THE REFORMED CONFESSIONS

Robert Drake

1988

ZWINGLI'S 67 ARTICLES (1523)

Huldreich Zwingli prepared the Articles for public debate before the City Council of Zurich concerning the errors of Rome. About 600 gathered to listen.

The Articles contain many good statements:

"The sum of the gospel is that our Lord Jesus Christ, the true Son of God, has made known to us the will of his heavenly Father, and by his innocence has redeemed us from death and reconciled us unto God" (2). "Therefore, Christ is the only way to salvation for all who ever lived, do live or ever will live" (3). " . . . our salvation is based on faith in the Gospel and our damnation of unbelief; for all truth is clear in him" (15). "In the Gospel we learn that human doctrines and traditions are of no avail to salvation" (16). "That Christ, who offered himself up once for all, is in eternity a perpetual sacrifice in payment of the sins of all believers, from which it follows that the Mass is not a sacrifice but a recollection of the sacrifice" (18). " . . . we need no mediator beyond this life but Christ" (20). "Everything which God permits or does not forbid is lawful" (28). "Confession which is made to a priest or to a neighbor is not for the remission of sins, but for counseling" (52). "The true Holy Scriptures know nothing of purgatory" (57).

Since so much of the content is directed against the teachings of Rome, the document is too much a product of its times to be of lasting value. Besides, there are troubling statements such as Article 65: "no violence is to be done to their bodies unless their conduct is so unseemly that it cannot be tolerated."

THE TEN THESES OF BERN (1528)

In Switzerland, 350 representatives gathered for debate. Among them, Zwingli of Zurich and of . The Ten Theses would be used when Bern extended its missionary work into other places under people like William Farel, but its influence also extended into France, Holland, Scotland, and England.

It was too historically specific and too brief, but it did give us the Reformed principle of worship: "The Church of Christ makes no laws or commandments without God's Word. Hence all human traditions, which are called ecclesiastical commandments, are binding upon us only in so far as they are based on and commanded by God's Word" (2).

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THE TETRAPOLITAN CONFESSION (1530)

Holy Roman Emperor Charles V called for a Diet in Augsburg in an attempt to reconcile the churches. The Lutheran position drafted for the occasion became known as the . The delegates from Strasbourg had been instructed not to avoid unity by being too strict. However, the Roman Catholic theologian John Eck had submitted 404 articles in which Strasbourg was criticized.

Martin Bucer arrived and hastily formulated a mediating position between the Lutherans and Zwingli on the Lord's Supper. It ended up being unclear: "he deigns to give his true body and true blood to be truly eaten and drunk for the food and drink of souls." "Falsely our adversaries proclaim . . . that nothing save mere bread and mere wine is administered in our Suppers . . ." We "receive these sacraments for the quickening nourishment of their souls and the grateful remembrance of so great a benefit" (17).

For a confession we need something which is not historically specific, not written in haste, and not just a compromise which avoids saying what people really believe.

THE FIRST CONFESSION OF BASEL (1534)

While there is still no positive statement about what the Supper is, Oecolampadius was clearer on distinguishing the Supper from Luther. Christ "is present in his Holy Supper for all who truly believe . . . However, we do not enclose in the bread and the wine of the Lord the natural, true and essential body of Christ . . . who has ascended into heaven" (6). If his body is in heaven, it cannot be in the Supper.

While it does not go far enough with the Supper, it goes too far in its rejection of Anabaptists: We "reject as an abomination and as blasphemy the alien false doctrines which are among the damnable and wicked opinions uttered by these factious spirits, namely, that children (whom we baptize according to the custom of the apostles and the early Church and because baptism has replaced circumcision) should not be baptized" (12).

THE FIRST HELVETIC CONFESSION OF FAITH (1536) [also known as the Second Confession of Basel]

Pope Paul III planned to convene a council in 1537. This would become the Council of Trent which defined Roman Catholicism over against . In anticipation of it, Martin Bucer and wanted to unify the Lutherans and Swiss. Bullinger, the successor to Zwingli in Zurich was a principal author, with Bucer influencing the Lord's Supper section.

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Luther liked it at first, but then changed his mind. Obviously, the Reformed were not trying to be separatists.

