A Study Guide to Reformed Worship for MINTS Students

Reformed Worship BAM/MAM 110 “But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” (John 4:23,24)

A study guide to Reformed Worship for MINTS students

Rev. Dr. Julian Michael Zugg Covenant PCA, Houston, Texas Email: [email protected] , Web: www.zugg.org

MINTS International Seminary, 14401 Old Cutler Road Miami, Florida 33158 USA Tel. 786-573-7001, www.mints.edu

PREFACE

INTRODUCTION

LESSON ONE: Introduction to Worship

LESSON TWO: A Biblical Theology of Worship

LESSON THREE: Corporate Worship

LESSON FOUR: The Regulative Principle

LESSON FIVE: The Elements of Worship

LESSON SIX: Liturgy

LESSON SEVEN: The Lord’s Day

LESSON EIGHT: The Sacraments and Worship

APPENDIX

BIBLIOGRAPHY

INSTRUCTOR’S MANUAL

PREFACE

This work is written for my MINTS students in Belize. In the gospel we have the great revelation of the Son of God. May the God who revealed Himself in the face of Jesus Christ, bless you all. INTRODUCTION To worship God is the Christian’s great task. Worship is at the heart of the Christian life. In this course, we will study how the church, the body of Christ, ought to worship God. These issues were debated at the time of the Reformation, and a number of important biblical principles were formulated. We will scrutinize these principles in order to help us to worship God better.

COURSE CONTENT The course is divided into eight lessons with each chapter investigating an element of worship. The opening lesson deals with the importance of worship and is followed by a reflection of key biblical texts and how they have been used in worship in lesson two. Lesson three looks at the importance and principle of corporate worship, and lessons four through six discuss the Regulative Principle and liturgy. The importance of the Lord’s Day in worship is the focus of lesson seven, while lesson eight highlights the sacraments in worship.

COURSE MATERIALS The lecture notes are a full exposition. The students are required to read them thoroughly along with the Scriptures. Students are expected to answer the questions at the end of each lesson. The lesson questions will form the basis of the exams. There are two recommended texts. Students who are new to worship courses are encouraged to read With Reverence and Awe, by Hart and Muether. For students with a Reformed background, or those who have studied worship before, Christ-Centered Worship by Bryan Chapell is a useful and very practical book. It includes useful resources, texts, creeds and prayers that have been used in Reformed worship. Master’s students should read both books.

COURSE OBJECTIVES To study worship with other students To acquire a detailed exegetical and historical understanding of worship To be able to critically evaluate different worship styles To be able to develop a liturgy of public worship

3 To be able to lead worship in their local church To worship God in Spirit and Truth

STRUCTURE OF THE COURSE This course has been organized into eight consecutive lessons. The lessons should be studied in order. COURSE REQUIREMENTS 1. Participate in 15 hours of common teaching time. 2. Complete the Bible study exercises as contained in the 8 lessons. 3. Read With Reverence and Awe (Certificate or Bachelor’s level) and Christ-Centered Worship (Master’s Level). Read the Appendices 1 and 2 in lesson 6 and the Directory of Public Worship either online or with the book by Mark Dever and Sinclair Ferguson. 4. Write an outline for worship in your local church from a Bible text chosen by the instructor. COURSE EVALUATION 1. Student Participation (15%): One point given for each class hour attended. 2. Student Homework (20%): Five points for completing the questions at the end of each lesson. 3. Student Exam (35%): Students will take an exam in the final week of the course. The exam is based upon the student homework. 4. Student Readings (15%): Students will be given credit for completing the required reading. 5. Student Paper (30%): Students are to prepare an outline for worship from a text given to the students by the instructor. BENEFITS OF THIS COURSE The course will provide training so to better understand, plan for, and lead worship according to biblical principles.

4 Lesson One: Introduction to Worship

The lesson is an introduction to worship. Man was created to worship God (Isa. 43:7). Jesus says we are to worship God alone (Matt. 4:10). Jesus tells the woman at the well that God is seeking true worshipers, those who worship Him in Spirit and truth (John 4:21–24).1 The principle that men are to worship God is found throughout the Scriptures, being mentioned 192 times. This concept includes both personal worship (Rom. 12:1) and also the corporate worship of the church as a community. The focus of this course is corporate worship of the New Testament church.

1. Worship Confusion There is a great deal of confusion about worship today. One can travel from church to church and from denomination to denomination and experience a wide range of worship styles and philosophies. No two churches are the same. I have listed common thoughts about worship below. As you read them consider which ones you agree with and which ones you disagree with. How many of these have you thought about? 1. Worship should reflect our culture. We should feel comfortable in worship. 2. We should show reverence and respect in worship. 3. Outward elements are not important. What is important is what is in the heart. 4. We use traditional worship. We use contemporary worship. We use a blended worship style. 5. Worship should be made to make unbelievers feel comfortable. Church is about evangelism. 6. Our worship should be free, in the Spirit, and therefore should be unconstrained by the human forms. 7. Our worship must be in truth, so it must follow the Scriptures at all points. 8. Our worship is according to the tradition of the church. We have always done it this way. 9. Church worship is not important; what matters is my personal relationship with Jesus Christ. I can worship God at home. Going to church does nothing for me. 10. Everybody should share in worship. The wide variety of worship styles reflects a failure to teach about worship coupled with general cultural and theological diversity. Rayburn notes “….individual Christians have been encouraged to have their own daily quiet time, for a period of personal devotion is an important part of every Christian’s life. They have been admonished to pray for their own needs and the needs of others. They have been

1 Brand 1687 5 taught to study the Bible for their own spiritual growth and for use in guiding and instructing others. There remains, however among sincere believers today a woeful ignorance concerning the significance of true worship and the means of attaining the blessings of a rich, rewarding corporate worship.” (1) If a church member was asked why they worship the way they do, they often would be unable to answer the question. Confusion exists because many have not thought through a biblical, consistent, and theological basis of worship. In this study, we will see that God has given us clear principles for worship. The church has debated the issue of worship for centuries, and from the period of the Reformation certain key principles have been developed. It is our job to recover these principles and teach them to the church.

2. The Centrality of Worship Worship is central in the life of a Christian. The witness of the whole of Scripture is that we are saved in order to worship God. Israel was redeemed in order that they might worship God

Afterward Moses and Aaron went in and told Pharaoh, “Thus says the LORD God of Israel: ‘Let My people go, that they may hold a feast to Me in the wilderness.’ ” (Exod. 5:1).2 After being redeemed from Egypt, Israel uses her salvation as the focus of her praise. She is called to serve, worship, and praise Him. In Exodus 15 we read:

Then Moses and the children of Israel sang this song to the LORD, and spoke, saying: “I will sing to the LORD, For He has triumphed gloriously! The horse and its rider He has thrown into the sea! (2)The LORD is my strength and song, And He has become my salvation; He is my God, and I will praise Him; My father’s God, and I will exalt Him” (Exod. 15:1,2).

Hart and Muether (52) capture Israel’s experience: “The Israelites rightly responded to their deliverance from the bondage of Egypt with a song of praise to the God of their salvation. Not only did the Exodus elicit a song of worship, but this song of worship also showed that God had delivered His people so they could worship Him.” 3 Israel’s salvation under Moses points us to the greater salvation of the church through Christ. In John 4, we read how Jesus saved the woman at the well. While speaking to her about salvation, He also said, “But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth” (23,24). Jesus joins salvation and worship. Just like Israel’s salvation in the Old Covenant, the New Covenant salvation is salvation in order to worship.

22 See also Exodus 7:16, 8:1, 8:20, 9:1, 9:13, and 10:3. 33 Large sections of Exodus are very detailed accounts concerning the construction of the place of worship for the children of Israel, the tabernacle (Rayburn 18).

6 The Scriptures end with the same focus on worship. In Revelation 4 and 5, the twenty- four elders and the multitude that cannot be numbered (the church) worship God for His two great works of creation and salvation.

Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever, (10) the twenty-four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne and worship Him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying: (11) “You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, And by Your will they exist and were created,” (Rev. 4:9-11). In the same way, the heavenly church gives thanks for redemption. And they sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; For You were slain, And have redeemed us to God by Your blood Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, (10) And have made us kings and priests to our God; And we shall reign on the earth” (Rev. 5:9,10). From Israel, to Christ speaking to the woman at the well, to heaven itself, the pattern is the same; the church is saved to worship. God’s great aim in salvation is to gather a community to Himself in order to worship Him.4

3. Foundational Principles We will use the simple phrase, the church is saved to worship, to develop the fundamental principles for worship.

3.1. The Aim of Salvation - That We Might Worship Since the aim of salvation is to worship, we must not separate our thinking about worship from salvation. The theological principles of salvation and worship are the same; they are linked. We will illustrate this by considering the Roman Catholic and Brethren Churches. At the time of the Reformation, Roman Catholic theology stressed the power and authority of the church on earth. The centrality and power of the church to teach religious doctrine, or magisterium, meant that worship was about the Church and the priests. The laity, the congregation, was passive in worship. The power of the priest and the Church is seen today, in the Mass. In the Mass, the priest re-sacrifices Christ. The Mass is at the center of worship. Without the priest there is no sacrifice, without the sacrifice there is no salvation. The Roman Catholic doctrine of the Mass focuses upon the priesthood and the actual Mass itself, and thereby controls the Church’s theology of worship. The interrelationship between salvation and worship forced Calvin and the reformers do deal with both.5

44 The Reformers understood this link. Calvin stressed the link between salvation and worship in The Necessity of Reforming the Church. The Westminster Shorter Catechism opens with the statement that “Man’s chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.” 55 The link between theology and worship can be clearly seen in Calvin, The Necessity of Reforming the Church.

7 Many evangelical churches stress the equality and unity of the body. They tend not to stress the authority of officers (the elders and deacons) rather; all the congregation is encouraged to participate. They speak of sharing the Word, and women and children play a greater role in worship. Generally, the worship is horizontal, informal and tends to lack structure. Our theology informs and drives our worship. We can illustrate this below.

The more consistent our theology is with the Scripture, the more scriptural our principles of worship will be. Different theologies of God, man, salvation, and the church will lead to different theologies of worship and practice. An Arminian, man-centered, theology will place man at the center of worship, while Reformed centered worship seeks to place God at the center.

3.2. Saved to WORSHIP God God saves the church in order that it might worship Him. Clearly there are many benefits to man in salvation, but the Scriptures teach that all those benefits should lead to us worshiping Him. The object of the salvation of a community is to worship God. This basic principle will frame our attitude to worship. Worship is about God first and us second. It also means that the main focus of our worship is not to save unbelievers, rather, the main focus is to enter God’s house in His way to thank Him for His salvation. It is not that we do not want men to be saved, we do, but we are to remember that the church is mainly to be about the worship of God and the blessing of those who have been saved. This is the scriptural focus. The worship service is the meeting of the redeemed to worship their God in thanksgiving and praise. The object of worship is not man, his needs and desires, his fulfillment or even his salvation.

8 3.3. Worship God’s Way Since the focus of worship is God, we are to structure our worship around His will. He is the object, and He determines how we are to worship. Many begin the discussion of church worship by focusing upon men. What is helpful to me? What will attract others to worship? What human methods can we use to help us in worship? To begin the discussion by focusing upon man reverses the theological pattern and denies basic theological principles. Men are saved by God to worship Him, and this worship is according to His will. Since man is a sinner, man does not know how to worship God. He does not know how to come into God presence. Due to man’s sin, he will not come to God in an appropriate way. (See lesson 4.) Due to sin, the culture of this earth and the culture of heaven are vastly different. The world is man-centered; heaven is God-centered. The two theologies cannot co-exit, so worship based only upon what men want, rather than what God desires, is wrong. Returning to the picture of Israel being redeemed from Egypt, in order for Israel to worship correctly, she was first brought out of the realm and influence of Egypt, out of wicked Egypt to God’s Mountain, Sinai, where she was told how to worship God according to His will. The order and emphasis is clear. Jesus made the same point in John 4. Jesus stressed that men were to worship God in spirit and truth. The truth is God’s truth, not man’s truth. The spirit means in and by the power of the Holy Spirit, not by human effort. The command to worship in spirit and truth shows the impossibility of man-centered worship. To worship in the spirit is to worship in the power of the Holy Spirit, something no unsaved man in the flesh can do (Rom 8:7, 1 Cor. 2:14). To worship in truth, this woman had to leave her sinful Samaritan principles in order to worship in the way that God had revealed. Jesus was clear. The woman’s way of doing things meant she worshiped what she did not know. The church is called out of the wicked sinful fallen world that surrounds her in order to worship God. She is not to accommodate and bring the wicked world into her worship. Worship is the church separating herself from the world in order to enter into God’s presence. The church is not to mimic the world in worship; the church is to listen to God in worship. The desire for a church to become seeker sensitive has as its primary principle the need to make itself like the world in order to accommodate itself to the world. Should our worship not seek to evangelize men? Should this not be our greatest priority in worship? Many Christians argue that the primary duty of the church in worship is evangelism. The object of worship is to save sinners. As we have seen above, this is not the Scriptures’ witness to worship. This principle that worship must be on God’s terms, not man’s terms does not deny man’s need to be saved, nor our care for the lost, rather it reinforces the need for salvation. An easy man-centered worship does not address man’s deepest needs: his idolatry and captivity in sin and his need to repent and believe in Christ. Man-centered worship seeks to pull down the barriers between man and God, making it easy for him to enter the kingdom although Jesus, Himself, said it was hard due to man’s sin (Matt. 19:24, Mark 10:25, Luke 18:25). This form of worship denies the very truth of the gospel; man is a sinner and God must save him.

9 We agree that we are never to put any additional human barriers before men. We can’t create obstacles that make it harder to be saved. We are to be all things to all men, (1 Cor. 9: 22) in order that we may save some, but we are never to deny God’s Word in this process. While Paul sought all means to evangelize, he expressly says he is under the law of Christ (1 Cor. 9: 21). He is still bound to honor God first. To place men before God is an offense to God and deceives men as to what God is like.

3.4. Trinitarian Worship God’s work in Christ is the center of all our theology. In John 4, Jesus notes (His Word) that it is worship of the Father, through the Son by the Spirit. Jesus is the Truth of God. Worship must be the power of the Spirit. In worship we worship the Father. Our worship is based on Trinitarian principles.

4. Definition of Worship We conclude by defining worship. Jesus says we are to worship and serve God alone (Matt 4:10). Rayburn notes “worship is a contraction of the original Anglo-Saxon word worth- ship” It means “to accord Him the proper recognition of His inheritance, dignity and value, or to put it another way, to accord Him His worth or His worthiness (23). The word “serve” has the original idea of serving as a slave for a master (see Acts 7:42, 24:14, Phil. 3:3, Heb. 10:2). To serve God is to offer oneself up to God in service even as Christ did in the temptation in Matthew 4. In the Old Testament to ‘worship’ included the idea of to bowing down and prostrating oneself, a posture indicating reverence and homage given to a lord (whether human or divine). In the New Testament the word for worship includes ‘bow down’ and it also includes service or piety.6 In the New Testament it is often linked to praise and thanksgiving to the glory of God. Worship in the New Testament usually means expression of praise or thanksgiving (Luke 17:15–16)7 which is the appropriate human response to the magnificent glory of God.8

Conclusion There is a great deal of confusion about worship and yet worship is the heart of salvation and Christianity. We are saved to worship and that worship must be according to God’s will, not our will. Each member of the Trinity is vital for worship. It is the duty of all Christians to understand the nature of worship and for ministers to lead and teach it to their congregations.

6 Achtemeier 1146 7 Freedman 1391 8 Ibid. 10 Lesson One Questions

1. Explain the significance of Exodus 5:1 for worship?

2. Summarize Hart’s quotation from page 52 of his book.

3. Memorize John 4: 23, 24.

4. What two reasons does the church in heaven have for worshiping God?

5. What is the relationship between theology and worship?

6. Explain how Roman Catholic theology influenced her worship.

7. Who is the key focus in worship?

8. Should a church structure the worship service in order to make it easier for non-Christians to worship?

9. Can we make it easier for someone to believe? Use Mark 10:25 in your answer.

10. Name four things that Jesus taught about worship in John 4.

Questions for Class Discussion

1.What have you as a church member/leader been taught about worship? 2. Do our worship, prayers and Scripture readings focus upon men or God? Do we begin our prayers with our needs or do we spend our prayer time in worship?

11 Lesson Two: A Biblical Theology of Worship - Shadow to Antitype

In this lesson we will trace worship from Eden to Sinai to the New Creation. Old Covenant worship is a type, a shadow, pointing forward to the fulfillment of worship in the New Covenant. Old Testament worship reaches its climax in Christ and the New Covenant. We begin our examination with the principles of worship in Eden then move on to consider worship of the Old Covenant at Sinai, and finally we will consider the fullness of worship that was introduced under the New Covenant. Although other passages will be reflected on briefly, this lesson will concentrate on three major passages, Genesis 2 and 3, Exodus 19, and John 4.9 1. Worship in Eden, the Temple and the New Creation Adam was the first prophet, priest, and king. He met and worshipped God in the Garden of Eden. Adam was called to tend or guard the garden and extend it over the whole creation. The Garden of Eden was the original temple. The later temple given to Israel is only a copy or shadow of the garden. As the original garden looked forward to the new creation, so the temple given to Israel was also a reflection the new creation. The original creation was divided into three–the garden, Eden, and the rest of creation (Gen. 2:8-10). The garden was man’s dwelling and man was to extend the garden until it covered the whole creation (Gen. 1:28). The three-fold division is repeated in the temple. There is the Holy Place of God (Eden), the holy place for the priests (the garden), and outside the temple for everyone else. Each of the three areas shows increasing holiness. First we have Eden, God’s dwelling; second, the garden, Adam’s workplace; and third, the world outside the garden, not the garden but still “very good”. Further, the words used for God “meeting man” in the garden are the same as the words that stressed God being in the midst of Israel.

And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden (Gen. 3:8)

And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people (Lev. 26:12).

Because the LORD your God walks in the midst of your camp, to deliver you and to give up your enemies before you, therefore your camp must be holy, so that He may not see anything indecent among you and turn away from you (Deut. 23:14). Adam was commanded by God to cultivate and keep the garden. This agricultural command is the same word used of the priests serving and guarding in the tabernacle in 1 Chronicles 9:23 and 2 Chronicles 23:19.

9 For a fuller account of Old and New Testament worship, including the temple, see Rayburn 43-101. 12 Adam was a priest and as a priest he was to guard the garden from evil and uncleanness.10 In Ezekiel the priests are temple wardens (Ezek. 40:45; 44:24). Adam was to guard the temple, to stop any unclean thing (the serpent/Satan) from entering into the garden. Adam is both king and priest in the garden. Since Adam is to be fruitful, multiply, and fill the whole earth, Adam was to extend the garden/temple throughout the creation. If Adam was obedient, the whole of the old creation was to be turned into the garden/temple with Adam as its priest and image bearer (Beale 82; Kline 1989: 55-56). The aim is for the entire earth to become the garden, the new temple.11 It is important to see these things because they show us that 1) Eden was the first temple, 2) that the temple given to Israel is a mere copy of Eden, and 3) that the whole of the new creation will bring in the fulfillment of the temple of God. That is why there is no temple in the final city as the whole of the city/creation will be the temple. Adam failed. He allowed the serpent, an unclean thing, to beguile him, and he sinned. This defiled the original garden and so unclean Adam could not remain in the garden/holy place of God, and was exiled. God placed cherubim to stand guard at the entrance of the garden. (Gen. 3:24). We see a parallel role for the cherubim in the temple; two cherubim guarded the Ark of the Covenant (Exod. 26:18-22).12 Due to Adam’s sin, Adam was barred from the garden temple; his path blocked by an angel with a flaming sword (Gen. 3:24). Now, Adam/men can only enter into the temple through the high priest. In Israel, only the priest and high priest has access into the presence of God. Jesus comes as the great high priest, the one who is the temple. He serves as both the priest and the offering. In His death He enters the Holy Place and the temple veil is ripped, showing that in Him the way into the Holy Place is opened. In the book of Revelation the whole of the new creation is now the temple. The original creation was to extend over the whole of creation (Ps. 8) and Christ brings this to fulfillment. In Him, the whole of the new creation is now the temple. Only those who have the Lamb enter the new creation.

2. Sinai Worship

God delivered Israel in order that they might serve Him (Exod. 3:18, 24:1). God met Israel at Mount Sinai. Through the preparation for this meeting with God and the giving of the Ten Commandments by God, the principles on how they were to approach God in worship were revealed to the Israelites.

1010 There are other indicators that show that the garden was the first pattern of the temple. Both had east-facing entrances (Gen. 3:8, 24). The water flowed from the garden out into the whole creation (Gen. 2:10). We see this in Ezekiel 47:1-12 where the waters flow out from the temple eastward into the whole earth. John see Christ fulfilling this in John 7 and in the new creation in the book of Revelation where the temple vision is further fulfilled as the waters of life flow from the throne of God into the whole creation (Rev. 22:1ff). 1111 In Psalm 8, the psalmist claims that the ultimate goal of humanity was to fill the whole earth with God’s glory. From Psalm 8, Beale notes the following: God’s name is to be glorified throughout the earth. (vv.1,9) This is to be achieved through humanity in God’s image (v. 5) who spread his rule over all the works of God’s hands (vv. 6-8). 1212 The cherubim and palm trees were also represented in the holy place and on the doors (1 Kings 6:27, 32-35). 13 When Israel first reached the mountain, God told them how to draw near to Him. Then the LORD said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes. And let them be ready for the third day. For on the third day the LORD will come down upon Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. You shall set bounds for the people all around, saying, ‘Take heed to yourselves that you do not go up to the mountain or touch its base. Whoever touches the mountain shall surely be put to death. Not a hand shall touch him, but he shall surely be stoned or shot with an arrow; whether man or beast, he shall not live.’ When the trumpet sounds long, they shall come near the mountain” (Exod. 19:10-13). Mount Sinai was a threatening scary place. Unclean Israel was approaching a holy God. To stress His holiness, God revealed Himself to Israel through frightening powerful signs, signs that stressed His glory and their uncleanness before Him. In order to approach Him, the Israelites were to consecrate and wash themselves, and they were warned not to touch the mountain where He would come. Through these actions, God stressed His holiness, their uncleanness, and the terrifying nature of the meeting. In fear the people chose Moses as mediator, and asked him to enter God’s presence for them. Now all the people witnessed the thunderings, the lightning flashes, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood afar off. Then they said to Moses, “You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die” (Exod. 20:18, 19). Moses is the great mediator of the Old Covenant. God then gave the Ten Commandments to Moses to give to the people. The first four commandments regulate Israel’s relationship with God. 1. God is the object of worship (1st Commandment). 2. God instructs Israel on how they are to worship (2nd Commandment). 3. God warns Israel to honor His name (3rd Commandment). 4. God commands Israel to set aside one day to worship (4th Commandment). In the second commandment God tells Israel about worship.

“You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them” (Exod. 20:4). The commandment warns Israel of two errors, they were not to make a carved image of any likeness in heaven and they were not to serve those images.

2.1. No Idols Idolatry is the creation of a false image of God, or a false god.13 1313The commandment is not forbidding all images, art and the like, although some reformed Jewish sects interpret the command in this way. Art and images are acceptable if they do not depict God and are not attached to worship.

14 The commandment stresses that the image must not be based upon any likeness in heaven above, on earth, or underwater. These three spheres encompass the whole of the created order. In Deuteronomy 4:15, God reminds them of the commandment and admonishes Israel that when they met Him, they did not see any form on the mountain. To worship God through any form is sin. This is true even though God has revealed Himself in many forms over time. The burning bush, the pillar of cloud and fire, and the Angel of the Lord are all examples. Even so, God’s word is clear; we are not to try to use these forms in our worship. Paul, in Romans 1:18ff, warns of the folly and idolatry of men when they worship the creation. As men, we only have two real options, we can worship the Creator or the creation.

2.2. Do Not Worship Idols The second warning is not to bow down and worship the image. We have already been told we should not make any image, and God now reinforces the idea by commanding that we are not to worship them. How easy it is to break this commandment is seen in Exodus. Israel had just been given the second commandment and they immediately broke it. A few chapters later, Aaron and Israel sought to worship God through the form of a golden calf. “This is your god, O Israel, that brought you out of the land of Egypt” (Exod. 32:4). We are to note that they still called the image Israel’s God, the one who delivered them, but they sought to worship Him through the form of a calf. Moses condemned this act as idolatry. Later in Israel’s history, Jeroboam II also used the golden calf to seduce Israel away from temple worship (1 Kings 12:28ff). Why they used the image of a calf is unclear, but both the calf and bull represented power and strength. The commandment also prevents us from worshiping other gods with the true God. King Solomon sinned by allowing his wives to introduce idols alongside the worship of the true God in Israel. The practice corrupted Solomon’s witness and brought judgment upon him and Israel. Today the Roman Catholic Church adds Mary and the saints to their worship, arguing that both of these can help us in approaching God. They defend their use of images by arguing that worship can be divided into latria and dulia. Latria in Latin is veneration, a lower form of worship. This they claim is acceptable. They say that dulia is worship that belongs to God alone and so idols are prohibited. This is an artificial man-made distinction that breaks the commandment. Catholics also allow syncretism, which is a mixing of Christianity and local religions, in their mission work. In Africa, ancestor worship is included into Catholic doctrine by linking the ancestors to the saints and allowing for the ancestors to assist worship like the saints do for Catholics. In the West, we do something similar. We often use worldly cultural things to seek to draw people into the church. The true worship of God then gets mixed with earthly things. Super Bowl Sundays and free cars give-aways for attendance are used to get people into church. Worship is turned into entertainment. The culture then enters the church as a form of worship.

