USA > Massachusetts > Suffolk County > Boston > The confession of faith and form of covenant of the Old South Church, in Boston, Massachusetts, with lists of the founders, the pastors, the ruling elders and deacons, and the members > Part 3
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II. Whereas there is none that doeth good, and sinneth not, and the best of men may through the power and deceitfulness of their corruptions dwel- ling in them, with the prevalency of temptation, fall into great sins and provocations; God hath in the covenant of grace mercifully provided, that be- lievers so sinning and falling, be renewed through repentance unto salvation.
III. This saving repentance is an evangelical grace, whereby a person being by the Holy Ghost made sensible of the manifold evils of his sin, doth by faith in Christ humble himself for it with godly sorrow, detestation of it, and self abhor- rency, praying for pardon and strength of grace, with a purpose and endeavor by supplies of the Spirit, to walk before God unto all well-pleasing in all things.
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IV. As repentance is to be continued through the whole course of our lives, upon the account of the body of death, and the motions thereof ; so it is every man's duty to repent of his particular known sins, particularly.
V. Such is the provision which God hath made through Christ in the covenant of grace, for the preservation of believers unto salvation, that although there is no sin so small, but it deserves damnation, yet there is no sin so great, that it shall bring damnation, on them who truly repent; which makes the constant preaching of repentance necessary.
CHAP. XVI.
Of Good Works.
Good works are only such as God hath com- manded in his holy word, and not such as with- out the warrant thereof are devised by men out of blind zeal, or upon any pretence of good inten- tions.
II. These good works done in obedience to God's commandments, are the fruits and evidences of a true and lively faith, and by them believers manifest their thankfulness, strengthen their as- surance, edify their brethren, adorn the profession of the gospel, stop the mouths of the adversaries, and glorify God, whose workmanship they are,
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created in Christ Jesus thereunto, that having their fruit unto holiness, they may have the end eternal life.
III. Their ability to do good works is not at all of themselves, but wholly from the Spirit of Christ: and that they may be enabled thereunto, besides the graces they have already received, there is required an actual influence of the same Holy Spirit to work in them to will and to do, of his good pleasure ; yet are they not hereupon to grow negligent, as if they were not bound to per- form any duty, unless upon a special motion of the Spirit, but they ought to be diligent in stirring up the grace of God that is in them.
IV. They who in their obedience attain to the greatest height which is possible in this life, are so far from being able to supererogate, and to do more than God requires, as that they fall short of much, which in duty they are bound to do.
V. We cannot by our best works merit par- don of sin, or eternal life at the hand of God, by reason of the great disproportion that is be- tween them, and the glory to come; and the in- finite distance that is between us and God, whom by them we can neither profit, nor satisfy for the debt of our former sins ; but when we have done all we can, we have done but our duty, and are unprofitable servants ; and because as they are good, they proceed from his Spirit, and as they are wrought by us, they are defiled and mixed with so much weakness and imperfection, that
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they cannot endure the severity of God's judg- ment.
VI. Yet notwithstanding, the persons of be- lievers being accepted through Christ, their good works also are accepted in him, not as though they were in this life wholly unblamable and un- reprovable in God's sight, but that he looking upon them in his Son is pleased to accept and reward that which is sincere, although accompa- nied by many weaknesses and imperfections.
VII. Works done by unregenerate men, al- though for the matter of them, they may be things which God commands, and of good use both to themselves and to others; yet because they pro- ceed not from an heart purified by faith, nor are done in a right manner, according to the word, nor to the right end, the glory of God; they are therefore sinful, and cannot please God, nor make a man meet to receive grace from God; and yet their neglect of them is more sinful and displeas- ing to God.
CHAP. XVII.
Of the Perseverance of the Saints.
They, whom God hath accepted in his Beloved, effectually called and sanctified by his Spirit, can neither totally nor finally fall away from the state of grace, but shall certainly persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved.
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II. This perseverance of the saints depends not upon their own free-will, but upon the immuta- bility of the decree of election, from the free and unchangeable love of God the Father, upon the efficacy of the merit and intercession of Jesus Christ, and union with him; the oath of God, the abiding of his Spirit, and the seed of God within them, and the nature of the covenant of grace, from all which ariseth also the certainty and infal- libility thereof.
