Westminster Confession of Faith (1647)
Chapter 1 Of the holy Scripture,
Chapter 2 Of God, and of the Holy Trinity,
Chapter 3 Of God's Eternal Decree,
Chapter 4 Of Creation,
Chapter 5 Of Providence,
Chapter 6 Of the Fall of Man, of Sin, and of
the Punishment thereof,
Chapter 7 Of God's Covenant with Man,
Chapter 8 Of Christ the Mediator,
Chapter 9 Of Free Will,
Chapter 10 Of Effectual Calling,
Chapter 11 Of Justification,
Chapter 12 Of Adoption,
Chapter 13 Of Sanctification,
Chapter 14 Of Saving Faith,
Chapter 15 Of Repentance Unto Life,
Chapter 16 Of Good Works,
Chapter 17 Of The Perseverance of the Saints,
Chapter 18 Of the Assurance of Grace and Salvation,
Chapter 19 Of the Law of God,
Chapter 20 Of Christian Liberty, and Liberty of Conscience,
Chapter 21 Of Religious Worship and the Sabbath-day,
Chapter 22 Of Lawful Oaths and Vows,
Chapter 23 Of the Civil Magistrate,
Chapter 24 Of Marriage and Divorce,
Chapter 25 Of the Church,
Chapter 26 Of the Communion of the Saints,
Chapter 27 Of the Sacraments,
Chapter 28 Of Baptism,
Chapter 29 Of the Lord's Supper,
Chapter 30 Of Church Censures,
Chapter 31 Of Synods and Councils,
Chapter 32 Of the State of Man After Death, and of
the Resurrection of the Dead,
Chapter 33 Of the Last Judgment
CHAPTER 1
Of the holy Scripture
I. Although the light of nature, and the works of creation and providence,
do so far manifest the goodness, wisdom, and power of God, as to leave men
inexcusable; yet are they not sufficient to give that knowledge of God,
and of his will, which is necessary unto salvation; therefore it pleased
the Lord, at sundry times, and in divers manners, to reveal himself, and
to declare that his will unto his Church; and afterwards for the better
preserving and propagating of the truth, and for the more sure establishment
and comfort of the Church against the corruption of the flesh, and the malice
of Satan and of the world, to commit the same wholly unto writing; which
maketh the holy Scripture to be most necessary; those former ways of God's
revealing his will unto his people being now ceased.
II. Under the name of holy Scripture, or the Word of God written, are
now contained all the Books of the Old and New Testament, which are these:
Of the Old Testament
Genesis Ecclesiastes
Exodus The Song of Songs
Leviticus Isaiah
Numbers Jeremiah
Deuteronomy Lamentations
Joshua Ezekiel
Judges Daniel
Ruth H osea
I Samuel Joel
II Samuel Amos
I Kings Obadiah
II Kings Jonah
I Chronicles Micah
II Chronicles Nahum
Ezra Habakkuk
Nehemiah Zephaniah
Esther Haggai
Job Zechariah
Psalms Malachi
Proverbs
Of the New Testament
Matthew 1 and 2 Thessalonians
Mark Timothy I
Luke Timothy II
John Titus
Acts Philemon
Romans Hebrews
1 and 2 Corinthians James Galatians
1 and 2 Peter Ephesians 1, 2, and 3 John
Philippians Jude Colossians Revelation
All which are given by inspiration of God, to be the rule of faith and
life.
III. The books commonly called Apocrypha, not being of divine inspiration,
are no part of the Canon of Scripture; and therefore are of no authority
in the Church of God, nor to be any otherwise approved, or made use of,
than other human writings.
IV. The authority of the holy Scripture, for which it ought to be believed
and obeyed, dependeth not upon the testimony of any man or Church, but wholly
upon God (who is truth itself), the Author thereof; and therefore it is
to be received, because it is the Word of God.
V. We may be moved and induced by the testimony of the Church to an high
and reverent esteem of the holy Scripture; and the heavenliness of the matter,
the efficacy of the doctrine, the majesty of the style, the consent of all
the parts, the scope of the whole (which is to give all glory to God), the
full discovery it makes of the only way of man's salvation, the many other
incomparable excellencies, and the entire perfection thereof, are arguments
whereby it doth abundantly evidence itself to be the Word of God; yet, notwithstanding,
our full persuasion and assurance of the infallible truth and divine authority
thereof, is from the inward work of the Holy Spirit, bearing witness by
and with the Word in our hearts.
VI. The whole counsel of God, concerning all things necessary for his
own glory, man's salvation, faith, and life, is either expressly set down
in Scripture, or by good and necessary consequence may be deduced from Scripture:
unto which nothing at any time is to be added, whether by new revelations
of the Spirit, or traditions of men. Nevertheless we acknowledge the inward
illumination of the Spirit of God to be necessary for the saving understanding
of such things as are revealed in the Word; and that there are some circumstances
concerning the worship of God, and the government of the Church, common
to human actions and societies, which are to be ordered by the light of
nature and Christian prudence, according to the general rules of the Word,
which are always to be observed.
VII. All things in Scripture are not alike plain in themselves, nor alike
clear unto all; yet those things which are necessary to be known, believed,
and observed, for salvation, are so clearly propounded and opened in some
place of Scripture or other, that not only the learned, but the unlearned,
in a due use of the ordinary means, may attain unto a sufficient understanding
of them.
VIII. The Old Testament in Hebrew (which was the native language of the
people of God of old), and the New Testament in Greek (which at the time
of the writing of it was most generally known to the nations), being immediately
inspired by God, and by his singular care and providence kept pure in all
ages, are therefore authentical; so as in all controversies of religion
the Church is finally to appeal unto them. But because these original tongues
are not known to all the people of God who have right unto, and interest
in, the Scriptures, and are commanded, in the fear of God, to read and search
them, therefore they are to be translated into the language of every people
unto which they come, that the Word of God dwelling plentifully in all,
they may worship him in an acceptable manner, and, through patience and
comfort of the Scriptures, may have hope.
IX. The infallible rule of interpretation of Scripture, is the Scripture
itself; and therefore, when there is a question about the true and full
sense of any scripture (which is not manifold, but one), it may be searched
and known by other places that speak more clearly.
X. The Supreme Judge, by which all controversies of religion are to be
determined, and all decress of councils, opinions of ancient writers, doctrines
of men, and private spirits, are to be examined, and in whose sentence we
are to rest, can be no other but the Holy Spirit speaking in the Scripture.
I. There is but one only living and true God, who is
infinite in being and perfection, a most pure spirit, invisible, without
body, parts, or passions, immutable, immense, eternal, incomprehensible,
almighty, most wise, most holy, most free, most absolute, working all things
according to the counsel of his own immutable and most righteous will, for
his own glory, most loving, gracious, merciful, long-suffering, abundant
in goodness and truth, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin; the rewarder
of them that diligently seek him; and withal most just and terrible in his
judgments; hating all sin; and who will by no means clear the guilty.
