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Tag: Westminster Confession

DOCTRINE – WHO SAYS?
GOD IS One and FIRST

Is God’s TRUTH not found in SCRIPTURE?

“How long will you waver between two opinions?
If the LORD is God, follow him.
1 Kings 18:21b CSB – the question of the Prophet Elijah to the sons of Israel and false prophets at Mount Carmel

It’s a great QUESTION Elijah asks of men ‘limping between two opinions’ [LSB].

Wouldn’t it logically follow to ASK the same QUESTION of TRUTH?

IF Yᵊhōvâ IS ĕlōhîm come to HIM — the Way, the Truth and the Life.
Roger@TalkofJesus.com

GOD is first in my life. Do YOU have a problem with that?
Roger @ Talk of JESUS .com

God’s TRUTH

As a matter of fact,
- MOST people do have a problem with putting GOD and Jesus Christ FIRST and before all else.
- Many refuse to study TRUTH of what GOD has revealed for human creatures to consider.
Why Study GOD ?
- I have already provided an initial reason AND DEFINITIONS related to doctrine in a brief introductory apologetic.
a Brief Apologetic for Doctrine

“Have centuries of history defined by the word of Almighty GOD fallen into a bottomless black hole of godless futility?” – RH
- In my previous look at The LORD God I intentionally offered only QUESTIONS for YOUR consideration without reference quoting the Bible.
Theology always Begins with GOD

“Acceptable Doctrines of the Common Era include a PAN-THEON poised in aTheist theory, pagan myth and stone-cold idols of every egregious god and any false prophet. – RH
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SO NOW WHAT? (Do YOU have answers?)
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the QUESTIONS of doctrine-based Theology

What is God? – Q4 Westminster Shorter Catechism
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In case you haven't done your homework, I'll provide an introductory ANSWER HERE, although You'll have to READ the (9) Scriptural answers on your own [referenced in the link above] from which this DOCTRINE is rooted.
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Quest. 4. What is God?
Ans. 4. God is a Spirit,(1) infinite,(2) eternal,(3) and unchangeable,(4) in his being,(5) wisdom,(6) power,(7) holiness,(8) justice, goodness, and truth(9)
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WHY STUDY GOD?

IF God is all of this (and more), why would we NOT study more about the Almighty, Eternal and Good LORD, WHO IS the Creator of all things and initiator and sustainer of our own life?

Certainly YOU have more QUESTIONS about GOD
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Perhaps you have questions similar to those I suggested last time from DOCTRINE taught through the Baltimore Catechism, which was formerly and formally endorsed by the Roman Catholic Church *before this Common Era).
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* officially replaced by the United States Catholic Catechism for Adults in 2004 C.E.
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Who is God?

Why did God make you?
1. Q. Is there but one God?
  A. Yes; there is but one God.
2. Q. Why can there be but one God?
  A. There can be but one God, because God, being supreme and infinite, cannot have an equal.
3. Q. How many Persons are there in God?
  A. In God there are three Divine Persons, really distinct, and equal in all things-the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.
Source: https://sacred-texts.com/chr/balt/balt1.htm *

DISCLAIMER About Sacred-Texts – This site is .. about religion, mythology, legends and folklore, and occult and esoteric topics.

[*note this aTheist approach]
‘This site has no particular agenda other than promoting religious tolerance and scholarship.’
the Baseless questions of philosophers and scholars

Scholarship, teaching and atheistic claims as an ‘unbiased‘ or ‘scientific approach” to theological and anthropological QUESTIONS frequently lack the logic and truth they claim.
Roger@TalkofJesus.com

There is ONE GOD and one TRUTH.

“How long will you be limping between two opinions?
1 Kings 18:21b LSB

All of us have become like something unclean…

“Now I know this: that you are a man of God and that the word of Yahweh in your mouth is truth.”
1 Kings 17:24 LSB – witness of a widow in Zarephath of Elijah after the Prophet raised her son from the dead

Answers of TRUTH through Scripture

All Scripture
is God-breathed
and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness
2 Timothy 3:15 LSB – θεόπνευστος [inspired by God]

This is NOT to say that the BIBLE contains ALL TRUTH, but that those things revealed by the Lord God through Scripture are TRUE and reliable.

IF any man should claim some additional ‘truth,’ NOT found in the Bible, THEN this humankind creature made in God’s image imagines the unprovable (even IF its human claim is ‘science‘).

Are ALL truths EQUAL?

OF COURSE NOT!

What claim of man can stand against GOD?

The heavens declare the glory of God,

and the expanse proclaims the work of his hands.

The instruction of the LORD is perfect..

the testimony of the LORD is trustworthy..

The precepts of the LORD are right..

the command of the LORD is radiant..

The fear of the LORD is pure,

enduring forever;

the ordinances of the LORD are reliable

and altogether righteous.
Psalm 19:1,7a,c,8a,c,9 CSB

The LORD Speaks!

