Westminster Shorter Catechism Q&A #3

Q: What do the scriptures principally teach?
A: The scriptures principally teach what man is to believe concerning God, and what duty God requires of man. 
John 5:39: You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me,

How many times have we heard people, both Christian and non-Christian, say, "well my god is..." and then they continue on to give a description of a god of their own creation? A good example of this is an article I recently read by a "progressive" theologian. The article, which was written to describe how progressive Christians understand the Bible, of course, gave lip service to the Bible. But then the article went on to say that progressives do not believe that everything the Bible says is true and accurate. And what part of the Bible did the author reject? Any part that presents God as wrathful, vengeful, jealous, and so on. See, these attributes, in his mind, are simply incompatible with his god. The author wrote of a god full of love, compassion, patience, faithfulness, grace and mercy (I'm not sure what mercy means when there is no divine wrath, but that's a whole other topic!). Yes, the Bible certainly does reveal God to be all of those things, but the Bible also reveals God to be perfectly just, jealous, and full of wrath towards the unholy. The author of the article was not using the Bible to shape his understanding of God, rather, he was forming his own god based upon a fallen, human understanding of what he believes God should be. He openly discredited parts of God's word as simply being wrong if those portions of scripture presented attributes of God that seemed to contradict his mold.

This approach to understanding God, of course, has huge implications on his theology. Along with defining the rules and parameters of who he thinks God is, he goes on to form a set of rules and parameters of how a Christian should live and act based upon his view of God. Because this author was able to discredit a God of wrath, he is essentially able to justify any lifestyle, any sin, anything he wants based upon whether he deems it loving, fair, or in lines with his notion of justice. 

We can all do this, can't we? We trust our fallen notions of fairness and justice, or love, or kindness, and then try to form a god who fits into our mold. It is idolatry, plain and simple, and here's the real kicker. Our own thoughts and opinions are not our guide to what we should believe concerning God. God himself has revealed his character and nature, and he has done it in the pages of scripture. Accept it as revelation, or reject it as revelation, but there is no middle ground here. The Bible alone gives us the revelation we need to know who God is, and if we seem to feel that there are contradictions in how God has revealed himself in the scriptures, then the problem is not in God's revelation, but rather, in our understanding of it. We are not free to simply cast aside portions of the Bible that we believe present God to be something we don't like. We must let the revelation of God mold and shape our understanding of God, not let our understanding of God mold and shape what we think the Bible says, or what God should or shouldn't be like. And once we are able to see who God truly is, as he has revealed himself to be in scripture, then we are able to see what duty God requires of us. In other words, you cannot have orthopraxy (right living) if you do not first have orthodoxy (right belief). 

How does all of this relate then to Christ's words in John 5:39? It's actually quite remarkable what Jesus is saying here. He reveals to us in these words that he is God in the flesh, and that he is the fulfillment of all Biblical revelation. The Old Testament laws and rituals? They point to him! Do we want to know what God is like and what he requires of us? Then look in faith to Jesus Christ himself! Look as his character, his attributes, his life of perfect obedience, and his substitutionary death on the cross. 

 

The Sufficiency of Scripture and Continuing Revelation

Part of our blog on the second question of the Westminster Shorter Catechism emphasized the full sufficiency of Scripture. One of the challenges to the doctrine of sufficiency is the idea of continued revelation, that is to say, the idea that God is sending extra-Biblical, personal revelation to Christians today. Some call it "words of knowledge", some call it "prophecy", but whatever name we give this idea of continued revelation, I think it's fair to say that it has not been properly examined in light of the doctrine of the sufficiency of Scripture. 

One place where we see this really taking hold lately is in the barrage of books written by people claiming to die and go to Heaven. These books, the authors claim, are full of first hand experiences of what Heaven is like. They describe many things that that the Bible never mentions, or in some cases is out right contradictory to what Scripture says about Heaven. Theses books are wildly popular within Evangelicalism, and are accepted as new revelation by many without ever questioning the validity of the stories.

This week we came across an amazing article from Christianity Today. The article discusses a retraction by the subject of "The Boy Who Came Back From Heaven", Alex Malarkey. Malarkey openly admits in his retraction that he did indeed make up his story about his fantastic voyage into the great beyond. But the retraction is not the truly amazing part of this article. It is both his genuine spirit of repentance and his clear statement on the sufficiency of the Bible that is stunning. Alex first admits that, "I said that I went to Heaven because I thought it would get me attention. When I made the claims that I did, I had never read the Bible." He then goes on, "People have profited from lies, and continue to. They should read the Bible, which is enough." His retraction ends with this statement, "I want the whole world to know that the Bible is sufficient".

Yes, Alex is right. The Bible is sufficient, and the only infallible source of knowledge and truth. We cannot with one hand hold up the Bible, making triumphant claims about its innerrancy, infallibility, authority, and sufficiency, and in the other hand hold up books containing extra-Biblical revelation. If we truly believe that the Bible is fully sufficient, then why do we feel the need to look elsewhere for new revelation? Let us rest in what we know God has revealed to us in the pages of Scripture. It truly is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy God!