II. God hath all life, glory, goodness, blessedness,
in and of himself; and is alone in and unto himself all-sufficient, not
standing in need of any creatures which he hath made, nor deriving any glory
from them, but only manifesting his own glory in, by, unto, and upon them;
he is the alone foundation of all being, of whom, through whom, and to whom,
are all things; and hath most sovereign dominion over them, to do by them,
for them, or upon them, whatsoever himself pleaseth. In his sight all things
are open and manifest; his knowledge is infinite, infallible, and independent
upon the creature; so as nothing is to him contingent or uncertain. He is
most holy in all his counsels, in all his works, and in all his commands.
To him is due from angels and men, and every other creature, whatsoever
worship, service, or obedience he is pleased to require of them.
III. In the unity of the Godhead there be three Persons
of one substance, power, and eternity: God the Father, God the Son, and
God the Holy Ghost. The Father is of none, neither begotten nor proceeding;
the Son is eternall begotten of the Father; the Holy Ghost eternally proceeding
from the Father and the Son.
I. God from all eternity did by the most and holy counsel
of his own will, freely and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass;
yet so as thereby neither is God the author of sin; nor is violence offered
to the will of the creatures, nor is the liberty or contingency of second
causes taken away, but rather established.
II. Although God knows whatsoever may or can come to
pass, upon all supposed conditions; yet hath he not decreed any thing because
he foresaw it as future, as that which would come to pass, upon such conditions.
III. By the decree of God, for the manifestation of his
glory, some men and angels are predestinated unto everlasting life, and
others foreordained to everlasting death.
IV. These angels and men, thus predestinated and foreordained,
are particularly and unchangeably designed; and their number is so certain
and definite that it can not be either increased or diminished.
V. Those of mankind that are predestinated unto life,
God, before the foundation of the world was laid, according to his eternal
and immutable purpose, and the secret counsel and good pleasure of his will,
hath chosen in Christ, unto everlasting glory, out of his free grace and
love alone, without any foresight of faith or good works, or perseverance
in either of them, or any other thing in the creature, as conditions, or
causes moving him thereunto; and all to the praise of his glorious grace.
VI. As God hath appointed the elect unto glory, so hath
he, by the eternal and most free purpose of his will, foreordained all the
means thereunto. Wherefore they who are elected being fallen in Adam are
redeemed by Christ, are effectually called unto faith in Christ by his Spirit
working in due season; are justified, adopted, sanctified, and kept by his
power through faith unto salvation. Neither are any other redeemed by Christ,
effectually called, justified, adopted, sanctified, and saved, but the elect
only.
VII. The rest of mankind, God was pleased, according
to the unsearchable counsel of his own will, whereby he extendeth or withholdeth
mercy as he pleaseth, for the glory of his sovereign power over his creatures,
to pass by, and to ordain them to dishonor and wrath for their sin, to the
praise of his glorious justice.
VIII. The doctrine of this high mystery of predestination
is to be handled with special prudence and care, that men attending to the
will og God revealed in his Word, and yielding obedience thereunto, may,
from the certainty of their effectual vocation, be assured of their eternal
election. So shall this doctrine afford matter of praise, reverence, and
admiration of God; and of humility, diligence, and abundant consolation
to all that sincerely obey the gospel.
I. It pleased God the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, for
the manifestation of the glory of his eternal power, wisdom, and goodness,
in the beginning, to create or make of nothing the world, and all things
therein, whether visible or invisible, in the space of six days, and all
very good.
II. After God had made all other creatures, he created
man, male and female, with reasonable and immortal souls, endued with knowledge,
righteousness, and true holiness after his own image, having the law of
God written in their hearts, and power to fulfill it; and yet under a possibility
of transgressing, being left to the liberty of their own will, which was
subject unto change. Besides this law written in their hearts, they received
a command not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; which
while they kept were happy in their communion with God, and had dominion
over the creatures.
I. God, the great Creator of all things, doth uphold,
direct dispose, and govern all creatures, actions, and things, from the
greatest even to the least, by his most wise and holy providence, according
to his infallible foreknowledge, and the free and immutable counsel of his
own will, to the praise of the glory of his wisdom, power, justice, goodness,
and mercy.
II. Although in relation to the foreknowledge and decree
of God, the first cause, all things come to pass immutably and infallibly,
yet, by the same providence, he ordereth them to fall out according to the
nature of second causes, either necessarily, freely, or contingently.
III. God, in his ordinary providence, maketh use of means,
yet is free to work without, above, and against them, at his pleasure.
IV. The almighty power, unsearchable wisdom, and infinite
goodness of God, so far manifest themselves in his providence, that it extendeth
itself even to the first Fall, and all other sins of angels and men, and
that not by a bare permission, but such as hath joined with it a most wise
and powerful bounding, and otherwise ordering and governing of them, in
a manifold dispensation, to his own holy ends; yet so, as the sinfulness
thereof proceedeth only from the creature, and not from God; who being most
holy and righteous, neither is nor can be the author or approver of sin.
V. The most wise, righteous, and gracious God, doth oftentimes
leave for a season his own children to manifold temptations and the corruption
of their own hearts, to chastise them for their former sins, or to discover
unto them the hidden strength of corruption and deceitfulness of their hearts,
that they may be humbled; and to raise them to a more close and constant
dependence for their support upon himself, and to make them more watchful
against all future occasions of sin, and for sundry other just and holy
ends.
VI. As for those wicked and ungodly men whom God, as
a righteous judge, for former sins, doth blind and harden; from them he
not only withholdeth his grace, whereby they might have been enlightened
in their understandings, and wrought upon their hearts; but sometimes also
withdraweth the gifts which they had; and exposeth them to such objects
as their corruption makes occasion of sin; and withal, gives them over to
their own lusts, the temptatoins of the world, and the power of Satan; whereby
it comes to pass that they harden themselves, even under those means which
God useth for the softening of others.
VII. As the providence of God doth, in general, reach
to all creatures, so, after a most special manner, it taketh care of his
Church, and disposeth all things to the good thereof.
I. Our first parents, begin seduced by the subtilty and
temptations of Satan, sinned in eating the forbidden fruit. This their sin
God was pleased, according to his wise and holy counsel, to permit, having
purposed to order it to his own glory.
II. By this sin they fell from their original righteousness
and communion with God, and so became dead in sin, and wholly defiled in
all the faculties and parts of soul and body.
III. They being the root of mankind, the guilt of this
sin was imputed, and the same death in sin and corrupted nature conveyed
to all their posterity, descending from them by original generation.
IV. From this original corruption, whereby we are utterly
indisposed, disabled, and made opposite to all good, and wholly inclined
to all evil, do proceed all actual transgressions.
V. This corruption of nature, during this life, doth
remain in those that are regenerated; and although it be through Christ
pardoned and mortified, yet both itself, and all the motions thereof, are
truly and properly sin.
VI. Every sin, both original and actual, being a transgression
of the righteous law of God, and contrary thereunto, doth, in its own nature,
bring guilt upon the sinner, whereby he is bound over to the wrath of God,
and curse of the law, and so made subject to death, with all miseries spiritual,
temporal, and eternal.
I. The distance between God and the creature is so great,
that although reasonable creatures do owe obedience unto him as their Creator,
yet they could never have any fruition of him, as their blessedness and
reward, but by some voluntary condescencion on God's part, which he hath
been pleased to express by way of covenant.
