 |
|
THE STUDY CATECHISM:
CONFIRMATION VERSION
NEW Presbyterian Catechism
Question 1. What is God’s purpose in your life?
God wills that I should live by the grace of the Lord
Jesus Christ, for the
love of God, and in the communion of the Holy Spirit.
(2 Corinthians 13:13)
Question 2. How do you live by the grace of the Lord
Jesus Christ?
I am not my own. I have been bought with a price. The Lord
Jesus Christ
loved me and gave himself for me. I entrust myself
completely to his care, giving thanks each day for his wonderful
goodness.
(1 Corinthians 6:19-20; Galatians 2:20; Psalm 136:1)
Question 3. How do you live for the love of God?
I love because God first loved me. Amazed by grace, I live
for the Lord
who died and rose again, triumphant over death,
for my sake. Therefore, I take those around me to heart,
especially those in need, knowing that Christ died for them no
less than for me.
(1 John 4:19; 2 Corinthians 5:15; Romans 12:15-16)
Question 4. How do you live in the communion of the
Holy Spirit?
By the Holy Spirit, I am made one with the Lord Jesus
Christ. I am
baptized into Christ’s body, the church. As a member
of this community, I
trust in God’s Word, share in the Lord’s Supper, and
turn to God in
prayer. As I grow in grace and knowledge, I am led to
do the good works
that God intends for my life.
(1 Corinthians 12:27; Galatians 3:27; 1 Corinthians
6:17,19; 2 Peter 3:18;
Ephesians 2:10)
I The Apostles’ Creed
Question 5. What does a Christian Believe?
All that is promised in the gospel. A summary is
found in the Apostles’ Creed, which affirms the main content of
the Christian faith.
(John 20:31)
Question 6. What is the first article of the Apostles’
Creed?
"I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and
earth."
Question 7. What do you believe when you confess your
faith in "God the Father
Almighty"?
That God is a God of love, and that God’s love is
powerful beyond
measure.
(Lamentations 3:22; Song of Solomon 8:7; 1 John 4:8)
Question 8. How do you understand the love and power of
God?
Through Jesus Christ. In his life of compassion, his death
on the cross,
and his resurrection from the dead, I see how vast is
God’s love for the
world – a love that is ready to suffer for our sakes, yet
so strong that
nothing will prevail against it.
(John 3:16; Hebrews 1:3; 1 John 4:9; Matthew 9:36; Psalm
106:8)
Question 9. What comfort do you receive from this
truth?
This powerful and loving God is the one whose promises I
may trust in
all the circumstances of my life, and to whom I belong in
life and in
death.
(Psalm 12:6; Romans 8:38-39)
Question 10. Do you make this confession by yourself?
No. With all those before me who have loved the Lord Jesus
Christ, and
with all who serve him of earth here and now, I
confess my faith in this
loving and powerful God.
(Hebrews 12:1; Romans 1:12)
Question 11. When the creed speaks of "God the Father,"
does it mean that God
Is male?
No. Only creatures having bodies can be either
male or female. But
God has no body, since by nature God is Spirit.
Holy Scripture reveals
God as a living God beyond all sexual
distinctions. Scripture uses
diverse images for God, female as well as male.
(Isaiah 49:15; Isaiah 66:13; Matthew 23:37)
Question 12. Why then does the creed speak of God the
Father?
Because God is identified in the New Testament
as the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
(Romans 1:7; John 14:9-10; John 17:24; John
1:12; Galatians 4:6)
Question 13. When you confess God as our Father, do you
mean that men should
dominate women?
No. All human beings, male or female, ought to
conform their lives to
the love, humility, and kindness of God. In fact
God calls women and
men to all ministries of the church. Any abuse or
domination in human
relationships is a direct violation of God’s
Fatherhood.
(Galatians 3:28; Ephesians 5:21)
Question 14. If God’s love is so powerful, why is there
evil in the world?
No one can say why, for evil is a terrible
mystery. Still, we know that God’s triumph over evil is certain.