III. And though they may through the temp- tation of Satan, and of the world, the prevalency of corruption remaining in them, and the neglect of the means of their preservation, fall into grievous sins, and for a time continue therein, whereby they incur God's displeasure, and grieve his Holy Spirit, come to have their graces and comforts impaired, have their hearts hardened, and their consciences wounded, hurt and scandalize others, and bring temporal judgments upon themselves ; yet they are and shall be kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation,
CHAP. XVIII.
Of the Assurance of Grace and Salvation.
Although temporary believers, and other unre- generate men may vainly deceive themselves with false hopes and carnal presumptions of being in
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the favor of God, and state of salvation, which hope of theirs shall perish, yet such as truly be- lieve in the Lord Jesus, and love him in sincerity, endeavoring to walk in all good conscience before him, may in this life be certainly assured that they are in a state of grace, and may rejoice in the hope of the glory of God, which hope shall never make them ashamed.
II. This certainty is not a bare conjectural and probable persuasion, grounded upon a fallible hope, but an infallible assurance of faith, founded on the blood and righteousness of Christ, revealed in the gospel, and also upon the inward evidence of those graces, unto which promises are made, and on the immediate witness of the Spirit, testi- fying our adoption, and as a fruit thereof, leaving the heart more humble and holy.
III. This infallible assurance doth not so be- long to the essence of faith, but that a true be- liever may wait long, and conflict with many dif- ficulties before he be partaker of it; yet being enabled by the Spirit to know the things which are freely given him of God, he may without ex- traordinary revelation, in the right use of ordinary means attain thereunto ; and therefore it is the duty of every one to give all diligence to make his calling and election sure, that thereby his heart may be enlarged in peace and joy in the Holy Ghost, in love and thankfulness to God, and in strength and cheerfulness in the duties of obe- dience, the proper fruits of this assurance; so far is it from inclining men to looseness,
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IV. True believers may have the assurance of their salvation divers ways shaken, diminished and intermitted, as by negligence in preserving of it, by falling into some special sin, which woundeth the conscience, and grieveth the Spirit, by some sudden or vehement temptation, by God's with- drawing the light of his countenance, suffering even such as fear him to walk in darkness, and to have no light; yet they are neither utterly desti- tute of that seed of God, and life of faith, that love of Christ and the brethren, that sincerity of heart and conscience of duty, out of which by the operation of the Spirit, this assurance may in due time be revived, and by the which in the mean time they are supported from utter despair.
CHAP. XIX. Of the Law of God.
God gave to Adam a law of universal obe- dience written in his heart, and a particular pre- cept of not eating the fruit of the tree of knowl- edge of good and evil, as a covenant or works, by which he bound him and all his posterity to per- sonal, entire, exact and perpetual obedience, pro- mised life upon the fulfilling, and threatened death upon the breach of it, and endued him with power and ability to keep it.
II. This law so written in the heart, continued
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to be a perfect rule of righteousness after the fall of man, and was delivered by God on mount Sinai in ten commandments, and written in two tables; the four first commandments containing our duty towards God, and the other six our duty to man.
III. Besides this law commonly called moral, God was pleased to give to the people of Israel, as a church under age, ceremonial laws, contain- ing several typical ordinances, partly of worship, prefiguring Christ, his graces, actions, sufferings and benefits, and partly holding forth divers in- structions of moral duties , all which ceremonial laws being appointed only to the time of reforma- tion, are by Jesus Christ, the true Messiah and only lawgiver, who was furnished with power from the Father for that end, abrogated and taken away.
IV. To them also he gave sundry judicial laws, which expired together with the state of that people, not obliging any now by virtue of that institution, their general equity only being still of moral use.
V. The moral law doth forever bind all, as well justified persons as others, to the obedience thereof; and that not only in regard of the matter contained in it but also in respect of the authority of God the Creator, who gave it: neither doth Christ in the gospel any way dissolve, but much strengthen this obligation.