Westminster Shorter Catechism Q&A #2

Q: What rule has God given to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him?
A: The word of God, which is contained in the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament, is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy him. 
2 Timothy 3:15-17: And how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. 
 

I was discussing with a fellow member at Proclamation about how important these first two questions are to our faith. Indeed, these two questions are paramount to our existence as a church. We exist to worship, glorify, and enjoy God, and Scripture alone reveals to us how we may do so. 

This question and answer emphasizes not only that the Word of God is inerrant,  inspired, authoritative, and infallible, but it also emphasizes that it is fully sufficient. The full sufficiency of the Bible is an important aspect of the doctrine of "Sola Scriptura" that we can easily forget. As Evangelicals, we are quick to emphasize (though, unfortunately, less quick these days) Scripture's authority or infallibility, but really, not much has been said about the sufficiency of Scripture. Here, though, as the catechism sums up what Paul is writing in 2 Timothy 3, we see that the Bible is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy God. What is this saying? It is saying that in the pages of Scripture we are told how to live our lives. We are told how to worship God both privately and corporately. We are given everything within the pages of Scripture that we need for salvation, for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness. 

That is it. The Bible alone has complete and final authority to guide us through the Christian life. Not human invention, not feelings, not popes and counsels, not personal revelation. Nothing but the Word of God is to be our rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy God. May we grow in our knowledge of the Word so that we may glorify and enjoy God in all things! 

Westminster Shorter Catechism Q&A #1

Q: What is the chief end of man?
A: Man's chief end is to glorify God and enjoy him forever.
1 Corinthians 10:31: So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

Norman Maclean, in his autobiographical work, A River Runs Through It, shared a memory of his childhood as it pertained to this question. "In between on Sunday afternoons we had to study The Westminster Shorter Catechism for an hour and then recite before we could walk the hills with my father while he unwound between services. But he never asked us more than the first question in the catechism, "What is the chief end of man?" And we answered together so one of us could carry on if the other forgot, "Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever." This always seemed to satisfy him, as indeed such a beautiful answer should have."

Indeed, it is a beautiful statement. It reminds us of what we were created to do, and that there is true enjoyment in doing it. God, the author and creator of life, created us to worship him, to glorify him in all things! But there is more here. By glorifying God, we find that we actually enjoy him. We find fellowship and communion with our heavenly Father that is eternal in scope. This is our true contentment! Being created to glorify God doesn't just benefit God (not that God could be enriched or benefit from us!). No, rather, we find that we, the created finite beings, are the ones who benefit infinitely.

This fellowship and communion is what we lost in the garden when our first parents fell, and it is exactly what we find again through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Such a statement should satisfy us just as it satisfied Maclean's father. Can we see the beauty in this statement?

But Paul's statements in 1 Corinthians 10 are indeed challenging to us. Whatever we do, do all to the glory of God. How miserably we fail at this. But here is the hope of the gospel: Having been robed in the righteousness of Christ, having been brought back into fellowship with God, we can, through the working of the Holy Spirit in our lives, truly strive to do all things to the glory of God.

And brothers and sisters, this is our framework for living, isn't it? We have our purpose for this life summarized in the catechism, and we have the standard and guide for our lives in the words of the apostle. Do we want to find true contentment? Find eternal contentment in worshiping and communing with God! And how do we worship and commune with God? By seeking to glorify him in all that we do! May we take up this charge. May we make it our prayer every day that God, through the working of the Spirit in our lives, would help us to truly glorify and honor him in all that we think, say, and do!

Blogging Through the Westminster Shorter Catechism

As Troy announced on Sunday, as part of my preparation for ordination, I am in the process of memorizing the Westminster Shorter Catechism and Scripture references for each question and answer. We are providing book marks starting Sunday with the memorization plan, and it is our hope to use this blog to provide additional reflection on each question.

We realize there may be some who simply do not see the value in memorizing catechisms. I am quite sympathetic, as a person who struggles to memorize Scripture, to those who would say our time could be better spent on memorizing the Word of God only. Memorizing catechisms could, for some people, be seen as a waste of time and energy. Not only for adults, but also for our children, as many of us use the First Catechisms in our homes to begin Biblical instruction to our young ones. Biblical literacy is indeed our top priority. We want to know what the Word of God says. We want to pour through the pages of the Bible, hiding it in our hearts and helping our children do the same. Please do put your time and energy into memorizing Scripture. Make it your top priority. However, we must remember this: Catechisms, when used properly, do not replace the memorization of Scripture, but rather, help bring clarity to what we are memorizing. It is one thing to memorize John 3:16 as a child. It is another to memorize it and know that to believe in Christ means that "Faith in Jesus Christ is a saving grace, whereby we receive and rest upon him alone for salvation, as he is offered to us in the gospel." (Shorter Catechism #86) 

My own heart has been encouraged as I have watched my young children memorize catechisms. When my daughters tell me that God created them and all things for his own glory, and that we can glorify God by loving him and doing what he commands, I realize that the catechisms have given these young children a better understanding of Biblical truth than what many believing adults have, and in just a few questions and answers, these little ones are able to summarize grand truths of Scripture! This is the real value in this effort, and it is our prayer and hope that you would all be edified by this work, and that your knowledge and understanding of the Word of God would grow!