Professional Documents
Culture Documents
The Church
(Reprinted from Law and Society, Volume 2 of the
Institutes of Biblical Law [Vallecito, CA: Ross House Books, 1982], 335-338)
Supporting
the Local Church
I t is only through faithful preach-
ing and teaching of the Word that
churches can fulfill their high calling
pro-life organizations, worldview
organizations, charities, scholarly en-
deavors and more. Many have pursued
limits itself to defending liberty from
evildoers. A Biblical state would seldom
intersect the life of the self-governed
before God. theological training, including seminary man. The limited scope of a Biblical
The ministry of Chalcedon has for training, and local churches have been state is easily seen in the limitation of
thirty-nine years promoted a very broad organized as well, but many of our the tax to a head tax, a uniform amount
view of the Kingdom of God and the own “spin-offs” have been independent on all adult men (Ex. 30:11-16). A uni-
role of its citizens. Chalcedon is an edu- ministries. A few, particularly schools, form tax would have to be so small that
cational ministry that seeks to proclaim have been privately owned for-profit even the poor could afford it.
the application of the Word to every ventures. The organized church is also a nec-
area of faith and life. We are not com- Some have criticized such activities essary but limited sphere. It is a ministry
petitors with the local church any more and Chalcedon itself as “parachurch.” of grace, which can only be fulfilled
than we compete with the family or the This charge is illegitimate, however, for by its proclamation of the Word. The
state. We seek to be a voice directing it assumes that our duties more right- church is a ministry of grace, but not
men in terms of their calling to faithful fully belong to, or are perhaps even in the mediator of that grace. Its purpose
service as citizens of the eternal King- conflict with, the local church. The is to encourage the saint’s growth and
dom of God. That Kingdom is wherever local church has a lofty calling, but if we edification, but it cannot go beyond its
Jesus Christ reigns. It begins in the heart allow it an elevated organizational struc- authority and try to control all aspects
and mind, but must extend outward to ture we return to the fallacy of Rome. of the Kingdom of God.
the family, the vocation, the commu-
nity, and our message to the world. Spheres of Authority Levites and Temple Priests
“Christ is Lord” is our message. We God has given us spheres of authori- There is a Biblical model for the
call the state to its proper role. We call ty for governing our lives. What is legiti- organized church and the work of the
churches to their proper roles. We call mate for one sphere cannot legitimately church. In the Old Testament, the
families to go beyond study and worship be assumed by another. Authority is Levites were dispersed throughout the
to dominion activity in terms of their circumscribed by Scripture. land. Only a small number of the Levite
acknowledgement of Christ’s Lordship. The family is God’s basic institu- tribe were qualified to perform acts of
Emboldened by Chalcedon, numer- tion. Four of the commandments worship in the sanctuary. The tithe for
ous pastors are fearlessly proclaiming pertain directly to the family and its God’s work went not to the few temple
the Faith for All of Life. We are often preservation. We are called to protect its priests, but to the Levites, who, in turn,
told that “Chalcedon changed my life.” honor (honoring father and mother), passed on one-tenth of that amount
Some, struggling against great challenges purity (no adultery), and property (no (1% of the income of the people) to the
in their ministries, have added with a theft or covetousness). We are therefore priests in the temple (Num.18:21-28).
smile, “It’s all your fault!” called to preserve the family (and its God’s property went to God’s larger
Many ministries have begun because definition in terms of “mother” and work and this giving was under the
of Chalcedon’s encouragement to apply “father”) and further it by covenantal control of the tither. There is no indica-
the faith to all areas of life: countless education. tion that the tithe had to go to “the local
schools, all kinds of professional orga- The state is God’s ministry of justice Levites.”
nizations, orphanages, political groups, (Rom. 13:1-7) and is godly when it The Levites performed many func-
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Faith for All of Life
Worship and Warfare: Recovering the
Dominion Mandate in Worship Music
Stephen R. Turley
God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it:
and have dominion. (Gen. 1:28) — The Dominion Mandate
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them. (Mt. 28:19) Go ye into all the world,
and preach the gospel to every creature. (Mk. 16:19) — The Great Commission
H ow can we sanc-
tify and enjoy this
queen of all days — the
of God, use the Holy sacraments, call
publicly upon the Lord, and give Chris-
tian alms. Our spiritual rest consists in
point. Certainly, there is such a thing
as profaning the Lord’s Day. But most
questions about Sabbath-rest tend to be
Sabbath? The answer is heartfelt worship of the Triune God. scholastic hair-splitting. Once the hair
relevant because one- Jesus commanded, “Come unto Me is split, we split the same hair again and
seventh of our time each all ye that labor and are heavy laden, again.
week is set aside for rest. Sanctifying And I will give you rest” (Mt. 11:28). In When I attended Westminster
the Sabbath is a question of supreme Christ we have entered into His rest in Seminary my pastor wined and dined
practicality. this life (Heb. 4:10); He has given us a me at a restaurant on the Lord’s Day. I
The word Sabbath means rest, and day to worship Him, an earthly sabbath. was unsure about his invitation and even
its verbal form to sabbath means to rest. The principle of rest carries over into the hemmed-and-hawed for a while before
On the first day of the week which is the New Covenant. accepting. Since he ministered in a
Lord’s Day, the church is commanded to The second rest is physical: a cessa- Presbyterian church, I concluded that he
sabbath. I phrase it this way because the tion from our work, to do what refreshes knew better than myself, who was living
our spirits and bodies. God Himself a dog’s life as a seminary student.
old Saturday Sabbath has been fulfilled
labored for six days, rested, and was After a great feast we journeyed back
in Christ, so that the first day of the
refreshed. The day is for both worship to the seminary grounds and passed
week is not (technically) the Sabbath
and rest. some neighborhood kids playing football
Day (Col. 2:16).