Scripture: 2. Scripture is its own interpreter, that is, not the church which makes analogies, nor subjective personal experiences.

Sin: 7. "This man, whom God made righteous and good, fell into sin through his own guilt, and dragged the whole human race into his fall with him and subjected it to such misery." 8. "This original or inherited sin" . . . "is so strong in us that reason cannot follow what it knows nor can the mind kindle a divine spark and fan it." [The statements are more like preaching than theological precision.]

Freedom: 9. "We ascribe freedom of choice to man because we find in ourselves that we do good and evil knowingly and deliberately . . . Our salvation is from God, but from ourselves there is nothing but sin and damnation."

The Church: 10. The distinction between a visible and invisible church is unclear. "And although this Church and congregation of Christ is open and known to God's eyes alone, yet it is not only known but also gathered and built up by visible signs, rites, and ordinances . . ."

The sacraments: 20. "As the signs are bodily received, so these substantial, invisible and spiritual things are received by faith."

Baptism: 21. "We baptize our children in this holy bath because it would be unjust if we were to rob of the fellowship of God's people those who have been born of us for a people of God, for which they had been intended by the divine Word and of whom it may be assumed that they have been elected by God" [A text is Matthew 21:18f].

The Supper: 22. "not food for the belly but the food and nourishment of a spiritual and eternal life . . . " With this spiritual food we are refreshed.

Assemblies: 23. "that the mysteries of Scripture be daily expounded and explained by qualified ministers . . . " Chalices, priestly gowns for the mass, choir robes, flags, candles, altars "to the extent they serve to hinder and pervert true religion and proper worship of God, and especially the idols and pictures which are used for worship and are a scandal . . . – these we want to have banished far from our holy congregation."

Christian Liberty: 24. (the adiaphoria): "Things which are neither commanded or forbidden, but are adiaphoria [indifferent] and voluntary" . . . may be freely used by devout, believing Christians at all times and in all places, provided he does so judiciously and with love."

Government: 26. "a government will above all make every effort that the pure Word of God be faithfully proclaimed to the congregation, . . . that the ministers of the Church and the poor in the Church be well taken care of."

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Conspicuously absent so far is any discussion of predestination and election.

THE LAUSANNE ARTICLES OF 1536

The Articles were set forth by Farel. 337 priests were invited to come and refute them. 174 showed up and only 4 took part. Calvin was present. There is no reference to predestination nor to the nature of the Supper. Instead, I. justification is by faith, II. Christ is the only true priest, IV. there are only two sacraments, V. the ministry of the Church is preaching the Word and administering sacraments, VI. confession of sin is to God alone.

THE GENEVA CONFESSION OF 1536

Calvin was thought to be the author, but most likely was not. Again, there is no doctrine of predestination. However, the initiative of God in salvation is presented. 4. Man "has to be illumined by God, so that he come to the right knowledge of his salvation . . ." 8. "we acknowledge that by his spirit we are regenerated into a new spiritual nature."

THE CONFESSION OF FAITH OF THE ENGLISH CONGREGATION AT GENEVA (1556)

Mary I came to the English throne in 1553 and about a thousand exiles fled for Europe. Less than 200 were in Geneva. These are the people who produced the Geneva . The confession wasn't written by John Knox, but Calvin approved it.

We can see developments.

First, there is a move to make a more complete confession by including the content of earlier classical . The form is even like an expanded Apostles' in four sections: the triune God, salvation by Christ, the Holy Spirit, and the Church.

Second, predestination is addressed, but not in the first section on God. It is implied in the section on the Spirit "who regenerates and sanctifies us" . . . "God's elect." Then it is elaborated on in the Fourth section on the Church. "This Church is not visible to man's eye but only known to God who of the lost sons of Adam has ordained some as vessels of wrath to damnation, and has chosen others as vessels of his mercy to be saved." (Notice that this clarification on predestination is made by a suffering church. This will become typical of the Reformed. Instead of retreating from their beliefs to avoid suffering, they will become bolder.)

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Third, the marks of the church are defined in IV as the Word, the Sacraments, and Discipline.

