Thieleman J. van Braght · 54 of 210

Account of Holy Baptism in the Sixteenth Century · Part 3

And this only good, and only wise, exalted God, who is all in all, dwells with His worshipful, glorious existence above in heaven, in a light which no man has seen, nor can see, and is present everywhere with His Spirit and power, filling heaven and earth, so that heaven is His throne, and the earth His footstool. From His all seeing eye nothing is hid, but He is an omniscient hearer and beholder of the hearts and secret intents and thoughts of all men; all things being naked and open unto His eyes. I Cor. 4:5; Heb. 4:13.

And since He is such an omniscient God, full of all grace and mercy, and a God of all comfort, with whom alone the fountain of wisdom and all good gifts are to be found; and since He will not give this His divine honor to another, therefore all men are in duty bound, to seek, by ardent prayer and with a desiring heart, all grace, peace, forgiveness of sins, and eternal life, in God alone and in none other.*

And to this only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords, before whose worshipful majesty the angels stand with trembling; whose word is true, and whose command is powerful; who is a righteous judge over all; finally every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess, that He alone is Lord, to the praise of His glory.

And this only, eternal, true God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, consists in one true Father, and one true Son, and one true Holy Ghost. And besides this only God there never has been another, nor ever will be.

Concerning this only, eternal God, read: Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord. Deut. 6:4; Mark 12 29.

Through Isaiah he speaks: For I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me. Isa. 46:9; 45:5; 44:6; 43:11; 41:4.

Through Paul he says: That an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is none other God but one. I Cor. 8:4; 12:6; Eph. 4:6.

And in this only God we must necessarily believe to salvation, as the beginning and foundation of the Christian faith. Read: For he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him. Heb. 11:6.

To believe in this God, is also called a principle of the Christian doctrine. Read Heb. 6:1; Jas. 2: i 9; John 17:8; 14:1; Gen. 15:6; Rom. 4:9.

ARTICLE II

Of the eternal birth and Godhead of the only and eternal Son of God, we confess: That the Son of God was born and proceeded from all eternity, in an ineffable manner, from the true God, His Father; of the essence and substance of the almighty God, as a Light from the true Light, true God from the true God; being in the form of God, the likeness of the invisible God, the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person; so that He was born and proceeded from God His Father as the brightness of the everlasting light, the immaculate reflection of the power of God, and the image of His goodness; being equal with His Father in essence, form, and attributes; as eternal, almighty, holy, and the like. For it is an inevitable consequence that like produces like.

Thus, as the stone spoken of by the prophet Daniel, which was cut out of the mountain without hands, and itself became a great mountain, is of the same essence and substance with the mountain; so also the precious, elect cornerstone, Jesus Christ, was born or proceeded from God the almighty Father (who is called a mountain and rock forever), and is of the same essence and substance with him.

" Since God knows everything, believers can call a on Him with a firm confidence; for He hears their cry and knows heir wants.

Hence, Christ Jesus, the only begotten Son of God, is to be believed in, confessed, served, honored, and worshiped by all believers, as the true God with His Father. But as this is also a matter of faith, and not of reason or comprehension, all this must be viewed, believed, judged, and spoken of, not humanly, nor carnally, but divinely and spiritually.

Concerning this high, eternal birth, issue, and Godhead of the Son of God, read: "Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee." Ps. 2:7. "For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father; and he shall be to me a Son. And again, When he bringeth in the first begotten into the world." Heb. 1:5, 6.

"So also Christ glorified not himself to be made a high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, today have I begotten thee." Heb. 5:5.

"And we declare unto you glad tidings, how that the promise which was made unto the fathers, God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that he raised up Jesus again; as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee." Acts 13:32, 33. Observe, that this passage of Paul has reference not only to the raising up of Christ from the dead, but chiefly to His eternal birth from God His Father.

The prophet Micah, speaking of Bethlehem, says: "Out of thee shall he come forth that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting." Mic. 5:2; John 16:28, 30.

Again, Paul says: "Who is the image of the invisible God, the first born (mark, the first born) of every creature." Col. 1:15; Rev. 3:14.