בָרִים (Deuteronomy) 4:1 וְעַתָּה יִשְׂרָאֵל שְׁמַע אֶל־הַחֻקִּים וְאֶל־הַמִּשְׁפָּטִים אֲשֶׁר אָנֹכִי מְלַמֵּד אֶתְכֶם לַעֲשׂוֹת לְמַעַן תִּחְיוּ וּבָאתֶם וִירִשְׁתֶּם אֶת־הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵי אֲבֹתֵיכֶם נֹתֵן לָכֶם׃

“Then the LORD spoke to you from the fire. You kept hearing the sound of the words, but didn’t see a form; there was only a voice. – Deuteronomy 4:12

“The LORD spoke to you face to face from the fire on the mountain. Deuteronomy 5:4

“The LORD spoke these commands in a loud voice to your entire assembly from the fire, cloud, and total darkness on the mountain; he added nothing more.

He wrote them on two stone tablets and gave them to me.

THE TEN COMMANDMENTS

Deuteronomy 5:22

Inerrancy of the Bible

inerrant /ĭn-ĕr′ənt/

adjective
1. Incapable of erring; infallible.
2. Containing no errors. Of or pertaining to inerrancy.
3. Without error, particularly used in reference to the Bible.
  - The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition •
“.. the Bible says that God’s words are the ultimate standard of truth.

If the entire Scripture contains the communication of God to humanity,

then it can be logically inferred that its contents will reflect the perfect nature of God.

The logical result of these truths is that God’s Word is without error in everything that it says.

Therefore, it is proper to call the Bible inerrant, infallible or a number of other terms that Christians use to describe its nature.
Source: Don Stewart :: Does the Bible Testify to Its Own Inerrancy?

True Witnesses of God’s Word

This was the appearance of the likeness of the LORD’s glory. When I saw it, I fell facedown and heard a voice speaking. He said to me,

“Son of man, stand up on your feet and I will speak with you.”

As he spoke to me, the Spirit entered me and set me on my feet, and I listened to the one who was speaking to me.
Ezekiel 1:28b-2:2 CSB

Then I heard a holy one speaking, and another holy one said to the speaker, “How long will the events of this vision last — .. While I, Daniel, was watching the vision and trying to understand it, there stood before me someone who appeared to be a man. I heard a human voice calling from the middle of the Ulai:

“Gabriel, explain the vision to this man.”

So he approached where I was standing; when he came near, I was terrified and fell facedown.

“Son of man,” he said to me, “understand that the vision refers to the time of the end.”
Daniel 8:13a, 15-17 CSB

a Voice from the cloud

After six days Jesus took Peter, James, and his brother John and led them up on a high mountain by themselves. Suddenly,

Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with him.

He was transfigured in front of them, and his face shone like the sun; his clothes became as white as the light…

While he [Peter] was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said,

“This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased. Listen to him! ”
Gospel of Matthew 17:5b [vs.1-3,5]

Why study God through the Word of Scripture?

God-willing, we will study this question further NEXT in our look at Doctrines of the Common Era.

Our point today is that Truth comes from God and not from mankind (humankind, scientists and philosophers).

The Source of Truth is exclusive to God and what the Lord chooses to reveal to some or all of his mortal human creatures.

Believe in God and Know the Truth

You believe in God; believe also in me.
Gospel of John 14:1b NET

Jesus replied,
“I am the way, and the truth, and the life.
No one comes to the Father
except through me.
Gospel of John 14:6 NET

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May 25, 2024
What is the Chief End of Man? – Our #1 question
Perhaps you know this first QUESTION (What is the chief end of man?) of the Westminster Divines, actually a shortened version of the original.
1. What is the chief and highest end of man?
What is the Highest Goal of Mankind?
Who do you live your life for?
Answer to question #1
It is written from the Gospel:
Does GOD deserve to be #1 on your VIP list?
What IF you have the wrong ANSWER to Question #1?
I could ask the first question of the Westminster Catechism (teaching) a different way.

What is the Highest Goal of Mankind?

Mankind, of course, includes womankind, just as Scripture frequently includes women while referring to or instructing men.

What is YOUR big GOAL?

OR may I ask the chief question of every man or woman:

WHY am I here?

(You do have a purpose to your mortal life, don’t you?)
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If you don't know the ANSWER or have never considered the #1 Question of life, NOW might be the best time to carefully create your own answer to man's compelling question of purpose.
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Who do you live your life for?

IF our chief end in life relates to a person, then we must ask:

WHO is this VIP for whom WE live our lives, the one who truly deserves to be the principle person receiving the chief end of our goals of this brief mortal life?
- Our Husband or Wife?
- Our Father or Mother?
- A Son or a Daughter (perhaps all of our Children)?
- A beloved Friend or possibly a Mentor and Teacher worthy of our highest regard?
- Someone from the past or an idol of these present times?
WHO is the MOST important Person worthy of the chief end of your time?

