Thread: The role of a confession

I'm trying to gain a better understanding of the historical reason for confessions throughout the ages (specifically with regard to the Reformers' views of the reason to have confessions). I am also trying to better grasp the function of a confession with respect to how / if it should be normative in the life of a believer. Now I know that only the Bible is normative, but we do place a normative status on confessions insofar as they reflect what the Bible teaches. But therein is my question. Since our theology as contained in a confession is only and can only be an approximation of what the Bible teaches (since we are fallible), then isn't the confession subject to change? And if it is subject to change then how are they normative?

Background for my inquiry are some arguments by Rome apologists who say we are left with doctrine that can change at any time because the Bible is not normative until interpreted and then how its normative is left to the interpretation, thus leaving all doctrine open for revision. I know a presumed infallible pope doesn't remove the fact that we are interpreters, however, I really want to dive in to how the Reformers defended their confessions as true recitations of what the Bible teaches and how we can be confident in them.

As someone who did not come from a confessional background, I am also interested in this. Thanks for asking

any thoughts on this matter?

My answer is that Heb. 4:14 and 10:23, namely of holding fast the confession, is the crux of the matter. We need to be assured that we are holding fast to the same confession that the Apostles were holding fast to. Thus you see the creeds forming, then council rulings, then confessional statements, all from the church's attempt to hold fast the one original confession. The Word is unchangeable, so we cannot have churches in different ages holding to that same Word but believing different doctrines from that Word.

The Confessions summarize the doctrines, giving to us the important essentials that the Word teaches us. When one says he believes the Confessions he says he believes the witness of the Spirit through the Church throughout the ages. He's not saying that he believes anything in addition to the Word; he's saying that he believes the Word as it has been handed down to us through the Spirit's work through the Church.

We can all say that we believe in the Bible - but really (with the wide variety of views in the camps that "Just believe the bible") a further summary of the most central doctrines are needed.

"We just have the Bible" is largely meaningless. A further summary of doctrine is needed,


Thus, having a confession is like having an authoritative summary of doctrine to better fix the doctrine of the church.

Also,it is a good tool to teach the new believers,

Also, it is a good standard to avoid "drift" in a church as pastors come and go and people change.

It also roots a church into a mindset that shows us that we are the church of all ages and needs not necessarily re-invent itself every 10 years (it gives us a historical anchor). The church was not born yesterday.

Good questions.

The Westminster Confession, for example, is taken as a summary of the doctrine of Scripture. It is both systematic and literal, the latter because each statement and proposition is footnoted by a "Scripture proof."

The Confession is not infallible like Scripture. There is a long, deliberative process for amending the Confession if it is found to be out of accord with Scripture in any statement or proposition. It is not intended to cover every doctrine of Scripture but the main ones that have been contended for historically in the Christian faith.

The Confession has been time-tested. Most every argument against its parts have been thoroughly debated in the past so you can have that level of confidence in researching and defending it.

We don't live by the Confession, we live by Scripture. However, in saying that, the Confession helps us define the doctrine of Scripture by way of summary. This is of great benefit because it takes the doctrine of Scripture, taken as a whole. While we are prone to take one Scripture out of context or not even read large parts of God's Word, the Confession intends to summarize the doctrine of the whole of Scripture- something it is difficult for an individual to do on their own.

Remember also that in Reformed Theology, the unity of the church must be grounded in doctrinal agreement.

This is intended to preserve the peace and purity of the church so that the constant and shifting opinions of men, the maturity of individuals at a given point in time, egos, and politics of men do not place unity in a constant state of flux and distract from the central purpose of the church, discipling God's people in the Gospel and every aspect of God's Word.

Also remember, that while church leaders are to vow they receive every statement and proposition of the Confession as faithfully summarizing the doctrine of Scripture, (unless specifically granted exception by a spiritual jury of peers), members are not. Members only vow to study the Church's doctrine in humility and peace and submit to her discipline. This also is designed to further the peace and purity of the Church, which a Confession can greatly assist.

