Chapter 13 – Sanctification

1. Those who are united to Christ and effectually called and regenerated have a new heart and a new spirit created in them through the power of Christ’s death and resurrection. They are also further sanctified, really and personally,¹through the same power, by his Word and Spirit dwelling in them.² The dominion of the whole body of sin is destroyed,³and the various evil desires that arise from it are more and more weakened and put to death.⁴  At the same time, those called and regenerated are more and more enlivened and strengthened in all saving graces⁵ so that they practice true holiness, without which no one will see the Lord.⁶

¹Acts 20:32; Romans 6:5, 6. ²John 17:17; Ephesians 3:16–19; 1 Thessalonians 5:21–23. ³Romans 6:14. ⁴Galatians 5:24. ⁵Colossians 1:11. ⁶2 Corinthians 7:1; Hebrews 12:14.

2. This sanctification extends throughout the whole person,⁷ though it is never completed in this life. Some corruption remains in every part.⁸  From this arises a continual and irreconcilable war, with the desires of the flesh against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh.⁹

⁷1 Thessalonians 5:23. ⁸Romans 7:18, 23. ⁹Galatians 5:17; 1 Peter 2:11.

3. In this war, the remaining corruption may greatly prevail for a time.¹⁰  Yet through the continual supply of strength from the sanctifying Spirit of Christ, the regenerate part overcomes.¹¹  So the saints grow in grace, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. They pursue a heavenly life, in gospel obedience to all the commands that Christ as Head and King has given them in his Word.¹²

¹⁰Romans 7:23. ¹¹Romans 6:14. ¹²Ephesians 4:15, 16; 2 Corinthians 3:18; 2 Corinthians 7:1.

Confession The Faith–The 1689 Baptist Confession for the 21^st Century

Chapter 12 – Adoption

1. God has granted that all those who are justified would receive the grace of adoption, in and for the sake of his only Son Jesus Christ.¹ By this they are counted among the children of God and enjoy the freedom and privileges of that relationship.² They inherit his name,³ receive the spirit of adoption,⁴ have access to the throne of grace with boldness, and are enabled to cry “Abba, Father!”⁵ They are given compassion,⁶ protected,⁷ provided for,⁸ and chastened by him as a father.⁹  Yet they are never cast off¹⁰ but are sealed for the day of redemption¹¹ and inherit the promises as heirs of everlasting salvation.¹²

¹Ephesians 1:5; Galatians 4:4, 5. ²John 1:12; Romans 8:17. ³2 Corinthians 6:18; Revelation 3:12. ⁴Romans 8:15. ⁵Galatians 4:6; Ephesians 2:18. ⁶Psalms 103:13. ⁷Proverbs 14:26. ⁸1 Peter 5:7. ⁹Hebrews 12:6. ¹⁰Isaiah 54:8, 9; Lamentations 3:31. ¹¹Ephesians 4:30. ¹²Hebrews 1:14; 6:12.

Confession The Faith–The 1689 Baptist Confession for the 21^st Century

Chapter 11- Justification

1. Those God effectually calls he also freely justifies.¹  He does this, not by infusing righteousness into them but by pardoning their sins and accounting and accepting them as righteous.² He does this for Christ’s sake alone and not for anything produced in them or done by them.³  He does not impute faith itself, the act of believing, or any other gospel obedience to them as their righteousness. Instead, he imputes Christ’s active obedience to the whole law and passive obedience in his death as their whole and only righteousness by faith.⁴  This faith is not self-generated; it is the gift of God.^5 1Romans 3:24; 8:30. ²Romans 4:5–8; Ephesians 1:7. ³1 Corinthians 1:30, 31; Romans 5:17–19. ⁴Philippians 3:8, 9; Ephesians 2:8–10. ⁵John 1:12; Romans 5:17.

2. Faith that receives and rests on Christ and his righteousness is the only instrument of justification.⁶  Yet it does not occur by itself in the person justified, but it is always accompanied by every other saving grace. It is not a dead faith but works through love.^7 6Romans 3:28. ⁷Galatians 5:6; James 2:17, 22, 26.

