HOME
THE
GOSPEL
STATEMENT
OF FAITH
ARTICLES
NEWZ
GOSPEL VERSES
GOSPEL
SHOCKERS
TWO GOSPELS?
GOSPEL PROOFS
FAITH
ALONE
GOOD
WORKS
BIBLE
AIDS
ABOUT
THE MASS
HOLY
COMMUNION
COUNCIL
OF TRENT
DOGMA
END TIMES
EWTN
LINKS
|
|
Belgic Confession of Faith
Introduction
Having been composed in 1561, it is often called the Belgic Confession
because it was written in the southern Lowlands, now known as Belgium. Its
chief author was Guido de Bres, on of the several itinerant preachers
during those days of persecution, who died a martyr's death.
Under Philip II, of Spain, an ally of the Romish Church, the Reformed
believers in the Lowlands were sorely persecuted as revolutionaries. This
Confession was written primarily as a testimony to the Spanish king to
prove that the Reformed believers were not rebels, as was charged, but
law-abiding citizens who professed only those doctrines which were the
teachings of Holy Scripture. In 1562 a copy was sent to the Spanish king,
accompanied by a petition for relief from persecution, in which the
petitioners declared that they were ready to obey the government in all
lawful things, although they would "offer their backs to stripes, their
tongues to knives, their mouths to gags, and their whole bodies to fire,"
rather than deny the truth of God's Word.
The Confession and the petition had no effect on the Spanish
authorities. However, it served well as a means of instruction of Reformed
believers and thus became an expression of the faith of a people enduring
suffering for Christ's sake. This is also reflected in its language. For
while this confession follows the objective doctrinal order in its
articles, its profoundly personal element is evident from the fact that
every article begins with such words as, "We believe...," "We believe and
confess...," or, "We all believe with the heart and confess with the
mouth...."
The confession was adopted by several National Synods in the sixteenth
century, and, after careful revision of the text, was approved and adopted
by the Synod of Dordrecht, 1618-1619, and ever since that time included
among our "Three Forms of Unity."
Table of Contents
Article I There is Only One God
Article II By What Means God is Made Known unto Us
Article III The Written Word of God
Article IV Canonical Books of the Holy Scripture
Article V Whence the Holy Scriptures Derive Their Dignity
and Authority
Article VI The Difference between the Canonical and
Apocryphal Books
Article VII The Sufficiency of the Holy Scriptures to be
the Only Rule of Faith
Article VIII God is One in Essence, Yet Distinguished in
Three Persons
Article IX The Proof of the Foregoing Article of the
Trinity of Persons in One God
Article X Jesus Christ is True and Eternal God
Article XI The Holy Spirit is True and Eternal God
Article XII The Creation of All Things, Especially the
Angels
Article XIII The Providence of God and His Government of
All Things
Article XIV The Creation and Fall of Man, and His
Incapacity to Perform What is Truly Good
Article XV Original Sin
Article XVI Eternal Election
Article XVII The Recovery of Fallen Man
Article XVIII The Incarnation of Jesus Christ
Article XIX The Union and Distinction of the Two Natures
in the Person of Christ
Article XX God Has Manifested His Justice and Mercy in
Christ
Article XXI The Satisfaction of Christ, Our Only High
Priest, for Us
Article XXII Our Justification Through Faith in Jesus
Christ
Article XXIII Wherein Our Justification before God
Consists
Article XXIV Mans Sanctification and Good Works
Article XXV The Abolishing of the Ceremonial Law
Article XXVI Christs Intercession
Article XXVII The Catholic Christian Church
Article XXVIII Every One is Bound to Join Himself to the
True Church
Article XXIX The Marks of the True Church, and Wherein it
Differs from the False Church
Article XXX The Government of the Church and its Officers
Article XXXI The Ministers, Elders and Deacons
Article XXXII The Order and Discipline of the Church
Article XXXIII The Sacraments
Article XXXIV Holy Baptism
Article XXXV The Holy Supper of Our Lord Jesus Christ
Article XXXVI The Magistracy (Civil Government)
Article XXXVII The Last Judgment
Article I
There Is Only One God
We all believe with the heart and confess with the mouth that there is
one only simple and spiritual Being, which we call God; and that He is
eternal, incomprehensible, invisible, immutable, infinite, almighty,
perfectly wise, just, good, and the overflowing fountain of all good. [Return
to Contents]
Article II
By What Means God Is Made Known unto Us
We know Him by two means: First, by the creation, preservation, and
government of the universe; which is before our eyes as a most elegant
book, wherein all creatures, great and small, are as so many characters
leading us to see clearly the invisible things of God, even his
everlasting power and divinity, as the apostle Paul says (Rom. 1:20).
All which things are sufficient to convince men and leave them without
excuse. Second, He makes Himself more clearly and fully known to us by His
holy and divine Word, that is to say, as far as is necessary for us to
know in this life, to His glory and our salvation. [Return
to Contents]
Article III
The Written Word of God
We confess that this Word of God was not sent nor delivered by the will
of man, but that men spake from God, being moved by the Holy Spirit,
as the apostle Peter says; and that afterwards God, from a special care
which He has for us and our salvation, commanded His servants, the
prophets and apostles, to commit His revealed word to writing; and He
Himself wrote with His own finger the two tables of the law. Therefore we
call such writings holy and divine Scriptures. [Return
to Contents]
Article IV
Canonical Books of the Holy Scripture
We believe that the Holy Scriptures are contained in two books, namely,
the Old and the New Testament, which are canonical, against which nothing
can be alleged. These are thus named in the Church of God.
The books of the Old Testament are the five books of Moses, to wit:
Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy; the book of Joshua,
Judges, Ruth, the two books of Samuel, the two of the Kings, two books of
the Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther; Job, the Psalms, the three books
of Solomon, namely, the Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the Song of Songs; the
four great prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah (Lamentations), Ezekiel, and Daniel;
and the twelve lesser prophets, namely, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah,
Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi.
