1. God
We confess and acknowledge one God alone, to whom alone we must
cleave, whom alone we must serve, whom only we must worship, and in
whom alone we put our trust. Who is eternal, infinite, immeasurable,
incomprehensible, omnipotent, invisible; one in substance and yet distinct in
three persons, the father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. By whom we confess
all things in heaven and earth, visible and invisible, to have been created, to
be retained in their being, and to be ruled and guided by His inscrutable
providence for such end as His eternal wisdom, goodness, and justice have
appointed, and to the manifestation of His own glory.
2. The Creation of Man
We confess and acknowledge that our God has created man, ie, our first
father, Adam, after his own image and likeness, to whom He gave wisdom,
lordship, justice, free will, and self consciousness, so that in the whole
nature of man no imperfection could be found. From this dignity and
perfection man and woman both fell; the woman being deceived by the
serpent and man obeying the voice of the woman, both conspiring against
the sovereign majesty of God, who in clear words had previously threatened
death if they presumed to eat of the forbidden tree.
3. Original Sin
By this transgression, generally known as original sin, the image of God was
utterly defaced in man, and he and his children became by nature hostile to
God, slaves to Satan, and servants to sin. And thus everlasting death has had,
and shall have, power and dominion over all who have not been, are not, or
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shall not be reborn from above. This rebirth is wrought by the power of the
Holy Ghost creating in the hearts of God's chosen ones an assured faith in
the promise of God revealed to us in His Word; by this faith we grasp Christ
Jesus with the graces and blessings promised in him.
4. The Revelation of the Promise
We constantly believe that God, after the fearful and horrible departure of
man from His Obedience, did seek Adam again, call upon him, rebuke and
convict him of his sin, and in the end made unto him a most joyful promise,
that 'the seed of the woman should bruise the head of the serpent', that is,
that he should destroy the works of the devil. This promise was repeated and
made clearer from time to time; it was embraced with joy, and most
constantly received by all the faithful from Adam to Noah, from Noah to
Abraham, from Abraham to David, and so onwards to the incarnation of
Christ Jesus; all (we mean the believing fathers under the law) did see the
joyful day of Christ Jesus, and did rejoice.
5. The Continuance, Increase and Preservation of the
Kirk
We most surely believe that God preserved, instructed, multiplied, honoured,
adorned, and call from death to life His Kirk in all ages since Adam until the
coming of Christ Jesus, in the flesh. For he called Abraham from his father's
country, instructed him, and multiplied his seed; he marvellously preserved
him, and more marvellously delivered his seed from the bondage and
tyranny of Pharaoh; to them He gave His laws, constitutions, and
ceremonies; to them he gave the land of Canaan; after He had given them
judges, and afterwards Saul, He gave David to be king, to whom He gave
promise that of the fruit of his loins should one sit forever upon his royal
throne. To this same people from time to time He sent prophets, to recall
them to the right way of their God, from which sometimes they strayed by
idolatry. And although, because of their stubborn contempt for righteousness
He was compelled to give them into the hands of their enemies, as had
previously been threatened by the mouth of Moses, so that the whole city
was destroyed, the temple burned with fire, and the whole land desolate for
seventy years, yet in mercy He restored them again to Jerusalem, where the
city and temple were rebuilt, and they endured against all temptations and
assaults of Satan till the Messiah came according to the promise.
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6. The Incarnation of Christ Jesus
When the fulness of time came God sent His Son, His eternal Wisdom, the
substance of His own glory, into this world, who took the nature of humanity
from the substance of a woman, a virgin, by means of the Holy Ghost. And
so was born the 'Just seed of David', the 'Angel of the great counsel of God',
the very Messiah promised, whom we confess and acknowledge to be
Emmanuel, true God and true man, two perfect natures united and joined in
one person. So by our Confession we condemn the damnable and pestilent
heresies of Arius, Marcion, Eutyches, Nestorius, and such others as did
either deny the eternity of His Godhead, or the truth of his humanity, or
confounded them, or else divided them.
