BC 7.3

7.3. The Marks of the True Church

We believe that we ought to discern diligently and very carefully, by the Word of God, what is the true church- for all sects in the world today claim for themselves the name of "the church." We are not speaking here of the company of hypocrites who are mixed among the good in the church and who nonetheless are not part of it, even though they are physically there. But we are speaking of distinguishing the body and fellowship of the true church from all sects that call themselves "the church." The true church can be recognized if it has the following marks: The church engages in the pure preaching of the gospel; it makes use of the pure administration of the sacraments as Christ instituted them; it practices church discipline for correcting faults. In short, it governs itself according to the pure Word of God, rejecting all things contrary to it and holding Jesus Christ as the only Head. By these marks one can be assured of recognizing the true church- and no one ought to be separated from it. As for those who can belong to the church, we can recognize them by the distinguishing marks of Christians: namely by faith, and by their fleeing from sin and pursuing righteousness, once they have received the one and only Savior, Jesus Christ. They love the true God and their neighbors, without turning to the right or left, and they crucify the flesh and its works. Though great weakness remains in them, they fight against it by the Spirit all the days of their lives, appealing constantly to the blood, suffering, death, and obedience of the Lord Jesus, in whom they have forgiveness of their sins, through faith in him. As for the false church, it assigns more authority to itself and its ordinances than to the Word of God; it does not want to subject itself to the yoke of Christ; it does not administer the sacraments as Christ commanded in his Word; it rather adds to them or subtracts from them as it pleases; it bases itself on humans, more than on Jesus Christ; it persecutes those who live holy lives according to the Word of God and who rebuke it for its faults, greed, and idolatry. These two churches are easy to recognize and thus to distinguish from each other.

Proof texts

• Rev. 2:9 — [9] “‘I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich) and the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.
• Rom. 9:6 — [6] But it is not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel,
• Gal. 1:8 — [8] But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.
• 1 Tim. 3:15 — [15] if I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth.
• Acts 19:3-5 — [3] And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” They said, “Into John's baptism.” [4] And Paul said, “John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, Jesus.” [5] On hearing this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
• 1 Cor. 11:20-29 — [20] When you come together, it is not the Lord's supper that you eat. [21] For in eating, each one goes ahead with his own meal. One goes hungry, another gets drunk. [22] What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I commend you in this? No, I will not. [23] For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, [24] and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” [25] In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” [26] For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. [27] Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. [28] Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. [29] For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself.
• Matt. 18:15-17 — [15] “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. [16] But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. [17] If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.
• 1 Cor. 5:4-5, 13 — [4] When you are assembled in the name of the Lord Jesus and my spirit is present, with the power of our Lord Jesus, [5] you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord. [13] God judges those outside. “Purge the evil person from among you.”
• 2 Thess. 3:6, 14 — [6] Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us. [14] If anyone does not obey what we say in this letter, take note of that person, and have nothing to do with him, that he may be ashamed.
• Titus 3:10 — [10] As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once and then twice, have nothing more to do with him,
• John 8:47 — [47] Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.”
• John 17:20 — [20] “I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word,
• Acts 17:11 — [11] Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.
• Eph. 2:20 — [20] built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone,
• Col. 1:23 — [23] if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.
• 1 Tim. 6:3 — [3] If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness,
• 1 Thess. 5:21 — [21] but test everything; hold fast what is good.
• 1 Tim. 6:20 — [20] O Timothy, guard the deposit entrusted to you. Avoid the irreverent babble and contradictions of what is falsely called “knowledge,”
• Rev. 2:6 — [6] Yet this you have: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.
• John 10:14 — [14] I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me,
• Eph. 5:23 — [23] For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior.
• Col. 1:18 — [18] And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.
• John 1:12 — [12] But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,
• 1 John 4:2 — [2] By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God,
• Rom. 6:2 — [2] By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?
• Phil. 3:12 — [12] Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.
• 1 John 4:19-21 — [19] We love because he first loved us. [20] If anyone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. [21] And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.
• Gal. 5:24 — [24] And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
• Rom. 7:15 — [15] For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.
• Gal. 5:17 — [17] For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.
• Rom. 7:24-25 — [24] Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? [25] Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.
• 1 John 1:7-9 — [7] But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. [8] If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. [9] If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
• Acts 4:17-18 — [17] But in order that it may spread no further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to anyone in this name.” [18] So they called them and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.
• 2 Tim. 4:3-4 — [3] For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, [4] and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.
• 2 John 9 — [9] Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son.
• John 16:2 — [2] They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God.

For discussion

1. The Assembly cited Rev. 2:9 in support of this answer. Read it in context — how does it bear on what is claimed here?
2. 36 passages are cited here. Which does the most work, and is anything claimed that the proofs do not obviously carry?
3. WCF 25.1 treats the same ground. What does it add, and why might it put things differently?
4. HC Q54 treats the same ground. What does it add, and why might it put things differently?

Read alongside

WCF 25.1 · HC Q54 · HC Q55 · 1689 26.1