In many Christian Reformed and other Reformed congregations, the law is read every Sunday. But why? Must there be a reading of the law in the Sunday worship service anyway, and does it possibly say something about the relationship with God when the consistory no longer regards that as necessary? This is a question of principle.

If there truly must be a weekly reading of the law, in which form could this take place? Is there a problem with substituting the reading of the Ten Commandments with a passage out of the letters in which the congregation is called to a holy life? This is a question of a practical nature.

Negative Sound⤒🔗

“Law” has become a negative word for many people in our time. The law binds you to all kinds of restrictions. It has something of a severe nature and especially dictates what you may not do. The claim that you would encounter a punishing God when you transgress against the law totally does not fit into a culture where people are very strongly focused on themselves.

There is, in the first place, a necessity for understanding and warmth. In the church, the emphasis must lie on the comfort and encouragement from the Bible. The post-modern man has no use for a God who is “angry about sin.”

Joy←⤒🔗

It should be clear that this is not God’s intention with his law. The law of God is torah, a Hebrew word that is derived from a word which means “to instruct.” The Ten Commandments or Ten Words, the Decalogue, is meant to give direction. If a person follows these rules, then he or she will come to the purpose of his or her life. It is a law which gives life and leads to life. Seen in this manner, the law, first of all, gives joy. The joy of the law, which the Jews bring to expression so intensely, should also emanate from a Christian, for example in the singing of the Psalms which interpret this joy (Psalms 1; 19; 119).

Covenant Law←⤒🔗

The joy comes forth out of the intimate relationship with the Giver of the Law. Whoever reads the law with the eye of faith sees the good hand of the Father in heaven behind it. God gave his law to preserve his people in the salvation which he had prepared for them. It is actually about a covenant statute, a sort of a foundation law at the alliance of the Lord with Israel. The Decalogue has its own place therein, because it concerns the direct proclamation of God’s will.

The Whole Law←⤒🔗

Although the will of God is clearly proclaimed in the Ten Words, we may not detach them from the other laws, such as the civil and ceremonial laws. It is important to track down the Biblical principles of these laws in order to also understand, in them, the will of God for our time.  Thus the whole Old Testament participates. Thus, no tittle (accent mark) or jot (smallest letter) of the law and the prophets will be put away (Matthew 5:17-20: KJV).

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus shows the depth of God’s commandments (Matthew 5-7). He did not come to abolish the law and the prophets, but to fulfill them (Matthew 5:17-19). Doing the will of his Father was, for him, food and drink (John 4:34). Keeping God’s commandments is therefore the best proof that we love Christ (1 John 2:3).

Principle←⤒🔗

Paying attention to the above-mentioned notes, I am of the persuasion that it is a matter of principle that we, in one way or another, let ourselves be instructed weekly by the law of God in the worship service. It is precisely the congregation of Christ that must learn to understand the will of God in order to walk as children of the light in the world. For that reason, so much space is given in the Heidelberg Catechism for the discussion of the Ten Commandments in the section of thankfulness. Here we encounter the real meaning of the law. Out of thankfulness for the redemption in Christ, we walk before his face. Therein, the Ten Words are the rule of life. Surely the church consistory would not deprive the congregation of them! In the contemplation of God’s law, the heart of the believer delights in the fellowship with God (Psalm 1).

Knowing our Sin←⤒🔗

Meanwhile, in his law, God holds a mirror in front of us. This is how we learn to know ourselves as sinners and to humble ourselves before his face. Therefore, it is necessary that the law continues to be preached so strictly (Heidelberg Catechism answer 115). Knowledge of our sin belongs to one of the three things that a believer must know-and continue to know more deeply-in order to be able to live and die in the comfort of Lord’s Day 1. Therefore, it is my conviction, also for that reason, that it is not right to put away the reading of the law from the Sunday worship service.

Society←⤒🔗

The last reason — but not the least — for the reading of the law in the worship service concerns the meaning of the law of God for society. The Ten Words form a message of God’s will for every person. The law has application to life as it happens around us. It is also valid for all levels of society (Galatians 3:28).

Precisely now that the church in the West is being driven into the margins of society, the congregation of Christ must hold, in front of itself, weekly, the holy and wholesome laws of God. In this way the law of God, via the public worship service, is also God’s witness of, and the conscience of society in conformity to, the original calling of Israel, for, “from all peoples on earth this one people was called to carry the knowledge of good and evil on the earth” (J. Koopmans).

Different Forms←⤒🔗

Assuming that there is a weekly reading of the law, in what form should this take place? Usually, the law is read from Exodus 20, often with the summary out of the New Testament (Matthew 22:37-40). There are alternatives. I will name a few:

1. For a change, Deuteronomy 5:6-21 can be read.
    
2. Leviticus 19 can be read selectively, for example, the verses 1-4, 9-12, and 34-37. In this section, God speaks emphatically with authority by repeating continuously, “I am the Lord.” The focus here lies on the relationship between God and his people.
    
3. In order to highlight the importance of hearing the Words of God in faith, and thereby to show the unity between the Old and New Testaments, the following combination is possible: Deuteronomy 6:1-7 and Mark 12:28-31.
    
4. Other places where we find commandments are the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5; 6; 7), Matthew 19:1-12; Luke 18:18-27; Romans 12:9-21; 13:8-14; Galatians 5:13-26; James 2:8-13. These portions of Scripture can possibly be read beside or after the Ten Commandments. They also accent the unity of the two Testaments.

Liturgical Freedom←⤒🔗

That I am not prescribing anything or excluding other choices, is hopefully clear.

Also the moment of the reading or the singing of the Ten Commandments in the worship service may differ. In order to explicitly give the confession of guilt a place in the liturgy, the summary of the law may be read before the Ten Commandments are read, followed by the proclamation of grace. The Decalogue can then possibly be sung or read after the sermon.

Let us not measure each other by this and use the reading of the law as a shibboleth. It is important to explain to the congregation why we do something in one or other manner in the worship service. Liturgy literally means a work that concerns the people. Along the way, it came to mean “order of service,” in particular that of the gathering of the Christian congregation around the Word of God. Such an order demands careful consideration.

Questions for Discussion:←⤒🔗

1. A church council that does not regard the weekly reading of the law as necessary anymore, should be called to the order of the service of God by the congregation. What do you think?
    
2. What do the words of Paul in Romans 7:6 and Galatians 5:1 say to us on the topic of understanding the law?
   a. How do the various functions of the law come to their right in the worship service?
   b. Can a choice be made in this? Calvin usually let the congregation sing the Ten Commandments in the worship service. What do you think of this?