VI. Although true believers be not under the
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law, as a covenant of works, to be thereby justified or condemned, yet it is of great use to them as well as to others, in that, as a rule of life, inform- ing them of the will of God, and their duty, and directs and binds them to walk accordingly, dis- covering also the sinful pollutions of their nature, hearts and lives, so as examining themselves there- by, they may come to further conviction of, humili- ation for, and hatred against sin, together with a clearer sight of the need they have of Christ, and the perfection of his obedience. It is likewise of use to the regenerate, to restrain their corruptions, in that it forbids sin, and the threatenings of it serve to show what even their sins deserve, and what afflictions in this life they may expect for them, although freed from the curse thereof threat- ened in the law. The promises of it in like man- ner show them God's approbation of obedience, and what blessings they may expect upon the per- formance thereof, although not as due to them by the law, as a covenant of works ; so as a man's doing good, and refraining from evil, because the law encourageth to the one, and deterreth from the other, is no evidence of his being under the law, and not under grace.
VII. Neither are the fore-mentioned uses of the law contrary to the grace of the gospel, but do sweetly comply with it, the Spirit of Christ sub- · duing and enabling the will of man to do that freely and cheerfully, which the will of God re- vealed in the law required to be done.
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CHAP. XX.
Of the Gospel, and of the Extent of the Grace thereof.
The covenant of works being broken by sin, and made unprofitable unto life, God was pleased to give unto the elect the promise of Christ, the Seed of the woman, as the means of calling them and begetting in them faith and repentance. In this promise, the gospel, as to the substance of it, was revealed, and was therein effectual for the conversion and salvation of sinners.
II. This promise of Christ, and salvation by him, is revealed only in and by the word of God ; neither do the works of creation or providence, with the light of nature, make discovery of Christ, or of grace by him, so much as in a general or obscure way ; much less that men destitute of the revelation of him by the promise or gospel, should be enabled thereby to attain saving faith or re- pentance.
III. The revelation of the gospel unto sinners made in divers times, and by sundry parts, with the addition of promises and precepts for the obe- dience required therein, as to the nations and per- sons to whom it is granted, is merely of the sov- ereign will and good pleasure of God, not being annexed by virtue of any promise to the due im- provement of men's natural abilities, by virtue of
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common light received without it, which none ever did make, or can so do : and therefore in all ages the preaching of the gospel hath been grant- ed unto persons and nations, as to the extent or straitening of it, in great variety, according to the counsel of the will of God.
IV. Although the gospel be the only outward means of revealing Christ and saving grace, and is, as such, abundantly sufficient thereunto; yet that men who are dead in trespasses, may be born again, quickened or regenerated, there is more- over necessary an effectual, irresistible work of the Holy Ghost upon the whole soul, for the pro- ducing in them a new spiritual life, without which no other means are sufficient for their conversion unto God.
CHAP. XXI.
Of Christian Liberty, and Liberty of Conscience.
The liberty which Christ hath purchased for be- lievers under the gospel, consists in their freedom from the guilt of sin, the condemning wrath of God, the rigor and curse of the law, and in their being delivered from this present evil world, bon- dage to Satan, and dominion of sin, from the evil of afflictions, the fear and sting of death, the vic- tory of the grave, and everlasting damnation ; as also in their free access to God, and their yielding
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obedience unto him, not out of slavish fear, but a child-like love and willing mind : all which were common also to believers under the law, for the substance of them, but under the New Testament the liberty of Christians is further enlarged in their freedom from the yoke of the ceremonial law, the whole legal administration of the covenant of grace, to which the Jewish church was subjected, and in greater boldness of access to the throne of grace, and in fuller communications of the free Spirit of God, than believers under the law did ordinarily partake of.
II. God alone is Lord of the conscience, and hath left it free from the doctrines and command- ments of men, which are in any thing contrary to his word, or not contained in it ; so that to believe such doctrines, or to obey such commands out of conscience, is to betray true liberty of conscience, and the requiring of an implicit faith, and an ab- solute and blind obedience, is to destroy liberty of conscience, and reason also.