7. Why the Mediator had to be True God and True
Man
We acknowledge and confess that this wonderful union between the
Godhead and the humanity in Christ Jesus did arise from the eternal and
immutable decree of God from which all our salvation springs and depends.
8. Election
That same eternal God and Father, who by grace alone chose us in His Son
Christ Jesus before the foundation of the world was laid, appointed Him to
be our head, our brother, our pastor, and the great bishop of our souls. But
since the opposition between the justice of God and our sins was such that
no flesh by itself could or might have attained unto God, it behoved the Son
of God to descend unto us and take Himself a body of our body, flesh of our
flesh, and bone of our bone, and so become the Mediator between God and
man, giving power to as many as believe in Him to be the sons of God; as
He Himself says, 'I ascend to My Father and to your Father, to My God and
to your God'. By this holy brotherhood whatever we have lost in Adam is
restored to us again. Therefore we are not afraid to call God our Father, not
so much because He has created us, which we have in common with the
reprobate, as because He has given unto us His only Son to be our brother,
and given us grace to acknowledge and embrace Him as our only Mediator.
Further, it behoved the Messiah and Redeemer to be true God and true man,
because he was able to undergo the punishment of our transgressions and to
present Himself in the presence of His Father's Judgment, as in our stead, to
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suffer for our transgression and disobedience, and by death to overcome him
that was the author of death. But because the Godhead alone could not suffer
death, and neither could manhood overcome death, He joined both together
in one person, that the weakness of one should suffer and be subject to death
- which we had deserved - and the infinite and invincible power of the other,
that is, of the Godhead, should triumph, and purchase for us life, liberty, and
perpetual victory. So we confess, and most undoubtedly believe.
9. Christ's Death, Passion, and Burial
That our Lord Jesus offered Himself a voluntary sacrifice unto His Father
for us, that He suffered contradiction of sinners, that He was wounded and
plagued for our transgressions, that He, the clean innocent Lamb of God,
was condemned in the presence of an earthly judge, that we should be
absolved before the judgment seat of our God; that He suffered not only the
cruel death of the cross, which was accursed by the sentence of God; but
also that He suffered for a season the wrath of His Father which sinners had
deserved. But yet we avow that he remained the only, well beloved, and
blessed Son of His Father even in the midst of His anguish and torment
which He suffered in body and soul to make full atonement for the sins of
His people. From this we confess and avow that there remains no other
sacrifice for sins; if any affirm so, we do not hesitate to say that they are
blasphemers against Christ's death and the everlasting atonement thereby
purchased for us.
10. The Resurrection
We undoubtedly believe, since it was impossible that the sorrows of death
should retain in bondage the Author of Life, that our Lord Jesus crucified,
dead, and buried, who descended into hell, did rise again for our
justification, and the destruction of him who was the author of death, and
brought life again to us who were subject to death and its bondage. We know
that His resurrection was confirmed by the testimony of His enemies, and by
the resurrection of the dead, whose sepulchres did open, and they did rise
and appear to many within the city of Jerusalem. It was also confirmed by
the testimony of His angels, and by the senses and judgement of His
apostles, and of others, who had conversation, and did eat and drink with
Him after His resurrection.
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11. The Ascension
We do not doubt but that the selfsame body which was born of the virgin,
was crucified, dead and buried, and which did rise again, did ascend into the
heavens, for the accomplishment of all things, where in our name and for our
comfort He has received all power in heaven and earth, where He sits at the
right hand of the Father, having received His kingdom, the only advocate
and mediator for us. Which glory, honour, and prerogative, He alone
amongst the brethren shall possess till all His enemies are made His
footstall, as we undoubtedly believe they shall be in the Last Judgment. We
believe that the same Lord Jesus shall visibly return for this Last Judgment
as He was seen to ascend. And then, we firmly believe, the time of
refreshing and restitution of all things shall come, so that those who from the
beginning have suffered violence, injury, and wrong for righteousness' sake,
shall inherit that blessed immortality promised them from the beginning.