Originally Posted by Scott1

Also remember, that while church leaders are to vow they receive every statement and proposition of the Confession as faithfully summarizing the doctrine of Scripture, (unless specifically granted exception by a spiritual jury of peers), members are not. Members only vow to study the Church's doctrine in humility and peace and submit to her discipline. This also is designed to further the peace and purity of the Church, which a Confession can greatly assist.

In our denomination, we answer "yes" to the followingquestions:

1. Do you acknowledge the doctrine contained in the Old and New Testaments and in the Articles of the Christian faith and taught here in this Christian Church to be the true and complete doctrine of salvation?
2. Have you resolved by the grace of God to adhere to this doctrine; to reject all heresies repugnant thereto and to lead a new, godly life?
3. Will you submit to church government, and in case you should be delinquent (which may God graciously forbid) to church discipline?

I take this to mean that members also vow that they receive every statement of the 3FU as faithfully summarizing Scripture. Is this to be advised against, or should I interpret an affirmative answer differently? I appreciate any comments.

Everyone has a confession of faith. That is, everyone has an idea of what they believe. Anyone who tells you differently is lying, and is seeking to sneak in his confession under the door without your realizing it.

The great advantage of a church confession is that everyone can see it. It's there, out in the open. Confessional churches, then, are being honest about what they believe. You can know where they stand.

The fact is that interpretation of the Bible does not take place in a vacuum. Anyone who is reading a translation is reading interpretation, to a lesser or larger degree. Rather than seeking to throw off the so-called "shackles" of the church's ministerium, we should critically but sympathetically engage the tradition. The tradition and the church's interpretation is not infallible. However, that does not mean that we throw it away as useless.

Some of the reasons for confessions have been excellently stated here already. Unity around the truth is the foremost reason. Just saying "the Bible" is simply not enough to combat heresy, since every heretic has said "the Bible" as well. Confessions are mutually agreed upon interpretations of the Bible that guard the truth against error, and are therefore a yardstick to which we hold office bearers accountable. They are the single greatest aid to the peace and purity of the church.

From the point of view of a grumpy impatient person, a confession keeps one from having to re-invent the wheel every time someone gets a crazy idea. You don't constantly have to debate things that have already been debated. There is a percentage of time one needs to be able to relax among one's fellow church goers, and a confession can help quite a bit with this.

Although in a non-confessional Bible church, I am confessional at heart. As part of the church leadership in earlier years, I was able to "sell" the need for a written Statement of Faith, because of some faulty teaching in youth Sundayschool. While this is not as extensive as one of the historic Reformed Confessions, it was an improvement over the mantra, "The Bible is our statement of faith," which is clearly a functionally inadequate position.

The only unity in most Bible churches is their insistence on the individual's independence, certainly not a unity of doctrine. Oh, they do all agree on the need for video shows and contemporary music bands in worship. . .

but that's another story.

It is true, every church and every one calling himself a Christian says "I believe the Bible", or "The Bible is my only statement of faith", or something along those lines. Similarly, every church claims to preach the Word of God, no matter how far they stray from that Word.

So by way of these brave words, everyone is not only confessional, but is also making a statement of subscription. This is true whether or not a church has a statement they call a confession of faith, whether or not they have a subscription policy. That's because they all claim to believe the Bible. The point is that this statement of believing the Bible means absolutely nothing if it means that they are only believing themselves, and whatever they can make the Bible say.

One of the key things about the Confession of Faith of the Reformed persuasion is that it keeps things in place so that everyone can read the Bible for themselves. If you're going to build a house you don't put down a foundation on shifting sand. You have to have a firm footing on solid ground. Neither do you put the roof on first, and then build the walls, and then the foundation walls. You have to have a solid grounding, and everything needs to be built in its proper place, so that it is a solid house. That's what the Confessions do for our Bible-believing faith and theology; it keeps first things first, the more solid undergirding the less clear, so that beginners in Bible reading can make better sense of it when they read the Bible for themselves.

