BCO 55 is about more than just polity; it’s about the heart’s need for truth. We gather to say out loud what we believe because we so easily forget it. We recite these things because they provide a “broad summary” of our hope when our own strength and clarity are failing.

While the Book of Church Order is often viewed as a technical manual for church government, I believe there is a profound, pastoral heartbeat beneath it’s requirements, especially when it comes to how we gather as a congregation.

What follows is a look at BCO 55, a brief but vital chapter focused on Confessing the Faith.

The Proper Nature of Confession

The BCO 55-1 begins with a simple statement: “It is proper for the congregation of God’s people publicly to confess their faith”. Confessing our faith isn’t just a tradition we’ve hung onto or a stylistic choice for “vanilla Presbyterians” like us; rather, it is a right and fitting response for the people of God.

In our worship services, we make use of creeds and confessions that are true to the Word (specifically citing the Apostles’ Creed, the Nicene Creed, or the Westminster Standards). While some might debate the specific documents used, it is certainly not unbiblical to use creeds and confessions. There are, in fact, confessions in Scripture that were likely used by the early church and then inscripturated by the Apostle Paul. Whether we are using constitutional documents or the ecumenical creeds, these are essential tools for our worship.

Why We Confess

• We confess our faith to remind us of what is true. When we gather, we need to be reminded of what is true.
• We confess to counteract the world. We spend our entire week in the midst of a world that is false in many ways.

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