3. By his obedience and death, Christ fully paid the debt of all those who are justified. He endured in their place the penalty they deserved. By this sacrifice of himself in his bloodshed on the cross, he legitimately, really, and fully satisfied God’s justice on their behalf.⁸  Yet their justification is based entirely on free grace, because he was given by the Father for them, and his obedience and satisfaction were accepted in their place. These things were done freely, not because of anything in them,⁹ so that both the exact justice and the rich grace of God would be glorified in the justification of sinners.¹⁰⁸Hebrews 10:14; 1 Peter 1:18, 19; Isaiah 53:5, 6. ⁹Romans 8:32; 2 Corinthians 5:21. ¹⁰Romans 3:26; Ephesians 1:6,7; 2:7.

4. From all eternity God decreed to justify all the elect,¹¹ and in the fullness of time Christ died for their sins and rose again for their justification.¹²  Nevertheless, they are not justified personally until the Holy Spirit actually applies Christ to them at the proper time.¹³¹¹Galatians 3:8; 1 Peter 1:2; 1 Timothy 2:6. ¹²Romans 4:25. ¹³Colossians 1:21, 22; Titus 3:4–7.

5. God continues to forgive the sins of those who are justified.¹⁴  Even though they can never fall from a state of justification,¹⁵ they may fall under God’s fatherly displeasure  because of their sins.¹⁶  In that condition they will not usually have the light of his face restored to them until they humble themselves, confess their sins, plead for pardon, and renew their faith and repentance.¹⁷¹⁴Matthew 6:12; 1 John 1:7, 9. ¹⁵John 10:28. ¹⁶Psalms 89:31–33. ¹⁷Psalms 32:5; Psalms 51; Matthew 26:75.

6. In all these ways, the justification of believers under the Old Testament was exactly the same as the justification of believers under the New Testament.^18 18Galatians 3:9; Romans 4:22–24.

Confession The Faith–The 1689 Baptist Confession for the 21^st Century

Chapter 10 – Effectual Calling

1. In God’s appointed and acceptable time, he is pleased to call effectually,¹ by his Word and Spirit, those he has predestined to life. He calls them out of their natural state of sin and death to grace and salvation by Jesus Christ.²  He enlightens their minds spiritually and savingly to understand the things of God.³ He takes away their heart of stone and gives them a heart of flesh.⁴  He renews their wills and by his almighty power turns them to good and effectually draws them to Jesus Christ.⁵  Yet he does all this in such a way that they come completely freely, since they are made willing by his grace.⁶

¹Romans 8:30; Romans 11:7; Ephesians 1:10, 11; 2 Thessalonians 2:13, 14. ²Ephesians 2:1–6. ³Acts 26:18; Ephesians 1:17, 18. ⁴Ezekiel 36:26. ⁵Deuteronomy 30:6; Ezekiel 36:27; Ephesians 1:19. ⁶Psalm 110:3; Song of Solomon 1:4.

2. This effectual call flows from God’s free and special grace alone, not from anything at all foreseen in those called. Neither does the call arise from any power or action on their part;⁷ they are totally passive in it. They are dead in sins and trespasses until they are made alive and renewed by the Holy Spirit.⁸  By this they are enabled to answer this call and to embrace the grace offered and conveyed in it. This response is enabled by a power that is no less than that which raised Christ from the dead.⁹

⁷2 Timothy 1:9; Ephesians 2:8. ⁸1 Corinthians 2:14; Ephesians 2:5; John 5:25. ⁹Ephesians 1:19, 20.

3. Elect infants dying in infancy are regenerated and saved by Christ through the Spirit,¹⁰ who works when and where and how he pleases.¹¹   The same is true of every elect person who is incapable of being outwardly called by the ministry of the Word.

¹⁰John 3:3, 5, 6. ¹¹John 3:8.

