ok, I told everyone that I would be lurking around and here is one of my lurking post... I just could not resist a reply..
I see nothing wrong with covenant renewal worship. It does not deny the regulative principle, but in fact strengths the regulative worship. Who ever said that it comes close to federal vision is wrong.
First off.. In covenant renewal worship, the word is not neglected or belittled, but the Lord's Supper is elevated since it does spiritually fed us and is a visual view of the gospel. After all It is the Word AND Sacrament. Sermons tend to be anywhere from 45 mins to over an hour in covenant renewal worship...
Secondly, covenant renewal worship is the biblically defined set liturgy of worship in the covenant of grace, as defined by scripture. It tells us that not only are the elements of worship important but also the order of worship is important. And that the New Covenant Worship is continued from the Old Covenant in many ways. Jesus' death abolished all animal sacrifice (Hebrews 10:4) but it did not abolish all sacrifice. We are to offer ourselves as "Living Sacrifices" to God (Romans 12:1). The sacrifices of the Old Testament not only point forward to the atoning work of Christ on the cross, they also point forward to our worship as living sacrifices.
Leviticus chapter 9 gives us details of the order of sacrifice in worship services. They consist of the following...
Call to Worship -
This expresses the truth that none of us can approach God unless he initiates the covenant with us.
Sin Offering -
This is where we hear the laws of God and lament our sins and confess our sins corporately, and of our need for forgiveness.
Burnt Offering -
Or the Consecration, ascension offering. This represents the ascension of believers into the presence of God. In this way we show we belong wholly to the Lord. We will hear the Word of God read, we offer ourselves in prayer and praise to God, and we hear the sermon as the Lord speaks through the Pastor.
Peace Offering -
Communion. Part of the animal was burned, part of it was waved before the Lord and then given to the worshipper to eat. The portion that was burned was called the Lord's good. This offering was unique in that it was the only one of the offerings in which the worshipper was permitted to eat a portion of it. In the peace offering the worshipper ate with God as an expression of deep love, trust and fellowship. Around the table of the Lord there is peace and assurance of his love for us. So it is that the covenant memorial of the Lord's Supper is offered to us by Christ, our peace offering, and he communes with us through it. As part of the regular Lord's Day worship, God gives us the privilege of sharing a covenant meal with him.
Commission -
Aaron and Moses concluded the service by blessing the people with God's benediction. As we leave the assembly of the saints, we need to know that we are not leaving God behind.
This is the liturgy the bible gives us to worship God and the order that it should follow. It will only consist of the elements of worship that God has prescribed along with a covenantal dialogue between God and Man within the worship service.
This is covenant renewal worship in a nutshell. Let us not undermind the WORD and SACRAMENT of worship and let us bring the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper back to its rightful place along side the Word in worship.
Michael