THE FRENCH CONFESSION OF FAITH (1559)

French Protestants wrote to the Reformers in Switzerland asking them to intercede with the King of France to halt persecutions. They sent Calvin a statement of their faith and wanted him to write one. He was opposed to one man doing it, so he, Beza, and Viret drafted one in 1557. The Confession of 1559 was based on their "Genevan draft."

It expands upon God's sovereignty.

Article VIII: "We believe that he not only created all things, but that he governs and directs them, disposing and ordaining by his sovereign will all that happens in the world; not that he is the author of evil, or that the guilt of it can be imputed to him, as his will is the sovereign and infallible rule of all right and justice ; but he hath wonderful means of so making use of devils and sinners that he can turn to good the evil which they do, and of which they are guilty. And thus, confessing that the providence of God orders all things, we humbly bow before the secrets which are hidden to us, without questioning what is above our understanding; but rather making use of what is revealed to us in Holy Scripture for our peace and safety . . ."

Article XII: " . . . God, according to his eternal and immutable counsel, calleth those whom he hath chosen by his goodness and mercy alone in our Lord Jesus Christ, without consideration of their works, to display in them his justice. For the ones are no better than the others, until God discerns them according to his immutable purpose which has determined in Jesus Christ before the creation of the world."

Article XXI: "We believe we are enlightened in faith by the secret power of the Holy Spirit . . . so the elect have no cause to glory . . ."

Article XXII: "The good works we do proceed from his Spirit."

For the first time, natural theology was added.

Article II: " . . . God reveals himself to men; firstly, in his works, in their creation, as well as in their preservation and control. Secondly, and more clearly, in his Word, which was in the beginning revealed through oracles, and which was afterward committed to writing in the books which we call the Holy Scriptures."

Another first is the canon issue.

Article III: "We know these books to be canonical, and the sure rule of our faith, not so much by the common accord and consent of the Church, as by the testimony and inward

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illumination of the Holy Spirit, which enables us to distinguish them from other ecclesiastical books upon which, however useful, we can not found any articles of faith."

Article V: " . . . no authority . . . should be opposed to these Holy Scriptures, but on the contrary, all things should be examined, regulated, and reformed according to them."

The Law Article XXIII: " . . . we seek aid from the law and the prophets for the ruling of our lives, as well as for our confirmation in the promises of the gospel."

Church Government Article XXIX: "That there should be pastors, overseers, and deacons, so that true doctrine may have its course, that errors may be corrected and suppressed, and the poor and all who are in affliction may be helped in their necessities . . ."

The pattern of creation, fall, and redemption is emerging as the presentation is derived more from Scripture and not just isolated points of disagreement with Roman Catholicism and . The progression of thought in the Confession is: (1) God; (2-5) Scripture; (6) trinity; (7) creation; (8) providence; (9-11) the fall into sin; (12) election; (13-22) redemption in Christ; (23) the Law; (24-33) the church; (34-38) the sacraments; (39-40) civil government.

Also, a system of logically connected ideas is unfolding in which man is dependent upon God's Spirit, but the ideas are still centering mainly on the nature of the church. The basic ingredients of the system are:

1. God reveals himself in his creation and in the Scripture which is its own interpreter, but because man is fallen in Adam he needs a work of God's Spirit to understand both revelations. 2. The Spirit gives understanding and calls those whom God chose to be redeemed in Christ. 3. The chosen who have been called by the Spirit into redemption, constitute the invisible church. 4. The invisible church receives a Spiritual application of the sacraments.

Still needed is a thorough integration with the visible church: its Marks, the Regulative Principle, Christian liberty, and the Law.

THE SCOTTISH CONFESSION OF FAITH (1560)

Protestant nobles in Scotland entered into a covenant in 1557 to defend to the death "the whole congregation of Christ and every member thereof." When a treaty was worked out with

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England, the six "Johns," one of whom was John Knox, were commissioned to draft a confession of faith, which they did in four days.

The use of creation, fall, and redemption in the French Confession now comes to dominate the Scots' Confession. After an opening chapter on the triune God, the next three chapters are creation, original sin, and the promise of redemption. What follows maintains a historical emphasis and resembles biblical theology (redemptive history) more than systematic theology.