15 In the Exodus narrative, God warns Israel of introducing cultural aspects into worship. In Deuteronomy 12:29-32 He states: “When the LORD your God cuts off from before you the nations which you go to dispossess, and you displace them and dwell in their land, (30) take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed from before you, and that you do not inquire after their Gods, saying, ‘How did these nations serve their Gods? I also will do likewise.’ (31) You shall not worship the LORD your God in that way; for every abomination to the LORD which He hates they have done to their gods; for they burn even their sons and daughters in the fire to their gods. (32) Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it.”

God warns the church against including other things within its worship or worshiping God in any other way than the way He has commanded. In verse 32 of Deuteronomy 12, God warns Israel not to add anything to His worship or not to take anything away. God has told us how He is to be worshiped and we must follow Him.

What about pictures of Jesus? There is an argument that since Jesus Christ has come in human form we can now make images of Christ and use them for worship; as far as Jesus is concerned the second commandment is over. This argument cannot stand. Even if Jesus has come, the command not to worship God through any image still stands. Jesus did not revoke it. The argument is reinforced as the Scriptures never once try to describe Jesus’ human nature (i.e. what He looked like). Although Peter and the other apostles were all eyewitnesses, they never left one description of the physical Jesus. The Holy Spirit, who guided them in writing the Scriptures, deliberately omitted any description of Jesus. The Spirit did not want us to know what He looked like. The work of the Spirit is consistent with the second commandment. The lack of any description means that it is impossible to make an accurate picture. Our best guesses are only conjecture, and they will lead us into error. They have no value. Paul also warns the church about focusing on Jesus according to the flesh. Paul says, “From now on, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him thus no longer,” (2 Cor. 5:16). Christ is in His new resurrection body, no longer in the flesh (1 Cor. 15:39). Many like to use representations of God and Jesus for education or evangelistic purposes. They argue we are not worshiping Jesus; rather, we are using the image as an educational tool. This argument is similar to the latria and dulia distinction mentioned above. However, this too cannot be sustained. Education leads to worship; it cannot be separated from it. Due to this link, pictures of Jesus should not be used as educational or evangelistic tools because they cannot be used as aides in worship. True worship is only in and through the power of the Spirit, as we will see in John 4 below.

2.3. Serious Nature of the Commandment For I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me, (6) but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments (Exod. 20:5,6). The serious nature is seen in the second half of the commandment, which stresses God’s judgment upon not only those who break the commandment, but also on their children. God says we are not to use images as He is a jealous God. The use of the word “jealous” points us to

16 covenantal marriage language. In the covenant, the husband is jealous for his wife. In the same way, God is jealous for His glory. No image can do God justice, and all images will take from His glory. When we worship idols or worship God through idols, we are breaking the marriage vow. God warns that His judgment will fall upon them and their children, even to the third and fourth generation. If we do not worship God seriously, we run the risk of losing future generations through our teaching because God, Himself, will give them over to false worship. False worship can destroy the next generations of the church. Israel’s worship is confirmed with the covenantal sealing in blood. In Exodus 24:3-8 the Old Covenant is sealed with blood and a sacrifice. So Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD and all the judgments. And all the people answered with one voice and said, “All the words which the LORD has said we will do.” (4) And Moses wrote all the words of the LORD. And he rose early in the morning, and built an altar at the foot of the mountain, and twelve pillars according to the twelve tribes of Israel. (5) Then he sent young men of the children of Israel, who offered burnt offerings and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen to the LORD. (6) And Moses took half the blood and put it in basins, and half the blood he sprinkled on the altar. (7) Then he took the Book of the Covenant and read in the hearing of the people. And they said, “All that the LORD has said we will do, and be obedient.” (8) And Moses took the blood, sprinkled it on the people, and said; “This is the blood of the covenant which the LORD has made with you according to all these words.” The blood of the covenant represents a promise to obey God. The blood symbolizes judgment if the covenant is breached.

4.4. God is Spirit The foundational reason for not worshiping God in any image, as per the second commandment, is made clear in John 4. (We will discuss this passage later.) Jesus tells us that God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and truth. In Romans 1:20, Paul states “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead.” As Spirit, He has no fleshly or material image, therefore to worship Him through any fleshly, material, and created image is to distort His nature. To do so is to commit the idolatry of Romans 1:18ff and Acts 17:16-32. Such worship confuses the created world with the uncreated sovereign, eternal Being: “…and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things (Rom. 1:23). In summary, the worship on Mount Sinai was characterized by: 1. God telling Israel how to approach Him. 2. God revealing Himself in power and great terror. 3. Moses mediating between God and man. 4. God giving express instructions to Moses/Israel on how to worship 5. God ratifying the covenant with blood.

17 3. The Worship at the Temple After the fall, God gave Israel the temple. Reviving the Garden of Eden, the worship of God in the Old Testament was focused in one place, the temple. Now only here God would come down and dwell with men (1 Kings 8). In the glory cloud, God came and dwelt in the tabernacle with His people. The temple, in the midst of Israel, was to teach the people of God two things. One, that God dwelt with them, though at the same time, they were not worthy to enter into His presence due to their sin. Two, that a sacrifice was necessary or they would die. Both of these lessons point forward to the coming of Jesus, Emanuel, God with us, who would also give His life as an atonement for sin, so that men can dwell with God. This temple should be understood as pointing backward to the garden and forward to the new heavens and the earth.

4. Synagogue Worship 14 The exile ended temple worship. Even though the temple was rebuilt in the return, the glory of God never returned to it. The local synagogue replaced the temple throughout Israel and in the world wherever the Jews went. A synagogue service was simple: reading, praying and singing. Jesus regularly attended synagogue worship and taught there as well (Luke 4:16ff). Because of this, many Christians argue that we no longer follow the temple liturgy but should follow the liturgy of the synagogue.15

5. New Covenant Worship In His coming, Christ, the antitype, fulfilled the Old Covenant types and shadows. In Jesus, as the mediator of the New Covenant, the worship of God reaches its fulfillment. In the New Covenant, worship is no longer focused upon the temple and sacrifices; instead, worship is focused upon the Father, through Christ, and must be in the Spirit and truth.

4.1. Jesus is the Temple As we have seen, the temple was a shadow and a type pointing forward to Christ in His priestly office and sacrifice. Jesus is the temple and He replaces it. In John 2, He states: “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” (20) Then the Jews said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?” (21) But He was speaking of the temple of His body. (22) Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said (19-22). Jesus indicates that He is the true temple and His coming replaces the Old Covenant temple structure. All worship is to be centered upon Him. Christ’s coming and dying, once, means that there is no longer any value in any earthly temple or sacrifices. They could never take away sin (Heb. 10:1-4). Jesus is now the high priest, the sacrifices and the temple itself. In His

1414 For a fulle r description of the nature and and importance of synagogue worship see Bannerman XXX. 15 It might be better to argue that the synagogue worship reflects many of the principles of the Reformers, rather than claiming that the synagogue is the basis for Reformed worship (Bannerman XX)

18 death the temple veil is torn in two, the sign of the temple given to Israel is finished, as God’s new temple is the whole of the new creation in Christ.

4.2. Worship in Spirit and Truth (John 4:4) Jesus’ incarnation and the New Covenant/the new creation, redefined the nature of worship. Jesus describes these changes in John 4:22-24.

You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. (23) But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. (24) God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” Jesus tells the woman that the location of worship would shortly become irrelevant. He stresses the need to worship in Spirit and truth and speaks of the need to worship God as Father. The changes occur due to His being lifted up in death (the reference to the hour is a reference to His death and resurrection). The greater promises and benefits under the New Covenant allow for a greater, more intimate, more spiritual worship. 4.2.1. The Background to John 4 During His ministry, Jesus passes through Samaria. The Samaritans believed that they should worship on Mount Gerizim, where Israel initially covenanted with God when they entered the land. Jesus met the woman at the well and answers her question about the correct mountain on which to worship. 4.2.2. Worship Redefined in the New Covenant Jesus defines New Covenant worship. Under the New Covenant we can now approach God as Father. In order to approach, we must do so in and by the Holy Spirit. It is Jesus’ life and death that makes this possible. John 4 stresses the Trinitarian nature of worship. It is worship to the Father, by the works of the Son, aided by the Holy Spirit. Anything other than this is to worship God in vain.16 Paul stresses the triune nature of worship in 2 Corinthians 13:14 “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.” Our worship is through Christ as Mediator. Jesus begins by saying that the hour is coming, and now is. The term hour in John’s gospel points to His life, death. and resurrection. Jesus, His mediation and His sacrifice, is the basis for worship. Wherever men are they can worship God in and through the risen Christ. Jesus says later, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). We can only approach God in and through Christ. To approach God in any other way is unacceptable. This mirrors the Old Testament commandment. Jesus says the Father is seeking such to worship Him. In worship, we are to approach God as Father. Typologically, God called Himself Israel’s Father in Exodus 4:22. The typology finds its fulfillment in the Gospels, in the relationship between Jesus and His Father. Since we are in Him, we too address God as Father.

1616 Paul in Galatians 4:5, 6 likewise stresses the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit in the New Covenant.

19 God has many names, and we can use any of the names to address Him, but God has specifically chosen the term “Father” to define our New Covenant relationship. Jesus says “the Father” is seeking those to worship Him. It is the height of worship to approach God as a son to his Father. Jesus calls God Father and Holy Father (John 17:1,17), and in the Lord’s Prayer, He teaches us to address God as Father (Matt. 6:8). Jesus is the model for sons coming to the Father and we are sons in Him by adoption (Gal 4,5,6).17 The father/son relationship indicates the direct, immediate, intimate, and accepted nature of the relationship and worship. To call or to address God as Father is to join Christ in the Father-Son relationship. In this worship, we have direct access into the Father’s presence both through the Son and as the Son had. We approach as coheirs, joint sons with our Elder Brother (Heb. 2:12). We share in the Spirit. Our worship is acceptable in the Son. We may come in Christ, knowing He will receive us. We may come knowing that His Son’s sacrifice is acceptable, and so we are accepted as sons. We are to worship in the Spirit. When Jesus mentions we are to worship in the spirit, He does not mean we are to worship Him from our hearts or our inner beings. John’s reference to the spirit draws on the fact that God is Spirit. Jesus says, “God is Spirit” (John 4:24). Sinful fleshly men can only worship God as a spiritual, holy being if they are aided by the Spirit. In John 3, Jesus tells Nicodemus that he must be born again through the Spirit of God to enter the Kingdom. In Isaiah 31:3, God contrasts the flesh and the Spirit of God. Now the Egyptians are men, and not God; And their horses are flesh, and not spirit. In Ezekiel 11:19, 36:26, God promises to put His Spirit within true worshipers in the New Covenant. Then I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within them, and take the stony heart out of their flesh, and give them a heart of flesh…(Ezek. 11:19).

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh (Ezek. 36:26). To worship in the spirit is to worship with a regenerate heart, being indwelt by the person of the Spirit. It cannot be done in the flesh. The unregenerate man cannot worship God. True spiritual worship is a work of the Holy Spirit upon our souls. We can only worship in the spirit as the Spirit acts upon us. Because worship is now in the spirit, it does not rely upon any of the external fleshly ordinances. Outward things, the Temple, sacrifices, and feast days are no longer relevant.18

1717 And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!”

18.Jesus makes the same point in Mark 7:14ff. When He had called all the multitude to Himself, He said to them, “Hear Me, everyone, and understand: (15) There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man. (16) If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!” (17) When He had entered a house away from the crowd, His disciples asked Him concerning the parable. (18) So He said to them, “Are you thus without understanding also? Do you not perceive that whatever enters a man from outside cannot defile him, (19) because it does not enter his heart but his stomach, and is eliminated, thus purifying all foods?” (20) And He said, “What comes out of a man, that defiles a man. (21) For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, (22) covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. (23) All these evil things come from within and defile a man.” 20 We see the centrality of the spirit for all Christian actions in that it is the Spirit that reveals the truth to us. It is He who changes the heart, and it is He who indwells us, making us the New Temple of God. We are to worship in truth. This has two aspects. In the immediate context, it refers to the need to worship God according to His revealed will. The Samaritans 19 failed to worship God because they failed to worship Him as He had revealed Himself. Incorrect worship, worship not according to truth, is false worship. If we do not worship God in truth, we do not worship Him at all. Our worship will be rejected. The word “truth” must be read in the light of the rest of the Scriptures and the New Covenant. This refers to worshiping Him as the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.

5. Church Worship In the New Covenant, the shadows of the Old Testament have passed away and the fullness of worship has come in the church of Christ, indwelt by the Spirit. We see this in Hebrews 12 and Revelation 4,5. In Hebrews 12, the author contrasts worship under the Old Covenant with the greater worship in the New Covenant. Now, the Church enters into God’s presence in a direct manner. The formal gathering of the church in Christ and the New Covenant brings it into the very presence of God.

For you have not come to what may be touched, a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest and (19) the sound of a trumpet and a voice whose words made the hearers beg that no further messages be spoken to them. (20) For they could not endure the order that was given, “If even a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned.” (21) Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I tremble with fear.” (22) But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, (23) to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, (24) to Jesus the Mediator of the New Covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel (Heb. 12:18-24). In contrast to the frightening spectacle in Moses’ day, believers are encouraged to enter God’s presence. In worship, the church enters into God’s heavenly presence. Believers are in the company of the living God, the Judge of all. They are present in the heavenly Jerusalem, the true dwelling place of God.20 They stand with Jesus, the Mediator of the New Covenant, sanctified by His blood and His work. They join with the angels and the saints in heaven. John also speaks about the current nature of heavenly New Covenant worship. John was in the spirit on the Lord’s Day, and he was taken into heaven (Rev. 1:10). He enters the very throne room of God and sees a vision of the Ancient of Days upon the throne and the Lamb that was slain standing next to Him. The Holy Spirit is also surrounding the throne (Rev. 4:5). God and the Lamb are in the center of the throne surrounded by the angels and the church worshiping.

19. Jesus began the section by stating that the Samaritans were wrong. YOU worship what you do not know. He made it clear that God did not accept their false unbiblical worship. 2020 See Kline‘s work God, Heaven, and Har Magedon for an introduction to the relationship between heaven and earth. 21 They worship God for His works of creation and redemption (Rev. 4,5). This is not the final picture of worship in the Scriptures. 6. Future Heavenly Worship The Bible ends with pictures of worship in the New Heavens and the New Earth (Rev. 20-22). In these verses, we see the coming of the New Heaven and the New Earth. Jerusalem, the city of God, descends upon the New Earth. Jerusalem is the center of the worship of God. In the New Creation, there is no temple. The Lamb is the temple, and likewise the church is the temple along with the whole of the New Creation.21 In the New Creation, the separation between God and man is ended. The Fatherhood of God is complete, and we will stand with Christ in the Spirit before God forever.22 Conclusion The Bible teaches about worship from type to antitype. In the second commandment, God forbids the making and worshiping of any graven images. In the New Covenant, Jesus tells us that God is Spirit, and if we are to worship Him we are to worship in Spirit and truth. Our New Testament worship is heavenly worship; we enter into heaven itself in Christ and in Christ join the heavenly community. The Scriptures end with the whole of the New Heavens and the New Earth being the temple.

2120 See Beale‘s work The Temple and the Church’s Mission where he argues that the whole of creation is the temple in heaven. 2222 Zugg, Eschatology, MINTS, 2010

22 Lesson Two Questions

1. How does Old Covenant worship relate to New Covenant worship?

2. What is the second commandment?

3. What was the sin with the golden calf?

4. Explain why we cannot make pictures of Jesus since He has come in the flesh?

5. What judgment does God threaten us with for breaking this commandment?

6. In John 4, what does it mean to worship in the Spirit?

7. What is the significance of the father-son relationship for worship?

8. Does the truth still matter in New Testament worship? Cite supporting texts.

9. Explain the heavenly worship from Hebrews.

10. Explain the heavenly worship in Revelation 20-22.

23 Lesson Three: Corporate Worship This lesson focuses upon corporate worship by the church. We begin by stressing the importance of corporate worship and will then consider the biblical principles of corporate worship.

1. The Importance of Corporate Worship In many circles, the very idea of corporate worship is under attack. This attack is focused on two main fronts. In many churches, there is a general stress on the individual, rather than the corporate body. In this line of argument, the personal nature of salvation has reduced worship to merely focusing on “my” relationship with God. It rejects the need for others in worship and in life. Others argue that all of life is worship therefore there is no such thing as special days, times, or gathering to worship. Therefore there are no special principles that we are to apply to corporate worship that we do not apply to all of life. We will consider both of these arguments. There are only a few New Testament texts that command corporate worship. In Hebrews 10:25 we are told, “Do not neglect the meeting together as was the habit of some.” Paul also addresses how to conduct oneself in the church in 1 Corinthians. One reason for the scarcity of verses is that the nature of the church and the witness of the whole of the New Testament presume it. Corporate worship was a “given” in the New Testament. In Hebrews, they were not commanded to worship corporately; rather, they were commanded to not forsake what they were already doing. The same applies to Paul’s letter to the Corinthians. In Acts, the newly converted individual Christians join together to worship and to serve. The gospel message creates the church, the new community, not just individual sinners (Acts 2:42-45). Paul’s mission strategy is to found churches, and he writes his letters to churches. In Corinthians, he writes to them as they corporately participate in the Lord’s Supper. He reminds them that they have houses in which to eat and drink so when they come together as a formal gathering to take the Lord’s Supper, it is a unique event (1Cor. 11:33). The corporate nature of our religion is evident from Paul’s theology. Our salvation is in Christ; we are united to Him by faith becoming the sons and daughters of God. In Christ we are baptized into one body. For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free —and all were made to drink of one Spirit (1 Cor. 12:12,13). We are many members but one body and as one body we are to worship together. For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. (Rom. 12:4). As it is, there are many parts, yet one body (1 Cor. 12:20). Our worship can only be a mature worship as we gather corporately. Only in corporate worship, in the assembling of the saints, can we use our gifts in worship and edification. The teacher’s personal gift is to be used to edify the whole body. Preaching and teaching are elements of worship, and they cannot be exercised alone. In reality, this applies to all the gifts. Each gift has been given for the edification of the body. It is only as we are a part of the body and through the body that our sanctification (and so our worship) is made complete. Our

24 Christianity is corporate, and so our worship is also principally corporate. Corporate worship is a vital part of our Christian life. The Scriptures indicate a difference and distinction between private and corporate worship. The early church met on the first day of the week. This was the Lord’s Day, the day that Jesus rose from the dead. The setting-apart of the first day of the week for worship indicates that the early church did not treat all days alike. We see the same distinction between personal and corporate worship in communion. Communion must be a corporate event, or it loses all meaning. In communion the church gathers together as one body, to eat and drink and to remember Christ (1 Cor. 10-11). This is different from worship at home (1 Cor. 11:33, 34). In Corinthians and the Pastoral epistles, Paul distinguishes between conduct at church and conduct at home. In Corinth, they can all eat and drink at home as they please, but when they come together as a church, they must show restraint. Therefore, my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. But if anyone is hungry, let him eat at home, lest you come together for judgment. And the rest I will set in order when I come (1 Cor. 11:33, 34). In 1 Corinthians 14, Paul says the women are not to speak in church, but ask their husbands at home. Paul speaks specifically about women’s conduct in the church in 1 Corinthians 11, and he concludes by referring to the custom of the churches in 1 Corinthians 11:16. As seen above, the Scriptures do distinguish between corporate and private worship.

2. Principles of Corporate Worship We turn now to the principles of corporate worship. The principles of corporate worship flow from the old creation. As we have seen, the old creation was a type fulfilled in the New Covenant. Worship is now in Christ, in the Spirit with the angels in the heavenly realm (Heb. 21-23). At the same time, since man is still living in the old creation, the two creations currently coexist. Due to this, Paul can and does stress that old creation structures of male and female and the representative nature of Old Covenant worship still exist.

2.1. Worship in the Spiritual Realm In the Old Testament, worship was closely related to angels. This points us to the underlying spiritual nature of worship. In worship, we enter the spiritual realm. The first instance of this can be found when Jacob saw the ladder extending into heaven in Genesis 28:10-17. This incident is fulfilled in John’s gospel where the angels ascended and descended on Christ (John 1:50, 51). Angels attended the worship of God at Sinai (Deut. 33:2, Heb. 2:1). In the temple, God came with His angels (Ps. 68:17) (Engle 56). The angels were depicted in the temple; cherubim covered the mercy seat (Exod. 25:18-22, 1 Chron. 13:6, 28:18) and were pictured upon the temple walls (2 Chron. 3:10-14). Now that Christ has come and the Spirit has been poured out, the interaction between the physical and spiritual realm is stressed. In Hebrews, the writer declares that when the church

25 worships, we enter the very presence of God and the angels. Here the church is not just a local earthly gathering, it is far more. When we worship we: “….. [H]ave come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, (23) and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, (24)and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel (Heb. 12: 22-24). The passages provide the context for Paul’s injunction: “… [A] wife ought to have a symbol of authority on her head, because of the angels (1Cor. 11:10). When the church worships as a church, she, in Christ, enters into the heavenly realm and is joined in worship by the angels and the saints in heaven. Our earthy worship also points forward to the great corporate worship celebration in the New Heavens and the New Earth (Rev. 21, 22).

2.2. Representative Worship The church worships in and through those whom God has appointed with authority to speak for Him. Jesus Christ is the example of representative worship. Paul develops these ideas in 1Timothy 2:5. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time. Jesus is the one mediator between God and man and we approach God in and through Him. In His absence, God has appointed men to continue to act as His agents for the church. Paul is Jesus’ apostolic messenger. For this I was appointed a preacher and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth (1Tim. 2:7). When Paul speaks, he speaks as God’s agent. He speaks for God. In the church, God has called men to represent Him in corporate worship. They have been gifted and called by God (Eph. 4:11- 16). God addresses the congregation through these men as His agents; they speak with His authority. These men are representatives in two senses. They stand for God, as God’s representative in directing worship for God. As ordained men, they read, pray and preach as God’s agents with His authority to the congregation. At the same time, the congregation is represented to God through their agents, by these men’s prayers and intercession for the people. This view shows the importance and the serious nature of the spiritual gifts given by God for corporate worship. Those who lead in worship do so for God. Those who listen to these men are listening to God’s agents speaking for God to the congregation. “ Worship is intercommunication between God and Man” (Stuart Robinson, 40). The minister of worship speaks for God in the reading, expounding, and preaching of the Word, and in the benediction, and pronouncing acts of discipline. In prayer he speaks for men to God. The people pray to God through the minister and by saying, “Amen”. This is the real nature and function of worship. The reading and preaching are the voice of Christ to the people. “It is the taking of that word which Christ, as the prophet of the Word, has offered, and through the usual forms operating by speech upon the human soul, and by the aid of the Holy Ghost making it still the voice of Christ to men now, as readily as it was to those to whom it was first uttered” (Stuart Robinson 41).

26 The worship through representative and its relationship to the priesthood of all believers must be understood. We no longer have separate priests with special privileges. In Christ we are all kings and priests to God, and we all worship him. At the same time, within one body, each priest has a separate function, a separate gift to be used for the benefit of all. The elders are specifically called to lead; they are called to represent the congregation to God. As representatives, they do not exclude the congregation, they lead for and on behalf of the congregation, and the congregation joins the worship of God in them. The priesthood of all believes is represented in and through the representatives. In the preaching of the word, the elders, as well as the congregation, are all instructed by the same word. In corporate singing, all the believers are to sing, elders and congregation. Representative worship is not against the priesthood of all believers

2.2.1. Male Leadership Leading in corporate worship is an act of authority, a fact that means that the representatives are to be those who exercise authority in the church. This limits leadership to male elders. In 1Timothy 2:8ff, Paul stresses that men are to lead in worship through preaching and shepherding/leading.

I desire then that in every place the men should pray, lifting holy hands without anger or quarreling; (9) likewise also that women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly attire, (10) but with what is proper for women who profess godliness—with good works. (11) Let a woman learn quietly with all submissiveness. (12) I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet. (13) For Adam was formed first, then Eve; (14) and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor. (15)Yet she will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith and love and holiness, with self-control.

These verses show that men are called to pray (v.8) lifting up holy hands. These are apostolic commands (v.9). These men are to lead the congregation. In contrast, women are not permitted to teach, lead, or exercise authority in corporate worship. They are to learn in all submission. Men are to lead, woman are to submit. This does not reflect upon their ability, intelligence, or spirituality. There are many very able, intelligent, and gifted women in the church but each is called to their own role within the body. Paul, as Christ’s ambassador, calls women to be silent in corporate worship. Men are to lead in prayer by lifting up holy, sanctified hands, hands set apart by God for this purpose.