Those of the New Testament are the four evangelists, to wit: Matthew,
Mark, Luke, and John; the Acts of the Apostles; the thirteen epistles of
the apostle Paul, namely, one to the Romans, two to the Corinthians, one
to the Galatians, one to the Ephesians, one to the Philippians, one to the
Colossians, two to the Thessalonians, two to Timothy, one to Titus, one to
Philemon; Hebrews; the seven epistles of the other apostles, namely, one
of James, two of Peter, three of John, one of Jude; and the Revelation of
the apostle John. [Return to Contents]
Article V
Whence the Holy Scriptures Derive Their Dignity and Authority
We receive all these books, and these only, as holy and canonical, for
the regulation, foundation, and confirmation of our faith; believing
without any doubt all things contained in them, not so much because the
Church receives and approves them as such, but more especially because the
Holy Spirit witnesses in our hearts that they are from God, and also
because they carry the evidence thereof in themselves. For the very blind
are able to perceive that the things foretold in them are being fulfilled.
[Return to Contents]
Article VI
The Difference Between the Canonical and Apocryphal Books
We distinguish those sacred books from the apocryphal, viz: the third
and fourth books of Esdras, the books of Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Jesus
Sirach, Baruch, the Appendix to the book of Esther, the Song of the Three
Children in the Furnace, the History of Susannah, of Bel and the Dragon,
the Prayer of Manasseh, and the two books of the Maccabees. All of which
the Church may read and take instruction from, so far as they agree with
the canonical books; but they are far from having such power and efficacy
that we may from their testimony confirm any point of faith or of the
Christian religion; much less may they be used to detract from the
authority of the other, that is, the sacred books. [Return
to Contents]
Article VII
The Sufficiency of the Holy Scriptures to Be the Only Rule of Faith
We believe that those Holy Scriptures fully contain the will of God,
and that whatsoever man ought to believe unto salvation is sufficiently
taught therein. For since the whole manner of worship which God requires
of us is written in them at large, it is unlawful for any one, though an
apostle, to teach otherwise than we are now taught in the Holy Scriptures:
nay, though it were an angel from heaven, as the apostle Paul
says. For since it is forbidden to add unto or take away anything from
the Word of God, it does thereby evidently appear that the doctrine
thereof is most perfect and complete in all respects.
Neither may we consider any writings of men, however holy these men may
have been, of equal value with those divine Scriptures, nor ought we to
consider custom, or the great multitude, or antiquity, or succession of
times and persons, or councils, decrees or statutes, as of equal value
with the truth of God, since the truth is above all; for all men are
of themselves liars, and more vain than vanity itself. Therefore we
reject with all our hearts whatsoever does not agree with this infallible
rule, as the apostles have taught us, saying, Prove the spirits, whether
they are of God. Likewise: If any one cometh unto you, and bringeth
not this teaching, receive him not into your house. [Return
to Contents]
Article VIII
God Is One in Essence, Yet Distinguished in Three Persons
According to this truth and this Word of God, we believe in one only
God, who is the one single essence, in which are three persons, really,
truly, and eternally distinct according to their incommunica ble
properties; namely, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The
Father is the cause, origin, and beginning of all things visible and
invisible; the Son is the word, wisdom, and image of the Father; the Holy
Spirit is the eternal power and might, proceeding from the Father and the
Son. Nevertheless, God is not by this distinction divided into three,
since the Holy Scriptures teach us that the Father, and the Son, and the
Holy Spirit have each His personality, distinguished by Their properties;
but in such wise that these three persons are but one only God.
Hence, then, it is evident that the Father is not the Son, nor the Son
the Father, and likewise the Holy Spirit is neither the Father nor the
Son. Nevertheless, these persons thus distinguished are not divided, nor
intermixed; for the Father has not assumed the flesh, nor has the Holy
Spirit, but the Son only. The Father has never been without His Son, or
without His Holy Spirit. For They are all three co- eternal and
co-essential. There is neither first nor last; for They are all three one,
in truth, in power, in goodness, and in mercy. [Return
to Contents]
Article IX
The Proof of the Foregoing Article of the Trinity of Persons in One God
All this we know as well from the testimonies of Holy Writ as from
their operations, and chiefly by those we feel in ourselves. The
testimonies of the Holy Scriptures that teach us to believe this Holy
Trinity are written in many places of the Old Testament, which are not so
necessary to enumerate as to choose them out with discretion and judgment.
In Genesis, chap. 1:26, 27, God says: Let us make man in our image,
after our likeness, etc. And God created man in his own image,
male and female created he them. And Gen. 3:22, Behold, the man
is become as one of us. From this saying, Let us make man in
our image, it appears that there are more persons than one in the
Godhead; and when He says, God created, He signifies the unity. It is
true, He does not say how many persons there are, but that which appears
to us somewhat obscure in the Old Testament is very plain in the New. For
when our Lord was baptized in Jordan, the voice of the Father was heard,
saying, This is my beloved Son; the Son was seen in the water,
and the Holy Spirit appeared in the shape of a dove. This form is also
instituted by Christ in the baptism of all believers: Make disciples
of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the
Son and of the Holy Spirit. In the Gospel of Luke the angel Gabriel
thus addressed Mary, the mother of our Lord: The Holy Spirit shall
come upon thee, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee;
wherefore also the holy thing which is begotten shall be called the Son of
God. Likewise: The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love
of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit, be with you all. And (A.V.):
There are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and
the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.
In all these places we are fully taught that there are three persons in
one only divine essence. And although this doctrine far surpasses all
human understanding, nevertheless we now believe it by means of the Word
of God, but expect hereafter to enjoy the perfect knowledge and benefit
thereof in heaven.
