1990 issue 1 - the foundational principles of presbyterian church government - counsel of chalcedon

8/12/2019 1990 Issue 1 - The Foundational Principles of Presbyterian Church Government - Counsel of Chalcedon

1/5

Joe Morecraft continues his

Aspects ofBiblical Church Government

with

Part ill,

The Foundational Principles of

Presbyterian

Church

Government

T

is article is a condensation and

paraphrase of Thomas Withe

row's irrefutable little book,

The Apostolic Church: Which

Is It?, first

printed

in

1856, and

reprinted several times from 1954 to

1983

by

the

Free

Presbyterian Publica

tions, 133 Woodlands Rd., Glasgow,

Scotland.

I do

add some

of my

own re

marks along with some quotes from

The Book

of

church

Order

of

the

Re-

fonned Presbyterian Church, but the

genius of the article is that of Withe

row. Professor Thomas Witherow stud

ied under the great Thomas Chalmers of

Edinburgh. He became Pastor

at

Maghera, Ireland andProfessorofEccle

siastical History, Magee College, Lon

donderry, in 1856

God makes unmistakably clear that

AIL God-breathed Scripture. . . is

PROFITABLE for teaching, for re-

proof, for correction; for training in

righteousness; that the man of God may

be adequate, equipped for every good

work, Tim. 3:16-17. This means

that nothing in

the Bible is unim

portant, unprofitable

or

without pur

pose for our lives. Though every state

ment in the Scripture cannot be regarded

as absolutely essential to salvation, yet

everything there is essential to some

other wise and important end, else i t

would

not

find a place in the good Word

of God. (Witherow, pg. 12) The

simplest statement in the Bible is of

more importance to us than the most

complex statement made by ~ hu

man

genius.

Any

truth merely human

should weigh

with us

light as a feather

in comparison with the most insigni

ficant of the truths of God. (pg. 13)

Therefore,

we

should strive to under

stand and apply everything

God

has

placed in his written Word.

This is the basis of our study and

practice of Biblical church government.

Whereas correct views

of

church govern

ment are not essential to salvation,

nevertheless, they are essential to the

life, health, glory and effectiveness of

the church. We hope to show that the

scriptural doctrine

of

Presbytery is

necessary to the perfection of the order

of the visible church, but is not es

sential to its existence. Book: of

Church Order of the Reformed Presby

terian Church

in

the

United

States.)

Presbytery is that

fonn

of church gov

ernment which is dispensed by presby

ters or elders, met

in

Session, Presby

tery, Synod,

or

General Assembly . .

(pg.

14) .

Presbyterian church government is

based on the following six biblical prin

ciples . ( Presbyterian comes from the

Greek word,

presbyteros,

meaning

elder. )

First, the officers

of

the

church

were

chQsen by the peo-

ple

ll legitimate offices in the

church were instituted by the Lord Jesus

Christ,

Eph

, 4:7f.

He is

the embodi

ment

of them all: Christ

is

our Apos

tle, Heb. 3:1; our Evangelist, Eph.

2: 17; our Pastor and Shepherd,

I

Pet.

2:24-25; and our Deacon, who carne

to

serve,

not

to be served,

Mark

10:45.

Christ

personally appointed his twelve

Apostles, Mark 2:14. After Christ's

reslJP ection and ascension, He placed

apostles, elders, (both teaching elders

and ruling elders,

I

Tim. 5:17), and dea-

cons into office by the popular vote

of

people to whom and with whom they

would be ministering, Acts 1:13-26;

Acts 6:1-6; Acts

14:23,

(where the true

meaning of the Greek word translated

ordaining in the KJV is to

elect by a

shaw

of hands.

In

the Apostolic

church officers were chosen by

the

people).

Second, the office of Bishop

The Counsel of Chalcedon Jan.-Feb. 1990 page 6

nd Elder

was

identical. In the

New Testament church,

all

elders (pres

byters) were bishops, and

all

bishops

were elders. The same verse never

speaks

of

bishops and elders, as if they

were two offices. When Paul writes

to

the church at Philippi, he mentions the

bishops and deacons, 1:1, but he does

not

mention elders. When James urges

the

sick

to

call for the elders

of

the

church, 5:

14

, he does not mention

bishops.

If

the offices

of

bishop and

elder were quite distinct---if a bishop

were an officer-bearer bearing 111le over

a number

of

elders, it does seem strange

that

no

passage of Scripture speaks at

the same time of bishops and elders.

