Catechism Flashcards
What else did God make?
God made all things.
Who made you?
God made me.
Why did God make you and everything else?
For His own glory.
How can you glorify God?
By loving Him and doing what He commands.
Why should you glorify God?
Because He made me and takes care of me.
Why else should you glorify God?
Because He is inherently worthy of glory.
Are there more gods than one?
There is only one God.
In how many persons does this one God exist?
God exists in three persons.
Who are they?
The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
What is God?
God is a spirit, and does not have a body like us.
Where is God?
God is everywhere, but He is not everything.
Can you see God?
No, I cannot see God; but He always sees me.
Does God know all things?
Yes, nothing is hidden from God.
Can God do all things?
Yes, God can do anything in His perfect will.
Where do you learn how to love and obey God?
Only in the Bible.
Who wrote the Bible?
Men who were led by the Holy Spirit.
Who were our first parents?
Adam and Eve.
What were our first parents made out of?
God made the body of Adam out of the ground, and God made the body of Eve from Adam’s body.
What did God give Adam and Eve besides bodies?
He gave them souls that could never die.
Do you have a soul as well as a body?
Yes, I have a soul that will never die.
How do you know that you have a soul?
Because the Bible tells me so.
In what condition did God make Adam and Eve?
He made them happy and without sin.
What is a covenant?
An agreement between two or more persons.
What covenant did God make with Adam and Eve?
The covenant of works.
What were Adam and Eve bound to do by the covenant of works?
To obey God perfectly.
What did God promise in the covenant of works?
To reward Adam and Eve with life if they obeyed Him.
What did God threaten in the covenant of works?
To punish Adam and Eve with death if they disobeyed.
Did Adam and Eve keep the covenant of works?
No, they sinned against God.
What is sin?
Sin is not conforming to the law of God, or breaking God’s law.
What is meant by “not conforming”?
Not being or doing what God requires.
What is meant by “breaking God’s law”?
Doing what God forbids.
What was the sin of our first parents?
Eating the forbidden fruit.
Who tempted them to this sin?
The devil tempted Eve, and she gave the fruit to Adam.
Did Eve sin alone?
No, Adam allowed her to eat, and ate the fruit himself.
What happened to our first parents when they sinned?
Instead of being perfect and happy, they became sinful and miserable.
Did Adam act for himself alone in the covenant of works?
No, he represented all of his descendants.
What effect did the sin of Adam have on all mankind?
All mankind are born in a state of sin and misery.
What is that sinful nature which we inherit from Adam called?
Original sin.
What does every sin deserve?
The eternal wrath and curse of God.
Can anyone go to Heaven with this sinful nature?
No, our hearts must be changed before we can be fit for Heaven.
What is a change of heart called?
Regeneration.
Who can change a sinner’s heart?
The Holy Spirit alone.
Can anyone be saved through the covenant of works?
Nobody can be saved through the covenant of works.
Why can’t anybody be saved by the covenant of works?
Because everyone has broken it, and everyone is condemned by it.
With whom did God the Father make the covenant of grace?
With Jesus Christ, His eternal Son.
Whom did Christ represent in the covenant of grace?
His elect people.
What did Christ undertake in the covenant of grace?
To keep the whole law for His people, and to suffer the punishment due to their sin.
Did our Lord Jesus Christ ever commit even one sin?
No. He was holy, perfect, and undefiled.
How could the Son of God suffer?
Jesus Christ, the Son of God, became man so that He might obey and suffer in our nature.
What is meant by the Atonement?
Christ satisfied the Father’s divine justice, by His sufferings and death, in the place of sinners.
What did God the Father undertake in the covenant of grace?
To justify and sanctify those for whom Jesus Christ would die.
What is justification?
It is God’s forgiving of sinners, and treating them as if they never sinned.
What is sanctification?
It is God making sinners holy in mind and actions.
Who did Jesus Christ suffer for?
For everyone the Father gave Him.
What kind of life did Jesus live on earth?
A life of poverty and suffering.
What kind of death did Christ die?
The painful and shameful death of the cross.
Who will be saved?
Only those who repent of sin and believe in Christ.
What is the evidence that one has been saved?
By leading holy lives in mind and action.
What does it mean to repent?
To be sorry for your sin, and to hate and forsake it primarily because it is displeasing to God.
What does it mean to believe, or have faith in Jesus Christ?
To trust in Jesus Christ alone for salvation.
Can you repent and believe in Christ by your own power?
No. I can do nothing good without the help of God’s Holy Spirit.
How can you get the help of the Holy Spirit?
God has told us that we must pray to Him for the Holy Spirit.
How long ago has it been since Jesus died?
About 2,000 years.
How were God-fearing people saved before Jesus came?
By having faith that God would send a future Savior.
How did they show their faith?
By offering sacrifices on God’s altar.
What did these sacrifices represent?
Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, who was to die for sinners.
Can we show our faith the same way?
No. Sacrifice was only acceptable for those who lived before Jesus came.
