1689 LONDON BAPTIST CONFESSION OF FAITH

Systematic Theology Course 2

Study 2: Of the Holy Scriptures 1:1-3

Is there a God? Can God be known? How can we learn anything about God?
Undoubtedly we have all asked ourselves these questions at some time in our lives.
What are the answers to these questions? Well, by the time we complete this study we
will be able to answer these questions and more.

Scripture certainly affirms that there is a God (Gen 1:1). Yet apart from God revealing
Himself to man, God and His ways cannot be known by man. We can only know God in
so far as God actively makes Himself known to us. This process of God revealing Himself
to man is called revelation. It is Gods self-disclosure to man. Theology usually speaks
of two areas of revelation general and special revelation.

2.1 General and Special Revelation

General revelation is revelation communicated or revealed through our moral and

religious feelings, and through the visible creation of God. It is general because it is
given to all humanity and is found in all that God has made. This knowledge of God can
be acquired by human reason through the consideration of creation and our
consciences (Ps 19:1,2; 104:24; Rom 1:19,20; 2:14,15). Man can learn about God by
thinking upon what he observes and senses in creation, moving from observation to
reasonable conclusions about God. Such revelation is also known as natural theology.

QUESTION:

What sort of things can be learnt from a consideration of creation?

Though general revelation can convey much knowledge of Gods nature, power and
divinity, it is now obscured by sin. There is nothing wrong with the revelation, for it still
does what it should. However we are now unable to take advantage of this revelation
because of our sinfulness. What this actually means for fallen man is that right
knowledge of God cannot be gained through mere human reasoning alone, for we are
now anti-God by nature and refuse to acknowledge the truth about God (Rom 1:18-23).

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But there is still enough knowledge of God in general revelation to leave us (man)
without excuse for not acknowledging Him (Rom 1:20).

QUESTION:

Explain why more than general revelation is necessary for salvation?

Now something more is needed if we are to know anything about God, especially if we
are to gain a saving knowledge of God, for we are blinded by sin and unable to
understand spiritual truth (1 Cor 2:14), and general revelation does not reveal the way
of salvation to man anyhow. If we are to be saved from our fallen position, we need to
be told how that salvation may be achieved, otherwise we (man) will just continue to
flounder around in the spiritual darkness.

That something more that is needed is called special revelation. This revelation is
communicated in a supernatural manner, such as when God speaks directly to man or
through a divinely appointed messenger. God reveals Himself and the way of salvation
to man directly, so that he cannot escape such knowledge. It is revelation that cannot be
developed or understood through nature or by unaided human reason. Special
revelation comes to man through various means, such as Theophanies (visible
manifestations of God) (Gen 16:13; 31:11; Ex 3:2; 23:20-33; 33:9; 1 Kings 19:12; Ps
18:10-16; 78:14), direct communications (Num 12:6; 27:21; Deut 5:4; Is 6; Jn 14:26; 1
Cor 2:12,13; 1 Thess 2:13; 1 Pet 1:11) and miracles (1 Tim 3:16; Rev 21:5).

The purpose of special revelation is to bring certain people (the elect) to a saving
knowledge of God. It brings more understanding to man than just basic truths about
God. Special revelation is a disclosure of God to man concerning Himself, His ways, and
the way to salvation. For a man to be saved he needs special revelation. To be of lasting
benefit to man records of special revelation needed to be committed to writing and this
is the purpose of the Bible.

Such special revelation in recorded form came to man through His prophets and the
apostles. It came through the agency of man, under inspiration of the Spirit of God (Mk
7:13; 2 Tim 3:16,17; Heb 1:1,2; 2 Pet 3:16), though remaining the words of men,
containing their own thoughts, styles, and so on (1 Chron 29:29; Lk 1:1-4; 2 Pet 1:19). It
was then preserved through the ages by God, translated, distributed and has now come
down to us in its various translated copies.

What was spoken and written by inspiration, came with as high authority as if it had
proceeded from God without the use of human instrumentality.

J. L. Dagg

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2.2 The 1689 Confession of Faith on Scripture

The first article of the Confession of Faith deals with what it calls The Holy Scripture. It
acknowledges that these are those writings which are totally separate from all other
writings known in the world, for they are the product of both God and men (2 Tim
3:16,17; 2 Pet 1:20,21). These writings are the special revelation of God in written form.

1. The Holy Scriptures are the only sufficient, certain, and infallible rule of all saving
knowledge, faith and obedience (a). Although the light of nature, and the works of creation
and providence do so far manifest the goodness, wisdom, and power of God, as to leave men
inexcusable, yet are they not sufficient to give that knowledge of God and His will which is
necessary unto salvation (b). Therefore it pleased the Lord at different times, and in various
manners to reveal Himself, and to declare that His will unto His church (c); and afterward for
the better preserving and propagating of the truth, and for the more sure establishment and
comfort of the church against the corruption of the flesh, and the malice of Satan, and of the
world, to commit the same wholly unto writing; which makes the Holy Scriptures to be most
necessary, those former ways of Gods revealing His will unto His people being now ceased (d).

a. 2 Tim 3:15-17; Is 8:20; Lk 16:29,31; Eph 2:20.

b. Rom 1:19-21; 2:14,15; Ps 19:1-3.
c. Heb 1:1.
d. Pr 22:19-21; Rom 15:4; 2 Pet 1:19,20.