But, on the other hand, the stubborn, disobedient, cruel persecutors, filthy
persons, idolators, and all sorts of the unbelieving, shall be cast into the
dungeon of utter darkness, where their worm shall not die, nor their fire be
quenched. The remembrance of that day, and of the Judgment to be executed
in it, is not only a bridle by which our carnal lusts are restrained but also
such inestimable comfort that neither the threatening of worldly princes, nor
the fear of present danger or of temporal death, may move us to renounce
and forsake that blessed society which we, the members, have with our Head
and only Mediator, Christ Jesus: whom we confess and avow to be the
promised Messiah, the only Head of His Kirk, our just Lawgiver, our only
High Priest, Advocate, and Mediator. To which honours and offices, if man
or angel presume to intrude themselves, we utterly detest and abhor them, as
blasphemous to our sovereign and supreme Governor, Christ Jesus.
12. Faith in the Holy Ghost
Our faith and its assurance do not proceed from flesh and blood, that is to
say, from natural powers within us, but are the inspiration of the Holy Ghost;
whom we confess to be God, equal with the Father and the Son, who
sanctifies us, and brings us into all truth by His own working, without whom
we should remain forever enemies to God and ignorant of His Son, Christ
Jesus. For by nature we are so dead, blind, and perverse, that neither can we
feel when we are pricked, see the light when it shines, nor assent to the will
of God when it is revealed, unless the Spirit of the Lord Jesus quicken that
which is dead, remove the darkness from our minds, and bow our stubborn
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hearts to the obedience of His blessed will. And so, as we confess that God
the Father created us when we were not, as His Son our Lord Jesus
redeemed us when we were enemies to Him, so also do we confess that the
Holy Ghost does sanctify and regenerate us, without respect to any merit
proceeding from us , be it before or be it after our regeneration. To put this
even more plainly; as we willingly disclaim any honour and glory for our
own creation and redemption, so do we willingly also for our own
regeneration and sanctification; for by ourselves we are not capable of
thinking one good thought, but He who has begun the work in us alone
continues us in it; to the praise and glory of His undeserved grace.
13. The Cause of Good Works
The cause of good works, we confess, is not our free will, but the Spirit of
the Lord Jesus, who dwells in our hearts by true faith, brings forth such
works as God has prepared for us to walk in. For we most boldly affirm that
it is blasphemy to say that Christ abides in the hearts of them in whom is no
spirit of sanctification. Therefore we do not hesitate to affirm that murderers,
oppressors, cruel persecutors, adulterers, filthy persons, idolators, drunkards,
thieves, and all workers of iniquity, have neither true faith nor anything of
the Spirit of the Lord Jesus, so long as they obstinately continue in
wickedness. For as soon as the Spirit of the Lord Jesus, whom God's chosen
children receive by true faith, takes possession of the heart of any man, so
soon does He regenerate and renew him, so that he begins to hate what
before he loved, and to love what he hated before. Thence comes that
continual battle which is between the flesh and the Spirit in God's children,
while the flesh and the natural man, being corrupt, lust for things pleasant
and delightful to themselves, are envious in adversity and proud in
prosperity, and every moment prone and ready to offend the majesty of God.
But the Spirit of God, who bears witness to our spirit that we are the sons of
God, makes us resist filthy pleasures and groan in God's presence for
deliverance from this bondage of corruption, and finally to triumph over sin
so that it does not reign in our mortal bodies. Other men do not share this
conflict since they do not have God's Spirit, but they readily follow and obey
sin and feel no regrets, since they act as the devil and their corrupt nature
urge. But the sons of God fight against sin; sob and mourn when they find
themselves tempted to do evil; and, if they fall, rise again with earnest and
unfeigned repentance. They do these things, not by their own power, but by
the power of the Lord Jesus, apart from whom they can do nothing.
