The Heidelberg Catechism As A Confession Of Faith

By Joel R. Beeke

But why art thou called a Christian? 

Because I am a member of Christ by faith, and thus am partaker of His anointing; that so I may confess His name, and present myself a living sacrifice of thankfulness to Him… 

—Heidelberg Catechism, Q. 32

What is a confession of faith? How is it related to the truth revealed in God’s Word? Scotland’s Robert Shaw (1795-1863) provides this definition:

A Confession of Faith…is a declaration of the manner in which any man, or number of men—any Christian or any Church—understands the truth which has been revealed. Its object is, therefore not to teach divine truth; but to exhibit a clear, systematic, and intelligible declaration of our own sentiments, and to furnish the means of ascertaining the opinions of others, especially in religious controversies…. The question is not, therefore, one respecting God’s truth, but respecting man’s truth—not respecting the truth of the Bible, but respecting man’s apprehension of that truth. [1]

In other words, a confession of faith is not simply a summary of statements taken from Scripture. Nor is it an exercise in exegesis, the science of drawing the precise meaning out of a Scripture text. The exegesis of Scripture is the necessary, but preliminary work, which furnishes the foundation of biblical truth on which the confession is based.

A confession of faith is an exercise in hermeneutics, the science of interpreting and applying the results of sound exegesis or “searching of the Scriptures” (John 5:39; Acts 17:17). Exegesis answers the question of “What precisely does the text say?” Hermeneutics answers such questions as “What does it mean to us? How do we understand it and apply it?”

The most important truth revealed in Scripture is the way of salvation in Christ. What precisely is the good news, the gospel? How are sinners saved? What does it mean to be a Christian? Hence the remarkable starting point for the Heidelberg Catechism is its statement of the Christian’s only comfort in life and in death.

Unique among all confessions of faith, ancient and modern, the Catechism begins with the good news that Christ has fully satisfied the price of all our sins with His precious blood, and delivered us from all the power of the devil. Those who belong to Christ are justified, emancipated, preserved, adopted by God as His children, indwelt by the Spirit, sanctified, assured of eternal life, and made “willing and ready henceforth” to live for Christ. [2]

Other Functions Of A Confession Of Faith

Shaw goes on to identify other functions of a confession of faith. A confession of faith is the church’s united affirmation of the truth: “Since she has been constituted the depository of God’s truth, it is her duty to him to state, in the most distinct and explicit terms, what she understands that truth to mean. In this manner she not only proclaims what God has said, but also appends her seal that God is true.”3 The confession thus becomes the church’s “Yea and Amen” (2 Cor. 1:20) to God’s Word, affirming its truth and trustworthiness and its inerrant and infallible authority as “given by inspiration of God to be the rule of faith and life.” [4]

As a witness to how the church understands the truth of God in Scripture, and as an affirmation and commendation of that truth, a confession of faith also serves as a standard of teaching and interpretation for the church’s ministers of the Word; a bond of union for the members of the church; a term of admission for others who ask to be received as members of the church; and finally, a common testimony to the wider church and to the world at large.

Doxology: The Ultimate End Of A Confession Of Faith

The Heidelberg Catechism says a Christian partakes of Christ’s anointing “that so I may confess His name, and present myself a living sacrifice of thanksgiving to Him.” [5] The third commandment regulates our use of God’s name, “so that He may be rightly confessed and worshiped by us, and be glorified in all our words and works.” [6] The ninth commandment requires of the believer that “I love the truth, speak it uprightly and confess it.” [7] Thus the ultimate end of a confession of faith is to praise God for the truth and grace that shine together in His most holy and divine Word. [8]

Evaluating The Catechism As A Confession Of Faith

In the light of the nature and functions of a confession of faith, how well does the Heidelberg Catechism fulfill these purposes?

First:	As an explanation of the way of salvation
Second:	As a statement of the church’s understanding of the system of biblical truth in general
Third:	As an affirmation of the truth and trustworthiness of God’s Word
Fourth:	As a guide to the application of that Word to the believer’s faith and life
Fifth:	As a doxology, or ascription of praise to God.