2. Under the name of Holy Scripture, or the Word of God written, are now contained all the
books of the Old and New Testament, which are these:

Of the Old Testament,

Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel,
1 Kings, 2 Kings, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job, Psalms, Proverbs,
Ecclesiastes, The Song of Songs, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel,
Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi.

Of the New Testament,

Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, The Acts of the Apostles, Paul's Epistle to the Romans, 1
Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 2
Thessalonians, 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, the Epistle to the Hebrews, the Epistle of
James, The first and second Epistles of Peter, The first, second and third Epistles of John, the
Epistle of Jude, the Revelation. All of which are given by the inspiration of God, to be the rule
of faith and life (a).

a. 2 Tim 3:16.

3. The books commonly called Apocrypha, not being of (f) divine inspiration, are no part of the
canon or rule of the Scriptures, and therefore are of no authority to the church of God, nor to
be any otherwise approved or made use of than other human writings (a).

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 a. Lk 24:27,44; Rom 3:2.

2.3 The Necessity of Scripture

Today, as was the case in 1689, there are no other writings or means whereby we can
come to a saving knowledge of God, except through these Holy Scriptures. In times
past it was possible to gain such saving knowledge from other sources of special
revelation, namely angels, prophets, apostles and even the Lord Jesus Christ Himself
(Heb 1:1,2; Gal 1:11,12). But this is no longer the case, as they are no longer bodily
present among us. Hence the Bible has now become our only source of saving
knowledge. Special revelation has now ceased in the sense of there being any new
revelation given to man.

QUESTION:

Why is it necessary for us to have the Scriptures in our own language? Explain.

It is impossible for men to be saved without the Scriptures, for they must come into
contact with them in order to be saved (2 Tim 3:15; Lk 6:27-31), for those former ways
of Gods revealing His will are now ceased. If we are to know the way of salvation we
need God to tell us what it is, and with the ending of new revelations, we need accurate
records of past revelations in order to know how we may be saved.

2.4 The Insufficiency of General Revelation

It is certainly true that there is much to learn through Gods general revelation, in both
creation and providence, and this enough to leave men inexcusable before God (Rom
1:20; Ps 19:1,2). However these sources of knowledge are not sufficient to give any
person a saving knowledge of God, for these tell us nothing of what is necessary for
salvation.

QUESTION:

Why is general revelation not enough to bring a person to salvation?

2.5 The Preservation and Publication of Special Revelation

Since men need special revelation for salvation, and since there are no longer any other
instruments of special revelation, it is obviously necessary that special revelation from
the past be preserved in order for men to be saved. It is here therefore that the Bible

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becomes necessary for salvation (Jn 5:39,40).

In order to preserve the epitome of special revelation from the various means of
corruption, such as human weakness and sinfulness, Satan and the world, it pleased the
Lord to commit the same wholly unto writing. Consider here, 2 Peter 1:15ff.

In so doing, the record of special revelation has been accurately preserved and able to
be faithfully published throughout the world (Rom 1:8-15; Gal 4:20; 6:11; 1 Tim 3:14,15;
Rev 1:9,19; 2:1). Men therefore have available to them, the only sufficient, certain and
infallible rule of all saving knowledge, faith and obedience (Rom 15:4).

QUESTION:

Why does an unbeliever need to be in contact with the Bible in order to be saved?

2.6 The Identity of Holy Scripture

The Confession of Faith very clearly identifies those writings that are Holy Scripture. It
lists as Holy Scripture the 39 books of the Old Testament and the 27 books of the New
Testament. Outside of these books there are no others that are to be recognized as Holy
Scripture.

These 66 books are recognized as having been given by the inspiration of God (2 Tim
3:16; 2 Pet 1:20,21). What this means is that even though they were written in their
original language by human authors, what was written was none-the-less Gods Word,
for it was He who gave them the words to write (Gal 1:11,12; 2 Pet 1:20,21;
3:1,2,15,16).

By inspiration, we do not mean that God used the individual writers as automata, or that He
dictated to them what they should say, but we mean that His Holy Spirit so guided and
controlled the writers that what they wrote was true, and was the particular truth God wanted
to be given in writing to His people. God allowed the writers to use their own intellects, their
own language and their own style, but when they wrote, His Holy Spirit supernaturally kept
their writing free from error, and rendered it the exact truth which God wanted conveyed to
His people down through the ages.

F. Hamilton
Quoted by L. Boettner
The Reformed Doctrine of Predestination

QUESTION:

What implications does inspiration have for the modern reader and preacher of Gods
Word?

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2.7 The Apocrypha

The word apocrypha comes from the Greek, and its meaning is that which is hidden.
Today the word is associated with the collection of books which appear between the
Old and New Testaments in the Vulgate and New English Bibles. These are books that
were rejected by both the Jews and the early church as being no part of the Canon or
rule of Scripture.

The Canon, simply means the standard or rule. When a book is determined as outside
the Canon of Scripture, what is meant is that it doesnt reach the criteria for inclusion
in the Holy Scriptures. The Canon of Scripture takes into account the following:

were these books accepted as Scriptural by Jesus (Mt 5:17,18; Lk

24:25-27,44,45)?
do they carry Apostolic Authority?
and, were these books recognized by the early church as Scriptural?

QUESTIONS:

What place do the writings of men, outside of the Holy Scriptures, hold for us? Are they
of any continuing value? Explain.

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as is. Thankyou.

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