Our Lord Jesus Christ, crucified and risen, is himself God’s
promise that suffering will come to an end, that death shall be
no more, and that all things will be made new.
(Psalm 23:4; 1 Peter 1:3; 2 Peter 3:13; Romans 8:21; Job
19:25)
Question 15. What do you believe when you say that God
is "Maker of heaven and
earth"?
First, that God called heaven and earth, with all
that is in them, into
being out of nothing. Second, that God rules and
supports the creation
in perfect wisdom, according to God’s eternal
purpose.
(Revelation 4:11; Genesis 1:1; Hebrews 11:3)
Question 16. Did God need to make the world?
No. God would still be God even if heaven and earth had
never been
(Acts 17:24-25)
Question 17. Why, then, did God create the world?
God’s creation of the world was an act of grace. God
granted
existence to the world simply in order to bless it. God
created the
world to reveal God’s glory, to share the love and
freedom at the heart of God’s
being, and to give us eternal life in fellowship
with God.
(Psalm 19:1; 2 Corinthians 3:17; Psalm 67:6-7; Ephesians
1:3-4; John 3:36)
Question 18. Does your confession of God as Creator
contradict the findings of
modern science?
No. Natural science has much to teach us about the
particular
mechanisms of nature, but it is not equipped to answer
questions about
ultimate reality. Nothing basic to the Christian faith
contradicts the
findings of modern science, nor does anything
essential to modern
science contradict the Christian faith.
(John 1:1-3)
Question 19. What does it mean to say that human beings
are created in the
image of God?
God created us to live together in love and
freedom – with God, with
one another and with the world. We are created to
be loving
companions of others so that something of God’s
goodness may be
reflected in our lives.
(Genesis 1:26; Genesis 1:27)
Question 20. What does our creation in God’s image
reflect about God?
Our being created for loving relationships is a reflection
of the Holy
Trinity. In the mystery of the one God, the three
divine persons –
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – live eternally in perfect
love and freedom.
(Luke 3:21-22; John 1:18; John 5:19; John 17:21-22)
Question 21. What does our creation in God’s image say
about our responsibility
For the earth?
We are responsible for seeing that the earth’s
gifts are used fairly and
wisely. We must take care that no creature
suffers from the abuse of
what we are given, and that future generations
may continue to enjoy the earth’s abundance in praise to God.
(Psalm 24:1; Psalm 89:11; Genesis 2:15; Genesis 1:26;
Isaiah 24:5; Romans 12:2)
Question 22. What is God’s providence?
God not only preserves the world, but also continually
rules over it.
God cares for every creature and brings good out
of evil, so that nothing
Evil is permitted to occur that God does not bend
finally to the good.
(Romans 8:28; Psalm 103:19; Psalm 145:17)
Question 23. What comfort do you receive by trusting in
God’s providence?
The eternal Father of our Lord Jesus Christ watches over
me each day
of my life, blessing and guiding me wherever I may be.
God strengthens
me when I am faithful, comforts me when I am
discouraged or
sorrowful, raises me up if I fall, and bring me at
last to eternal life.
(Psalm 146:9; Isaiah 58:11; Isaiah 41:10; 2 Corinthians
1:3-5; Psalm 30:5)
Question 24. What is the second article of the
Apostles’ Creed?
"And I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son,
our Lord. He was
conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin
Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead and
buried. He descended into hell. On the third day he rose again
from the dead. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the
right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living
and the dead."
Question 25. What do you believe when you confess your
faith in Jesus Christ as
"God’s only Son"?
No one else will ever be God incarnate. No one
else will ever die for the sins of the world. Only Jesus Christ
is such a person, only he could do such a work, and he in fact
has done it.
(Isaiah 53:5; John 1:29; Colossians 1:15-20; Luke 3:21-22;
John 1:14)
Question 26. What do you affirm when you confess your
faith in Jesus Christ as
"our Lord"?
That having been raised from the dead Christ
reigns with compassion and justice over all things in heaven and
on earth, especially over those who confess him by faith. By
loving and serving him above all else, I give glory
and honor to God.
