I am convinced that honest and rigorous confessionalism is the answer to the problem (doctrinal error continues to invade churches). Confessionalism does several very positive things.

First, it causes us to embrace doctrinal humility. I notice that the reappraisals and defections come as a result of individual inquiry. When I set myself up as the doctrinal authority (or rely on some other individual to do the same), I set myself up as the standard and criteria for judgment. How often have I heard someone say “I have studied this matter and here is my conclusion . . . .”, a conclusion often novel or out of harmony with received doctrine. When I submit myself to the wisdom of the church, gathered over the ages, I am kept from assuming a place of authority. In reality, I am in a position of submission. At this point, someone will protest, but what about Scripture? Isn’t it an authority over the Confession? Well, of course, and it always must be so. But the problem is that I never read Scripture apart from my own gloss on Scripture. It is too easy for me to think that my reading of the Bible is necessarily the correct one.

Secondly, confessionalism ties us to the church past and present. A good Confession of faith will express doctrines always believed by Christians. This was one of the great issues of the Reformation. The Reformers viewed themselves, not as innovators, but as recoverers of the tradition (read this as doctrine and practice as in 2 Thess 2:13-15) of the apostles and their successors. I think it was Anthony Lane who wrote that the Reformation was, in one sense, a dispute over the proper interpretation of the Fathers. This is a brilliant observation, pointing up a very important aspect of Reformation thinking: the truth is not new, it is old. When we adopt a Confession, we are identifying with every group of Christians which has confessed the same doctrine, all the way back to the apostles. Confessions keep us from theological and practical novelty.

excerpt from Prof. James Renihan’s blog – Institute of Reformed Baptist Studies

Tags: Confession

This entry was posted on Wednesday, January 7th, 2009 at 10:44 am and is filed under 1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith, Church. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.