Let’s examine each of these individually.

As An Explanation Of The Way Of Salvation

The Heidelberg Catechism is unique among all the confessions and catechisms of the Reformation in its starting point, the Christian’s “only comfort.” The Catechism thus begins its explanation of the truth of God with a summary of what the gospel means to a believer.

The way of salvation is presented in the most personal terms. Salvation is found in self-denial, self-renunciation, and committing all to the hands of our faithful Savior Jesus Christ, knowing that He has paid for our sins with His precious blood, and delivered us from all the power of the devil—that is, from condemnation, death, and hell.

This succinct but satisfying summary of the gospel opens the way for the next six Lord’s Days to be devoted to our creation and fall, our helpless condition as sinners, and our need for a Mediator and Deliverer. Step by step, we are brought face to face with the Lord Jesus Christ, our Mediator, the incarnate Son of God, “who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption.” [9]

At this juncture, the Catechism asks, “Are all men then, as they perished in Adam, saved by Christ?” Answer: “No; only those who are ingrafted in Him, and receive all His benefits, by a true faith.” [10] “True faith” is one of the recurring themes of the Catechism, referred to many times and explained in various places.

The term is meant to be a reminder that, as Christ teaches in the parable of the sower (Matt. 13:3-9, 18-23), there is more than one kind of faith. True faith endures and bears much fruit. Its counterfeit versions endure only for a time, if at all; are easily overwhelmed by life’s circumstances; and although they may show promise at the first, in the end bear no real or lasting fruit. Thus the Catechism states:

True faith is not only a certain knowledge, whereby I hold for truth all that God has revealed to us in His Word, but also an assured confidence, which the Holy Ghost works by the Gospel in my heart, that not only to others, but to me also, remission of sin, everlasting righteousness and salvation are freely given by God, merely of grace, only for the sake of Christ’s merits. [11]

The Marrow Men of Scotland could not have written a better description of faith taking hold of Christ for salvation, as He is freely offered in the gospel. Over many generations, Reformed Christians have cherished this description of true faith, and some have asked that it be expounded at their funerals as their witness to the living.

Much more could be said. The contents of the gospel—what they mean to the believer, how they are experienced in Christ, and what it should mean for our lives—is another recurring theme of the Catechism. True faith is revisited in connection with the substantial account of justification by faith alone in Lord’s Days 23 and 51. It could justly be said that the Catechism as a whole is an explanation and commentary on the way of salvation in Christ.

As An Explanation Of The System Of Biblical Truth

The Catechism is not narrowly focused on one aspect of revealed truth. Rather, adhering to the ancient custom of explaining the Twelve Articles of the Apostles’ Creed, the Catechism explains the whole system of truth revealed in the Bible, including the being of God; the trinity of persons in the Godhead; creation and providence; the incarnation of the Son; His names and titles; His work in the state of humiliation to accomplish redemption, including suffering, crucifixion, death, and burial; His exaltation to God’s right hand; His subsequent work in applying redemption through the work of the Spirit in the life of the church and the believer; and His coming again to judge the world.

At each point the Catechism does several things at once. It demands explanations and definitions, asking the questions time and again, “What dost thou mean by that? What believest thou when thou sayest that?” It often follows up an answer by asking another question or raising an objection, compelling the respondent to reason with the truth and examine its implications. And finally, it addresses the matter of application: “What advantage is it to us? What profit dost thou receive? What further benefit do we receive? What comfort is it to thee?”

As an explanation of how Reformed believers understand the foundational truths revealed in Scripture, the Catechism cannot be faulted. It excels beyond other Reformed confessions of faith by teaching the believer to reason from Scripture to those “good and necessary consequences” cited by the Westminster Divines, which are also held to be part of the whole counsel of God. [12]

As An Affirmation Of The Truth Of God’s Word

No section of the Heidelberg Catechism is devoted to the doctrine of Scripture; certainly, there is nothing like the first chapter of the Westminster Confession, or Articles 2 through 7 of the Belgic Confession.

