James 4:14

What is your life? You are a

mist that appears for a little
while and then vanishes.
Ephesians 5:15-16
Be very careful, then, how you
live—not as unwise but as
wise, making the most of
every opportunity, because
the days are evil.
Antiochus Epiphanes
Daniel 11:32
But the people who know
their God shall stand firm and
take action.
 ‘11
Rediscovering the Good News
that We Dare Not Forget!

Coming to Grace Jan. 2, 2011

 The Heidelberg Catechism

A Christian catechism is?

It is a means of instruction in
the form of a series of questions
and answers about God and the
truths of Scripture (theology).
 The Heidelberg
Catechism (1563)

- The Bible
- The Pilgrim’s Progress
- The Imitation of Christ
- The Heidelberg Catechism
Most catechisms were for the
most part structured around
three teachings:

- The Apostles Creed

- The Ten Commandments
- The Lord’s Prayer
 The Heidelberg
Catechism (1563)

129 questions

52 Lord’s Day Readings

The Good News
We Almost
Forgot:
Rediscovering
the Gospel in a
16 Century
th

Catechism by
Kevin DeYoung.
The Structure of the Catechism

Q3 – Q11 Man’s Misery

Q12 – Q85 Man’s Deliverance
Q86 – Q129 Man’s Response
The Structure of the Catechism

Q3 – Q11 Guilt
Q12 – Q85 Grace
Q86 – Q129 Gratitude
The Structure of the Catechism

Man’s Misery ---- Guilt

Man’s Deliverance ---- Grace
Man’s Response ---- Gratitude

Same 3-fold structure found in

book of Romans!
 “I believe this sequence
of concepts is the only
proper way to
understand and apply
Jerry the Bible to our lives. Yet
Bridges my perception of today’s
Christian community is
that we are largely
imperative driven.”
 “We major on ‘ought
to’ and ‘how to’ with
little regard for that
which makes us
Jerry ‘want to.’ (p. 11)
Bridges
The Structure of the Catechism

Q3 – Q11 Guilt
Q12 – Q85 Grace
Q86 – Q129 Gratitude
Question 1: What is your only
comfort in life and death?

Answer: That I am not my

own, but belong body and
soul, in life and in death to my
faithful Savior, Jesus Christ.
Answer (continued): Christ
has fully paid for all my sins
with his precious blood, and
has set me free from all the
power of the devil.
Answer (continued): He also
watches over me in such a way
that not a hair can fall from my
head without the will of my
Father in heaven; in fact, all
things must work together for
my salvation.
Answer (continued): Because I
belong to him, Christ, by his
Holy Spirit assures me of
eternal life and makes me
wholeheartedly willing and
ready from now on to live for
him.
Question 1: What is your only
comfort in life and death?

“security”
Question 1: What is your only
comfort in life and death?

“ultimate”
Question 1: What is your only
comfort in life and death?

What is it in life and in death

that is our only real security?

JESUS!
The WORKS of Jesus

1. His work of REDEMPTION

Answer: That I am not my
own, but belong body and
soul, in life and in death to my
faithful Savior, Jesus Christ.
Christ has fully paid for all my
sins with his precious blood,
and has set me free from all
the power of the devil.
 “Redeem” = “To buy out”
Used to refer to the purchase of
a slave’s freedom
When used of Christ’s work, it
refers to the price Jesus paid to
set us free from sin and Satan
Answer: That I am not my own,
but belong body and soul, in life
and in death to my faithful
Savior, Jesus Christ. Christ has
fully paid for all my sins with
his precious blood, and has set
me free from all the power of
the devil.
1 Peter 1:18-19
For you know that it was not with
perishable things such as silver or
gold that you were redeemed from
the empty way of life handed
down to you from your ancestors,
but with the precious blood of
Christ, a lamb without blemish or
defect.
Titus 2:14
Who gave himself for us to
redeem us from all wickedness
and to purify for himself a
people that are his very own…
Hebrews 2:14
Since the children have flesh
and blood, he too shared in
their humanity so that by his
death he might break the
power of him who holds the
power of death—that is, the
devil—
The WORKS of Jesus

1. His work of REDEMPTION

2. His work of PRESERVATION
Not only does Jesus SAVE us
(redemption), He also
KEEPS us (preservation)
Answer: He also watches over
me in such a way that not a
hair can fall from my head
without the will of my Father
in heaven; in fact, all things
must work together for my
salvation.
Answer: Because I belong to
him, Christ, by his Holy Spirit
assures me of eternal life and
makes me wholeheartedly
willing and ready from now on
to live for him.
John 10:14
I am the good shepherd; I know
my sheep.
 
John 10:28
I give them eternal life, and they
shall never perish; no one will
snatch them out of my hand.
Matthew 10:29-31
Are not two sparrows sold for a
penny? Yet not one of them will fall
to the ground outside your Father’s
care. And even the very hairs of
your head are all numbered. So
don’t be afraid; you are worth
more than many sparrows.
Romans 8:28
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Romans 8:28
And we know that in all things
God works for the good of
those who love him, who have
been called according to his
purpose.
Answer: Because I belong to
him, Christ, by his Holy Spirit
assures me of eternal life and
makes me wholeheartedly
willing and ready from now
on to live for him.
Philippians 2:13
For it is God who works in you
to will and to act in order to
fulfill his good purpose.
The WORKS of Jesus

1. His work of REDEMPTION

2. His work of PRESERVATION
Not only does Jesus SAVE us
(redemption), He also
KEEPS us (preservation)
 What one
word does the
catechism use
to describe the
character of
Jesus?
hem, fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might ma

Answer: That I am not

my own, but belong
body and soul, in life and
in death to my faithful
Savior, Jesus Christ. (see
Hebrews 2:17)
Hebrews 2:17
For this reason he had to be
made like them, fully human in
every way, in order that he might
become a merciful and faithful
high priest in service to God, and
that he might make atonement
for the sins of the people.
hem, fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might ma

Answer: That I am not

my own, but belong
body and soul, in life and
in death to my faithful
Savior, Jesus Christ. (see
Hebrews 2:17)
Question 2: What do you need
to know in order to live and
die in the joy of this comfort?.
Answer: First, how great my
sins and misery are; second,
how I am delivered from all my
sins and misery; third, how I
am to be thankful to God for
such deliverance.
The Structure of the Catechism

Man’s Misery ---- Guilt

Man’s Deliverance ---- Grace
Man’s Response ---- Gratitude
 ‘1
1
Why Life Often Doesn’t Work!

Questions #3-#11

Pages 24-35
1. If you are a believer in Jesus
Christ, then you belong in totality
to Him! So live FOR Him!
2. If you are one of Christ’s
sheep, you are always in His hand
no matter how tough life might
become. So live IN Him!
John 16:33
I have told you these things,
so that in me you may have
peace. In this world you will
have trouble. But take
heart! I have overcome the
world.