II. The first covenant made with man was a covenant of
works, wherein life was promised to Adam, and in him to his posterity, upon
condition of perfect and personal obedience.
III. Man by his fall having made himself incapable of
life by that covenant, the Lord was pleased to make a second, commonly called
the covenant of grace: wherein he freely offered unto sinners life and salvation
by Jesus Christ, requiring of them faith in him, that they may be saved,
and promising to give unto all those that are ordained unto life, his Holy
Spirit, to make them willing and able to believe.
IV. This covenant of grace is frequently set forth in
the Scripture by the name of a testament, in reference to the death of Jesus
Christ, the testator, and to the everlasting inheritance, with all things
belonging to it, therein bequeathed.
V. This covenant was differently administered in the
time of the law, and in the time of the gospel: under the law it was administered
by promises, prophecies, sacrifices, circumcision, the paschal lamb, and
other types and ordinances delivered to the people of the Jews, all fore-signifying
Christ to come, which were for that time sufficient and efficacious, through
the operation of the Spirit, to instruct and build up the elect in faith
in the promised Messiah, by whom they had full remission of sins, and eternal
salvation, and is called the Old Testament.
VI. Under the gospel, when Christ the substance was exhibited,
the ordinances in which this covenant is dispensed, are the preaching of
the Word, and the administration of the sacraments of Baptism and the Lord's
Supper; which, though fewer in number, and administered with more simplicity
and less outward glory, yet in them it is held forth in more fulness, evidence,
and spiritual efficacy, to all nations, both Jews and Gentiles; and is called
the New Testament. There are not, therefore, two covenants of grace differing
in substance, but one and the same under various dispensations.
I. It pleased God, in his eternal purpose, to choose
and ordain the Lord Jesus, his only-begotten Son, to be the Mediator between
God and men, the prophet, priest, and king; the head and Savior of the Church,
the heir or all things, and judge of the world; unto whom he did, from all
eternity, give a people to be his seed, and to be by him in time redeemed,
called, justified, sanctified, and glorified.
II. The Son of God, the second Person in the Trinity,
being very and eternal God, of one substance, and equal with the Father,
did, when the fullness of time was come, take upon him man's nature, with
all the essential properties and common infirmities thereof; yet without
sin: being conceived by he power of the Holy Ghost, in the womb of the Virgin
Mary, of her substance. So that two whole, perfect, and distinct natures,
the Godhead and the manhood, were inseparably joined together in one person,
without conversion, composition, or confusion. Which person is very God
and very man, yet one Christ, the only Mediator between God and man.
III. The Lord Jesus in his human nature thus united to
the divine, was sanctified and anointed with the Holy Spirit above measure;
having in him all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, in whom it pleased
the Father that all fullness should dwell: to the end that being holy, harmless,
undefiled, and full of grace and truth, he might be thoroughly furnished
to execute the office of a Mediator and Surety. Which office he took not
unto himself, but was thereunto called by his Father; who put all power
and judgment into his hand, and gave him commandment to execute the same.
IV. This office the Lord Jesus did most willingly undertake,
which, that he might discharge, he was made under the law, and did perfectly
fulfill it; endured most grievous torments immediately in his soul, and
most painful sufferings in his body; was crucified and died; was buried,
and remained under the power of death, yet saw no corruption. On the third
day he arose from the dead, with the same body in which he suffered; with
which also he ascended into heaven, and there sitteth at the right hand
of his Father, making intercession; and shall return to judge men and angels,
at the end of the world.
V. The Lord Jesus, by his perfect obedience and sacrifice
of himself, which he through the eternal Spirit once offered up unto God,
hath fully satisfied the justice of his Father; and purchased not only reconciliation,
but an everlasting inheritance in the kingdom of heaven, for all those whom
the Father hath given unto him.
VI. Although the work of redemption was not actually
wrought by Christ till after his incarnation, yet the virtue, efficacy,
and benefits thereof were communicated into the elect, in all ages successively
from the beginning of the world, in and by those promises, types, and sacrifices
wherein he was revealed, and signified to be the seed of the woman, which
should bruise the serpant's head, and the Lamb slain from the beginning
of the world, being yesterday and today the same and for ever.
VII. Christ, in the work of mediation, acteth according
to both natures; by each nature doing that which is proper to itself; yet
by reason of the unity of the person, that which is proper to one nature
is sometimes, in Scripture, attributed to the person denominated by the
other nature.
VIII. To all those for whom Christ hath purchased redemption,
he doth certainly and effectually apply and communicate the same; making
intercession for them, and revealing unto them, in and by the Word, the
mysteries of salvation; effectually persuading them by his Spirit to believe
and obey; and governing their hearts by his Word and Spirit; overcoming
all their enemies by his almighty power and wisdom, in such manner and ways
as are most consonant to his wonderful and unsearchable dispensation.
I. God hath endued the will of man with that natural
liberty, that is neither forced, nor by any absolute necessity of nature
determined to good or evil.
II. Man, in his state of innocency, had freedom and power
to will and to do that which is good and well-pleasing to God; but yet mutably,
so that he might fall from it.
III. Man, by his fall into a state of sin, hath wholly
lost all ability of will to any spiritual good accompanying salvation; so
as a natural man, being altogether averse from that good, and dead in sin,
is not able, by his own strength, to convert himself, or to prepare himself
thereunto.
IV. When God converts a sinner and translates him into
the state of grace, he freeth him from his natural bondage under sin, and,
by his grace alone, enables him freely to will and to do that which is spiritually
good; yet so as that, by reason of his remaining corruption, he doth not
perfectly, nor only, will that which is good, but doth also will that which
is evil.
V. The will of man is made perfectly and immutable free
to good alone, in the state of glory only.
I. All those whom God hath predestinated unto life,
and those only, he is pleased, in his appointed and accepted time, effectutlly
to call, by his Word and Spirit, out of that state of sin and death in which
they are by nature, to grace and salvation by Jesus Christ: enlightening
their minds, spiritually and savingly, to understand the things of God,
taking away their heart of stone, and giving unto them an heart of flesh;
renewing their wills, and by his almighty power determining them to that
which is good; and effectually drawing them to Jesus Christ; yet so as they
come most freely, being made willing by his grace.
II. This effectual call is of God's free and special
grace alone, not from any thing at all foreseen in man, who is altogether
passive therein, until, being quickened and renewed by the Holy Spirit,
he is thereby enabled to answer this call, and to embrace the grace offered
and conveyed in it.
III. Elect infants, dying in infance, are regenerated
and saved by Christ through the Spirit, who worketh when, and where, and
how he pleaseth. So also are all other elect persons who are incapable of
being outwardly called by the ministry of the Word.
IV. Others, not elected, although they may be called
by the ministry of the Word, and may have some common operations of the
Spirit, yet they never truly come to Christ, and therefore can not be saved:
much less can men, not professing the Christian religion, be saved in any
other way whatsoever, be they never so diligent to frame their lives according
to the light of nature, and the law of that religion they do profess; and
to assert and maintain that they may is without warrant of the Word of God.
