Terry L. Johnson, Reformed Worship: Worship that is According to Scripture (Revised and Expanded), 14-17, 101
Permitted versus Proper
[T]he question we want to answer is not merely what may be permitted, or even what might one get away with and still be within the bounds of Scripture’s regulative requirements. Reformed worship may not be reduced to the regulative principle, particularly the regulative principle narrowly construed, any more than the Reformed faith can be reduced to “Five Points.” The regulative principle, interpreted merely as lists of approved and disapproved elements, does not address (when understood narrowly) a fundamental ingredient of worship: reverence. It does not address matters of decorum. It does not address words and actions appropriate to a reverential approach to God.8 No, our question is what ought to be done in public worship. It may be permissible for a church to begin its worship with the song “Deep and Wide,” then sing as its second hymn “Zaccheus Was a Wee Little Man,” and conclude the service with “The B-I-B-L-E.” “Scripture does not forbid it,” a strict biblicist might say. But such would be of doubtful propriety. We can even say that such ought not to be done under normal circumstances. Yet we say that, not because there is a Bible verse that forbids these children’s songs, but because of a more general sense of what is appropriate in light of the nature of the Sunday assembly as the church’s public service of worship. Not every question in worship or life can be answered by the direct application of a Bible verse. Indeed it is legalistic and fundamentalistic to expect to do so. Right living rarely consists of simply applying the Bible’s rules to circumstances. Rather, right living requires the illumination of the Holy Spirit and wisdom in applying general principles to daily choices. Pharisees limit the Bible’s application to the specific words—you shall not kill, commit murder, and so on, and ignore the broader application. Yet the broader application is where most of life is lived, and it is here that Jesus criticizes the hypocrites of His day (Matthew 5:21–48). Most of life is lived “between the lines” of explicit commands.
Consequently, the Apostles regularly appeal to what is “fitting” or “suitable” or “proper,” in light of Scripture’s explicit commands, and yet without spelling out exactly what these things mean. They expect that believers will apply wisdom and discern what is appropriate. We are urged to judge what is “proper” (Greek prepo = to be fitting, seemly, suitable) about hair length, even discerning such from nature (1 Corinthians 11:13–14). The Apostle Paul tells Titus to “speak the things which are fitting (Greek prepei) for sound doctrine” (Titus 2:1). Women are to adorn themselves with “proper” (prepei) clothing (1 Timothy 2:9–10). Paul tells the Ephesians to avoid talk that is “not fitting” (prepei) (Ephesians 5:3–4). In the last two cases some of the details are fleshed out. Women are to dress “modestly” and “discreetly.” They are to avoid ostentatious display by not braiding hair or wearing gold or pearls or costly garments. “Silly talk” and “coarse jesting” are listed among the unfitting words. But in these and all other cases the precise point at which one crosses the line from modesty to immodesty, from discreet to indiscreet, from fitting to silly or vulgar, is not and cannot be spelled out. We only know that [sic] the difference through Spirit-given wisdom. When is a dress too short? At some point it is, and the sin of immodesty has been committed, objectively and actually. The determining of such is a subjective judgment. Yet, the failure of subjective judgment leads to objective sin. Nearly all behavioral judgments (e.g. love, modesty, frugality, integrity) are arrived at in this way, in applying wisdom in realms beyond the direct application of specific commands.