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14. The Works which are accounted Good Before God
We confess and acknowledge that God has given to man His holy law, in
which not only all such works as displease and offend His godly majesty are
forbidden, but also those which please Him and which He has promised to
reward are commanded. These works are of two kinds. The one is done to
the honour of God, the other to the profit of our neighbour, and both have
the revealed will of God as their assurance. To have one God, to worship
and honour Him, to call upon Him in our troubles, to reverence His holy
Name, to hear His Word and to believe it, and to share in His holy
sacraments, belong to the first kind. To honour father, mother, princes,
rulers, and superior powers; to love them, to support them, to obey their
orders if they are not contrary to the commands of God, to save the lives of
the innocent, to repress tyranny, to defend the oppressed, to keep our bodies
clean and holy, to live in soberness and temperance, to deal justly with all
men in word and deed, and, finally, to repress any desire to harm our
neighbour, are the good works of the second kind, and these are most
pleasing and acceptable to God as He has commanded them Himself. Acts to
the contrary are sins, which always displease Him and provoke Him to
anger, such as, not to call upon Him alone when we have need, not to hear
His Word with reverence, but to condemn and despise it, to have or worship
idols, to maintain and defend idolatry, lightly to esteem the reverend name
of God, to profane, abuse of condemn the sacraments of Christ Jesus, to
disobey or resist any whom God has placed in authority, so long as they do
not exceed the bounds of their office, to murder, or to consent thereto, to
bear hatred, or to let innocent blood be shed if we can prevent it. In
conclusion, we confess and affirm that the breach of any other
commandment of the first or second kind is sin, by which God's anger and
displeasure are kindled against the proud, unthankful world. So that we
affirm good works to be those alone which are done in faith and at the
command of God who, in His law, has set forth the things which please Him.
We affirm that evil works are not only those expressly done against God's
command, but also, in religious matters and the worship of God, those things
which have no other warrant than the invention and opinion of man. From
the beginning God has rejected such, as we learn from the words of the
prophet Isaiah and of our master, Christ Jesus, 'In vain do they worship Me,
teaching the doctrines and commandments of men.'
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15. The Perfection of the Law and the Imperfection of
Man
We confess and acknowledge that the law of God is most just, equal, holy
and perfect, commanding those things which, when perfectly done, can give
life and eternal felicity; but our nature is so corrupt, weak, and imperfect,
that we are never able perfectly to fulfil the works of the law. Even after we
are reborn, if we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth
of God is not in us. It is therefore essential for us to lay hold on Christ Jesus,
in His righteousness and His atonement, since He is the end and
consummation of the Law and since it is by Him that we are set at liberty so
that the curse of God may not fall upon us, even though we do not fulfil the
Law in all points. For as God the Father beholds us in the body of His Son
Christ Jesus, He accepts our imperfect obedience as if it were perfect, and
covers our works, which are defiled with many stains, with the righteousness
of His Son. We do not mean that we are so set at liberty that we owe no
obedience to the Law - for we have already acknowledged its place - but we
affirm that no man on earth, with the sole exception of Christ Jesus, has
given, gives, or shall give in action that obedience to the Law which the Law
requires. When we have done all things we must fall down and unfeignedly
confess that we are unprofitable servants. Therefore, whoever boasts of the
merits of his own works or puts his trust in works of supererogation, boasts
of what does not exist, and puts his trust in damnable idolatry.
16. The Kirk
As we believe in one God, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, so we firmly
believe that from the beginning there has been, now is, and to the end of the
world shall be, one Kirk, that is to say, one company and multitude of men
chosen by God, who rightly worship and embrace Him in true faith in Christ
Jesus, who is the only Head of the Kirk, even as it is the body and spouse of
Christ Jesus. This Kirk is Catholic, that is, universal, because it contains the
chosen of all ages, of all realms, nations, and tongues, be they of the Jews or
be they of the Gentiles, who have communion and society with God, and
with His Son, Christ Jesus, through the sanctification of His Holy Spirit. It is
therefore called the communion, not of profane persons, but of saints, who,
as citizens of the heavenly Jerusalem, have the fruit of inestimable benefits,
one God, one Lord Jesus, one faith, and one baptism. Out of this Kirk there
is neither life nor eternal felicity. Therefore we utterly abhor the blasphemy
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of those who hold that men who live according to equity and justice shall be
saved, no matter what religion they profess. For since there is neither life nor
salvation without Christ Jesus; so shall none have part therein but those
whom the Father hath given unto His Son Christ Jesus, and those who in
time come to Him, avow His doctrine, and believe in Him. (We include the
children with the believing parents.) This Kirk is invisible, known only to
God, who alone knows whom He has chosen, and includes both the chosen
who are departed, the Kirk triumphant, those who yet live and fight against
sin and Satan, and those who shall live hereafter.