While all are to pray, leading in public worship is for those who are called to positions of authority in the church, particularly the elders (1Tim. 2:8-14; 5:17).23 The representative idea means the worship through Christ extends to the congregation through the eldership. The church is lead by the elders into the presence of Christ, and they lead the congregation into God presence. As a congregation they all are seen as joining in prayer through their representative. They show this by adding their formal “Amen” as a body at the end of the prayer. Teaching is an authoritative action for Christ. Timothy is appointed by Paul to teach. Paul says to him, These things command and teach (1Tim. 4:11), and he is called to stir up the gift that is in him (1Tim. 4:14; 2 Tim. 1:6).

23 In 1 Timothy 2:8 Paul ties the issue of women in worship with authority. It is only those who have leadership roles who are to lead in worship. Since women are not to exercise authority they are not to lead. 27 The rule of elders in teaching and leading is stressed in 1Thessalonians 5:12,13: We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, (13) and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God, consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith (Heb. 13:7). In Ephesians 4, Paul speaks of those called and gifted to teach in the church. In each case the calling to lead and teach is to men (1Tim. 2). In order to teach in public worship, a man must have the spiritual gifts and be called to be a teacher. The Westminster Confession of faith narrowly limits those who can preach the gospel to ministers who have been approved by the court of the church. Pipa argues, from 1Timothy 3, that we should enlarge this to include ruling elders who exercise pastoral responsibility and have public expression.24 They may also lead the congregation in exhortation. The public reading of the Scripture is an authoritative action. It is a public, formal statement of God’s will for the people. It is an aspect of teaching and so His representatives should do it. The reading of the Word should be regarded as the function of the elders, speaking for God. The leadership in the church is to be those who are of good character and theologically sound both in the church and to those outside. Paul stresses this in 1Timothy 3 and Titus 1 where he lists the role of elders and deacons. They are to have a good reputation, outside and inside the church, they are to be able to teach, and they are to be able to rule their own households well. It is vital that these men have theological discernment, as their actions will frame the worship for the entire church and affect the spiritual life of the congregation. The spirituality of the elder/representative will affect the nature and depth of the worship of the whole group. Their good conduct and authority is symbolic of the authority of Christ.

2.3. Women in Corporate Worship 1Timothy 2 emphasizes that women are called to receive instruction with submissiveness. Paul parallels this teaching in 1 Corinthians 14:34,35 “The women should keep silent in the churches. For they are not permitted to speak, but should be in submission, as the Law also says. (35) If there is anything they desire to learn, let them ask their husbands at home. For it is shameful for a woman to speak in church.” In 1Timothy 2, Paul notes the order of creation and the capacity women have to be seduced. 25 Also, Paul highlights the fact that outside worship women should be active in training other women to be better wives and mothers. In Titus 2:3-5 Paul tells Titus… The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, They are to teach what is good, (4) and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, (5) to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled.

2424 Pipa, J. Greenville Seminary, Lectures, Audio lectures only, Sermon Audio.

2525 In 1 Corinthians 11:5, Paul speaks of women praying and prophesying with their heads uncovered.

28 This verse does not refer to the gathering of the whole congregation in formal corporate worship. Formal worship would include the whole church, men and women. Further, the verse clearly states that woman should be teaching other woman in regard to domestic issues, rather than it being a general statement of women teaching women. This verse is not a general mandate for women to teach other women in all aspects of theology. Some argue that priestesses and prophetesses in the Old Testament held positions of authority in the congregation. Others point to the blessing that Pricilla was to Apollos. In the Old Testament there was no evidence that women were part of the formal worship in the temple. Although all men and women are now kings and priests to God, this does not mean that all are our representative leaders in public worship. They did not take that role. The case of Pricilla and Apollos shows clearly the way a godly woman can be a blessing to men and to the whole church. In this particular case, she acted privately and with her husband’s approval, not publically, outside the formal worship of the church. In acting this way, she honored the need to respect leadership in the church as well as binging a blessing to Apollos and the whole church. She is an excellent example of how women are honored in the New Testament without usurping the leadership function of men. 2.4. Corporate Singing The church is commanded to worship God in song (Col. 3:16, Eph. 5:19). These are general exhortations to sing that include the need to pray in corporate worship. Since everybody has to sing the same material, it is important that the songs be well chosen. The choice of songs is the responsibility of the elders. Singing, like praying and teaching/preaching, must reflect the principles of worship. Singing is closely related to prayer, and it is a theological statement of adoration. In some circles, it is common to put singing into the hands of the praise team, but as part of the formal worship of God, it is the duty of the elders to supervise worship. Singing should be corporate. It is a right and privilege of the congregation to sing God’s praises. For this reason, many Reformed teachers are not in favor of choirs or “special music”, as these can become an activity for the choir only that takes away from the right of the congregation to sing as a corporate body. Sometimes, they can be helpful in leading a congregation to worship, but the reformers stressed that Father desires to hear all His children sing to Him. As priests to God the whole congregation is to praise Him. Likewise music is to support the singing, to promote God’s people in worship. It must never become the focus of worship.

2.4. Active and Participatory Worship One problem we have today is that we tend to consider worship as either active or passive. One is either doing something, like praying, or one is not doing anything, one is merely sitting, listening to someone else pray. The Scriptures do not divide things in this manner. The Scriptures stress that some lead in prayer, while others actively participate in prayer by silently, but really, joining with their representative. In this, there is a union between the leader and the followers. They join with him in prayer.

29 2.4.1. Corporate “Amen” The congregation is to use the corporate Amen after prayers, hymns, and songs. The congregation joins in prayer by adding the corporate Amen, translated as “Let it be”; a vocal and public affirmation that they are in agreement with the prayer. Otherwise, if you give thanks with your spirit, how can anyone in the position of an outsider say “Amen” to your thanksgiving when he does not know what you are saying (1 Cor. 14:16)? Perkins speaks of one voice leading and others silently indicating agreement by saying “Amen”. 26 The Amen is to be used in singing. After singing, all the people say “Amen”. In Revelation 5:9ff, the church in heaven says, “Amen”.

And they sang a new song, saying “Worthy are You to take the scroll and to open its seals, for You were slain, and by Your blood You ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, (10) and You have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.” (11) Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, (12) saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” (13) And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, “To Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!” (14) And the four living creatures said, “Amen!” and the elders fell down and worshiped. 2.4.2. Corporate Lifting up of Hands Lifting up our hands is representative of our souls being lifted up into heaven (Calvin). We are to lift our souls to God in public and private prayer, both the representative and the congregation. As a word of caution, in some case, one person lifts up their hands and other do not, and this can be distracting. It would be best if the congregation lifts up their hands together. 2.4.3. Posture in Worship We are both flesh and soul. Our inner, spiritual man is reflected in the actions of the outer man. We do not worship in disembodied souls; Christ redeems the whole man. The whole man is in union with Christ. This indicates that our bodies and posture are important in worship. We see numerous examples of posture in worship. Reading- There is one posture mentioned in Scripture for the reading of the Word of God and that is standing. This was a universal practice in the synagogue (Neh. 8:5). Prayer - There are three primary postures in Scripture for prayer: standing, kneeling and prone. Jesus speaks of standing in the story of the Pharisees and publican, “When you stand in prayer…” The men stand in 2 Chronicles 20. Kneeling for prayer is found throughout the Old and New Testaments (Luke 22:41, Acts 20: 36, Eph. 3:14). It was practiced by Calvin and the Reformed French Church, in 1559, as well as the Puritans. Outside the main three postures, one other that is mentioned is looking up without closing one’s eyes. Jesus looked up to Heaven in John 17. In many cases, we close our eyes so as not to be distracted.

2626 Peck, Notes on Ecclesiology

30 Teaching- Jesus sat and stood to teach. Dancing - In 2 Samuel 6:14,16 we are told David danced before the Lord. Many use this verse to argue that we are to dance before God. In response, we see that this was a singular action, it is not commanded in temple worship, and so it cannot claim to be a regular feature, even of Old Testament worship. There is no indication it was commanded in the formal temple liturgy and the example is not repeated in the principles or examples of worship the New Testament. We can say that the dancing before the Lord was a Jewish expression of joy by a man at a certain stage. Having said this, it is clear that there is a greater sense of movement in the Africa than in the west. This is fine so long as it includes the whole man, body and soul. While the actual practice might differ from place to place, we should understand that posture is important in worship and the posture should show due reverence and honor to God. 2.4.4. Order in Worship Paul states, Let all things be done decently and in order (1Cor. 14:40) indicating the need for order in our services. A random, casual style is not good worship. God wants us to use our mind and to plan, even as He plans all things for our good. A number of Charismatic/Pentecostal churches argue that they are worshiping in the Spirit and so their worship should be free and unstructured. We should not plan or set any set limits on the Spirit. Paul addresses this issue directly in 1 Corinthians 14:30. In Corinth, the Holy Spirit was inspiring the prophets and they were speaking at the same time. Paul tells the prophets that they were to wait; they were not to speak all at once, but they are to do things in a proper order. He says the spirit of the prophet is subject to the prophet and the prophets should wait until all in the group can benefit. The whole idea that the Spirit works in a free, random, way is based upon a false idea that the Spirit works against nature and order. The Spirit works against the flesh and sin, but it does not work against God’s own created order. In 1 Corinthians 12-14, Paul stresses we are to worship in the Spirit and in an ordered manner. The Spirit made the creation and He is at work in the church. He does not contradict His own work. The Spirit works in and through the natural created order, enhancing it, developing it, not against it. The Spirit is against sin; it is not against the created order. We will look at the order of worship in more detail when we look at the Regulative Principle and the elements and form of worship in the church. Worship in a mission church Some have argued that there is a different set of principles for worship in a mission situation. This cannot be correct. In a mission situation, as in a more formal church situation, the church worships through its elders. The principles already considered are simple enough to be used in either case. A group without elders is not a church gathering.

31 Conclusion God’s people are called to worship Him as the church. The corporate worship of God’s people is a vital part of her life. God has given her elders to lead her in this activity. When they join to worship, they join with the angels and with God’s saints in heaven, in the spiritual realm. The church worships through her authoritative representatives. The congregation participates by following and adding their own corporate Amen.

32 Lesson 3 Questions

1. What does Hebrews 10:25 teach?

2. Why is corporate worship important?

3. Is there a distinction between corporate and private worship?

4. Who has authority to teach, pray, and lead in the church?

5. What do we mean by representative worship?

6. What role are women to play in corporate worship and why?

7. What do we mean by participation in worship?

8. What is the corporate Amen? When is it used?

9. What was the problem that Paul faced in Corinth concerning the Spirit?

10. Does the Spirit work against order in the church?

33 Lesson Four: The Regulative Principle

Our worship style grows out of our theology; our theology will direct and control our practical approach to worship. We illustrated this principle by contrasting Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, and Reformed theology and worship. Roman Catholic theology stresses the priesthood and sacrifice, so the priest and the Mass are central. Pentecostalism emphasizes the Spirit, and so aims for loose, spontaneous, unstructured worship in which tongues and prophecy play a major part. Reformed worship focuses on the Word of God, and God’s sovereign right to control worship. The Regulative Principle of worship, which states worship is to be defined by God’s Word alone, is the central plank of Reformed worship. In this lesson, we will introduce the Regulative Principle and show that it is central to Reformed thinking.

1. Regulative Principle Calvin states emphatically that worship is only that which is sanctioned by God. God will not accept any other worship. “Moreover, the rule which distinguishes between pure and vitiated worship is of universal application, in order that we might not adopt any device which seems fit to ourselves, but look to the injunctions of Him who alone is entitled to prescribe. Therefore if we would have Him to approve our worship, this rule, which He everywhere enforces with the utmost strictness, may be carefully observed……the Lord condemning and prohibiting all fictitious worship, requires us to give obedience only to His own voice…. this established His authority, … such is our folly, that when we are left at liberty, all we are able to do is to go astray. ”27 The Heidelberg Confession in its commentary on the second commandment concludes that we may only worship God according to His Word. The later Puritans developed the term Regulative Principle. The Westminster Confession offers the following definition of worship: The light of nature showeth that there is a God, who hath lordship and sovereignty over all; is good, and doeth good unto all; and is therefore to be feared, loved, praised, called upon, trusted in, and served with all the heart, and with all the soul, and with all the might. But the acceptable way of worshipping the true God is instituted by Himself, and so limited by His own revealed will, that He may not be worshipped according to the imaginations and devices of men, or the suggestions of Satan, under any visible representation or any other way not prescribed in the Holy Scripture (WCF 2.1.1). The key phrases lead us to believe that worship is to be in the acceptable way as instituted by God. It is God’s worship, limited by Him as it is revealed in Scripture. When men try to worship God in any other way, they do so from the imaginations of their own heart, or according to Satan. Such worship is unacceptable to God.

2727 John Calvin, The Necessity of Reforming the Church, Dallas, Protestant Heritage press, (1995), 17

34 2. The Exegetical and Theological Grounds of the Regulative Principle The Regulative Principle is proven from both exegetical and theological grounds.

2.1. Exegetical Grounds In lecture 2, we considered how God regulated worship in and through the second commandment. God commanded how He was to be worshiped. Israel was not free to worship God in any way she liked. The second commandment was backed up by other statements that stress that nothing must be added and nothing subtracted from the worship of God.

You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you (Deut. 4:2). The importance of worship as God commanded is seen from Leviticus 10:1-3:

Then Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it, put incense on it, and offered profane fire before the LORD, which He had not commanded them.(2) So fire went out from the LORD and devoured them, and they died before the LORD. (3)And Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the LORD spoke, saying: ‘By those who come near Me I must be regarded as holy; And before all the people must be glorified.’ ” So Aaron held his peace. The sin of Nadab and Abihu was that they offered a strange (non-commanded, non-sanctified) fire to the Lord. Since God had not authorized this, He judged them. God’s action was extreme because the two sons were leaders of the people and their corruption of worship would have led the whole assembly astray. They were also an early example to warn others. Therefore early on in her history, Israel knew clearly how to worship God and the consequences for failing to do so rightly. The same judgment occurs with King Uzziah (2 Chron 26:18ff). He was a holy king who did right in the sight of the Lord, but he disregarded God’s commands for worship. He tried to enter and offer sacrifices before the Lord, but that was the priest’s job. God judged him for the actions.

But when he was strong his heart was lifted up, to his destruction, for he transgressed against the LORD his God by entering the temple of the LORD to burn incense on the altar of incense. (17) So Azariah the priest went in after him, and with him were eighty priests of the LORD—valiant men. (18) And they withstood King Uzziah, and said to him, “It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the LORD, but for the priests, the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Get out of the sanctuary, for you have trespassed! You shall have no honor from the LORD God.” (19) Then Uzziah became furious; and he had a censer in his hand to burn incense. And while he was angry with the priests, leprosy broke out on his forehead, before the priests in the house of the LORD, beside the incense altar. (20) And Azariah the chief priest and all the priests looked at him, and there, on his forehead, he was leprous; so they thrust him out of that place. Indeed he also hurried to get out, because the LORD had struck him. (21) King Uzziah was a leper until the day of his death. He dwelt in an isolated house, because he was a leper; for he was cut off from the house of the LORD (2 Chron. 26:16ff). In the New Testament, Jesus rejects the worship of the Pharisees as they taught men to worship according their traditions, not according to God’s Word.

Then the Pharisees and some of the scribes came together to Him, having come from Jerusalem. (2) Now when they saw some of His disciples eat bread with defiled, that is, with unwashed hands, they found fault. (3) For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands in a special way, holding the

35 tradition of the elders. (4) When they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other things which they have received and hold, like the washing of cups, pitchers, copper vessels, and couches. (5) Then the Pharisees and scribes asked Him, “Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?” (6) He answered and said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honors Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me. (7) And in vain they worship Me teaching as doctrines the commandments of men’. (8) For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men—the washing of pitchers and cups, and many other such things you do.” (9) He said to them, “All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition. (10) For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.’ (11) But you say, ‘If a man says to his father or mother, ‘Whatever profit you might have received from me is Corban”—’ (that is, a gift to God), (12) then you no longer let him do anything for his father or his mother,(13) making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down. And many such things you do” (Mark 7:1ff). The Pharisees invented extra rules to worship God. They said that if a man would give himself to temple worship, he no longer had to honor his father and mother. The rules were self- made and self-imposed by the Pharisees upon the people. They were not from God. Jesus rejects their man-made rules. The passage also warns us that most man-made regulations, though they seemingly add to God’s holiness, end up breaking one of God’s commandments. Additions to God’s commandments lead to the rejection of others. In this case, the adding of the temple worship took away from the honoring of one’s father and mother. When men add extra obligations or extra laws, these have no power to bring holiness. In Colossians, Paul warns the Church against making man-made rules that seem to be helpful, but they have no power. 28 …which all concern things which perish with the using—according to the commandments and doctrines of men? (23) These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh (Col. 2:22, 23). This is consistent with Jesus’ words that the only effective worship is in the Spirit.

2.2. Theological Grounds The Regulative Principle is also argued from theological grounds. Calvin underscores the fact that the sovereignty of God, the sufficiency of Scripture in all areas of faith and practice, and the total depravity of man make man-made worship dangerous. 2.2.1. The Creator- Creation Distinction Reformed Theology argues that since God is our Creator. He must tell us how we are to approach Him. We have no choice when coming before our great Creator; rather, we must abide by His determinations in order to seek His face.

2828The principle in Colossians 2 is a general one, but it also applies to worship.

36 2.2.2. The Doctrine of Revelation We would be blind without His Word. Without God revealing Himself to us we would not know Him. We are finite. When we come to worship; it is not what pleases us that matters, it is what pleases God. Paul stresses the un-knowability of God in Romans 11:33. Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out! It is only through God’s self-revelation that we know how to approach Him. If God is unknowable, how can we know how to approach Him? Mercifully, God has revealed Himself in Scripture. In 2 Timothy 3, Paul stresses that Scripture is sufficient, so that a man might be completely mature in every good work. All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Tim. 3:16). This includes worship. Scripture alone orders the worship of God. We need nothing else to help us to grow in our worship. God has given us everything we need. The Westminster Confession of Faith’s teaching concerning Scripture and revelation makes the same point. The whole counsel of God, concerning all things necessary for His own glory, man's salvation, faith, and life, is either expressly set down in Scripture, or by good and necessary consequence may be deduced from Scripture: unto which nothing at any time is to be added, whether by new revelations of the Spirit, or traditions of men. Nevertheless we acknowledge the inward illumination of the Spirit of God to be necessary for the saving understanding of such things as are revealed in the Word; and that there are some circumstances concerning the worship of God, and the government of the Church, common to human actions and societies, which are to be ordered by the light of nature and Christian prudence, according to the general rules of the Word, which are always to be observed (WCF1.6). The confession stresses that all things necessary for God’s own glory and man’s salvation are either expressly set down in the Scriptures, or can be deduced by good and necessary consequence. Nothing is to be added to the Word of God. 2.2.3. Doctrine of Sin Calvinism and Reformed theology emphasize the total corruption of man, the darkness of his mind in sin, and man’s natural hostility to God. All three things point to the fact that man cannot and does not naturally want to worship God. Naturally, he worships idols. Sinful man does not know or want to worship God according to His Word (Eph. 4:17, 28; Rom. 8:7; 1 Cor. 8.). The Confession also stresses that sinful men are easily influenced by the devil. The devil is subtle and can lead us astray (WCF 21.1). The correct approach is for us to humble ourselves under God’s Word. We should not trust our own wisdom, but should only trust in those things that God has revealed to us in the Scriptures. This is freedom. We are freed from being forced by men to worship in any way that

37 God has not commanded. The Westminster Confession of Faith says (2.2): God alone is Lord of the conscience, and hath left it free from the doctrines and commandments of men which are in any thing contrary to His Word, or beside it in matters of faith or worship. So that to believe such doctrines, or to obey such commandments out of conscience, is to betray true liberty of conscience; and the requiring an implicit faith, and an absolute and blind obedience, is to destroy liberty of conscience, and reason also.

3. Other Theologies of Worship There are a number of other worship philosophies. In this section we will consider them.

3.1. The Roman Catholic View The Romans Catholic view of authority is based on a mixture of Scripture, tradition, and the authority of the Church. Through closer review, one sees that the Roman Catholic Church puts the final authority for worship in the hands of the church, not the Scripture. The church defines what is and what is not, true worship. 3.2. The Lutheran Position The Lutheran position is that anything is permitted, unless Scripture expressly forbids it. This means that if the Bible does not speak to something then we can add it to worship. By this logic, we can have an altar and candles in the church as these things are not expressly prohibited. 3.3. Modern Evangelical/Pentecostal Worship Many modern evangelicals do not have clear principles directing worship. They can be very pragmatic and man-centered in worship to encourage attendance. They try to be culturally relevant as much as possible. Some try to be seeker sensitive, that is to say, they do everything to accommodate and make the unbeliever comfortable in worship. If in these cases, the object of worship is evangelism and is man-centered, instead of the object being God and focusing upon His worship. As we have already seen from John 4, God is Spirit and only believers with a regenerate heart can worship Him in Spirit and truth.

4. The Content of Public Worship As God regulates worship, what does He want? The Westminster Confession helpfully divides the worship of God into three things: the elements, the forms, and the circumstances of worship. We begin with a short introduction of these three things, and then we will go on to expand on these elements and forms in the next two lessons.

4.1. The Elements The elements are the things we should include in worship. These are things we can prove from the Scriptures. Conversely, to put the Regulative Principle in the negative, unless we can prove that the New Testament church used these elements we should not include them in our worship.

38 The Scriptures and the Westminster Confession lay down the following elements: prayer with thanksgiving, the reading of Scripture, the preaching and hearing of the Word, the singing of Psalms with grace in heart, and the Sacraments. It also speaks of occasional elements: the creeds, vows, and ordination. The scriptural support is in Acts 2:42ff which stresses the Word, the apostles’ teaching, the Sacraments, and prayer. (See also 1 Cor. 14:1; 2 Tim. 2:2.) Collections are mentioned in 1Corinthians 16:1, 2 and the Lord’s Supper is found in Acts 2:42ff and 1Corinthians 11.

4.2. Forms and Circumstances The Westminster Confession distinguishes between the elements of worship, the forms, and the circumstances. The elements are the things that must be in worship. The form of worship just refers to the order of the elements, for example the order of service we use or the frequency of communion services. The circumstances of worship refers to issues such as when to meet, where to meet, lighting, speakers, if we use hymnbooks or overhead projectors, etc. Circumstances are discussed in Westminster Confession of Faith 1.6., which states that the circumstances of worship are to be ordered by the light of nature and Christian prudence and according to the general rules of the Word, which are always to be observed. These concern things that are common to human activity. The Scriptures leave it to the wisdom of the elders to regulate our worship. The threefold structure offered by the Westminster Confession is a simple way to understand God’s demands in worship. The elements are commanded, the form of the service is free and the circumstances are to left to the church to order her affairs in a way that most benefits the whole church.

5. Christ-Centered, Scripture and Spirit Filled As we have already noted, worship focuses upon Christ, through the Spirit. It must also be based upon the Scriptures. The Word of God is central in worship. It tells us to worship, it provides the content of our worship and it even helps us to respond to God through the psalms and prayers of Scripture. The testimony of Scripture is that in worship we are to read the Bible, sing the Bible, preach the Bible and pray the Bible. Faith comes by hearing and hearing from the Word of God; without faith we cannot please God (Heb. 11:6). By faith we are converted, sanctified, and the riches of Christ are poured out upon us. The trend today is to minimize the use and role of the Scriptures. Terry Johnson 29 argues that the minimization of Scripture is a trend that has developed over the last 150 years. I would argue that since our worship is linked to our theology the change in worship reflects a change in foundational theology, a movement away from the Word of God. For example, in Catholic theology the power is seen in the church, Christ’s rule is not seen as being in and through the Word by the Spirit. This means that the Word is not central but it is the Mass and the work of the priest. In modern Pentecostalism, a recent movement in the church, the direct work of the Spirit is emphasized. This focuses the worship on spiritual experience and on personal revelation and

2929 Greenville Audio Lectures on Worship

39 gifts, which then leads to the downplay of the Word of God. In many modern churches, they have lost confidence in the Word of God to convert and sanctify men through the Spirit. This has led to these churches stressing other things, other activities and programs in worship. In the modern service, there has been a downgrading of preaching, praying, reading Scripture, and singing the Psalms, and doctrinal hymns. This is something that must be corrected.

Conclusion The Regulative Principle states that we are only to worship in a way that God has commanded us in the Scriptures. We are not to add to it or take away from it. Without God teaching us, we would not know how to worship Him. God judged those who sought to worship Him in any other way. The reformers argued that only those things commanded in the Scriptures are allowable. The things we must include are called the elements of worship. The Word of God is central in worship and modern Christianity has moved away from the centrality of the Word of God.

