Section IV. — ^This catholic Church hath been sometimes more, sometimes less visible.® And particular churches, which

are members thereof, are more or less pure, according as the doctrine of the gospel is taught and embraced, ordinaroes administered, and public worship performed more or less purely in them.®

Section V. — The purest churches under heaven are subject both to mixture and error ;^" and some have so degenerated as to become no churches of Christ, but synagogues of Satan." Nevertheless, there shall be always a Church on earth, to worship God according to his will.^^

Section VI. — There is no other head of the Church but the •^^ord Jesus Christ :^' nor can the Pope of Rome in any sense be the head thereof; but is that Antichrist, that man of sin and son of perdition, that exalteth himself in the Church against Christ, and all that is called God.'*

8 Rom. xi. 3, 4; Rev. xii. 6, 14.— 9 Rev. ii., iii ; 1 Cor. v. 6, 7.— ^^ 1 Cor. xiii. 12; Rev. ii., iii: Matt. xiii. 24-30,47. — ^i Rev. xviii. 2; Rom. xi. 18-22.— 12 Matt. xvi. 18; Ps. Ixxii. 17; cii. 28: Matt, xxviii. 19, 20.— 13 Col. i. 18 ; Eph. i. 22.— i* Matt, xxiii. 8-10 ; 2 Thess. ii. 3, 4, 8, 9 ; Rer. xiii. 6.

All that is tauglit in these Sections necessarily follows from what we have above ascertained as to the nature of the visible Church :

1st. Since the catholic or universal visible Church consists of all the professors of the true religion in the world, and of all the particular ecclesiastical organizations which continue loyal to the Head, and maintain doctrines essentially sound, it must necessarily follow that the Church as a whole is in any age more or less visible, and any particular constituent church more or less pure in proportion — (a) to the purity of the doctrine they profess and the worship they maintain ; (6) tc their zeal and spiritual character and energy; and (c) to the purity of their membership maintained by discipline. In proportion as these are all advanced in perfection, and prevail generally throughout the whole

body, in the same degree will the entin? Church appear more visibly discriminated from the world and manifest in her entire outline. In the same measure also will every individual ecclesiastical organization be pure — that is, free from heterogeneous elements — and consecrated to the accomplishment of the ends for which it is designed.

2d. It follows, also, from the very nature of the visible Church and its condition in this world, that its purity is a matter of degree, varying at different times and in different sections. The teaching of Scripture as to the nature of the kingdom under the present dispensation (Matt, xiii.), the nature of man yet imperfectly sanctified, and the universal experience of the churches, lead us to the conclusion that the very purest churches are yet very imperfect, and will continue so to the end, and that some will become so corrupt as to lose their character as true churches of Christ altogether. This was the case witli the ancient Church under the reign of Ahab, when the children of Israel had apostatized from the service of the true God to such an extent that Elijah thought he was the only one left faithful. Even in that state of affairs the Lord declared, " Yet have I left me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed unto Baal.'' 1 Kings xix. 18. Even more entire deterioration has happened to the ancient churches founded by the apostles in the East and by their successors in Northern Africa. The churches which acknowledge the supremacy of the Bishop of Rome have abandoned the faith and obscured the glory of their Lord in one direction, while many professedly Protestant churches — as the English and American Socinians and the German Rationalists — have made an equal apostasy in another.

The Church of Rome maintains that the promise of Christ secures the infallible orthodoxy and purity of the visible organization, in subjection to apostolical ly-ordained bishops, to the end of the world. But the Church whose infallible orthodoxy and purity is guaranteed by the divine promise is no outward visible organization or succession of bishops or priests ; it is the particular Church of no nation or generation, but it is the true invisible body of the elect or of true believers of all nations and ages. That it is so is proved — (1.) From the fact that for eighteen hundred years the promise has been fulfilled in the sense we have defined, but has never been fulfilled in the sense the Romish Church demands. They have themselves led the defection from the faith and practice of the apostolic Church. And among Romanists and Protestants alike, visible ecclesiastical organizations are continually changing their character and relations to the truth. (2.) The Epistles are addressed to " the Church," and the salutations explain that phrase by the equivalents " the called," " the saints," etc. See the salutations of First and Second Corinthians, Ephesians, Colossians, First and Second Peter, and Jude. The same attributes are. ascribed to the members of the true Church in the body of the Epistles. 1 Cor. i. 30; iii. 16; vi. 11 ; Eph. ii. 3-8, 19-22 ; Col. i. 21 ; ii. 10 ; 1 Pet. ii. 9. (3.) The attributes ascribed to the true Church prove it to be spiritual, and, in the sense explained, invisible, and not an outward organized succession. Eph. v. 27 ; 1 Pet. ii. 5; Johnx. V ; Col. i. 18,24.

3d. It follows, nevertheless, from the relation which the visible Church sustains to the invisible Church, that since, according to divine promise, the latter can never entirely fail from the earth (Matt. xvi. 18), so likewise^ however the former may be obscured by heresies or lessened by defection, it can never be entirely wanting. Wherever the true Church is, it will be more or less visible ; not in proportion, however, to the size or pretension of the organization wdth which it may be associated, but in proportion to the purity of its faith and the spiritual activity and fruitfulness of its membership.