I. Those whom God effectually calleth, he also freely
justifieth: not by infusing righteousness into them, but by pardoning their
sins, and by accounting and accepting their persons as righteous; not for
any thing wrought in them, or done by them, but for Christ's sake alons;
not by imputing faith itself, the act of believing, or any other evangelical
obedience to them, as their righteousness; but by imputing the obedience
and satisfaction of Christ unto them, they receiving and resting on him
and his righteousness by faith; which faith they have not of themselves,
it is the gift of God.
II. Faith, thus receiving and resting on Christ and
his righteousness, is the alone instrument of justification; yet is it not
alone in the person justified, but is ever accompanied with all other saving
graces, and is no dead faith, but worketh by love.
III. Christ, by his obedience and death, did fully discharge
the debt of all those that are thus justified, and did make a proper, real,
and full satisfaction o his Father's justice in their behalf. Yet inasmuch
as he was given by the Father for them, and his obedience and satisfaction
accepted in their stead, and both freely, not for any thing in them, their
justification is only of free grace, that both the exact justice and rich
grace of God might be glorified in the justification of sinners.
IV. God did, from all eternity, decree to justify the
elect; and Christ did, in the fullness of time, die for their sins and rise
again for their justification; nevertheless they are not justified until
the Holy Spirit doth, in due time, actually apply Christ unto them.
V. God doth continue to forgive the sins of those that
are justified; and although they can never fall from the state of justification,
yet they may by their sins fall under God's Fatherly displeasure, and not
have the light of his countenance restored unto them, until they humble
themselves, confess their sins, beg pardon, and renew their faith and repentance.
VI. The justification of believers under the Old Testament
was, in all these respect, one and the same with the justification of believers
under the New Testament.
All those that are justified, God vouchsafeth, in and
for his only Son Jesus Christ, to make partakers of the grace of adoption:
by which they are taken into the number, and enjoy the liberties and privileges
of the children of God; have his name put upon them; receive the Spirit
of adoption; have access to the throne of grace with boldness; are enabled
to cry, Abba, Father; are pitied, protected, provided for, and chastened
by his as by a father; yet never cast off, but sealed to the day of redemption,
and inherit the promises, as heirs of everlasting salvation.
I. They who are effectually called and regenerated,
having a new heart and a new spirit created in them, are further sanctified,
really and personally, through the virtue of Christ's death and resurrection,
by his Word and Spirit dwelling in them; the dominion of the whole body
of sin is destroyed, and the several lusts thereof are more and more weakened
and mortified, and they more and more quickened and strengthened, in all
saving graces, to the practice of true holiness, without which no man shall
see the Lord.
II. This sanctification is throughout in the whole man,
yet imperfect in this life: there abideth still some remnants of corruption
in every part, whence ariseth a continual and irreconcilable war, the flesh
lusting against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh.
III. In which war, although the remaining corruption
for a time may much prevail, yet, through the continual supply of strength
rom the sanctifying Spirit of Christ, the regerate part doth overcome: and
sothe saints grow in grace, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
I. The grace of faith, whereby the elect are enabled
to believe to the saving of their souls, is the work of the Spirit of Christ
in their hearts; and is ordinarily wrought by the ministry of the Word:
by which also, and by the administration of the sacraments, and prayer,
it is increased and strengthened.
II. By this faith, a Christian believeth to be true
whatesoever is revealed in the Word, for the authority of god himself speaking
therein; and acteth differently, upon that which each particular passage
thereof containeth; yielding obedience to the commands, trembling at the
threatenings, and embracing the promises of God for this life, and that
which is to come. But the principle acts of saving faith are, accepting,
receiving, and resting upon Christ alone for justification, sanctification,
and eternal life, by virtue of the covenant of grace.
III. This faith is different in degrees, weak or strong;
may be often and many ways assailed and weakened, but gets the victory;
growing up in many to the attainment of a full assurance through Christ,
who is both the author and finisher of our faith.
I. Repentance unto life is an evangelical grace, the
doctrine whereof is to be preached by every minister of the gospel, as well
as that of faith in Christ.
II. By it a sinner, out of the sight and sense, not
only of the danger, but also of the filthiness and odiousness of his sins,
as contrary to the holy nature and righteous law of God, and upon the apprehension
of his mercy in Christ to such as are penitent, so grieves for, and hates
his sins, as to turn from them all unto God, purposing and endeavoring to
walk with him in all the ways of his commandments.
III. Although repentance be not to be rested in as any
satisfaction for sin, or any cause of the pardon thereof, which is the act
of God's free grace in Christ; yet is it of such necessity to all sinners,
that none may expect pardon without it.
IV. As there is no sin so small but it deserves damnation;
so there is no sin so great that it can bring damnation upon those who truly
repent.
V. Men ought not to content themselves with a general
repentance, but it is every man's duty to endeavor to repent of his particular
sins, particularly.
VI. As every man is bound to make private confession
of his sins to God, praying for the pardon thereof, upon which, and the
forsaking of them, he shall find mercy: so he that scandelizeth his brother,
or the Church of Christ, ought to be willing, by a private or public confession
and sorrow for his sin, to declare his repentance to those that are offended;
who are thereupon to be reconciled to him, and in love to receive him.
I. Good works are only such as God hath commanded in
his holy Word, and not such as, without the warrant thereof, are devised
by men out of blind zeal, or upon any pretense of good intention.
II. These good works, done in obedience to God's commandments,
are the fruits and evidences of a true and lively faith: and by them believers
manifest their thankfulness, strengthen their assurance, edify their brethren,
adorn the profession of the gospel, stop the mouths of the adversaries,
and glorify God, whose workmanship they are, created in Christ Jesus thereunto,
that, having their fruit unto holiness, they may have the end, eternal life.
III. Their ability to do good works is not at all of
themselves, but wholly from the Spirit of Christ. And that they may be enabled
thereunto, besides the graces they have already received, there is required
an actual influence of the same Holy Spirit to work in them to will and
to do of his good pleasure; yet are they not hereupon to grow negligent,
as if they were not bound to perform any duty unless upon a special motion
of the Spirit; but they ought to be diligent in stirring up the grace of
God that is in them.
IV. They, who in their obedience, attain to the greatest
height which is possible in this life, are so far from being able to supererogate
and to do more than God requires, that they fall short of much which in
duty they are bound to do.
V. We can not, by our best works, merit pardon of sin,
or eternal life, at the hand of God, because of the great disproportion
that is between them and the glory to come, and the infinite distance that
is between us and God, whom by them we can neither profit, nor satisfy for
the debt of our former sins; but when we have done all we can, we have done
but our duty, and are unprofitable servants: and because, as they are good,
they proceed from his Spirit; and as they are wrought by us, they are defiled
and mixed with so much weakness and imperfection that they can not endure
the severity of God's judgment.
VI. Yet notwithstanding, the persons of believers being
accepted through Christ, their good works also are accepted in him, not
as though they were in this life wholly unblamable and unreprovable in God's
sight; but that he, looking upon them in his Son, is pleased to accept and
reward that which is sincere, although accompanied with many weaknesses
and imperfections.