III. They who upon pretence of Christian lib- erty do practise any sin, or cherish any lust, as they do thereby pervert the main design of the grace of the gospel to their own destruction, so they wholly destroy the end of Christian liberty, which is, that being delivered out of the hands of our enemies, we might serve the Lord without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him all the days of our life.
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CHAP. XXII.
Of Religious Worship, and of the Sabbath-day.
The light of nature showeth that there is a God, who hath lordship and sovereignty over all; is just, good, and doeth good unto all, and is there- fore to be feared, loved, praised, called upon, trust- ed in, and served with all the heart, and all the soul, and with all the might; but the acceptable way of worshipping the true God, is instituted by himself, and so limited by his own revealed will, that he may not be worshipped according to the imaginations and devices of men, or the sugges- tions of Satan, under any visible representations, or any other way not prescribed in the Holy Scriptures.
II. Religious worship is to be given to God the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, and to him alone; not to angels, saints, or any other creature; and since the fall, not without a mediator, nor in the mediation of any other but of Christ alone.
III. Prayer with thanksgiving, being one spe- cial part of natural worship, is by God required of all men; but that it may be accepted, it is to be made in the name of the Son, by the help of his Spirit, according to his will, with understand- ing, reverence, humility, fervency, faith, love, and perseverance : and when with others, in a known tongue.
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IV. Prayer is to be made for things lawful, and for all sorts of men living, or that shall live hereafter, but not for the dead, nor for those of whom it may be known that they have sinned the sin unto death.
V. The reading of the Scriptures, preaching and hearing of the word of God, singing of psalms, as also the administration of baptism and the Lord's supper, are all parts of religious worship of God, to be performed in obedience unto God, with understanding, faith, reverence and godly fear. Solemn humiliations with fastings, and thanksgiving upon special occasions, are in their several times and seasons to be used in an holy and religious manner.
VI. Neither prayer nor any other part of relig- ious worship, is now under the gospel either tied unto, or made more acceptable by any place in which it is performed, or towards which it is di- rected : but God is to be worshipped every where in spirit and in truth, as in private families daily, and in secret each one by himself, so more sol- emnly in the public assemblies, which are not carelessly nor wilfully to be neglected, or forsaken, when God by his word or providence calleth thereunto.
VII. As it is of the law of nature, that in gen- eral a proportion of time by God's appointment be set apart for the worship of God; so by his word in a positive, moral and perpetual command- ment, binding all men in all ages, he hath particu-
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larly appointed one day in seven for a Sabbath to be kept holy unto him, which from the beginning of the world to the resurrection of Christ, was the last day of the week, and from the resurrection of Christ, was changed into the first day of the week, which in scripture is called the Lord's day, and is to be continued to the end of the world as the Christian Sabbath, the observation of the last day of the week being abolished.
VIII. This Sabbath is then kept holy unto the Lord, when men after a due preparing of their hearts, and ordering their common affairs before- hand, do not only observe an holy rest all the day from their own works, words, and thoughts about their worldly employments and recreations, but also are taken up the whole time in the public and private exercises of his worship, and in the duties of necessity and mercy.
CHAP. XXIII.
Of Lawful Oaths and Vous.
A lawful oath is a part of religious worship, wherein the person swearing in truth, righteous- ness and judgment, solemnly calleth God to wit- ness what he asserteth or promiseth, and to judge him according to the truth or falsehood of what he sweareth.
II. The name of God only is that by which
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men ought to swear, and therein it is to be used with all holy fear and reverence: therefore to swear vainly or rashly by that glorious and dread- ful name, or to swear at all by any other thing, is sinful, and to be abhorred: yet as in matters of weight and moment an oath is warranted by the word of God, under the New Testament, as well as under the old : so a lawful oath, being imposed by lawful authority in such matters, ought to be taken.
III. Whosoever taketh an oath warranted by the word of God, ought duly to consider the weightiness of so solemn an act, and therein to avouch nothing but what he is fully persuaded is the truth : neither may any man bind himself by oath to any thing, but what is good and just, and what he believeth so to be, and what he is able and resolved to perform. Yet it is a sin to refuse an oath touching any thing that is good and just, being lawfully imposed by authority.