Moreover, we must observe the particular offices and operations of
these three persons towards us. The Father is called our Creator, by His
power; the Son is our Savior and Redeemer, by His blood; the Holy Spirit
is our Sanctifier, by His dwelling in our hearts.
This doctrine of the Holy Trinity has always been affirmed and
maintained by the true Church since the time of the apostles to this very
day against the Jews, Mohammedans, and some false Christians and heretics,
as Marcion, Manes, Praxeas, Sabellius, Samosatenus, Arius, and such like,
who have been justly condemned by the orthodox fathers. Therefore, in this
point, we do willingly receive the three creeds, namely, that of the
Apostles, of Nicea, and of Athanasius; likewise that which, conformable
thereunto, is agreed upon by the ancient fathers. [Return
to Contents]
Article X
Jesus Christ Is True and Eternal God
We believe that Jesus Christ according to His divine nature is the only
begotten Son of God, begotten from eternity, not made, nor created (for
then He would be a creature), but co-essential and co- eternal with the
Father, the very image of his substance and the effulgence of his
glory, equal unto Him in all things. He is the Son of God, not only
from the time that He assumed our nature but from all eternity, as these
testimonies, when compared together, teach us. Moses says that God created
the world; and St. John says that all things were made by that Word which
he calls God. The apostle says that God made the world by His Son;
likewise, that God created all things by Jesus Christ. Therefore it must
needs follow that He who is called God, the Word, the Son, and Jesus
Christ, did exist at that time when all things were created by Him.
Therefore the prophet Micah says: His goingsforth are from of old,
from everlasting. And the apostle: He hath neither beginning of
days nor end of life. He therefore is that true, eternal, and
almighty God whom we invoke, worship, and serve. [Return
to Contents]
Article XI
The Holy Spirit Is True and Eternal God
We believe and confess also that the Holy Spirit from eternity proceeds
from the Father and the Son; and therefore neither is made, created, nor
begotten, but only proceeds from both; who in order is the third person of
the Holy Trinity; of one and the same essence, majesty, and glory with the
Father and the Son; and therefore is the true and eternal God, as the Holy
Scriptures teach us. [Return to Contents]
Article XII
The Creation of All Things, Especially the Angels
We believe that the Father by the Word, that is, by His Son, has
created of nothing the heaven, the earth, and all creatures, when it
seemed good unto Him; giving unto every creature its being, shape, form,
and several offices to serve its Creator; that He also still upholds and
governs them by His eternal providence and infinite power for the service
of mankind, to the end that man may serve his God.
He also created the angels good, to be His messengers and to serve His
elect; some of whom are fallen from that excellency in which God created
them into everlasting perdition, and the others have by the grace of God
remained steadfast and continued in their first state. The devils and evil
spirits are so depraved that they are enemies of God and every good thing;
to the utmost of their power as murderers watching to ruin the Church and
every member thereof, and by their wicked stratagems to destroy all; and
are, therefore, by their own wickedness adjudged to eternal damnation,
daily expecting their horrible torments.
Therefore we reject and abhor the error of the Sadducees, who deny the
existence of spirits and angels; and also that of the Manichees, who
assert that the devils have their origin of themselves, and that they are
wicked of their own nature, without having been corrupted. [Return
to Contents]
Article XIII
The Providence of God and His Government of All Things
We believe that the same good God, after He had created all things, did
not forsake them or give them up to fortune or chance, but that He rules
and governs them according to His holy will, so that nothing happens in
this world without His appointment; nevertheless, God neither is the
Author of nor can be charged with the sins which are committed. For His
power and goodness are so great and incomprehensible that He orders and
executes His work in the most excellent and just manner, even then when
devils and wicked men act unjustly. And as to what He does surpassing
human understanding, we will not curiously inquire into farther than our
capacity will admit of; but with the greatest humility and reverence adore
the righteous judgments of God, which are hid from us, contenting
ourselves that we are pupils of Christ, to learn only those things which
He has revealed to us in His Word, without transgress ing these limits.
This doctrine affords us unspeakable consolation, since we are taught
thereby that nothing can befall us by chance, but by the direction of our
most gracious and heavenly Father; who watches over us with a paternal
care, keeping all creatures so under His power that not a hair of our
head (for they are all numbered), nor a sparrow can fall to the ground
without the will of our Father, in whom we do entirely trust; being
persuaded that He so restrains the devil and all our enemies that without
His will and permission they cannot hurt us.
And therefore we reject that damnable error of the Epicureans, who say
that God regards nothing but leaves all things to chance. [Return
to Contents]
Article XIV
The Creation and Fall of Man, and His Incapacity to Perform What Is Truly
Good
We believe that God created man out of the dust of the earth, and made
and formed him after His own image and likeness, good, righteous, and
holy, capable in all things to will agreeably to the will of God. But
being in honor, he understood it not, neither knew his excellency,
but wilfully subjected himself to sin and consequently to death and the
curse, giving ear to the words of the devil. For the command ment of life,
which he had received, he transgressed; and by sin separated himself from
God, who was his true life; having corrupted his whole nature; whereby he
made himself liable to corporal and spiritual death. And being thus become
wicked, perverse, and corrupt in all his ways, he has lost all his
excellent gifts which he had received from God, and retained only small
remains thereof, which, however, are sufficient to leave man without
excuse; for all the light which is in us is changed into darkness, as the
Scriptures teach us, saying: The light shineth in the darkness, and
the darkness apprehended it not; where St. John calls men darkness.
Therefore we reject all that is taught repugnant to this concerning the
free will of man, since man is but a slave to sin, and can receive
nothing, except it have been given him from heaven. For who may
presume to boast that he of himself can do any good, since Christ says:
No man can come to me, except the Father that sent me draw him?