Before the fall, man had "wisdom, lordship, justice, free will" and "no imperfection" (II). Original sin which is passed on to everyone has "utterly defaced" the image of God in man (III). The promise of redemption made in the Garden was "repeated and made clearer from time to time so that "all (we mean the believing fathers under the law) did see the joyful day of Christ Jesus, and did rejoice (IV). Biblical history is then surveyed under the heading of the Kirk or church to show the unity of the testaments around the promise. While the word "covenants" is not used, it is implied in the divisions of history from Adam to Noah, from Noah to Abraham, from Abraham to David, from David to Christ (V).

The incarnation of Christ is described in both creedal and biblical language: seed of David, Immanuel, true God and true man, two natures in one person (VI, VII). Election is then dealt with briefly to explain why Christ had to become man: "That same eternal God and Father, who by grace alone chose us in his Son Christ Jesus before the foundation of the world was laid, appointed him to be . . . the mediator between God and man, giving power to as many as believe in him to be sons of God . . . " (VIII) by his atoning death (IX), resurrection (X), and ascension (XI). Our faith comes from the Holy Spirit (XII) and so do our works. "The cause of good works, we confess, is not our free will, but the Spirit of the Lord Jesus . . ." (XIII). In the law, God has set forth the things which please him (XIV) and while we cannot keep it perfectly, "God, the Father beholds us in the body of his Son Christ Jesus:" and "accepts our imperfect obedience as if it were perfect" (XV).

The "Kirk is invisible, known only to God, who alone knows whom he has chosen" (XVI), yet the Marks of the church are set forth (XVIII). Almost as an afterthought, the last chapter returns to the subject of the visible church. Although the church has marks, "we do not mean that every individual person in that company is a chosen member of Christ Jesus" (XXV). We are still looking for a thorough integration of the invisible and visible.

The two sacraments of the church are baptism and the Supper, replacing Old Testament circumcision and the passover. They were given "to make a visible distinction between his people and those who were without the Covenant." Baptism only gets a few passing references. Most of the attention is on the Lord's Supper, and in Chapter XXI, the Supper receives both the clearest formulation so far and the most confusing. On the one hand, " . . . this union and conjunction which we have with the body and blood of Christ Jesus in the right use of the

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sacraments is wrought by means of the Holy Ghost." On the other hand, "as the eternal Godhead has given to the flesh of Christ Jesus, which by nature was corruptible and mortal, life and immortality, so the eating and drinking of the flesh and blood of Christ does the like for us."

THE (1561)

It was authored by Guy de Bray in an attempt to convince authorities to halt persecution in the Netherlands. More people were martyred there than anywhere else. Guy de Bray himself was executed in 1568. As opposition increases, the churches increase the specifics of what they believe rather than compromising what they believe.

The outline is much like the French Confession and is systematic theology. It has beginning articles on revelation and the being of God. [Perhaps too ambitiously, it says that while we don't understand the trinity now "we expect hereafter to enjoy the perfect knowledge and benefit thereof in heaven" (9).] This is followed by articles on Creation, Providence, and the Fall of Man, and Original Sin.

Election is then presented after discussing the fall. "We believe that all the posterity of Adam, being thus fallen into perdition and ruin by the sin of our first parents, God then did manifest himself as he is; that is to say, MERCIFUL and JUST: MERCIFUL since he delivers and preserves from this perdition all whom he, in his eternal and unchangeable council, of mere goodness hath elected in Christ Jesus our Lord, without any respect to their works; JUST, in leaving others in the fall and perdition wherein they have involved themselves" (16). This is followed by the Recovery of Fallen Man, quoting from Genesis 3:15 (17).

The Confession provides several helpful clarifications. The first is the implied link between election and atonement. This will eventually be known as "the limited atonement." The doctrine is derived by combining Articles 16 and 20. In Article 16 we read that some receive mercy and others receive justice, but Article 20 says the cross of Christ reveals both mercy and justice for the elect. The point, of course, is that no one escapes God's justice, for he either leaves you on your own to face his justice, or he has Christ face it for you – which is mercy. The implication is that the two demonstrations of justice, in the cross and at the Judgment Day are mutually exclusive for two different groups. If God had satisfied his justice in the cross for everyone, how could he also threaten a coming day of wrath as his justice? He would be punishing sins again after he had already punished them in Christ. The cross cannot be understood as just a potential satisfaction of justice, depending upon whether or not you accept it. So, either sins were not really punished in the cross, or they were really punished for the elect alone.

