Appendix I
The Proper Use of Creeds from The Scots
Confession 1560
Chapter XX
General Councils, Their Power,
Authority, and the Cause of Their Summoning
As we do not rashly condemn what good men, assembled
together in general council lawfully gathered, have set before us; so we
do not receive uncritically whatever has been declared to men under the
name of the general councils, for it is plain that, being human, some of
them have manifestly erred, and that in matters of great weight and
importance. So far then as the council confirmed its decrees by the plain
Word of God, so far do we reverence and embrace them. But if men, under
the name of a council, pretend to forge for us new articles of faith, or
to make decisions contrary to the Word of God, then we must utterly deny
them as the doctrine of devils, drawing our souls from the voice of the
One God to follow the doctrines and the teachings of men. The reason why
the general councils met was not to make any permanent law which God had
not made before, nor yet to form new articles for our belief, nor to give
the Word of God authority; much less to make that to be His Word, or even
the true interpretation of it, which was not expressed previously by His
holy will in His Word; but the reason for councils, at least to those that
deserve that name, was partly to refute heresies, and to give public
confession of their faith to the generations following, which they did by
the authority of God’s written Word, and not by any opinion or
prerogative, that they could not err by reason of their numbers. This, we
judge, was the primary reason for general councils. The second was that
good policy and order should be constituted and observed in the Kirk
[presbytery] where, as in the house of God, it becomes all things to be
done decently and in order. Not that we think any policy or order of
ceremonies can be appointed for all ages, times, and places; for as
ceremonies which men have devised are but temporal, so they may, and ought
to be, changed, where they foster superstitions rather than edify the
Kirk.
(Modern Translation by: James Bulloch, St. Andrews
Press, Edinburgh, 1960)
Appendix II
Proposed Changes to the WCF 1647
In the interests of honest subscription, we want to
state plainly here what portions of the WCF 1646 we believe could be
revised profitably by the church at large. The first section concerns
phrases which we believe require careful historical study so that the
contextual meaning of seventeenth century theologians may be understood.
The second section includes some exegetical concerns, and the third
reveals some theological disagreements.
Contextual concerns:
1. WCF VII.ii -- Change "covenant of works" to
"covenant of creation." The same of WCF XIX.i.
2. WCF XXV.vi -- Delete "but is that Antichrist, that
man of sin and son of perdition." This does not represent any softening of
the Reformed view of the Roman Catholic claims.
Exegetical concerns:
1. WCF I.viii -- Change "in Hebrew" to "in Hebrew and
Aramaic."
2. WCF XXVIII.iii -- Insert the word "also" between
"is" and "rightly."
3. WCF I-XXXIII - The Scripture proofs cited by the WCF
do not uniformly support the theological truths expressed in the articles
to which they refer.
Theological concerns:
1. WCF XXI.viii -- Replace "the whole time" with "with
rest."
2. WCF XXIII.iii -- Delete the last phrase, beginning
with "to provide that whatsoever..."
3. WCF XXV.i -- Delete "which is invisible."
4. WCF XXVII.iv -- Replace "by any but by" with
"without the oversight of," and follow the phrase "minister of the Word"
with "or elder."
As you can see, even though the above concerns are
substantive, we are in agreement with the overwhelming majority of
the WCF 1646. May God move on the hearts of His people everywhere to take
heed to their doctrine (1 Timothy 4:16) until it is evident to all
creation that there is indeed but one body, one Spirit, one hope, one
Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father of all (Ephesians
4:4-5).
Appendix III
Trinity Church--What We Believe
We believe God is the center of the universe, and
that man exists to glorify Him. We believe God sovereignly ordains
whatsoever comes to pass. We are evangelical in the historic sense
of the word. We believe God, through the death, burial, and resurrection
of His Son Jesus Christ, actually saves helpless, hell deserving sinners;
He does not merely assist them in saving themselves. We believe sinners
are saved by the grace of God alone, through the instrument of faith
alone, plus nothing.
We believe the Bible is the inerrant Word of God,
internally consistent, and the only rule for belief and practice.
We believe God's law is found in the Bible and is three-fold in purpose:
First, to drive the sinner to trust in Christ alone, the only perfect
law-keeper. Second, to provide a standard of obedience for the Christian,
by which he may measure his progress in sanctification. And third, to
maintain order in society, restraining and arresting evil in the civil
realm. Although we have a high regard for God’s law, we do heartily
condemn all forms of legalism -- the binding of men’s consciences by
man-made rules which exceed God’s revealed standard -- as hatred of God’s
law.
We believe in the existence of God because the
Bible says so, not because we can "prove" it. We do not try to convince
the unconverted that God is real. Unbelievers know God, but suppress their
knowledge of Him in wickedness. They need repentance, not evidence. Of
course we believe there is evidence for the Faith, in fact, we believe
that there is nothing but evidence for the Faith.
We believe Christ has been given all authority in
heaven and on earth, and has commanded and empowered His church to make
disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the triune
God, and teaching them to obey all that Christ has commanded. We believe
Satan is a defeated foe, and that Christ will reign till He has put all
enemies under His feet, and then comes the end.
We believe the earth and all its fullness is the Lord's
and that every area dominated by sin must be reconstructed in terms of the
Bible. This includes the individual, the family, the church, and society
at large, including the state. We firmly believe in the separation of
church and state, but not the separation of the state or anything else
from God. We declare the Lordship of Christ in every sphere through
the preaching of His Word with prayer, expecting eventual triumph.
We believe truth is absolute and that doctrine
matters. However, our doctrine does not define the boundaries of our
fellowship. Our basis for fellowship is a biblical confession of the
lordship of Jesus Christ, and the absence of a scandalous lifestyle.
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