Dr. Bob Gonzales
Puritan Board Junior
Is what has been called the "Regulative Principle of Worship" (RPW) and been identified with the teaching of the 17th-century Puritan Confessions a different hermeneutical/theological principle or method than sola Scriptura? According to T. David Gordon, the answer is "yes." Gordon writes,
“In point of fact, however, the regulative principle does provide a different hermeneutic. In other areas [of life], exegesis (with all its attendant difficulties) proscribes what may be done, leaving other practices open. In faith and worship, exegesis (with all its attendant difficulties) prescribes what is permissible, leaving other practices closed" (emphasis his; "Some Answers About the Regulative Principle," Westminster Theological Journal 55:2 (Fall 1993): 326-27.
Gordon doesn't provide in this article any exegetical support for this distinction between the RPW and sola Scriptura. I am interested to learn what Scriptural data those who agree with Gordon might employ to support his conclusion.