VII. Works done by unregenerate men, although for the
matter of them they may be things which God commands, and of good use both
to themselves and others; yet, because they proceed not from a heart purified
by faith; nor are done in a right manner, according to the Word; nor to
a right end, the glory of God; they are therefore sinful and can not please
God, or make a man meet to receive grace from God. And yet their neglect
of them is more sinful, and displeasing unto God.
I. They whom God hath accepted in his Beloved, effectually
called and sanctified by his Spirit, can neither totally nor finally fall
away from the state of grace; but shall certainly persevere therein to the
end, and be eternally saved.
II. This perseverance of the saints depends, not upon
their own free-will, but upon the immutability of the decree of election,
flowing from the free and unchangeable love of God the Father; upon the
efficacy of the merit and intercession of Jesus Christ; the abiding of the
Spirit and of the seed of God within them; and the nature of the covenant
of grace; from all which ariseth also the certainty and infallibility thereof.
III. Nevertheless they may, through the temptations
of Satan and of the world, the prevelancy of corruption remaining in them,
and the neglect of the means of their perseverance, fall into grievous sins;
ad for a time continue therein: whereby they incur God's displeasure, and
grieve his Holy Spirit; come to be deprived of some measure of their graces
and comforts; have their hearts hardened, and their consciences wounded;
hurt and scandalize others, and bring temporal judgments upon theselves.
I. Although hypocrites, and other unregenerate men,
may vainly deceive themselves with false hopes and carnal presumptions:
of being in the favor of God and estate of salvation; which hope of theirs
shall perish: yet such as truly believe in the Lord Jesus, and love him
in sincerity, endeavoring to walk in all good conscience before him, may
in this life be certainly assured that they are in a state of grace, and
may rejoice in the hope of the glory of God: which hope shall never make
them ashamed.
II. This certainty is not a bare conjectural and probably
persuasion, grounded upon a fallible hope; but an infallible assurance of
faith, founded upon the divine truth of the promises of salvation, the inward
evidence of those graces unto which these promises are made, the testimony
of the Spirit of adoption witnessing with our spirits that we are the children
of God; which Spirit is the earnest of our inheritance, whereby we are sealed
to the day of redemption.
III. This infallible assurance doth not so belong to
the essence of faith but that a true believer may wait long and conflict
with many difficulties before he be partaker of it: yet, being enabled by
the Spirit to know the things which are freely given him of God, he may,
without extraordinary revelation, in the right use of ordinary means, attain
thereunto. And therefore it is the duty of everyone to give all diligence
to make his calling and election sure; that thereby his heart may be enlarged
in peace and joy in the Holy Ghost, in love and thankfulness to God, and
in strength and cheerfulness in the duties of obedience, the proper fruits
of this assurance: so far is it from inclining men to looseness.
IV. True believers may have the assurance of their salvation
divers ways shaken, diminished, and intermitted; as, by negligence in preserving
of it; by falling into some special sin, which woundeth the conscience,
and grievth the Spirit; by some sudden or vehement temptation; by God's
withdrawing the light of his countenance and suffering even such as fear
him to walk in darkness and to have no light: yet are they never utterly
destitute of that seed of God, and life of faith, that love of Christ and
the brethren, that sincerity of heart and conscience of duty, out of which,
by the operation of the Spirit, this assurance may in due time be revived,
and by the which, in the meantime, they are supported from utter despair.
I. God gave to Adam a law, as a covenant of works, by
which he bound him and all his posterity to personal, entire, exact, and
perpetual obedience; promised life upon the fulfilling, and threatened death
upon the breach of it; and endued him with power and ability to keep it.
II. This law, after his Fall, continued to be a perfect
rule of righteousness; and, as such, was delivered by God upon mount Sinai
in ten commandments, and written in two tables; the first four commandments
containing our duty toward God, and the other six our duty to man.
III. Besides this law, commonly called moral, God was
pleased to give to the people of Israel, as a Church under age, ceremonial
laws, containing several typical ordinances, partly of worship, prefiguring
Christ, his graces, actions, sufferings, and benefits; and partly holding
forth divers instructions of moral duties. All which ceremonial laws are
now abrogated under the New Testament.
IV. To them also, as a body politic, he gave sundry
judicial laws, which expired together with the state of that people, not
obliging any other, now, further than the general equity thereof may require.
V. The moral law doth forever bind all, as well justified
persons as others, to the obedience thereof; and that not only in regard
of the matter contained in it, but also in respect of the authority of God
the Creator who gave it. Neither doth Christ in the gospel any way dissolve,
but much strengthen, this obligation.
VI. Although true believers be not under the law as
a covenant of works, to be thereby justified or condemned; yet is it of
great use to them, as well as to others; in that, as a rule of life, informing
them of the will of God and their duty, it directs and binds them to walk
accordingly; discovering also the sinful pollutions of their nature, hearts,
and lives; so as, examining themselves thereby, they may come to further
conviction of, humiliation for, and hatred against sin; together with a
clearer sight of the need they have of Christ, and the perfection of his
obedience. It is likewise of use to the regenerate, to restrain their corruptions,
in that it forbids sin, and the threatenings of it serve to show what even
their sins deserve, and what afflictions in this life they may expect for
them, although freed from the curse thereof threatened in the law. The promises
of it, in like manner, show them God's approbation of obedience, and what
blessings they may expect upon the performance thereof; although not as
due to them by the law as a covenant of works: so as a man's doing good,
and refraining from evil, because the law encourageth to the one, and deterreth
from the other, is no evidence of his being under the law, and not under
grace.
VII. Neither are the forementioned uses of the law contrary
to the grace of the gospel, but do sweetly comply with it: the Spirit of
Christ subduing and enabling the will of man to do that freely and cheerfully,
which the will of God, revealed in the law, requireth to be done.
I. The liberty which Christ hath purchased for believers
under the gospel consists in their freedom from the guilt of sin, the condemning
wrath of God, the curse of the moral law; and in their being delivered from
thos present evil world, bondage to Satan, and dominion of sin, from the
evil of afflictions, the sting of death, the victory of the grave, and everlasting
damnation; as also in their free access to God, and their yielding obedience
unto him, not out of slavish fear, but a childlike love, and a willing mind.
All which were common also to believers under the law; but under the New
Testament the liberty of Christians is further enlarged in their freedom
from the yoke of the ceremonial law, to which the Jewish Church was subjected;
and in greater boldness of access to the throne of grace, and in fuller
communications of the free Spirit of God, than believers under the law did
ordinarily partake of.
II. God alone is Lord of the conscience, and hath left
it free from the doctrines and commandments of men which are in any thing
contrary to his Word, or beside it in matters of faith on worship. So that
to believe such doctrines, or to obey such commandments out of conscience,
is ts betray true liberty of conscience; and the requiring an implicit faith,
and an absolute and blind obedience, is to destroy liberty of conscience,
and reason also.
III. They who, upon pretense of Christian liberty, do
practice any sin, or cherish any lust, do thereby destroy the end of Christian
liberty; which is, that, being delivered out of the hands of our enemies,
we might serve the Lord without fear, in holiness and righteousness before
him, all the days of our life.