4. Those who are not elected will not and cannot truly come to Christ and therefore cannot be saved, because they are not effectually drawn by the Father.¹²  They may even be called by the ministry of the Word and may receive some ordinary working of the Spirit without being saved.¹³  Much less can any be saved who do not receive the Christian religion, no matter how diligently they live their lives according to the light of nature and the teachings of the religion they profess.¹⁴

¹²John 6:44, 45, 65; 1 John 2:24, 25. ¹³Matthew 22:14; Matthew 13:20, 21; Hebrews 6:4, 5. ¹⁴Acts 4:12; John 4:22; John 17:3.

Confession The Faith–The 1689 Baptist Confession for the 21^st Century

Chapter 9–Free Will

1. God has endowed human will with natural liberty and power to act on choices so that it is neither forced nor inherently bound by nature to do good or evil.¹

¹Matthew 17:12; James 1:14; Deuteronomy 30:19.

2. Humanity in the state of innocence had freedom and power to will and to do what was good and well-pleasing to God.²  Yet this condition was unstable, so that humanity could fall from it.³

²Ecclesiastes 7:29. ³Genesis 3:6.

3. Humanity, by falling into a state of sin, has completely lost all ability to choose any spiritual good that accompanies salvation.⁴  Thus, people in their natural^a state are absolutely opposed to spiritual good and dead in sin,⁵ so that they cannot convert themselves by their own strength or prepare themselves for conversion.⁶

^awithout the Spirit
⁴Romans 5:6; Romans 8:7. ⁵Ephesians 2:1, 5. ⁶Titus 3:3–5; John 6:44.

4. When God converts sinners and transforms them into the state of grace, he frees them from their natural bondage to sin⁷ and by his grace alone enables them to will and to do freely what is spiritually good.⁸  Yet because of their remaining corruption, they do not perfectly nor exclusively will what is good but also will what is evil.⁹

⁷Colossians 1:13; John 8:36. ⁸Philippians 2:13. ⁹Romans 7:15, 18, 19, 21, 23.

5. Only in the state of glory is the will made perfectly and unchangeably free toward good alone.¹⁰

¹⁰Ephesians 4:13.

The 1689 Baptist Confession for the 21^st Century

Chapter 8 – Christ the Mediator

1. God was pleased, in his eternal purpose, to choose and ordain the Lord Jesus, his only begotten Son, according to the covenant made between them, to be the mediator between God and humanity.¹  God chose him to be prophet,² priest,³and king,⁴ and to be head and savior of the church,⁵ the heir of all things,⁶ and judge of the world.⁷  From all eternity, God gave to the Son a people to be his offspring. In time these people would be redeemed, called, justified, sanctified, and glorified by him.⁸

¹Isaiah 42:1; 1 Peter 1:19, 20. ²Acts 3:22. ³Hebrews 5:5, 6. ⁴Psalms 2:6; Luke 1:33. ⁵Ephesians 1:22, 23. ⁶Hebrews 1:2. ⁷Acts 17:31. ⁸Isaiah 53:10; John 17:6; Romans 8:30.

2. The Son of God, the second person of the Holy Trinity, is truly and eternally God. He is the brightness of the Father’s glory, the same in substance and equal with him. He made the world and sustains and governs everything he has made. When the fullness of time came, he took upon himself human nature, with all the essential properties and common weaknesses of it⁹ but without sin.¹⁰  He was conceived by the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Virgin Mary. The Holy Spirit came down upon her, and the power of the Most High overshadowed her. Thus, he was born of a woman from the tribe of Judah, a descendant of Abraham and David in fulfillment of the Scriptures.¹¹  Two whole, perfect, and distinct natures were inseparably joined together in one person, without converting one into the other or mixing them together to produce a different or blended nature. This person is truly God and truly man, yet one Christ, the only mediator between God and humanity.¹²

⁹John 1:14; Galatians 4;4. ¹⁰Romans 8:3; Hebrews 2:14, 16, 17; Hebrews 4:15. ¹¹Matthew 1:22, 23; Luke 1:27, 31, 35. ¹²Romans 9:5; 1 Timothy 2:5.