17. The Immortality of Souls
The chosen departed are in peace, and rest from their labours; not that they
sleep and are lost in oblivion as some fanatics hold, for they are delivered
from all fear and torment, and all the temptations to which we and all God's
chosen are subject in this life, and because of which we are called the Kirk
Militant. On the other hand, the reprobate and unfaithful departed have
anguish, torment, and pain which cannot be expressed. Neither the one nor
the other is in such sleep that they feel no joy or torment, as is testified by
Christ's parable in St Luke 16, His words to the thief, and the words of the
souls crying under the altar, "O Lord, Thou that art righteous and just, how
long shalt Thou not revenge our blood upon those that dwell in the earth?"
18. The Notes by which the True Kirk shall be
determined from the False, and Who shall be Judge of
Doctrine
Since Satan has laboured from the beginning to adorn his pestilent
synagogue with the title of the Kirk of God, and has incited cruel murderers
to persecute, trouble, and molest the true Kirk and its members, as Cain did
to Abel, Ishmael to Isaac, Esau to Jacob, and the whole priesthood of the
Jews to Christ Jesus Himself and His apostles after Him. So it is essential
that the true Kirk be distinguished from the filthy synagogues by clear and
perfect notes lest we, being deceived, receive and embrace, to our own
condemnation, the one for the other. The notes, signs, and assured tokens
whereby the spotless bride of Christ is known from that horrible harlot, the
false Kirk, we state, are neither antiquity, usurped title, lineal succession,
appointed place, nor the numbers of men approving an error. For Cain was
before Abel and Seth in age and title; Jerusalem had precedence above all
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other parts of the earth, for in it were priests lineally descended from Aaron,
and greater numbers followed the scribes, pharisees, and priests, than
unfeignedly believed and followed Christ Jesus and His doctrine. . . and yet
no man of judgment, we suppose, will hold that any of the forenamed were
the Kirk of God. The notes of the true Kirk, therefore, we believe, confess,
and avow to be: first, the true preaching of the Word of God, in which God
has revealed Himself to us, as the writings of the prophets and apostles
declare; secondly, the right administration of the sacraments of Christ Jesus,
with which must be associated the Word and promise of God to seal and
confirm them in our hearts; and lastly, ecclesiastical discipline uprightly
ministered, as God's Word prescribes, whereby vice is repressed and virtue
nourished. Then wherever these notes are seen and continue for any time, be
the number complete or not, there, beyond any doubt, is the true Kirk of
Christ, who, according to His promise, is in its midst. This is not that
universal Kirk of which we have spoken before, but particular Kirks, such as
were in Corinth, Galatia, Ephesus, and other places where the ministry was
planted by Paul and which he himself called Kirks of God. Such Kirks, we
the inhabitants of the realm of Scotland confessing Christ Jesus, do claim to
have in our cities, towns, and reformed districts because of the doctrine
taught in our Kirks, contained in the written Word of God, that is, the Old
and New Testaments, in those books which were originally reckoned
canonical. We affirm that in these all things necessary to be believed for the
salvation of men are sufficiently expressed. The interpretation of Scripture,
we confess, does not belong to any private or public person, nor yet to any
Kirk for pre-eminence or precedence, personal or local, which it has above
others, but pertains to the Spirit of God by whom the Scriptures were
written. When controversy arises about the right understanding of any
passage or sentence of Scripture, or for the reformation of any abuse within
the Kirk of God, we ought not so much to ask what men have said or done
before us, as what the Holy Ghost uniformly speaks within the body of the
Scriptures and what Christ Jesus Himself did and commanded. For it is
agreed by all that the Spirit of God, who is the Spirit of unity, cannot
contradict Himself. So if the interpretation or opinion of any theologian,
Kirk, or council, is contrary to the plain Word of God written in any other
passage of Scripture, it is most certain that this is not the true understanding
and meaning of the Holy Ghost, although councils, realms, and nations have
approved and received it. We dare not receive or admit any interpretation
which is contrary to any principal point of our faith, or to any plain text of
Scripture, or to the rule of love.
