PCA HISTORICAL CENTER
Archives and Manuscript Repository for the Continuing Presbyterian Church

Presbyterian Polity :
Books of Church Order :
Articles & Books
Bibliography
by Denom.
PCA Specific

The Historical Development of the Book of Church Order

Preface to the Book of Church Order

I. King and Head
of the Church
II. Preliminary Principles
III. The Constitution Defined

Section 1 : The King and Head of the Church
Paragraphs 2 and 3: His Offices

Jesus, the Mediator, the sole Priest, Prophet, King, Saviour, and Head of the Church, contains in Himself, by the way of eminency, all the offices in His Church, and has many of their names attributed to Him in the Scriptures. He is Apostle, Teacher, Pastor, Minister, and Bishop, and the only Lawgiver in Zion.
It belongs to His Majesty from His throne of glory to rule and teach the Church, through His Word and Spirit by the ministry of men; thus mediately exercising His own authority, and enforcing His own laws, unto the edification and establishment of His kingdom.

[Historical Summary : The earliest appearance of this text found to date is in the 1867 PCUS draft. The latter half of this paragraph has been incorporated into the Form of Government of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, appearing at least as early as a proposed revision in 1967 (then adopted in 1979). And perhaps most curiously, this same second sentence even finds its way into the Constitution of the Biblical Mennonite Alliance!

PCUS 1879, Chapter II. Of the Church, Section 1.--Of its King and Head, paragraph 2
II. Jesus, the Mediator, the sole Priest, Prophet, King, Saviour, and Head of the Church, contains in Himself, by the way of eminency, all the offices in His Church, and has many of their names attributed to Him in the Scriptures. He is Apostle, Teacher, Pastor, Minister, and Bishop, and the only Lawgiver in Zion. It belongs to His Majesty from His throne of glory, to rule and teach the Church, through His Word and Spirit, by the ministry of men; thus mediately exercising His own authority, and enforcing His own laws, unto the edification and establishment of His kingdom.

PCUS 1869 draft, II-1-2
Jesus, the Mediator, is the sole Priest, Prophet, King, Saviour, and Head of the Church, contains in Himself, by way of eminency, all the offices in His Church, and hath many of their names attributed to Him in the Scriptures. He is Apostle, Teacher, Pastor, Minister and Bishop, and the only Lawgiver in Zion. It belongeth to His Majesty from His throne of glory, to command, rule and teach the Church, through His Word and Spirit, by the ministry of men; thus mediately exercising His own authority, and enforcing His own laws, unto the edification and establishment of His kingdom.

PCUS 1867 draft, II-1-2
Jesus, the Mediator, is the sole Priest, Prophet, King, Saviour, and Head of the church; and contains in himself by way of eminency, all the offices in his church, and hath many of their names attributed to him in the Scriptures. He is Apostle, Teacher, Pastor, Minister and Bishop, and the only Lawgiver in Zion. It belongeth to his Majesty from his throne of glory, to command, rule and teach the church, through his Word and Spirit, by the ministry of men; thus mediately exercising his own authority, and enforcing his own laws unto the edification and establishment of his kingdom.

PARALLEL TEXTS:

OPC 2005, Form of Government, I-2
There is therefore but one King and Head of the church, the only Mediator between God and man, Jesus Christ, who rules in his church by his Word and Spirit. His mediatorial office includes all the offices in his church. It belongs to his majesty from his throne of glory not only to rule his church directly but also to use the ministry of men in ruling and teaching his church through his Word and Spirit, thus exercising through men his own authority and enforcing his own laws. The authority of all such ministerial office rests upon his appointment, who has ordained government in his church, revealed its nature to us in his Word, and promised his presence in the midst of his church as this government is exercised in his name.

COMMENTARY:
F.P. Ramsay, Exposition of the Book of Church Order (1898, pp. 20-21), on Chapter II, Section 1, Paragraph 2 :
But the power of Christ is not merely an appointing power ; he himself discharges all official functions whatever.
9.--II. Jesus, the Mediator, the sole Priest, Prophet, King, Saviour, and Head of the Church,
for now there is no subordinate priest or prophet, as there is no other King or Saviour or Head ;
contains in Himself, by the way of eminency, all the offices in His Church, and has many of their names attributed to Him in the Scriptures. He is Apostle, Teacher, Pastor, Minister, and Bishop, and the only Lawgiver in Zion.
For not even Moses is called a lawgiver in the Scriptures. Not only is every claim to legislative authority or to original control of every sort denied as to all but Christ himself ; but also he has all offices within himself, so that he is not a Minister of the Word, but the Minister of the Word, not a Ruling Elder, but the Ruling Elder, and not a Deacon, but the Deacon, of his Church. Therefore,
It belongs to His Majesty from His throne of glory, to rule and teach the Church, through His Word and Spirit, by the ministry of men; thus mediately exercising His own authority, and enforcing His own laws, unto the edification and establishment of His kingdom.
By including all official functions under the terms "rule and teach," the sentence does not make distribution a non-official function, but includes it under these as being in order to them. The principle must not be lost sight of, that it is Christ who rules and teaches the Church by the ministry of men, and not they who rule and teach the Church for him. They are not themselves governors, but the media of the only Governor.


Chapter Index [links to Par. 1 of each chapter]:
FoG..
1
2
3.
4
5.
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
I. King & Head of Church
.§1.
§4
§5
RoD
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
II. Preliminary Principles
§1
§2
§3
§4
§5
§6
§7
§8
DfW
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
[FoG = Form of Government ; RoD = Rules of Discipline ; DfW = Directory for Worship]

©PCA Historical Center, 12330 Conway Road, St. Louis, MO, 2017. All Rights Reserved.