For example (this is a mistake often made), we don't know which millennial view is right because the Bible is not clear on it. So it would be a mistake to make your mind up on that irst and then afterwards interpret the more clear doctrines on the basis of what you have made up your own mind about. You have to understand the less clear texts by the more clear verses. That's what the Confessions do: they put the undeniable truths up front, then work towards the necessary yet less clear doctrines. What they do not do, and never will do, and never will agree to, is saying something the Bible does not say, or putting things in the wrong order.

So the Confessions are also a teaching tool for the Church.

But they also have a personal use. Notice that the Confessions make it very, very clear that not even these Confessions are the basis of authority for the Church on their own. If you see the Confessions instead of the Bible when you read them, then you are not understanding the Confessions. They may yet be proven wrong on some point, but that's exactly why it is important that we recognize it when we find it out. They represent the Bible's teachings and authority, they point to it, and they lead us to it. They are intended to lead to nothing else but to the Bible's authority for life and faith. They are a help toward the Bible.

When you're reading the Bible and you think you are getting what it is saying, then you can refer to the Confessions to see what the Church has been understanding through the centuries. The truth is not novel. It's been the same truth all these years. Nothing has been added. A lot has been clarified, but nothing has been added. That's also a role for the Confessions, to guard and to witness to that long-standing original confession.

Originally Posted by NateLanning

Originally Posted by Scott1

Also remember, that while church leaders are to vow they receive every statement and proposition of the Confession as faithfully summarizing the doctrine of Scripture, (unless specifically granted exception by a spiritual jury of peers), members are not. Members only vow to study the Church's doctrine in humility and peace and submit to her discipline. This also is designed to further the peace and purity of the Church, which a Confession can greatly assist.

In our denomination, we answer "yes" to the followingquestions:

1. Do you acknowledge the doctrine contained in the Old and New Testaments and in the Articles of the Christian faith and taught here in this Christian Church to be the true and complete doctrine of salvation?
2. Have you resolved by the grace of God to adhere to this doctrine; to reject all heresies repugnant thereto and to lead a new, godly life?
3. Will you submit to church government, and in case you should be delinquent (which may God graciously forbid) to church discipline?

I take this to mean that members also vow that they receive every statement of the 3FU as faithfully summarizing Scripture. Is this to be advised against, or should I interpret an affirmative answer differently? I appreciate any comments.

I'm not familiar with the requirements for membership you cite. However, as your profile also indicates OPC, here are their four vows:

Do you believe the Bible, consisting of the Old and New Testaments, to be the Word of God, and its doctrine of salvation to be the perfect and only true doctrine of salvation?

Do you confess that because of your sinfulness you abhor and humble yourself before God, and that you trust for salvation not in yourself but in Jesus Christ alone?

Do you acknowledge Jesus Christ as your sovereign Lord and do you promise, in reliance on the grace of God, to serve him with all that is in you, to forsake the world, to mortify your old nature, and to lead a godly life?

Do you agree to submit in the Lord to the government of this church and, in case you should be found delinquent in doctrine or life, to heed its discipline?

While I cannot assume to speak for the denomination, these vows appear to not require receiving in belief the Confession of the OPC (e.g. Westminster Standards).

Practically, since the church is always receiving brand new Christians, how could we practically expect brand new Believers to understand, far less vow their belief in some of the deep and profound doctrine contained in for example, the London Baptist Confession?

Joel,

You look like quite a guitar player! Do you have any favorite bands? My son plays both the acoustic and electric. We like some of Phil Keaggy's music.

I've posted a four part study entitled, "On the Validity & Value of Confessions of Faith" elsewhere (Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV), which may be of some help. And to balance out my emphasis on the need and importance of confession, I also posted two articles on "The Danger of Reformed Traditionalism." Part I addresses the danger itself, Part II suggests specific ways in we can avoid the danger by updating our confessions in order to reflect the Spirit's ongoing illumination of the church and address issues today that were not addressed in the 17th century confessions. Of course, as a Baptist I'm focusing on the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith (the granddaughter of the WCF), but I think what I say has relevance for all confessional churches.