The command to rest is just as au- on the seminary lawn. Immediately, my
The breezy attitude of those who thoritative as to worship or to work the pastor cried out, “Look at those kids
say that every day is a Lord’s Day, based other six days. We might take a nap on profaning the Sabbath!” I wondered how
upon a misreading of Romans 14:6, the Lord’s Day, watch a movie, or shoot this meshed with our eating in a public
where Paul describes those who observe a some hoops. The other six days are for business on the Sabbath.
day to the Lord, and others who do not work; we work six and rest one. “We can The Rev. Greg Bahnsen once told
observe the day, but to the Lord they do do a week’s work in six days, but we can- me about attending a Christian youth
not observe it. not do a week’s work in seven days.” camp when two campers were found
If every day is alike, then what Paul Sabbathing has two features. We tossing a football on the Sabbath. A
says about eating would also be true of take pleasure in our accomplished work. minister admonished them to put away
the Lord’s Supper. There would be no This is what God Himself did at the the sacrilegious pigskin. In its place he
Lord’s Supper because some eat to the creation. His refreshment on the Seventh suggested their taking “a nature hike”!
Lord, and others who do not, eat not Day included His taking stock of His
to the Lord. But Scripture teaches that creation. He did not rest because He was We Eat and Fellowship
the Lord’s Supper is a sacrosanct meal fatigued. Rather, He reflected on His on This Day, Too
distinguished from all others, so the creative work and found it to be “very In the Old Testament the Sabbath
Lord’s Day is distinguished, too. Each good” (Gen. 1:31). We should follow was a feast day, not a fast day. God’s
day is unto the Lord, but only one is the this example. We gaze upon our accom- people were commanded to gather a
Lord’s Day. plished work and are delighted! double-portion of manna on Friday, so
The second feature is that the Sab- that they would not have to work on
The Essence of bath is the eye of “Hurricane Work.” We the Sabbath. Even if all the food was
the Lord’s Day Is Rest do not merely enjoy what we have done, prepared the day before, the Sabbath
What is emphasized in the Fourth but we rest from what we have done. was a feast day.
Commandment is not just worship, but This energizes us for productive future It strikes me as odd that some
rest: two kinds of rest. We spiritually rest work. Christian families fix modest meals on
in Christ on the Lord’s Day when we Questions about what you can or this royal, queen of all days. I once was
diligently attend church, learn the Word cannot do on the Lord’s Day miss the a part of a delegation of ministers who
A sk the average
Christian of the 21st
century what the future
both Lord and Christ”(Ac. 2:33, empha-
sis added).
Now, with His Spirit dwelling in us,
at the end of the whole world, heaven and
earth shall be restored.”1
This preaching infused its hearers
holds and you will most we are to take dominion of this fallen with the vision of gospel prosperity.
likely get a bleak picture world. We are to make disciples of all John Calvin set the Puritan heart ablaze,
of misery. the nations. We are to teach our children “So in this prayer we ask that, with all
The world, he says, is getting worse diligently the law of God. We are to impediment removed, He may bring all
and worse. But we need not worry: press the crown rights of King Jesus into mortals under His command, and lead
we will be happily raptured from this all of society. The schools, the stores, them to consider the life of Heaven…so
earthly mess. There’s no need to invest the courtrooms, the airwaves, the town we pray that…the whole world may come
too much time or effort in the affairs square; all are to submit to His lordship. over to Him…and now as the Kingdom of
of this world because the world is not Christ expects it! Why don’t we? God increases, stage upon stage, to the end
going well and its Christian population of the world, we must every day pray for its
will not be around much longer anyway. We’ve Lost Our Vision coming. As far as iniquity holds the world
What are the implications of such The church of America has lost in its sway, so far is the Kingdom of God
a sour eschatology? Christians now lack its vision. I say “lost” because it wasn’t absent, for complete righteousness must
the victorious vision Christ laid before always so. come in its train.”2
His beloved Church before He ascended Look back to the formative years of
to Heaven. The Church got its march- our country, observe the vital faith of Families, Too
ing orders from Christ, “And Jesus our Puritan fathers. Although they were It was imperative for each house-
came and spake unto them, saying, All comparatively few in number, they were hold to train up children in their faith.