IV. And because the powers which God hath ordained,
and the liberty which Christ hath purchased, are not intended by God to
destroy, but mutually to uphold and preserve one another; they who, upon
pretense of Christian liberty, shall oppose any lawful power, or the lawful
exercise of it, whether it be civil or ecclesiastical, resist the ordinance
of God. And for their publishing of such opinions, or maintaining of such
practices, as are contrary to the light of nature, or to the known principles
of Christianity, whether concerning faith, worship, or conversation; or
to the power of godliness; or such erroneous opinions or practices as, either
in their own nature, or in the manner of publishing or maintaining them,
are destructive to the external peace and order which Christ hath established
in the Church: they may be lawfully called to account, and proceeded against
by the censures of the Church, and by the power of the Civil Magistrate.
I. The light of nature showeth that there is a God,
who hath lordship and sovereignty over all; is good, and doeth good unto
all; and is therefore to be feared, loved, praised, called upon, trusted
in, and served with all the hearth, and with all the soul, and with all
the might. But the acceptable way of worshipping the true God is instituted
by himself, and so limited by his own revealed will, that he may not be
worshipped according to the imaginations and devices of men, or the suggestions
of Satan, under any visible representation or any other way not prescribed
in the holy Scripture.
II. Religious worship is to be given to God, the Father,
Son, and Holy Ghost; and to him alone: not to angels, saints, or any other
creature: and since the Fall, not without a Mediator; nor in the mediation
of any other but of Christ alone.
III. Prayer with thanksgiving, being one special part
of religious worship, is by God required of all men; and that it may be
accepted, it is to be made in the name of the Son, by the help of his Holy
Spirit, according to his will, with understanding, reverence, humility,
fervency, faith, love, and perseverance; and, if vocal, in a known tongue.
IV. Prayer is to be made for things lawful, and for
all sorts of men living, or that shall live hereafter; but not for the dead,
nor for those of whom it may be known that they have sinned the sin unto
death.
V. The reading of the Scriptures with godly fear; the
sound preaching, and conscionable hearing of the Word, in obedience unto
God with understanding, faith, and reverence; singing of psalms with grace
in the heart; as, also, the due administration and worthy receiving of the
sacraments instituted by Christ; are all parts of the ordinary religious
worship of God: besides religious oaths, and vows, solemn fastings, and
thanksgivings upon special occasion; which are, in their several times and
seasons, to be used in an holy and religious manner.
VI. Neither prayer, nor any other part of religious
worship, is now, under the gospel, either tied unto, or made more acceptable
to, any place in which it is performed, or towards which it is directed:
but God is to be worshipped everywhere in spirit and in truth; as in private
families daily, and in secret each one by himself, so more solemnly in the
public assemblies, which are not carelessly or willfully to be neglected
or forsaken, when God, by his Word or providence, calleth thereunto.
VII. As it is of the law of nature, that, in general,
a due proportion of time be set apart for the worship of God; so, in his
Word, by a positive, moral, and perpetual commandment, binding all men in
all ages, he hath particularly appointed one day in seven for a Sabbath,
to be kept holy unto him: which, from the beginning of the world to the
resurrection of Christ, was the last day of the week; and, from the resurrection
of Christ, was changed into the first day of the week, which in Scripture
is called the Lord's Day, and is to be continued to the end of the world
as the Christian Sabbath.
VIII. This Sabbath is to be kept holy unto the Lord
when men, after a due preparing of their hearts, and ordering of their common
affairs beforehand, do not only observe an holy rest all the day from their
own works, words, and thoughts about their wordly employments and recreations;
but also are taken up the whole time in the public and private exercises
of his worship, and in the duties of necessity and mercy.
I. A lawful oath is a part of religious worship, wherein
upon just occasion, the person swearing solemnly calleth God to witness
what he asserteth or promiseth; and to judge him according to the truth
or falsehood of what he sweareth.
II. The name of God only is that by which men ought
to swear, and therein it is to be used with all holy fear and reverence;
therefore to swear vainly or rashly by that glorious and dreadful name,
or to swear at all by any other thing, is sinful, and to be abhorred. Yet,
as, in matters of weight and moment, an oath is warranted by the Word of
God, under the New Testament, as well as under the Old, so a lawful oath,
being imposed by lawful authority, in such matters ought to be taken.
III. Whosoever taketh an oath ought duly to consider
the weightiness of so solemn an act, and therein to avouch nothing but what
he is fully persuaded is the truth. Neither may any man bind himself by
oath to any thing but what is good and just, and what he believeth so to
be, and what he is able and resolved to perform. Yet it is a sin to refuse
an oath touching any thing that is good and just, being imposed by lawful
authority.
IV. An oath is to be taken in the plain and common sense
of the words, without equivocation or mental reservation. It can not oblige
to sin; but in any thing not sinful, being taken, it binds to performance,
although to a man's own hurt: nor is it to be violated, although made to
heretics or infidels.
V. A vow is of the like nature with a promissory oath,
and ought to be made with the like religious care, and to be performed with
the like faithfulness.
VI. It is not to be made to any creature, but to God
alone: and that it may be accepted, it is to be made voluntarily, out of
faith and conscience of duty, in way of thankfulness for mercy received,
or for obtaining of what we want; whereby we more strictly bind ourselves
to necessary duties, or to other things, so far and so long as they may
fitly conduce thereunto.
VII. No man may vow to do any thing forbidden in the
Word of God, or what would hinder any duty therein commanded, or which is
not in his own power, and for the performance of which he hath no promise
or ability from God. In which respects, monastical vows of perpetual single
life, professed poverty, and regular obedience, are so far from being degrees
of higher perfection, that they are superstitious and sinful snares, in
which no Christian may entangle himself.
I. God, the Supreme Lord and King of all the world,
hath ordained civil magistrates to be under him over the people, for his
own glory and the public good; and to this end, hath armed them with the
power of the sword, for the defense and encouragement of them that are good,
and for the punishment of evil-doers.
II. It is lawful for Christians to accept and execute
the office of a magistrate when called thereunto; in the managing whereof,
as they ought especially to maintain piety, justice, and peace, according
to the wholesome laws of each commonwealth, so, for that end, they may lawfully,
now under the New Testament, wage war upon just and necessary occasions.
III. Civil magistrates may not assume to themselves
the administration of the Word and Sacraments; or the power of the keys
of the kingdom of heaven; or, in the least, interfere in matters of faith.
Yet, as nursing fathers, it is the duty of civil magistrates to protect
the Church of our common Lord, without giving the preference to any denomination
of Christians above the rest, in such a manner that all ecclesiastical persons
whatever shall enjoy the full, free, and unquestioned liberty of discharging
every aprt of their sacred functions, without violence or danger. And, as
Jesus Christ hath appointed a regular government and discipline in his Church,
no law of any commonwealth should interfere with, let, or hinder, the due
exercise thereof, among the voluntary members of any denomination of Christians,
according to their own profession of belief. It is the duty of civil magistrates
to protect the person and good name of all their people, in such an effectual
manner as that no person be suffered, either upon pretense of religion or
infidelity, to offer any indignity, violence, abuse, or injury to any other
person whatsoever: and to take order, that all religious and ecclesiastical
assemblies be held without molestation or disturbance.