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19. The Authority of the Scriptures
As we believe and confess the Scriptures of God sufficient to instruct and
make perfect the man of God, so do we affirm and avow their authority to be
from God, and not to depend on men or angels. We affirm therefore, that
those who say the Scriptures have no other authority save that which they
have received from the Kirk are blasphemous against God and injurious to
the true Kirk, which always hears and obeys the voice of her own Spouse
and Pastor, but takes not upon her to be mistress over the same.
20. General Councils, their Power, Authority, and the
Cause of their Summoning
As we do not rashly condemn what good men, assembled together in
General Councils 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 confirms 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
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 of 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 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,
when they foster superstition rather than edify the Kirk.
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21. The Sacraments
As the fathers under the Law, besides the reality of the sacrifices, had two
chief sacraments, that is, circumcision and the passover, and those who
rejected these were not reckoned among God's people; so do we
acknowledge and confess that now in the time of the Gospel we have two
chief sacraments, which alone were instituted by the Lord Jesus and
commanded to be used by all who will be counted embers of His body, that
is, Baptism and the Supper of Table of the Lord Jesus, also called the
Communion of His Body and Blood. These sacraments, both of the Old
Testament and of the New, were instituted by God not only to make a visible
distinction between His people and those who were without the Covenant,
but also to exercise the faith of His children and, by participation of these
sacraments, to seal in their hearts the assurance of His promise, and of that
most blessed conjunction, unity, and society, which the chosen have with
their Head, Christ Jesus. And so we utterly condemn the vanity of those who
affirm the sacraments to be nothing else than naked and bare signs. No, we
assuredly believe that by Baptism we are engrafted into Christ Jesus, to be
made partakers of His righteousness, by which our sins are covered and
remitted, and also that in the Supper rightly used, Christ Jesus is so joined
with us that He becomes the very nourishment and food of our souls. Not
that we imagine any transubstantiation of bread into Christ's body, and of
wine into His natural blood, as the Romanists have perniciously taught and
wrongly believed; but this union and conjunction which we have with the
body and blood of Christ Jesus in the right use of the sacraments is wrought
by means of the Holy Ghost, who by true faith carries us above all things
that are visible, carnal, and earthly, and makes us feed upon the body and
blood of Christ Jesus, once broken and shed for us but now in heaven, and
appearing for us in the presence of His Father. Notwithstanding the distance
between His glorified body in heaven and mortal men on earth, yet we must
assuredly believe that the bread which we break is the communion of
Christ's body and the cup which we bless the communion of His blood. Thus
we confess and believe without doubt that the faithful, in the right use of the
Lord's Table, do so eat the body and drink the blood of the Lord Jesus that
He remains in them and they in Him; they are so made flesh of His flesh and
bone of His bone that as the eternal Godhead has given to the flesh of Christ
Jesus, which by nature was corruptible and mortal, life and immortality, so
the eating and drinking of the flesh and blood of Christ Jesus does the like
for us. We grant that this is neither given to us at the time nor by the power
and virtue of the sacrament alone, but we affirm that the faithful, in the right
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use of the Lord's Table, have such union with Christ Jesus as the natural man
cannot apprehend. Further we affirm that although the faithful, hindered by
negligence and human weakness, do not profit as much as they ought in the
actual moment of the Supper, yet afterwards it shall bring forth fruit, being
living seed sown in good ground; for the Holy Spirit, who can never be
separated from the right institution of the Lord Jesus, will not deprive the
faithful of the fruit of that mystical action. Yet all this, we say again, comes
of that true faith which apprehends Christ Jesus, who alone makes the
sacrament effective in us. Therefore, if anyone slanders us by saying that we
affirm or believe the sacraments to be symbols and nothing more, they are
libellous and speak against the plain facts. On the other hand we readily
admit that we make a distinction between Christ Jesus in His eternal
substance and the elements of the sacramental signs. So we neither worship
the elements, in place of that which they signify, nor yet do we despise them
or undervalue them, but we use them with great reverence, examining
ourselves diligently before we participate, since we are assured by the mouth
of the apostle that "whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup pf the
Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord".
