2. More Reasons and Some Objections
Rev Caleb Hembd
4. Practical reasons for confessions. Creeds and confessions help us in a variety of practical ways. First, they help us understand the main doctrines of Scripture. To be saved we must know at least some truth. Of course, we need more than just a head knowledge of the truth – the Holy Spirit must put the truth into our hearts in regeneration. But saving truth enters the heart through the understanding. If truth is not understood, it will not have a lasting effect. Christ says, “When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart” (Mt 13:19).
The Ethiopian eunuch was reading Isaiah 53 but did not understand it. Then he heard Philip’s explanation, which was blessed to his soul, and he went on his way rejoicing. Similarly, creeds and confessions provide explanations of important doctrines which, by the blessing of the Spirit, regenerate, sanctify and comfort our souls.
Second, creeds and confessions help us identify and refute error. A young man once met two Mormons who claimed that their leader (Joseph Smith) had been sent by God to show us what true Christianity was. They claimed
1The final part of a paper given at this year’s Youth Conference in New Zealand. It was originally entitled, “Why Do We Need Creeds and Confessions of Faith?” The first part gave biblical and historical reasons.
that the great apostasy predicted by the Apostles occurred soon after their death, and the true Church went extinct for centuries.
This did not sound right to the young man, but he could not think of a Bible verse to refute them. He decided to look up what The Westminster Confession of Faith says about the Church. In chapter 25, he read that “there shall always be a Church on earth, to worship God according to His will”. One of the proof texts for this statement was Matthew 16:18: “Upon this rock I will build My Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it”. Examining the Confession made him think of another text: “My righteousness shall be for ever, and My salvation from generation to generation” (Is 51:8). In every generation, souls will be saved – no matter how dark the day is. The young man saw that The Confession of Faith was like a map to help him get quickly to the Scriptures he needed to refute false teaching.
Third, Confessions show us the unity and harmony of the truths of Scripture. They show how one doctrine relates to another. For example, the doctrines of total depravity and effectual calling are related to one another. If we are totally depraved – dead in trespasses and in sins – then the Holy Spirit must quicken (put life into) us with that power which He wrought in Christ when He raised Him from the dead (Rom 8:11, Eph 1:19-20). This quickening takes place in effectual calling.
One solemn lesson arises from the fact that all truths relate to one another. If one truth is denied, it may lead to the denial of another truth. Therefore we cannot afford to be indifferent to any truth in the Word of God.
Fourth, creeds and confessions help ensure that the same teaching is heard in all the pulpits of the Church. The Apostle Paul commands us by the authority of Christ, “Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgement” (1 Cor 1:10). Here Paul makes clear that the Church must “speak the same thing” by teaching the same doctrine and by worshipping and serving God in the same way. Only Churches that are fully committed to a confession of faith will come close to this standard. A Church that chooses not to be fully committed to a confession of faith is not even trying to obey this divine command.
Fifth, creeds and confessions help ensure that the same biblical teaching will be declared to succeeding generations (with God’s care and keeping). Time passes quickly, and soon an entire generation of faithful ministers will be removed from the earth. Who will replace them? The Church with an unreserved commitment to a confession of faith answers, Only those men who will preach the same unchanging truths that our fathers did.
Too often, Churches with a loose connection to a confession of faith change dramatically when a new minister arrives. He claims that he preaches the same gospel – only in a different way. But the more discerning hearers see that he is preaching a different gospel altogether. Great upheaval follows. The conservative members find that they cannot stop the disturbing doctrine from being taught, because the Church has no fixed standard of doctrine. Their only option is to leave the Church and go elsewhere.
5. Objections to creeds and confessions. Throughout the centuries, there have been a few professing Christians who have strongly objected to creeds and confessions. Some are concerned that creeds are given a place that belongs to Scripture alone. Others protest against creeds, because they so effectively expose the false teaching that they are trying to spread. An old writer observed, “People are seldom against creeds, except when the creeds are against them”. We will state and answer four main objections that are made time and time again.
- Some people claim that it is arrogant for the Church to declare how others should understand the Scriptures. They argue that every person has the right to interpret the Scriptures for himself, and that creeds and confessions interfere with this right.
This objection is easily answered. Every time a minister preaches, he is showing his hearers how to understand the Scriptures. Creeds and confessions also show us how to understand the Scriptures. If creeds are wrong, then so are sermons. The minister should do nothing more than read the Scriptures to the congregation. And he should read them in the original Hebrew and Greek, since translations are the work of fallible men and not inspired.
Further, sermons and creeds have authority because they are rooted in Scripture. The minister says, These are the doctrines you must believe, and these are the duties you must do, because this is what the Word of God says. Similarly, the Church says in her creeds and confessions, You must believe the following doctrines, because this is what the Word of God says; just study the proof texts that we have appended to every doctrinal statement. In no part of a creed does the Church appeal to her own authority, or to the authority of learned theologians. In every statement of a confession of faith, the Church appeals to the Word of God alone.