3. The Lord Jesus, in his human nature united in this way to the divine in the person of the Son, was sanctified and anointed with the Holy Spirit beyond measure.¹³  He had in himself all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.¹⁴  The Father was pleased to make all fullness dwell in him¹⁵ so that—being holy, harmless, undefiled,¹⁶ and full of grace and truth¹⁷—he was thoroughly qualified to carry out the office of mediator and guarantor.¹⁸  He did not take this office upon himself but was called to it by his Father,¹⁹ who put all power and judgment in his hand and commanded him to carry them out.²⁰

¹³Psalms 45:7; Acts 10:38; John 3:34. ¹⁴Colossians 2:3. ¹⁵Colossians 1:19. ¹⁶Hebrews 7:26. ¹⁷John 1:14. ¹⁸Hebrews 7:22. ¹⁹Hebrews 5:5. ²⁰John 5:22, 27; Matthew 28:18; Acts 2:36.

4. The Lord Jesus most willingly undertook this office.²¹  To discharge it, he was born under the law²² and perfectly fulfilled it. He also experienced the punishment that we deserved and that we should have endured and suffered.²³  He was made sin and a curse for us.²⁴  He  endured extremely heavy sorrows in his soul and extremely painful sufferings in his body.²⁵  He was crucified and died and remained in a state of death, yet his body did not decay.²⁶  On the third day he arose from the dead²⁷ with the same body in which he suffered.²⁸  In this body he also ascended into heaven,²⁹ where he sits at the right hand of his Father, interceding.³⁰  He will return to judge men and angels at the end of the age.³¹

²¹Psalms 40:7, 8; Hebrews 10:5–10; John 10:18. ²²Gal 4:4; Matthew 3:15. ²³Galatians 3:13; Isaiah 53:6; 1 Peter 3:18. ²⁴2 Corinthians 5:21. ²⁵Matthew 26:37, 38; Luke 22:44; Matthew 27:46. ²⁶Acts 13:37. ²⁷1 Corinthians 15:3, 4. ²⁸John 20:25, 27. ²⁹Mark 16:19; Acts 1:9–11. ³⁰Romans 8:34; Hebrews 9:24. ³¹Acts 10:42; Romans 14:9, 10; Acts 1:11; 2 Peter 2:4.

5. The Lord Jesus has fully satisfied the justice of God, obtained reconciliation, and purchased an everlasting inheritance in the kingdom of heaven for all those given to him by the Father.³²  He has accomplished these things by his perfect obedience and sacrifice of himself, which he once for all offered up to God through the eternal Spirit.³³

³²John 17:2; Hebrews 9:15. ³³Hebrews 9:14; Hebrews 10:14; Romans 3:25, 26.

6. The price of redemption was not actually paid by Christ till after his incarnation. Yet the virtue, efficacy, and benefit of it was imparted to the elect in every age since the beginning of the world, in and by those promises, types, and sacrifices that revealed him and pointed to him as the seed that would bruise the serpent’s head³⁴ and the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.³⁵  He is the same yesterday and today and forever.³⁶

³⁴1 Corinthians 4:10; Hebrews 4:2; 1 Peter 1:10, 11. ³⁵Revelation 13:8. ³⁶Hebrews 13:8.

7. In his work of mediation, Christ acts according to both natures, by each nature doing what is appropriate to itself. Even so, because of the unity of the person, that which is appropriate to one nature is sometimes in Scripture attributed to the person under the designation of the other nature.³⁷

³⁷John 3:13; Acts 20:28

8. To all those for whom Christ has obtained eternal redemption, he certainly and effectually applies and imparts it. He intercedes for them,³⁸ unites them to himself by his Spirit, and reveals to them in and by his Word the mystery of salvation. He persuades them to believe and obey³⁹ and governs their hearts by his Word and Spirit.⁴⁰  He overcomes all their enemies by his almighty power and wisdom,⁴¹ using methods and ways that are perfectly consistent with his wonderful and unsearchable governance. All these things are by free and absolute grace, apart from any condition for obtaining it that is foreseen in them.⁴²

³⁸John 6:37; John 10:15, 16; John 17:9; Romans 5:10. ³⁹John 17:6; Ephesians 1:9; 1 John 5:20. ⁴⁰Romans 8:9, 14. ⁴¹Psalms 110:1; 1 Corinthians 15:25, 26. ⁴²John 3:8; Ephesians 1:8.

