Prayer for Good Friday

Good Friday provides an opportunity to meditate on our need for Easter. When we survey the wondrous cross, we pour contempt on our pride, and come with sharpened hunger to the festal table the risen Christ spreads for us on Easter morn.

If you are in the Washington, DC, area during Holy Week, you are welcome to join us for our Good Friday service, which is usually held at 6:00 pm. Please check our website to confirm service times this year (2021 Good Friday service details here). 

Prayer for Good Friday

Included in the Liturgical Forms and Prayers of the URCNA is a prayer for use in a Good Friday service. Though intended for public worship, this prayer is also commended for personal or family use as well:

Our Father, who so loved the world that You gave Your only begotten Son, we acknowledge and marvel at Your mercy. Even while we were enemies, You reconciled us; even while we were strangers, You made us fellow heirs with Christ of all eternal blessings; even while we stood condemned, You redeemed us; even while we were imprisoned, You delivered us from the tyranny of sin, death, and the devil. On this solemn occasion, we loathe our miserable estate and celebrate Your marvelous grace. Beneath the cross of Christ, we come to know that ours is the guilt, but Yours the forgiveness; ours the condemnation, but Yours the gift of justification; ours the bondage, yet Yours the freedom of adoption and new obedience. Even the faith with which we confess our dear Savior’s sacrifice was won for us by His death. Therefore, we cry out to You in sorrow for our sins and in thanksgiving for Your gift. Give us the grace, we pray, to receive again this word of the cross, which alone can refresh us on our pilgrim way, and send us out again into the world as witnesses to the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. Amen.

Many American Christians tend to be a bit allergic to written prayers, but they are an important part of the Reformed tradition on the European continent. While such prayers are for voluntary use — our Church Order doesn’t require them — they are a valued resource. While they are suitable to be read in the home or for a service, they can also serve as useful outlines for more extemporaneous prayers.

What follows is a brief commentary on our Good Friday prayer.

Commentary

Our Father, who so loved the world that You gave Your only begotten Son, we acknowledge and marvel at Your mercy. 

Our prayer opens by addressing God as Father, as Jesus instructed us in Matthew 6:9, and acknowledging the great mercy he showed us by sending his Son to die for us on the cross. Our Heidelberg Catechism reminds us that the Creator God “is my God and Father for the sake of Christ his Son.” The death of Jesus secured our adoption as sons and daughters so that we pray to God as our Father. 

Even while we were enemies, You reconciled us; even while we were strangers, You made us fellow heirs with Christ of all eternal blessings; even while we stood condemned, You redeemed us; even while we were imprisoned, You delivered us from the tyranny of sin, death, and the devil. 

The first petition, as it were, is a confession of sorts acknowledging the fallen state we find ourselves in apart from God’s mercy: “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). God sent Jesus to die for us while we were enemies, strangers, condemned, imprisoned, and under the tyranny of sin, death, and the devil. By beginning our prayer with this humble approach, we acknowledge the magnitude of God’s gift given on Good Friday.

This is always a wonderful way to start our prayers to a holy God, and this form provides an excellent model for us.

On this solemn occasion, we loathe our miserable estate and celebrate Your marvelous grace. Beneath the cross of Christ, we come to know that ours is the guilt, but Yours the forgiveness; ours the condemnation, but Yours the gift of justification; ours the bondage, yet Yours the freedom of adoption and new obedience. Even the faith with which we confess our dear Savior’s sacrifice was won for us by His death. 

Next, the prayer moves to the particular occasion for which it is offered, Good Friday.

Good Friday is one of the “evangelical feast days” that celebrate the saving works of our savior. Reformed Christians don’t hold to a church calendar, per se. We desire our worship to be biblical, and we do not believe the New Testament teaches us that keeping a calendar of feast days is a useful pattern for the people of God in the new covenant (Colossians 2:16). Rather, we hold that the weekly rhythm of the Lord’s Day is the most important liturgical rhythm for saints under the new covenant and that Christians should celebrate the resurrection every Sunday. 

And yet, we acknowledge that it is reasonable and permissible to regularly, even annually, acknowledge key anniversaries in the history of redemption. Good Friday is one such “solemn occasion.” We should “preach Christ and him crucified” in every sermon, but on Good Friday we are able to dwell on the weighty message of the cross. Thus, on Good Friday the purpose of the cross of Christ, in particular, is highlighted, namely, our great sin which required such a great sacrifice. 