Also John: "No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son (mark, the only begotten Son) which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him." John 1:18 and 14.

. Read also: Prov. 8:23; Dan. 2:34, 45; Syr. 24:13; Rom. 8:29. Concerning the Godhead of Christ, read: Ps. 45:6; Heb. 1:8; John 1:1 and 20:28; Rom. 9:5; I John 5:20.

ARTICLE III

D f the Holy Ghost we believe and confess: That there is a true, real Holy Ghost, also comprehended in the only, eternal, divine essence; who proceeds from the Father and the Son and is the power of the Most High, by whom the Father and the Son operate, and through whom heaven and earth, and all the heavenly host were made. Hence, the divine attributes are ascribed to Him; as eternal, almighty, holy, omniscient; who searches the deep things of the Godhead, knows what is in God, and goes through and searches all spirits, however subtle they may be. He is therefore confessed as the true God with the Father and the Son. And He is the subtle breath of the power of God, who with His divine inspiration illuminates and enkindles the heart of man, and confirms and leads him into all truth. He is given by God unto all who obey Him. All that are led by this Spirit, are the sons of God. He that has not this Spirit, does not belong to God. He is called the real and earnest of the inheritance of all true children of God. He who blasphemes this Spirit, must never expect forgiveness. Christ also commands to baptize believers in the name of the Holy Ghost.

Concerning this only Spirit of God, read: "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters." Gen. 1:1, 2.

Through Paul we are taught: "There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit." I Cor. 12:4. "But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit." I Cor. 12:11, 13..Read also: II Sam. 23:2; Eph. 4:4; Matt. 10:20; Luke 12:12; Matt. 3:16; John 1:32; Matt. 28:19; Mark 16:16.

ARTICLE IV

How Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are to be distinguished in certain attributes. Of this we confess

That in the only eternal Divine Being there are not three mere names; but that each name has its true signification and attributes; so that there is a true real Father, of whom all things are; and a true, real Son, by whom are all things; and a true, real Holy Ghost, through whom the Father and the Son operate. The Father is the true Father, who begat the Son before all time, and from whom the Son proceeded and came, and by whom He [the Father] created and made all things; and through whom the Son was sent to be the Saviour of the world. The Son was born of, proceeded and came from the Father; by whom the Father created all things, and who was sent by the Father, and came into the world, and, through the effectual power of the Most High was conceived by Mary, and born as man. He suffered, was crucified, died, rose from the dead, ascended to heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of His Almighty Father in heaven. The Holy Ghost is He that proceeds from the Father and the Son, and is sent by them; through whom the Father and the Son operate and work. He speaks not of Himself, but whatsoever He has heard from the Father; He takes of the things of Christ, to show them to His own.

Hence there are, in the same divine Essence, in heaven, three true witnesses: the Father, the Word; and the Holy Ghost; of whom the glory of the only begotten Son of God appeared really and distinctively, in the form of a servant, on earth, and was also seen by John the Baptist, at the Jordan. And the Holy Spirit was also distinctively seen by the same John to descend, in the form of a dove, from God out of heaven, upon Christ and abide upon

Him. And the Father who is. an invisible Spirit, and cannot be seen by mortal eye, let His voice be heard from heaven: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."

These three true witnesses are distinctively spoken of, as follows: "If I bear witness of myself, my witness is not true. There is another that beareth witness of me." John 5:31, 32.

"I am not alone, but I and the Father that sent me. It is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true. I am one that bear witness,of myself, and the Father that sent me, beareth witness of me." John 8:16-18, 29, 54; I John 5:20; John 16:32 and 15:24. .

Again, Paul says: "There is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus." I Tim. 2:5.

"Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in:he doctrine of Christ, hath not God: He that abid'=!th in the doctrine of Cbrist, he hath both the'Fa;:her and the Son." II John 1. 9.

Of the Holy Ghost, Christ says: "I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter;:hat he may abide with you forever; even the Spirit )f truth; whom the world cannot receive." John 14:11, 17; Matt. 12:32.