We know a link between election and atonement is implied because the Synod of Dort in 1618 will say it is answering those who oppose the Belgic Confession.

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The second clarification is the role of faith. "For it must needs follow, either that all things which are requisite to our salvation are not in Jesus Christ, or if all things are in him, that then those who possess Jesus Christ through faith have complete salvation in him . . . We do not mean that faith itself justifies us, for it is only an instrument with which we embrace Christ . . ." (22). "We believe that this true faith, being wrought in man by the hearing of the Word of God and the operation of the Holy Ghost, doth regenerate and make him a new man, causing him to live a new life, and freeing him from the bondage of sin" (24).

The third is baptism. The reason it replaces circumcision is because Christ has ended the shedding of blood. It is "that which is visible, but our Lord giveth that which is signified by the Sacrament, namely, the gifts and invisible grace . . ." It is the "sign of the covenant" (34).

The fourth is the Supper. It is to testify that "as certainly as we receive and hold this Sacrament in our hands, and eat and drink the same with our mouths . . . so we also do as certainly receive by faith . . . the true body and blood of Christ . . . But the manner of our partaking of the same is not by the mouth, but by the Spirit through faith" (35).

The Marks of the church are presented, but there is still ambiguity about the relationship between the visible and invisible church (29).

THE THIRTY-NINE ARTICLES OF FAITH (1562)

With the Act of Supremacy in 1534, Henry VIII had declared himself the Head of the Church of England. In 1536, the standards of the faith were to be the Bible, the Apostolic, Nicene, and Athanasian Creeds, the first four councils of the ancient church. The church would hold to justification by faith, but also the corporeal presence of Christ in the Supper and respect for images in worship.

In 1552, Forty-Two Articles of Religion were drafted under Edward VI chiefly by Archbishop Cranmer. Edward was succeeded the next year by the Roman Catholic Mary. After Elizabeth I came to the throne, a Convocation was held which revised the Articles into Thirty- Nine. It was modeled after the Lutheran Augsburg Confession, now had Calvin's influence on the Lord's Supper, and an almost Roman Catholic respect for church tradition. Apparently, the English had not yet found their confessional voice.

THE (1563)

Elector Palatine, Frederick III commissioned Zacharius Ursinus, age 28, and Caspar Olevianus, age 26, to write a catechism for instructing the youth. It has the passion of youth. You hear it in the first question and answer. It is the Reformed faith seen through the eyes of the

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young, but it impressed the elderly. After it was approved by the Synod of Dort in 1619, it became one of the most widely used statements of the Reformed faith. [So much for God's frozen chosen!]

The overall organizing theme is the law of God, precisely because of the passionate emphasis. The Catechism launches right into sin and how we learn about sin from the law of God (like youth pastors establishing relevance). Then it backs up to ask "Did God create man evil and perverse like this?" (6). No, creation, fall, and redemptive mercy. It will return to the law of God later, but this time under the heading of gratitude for redemption.

The beginning 25 questions are a survey of sin and salvation. In that survey there is a wonderfully passionate summary of faith. "It is not only a certain knowledge by which I accept as true all that God has revealed to us in his Word, but also a wholehearted trust which the Holy Spirit creates in me through the gospel, that, not only to others, but to me also God has given the forgiveness of sins . . . (21). Questions 26 to 58 are then an exposition of the Apostles' Creed as the content of faith. It turns history into theology, but it is theology in the context of that passionate, personal faith. Then follows the Sacraments, the law, and the Lord's Prayer.

Regarding the Supper: " . . . as the water in baptism is not changed into the blood of Christ, nor becomes the washing away of sins by itself, but is only a divine sign and confirmation of it, so also in the Lord's Supper the sacred bread does not become the body of Christ itself . . . " (78 " . . . we come to share in his true body and blood through the Holy Spirit . . ." (79).

There is no mention of predestination and election, but instead everything is put in the personal context of "my" faith.

