Systematic Theology, by Louis Berkhof - New Leaven

Matt. 28:18. It must be exercised in harmony with the Word of God and under the
direction of the Holy Spirit, through both of which Christ governs His Church, and in
the name of Christ Himself as the King of the Church, Rom. 10:14,15; Eph. 5:23; I Cor.
5:4. Yet it is a very real and comprehensive power, consisting in the administration of
the Word and the sacraments, Matt. 28:19, the determination of what is and what is not
permitted in the Kingdom of God, Matt. 16:19, the forgiving and retaining of sin, John
20:23, and the exercise of discipline in the Church, Matt. 16:18; 18:17; I Cor. 5:4; Tit. 3:10;
Heb. 12:15-17.
C. DIFFERENT KINDS OF CHURCH POWER.
In connection with the three offices of Christ there is also a threefold power in the
Church, namely, the potestas dogmatica or docendi, the potestas gubernans or ordinans of
which the potestas iudicans or disciplinae is a subdivision, and the potestas or ministerium
misericordiae.
1. THE POTESTAS DOGMATICA OR DOCENDI. The Church has a divine task in connection
with the truth. It is her duty to be a witness to the truth to those who are without, and
both a witness and a teacher to those that are within. The Church must exercise this
power:
a. In the preservation of the Word of God. By giving His Word to the Church, God
constituted the Church the keeper of the precious deposit of the truth. While hostile
forces are pitted against it and the power of error is everywhere apparent, the Church
must see to it that the truth does not perish from the earth, that the inspired volume in
which it is embodied be kept pure and unmutilated, in order that its purpose may not
be defeated, and that it be handed on faithfully from generation to generation. It has the
great and responsible task of maintaining and defending the truth against all the forces
of unbelief and error, I Tim. 1:3,4; II Tim. 1:13; Tit. 1:9-11. The Church has not always
been mindful of this sacred duty. During the last century too many of the leaders of the
Church have even welcomed the assaults of a hostile criticism upon the Bible, and have
rejoiced in the fact that it was brought down to the level of a purely human production,
a mixture of truth and error. They have shown little of the determination which caused
Luther to cry out: “Das Wort sollen Sie stehen lassen.”
b. In the administration of the Word and of the sacraments. It is not only the duty of the
Church to preserve the Word of God, but also to preach it in the world and in the
assembly of the people of God, for the conversion of sinners and for the edification of
the saints. The Church has an evangelistic or missionary task in the world. The King,
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