In worship the same sort of judgments are required. We are not merely to ask what is permissible, but what is appropriate, proper, and fitting. For example, we are commanded to worship with “reverence and awe” (Hebrews 12:28). There are ways of singing, praying, and preaching that are irreverent. There are extraneous words and actions that, given the nature of God, the nature of the assembly, and the practical requirements of reverence, are inappropriate, improper, and unsuitable. Yet in any given case this may be discerned to be so, not because there is a verse that specifically says, for example, “Thou shalt not begin worship by dribbling a basketball down the center aisle” (as did one Presbyterian pastor belonging to a conservative denomination), any more than a verse may be found to specify that skirts may be 1 inch above the knee, but not 1 ½ inches. A television preacher recently led his congregation to respond enthusiastically to a beautiful solo by saying, “And all God’s children said,” at which point they joined him in saying, “Wow!!” No single verse forbids “wow” as a liturgical response. These sorts of things are only discerned by wisdom. The Bible expects and demands that we move beyond narrow, legalistic, fundamentalistic constructions of what is permissible in worship, and ask instead what ought to be done when the church assembles for worship. “All things are lawful,” says the Apostle, “but not all things are profitable” (1 Corinthians 6:12; 10:23).
8. We are leaving aside for the time being the question of whether or not the regulative principle should be narrowly construed. Since the regulative principle appeals to the third commandment for support, we see reverence and related matters as being contained within its framework.
Wonderful little books. This is a catechism trilogy: expositions of the three major pieces of Christian teaching—the Creed, Decalogue, and Lord’s Prayer. It’s a great start for new believers. Packer is so insightful and memorable in his writing. My wife and I began with one as our Sabbath reading, together. We liked it so much that we decided to get the other two. It was a good decision. They are concise, but rich. Perfect for Sunday reading, especially as a family. Of the three, we enjoyed Praying the Lord’s Prayer the most.
An excellent study on a topic that really needs it. This is a confessionally Reformed in-house discussion, but a beneficial one.
I do not despise my brothers and sisters who defend a cappella worship, and it is my hope that they will not despise me. This book is simply my response to those who claim that we have no Biblical basis for musical instruments and who assert that we are violating the Regulative Principle of Worship. It is my hope that I have fairly represented their position on the subject and that I have adequately answered their objections. But it is also my hope that the church will at some point be united in giving God the kind of music that He loves.
loc. 99
What is important to understand about this book is the case the author is making: not merely that instruments are permitted in corporate worship, but that they are mandatory. That’s going all the way. Phillip Kayser doesn’t believe instruments are circumstances of worship. When we are commanded to sing psalms to the Lord, instrumental accompaniment is part of that command. In other words, a cappella worship violates the Regulative Principle of Worship (RPW). I had never heard that case made, before.
I particularly appreciated the historical section, since a cappella worship is presented as having the majority of church history in support of it.
The false picture often painted is that of an early church that maintained purity of worship (with no instrumentation), and as Romanism grew, corruption grew, and with it came church instrumental music.
loc. 751
Sadly, a cappella writers have frequently copied “citations” of early church fathers from other a cappella books without checking the sources. This bad scholarship has resulted in an embarrassing number of false citations that do not exist in the original sources. This has certainly been the case with Justin Martyr.
There’s every reason to speak God’s message God’s way—because it’s God who brings true repentance and spiritual growth.
I bought this on recommendation from a seminary graduate. It was required reading in their pastoral class. I simply had to have it. It did not disappoint. It’s so rich that blogging through each chapter would be an extremely edifying exercise.
The irony of this book is the subtitle: Teaching the Gospel to Kids. I understand the intent, but as I read, I wondered why. The subtitle could easily be “teaching the Gospel, period.” Or “Teaching the Gospel to All Ages.” Seriously. The blunders made in teaching the Bible to kids are often repeated for adults. In just reading the first chapter, I realized that what he was talking about was what I heard in every church service. Mishandling of Scripture, especially moralism, knows no age-discrimination. The author even makes that point, occasionally:
We assume kids are well-grounded in the good news and that it’s there in the background as we teach other stuff. But what’s assumed is quickly forgotten. Without constant revival from the good news, kids—and adults—start trying to obey God under their own strength and willpower. The good news was never meant to be background. It’s foreground—the source we look to for the power to do everything else.
This book is absolute gold and possibly my favorite—or most affecting—read of the year.
