1. The light of nature shows that there is a God who has lordship and sovereignty over all, is good and does good to all, and is therefore to be feared, loved, praised, called on, trusted in, and served with all one’s heart, with all one’s soul, and with all one’s might. But the acceptable way of worshipping the true God is instituted by himself and is limited to his own revealed will. Therefore he may not be worshipped according to the imaginations and inventions of mankind or the suggestions of Satan, in any visible representation, or in any other way not prescribed in the holy Scriptures.

2. Religious worship is to be given to God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and to him alone, not to angels, saints, or to any other creature. Also, since the fall of mankind, worship cannot occur without a mediator, nor in the mediation of anyone other than Christ alone.

3. Prayer with thanksgiving, being a special part of religious worship, is required of all people by God. That it may be accepted, it is to be made in the name of the Son, by the help of his Spirit, and according to his will, with understanding, reverence, humility, fervency, faith, love, and perseverance, and if vocal, in a known tongue.

4. Prayer is to be made for lawful things and for all sorts of living people, or for those who will live in the future, but not for the dead, nor for those of whom it may be known that they have sinned the sin leading to death.

5. The ordinary religious worship of God includes:

• the reading of the Scriptures with godly fear,
• the sound preaching and conscientious hearing of the Word, in obedience to God, with understanding, faith, and reverence,
• singing of psalms with grace in the heart;
• and the due administration and worthy receiving of the sacraments instituted by Christ. In addition, religious oaths, vows, solemn fasts, and thanksgivings on special occasions, in their several times and seasons, are appropriate when used in a holy and religious manner.

6. Under the Gospel, neither prayer nor any other part of religious worship is tied to or made more acceptable by any place in which it is performed, or towards which it is directed. Instead, God is to be worshipped everywhere, in spirit and truth. It is to occur in private families daily, in secret, each one by himself, and more solemnly in public assemblies. These are not to be carelessly or willfully neglected or forsaken, when God calls us to it by his Word or his providence.

7. As it is the law of nature that, in general, a due proportion of time be set apart for the worship of God, so God has particularly appointed one day in seven for a Sabbath to be kept holy to him, by a positive, moral, and perpetual commandment in his Word, binding all people in all ages. From the beginning of the world to the resurrection of Christ, this was the last day of the week, and after the resurrection of Christ it was changed into the first day of the week, which is called in Scripture the Lord’s Day, and is to be continued to the end of the world as the Christian Sabbath.

8. This Sabbath is kept holy to the Lord when the people, after a due preparation of their hearts and ordering of their common affairs beforehand, not only observe a holy rest all day long from their own works, words, and thoughts about their worldly employments and recreations, but also are involved the whole time in the public and private exercises of God’s worship, as well as duties of necessity and mercy.