About Reformation Crowley’s Ridge
A Biblical Vision of the Church
Christianity cannot be reduced to a relationship between an isolated believer and Jesus Christ. Rather, Christianity is the shared life of the Church in vital communion with Christ, through which he gathers and builds his people up in faith, holiness, and love by the ministry of the Word, sacraments, and prayer. And while most of us are accustomed to think in terms of churches (plural) instead of the Church (singular), the Bible places great emphasis on the fact that the Church is one, because its only King and Head, Jesus Christ, is one (Ephesians 4:4–5).
For the better part of the last 2,000 years, the Church has confessed the words of the Nicene Creed (381 A.D.): “We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church.” In this sense “catholic” does not mean Roman Catholic, but rather “universal,” the full number of God’s people throughout all ages and places. Unfortunately, a variety of factors have led to many churches today that are functionally disconnected from one another and, in many cases, from the Church throughout history in terms of theology (belief), piety (personal devotion), and practice (worship and living).
The Faith Received, Not Invented
One of the great promises of Christ to his Church is his continued presence with it through the Holy Spirit until he comes again (Matthew 28:20). This continued presence in light of the organic unity of the Church in Christ reminds us that he has given us a faith that is to be received, not invented or reinvented by each generation of Christians. The Bible describes it as “the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 3).
Even though the content of this “faith” is objective and unchanging, the Church had to grow in its comprehension and articulation of it after the death of the Apostles. Of course the Apostles themselves began this work by showing how Christ’s fulfillment of the Old Testament promises affects New Testament worship and practice. As the Church developed its worship and practice according to the Scriptures as the infallible rule of faith and life, it also had to meet many challenges to the faith with those same Scriptures. Some of the fruit of the Church’s faithfulness and devotion to God’s truth can be seen in the early creeds and confessional statements such as the Nicene Creed (381 A.D.), Apostles’ Creed (3rd–5th centuries), and the Chalcedonian Definition (451 A.D.).
Reformed, Not Reinvented
Throughout the Middle Ages the Church continued to develop a rich piety and practice that flowed from its theology. To be sure, there were also a number of erroneous theological positions and ecclesiastical practices that became prominent during this period, especially the later part, but this serves as a reminder that God is faithful to preserve his Church despite the weaknesses of those within it. And it is God’s faithful preservation of his Church that gave rise to the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century.
Contrary to what many people think, the Reformers did not set out to start a new Church or churches. They observed that some of the most foundational doctrines of the Church’s historic faith had become obscured or corrupted in their day. Chief among these were the doctrine of justification (how we are made right with God), the authority of Scripture, how Christ rules his Church, and the sufficiency of his once-for-all sacrifice for sinners on the cross.
So it was the desire of the Reformers to renew the Church in its confession of the essential doctrines of the faith that had defined it and shaped it throughout its entire existence. As church historian Nick Needham has noted, the Reformation was the best elements of Western medieval Christianity seeking to reform its worst elements. Sadly, the Church of Rome ultimately excommunicated the Reformers for their efforts, thereby forcing a division in the visible Church. The Reformers stood firm in contending for the faith once for all delivered to the saints, though forced out of communion with Rome.
A sort of unity within diversity developed among the Reformed churches as they sought to follow the tradition of the Church in carefully articulating their understanding of Holy Scripture, the gospel, and what it means for Christians seeking to walk humbly with their Savior. This resulted in a number of confessions of faith adopted by these churches in the 16th and 17th centuries, with the Westminster Confession of Faith (1646) and the Westminster Larger and Shorter Catechisms (1647) representing one of the mature expressions of Reformed orthodoxy. These documents, collectively known as the Westminster Standards, are the confessional standards of Presbyterianism.
The Whole Christian Life
Presbyterianism (and the Reformed tradition more broadly) is often criticized as being cold and stifled. While this criticism may be deserved in some cases, it is certainly not an accurate assessment of the tradition as a whole. The essence of Presbyterianism is well-summarized in question 1 of the Westminster Shorter Catechism:
Question 1: What is the chief end of man?
Answer: Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.
This one question and answer points us toward three inseparable dimensions of the Christian life emphasized throughout the Reformed tradition: theology (what we believe), piety (how we live), and practice (how we worship). These are not three separate pursuits but rather interconnected aspects of the unified Christian life in communion with Christ and his Church. What we believe determines how we worship and therefore how we glorify God together. And our corporate belief and worship in turn determine how we enjoy God in our living, as we eagerly await the full enjoyment of his glorious presence in eternity.
Presbyterians believe that Christ is Lord over all of life and that our greatest good (and our greatest duty) is to know and glorify him with the life (and new life in him!) that we have been given. We also joyfully recognize that our God works through means, especially the ordinances of the Word, prayer, and sacraments, which he has given to convey the benefits of Christ’s saving work to his people. These means have a central place in the life and ministry of the Church, to which Christ has given ministers and elders for its government and oversight, and deacons for serving it in works of mercy.
Why This Matters Here
Paragould has many churches and many sincere Christians. The idea behind Reformation Crowley’s Ridge is not meant to suggest otherwise. It is driven by the burden that there is not a single confessionally Reformed church in our city that is home to over 30,000 souls. I do not believe that the Reformed tradition is the exclusive continuation of the one true Church, but as the Reformed tradition is part of that Church, I do believe that it offers the clearest and most consistent expression of the Christian faith and provides a biblical framework in which the whole life of the Church can flourish.
Reformation Crowley’s Ridge is also driven by the burden that a great number of the people who call Paragould home are still lost in their sins and destined for the judgment that is due to them when their time on earth is done. As it is written in Romans 10:14, “How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?” The gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ alone must be proclaimed, not only in churches, but in the community where unbelievers gather. And as it was noted above, when a person believes the gospel, Jesus not only saves them from certain judgment, but also enfolds them into the life of his Church.
This enfolding into the life of the Church truly means something. It means that people are ministered to not merely as isolated individuals but as members of the Body of Christ. It means that families in the local church are regarded as Christian families, in which the children are to be raised in the nurture and admonition of the Lord as members of his covenant people, for the promises of God have always included believers and their children. And it means that every member of the local church is to be shepherded by men who have been called by God and ordained to that task, who will care for them in the Lord, encouraging them in their fight against sin, admonishing them when they stray, and building them up in the faith of the gospel.
Reformation Crowley’s Ridge
The hope for Reformation Crowley’s Ridge is that the Lord would see fit to establish a confessionally Reformed and Presbyterian church in Paragould that will bear witness to the faith once for all delivered to the saints; commit itself to God’s Word and the theology, piety, and practice that come from it; and seek to encourage other churches toward a deeper continuity with the historic faith and life of the Church.
Lord willing, we will soon begin a Bible study that meets regularly to study the depths of the riches of God in his Word and to encourage one another in the faith. But this gathering is not only for those who are already Christians; it is for anyone who would like to attend and learn more about the Christian faith.
If this is something that you may want to be a part of, please reach out to me (Rev. William Barnett) at ReformationCrowleysRidge@gmail.com and come to our next Bible study gathering; details are available on this page.