IV. An oath is to be taken in the plain and common sense of the words, without equivocation, or mental reservation : it cannot oblige to sin, but in any thing not sinful being taken, it binds to per- formance, although to a man's own hurt; nor is it to be violated, although made to heretics or infidels.
V. A vow, which is not to be made to any creature, but God alone, is of the like nature with a promissory oath, and ought to be made with the like religious care, and to be performed with the like faithfulness.
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VI. Popish monastical vows of perpetual sin- gle life, professed poverty, and regular obedience, are so far from being degrees of higher perfection, that they are superstitious and sinful snares, in which no Christian may entangle himself.
CHAP. XXIV.
Of the Civil Magistrate.
God, the supreme Lord and King of all the world, hath ordained civil magistrates to be under him, over the people for his own glory and the public good ; and to this end hath armed them with the power of the sword, for the defence and encouragement of them that do good, and for the punishment of evil doers.
II. It is lawful for Christians to accept and execute the office of a magistrate, when called thereunto : in the management whereof, as they ought especially to maintain piety, justice and peace, according to the wholesome laws of each commonwealth, so for that end they may lawfully now under the New Testament wage war upon just and necessary occasion.
III. They, who upon pretence of Christian liberty shall oppose any lawful power, or the law- ful exercises of it, resist the ordinance of God, and for their publishing of such opinions, or maintain- ing of such practices as are contrary to the light
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of nature, or to the known principles of Christian- ity, whether concerning faith, worship or conver- sation, or to the power of godliness, or such erro- neous opinions or practices, as either in their own nature, or in the manner of publishing or main- taining them, are destructive to the external peace and order which Christ hath established in the church, they may lawfully be called to account, and proceeded against by the censures of the church, and by the power of the civil magistrate ; yet in such differences about the doctrines of the gospel, or ways of the worship of God, as may befall men exercising a good conscience, mani- festing it in their conversation, and holding the foundation, and duly observing the rules of peace and order, there is no warrant for the magistrate to abridge them of their liberty.
IV. It is the duty of people to pray for magis- trates, to honor their persons, to pay them tribute and other dues, to obey their lawful commands, and to be subject to their authority for conscience sake. Infidelity, or difference in religion, doth not make void the magistrates' just and legal author- ity, nor free the people from their due obedience to him : from which ecclesiastical persons are not exempted, much less hath the Pope any power or jurisdiction over them in their dominions, or over any of their people, and least of all to deprive them of their dominions or lives, if he shall judge them to be heretics, or upon any other pretence whatsoever.
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CHAP. XXV.
Of Marriage.
Marriage is to be between one man and one woman : neither is it lawful for any man to have more than one wife, nor for any woman to have more than one husband at the same time.
II. Marriage was ordained for the mutual help of husband and wife, for the increase of mankind with a legitimate issue, and of the church with an holy seed, and for preventing of uncleanness.
III. It is lawful for all sorts of people to marry, who are able with judgment to give their consent. Yet it is the duty of Christians to marry in the Lord, and therefore such as profess the true re- formed religion, should not marry with Infidels, Papists, or other idolaters : neither should such as are godly, be unequally yoked by marrying such as are wicked in their life, or maintain damnable heresy.
IV. Marriage ought not to be within the de- grees of consanguinity or affinity forbidden in the word, nor can such incestuous marriages ever be made lawful by any law of man, or consent of parties, so as those persons may live together as man and wife.
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CHAP. XXVI.
Of the Church.
The Catholic or universal church, which is in- visible, consists of the whole number of the elect, that have been, are, or shall be gathered into one under Christ the head thereof, and is the spouse, the body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.
II. The whole body of men throughout the world, professing the faith of the gospel, and obe- dience unto God by Christ according unto it, not destroying their own profession by any errors evert- ing the foundation, or unholiness of conversation, they and their children with them are, and may be called the visible Catholic church of Christ, al- though as such it is not intrusted with any officers to rule or govern over the whole body.
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