(1 Corinthians 15:3-4; Revelations 11:15; Ephesians
1:20-23; Philippians 2:9-11)
Question 27. How did the coming of Jesus confirm God’s
covenant with Israel?
God made a covenant with Israel, promising that
God would be their God, that they would be God’s people, and
that through them all the peoples of the earth would be blessed.
With the coming of Jesus the covenant was thrown open to the
world. By faith in him, all peoples were welcomed into the
covenant. This throwing open of the gates confirmed the promise
that through Israel God’s blessing would come to all.
(Genesis17:3-4; Genesis 12:1-3; Exodus 6:4-5;
Galatians 3:14; Jeremiah 30:22; 1 Peter 2:9-10; Zechariah 1:6;
Leviticus 5:6; Psalm 72:1,4)
Question 28. Was the covenant with Israel an
everlasting covenant?
Yes. Although for the most part Israel has not
accepted Jesus as the Messiah, God has not rejected Israel. God
still loves Israel, and God is their hope, "for the gifts and
the calling of God are irrevocable" (Romans. 11:29).
(Isaiah 61:8; Jeremiah 31:3; 2 Samuel 23:5; Romans 11:29)
Question 29. What do you affirm when you say he was
"conceived by the Holy
Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary"?
First, that being born of Mary, Jesus was truly
a human being. Second, that our Lord’s incarnation was a holy
and mysterious event. Third, that he was set apart by his unique
origin for the sake of accomplishing our salvation.
(Luke 1:31; Luke 1:35; Hebrews 2:1-14; Philippians 2:5-7)
Question 30. What is the significance of affirming that
Jesus is truly God?
Only God can properly deserve worship. Only God
can reveal to us who God is. And only God can save us from our
sins. Being truly God, Jesus made these conditions. He is the
proper object of our worship, the self-revelation of God, and
the Savior of the world.
(John 20:28; Matthew 11:27; 1 John 4:14)
Question 31. What is the significance of affirming that
Jesus is also truly a
human being?
Being truly human, Jesus entered fully into our
fallen situation and overcame it. He lived a life of pure
obedience to God, even to the point of accepting a violent
death. When we accept him by faith, he removes our disobedience
and clothes us with his perfect righteousness.
(Hebrews 2:17-18; Hebrews 4:15; Hebrews 5:8-9;
Romans 5:19)
Question 32. What do you affirm when you say that he
"suffered under
Pontius Pilate"?
First, that our Lord was rejected and abused by
the authorities of that
time, both religious and political. Second, and
even more importantly,
that he submitted to condemnation by an earthly
judge so that we might
be aquitted before our heavenly Judge.
(Luke 18:32; Isaiah 53:3; Psalm 9:9; Luke 1:52; 2
Corinthians 5:21; 2 Timothy 4:8)
Question 33. What do you affirm when you say that he
was "crucified, dead, and
buried"?
From Christ’s lonely and terrible death we learn
that there is no
sorrow he has not known, no grief he has not
borne, and no price he
was unwilling to pay in order to reconcile us to
God.
(Matthew 26:38-39; Isaiah 53:5; Galatians 3:13; Hebrews
2:9; 2 Corinthians 5:19)
Question 34. What do you affirm when you say that he
descended into
hell?
That our Lord took upon himself the full
consequences of our sinfulness in order that we might be spared.
(Mark 15:34; Hebrews 9:26; Romans 4:24-25)
Question 35. What do you affirm when you say that "on
the third day he
rose again from the dead"?
Our Lord could not be held by the power of
death. Having died
on the cross, he appeared to his followers, and
revealed himself to them as the Lord and Savior of the world.
(Acts 2:24; 1 Corinthians 15:3-4; Luke 24:36-40; John
20:15-18; 1 Corinthians 15:5-8; John 20:27)
Question 36. What do you affirm when you say that "he
ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the father?
First, that Christ has gone to be with his
loving Father so that he is now hidden except to the eyes of
faith. Second, however, that he is not cut off from us but is
present here and now by grace. He reigns with divine authority,
protecting us, and interceding for us until he returns in glory.
