mgpcpastor's blog

Scott Newling commences a projected series of posts on the Sola Panel by recalling that in ‘1 Timothy 4:13, Paul instructs Timothy as follows: “Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching”’.
The problem he observes is that in Bible believing churches which utilise relaxed and informal models for their corporate meetings less and less Bible is read, and readings that do take place are usually associated with (and immediately precede) the sermon. The Bible is not read for its own sake and in obedience to the biblical injunction to hear the Word of God read aloud.
As many Presbyterian churches move toward this model of worship service these are concerns that need to be considered.
Newling’s closing thought for his first post:

For the moment however, I want us to be honest with ourselves as people who claim to love the Bible as God’s word, knowing that we don’t live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. As we compare ourselves to our heritage, is it really possible for us to say that we are, in our churches, devoted to the public reading of Scripture? Would any Reformer, whom we cherish so dearly, even recognize what we do compared to them? But the only question that matters of course is this: does God think we are devoted to the public reading of Scripture?
Read the whole post, along with a series of very constructive comments.