"But if I depart I will send him unto you. , . . For he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever ie shall hear, that shall he speak. . . He shalllorify me; for he shall receive of mine, and shallhew it unto you" John 16:7, 13, 14;

How John, the man of God, saw the Holy Ghost in the form of a dove. Read, "And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like, a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee. I am well pleased" Luke 3:22.

"And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him and I knew him not; but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God" John 1:32-34: Read also Mark 1:10.

"And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and John saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him" Matt. 3:16.

Mark, bow, awfully they sin against the Most High, who, cntrary to all these express words of the Holy Ghost, still dare say and maintain, that John did not see the Holy Ghost, but only a natural or created dove.

Hear also how the voice of the Father was heard from heaven:."And to a voice from heaven saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." Matt. 3:17.

"For he received from God the Father, honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory." II Pet. 1:17. Read also Ps. 110:1; II Esd. 13:32; John 1:1; I Cor. 12:5; I John 6:7.

"For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost." I John 5:7; I Cor. 12:4; Rev. 3:14.

ARTICLE V

That these three true witnesses are but one only true God. Hereupon we confessed: That this must certainly follow, from the fact, that the Son proceeded or came forth from the eternal essence and substance of the Father; and that the Holy Ghost truly proceeds from the Father and Son, and is comprehended together with the Father and the Son in the only; eternal Divine Being.*

Moreover, this is abundantly testified and confirmed by the divine works and attributes, which are ascribed in the holy Scriptures jointly to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, of which no angels in heaven, much less, any other creatures are capable, but which belong and are peculiar to the only God alone; as the creating, governing, and upholding of heaven and earth with all things visible and invisible; the gracious Gospel sent from heaven; the sending out of the apostles to preach the same among all nations; the raising of man from the dead, and the giving of eternal life; and all divine worship, honor and reverence. Hence they are perfectly one, not only in will, words, and works, but also in essence, and in the eternal and indescribable Godhead. Thus also in the divine works, so that whatsoever the Father does, the Son does likewise; and as the Father raises up the dead, even so the Son quickens whom He will; and all this they do in the power and with the co operation of the Holy Ghost; and hence they can with reason and truth be called the one God of heaven and earth. Besides Him, there has been no other God, neither shall another be found in all eternity. Hence in the term one God, Father, Son and Holy Ghost are comprehended.

On this subject read the prophet Jeremiah: "The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, even they shall perish from the earth, and from under these heavens. He hath made the earth by his power, he hath established the world by his wisdom." Jer. 10:11, 12; Isa. 44:24; Ps. 96:5.

"By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth." Ps. 33:6; Heb. 3:4; Acts 4:24.

"All things were made by him (Christ); and without him was not anything made that was made:" John 1:3 and 5:19.

Concerning this perfect unity read: "My Father, which gave them me (says Christ) is greater than all; and no man i's able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. I and my Father are one." John 10:29, 30.

* These things are very difficult to understand, and above hu. man reason; hence they are not to be comprehended by reason, but must reverently be embraced in faith.

Christ said to Philip: "He that hath seen me hath seen the Father. Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me?" John 14:9, 10; 12:45; 17:21.

How the Holy Ghost is also called God. Read what Peter said to Ananias: "Why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost?" And a little further on: "Thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God." Acts 5:3, 4.

"Them that have preached the Gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven." I Pet. 1:12.

"The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen." II Cor. 13:14.

"For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost; and these three are one." I John 5:7; Deut. 6:4; Mark 12:29; I Cor. 8:6; Gal. 3:20.

ARTICLE VI

Of the creation of all things visible and invisible, and of the creation of man we confess: That the only, almighty, and wonderworking God, who is the origin of all good, and for whose sake all things are created, and have their being, created, among other invisible things, also a multitude of many thousand angels, whom He has put as ministering and immortal spirits in His worshipful glory, to minister unto their Creator, and to offer Him praise, honor, and thanks; and who are sent forth by God, as messengers, to minister in manifold ways for men who shall be heirs of salvation; and with which angels of God, Christ Jesus shall appear in the clouds of heaven, to hold judgment over all men. And He shall glorify all that believe and please God, and make them like the glorious, immortal angels, and crown them with all holy angels in everlasting glory.