THE SECOND HELVETIC CONFESSION (1566)

It was written by Heinrich Bullinger, the successor to Zwingli in Zurich. Bullinger spanned three generations of the Reformation. He was converted in 1522 in Luther's heyday, was a friend of John Calvin, and outlived him to be respected by Calvin's successor Beza as well as Ursinus. The Confession is very long, 77 pages, even though the subtitle is "A simple confession and exposition of the orthodox faith." (Note: not the Reformed faith.)

One reason for the length is that he picks up every theme mentioned in the earlier confessions: natural theology, the authority of Scripture, the canon, Adam's sin, election, faith as an instrument, the usefulness of the law and its role as gratitude, Christian liberty, the marks of the church, the regulative principle, the government of the church, baptism as replacing circumcision, the Supper as spiritual presence of Christ, and the use of creation, fall, and

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redemption. To these he adds what will be called common grace, our progress in the arts with God's blessing, (IX), and the priesthood of all believers (XVIII).

Another reason for the length is that it is somewhat redundant, moving back and forth among topics. It is also very personal in tone and sounds like a grandfatherly pastor. He even ends with a practical section on visiting the sick and raising children.

Chapter IX "Of free will, and thus of human powers," illustrates how he approaches a subject. "In this matter, which has always produced many conflicts in the Church, we teach that a threefold condition or state of man is to be considered. What man was before the fall . . . what man was after the fall . . ." and what man is in regeneration. "In regeneration the understanding is illumined by the Holy Spirit in order that it may understand both the mysteries and the will of God . . ." the regenerate in choosing and doing good, work not only passively but actively. For they are moved by God that they may do themselves what they do." "Moreover, no one denies that in external things both the regenerate and unregenerate enjoy free will . . . he is able to speak or to keep silent, to go out of his house or to remain at home, etc." He just doesn't have the free will necessary to choose salvation.

Chapter X on "Election" says, "although God knows who are his . . . we must hope well of all, and not rashly judge any man to be a reprobate.:" You are not to say you are not elected, so it is hopeless to believe, or that you are not elected so it is indifferent whether you believe. "If you believe in Christ, you are elected."

In chapter XI, Bullinger noted that the body of Christ is in heaven and did not take on the characteristics of omnipresence. Therefore he can conclude in XXI that "the body and blood of the Lord, while remaining in their own essence and property, are spiritually communicated to us, certainly not in a corporeal but in a spiritual way, by the Holy Spirit . . ." Zwingli's position is now gone.

THE (1619)

The Canons were produced by the Synod of Dort with 27 delegates from other countries present. The document dwells on the doctrine of God's election because this had been disputed by Arminius, a professor of theology at the University of Leyden. He taught a conditional election by God based on his foreknowledge of who would believe, universal atonement, partial depravity, resistible grace, and the possibility of losing one's salvation. The response of Dort has been summarized as TULIP: total depravity, unconditional election, limited atonement, irresistible grace, and the perseverance of the saints.

While not technically a confession of faith, the Canons were meant to be an elaboration on the confession of the Belgic Churches. The conclusion of the Canons states that they were

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drafted because "the orthodox doctrine respecting the five articles . . . have been controverted in the Belgic Churches." The Synod of Dort judged their articles "to be drawn from the Word of God, and to be agreeable to the confession of the Reformed Churches."

While TULIP accurately summarizes the position of Dort, it fails to capture the genius of the arguments. Each of the five sections is itself an argument for God's election. In each argument, the nature of the fall is crucial, dictating what the nature of redemption must be.

Chapter I: From sin to election. All have sinned in Adam. God would not be unjust to leave everyone in sin and condemnation (1), but he offers faith in Christ according to John 3:16 (2). To bring faith, God sends preachers (3). The wrath of God abides on those who do not believe (4). The cause of unbelief is not in God but in man (5). Since the same cause of unbelief is found in all men, the cause of belief is found in God's eternal decree (6). Not until Article 7, do we get the famous outline we summarize as TULIP: from the fall some are chosen, saved by Christ, effectually called to him, and preserved.

Assurance of election is faith, filial fear, godly sorrow for sin and hunger for righteousness (12). Those who make use of the means God has given ought not "to rank themselves among the reprobate" 16. Godly parents "ought not to doubt the election and salvation of their children (17).

