Reformed Presbyterian Minutes of Synod 1995 - Rparchives.org

REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH\T\_(a) Reverently acknowledges the incomprehensible greatness, goodness, andmajesty of the Lord.(b) Solemnly confesses our unworthiness by nature to approach Him and ourutter inability of ourselves to do so.(c) Humbly seeks his pardon, assistance, and acceptance.(d) Blesses him for the unspeakable gift of his Son Jesus, the only Savior ofsinners.(e) Joyfully claims all the promises of his covenant of grace.(f) Expectantly applies for his blessing upon the praise, prayer, and proclamationof the Word that day.(g) All in the name of the only mediator between God and man, the Lord JesusChrist.5. After the worship has begun, everyone should give his or herundivided attention. The worshippers should not read anything other thanthat which the minister is reading or citing. They should also abstain fromwhispering, comments, conversation, greetings, sleeping, and other behaviordisruptive to the minister and congregation, and a hindrance to their ownfaithful service to the Lord. Infants that are unduly restless should be takenout and pacified, or, where possible, placed in the nursery.The Singing of Praise6. The heartfelt singing of praise is an essential element of public worship.The Psalms of the Bible, because of positive biblical warrant, their inherentexcellence, and their divine inspiration, are to be sung in the public worshipof God, to the exclusion of all songs or hymns of human composition. Theyare to be sung without the accompaniment of instruments, since these are notauthorized for New Testament worship. Psalm versions used in the praise ofGod ought to be accurate in their rendering of the original Scripture text, setto appropriate music, and be those which are approved by the church.Psalms, or portions of Psalms, should be chosen for the coherence of theircontent and their appropriateness to the theme of the worship. The use offragments of Psalms as choruses, often with repetition after repetition, is tobe avoided.7. We are all under obligation to praise God and to sing thoughtfully,reverently, and enthusiastically, with grace in the heart. Careful attentionshould be paid to the music and to the leading of the precentor, that thepraise might resound with an attractiveness reflective of the glory of God andthe beauty of holiness. Congregations should not fall into the habit of usingonly certain favorite Psalms. All of the Psalms are to be used in the church's