The Historical Development of the Book of Church Order

Chapter 47 : The Principles and Elements of Public Worship

Paragraph 6 :

47-6. The Lord Jesus Christ has prescribed no fixed forms for public worship but, in the interest of life and power in worship, has given His Church a large measure of liberty in this matter. It may not be forgotten, however, that there is true liberty only where the rules of God’s Word are observed and the Spirit of the Lord is, that all things must be done decently and in order, and that God’s people should serve Him with reverence and in the beauty of holiness. From its beginning to its end a service of public worship should be characterized by that simplicity which is an evidence of sincerity and by that beauty and dignity which are a manifestation of holiness.

[DIGEST: What we have now as chapter 47 was not part of either the Proposed Book of Church Order (1973) or the Book of Church Order as adopted by the first General Assembly later that same year. Rather, this chapter, with its nine paragraphs, dates to 1975 when this text was presented by the Constitutional Documents Committee, as part of its proposed revision of the Directory. [M3GA, 3-15, pp. 55-56] This chapter, originally numbered as chapter 48, presents entirely new text not previously part of any prior Presbyterian Book of Church Order. The chapter was renumbered as chapter 47 when the original chapters 8 and 9 were merged in 1980. No changes to paragraph 47-6 have been made since adoption in 1975.

ANTECEDENT TEXTS:
1975, 48-6, [M14GA, p. 339]
The Lord Jesus Christ has prescribed no fixed forms for public worship but, in the interest of life and power in worship, has given his church a large measure of liberty in this matter. It may not be forgotten, however, that there is true liberty only where the rules of God’s Word are observed and the Spirit of the Lord is, that all things must be done decently and in order, and that God’s people should serve him with reverence and in the beauty of holiness. From its beginning to its end a service of public worship should be characterized by that simplicity which is an evidence of sincerity and by that beauty and dignity which are a manifestation of holiness.

[No comparable text in any of the following editions:]
1. PCA 1973, Adopted text, as printed in the Minutes of General Assembly
2. Continuing Presbyterian Church 1973, Proposed text
3. PCUS 1933
4. PCUS 1925
5. PCUS 1894

COMMENTARY:
Morton H. Smith, Commentary on the Book of Church Order, 6th edition, 2007, p. 398-399.
Having introduced the matter of forms in the previous paragraph, this paragraph continues this subject, stating first of all the basic principle that the Lord Jesus has not prescribed any set forms for public worship in the New Testament. This is sharply in contrast with the Old Testament, where the external forms were carefully laid out. The Westminster Confession describes the differences between the Old and New Testaments as follows: Having spoken of the various specific
types and ordinances of the Old Testament,[2] it then says:

To guard against the sinful inclinations of men, the paragraph reminds us that liberty with regard to forms is not license to do anything one may imagine as a part of worship. We are brought back to the regulative principle of worship, namely, that we do not include anything in worship that is not warranted by Scripture. In practicing our liberty, we must keep in mind the general rules of the Word of God, specifically, (1) all things must be done decently and in order; (2) that God's people must serve the Lord in reverence and the beauty of holiness. As the Confession indicates, the worship of the New Testament is to be performed with simplicity, since this itself is an evidence of sincerity and a manifestation of proper dignity and holiness. This should serve as a warning against inventing elaborate forms.