(pg. 38) The reas6n for this is

that

these are two designations for the same

office. Titus

1:5-7

shows this

to be

the

case. Paul left Titus

in

Crete

to

ordain

elders

in

every city.

To

assist

him in

the

discharge

of

this

duty, Paul states

the qualifications of an elder. He com

mences his statement with the

words:

A bishop must be blameless. . .

Notice that the word elder, used in

the

beginning

of

the passage is exchanged

for the word bishop

at

the conclusion,

and yet the same church officer is

spoken of. An elder must have these

qualifications, because a bishop must

be blameless. This clearly identifies the

elder and the bishop.

In Acts 20:17-28 Paul sent for the

el(lers of the church at Ephesus. He

addressed them as bishops, calling

upon them to take heed

of

the flock

over which the Holy Spirit had made

them 'overseers,' i.e., 'bishops,' Phil.

1:1. In

the Apostolic church the offices

of bishop and elder were identical. The

name elder

or

presbyter expressed their

maturity and wisdom, and the name

bishop denoted their function

of

shep

herding oversight and pastoral care.

Third, there w s a pluraliJy of

eltkts in each church.

And when

they had chosen for them by suffrage,

elders in every church, and had prayed

with fasting, they commended them to

the Lord Acts 14:23. In the early

church of Acts there was more than one

elder in each congregation. There was

always more than one. There was

always a plurali ty of elders. We see this

also in Acts 20: 17, where Paul calls the

elders . of the church of Ephesus to

meet him at Miletus. Paul also ad-


2/5

dresses his Philippian Epistle to all

the saints in Christ Jesus which are

at

Philippi, with the bishops and dea

cons, 1:

1.

In the church in Acts there

was no one man rule of churches. In

the Apostolic church there was a plurali

ty

of

elders in each congregation.

Fourth, ordination was the act

o a presbytery, i.e., o a plur-

ality

o

elders.

Ordination is the

authoritative admission

of

one duly

called to . an office in the Church

of

God, accompanied with prayer and the

laying on

of

hands (The Book of

Church Order

of

the RPCUS). In the

Book

of

Acts every teaching elder,

ruling elder and

deacon

was set apart

solemnly to his office by the act of or

dination. In its outward form

it

con

sisted

of

three things---fasting, prayer

and imposition

of

hands. (pg.

45

See

Acts 6:6; 13:1-3;

and

I Tim. 4:14;

5:22. The question is: whose hands

were laid on the heads of those being

ordained? Were

they

the hands

of

a

single elder-bishop or of several elders?

I Timothy 4:14 gives us the answer. In

Timothy's ordination we see that he

was set apart

to

his office with the lay

ing on

of

the hands

of

the presbytery,

i.e., by presbyters-elders in their joint,

official capacity. Also in Acts 13:1-3,

when Barnabas and Saul were ordained

as missionaries,

the

prophets and teach

ers fasted, prayed, and laid their hands

on

them, and sent them to the work.

This

point

is also confirmed in Acts

6:6.

lil

the Apostolic church, ordination

was the act

of

the presbytery, and not of

a single individual.

Fifth, there

was

the prMiege

o appeal to the assembly o el-

ders

and the power o church

government

was

exercised by

them jouttly. Acts 15 and 16 make

this point, as they describe the first

presbytery meeting in Jerusalem. The

chapters need to be read in their entire

ty. In those chapters the following facts

stand out

1.

Barnabas and Paul had a dispute

about circumcision with certain false

teachers from Judea;

2. This

di

spute was not settled in the

church

of

Antioch where it origirlated;

3. The matter

was

referred to a church

court (presbytery) consisting

of

apostles

and elders at Jerusalem;

4. This presbytery

met

publicly to

deliberate the issue;

5. These apostles

and

elders, acting

jointly as presbytery, rendered a de

cision on the issue;

6. To this decision the church at

Antioch

and

the churches of Syria

and

Cilicia yielded submission

.