This deficiency is covered by the Catechism’s definition of true faith as in part, “a certain knowledge whereby I hold for truth all that God has revealed to us in His Word.”

This statement has the ring of child-like faith in the truth of Scripture, and that is not to be despised. Furthermore, the Catechism makes good on this assertion of faith in the truth and trustworthiness of the whole of Scripture:

• The believer knows his misery “out of the law of God” (Q. 3).
• He knows that Christ is the Mediator “from the holy gospel, which God Himself first revealed in Paradise, and afterwards published by the patriarchs and prophets, and represented by the sacrifices and other ceremonies of the law; and lastly has fulfilled it by His only begotten Son” (Q. 19).
• He holds that it is necessary for a Christian to believe “all things promised us in the gospel” (Q. 22).
• He believes in the Trinity “because God has so revealed Himself in His Word” (Q. 25).
• He believes that Christ, as King and Head of the church, builds His church and governs us “by His Word and Spirit” (Q. 31, 54).
• He believes that the Holy Ghost “works faith in our hearts by the preaching of the gospel” (Q. 65), and that such preaching is one of “the keys of the kingdom” (Q. 83).
• He believes that infants are to be baptized because they “are included in the covenant…and since redemption from sin by the blood of Christ, and the Holy Ghost, the author of faith, is promised to them no less than to the adult” (Q. 74).
• He expects Christ to feed and nourish believers with His body and blood in the sacrament of Holy Communion, because He has promised to do so “in the institution of the holy supper,” and because “this promise is repeated by the holy apostle Paul” (Q. 77).
• He knows that good works must be “such as are performed according to the law of God…and not such as are founded on the imaginations or institutions of man” (Q. 91).
• He believes that he must “pray to the one true God only, who hath manifested Himself in His word, for all things He has commanded us to ask of Him” (Q. 117).

It is clear from this chain of evidences that the inerrant truth and infallible authority of Scripture as God’s inspired rule of faith and life is everywhere assumed, believed, and acted upon in the Catechism, even though an explicit statement of the doctrine of Scripture is missing. The situation is succinctly described in the Westminster Confession:

By this faith, a Christian believeth to be true whatsoever is revealed in the word, for the authority of God himself speaking therein; and acteth differently upon that which each particular passage thereof containeth; yielding obedience to the commands, trembling at the threatenings, and embracing the promises of God for this life and that which is to come. But the principle acts of saving faith are, accepting, receiving and resting upon Christ alone for justification, sanctification and eternal life…. [13]

As A Guide To The Application Of Scripture To Faith And Life

In passing, note that other doctrinal topics are highlighted in confessions of faith that receive scant or no attention in the Catechism. It offers only the barest essentials of the doctrines of election, the church, and the covenant of grace. It does not mention church polity, the civil magistrate, or the Christian commonwealth. For statements on these topics, Reformed believers may consult the Belgic Confession, the Liturgy of the Reformed Churches, including the Forms for Baptism and the Lord’s Supper, and at a later date, the Canons of Dort.

But as a guide for the application of the truth of Scripture to faith and life, the Catechism is unsurpassed. We have already noted how, in explaining the Articles of the Creed, the Catechism constantly presses the believer to know and experience the practical side of each doctrinal truth, driving all home with the final demand: “But what doth it profit thee now that thou believest all this?” (Q. 59). So the truths of Scripture, rightly understood, are applied to the faith and comfort of the believer, one by one.

The lessons regarding the application of Scripture to life are presented in the form of an explanation of each of the Ten Commandments of the moral law. Unlike Westminster’s Larger Catechism, the Heidelberg does not major on the details of all the specific duties required, nor on the numerous particular sins forbidden. Rather, the basic requirement of the commandment is stated in a memorable form, full of implications for the believer to draw out for himself.

There are exceptions along the way, of course, such as Question 98, which specifically asks if “images may be tolerated in the churches as books for the [illiterate] laity,” as the Roman Catholic Church had taught. The answer is, “No, for we must not pretend to be wiser than God, who will have His people taught, not by dumb images, but by the lively preaching of His Word.”

