One could even argue that the other great principal doctrines of the reformation such as sola gratia, sola fide are logically dependent upon sola scriptura. Matthew mcmahon articles on puritan worship and the regulative principle. In america, by far the most popular, honored day is not the lords day but christmas. The scriptural basis for the regulative principle of worship pdf. Sometimes the regulative principle of worship is interpreted as meaning that the new covenant does have a prescriptive liturgy, and it just happens to be of the most minimal variety. But at least with the regulative principle we can come to worship knowing that nothing will be asked of us except that which can be shown to be true according to the word of god. Everything done in the worship of gods people should be pointing towards and proclaiming the same message as. If it isnt in the bible, it cannot be in a worship setting. Some reformed thinkers and churches have appealed to it to bar the use of contemporary praise songs in public worship, some to insist on the use of psalms only, and.
This truth is an application of the regulative principle of worship, and it is illustrated. I think both sides are starting off on the wrong foot. The regulative principle of worship the reformed understanding of the practice of biblical worship is usually summarized by the regulative principle of worship rpw. Since this is true, he has revealed that to us in scripture. Association of reformed baptist churches of america. The regulative principle of worship defined we can only approach god on his own terms, not only for salvation, but also in worship. As the westminster confession of faith explains, 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. The scriptural regulative principle of worship by g. Some lutherans say, whatever is not forbidden is allowed.
The regulative principle of worship and the biblical. Pdf reflections on the regulative principle of worship. The regulative principle of worship is a christian doctrine, held by some calvinists and anabaptists, that god commands churches to conduct public services of worship using certain distinct elements affirmatively found in scripture, and conversely. The regulative principle of worship and christmas reformed online. There is a lot of confusion as to what these principals mean and how they are worked out in the life of the church. Central to the theology of worship set forth by the lbc is the belief that all true christian worship is.
Which is correct, the regulative principle or the normative. Even those who want to modifyor entirely eliminatethe rpw are willing to concede as. The remainder of my presentation will therefore be an attempt to demonstrate two things from the scriptures. As the westminster confession says, but the acceptable way of worshipping the true god is instituted by himself, and so limited to his own revealed will, that he may not be worshipped according to the imaginations and devices of men. What does the regulative principle require of church members. The regulative principle of worship states that every act of worship must have explicit biblical evidence in order for it to be practiced by christians. Because of the vital and central place of worship, the church needs to give careful attention to what is done in worship, and especially in public worship.
The regulative principle of worship is a biblical doctrine. The regulative principle of worship banner of truth uk. First, the regulative principle of worship is directly related to sola scriptura doctrines such as the infallibility, absolute authority, sufficiency and perfection of scripture. The regulative principle of worship by john calvin moreover, the rule which distinguishes between pure and vitiated worship is of universal application, in order that we may not adopt any device which seems fit to ourselves, but look to the injunction of him who alone is entitled to prescribe. Since this understanding of church power is integral to the regulative principle, there are broader applications that take us beyond attendance and the elements of a service. Is there a regulative principle of worship sam waldron.
Let it be clear from the outset that my questions about the reformed regulative principle for public worship do not spring from doubts about what i take to be its main thrust. The regulative principle of worship banner of truth usa. As this term suggests, our worship of god must be regulated by the word of god. It affirms that christians ought only to incorporate into their worship those things that god has expressly commanded. Ligon duncan what is the regulative principle of worship.
The regulative principle of worship the regulative principle of worship states that the corporate worship of god is to be founded upon specific directions of scripture written by derek thomas thursday, january 29, 2015 it is important to realize that the regulative principle as applied to public worship frees the church from acts of. The normative principle is the idea that anything not expressly forbidden by scripture can be used in corporate worship. Are they familiar with what the scripture says on this. Today, many christians are turning back to the puritans to, walk in the old paths, of gods word, and to continue to proclaim old truth that glorifies jesus christ. More particularly, perkins defined divine worship as the ascribing of divinitie to the thing we honour, whereby we make it unto us some divine thing above the order of any creature. God alone can order his worship, and god alone does order his worship. Rather than scripture providing the directive for how we are to conduct public worship, the church is seen as the final authority in such matters. Jun, 2003 the regulative principle, which is the historic way by which reformed people have addressed the worship issue, speaks both to truth and spirit.