Who will glory in his own will, who understands that the mind of the
flesh is enmity against God? Who can speak of his knowledge, since
the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God? In
short, who dares suggest any thought, since he knows that we are not
sufficient of ourselves to account anything as of ourselves, but that our
sufficiency is of God? And therefore what the apostle says ought
justly to be held sure and firm, that God worketh in us both to will
and to work, for his good pleasure. For there is no understanding nor
will conformable to the divine understand ing and will but what Christ has
wrought in man; which He teaches us, when He says: Apart from me ye
can do nothing. [Return to Contents]
We believe that through the disobedience of Adam original sin is
extended to all mankind; which is a corruption of the whole nature and a
hereditary disease, wherewith even infants in their mothers womb are
infected, and which produces in man all sorts of sin, being in him as a
root thereof, and therefore is so vile and abominable in the sight of God
that it is sufficient to condemn all mankind. Nor is it altogether
abolished or wholly eradicated even by regeneration; since sin always
issues forth from this woeful source, as water from a fountain;
notwithstanding it is not imputed to the children of God unto
condemnation, but by His grace and mercy is forgiven them. Not that they
should rest securely in sin, but that a sense of this corruption should
make believers often to sigh, desiring to be delivered from this body of
death.
Wherefore we reject the error of the Pelagians, who assert that sin
proceeds only from imitation. [Return to Contents]
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 such 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 counsel of mere goodness has 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. [Return to Contents]
Article XVII
The Recovery of Fallen Man
We believe that our most gracious God, in His admirable wisdom and
goodness, seeing that man had thus thrown himself into physical and
spiritual death and made himself wholly miserable, was pleased to seek and
comfort him, when he trembling fled from His presence, promising him that
He would give His Son (who would be born of a woman) to
bruise the head of the serpentand to make him blessed. [Return
to Contents]
Article XVIII
The Incarnation of Jesus Christ
We confess, therefore, that God has fulfilled the promise which He made
to the fathers by the mouth of His holy prophets, when He sent into the
world, at the time appointed by Him, His own only- begotten and eternal
Son, who took upon Him the form of a servant and became like unto man,
really assuming the true human nature with all its infirmities, sin
excepted; being conceived in the womb of the blessed virgin Mary by the
power of the Holy Spirit without the means of man; and did not only assume
human nature as to the body, but also a true human soul, that He might be
a real man. For since the soul was lost as well as the body, it was
necessary that He should take both upon Him, to save both.
Therefore we confess (in opposition to the heresy of the Anabaptists,
who deny that Christ assumed human flesh of His mother) that Christ
partook of the flesh and blood of the children; that He is a
fruit of the loins of David after the flesh; born of the seed of David
according to the flesh; a fruit of the womb of Mary; born of a woman; a
branch of David; a shoot of the root of Jesse; sprung from the tribe of
Judah; descended from the Jews according to the flesh; of the seed of
Abraham, since (A.V.) he took on him the seed of Abraham, and was made
like unto his brethren in all things, sin excepted; so that in truth
He is our IMMANUEL, that is to say, God with us. [Return
to Contents]
Article XIX
The Union and Distinction of the Two Natures in the Person of Christ
We believe that by this conception the person of the Son is inseparably
united and connected with the human nature; so that there are not two Sons
of God, nor two persons, but two natures united in one single person; yet
each nature retains its own distinct properties. As, then, the divine
nature has always remained uncreated, without beginning of days or end of
life, filling heaven and earth, so also has the human nature not lost its
properties but remained a creature, having beginning of days, being a
finite nature, and retaining all the properties of a real body. And though
He has by His resurrection given immortality to the same, nevertheless He
has not changed the reality of His human nature; forasmuch as our
salvation and resurrection also depend on the reality of His body. But
these two natures are so closely united in one person that they were not
separated even by His death. Therefore that which He, when dying,
commended into the hands of His Father, was a real human spirit, departing
from His body. But in the meantime the divine nature always remained
united with the human, even when He lay in the grave; and the Godhead did
not cease to be in Him, any more than it did when He was an infant, though
it did not so clearly manifest itself for a while. Wherefore we confess
that He is very God and very man: very
God by His power to conquer death; and very man that He might die for us
according to the infirmity of His flesh. [Return to
Contents]
Article XX
God Has Manifested His Justice and Mercy in Christ
We believe that God, who is perfectly merciful and just, sent His Son
to assume that nature in which the disobedience was committed, to make
satisfaction in the same, and to bear the punishment of sin by His most
bitter passion and death. God therefore manifested His justice against His
Son when He laid our iniquities upon Him, and poured forth His mercy and
goodness on us, who were guilty and worthy of damnation, out of mere and
perfect love, giving His Son unto death for us, and raising Him for our
justification, that through Him we might obtain immortality and life
eternal. [Return to Contents]
Article XXI
The Satisfaction of Christ, Our Only High Priest, for Us
We believe that Jesus Christ is ordained with an oath to be an
everlasting High Priest, after the order of Melchizedek; and that He has
presented Himself in our behalf before the Father, to appease His wrath by
His full satisfaction, by offering Himself on the tree of the cross, and
pouring out His precious blood to purge away our sins, as the prophets had
foretold. For it is written: He was wounded for our transgressions, he
was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon
him; and with his stripes we are healed. He was led as a lamb to the
slaughter, and numbered with the transgressors; and condemned by
Pontius Pilate as a malefactor, though he had first declared Him innocent.
Therefore, He restored that which he took not away, and suffered, the
righteous for the unrighteous, as well in His body as in His soul,
feeling the terrible punishment which our sins had merited; insomuch that
his sweat became as it were great drops of blood falling down upon the
ground. He called out: My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?
and has suffered all this for the remission of our sins.
