What does saving faith do?
1. it yields obedience to God’s commands.
2. it trembles at God’s threatenings.
3. it embraces the promises of God.
(1689 Confession, 14. 2)
General
The Law in Man’s Creation
Chapter 6 states “God created man upright and perfect, and gave him a righteous law, which had been unto life had he kept it, and threatened death upon the breach thereof.” What law was this? It was nothing less than God’s moral law that belongs to the nature and character of God. It is by this law in man at creation that Paul can say in Romans 1 that all men (unbelieving people) know God (Rom. 1:19, 21, 32). As a result they are without excuse (Rom. 1:20) and it’s just downhill from here in every respect. [Read more…] about The Law in Man’s Creation
Humbled or Hardened
The Confession in the section on Divine Providence has two sections (1689. 5. 5, 6) that reveal how God deals with a believer and an unbeliever. (See Here). God acts upon the Christian to produce a humbling, but in the case of an unbeliever he hardens them. It is a fearful thing to deal with God.
The Word of God
The Confession opens with these startling words, “The Holy Scripture is the only sufficient, certain, and infallible rule of all saving knowledge, faith, and obedience…” It is that little word ‘only’ that holds the whole thing together. The first thing it does is to exclude everything that is not the Word of God. The second thing it does is to limit all saving knowledge, faith and obedience to the Scriptures. The things that pertain to salvation or more particularly to anyone being saved cannot be found anywhere else.. The third thing the statement does is to confine authority to the Word of God only. You cannot look elsewhere for a plan about salvation. Scripture is sufficient and certain and infallible. Sufficient meaning it does; certain meaning it is is, and infallible meaning it is without defect and incapable of it. The final thing we can says about this little statement is that God’s Word provides us with everything we need to know (knowledge), everything we need to believe (faith) and everything we must do (obedience). And there you go – you need nothing else. So tolle lege!
Confession Signatories
The following signed the Confession:
Hanserd Knollys Pastor Broken Wharf London
William Kiffin Pastor Devonshire-square London
John Harris Pastor Joiner’s Hall London
William Collins Pastor Petty France London
Hercules Collins Pastor Wapping London
Robert Steed Pastor Broken Wharf London
Leonard HarrisonPastor Limehouse London
George Barret Pastor Mile End Green London
Isaac Lamb Pastor Pennington-street London
Richard Adams Minister Shad Thames Southwark
Benjamin Keach Pastor Horse-lie-down Southwark
Andrew Gifford Pastor Bristol, Fryars Som. & Glouc.
Thomas Vaux Pastor Broadmead Som. & Glouc.
Thomas Winnel Pastor Taunton Som. & Glouc.
James Hitt Preacher Dalwood Dorset
Richard TidmarshMinister Oxford City Osen
William Facey Pastor Reading Berks
Samuel Buttall Minister Plymouth Devon
Christopher PriceMinister Abergavenny Monmouth
Daniel Finch Minister Kingsworth Herts
John Ball Minister Tiverton Devon
Edmond White Pastor Evershall Bedford
William PritchardPastor Blaenau Monmouth
Paul Fruin Minister Warwick Warwick
Richard Ring Pastor Southampton Hants
John Tompkins Minister Abingdon Berks
Toby Willes Pastor Bridewater Somerset
John Carter Steventon Bedford
James Webb Devizes Wilts.
Richard Sutton Pastor Tring Herts
Robert Knight Pastor Stukeley Bucks
Edward Price Pastor Hereford-City Hereford
William Phipps Pastor Exon Devon
William Hawkins Pastor Dimmock Gloucester
Samuel Ewer Pastor Hemstead Herts
Edward Man Pastor Houndsditch London
Charles Archer Pastor Hick-Norton Oxon
In the name of and on the behalf of the whole assembly.