IV. It is the duty of the people to pray for magistrates,
to honor their persons, to pay them tribute and other dues, to obey their
lawful commands, and to be subject to their authority, for conscience' sake.
Infidelity, or difference in religion, doth not make boid the magistrate's
just and legal authority, nor free the people from their obedience to him:
from which ecclesiastical persons are not exempted; much less hath the Pope
any power or jurisdiction over them in their dominions, or over any of their
people; and least of all to deprive them of their dominions or lives, if
he shall judge them to be heretics, or upon any other pretense whatsoever.
I. Marriage is to be between one man and one woman:
neither is it lawful for any man to have more than one wife, nor for any
woman to have more than one husband at the same time.
II. Marriage was ordained for the mutual help of husband
and wife; for the increase of mankind with a legitimate issue, and of the
Church with an holy seed; and for preventing of uncleanness.
III. It is lawful for all sorts of people to marry who
are able with judgment to give their consent. Yet it is the duty of Christians
to marry only in the Lord. And, therefore, such as profess the true reformed
religion should not marry with infidels, Papists, or other idolaters: neither
should such as are godly be unequally yoked, by marrying with such as are
notoriously wicked in their life, or maintain damnable heresies.
IV. Marriage ought not to be within the degrees of consanguinity
or affinity forbidden in the Word; nor can such incestuous marriages ever
be made lawful by any law of man, or consent of parties, so as those persons
may live together, as man and wife. The man may not marry any of his wife's
kindred nearer in blood than he may of his own, nor the woman of her husband's
kindred nearer in blood than of her own.
V. Adultery or fornication, committed after a contract,
being detected before marriage, giveth just occasion to the innocent party
to dissolve that contract. In the case of adultery after marriage, it is
lawful for the innocent party to sue out a divorce, and after the divorce
to marry another, as if the offending party were dead.
VI. Although the corruption of man be such as is apt
to study arguments, unduly to put asunder those whom God hath joined together
in marriage; yet nothing but adultery, or such willful desertion as can
no way be remedied by the Church or civil magistrate, is cause sufficient
of dissolving the bond of marriage; wherein a public and orderly course
of proceeding is to be observed; and the persons concerned in it, not left
to their own wills and discretion in their own case.
I. The catholic or universal Church, which is invisible,
consists of the whole number of the elect, that have been, are, or shall
be gathered into one, under Christ the head thereof; and is the spouse,
the body, the fullness of Him that filleth all in all.
II. The visible Church, which is also catholic or universal
under the gospel (not confined to one nation as before under the law), consists
of all those throughout the world that profess the true religion, together
with their children; and is the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ; the house
and family of God, through which men are ordinarily saved and union with
which is essential to their best growth and service.
III. Unto this catholic and visible Church, Christ hath
given the ministry, oracles, and ordinances of God, for the gathering and
perfecting of the saints, in this life, to the end of the world; and doth
by his own presence and Spirit, according to his promise, make them effectual
thereunto.
IV. This catholic Church hath been sometimes more, sometimes
less, visible. And particular Churches, which are members thereof, are more
or less pure, according as the doctrine of the gospel is taught and embraced,
ordinances administered, and public worship performed more or less purely
in them.
V. The purest Churches under heaven are subject both
to mixture and error: and some have so degenerated as to become apparently
no Churches of Christ. Nevertheless, there shall be always a Church on earth,
to worship God according to his will.
VI. There is no other head of the Church but the Lord
Jesus Christ: nor can the Pope of Rome in any sense be head thereof; but
is that Antichrist, that man of sin and son of perdition, that exalteth
himself in the Church against Christ, and all that is called God.
I. All saints that are united to Jesus Christ their
head, by his Spirit and by faith, have fellowship with him in his graces,
sufferings, death, resurrection, and glory: and, being united to one another
in love, they have communion in each other's gifts and graces, and are obliged
to the performance of such duties, public and private, as to conduce to
their mutual good, both in the inward and outward man.
II. Saints by profession, are bound to maintain an holy
fellowship and communion in the worship of God, and in performing such other
spiritual services as tend to their mutual edification; as also in relieving
each other in outward things, according to their several abilities and necesities.
Which communion, as God offereth opportunity, is to be extended unto all
those who, in every place, call upno the name of the Lord Jesus.
III. This communion which the saints have with Christ,
doth not make them in any wise partakers of the substance of the Godhead,
or to be equal with Christ in any respect: either of which to affirm, is
impious and blasphemous. Nor doth their communion one with another as saints,
take away or infringe the title or property which each man hath in his goods
and possessions.
I. Sacraments are holy signs and seals of the covenant
of grace, immediately instituted by God, to represent Christ and his benefits,
and to confirm our interest in him: as also to put a visible difference
between those that belong unto the Church, and the rest of thw world; and
solemnly to engage them to the service of God in Christ, according to his
Word.
II. There is in every sacrament a spiritual relation,
or sacramental union, between the sign and the thing signified; whence it
comes to pass that the names and effects of the one are attributed to the
other.
III. The grace which is exhibited in or by the sacraments,
rightly used, is not conferred by any power in them; neither doth the efficacy
of a sacrament depend upon the piety or intention of him that doth administer
it, but upon the work of the Spirit, and the word of institution, which
conatins, together with a precept authorizing the use thereof, a promise
of benefit to worthy receivers.
IV. There be only two sacraments ordained by Christ
our Lord in the gospels, that is to say, Baptism and the Supper of the Lord:
neither or which may be dispensed by any but a minister of the Word, lawfully
ordained.
V. The sacraments of the Old Testament, in regard of
the spiritual things thereby signified and exhibited, were, for substance,
the same with those of the New.
I. Baptism is a sacrament of the New Testament, ordained
by Jesus Christ, not only for the solemn admission of the party baptized
into the visible Church, but also to be unto him a sign and seal of the
covenant of grace, or his ingrafting into Christ, of regeneration, of remission
of sins, and of his giving up unto God, through Jesus Christ, to walk in
newness of life: which sacrament is, by Christ's own appointment, to be
continued in his Churchy until the end of the world.
II. The outward element to be used in the sacrament
is water, wherewith the party is to be baptized in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, by a minister of the gospel, lawfully
called thereunto.
III. Dipping of the person into the water is not necessary;
but baptism is rightly administered by pouring or sprinkling water upon
the person.
IV. Not only those that do actually profess faith in
and obedience unto Christ, but also the infants of one or both believing
parents are to be baptized.
V. Although it be a great sin to contemn or neglect
this ordinance, yet grace and salvation are not so inseparably annexed unto
it as that no person can be regenerated or saved without it, or that all
that are baptized are undoubtedly regenerated.
VI. The efficacy of baptism is not tied to that moment
of time wherein it is administered; yet, notwithstanding, by the right use
of this ordinancy the grace promised is not only offered, but really exhibited
and conferred by the Holy Ghost, to such (whether of age or infants) as
that grace belongeth unto, according to the counsel of God's own will, in
his appointed time.
VII. The sacrament of Baptism is but once to be administered
to any person.