Wherefore we justly say with the apostle Paul that we know nothing
save Jesus Christ, and him crucified; we count all things but loss and
refuse for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus our Lord,
in whose wounds we find all manner of consolation. Neither is it necessary
to seek or invent any other means of being reconciled to God than this
only sacrifice, once offered, by which he hath perfected forever them
that are sanctified. This is also the reason why He was called by the
angel of God, JESUS, that is to say, SAVIOR, because He would save his
people from their sins. [Return to Contents]
Article XXII
Our Justification Through Faith in Jesus Christ
We believe that, to attain the true knowledge of this great mystery,
the Holy Spirit kindles in our hearts an upright faith, which embraces
Jesus Christ with all His merits, appropriates Him, and seeks nothing more
besides Him. 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. Therefore, for any to assert that Christ is not
sufficient, but that something more is required besides Him, would be too
gross a blasphemy; for hence it would follow that Christ was but half a
Savior.
Therefore we justly say with Paul, that we are justified by faith
alone, or by faith apart from works. However, to speak more
clearly, we do not mean that faith itself justifies us, for it is only an
instrument with which we embrace Christ our righteousness. But Jesus
Christ, imputing to us all His merits, and so many holy works which He has
done for us and in our stead, is our righteousness. And faith is an
instrument that keeps us in communion with Him in all His benefits, which,
when they become ours, are more than sufficient to acquit us of our sins.
[Return to Contents]
Article XXIII
Wherein Our Justification Before God Consists
We believe that our salvation consists in the remission of our sins for
Jesus Christs sake, and that therein our righteousness before God is
implied; as David and Paul teach us, declaring this to be the blessedness
of man that God imputes righteousness to him apart from works.
And the same apostle says that we are justified freely by his grace,
through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.
And therefore we always hold fast this foundation, ascribing all the
glory to God, humbling ourselves before Him, and acknowledging ourselves
to be such as we really are, without presuming to trust in anything in
ourselves, or in any merit of ours, relying and resting upon the obedience
of Christ crucified alone, which becomes ours when we believe in Him. This
is sufficient to cover all our iniquities, and to give us confidence in
approaching to God; freeing the conscience of fear, terror, and dread,
without following the example of our first father, Adam, who, trembling,
attempted to cover himself with fig-leaves. And, verily, if we should
appear before God, relying on ourselves or on any other creature, though
ever so little, we should, alas! be consumed. And therefore every one must
pray with David: O Jehovah, enter not into judgment with thy servant:
for in thy sight no man living is righteous. [Return
to Contents]
Article XXIV
Mans Sanctification and Good Works
We believe that this true faith, being wrought in man by the hearing of
the Word of God and the operation of the Holy Spirit, sanctifies him and
makes him a new man, causing him to live a new life, and freeing him from
the bondage of sin. Therefore it is so far from being true that this
justifying faith makes men remiss in a pious and holy life, that on the
contrary without it they would never do anything out of love to God, but
only out of self-love or fear of damnation. Therefore it is impossible
that this holy faith can be unfruitful in man; for we do not speak of a
vain faith, but of such a faith which is called in Scripture a faith
working through love, which excites man to the practice of those
works which God has commanded in His Word.
These works, as they proceed from the good root of faith, are good and
acceptable in the sight of God, forasmuch as they are all sanctified by
His grace. Nevertheless they are of no account towards our justification,
for it is by faith in Christ that we are justified, even before we do good
works; otherwise they could not be good works, any more than the fruit of
a tree can be good before the tree itself is good.
Therefore we do good works, but not to merit by them (for what can we
merit?); nay, we are indebted to God for the good works we do, and not He
to us, since it is He who worketh in us both to will and to work, for
his good pleasure. Let us therefore attend to what is written:
When ye shall have done all the things that are commanded you, say, We are
unprofitable servants; we have done that which it was our duty to do.
In the meantime we do not deny that God rewards good works, but it is
through His grace that He crowns His gifts.
Moreover, though we do good works, we do not found our salvation upon
them; for we can do no work but what is polluted by our flesh, and also
punishable; and although we could perform such works, still the
remembrance of one sin is sufficient to make God reject them. Thus, then,
we would always be in doubt, tossed to and fro without any certainty, and
our poor consciences would be continually vexed if they relied not on the
merits of the suffering and death of our Savior. [Return
to Contents]
Article XXV
The Abolishing of the Ceremonial Law
We believe that the ceremonies and symbols of the law ceased at the
coming of Christ, and that all the shadows are accomplished; so that the
use of them must be abolished among Christians; yet the truth and
substance of them remain with us in Jesus Christ, in whom they have their
completion. In the meantime we still use the testimonies taken out of the
law and the prophets to confirm us in the doctrine of the gospel, and to
regulate our life in all honorableness to the glory of God, according to
His will. [Return to Contents]
We believe that we have no access unto God but alone through the only
Mediator and Advocate, Jesus Christ the righteous; who therefore became
man, having united in one person the divine and human natures, that we men
might have access to the divine Majesty, which access would otherwise be
barred against us. But this Mediator, whom the Father has appointed
between Him and us, ought in no wise to affright us by His majesty, or
cause us to seek another according to our fancy. For there is no creature,
either in heaven or on earth, who loves us more than Jesus Christ; who,
though existing in the form of God, yet emptied himself, being made in
the likeness of men and of a servant for us, and in all things
was made like unto his brethren. If, then, we should seek for another
mediator who would be favorably inclined towards us, whom could we find
who loved us more than He who laid down His life for us, even while we
were his enemies? And if we seek for one who has power and majesty,
who is there that has so much of both as He who sits at the right hand
of God and to whom hath been given all authority in heaven and on
earth? And who will sooner be heard than the own well beloved Son of
God?
Therefore it was only through distrust that this practice of
dishonoring, instead of honoring, the saints was introduced, doing that
which they never have done nor required, but have on the contrary
steadfastly rejected according to their bounden duty, as appears by their
writings. Neither must we plead here our unworthiness; for the meaning is
not that we should offer our prayers to God on the ground of our own
worthiness, but only on the ground of the excellency and worthiness of the
Lord Jesus Christ, whose righteousness is become ours by faith.
