Theology Flashcards
What are the chapter headings in the confession…..
- Holy Scriptures
- God and the Holy Trinity
- God’s Eternal Decree
- Creation
- Providence
- Of the Fall of Man, of Sin and the Punishment thereof
- God’s covenant with man
- Christ the mediator
- Free Will
- Effectual Calling
- Justification
- Adoption
- Sanctification
- Saving Faith
- Repentance unto Life
- Good Works
- Perseverance of the Saints
- Assurance of Salvation
- The Law of God
- Christian Liberty, Liberty of Conscience
- Religious Worship and the Sabbath Day
22 Lawful Oaths and Vows - The Civil Magistrate
- Of Marriage and Divorce
- Of the Church
- THe Communion of Saints
- Of the Sacaraments
- Of Baptism
- The Lord’s Supper
- Church Censures
- Synods and Councils
- THe State of Men after death and of the Resurrection of the Dead
- The Last Judgment
When, in What Country and for what purpose were the Westminster standards produced?
1643 -1647 in England, To advise Parliament. Original purpose to revise 39 articles. Later given a new directive to prepare a new Confession of Faith, Catechism, Form of Government and Directory for worship for England, Scottland.
What were the parties represented at the Assembly?
Episcopalians, presbyterians, independents and Erastian representatives.
What is the chief end of man?
To glorify God and enjoy him forever.
What is God?
God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal and unchangeable in his being, wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness and truth.
What are the decrees of GOd
The decrees of God are his ETERNAL PURPOSE, according to the counsel of his will, whereby, for his own glory, he hat foreordained whatsoever comes to pass.
How did God create man?
God created man male and female after his own image in knowledge, righteousness and holiness with dominion over the creatures
What are the works of providence
God’s works of providence are, his most holy, wise and powerful preserving and governing all his creatures and their actions.
What special act of providence did God exercise towards man in the estate wherin he was created?
He entered into a covenant of life with him, upon condition of perfect obedience; forbidding him to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, upon the pain of death.
What is sin?
Sin is failing to conform to or transgressing the law of God
Did all manind fall in Adam’s first transgression
God made his covenant with Adam, not only for himself, but for his posterity; everyone who comes after him by ordinary generation, sinned in him and fell with him, in his first transgression.
Wherin consists the sinfulness of the estate wherin to man fell?
The sinfulness of that estate wherinto man fell, consists in the guilt of Adam’s first sin, the lack of original righteouness and the corruption of his whole nature, which is commonly called original sin; together with all actual transgressions which proceed from it.
What is the misery of that estate wherin to man fell?
All mankind by their fall lost communion with God, are under his wrath and curse and so made liable to all the miseries of this life, to death itself and to the pains of hell forever.
Did God leave all mankind to perish in the estate of sin and misery?
God, having out of his mere good pleasure, from all eternity, elected some to everlasting life, did enter into a covenant of grace to deliver them out of the estate of sin and misery and to bring them into an estate of salvation by a redeemer.
How did Christ, being the son of God, become man?
Christ, the son of God, became man, by takin gto himself a true body and a reasonable soul, being conceived by the power of the Holy Ghost, in the womb of the virgin Mary, and born of her, yet without sin.
How doth Christ execute the office of prophet?
In revealing to us by his Word and Spirit the will of God for our salvation.
How doth Christ execute the office of Priest?
In his once offering up of himself a sacrifice to satisfy divine justice and to reconcile us to God and in makin continual intercession for us.
How doth Christ execute the office of King
In subduing us to himself, in ruling and defending us, and in restraining and conquering all his and our enemies
What is effectual calling?
Effectual calling is a work of God’s Spriity, whereby, convincing us of our sin and misery, enlightening our minds in the knowledge of Christ an renewing our wills, he doth persuate adn enable us to embrace Jesus Christ, freely offered to us in the gospel.
What is justification?
Justification is an acat of God’s free grace wherin he pardons all our sins and accepteth us as righteous in his sight, only for the righteouness of Christ imputed to us, and received by faith alone.
What is adoption
Adoption is an act of God’s free grace, whereby we are received into the number, and have a right to all the privelages of the sons of God.
What is sanctification?
Sanctification is the work of God’s free grace whereby we are renewed in the whole man after the image of God, and are enabled more and more to die unto sin, and live unto righteousness.
What is required and forbidden in the 1st commandment
Required: To know and acknoldge God to be the only true God and our God; and to worship and glorify him accordingly
Forbidden: The denying or not worshipping and glorifying the true God as God and our God and the giving of that worship and glory to any other, which is due to him alone.
What is required and forbidden in the 2nd commandment
The receiving, observing and keeping pure and entire, all such religius worship and ordinances as God hath appointed in his Word.
Forbidden: The worshiping of God by images, or any way not appointed in his word.
What is required and forbidden in the fifth Commandment
Requrired: Preservering the honor and performing the duties belonging to everyone in their several places and relations as superiors, inferiors or equals.
