“Across the past four centuries, Baptist Christians have set forth their most cherished convictions about God, salvation, the church, and the life of faith in…confessions, covenants, and catechisms. In recent years these classic texts have been forgotten and discarded by many Baptists. The malign neglect of these important primary sources has certainly contributed to the theological amnesia and spiritual myopia which afflict all too many Baptists today. Real revival and true reformation will not be built on flimsy foundations.” – Timothy George
What is a Confession of Faith?
A confession of faith is a statement of belief adopted by a church or association of churches that defines doctrinal identity and guides biblical interpretation for the purpose of cooperation and mission. In a recent book, Nate Akin says that confessions of faith “…serve as a way for us to say to a confused world, “This is what we believe.”
There is a biblical precedence for a shared body of doctrine and belief. The passages given below are normally referenced to support the affirmation of the historic creeds (Apostles, Nicene, Athanasian, Chalcedon) but, by extension, also support the writing and affirming of confessions of faith.
3 Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints (Jud 3)
16 Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory. (1 Ti 3:16)
“…guard the good deposit entrusted to you.” (2 Ti 1:14)
15 So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter. (2 Th 2:15)
These passages establish a precedent for confessing faith and clearly refer to a body of established doctrine.
In the 16th Century, following the Reformation, Protestants began to write and adopt confessions of faith in abundance. The most enduring of these confessions, which are widely affirmed and used today, are the Augsburg Confession (1530) by Lutherans, the Thirty-Nine Articles (1563) of the Church of England, and the Westminster Confession (1644) of English and Scottish Presbyterians.
The most pertinent question for us is, were the early Baptists different? The answer is no.
In 1644, seven Particular Baptist congregations in London published what is now known as the First London Baptist Confession. Its original intent was to clarify the orthodoxy and faithfulness of these seven churches, which had been subject to slanderous and false rumors.
The most influential Baptist confession written during this period is now known as the Second Baptist London Confession (1677/1689), sometimes called the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith. This confession was adopted in the United States with the addition of two articles and reprinted as the Philadelphia Baptist Confession of Faith in 1742. That printing was paid for by the churches in Philadelphia but done by Benjamin Franklin. Yes, that Benjamin Franklin. Other notable Baptist confessions worth mentioning are the Orthodox Creed (1678) from the General Baptist in England, the New Hampshire Confession of Faith (1833), the Abstract of Principles (1858), and the Baptist Faith & Message (1925, 1963, 2000).
What is the importance of Confessions?
Historically, Baptist Confessions have been used for three purposes.
1. Confessions of Faith express unity with historic Christianity.
Leon Mcbeth sums this up nicely by saying that Baptists have “often used confessions of faith not to proclaim ‘Baptist Distinctives’ but instead to show how similar Baptists were to other orthodox Christians.”
For example, the Second London Baptist Confession (1677/1689) reads very close to the Westminster Confession throughout many articles (1644), and that is on purpose! Consider the following paragraph from the preamble of the Second London Confession.
“…we did in like manner conclude it best to follow their example in making use of the very same words with them both in these articles (which are very many) wherein our faith and doctrine are the same with theirs; and this we did the more abundantly to manifest our consent with both in all the fundamental articles of the Christian religion, as also with many others whose orthodox Confessions have been published to the world on the behalf of the Protestant in diverse nations and cities. And also to convince all that we have no itch to clog religion with new words, but do readily acquiesce in that form of sound words which hath been, in consent with the Holy Scriptures, used by others before us; hereby declaring, before God, angels, and men, our hearty agreement with them in that wholesome Protestant doctrine which, with so clear evidence of Scriptures, they have asserted.”
2. Confessions of Faith articulate Baptist distinctives.
While seeking to express unity with historic Christianity, Baptist confessions of faith also seek to articulate the distinctive doctrines that Baptists cherish. These confessions clarify, for example, the Baptist’s theological vision concerning the church, the ordinances, religious liberty, etc.
The preamble to the Baptist Faith & Message 2000 states, “Baptists are a people of deep beliefs and cherished doctrines. Throughout our history we have been a confessional people, adopting statements of faith as a witness to our beliefs and a pledge of our faithfulness to the doctrines revealed in Holy Scripture.”
3. Confessions of Faith serve as a standard of unity for mission partnership.
Cooperation requires unity, and shared doctrinal commitments serve as a basis for unity. It is easier to cooperate and partner with those who share your confession of faith or one of similar faith and practice.
It’s hard to know what these confessions were used for, if not to identify a common set of beliefs and practices for denominational unity and boundaries. There’s no clear mission if you don’t have a clear set of beliefs.- Thomas Kidd
Waldo’s Declaration of Faith: The New Hampshire Confession
Waldo was founded in 1850, and sometime after that, the church members adopted the historic and influential New Hampshire Confession (1833). It was written and adopted by the Baptist Association in New Hamshire but was made widely available by J. Newton Brown in his Church Manual in 1853.
Renown Baptist historian Tom Nettles summarizes the content of the New Hampshire Confession in the following way.
“… a noble confession, orthodox in its theology and Christology, uncompromised in its affirmation of the holy and wise sovereignty of God over his creation, the purely gratuitous character of salvation, clear in its baptistic understanding of the church, and firm in the reality of the eternal destinies of the righteous (esteemed so by the grace of God in the work of Christ) and the wicked, judged so by their continual transgression of the law and their wicked unbelief.”
Nathaniel R. Martin 