"You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God."
(Matt. 16:16)


"For I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles."
(1 Cor. 15:3-7)

The Apostles Creed

The Westminster Confession of Faith, a historic Presbyterian document, refers to the Holy Spirit as a source of God's grace and "the only efficient agent in the application of redemption". For all humans, the confession says, the Spirit "convicts them of sin, moves them to repentance and persuades and enables them to embrace Jesus Christ by faith." It further states that God is willing to give the Spirit to all who ask.

The Brief Statement of Faith, the most recent Presbyterian confessional document also speaks about the Holy Spirit.

What is the chief end of man?
Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever. (Westminster Shorter Catechism, Question 1)The Presbyterian Confessions

Every Sunday, in many Presbyterian congregations, we reaffirm our faith using all or part of one of our confessions--often the Apostles' Creed or the Nicene Creed, or A Brief Statement of Faith. The first part of the constitution of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) is the Book of Confessions, which contains 11 formal statements of faith structured as creeds, confessions and catechisms.

Presbyterians claim Scripture as the primary rule of faith and life, and Scripture quotes confessions from the early communities of faith. The Hebrew Scriptures tell of the covenant people affirming in worship the "shema" "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one" (Deuteronomy 6:4 9). The New Testament records the earliest Christian creed: "Jesus is Lord" (Philippians 2:11).

Confessions define what we as a community believe. We have confessions because we are a community of believers, not a random collection of individuals. These statements of faith actively affirm our beliefs about God, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, and about humanity, the church and the world (the context in which God, humanity, and the church interact).

We have confessions because we are fallible human beings, prone to error, and inclined to forget who and whose we are. We need guidance and continual reminders about what we believe.

"because if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For one believes with the heart and so is justified, and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved. The scripture says, "No one who believes in him will be put to shame." For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; the same Lord is Lord of all and is generous to all who call on him. For, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved." (Romans 10:9-13)

The church soon found it necessary to say more than simply "Jesus is Lord." By the fourth and fifth centuries the church had become far removed from the direct disciples of Jesus and any eyewitnesses to the events of the crucifixion, resurrection and Pentecost. The Nicene and Apostles' Creeds emerged in response to concerns about whether or not Jesus Christ could be both divine and human.

The core of the Apostles' Creed reinforces the historical life of Jesus the Christ, underscoring the fact that he was "born of the virgin Mary," that he suffered "under Pontius Pilate" (a historical figure), that he "was crucified, dead, and buried." The Nicene Creed emerged as correction to the heresy of the theologian Arius, who declared Christ unequal to God. It reaffirms the historical Jesus of Nazareth as the Christ and confirms the Trinitarian nature of God.

Three of our confessions (the Scots, Second Helvetic, and Westminster Confessions) and all three of our catechisms (the Heidelberg and the Westminster Shorter and Larger Catechisms) developed out of the conflicts between newly emerging Protestantism and medieval Roman Catholicism. The Scots Confession condemned such medieval church abuses as the selling of indulgences, in which church members could pay sums of money to atone for sins prior to committing them. The Scots Confession also emphasized the faithfulness of God's Word in Scripture.

John Calvin inspired the writing of Second Helvetic Confession, which, like the famous technical precision of Swiss watches and clocks, describes the specifics of church work and administration. The Second Helvetic also outlines our doctrine of salvation, contrasting the Reformed understanding of salvation as God's gift in Jesus Christ with medieval Roman Catholicism's stress on human merit (see specifically 5.053). The Scots, Second Helvetic and Westminster Confessions all strongly assert the centrality of Scripture.

What is your only comfort, in life and in death? (Question #1)

That I belong—body and soul, in life and in death—not to myself but to my faithful Savior, Jesus Christ, who at the cost of his own blood has fully paid for all my sins and has completely freed me from the dominion of the devil; that he protects me so well that without the will of my Father in heaven not a hair can fall from my head; indeed, that everything must fit his purpose for my salvation. Therefore, by his Holy Spirit, he also assures me of eternal life, and makes me wholeheartedly willing and ready from now on to live for him. (The Heidelberg Catechism)

Nearly four centuries passed before the church formed and adopted another confession. Within the past six decades the church has embraced three new confessions: the Declaration of Barmen, Confession of 1967, and A Brief Statement of Faith.

The Declaration of Barmen raised its voice against Hitler's in post-Weimar Republican Germany. It reaffirms the church's profession of the sovereignty of God, the authority of Scripture, and the salvation of Jesus Christ. In those affirmations we hear a resounding denial of Hitler's hostile, Nazi claims of sovereignty, authority and salvation.

If you would like to have an electronic version of the Book of Confessions of the PC(USA) in PDF format or purchase a hard copy of the confessions. Click Here.

We have confessions because we are an evangelical church. We who believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ have a mandate to share that Good News for the sake of the world. Matthew 28:19-20 cites our mandate, in Jesus' final words to his first disciples: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you."

The Book of Order states these purposes for our confessions: "These statements identify the church as a community of people known by its convictions as well as by its actions. They guide the church in its study and interpretation of Scriptures; they summarize the essence of Christian tradition; they direct the church in maintaining sound doctrines; they equip the church for its work of proclamation" (G-2.0100b).