Therefore the apostle, to remove this foolish fear, or rather distrust,
from us, rightly says that Jesus Christ in all things was made like
unto his brethren, that he might become a merciful and faithful high
priest, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For in that he
himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succor them that are
tempted. And further to encourage us to go to Him, he says:
Having then a great high priest, who hath passed through the heavens,
Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we have not a
high priest that cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities;
but one that hath been in all points tempted like aswe are, yet
without sin. Let us therefore draw near with boldness unto the throne of
grace, that we may receive mercy, and may find grace to help us
in time of need. The same apostle says: Having boldness to enter
into the holy place by the blood of Jesus, let us draw near with a true
heart in fullness of faith, etc. Likewise: Christ hath his
priesthood unchangeable; wherefore also he is able to save to the
uttermost them that draw near unto God through him, seeing he ever liveth
to make intercession for them.
What more can be required? since Christ Himself says: I am the way,
and the truth, and the life: no one cometh unto the Father, but by me.
To what purpose should we, then, seek another advocate, since it has
pleased God to give us His own Son as an Advocate? Let us not forsake Him
to take another, or rather to seek after another, without ever being able
to find him; for God well knew, when He gave Him to us, that we were
sinners.
Therefore, according to the command of Christ, we call upon the
heavenly Father through Jesus Christ our only Mediator, as we are taught
in the Lords Prayer; being assured that whatever we ask of the Father in
His Name will be granted us. [Return to Contents]
Article XXVII
The Catholic Christian Church
We believe and profess one catholic or universal Church, which is a
holy congregation of true Christian believers, all expecting their
salvation in Jesus Christ, being washed by His blood, sanctified and
sealed by the Holy Spirit.
This Church has been from the beginning of the world, and will be to
the end thereof; which is evident from this that Christ is an eternal
King, which without subjects He cannot be. And this holy Church is
preserved or supported by God against the rage of the whole world; though
it sometimes for a while appears very small, and in the eyes of men to be
reduced to nothing; as during the perilous reign of Ahab the Lord reserved
unto Him seven thousand men who had not bowed their knees to Baal.
Furthermore, this holy Church is not confined, bound, or limited to a
certain place or to certain persons, but is spread and dispersed over the
whole world; and yet is joined and united with heart and will, by the
power of faith, in one and the same Spirit. [Return to
Contents]
Article XXVIII
Every One Is Bound to Join Himself to the True Church
We believe, since this holy congregation is an assembly of those who
are saved, and outside of it there is no salvation, that no person of
whatsoever state or condition he may be, ought to withdraw from it,
content to be by himself; but that all men are in duty bound to join and
unite themselves with it; maintaining the unity of the Church; submitting
themselves to the doctrine and discipline thereof; bowing their necks
under the yoke of Jesus Christ; and as mutual members of the same body,
serving to the edification of the brethren, according to the talents God
has given them.
And that this may be the more effectually observed, it is the duty of
all believers, according to the Word of God, to separate themselves from
all those who do not belong to the Church, and to join themselves to this
congregation, wheresoever God has established it, even though the
magistrates and edicts of princes were against it, yea, though they should
suffer death or any other corporal punishment. Therefore all those who
separate themselves from the same or do not join themselves to it act
contrary to the ordinance of God. [Return to Contents]
Article XXIX
The Marks of the True Church, and Wherein it Differs from the False Church
We believe that we ought diligently and circumspectly to discern from
the Word of God which is the true Church, since all sects which are in the
world assume to themselves the name of the Church. But we speak not here
of hypocrites, who are mixed in the Church with the good, yet are not of
the Church, though externally in it; but we say that the body and
communion of the true Church must be distinguished from all sects that
call themselves the Church.
The marks by which the true Church is known are these: If the pure
doctrine of the gospel is preached therein; if it maintains the pure
administration of the sacraments as instituted by Christ; if church
discipline is exercised in chastening of sin; in short, if all things are
managed according to the pure Word of God, all things contrary thereto
rejected, and Jesus Christ acknowledged as the only Head of the Church.
Hereby the true Church may certainly be known, from which no man has a
right to separate himself.
With respect to those who are members of the Church, they may be known
by the marks of Christians; namely, by faith, and when, having received
Jesus Christ the only Savior, they avoid sin, follow after righteousness,
love the true God and their neighbor, neither turn aside to the right or
left, and crucify the flesh with the works thereof. But this is not to be
understood as if there did not remain in them great infirmities; but they
fight against them through the Spirit all the days of their life,
continually taking their refuge in the blood, death, passion, and
obedience of our Lord Jesus Christ, in whom they have remission of sins,
through faith in Him.
As for the false Church, it ascribes more power and authority to itself
and its ordinances than to the Word of God, and will not submit itself to
the yoke of Christ. Neither does it administer the sacra ments as
appointed by Christ in His Word, but adds to and takes from them, as it
thinks proper; it relies more upon men than upon Christ; and persecutes
those who live holily according to the Word of God and rebuke it for its
errors, covetousness, and idolatry.
These two Churches are easily known and distinguished from each other.
[Return to Contents]
Article XXX
The Government of the Church and its Offices
We believe that this true Church must be governed by that spiritual
polity which our Lord has taught us in His Word; namely, that there must
be ministers or pastors to preach the Word of God and to administer the
sacraments; also elders and deacons, who, together with the pastors, form
the council of the Church; that by these means the true religion may be
preserved, and the true doctrine everywhere propagated, likewise
transgressors chastened and restrained by spiritual means; also that the
poor and distressed may be relieved and comforted, according to their
necessities. By these means everything will be carried on in the Church
with good order and decency, when faithful men are chosen, according to
the rule prescribed by St. Paul in his Epistle to Timothy. [Return
to Contents]
Article XXXI
The Ministers, Elders, and Deacons
We believe that the ministers of Gods Word, the elders, and the deacons
ought to be chosen to their respective offices by a lawful election by the
Church, with calling upon the name of the Lord, and in that order which
the Word of God teaches. Therefore every one must take heed not to intrude
himself by improper means, but is bound to wait till it shall please God
to call him; that he may have testimony of his calling, and be certain and
assured that it is of the Lord.