The original German text of Lord’s Day 38, devoted to the fourth commandment, made no reference to the Christian Sabbath as such. That deficiency was covered by the fathers at Dort, by adding the words, “especially on the Sabbath, that is, on the day of rest.” Otherwise, the text paints a vivid portrait of church-going in the sixteenth century.

Lord’s Day 41 reminds believers that purity and self-control are as obligatory for married persons as for singles. The seventh commandment is said to teach “that all uncleanness is accursed of God; and that therefore we must with all our hearts detest the same, and live chastely and temperately, whether in holy wedlock or in single life” (Q. 108).

But the explanation of the commandments comes to a somewhat bittersweet end in Lord’s Day 44, where the believer is told that “even the holiest men, while in this life, have only a small beginning of this obedience; yet so, that with a sincere resolution they begin to live, not only according to some, but all the commandments of God” (Q. 114). Our sanctification will never be perfect or even very substantial in this life. The Christian life is a life of repentance, sorrowing over our sins, seeking pardon for them from God, and striving to be conformed to the image of the Son; but we shall not reach that goal until we are safe on the other side, “at the perfection proposed to us in a life to come” (Q. 115).

The final section of the Catechism is devoted to the practice of prayer and to the understanding and profitable use of the Lord’s Prayer. Each of the six petitions of the Lord’s Prayer is explained, not by objective statement, but by expanding the simple words of the petitions into six prayers for the believer to use in private or family worship. The extreme aversion to “form prayers” that sprang up among the more radical Puritans was unknown to the Reformers.

This treatment of the Lord’s Prayer means that as the Catechism comes to an end, instruction ceases and gives way to worship in an extended time of prayer to our God and Father in heaven (Q. 122-128). In terms of application, what could be more thorough than to cease from hearing and get on to the doing of the truth?

As Doxology: Praising God For His Truth And Grace

One final dimension in which the Heidelberg Catechism exceeds other Reformed confessions of faith is the way in which doxology, or the ascription of praise to God, is woven into its very fabric. One reason is the decision to discuss the Christian life under the heading of “Thankfulness.” No less than twenty-one Lord’s Days (32-52) are devoted to the theme of “how I shall express my gratitude to God for such deliverance,” and so “enjoying this comfort, may live and die happily.” [14]

But the Catechism does not wait until Lord’s Day 32 before introducing notes of praise to God for His truth and grace. At the very outset, in Question 1, the believer testifies to a great change of heart, declaring that Christ by His Holy Spirit has made him “willing and ready, henceforth to live unto Him.” The heart has been redirected from self to Christ. This redirection is necessary as a precondition for offering acceptable worship, praise, and thanksgiving to God.

In Question 6, we are reminded that man was created with the capacity to “know God his Creator, heartily love Him and live with Him in eternal happiness to glorify and praise Him.” This is the Heidelberger counterpart to the famous dictum of Westminster’s Shorter Catechism that “Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever.” [15] This capacity was lost to man in the fall, but recovered, as we have seen, in redemption.

Question 32 tells us that the Christian partakes of Christ’s anointing “that so I may confess His name, and present myself a living sacrifice of thankfulness to Him.” Question 43 states that by virtue of the death of Christ on the cross, our old man is crucified with Him, “that so the corrupt inclinations of the flesh may no more reign in us, but that we may offer ourselves unto Him a sacrifice of thanksgiving.” Question 58, on the life everlasting, anticipates the joys of heaven, where salvation is perfected in glory, as the final state of the believer in which he shall “praise God therein for ever.”

Refuting a common objection to justification by faith alone, Question 64 declares that “it is impossible that those, who are implanted into Christ by a true faith, should not bring forth fruits of thankfulness.” Or, as the Westminster Confession says, “Faith…is the alone instrument of justification; yet is it not alone in the person justified, but is ever accompanied with all other saving graces, and is no dead faith, but worketh by love.” [16]

Doxology is more fully explained in the Third Part of the Catechism, “Of Thankfulness,” beginning with Lord’s Day 32. Question 86 says we must still do good works, “that so we may testify, by the whole of our conduct, our gratitude to God for His blessings, and that He may be praised by us.” Question 91 insists that those works are only good if “performed…to His glory.”