But as some of these angels became unfaithful and apostate to God, their Creator, they were, through their own voluntary sin or pride, rejected by the holy and righteous God, who is of purer eyes than to behold evil, and were cast down from the glorious estate of heaven to hell, bound with chains of darkness and reserved until the great day of judgment, to be sentenced with all unbelievers to eternal damnation.

These impure spirits or devils are called: the prince of darkness and spirit of wickedness, who rules in the air and works in the children of disobedience; with whom all unbelievers, who are governed and seduced by Satan, are in fellowship. And as all believers are in the society or brotherhood of the holy angels, and shall enjoy eternal salvation with them; so, on the other band, shall all unbelievers have to endure everlasting damnation with all impure or apostate angels, with whom unbelievers are in fellowship.

Likewise, God Almighty, in the beginning, from nothing, in a most wonderful manner, and above all human reason and comprehension, created heaven, the earth, and the sea, with all their glorious adornment, He, the Blessed, only saying: "Let heaven and earth be made; and his word was a perfect work." He also adorned the heavens with many glorious lights; two great lights, one to rule and illume the day, and the other to rule the night; together with many glorious stars, which He ordained to the honor of their Creator, and the service of men.

Thus also, the Lord Almighty endowed the earth with many glorious fountains and running rivers, and adorned it with manifold trees and animals, and with all that lives and moves thereon. And He created the sea with great whales and various kinds of fish, for the wants of man, together with all that lives and moves therein. And He established the earth out of the water and in the water, by His almighty and everlasting word. They shall be preserved until the last great day of judgment.

After God, the Lord, in five days had most wisely and excellently created heaven, and earth, and the sea, together with all visible things, He, on the sixth day, formed man from the earth, and breathed into him the breath of life; and from his rib made Eve, a woman, and gave her to him as a helpmeet. Moreover, He loved them above all other creatures, and clothed them like Himself with divine virtues, which are righteousness and true holiness; endowing them with wisdom, speech, and reason, that they might know, fear, and love their Creator, and serve Him in voluntary obedience. He placed them as lords over all creatures, endowing them with immortality, that they might be and live before Him, and rule and reign over all creatures which God the Lord created.

Concerning this wonderful creation, read: "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created." Rev. 4:11.

"For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers; all things were created by him, and in him." Col. 1:16; Ps. 33:6.

Regarding the angels, read: "He maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire. Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?" Heb. 1:7, 14; Ps. 104:4.

Concerning the apostasy of the angels, read: "For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them unto chains and darkness, to be reserved unto judgment." II Pet. 2:4; Jude 6; Luke 10:18; Isa.14:8; Rev. 12:4.

Regarding the creation of the visible things, read: "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth." Gen. 1:1; John 1:3; Ps. 33:6.

God said: "Let heaven and earth be made; and thy word was a perfect work." II Esd. 6:38.

"For thine almighty hand, that made the world of matter without form." Wisd. 11:17.

"I beseech thee, my son, look upon the heaven, and the earth, and all that is therein, and consider that God made them of things that were not; and so was mankind made likewise." II Macc. 7:28.

"Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear." Heb. 11:3; Acts 17:24; Ps. 146:6; 148:5.

Concerning the creation of man, read: "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness." Gen. 1:26.

"And the Lord formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." Gen. 2:7; Acts 17:25; I Cor. 15:45.

How man was created, read: "This only have I found, that God hath made man upright." Eccl. 7:29; Gen. 1:26; 5:1.

"For God created man to be immortal, and made him to be an image of his own eternity." Wisd. 2:23; Sir. 17:1.

"And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness." Eph.4:24.

"And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good." Gen. 1:31; Deut. 3254.

