This article deals with the government of the church and with the offices which the Lord has given in it. The church of God is called by many different names in God's Word. It is called the house of Christ in Hebrews 3:6, "But Christ as a Son over His own house." It is called a congregation. It is called His kingdom. We think of Matthew 6:33, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God." It is called His body, with many different members, but all being bound together in the same Head.

You understand that if there is a house, there must be order in that house. If there is no order, things will not go well in your home. It is the same in a kingdom. There must be a certain policy, a certain order and government. God also is not a God of confusion, but of peace. In 1 Corinthians 14:40 we read, "Let all things be done decently and in order." The church is a body, the body of the Lord, governed, first of all, by the Head. That Head is not a pope, not any human being, but it is Jesus Christ. Our fathers say, "The church must be governed by the spiritual policy which our Lord hath taught us in His Word."

When we read "the spiritual policy," we think of a state or city, and of the government of that city. We need those who keep order in that particular city or state. The Lord has also given a spiritual policy, or system of government, in the church. Our fathers said that it pleases the Lord to govern the church by means of officers. Those officers govern in Christ's name and on His account. They reign with the authority received from their Master. In the course of time there have been many different views about how the church should be viewed in regard to its environment, its relationship to the state and to the world in which that church lives, and also in regard to how the church should be governed.

First, there is the model of the church-state. Rome teaches that the church stands above the state. The Pope, they say, has two swords. The one sword is ecclesiastical, a church sword; the other is a worldly sword. Both swords are in the hand of the Pope, and he has supreme authority over church and state. The Pope even has authority over emperors and kings; often popes have exercised that authority and sought to make the mighty ones of the world to bow before them. Then the church rules over the state; and the Pope has the supreme authority over church and state.

The second model is the state-church, which is just the opposite. The state rules and reigns over and in the church. In the time of Constantine the Great, when Chris­tianity became the official religion of the state, the Christians received many privileges. They were preferred for government offices. They also received protection from the state, and the official religion was pro­moted in many ways by the emperor. But the negative side of this position was that Constantine the Great and his successors said that they had the authority to convene a synod or to sign the final approval of an ecclesi­astical decision. They exercised real power within the church. They used their power when, for instance, they sent the godly bishop, Athanasius, into exile because the emperor was a friend of the heretic, Arius, who denied the Trinity and the Godhead of Christ. At that time it was the view that religion had to be protected. Christianity was the official religion, but the emperors claimed the right to decide where and when the synod or council had to convene. The decisions which the church made had to be approved by the emperor's signature. That is the state-church.

Later, in England, such kings as Charles I and II and James II tried to exercise dominion over the church. They oppressed those who opposed their worldly authority. In Scotland many godly people and godly ministers were persecuted and, in some cases, put to death because of their opposition. The church of Scotland did not acknowledge the supremacy of the king in the church. In the time of heavy persecution when the king tried to exercise authority within the church, the Scottish Presbyterian Church made a decision of several points, which were as follows:

Presbyterian Church made a decision of several points, which were as follows:

1. The laws of Christ, the King of the church, are in regard to doctrine, life, worship, discipline, and government, and these laws are sufficient.
2. Christ, the King of His church, has ordained minis­ters and elders; therefore the government of the church belongs exclusively to the elders and ministers whom He has placed over her.
3. The authority of the church is not based on apostolic succession, nor on appoint­ment by the state, but is exclusively derived from Christ, her King.
4. The civil government may not exercise any right to govern the church in any manner.

1. This we teach because Christ has given the power of the keys only to the spiritual authority, "I will give unto you the keys of the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 16:19).
2. He has given unto them all responsibility, "Take heed, therefore, unto your­selves and to all the flock over the which the Holy Ghost has made you overseers, to feed the church of God which He has purchased with His own blood" (Acts 20:28).
3. He has given them all the precepts necessary for this government.

That was their view, but for this view they were heavily persecuted, and many of them sighed in prison. I think of the godly Samuel Ruther­ford, who was sent into exile. How­ever, the Lord blessed that time for him and gave him the ability and the light to write beautiful letters, which are still a blessing for many.

