The 1689 Baptist Confession Declares Saving Faith may be Administered via Baptism and Communion

[InTheLight]

Any Reformed, Doctrines of Grace, or Calvinists want to comment on Chapter 14 of the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith where it states baptism, communion, and prayer, are all means that God uses to deliver saving faith?

Chapter 14: Of Saving Faith
1. The grace of faith, whereby the elect are enabled to believe to the saving of their souls, is the work of the Spirit of Christ in their hearts, and is ordinarily wrought by the ministry of the Word; by which also, and by the administration of baptism and the Lord's supper, prayer, and other means appointed of God,

 

[Rob_BW]

Have you tried the plain English version?

Chapter 14 - Saving Faith
1. The grace of faith, by which the elect are enabled to believe so that their souls are saved, is the work of the Spirit of Christ in their hearts.1 Faith is ordinarily produced by the ministry of the Word.2 By this same ministry and by the administration of baptism and the Lord’s supper, prayer, and other means appointed by God, faith is increased and strengthened.3

12 Corinthians 4:13; Ephesians 2:8. 2Romans 10:14, 17. 3Luke 17:5; 1 Peter 2:2; Acts 20:32.

The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith in Modern English

 

[Reformed]

Any Reformed, Doctrines of Grace, or Calvinists want to comment on Chapter 14 of the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith where it states baptism, communion, and prayer, are all means that God uses to deliver saving faith?

Chapter 14: Of Saving Faith
1. The grace of faith, whereby the elect are enabled to believe to the saving of their souls, is the work of the Spirit of Christ in their hearts, and is ordinarily wrought by the ministry of the Word; by which also, and by the administration of baptism and the Lord's supper, prayer, and other means appointed of God,

#49.7

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

 

[Reformed]

Have you tried the plain English version?

Chapter 14 - Saving Faith
1. The grace of faith, by which the elect are enabled to believe so that their souls are saved, is the work of the Spirit of Christ in their hearts.1 Faith is ordinarily produced by the ministry of the Word.2 By this same ministry and by the administration of baptism and the Lord’s supper, prayer, and other means appointed by God, faith is increased and strengthened.3

12 Corinthians 4:13; Ephesians 2:8. 2Romans 10:14, 17. 3Luke 17:5; 1 Peter 2:2; Acts 20:32.

The 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith in Modern English

When we consider what baptism symbolizes it is a beautiful picture of our death to sin and being raised in newness of life. The Lord's Supper is a remembrance of Christ, which we share with our fellow brothers and sisters. These things can serve as faith-builders. That is what the framers of the 1689 LBC meant.

 

[Jerome]

(pdf) ARBCA Update, publication of a Reformed Baptist association of a few dozen churches that 'hold to' The 1689 Confession:

"ARBCA General Assembly, held at Trinity Reformed Baptist Church in La Mirada, Calif. ....Dr. Richard Barcellos of Heritage Baptist Church, Owensboro, Ky., spoke on 'The Lord’s Supper as Means of Grace', focusing on the benefits that communion conveys to believers – it’s not just a memorial meal. Those benefits include sanctifying grace indued to the soul, the benefits of Christ’s body and blood nourishes believers’ souls, the frequency of the supper, and its links with the past, 'do this in remembrance of Me', present 'the cup of blessing which we drink,' and future 'do this till I come,' as recorded by Christ’s directives. He noted that 'baptism is a sacrament of spiritual birth; the Lord’s Supper is a sacrament of spiritual feeding.'"

 

[InTheLight]

Have you tried the plain English version?

By this same ministry and by the administration of baptism and the Lord’s supper, prayer, and other means appointed by God, faith is increased and strengthened.

Saving faith is "increased and strengthened"?

How does one know when they have enough?



Sent from my Pixel 2 XL

 

[Reformed]

Saving faith is "increased and strengthened"?

How does one know when they have enough?



Sent from my Pixel 2 XL

#94

 

[Rob_BW]

Saving faith is "increased and strengthened"?

How does one know when they have enough?



Sent from my Pixel 2 XL

Is your faith not assaulted by the world on a daily basis?

I plead Matthew 17:20 in regards to faith having a size.

 

[InTheLight]

Is your faith not assaulted by the world on a daily basis?

Sure, but not my saving faith.



Sent from my Pixel 2 XL

 

[Rob_BW]

Sure, but not my saving faith.



Sent from my Pixel 2 XL

I'll be honest with you, when I read stuff like "means of grace" from the Lutherans and some others, I think they didn't reform enough from the RCC.

But I don't see a problem in 14.1.

 

[Reformed]

I'll be honest with you, when I read stuff like "means of grace" from the Lutherans and some others, I think they didn't reform enough from the RCC.
But I don't see a problem in 14.1.

Rob, it is all in the definition. That said, I tend to get theologically queazy when terms are used that carry strong Roman undertones. The term "sacrament" is not wrong in and of itself but "ordinance" serves the purpose of distancing itself from Rome.

 

[MartyF]

Have you tried the plain English v

NEVER!! KJB only!

just kidding

 

[Iconoclast]

InTheLight,

Saving faith is "increased and strengthened"?

How does one know when they have enough?

ITL, keep in mind that our justification is a one-time thing. Saving faith, however, includes our sanctification and our growth in grace..
reflecting on the fact of Jesus dying on our behalf and then saving us primarily from our sins, These ordinances are instructive as to who we are,IN Christ, and how we should live in light of it.
We are saved from sins dominion, and the penalty of our sins by Jesus active and passive obedience.
Romans 6 is a go to chapter, along with Ephesians 1- 5 .

 

[InTheLight]

InTheLight,
ITL, keep in mind that our justification is a one-time thing. Saving faith, however, includes our sanctification and our growth in grace..

Disagree. Saving faith IS justification. Justification by faith alone is a bedrock of Baptist theology (and most Protestantism.) Therefore saving faith is a one time thing.

 

[Reformed]

InTheLight,



ITL, keep in mind that our justification is a one-time thing. Saving faith, however, includes our sanctification and our growth in grace..
reflecting on the fact of Jesus dying on our behalf and then saving us primarily from our sins, These ordinances are instructive as to who we are,IN Christ, and how we should live in light of it.
We are saved from sins dominion, and the penalty of our sins by Jesus active and passive obedience.
Romans 6 is a go to chapter, along with Ephesians 1- 5 .

Brother, you are going to get pushback on advocating an Ordo Salutis but that is OK. You are spot on.