The Service of Holy Communion
The Lutheran Hymnary p. 72: 20-27
The Service of Holy Communion follows the Service of the Word as the second important part of the liturgy. As God gives his gifts through the preaching of the Gospel, the gifts of forgiveness, life, and salvation, so He also gives His gifts through the Lord’s Supper, which is the Gospel in sacramental form.
A sacrament is a rite that is (1) instituted by Christ, (2) tied to specific words that are (3) connected with earthly elements and that (4) offers and gives the forgiveness of sins. Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are the two sacraments.
When we reflect upon the meaning of the sacraments, we cannot help but be reminded that all aspects of our salvation – the atonement for our sins, the giving of forgiveness to us, and our acceptance of it through faith are in fact God’s work in us. This truth guides our understanding of salvation. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9)
The Service of Holy Communion begins with the Preface and starts with another Salutation. The pastor greets the people, “The Lord be with you,” and the people respond, “And with your spirit.” Just as at the beginning of the Service of the Word, this is a prayer that Christ our Lord would accompany His word and sacrament with His gifts, as in fact He has promised to do.
The pastor then calls to the people to “Lift up your hearts.” This is followed by the Proper Preface. Remember that the “propers” are the parts of the service that change with the seasons. The Proper Prefaces are remembrances of the mercies of our Lord, for which we join in praise to Him, along with the angels and all the saints in heaven and on earth.
The song of praise that we sing at this time is the Sanctus, taken from Isaiah 6:1-4 (NKJV)
…I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple. Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one cried to another and said:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
The whole earth is full of His glory!”
And the posts of the door were shaken by the voice of him who cried out, and the house was filled with smoke.