AP

Leading Gathered Worship

‘Then I will give you shepherds after my own heart’ – Jeremiah 3:15

Some of the ways in which we worship God on Sundays seem normal to us, but might be considered unusual to previous generations of God’s people. An example is the rise of the view that many Christians, not just the minister and elders, should be involved in leading worship in church. Leading worship involves the reading and preaching of God’s word, but it also includes the call to worship, the benediction, the pastoral prayer, and so on.

One of the speakers of a conference back in 2018 acknowledged the novelty of this idea, saying ‘when I went to dig into it a little bit… I was astonished at how little had been written about it at a robust theological level…  almost total silence in fact’ [1]. This idea is sometimes referred to as ‘every member ministry,’ although the phrase means different things to different people.

In evaluating this idea, our first challenge is to come to a common understanding of the English word ‘ministry’. On the one hand, ministry can be anything a person does for the benefit of others, whether in church or not. A ministry can be one of practical care, or outreach, or worship. One person’s ministry is to provide food for the hungry, another welcomes brothers and sisters to church with a smile, and another person runs an English as a Second Language ministry. All of these can be called ministries.

These activities give expression to the church’s broad calling ‘to love God and to love his own, to know Christ and to make him known’. In this sense, every Christian is indeed called to be a minister. Who would deny that everyone being involved in acts of love and service is a good thing? These ministries are answering our Lord’s call for us to love our neighbours (Mark 12:31) and build one another up (1 Thess. 5:11). One minister has suggested that we might call this ‘every member love’. The phrase ‘every member service’ might also be fitting.

But on the other hand, the word ‘ministry’ can also be used in a more technical sense, to refer to the specific task of the ‘ministry of the word and sacraments.’ This is what has traditionally been done by ‘the minister’ – the man called, examined and set apart for service in a local church. Presbyterians and other Reformed believers have traditionally understood a key part of the calling of a minister to be the leading gathered worship, which includes the preaching, but also more than that.

Since the beginning, our Lord has ordained some for the work of ministry. We see this in the ways in which God’s people received his word in the Old Testament. God instructed Moses to read the covenant scroll aloud to the people (Ex. 24:3-7). This responsibility was later delegated to the ‘priests, the sons of Levi’ and ‘all the elders of Israel,’ who were commanded to read the law aloud every seven years (Deut. 31:9-12). Likewise, Joshua would read aloud the words of the law (Josh. 8:30-35), and it was King Josiah who read the words of the book of the covenant to the people (2 Kings 23:1–2). There have always been those who have been appointed to this ministerial task.

Perhaps the most obvious example of this in the Old Testament is in Nehemiah, where it was Ezra the priest who ‘brought the law before the assembly of men, women, and all who could listen with understanding’ (Neh. 8:2). A high wooden platform was made for this very purpose (Neh. 8:4), and the 13 men up there with him were probably other priests. Ezra’s task was to proclaim and make clear, and the people’s task was to hear, understand, and worship. Even though it might grate against our modern instincts, not everyone was called to minister the word that day.

It is no surprise, then, that we find great continuity in this pattern of worship into the New Testament. Paul exhorted Timothy to ‘give your attention to public reading, exhortation, and teaching’ (1 Tim. 4:13). The instructions were given to Timothy the young elder, as an elder. It applies still – to all those in the ordinary and perpetual office. The responsibility of ministry was not given to the flock, but to the shepherds set apart to care for them.

In recent years, however, this question has often been approached from the other end. Beginning with Paul’s command, ‘I do not allow a woman to teach’ (1 Tim. 2:12), careful investigation has been made into what exactly is meant by the word ‘teach’, and whether or not this would include what we have as a typical sermon today. Because of this focus, many congregations are open to having members of the congregation do any part of leading worship in church except for the sermon. Approaching the question from this direction, however, is to have the tail wagging the dog.

 Rather than answering the negative question of who is prohibited from preaching, the scriptures present a positive vision of elders as those who lead the congregation in worship, most prominently at gathered worship each Lord’s Day. This is why some churches today go against the grain by only having elders speaking from the front, in the call to worship, reading of the law, repentance of sins, assurance of forgiveness, pastoral prayer, benediction… and also the sermon. Questions and Answers 156 and 158 of the Westminster Larger Catechism have this understanding as their assumed foundation.

Two objections to this view might be raised. Ephesians 4:11-12 is often cited to indicate that it is not exclusively the work of the elders to lead gathered worship. But, quite the opposite, this section seems to indicate a high view of office in the New Testament. Furthermore, the NIV translation of the phrase ‘to equip his people for works of service’ captures the sense of the Greek word diakonias (as in ‘deacon’)best, rather than ‘acts of ministry’ (CSB). Again, ‘every member service’ would be a good description for us to adopt. Another objection might be raised from Romans 12:3-8. If anything, however, this passage would indicate that not all members of the body need perform all the functions of the body. Each one has his or her own part to play.

            What is driving our desire to have all members involved in leading gathered worship? On the positive side, it is lovely indeed when everyone is involved in church. Perhaps also, it is our modern familiarity with ‘training’ rather than ‘ordaining’ – that is, skills rather than office. But Moses wasn’t set apart because of his gifts and skills. He was called first, and trusted God to equip him, second (Ex. 3:11-12). Similarly, ministers are not set apart because of their theological training, and whatever gifts in communication they might have. Rather, theological training and examination by the Presbytery serve to confirm their perceived calling.

It might be countercultural, but together we could explore to what extent it should normally be elders only leading gathered worship each Lord’s Day.

[1] ‘Every Member Ministry’ with Tony Payne — The Pastor’s Heart (thepastorsheart.net), at https://www.thepastorsheart.net/podcast/tony-payne, from 2min 43sec.

– Jacques Nel