The third view (which is ours) is the Reformed principle, as was taught by Calvin. Calvin said: "The Reformed principle is the separation between church and state." Each has its own authority. The government certainly has a task with regard to the church. It may and must protect the church and promote true religion. But it certainly does not have a task in the church.

Calvin said that God takes man to represent His person, and He gives His testimonies by men. He called them "men who are raised from the dust," to remind them of their humble origin. Then he also said,

"He who tries to destroy this order and this sort of government, or minimizes it as if it would not be so necessary, seeks the scattering, or rather the fall and destruction of the church. For the light and warmth of the sun is not as necessary for the nourishing and preservation of this present life as is the office of apostle, shepherd, and pastor for the preservation of the church on earth."

Calvin here made a very strong statement. He said that the offices are indispensable, and that they are not only for a healthy ecclesiastical life, but also for the healthy spiritual life of God's children. Therefore it need not surprise you that the Reformation restored not only the Word of God on the pulpit as the center of worship, but it also caused a return to the New Testament offices, the offices of pastors and teachers, of two kinds of elders, and of deacons.

Luther did not go as far as Calvin. He restored only the office of the ministers of the Word. He did not have elders. Though he had deacons, they were only to assist the minister in the things he could not do. Luther had actually but one office, and the deacons were merely assistants. However, Calvin defended the spiritual offices and emphasized that these offices are instituted by Christ. He distinguished four offices: pas­tors, teachers, elders, and deacons.

We believe that a minister must be a pastor and a teacher; that is one office. Calvin, however, distinguished between teachers and pastors. Teachers had to explain, be expositors of the Scriptures, and also instruct those who had to be trained for the ministry. Along with explaining the Scriptures, pastors had the tasks of discipline, government, administering the sacraments, and exhorting the people. But teachers and pastors are the same. The Lord has three offices in His church, the prophetic, the priestly, and the kingly offices, just as Christ has three offices as the great Prophet, the only High Priest, and eternal King of His church.

In the early Christian church there were elders, or presbyters. There were two kinds of elders:

1. There were those defending the truth. That was, and still is, neces­sary. Those elders were the teaching elders – we would say, the ministers.
2. There were also the governing elders, who had the oversight over the church, those whom we now would call elders.

Both were ordained and given to the church by Christ as the Head of the church. Those office-bearers are to be respected because the Lord Himself has placed them in their office. Professor Schilder says, "It is a fatal mentality if people who have a little education exalt themselves above simple office-bearers who are less educated, and have no respect or reverence for them." Those office-bearers derive their office from their Master, and, as such, they are placed there by Him, not because they have more gifts or more knowledge, but because it has pleased the Lord to place them there.

Voetius says that in ecclesiastical life the consistory has the highest authority derived from Christ. When we speak about synods, then classes, and then consistories, we do not believe in a hierarchy. But according to the Scriptures we believe that each local church is a revelation, a manifestation, of the body of Christ. The consistories have the duty to seek fellowship with other consistories who are of the same persuasion, so they form classes and synods. But the essence of the church is not in a synod or classis, but in the consistory. The consistory is not just delegated by the members, but it is chosen and placed there by God, with the authority to govern the church. Classes and synods are broader assemblies, and the consistory is a narrower assembly; the classis consists of delegates from several consistories, and the synod consists of delegates from three or more classes.

In our sister churches in the Netherlands there is a General Synod, and between classes and the General Synod they also have Particular Synods. The General Synod convenes every three years, and the Particular Synods every year. Because we are a smaller denomination, we have just a Synod and classes, with Synod convening every other year, while classis meetings are held every year, usually in April and October.

Those classes and synods derive their authority from the credentials of the delegates who are sent by the consistories. A synod derives its authority not from a kind of hierarchy, but from the delegates who are chosen by the classes, and who bring their credentials to that broader meeting.

We will now consider what our fathers have said about the offices.