(Acts 1:6-11; Colossians 3:1)
Question 37. How do you understand the words that "he
will come again to judge
the living and the dead?"
Like everyone else, I too must stand in fear and
trembling before the judgment seat of Christ. But the Judge is
the one who submitted to judgment for my sake. Nothing will be
able to separate me from the love of God in Christ Jesus my
Lord.
(2 Corinthians 5:10; Ecclesiastes 12:14; Acts 17:31;
Romans 8:38-39; 1 John 4:17;
1 Corinthians 3:12-15; Acts 10:42)
Question 38. Will all human beings be saved?
No one will be lost who can be saved. The limits
to salvation, whatever they may be, are known only to God. Three
truths above all are certain. God is a holy God who is not to be
trifled with. No one will be saved except by grace alone. And no
judge could possibly be more gracious than our Lord and Savior,
Jesus Christ.
(Hebrews 10:31; Romans 11:32; Luke 15:4-7; Ephesians 2:8;
1 Timothy 2:3-4;
John 3:17-18;
Ezekiel 18:32; 2 Corinthians 5:14-15)
Question 39. How should I treat non-Christians and
people of other religions?
I should meet friendship with friendship,
hostility with kindness, generosity with gratitude, persecution
with forbearance, truth with agreement, and error with truth. I
should express my faith by word and by deed. I should avoid
compromising the truth on the one hand and being narrow-minded
on the other. In short, I should welcome and accept these others
in a way that honors and reflects the Lord’s welcome and
acceptance of me.
(Romans 15:7; Luke 6:37; Matthew 5:44; Ephesians 4:25;
Acts 13:47; Romans 12:21;
Question 40. How will God deal with the followers of
other religions?
God offers salvation to all human beings through
Jesus Christ. How God will deal with those who do not know or
follow Christ, but who follow another tradition, we cannot
finally say. We can say, however, that God is gracious and
merciful, and that God will not deal with people in any other
way than we see in Jesus Christ, who came as the Savior of the
world.
(Revelation 7:9; Psalm 103:8; John 3:19; Titus 2:11)
Question 41. Is Christianity the only true religion?
By the grace of God, Christianity offers the
truth of the gospel. Although other religions may contain
various truths, no other can or does affirm the name of Jesus
Christ as the hope of the world.
(Matthew 7:3; James 1:26; James 1:27; Acts 4:12;
John 14:6; Romans 1:16;
2 Corinthians 4:7)
Question 42. What is the third article of the Apostles’
Creed?
"I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic
church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the
resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen."
Question 43. What do you believe when you confess your
faith in the Holy Spirit?
The Holy Spirit is the divine person who enables
us to love, know, and serve Jesus Christ.
Question 44. How do we receive the Holy Spirit?
By receiving the Word of God. The Spirit arrives
with the Word, brings us to rebirth, and assures us of eternal
life. The Spirit nurtures, corrects, and strengthens us with the
truth of the Word.
(Ephesians 6:17; John 14:16-17; John 3:5-6; Luke 11:13; 1
Thessalonians 1:5;
John 16:8; Romans 8:15-16
Question 45. What do you mean when you speak of "the
Word of God"?
"Jesus Christ as he is attested for us in Holy
Scripture is the one Word of God whom we have to hear, and whom
we have to trust and obey in life and in death" (Barmen
Declaration, Article 1).
(
Question 46. Isn’t Holy Scripture also the Word of God?
Yes. Holy Scripture is also God’s Word because
of its focus, its function, and its founder. Its central focus
is Jesus Christ, the living Word. Its basic function is to
deepen our love, knowledge, and service of him as our Savior and
Lord. And its dependable founder is the Holy Spirit, who spoke
through the prophets and apostles, and who inspires us with
eager desire for the truths that Scripture contains.
Question 47. Isn’t preaching also the Word of God?
Yes. Preaching is God’s Word when it is faithful
to the witness of Holy Scripture. Faith comes by hearing God’s
Word in the form of faithful preaching and teaching.
Question 48. What do you affirm when you speak of "the
holy catholic church"?
