Public Faith
Public confession of faith has always been a mark of Christian discipleship. Our faith is personal but not private. That is, while faith is a personal act of belief, it is not something we can or should keep secret. Baptism, for example, is always a public act, never one done in private. In centuries past when communities were small, to be baptized declared to the community that one was a Christian. To be baptized was to declare to the world that one had chosen to be a Christian, no matter what the social consequences might be.
What does confession of our faith indicate? Is it mere intellectual assent to a set of propositions? The answer is “No.” Confessing our faith is certainly an act of the mind, but it is more. It is a commitment of body, soul, will, and intellect to God. Jesus himself said that we must love God with “heart, mind, soul, and strength” (Mark 12:30). While assent to a true understanding of God is important, faith is more than just right belief. As Jesus said, we are to worship God in “spirit and truth” (John 4:23). To worship God rightly is important, but faith must involve our heart and soul as well. When we confess our faith, we give God glory and declare to the world our membership in the body of Christ.
The church has an important role to play in developing faith in others. Third-century Christian teacher Cyprian said, “You cannot have God for your Father unless you have the church as your mother.” John Calvin said, “There is no other way to enter into life unless this mother conceive us in her womb, give us birth, [and] nourish us at her breast …” Like a nurturing mother, the church helps bring new Christians into the world, raise them to adulthood, and surround them with loving care. Though the Holy Spirit creates faith, he uses the church as the vehicle for his work. The church lifts up God’s glory so that Christ is exalted, particularly his death and resurrection. It also works so that Christ’s life becomes visible in the body of the church as it exhibits the kingdom of heaven to the world.
How does God indwell his church? He manifests his life in the church, so that his light draws people from every tribe and tongue and nation to be reconciled to God. Jesus said that we are to let our lights shine so that others will see our good works and give glory to God in heaven (Matthew 5:16). The life of the church should be a beacon for others, a light in the darkness, a ray of hope for the discouraged, and a symbol of truth in a dishonest culture. While light repels those who wish to hide, it also attracts those in need of grace. One facet of the evangelistic work of the church is to be a haven of hope and peace that will draw the prodigal back home. The gospel is not just for some, but for all. Christ calls people around the world to find hope in him. The evidence of this truth is seen in the worldwide embrace of Christ across nations, languages, and cultures. Everywhere that Christ is preached, he finds hearts eager to receive him.
St. Francis of Assisi uttered a wonderful prayer about the church’s witness. It asks God to make us instruments by which he will draw others to himself: “Lord, make me an instrument of your peace: where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy. O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console, to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.”