The special services Reformed Christians mark are called “evangelical feast days” because they are based on the crucial gospel (evangelical) events in our Savior’s life. We believe Christ’s birth, death, resurrection, ascension, and sending of the spirit may be celebrated with annual services that focus on Christmas, Good Friday, Easter, Ascension, and Pentecost. Reformed Christians preserved these ancient celebrations because they were not man-made or man-focused, unlike the medieval church calendar’s celebration of saints’ days and other feasts.

One of the benefits of marking Good Friday is that it allows for a robust celebration and focus on the resurrection on Easter Sunday. There is no Easter joy without Good Friday sorrow — the story of the cross and the tomb are intertwined. But celebrating both of these radical extremes in a single service can be quite difficult. As a result, Easter in the modern church often skims over the bad news of the cross. We believe there is wisdom and richness in given each moment in Christ’s passion, death, and resurrection its due attention.

Therefore, we cry out to You in sorrow for our sins and in thanksgiving for Your gift. Give us the grace, we pray, to receive again this word of the cross, which alone can refresh us on our pilgrim way, and send us out again into the world as witnesses to the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. Amen.

Again I say: Good Friday provides an opportunity to meditate on our need for Easter. Confess your sin, pour contempt on your pride, and come with a sharpened hunger for the festal table the risen Christ spreads for you on Easter morn.

We hope you’ll join us for our Good Friday service at Christ Reformed Church.

A Guide to Thanksgiving Day Prayer

It is good to acknowledge our limits, and all of us have endured a mediocre prayer or two before digging in to our Thanksgiving Day feast.

Of course, the Lord welcomes all faithful prayer, and the Spirit interprets our groanings. But leading a group in public prayer is a skill that is developed through practice, Scripture study, and theological reflection. Not all of us are equally gifted, and it can be nerve-wracking to be called upon to pray when you are unprepared.

 One of the great benefits of being a member of a confessionally Reformed church is the ability to draw on a rich liturgical tradition, including a Book of Forms and Prayers that dates to the sixteenth century reformation. The United Reformed Churches in North America (URCNA) have made their book available in full online at www.formsandprayers.com, so a theologically rich prayer is never more than a few screen taps away. These prayers can profitably be read verbatim, or used as a model or guide, providing an outline for a beautiful prayer. 

Our book includes liturgical forms and prayers for the Lord’s Day worship, as well as additional prayers for special services such as Christmas, Good Friday, and Easter. There are also prayers for ecclesiastical assemblies and for personal and family use.

Here are a few thoughts on the Thanksgiving Day Prayer:

Our Sovereign God, who created all things for Your pleasure and who gives to all life, breath, and every good thing, we thank You for our creation, our preservation, and all the blessings of this life. 

 The doctrine of creation is the foundation of much biblical thanksgiving. Our prayer opens by reminding us that all things were created for God’s pleasure, and that his work of creation continues in his current work of preservation. All good things come to us from God.

For rain and sunshine, in abundance and in lack, we acknowledge that our times are in Your hands. You supply all of Your creatures with Your good gifts, the just and the unjust alike. 

 We thank God not only for good things and abundance, but for his supervision of our lack. Our comfort in all circumstances comes from the knowledge that “our times are in His hands.”

Nevertheless, we especially give You praise for the surpassing greatness of Your saving grace, which You have shown to us in Christ Jesus our Savior. For our election in Him before the foundation of the world, for our redemption by Him in His life, death, and resurrection, for our effectual calling, justification, sanctification, and all of the blessings of our union with Him, we give You our heartfelt thanks. 

 While creation may be the foundation of our thanksgiving, God’s redeeming work is deserving of special mention. Apart from redemption our hearts would be darkened and we would not be able to truly thank God for anything. This work of redemption started in eternity past, and continues until his return in glory.

Often, at Thanksgiving Day celebrations we find ourselves in mixed company. It is a national, secular holiday. Reading a prayer is a helpful way of articulating a doctrine of redemption in a fashion that might be slightly less personally offensive in mixed company, if it is introduced as a prayer used by the church in thanking God.

Sometimes we also find ourselves praying with extended family who nominally express faith in God but aren’t actively a part of a worshiping community. This prayer enumerates specific blessings of God’s saving work, and we should be prepared to reflect further on them if they become a point of dinnertime conversation.

