FROM
THE PASTOR . . . 
(While we are without a pastor, we are inviting some in our denomination to submit articles for our church newsletter, Family Ties, and for this article on our website.)
Christ's Words in our Ears
From Rev. David Lauten
(Rev.
David Lauten is currently serving as our Interim Moderator of Session while our
church is without a pastor. Rev. Lauten is a minister at First Presbyterian
Church in Columbia, South Carolina.)
Following
a worship service this past Sunday, someone commented that “it seemed as
though Christ Himself was speaking to me during the sermon today.”
Perhaps,
you have had occasions, during the preaching of God’s Word, when the words of
the Minister rang as Christ’s words in your ears.
As
Paul describes the power of the gospel to bring reconciliation between Gentiles
and Jews, he strikingly writes in Ephesians 2:17, “And
he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were
near.”
The
gospel which had broken down the dividing wall of hostility (Ephesians 2:14)
among the Ephesians was proclaimed by Christ. What does Paul mean by suggesting
Christ preached in
If
Christ Himself had never preached in
Heinrich
(Henry – in English) Bullinger, a Swiss Reformer and one of the most
influential theologians of the 16th century Reformation, can provide
help for our understanding here.
Bullinger
wrote a theological statement of thirty articles for personal use, which he
later revised and attached to his will. This document, which was first published
in 1556, became known as the Second Helvetic Confession.
The
word “Helevtic” may sound a bit strange to our ears. Perhaps, you are
familiar with the Helvetica typeface, or Helvetica computer font. Helevtic is a
shortened version of “Confoederatio
Helvetica”, the Latin name for
In
a paragraph from Chapter One of the Second Helvetic Confession, entitled, ”THE
PREACHING OF THE WORD OF GOD IS THE WORD OF GOD,” Bullinger writes:
“Wherefore when this Word of God is now preached in the church by preachers
lawfully called, we believe that the very Word of God is proclaimed.”
Bullinger
reminds us that when Paul describes Christ preaching to the Ephesians, he is
referring to ministers of the gospel who faithfully proclaimed God’s Word to
them (Romans 10:17, I Thessalonians 2:13).
Part
of the beauty and wonder of the gospel is that Christ addresses His people
through His Word preached by His ministers of the gospel.
When
I first considered that Christ attends His Word preached, worship took on a
deeper meaning. I came not to hear the words of man, but with a renewed
expectation of hearing the voice of my Savior through His Word. Also, I began to
attend worship with an eye toward meeting Christ and enjoying union and
communion with Him through His living Word proclaimed.
What
expectations do you have as you come to worship?
If
Paul were able to send Arsenal Hill Presbyterian Church of Columbia a letter, I
am sure he would mention that through the proclamation of God’s Word, we hear
Christ’s Word in our ears. But, more importantly, how would he write about our
reception of Christ’s Word preached?