Survey of the Westminster Confession of Faith (Chapter 1 continued)

Survey of the Westminster Confession of Faith

Chapter 1

Of the Holy Scripture (Continued)

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 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.

The sixth section of Chapter 1 teaches that all which God wants us to know is to be found in the Scriptures; the Bible is all the information we need (note the Confession’s phrase “all things necessary”) pertaining to God’s glory, our salvation, faith and life. The Divines maintained that God’s word speaks to all of our concerns and circumstances in life. This characteristic of the Bible is known as its “sufficiency.”

This is not to say that the Bible is full of exhaustive detail as it speaks to us about God, ourselves and life. Rather, as the Confession points out, all that we need to know and all that God wished to disclose to us, is either “expressly set down in Scripture” or can be deduced from Scripture. Therefore, the Bible contains some details, of course, but it also teaches certain governing principles which are discovered through careful study.

Since the Bible is God’s word and not man’s, and since this revelation is complete and sufficient for our needs, the writers of the Confession conclude: “nothing at any time is to be added, whether by new revelations of the Spirit, or traditions of men.”

In their statements, the Westminster Divines acknowledge sinful man’s inability to know truth and the necessity, therefore, of guidance from outside himself. As we have noted previously, a belief in man’s lost and hopeless condition runs through this first chapter.

The Confession recognizes that some matters touching upon the worship of God and the government of the Church can be determined by “the light of nature and Christian prudence” but only “according to the general rules of the Word.” This means that in addition to specific statements of truth in the Bible, there are principles (we noted this earlier) which can be deduced from the Scriptures. These principles, in turn, can be applied to the worship and government of the Church. The Bible states truth implicitly as well as expressly; therefore, when the Bible teaches something by way of implication, it is still truth and is still binding.

We must be careful not to misunderstand what is being said. The Confession is not teaching that the worship of God is an open question; nor is it teaching that the government of the Church has not been specified in Scripture. What is meant is that the circumstances in which the stipulations of Scripture in these two areas are obeyed may vary.

For example, the place and time where we worship on Sunday is not specified in the Bible. Early Christians met “in the temple” and “from house to house” according to Acts 2:46; possession of a church building is not essential to the existence of a Christian church. While the elements of worship cannot be altered, the circumstances of worship might change.

Likewise, the details of church government are not specified in Scripture. The concept of presbyteries and general assemblies is seen in the New Testament, but the organization of such bodies and the circumstances of meetings are left open. This liberty of organization, it must be emphasized again, is subject to the principles of God’s word.

The potential for abuse of this teaching is obvious; the reality of its abuse can be readily observed in modern Christianity. There are some who meet for worship on Sunday only because it is traditional, not because they are convinced that the New Testament teaches Lord’s Day observance. Even some who believe the Church should gather on Sunday do not guard against the introduction of foreign elements into their worship. The same observation could be made about much of church government as it exists today.

The Confession is not sanctioning such abuses of Christian liberty. In spite of the certainty of misapplication, the Divines are saying what the Bible says. Mature Christianity can handle both responsibility and liberty. It is the immature and unstable who concentrate on one to the exclusion of the other.

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.

The Confession rightly admits that there are parts of Scripture that are more difficult to understand and interpret than others. It also recognizes differing degrees of ability among those who study the Bible. Indeed, there are parts that give rise to manifold interpretations; there are others concerning which no disagreement whatsoever is found (at least among those who share a common view of Scripture’s nature).

Note that the Confession endorses systematic study of the Bible in the phrase: “…so clearly propounded, and opened in some place of Scripture or other…” What has been called “proof-text theology” is not what the Divines had in mind. The serious student of the Bible does not build a doctrine on a single verse of Scripture or a limited collection of verses.

The writers of the Confession also note that the essentials of salvation are so plain in Scripture that the “unlearned” as well as the “learned” can discover them through “ordinary means.” This means one does not have to have special training to find out what the Bible says concerning the fundamental issue of salvation (and, we might add, a host of other subjects).

(To be continued)