4th. That the Lord Jesus Christ is the only absolute and supreme Head of the Church is self-evident, is abundantly asserted in Scripture (Col. i. 18, and Eph. i. 20-23), and has never been denied by any Christians.

Many have, however, maintained that, as the visible Church on earth has a government and laws, and since these must be administered by a visible authority, so the Church must have an earthly visible head, acting upon authority delegated by Christ and as his representative. The Church of E-ome claims this for the pope. " So has Christ — the Head and Spouse — placed over his Church, which he governs by his most inward Spirit, a man to be the vicar and minister of his power; for as a visible church requires a visible head, our Saviour appointed Peter head and pastor of all the faithful."*

The Erastian State churches of Germany and Great

Britain have acknowledged their respective sovereigns

as supreme heads of the Church as well as of the State.

Henry VIII. was recognized as "supreme head of the

♦ Cat. Bom., Part i., ch. x., Q. 11.

Church of England;" and it was enacted "that the king, his heirs, etc., shall be taken, accepted and reputed the only supreme head on earth of the Church of England, called Angllcana Ecclesia; and shall have and enjoy, annexed and united to the imperial crown of this realm, as well the style and title thereof, as all honours, dignities, immunities, profits and commodities to the said dignity of supreme head of the said Church belonging and appertaining." * This supremacy of the reigning sovereign over the Church is even made an article of faith, being incorporated into the Thirty-seventh Article of the Church of England : " The queen's majesty has the chief power in this realm of England, and other her dominions ; unto whom the chief government of all estates of this realm, whether they be ecelesiastical or civil, in all causes, doth appertain."

In both these cases, and in all cases of like claims to ecclesiastical supremacy, it is a mere question of fact and evidence. If, as a matter of fact, Christ delegated his authority either to the pope or to national sovereigns, and made them, as his vicars, visible heads of his Church, then we ought to obey them, and our disobedience is treason to Christ. On the contrary, if they have no such authority, and are unable to prove their claims by unquestionable credentials, then their assumption of such power is a blasphemous intrusion upon divine prerogatives and treason to the human race. It is obvious that neither party c^n show any plausible foundation for their claims, and that upon the slightest interrogation they fall of their own weight.

In the absence of any duly-accredited visible head of * Tk^ 26 Henry VIII., cap. i.

the Church, we are forced back to direct dependence for law and its administration, as well as for redemption, upon the great invisible Head. He presides over and governs his Church (1) through his inspired word, which is, as we have seen, an infallible, complete and perspicuous rule of faith and practice. (2.) Through the apostolical institutions transmitted to us, as the ministry, the sacraments, the ordinances, etc. Eph. iv. 11. And (3) through his own spiritual presence, which extends to all his members, and endures to the end of the world. Matt, xviii. 20; xxviii. 20.

The word Antichrist occurs in the New Testament in

1 John ii. 18, 22 ; iv. 3 ; 2 John 7. The coming of the "man of sin," the "son of perdition," is predicted m

2 Thess. ii. 3, 4. Interpreters have differed as to whether these phrases were intended to designate a personal opponent of the Lord, or principles and systems antagonistic to him and his cause. The authors of our Confession can hardly have intended to declare that each individual pope of the long succession is the personal Antichrist, and they probably meant that the papal system is in spirit, form and effect wholly antichristian, and that it marked a defection from apostolical Christianity foreseen and foretold -in Scripture. All of which was true in their day, and is true in ours. We have need, however, to remember that as the forms of evil change, and the complications of the kingdom of Christ with that of Satan vary with the progress of e'/ents, "even now are there many Antichrists." 1 John ii. 18.

434 CONFESSION OP FAITH.

This section is levelled against the doctrine of the Church of Rome, respecting works of supererogation. That Church teaches, that besides those precepts which are binding on all, and which none can disobey without sin, there are " counsels of perfection" given in the New Testament, which men are at hberty to neglect if they please; and, therefore, those who comply with these counsels, perform more than they are bound to do, and have, consequently, a superfluous degree of merit, that may be transferred to others for their benefit. In the progress of the corruptions of that Church, it was taught and believed, that the whole stocli of superfluous merit, arising out of the good works of those who comply with the counsels of perfection, is committed to the management of the Pope, to be parcelled out according to his pleasure, in such dispensations and indulgences as the sins and infirmities of other members of the Church appear to him to stand in need of. The enormous abuses of this discretionary power with which the Pope was invested, were the immediate cause of the Reformation.* In opposition to this blasphemous doctrine, Protestants maintain, that there is not the slightest foundation in the Scripture for what the Papists call " counsels of perfection." This is evident from the nature of the comI mands which devolve upon all men. We are required " to love God with all our heart, and with all our soul, and with all our strength, and with all our mind; and our neighbour as ourself." — Luke x. 27. What more can be conceived than is implied in these two commands ? Works of supererogation have no existence but in the vain imaginations of ignorant and self-righteous men. So far are the most eminent saints from exceeding the measure of their duty, that they fall far short of what they are in duty bound to do. " In many * Hill's Lectures in Divinity, vol. ii., p. 302.

1G8

CONFESSION OF FAITH. [JCRAP. XVI.

things we offend all." " If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." — James iii. 2; 1 John i. 8. Our Saviour has taught us to pray daily that our trespasses may be forgiven; which necessarily implies that we offend every day.