The Doctrine of the Church (11): The Attributes and Marks of the Church / The Power and Government of the Church

They are subservient to the preaching. In the sacraments -- holy baptism and the Lord's Supper -- the Word of God is, as it were, presented in visible and tangible form. And the very power of true Christian discipline is the Word of Christ and its preaching. Besides, where the Word of God is purely preached in all its fulness and significance, there the sacraments are not likely to be profaned, while such preaching is already in itself exercise of Christian discipline. Hence, we may say that...