Pulpit Priority
Calvin believed that biblical preaching must occupy the chief place in the worship service. What God has to say to man is infinitely more important than what man has to say to God. If the congregation is to worship properly, if believers are to be edified, if the lost are to be converted, God’s Word must be exposited. Nothing must crowd the Scriptures out of the chief place in the public gathering.
The primacy of biblical preaching in Calvin’s thought was undeniable: “Wherever we see the Word of God purely preached and heard, and the sacraments administered according to Christ’s institution, there, it is not to be doubted, a church of God exists.”22 On the other hand, “An assembly in which the preaching of heavenly doctrine is not heard does not deserve to be reckoned a church.”23 In short, Calvin held that Bible exposition should occupy the primary place in the worship service, meaning that preaching is the primary role of the minister.[1]
22 Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion, Vol. II, trans. Ford Lewis Battles (Philadelphia, PA: Westminster Press, 1960), 1,023.
23 Calvin, Commentary on the Book of the Prophet Isaiah, Vol. 3, trans. William Pringle (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1979 reprint), 213.
[1] Steven J. Lawson, The Expository Genius of John Calvin (Lake Mary, FL: Reformation Trust Publishing, 2007), 30.
No comments:
Post a Comment