40 Lesson 4 Questions

1. What do we call the principle of Reformed worship?

2. Give two Old Testament examples that prove we must do only what God has commanded.

3. Name two theological arguments we can make in support of the Regulative Principle.

4. Explain the Roman Catholic and Lutheran positions on worship.

5. What three categories does the Westminster Confession of Faith use to help us to order worship?

6. What is an element? Give an example.

7. What is a form? Give an example.

8. What is a circumstance? Give an example.

9. What is the stress of modern Pentecostalism and what affect does this have on worship?

10. Why has modern evangelism taken us away from Scripture?

41 Lesson Five: The Elements of Worship

The Regulative Principle stresses we are to worship according to God’s commandments. The elements refer to those things that God has commanded. The elements are identified by either express revelation/commandment from God, or by things that are revealed by good and necessary inference (WCF 1.6). These things are not expressly revealed but naturally follow from what we are taught. An example is Jesus’ teaching to the Sadducees about the resurrection. He quotes the law that says, “I am the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob” (Matt. 23:32). The “I am” is in present tense, even though Yahweh says this a long time after the men mentioned have died. This means that although they are dead, they are still alive; they are still God’s and He will raise them up on the last day. Theologically, the church uses the same approach with the Trinity. The Trinity is not expressly revealed, but the information to develop the doctrine of the Trinity is. Because Jesus participated in synagogue worship, the inference can be made that He did not disapprove of it (as He did with the Samarian theology). Because Jesus promised that He would replace the temple, some look to the Synagogue practice and liturgy as being acceptable to God. The early church modeled their worship after the synagogue practices. The Westminster Confession 21: 3,5 defines the elements. They are summarized in the Larger Catechism Q.108. What are the duties required in the second commandment? Answer: The duties required in the second commandment are, the receiving, observing, and keeping pure and entire, all such religious worship and ordinances as God has instituted in His Word; particularly prayer and thanksgiving in the name of Christ; the reading, preaching, and hearing of the Word; the administration and receiving of the sacraments; church government and discipline; the ministry and maintenance thereof; religious fasting; swearing by the name of God, and vowing unto Him: as also the disapproving, detesting, opposing, all false worship; and, according to each one's place and calling, removing it, and all monuments of idolatry. As we consider the elements, I have also included a number of ways that the Reformed tradition has applied them in worship. While technically this moves into the form of worship as well, it is helpful to see how Reformed theology understood the use of the elements. The elements are mandatory, the forms are not.

1. The Reading, Preaching, and Teaching of the Word of God The Westminster Confession of Faith 21.5 stresses that the reading of the Scriptures with godly fear, the sound preaching and conscionable hearing of the Word, in obedience unto God, with understanding, faith, and reverence is an element of worship. The key text is 2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

42 1.1. Preaching and Teaching Elements God is revealed in and through the Scripture, and so Scripture represents God’s will for us. How He is to be praised is a central theme. The reading, praying, and hearing of Scripture with thanksgiving and grace is an essential and active part of worship. I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: (2) Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. (3) For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; (4) and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables (2 Tim. 4:1-4). Paul requires instruction (1 Cor. 14:26) from the reading of both his letters and the old covenant Scriptures (Col. 3:8).

1.2. The Call to Worship The Westminster Confession 30 begins worship with a formal call to worship. In the Netherland’s tradition, the Votum salutation is a real call by the church, exercising the keys of the kingdom, to gather the church into the presence of God.

1.3. The Reading of Scripture This is central. Reformed Churches have stressed that reading was to be not merely before preaching, but a separate part of the service. It is common to read from both the Old Testament and New Testament to show the unity of the Scriptures and the ongoing validity of the Old Covenant. (There also might have been lower literacy and many would not have had their own copy of the Scriptures at that time.) The congregation could also recite the Word together.

1.4. Preaching The Reformers had a high view of preaching. It was common to say that when the minister preached according to Scriptures, he preached the very Word of God with the authority of God. God speaks to the congregation through preaching.

1.5. Salutation This is a greeting to the congregation from the minister in God’s name, a form drawn from the example of Paul’s letters. It is common to begin with a call and the congregation to respond with a vow. For example, the congregation responds to a salutation with, “Our help is in the name of the Lord.” Early 1900 American Presbyterianism often started with the doxology. Worship begins by praising God for who He is.

1.6. Benedictions This is another use of the element of Scripture in worship. An example is Numbers 6:24- 27. “‘The LORD bless you and keep you; The LORD make His face shine upon you, And be

3030 Calvin began with a Scripture reading.

43 gracious to you; LORD lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace.’ So they shall put My name on the children of Israel, and I will bless them.” This is to be done by a leader, an elder of the church, in Christ’s name, on behalf of the church, for God, at the end of the service. It pronounces the blessing on God’s congregation; they leave the protection and presence of God’s people and go on their pilgrimage. It is God who blesses; the minister is merely the agent. It is more than a prayer. It is the sealing of God’s mark and name upon His people (Num. 6:27). Other benedictions can be found in Scripture. In these, other blessings from God for His people are spelled out. 31

Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, @1)make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen (Heb. 13:20,21).

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. My love be with you all in Christ Jesus. Amen (1Cor. 16:23).

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen (2 Cor. 13:14).

Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy,(25) to God our Savior, Who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen (Jude 24,25)32. l.7. Doxologies A doxology, from the Greek doxa (glory) and logos (word or speaking), is a short hymn of praise and thanksgiving to God, found in various Christian worship services, often added to the end of canticles, psalms, and hymns. The tradition derives from a similar practice in the Jewish synagogue. Romans 11:33 is a scriptural example. Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out! All teaching and worship lead to a doxology. One common doxology is The Gloria Patri, (named for its first two words in Latin). Roman Catholics, Old Catholics, Independent Catholics, Orthodox and many Protestants, including Anglicans, Presbyterians, Lutherans, Methodists and Reformed Baptists, commonly use it as a doxology. It is called the "Lesser Doxology", thus distinguished from the "Great Doxology", Gloria in Excelsis Deo. Doxologies have also been regarded as short declarations of faith in the co-equality of the three Persons of the Holy Trinity. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost. As it was in the beginning, and now, and always, to the ages of ages. Amen (Literal translation from Latin). Common Doxologies include:

3131 Some stress that it can also be a mark or a seal, God especially marks His people for blessing. 2 Timothy 2:19 Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” – contrast this with the seal on the unbelievers in Revelation 13:16 He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. 3232 This is a doxology, surely, even though it is often called the Benediction. 44 Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow; Praise Him, all creatures here below; Praise Him above, ye Heavenly Host; Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen. From the end of the Lord’s Prayer, "For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever, Amen” (Matt. 6:13b). l.8. Creeds While the Presbyterians and Westminster divines, influenced by Independents, did not demand the use of creeds in worship, the Dutch Presbyterian tradition did use creeds in their churches. Creeds are useful as they summarize teaching, affirm unity in the church, remind the church that she is one throughout all ages; that she stands with and is one with the church in the past and she confesses with the one church in heaven. An argument against creeds is that it binds the church members’ consciences in public worship and if you only require a simple membership vow, you might be binding the conscience to ask someone to speak a full creed when they have not agreed to it. The Dutch Reformed Church uses creeds in worship, but they require new members to subscribe to the whole Catechism and Confession of the church. The leading creeds are the Apostles’ Creed33, the Nicene Creed and the Athanasian Creed. These creeds can be found in the appendix to this course. Many early Reformed churches sang the creeds.

2. Prayer Everyone agrees that prayer is a vital part of worship, but how are we to pray? As I have traveled around the world, I have seen churches pray in so many different ways. How did each church learn to pray? In many cases people learn to pray from the example of those who lead in worship. Are there right and wrong ways to pray? Can we learn to pray better? The Scriptures have a lot to say about how to pray. This applies both to personal and corporate prayer. In the Old Testament there are many great prayers by great saints of God. They have been recorded for us as examples of how they prayed. We should study their prayers to learn how to pray. The Psalms also serve as examples of the prayers of holy men. In all cases found in Scripture the Holy Spirit inspired their prayers. In the New Testament, the disciples knew they did not know how to pray. They asked the Lord Jesus to teach them to pray. Jesus taught them what we call the Lord’s Prayer in Mathew 6:9-13. Jesus also mentions a number of other principles of prayer in the Sermon on the Mount.

3333 Despite its title, the Apostles’ Creed was not written by the apostles or disciples who walked and talked with Jesus in the first century. It is a compilation of what believers in the first centuries knew from written and oral testimony, which was then distilled into the essentials of the Christian faith. This creed was reworked by successive councils of the early Church and it was adopted in its present form before the end of the fourth century (CRC Website).

45 Let us consider the following principles of prayer:. 1. We are to pray in the same way that the men of God prayed. We are to model our prayers on their prayers. These prayers include Moses’ prayer (Exod. 34), Solomon’s prayer (1 Kings 8), Daniel’s prayer (Dan. 9), Jonah’s prayer (Jonah 2), Hannah’s prayer (1 Sam. 2), Mary’s prayer (Luke 2), Jesus’ prayer (John 17), the prayers of the apostles in Acts 4 and other places, and Paul’s prayers for the church in his letters. 2. We are to pray the Psalms. The Psalms are to be sung and prayed in corporate worship. 3. We are to use the Lord’s Prayer, both as a prayer and as a model for prayer. In the Lord’s Prayer we first begin with worship of God before we ask God for His blessings on us. One of the most common ways we pray incorrectly is when we just repeat God’s name over and over again. We never see this in Scripture. The Scriptures clearly teach us that that to just keep repeating God’s name is to pray like the heathen, the wicked who think they will only be heard if they keep repeating and shouting God’s name. “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. (8) Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. When we pray we are speaking to God, and God already knows and cares for us, so we are to come in humble obedience not trying to force God to do our will. Another common failure is when everyone prays openly and loudly at the same time. As we saw in Corinth, Paul told the church that everything should be done in good order. In a related passage, we saw that Paul told the prophets, even when they were directly inspired by the Spirit, to pray one after the other. They were not all to prophecy together. In corporate prayer it is better that the elders lead prayer for and on behalf of the congregation. The same principle applies to praise and worship. We are given a number of Psalms and commanded to sing them. When we sing another material, the Psalms are our model. Again we see that the Psalms do not just repeat the same things over and over. The Psalms are a mixture of heart cries, theology, and praise. Our songs should be the same. The Westminster Confession of Faith 21.3 states: Prayer, with thanksgiving, being one special part of religious worship is by God required of all men, and, that it may be accepted, it is to be made in the name of the Son, by the help of His Spirit, according to His will, with understanding, reverence, humility, fervency, faith, love and perseverance; and, if vocal, in a known tongue. It goes on to say in 21.4: Prayer is to be made for things lawful; and for all sorts of men living, or that shall live hereafter; but not for the dead, nor for those of whom it may be known that they have sinned the sin unto death.

The Confession teaches that we are to pray during the service and the prayers must be in the name of the Son. If we fail to pray in Christ’s name, our prayers are not acceptable to God. It is not a formula; rather, when we fail to pray in Jesus’ name, we fail to recognize His ongoing intercession and foundational role in our salvation. Shaw, commenting on the Confession states: “It is not enough, however, that we merely introduce the name of Christ into our prayers, or that

46 we conclude them with the bare words: "All that we ask is for Christ's sake." To pray in the name of Christ, is to draw all our encouragement to pray from Christ alone, to engage in this duty is dependence upon His strength, and to rely upon His merit and intercession alone for access to God, and for acceptance and a gracious answer to our prayers” (www.reformed.org/documents/shaw). The Lord’s Prayer offers us a basic form. The Westminster Confession has an exposition of the Lord’s Prayer in both the Shorter and Larger catechisms. I have included on your reading list two books that will help with public prayer. It is common to divide up the prayers into various types and to use them in the appropriate places in the service. The major divisions are adoration (at the beginning of the service), confession, supplication/intercession and thanksgiving. The Westminster Confession also states that prayer, if vocal, was to be in a known tongue. 3. Singing The Westminster Confession says in 21.5, The singing of psalms with grace in the heart. is a part of the ordinary worship of God. The scriptural warrant for this is Ephesians 5:19, 20 and Colossians 3:16, 17, which stress the singing of psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, and also James 5:13. There are scriptural examples of this in 1 Corinthians 14:15-26.

[S]peaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ (Eph. 5:19).

Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms (James 5:13).

3.1. Exclusive Psalmody Reformed churches have been divided over whether we are to sing only Psalms from the Old Testament (exclusive psalmody) or if we can also sing other non-inspired materials (hymns). Calvin never argued expressly for exclusive psalmody, but he developed the Genevan Psalter and the Reformed churches in Geneva sang mostly Psalms, with Scripture (the law) and creeds that were put to music. The Scottish church under Knox and the Westminster Confession held to exclusive psalmody. The independent churches lead the way to singing hymns. The use of hymns developed mainly in England in Evangelical Awakenings (Isaac Watts paraphrased the Psalms and the Wesley hymns) and in America during the Great Awakenings (1725-1750 and 1800-1840). The argument for exclusive psalmody is that we are only to do what the Scriptures tell us in worship. The Psalter was the Old Testament hymnbook and the key references in Ephesians and Colossians all speak of Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. This threefold division represents the threefold division in the book of Psalms that divides the Psalms into psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Hymns and spiritual songs are not non-Psalms; rather, they are part of the Psalter. If we look at the superscriptions (which are inspired) many of the Psalms are called hymns. After the supper, Jesus went out and they sang a hymn (Matt. 26:30). It was common to sing Psalm 118 and others after the Passover. Furthermore they argue that the Psalms are

47 prophetic and typological, and so they point forward to Christ. They are not Old Covenant documents; rather, they point to the New Testament. The Synod of Dort held to exclusive psalmody. Calvin and the French church both allowed and sang Psalms, hymns, the Ten Commandments, and the Creeds.34 Morton Smith suggests that by using the Psalter in the early church, they had an immediate hymnbook. Pipa takes a Psalms and hymn position.35 He argues that the Old Testament never says they were the only things we are to sing to God. There are a number of illustrations of songs sung to God. He finds a parallel between Psalms and prayer. Many of the Psalms are prayers and there are a number of other prayers in Scripture. Further, in the New Testament, the name of Christ is important in worship (not mentioned in the Psalms) and there are a number of biblical illustrations of New Testament songs to Jesus’ name. Revelation 5 is an example. For these reasons, he holds to singing hymns and psalms. Whatever one’s position on the above, it is clear that that we need to sing far more of the Psalms in the public worship of God.

3.2. Corporate Singing The Reformers emphasized corporate singing; meaning that the entire congregation is to sing praise to God together. When we use a choir, this separates the worship of the choir from the worship of the people. God wants His people to sing to Him, and it is their right and privilege in corporate worship to do so. The corporate singing also precludes so called special music or solos in worship. Historically, this special music only developed in the 1800’s in American worship,36 flowing out of the individual subjectivism of the Second Great Awakening. 3.3. Music The early church did not use instruments. They sang without instruments for the first 1000 years of the church. The early Reformers began to use instruments, but only to facilitate the corporate singing. If we use music, both the music and instruments are to be subservient to and aid the public worship. This constrains the type of music that is used. It must be able to be sung and it must never dominate the worship or take the place of corporate singing. Instruments should never be used for entertainment in worship, which is a common practice in the Roman Catholic and many protestant and evangelical churches today. Right words supported by the right melody. There must be a correspondence between the music, what we sing, and how we sing it.

3434 Morton Smith in Greenville conference on worship notes that Huguenots were devoted to Psalter, and sang it under persecution and in battle. Due to their love of the Psalter the Roman Catholic Church made it illegal to sing Psalms in France. 3535Greenville Presbyterian Theological Seminary, Audio lecturers only. 3636Dr. Morton Smith- Greenville Conference on Worship, Audio

48 4. Sacraments

4.1. The Lord’s Supper The Lord’s Supper is also known as Communion, the Table of the Lord, and the Eucharist. The Lord’s Supper is a covenantal meal, affirming the New Covenant in Christ’s blood, and one to be celebrated ONLY with other believers. In 1 Corinthians 11, Paul instructs the church on how they are to gather together for Communion. It is to be administered by the leaders of the church. The Roman Catholic practice of private communion is without scriptural warrant and is not theologically correct.

4.2. Corporate and Public Baptism Who should administer baptism and where should it be administered? There are no express commandments or examples for public baptism being a part of the service of the church, and we have a number of examples where baptism is administered to individuals without the church (Acts 8, Act 16). Since baptism symbolizes the public confession and entrance of the person into God’s church, the Westminster divines made baptism a public act of worship. No doubt though, in exceptional cases, baptism could be administered privately, but this would be the exception, not the rule.

5. The Offering This is not mentioned in Westminster Confession as an element of worship. The classic passages that lend credence to the offering as a part of worship are Psalm 96:8, to bring an offering into the house of the Lord, and 1 Corinthians 16:1, 2. The difficulty is that the former refers to the temple worship (which was fulfilled in Christ), and the latter refers to a specific collection for the saints in Jerusalem, not an ongoing obligation for the church to make collection for its own use. We do know that the church is to honor those who labor in the Word, and we are not to muzzle an ox that threshes out the grain. Combining 1 Corinthians 16 and these principles, a collection for the administration of the church during the worship service can be substantiated. Offerings have also been included under the idea of paying vows and the Confession speaks of the maintenance of religion, and offerings might make sense in this line of thinking as well.

6. Religious Vows The Westminster Confession also speaks of vows as a proper element of worship. It has been suggested that would include the church reciting the Confession of Faith, vows of church membership, vows in baptism, vows taken by church officers, and tithes (see above). It is the duty of all members to seek to implement these things and to keep God’s worship pure, according to each one’s respective authority and responsibility in the church. The primary duty belongs to the elders and officers. The Confession indicates the need for the heart to be involved in worship. Worshiping with our tongue, if our heart is not involved, is not enough. Psalm 50 stresses the danger of perfectly observing externals but having hearts that are far from God.

49 Conclusion

The Westminster Confession of Faith lists a number of elements that should be in public worship as well as some occasional elements. They are the receiving, observing, and keeping pure and entire, all such religious worship and ordinances as God has instituted in His Word; particularly prayer and thanksgiving in the name of Christ; the reading, preaching, and hearing of the Word; the administration and receiving of the sacraments; church government and discipline; the ministry and maintenance thereof; religious fasting; swearing by the name of God, and vowing unto Him.

50 Lesson Five Questions

1. Where, in Scripture, are we commanded to use the Word in Worship?

2. Where, in Scripture, are we commanded to sing?

3. What is the scriptural warrant for prayer during worship?

4. What is the scriptural warrant for the use of Sacraments?

5. Why do we have baptism as a Sacrament?

6. Why do we include offering in worship?

7. What do we mean by religious vows being used in worship? Cite examples.

8. How have creeds been used in the various Reformed traditions? Explain the traditions.

9. Explain the argument for exclusive psalmody.

10. Explain the argument that all singing should be corporate singing.

51 Lesson Six: Liturgy

This lesson discusses the order in which the elements are put together in worship. This is called the liturgy. We will include a short history of worship at the end of the lesson. The word “liturgy” comes from Leviticus. The Hebrew word was used to describe the ordering of the elements in worship during the old covenant. The Greek equivalent is used in Acts 13:2, where we are told that Saul and the others were “ministering” (Greek verb) before the Lord. These words form the background to the word liturgy. We often misunderstand the term. We designate churches with a high liturgy (i.e. Roman Catholic, Anglican and Episcopalian), as liturgical churches. In contrast, Pentecostal churches, those with a less formal, less structured worship are called unliturgical. This is incorrect. All churches are liturgical, though some have a more formal liturgy while others have a more unstructured liturgy. The issue of liturgy is vital to Reformed churches.

1. Four Major Approaches to Liturgy There are 4 major types of liturgy.37 We will briefly consider each. A. Imposed Liturgy The church, local or denominational, imposes a liturgy upon the leaders and members. This is a set form; one that must be followed by the congregation. Examples of this are the prayer books used by the Anglican, Episcopal, Roman Catholic, and Greek Orthodox churches. It includes set reading and common prayer (where the whole congregation joins together). B. Discretionary Liturgy This has a set order and it includes common prayer (in written form, and all the congregation prays together). The responsibility is given to the minister alone as to the matter and manner of worship. There is freedom availed to him to use his judgment. An example of this is the German Strasburg Liturgy used by Calvin in Geneva and John Knox in Scotland (2nd book of discipline). C. Rubrical Provision This type of liturgy gives the minister guidance by providing general headings of what should be included in worship and their order in the service. It includes subjects to be prayed for, the types and the position of prayers in the service. It does not include the wording of prayers nor does it choose the specific Psalms or hymns. It lays down broad headings, and under each heading it offers further guidance as to how the elements are to be used. This is the format of the

37. Pipa, quoting Charles Baird Liturgy in the Presbyterian Church says there have been 4 types of liturgy, lectures, Audio only.

52 Westminster Confession, and was used by the early Scots church and some early US Presbyterian churches. D. Complete Free Worship The church minister has all the discretion concerning how the elements are put together under this form of liturgy. This is the position of most evangelicals today. We do need to recognize that ‘no liturgy’ is actually a liturgy, so the contrast is not between no liturgy and a liturgy; rather, the real contrast is between having a free, non-structured liturgy and a more fixed liturgy. Historically, Reformed churches fall under position two or three.

2. Importance of Developing a Liturgy There is not an explicit order of worship given to us in Scripture.38 There is no prescribed liturgy for all churches. However, we also assert that a church must have some liturgical form and that that form must be consistent with scriptural principles. If the Bible does not give us a definitive liturgy why should we bother to consider the issue? Terry Johnson39 offers three questions to consider when speaking about liturgy.

2.1. Are All Forms Equally Suitable to Express Reformed and Presbyterian Convictions? The teaching and theology of the Reformed Church stresses some key elements concerning worship. These include the centrality of Christ, the sovereignty of God, and the Covenant. Our liturgy should reflect these principles, not undermine them. Some forms of worship are better suited to express these truths in worship than others. We are to have Biblical forms of worship that are consistent with our faith and practice.

2.2. Is the Power of Forms Being Taken Seriously Enough? Worship affects the whole man: the mind, the intellect, and the emotions. As we have already argued, there is a close connection between our theology and our worship. Calvinistic Reformed theology will develop a Calvinistic liturgy. If we are Brethren, it will affect the way and nature of our worship. Worship is and should be a powerful expression of our theology.

2.3. Are the Forms Used by the Reformed Church Being Taken Seriously? We should also recognize that the church is not just now, in the present, aided by the Spirit, but has a long history of Biblical tradition. The church has been led over the centuries, and the church should use her history to benefit and grow in understanding. The Word of God did not come first to us, we have inherited the Word from others who have gone before us, and those others were also led by the Spirit of God.

3838 Rayburn states, “It is also evident, both from the New Testament itself and from the sub apostolic evidence which is available to us, that the early church had no fixed ritual for its worship services” (88). 3939 Greenville Theological Conference

53 Liturgy is important. Chapel notes, “Liturgy tells us a story. We tell the gospel by the way we worship” (27). As such, we should consider our liturgy carefully.

3. Reformed Liturgy Principles Three main things have influenced Reformed worship: Reformed theology, gospel cycles, and church history.

3.1. Theological Principles Scripture and Reformed theology underscore a theology that controls our outlook, particularly Christ, the sovereignty of God, and the Covenant. The first principle is: God speaks in worship through his representatives. The worship leaders speak with God’s voice. Secondly, God is sovereign and takes all initiatives, including the covenant. With the covenant we must understand that it is God’s initiative; He offers the covenant. Also, we must respond to God. Men respond to the covenant in life. This is what our profession of faith is. It is a public affirmation that we are God’s covenant people. The two-fold pattern of God sovereignty and human response should be reflected in worship. Rayburn, in Come Let Us Worship, calls this the divine human dialogue. This means there is logic to how we structure worship. The Dutch theologian Van Dorin 40 argues that there are two aspects to worship. First, there are the elements flowing from God. These include the benediction, salutation, and the public reading of and listening to the Word. Second, there are various elements flowing from man back to God–the Votum, creeds, prayer, offerings, and the singing of praise to the Lord. Van Dorin sees a dynamic interplay between the two aspects. There is a constant interaction between the two. God speaks to man, man responds; God then speaks again and man responds. In preaching and the Sacraments we have both aspects. In preaching, we hear God’s Word and we listen to it with faith. God has given us the Sacraments, and at the same time, we are to receive them by faith. There a dynamic interplay between God and man is evident. Worship should be seen as a covenantal cycle of God’s initiative and our covenantal response.

3.2. Gospel Cycles41 Building on the idea of sovereignty and dialogue (God’s initiative and our response), Terry Johnson suggests the idea of gospel cycles. He argues that worship forms should be built upon the methods we find in the gospel itself. We use and follow the order in the gospel to structure our worship.42

4040 Pipa, Liturgy, Sermon Audio.

41 Terry Johnson, Sermon Audio 4242 This is an argument from inference in the scriptures. There is no express liturgy set down in scriptures at any point. Any arguments from the structures in the epistles are invalid, as these are epistles. The closest example of any organization that we have when we approach God is found in the Lord’s Prayer, (Matthew 6) and the prayers in 54 There are various cycles in worship. The gospel starts with a call to worship, hymns of praise to God, and the Gloria Patria. We respond - The Confession, Law of God, assurance of pardon43. We wait for the Means of Grace: preaching, Sacraments, intercession, Scriptures, and offering. We respond by thanksgiving, a concluding hymn, benediction, and a blessing. The structure above is based upon the logic of theology and Scripture.

