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Exploring Evangelicalism: The Presbyterian Church in America

A highlight of The Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) with an interview with Dr. Bryan Chapell

Written by Ed Stetzer | Saturday, October 24, 2015

“The PCA affirms the inerrancy of Scripture and places a high value on biblical preaching and worship. This is because we believe the Bible is our only infallible rule of faith and practice. By the design of the Holy Spirit, all that is necessary for a life of godliness are within its pages.”

 

This is the fourth in a series of posts I have done over the last few months in which I interview leaders of a variety of evangelical movements. Within the umbrella of evangelicalism, people believe differently about the Holy Spirit, baptism, ordinances, soteriology, worship styles, and all sorts of other aspects of church life. Here is the series so far:

Exploring Evangelicalism: The Assemblies of God

Exploring Evangelicalism: The Wesleyan Church

Exploring Evangelicalism: The Southern Baptist Convention

Today, we’re highlighting The Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) with an interview with Dr. Bryan Chapell. Bryan is the Senior Pastor of Grace Presbyterian Church and the former Chancellor of Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri, the denominational seminary of the Presbyterian Church in America.

In some cases, the person I invite to interview is obvious. George Wood, for example, leads the Assemblies of God. In some cases, it is less so—Frank Page leads an agency of the SBC, but it is also a “parent” agency in some ways (but not in others—which is more than you want to know, trust me!).

In the PCA, there is a Stated Clerk (and I was with Roy Taylor yesterday at the National Association of Evangelicals meeting), seminary presidents, heads of agencies, etc., which makes it a bit harder to pick someone to interview.

Yet, I know Bryan best and his article on the state of the PCA in the official denominational magazine (By Faith) caught my eye. (That article led to a flurry of responses.) Also, since he is the former chancellor of the denominational seminary (Covenant) and has been writing on the PCA, I asked him—and he delivered!

Bryan wrote the longest and most detailed of the responses. We even edited it down for this article (but you can click here for the whole thing). Edited down it is still 1600 words!

So, here’s Bryan…

Feel free to drop questions you might have about Presbyterians in the comments. If you are a Presbyterian, feel free to answer. And, remember to follow the commenting rules and, as in all the interviews, we are not having a debate on the PCA, but asking what they believe and why.

Ed Stetzer: What are some of the distinctives that make you different than other Evangelical groups?

Bryan Chapell: The PCA affirms the inerrancy of Scripture and places a high value on biblical preaching and worship. This is because we believe the Bible is our only infallible rule of faith and practice. By the design of the Holy Spirit, all that is necessary for a life of godliness are within its pages. The Bible was never intended to address every subject or science that we may confront in our world, but it does provide the standards for truth and life that we require to honor God in every situation.

While holding its Confessional standards secondary to the authority of Scripture, the PCA seeks to maintain its peace and purity by requiring ordained pastors and officers to subscribe to the theological doctrines detailed in the Westminster Standards (i.e., the Westminster Confession of Faith with its Larger and Shorter Catechisms).

Those standards also indicate that we believe churches should be in accountability relationships with one another, just as individual church members are. So we have regional presbyteries (gatherings of pastors and elders that seek to do ministry and mission together). Local churches are governed by elders and pastors elected by the local congregation. We practice the sacraments of the Lord’s Supper and Baptism, as the Scriptures instruct. We believe the Scriptures teach that baptism is for adult believers and their children. We do not practice infant baptism out of tradition and sentiment, but out of the understanding that God pledges his faithfulness in covenant relationships that are consistently taught in the Bible.

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[Editor’s note: One or more original URLs (links) referenced in this article are no longer valid; those links have been removed.]

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