The church is the community of all faithful
people who have given their lives to Jesus Christ with
thanksgiving. The church is holy because he is holy, and
universal (or "catholic") in significance because he is
universal in significance. Despite all its remaining
imperfections here and now, the church is called to become ever
more holy and catholic, for that is what it already is in
Christ.
Question 49. What is the mission of the church?
The mission of the church is to bear witness to
God’s love for the world in Jesus Christ.
Question 50. What forms does this mission take?
The church’s mission takes a wide variety of
forms, including evangelism, work for social justice, and
ministries of care. Yet the center is always the same: Jesus
Christ. In every case the church extends mercy and forgiveness
to the needy in a way that points finally to him.
Question 51. Who are the needy?
The hungry need bread, the homeless need a roof,
the oppressed need justice, and the lonely need fellowship. At
the same time, - on another and deeper level – the hopeless need
hope, sinners need forgiveness, and the world needs the gospel.
On this level no one is excluded, and all the needy are one. Our
mission as the church is to bring hope to a desperate world by
declaring God’s undying love – as one beggar tells another where
to find bread.
Question 52. What do you affirm when you speak of "the
communion of saints"?
All those who live in union with Christ, whether
on earth or with God in heaven, are "saints." Our communion with
Christ makes us members one of another. The ties that bind us in
Christ are deeper than any other human relationship.
Question 53. How do you enter into communion with
Christ and so with one
another?
By the power of the Holy Spirit as it works
through Word and Sacrament. The Scriptures acknowledge two
sacraments as instituted by our Lord Jesus Christ – baptism and
the Lord’s Supper.
Question 54. What is a sacrament?
A sacrament is a special act of Christian
worship, instituted by Christ, which uses a visible sign to
proclaim the promise of the gospel for the forgiveness of sins
and eternal life. In baptism the sign is that of water; in the
Lord’s Supper, that of bread and wine.
Question 55. What is baptism?
Baptism is the sign and seal through which we
are joined to Christ.
Question 56. What does it mean to be baptized?
My baptism means that I am joined to Christ
forever. As I am baptised with water, he baptizes me with his
Spirit, washing away all my sins and freeing me from their
control. My baptism is a sign that one day I will rise with him
in glory, and may walk with him even now in newness of life.
Question 57. Are infants also to be baptized?
Yes. Along with their believing parents, they
are included in the great hope of the gospel and belong to the
people of God. Forgiveness and faith are both promised to them
through Christ’s covenant with his people.
Question 58. Why are you baptized in the name of the
Father, and of the Son, and
of the Holy Spirit?
Because of the command Jesus gave his disciples.
After he was raised from the dead, he appeared to them and said,
"Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them
in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy
Spirit." (Matthew 28:19)
Question 59. What is the meaning of this name?
It is the name of the Holy Trinity. The Father
is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God. And yet they
are not three gods, but one God in three persons. We worship God
in this mystery.
Question 60. What is the Lord’s Supper?
The Lord’s Supper is the sign and seal by which
our communion with Christ is renewed.
Question 61. What does it mean to share in the Lord’s
Supper?
When we celebrate the Lord’s Supper, the Lord
Jesus Christ is truly present, pouring out his Spirit upon us.
By his Spirit, the bread that we break and the cup that we bless
share in his body and blood. As I receive the bread and the cup,
remembering that Christ died even for me, I feed on him in my
heart by faith with thanksgiving. His life becomes mine, and my
life becomes his, to all eternity.
Question 62. What do you mean when you speak of "the
forgiveness of sins"?
Because of Jesus Christ, God no longer holds my
sins against me. Christ alone is my righteousness and my life.
Grace alone is the basis on which God has forgiven me in him.
Faith alone is the means by which I receive Christ into my
heart, and with him the forgiveness that makes me whole.
Question 63. Does forgiveness mean that God excuses
sin?
No. God does not cease to be God. Although God
is merciful to the sinner, God does not excuse the evil of sin.
For to forgive is not to excuse.
Question 64. Does your forgiveness of those who have
harmed you depend on
their repentance?
