Worship That Echoes the Word
August 20, 2009Ed Clowney:
“Yet above all, the minister must bear the Word of God in the full depth of his stewardship. With the Word he enters the presence of God as he leads public worship. Only with the Word can men ascend God’s holy hill, for God’s promises are the only plea of a redeemed people. Worship is always an echo, reflecting the word of grace with the cry of praise. Preaching, too, is worship, for the naming of God’s name and the proclamation of his mercy is itself an act of praise. The minister at the Lord’s table or the baptismal font continues to be a minister of the Word. For this reason he administers the sacraments: not because he has a claim to a separate priestshood, but because the sacraments seals the Word and are observed as part of the proclamation of the Word to men.
(Clowney, Called to the Ministry, p 58)
One solid reason why the old 1662 Book of Common Prayer is perhaps the finest way to lead divine worship.