What is a “Reformed” Church?

Let’s begin with something fundamental...what is the church?

There are several fruitful ways to approach this question. Biblically, the church is described and today lives as the people of God, the assembly and body of Christ, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. Various denominations and groups of believers tend to focus more on one of these aspects than the others. The Reformed family of churches emphasizes the church as the people of God.

Another analysis of the true church was developed during the Protestant Reformation, an analysis that focused upon what were called the marks of a true church. This approach led to the presence of three distinguishing features of any true church of Jesus Christ: it must include the true preaching of the Word, the proper observance of the sacraments, and the faithful exercise of church discipline. These marks were derived from an emphasis on the apostles and the meaning of their doctrine as the foundation for the church.

One such apostle, named Peter, said this: “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness and into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.”
(I Peter 2:9-10)

Clearly the concept of the church is rich and far beyond this small description. But what about a “Reformed” church? This added word simply means that the richness of the above descriptions carries the imprint of those who were instrumental in the Protestant Reformation, mentioned earlier. This important movement in history is usually said to have begun in 1517 with Martin Luther, a Roman Catholic monk at the time. Luther read his Bible, and concluded that there was a need to reform his established church, that is, a need to re-form the church upon the Scripture as its absolute authority.

The Protestant Reformation was a glorious era in church history, a time when learned pastor-theologians met to write catechisms, creeds, and confessions. The Bible reinvigorated all of the Protestant church, and the theology of these reformers is often distilled into what are called the five Solas, meaning, in this case, essential doctrines of Scripture that stand alone. These Solas are Sola Scriptura (Scripture alone), Sola Gratia (Grace alone), Sola Fide (Faith alone), Solus Christus (Christ alone), and Soli Deo Gloria (the Glory of God alone).

Others in different areas of Europe arrived at the same beliefs and took up the same cause. Among the many reformers, John Calvin (1509-1564), a Frenchman, became known as the great systematizer of what the Bible taught. His work was done primarily in Geneva, Switzerland, and his influence became so profound that today the word “Calvinism” is often understood as a synonym for “Reformed.” So a “Reformed” church is one that views itself through the eyes of Scripture, and thus exists to teach, preach, and live the truths of God’s inerrant and infallible Word. Such a church will have its center focused upon God the Father’s plan of salvation through Jesus Christ his Son and his accomplished redemption on the cross, all applied by the Holy Spirit.

Learn more about the PCA here.