No. I am to forgive as I have been forgiven.
Just as God’s forgiveness of me does not depend on my first
confessing and repenting of my sins, so my forgiveness of those
who harm me does not depend on their doing so. However, when I
forgive the person who has harmed me, I do not deny or excuse
the harm that was done.
Question 65. What do you mean when you speak of "the
resurrection of the
body"?
Because Christ lives, we will live also. Death
is not the end of human life. The whole person, body and soul,
will be raised from death to eternal life with God.
Question 67. Won’t heaven be a boring place?
No. Heaven is our true home, a world of love.
There we shall at last see face to face what we now only glimpse
as through a distant mirror. Our deepest, truest delights in
this life are only a foreshadowing of the delights that await us
in heaven.
II THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
Question 68. What are the Ten Commandments?
The Ten Commandments give a summary of God’s law
for our lives. They teach us how to live rightly with God and
one another.
Question 69. Why should you obey this law?
Not to win God’s love, for God already loves me.
Not to earn my salvation, for Christ has earned it for me. Not
to avoid being punished, for then I would obey out of fear. With
gladness in my heart I should obey God’s law out of gratitude,
for God has blessed me by it and given it for my well-being.
Question 70. What is the first commandment?
You shall have no other gods before me (Exodus
20:4, Deuteronomy 5:8).
Question 71. What do you learn from the first
commandment?
No loyalty comes before my loyalty to God. I
should worship and serve only God, expect all good from God
alone, and love, fear, and honor God with all my heart.
Question 72. What is the second commandment?
You shall not make for yourself an idol.
Question 73. What do you learn from this commandment?
First, when I treat anything other than God as
though it were God, I make it an idol. Second, when I assume
that my own interests are more important then anything else, I
make them into idols, and in effect I also make an idol of
myself.
Question 74. What is the third commandment?
You shall not make wrongful use of the name of
the Lord your God (ex.20:7; Deut.5:11).
Question 75. What do you learn from this commandment?
I should use God’s name with reverence and awe.
God’s name is holy and deserves the highest honor from us. It is
insulted when used carelessly, as in a curse or a pious cliché.
Question 76. What is the fourth commandment?
Remember the Sabbath Day, and keep it holy.
(Ex.20:8; Deut. 5:12).
Question 77. What do you learn from this commandment?
God requires a special day to be set apart so
that worship can be at the center of my life. It is right to
honor God with thanks and praise, and to hear and receive God’s
Word.
Question 78. What is the best summary of the first four
commandments?
These teach me how to live rightly with God.
Jesus summed them up with the commandment he called the first
and greatest: You shall love the Lord your God with all your
heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. (Matt.
22:37; Deut. 6:5)
Question 79. What is the fifth commandment?
Honor your father and your mother. (Ex.20:12;
Deut.5:16)
Question 80. What do you learn from this commandment?
Though I owe reverence to God alone, I owe
genuine respect to my parents, both my mother and father. God
wills me to listen to them, be thankful for the benefits I
receive from them, and be considerate of their needs, especially
in old age.
Question 81. Are there limits to your obligation to
obey the fifth commandment?
Yes. No mere human being is God. Blind obedience
is not required, for everything should be tested by loyalty and
obedience to God.
Question 82. What is the sixth commandment?
You shall not murder. (Ex. 20:13; Deut. 5:17)
Question 83. What do you learn from the fifth
commandment?
God forbids anything that harms my neighbor
unfairly. Murder or injury can be done not only by direct
violence but also by an angry word or a clever plan, and not
only by an individual but also by unjust social institutions. I
should honor every human being, including my enemy, as a person
is made in God’s image.
Question 84. What is the seventh commandment?
You shall not commit adultry. (Ex. 20:14; Deut.
5:18)
Question 85. What do you learn from the seventh
commandment?
God requires fidelity and purity in sexual
relations. Since love is God’s great gift, God expects me not to
corrupt it, or confuse it with momentary desire or the selfish
fulfillment of my own pleasures. God forbids all sexual
immorality, whether in married or in single life.
Question 86. What is the eighth commandment?
