1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith & the 1695 Baptist Catechism

by James M. Renihan (Contributor)

This book contains the accepted editions of both Confession and Catechism along with the Scripture Proofs for both. Also included is a brief historical introduction by Dr. Jim Renihan, the original Appendix on Baptism, and the original Letter to the Reader. - Publisher.

Genres: Theology, Christianity, Church History, History, Devotional, Reference

123 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1689

Reviews

[Richard Lawrence · Rating 5 out of 5]

A well presented edition of the baptist confession (with the original letter to the reader and appendix) and the catechism.

These are brilliant resources from an earlier age that we ought to recover the use of.

Edifying, clarifying, uplifting and ultimately glorifying to God.

Useful as reference but also worth reading through repeatedly.

[BigGuyJawny · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best Confession of Faith this side of the Reformation!

Five Reasons Why I Gave it Five Stars:
+ Great Particular Baptist theology (I’m biased🌊)
+ I really appreciate the closeness of this confession to the tremendous Westminster confession.
+ The original Letter to the Reader and Apologetic for Paedobaptism are awesome additions that make this edition special.
+ The book is formatted great, organized succinctly and is very readable (all important for its utility purposes).
+ The Baptist Catechism is another perfect addition that rounds out this irreplaceable little work.

[Myles · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will be honest I never even knew about The 1695 Baptist Catechism, and have been raised a Baptist. Now almost 30 years after being saved, I stumbled across this while researching other Catechisms. This is not only a fantastic piece of history, but of discipleship, secondary tier to a foundation and wealth of knowledge. After reading all I can ask is "...what have we done by casting it to the side?"

[Trent Shell]

Reread, but first time reading the original preface and “Appendix on Baptism”.

[Dillan Gomez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still the most helpful confessional explanation of Biblical doctrine I have read. Reading this will leave you seeing yourself as small and seeing God as large. Very devotional in many ways.

[Nicholas Villarreal · Rating 5 out of 5]

The 1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith is a tremendous work agreeing in major part with the Westminster Confession of Faith (1646) differing mostly on the point of baptism. I wish all Christians whether Baptist or not would read this historic document. I believe it succinctly and accurately defines the core doctrines of true biblical, Christian faith as drawn from the Scriptures. Many people today are wary of the idea of a confession of faith and catechism perhaps because it sounds akin to traditions of Roman Catholicism. However, all Christians have a 'confession of faith', but not all have expressed it clearly or explicitly in written form. Many people claim the name of Christ and talk about God and Jesus (Mormons, Roman Catholics, Jehovah's Witnesses, etc.) but have fundamentally different beliefs in doctrine that DO matter for salvation. What this confession of faith and catechism accomplishes so well is to properly define what the Bible actually teaches about essential Christian doctrine.

The catechism is a great tool for teaching in church or in your home with your wife and/or children. It's simply a series of questions and answers about God and his Word. God commands us to teach our children and our family in the wisdom and instruction of the Lord and this is one of the many great ways of instilling and teaching God's truths to his people.

Buy it (or find it online for free), read it, ponder it, study, and be edified in your walk! God has blessed us richly with the wisdom and labors of his people who have gone before us. Don't neglect this good gift of his to us!

[Joe Cassada · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some may find it weird that I would give 5 stars to a confession of faith and a catechism, but my motivations issue from the understanding that this document played a major role in the early history of Baptist churches.

Most will not find it riveting to read, but Baptists (Calvinistic or Arminian) owe it to themselves to be familiar with how many of their own believed (nearly) 400 years ago. I think any discerning Baptist who is conscious of the current state in Baptist churches would be shocked to see just how much we have changed over the past 4 centuries. Precious doctrines like repentance, the Lord's Day, and the authority of the original languages over translations has been largely forgotten.

Regarding this edition of the LBCF: I love that it is at least bonded leather instead of paperback. The font style and size is perfect, the paper has a goodish thickness to it, and the ribbon bookmark is a nice touch.

Buy it. Carry it around. Read it devotionally. Be edified.

[Nicholas Anctil · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The Lord our God is but one only living and true God, whose subsistence is in and of Himself, infinite in being and perfection, whose essence cannot be comprehended by any but Himself; a most pure spirit, invisible, without body, parts, or passions; who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; who is immutable, immense, eternal, incomprehensible, almighty, every way infinite, most holy, most wise, most free, most absolute; working all things according to the counsel of His own immutable and most righteous will, for His own glory; most loving, gracious, merciful, long-suffering, abundant in goodness and truth, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin; the rewarder of them that diligently seek Him; and withal most just and terrible in His judgments; hating all sin, and who will by no means clear the guilty." - Chapter 2 Of God And Of The Holy Trinity, Paragraph 1

[Blake · Rating 5 out of 5]

This confession of faith has marked my entrance into historically "reformed/particular" Baptist Christianity. It's a confession that I would recommend to anyone wanting to know where their Baptist roots come from. It was Calvinistic Particular Baptist churches as in London of 1689 that helped preserve the historically baptist position with its deep love of Baptist Covenant Theology. Do I fully subscribe? I am not 100 percent sure. The only set back I may have had was the use of the word "recreations" in sections dealing with the Sabbath. Only time in deep study will settle that minor issue.

[Matt Pelto · Rating 5 out of 5]

The 2nd London Baptist Confession of Faith is, by my reading of Scripture, the most accurate summary of Christian doctrine. It confesses a Reformed Baptist perspective in a way that maintains continuity with the Presbyterian and Congregational traditions (as it is generally a modification of Westminster and Savoy). The confession is bound with and appendix on baptism, which is a thorough but irenic treatment on the subject of pedobaptism, and a baptist catechism, which in many ways is similar to the Westminster Shorter Catechism both in scope and in devotion.

[Stephen Bratton · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent synopsis of the historic Baptist Faith. This book is used weekly at Grace Family Baptist Church.

[Marcus Muresan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great — 8.5/10