I. Our Lord Jesus, in the night wherein he was betrayed,
instituted the sacrament of his body and blood, called the Lord's Supper,
to be observed in his Church unto the end of the world; for the perpetual
remembrance of the sacrifice of himself in his death, the sealing all benefits
thereof unto true believers, their spiritual nourishment and growth in him,
their further engagement in and to all duties which they owe unto him; and
to be a bond and pledge of their communion with him, and with each other,
as members of his mystical body.
II. In this sacrament Christ is not offered up to his
Father, nor any real sacrifice made at all for remission of sins of the
quick or dead, but a commemoration of that one offering up of himself, by
himself, upon the cross, once for all, and a spiritual oblation of all possible
praise unto God for the same; so that the Popish sacrifice of the mass,
as they call it, is most abominably injurious to Christ's one only sacrifice,
the alone propitiation for all the sins of the elect.
III. The Lord Jesus hath, in this ordinance, appointed
his ministers to declare his word of institution to the people, to pray,
and bless the elements of bread and wine, and thereby to set them apart
from a common to an holy use; and to take and break the bread, to take the
cup, and (they communicating also themselves) to give both to the communicants;
but to none who are not then present in the congregation.
IV. Private masses, or receiving this sacrament by a
priest, or any other, alone; as likewise the denial of the cup to the people;
worshipping the elements, the lifting them up, or carrying them about for
adoration, and the reserving them for any pretended religious use, are all
contrary to the nature of this sacrament, and to the institution of Christ.
V. The outward elements in this sacrament, duly set
apart to the uses ordained by Christ, have such relation to him crucified,
as that truly, yet sacramentally only, they are sometimes called by the
name of the thigns they represent, to wit, the body and blood of Christ;
albeit, in substance and nature, they still remain truly, and only, bread
and wine, as they were before.
VI. That doctrine which maintains a change of the substance
of bread and wine, into the substance of Christ's body and blood (commonly
called transubstantiation) by consecration of a priest, or by any other
way, is repugnant, not to Scripture alone, but even to common-sense and
reason; overthroweth the nature of the sacrament; and hath been, and is,
the cause of manifold superstitions, yea, of gross idolatries.
VII. Worthy receivers, outwardly partaking of the visible
elements in this sacrament, do then also inwardly by faith, really and indeed,
yet not carnally and corporally, but spiritually, receive and feed upon
Christ crucified, and all benefits of his death: the body and blood of Christ
being then not corporally or carnally in, with, or under the bread and wine;
yet as really, but spiritually, present to the faith of believers in that
ordinance, as the elements themselves are to their outward senses.
VIII. Although ignorant and wicked men receive the outward
elements in this sacrament, yet they receive not the thing signified thereby;
but by their unworthy coming thereunto are guilty of the body and blood
of the Lord, to their own damnation. Wherefore all ignorant and ungodly
persons, as they are unfit to enjoy communion with him, so are they unworthy
of the Lord's table, and can not, without great sin against Christ, while
they remain such, partake of these holy mysteries, or be admitted thereunto.
I. 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.
II. To these officers the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven
are committed, by virtue whereof they have power respectively to retain
and remit sins, to shut that kingdom against the impenitent, both by the
word and censures; and to open it unto penitent sinners, by the ministry
of the gospel, and by absolution from censures, as occasion shall require.
III. Church censures are necessary for the reclaiming
and gaining of offending brethren; for deterring of others from like offenses;
for purging out of that leaven which might infect the whole lump; for vindicating
the honor of Christ, and the holy profession of the gospel; and for preventing
the wrath of God, which might justly fall upon the Church, if they should
suffer his covenant, and the seals thereof, to be profaned by notorious
and obstinate offenders.
IV. For the better attaining of these ends, the officers
of the Church are to proceed by admonition, suspension from the sacrament
of the Lord's Supper for a season, and by excommunication from the Church,
according to the nature of the crime, and demerit of the person.
I. For the better government and further edification
of the Church, there ought to be such assemblies as are commonly called
synods or councils.
II. As magistrates may lawfully call a synod of ministers
and other fit persons to consult and advise with about matters of religion;
so, if magistrates be open enemies of the Church, the ministers of Christ,
of themselves, by virtue of their office, or they, with other fit persons,
upon delegation from their churches, may meet together in such assemblies.
III. It belongeth to synods and councils, ministerially,
to determine controversies of faith, and cases of conscience; to set down
rules and directions for the better ordering of the public worship of God,
and government of his Church; to receive complaints in cases of maladministration,
and authoritatively to determine the same: which decrees and determinations,
if consonant to the Word of God, are to be received with reverence and submission,
not only for their agreement with the Word, but also for the power whereby
they are made, as being an ordinance of God, appointed thereunto in his
Word.
[6.175] IV. All synods or councils since the apostles'
times, whether general or particular, may err, and many have erred; therefore
they are not to be made the rule of faith or practice, but to be used as
a help in both.
[6.176] V. Synods and councils are to handle or conclude
nothing but that which is ecclesiastical: and are not to intermeddle with
civil affairs which concern the commonwealth, unless by way of humble petition
in cases extraordinary; or by way of advice for satisfaction of conscience,
if they be thereunto required by the civil magistrate.
I. The bodies of men, after death, return to dust, and
see corruption; but their souls (which neither die nor sleep), having an
immortal subsistence, immediately return to God who gave them. The souls
of the righteous, being then made perfect in holiness, are received into
the highest heavens, where they behold the face of God in light and glory,
waiting for the full redemption of their bodies; and the souls of the wicked
are cast into hell, where they remain in torments and utter darkness, reserved
to the judgment of the great day. Besides these two places for souls separated
from their bodies, the Scripture acknowledgeth none.
II. At the last day, such as are found alive shall not
die, but be changed: and all the dead shall be raised up with the self-same
bodies, and none other, although with different qualities, which shall be
united again to their souls forever.
III. The bodies of the unjust shall, by the power of
Christ, be raised to dishonor; the bodies of the just, by his Spirit, unto
honor, and be made conformable to his own glorious body.
I. God hath appointed a day, wherein he will judge the
world in righteousness by Jesus Christ, to whom all power and judgment is
given of the Father. In which day, not only the apostate angels shall be
judged; but likewise all persons, that have lived upon earth, shall appear
before the tribunal of Christ, to give an account of their thoughts, words,
and deeds; and to receive according to what they have done in the body,
whether good or evil.
II. The end of God's appointing this day, is for the
manifestation of the glory of his mercy in the eternal salvation of the
elect; and of his justice in the damnation of the reprobate, who are wicked
and disobedient. For then shall the righteous go into everlasting life,
and receive that fullness of joy and refreshing which shall come from the
presence of the Lord: but the wicked, who know not God, and obey not the
gospel of Jesus Christ, shall be cast into eternal torments, and punished
with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the
glory of his power.
III. As Christ would have us to be certainly persuaded
that there shall be a day of judgment, both to deter all men from sin, and
for the greater consolation of the godly in their adversity: so will he
have that day unknown to men, that they may shake off all carnal security,
and be always watchful, because they know not at what hour the Lord will
come; and may be ever prepared to say, Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly. Amen.
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