1. They spoke about the task of the ministers or pastors: "To preach the Word of God, to administer the sacraments." You understand that this is not the only task of God's servants. They also have the tasks of publicly calling upon the name of the Lord, visiting the sick, teaching and instructing, and governing the church together with the elders. But their special task is to preach the Word of God and to administer the sacraments.

We read in Isaiah 52:7, "How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!"

There is a great need also in our churches, for in many vacant congre­gations sermons are read instead of being spoken. Yet it is still the preach­ing of the Word of God which is brought to the congregation by the assistance of elders who read the sermons. The elders then perform labors which are to be considered as assisting the ministers, and so they are performing labors of the prophetical office.

2. Then there is the office of the elders. There is also a need of God-fearing elders in these days. Arnoldus van Rotterdam, one of our forefathers in the Netherlands, said, "These are such men, with godliness and dignity, who are added to the ministers of the Word as helpers to the promotion of the building up and good order of the church as is said in 1 Timothy 5:17." He said, "This is an excellent and also a solemn, weighty office, since these elders together with the ministers of the Word form the council of the church in order to govern the church in Christ's name, and that according to the rules of the Holy Scriptures. May the Lord raise up many godly men in these days of decay and apostasy to watch over the inheritance of the Lord, to keep out the wolves in sheep's clothes, and to watch that the Word of God would not be cut apart, but rightly divided."
3. There is also the office of deacon. Our fathers have stated that "the poor and distressed may be relieved and comforted according to their necessity." Deacons also have a very weighty office, a very solemn task. Many are of the opinion that in order to be an elder you must be converted and need to be a godly person, but in order to be a deacon you just need to be a nice person. But none of us has the right to be unconverted; we all ought to be servants of God, we all should serve Him, even if we do not have an office in the church. No one has the right to withdraw his time and strength and talents from the Lord, who has created us for Himself and for His service, as was true in Paradise. We must say that also the office of the deacon is a very weighty office. Deacons also should serve in the fear of the Lord. External gifts are not enough for the Lord. There might be deacons who say, "How then can I serve?" But that is true for all of us. May that drive us to our knees, and may we receive the desire to be ministered to from the fullness of the Lord Jesus Christ. His grace is sufficient for all our insufficiencies.

Another question is, "Do the deacons belong to the consistory?" The forms for ordination and Article 38 of our church order do not consider deacons to belong to the consistory except in small consistories where they serve as assistants, also to the elders. Deacons then go with the elders on house visitation, and there are many labors which they also perform in assisting the elders. The primary task of the deacons is caring for the poor, whereas the task of the elders is pastoral care, supervision, and discipline.

In regard to the government of the church we must be on our guard for two dangers. The first danger is hierarchy, and the second is independentism.

There is hierarchy when synods and classes have a kind of tyrannical or dictatorial way in which they rule over the consistories. Then there is no way of appeal, and all the power lies with the synod or classis. That is hierarchy, as Rome has, but it is not the Reformed view of church government.

In independentism, the other danger, we do not accept the authority of major assemblies. We view the essence of the church as the membership ruling through the elders, who are merely delegates accountable to the membership. That is also not the opinion of our reformed fathers. The reformed view was that the local consistory has full authority, received from Christ. The essence of the church is not in the membership, but in the consistory, being appointed by God.

But consistories should seek fellowship with other consistories which voluntarily have incorporated themselves into a denomination and make decisions together in broader assemblies. These decisions will then be obeyed by local consistories. There is only one exception, which is when those decisions are proven to be against God's Word.

When consistories or members are of the opinion that decisions are against God's Word, they should appeal to those broader assemblies and make their objections known to them. God's Word should give the final answer, and synods, classes, consistories, and members should be governed by God's revealed will, given to us in His testimony.

We also believe that God reigns in His church. The government of the church may not have a worldly character. However, Christ reigns in His church by men with many shortcomings. He governs by means of the offices which He has instituted Himself. God honors His own ordinances and has given them for the welfare of His children.