who are "by nature born into sin" are admitted into Christ’s church and become part of his body.

• In baptism we are made children of God and heirs to the kingdom of heaven. This means that by the act of baptism we confess that we accept Christ as Sovereign and Savior of our lives. From that moment on, God recognizes us as God's children; our sins are erased and we are a new creation in Christ Jesus.
• In baptism we receive our name. As a good parent, God knows each child by name, so that in baptism we become part of the family of God. In some cases, a person who is baptized as an adult takes a new name as a testimony to a new relationship through faith in Jesus. Our name is important in our social life and in the church.
• In baptism we are received as members of Christ’s church. Baptism is a call to testify. We are chosen "to proclaim the mighty acts of God who called us out of darkness into his own marvelous light." Baptism calls us to witness to our faith.

Holy Communion

The biblical authority for the celebration of Holy Communion is found in 1 Cor.11:23-26. We hear Jesus’ words "do this" twice in this passage. The Spanish language hymnal Mil Voces Para Celebrar helps us place this sacrament within the Wesleyan tradition and that of The United Methodist Church. In the first paragraph of the section, "Culto con el sacramento de la Santa Comunión" (Worship Service with Holy Communion), p. 6, we read:

As disciples of Jesus Christ, we participate in Holy Communion in memory of the last supper of the Lord with his disciples, on the night that he was betrayed. It is a sacred reminder of the sacrifice of Jesus for us (John 3:16).

Each time that we receive the elements of Holy Communion, we proclaim his death until he returns. As we take Holy Communion, we also celebrate Jesus’ resurrection and his presence with us (1 Cor. 15:3-11, 20).

Three elements that should be present in our minds and hearts each time we come to the Lord’s table are:

• Memorial – We are reminded of Jesus’ sacrifice on our behalf. It is fitting that, as we receive the bread and cup, we do so with profound personal devotion and thankfulness, remembering that Christ died for each of us.
• Communion – We remember that we are parts of a whole – the worldwide community of faith. In Holy Communion our expression of praise for the salvation we have received is joined by all the faithful in the world who recognize Jesus as Lord and Savior.
• Proclamation – Holy Communion is a declaration of faith by those who participate in it. As we come to the Lord’s table we declare to whom we belong. And as we leave our place of worship, we should announce, to all who will hear, what God has done for us.

The Methodist societies begun by Wesley offer us a good example of what our Christian task should be. They were a group of persons, who banded together to look for God’s power through prayer, received the word of exhortation, looked after each other with love and worked out their salvation.

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Rev. Ariel Zambrano is a retired clergy member of the California-Pacific Annual Conference. He teaches Course of Study School courses twice a year at Claremont School of Theology. He currently resides in Claremont, CA.