When the presbytery at Jerusalem

sent its official decision to the churches

it

was signed

in

the name

of

the apos-

ties and the elders. This teaches us

that whenever any controversies arise

which cannot be

settled

within a congre

gation, it may be referred to the presby

tery for settlement. Thus, we see two

facts in the life of the early church: (1).

there existed the

right

of appeal and the

privilege of referring disputed issues

to

the decision of assemblies consisting of

the elders of the church, who have the

authority

from Christ to

meet

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ate, decide and demand obedience

to

its.

decisions

which

are consistent

with

the

word

of the

Lord; and 2). this "ecclesi-

astical assembly," or presbytery, there

fore,

had the right and duty to govern

the

church in

their

associated, jointcapa-.

city under the Head of the

Church,

whom it

represented.

Sixth, the only Head

o

the

church

w s the

Lord Jesus

Christ. See

Ephesians

1:22; 4:15;

5:23. The church is a living organism

with Jesus Christ

as its

Head,

i.e., the

sautee

of

his life

and direction.

;

f s

also

an

organization, a kingdom, with

Christ as

its

Gng. It

belongs to His

majesty

from

His

throne

of

glory to

institutional and functional separation

between them, they

have

responsibili

ties toward each other, and they both are

accountable

to

Jesus Christ their com

mon

Head,

and

to

His

written Word,

Eph.

5:25;

Rev.

1:5.

Furthermore,

just as

the state has

no

jurisdiction over the church,

so no

one

office-bearer in the church, however

distinguished

his

gifts and labors, has

the

rightto

require

the

officers

and

mem

bers

of

the church to obey him as over

them

all. Church officers are to be ser

vants

of

the flock

and

examples

to

the

flock, 1 Pet. 5:3, not dictators over

it

.

Even the

apostles

did not

Claim

to

have

dominion over the people's faith,

but

only to

be

helpers

of

their joy,

T

T ~ e r e is s ~ h a thing ~ s being Presbr.terian

wtthout betng a Christian, as

tt

ts posstble to

be

a Christian without being a Presbyterian.

Depend upon it,

it

is best to be both."

-Thomas Witherow, in

The Apostolic Church: Which Is It?

rule

and teach the church through his

Word and

Spirit

by

the ministry

of

men: thus mediately exercising his

own

authority and enforcing his own laws,

unto the

edification and establishment

of

his kingdom. -- Christ, as King, has

given to His

church officers, oracles

(revelation)

and

ordinances: andespecial

ly

has

He ordained

therein his system

of

doctrine, government, discipline and

worship,

all of which are either . ex

pressly

set down

in Scripture,

by

good

andnecessary inference

may

be de

duced

therefrom;

and to which

things

He commands that nothing

be

added,

and that

from them

nothing be taken

away."

(The

Book

of

Church Oi"der

of

theRPCUS).

Chapter of th

.e Westntinster

Confession of Faith states that: "The

Lord

Jesus

Christ, as King

and Head

of

his church, hath therein appointed a gov- .

einment in

the hands

of church

officers,

distinct

from the civil magistrate."

There

is an ecclesiastical government

with its

own powers, functions, juris-

diction,

and

limitations;

and

there is a

civil

government

with its

own

powers,

functions, jurisdiction and limitations.

Both

are instituted

by

God

in

Christ,

Rom. 13:1f. And, although there

is

an

Ccir. 1:24. (pg. 56) Even Peter, one of

the more

outspoken apostles, saw

him

self in this light He never claimed offi

cial

supremacy for himself.

He

always

acted

with

his fellow-apostles as a sim

ple

preacher

of

the gospel.

Jesus

Christ is the only

Head

of his

Church. He shares that

role

with

no

other

person. "What the

head

is to the

human

body Christ is to .the Church;

and as the body cannot have two heads,

so the Church

cannot

have two heads-

neither Christ

and

the Pope,

nor

Christ

and

the Monarch.

To

us there seems

no

middle

way

in

this matter.

We

must

either reject the authority

of

the Bible,

or

believe what

it

teaches--namely, that

Christ is head

over

all

things to the

Church.

Wechoosethelatter. TheHead-

ship.

of

Christ is the sixth principle

of

government

that

we

find

in

operation

in

apostolic days.