Chapter II: From the satisfaction of justice to election. "We cannot escape [wrath] unless satisfaction be made to the justice of God (1). Christ made satisfaction on our behalf (2). His satisfaction was "abundantly sufficient to expiate the sins of the whole world" (3). "The promise of the gospel is that whosoever believes in Christ crucified shall not perish, but have eternal life" (5). The fact that many who are called to believe do not believe "is not owing to any defect or insufficiency in the sacrifice offered by Christ upon the cross, but is wholly to be imputed to themselves" (6). But as many as believe will be saved (7). Since those who believe and have the same problem as those who do not believe, they can believe and be saved because God had willed the sacrifice of Christ be sufficient for his elect (8).

Chapters III and IV: From knowledge to election. Man was created as the image of God with true spiritual knowledge but lost it in the fall (1). However, he still has some knowledge of God and the difference between good and evil, but it is not enough to bring him to a saving knowledge of God (4). The same is true about the law of God which reveals the greatness of sin but cannot "impart strength to extricate him from this misery . . . being weak through the flesh" (5). So, God gave knowledge "by the operation [i. e., by inspiration and anointing?] of the Holy Spirit through the word or ministry of reconciliation; which is the glad tidings concerning the Messiah . . . to save such as believe" (6). The fact that men do not believe is not God's fault but theirs (9). Since all others share in the same fault, the

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fact that some do believe cannot be ascribed to their free will but must be ascribed to God who has chosen them from eternity (10).

Since man did not cease to be a creature endowed with understanding and will . . . "this grace of regeneration does not treat men as senseless stocks and blocks, nor take away their wills and its properties, or do violence thereto, but it spiritually quickens, heals, corrects, and at the same time sweetly and powerfully bends it . . . in which the true and spiritual restoration and freedom of our will consist" (16). To do this, God uses the means of the Word, the sacraments, and discipline (17).

Chapter V: From promise to election. Believers continue to sin which demonstrates their weakness (1). If they are going to persevere, it cannot be by their own strength (3). They persevere because God has promised they will be able to endure, and his counsel of promise cannot be changed (8).

THE WESTMINSTER CONFESSION OF FAITH (1646)

After the Convocation of 1562, the English church was split into two camps. On one side were those who wanted more reform to distinguish the church from Roman Catholic trappings, and who believed the Bible contained a view of church government. These were the Puritans. On the other side were those who felt Rome just needed a few adjustments and that the form of church government was left to the civil authorities to decide. These were the Prelates. When the wearing of vestures was enforced in 1566, the Puritans considered separating from the Established Church and began worshipping in homes. In 1572, they dared to form a Presbytery, and about 1580, as persecution increased, others, following the lead of Robert Brown reacted in the direction of congregationalism. Parliament tried several times to intervene on their behalf, but Elizabeth resisted. When Elizabeth died in 1603, James IV of Scotland became James I of England. The Puritans presented him with the Millenary Petition. In response, he held The Hampton Court Conference which demanded conformity. By 1610, citizens were seeing a danger to liberty, and again Parliament tried to intervene but was dissolved.

In 1625, Charles I, who was married to a Roman Catholic, became king. He tried to impose the high church rituals upon Scotland in 1640. The attempt escalated his conflicts with Parliament. In 1642, the Scots notified the English Parliament of their desire to avoid civil war and to arrive at one confession of faith and form of church government. In response, the English Parliament actually abolished the present form of church government and called an assembly to deliberate on what the new form would be. Those chosen to attend were mostly Presbyterians, a handful of Congregationalists (The Five Dissenting Brethren), and two or three Erastians. Those holding to Episcopacy didn't attend.

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At first, the Assembly's assignment was to revise the 39 Articles of Faith, but the more pressing issue for Parliament was church government, in particular, whether church discipline required civil authority. Agreement was unlikely. At one extreme, the Congregationalists held that power of ordination was in the local church, rejected the idea of successive church courts, and saw no censure beyond admonition. Thomas Goodwin said, "discipline did not constitute a church, nor is any note of a church." At the other extreme, the Erastians used the model of Israel to claim all discipline was by civil authority.