And we look with great anticipation toward that day when You will raise us to life everlasting, glorified and confirmed in righteousness, so that we may sing Your praises without the defilement of our present weaknesses, distractions, and sins. 

Americans can sometimes slip into the error that the fullness of God’s blessings are known here and now in the U.S. of A. Our prayer reminds us that we look forward in “great anticipation” for God’s greatest blessings, and this confidence in future blessings is perhaps our greatest blessing.

Also, this prayer reminds us of the importance of confessing our sins, even in a prayer of thanksgiving. 

As You have given us these gifts, we ask that You would give us grateful hearts, so that we may serve our neighbors in love. 

Our gratitude is a result of God’s saving work in our hearts, and this saving work results in a grateful response toward God and neighbor. May this thanksgiving holiday serve as a spur and a reminder of how we are called to share God’s blessings with those around us.

This we pray in the name of Jesus Christ our Savior, who taught us to pray, saying: 

Our Father Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever.
Amen.

Closing a prayer with the Lord’s Prayer is a wonderful way to invite all members of your Thanksgiving Day celebration to join their voices together. It is an invitation to pray to God.

Here’s a pro tip: you can give your group advanced warning that you’ll close with the Lord’s Prayer and prepare them to join you. Sometimes it’s worth mentioning whether you go with “debts” or “trespasses” to avoid a brief moment of awkwardness. 

By closing with the Lord’s Prayer, you may give a struggling sinner the opportunity to take their first stumbling steps to calling out to God for forgiveness. 

I still remember a number of years ago when I was praying at an ordinary family dinner. My father was not a churchgoing man, and I don’t think I had ever heard him pray. But when I closed with the Lord’s Prayer, he joined in, for it triggered a deep memory he had from his youth. It was one of the few times I ever heard him pray. 

Yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.  

Amen.

The Form for the Ordination of Ministers of Word and Sacrament

We are a liturgical church, in keeping with our Dutch Reformed tradition. In this post, we continue our series of blog entries providing commentary on the United Reformed Church’s liturgical forms contained in our Book of Forms and Prayers. All of these forms, including the form for the Ordination (or Installation) of Ministers of Word and Sacrament, can be found online at formsandprayers.com.

Ordination of Ministers is an essential work of the church, and this liturgical form, though infrequently used, contains a rich vein of instruction for Christ’s church. It is a valuable practice for the congregation to read through this form before an ordination service, that they might benefit all the more from the instruction they will receive during the ordination service.

Congregation of Jesus Christ, the Council has made known to you the name of our brother _________, who is now to be ordained to the ministry of the Word and sacraments (or: installed in the ministry to which he has been called).

The form begins by naming the “brother” to be ordained, because the United Reformed Churches of North America (URCNA), in keeping with the teaching of the word of God and the ancient practice of the Christian church, ordain only men to the office of Minister of Word and Sacrament. This is far from a universal practice today and definitely founded upon counter-cultural claims God’s work makes about the very nature of God’s creation and our humanity. God’s word clearly teaches that we are created “in the image of God,” “male and female.” Men and women thus equally reflect the image of God, and share in equality of nature (Genesis 1:26-27), but not without a diversity of callings and roles that is taught throughout scripture.

It is far outside the scope of this blog post to fully address the many issues related to gender, but it is important to reflect on how these issues are reflected in a church’s practice and teaching about ordination. It is important to note that the biblical teaching about the ordination of ministers throughout teaches that men are uniquely called to this office, and the bible furthermore teaches that this diversity of callings within the church is grounded in the creation order itself (1 Timothy 2:8-15). While many women played a crucial role ministering to the Lord during his earthly ministry (Mark 15:41) and served as the first witnesses to the resurrection (Mark 16:7), Christ called twelve men to serve as his Apostles (Mark 3:13-14). Paul’s teaching in 1 Timothy clarifies that this is not merely due to the cultural biases of his time, but is grounded in the creation order itself.

While many in our age may disagree strongly with our practice, we are convinced that we must submit to the clear teaching of the Word of God on this matter. Furthermore, we should not abandon lightly this teaching of Christ and the Apostles which has been the longstanding practice of the church.

Note that a minister is only “ordained” once. When he takes up the office of Minister in a new church, he is “installed” in that office. This form is used for both of those services.