ARTICLE VII

Of the fall and punishment of man we confess: The first man, Adam, and Eve, having been thus gloriously created after the likeness of their Creator, unto eternal life, did not continue long in this estate; but as they were created with a free will, to choose what they would, so that they could fear, serve and obey their Creator, or, disobey and forsake Him; and as their Creator had given them a command, not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; for in the day that they should eat thereof, they should surely die; they, notwithstanding this, in their vain desire to be equal to their Creator in wisdom and knowledge, were led and drawn away from God, and deceived by Satan; and thus they disobediently and voluntarily transgressed the command of their Creator. The woman, last created, was first deceived, and turned her ears away from God to Satan, and, also seducing her husband, they through this sin, fell under the wrath and disfavor of God, and, with all their posterity, became subject that very day, to temporal and eternal death, and were thus divested of the divine virtue, which is righteousness, and true holiness, and became sinful and mortal.

On this account, God the holy and righteous judge, in whose sight wickedness can not endure, but who is of purer eyes than to behold evil, or to look on iniquity; and who threatens from heaven with His wrath and disfavor all disobedience and ingratitude of men; was so incensed by the sin thus committed by Adam and Eve, that thereby they not only fell into eternal condemnation, together with all their posterity, but God the Lord moreover imposed upon Adam and Eve divers temporal, bodily punishments, which also continually extend themselves into all their generations. Who are so corrupted in Adam, that they are all from their youth, by nature, inclined to sin and evil, and are therefore deprived of the beautiful pleasuregarden, or paradise, but must eat their bread, all their. life, in sorrow and in the sweat of their face, from the uncultivated earth, which because of this first sin was so cursed and marred, that it brings forth of itself weeds, thorns, and thistles; and cover the shame of their bodies made naked by sin. The woman, as the chief transgressor, has to subject her will and power to the man, and was constrained to bring forth her children in pain and anguish. This punishment continues upon all men, until they finally return to the dust and ashes whence they came.

Concerning how Adam, together with the whole human race, through sin, fell into temporal and eternal death, and, in consequence of this, became sinful, read: "Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men." "Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned." etc. "And not as it was by one that sinned . . . for the judgment was by one to condemnation," etc. "For if by one man's offense death reigned," etc. "Therefore, as by the offense of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation," etc. "For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners," etc. Rom. 5:12, 14-19.

"For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive." I Cor. 15:21, 22.

"Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me." Ps. 51:5.

"Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean?" Job 14:4.

"Of the woman came the beginning of sin, and through her we all die." Sir. 25:24; Tit. 2:14; Wisd. 2:24.

The prophet Esdra says: "The first Adam bearing a wicked heart, transgressed, and was overcome; and so be all they that are born of him." "And he transgressed, and thou immediately, thou appointedst death in him and in his generations." II Esd. 3:21, 7.

"O thou Adam, what hast thou done! for though it was thou that sinned, thou art not fallen alone, but we all that come of thee." II Esd. 7:48. Read also: John 3:6; Rom. 8:5; Eph. 2:3; Sir. 17:16; Gen. 6:5.

Read further, how God announced unto Adam his punishment on account of sin, which punishment God extends unto all his posterity: "Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it:. cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; thorns also. and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field: in the sweat of thy:face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground.; for out of it wast thou taken: for, dust thou art and unto dust shalt thou return." Gen. 3:17-19,, 23, 24. Concerning the punishment of the woman, read: Gen. 3:16; I Cor. 14:34; I Tim. 2:12.

ARTICLE VIII

Of the restoration or justification. of man. We confess that Adam and Eve having thus fallen under the wrath and disfavor of God, and into death and eternal condemnation, together with all their posterity, so that no remedy or deliverance 'vas to be found in heaven or earth, among any created beings, who could help, and redeem them, and reconcile them to God, the Creator of all things, who is the Almighty God (against whose majesty they had sinned, and who. alone could heal them), who is rich and abounding in all grace and mercy, had compassion upon Adam and his posterity, and, hence, promised them His only begotten Son as a comforting Redeemer and Saviour, , whom He would put as enmity between Satan and thp woman and their seed, to the comfort and help of fallen mankind, in order thus to bruise the head of Satan, and to deprive him of his power; and, in this manner, to deliver Adam and his posterity from the prison of sin, the power of the devil and eternal perdition, and to reconcile them to. God.