This is actually a book that was published this year. It’s rare that I can acquire a recent publication. This was mandatory for me, since it was the 400th Anniversary of the Synod of Dort (hence it being published this year). And I was preparing a Doctrines of Grace conference in commemoration of the Canons of Dort. And, W. Robert Godfrey is an expert on the Canons. In fact, the text of the Canons in this book is Godfrey’s own translation. It doesn’t get better than that.
I really enjoyed reading this because it is a paragraph-by-paragraph exposition of the Canons. If you want analysis of the Canons of Dort, this is the book to read. Godfrey even expounded the “Rejection of Errors,” a substantial part of the document which everyone else thinks is okay to ignore.
Finally, leading the five appendices, Appendix 1: “Arminius: A New Look,” is a gem. The typical, unquestioned narrative of Jacob Arminius as innocent victim of those mean Calvinists has gone unchallenged long enough. Godfrey sets the record straight.
As an author, Dr. Voddie Baucham, Jr., is always a delight. He writes like he speaks. The content of this book is excellent. I was led to read this after listening to two talks of his on discipleship in the home and the church and youth ministry. The material for both were in this book. Providentially, I had acquired this book years before. It did not disappoint. Highlighting ensued. Facebook shares gushed forth. Tears were shed (not really).
So many good points were made, and bad ideas and practices nailed. From the Preface:
God has given clear instructions to his people as to the importance and pattern of family discipleship. This book explores that pattern by walking through Deuteronomy 6 with one eye on the text and the other on the times. This book is not about how methods can manipulate outcomes. Nor is it about offering simplistic assessments of current trends or potential solutions. This is an impassioned plea—a clarion call. This is one man’s effort to say, “Wake Up!” We are not multiplying in the land, and it is not well with us (Deut. 6:1–4; cf. Eph. 6:1–4), and these are sure signs that God’s covenant people are not employing biblical means when it comes to the evangelism and discipleship of the next generation.
Just as the farmer who expects crops needs to till, plant, water, weed, watch, and pray, the parent who desires to see a harvest in the heart of his or her child must do the same. Employing biblical means, far from being evidence of a lack of trust, or presuming upon God, is a sure sign that we understand our utter dependence on God to do that which only he can. If we desire to raise sons and daughters who walk with God we must be about those things that God has commanded.
—Baucham Jr., Voddie. Family Driven Faith (Paperback Edition with Study Questions ) (pp. 7-8). Crossway. Kindle Edition.
In the Introduction, he diagnoses the problem:
I believe we are looking for answers in all the wrong places. Our children are not falling away because the church is doing a poor job—although that is undoubtedly a factor. Our children are falling away because we are asking the church to do what God designed the family to accomplish. Discipleship and multi-generational faithfulness begins and ends at home.
—Baucham Jr., Voddie. Family Driven Faith (Paperback Edition with Study Questions ) (p. 9). Crossway. Kindle Edition.
You can just feel an incoming sucker-punch at age-segregated ministry. Baucham also takes some welcomed digs at the idolatry of sports. Thank you.
Like many parents, they found themselves traveling to tournament after tournament and praying for the opportunity to be out on Sunday since that meant they were playing for a title somewhere. What they didn’t realize is that they were teaching Thomas to prioritize baseball above the Fourth Commandment. They were teaching Thomas that he should honor the Sabbath and keep it holy unless it’s baseball season.
Thus when Thomas got to college and had to choose between going to church and hanging out with his teammates, the foundation for his decision had already been laid. . .
In other words, Thomas’s lack of commitment to spiritual matters laid the groundwork for his moral compromise. Christianity was never the center of Thomas’s universe. It was always something on the periphery. Church, and more importantly Jesus Christ, always orbited around baseball, the bright, shining star at the center of his universe.
—Baucham Jr., Voddie. Family Driven Faith (Paperback Edition with Study Questions ) (p. 37). Crossway. Kindle Edition.
And of course, what you’ve really been waiting for: the family integrated church. Which is a weird title to begin with, considering the covenant community was always “integrated,” until recent history. Age-segregation is the innovation, not age-integration.