In other words, the regulative principle for worship is the same as the regulative principle for all of human life. But my concern is not so much with the scholars as it is with the rank and file membership of our churches. On the contemporary use and misuse of the regulative principle. The regulative principle of worship is a christian doctrine, held by some calvinists and. Jun 04, 2012 in other words, the regulative principle for worship is the same as the regulative principle for all of human life. It is from that principle of worship, derived from the scripture, that we deduce what is acceptable and unacceptable in the public worship of god in our churches.
The regulative principle, which is the historic way by which reformed people have addressed the worship issue, speaks both to truth and spirit. The discussion above, in my view, is a fairly complete statement of the regulative principle, both as it is found in the bible and in the explicit statements of the reformed confessional standards. The scriptural regulative principle of worship the westminster. The regulative principle of worship holds that we worship god in the manner he has commanded us in his word. Apr 05, 2017 third, we should apply the regulative principle in the content of our worship. It is positive command which is enforced by the mere will of the lawgiver.
In other words, it is the belief that god institutes in scripture whatever he requires for worship in the church, and everything else should be avoided. The regulative principle of worship reformed theology at. Apr 17, 2018 the normative principle of worship is the generally accepted approach to worship practiced by anglicans, lutherans, evangelicals, and methodists. Some questions about the regulative principlejohn m. Its unfortunate most people probably think worship according to the regulative principle is the hardest to transport to other cultures. The regulative principle of worship free presbyterian.
Third, we should apply the regulative principle in the content of our worship. On the surface, it is difficult to see why anyone who values the authority of scripture would find such a. Nov, 2017 god cares how we worship him and he has instructed us in his word so that we can know what is that good and perfect will of god. The opposite of the regulative principle is the inventive principle, which has roman catholicism as its chief proponent.
The regulative principle is an expression of the limits of church power such that the church in its worship may require of its members only that which christ requires and no more. They imagine new ways to worship godways that he has not revealed in his word. The regulative principle of the church chapel library. Frame, john some questions about the regulative principle. Worship and the regulative principle reformed hope. We must have a warrant from gods word for every form of worship we employ because only god is wise.
The regulative principle argues that our worship should be regulated by holy scripture. At its worst, this principle leads to constant friction and suspicion between believers. The regulative principle of worship rpw is the doctrine that everything of religious significance in worship must be prescribed in holy scripture, either explicitly or by good and necessary consequence, such that whatever. Avoiding the ode to the arbitrary, the regulative principle for worship posits that the holy scriptures provide very clear guidelines for corporate worship services, and adding to those guidelines are unbiblical and unhelpful. The regulative principle of worship ordained servantvol. And the answer is already implied in our firm adherence to the bible as the inspired word of god the only infallible rule of faith and practice. The regulative principle is currently the subject of no small controversy in reformed circles.
You and i are responsible to worship according to the standards god gives us in the age in which we live. The regulative principle of worship in christian theology teaches that the public worship of god should include those and only those elements that are instituted, commanded, or appointed by command or example in the bible. The regulative and normative principles of worship new. You would be required to approach god in public worship through some method you find unbiblical and noxious. The regulative principles says, lets worship god as he wants to be worshiped.
Granted, those are excellent questions, but i think they miss the point of the regulative principle of worship. The locus classicus for this perspective is leviticus 10, where nadab and abihu, the sons of levi are struck dead by god for offering strange fire before the lord. Based on the 2nd commandment and other biblical texts and stories, historic reformed and presbyterian churches have taught and practiced the regulative principle of worship. For example, an article online said that those who hold to the regulative view do not use instruments in their. Which is correct, the regulative principle or the normative principle of worship. So in worship, we should not, for example, engage in skits for church, or special music, because these things are not prescribed by god as the function of believers as they meet in an formal setting for worship. There is a lot that can be said about the debate between the regulative principle of worship versus the normative principle of worship. The normative principle of worship is the generally accepted approach to worship practiced by anglicans, lutherans, evangelicals, and methodists. Jan 11, 2017 that we in no wise make any image of god, nor worship him in any other way than he has commanded us in his word.
The regulative principle has nothing to do with permission. Matthew mcmahon the regulative principle was given its classical and definitive statement in the reformed confessions formulated in the 17th century. Hammett explains, guiding baptist in their choice of the elements of worship, at least to some degree in the past, has been what is called the regulative principle. It is important to spell this out, because now it is becoming common for professedly reformed churches to maintain that they hold to the regulative principle of worship at the same time as singing hymns, using organs, keeping christmas and so on. This danger can only be avoided by adhering to the worship god has revealed in his word.