You shall not steal. (Ex. 20:155; Deut. 5:19)
Question 87. What do you learn from this commandment?
God forbids all theft and robbery, including
schemes, tricks, or systems that unjustly take what belongs to
someone else. God requires me not to be driven by greed, not to
misuse or waste the gifts I have been given, and not to distrust
the promise that God will supply my needs.
Question 88. What is the ninth commandment?
You shall not bear false witness against your
neighbor. (Ex. 20:16 Deut.5:20)
Question 89. What do you learn from this commandment?
God forbids me to damage the honor or reputation
of my neighbor. I should not say false things against anyone for
the sake of money, favor, or friendship, for the sake of
revenge, or for any other reason. God requires me to speak well
of my neighbor when I can, and to view the faults of my neighbor
with tolerance when I cannot.
Question 90. Does this commandment forbid racism and
other forms of negative
stereotyping?
Yes. In forbidding false witness against my
neighbor, God forbids me to be prejudiced against people who
belong to any vulnerable, different, or disfavored social group.
Jews, women, homosexuals, racial and ethnic minorities, and
national enemies are among those who have suffered terrible from
being subjected to the slurs of social prejudice.
Question 91. What is the tenth commandment?
You shall not covet what is your neighbor’s.
(Ex. 20:17 Deut.5:21)
Question 92. What do you learn from this commandment?
My whole heart should belong to God alone, not
to money or the things of this world. "Coveting" means desiring
something wrongfully. I should not resent the good fortune or
success of my neighbor or allow envy to corrupt my heart.
Question 93. What is the best summary of the last six
commandments?
These teach me how to live rightly with my
neighbor. Jesus summed them up with a commandment which is like
the greatest one about loving God: You shall love your neighbor
as yourself (Matt. 22:39, Lev.19:18)
Question 94. Can you obey these commandments perfectly?
No. Yet there is more grace in God than sin in
me. While I must confess m6y sins to God and resolve not to
commit them, I can be confident that God is forgiving, and will
give me the grace to grow in love and knowledge day by day.
III THE LORD’S PRAYER
Question 95. What is prayer?
Prayer means calling upon God whose Spirit is
always present with us. In prayer we approach God with
reverence, confidence, and humility. Prayer involves both
addressing God in praise, confession, thanksgiving, and
supplication, and listening for God’s word within our hearts.
When we adore God, we are filled with wonder, love, and praise
before God’s heavenly glory. When we confess our sins to God, we
ask for forgiveness with sorry hearts. When we give thanks to
God, we acknowledge God’s great goodness in all that has been
provided for us. Finally, when we call upon god to hear our
requests, we affirm that God is always near to us in times of
need and sorrow.
Question 96. What is the purpose of prayer?
Prayer brings us into communion with God. The
more our lives are rooted in prayer, the more we sense how
wonderful God is in grace, purity, majesty, and love. Prayer
means offering our lives completely to God, submitting ourselves
to God’s will, and waiting faithfully for God’s grace. Through
prayer God frees us from anxiety, equips us for service, and
deepens our faith.
Question 97. What prayer serves as our rule or pattern?
Our rule or pattern is found in the Lord’s
Prayer, which Jesus taught to his disciples:
Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive our sins as we forgive those who sin
against us.
Save us from the time of trial and deliver us
from evil.
For the kingdom, the power and the glory are
yours now and for ever. Amen.
These words express everything that we may
desire and expect from God.
Question 98. What is meant by addressing God as "Our
Father in heaven"?
When we pray to God as "our Father in heaven,"
we draw near with childlike reverence and place ourselves
securely in God’s hands. We express our confidence that God
cares for us, and that nothing on earth is beyond the reach of
God’s grace.
Question 99. What is meant by the first petition,
"Hallowed be your name"?
This petition is placed first, because it
expresses the goal and purpose of the whole prayer. When we pray
for God’s name to be "hallowed," we ask that we will know and
glorify God as God really is, and that all things will truly
come to serve God.
Question 100. What is meant by the second petition,
"Your kingdom come"?
|