The Holy Scriptures teach us that Christ Jesus gathers, protects, and preserves for Himself a church out of the corrupt race of men for life eternal and gives to His church such teaching and care that she may grow in faith, love, and service. For this work, Christ, by a particular grace, uses men, appointing them to the preaching of the gospel and for the building up of His body. The apostle Paul solemnly charged Timothy to “preach the word” (2 Tim. 4:2), and our Lord Jesus charged His disciples to “make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Matt. 28:19–20). The apostle Paul declares that the Lord Jesus Christ has given “the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ” (Eph. 4:11-12). For this reason, the church has recognized the distinct office of the minister of the Word.

The work of ordination is the work of Christ himself. It is his work of growing and building the church, which is uniquely the place of his saving activity in this fallen world. So our understanding of ordination is first grounded upon our understanding of the church itself. For a fuller appreciation of what we confess about the church, see our Belgic Confession, Articles 27 – 35).

A man may not and cannot set himself apart from this work. Because ordination is Christ’s work, it is not merely the work or credential of the man being ordained. Rather, Christ is through the church making a “solemn approval of and attestation to a man’s inward call, his gifts, and his calling by the church” (Book of Order, XX.2, Orthodox Presbyterian Church).

The URCNA, along with most Reformed churches which had their roots in continental Europe, understand the Minister of the Word to be a distinct office from Elder, as opposed to a “Teaching Elder” that is a subset of this office. While this is not a major difference, it is reflected in our form.

The minister of the Word is called by the command of God to preach the gospel of His kingdom. This preaching has the twofold object of calling sinners to reconciliation with God through Jesus Christ and nurturing believers in the faith and life of the kingdom of God. Ministers are called “ambassadors for Christ,” as though He were pleading by them, “Be reconciled to God” (2 Cor. 5:20). Therefore, this preaching must be addressed to all people. The preaching of the gospel must especially be addressed to the gathered congregation for the nurturing of Christian faith and life and for strengthening them against all error. Paul charged Timothy “in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus …: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching” (2 Tim. 4:1-2). And he charged Titus that a minister “must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it” (Titus 1:9). The minister of the Word is called to administer the sacraments which the Lord has instituted as signs and seals of His grace. Christ gave this charge to His apostles, and through them to all ministers of the Word, when He commanded them to “make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matt. 28:19), and when He said of the Lord’s Supper: “Do this in remembrance of me” (1 Cor. 11:24-25). The minister of the Word is called to the service of prayer. In speaking of their calling, the apostles say, “We will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word” (Acts 6:4). So, too, it is the calling of all God’s ministers to lead the people of God in “supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings … for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions” (1 Tim. 2:1-2).

The first calling of the minister is to preach to the gospel of the Kingdom, which has a twofold object. The minister must address sinners outside the church, calling them to faith in Christ and reconciliation with God. Further, the minister must nurture believers In their faith and life in the Kingdom.

As suggested by the title of this office, “Minister of Word and Sacrament,” the minister is also called to administer the sacraments. The Apostles were commanded to baptize and to “do this in remembrance of me” with regard to the Lord’s Supper. John Calvin called the sacraments “a visible word,” and their administration is the special charge of the minister because the sacraments depend upon the preaching of the word. They cannot be celebrated apart from the ministry of the word, and the proper celebration of the sacraments entails the instruction of the Word. They are Christ’s sacraments, and therefore, to be administered by his ministers.

Finally, the minister is called to prayer. This includes both prayer for God’s people and the leading of prayer with God’s people. The pastoral prayer, though sadly a fading practice in the Christian church, is a crucial ministry of Christ among his people here at Christ Reformed Church.

The minister of the Word is called, together with the elders, to shepherd the people of God in their Christian life, giving guidance and counsel in all that they need, exhorting them to “contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3), and keeping the church of God in good order and discipline. They are pastors, appointed to shepherd the church of Christ, which He purchased with His own blood, in keeping with the Lord’s command: “Feed my lambs.… Feed my sheep” (John 21:15,17). They, together with the elders, watch over the house of God for the right and fruitful ordering of the faith and life and worship of the people of God. In their exercise of the keys of the kingdom, what they “bind on earth shall be bound in heaven,” and what they “loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven” (Matt. 18:18).