3.3. Historical Wisdom The third important fact of worship is recognizing that we do not practice our theology in a vacuum. God has led the church over the centuries and we build upon that history. Through the centuries, the church has grown in her understanding of theology and worship. The Reformers did not invent something new. Calvin, in seeking to reform the worship of the Roman Catholic Church, went back to the early church roots of worship. There is a close link between the worship of the early church and Reformed worship.44 Let’s now turn to a short history of worship in the church.45

4. Reformed Worship and the Early Church In this section we will discuss the history of worship from the early church to the Reformation and beyond. 4.1. Justin Martyr (died circa 165) Calvin developed his liturgy from Scripture and from the early church fathers, so we will begin by studying the liturgy used by Justin Martyr and other early church fathers.46 [1] And on the day called Sunday, all who live in cities or in the country gather together to one place, and [2] the memoirs of the apostles or the writings of the prophets are read, as long as time permits; then, when the reader has ceased, the president verbally instructs, and exhorts to the imitation of these good things. [3] Then we all rise together and pray, and, as we before said, when our prayer is ended, [4] bread and wine and water are brought, and the president in like manner offers prayers and thanksgivings, according to his ability, and the people assent, saying Amen; and there is a distribution to each, and a participation of that over which thanks have been Scripture, but these are prayers, not a formal order of worship. 4343 The assurance of pardon is technically given by the minister, so it is not a response. 4444 Hughes Oliphant Olds, The Patristic Roots of Reformed Worship 4545 For a short review of worship principles from the Roman Church to the present see Chapell, Christ- Centered Worship, 27-99 and Bard Thompson book Liturgies of the Western Church.

4646 I have added numbers for emphasis. 55 given, and to those who are absent a portion is sent by the deacons. [5] And they who are well to do, and willing, give what each thinks fit; and what is collected is deposited with the president, who succors the orphans and widows and those who, through sickness or any other cause, are in want, and those who are in bonds and the strangers sojourning among us, and in a word takes care of all who are in need. [6] But Sunday is the day on which we all hold our common assembly, because it is the first day on which God, having wrought a change in the darkness and matter, made the world; and Jesus Christ our Savior on the same day rose from the dead. For He was crucified on the day before that of Saturn (Saturday); and on the day after that of Saturn, which is the day of the Sun, having appeared to His apostles and disciples, He taught them these things, which we have submitted to you also for your consideration.47 Engle (103) notes that later, the early church worship changed from an informal service to a more formalized worship and, she began to use lectionaries, which are a list of prescribed readings for church. The lectionaries eventually led to the church calendar. The church also began to move back to Old Testament worship, shifting the focus from the simple meal of the Lord’s Supper to the sacrifices of the Old Testament. The Communion table was renamed the altar. The first order of service is called the Clementine Liturgy, from Antioch AD 380. It reads as follows: Liturgy of the Word

Scripture Reading

Sermon

Prayers

Kiss of Peace

Liturgy of the Upper Room

Bringing of the Bread and Wine

Eucharistic Prayer

The Communion

Offertory with collection for the Poor

Worship was divided into two parts, the Liturgy of the Word, and the Liturgy of the Upper Room. There was also a separate service for baptism. Even when the church did not

4747 Bard Thompson 3-7

56 follow the Lord’s Supper, they still acknowledged the Liturgy of the Upper Room. In the early church, we see a simple service with a distinct flow and order. 4.2. The Church in the Middle-Ages The church in the middle ages moved further away from the simplicity of worship and became more ornate. Prayer for the dead and other ceremonies were added. Originally, the Roman Church used Latin, the contemporary Roman Language. Since the church was becoming more formal, she tried to impose it on all churches everywhere, including those churches that did not speak Latin. Over time, Latin continued to dominate even though most could not understand it. The church was now worshiping without understanding. (This practice was changed in Second Vatican council, 1962-1965). Another trend, linked to the first, was the use of visual aids, instead of the simple verbal teaching. The church used statues, icons and paintings as valid worship. Over time, the Mass was elevated and made the center of worship. The elements were now deemed transformed, changed into the very reality of Christ’s body and blood. The Mass was central to salvation. The priesthood, who administered the Mass, gained power, and parts of the sacrifice were removed from the people. The people became passive in worship.

4.3. Luther-The Reformation Over a period of time, Luther moved the church back from the Roman Catholic liturgy to one similar to that of the early church with the simplicity of Justin Martyr. Later Reformers would link salvation and worship so closely that to reform worship became a priority. Luther’s main concern was to separate himself from Roman theology in worship. Luther emphasized that the congregation was to participate in worship. He removed the reading of the Old Testament in order to focus on the New Testament. He removed the giving of offerings in communion, because he feared they would be considered indulgences. He ended the service with corporate singing to stress the priesthood of all believers (Chapell, 35-41).

4.4. Calvin and Reformed Churches The basis of Calvin’s worship was the Scriptures, supplemented with a look back at the early church fathers. He believed in the connection of the universal catholic church, and so he looked at the writing of the ancient fathers to test his interpretation of the Scriptures. The ancients had insight into the Scriptures, and so he sought to bring the church back in line with early church worship. Calvin continued the early church two-part liturgy: the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Upper Room. These were the only two means to bring grace to the people. Calvin was exiled from Geneva and ended up in Strasbourg for three years. In Strasbourg, he was influenced by the liturgy of Martin Bucer (which built upon elements of Luther’s liturgy). This liturgy was the one Calvin preferred but he could not get it accepted in

57 Geneva. 48The Strasbourg Liturgy had the key elements of worship, prayer, confession, singing of hymns, a simple and clear logic. It built upon the worship of the early church in its (1) call to worship (2) confession of sin, words of pardon, singing of the Ten Commandments, and prayers for illumination, and (3) the reading of Scripture and the sermon. The confession is found in the reader and a commentary is found in http://www.echohills.wso.net/Worship/Word.htm 1. Call to Worship – Scripture (God) 2. Confession of Sin (Man) A. Words of Pardon (God) B. Singing of the Ten Commandments, each commandment was followed by the Kyrie Eleison - “Lord have mercy...” (man) 3. Collect for Illumination A. Reading of Scripture (God) B. Sermon (God) C. Upper Room- 1. Calvin wanted to have weekly communion but he was rejected in Geneva. Even when he did not have communion, they used Justin Martyr’s practice of still having a Liturgy of the Upper Room. 2. Collection of alms, intercessions, Nunic Demitus, and Aaronic benediction. There is clear flow from God to man, and the “gospel logic” idea is used. When Calvin returned to Geneva, he used a similar liturgy.

4.4.1 Calvin and Written Prayers in Worship Calvin used the following forms of Prayer: Pardon (often common prayer), intercessory prayer, free prayer, and collect, which are short written prayers. Calvin also laid out what to pray for at the end of the sermon and then went straight into a bidding prayer of application. 4.4.2 The Use of the Psalter Calvin wrote the Geneva Psalter for use in worship. (It is still in use today.) He did allow for the Scripture to be sung. He nowhere says that psalms alone were to be sung. There were few

4848 Specifically Calvin wanted, but could not get, weekly communion and the assurance of Pardon as both were seen as being too close to catholic priestly ordinances (Chapell 46,47).

58 hymns and his position is unclear. The issue of hymns only really arose with the hymns of Watts and Wesley. When using hymns, Calvin stressed that the elders must get the congregation accustomed to the hymns and should not change them too frequently. Calvin rejected the use of instruments in worship, following the early church practice. This is still the tradition of the Greek Orthodox and the Scots Presbyterian Churches. They argue that instruments were only used in the temple and since the temple has been fulfilled in Christ, the use of instruments had also ended. Calvin held that right words support the right melody. There must be a correspondence between what we sing and how we sing it. Calvin also stressed the heart in worship. It is not enough to worship with the tongue, if we are not worshiping with the heart. In Psalm 50, Israel is perfectly observing the external, but their hearts are far from God. 4.4.3 The Reformers and the Church Calendar Earlier, we saw how the church calendar entered the church. The calendar was well established by the time of the Reformation in Catholic and Anglican circles. The Reformers rejected the calendars in favor of simple Sabbath Day worship. 4.5. John Knox and the Scottish Reformation Knox was influenced by Calvin and upon his return to Scotland, Knox sought to reform the church. He abolished the papal mass and rid the church of idolatry and religious images, ecclesiastic holidays, and other superstitions. Under Knox, Scotland underwent a complete reformation. The Scottish Psalter was the bond and liturgy over all Scotland.

4.6. English Puritan Influences49

The Puritans used the Middleburg liturgy. Under this liturgy all forms of prayer were written. It was a formal liturgy with written prayers.

5. Directory of Public Worship.

The Westminster Confession formulated two great principles of worship. First, it clearly defined the Regulative Principle of worship. Second, in the non-binding Directory of Public Worship, the Westminster divines laid down a rubric for worship with headings and suggestions for prayer, without including actual prayers as the prayer book had done. This second principle was a compromise between the Scottish Presbyterians and the Independents. The Presbyterians desired common prayer and a more formal liturgy. The Independents wanted free prayer. A compromise was had where a structure was given but not the actual words.

4949 For a discussion of the period and the Middleburg liturgy see Bard Thomson, 311- 341.

59 5.1. Directory Order of Service The Westminster Directory for public worship combines simplicity and reverent spirituality. The order of service is as follows: Call to Worship Prayer for Grace and Enlightenment Scripture Reading: OT Chapter NT Chapter Metrical Psalm Prayer of Confession and Intercession Preaching of the Word Prayer of Thanksgiving and Petition Lord's Prayer Metrical Psalm Benediction 50

6. The Independents – The Movement to a Free Liturgy

There was a growing movement in the church, which felt that the Reformed worship service violated freedom of conscience, and personal, experimental piety. Hodge argued, “[Liturgies] tend to formality and cannot be an adequate substitute for the warm outgoing of the heart moved by the spirit of genuine devotion” (“Presbyterian Liturgies” The Church and its Polity, 162.)

7. The American Revivals (1740- 1830’s)

The Great Awakenings in America lead to a new subjectivism in the church. The focus was now less on creeds, confession, and historic worship and more on personal man-centered expression. The test of the church in the Revivals was no longer whether the church had the scriptural marks of a true church; rather, the new basis for the church was linked to spiritual manifestation. The use of a confession and written prayers was rejected as a dead orthodoxy. The

5050 Alan Clifford, What is Worship, 7

60 trend towards hymns was reinforced. The trend of making worship more evangelistic, thus less focused on the church itself, continued. Finney introduced the altar call to worship services. This began in revival services, but then was added to the standard liturgy in the church in the 1830’s and continued after that time. The stress on alter-calls, or re-dedication of the faithful, pushed out the regular celebration of the Lord’s Supper. Under revivalism, worship was redefined around reaching the lost, rather than the church worshiping God. 8. The Pentecostal Movement- Gifts and Tongues in Worship The Pentecostal movement stresses the spontaneous unstructured spirit-filled worship. In Pentecostal circles, there is a repeated stress on the need for the Spirit, leading to repeated calls upon the Spirit to be present. Reformed worship has always agreed that we are to ask the Spirit to draw near to us, but it also affirms that all believers have the Spirit and so they and they only can worship. Pentecostalism also stresses the work of the Spirit in the present, his immediate action without considering past history of the spirit working in the church. The focus on the direct and immediate action of God in by the Spirit has also reduces the importance of the teaching and the preaching of the word. The fact that the Spirit inspired the scriptures, and that God speaks to us through the scriptures is downplayed.

Conclusion

All churches are liturgical. The difference lies in the structure of the service; some are more formal, while others are considered free. The form of our liturgy must be consistent with our theology. We share the gospel through our order of service. Luther, Calvin, and Knox favored a liturgy that reflected the simplicity and beliefs of our early church fathers.

61 Lesson Six Questions

1. Where do we find the term liturgy in Scripture?

2. All churches have a liturgy. Discuss.

3. What do we mean by Rubrical Provision for worship?

4. Why, according to Terry Johnson, is the history of worship important?

5. What are some central paradigms in worship?

6. Explain the concept of gospel cycles.

7. What is the link between Early Church and Reformed worship? Cite Calvin’s position.

8. What were the two main divisions of the Justin Martyr’s liturgy?

9. What is the Reformed position on the church calendar?

10. Outline the order of worship in the Westminster Directory.

62 Lesson 7: The Lord’s Day

The Sabbath day plays an important part in worship. In the Old Testament, God set aside the seventh day, the last day of the week, for worship. The cycle was work pointing to rest. The Sabbath day reminded Israel that God was both her Creator and Savior. Jesus showed Himself to be the Lord of the Sabbath, He rose again on the first day, and as savior He brought in the new creation. Consequently, the church, in Acts, began to worship God on the first day of the week, the Lord’s Day.

1. The Old Testament Sabbath

1.1. The Sabbath in Creation

The Sabbath is a creation ordinance. In Genesis 2:1-3 we read, Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them, were finished. And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work that God had created and made. God did not need to rest; rather, God treated this day differently. He sanctified it and blessed it. The word 'Sabbath' means to cease or rest from labor. This points to God declaring that His creation is full and complete; the act of creation would not happen again. The Sabbath also indicates God’s looking back and contemplating, taking pleasure in His work. God’s resting gives men an example so that they too might rest. Jesus says the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. The Sabbath was made to give us rest. In verse three, we are told that God “blessed and sanctified it.” To bless something is to make it able to do that for which it was created. The word is used of the animals. They were to multiply and God gave them the ability to do that. In the same way, God blesses the Sabbath making it special, able to do what it is intended to do, to give men rest. This is both a physical and a spiritual rest. God also “sanctified” the day. In Leviticus and the temple instructions, this word refers to setting something aside from common everyday use to be used only for God (Chantry 20). God set the Sabbath aside from the other days of the week that it might be separate and used for rest and worship. The Sabbath is also a type; pointing to the promise that after working God would give man true rest. We will consider typology later.

1.2. The Sabbath and the Fourth Commandment

63 God repeats the need to keep the Sabbath in the fourth of the Ten Commandments. “Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the LORD your God commanded you. (13) Six days you shall labor and do all your work,(14) but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the LORD your God. In it you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your female servant, nor your ox, nor your donkey, nor any of your cattle, nor your stranger who is within your gates, that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you. (15) And remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you out from there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm; therefore the LORD your God commanded you to keep the Sabbath day (Deut. 5:12ff). 1.2.1. Two Reasons for the Sabbath In Exodus, God says, For in six days the LORD made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it (Exod. 20:11). Here the Sabbath is a witness to creation. In the Deuteronomy passage above, God links the Sabbath to His salvation. Israel must remember that they were slaves in Egypt and God brought them out by His hand. The Sabbath explicitly relates to both creation and redemption. Israel is to fulfill the Sabbath. In so doing, she acknowledges God as Creator and Redeemer. To deny the Sabbath denies both of these truths. The commandment tells us we are not to work on the day, and those in authority are commanded to ensure that no one else under their authority, their families, their cattle, and any strangers, including non-Israelites, worked. Nehemiah rebuked Israel for working on the Sabbath day, and he was forced to defend the Sabbath against outsiders who wanted to come in and undermine Israel’s Sabbath-keeping by buying and selling on the Sabbath day (Neh. 13:15-23). We are not to work or to encourage others to work on the Sabbath. Example in the Wilderness We can see what God thinks of work on the Sabbath as we look at how God provided manna for the children of Israel in the wilderness. From Exodus 16:15-27, we learn the following principles: (1) God wants us to work six days, and rest on the Sabbath. (2) God provided manna on the six days, but not on the seventh, which indicates that we are to rest on the Sabbath. (3) Although no manna was provided on the seventh day, what was given to the Israelites on the other six days was enough to cover day seven. We can rest confidently on the Sabbath knowing that God will provide. (4) When the children of Israel went out to collect the manna on the Sabbath, the Lord was angry with them, just as He is angry with us when we break the Sabbath. God shows the seriousness of the Sabbath command in the story of the man collecting firewood on the Sabbath (Num. 15:32-36). 1.3. A Type of Eternal Rest

The Sabbath is a type: something that looks forward to a greater fulfillment. The Sabbath day points to the reality that there will be an eternal rest in Christ. As a type it has a cycle; first obedience and then rest. From the feasts of the Old Testament, the Sabbaths and Jubilees, and from the book of Hebrews, we see that the Sabbath pointed forward to the eternal rest of God.

64 Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it. For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. For we who have believed do enter that rest, as He has said “So I swore in My wrath ‘They shall not enter My rest,’ ” although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. For He has spoken in a certain place of the seventh day in this way: “And God rested on the seventh day from all His works”; and again in this place: “They shall not enter My rest” (Heb. 4:1-4). The typology of the Sabbath means that, in Christ, the rest has already come and yet not fully come. Hebrews clearly states that we still look forward to entering into God’s rest. The Sabbath typology is reinforced through the feast day cycles. There was a weekly Sabbath, a Sabbath once every seven years (Lev. 25:1-7), and a seven-year cycle of Sabbaths, seven sevens (Lev. 25:8- 22). The Jewish year was full of Sabbaths, each pointing these ended in rest for the people of God. The climax was the great Jubilee in the 50th year. The Jubilee was a time of liberty, a time where debts were canceled. Isaiah speaks of the great Jubilee in Isaiah 61:1-3. Jesus uses these verses to proclaim His own ministry in Luke 4:18, 19. The Old Testament Sabbath are fulfilled in Jesus’ coming.

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, (19) to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (Luke 4:18,19).

Sabbaths principles structured the whole of the Old Testament year, The Sabbath principles pictured here are as follows: 1. The Jubilee followed the Old Testament structure of work and then rest. 2. The Sabbath pointed forward to liberty. 3. The Sabbath Jubilee is fulfilled in Christ’s work. It is Christ who brings in the great Jubilee (Luke 4). 4. The Sabbaths and Jubilees are types, pointing forward to the great blessings God will bring. 1.4. The Internal Heart Attitude of the Sabbath (Isaiah 58:13, 14)

The internal nature of the Sabbath, that it points to an attitude of the heart under the Old Covenant is seen in Isaiah 58:13, 14. “If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, From doing your pleasure on My holy day, And call the Sabbath a delight, The holy day of the LORD honorable, And shall honor Him, not doing your own ways, Nor finding your own pleasure, Nor speaking your own words, (14)Then you shall delight yourself in the LORD; And I will cause you to ride on the high hills of the earth, And feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father. The mouth of the LORD has spoken.”

65 1.4.1. The Context

In Isaiah, the people of God were complaining that God was not responding to them. God said to them that the reason He was not blessing them was due to the fact that they were only legally and externally following the Sabbath. This made them legalists and hypocrites. They were living in sin, they were oppressing workers, and they were not seeking God and His own name. God challenged Israel to stop being “formal” Sabbath observers and to use the day as He intended. If they would set it apart, He would set it apart to be a blessing. He would come to them in grace, light would break out, and they would call and He would answer. Pipa 51 notes that God argued with them both negatively and positively.

1.4.2. The Negative (Isaiah 58:13)

The Lord tells Israel that she must stop doing her own thing on the Sabbath. She must turn [her] foot from doing [her] own pleasure on My holy day. Instead of pleasing ourselves, we are to please Him, and do His will. So often we either do what we want on this day, putting our interests before the Lord’s, or we waste the day. Both sides are wrong. Common ways in which we honor our own desires include choosing to work on the Sabbath, studying for a test or completing homework on the Sabbath, or playing or watching sports and/or other entertainment. (Most professional sports schedule events happen on Sundays.)

1.4.3. The Positive (Isaiah 58:14)

God goes on to promise particular blessings for His people on the Sabbath if men would be careful to observe the Sabbath. 1. God would help them to delight in Himself. 2. They would rise on the high hills of the earth. 3. He will feed them with the heritage of Jacob, their father. 1. The phrase to ‘delight in the Lord', reminds a believer that God is his treasure. We can and should love Him. As we seek Him, He will cause us to delight in Him. He will increase our love for Him. In Psalm 100, the psalmist comes into God’s house and shouts for joy. 2. The High places of the earth represent spiritual victory. Moses speaks of this victory in Deuteronomy 33:29, “Happy are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the LORD, The shield of your help And the sword of your majesty! Your enemies shall submit to you, And you shall tread down their high places.”

5151 Sermonaudio.com- The Lord’s Day

66 The treading down of the high places represents the victory over idols in Israel’s life. It points to the victory we will have spiritually, in our lives and the lives of the church, over Satan and the world. The Sabbath is a means of strength and grace. In many cases the church is weak because she has denied the means to a blessing, so she will not have victory. She will lack spiritual strength. 3. A feast is a place of joy, a place of shared fellowship. “I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your Father” is a phrase that reminds us of the gospel of grace, the promises that were made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (that the seed should come and give forgiveness), and the outpouring of the Spirit. These promises include the spiritual and physical blessings for His people.

1.4.4. The Mouth of the Lord Has Spoken

With the mouth of Jehovah I have spoken. This is an exclamation made to emphasize God’s faithfulness on important promises. God knows we tend to treat the day lightly, and we tend to forget its importance (Chantry 18). He wants this day to be honored. This is the essence of the fourth commandment.

2. The New Testament Understanding of the Sabbath

The New Covenant builds upon the Old Covenant idea of the Sabbath. Because the law given to Israel is fulfilled in Christ, we can say that Jesus brings in the Sabbath rest, or that Jesus has authority over the Sabbath. The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath and therefore we can speak of it as the 'Lord's Day'.

2.1. Jesus' Example and Teaching on the Sabbath

Jesus affirmed the Sabbath day. Jesus sought to uphold the Sabbath day, and free it from Jewish legalism. He rejected the legalistic rule-based, hair splitting of the Pharisees who had made the Sabbath a burden. Jesus focused on the reality that the Sabbath was to do good to man. Jesus took pains to correctly interpret the Old Testament principles as they were fulfilled in His life and in the coming of the Kingdom of God. Jesus’ attitude to the Sabbath can be seen in Luke 6:1ff: Now it happened on the second Sabbath after the first that He went through the grainfields. And His disciples plucked the heads of grain and ate them, rubbing them in their hands. (2) And some of the Pharisees said to them, “Why are you doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath?” (3) But Jesus answering them said, “Have you not even read this, what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him 4) how he went into the house of God, took and ate the showbread, and also gave some to those with him, which is not lawful for any but the priests to eat?” (5) And He said to them, “The Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath.” (6) Now it happened on another Sabbath, also, that He entered the synagogue and taught. And a man was there whose right hand was 67 withered. (7) So the scribes and Pharisees watched Him closely, whether He would heal on the Sabbath, that they might find an accusation against Him. (8) But He knew their thoughts, and said to the man who had the withered hand, “Arise and stand here.” And he arose and stood. (9) Then Jesus said to them, “I will ask you one thing: Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy?” (10)And when He had looked around at them all, He said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” And he did so, and his hand was restored as whole as the other. (11) But they were filled with rage, and discussed with one another what they might do to Jesus. From the above and from other examples in His life, Jesus used the day to worship, to rest, and to do good works. Jesus was found in the synagogues, worshiping and teaching on the Sabbath (Mark 1:21; 6:2). On a number of occasions, Jesus healed the sick on the Sabbath Day (Mark 3:2,4). On the Sabbath, Jesus did many works of mercy and kindness. The Sabbath represents the blessing of the new kingdom, so we positively should be doing good, doing God’s works. This would involve visiting the sick, the poor, the hungry, and being a blessing to those who do not have (as represented by the miracles of Jesus). Jesus also drew His disciples aside to rest on that day. Jesus claims to have authority to interpret and act on the Sabbath day, because as he says, “The Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath” (Matt. 12:8). While the Old Testament warns us to keep the Sabbath in a negative way, Jesus’ life and ministry are a positive example of how the Sabbath and the Lord’s Day are to be kept. The reality is that if we did the positive things, similar to what Jesus did, worship, kingdom mercy and rest, we would not need the negative warnings. When the Sabbath is expressed as a positive duty to follow Christ, how can a Christian have a negative view of the Sabbath? And He said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath” (Mark 2:27). The Westminster Confession speaks of not working, except for works of necessity and mercy (WCF 21.8).