Forbidden: The neglecting of, or doing anything against, the honor and duty which belongeth to everyone in their several places and relations.
What is required in the sixth commandment
Required: All lawful endeavors to preserve our own life, or the life of others.
Forbidden: Taking away of our own life, or the life of our neighbor, unjustly, or whatsoever tendeth thereunto.
What is required and forbidden in the seventh commandment
required - preservation of our own and our neighbor’s chastity, in heart speech and behavior.
forbidden: - All unchaste thoughts, words and actions.
What is required and forbidden in the ninth commandment?
Required - maintaining and promoting of truth between man and man, and of our won and our neighbor’s good name, especially in witness-bearing.
Forbidden - Whatsover is prejudicial to truth, or injurious to our own, or our neighbor’s good name.
Are all transgressions of the law equally heinous?
SOme sins in themselves, and by reason of several aggravations are more heinous in the sight of God than others.
What is faith in Jesus Christ
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.
What is repentance unto life
Is a saving grace, whereby a sinner, out of a true sense of his sin, and apprehension of the mercy of God in Christ, doth, with grief and hatred of his sin, turn from it unto God, with full purpose of, and endeavor after, new obedience.
How is the Word made effectual to salvation?
The spirit of God makes the reading, but especially the preaching, of the Word, an effectual means of convincing and converting sinnersm, and of building them up in holiness and comfort, through faith, unto salvation.
What is a sacrament?
A sacrament is a holy ordinance instituted by Christ; wherin, by sensible signs, Christ, and the benefits of the New Cov, are represented, sealed and applied to believers.
To whom is baptism to be adminstered
Not to any that are out of the visible church, till they profess faith in Christ, and obedience to him; BUT the infants of such are members of the visible church are to be baptized.
What is prayer
Prayer is the offering up of our desires unto God, for things agreeable to his will, in the name of Christ, with confession of our sins and a thankful acknowledgement of his mercies.
How doth it appear that there is a God?(L2)
The very light of nature in man, and the works of God, declare plainly that there is a God; but his word and Spirity only do sufficiently and effectually reveal him unto men for their salvation.
How doth it appear that the Scriptures are of the Word of God (L4)aAqaa
The Scriptures manifest themselves to be the Word of God by their majesty and purity; by the conset of all the parts, and the scope of the whole, which is to give all glory to God; by their light and power to convince and convert sinners, to comfort and build up believers unto salvation: but the Spirit of God bearing witness by and with the Scriptures in the very heart of man, is alone able fully to persuade it that they are the very word of God.
How was the covenant of Grace adminstered in the Old Test. (L34)
It was administered by promises, prophecies, sacrifices, circumcision, the passover and other types and ordinances, which did all fore-signify Christ then to come, and were for that time sufficient to build up the elect in faith in the promised Messiah, by whom they then had full remission of sin, and eternal salvation.
Can they who have never heard the gospel and so know not Jesus Christ, nor believe in him, be saved by their living according to the light of nature? (L60)
They cannot be saved, be they never so diligent to frame their lives according to the light of nature, or the laws of that religion which they profess; neither is there salvation in any other, but in Christ alone, who is the Savior only of his body and the church.
Are all they saved who hear the gospel and live in the church? (L61)
All that hear the gospel and live in the visible church, are not saved, but they only who are true members of the church invisible church.
What is the visible church? (L62)
The visbile church is a society made up of all such as in all ages and places of the world do profess the true religion and their children.
Wherein do justification and sanctification differ? (L-77)
Although sanctification be inseparably be joined with justification, yet they differe, in that God in justification imputeth the righteousness of Christ; in sanctification of his Spirit infuseth grace and enables to the exercise thereof; in the former, sin is pardoned, in the other it is subdued: the one doth equally free all believers from the revenging wrath of God, and that perfectly in this life, that they never fall into condemnation, the other is neither equal in all, nor in this life perfect in any, but growing up to perfection.
What rules are to be observed for the right understanding of the ten commandments? (L-99)
- That the law is perfect and binds everyone to full conformity
- That it is spiritual, and so reacheth the understanding, will affections and all other powers of the sould.
- That one and the same thing, in diverse respects, is required or forbidden in several commandments
- That as, where a duty is commanded, the contrary sin is forbidden; and, where a sin, is forbidden, the contrary duty is commanded. Where a promise is annexed the contrary threatning is included and vice versa
- What God forbids, is at no time to be done; and what he commands is always our duty
- That under one sin or duty, all of the same kind are forbidden or commanded, together with causes, means, occasion and appearances thereof
- That what is forbidden or commanded to ourselves, we are bound according to our places to endeavor that it may be avoided or performed by others.
- That what is forbidden or commanded to others, we are bound, according to our places and callings, to be helpful to them;
By whom and how is the Word of God to be preached? (L158)
to be preached only by such as are sufficiently gifted, and also duly approved and called to that office