The sincere free offer of the gospel in the sum of saving knowledge by t. Those who reject gods regulative principle of worship have a real problem explaining. Categorized bible translation, psalms, reformed practice, reforming worship, regulative principle of worship tagged acts 16. The regulative principle of worship is simple enough. Time and again it is clear that there was a desire to be in bondage again to the weak and. Jan 02, 2020 for example, churches following the regulative principle in worship often do not use musical instruments, since there is no new testament command or example that would warrant their use in the church. This third point answers the question of the substance of our worship from beginning to end. The regulative principle, properly applied, means that church members are free from the threats of idolatry and weirdness, heresy and tomfoolery.
In this brief post, i want to simply draw your attention to the use of the term worship in this discussion. Im not arguing for or against those things, just giving an example of a regulativetype argument. Sola scriptura and the regulative principle of worship. Everything done in the worship of gods people should be pointing towards and proclaiming the same message as the text of the sermon. Is it christmas, easter, kwanzaa, or the christian sabbath. The bible teaches us the regulative principle of worship. Christians beat each other up trying to discern exactly where the offering should go in the service or precisely which kinds of instruments have scriptural warrant. The regulative principle of worship and christmas brian schwertley introduction what is the most popular holy day of the year. The regulative principle of worship by derek thomas. On the surface, it is difficult to see why anyone who values the authority of scripture would find such a principle objectionable. What does the regulative principle require of church. The two classic protestant views of worship are the normative principle of worship and regulative principle of worship. As the westminster confession says, but the acceptable way of worshipping the true god is instituted by himself, and so limited to his own revealed will, that he may not be worshipped according to the.
The reasons that such an understanding is necessary are manifold. The regulative principle of worship maintains that scripture gives specific guidelines for conducting corporate worship services and that churches must not add anything to those guidelines. The scriptural regulative principle of worship the. The purposes of christian worship are to glorify god both in heaven and on earth and to build up the church on earth through the appointed means of grace. A paper presented at the 2001 international conference of reformed churches. Five lectures on the biblical principles of worship. Normative worship looks at the other side of the coin. Put simply, the regulative principle of worship states that the corporate worship of god is to be founded upon specific directions of scripture. Sola scriptura and the regulative principle of worship by brian. The clearest statement of this principle is found in wcf 21. There is no broad interpretation of the regulative principle. The regulative principle of worship rpw is the doctrine that everything of religious significance in worship must be prescribed in holy scripture, either explicitly or by good and necessary consequence, such that. Worship, psalm singing and grape juice by scott bushey. The regulative principle of worship 68 ordained servantvol.
Most are familiar with the socalled regulative principle of worship, that, in the words of the westminster confession, 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. Whether you live in a town with one church or hundreds, the regulative principle claims that churches do not have the warrant or authority. In john 4, we have the two fundamental sides of the regulative principle of worship. Reconsidering the puritan regulative principle phillipsburg, pa.
Feb 14, 2012 there is no broad interpretation of the regulative principle. Regulative principle of worship the reformed reader. Is not the whole of life itself to be lived according to the rule of. Sola scriptura and the regulative principle of worship brian schwertley introduction sola scriptura is one of the fundamental principles of the protestant reformation. Now, as soon as one begins critically interacting with this notion of a biblical liturgy, immediate challenges arise.
The sabbathlords day are not at odds with each other by scott bushey. Central to the theology of worship set forth by the lbc is the belief that all true christian worship is to be from the heart by faith. The regulative principle of worship james attebury. Jesus answers the samaritan woman in verse 21, woman, believe me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain. The regulative principle of worship first reformed presbyterian.
The regulative principle of worship is a christian doctrine, held by some calvinists and anabaptists, that god commands churches to conduct public services of worship using certain distinct elements affirmatively found in scripture, and conversely, that god prohibits any and all other practices in public worship. Normative vs regulative principle the puritan board. For example, churches following the regulative principle in worship often do not use musical instruments. Regulative worship relies upon scripture to dictate specifically what is allowed in worship. The regulative principle merely expresses the important truth that god is perfect and knows best how he ought to be worshiped. Watts worship in general was once defined by william perkins as the exhibiting and giving of reverence and honour to another.