20 years ago — July 7-14, 1997
The Book of Confessions expressed “in different ways and at various times, the … primary Reformed principles … : grace alone, faith alone, Scripture alone. … It may be abused by us or be used by us as it was intended. We can abuse the Book of Confessions if we forget that it is a ‘subordinate’ standard in the church, always subject to the authority of Jesus Christ, as the Scriptures bear witness to him, and subordinate to Scripture… . We can abuse the Book of Confessions if we forget that confessions report a particular faith statement from a specific moment in history and can be amended from time to time. As Presbyterians we have proclaimed ourselves to be open to the creative work of the Holy Spirit, Reformed and always ready to be reformed by God… . The confessions provide standards of faith and doctrine but they are not the primary or only standards.” The Book of Confessions can be abused if we go to the other extreme and see them as irrelevant.
From “For church officers: The Book of Confessions, a thumbnail sketch, part VIII: Guided by the confessions” by Earl S. Johnson Jr.