As for the ministers of Gods Word, they have equally the same power and
authority wheresoever they are, as they are all ministers of Christ, the
only universal Bishop and the only Head of the Church.
Moreover, in order that this holy ordinance of God may not be violated
or slighted, we say that every one ought to esteem the ministers of Gods
Word and the elders of the Church very highly for their works sake, and be
at peace with them without murmuring, strife, or contention, as much as
possible. [Return to Contents]
Article XXXII
The Order and Discipline of the Church
In the meantime we believe, though it is useful and beneficial that
those who are rulers of the Church institute and establish certain
ordinances among themselves for maintaining the body of the Church, yet
that they ought studiously to take care that they do not depart from those
things which Christ, our only Master, has instituted. And therefore we
reject all human inventions, and all laws which man would introduce into
the worship of God, thereby to bind and compel the conscience in any
manner whatever. Therefore we admit only of that which tends to nourish
and preserve concord and unity, and to keep all men in obedience to God.
For this purpose, excommunication or church discipline is requisite, with
all that pertains to it, according to the Word of God. [Return
to Contents]
We believe that our gracious God, taking account of our weakness and
infirmities, has ordained the sacraments for us, thereby to seal unto us
His promises, and to be pledges of the good will and grace of God towards
us, and also to nourish and strengthen our faith; which He has joined to
the Word of the gospel, the better to present to our senses both that
which He declares to us by His Word and that which He works inwardly in
our hearts, thereby confirming in us the salvation which He imparts to us.
For they are visible signs and seals of an inward and invisible thing, by
means whereof God works in us by the power of the Holy Spirit. Therefore
the signs are not empty or meaningless, so as to deceive us. For Jesus
Christ is the true object presented by them, without whom they would be of
no moment.
Moreover, we are satisfied with the number of sacraments which Christ
our Lord has instituted, which are two only, namely, the sacrament of
baptism and the holy supper of our Lord Jesus Christ. [Return
to Contents]
We believe and confess that Jesus Christ, who is the end of the law,
has made an end, by the shedding of His blood, of all other sheddings of
blood which men could or would make as a propitiation or satisfaction for
sin; and that He, having abolished circumcision, which was done with
blood, has instituted the sacrament of baptism instead thereof; by which
we are received into the Church of God, and separated from all other
people and strange religions, that we may wholly belong to Him whose mark
and ensign we bear; and which serves as a testimony to us that He will
forever be our gracious God and Father.
Therefore He has commanded all those who are His to be baptized with
pure water, into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy
Spirit, thereby signifying to us, that as water washes away the filth
of the body when poured upon it, and is seen on the body of the baptized
when sprinkled upon him, so does the blood of Christ by the power of the
Holy Spirit internally sprinkle the soul, cleanse it from its sins, and
regenerate us from children of wrath unto children of God. Not that this
is effected by the external water, but by the sprinkling of the precious
blood of the Son of God; who is our Red Sea, through which we must pass to
escape the tyranny of Pharaoh, that is, the devil, and to enter into the
spiritual land of Canaan.
The ministers, therefore, on their part administer the sacrament and
that which is visible, but our Lord gives that which is signified by the
sacrament, namely, the gifts and invisible grace; washing, cleansing, and
purging our souls of all filth and unrighteousness; renewing our hearts
and filling them with all comfort; giving unto us a true assurance of His
fatherly goodness; putting on us the new man, and putting off the old man
with all his deeds.
We believe, therefore, that every man who is earnestly studious of
obtaining life eternal ought to be baptized but once with this only
baptism, without ever repeating the same, since we cannot be born twice.
Neither does this baptism avail us only at the time when the water is
poured upon us and received by us, but also through the whole course of
our life.
Therefore we detest the error of the Anabaptists, who are not content
with the one only baptism they have once received, and moreover condemn
the baptism of the infants of believers, who we believe ought to be
baptized and sealed with the sign of the covenant, as the children in
Israel formerly were circumcised upon the same promises which are made
unto our children. And indeed Christ shed His blood no less for the
washing of the children of believers than for adult persons; and therefore
they ought to receive the sign and sacrament of that which Christ has done
for them; as the Lord commanded in the law that they should be made
partakers of the sacrament of Christs suffering and death shortly after
they were born, by offering for them a lamb, which was a sacrament of
Jesus Christ. Moreover, what circumcision was to the Jews, baptism is to
our children. And for this reason St. Paul calls baptism the
circumcision of Christ. [Return to Contents]
Article XXXV
The Holy Supper of Our Lord Jesus Christ
We believe and confess that our Savior Jesus Christ did ordain and
institute the sacrament of the holy supper to nourish and support those
whom He has already regenerated and incorporated into His family, which is
His Church.
Now those who are regenerated have in them a twofold life, the one
corporal and temporal, which they have from the first birth and is common
to all men; the other, spiritual and heavenly, which is given them in
their second birth, which is effected by the Word of the gospel, in the
communion of the body of Christ; and this life is not common, but is
peculiar to Gods elect. In like manner God has given us, for the support
of the bodily and earthly life, earthly and common bread, which is
subservient thereto and is common to all men, even as life itself. But for
the support of the spiritual and heavenly life which believers have He has
sent a living bread, which descended from heaven, namely, Jesus Christ,
who nourishes and strengthens the spiritual life of believers when they
eat Him, that is to say, when they appropriate and receive Him by faith in
the spirit.