22. The Right Administration of the Sacraments
Two things are necessary for the right administration of the sacraments. The
first is that they should be ministered by lawful ministers, and we declare
that these are men appointed to preach the Word, unto whom God had given
the power to preach to Gospel, and who are lawfully called by some Kirk.
The second is that they should be ministered in the elements and manner
which God has appointed. Otherwise they cease to be the sacraments of
Christ Jesus. This is why we abandon the teaching of the Roman Church and
withdraw from its sacraments; firstly, because their ministers are not true
ministers of Christ Jesus (indeed they even allow women, whom the Holy
Ghost will not permit to preach in the congregation, to baptise) and,
secondly, because they have so adulterated both the sacraments with their
own additions that no part of Christ's original act remains in its original
simplicity. The addition of oil, salt, spittle, and such like in baptism, are
merely human additions. To adore or venerate the sacrament, to carry it
through streets or towns in procession, or to reserve it in a special case, is
not the proper use of Christ's sacrament but an abuse of it. Christ Jesus said,
"Take ye, eat ye", and "Do this in remembrance of Me." By these words and
commands He sanctified bread and wine to be the sacrament of His holy
body and blood, so that the one should be eaten and that all should drink of
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the other, and not that they should be reserved for worship of honoured as
God, as the Papists do. Further, in withdrawing one part of the sacrament -
the blessed cup - from the people, they have committed sacrilege. Moreover,
if the sacraments are to be rightly used it is essential that the end and
purpose of their institution should be understood, not only by the minister
but by the recipients. For if the recipient does not understand what is being
done, the sacrament is not being rightly used, as is seen in the case of the
Old Testament sacrifices. Similarly, if the teacher teaches false doctrine
which is hateful to God, even though the sacraments are His own ordinance,
they are not rightly used, since wicked men have used them for another end
than what God commanded. We affirm that this has been done to the
sacraments in the Roman Church, for there the whole action of the Lord
Jesus is adulterated in form, purpose, and meaning. What Christ Jesus did,
and commanded to be done, is evident from the Gospels and from St Paul;
what the priest does at the altar we do not need to tell. The end and purpose
of Christ's institution, for which it should be used, is set forth in the words,
"Do this in remembrance of Me", and "For as often as ye eat this bread and
drink this cup ye do shew" - that is, extol, preach, magnify, and praise - "the
Lord's death, till He come". But let the words of the mass, and their own
doctors and teachings witness, what is the purpose and meaning of the mass;
it is that, as mediators between Christ and His Kirk, they should offer to God
the Father a sacrifice in Propitiation for the sins of the living and of the dead.
This doctrine is blasphemous to Christ Jesus and would deprive His unique
sacrifice, once offered on the cross for the cleansing of all who are to be
sanctified, of its sufficiency; so we detest and renounce it.
23. To Whom Sacraments Appertain
We hold that baptism applies as much to the children of the faithful as to
those who are of age and discretion, and so we condemn the error of the
Anabaptists, who deny that children should be baptised before they have
faith and understanding. But we hold that the Supper of the Lord is only for
those who are of the household of faith and can try and examine themselves
both in their faith and their duty to their neighbours. Those who eat and
drink of that holy table without faith, or without peace and goodwill to their
brethren, eat unworthily. This is the reason why ministers in our Kirk make
public and individual examination of those who are to be admitted to the
table of the Lord Jesus.