- Another common objection is as follows: It is lawful for the Church to write confessions in order to help us understand the Scriptures correctly. But it is not lawful for the Church to require men to subscribe to a confession before they can take office. This requirement destroys liberty of conscience. The Church has no right to dictate what office-bearers may believe.
This objection is answered in two steps. First, liberty of conscience does
not mean liberty to believe unscriptural doctrine, or liberty to do anything that is sinful. Second, no one is forced to subscribe to a confession of faith. It is a voluntary act, in which the man solemnly declares before God, I have read the Confession of Faith, and my conscience testifies that it is just what the Bible teaches; therefore I freely sign the Confession as the confession of my faith.
- Others object that confessions have not succeeded in keeping Churches unified and biblical. They point to Churches that once had sound confessions and yet became filled with division and error.
This observation is sadly true. But it does not mean that creeds and confessions are useless. Public laws do not get rid of crime, but they are still valuable and necessary. Much more crime would occur without them. Similarly, if a Church were to have no confession of faith, she would be troubled with far more error and division.2
- The last objection to consider is very common today, even in Reformed circles. It is as follows: Confessions should only include the doctrines that people need to know to be saved. Including other doctrines only causes needless division. Therefore we should require office-bearers to subscribe only to fundamental doctrines and not let minor doctrinal differences divide us.
This objection deserves a full answer. First, in the Great Commission, Christ commands His Church not only to preach the gospel to every creature but also to teach them to observe all things whatsoever He has commanded. Clearly Christ expected His Apostles to believe, teach and enforce everything in His Word – not just the key doctrines of the gospel. He demands no less of His Church today.
Second, it is true that people who believe only a few important truths of Scripture may go to heaven. However, that does not mean the other truths of Scripture are unimportant. At the very least, they are necessary for the comfort, stability and usefulness of the Christian. James Bannerman draws a useful distinction between truths that are necessary for the being of the Church and truths that are necessary for her well-being. Truths that are necessary for the being (or existence) of the Church include the doctrine of the Trinity and the Deity of Christ. A Church that does not believe in the Trinity believes in a god of its imagination and is therefore not the Church of Christ at all, but a synagogue of Satan. Truths that are necessary for the well-being of the Church include the regulative principle of worship, which teaches that only the things God has commanded can be brought into His worship.
To illustrate Bannerman’s point, imagine two healthy people who have
2Samuel Miller, Doctrinal Integrity: The Utility and Importance of Creeds and Confessions, Presbyterian Heritage Publications, 1989 reprint, p 48.
different diets. The first person is on a diet containing basic nutrients that give him energy for the day, but nothing else. The other person has a diet that includes a full array of nutrients, including vitamins. At first, the two people may both seem to be well. But when viruses are in the air, the first person’s health will likely break down due to a lack of vitamins, while the second person will likely continue to be healthy or recover more quickly (with God’s blessing). Similarly a Church that holds only to fundamental doctrines of Scripture may appear to be well at first, but is likely to weaken and eventually break down when Satan attacks. On the other hand, the Church that holds firmly to all truth will be far better equipped to resist his attacks.
Third, Christ specifically warns the teachers of His Church not to ignore any truth and commends those who both teach and practise all Scriptural principles. “Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven” (Mt 5:19). Therefore, the Church must resolve to assert, maintain and defend every truth in the Word of God.
Fourth, Christ declares, “He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much” (Lk 16:10). This teaches that those who are ready to compromise “small” biblical principles will be ready to compromise “great” biblical principles as well. An old writer put it well when he said, “He that despiseth small things, shall fall by little and little”. The Church ought therefore to require her office-bearers to subscribe wholeheartedly to a confession of faith that contains much more than the doctrines that people must know to be saved.
Conclusion. Our Bibles, church history, and experience show how important it is for our Church to hold unreservedly to The Westminster Confession of Faith. We should be thankful that there was never a time when the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland’s commitment to The Westminster Confession was in doubt. Never, for example, did our Church have a Declaratory Act that loosened its commitment to the Confession. Most Presbyterian denominations today either have, or used to have, a Declaratory Act in force. Of course, we must give the Lord all the glory for keeping the Church committed to sound doctrine for more than 125 years. “For who maketh thee to differ from another? And what hast thou that thou didst not receive? Now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?” (1 Cor 4:7).
Finally, the Lord in His goodness has placed us in a Church with a thoroughly-biblical confession of faith. Only a fraction of the world’s population today enjoys such a privilege. His favour toward us should stir us to study the Confession of Faith and seek grace to make it the confession of our
own faith. And we should be stirred to pray that our Church would be kept faithful to sound doctrine, pure worship, and holy practice. For “except the Lord keep the city, the watchmen waketh but in vain” (Ps 127:1).