Reading of God's Word in Public Worship

By Pastor Benjamin Glaser - Posted at Thoughts From Parson Farms:

How Ministers Are to Take Seriously Their Duty to Speak Well

Good Morning,

The next section of the Westminster Directory of Public Worship that we will be taking time to consider has to do with the public reading of the Bible on the Lord’s Day as the congregation gathers to worship. While today’s devotion will focus particularly on who is allowed to perform this act of grace the why should not be lost either. In the opening paragraph it is mentioned that the public reading is done for the purpose of edification. According to the dictionary to edify means to provide moral instruction by way of guidance. How that works is largely going to be determined by what we understand is happening not just in worship itself, but by virtue of the authority of the one doing the reading. Let’s get into it by first looking at the portion for today:

READING of the word in the congregation, being part of the publick worship of God, (wherein we; acknowledge our dependence upon him, and subjection to him,) is one use sanctified by him for the edifying of his people, is to be performed by the pastors and teachers.

Howbeit, such as intend the ministry, may occasionally both read the word, and exercise their gift in preaching in the congregation, if allowed by the presbytery thereunto.

I’ve written before about who is supposed to be publicly reading the word of God from the pulpit during worship and so I do not want to re-invent the wheel. The writers of the DPW do think it important enough to mention, so we will as well. The doctrines surrounding things like ordination can sound strange to our ears because the society we live in does not really promote ideas grounded in set-apart-ness (a word I just made up). Even when it comes to secular authority, i.e. – doctors, lawyers, etc... we have great doubts about credibility. Yet, it is a keen component of the way Christ has established His Church that there are roles governed by His word that only certain qualified men are to hold. Not all men, qualified and called men. It is not strictly a question of gender. Yes, only men are to be pastors and teachers (as the DPW uses that, more to explain in a bit). However, people like Timothy or Titus, or even Paul himself, gain their place in the body not by personal decision, but through the examination of the elders and the call of the Holy Spirit. We do things in the church not based on the will of the flesh, but of God.

Continue here.