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24. The Civil Magistrate
We confess and acknowledge that empires, kingdoms, dominions, and cities
are appointed and ordained by God; the powers and authorities in them,
emporors in empires, kings in their realms, dukes and princes in their
dominions, and magistrates in cities, are ordained by God's holy ordinance
for the manifestation of His own glory and for the good and well being of all
men. We hold that any men who conspire to rebel or overturn the civil
powers, as duly established, are not merely enemies to humanity but rebels
against God's will. Further, we confess and acknowledge that such persons
as are set in authority are to be loved, honoured, feared, and held in the
highest respect, because they are the lieutenants of God, and in their councils
God Himself doth sit and judge. They are the judges and princes to whom
God has given the sword for the praise and defence of good men and the
punishment of all open evil doers. Moreover, we state that the preservation
and purification of religion is particularly the duty of kings, princes, rulers,
and magistrates. They are not only appointed for civil government but also
to maintain true religion and to suppress all idolatry and superstition. This
may be seen in David, Jehosaphat, Hezekiah, Josiah, and others highly
commended for their zeal in that cause.
Therefore we confess and avow that those who resist the supreme powers, so
long as they are acting in their own spheres, are resisting God's ordinance
and cannot be held guiltless. We further state that so long as princes and
rulers vigilantly fulfil their office, anyone who denies them aid, counsel, or
service, denies it to God, who by His lieutenant craves it of them.
25. The Gifts Freely Given to the Kirk
Although the Word of God truly preached, the Sacraments rightly
administered, and discipline executed according to the Word of God, are
certain and infallible signs of the true Kirk, we do not mean that every
individual person in that company is a chosen member of Christ Jesus. We
acknowledge and confess that many weeds and tares are sown among the
corn and grow in great abundance in its midst, and that the reprobate may be
found in the fellowship of the chosen and may take an outward part with
them in the benefit of the Word and sacraments. But since they only confess
God for a time with their mouths and not with their hearts, they lapse, and do
not continue to the end. Therefore they do not share the fruits of Christ's
death, resurrection, and ascension. But such as unfeignedly believe with the
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heart and boldly confess the Lord Jesus with their mouths shall certainly
receive His gifts. Firstly, in this life, they shall receive remission of sins and
that by faith in Christ's blood alone; for though sin shall remain and
continually abide in our mortal bodies, yet it shall not be counted against us,
but be pardoned, and covered with Christ's righteousness. Secondly, in the
general judgment, there shall be given to every man and woman resurrection
of the flesh. The seas shall give up her dead, and the earth those who are
buried within her. Yea, the Eternal, our God, shall stretch out His hand on
the dust, and the dead shall arise incorruptible, and in the very substance of
their selfsame flesh which every man now bears, to receive according to
their works, glory or punishment. Such as now delight in vanity, cruelty,
superstition, or idolatry, shall be condemned to the fire unquenchable, in
which those who now serve the devil in all abominations shall be tormented
forever, both in body and spirit. But such as continue in welldoing to the
end, boldly confessing the Lord Jesus, shall receive glory, honour, and
immortality, we constantly believe, to reign forever in life everlasting with
Christ Jesus, to whose glorified body all His chosen shall be made like,
when He shall appear again in judgment and shall render up the Kingdom to
God His Father, who then shall be and ever shall remain, all in all things,
God blessed forever. To whom, with the Son and the Holy Ghost, be all
honour and glory, now and ever. Amen.
Arise, O Lord, and let Thine enemies be confounded; let them flee from Thy
presence that hate Thy godly Name. Give Thy servants strength to speak
Thy Word with boldness, and let all nations cleave to the true knowledge of
Thee. Amen.
These acts and articles were read in the face of the Parliament
and ratified by the Three Estates at Edinburgh the
17th day of August the year of God, 1560 years.