While all believers have a duty and obligation to care for one another in the church, the body of Christ, ministers along with elders have a special obligation to do so. They must know their sheep, their needs, their burdens, their weaknesses, so they may care for them faithfully. They also exercise the keys of the kingdom, with discipline being one of the marks of the church (Belgic Confession, Article 29). When the minster spreads the Lord’s table for a member of Christ’s church, he is publicly affirming that this individual believer is, according to their known doctrine and life, a child of God and a member of the body of Christ.

At this point, the Ordination Form provides different paragraphs for different offices unto which ministers may be ordained:

1. As a pastor of an established congregation

2. A foreign missionary

3. A home missionary (or church planter)

4. A teacher of theology (in a theological school or seminary)

5. Someone called to another task, such as a chaplaincy

Here we will look at the portion of the form dealing with a man called to pastor an established congregation.

We now proceed to ordain [or: install] brother _______ as a minister of the Word and sacraments in this congregation. We rejoice that the Lord Jesus, in His faithful love, has provided a minister to serve as pastor and teacher to this people, and also as their leader in the missionary calling of this church. We receive this servant of our Lord from the hand and heart of the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls. We are grateful that our Savior has committed preaching, teaching, and pastoral care to the office of the minister of the Word, and that He will continue to use sinful men for such high and holy purposes until the day of His return.

No one is able to fulfill this holy ministry in his own strength; therefore, we set our hope on Jesus Christ our Lord, who said: “And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matt. 28:20).

I love how we are reminded yet again that the minister is received “from the hand and heart of the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls.” Furthermore, ministers are sinful men. Their ordination does not reflect superhuman piety or gifting. They are members of the body of Christ, like every other believer, but they have been called and set apart for a special task. Ministers are like the Levites in the Old Testament, who didn’t receive an inheritance in the land — that is, a common calling of farming and laboring in the world — but rather were set apart to guard and keep the temple and worship of the Lord.

Now, in order that it may appear that you, ______, are willing to accept this office, you are requested to stand, and in the presence of God and His church give your answer to the following questions:

1. Do you believe that in the call of this congregation you are called by God Himself to this holy ministry?

2. Do you believe the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be the Word of God, the only infallible rule of faith and practice, and do you reject every doctrine in conflict with them?

3. Do you promise to discharge the duties of your office faithfully, to conduct yourself worthily of this calling, and to submit yourself to the government and discipline of the church?

Answer: I do so believe and promise, God helping me.

The ordinand here publicly testifies of their personal agreement with the call of God in and through the call of the congregation. In speaking of the call to ministry, we distinguish between the subjective call and the objective call. A minister’s call isn’t merely a feeling he has of a personal purpose and opinion of his own gifts. Indeed, a call isn’t real until it is received “in the call of the congregation.”

Furthermore, the ordinand indicates their agreement with God’s word and rejects all doctrines in conflict with them. URCNA Church Order Article 6 makes clear that at this point in the service, “before the laying on of hands,” the ordinand is to sign the Form of Subscription. Those who sign the Form of Subscription not only commit to teach and defend the doctrine of Scripture and the confessions, they also commit themselves to reject all errors that militate against it. This includes admitting to one’s elders any disagreements with the church’s doctrine which may arise at any time and submitting honestly to the review of the church.

The officiating minister shall then say (in the case of ordination: with the ceremony of the laying on of hands, other ministers present participating):

May God, our heavenly Father, who has called you to this holy office, enlighten you with His Spirit, strengthen you with His hand, and so govern you in your ministry that you may be engaged in it faithfully and fruitfully, to the glory of His name and the coming of the kingdom of His Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.

The laying on of hands is not a magical act that transfers power from one individual to another. It is an apostolic practice that symbolizes that the ordination comes not from Christ through his ministers (Acts 6:6,13:3, 1 Timothy 4:14,5:12). Christ’s servants, the ministers in the church, express their agreement and approval of this call, and the qualifications and gifts necessary to fulfill the call. This is why Paul instructs us to “not be hasty” in this act. Furthermore, it reflects the fact that Christ himself is calling this man to ministry through the entirety of the visible church, especially when visiting ministers and elders from other churches are able to participate in the act.