2.2. The Change in the Sabbath Day

Under the old covenant, the whole creation including Adam was a type pointing towards a greater fulfillment. Adam failed, but Jesus the second Adam finished the test. He rose, not on the last day but on the first day of the week. In Jesus, the Old Covenant is fulfilled; the old cycle has been replaced. Jesus brings the eternal rest to the people of God. As we still live in the old creation, we have not yet fully entered into that rest (Heb. 4:10). We are still waiting and that means that we still work, but in contrast to the old creation, we now start with rest, and then we work. The Old Covenant type was work pointing to rest, the New Covenant type is rest, already achieved in Jesus, before work. By worshiping on the first day of the week, the Lord’s Day parallels the two reasons for the fourth commandment. In keeping the Sabbath day holy, we confess that Jesus is the Creator. He made the original creation and more importantly, His resurrection brings in the new creation of God. We also affirm that Jesus is the Redeemer, the one who saves. Building upon the typology we spoke of earlier, Palmer Robertson states: “…the resurrection of Christ signifies an event which even surpasses God’s original creation activity. In

68 the Resurrection, God brought into final fulfillment His creative/redemptive program. The original creation launched the world. But the resurrection creation brought the world to its destined perfection” (Christ of the Covenants, 20). Jesus rose on the first day of the week. He met with the disciples on the evening of the first day of the week (John 20:19). Jesus then waited a full week, and on the first day of that week, revealed Himself to Thomas (John 20:26). The early church understood this, and so in Acts we are told they stopped worshiping on the seventh day and began to worship on the first day of the week. Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them and continued his message until midnight (Acts 20:7). Paul had arrived at Troas on the previous Monday or Tuesday (see v. 6) and waited until the first day of the week, the day before his departure, before joining with the believers. Luke shows that it was the common practice for the church to gather together on the first day of the week. In 1Corinthians 16:2, Paul says to the church in Corinth, On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come. John received his revelation on the Lord’s Day, and in Revelations 1:10 he says, “I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet.” We see from this text that the church met together on this day, specifically to worship as a church. For an extended discussion of this topic, see Chantry 82-96.

2.3. The Sabbath in the New Testament/ Gentile Culture.

What happens if we are Christians in a culture that does not have a special day of rest; will God judge us for not keeping the Lord’s Day? How did the early church interpret the Lord’s day? We answer this in two ways: 1) They did what they could do and 2) they saw the Sabbath in Israel as pointing to the Christian Sabbath. As they could, they tried to implement the Sabbath principles. It is important to understand this in countries that have anti-Christians principles. The national sins might prevent persons from resting and worshiping as they would like. God understands this and wants His church to do the best it can under those circumstances. He knows that the church is not Israel under the Old Testament and so He desires that she do what she can do. In Acts 20 (above), the implication is that the church met in the evening. This might have been because the church could not meet during the day. In countries that do not have a Sabbath day/Lord’s Day rest, believers lose the great blessing of the Lord’s Day.

2.4. Practical Sabbath Keeping

How can we keep the Sabbath? What things do we need to think about in order to keep the day special to the Lord? Acts 20:7 shows us it is a day to join in corporate worship, to spend time together with the brethren. We should prepare our hearts before going to worship. We can use our homes for family worship. If there is time, we should use the day especially to be a 69 blessing to our children. Seek things that make the day special and interesting, tell the Bible stories at home by acting them out. Make the day special by having special family treats. Finally, we ought to use the day for hospitality to other Christians, seeking ways to benefit the poor, the needy, visiting the sick, and helping those in need. Worship should spill over from the Sabbath into the rest of the week (Acts 2:42-46). The Sabbath, with corporate worship, strengthens us in order that we might be charged to live through the next week until we meet again as a group corporately upon the Sabbath (fullness of worship).

Conclusion

God has set apart one day a week to focus on worship, rest and doing good works. In the Old Testament it was the seventh day; in the New Testament it is the first day of the week. The keeping of the day is a statement to God and to the world that He is the creator and that He is our Redeemer. On this day we are to rest. We are to make others rest whom we have responsibility for. We are to worship, we are to delight ourselves in the Lord, and we are to do the good works of the kingdom.

70 Lesson Seven Questions

1. What is the first mention of God resting in the Bible? What is the importance of the passage?

2. What are the two reasons given for the Sabbath in the Ten Commandments?

3. What does the fourth commandment say about working on the Sabbath day?

4. What do we learn from the manna in the wilderness?

5. What do we mean when we say that the Sabbath is a type? What does it typify?

6. What Old Testament passage points to the spiritual nature of Sabbath under the Old Covenant?

7. What things did Jesus do on the Sabbath day? Why do we now call it the Lord’s Day?

8. What verse shows when the early church used to worship?

9. Why has the Sabbath been switched to the first day of the week?

10. How is the church in non-Christian cultures to keep the Lord's Day?

71 Lesson Eight: The Sacraments and Worship

This lesson considers how we are to worship God through the two New Covenant signs, baptism and the Lord’s Supper.52 We will begin by stressing certain foundational relationships between the New Covenant and the sacraments and then go on to specific applications for the Lord’s Supper and Covenant theology.

1. Foundational Principles

While worship is to be in spirit and in truth, God chose to give tangible and visible signs of Christ’s blessings, in the New Covenant to the church. The preaching of the Word and the sacraments all point to Christ. The preached word does not show one part of the gospel and the sacraments another part. In worship the Word, the Sacraments, and prayer (the ordinary means of grace), all point to Christ and the gospel. The sacraments, baptism and the Lord’s Supper, are the signs and seals of the covenant. The principle distinction is that the Word speaks to us and the sacraments demonstrate in a physical way what the Word tells us. The sacraments proclaim the gospel to all of our senses. The sacraments are commanded by Jesus, baptism is Matthew 28:1,18,19 and the Lord’s Supper in Matthew 26:26-29 and Luke 22:14 1.1. The Close Relationship between the Word and the Sacraments In the Scriptures, the Word and the sacraments are to be joined. We never have the sacraments without some word of explanation. When Christ gave the Lord’s Supper in the upper room, He explained what He was doing to the disciples. In this act, Christ linked the Word with the sacraments. We should follow His example.

When the hour had come, He sat down, and the twelve apostles with Him. (15) Then He said to them, “With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; (16) for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” (17) Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, “Take this and divide it among yourselves; (18) for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” (19) And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” (20) Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the New Covenant in My blood, which is shed for you. (21) But behold, the hand of My betrayer

5252 In this lesson, our focus is upon using the sacrament in worship, not upon the theology of the sacraments themselves. We recognize that this is an impossible distinction as our understanding of the theology of the sacraments will affect the way we use them in worship. For instance; if we hold to a Romans Catholic view of the Lord’s Supper as a sacrifice and transubstantiation, the changing of the elements into Christ’s actual body and blood, then we will put the sacrifice of the Mass in the center of worship. Everything will be built around the Mass and its power to forgive. However, if we see the supper as just a memorial, a witness to Christ rather than something that gives grace, then we will minimize its importance. The Reformed position is that the sacraments are means of grace, that by faith, the truths in the sacraments do give grace through the Holy Spirit.

72 is with Me on the table. And truly the Son of Man goes as it has been determined, but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed” (Luke 22:14ff)! Jesus gives them the wine and clearly explains that the wine points to His shed blood under the New Covenant. The breaking of bread also points to Christ giving His body and it being broken for sinners on the cross. The sacraments explain the gospel, they are the gospel in visible form and when we administer the sacraments, like Christ we should explain who they communicate the gospel message to believers. If Jesus had not explained the symbolism of the bread and the wine, the disciples would not have realized the significance. The church today should also explain the sacraments. The Word gives meaning to the sacraments. Only through the Word can we properly understand it. The Word helps us to understand the sacraments, and they in turn, in a very physical way, help us to understand the Word. The two are intertwined, and they should not be separated. In Communion, the Word and the explanation of what is happening in the sacraments should not be separated. When leading a Communion service, the elder should carefully explain what is happening each time the sacraments are performed. 1.2. The Nature and Symbolism of the Grace in the Sacrament

The Word and the sacraments point to the same thing, Christ and New Covenant. The grace given through the sacraments is the same grace as given through the Word. As we listen to the Word by faith, the Spirit takes the things of Christ and applies them to us. In the same way, as we take the sacrament, the Spirit takes the things of Christ and applies them to us. The fact that the grace is the same should be stressed. We do not get Christ in a different way or in another form in the sacraments. The Lord’s Supper and baptism are the gospel in picture form. They show, by the physical elements, the person and work of Christ. 1.3. The Covenantal Nature of the Sacraments

Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are signs of the New Covenant, joining the church to Christ.53 In baptism we are joined to Christ, 54 in the Lord’s Supper we feed on Him.55 We show our ongoing commitment to the covenant in the Lord’s Supper. The covenant undergirds and frames these two ordinances. The sacraments bind us to Christ and His work. In the sacraments,

5353The two Old Covenant signs of Circumcision and Passover are now replaced by the two New Covenant signs of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. 54 Westminster Confession of Faith: 28:1. Baptism is a sacrament of the New Testament, ordained by Jesus Christ, not only for the solemn admission of the party baptized into the visible Church; but also to be unto him a sign and seal of the covenant of grace, of his engrafting into Christ, of regeneration, of remission of sins, and of his giving up unto God, through Jesus Christ, to walk in the newness of life. 55 Westminster Confession of Faith: 29:1….for the perpetual remembrance of the sacrifice of Himself in His death; the sealing all benefits thereof unto true believers, their spiritual nourishment and growth in Him, their further engagement in and to all duties which they owe unto Him; and, to be a bond and pledge of their communion with Him, and with each other, as members of His mystical body.

73 God puts forward the grace of the New Covenant. Believers are to take the sacraments by faith as a sign that they are in covenant with God.

2. The Lord’s Supper in Worship

We turn now to a number of practical aspects of administering the Lord’s Supper. 2.1. The Names of the Supper

The Lord’s Supper is called three things in the Scriptures: the Eucharist, the Breaking of Bread and the Table of the Lord (1Cor.10:21). Each name emphasizes a different aspect of the Supper. During Communion, we should stress each of these aspects. Paul calls the supper, the Eucharist, which means the table of thanksgiving or gratitude to God. This name reminds us to give our thanks to God for His kindness. The term the “Table of the Lord” focuses us upon the fact that it is a meal, a communal meal for all of God’s people, and that it is, and was instituted to be, directed toward the Lord. It is His supper. The third term is the “Breaking of Bread” (Luke 22:20ff; Acts 2:42-44) and this emphasizes the sacrificial aspect of the Supper, the giving of Christ for His people. His denial and self-sacrifice are at the heart of Christ’s work in the New Covenant. 2.2. The Supper in the Service

The Supper is part of the same service as the Word. The early church had two liturgies, the Word and the Sacrament. The Liturgy of the Upper Room was added at the end of the service as a separate event for those who were part of the church. We must be careful how we separate the Supper from the rest of the service. Since the focus of both liturgies is the same, Christ and the New Covenant, the two liturgies should be joined as closely as possible with a seamless transition from one to the other. Any radical breaks give the appearance that the natures of the two parts of the service accomplish two different functions. The Lord’s Supper is a meal. The Supper is a body of believers joining together in the presence of Christ. The order and structure of the service should reflect this. The meal of Christ replaces the typological meal of the Passover given to Israel. In the supper, the participants eat and drink in Christ’s presence. The meal indicates intimate fellowship with Christ and with other Christians, one body in Him with many members. The meal setting or aspects of the Supper should be maintained as much as we can. We change the meal when we go forward to get the Supper (as is common in some churches) because the meal becomes focused upon the sacrificial and priestly elements. There should be consistency between the sign and the reality that the meal signifies. We break the bread, symbolizing the breaking of Christ’s body, we give thanks and we eat.

74 Christ leads the congregation through His ministers. The minister is Christ's representative, leading the congregation to see, by faith, the communion with Christ and with one another. We celebrate the Supper upon Christ’s command (1 Cor. 11). Christ instructs us to partake in remembrance of Him. As Christ’s supper, His heart is shown in it. The supper also stresses Christ’s deepest desire to be with His people. In Luke 20:15 He states, “With fervent desire I have desired to eat the supper with you.” It is His great desire to eat with them; it is His great desire to eat with us. He loves us so much He gave His life for the sheep. The Supper is for the saints. In response, the church joins to testify of Christ and her relationship to Him. The Lord's Supper is an ongoing public profession by the church that she is waiting upon Christ’s return. It shows that Christ feeds His sheep; He provides what they need. As a supper, it is to be taken in communion with others (1 Cor. 11: 20). The Supper shows our communion and union in the covenant of grace. It is a communal gathering; the supper should not be celebrated in private unless absolutely necessary due to sickness or other reason. The Supper points both backwards and forwards, and this dual nature should be stressed. The Supper points us back to the death of Christ on the cross, but it also points us forwards to the coming wedding feast, the final joyful communion with Christ. Then He said to them, “With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God. … But you are those who have continued with Me in My trials. And I bestow upon you a kingdom, just as My Father bestowed one upon Me, that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel”(Luke 22: 15,28). Currently, we eat by faith. Christ is not in our midst, but we enter into fellowship with Him and receive the blessing by faith. When Jesus returns, we will then eat and drink with Him by sight. We will see Him and eat and drink with Him face to face. The Supper is an ongoing command, indicating the ongoing, daily need to feed upon Christ. The implication of this is just as we are daily dependent upon food, even so we are daily dependent upon Christ. The service is to remind the church of the past memorial aspect, the present need to feed upon Christ for grace, and the future eschatological facet of the Supper. 2.3. The Fencing of the Table

When Paul addresses the Corinthians, he warns them of taking the Supper in an unworthy manner. In 1 Corinthians 11 he states:

Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. (28) But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.(29) For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. (30) For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep. (31) For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. (32)But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world (I Cor. 11: 27-32).

75 2.3.1. The Warning

Due to the specific command to be prepared, it is common for churches to warn the congregation the week before communion is celebrated. This is to stress that before any of the congregation partakes of the Supper, they are to examine themselves so they do not take the Supper unworthily. Each member is to consider his or her own heart. 2.3.2. The Nature of the Examination

The minister should stress that the examination is to consider our spiritual state. Paul tells us that we must not eat and drink unworthily. What does Paul mean by “in an unworthy manner”? We are all unworthy, so Paul does not mean we can only eat if we have no sin. That is to deny the gospel and the nature of the table. The table is a table for sinners. If we hate and are repenting of our sin, this should drive us to the table for grace, not away from it. The Supper, Christ’s shed blood and broken body, is for sinners, those who desire pardon and the strength to forsake their sins.

To take unworthily is to take the Supper in an unrepentant manner, knowing that we have unconfessed sin. This is to deny Christ’s work for us, our obligation to be the Lord's, and the need to walk in a worthy manner. The key test for us is, Are we repenting of our sin or not? If not, do not take the Supper. But, if we are repenting, we need to come to the Supper for forgiveness and pardon. While the gospel and the Supper both teach Christ and the New Covenant, we can sit under the Word without making any formal statement of our commitment. When we come to the table, we are making an open, formal and public covenantal commitment. We are the Lord's. This added factor calls us to closer self-examination. 2.3.3. The Consequences of Taking the Supper in an Unworthy Manner

Paul warns that if we take the Supper in an unworthy manner, we eat and drink judgment on ourselves. This includes sickness, weakness, and even death.

This is a covenantal warning. As with God’s covenant with Israel, if we are in the covenant we must act consistently within the covenant. If we live in an unworthy manner and still try to proclaim Christ, He may come to us in judgment in order that we might repent. 2.4. The Supper and the Poor

The early church always took a collection for the poor when they followed the Liturgy of the Upper Room. This was carried into the Directory of Public Worship in the Westminster Confession. The logic seems to be the need to look after the whole congregation in worship. In any congregation, there are those who have financial needs, to take the Supper and ignore those needs is to fail to love the body and so to deny an essential component of the Supper.

76 2.5. The Frequency of the Supper

As we have already indicated, food should be eaten regularly so the symbolism points to regular participation. “As often as you do this” implies frequency. Calvin elected for weekly communion. The Westminster Confession stresses the Supper should be celebrated frequently.

Some argue that taking the supper too frequently leads to the supper being taken too lightly, and therefore, we should take it less frequently. They claim that intensity is more important than frequency. The Supper, though, is a means of grace from God. It is not our intensity that matters; it is God’s bringing His grace to us in Christ that matters. It is a supper, not a special feast, and so it should be taken regularly. How regularly is a matter for the church to decide. 3. The Covenant Sign of Baptism

Baptism is the second covenant sign. The relationship between the covenant and baptism should be stressed. Baptism points to union with Christ and entry into the covenant community. In Acts, we see that baptism was applied to individuals, for example, the Ethiopian Eunuch of Acts 8, and to groups like Lydia and her household and the jailer and his household. In baptism, we join Christ, and the body, the church; therefore, if possible, baptism should be done in the presence of the whole covenantal community. 3.2. Baptism as a Profession of Faith

Baptism is a profession of faith. At Pentecost, Peter commanded the Jews too repent and be baptized. They were to repent from their sin of crucifying Christ, and they were to be baptized into His name (Acts 2:38). Baptism stressed that they believed Jesus was Messiah and they joined Him in faith. The same is true of the gentiles. They were to repent of their idolatry and be baptized into Christ's name, showing they now followed the true and living God.

Jesus says we are to baptize in the name (singular) of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit (three persons) (Matt. 28:20). In Acts, baptisms were often just administered in the name of Jesus. Each church was flexible in the way they baptized. It is usual to baptize into the full name of the Trinity. Baptism is to be administered by sprinkling or pouring, reflecting the outpouring of the Spirit on Pentecost. It is a profession of faith in Christ and union with Him. The Directory of Public Worship tells us we are to be constantly improving our baptism, by taking the promises of baptism and applying them by faith. The idea that baptism is not just a single event, but represents the living union with Christ for the duration of one's life should be taught to the person being baptized. This should also be taught to the church from time to time, and it should be taught to both the church and the candidate during a baptism service.

77 3.3. Infant Baptism The doctrine of infant baptism, the doctrine of the covenant and the fact of God’s working through households are found throughout the whole of the Old and New Testaments.56 In this short summary, we will begin by considering the doctrine from the Old Testament and then will apply it in the context of the New Covenant. In the Garden of Eden, God was gracious and blessed Adam with a family. Sin entered and disrupted the family. While sin disrupts the good of the created order, God’s grace in undoing sin works with God’s creation. God’s grace works against sin, not against nature. In Genesis, we see God’s grace running through the line of Adam and Seth. Also, Noah is saved from the flood along with his entire household. In the Abrahamic Covenant, God makes a covenant with Abraham and his offspring. The covenant passage is divided into two parts. First, in Genesis 17:1-6 God gives Abraham the covenant to strengthen his already existing faith. The covenant acts as a sign of his faith, to strengthen him.

When Abram was ninety-nine years old the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless, (2) that I may make my covenant between me and you, and may multiply you greatly.” (3) Then Abram fell on his face. And God said to him, (4) “Behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be the father of a multitude of nations. (5) No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham, for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations. (6) I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make you into nations, and kings shall come from you (Gen. 17:1-6). In second the section, the sign is also given to his whole household, including all future children who are eight days old. The sign is to be administered to them, even though they do not yet have faith.

And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you. (8) And I will give to you and to your offspring after you the land of your sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession, and I will be their God.” (9) And God said to Abraham, “As for you, you shall keep my covenant, you and your offspring after you throughout their generations. (10) This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. (11) You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you. (12) He who is eight days old among you shall be circumcised. Every male throughout your generations, whether born in your house or bought with your money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring, (13) both he who is born in your house and he who is bought with your money, shall surely be circumcised. So shall my covenant be in your flesh an everlasting covenant (Gen. 17:7-13).

The sign of the covenant is applied to both Abraham and his household. The term household had a broader meaning than just his natural children. It included all his servants and others brought into the household.

56 Infant baptism is an outworking of Covenant Theology. For Covenant Theology see Julian Zugg/MINTS/ENGLISH 78 The external act of circumcision pointed to an internal reality, a changed heart that loved God and followed His commandments. Moses said that he wished Israel would circumcise their hearts.

Circumcise therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stubborn (Deut. 10:16). Moses also notes that Israel will receive those blessings when God comes and restores them (in the new covenant). God, Himself, promises to circumcise their hearts and the hearts of their children.

And the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live. (Deut. 30:6). Circumcision was a promise by God that He would be Abraham’s God. Abraham believed Him and received the promises. All his seed/household who were circumcised still had to believe. The sign of circumcision, the promises of God had to responded to by faith. The mere sign alone does not change them. The promise that God would be their God and their children’s God is repeated to Israel in the New Covenant, along with the demand that Israel and the church respond by faith. When Peter preaches to Israel at Pentecost he says:

“Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (39) For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself” (Acts 2:38,39). The promise refers to the gift of the internal work of the Holy Spirit, the content and the fulfillment of the promise made to Abraham. This promise included their children as well. Paul makes the link between circumcision and the work of the Spirit in Philippians 3:2 and Colossians 2. Speaking to the church in Philippi, he says, “For we are the circumcision, who worship by the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh.” Paul applies the term circumcision to the church, both Jews and gentiles, and says that it is fulfilled in the internal work of the Spirit. We get the same picture of circumcision as a powerful work of God in the hearts of believers in Colossians 2.

In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, (12) having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead (Col. 2:11,12). God says to the church, that He, Himself, has circumcised those who were formally unregenerate, both Jew and gentile, according to the promise made to Abraham (Gal. 3:8; Deut 30:6).57 It is God who circumcised them, and the promise made to Abraham is now applied to the church.

57 And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed” (Gal. 3:8). 79 To summarize the argument thus far: 1) circumcision pointed to an internal work of God in the Spirit, changing their hearts, 2) it was for Abraham and his children 3) the promise is now applied to the church in the New Testament. Colossians also shows the link between circumcision and baptism. Circumcision pointed to God’s work in the heart. The blood pointed to Christ’s own death upon the cross. Now that Christ has come, circumcision is fulfilled. Christ has shed His blood. In the New Covenant, we are now united to God by baptism, and the Spirit works in our hearts. The Old Testament sign of circumcision is replaced by baptism. In the book of Acts, we see the continuation of the household principle that God’s grace works in and through households, along with the idea of the replacement of circumcision with baptism. Over half the baptisms in the book of Acts are household baptisms, rather than just personal baptisms (Acts 2:38; Pentecost, 10:48; Cornelius and Lydia, 16:15; the jailer, 16:33; Crispus, 18:8; not in Acts but relevant, Stephaus’ household, 1 Cor.1:16) . We are not asserting that everyone in the household believed, but that household baptism was the usual practice, one that followed the Old Covenant promise to Abraham, and that promise is to the believers and their households. We illustrate this from two key events: the conversion of the Philippian jailer and the conversion of Lydia.

One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul. (15) And after she was baptized, and her household as well (Acts 16:14,15). Lydia is converted, and she along with all her household, is baptized. The promise made to Abraham, is now made to this gentile family, in baptism. God would be her God and the God of her entire household. In this case, we are not told anything about her family. We don’t know if they believed or not. We only are certain that they were baptized. In the case of the Philippian jailer, also a gentile, we see the same pattern. He is told to believe and that he and his household would be saved.

Then he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” (31) And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.” And they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house….. (33) And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their wounds; and he was baptized at once, he and all his family (Acts 16:30-33).

What does Baptism Mean? Baptism is a promise of God, the gospel in picture form. There are two ways that baptism works. To believers like Abraham and Lydia, it acts as a sign and seal of the covenant, that they are united to God’s promises, now revealed in Christ’s death and resurrection, and that they share in the blessings of the New Covenant. To the children of believers, it represents God’s promise which those children must take by faith. God assures them that if they believe, they will receive the fulfillment of promises made to Abraham.

80 It is a promise given to the family, and as the family is part of the church, it is also given to the church. Children of believers are part of the church, and so they too share in its promises and are assisted by them. In the negative, it is not a promise that all will be saved. God loved Jacob, but hated Esau, Jacob’s twin, although both were in the Abrahamic covenant through Isaac. The story of Jacob and Esau also warns us not to presume that all children are saved because they are in the covenant (Rom. 9:13). Only the elect will come to faith. It is both a comfort to parents that God delights to work through households, yet also an exhortation that they are to teach and plead with their children to believe. Because baptism is principle to God’s covenantal promises, it can be valid even though it was administered by someone not understanding what it is, or from a different church, so long as the church is not heretical. Further, since baptism is a covenant promise by God, properly administered, baptism should only be given once. God’s valid promise does not depend upon us to understand it or receive it at that time. The benefit of baptism comes when we receive it by faith. Jacob, the founder of Israel, came to a profession of faith many years after he was circumcised. Baptism, A Parent’s Vow to Bring up the Children

The covenant is to believing parents and their children. Both have distinct responsibilities and these should be stressed at the time of baptism. The parents are called to bring up their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. This is part of their covenantal responsibility, the covenant not being made with them alone but also with their children. Parents are to teach their children their covenantal duty, which is to receive the covenant promises by faith. As the children get older, they are to take the covenantal promises and make them their own. They are to seek to understand the nature of the covenant of baptism, and to take the covenant promises for themselves. Children in the Lord’s Supper The fact that a child is baptized into the covenant does not presume or make them believers. Children are to make a clear profession of faith. Until they do, they are not capable of understanding the Lord’s Supper, which is a covenantal meal. Paul demanded self-examination and the ability to discern the Lord’s body and blood in order to participate. Since children cannot do that they are to stay away from the table. Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord.(28) Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. (29) For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself (1 Cor. 11:27-29). We desire that children come to Christ, to come with understand and faith. We give them the sign of baptism to confirm God’s promise to them, and we exhort them to believe those promises. Those who do are to examine themselves, repent and join in the Lord’s Supper as soon as they are able.

81 Conclusion The Sacraments, the Lord’s Supper and baptism, are visible signs of Christ’s blessings in the New Covenant. They proclaim, in a physical way, the gospel to us. The Word and the sacraments are joined and they should never be separated. The Lord’s Supper should be given with regularity, by God’s representatives, to the church. The Lord’s Supper is the church’s ongoing profession that she is waiting for Christ’s return. Baptism is to be administered to believers and their children. It is not just a single event, but represents the living union with Christ that lasts the duration of one’s life.

