And to this only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords, before whose worshipful majesty the angels stand with trembling; whose word is true, and whose command is powerful; who is a righteous Judge over all; finally every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess, that he alone is Lord, to the praise of his glory.
And this only, eternal, true God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, consists in one true Father, and one true Son, and one true Holy Ghost. And besides this only God there never has been another, nor ever will be.
Concerning this only, eternal God, read: Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord. Deut. 6:4; Mark 12:29.
Through Isaiah he speaks: For I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me. Is. 46:9; 45:5; 44:6; 43:11; 41:4.
Through Paul he says: That an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is none other God but one. 1 Cor. 8:4; 12:6; Eph. 4:6.
And in this only God we must necessarily believe to salvation, as the beginning and foundation of the Christian faith. Read: For he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. Heb. 11:6.
To believe in this God, is also called a principle of the Christian doctrine. Read Heb. 6:1; Jas. 2:19. John 17:8; 14:1; Gen. 15:6; Rom. 4:9.
ARTICLE II.
Of the eternal birth and Godhead of the only and eternal Son of God, we confess: That the Son of God was born and proceeded from all eternity, in an ineffable manner, from the true God, his Father; of the essence and substance of the almighty God, as a Light from the true Light, true God from the true God; being in the form of God, the likeness of the invisible God, the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person; so that he was born and proceeded from God his Father as the brightness of the everlasting light, the immaculate reflection of the power of God, and the image of his goodness; being equal with his Father in essence, form, and attributes; as eternal, almighty, holy, and the like. For it is an inevitable consequence that like produces like.
Thus, as the stone spoken of by the prophet Daniel, which was cut out of the mountain without hands, and itself became a great mountain, is of the same essence and substance with the mountain; so also the precious, elect corner-stone, Jesus Christ, was born or proceeded from God the almighty Father (who is called a mountain and rock forever), and is of the same essence and substance with him. Hence, Christ Jesus, the only begotten Son of God, is to be believed in, confessed, served, honored, and worshiped by all believers, as the true God with his Father. But as this is also a matter of faith, and not of reason or comprehension, all this must be viewed, believed, judged, and spoken of not humanly, nor carnally, but divinely and spiritually.