The second argument for the regulative principle of the church has to do with the inevitable tendency of human tradition. The introduction of extra-biblical practices into worship inevitably tends to nullify and undermine God’s appointed worship (Matt. 15:3, 8, 9; 2 Kings 16:10-18).
Matthew 15:3 suggests the inevitable tendency of following human traditions: “And He answered and said to them, ‘Why do you yourselves transgress the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition?’” Human traditions when incorporated into the holy church of God inevitably tendency to lead to the transgression of the divine ordinances.
2 Kings 16:10-18 is a penetrating moral tale and striking illustration of what happens to the ordinances when human invention intrudes itself into the ordained worship of God.
Now King Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and saw the altar which was at Damascus; and King Ahaz sent to Uriah the priest the pattern of the altar and its model, according to all its workmanship. So Uriah the priest built an altar; according to all that King Ahaz had sent from Damascus, thus Uriah the priest made it, before the coming of King Ahaz from Damascus. When the king came from Damascus, the king saw the altar; then the king approached the altar and went up to it, and burned his burnt offering and his meal offering, and poured his drink offering and sprinkled the blood of his peace offerings on the altar. The bronze altar, which was before the LORD, he brought from the front of the house, from between his altar and the house of the LORD, and he put it on the north side of his altar. Then King Ahaz commanded Uriah the priest, saying, “Upon the great altar burn the morning burnt offering and the evening meal offering and the king’s burnt offering and his meal offering, with the burnt offering of all the people of the land and their meal offering and their drink offerings; and sprinkle on it all the blood of the burnt offering and all the blood of the sacrifice. But the bronze altar shall be for me to inquire by.” So Uriah the priest did according to all that King Ahaz commanded. Then King Ahaz cut off the borders of the stands, and removed the laver from them; he also took down the sea from the bronze oxen which were under it and put it on a pavement of stone. The covered way for the sabbath which they had built in the house, and the outer entry of the king, he removed from the house of the LORD because of the king of Assyria.
The altar of the Lord is not replaced by the new altar. It is only displaced. This is the usual subtlety of human error. We would never dream of getting rid of God’s ordinances. We will treat them with great respect. But they will not have the central place in our worship. That will be occupied by the inventions of our wisdom.
This tendency is illustrated in evangelical churches today where mundane or silly announcements in the middle of worship, the unwise tradition of hand-shaking in the middle of worship, badly organized testimony times, clown shows, mime, liturgical dance, movies, and drama completely replace or severely restrict the clearly ordained parts of worship. These and other traditions of men, for instance, often leave only 15-20 minutes for preaching. Similarly deafening worship bands and the predominance of special music can push congregational singing into the corner of corporate worship.
Dr. Sam Waldron is the Academic Dean of CBTS and professor of Systematic Theology. He is also one of the pastors of Grace Reformed Baptist Church in Owensboro, KY. Dr. Waldron received a B.A. from Cornerstone University, an M.Div. from Trinity Ministerial Academy, a Th.M. from Grand Rapids Theological Seminary, and a Ph.D. from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. From 1977 to 2001 he was a pastor of the Reformed Baptist Church of Grand Rapids, MI. Dr. Waldron is the author of numerous books including A Modern Exposition of the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith, The End Times Made Simple, Baptist Roots in America, To Be Continued?, and MacArthur’s Millennial Manifesto: A Friendly Response.