In order that He might represent unto us this spiritual and heavenly
bread, Christ has instituted an earthly and visible bread as a sacrament
of His body, and wine as a sacrament of His blood, to testify by them unto
us that, as certainly as we receive and hold this sacrament in our hands
and eat and drink the same with our mouths, by which our life is
afterwards nourished, we also do as certainly receive by faith (which is
the hand and mouth of our soul) the true body and blood of Christ our only
Savior in our souls, for the support of our spiritual life.
Now, as it is certain and beyond all doubt that Jesus Christ has not
enjoined to us the use of His sacraments in vain, so He works in us all
that He represents to us by these holy signs, though the manner surpasses
our understanding and cannot be comprehended by us, as the operations of
the Holy Spirit are hidden and incomprehensible. In the meantime we err
not when we say that what is eaten and drunk by us is the proper and
natural body and the proper blood of Christ. But the manner of our
partaking of the same is not by the mouth, but by the spirit through
faith. Thus, then, though Christ always sits at the right hand of His
Father in the heavens, yet does He not therefore cease to make us
partakers of Himself by faith. This feast is a spiritual table, at which
Christ communicates Himself with all His benefits to us, and gives us
there to enjoy both Himself and the merits of His sufferings and death:
nourishing, strengthening, and comforting our poor comfortless souls by
the eating of His flesh, quickening and refreshing them by the drinking of
His blood.
Further, though the sacraments are connected with the thing signified
nevertheless both are not received by all men. The ungodly indeed receives
the sacrament to his condemnation, but he does not receive the truth of
the sacrament, even as Judas and Simon the sorcerer both indeed received
the sacrament but not Christ who was signified by it, of whom believers
only are made partakers.
Lastly, we receive this holy sacrament in the assembly of the people of
God, with humility and reverence, keeping up among us a holy remembrance
of the death of Christ our Savior, with thanksgiving, making there
confession of our faith and of the Christian religion. Therefore no one
ought to come to this table without having previously rightly examined
himself, lest by eating of this bread and drinking of this cup he eat and
drink judgment to himself. In a word, we are moved by the use of this holy
sacrament to a fervent love towards God and our neighbor.
Therefore we reject all mixtures and damnable inventions which men have
added unto and blended with the sacraments, as profanations of them; and
affirm that we ought to rest satisfied with the ordinance which Christ and
His apostles have taught us, and that we must speak of them in the same
manner as they have spoken. [Return to Contents]
Article XXXVI
The Magistracy (Civil Government)
We believe that our gracious God, because of the depravity of mankind,
has appointed kings, princes, and magistrates; willing that the world
should be governed by certain laws and policies; to the end that the
dissoluteness of men might be restrained, and all things carried on among
them with good order and decency. For this purpose He has invested the
magistracy with the sword for the punishment of evil-doers and for the
protection of them that do well.
Their office is not only to have regard unto and watch for the welfare
of the civil state, but also to protect the sacred ministry, that the
kingdom of Christ may thus be promoted. They must therefore countenance
the preaching of the Word of the gospel everywhere, that God may be
honored and worshipped by every one, as He commands in His Word.
Moreover, it is the bounden duty of every one, of whatever state,
quality, or condition he may be, to subject himself to the magistrates; to
pay tribute, to show due honor and respect to them, and to obey them in
all things which are not repugnant to the Word of God; to supplicate for
them in their prayers that God may rule and guide them in all their ways,
and that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and
gravity.
Wherefore we detest the Anabaptists and other seditious people, and in
general all those who reject the higher powers and magistrates and would
subvert justice, introduce community of goods, and confound that decency
and good order which God has established among men. [Return
to Contents]
Finally, we believe, according to the Word of God, when the time
appointed by the Lord (which is unknown to all creatures) is come and the
number of the elect complete, that our Lord Jesus Christ will come from
heaven, corporally and visibly, as He ascended, with great glory and
majesty to declare Himself Judge of the living and the dead, burning this
old world with fire and flame to cleanse it.
Then all men will personally appear before this great Judge, both men
and women and children, that have been from the beginning of the world to
the end thereof, being summoned by the voice of the archangel, and by
the sound of the trump of God. For all the dead shall be raised out
of the earth, and their souls joined and united with their proper bodies
in which they formerly lived. As for those who shall then be living, they
shall not die as the others, but be changed in the twinkling of an eye,
and from corruptible become incorruptible. Then the books shall be
opened, and the dead judged according to what they shall have done in
this world, whether it be good or evil. Nay, all men shall give
account of every idle word they have spoken, which the world only
counts amusement and jest; and then the secrets and hypocrisy of men shall
be disclosed and laid open before all.
And therefore the consideration of this judgment is justly terrible and
dreadful to the wicked and ungodly, but most desirable and comfortable to
the righteous and elect; because then their full deliver ance shall be
perfected, and there they shall receive the fruits of their labor and
trouble which they have borne. Their innocence shall be known to all, and
they shall see the terrible vengeance which God shall execute on the
wicked, who most cruelly persecuted, oppressed, and tormented them in this
world, and who shall be convicted by the testimony of their own
consciences, and shall become immortal, but only to be tormented in
the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels.
But on the contrary, the faithful and elect shall be crowned with glory
and honor; and the Son of God will confess their names before God His
Father and His elect angels; all tears shall be wiped from their eyes; and
their cause which is now condemned by many judges and magistrates as
heretical and impious will then be known to be the cause of the Son of
God. And for a gracious reward, the Lord will cause them to possess such a
glory as never entered into the heart of man to conceive.
Therefore we expect that great day with a most ardent desire, to the
end that we may fully enjoy the promises of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
AMEN. Amen, come, Lord Jesus. Rev. 22:20. [Return
to Contents]
 |