The officiating minister shall address the congregation:

Dear people of God and members of this church, since this solemn act involves obligations also on your part, I ask you before God:

1. Do you, in the name of the Lord, welcome this brother as your pastor?

2. Do you promise to receive the Word of God proclaimed by him and to encourage him in the discharge of his duty?

3. Will you pray that he may, in the power of the Spirit, equip you in the work of advancing God’s kingdom for the honor of Christ our Lord, the building up of His church, and the salvation of men?

To these questions, what is your answer?

Answer: We do, God helping us.

The local congregation has a role to play in the ordination of the minister as well and takes vows to fulfill this work. They will welcome him as their pastor, receive God’s word proclaimed by him, encourage him, and pray for him. Our Church Order stipulates that the Council of the local church can only call a man after having received the advice of the congregation, who therefore plays a crucial role in the selection of their pastor. Classis, the regional body, also plays a role, having examined those who become candidates for a call.

After the completion of the vows, an elder or minister issues a charge to the minister:

Beloved brother and fellow servant in Christ, take heed to yourself and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you a guardian, to feed the church of the Lord which He obtained with His own blood. Love Christ and feed His sheep, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, not for shameful gain, but eagerly, and not domineering over those in your charge, but humbly serving all. Set the believers an example in speech and conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. Attend to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching, and to teaching. Do not neglect the gift you have. Take heed to your teaching. Be patient in all trials. Be a good soldier of Jesus Christ, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers. And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will obtain the unfading crown of glory.

The ordination service is not only a milestone in the life of the church, it is a milestone in the life of the minister. It is his ministerial birthday. The charge impresses the significance of the call of Christ upon the new minister, echoing much of the language we see in Paul’s letters to Timothy.

It is followed by a corresponding charge to the congregation:

And you, beloved Christians, receive your minister in the Lord with all joy, and hold him in honor. Remember that through him God Himself speaks to you. Receive the Word that he, according to the Scripture, shall preach to you, not as the word of men, but, as it is in truth, the Word of God. Let the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, and bring the good news, be beautiful and pleasant to you. “Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you” (Heb. 13:17). If you do these things, the God of peace shall enter your homes. You who receive this man in the name of a prophet, shall receive a prophet’s reward, and through faith in Jesus Christ, the inheritance of eternal life.

Moderns Christians, and particularly Modern American Christians, are rugged individualists. We don’t take well to authority. The charge reminds us that, while Christ’s yoke is easy, and his burden is light — it is still a yoke. The Heidelberg Catechism’s teaching on the fifth commandment reminds us that we are to bear patiently with the failings of those God puts in authority over us (Heidelberg Catechism, 104).

Finally, the form closes by calling on God in prayer, which includes a congregational recitation of the Lord’s prayer.

No man is of himself sufficient for these things. Let us call upon the name of God:

Merciful Father, we are thankful that it pleases You by the ministry of men to gather Your church out of the lost human race to life eternal. We acknowledge the gift of this, Your servant, sent to this people as a messenger of Your peace. Send now the Holy Spirit upon him. Enlighten his mind to know the truth of Your Word. Give him the ability to make known the mystery of the gospel with boldness. Grant him the wisdom to care for and guide the people over whom he is placed. Through his ministry, build up Your holy church, and grant her increase in number and in virtue. Give Your servant courage through Your Spirit to fulfill his calling against every difficulty and to be steadfast to the end. We pray that this people will receive him as having been sent by You. May they receive his teaching and exhortation with all reverence, and believing in Christ through his word become partakers of eternal life. Grant this, O heavenly Father, for the sake of Your dear Son, in whose name we pray:

The congregation shall say:

Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen.

Almost all of our liturgical forms close in prayer. Many believers today don’t appreciate the value of form prayers, but they are an important part of our Reformed tradition, and our book of forms and prayers is full of them. There are prayers for use in corporate worship and for personal use in the home. I commend these prayers to you, as they are a rich vein of instruction, and using them with regularity can deepen and strengthen our own prayer life, not to mention serve as excellent training for when we are called upon to pray in public.

Conclusion

Congratulations if you are still reading! The Form for the Ordination of a Minister is not a brief or an insignificant affair. I like to think of our liturgical forms as topical sermons, and it is wise to preach a shorter sermon on this occasion that merely complements the material contained in the form.

The form’s length and the instruction contained in it reflect the centrality of the church and the ministry of word and sacrament in the Reformed tradition. The ordination of a man to this ministry is a great celebration in the life of the church, and a momentous occasion in the life of the minister. It is not to be taken lightly.