Let

us observe

the

conse

quence of

this principle;

for as

Christ

is

the Head of

the Church, the members of

the Church are to be

subject to Him;

and, as

we

have

no

way

of

ascertaining

the

mind

of

Christ except through the

Scriptures,

it

follows that tlte

affairs of

the

Church are

to

be

managed

by those

officers whom the Lord Jesus has

en-

trusted

with

that power, and are, with-

The Counsel

of

Chalcedon Jan.-Feb., 1990 page 8

out

the interference

of

any external

authority,

to be regulated according to

the mind of

God

as expressed

in

His

Word." (pg. 57)

Conclusion

"Here, then, is the result

of

our in

vestigations and comparisons. The

Word

of

God

contains six great, well

defined principles of government, that

were embodied

in

that church which

was planted and organized by the in

spired apostles

of

he Lord. All

x i s t i n g

niodem

churches claim to

be

apbstolic,

and,

with

the exception

of

the Greek

and

Roman

Churches, profess

to

adopt

the Scriptures as the sole ,rule

of

faith

and practice. But, on comparing the prel

acy of

the

Church

of

England ( ep sco

palianism) with the standard

of the Di-

vine Word, it is found that in that

church not one

of

the apostolic prin

ciples

of

government is recognized

or

embodied. Among the Independents

(congregationalism), three

of the

aposto

lic principles

are

exemplified

in

prac

tice, the remaining three are nowhere to

be

found, i.e.,

no

plurality

of

elders,

no

ordination by presbytery, and

no

privi

lege

of

appeal

to

presbytery. Among

Presbyterians, these

six

principles are

all acknowledged, and every one

of

them is a main feature

of

the Presby

terian system.

We now

remind the reader

of

the

axiom

with

which

we

entered

on

the

investigation:

the modern church which

embodies in its government most

apostolic principles, comes nearest in

its government to the apostolic church.

We

apply this axiom to the settlement

of the case. Our conclusion is, that,

while the prelacy

o

Rome and England

is

in

direct opposition to the form

o

ecclesiastical government that was

sanctioned by inipired men; and while

independency approaches much more

nearly, but still falls short

o

the primi-

tive model,

1HE

PRESBYTERIAN IS,

IN

POINT

OF GOVERNMENT,

1HE

ONLY APOSTOUC

CffiJRCH." (pg.

70-73) (This is

not

to say that the Pres

byterian Church is

in

everything a per

fect model of the biblical pattern, be

cause all churches need

to

be reformed

by the word

of

God

continually.) .

Of

all the churches now existing in the

world, the Presbyterian Church comes

nearest to the model o apostolic


4/5

times.

(pg. 76)

The lukewarm and odious indiffer

ence

to

Presbyterian principles that in

this day meets one everywhere, calls

loudly for a remedy

of

some kind. The

best I know is from the text-book

of

the Divine Word to teach the people

publicly and privately what Presby

terianism really is. Had

we

entered into

one vast conspiracy to let our principles

die

out

of

the memory

of

the world,

we

could not adopt any course more likely

to accomplish our end than never to

breathe

them

from the

pulpit But

if

we

wish the people

to

know

and

value

them, it is very plain

we

must show

that

we

know and value them ourselves.

f we

would drive any principles into

the popular mind, and make them as

'nails fastened by the master of as

semblies,'

we

must never cease

to

ham

mer

at

them. Sentiments perpetually

falling from the pulpit, the platform,

and the press, cannot, in the course

of

nature, forever fall pointless to the

earth; they may at ftrst be disliked by

not a few, but they will modify the

views even of persons whose judgments

have already attained maturity---they

will fasten with the greatest tenacity on

young minds opening to thought---they

will spread abroad

in

ever-enlarging

circles--they will grow to be public

opinion at the last. (pg. 86-87)

If we

wish to have Presbyterianism

the religion

of

the Church universal,

we

must

let

the world know that we

cherish a warm and devoted attachment

to its principles.

We

should not halt

between two opinions, clinging to one

sect and giving our influence to

another. We should cease to be a luke

warm and hybrid generation--Presby

terians only in name. This is not a time

for inconsistency and doubt--but for de

cision, for energy, for action. Presby

terianism should be

on

the move.

--If,

as a denomination, we would

be

faithful

to

the truth of God; if

we

would have

the people understand and to love our

system;

if

we would marshal public

opinion against renegadism

if

we

would push our Presbyterianism, and

call the attention of our fellow-Chris

tians to its Scripturality and its vigor;

if

we would have our friends to follow,

and our enemies to fear us---then we

should learn to regard our distinctive

principles as our pride and glory, and

(Continued on page 47)

Joe Morecraft continues his

Aspects

of

Biblical Church Government

with Part IV,

The Identity and Form

of

the

Church

of

Jesus Christ

T e church is the assembly

or fellowship

of

the people

of God, constituted by the

call of God, a people formed for himself

to show forth his praise and to bear wit

ness to

him in

the performance of pre

scribed functions, Matt.

