Historic Works

The Westminster Confession of Faith

The Westminster Confession of Faith is a thoughtful document that the Westminster Assembly wrote in 1643 to explain the basic teachings of the Bible. 

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What Is the Westminster Confession of Faith?

It was 1643. London. The little British world—Scotland, England, and Ireland—was caught in a civil war. And the Christian church wasn’t doing much better.

Debates still raged over the authority of the Bible. The Reformation—the return to the truth of the Bible, which had begun a century earlier—had spread all over Europe, and biblical teaching was beginning to take root in churches.

But it was time for reform in the Church of England—the official church of the British Isles. Time to re-forge its foundational documents according to the clear doctrines of Scripture and change Anglicanism for the better.

So in order to find peace within warring factions of the church, in 1646, over a hundred men of one mind piled into Westminster Abbey to rewrite the Church of England’s foundational documents.

Three documents emerged . . .

by Bibles.net

WESTMINSTER CONFESSION
FULL TEXT
Read the entirety of the Westminster Confession here.
FREE

Westminster Confession Chapters I and V Phone Wallpaper

We have made a graphic so you can keep a portion of the Westminster Confession on your phone as your background or screensaver!

The History of The Westminster Confession

Canons of Dordt
The Canons of Dordt were published in the Netherlands, rejecting Arminian doctrines. This document attempted to move Reformed churches toward John Calvin’s teaching, which was believed to be more biblical than Arminian doctrine.
War
The English Civil War began between Scotland, England, and Ireland.
Decision to Write Westminster
Puritans controlling the English Parliament called for a confession to guide the Church of England toward Calvin’s teaching.
Writing of the Confession
The Westminster Confession of Faith was written.
End of War
The English Civil War ended.
Second London Baptist Confession
Baptists in England produced the Second London Baptist Confession, altering portions of the Westminster Confession, in order to guide Reformed Baptist churches.
Adopted by Presbyterians
American Presbyterians officially adopted the Westminster Confession as their doctrinal standard.
1619
1642
1643
1646
1651
1689
1729
History of the Westminster Confession
Article: 8 Min

Why Is the Westminster Confession Still Important?

by Bibles.net
Article: 2 Min

The Westminster Confession of Faith Today

by Chad Van Dixhoorn at Reformation 21

Article: 7 Min

The History Behind the Westminster Shorter Catechism

by Sinclair Ferguson

Quote

Emotions Are Shaped by What We Think About

The emotions of the heart, in which many seem to think religion too exclusively to consist, ever follow the movements of the thought. Passion for service cannot take the place of passion for truth, or safely outrun the acquisition of truth… This is why God establishes and extends his Church by the ordinance of preaching; it is why we have Sunday schools and Bible classes.  

by B.B. Warfield | Source
Verse
EPHESIANS 4:11-16 ESV

And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.

Article: 7 Min

Is the Shorter Catechism Worth My Time?

by B.B. Warfield at The Westminster Presbyterian

Quote

You do not
know the truth,
my brother,
merely because you
accept the Westminster Assembly’s Confession,
and have studied it perfectly. No, we
know nothing till,
we are taught, of the Holy [Spirit],
who speaks to the heart rather than to the ear. 

Message: 50 Min

What Is It Like

to Enjoy God?

by John Piper

Verse
ROMANS 11:36 ESV

For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen. 

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