Confession/Confessions

Confessions unite and confessions divide. That reality is central to the meaning of a confession. “I believe this,” is, by implication, of necessity paired with “. . . therefore I do NOT believe that.”

I remember studying many confessions in my time at Gordon-Conwell. As I would study them, I often found myself saying, “Yes! Yes!” to certain confessions and even parts of certain confessions. But then, for example, in reading the Westminster Confession (1646), though I found myself so appreciative of the clarity that God is the Providential Lord of the universe, I also then found myself confused by the assertion that the Pope was called the Anti-Christ (Chapter 25, section 6).

Confessions are necessary summaries of belief to unite Christians without having to go over every passage of Scripture to decide if we can fellowship together. A good confession gives a solid grounding for fellowship and mission together built around the Great Tradition of the Church that is based in the Word of God.

For the sake of Christian mission and the integrity of our witness I believe it is best to focus on core doctrines that unite us, rather than building insurmountable walls around specific doctrines that divide us. Later confessions serve an important role in clarifying doctrine and guiding particular church traditions from within. Yet for cooperation in witness and mission, and for the sake of church unity, the earliest confessions remind us of the truths that Christians hold in common.

These earliest confessions, such as the Apostles’ Creed and Nicene Creed, were brief and focused on key doctrines that are foundational for all other teachings: Jesus is God and Jesus is human. Full Stop.

How is he fully God and fully human? That is where Nestorius got into trouble. He tried to explain this with his Diophysite doctrine.[1] It went a little too far trying to explain a divine mystery that is to be accepted and revered but not explained.

Last week I read what may be the very first Christian “confession.” It is found in 1 Timothy after Paul explains the requirements for leadership in the church. After that (3:15), he describes the Church in three images:

1. The Household of God
2. The Church (ekklesia or “called out”) of the Living God
3. The Pillar and Bulwark of the Truth

Beyond these, the Church is also described by Paul as the Body of Christ (Romans 12:4-7 and I Corinthians 12, etc.). The Church is one (one body) and it is like a household of God and it is the foundation (or defender) of Truth. What is this Truth upon which the church is founded? We find out in the very next and, I might add, very beautiful compound sentence. In I Timothy 3:16 he writes what I believe may be the earliest confession of faith. Look carefully at its six components:

This is a remarkable confession. The word translated as “common confession” in the NASB (“beyond all question” in the NIV) is homologoumenōs. It is a word that means “same” (homo) “belief, understanding, or word.” It is used of what is commonly understood as what we all agree on. It is used of the commonly accepted (homologoumna) books of the New Testament. Thus, a common confession or agreement is a good translation.

So, it is as if Paul were saying, “As you train leaders/elders and deacons remember both what the Church is (“bulwark of truth”) and then remember what that truth is—the six elements to our common confession: Incarnation, resurrection, Lord of angelic realm, a missionary savior, a savior for all the world and the reigning Lord!” We can nuance these six elements, but I think it is important to remember what is said in this early confession that we often overlook: Mission. Two of the six elements focus on Jesus who is the missionary of God! Very few confessions[2] talk about mission or evangelism. Most talk about belief in the church, not an orthodox confession about belief about those outside of the church. So, remembering this earliest confession may be a needed corrective for us as we seek to include other Christians in our confession while keeping God’s mission at its center.

[1] Nestorian Diophysitism is the belief that Christ has both a divine and a human essence or reality, but it became controversial because it appeared to divide Christ so sharply that critics believed it implied two persons rather than one person with two natures.

[2] The Lausanne Covenant is one wonderful exception (sections 4-10).

Dr. Scott W. Sunquist, president of Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, is author of the “Attentiveness” blog. He welcomes comments, responses, and good ideas.