Cited in sermons
William Kiffin
3 sermons · All people cited
2LCF Introduction and Preface to the 1689 Second London Baptist Confession
The Second London Baptist Confession of Faith (1689) did not arise in a vacuum — it was forged under persecution, shaped by theological antiquity, and published to correct misrepresentations of Particular Baptist doctrine. This study introduces the Confession through its original preface, examining the necessity and utility of creeds and confessions, the historical context of 17th-century England, and the specific additions, changes, and deletions the Particular Baptists made to the Westminster Confession and Savoy Declaration. The Confession stands as a faithful summary of biblical doctrine and a demonstration that Particular Baptists stood firmly within the stream of historic Protestant orthodoxy, differing from their Presbyterian and Congregationalist brethren only on baptism, church polity, and certain covenant theology distinctions.
The Utility of Confessions and Introduction to the Second London Baptist Confession
Confessions of faith are not competitors to Scripture but are faithful summaries of biblical doctrine, and the church has historically depended on them for good reason. This address introduces the Second London Baptist Confession of 1689, tracing its historical origins among the Particular Baptists of the 17th century and its relationship to the Westminster Confession and the Savoy Declaration. Five interlocking uses of a confession are then examined: defining church doctrine, defending it against error, discriminating between members and officers on doctrinal grounds, disciplining departures from orthodoxy, and distinguishing confessed doctrine from matters of Christian liberty. The goal is not confessional enslavement but confessional clarity — guardrails that protect the church and free her members to worship and grow in the grace and knowledge of Christ.
2LCF Chapter 28 - Of Baptism and the Lord's Supper
The two ordinances of baptism and the Lord's Supper are positive and sovereign institutions of the Lord Jesus Christ, the only lawgiver, to be administered in His church until He returns. This study of 2LCF Chapter 28 traces the confessional and biblical foundations of these ordinances across multiple chapters of the 1689 London Baptist Confession, demonstrating how doctrines of Scripture, Christology, sanctification, saving faith, and ecclesiology together undergird their proper observance. The sermon distinguishes the Baptist use of 'ordinance' from both Roman Catholic sacramentalism and the Paedo-Baptist covenantal framework, while insisting that these are not optional ceremonies but dominical injunctions binding the conscience of every believer. Christians are called not merely to be informed about baptism and the Lord's Supper, but to obey and rejoice in them as holy appointments given for the strengthening of faith and the glory of Christ.