16:18; 18:17,

wrote John Murray in his Collected

Writings,

(Vol.

I,

page 232f).

In

criti

cizing the use of the word, invisible

to describe the church, Murray said

that

according to Scripture

we

should speak

of

'the church' and conceive of it as that

visible entity

that

exists and functions

in

accord with the institution

of

Christ

as its Head, the church that is the body

of

Christ indwelt and directed by the

Holy Spirit, consisting

of

those sancti

fied in Christ Jesus and called

to

be

saints, manifested in the congregations

of the faithful, and fmally the church

glorious, holy and without blemish.

(pg. 236)

The biblical doctrine

of

the church is

foundational to Christian thinking and

living in this world. This fact becomes

obvious as

we

study the rich variety

of

distinct,

but

closely related, meanings

the word church has in the Bible. It

can

be

said that this ftve-fold meaning

of the word

church

is the theological

basis of Presbyterian church govern

ment.

First

church signifies the

whole body of people, whether

in

heaven

or on

earth, who hnve

been or shall be united to Jesus

Christ.

This

is

the community

of

the elect

of God

manifested and visual

ized in history.

In

this sense, the

church canno t be confined toone denom

ination of Christians or limited to one

institution

or

congregation.

It

tran

scends time, race, nationality, etc. Be

lievers

in

Jesus are not simply mem

bers of local assemblies, they are mern-

bers of

the universal, catholic Church

of

he Abnighty God. Therefore, believ

ers should always be able to worship

and fellowship with

all

members

of

the

onetrue Chureh, regardless

of

denomina

tional affiliation, preserving and exhibit

ing the truly catholic and biblically ecu

menical spirit.

Jesus used the word

church in

this

sense, when

he

told Peter that

He

would

build on earth, through the confession

his disciples make to the world

of

his

Lordship, a church, against which the

gates of hell will not prevail, Mat.

16:18f. Paul

used

the

word

in

this

sense, when

he

exhorted husbands to

love their wives, even as Christ also

loved the Church, and gave himself for

her, Eph. 5:25. This is the commun

ity

of

God's people

who

have been pur

chased with the blood

of

the Son

of

God Acts

20

:28. .

Second, church signifies the

whole body of those who pro-

fess faith

in

Christ

nd

their

children throughout the entire

world. The

congregation

of

the Lord

in the Old Testament was comprised

of

families. In Genesis 48:4 Jacob re

minds Joseph

of

God's Covenant Pro

mise:

And he said

to me 'Behold I

will make you ruit ul and numerous,

and I will make you a company

of

peoples, and will give this land to your

descendants (seed) after you for an ever

lasting possession. ' The Hebrew word

for company, (NASV), or multi

tude,

(KJV),

is

qahnl,

the Old Testa

ment word for assembly or congrega

tion, Exod. 12:6. The

Greek

version

of

the

Old

Testament,

the

Septuagint,

translated qahnl with synagogas,

which is a

New

Testament word for

church or congregation, James 2:2. No

tice

of whom

this great

qahal of peo

ples will

be

comprised---the fruitful

Th$ Counsel of Chalcedon o Jan.-Feb., 1990 o page 9


5/5

diately for it. They "offered strange fue

before the Lord, which He had not o m ~

manded them. And fire came out from

the Presence of the Lord and consumed

them. . .

.

" 10:1 God did this to

teach us that: (1). We are dealing with a

holy and jealous God, who will be

worshiped only as he commands; (2).

Good intentions, sincerity and religious

fervor do not excuse adding to or

s u b ~

tracting from God's word; and (3). "

.

if

we reflect how holy a thing God's

worship is, the enormity of the p u n i s h ~

ment will by no means offend us."

John Calvin.

Nadab and Abihu probably loved God

and meant well

in

what they did, but

they offered "fire which the Lord had

not commanded," either in a way

not

commanded

or

at a time

or

in a place

not commanded. And so God would not

allow them to leave the impression for

coming generations that worship is the

s e l f ~ e x p r e s s i o n

of

religious impulses.

Worship is

not

a matter of conscience

or of Christian liberty, i.e., doing what

appeals to us in one way or another.