On the one hand, it was good to have differing opinions on the church represented because every point had to be proved from Scripture. (In fact, Alexander Henderson, a Scottish member, sent letters to the churches in France, Holland, Switzerland, and Germany suggesting the idea of a great Protestant union based on Westminster, but it never materialized.) On the other hand, the differing opinions explain why the final draft of the Confession lacks a statement on the Marks of the Church. Instead, a chapter on Church Censures simply follows the chapters on The Sacraments, without connecting both to the Word. When the Catechisms (LC 154 and SC 88) link the Word and sacraments, they add prayer and call them "the means of grace."

Side stepping a clear statement on the Marks of the Church may be the Confession's central flaw, but in Chapter XXX-1 Of Church Censures, the writers courageously defied the very authority which had called the Assembly in the first place; "The Lord Jesus, as King and head of his Church, hath therein appointed a government, in the hand of Church officers, distinct from the civil magistrate." For this single statement, the English Parliament never did ratify the Westminster Confession.

To write the Confession, a list of basic biblical truths was drawn up (cf. the 2nd Helvetic), each assigned a chapter heading, and then arranged in a systematic form. At the same time, the theme of creation, fall, and redemption appears not just as part of the outline but as the recurring pattern for addressing topics within the outline (cf. the chapters on Covenant, Freedom, and Law). It gives both the document as a whole and individual subjects a biblical theological foundation.

For the first time, teachings about the being and decree of God are presented before creation, fall, and redemption. This gives God the most prominent place in the Confession. (The shift can't really be accomplished, because the decree assumes fall and redemption.)

For the first time, both the relationship between God's will and man's will is adequately addressed. The profound point in both Chapters V (Providence) and VI (Fall) is that God is able to order (organize) the freedom of his creatures to accomplish his own will. "He ordereth them to fall out, according to the nature of second causes . . ." (V-2). God was pleased "to permit [the fall], having purposed to order it to his own glory." (VI-1).

For the first time, biblical history is structured around two basic covenants: a covenant of works before the fall (VII-2) and a covenant of grace immediately after the fall (3). The value of

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this scheme is that it identifies God's pre-fall dealing with Adam as covenantal but also distinguishes it from all other post-fall covenant dealings which were redemptive.

For the first time, an adequate reason is given for why the law of God is in harmony with grace. Man, by virtue of his creation as the image of God, had the moral law written on his heart before the fall. Sinai restated that law, so it is still useful for the redeemed as a statement of how image of God is to live.

For the first time the invisible and visible church are harmonized. The invisible is the elect (XXV-1). The visible consists of those who profess the true religion and their children (2). To the visible church is given the ministry for gathering and perfecting the saints (3). This explains how the sacraments function. The visible church ministers visible signs to put a visible difference between the church and the world (XXVII-1). There is a difference between a sign and what is signified (2). The Spirit applies what is signified, the invisible realities, to the invisible church (3). Marks of the church are only implied (4).

For the first time, the assurance of salvation is radically stated as "infallible" (XVIII-2). Some puritans, especially in America were saying it was arrogant to have confidence one was elect.

WHAT IS REFORMED?

Our survey of the confessions has collected the following positions which have come to describe the Reformed faith:

Christ is the only way of salvation (Zwingli, 1523). We do in worship only what God commands (Bern, 1528). Baptism has replaced circumcision (Basel, 1534). Scripture is its own interpreter; all are fallen in Adam; we have Christian liberty of conscience in things not addressed in Scripture (1st Helvetic, 1536). By natural theology men know God exists; His church is governed by elders (French, 1559). Creation, fall, and redemption is the structure of Scripture; Christ is present in the Lord's Supper by the Holy Spirit (Scots, 1560). Christ died for the elect; faith is an instrument for, not the ground of, justification (Belgic, 1561). The Law is kept out of gratitude (Heidelberg, 1563). There is a priesthood of all believers; God upholds human culture by common grace (2nd Helvetic, 1566). Election makes the acceptance of the gospel possible (Dort, 1618). God orders the freedom of his creatures to accomplish his purpose; creation, fall and redemption are covenantally understood as a covenant of works and a covenant of grace; God ministers grace to the invisible church through the visible church; the Law describes the image of God (Westminster, 1643f).

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