Our church has no youth ministers, children’s ministers, or nursery. We do not divide families into component parts. We do not separate the mature women from the young teenage girls who need their guidance. We do not separate the toddler from his parents during worship. In fact, we don’t even do it in Bible study. We see the church as a family of families.
—Baucham Jr., Voddie. Family Driven Faith (Paperback Edition with Study Questions ) (p. 193). Crossway. Kindle Edition.
I can’t recommend this book enough, especially in a context where professing Christians have little to no biblical theology of family.
Okay, technically I didn’t read this, because I had the audiobook. Anyway. I love this Long Line of Godly Men Profile series of books. Many of them are written by Steven Lawson, and many of those are focused on the preaching ministry of the men. The one’s on the preaching of Luther and Calvin made my best reading list of 2017. The part on the call to the ministry was excellent.
I finished this book on an overnight boat ride, and met Dr. Steven Lawson the next day at his “Preaching the Pursuit of Holiness” conference.
Some déjà vu here. Steven Lawson’s Expositor made the “best list” last year, but this is a specific series of episodes he did, all on one topic: passion. They are incomparable.
A single lecture by Jim Paul, current director of English L’Abri. If you listen to one lecture today, listen to this one.
We are undergoing an ‘affective revolution’ in which our feelings define reality. This is driving much of the current debates around gender, but it also affects many other areas of our lives. What is the status of statements of our feelings in relationship to truth and reality outside of ourselves?
A single podcast episode. An excellent conversation about the primary virtue, today: niceness. Sadly, that’s true even among evangelicals. As Voddie Baucham famously quipped, “there’s an eleventh commandment, ‘Thou Shalt Be Nice’, and we don’t believe the other Ten.”
But the truth is, “niceness” is not a virtue. It has no strength. It can’t stand up to anything. It’s certainly not something Christ embodied.
We must think critically, and I mean biblically, about cultural virtues.
Best Watching
For the first time! If it’s been a tough year for reading, it’s been a great year for watching. Thus, from now on, I’ll be including a “Best Watching” category for video resources.
This video resource is free. Two playlists, from the YouTube channel Dennis Prutow, Professor Emeritus of Homiletics at Reformed Presbyterian Theological Seminary (RPTS). His homiletic text, So Pastor, What’s Your Point?was one of my best reads of 2018. That’s the best book on preaching I’ve ever read. Well, I stumbled upon his YouTube channel. He has two lengthy playlists on preaching. They are enough to get you started on preparing and delivering sermons, the best way.
Not only is the content wonderful, the delivery simple, the videos bite-sized for ease of digestion, and all about one of my favorite subjects—but it has been a life-changing class. I watched this, to wash down his mind-blowing homiletic text. And I finally adopted this method of sermon preparation and delivery, at the end of this year. Let me tell you: this method works. The personal impact this resource has had on my work outshines anything else on this list for 2019. I should just write a full review, elsewhere. The playlists are linked in the headings below:
Q. 49. Which is the second commandment? A. The second commandment is, Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or 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: thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; and showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
Q. 50. What is required in the second commandment? A. The second commandment requireth the receiving, observing, and keeping pure and entire, all such religious worship and ordinances as God hath appointed in his word.
This requires simplicity in worship. We don’t practice innovations, or inventions, in worship. That’s why worship in Reformed churches is not ornate, like the Church of Rome. Neither is it flashy, like evangelical “worship experiences.” It’s simple, because what is permitted in worship is restricted to what God has commanded. Nothing more, nothing less. This is what the 2nd Commandment implies. The first commandment tells us Who we worship, and the second tells us how.
That’s why Presbyterian worship services are simple. Worship is to be kept pure. Nothing commanded is to be left out. And, nothing not commanded is to be added. It’s limited to what God has appointed in his word.