82 Lesson Eight Questions 1. How are the sacraments related to the Word?

2. What grace do the sacraments bring that the Word does not? What are the implications of this?

3. What names are given to the sacraments? How should this influence our taking the Supper?

4. What elements of the Supper should be stressed?

5. What do we mean by “fencing the table”?

6. What does eating and drinking “unworthily” mean?

7. How frequently should we celebrate the Supper?

8. Why is it preferable that baptism be done in the presence of the congregation?

9. How is baptism a profession of faith?

10.What does it mean to improve one’s baptism? How should this be stressed in worship?

83 Appendix A Creeds

1. The Apostles’ Creed I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth: and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; He descended into hell; the third day He arose again from the dead; He ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy catholic church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen.

There are a number of other Creeds in the church. They tended to be developed to counter very specific issues in the church, and so they are more limited. Early creeds include the Nicene Creed, The Athenasian Creed and the Chalcedon Creed. 2. The Nicene Creed

I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.

And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father, by whom all things were made. Who, for us men and for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man; and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate. He suffered and was buried; and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father. And He shall come again, with glory, to judge the living and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end.

And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of Life; who proceedeth from the Father and the Son; who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified; who spoke by the prophets.

And I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the remission of sins. And I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

84 3. Chalcedon Creed (451 A.D)

Therefore, following the holy fathers, we all with one accord teach men to acknowledge one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, at once complete in Godhead and complete in manhood, truly God and truly man, consisting also of a reasonable soul and body; of one substance with the Father as regards His Godhead, and at the same time of one substance with us as regards His manhood; like us in all respects, apart from sin; as regards His Godhead, begotten of the Father before the ages, but yet as regards His manhood begotten, for us men and for our salvation, of Mary the Virgin, the God-bearer; one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, Only- begotten, recognized in two natures, without confusion, without change, without division, without separation; the distinction of natures being in no way annulled by the union, but rather the characteristics of each nature being preserved and coming together to form one person and subsistence, not as parted or separated into two persons, but one and the same Son and Only- begotten God the Word, Lord Jesus Christ; even as the prophets from earliest times spoke of Him, and our Lord Jesus Christ himself taught us, and the creed of the fathers has handed down to us.

85 Appendix B

John Calvin on the Wonder of the Psalms. Rev. Angus Stewart

The Wonder of the Psalms In the Preface to his commentary on the Psalms, John Calvin confesses that words cannot convey the wonder of this inspired book: “The varied and resplendid [i.e., resplendent] riches which are contained in this treasury it is no easy matter to express in words … the greatness of [the Psalms] does not admit of being fully unfolded” (Baker ed., p. xxxvi; pages given in Roman numerals refer to this book). For Calvin, the Psalms are a unique book in the canon of Holy Writ. There is no other book in which there is to be found more express and magnificent commendations, both of the unparalleled liberality of God towards His Church, and of all His works; there is no other book in which there is recorded so many deliverances, nor one in which the evidences and experiences of the fatherly providence and solicitude which God exercises towards us, are celebrated with such splendour of diction, and yet with the strictest adherence to truth; in short, there is no other book in which we are more perfectly taught the right manner of praising God, or in which we are more powerfully stirred up to the performance of this religious exercise (pp. xxxviii-xxxix). The Psalms are full of the riches of biblical doctrine, and the saints find in them great blessedness and peace. In one word, not only will we here find general commendations of the goodness of God, which may teach men to repose themselves in Him alone, and to seek all their happiness solely in Him; and which are intended to teach true believers with their whole hearts confidently to look to Him for help in all their necessities; but we will also find that the free remission of sins, which alone reconciles God towards us, and procures for us settled peace with Him, is so set forth and magnified, as that here there is nothing wanting which relates to the knowledge of eternal salvation (p. xxxix). The Genevan reformer sees in the Psalms a training ground for vital Christian godliness, especially “bearing the cross.” Undoubtedly he is thinking of the words of the Lord Jesus and the “whole course of the life of David” (p. xliv). Moreover, although The Psalms are replete with all the precepts which serve to frame our life to every part of holiness, piety, and righteousness, yet they will principally teach and train us to bear the cross; and the bearing of the cross is a genuine proof of our obedience, since by doing this, we renounce the guidance of our own affections, and submit ourselves entirely to God, leaving Him to govern us, and to dispose of our life according to His will, so that the afflictions which are the bitterest and most severe to our nature, become sweet to us, because they proceed from Him (p. xxxix).

86 One outstanding feature of the book of Psalms, in Calvin’s estimation, is that they cover the whole range of Christian emotions and infirmities, exposing our hearts to the searching eye of our Father in heaven and calling or drawing us to self-examination. “I have been accustomed,” writes Calvin, “to call this book, I think not inappropriately, The Anatomy of all the Parts of the Soul” (pp. xxxvi-xxxvii). He explains the reason for this insightful title: “… there is not an emotion of which any one can be conscious that is not here represented as in a mirror. Or rather, the Holy Spirit has here drawn … all the griefs, sorrows, fears, doubts, hopes, cares, perplexities, in short, all the distracting emotions with which the minds of men are wont to be agitated. The other parts of Scripture contain the commandments which God enjoined His servants to announce to us. But here the prophets themselves, seeing they are exhibited to us as speaking to God, and laying open all their inmost thoughts and affections, call, or rather draw, each of us to the examination of himself in particular, in order that none of the many infirmities to which we are subject, and of the many vices with which we abound, may remain concealed. It is certainly a rare and singular advantage, when all lurking places are discovered, and the heart is brought into the light, purged from that most baneful infection, hypocrisy” (p. xxxvii). John Calvin commenting of I Corinthians 14:15: "When he says, I will sing Psalms, or, I will sing, he makes use of a particular instance, instead of a general statement. For, as the praises of God were the subject matter of the Psalms, he means by the singing of Psalms—blessing God, or rendering thanks to Him, for in our supplications, we either ask something from God, or we acknowledge some blessing that has been conferred upon us. From this passage, however, we at the same time infer, that the custom of singing was, even at that time, in use among believers, as appears, also, from Pliny, who, writing at least forty years, or thereabouts, after the death of Paul, mentions, that the Christians were accustomed to sing Psalms to Christ before day-break. I have also no doubt, that, from the very first, they followed the custom of the Jewish Church in singing Psalms."

87 Appendix 3 (Printed with permission from Dr Clifford) THE WESTMINSTER DIRECTORY OF PUBLIC WORSHIP (1645) Alan Clifford [Excerpted from The Reformation of Worship: Papers read at the 1989 Westminster Conference, (London: The Westminster Conference, 1989), pp. 53-75. For a complete text of this paper, please contact the WRS Journal. Ed.] Introduction

...It would appear that in some respects, current confusion in the realm of worship is more difficult to cure than more theoretical theological differences. While it is ultimately true that faulty theology lies behind faulty practice, not all those who have abandoned traditional Reformed worship have rejected Reformed theology, at least notionally. What a former FIEC president has recently written in his church magazine gives us a measure of the problem:

“Within the service of worship we are also trying to proclaim God’s truth, and here too there is room for variety. The sermon as we think of it, is a relatively modem invention. There is room for all kinds of ways of reading the Scriptures, and also, I believe, for testimonies, interviews, and drama. We have to distinguish very honestly between what dishonours God, and what annoys our sensibilities.”1

And all this in a magazine which happily, in the same issue, quotes (as a SOP for traditionalists?) from Matthew Henry and Thomas Watson! Without pursuing our subject in pure academic and historical isolation, we may surely ask if the Westminster divines can help us nearly three hundred and fifty years on? At least they might help us to understand our confusion a little more clearly!

The Regulative Principle and Its Limits

...Unlike the drafting of the Confession of Faith, the Directory’s passage in committee and debate was often stormy.2 For the most part, differences of opinion concerned matters which the Scriptures shed no specific light on. ... The task is made no easier when one learns, in the words of Dr. Horton Davies, that the Directory was in fact ‘a compromise between the three parties, the English Presbyterians, the Scottish Presbyterians and the Independents.’3 ... Apart from certain leading principles, adopting the ‘Regulative Principle’ found the various parties at considerable odds where the Directory of Worship was concerned. It is easy to discern from the Scriptures that preaching, Scripture reading, prayers and the singing of God’s praise are the main elements of Christian worship and that the two divinely instituted symbolic ordinances are baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Undergirding this is the New Testament stress that all worship should be both ‘orderly’ and ‘spiritual.’ But concerning the precise form of sermons and prayers,’ the structure of a service of worship, the number of psalms (and/or hymns) to be sung, the frequency of the Lord’s Supper, the conduct of marriages and funerals, such matters are not determined in the New Testament. In short, what exactly does it mean to be biblical in the details as well as the principles of worship?

88 The Westminster divines soon realized that their attachment to the Regulative Principle did not solve all their problems. It was relatively easy to detect the unbiblical elements in the Book of Common Prayer (BCP), but not so easy to replace them by valid alternatives. Hence the Preface states that 'in laying aside the former Liturgy, with the many rites and ceremonies formerly used in the worship of God ... our care hath been to hold forth such things as are of divine institution in every ordinance; and other things we have endeavoured to set forth according to the rules of Christian prudence, agreeable to the general rules of the Word of God.’ Whereas these criteria were sufficient to ban the sacerdotal and superstitious overtones of the BCP and still are sufficient to ban drama and dance as well as women preachers and priests of either sex, areas of potential disagreement still remained. This is hardly surprising, for three distinct outlooks faced one another in the Assembly. The English Presbyterians were ex- Anglican Puritans, who, in their ‘nonconformity’ had been used to ‘reformed’ editions of the BCP. The Scottish Commissioners had used the Book of Common Order, the so-called ‘Knox’s Liturgy,’ which reflected the forms of Calvin’s Genevan liturgy. These two groups both accepted the validity of liturgical worship. And then there were the ‘proto-charismatic’ Independents who were opposed to any kind of service book. Such was the rather ominous lament of Robert Baillie, one of the Scottish Commissioners: ‘While we were sweetly debating on these things, in came Mr. Goodwin, who incontinent assayed to turn all upside down, to reason against all directories... I hope God will not permit him to go on to lead a faction for renting of the kirk.’4

The History and Development of Worship ... Calvin and Cranmer: The Character and Priorities of Worship ... Puritan Worship: the Westminster Directory

To return to the Directory itself, the in-built ambiguities of Elizabethan Anglicanism, the constant threat of Romanism and the Romanizing measures of Archbishop Laud form the immediate backdrop to the Westminster Assembly. With political Puritanism in the ascendancy, the scene was set to complete the English Reformation. ..2 If the text of the Directory tends to obscure differences over alternative preferences, the Preface justifies the replacement of the BCP in no uncertain terms. While its virtues are not ignored, it had become an ‘offense’ to many of the godly at home and abroad. ‘For, not to speak of urging the reading of all the prayers, which very greatly increased the burden of it, the many unprofitable and burdensome ceremonies,’ e.g., wearing the surplice, the sign of the cross at baptism, confirmation, bowing at the name of Jesus, etc., ‘have occasioned much mischief’ by troubling the consciences ‘of many godly ministers and people.’ Many good Christians have been ‘kept from the Lord’s Table’ and ‘able and faithful ministers’ have been debarred from their ministry. The bishops had virtually insisted that use of the BCP was the only acceptable way of worshiping God. Preaching had been ‘jostled out as unnecessary, or at best as far inferior’ to the reading of the service. In short, the Prayer Book had become ‘no better than an idol by many ignorant and superstitious people.’ Accordingly, the ‘Papists boasted that the book was a compliance with them in a great part of their service; and so were not a little confirmed in their superstition and idolatry, expecting rather our return to them, than endeavouring the reformation of themselves.’ Furthermore, exclusive use of the BCP had promoted ‘an idle and unedifying ministry,’ which contented itself with reading ‘set forms’ composed by others ‘without putting

89 forth themselves to exercise the gift of prayer, with which our Lord Jesus Christ pleaseth to furnish all His servants whom He calls to that office.’ These were the ‘weighty considerations’ which led the Assembly to ‘lay aside the former Liturgy.’

A Liturgy for Life

Before we focus particular attention on the public worship of the Lord’s Day, it should be remembered that ‘worship’ embraced the whole of life in the minds of our forefathers. God was to be acknowledged, loved and obeyed in all the experiences and decisions of daily life. Accordingly, the BCP in keeping with centuries of Christian tradition made provision for the great and momentous occasions in life from the womb to the tomb. What we immediately think of as ‘worship’ was a special instance of communal Lord’s Day worship, where the Lord is pleased to ‘command the blessing’ (Ps. 133:3). Thus against a background of common Sabbath desecration, even in less secular times, the Directory supplied practical spiritual guidance on ‘the sanctification of the Lord’s Day.’ While this concern was justified, it was recognized that in the vast majority of English parishes, then as now, the only certain contact people had with the church was through ‘hatchings, matchings and despatchings.’ Here the Directory is so unlike the Prayer Book in dealing with the problems posed by nominalism in a territorial conception of the church. ...

The Public Worship of the Lord’s Day

A combination of radical simplicity and reverent spirituality characterizes the Directory’s recommendations for the worship of the Lord’s Day. The order of service is as follows: • Call to worship • Prayer for grace and enlightenment • Scripture reading: • OT chapter • NT chapter • Metrical Psalm • Prayer of confession and intercession • Preaching of the Word • Prayer of thanksgiving and petition • Lord’s Prayer • Metrical Psalm • Benediction

The Pastor and the People

The Directory urges that the people prepare their hearts before assembling for worship, and that they meet ‘not irreverently, but in a grave and seeming manner, taking their seats or places without adoration, or bowing themselves towards one place or another.’ If the divines were anxious to discourage idolatrous genuflections in worship, they were equally concerned to prevent casual familiarity. Hence there were to be no ‘private wisperings, conferences, salutations, or doing reverence to any person present, or coming in.’ Likewise, there should be no

90 ‘gazing, sleeping, and other indecent behaviour, which may disturb the minister or people’ in ‘the service of God.’ The Scriptures are only to be read by ‘pastors and teachers,’ and occasionally by ministerial students. Thus the office of reader, tracing its ancestry from an earlier Reformed tradition back to the synagogue,49 was with doubtful necessity laid aside. Indeed, do the Scriptures support the Directory at this point? Unlike the Prayer Book lectionary, readings from the Apocrypha are forbidden, but ‘all the canonical books’ are to ‘read over in order, that the people may be better acquainted with the whole body of the Scriptures.’ Occasionally, part of what is read may be expounded, after the reading, for clarification. However, ‘regard is always to be had unto the time’ so that the rest of the service, and especially the preaching is not ‘rendered tedious.’

The Priority of Preaching

Thus the major concern of the Assembly was to restore preaching to a place of prominence in public worship. Here one detects the great difference in priorities between Anglican and Puritan worship. ... As the Prayer Book became more established, the sheer length of the liturgy left little or no time for a sermon. Practice rather than intention thus justifies Dr. Kenneth Brownell’s observation that ‘Anglican worship is primarily priestly’ whereas ‘Reformed worship is primarily prophetic.’51 ... The Westminster Assembly was determined to ensure that ‘good trumpets’ would have plenty of time to preach. Accordingly, the Directory declares that ‘Preaching of the word, being the power of God unto salvation, and one of the greatest and most excellent works belonging to the ministry of the gospel, should be so performed, that the workman need not be ashamed, but may save himself, and those that hear him.’ Whatever our former FIEC president means by saying that the sermon is a ‘relatively modern invention,’ we have the Puritans to thank for reasserting its importance. When the centrality of preaching is attacked by those ostensibly in the Puritan tradition, it is high time to remember our roots. For all that is best and most enduring in the history of evangelicalism has been due to the God-honoured, Spirit-anointed preaching of Christ and Him crucified. We must not be ignorant of Satan’s devices. He is always opposed to preaching. The introduction of drama and dance among so-called evangelicals gives him as well as others great pleasure, for the gap between truth-obscuring ‘dramatic worship’ and the truth-corrupting theatricalism of the Mass is no great chasm! One trusts it is not necessary in this conference to labour these points. But, for us to be self- critical for a moment, a thorough study of the Directory’s excellent pronouncements on preaching would not only complete a preacher’s education; it would help us to avoid the sometimes valid criticism one hears about modem Reformed preaching. For instance, the preacher should not simply dish up dull, undiluted systematic theology. Truth must be made to live. After all, doesn’t the prince of darkness prefer dull, dark sermons too? So ‘illustrations, of what kind soever, ought to be full of light.’ ... If preaching is to be the highlight of Reformed worship, powerless preaching is all the excuse our detractors need to go elsewhere and do something different! May we heed the words of the greatest preacher Puritanism ever produced, Richard Baxter: ‘Nothing is more indecent than a dead preacher, speaking to dead hearers the living truths of the living God.’54 To be practical, the Westminster divines didn’t expect that every preacher should conform to a rigid Puritan equivalent of the Anglican stereotype with his sanctimonious grin and parsonic voice! They weren’t out to crush individuality. As surely as Cranmer’s style was not Calvin’s, so

91 Bunyan was not to ape Baxter, nor was Goodwin to duplicate Gouge. So, the Directory’s ‘method is not prescribed as necessary for every man...but only recommended, as being found by experience to be very blessed of God.’ But whatever our homilectic method, our ministry should be ‘Painful’ rather than negligent, ‘Plain’ for all to understand, ‘Faithful’ in seeking Christ’s honour alone, ‘Wise’ in the use of reproof, without personal passion or bitterness, ‘Grave,’ so as not to make preaching appear contemptible there must be no attempt to entertain and ‘Loving’ or ‘affectionate,’ that our hearers may see our only concern is ‘to do them good.’ Lastly, he who teaches others must be seen to be ‘taught of God, and persuaded in his own heart, that all that he teacheth is the truth of Christ; and walking before his flock, as an example to them in it; earnestly, both in private and public, recommending his labours to the blessing of God, and watchfully looking to himself, and the flock whereof the Lord hath made him an overseer.’ If preaching was in need of reformation according to these criteria 350 years ago, God forbid that we should say anything less today!

The Practice of Prayer

If the prominence given to preaching distinguishes the Directory from the Prayer Book, so does its policy with regard to public prayer. While the divines retained a fixed liturgical framework, they did not prescribe set forms of prayer. Hence their recommendations were called a ‘directory,’ i.e. the subject matter for prayer is set down for the minister’s guidance in prayer. ... The debates of the Westminster Assembly have a relevance for us today, not least where the content of so-called ‘open worship’ and sometimes of pulpit prayers are concerned. Indeed, as I heard on one occasion, is it spiritual to thank God for ‘sending the Holy Spirit to lick us into shape’? The framers of the Directory would never have called such undignified rubbish Spirit- directed prayer! As A. F. Mitchell makes clear: ‘Nothing was further from their intentions than to encourage unpremeditated or purely extemporary effusions, or to represent any fluency in these as the stirring up of that gift which is given to all the children of God in some measure.’57 Even the Independent Philip Nye admitted there was a middle way between set forms and extemporary prayers when he said. ‘I plead for neither, but for studied prayers.’58 Surely, as Nye argued, public prayers require no less preparation than sermons. If the ‘open-your-mouth- wide-and-I- will-fill-it’ policy is irresponsible where preaching is concerned, why should we imagine it is acceptable in the case of prayer? If notes and even written-out sermons in the case of Jonathan Edwards are admissible, then why not written-out prayers? And let us not forget that if the minister prays extempore, what he utters becomes a pulpit-prescribed form for the praying congregation! Once the idea of prepared prayer is admitted, the objection to liturgical forms has to be treated with considerable reservation. Indeed, the Psalms may be regarded as liturgical documents, and did not the apostles weave part of Psalm 2 into their prayer in Acts 4:24-30? The Puritans and others objected to imposed liturgies this being the major objection to the Prayer Book but they were not altogether opposed to the use of precomposed forms. John Owen granted this later, even though he argues for Christ’s gift of prayer to ministers.59 Of course, as the preface to the Directory makes plain, the mere reading of fixed prayers could be a totally unspiritual exercise. That said, it is arguable that the Independents tended to be unnecessarily ‘ultra.’ They were understandably over-reacting to the mechanical abuse of an imposed liturgy. Indeed, had the Church of England adhered more closely to Calvin’s policy of a simpler, more flexible liturgy (including set prayers) from the beginning, this over-reaction

92 would have been avoided. As it was, the Independents helped produce a Directory which cut the 60 Reformed Churches adrift from a tradition of discretionary liturgical worship. Our current free-for-all policy really dates from this time. But surely, may not fixed forms be freely chosen by spiritually minded men alongside their own premeditated prayers? The all important point is the state of the heart. A man may be as unspiritual in his proud opposition to a liturgy as one who slavishly follows it. It was quite wrong to write the Prayer Book off completely, and later in the century, the Presbyterian Matthew Henry had occasion to rebuke the excessive criticism of it by another minister.61 ... True, as the preface of the Directory states, the Prayer Book had become an idol to some, but Cranmer’s prayers had helped create a genuine piety among many Englishmen. And who would question the theology and the unction of the prayer of humble access in the communion service:

'We do not presume to come to this thy table, O merciful Lord, trusting in our own righteousness, but in thy manifold and great mercies. We are not worthy so much as to gather up the crumbs under thy table. But thou art the same Lord, whose property is always to have mercy:...’

Surely Cranmer still has something to teach us today about public prayer....

The Privilege of Praise

To the Westminster reformers, public worship consisted of proclamation, prayer, and praise. Thus the Directory concludes: ‘And because singing of psalms is of all other the most proper ordinance for expressing joy and thanksgiving, ... It is the duty of Christians to praise God publickly, by singing of psalms together in the congregation, and also privately in the family.’ Time and propriety forbid a lengthy discussion of the exclusive psalmody versus hymns debate. This was simply not an issue for the Westminster Assembly, and the era of English hymnody had hardly dawned. However, the hymns of Watts and Wesley made their impact on exclusive psalm- singers during the following century throughout the English-speaking world. In the United States, the 1788 Presbyterian Directory enjoined the singing of ‘psalms and hymns.’ Forty years earlier, Jonathan Edwards had reacted to the new fashion with moderation. After preaching away from home, he found that his Northampton congregation had been using Watts’ hymns to the exclusion of the Psalter. He ‘disliked not their making some use of the hymns; but did not like 67 their setting aside the Psalms.’ However, this moderation is not enough for Michael Bushell whose reactionary tour de force in favour of exclusive psalmody nonetheless deserves the 68 attention of chorus and hymn singers alike! Certainly psalm singing deserves a much higher profile in modern worship. After all, are the psalms not the heritage of New Testament children of the covenant? However, one wonders if Bushell has not overstated his case. It is simply not that obvious that the Apostle excludes the possibility of post-apostolic hymns in Ephesians 5:19 and Colossians 3:16. Without denying that the ‘word of Christ’ is found in the psalms, surely New Testament Christians are expected to sing the ‘word of Christ’ in the language of fulfillment as well as prophecy. It seems strange that our understanding, preaching, and praying may be expressed in NT language when our praise should remain in OT language. This may be

93 69 illustrated from Calvin who was no exclusive psalm singer even if he did not write that 70 beautiful hymn attributed to him. The Reformer says ‘As for public prayers, there are two 71 kinds: the one consists simply of speech, the other of song.’ Now if spoken prayers may use NT language, why should sung prayers be confined to OT language? Is the praise of Christians to be no different from the Jews? And is the issue to be settled by a tune? Bushell argues that ‘uninspired praises,’ i.e., hymns not found in the Bible, have no place in Christian worship. But this could imply the most rigid kind of liturgical worship, with all our prayers and sermons taken verbatim from the Bible, for what Christian could be content with uninspired worship at any point in the service? It is surely sufficient to ensure that every part of worship is consistent with Scripture truth rather than a verbatim copy of it. If the psalms, unlike our sermons, are ‘untouched by human hands,’ where does that leave the Anglo-Scottish Psalter which, in the words of Sir Richard Terry, ‘groans under the weight of the monotonous ‘Ballad

Metre,’ i.e. 8.6.8.6.72 Did the Holy Spirit reveal them to David and Asaph in such a straitjacket, sometimes producing embarrassing if not amusing results? The Regulative Principle could overthrow the entire Presbyterian tradition of metrical psalms in favour of the Anglican chant! The answer is, of course, that literary form is a thing indifferent, and that it is the divinely- inspired truth-content that makes them acceptable. Quite! And is it not an insult to the Holy Spirit to describe a hymn which is orthodox and full of Christ ‘uninspired’? This is not to supplement Scripture, but to acknowledge that a hymn may reflect revelation as in a mirror. Just as the Westminster Directory was concerned that preaching and praying should faithfully reflect the Word of God, so hymns fulfilling the same requirement may surely be admitted. Consistent with Calvin’s actual position, later Presbyterians like Charles Hodge73 and Albert Barnes74 endorse the use of post-apostolic hymns. As for modern choruses, our forefathers would probably say that some of them are useful teaching aids for very young children. But for adults, they can only be the effusions of immature Christians reared on superficial preaching. Where there is a healthy appetite for the Reformed Faith, nothing less than the psalms and hymns of the Reformed Faith will be suitable vehicles of praise. It is unfortunate that English-speaking psalm-singers usually end up pleading for one rather unpoetic, seventeenth-century version of the Psalms. This is not to forget some glorious and justly famous individual psalms, nor do I wish to appear ungracious in my remarks. But there are other versions which could convince those brought up on the eloquence and energy of Watts and 75 Wesley that psalms should not be so neglected. The Anglo-Genevan Psalter, with its tasteful translations of Marot’s and Beza’s paraphrases, employing varied metres and set to the majestic and glorious tunes of Greiter and Bourgeois, meets this requirement. Here are the psalms which inspired the heroic Huguenots in their sufferings for Christ. There was nothing drab about Reformed worship at the beginning, judging by the experience of a student passing through Strasbourg in 1545 where Calvin had published his first psalter just six years before:

'You would never believe what a happy thing it is and what peace of conscience one experiences in being where the Word of God is purely proclaimed and the sacraments purely administered. Also when one hears the fine Psalms sung and the marvellous works of the Lord... At the beginning when I heard the singing I could scarcely keep myself from weeping with joy. You would not hear one voice drowning another. Everybody holds a 76 book of music in his hand. Every man and woman alike praises the Lord.'

