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Guide helps confession become a
tool fit for the hands of believers

By Carmen Fowler, The Layman, Posted Wednesday, April 21, 2010

This series is a must-read for pastors and lay leaders who desire to be equipped to teach the Reformed faith through the use of the Westminster Confession of Faith. 
 

Truths We Confess:
A Layman’s Guide to the Westminster Confession of Faith (in three volumes)
By R.C. Sproul
P&R Publishing, 2006.
To order click links:
Volume 1 
Volume 2
 Volume 3
Boxed set


Written with a pastoral tone and in lay people’s language, Sproul does what others have attempted and often failed to achieve: putting Reformed systematic theology within everyone’s reach. Pastors and elders being examined for entrance into denominations that continue to hold the Westminster as their sole confessional standard will find this work a true gift.
 
The box set includes three volumes. Volume I: The Triune God covers chapters 1-8 of Westminster, Volume II: Salvation and the Christian Life covers chapters 9-22, and Volume III: The State, the Family, the Church and Last Things covers chapters 23-33. Sproul not only walks through the Confession unpacking it “chapter and verse,” he comments throughout on the 21st century challenges Christians face in holding such faithful positions. Through Sproul’s instruction, the Westminster actually becomes a tool fit for the hand of every believer in defense of their faith in the culture in which we live.
 
In his comments on chapter 5 of Westminster: of Providence, Sproul writes, “…the concept of providence has diminished in significance because of our culture’s dominant worldview. It assumes that we live in a closed, mechanistic universe, in which everything happens according to the direct causality of physical things, by the fixed laws of nature, which operate independently of God. Nothing is more repugnant to the Biblical worldview of God than the idea that the world exists independently of him, functioning and operating on its own power, obeying its own built-in, inherent laws … Because we live in a time when the divine aspect is ignored or set aside, we have lost the sense of God’s providence, which was at the core of Christian faith for centuries.” (volume I, page 143-144). As he moves through the sections of the chapter on Providence the reader is uplifted, invited into the reality of God’s ongoing presence, power, and purpose throughout all days. And so, the theology on the page begins to live.
 
When dealing with difficult issues like double predestination or limited atonement (yes, he talks specifically about T.U.L.I.P.) Sproul uses stories, quotes the church fathers, and invites the reader into dialogue using a question and answer format. He also refers throughout the relevant passages of Scripture, mindful to always keep the Confession subordinate to the Word.
 

Additional resources

The Presbytery of San Diego adopted a summary of the essential tenets of the Christian faith and of our Reformed distinctive for use in churches, committees, and presbytery. It distills the 300 pages of the Book of Confessions to a helpful summary — six essentials and seven distinctives.
 
The Foundation for Reformed Theology strives to help ministers become the best preachers, teachers, and pastors possible and thus to help them in their work of building up the local congregations of the church so as to strengthen the entire church of Jesus Christ.
 
A Primer in Reformed Theology is designed to help small groups “return to the sources” and study
Reformed theology in a systematic way throughout 2010. John Calvin’s 1541 Institutes is the foundation. A pastor-scholar introduces each chapter, draws connections to Scripture and the wider Reformed tradition, and points out specific issues for further discussion.
 
Reformed Theological Seminary offers “Virtual Courses” available on the iTunes Web site.
For more information. 
 
For resources from the Presbyterian Lay Committee, visit the Reformation Press online bookstore.


In discussing God’s eternal decree (Westminster chapter 3), Sproul says, “In Romans 9 the apostle Paul gives his most extensive explanation of the doctrine of election. In the process, he anticipates objections that will be raised. In the middle of his discussion of election, he raises a question before his readers can: ‘What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God?’ (Rom. 9:14) That is the first objection the apostle expects to hear from his readers, so he deals with it up front” (Volume 1, page 85). So does Sproul, thereby equipping his readers to anticipate the objections that will be raised by their 21st century neighbors and friends, preparing them to answer with an intelligent Reformed faith.
 
This series is recommended for lay people, Sunday school classes, Bible study groups, Elders and seminarians in preparation for examination on Westminster, and all who want to be more fully equipped to articulate the faith once delivered to the saints.

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