August 1998 New Horizons

General Assembly 1998

by Paul S. MacDonald

Is the Bible true and relevant only for salvation, or does it speak to all areas of life? Reformed, biblical Presbyterianism has always insisted that biblical truth applies to such matters as church government as well as to personal salvation and sanctification. Why We Assemble As We Do Presbyterian churches follow the pattern of church government found in the New Testament, where we learn that the apostolic churches were governed by elders selected by the congregations and ordained by the laying on of hands. Since the church at Antioch, after prayer and fasting, commissioned Paul and Barnabas as pioneer missionaries, Presbyterian churches today likewise commission and send out missionaries. And because, when a problem of general concern arose, the churches referred the matter to a council of the apostles and elders in Jerusalem (see Acts 15), Presbyterians today call similar assemblies of ministers and elders to counsel the churches and adjudicate disputes. Having originated in 1936 to maintain ... Read more