94 Conclusion: Worship in Spirit and Truth

I would like to conclude on this note of joy in true worship. After all, the psalmist declared ‘In your presence is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures for evermore’ (Ps. 16: 11). One wonders if this was always the dominant note during the seventeenth century. True, there were great theologians, mighty preachers, and occasional revivals. But there were also, to use the subtitle of Richard Baxter’s Catholick Theologie (1675) the ‘dogmatical word-warriors,’ whose bitter disputings and ultra-orthodox contendings tended to drown the note of praise. Alas, the Puritans duplicated their confessions and their energies. It was a century which ended on the low notes of heresy, fragmentation, deadness, and secularism. And all this despite the faithful though formal attempts of the Puritans to complete the English Reformation. Do we not feel burdened by these things today? Do we not yearn for those seasons of revival and refreshment which would cure many if not all of our present ills? We dare not think that the mere reformation of worship will guarantee worship itself, any more than reformation itself automatically brings revival. There must be an earnest pleading with God and a humble dependence on the Holy Spirit. Unlike the Westminster divines, whose prescribed services including solemn fasts and public thanksgivings were quite formal, the Methodists of the next century restored the less formal love-feasts referred to in 2 Peter 2:13 and Jude 12, and known in the early church. Thomas Manton77 doubted whether they had any permanent place in the fellowship of the church whereas Calvin is happy just to acknowledge that these ‘frugal’ and ‘restrained’ gatherings were ‘feasts which the faithful held among themselves, to witness to their brotherly concord.’78 During the early days of the evangelical revival, something very remarkable occurred at a Methodist love-feast. As if to prove that God only meets with those who seek Him with a whole heart, whatever forms they use, John Wesley recorded in his Journal for Monday, January 1, 1739:

'Mr. Hall, Kinchin, Ingham, Whitefield, Hutchins, and my brother Charles, were present at our love-feast in Fetter Lane, with about sixty of our brethren. About three in the morning, as we were continuing instant in prayer, the power of God came mightily upon us, insomuch that many cried out for exceeding joy, and many fell to the ground. As soon as we were recovered a little from that awe and amazement at the presence of His Majesty, we broke out with one voice, ‘We praise thee, O God; we acknowledge thee to be the Lord'.’79 May the Lord in His infinite mercy so visit us again in our day. Let us pray:

Grant, Almighty God, that we may ever be attentive to that rule which has been prescribed to us by thee in the Law, as well as in the Prophets and in the Gospel, so that we may constantly abide in thy precepts, and be wholly dependent on the words of thy mouth, and never turn aside either to the right hand or to the left, but glorify thy name, as thou hast commanded us, by offering to thee a true, sincere, and spiritual worship. Grant also that we may truly and from the heart turn to thee, and offer ourselves to thee as a sacrifice, that thou mayest govern us according to thy will, and so rule all our affections by thy Spirit, that we may through the whole of our life strive to glorify thy name, until having at length finished all our struggles, we reach that blessed rest, which has been obtained for us by the blood of thy only-begotten Son, our Lord Jesus so Christ. Amen.80

95 The Rev. Dr. Alan C. Clifford pastors the Norwich Reformed Church in Norwich, Norfolk County, England. For more information about NRC, please see their website at www.geocities.com/nrchurch. Ed. Various editions of the Directory are available. The one used in this paper is included in The Westminster Confession of Faith (The Publications Committee of the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland: Glasgow, 1973). 1 David Middleton. ‘Praise’ in Angle. Surrey Chapel Magazine, Norwich. July, 1989. 2 For a detailed account of the progress of the Directory, see W. A. Shaw, A History of the English Church. Longmans, London, 1900, i. 337-57; Robert S. Paul, The Assembly of the Lord. T. & T. Clark. Edinburgh, 1987, 359-75. 3 Cited in J. M. Barkley, The Worship of the Reformed Church, Lutterworth, London, 1966, 31. 4 Cited in W. A. Shaw, op.cit., 340. ... 49 The Book of Common Order of the Church of Scotland ... and the Directory for the Public Worship of God..., with introduction and notes by George W. Sprott and Thomas Leishman, William Blackwood, Edinburgh, 1868, pp. xxiii and 332. ... 51 ‘Worship and the Marian Exiles in Frankfurt,’ in Spiritual Worship, Westminster Conference, London, 1986, 13. ... 54 Cited in Philip Doddridge, Lectures on Preaching in Works, eds. E. Williams and E. Parsons, Leeds, 1802-5, v.461. ... 57 The Westminster Assembly, its History and Standards, James Nisbet, London, 1883, 228. 58 Ibid., 229. 59 ‘It is not about stinted forms of prayer in the worship and service of God, by those who, of their own accord, do make use of that kind of assistance, judging that course to be better than anything they can do themselves in the discharge of the work of the ministry, but of the imposition of forms on others who desire “to stand fast in the liberty with which Christ hath made them free”, that we enquire.’ A Discourse concerning Liturgies, and their imposition in The Works of John Owen, DD, eds. W. H. Goold, Johnson, and Hunter, London, 1851, xv, 21). Agreeing with Owen in principle, yet also arguing in favour of traditional Reformed worship, James Bannerman writes: .’..we do not deny that a form of words is not only lawful, but necessary, in social or public prayer. We do not deny that it is lawful ... for ministers, in conducting the devotions of public assemblies, to premeditate or precompose their prayers... We do not deny, in respect even to human compositions of prayer or formal liturgies... it may become necessary to make use of forms of prayer as helps to ministers and people....’ (The Church of Christ: A Treatise on the Nature, Powers, Ordinances, Discipline, and Government of the Christian Church, Banner of Truth, fac. London, 1960, i. 382.) 60 Sprott and Leishman, op.cit., 263. 61 J. B. Williams, Memoirs ... of the Rev. Matthew Henry (1828), p. 182, in The Lives of Philip and Matthew Henry (two volumes in one), Banner of Truth, fac., Edinburgh, 1974. ... 67 Cited in Louis F. Benson, The English Hymn, The Presbyterian Board of Publication, Philadelphia, 1915, 163. 68 Michael Bushell, The Songs of Zion, Crown and Covenant Publications, Pittsburgh, Pa., 1980. 69 Judging by his Strasbourg and Genevan Psalters, Calvin was not exclusively committed to the OT Psalms, since they included metrical versions of the Lord’s Prayer, the Ten Commandments, the Song of Simeon and the Apostles Creed. Bushell admits that ‘It is quite true that Calvin never, so far as we know, formally and explicitly condemned the use of any and all uninspired songs in worship.’ (Ibid., 140.) Indeed, this is explained by Calvin’s unprejudiced exegesis of Colossians 3:16, so very different from Bushell’s forced view. Bushell overstates Calvin’s position when he says ‘The Psalms in Calvin’s view are so superior to human hymns that to place the latter alongside the former could only be an act of impiety.’ (Ibid.) What Calvin actually said was: .’..we shall find no songs better and more suitable for our purpose than the Psalms of David,’ which is rather different. Barkley shows that civil interference in Geneva frustrated Calvin’s desires for weekly communion, and there is evidence that he preferred the worship of Strasbourg to that of Geneva, where hymns were sung as well as psalms. See The Worship of the Reformed Church, pp. 16-21. In 1545 Calvin prepared a third edition of his liturgy La Forme des Prières for the use of his former congregation in Strasbourg. His outline of the ideal Sunday morning service hardly suggests exclusive psalmody; it also says something about the warmth and breadth of Calvin’s ‘Calvinism’: ‘We begin with the confession of our sins, adding readings from the Law and the Gospel (that is, sentences of remission) ... and after we are assured that as Jesus Christ has righteousness and life in Himself, and that He lives for the sake of the Father, so we are justified in Jesus Christ and live in a new life by the same Jesus Christ ... we continue with psalms, hymns of praise, the reading of the Gospel ... and ... quickened and stirred by the reading and preaching of the Gospel, and the confession of our faith (that is, Apostle’s Creed) ... it follows that we must pray for the salvation of all men for the life of Christ should be greatly enkindled within us. Now the life of Christ consists in this, namely, to seek and save that which is lost...’ (Ibid., pp. 17-18). The available evidence suggests that Calvin was really in sympathy with psalms and Scripture-based paraphrases. Unlike earlier editions, the 1611 edition of the Scottish Psalter reflected Calvin’s position more closely. To say these hymns were acceptable for private rather than public worship is to rest a questionable argument on the mere size of the congregation! See Hector Cameron’s doubtful discussion of these points in ‘Purity of Worship’ in Hold Fast Your Confession, ed. Donald Macleod, Knox Press, Edinburgh, 1978, pp. 102-3. To say these ‘hymns’ were published in a public service book for only private use when no such rule is indicated is not very convincing. 70 See

96 the hymn ‘I greet Thee who my sure Redeemer art’ in Christian Hymns, Evangelical Movement of Wales, Bridgend, 1977, hymn 124; also Hymns and Psalms, Methodist Publishing House, London, 1983, hymn 391. The hymn first appeared in the 1545 Strasbourg Psalter, the very same year Calvin produced the new liturgy for his old congregation. Is it not possible that he wrote the hymn for them too? According to Philip Schaff, it was also discovered in ‘an old Genevese prayer-book.’ (Christ in Song, Anson Randolph, New York, 1869, 678). While external evidence might not be conclusive (see Bushell, op.cit., p.199, n. 56), strong internal evidence of style and piety comparing the hymn with Calvin’s recorded prayers arguably strengthens Schaff’s case for Calvin’s authorship of the hymn. 71 Cited in Book of Praise: Anglo-Genevan Psalter, Committee for the Publication of the Anglo-Genevan Psalter, Hamilton, Ontario, 1971, p. v. 72 Calvin’s First Psalter (1539), ed. Sir Richard Terry, Ernest Benn Limited, London, 1932, p. viii. 73 A Commentary on the Epistle to the Ephesians, Banner of Truth, fac., London. 1964, pp. 303-49. 74 Notes ... on the New Testament: Ephesians-Colossians, Partridge and Oakey, London, 1850, p. 132. 75 See ref. 71. 76 Cited in Jean Cadier, The Man God Mastered, tr. O. R. Johnson, Inter-Varsity Fellowship, London. 1960, 98-100. 77 An Exposition on the Epistle of Jude, Banner of Truth, London, 1958, pp. 273- 4. 78 Comm. Jude 12. (Calvin’s Commentaries, eds. D. W. and T. F. Torrance, A Harmony of the Gospels ... and the Epistles of James and Jude, tr. A. W. Morrison, Saint Andrew Press, Edinburgh, 1972, 330-1. 79 The Journal of the Reverend John Wesley, AM, in Works, ed. Thomas Jackson, John Mason, London, 1840-2, i. 160-1. 80 John Calvin, A Commentary on the Twelve Minor Prophets: Volume 2: Joel. Amos & Obadiah, Banner of Truth, fac., Edinburgh. 1986, 183-4 and 104. 11

97 Bibliography Achtemeier, Paul J., Harper's Bible Dictionary, 1st ed. Publishers Harper & Row and Society of Biblical Literature, San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1985. Bannerman, D, The Church of Christ. Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1868. Beale, G.K. The Temple and the Churches Mission. Downers Grove: IVP, 2004. Brand, Charles, Charles Draper, Archie England, Steve Bond, E. Ray Clendenen, Trent C. Butler and Bill Latta, Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2003. Chantry, Walter, Call the Sabbath a Delight, Edinburgh: Banner of Truth Trust, 1991, Reprinted 2000. Chapel, Bryan, Christ Centered Worship, Grand Rapids: Baker, 2009. Clifford, Allen, The Directly of Public Worship 1645, http://www.wrs.edu/Materials_for_Web_Site/Journals/7-2%20Aug-2000/Clifford%20- %20Westminster%20Directory%20Worship.pdf Colouhoun, F, Gen. Edit. Elwell, Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, Grand Rapids: Baker, 1994 Dever Mark and Ferguson Sinclair, The Westminster Directory of Public Worship, Fearn: Christian Focus Publication, 2008. The Directory of Public Worship, www.opc.org/BCO/DPW.html Engle, Paul, Discovering the Fullness of Worship, Suwanee: Great Commission Publications, 1984. Freedman, David Noel, Allen C. Myers and Astrid B. Beck, Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible, Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans, 2000. Hart. D.G. and John R. Muether with Reverence and Awe, Phillipsburg: Presbyterian and Reformed, 2002. Kline, Meredith G. God, Heaven, and Har Magedon. Eugene: Wipf and Stock Publishers, 2006. Johnson, Terry, The Regulative Principle of Worship, Greenville: Greenville Worship Conference, 2003. Pipa, Joseph, Worship, Greenville Worship Conference, Greenville Lectures, 2003. Rayburn, Robert, O Come Let us Worship, Grand Rapids: Baker, 1980. Smith Morton, The History of Reformed Worship, Greenville: Worship Lectures, XXX Thompson, Bard, Liturgies of the Western Church, Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1980.

98 Stewart, Angus. John Calvin on the Wonder of the Psalms, http://www.cprf.co.uk/articles/johncalvinpsalms.htm

99 Instructor’s Manual Lesson One Answers 1. Israel is saved in order that she might worship, serve, and praise God 2. “The Israelites rightly responded to their deliverance from the bondage of Egypt with a song of praise to the God of their salvation. Not only did the Exodus elicit a song of worship, but this song of worship also showed that God had delivered His people so they could worship Him.” Student summaries will vary. 3. “But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” 4. creation and salvation 5. They are linked. Our theology will influence our understanding of worship. 6. The power of the church is centered upon salvation in the Mass, the priest, and the elements. 7. God, the Father, the Son and Holy Spirit 8. No, worship is for God first. We must, though, not add any additional cultural barriers either. 9. No. In Mark, Jesus warns that it is impossible for men to believe. 10. Salvation is linked to worship. It must be in spirit, in truth, and be to the Father. Lesson Two Answers 1. Old Covenant worship was a type, pointing forward to the antitype in Christ in the new Covenant. 2. “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them (Exodus 20:4). 3. The Israelites attempted to worship God through the use of a golden calf. 4. The commandment still prohibits it, and we do not know what Jesus looked like, and he is now in a resurrected body. 5. He will hold men accountable, even to the third and fourth generation. 6. It is to worship God in and by the power of the Holy Spirit. 7. Worship is only through a Father- Son relationship. 8. Jesus says we are to worship in truth, meaning according to His revealed will.

100 9. The Church now enters into God’s presence in worship in a direct manner, the formal gathering of the church in Christ and the New Covenant brings it into the very presence of God. 10. The new Jerusalem is now the center of the worship, in the New Creation, there is no temple as the Lamb is the temple. The church is the temple as well as the whole of the New Creation is the temple. The separation between God and man is ended. The Fatherhood of God is complete and we will stand, with Christ, in the Spirit, before God, forever. Lesson Three Answers 1. It teaches men are to join together in corporate worship. 2. We cannot worship, grow or mature if we are alone, we need the all the gifts of the body to worship. 3. Yes, and some actions like communion and baptism will only occur in joint worship. 4. Elders, men, as they act in their representative capacity. 5. God has called men to lead the congregation, they speak for God as his agents, and speak to God for their congregation in prayer. 6. They are to be silent. Paul cites the order of creation and woman’s deception in the fall as two reasons. 7. Participation is through elders, it is a representative participation. 8. The corporate Amen is a verbal public affirmation of agreement. The congregation joins together in assent to the representatives prayers. 9. All the prophets were speaking together, at once, causing confusion. 10. The Spirit works in an orderly way in the church. Lesson Four Answers

1. The Regulative Principle of Worship 2. Nadab and Abihu (Lev. 10:1-3), King Uzziah (2 Chron. 26:18ff) 3. We need God to reveal His will to us, we do not know naturally know how to worship. Also, we are fallen and sinful, and that too leads to ignorance of the correct way to worship God. 4. The Roman Catholics teach we are to worship through Scripture, tradition and authority. The church determines what is acceptable for worship. The Lutheran position is that anything is permitted, unless Scripture expressly forbids it. 5. elements, forms and circumstances 6. An element is something God expects us to do in worship. Examples include reading, praying, preaching. 7. The form of worship points to how the elements are put together, for example when we pray or when we have the sermon.

101 8. The circumstances refer to issues like when and where to meet, the lighting, speakers, the hymnbooks or overhead projectors. 9. Pentecostalism stresses a direct work of the Spirit causing the immediate spiritual experience over to take priority over all other forms. 10. It has minimized the use of Scripture in worship.

Lesson Five Answers 1. 2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Tim. 4:1-4; 1 Cor. 14:26 2. Eph. 5:19, 20 and Col. 3:16, 17 3. Matt. 6, Phil. 1:9 4. The Gospels, 1 Cor.11, and Acts 8, 16 5. Baptism symbolizes the public confession and entrance of the person into God’s church. 6. The church is commanded to pay its ministers, not muzzle and ox as it treads out the grain, and to give honor to those who teach. 7. The Westminster Confession includes confession of faith, vows of church membership, vows in baptism and vows taken by church officers, and tithes. 8. Dutch Presbyterian tradition used creeds, particularly the Apostles Creed58, the Nicene Creed and the Athanasian Creed. 9. The words “palsms, hymns and spiritual songs” in Colossians 3:16, 17 and Ephesians 5:19,20 refer to the Old Covenant Psalter. 10. God wants His people to sing to Him, and it is their right and privilege in corporate worship to do so.

Lesson Six Answers

1. from the Hebrew, in Leviticus, and in the Greek word “ministering” in Acts 13:2 2. All churches follow some form of worship practice. That is their liturgy, whether it be open or closed. 3.The minster is given general guidance as to the order and what to include, and he fleshes it out.

58. Despite its title, the Apostles’ Creed was not written by the apostles or disciples who walked and talked with Jesus in the first century. Instead it is a compilation of what believers in the first centuries knew from written and oral testimony, which was then distilled into the essentials of the Christian faith. This creed was reworked by successive councils of the early Church. It was adopted in its present form before the end of the fourth century. (CRC Website)

102 4. We are to remember that the church is greater than just us in this present generation. It has its own history, guided by the Spirit. 5.We worship according to Scripture; there are gospel cycles in worship and a historical aspect to worship. 6.Worship is a combination of us and God. He is sovereign and acts first, we respond to His action. The God-man interchange occurs throughout Scripture. 7. The early reformers built their worship on Scripture and the practice of the early church. 8. the Liturgy of the Word, the Liturgy of the Upper Room 9. It rejects the church calendar. 10. Call to worship, Prayer for grace and enlightenment, Scripture reading, OT chapter, NT chapter, Metrical Psalm, Prayer of confession and intercession, Preaching of the Word, Prayer of thanksgiving and petition, Lord's Prayer, Metrical Psalm, Benediction Lesson Seven Answers 1. Genesis 2:1-3. It shows the Sabbath is fixed in the creation. 2. creation and the salvation of Israel from Egypt 3. We must not work, not encourage other to work, expect works of necessity and mercy. 4. God has given us enough on six days so we will not need to work on Sunday. 5. It points forward to the eternal rest in Christ, in salvation, and the new heaven and new earth. 6. Isaiah 58:13, 14 7. Jesus did good to men, worshiped, and rested. Jesus has reclaimed, or claimed the day back for men. 8. Acts 20:7, 1 Cor. 16:2 9. Jesus’ resurrection is now the beginning of the new creation and of salvation. We begin with rest and work follows it. 10. We do what we can to implement the Sabbath principles today. Lesson Eight Answers 1. They are related, the Word speaks to us and the sacraments demonstrate in a physical way what the Word tells us. 2. No difference… the Word and the sacraments give the same grace. 3. The Eucharist, (thanksgiving or gratitude) the Breaking of Bread (sacrificial element) and the Table of the Lord (a communal meal, and a sacrifice)

103 4. It is meal of intimate fellowship, one focused on Christ’s sacrifice. 5. We issue a warning to all those taking the supper to judge themselves. 6. It is to knowingly take communion with unrepentant sin in our lives or as unbelievers. 7. Often, the exact frequency is not specified, but Jesus says often and the symbol of a meal points to frequency. 8. It is a covenantal bond to God and to the congregation. 9. Baptism points to Jesus as the Messiah, and it includes faith in the promises of the gospel and the New Covenant. 10. We are to understand God’s promises in the baptism and apply them to ourselves.

Exams Exam One ~ Week Five 1. Summarize Hart’s quotation from page 52 of his book. 2. What two reasons does the church in heaven have for worshiping God? 3. What is the relationship between theology and worship? 4. What is the second commandment? 5. What does it mean to worship in the Spirit in John 4? 6. What does Hebrews 10:25 teach? 7. Is there a distinction between corporate and private worship? 8. Who has authority to teach, pray and lead in the church? 9. What was the problem that Paul faced in Corinth concerning the Spirit? 10. What do we call the principle of Reformed worship? 11. Give two Old Testament examples that prove we must only do what God has commanded? 12. Name two theological arguments that can we make in support of the Regulative Principle? 13. Explain Roman Catholic and Lutheran position on worship. 14. What is an Element? Give an example. 15. Why has modern evangelism taken us away from Scripture?

Exam Two: End of Week Eight 1. Where are we commanded to sing? 104 2. Why do we have baptism as a public act of worship? 3. What do we mean by religious vows being used in worship? Give examples. 4. Where do we find the term liturgy in Scripture? 5. What do we mean by gospel cycles? 6. What is the link between Early Church and Reformed worship? Cite Calvin’s position. 7. Outline the order of worship in the Westminster Directory. 8. What are the two reasons given for the Sabbath in the ten commandments? 9. What does the fourth commandment say about working on the Sabbath day? 10. What Old Testament passage points to the spiritual nature of Sabbath in the Old Covenant? 11. Why has the Sabbath been switched to the first day of the week? 12. How are the sacraments related to the Word? 13. What names are given to the Lord’s Supper? How should this influence our taking the Supper? 14. What does eating and drinking “unworthily” mean? 15. What does it mean to improve one’s baptism? How should this be stressed in worship?

Neal’s comment.

105 I made a few typo changes: -pushed some titles on last line on pages to next page -p. 11. Eliminated double periods at end of sentence Eliminated extra space between footnotes at bottom of page Ibid has capital. -when you quote Scripture, remember to put spaces after punctuation.

Gen. 1: 2 Content. The course is interesting, it raises a lot of issues. The women issues on page 28 is rather short. Are women not allowed to pray, read Scripture, lead in music and give announcements in church? What about women preaching to women at places such as Women’s Bible Fellowship? Does headship imply hiddenship? Or should our cooperate worship service model the complementary role of male and female in worship, with the man leading the way? A good paragraph would be helpful on that. What is the role of the women as prophets, priests and kings in corporate worship? In the OT priesthood, women were involved, right? Elizabeth. In the NT all can call on the name of the Lord (Acts 2: 21). Believing women are prophets (Acts 2: 17). Women ruled in the theocracy as queens in OT and in the NT women instructed men such as Apollos and where publically recommended for their service. A good paragraph on that would be helpful. As to the Regulative Principle, did you treat the role of temple worship. Where is it prescribed in the NT that we only have a synagogue style worship? Psalm 150 exhorts (prescribes) us to dance. That was a temple setting. Do we still do that in church today? On the Sabbath rest, did you treat the role of Christian liberty as to the Sabbath? (Romans 14) Since we are a mission agency, could you add, somewhere, what are the most basic elements needed to have a worship service in a mission setting? According to our Anglican and English friend, Roland Allen, it requires: tradition (Apostles Creed), Bible reading and preaching, sacraments and education of leaders and members. Interesting summary of Presbyterian and Reformed principles of worship. The Biblical, theological and historical perspective is helpful. Perhaps the title could say: Presbyterian and Reformed Worship. As far as I am concern, this course, with a few extra comments on what is suggested above, is ready to be put on web page. Since Greg has showed signs of interest in this area, he may want to read it before putting it up, but as for me, it’s almost ready to go. I will send this to you and Greg and then ask you to resend it to me when Greg has responded and you made the final adjustments.

106 Thanks,