Question 94 says the first commandment enjoins us “to love, fear and glorify” God with our whole heart. Question 99 states that the third commandment requires us to “use the holy name of God no otherwise that with fear and reverence, so that He may be rightly confessed and worshipped by us, and be glorified in all our words and works.”

Finally, the first petition of the Lord’s Prayer, “Hallowed be Thy name,” is explained as the believer’s heartfelt plea that “we may so order and direct our whole lives, our thoughts, words, and actions, that Thy name may never be blasphemed, but rather honored and praised on our account” (Q. 122). Concluding the prayer with the doxology “For Thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory for ever,” the believer professes that he has asked all things “because Thou, being our King and almighty, art willing and able to give us all good; and all this we pray for, that thereby not we, but Thy holy name may be glorified forever” (Q. 128).

From the first steps we take in the Christian life until our feet are firmly planted in the halls of heaven, the Catechism teaches us that our first and great duty is to love God, to praise Him, to give thanks to Him always, and to glorify Him in all that we say and do. This is the end for which we were created. This is the end for which we have been redeemed in Christ. This is why we have been given His Word. This is why we have been indwelt by the Holy Spirit. And this is why we have been appointed a place in the Father’s house on high, to dwell with God forever.

Conclusion

By now you will have discerned my bias in favor of the Heidelberg Catechism as a confession of faith. Along the way, I have tried to take note of its deficiencies, in regard to important doctrines that receive little or no attention. However, some of the most important Reformed confessions have been criticized for similar defects and omissions.

For example, the Westminster Confession of Faith has been critiqued for its scant reference to the love of God [17] and its failure to devote a specific chapter to the person and work of the Holy Spirit, or to include a chapter on the gospel. Early in the twentieth century, zealous efforts were made to remedy those perceived defects. That is why some Presbyterian denominations have a few more chapters in their versions of the Confession of Faith beyond the usual thirty-three.

I am happy to belong to a denomination that holds not only to the three Westminster Standards, but also the Catechism together with the Belgic Confession and the Canons of Dort as “Three Forms of Unity.” Together, these “subordinate standards” provide a more complete testimony than any one offers on its own. But if I were pressed to choose which one of the three I would take as the confession of faith of the church I love, and my own personal confession of faith, the Heidelberg Catechism would be my first choice.

Notes

1. Robert Shaw, The Reformed Faith: An Exposition of the Westminster Confession of Faith (1845; repr., Inverness: Christian Focus, 2008), “Introductory Essay,” 11, 13. Shaw was professor in the Associate Presbytery’s Divinity Hall at Whitburn, W. Lothian, from 1817 until his death.
2. Heidelberg Catechism, Q. 1 [hereafter: Catechism]. Citations from the Catechism are taken from the version printed in The Psalter (Grand Rapids: Reformation Heritage Books, 1999).
3. Shaw, xiii. See also John 3:33.
4. Westminster Confession of Faith (Glasgow: Free Presbyterian, 1994), 1.2.
5. Catechism, Q. 32.
6. Catechism, Q. 99.
7. Catechism, Q. 112.
8. The Psalter, No. 381 (Psalm 138).
9. 1 Corinthians 1:30, cited in Catechism, Q. 18.
10. Catechism, Q. 20.
11. Catechism, Q. 21.
12. Westminster Confession of Faith, 1.6.
13. Wesminster Confession of Faith, 14.2.
14. Catechism, Q. 2.
15. Westminster Shorter Catechism, Q. 1.
16. Westminster Confession of Faith, 11.2.
17. In fact, there are only three brief references to the love of God in the Westminster Confession of Faith: in 2.1, where God is described as “most loving”; in 3.5, where election is ascribed to “his mere free grace and love”; and in 17.1, where saints are identified as “they whom God hath accepted in the Beloved.”