The essence

of

this violation is called

in the Bible, w i l l ~ w o r s h i p , Col.

2:16f.

i l l ~ w o r s h i p

is worship in

which the worshiper disregards the

revealed will of God concerning the

r e ~

scribed way by which God is to

be o r ~

shiped and served, and in which he

creates ways and means of worshiping

God out of his own inclinations, dis

positions and preferences. Man's pride

often leads to impertinence

and

presump

tion

in worship and in the work of the

church.

Man, because of his sinfulness, is

totally disqualified for suggesting how

God is to be worshiped or served, much

less for making actual additions to the

worship of God, other than those com

manded in the Bible. Even the church is

not qualified, nor does

it

have the right

to decree new procedures, offices, holy

days, or observances in worship, as

it

has no right to inculcate new doctrines

or

new laws. The wisdom of men must

be allowed

no

voice in determining the

worship of the church, Deut 29:29;

Isa. 33:22; 8:20.

Christ, the Head of the Church, has

clearly set forth in his word the

e l e ~

rnents he wants in a worship service.

Certain circumstances pertaining to the

service allow a measure of freedom,

i.e., the time, place, announcement of

the time and place of the next service,

etc. But, even these things, which are

in no way vital to the worship of God,

must

have reference to God's glory, be

Foundational Principles

Continued from page 9

preach and teach them, till the people

know them like the alphabet, and an

unwilling world be compelled to l s ~

ten." (pg. 88)

"There is such a thing as being a

Presbyterian without being a Christian,

as

it

is possible to

be

a Christian w i t h ~

out being a Presbyterian. Depend upon

it, it is best to be both. Make the atone

ment of Christ the refuge of your souls;

hold

fast

by

every truth of God's Word,

Identity

and

Form

Continued from page

duced to the level of Christian expedi

ency. They have been determined by

the Head of the church and clearly

rew

vealed in the Bible. The word of God

gives us the model,

in

the OT and the

NT for ecclesiastical polity and organi

zation, which it is the duty of all Chris

tians in all items

and

circumstances to

conform with gladness. f this is not

the case, then Christ has left his church

without sufficient guide and structure,

and its government must be shaped

by

expediency and fallen human wisdom.

Because the church of Christ, in all

its aspects--its doctrines, sacraments,

discipline, government, mission, wor

ship, faith, life and form--is the institu

tion of Christ, its Head and Savior,

every aspect of the church, including its

consistent with the Bible, and not be a

stumblingblock to others or contrary to

the Christian conscience. n

small and great;

lend

no encouragement

to

opposing errors; take

no

pains

to

con

ceal

your

attachment to Presbyterian

principles; and strive to do honor to the

system with which

you claim

connecw

tion, by your love to Christ, by an

upw

right and consistent life, and by earnest

endeavors on your part

to

deserve the

character which distinguished the saints

of God

in

other and better days -- 'a

peculiar people, zealous of

good

works."' (pg. 91

[Editors note- Amen. brother.

amen ] Q

government "

is

equally and alike a posi

tive appointment

by

God, being,

in

the

strict sense of the

tenns

a Divine insti

tution, not owing its origin

or

virtue

to

man,

and

not

amenable to

his views of

expediency, or determined

by

his ar

rangements. Looking at

the

church of

Christ as an express and positive ordi

nance of God, it is clear that man is

neither warranted or competent to judge

of its organization," wrote James Ban

nermen in his book

The Church o

Christ

The book of Church Order of

the RPCUS reaffmns this view: "The

scripturaldoctrine ofpresbytery is neces

sary to the perfection of the order of the

visible church, but

is

not

essential to

its existence."

ur

responsibility

is

not

to

try

to

improve upon

Chri

st's

form of church government revealed in

the Bible, but simply to put it into prac

tice in our own churches. n

Thanks to all of you who have responded to the

fundraising letter sent

out

in December.

If you have not responded yet, please help us meet our financial needs for the year.

Your contributions of

$100.00 or more, and your subscription payments of $25.00

will enable us to go forward with our plans for 1990 and beyond.

We thank God for you and pray His richest blessings on you as you live

and labor for the advancement of His glorious kingdom.

The Counsel of Chalcedon

3032

Hacienda

Court

Marietta GA

30066

The Counsel

of

Chalcedon Jan.-Feb., 1990 page 47

1990 issue 1 - the foundational principles of presbyterian church government - counsel of chalcedon

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