9. This office of mediator between God and humanity is appropriate for Christ alone, who is the prophet, priest, and king of the church of God. This office may not be transferred from him to anyone else, either in whole or in part.⁴³

⁴³1 Timothy 2:5.

10. The number and character of these offices is essential. Because we are ignorant, we need his prophetic office.⁴⁴  Because we are alienated from God and imperfect in the best of our service, we need his priestly office to reconcile us and present us to God as acceptable.⁴⁵  Because we are hostile and utterly unable to return to God, and so that we can be rescued and made secure from our spiritual enemies, we need his kingly office to convince, subdue, draw, sustain, deliver, and preserve us for his heavenly kingdom.⁴⁶

⁴⁴John 1:18. ⁴⁵Colossians 1:21; Galatians 5:17. ⁴⁶John 16:8; Psalms 110:3; Luke 1:74, 75.

Confession The Faith–The 1689 Baptist Confession for the 21^st Century

Chapter 7 – God’s Covenant

1. Though rational creatures are responsible to obey God as their Creator, the distance between God and these creatures is so great that they could never have attained the reward of life except by God’s voluntary condescension. He has been pleased to express this through a covenant framework.¹

¹Luke 17:10; Job 35:7, 8.

2. Since humanity brought itself under the curse of the law by its fall, it pleased the Lord to make a covenant of grace.²  In this covenant he freely offers to sinners life and salvation through Jesus Christ. On their part he requires faith in him, that they may be saved,³ and promises to give his Holy Spirit to all who are ordained to eternal life, to make them willing and able to believe.⁴

²Genesis 2:17; Galatians 3:10; Romans 3:20, 21. ³Romans 8:3; Mark 16:15, 16; John 3:16. ⁴Ezekiel 36:26, 27; John 6:44, 45; Psalms 110:3.

3. This covenant is revealed in the gospel. It was revealed first of all to Adam in the promise of salvation through the seed of the woman.⁵  After that, it was revealed step by step until the full revelation of it was completed in the New Testament.⁶  This covenant is based on the eternal covenant transaction between the Father and the Son concerning the redemption of the elect.⁷  Only through the grace of this covenant have those saved from among the descendants of fallen Adam obtained life and blessed immortality. Humanity is now utterly incapable of being accepted by God on the same terms on which Adam was accepted in his state of innocence.⁸

⁵Genesis 3:15. ⁶Hebrews 1:1. ⁷2 Timothy 1:9; Titus 1:2; ⁸Hebrews 11:6, 13; Romans 4:1, 2ff.; Acts 4:12; John 8:56.

Additional:  Covenant of Works

6.1 God created humanity upright and perfect. He gave them a righteous law that would have led to life if they had kept it but threatened death if they broke it.¹  Yet they did not remain for long in this position of honor. Satan used the craftiness of the serpent to seduce Eve, who then seduced Adam.

19.1 1 God gave Adam a law of comprehensive obedience written in his heart and a specific precept not to eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.¹  By these God obligated him and all his descendants to personal, total, exact, and perpetual obedience.²  God promised life if Adam fulfilled it and threatened death if he broke it, and he gave Adam the power and ability to keep it.³

¹Genesis 1:27; Ecclesiastes 7:29. ²Romans 10:5. ³Galatians 3:10, 12.

20.1 Because the covenant of works was broken by sin and was unable to confer life, God was pleased to proclaim the promise of Christ, the seed of the woman, as the means of calling the elect and producing in them faith and repentance.¹  In this promise the gospel in its substance was revealed and made effectual for the conversion and salvation of sinners.²

¹Genesis 3:15. ²Revelation 13:8.