"Go in Peace, serve the Lord" is a traditional dismissal at the end of worship services in many denominations. While it is common to say, it is anything but common in meaning.

When we are baptized, we are joined to Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, to the historic church and to the fellowship of all believers. We leave Sunday's service, strengthened through study of the biblical word and nourished by the life of the risen Savior through communion. When we go out, we take the very Peace of God with us. "Go in Peace."

But that is only the beginning of what it means to be a baptized.  We are gathered together for a purpose. The church does not exist for itself, it exists for the sake of the world. When we go out in Peace, we go prepared for mission and ministry for Christ's sake. The motto of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is, "God's Work, Our Hands." The church exists for this purpose, to serve the Lord, to be Christ to a world that may know his name, but may not know his heart. That is why we "Serve the Lord." Thanks be to God!

 

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