This makes Reformed churches stand out. Or seem peculiar. Other churches do not limit their worship to what God has appointed. They see no problem with adding things. The result? Other worship services have more going on. Are more extravagant. More experiential. More attractive. More exciting. More “spiritual,” or “anointed.” More entertaining. The form that they take doesn’t matter. Whether they have extra sacraments, ceremonies, and special religious clothing, or have added dramas, movies, and pictures of Jesus everywhere. They may look very different, but they are the same in principle. They have gone beyond what God has appointed for worship.
And what does Reformed worship look like, in comparison? Boring. Plain. Uneventful. Nothing special. Maybe even spiritually dead, or “quenching the Spirit.”
At least that can be the impression of those who are looking for all those innovations and additions, to those who are about the visual and what is pleasing to the eyes. That happens to be what the 2nd Commandment targets, by the way. As John Gerstner has said, worship is about what is pleasing to God, not what is pleasing to us.
So in contrast to innovations and additions in worship, we have a mandate to keep it simple and limited to what God has appointed. And this can make us look lacking, in comparison.
G.I. Williamson, with his usual practical wisdom, drives this home. He draws an application from these catechism questions, entitling it “The Danger of an Inferiority Complex.” He writes:
Reformed Christians sometimes (and quite wrongly) have an inferior feeling. Because of the simplicity of their worship—or in other words, because they do not have some of the things that are common in other churches, things that are attractive to human nature—they almost apologize for not having those things that are not commanded. What Reformed Christians should realize is that adherence to this principle does not make them the poorer. To the contrary, it is their true riches. For what could be more wonderful than to receive from the Lord himself a sure knowledge of the way that He would be worshipped? And what could be a higher privilege than to observe—and to keep pure and entire—all such religious worship?
I appreciate Williamson’s application so much because I have personally seen what he’s warning against. I have witnessed this inferiority complex. I have heard with my own ears what sounds very much like an apology for not having that more extravagant worship that is so common in all the evangelical churches.
And I feel like saying, “Please, do not apologize for adhering to Scripture!” As if you answer to human beings, instead of the Lord Jesus! Remember that Christ is head of the church.
Who do you want to please, anyway? We have certain knowledge about the worship that God desires, and the privilege of pleasing God with it! Why would we feel sorry for that? Perhaps we desire the approval of men, more?
This inferiority complex can even be followed by little moves of compromise. Even the tiniest efforts to be more contemporary, because that’s obviously what appeals to people now. All the other churches are doing it. And they have more people than we do.
Yet, we must recall the reason given to enforce the 2nd Commandment: God is a jealous God. God is zealous for his worship, that it be pure and acceptable, that it be according to what he has said, and not as the other peoples do. Remember the historical context of the Ten Commandments: God’s people were just delivered from an idolatrous nation (Egypt), and were moving into the midst of idolatrous nations! God in effect was saying, “don’t worship like that!” God’s people still need to hear that, today.
So stand unapologetically on his Word. By all means, explain why Reformed worship is simple, and not like other churches. And by “explain,” I mean give the Scriptural basis, give the biblical reasons. I certainly do not mean explain it away. Just say it, explain it, but don’t kill it with qualifications (because you don’t want to offend anyone).
But never, ever feel sorry for sticking to what Christ has appointed. Do not love the praise of men more than the praise of God. Following from that, never, ever actually say sorry for keeping it simple. In effect, you would be saying, “I’m sorry that we don’t compromise worship.” Really? Think of the Lord Jesus, head of the church, whom you worship, looking at you as you tell other people sorry for your worship being the way he has commanded! What a scandal! Personally, I would detect the implication that if it was up to you, the worship would be like everywhere else. That you would personally do it differently. Secretly, we wish that we could be like them: more attractive, more fun, more popular, because we offer what everyone likes.
Are you actually sorry for obeying Christ? Are you actually sorry for trying to keep the worship of God pure?
If we are sorry for that, what are our priorities? In our heart, what do we truly value? These are important questions that we must ask ourselves.
The Lord is jealous for his pure worship. We should be, as well.