power is given unto Me in heaven and in leadership positions in all the colo- A properly ordered family was para-
in earth. Go ye, therefore, and teach all nies, and influenced all areas of society. mount to the Puritans. Thomas Cobbett
nations, baptizing them in the name of (In fact, King George III never referred wrote, “[T]he greatest love and faithful-
the Father, and the Son, and of the Holy to an American Revolution, but called ness which parents as covenanters can
Ghost: teaching them to observe all things the events of 1776 the Presbyterian show to God, and to their children, who
whatsoever I have commanded you: and, rebellion.) America was to spread the in and with themselves are joint cove-
lo, I am with you always, even unto the gospel by being that City on a Hill pro- nanters with God, is so to educate them,
end of the world. Amen” (Mt. 28:18-20, claiming Christ in the lives of its citizens that…the conditions of the covenant
emphasis added). as well as its government. may be attended by their children, and
At Pentecost, the church received These early Americans were Calvin- so the whole covenant fully effected.”3
the power to carry out its mission, ists. Theirs was a desire to usher in the A well-ordered family had even civil
“Therefore being by the right hand of days of which Isaiah spoke. The great implications. The Reforming Synod of
God exalted, and having received of the Puritan preacher, Jonathan Edwards 1679 convening in Boston proclaimed,
Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, He voiced the same desire when he wrote, “Most of the evils that abound amongst
hath shed forth this, which you now see “The world was ruined as to man as us, proceed from defects as to family
and hear. For David is not ascended into effectively as if it were reduced to a government.”4 As covenant head, the
the heavens: but he saith himself, ‘the chaos again, all heavens and earth were Puritan father was obliged to catechize
Lord said unto my Lord, sit Thou on overthrown. But the design was to restore his children not only grounding them in
My right hand, until I make thy foes a all, as it were to create [new heavens and the faith but also teaching them how to
footstool.’ Therefore, let all the House of a new earth]. The work which was to be be good citizens.
Israel know assuredly, that God hath made done was begun immediately after the Cotton Mather, at the birth of his
that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, Fall and so is carried on till all is finished son, drew up his own catechism for the
G od has given us a
rich Christian heri-
tage in America and one
Muhlenberg listened to Henry, his pulse
quickened and his heart sensed the voice
of God. Many who heard the words of
preach and a time to pray, but the time for
me to preach has passed away.”
Then, in a voice that shook the
that is full of exemplary Patrick Henry, including Muhlenberg, rafters of the church, Reverend Muhlen-
men, to whom we can were being moved by winds not of this berg trumpeted,
look for examples and world. Christ was marching through “And there is a time to fight, and that
encouragement in wicked times like history and Muhlenberg did not want time has now come!”
these. One worthy example, well worth to be left behind. George Washington With that, Muhlenberg threw off
studying, was the Lutheran Pastor, John entreated Muhlenberg to join the cause his clerical robes to reveal the full dress
Peter Gabriel Muhlenberg. for American independence. It was not uniform of a Militia Colonel. The effect
Muhlenberg was born the eldest of a hard sell. Muhlenberg enlisted in the was dramatic. With mouths wide open,
eleven children1 on October 1, 1746. Continental Army under George Wash- the shocked congregation watched as
His father, Henry Melchior Muhlen- ington and was commissioned a colonel. Muhlenberg stepped into the aisle of the
berg, was the principal organizer and pa- He returned to his humble congregation church and ordered a drummer at the
triarch of American Lutheranism. Young in Woodstock with a great burden on church door to beat for fresh recruits.
Peter studied theology under his father’s his shoulders and a greater fire burning While the church bells tolled and the
tutelage. He was ordained as a minister in his heart. news of this most unusual service spread
of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Reverend Muhlenberg mounted throughout the small hamlet, and the
1768 and pastored several small flocks his pulpit on a cold January morning surrounding countryside, the typically
in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. In in 1776 and instructed those in the quiet country church turned into a hub
1772, Muhlenberg accepted a pastor- congregation to turn in their Bibles to of activity and excitement. Before the
ate in the Northern part of Virginia’s Ecclesiastes chapter 3. He looked sol- day’s end, Colonel Muhlenberg had
Shenandoah Valley, in the small village emnly over the men, women, boys, and enlisted nearly 300 men in his regiment.
of Woodstock where many Germans girls before him and began to read verses The 8th Virginia would become known
had migrated.2 What happened there, in one through eight. as the German Regiment.
January of 1776, should steel the nerves Muhlenberg recounted the tyranny Muhlenberg would soon mount
of every Christian in America today. of King George, the Stamp Act, and the the same white horse that had so often
Muhlenberg had been elected to events taking place in Boston and other carried him on pastoral duties and lead
the Virginia legislature in 1774, and cities in the Colonies. His voice rose his regiment to fight for the liberty in
was exposed to the growing rumbles for and filled with emotion as the injustice which he so ardently believed. When
independence. Muhlenberg was also of it all assaulted his sense of righteous- a relative criticized Muhlenberg for
present at St. John’s Church in Rich- ness. The congregation was spellbound. abandoning his church, Muhlenberg
mond when Patrick Henry shocked the Muhlenberg closed with these words: responded with the following words:
assembled multitude with his “Give me “In the language of the Holy Writ, I am a clergyman, it is true, but I am
liberty or give me death!” speech. As there is a time for all things, a time to a member of society as well as the poorest
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