Answer to question #1

Before I reveal the answer (if you don’t already know it) let me ask you this:

Are YOU the ONLY important person in your life OR is someone else the MOST important person in your life?

Didn’t God create you to relate to someone other than yourself?

So then shouldn’t your goals in life — especially your ‘chief end’ — relate to the PERSON of highest importance to the most important outcome or final end of your mortal life?

Consider one additional Person, an overlooked highest One most deserving to become the chief end of our earthly attention, love, praise — and yes, even worship.

It is written from the Gospel:

Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He would depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.
Gospel of John 13:1 Legacy Standard Bible

Almost everyone knows the gospel of the One worthy of the chief end of mankind’s earthly purpose?

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.
Gospel of John 3:16 Legacy Standard Bible

Jesus answered, “If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing; it is My Father who glorifies Me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God’
Gospel of John 8:54 LSB

10:30 ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμεν

“I and the Father are one.”
Good News of John 10:30 – testimony of JESUS that he the Son is of one essence with the One God our Father

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but through Me.
Gospel of John 14:6 LSB

.. He showed them both His hands and His side. The disciples then rejoiced when they saw the Lord. – John 20:20b

.. He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. – John 20:22b

Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever.
Answer: Question #1 of The Westminster Shorter Catechism

Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever.

Does GOD deserve to be #1 on your VIP list?

Whoever else you named as #1 on your personal VIP list, this most beloved person you view as your chief end of a purposeful life – they are NOT worthy of your worship.

HOWEVER:

IF you recognize the Eternal Person of God the Father —

IF you recognize the Eternal Person of God the Son —

IF you recognize the Eternal mysterious third Person of the TRINITY, God the Holy Spirit —

THEN you have chosen the right PERSONS of GOD to glorify.

Congratulations! You have won ETERNAL LIFE.

Recognize that the Lord God is a PERSONAL God to those He has chosen.

IF we will choose to place Him at the TOP of our VIP list, we secure His loving RELATIONSHIP for an ETERNAL LIFETIME!

God is not a man like us, yet the Lord God IS One God of THREE PERSONS, a true teaching of the Bible called Trinity.

I cannot address the deeper doctrine of the Trinity as part of this #1 answer to the teaching of a Biblical Christian Church, however you may read more about it here:

What Is the Doctrine of the Trinity?

.. only one God exists; there are three distinct Persons in the New Testament – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; each of these three distinct Persons is called God. Therefore the three distinct Persons must be the one God.
Don Stewart :: What Is the Doctrine of the Trinity?

What IF you have the wrong ANSWER to Question #1?

This may be a time to rethink the #1 priorities and goals of your daily and mortal life.

Maybe God has NOT chosen you for eternal life

and regrettably you accept the END of your mortal life

— you are dust and to dust you will return — .. AND then the judgment!

This is all supported by God’s written word of the Bible; but in addition to Scripture you could RETHINK your chief end through further study in the link provided earlier or by reading more about the DOCTRINES of God.
- SELF is ALWAYS the wrong answer (as frequently WE see in others)
- THINGS (like money or work or entertainment or vacations or clothes or cars or houses or politics or social clubs or sports or.. ANY other IDOL) will eventually prove to be WRONG ANSWERS.
- Your mom or your dad (present in your life, but not far distant or long passed from this mortal life), MAY be your #1 living person worthy of #1 on your human list; BUT not in the place of God.
  - Most of us know the Biblical Commandment of God concerning the HONOR of Parents, yet honor of our father or mother is less than our chief end of giving glory to the God who created us all.
- Your husband is not worthy of glory above God, though wives are commanded to RESPECT your husband.
  - And husbands, your wife is not worthy of glory above God since He commands you to LOVE her as Christ loves the Church.
  - These are God-ordained personal relationships between one man and one woman like no other, which God glorifies uniquely as ‘two become one,’ not unrelated to the Oneness of God and Christ with the Church.
- Should ANY child, infant to adult, become the chief end of purpose in the life of a parent (especially a mom)?
  - ALL biological fathers and biological mothers ought to cherish the special bond of the conception and birth of their child which God has given into your care, nurture and instruction, but NO CHILD should receive your #1 glory above God. (There are no ‘single moms,’ or at least their wouldn’t be if in the lives of both lovers God we chief end of their relationship.)
  - Adopted children with parents having chosen them by a new relationship are also equal to our biological children in our love. Like the children of our birth parents, chosen children inherit God’s love through parents who have chosen them but not in the place of glorifying God first.
- How about a FRIEND?
  - Do you value one friend above another? Are both of you not dependent on the God who knitted together the strong cord of all of your heart-held friendships? Glorify God with your friends and thank Him for each.
  - As for relationships of our past: have some become idols weighing our heart down to the darkness of the dust? You know God’s Commandment about idols, not all which are chiseled from wood or stone.
Perhaps YOU CHOSE more than one of the PERSONS you glorify for the top of your list. (None deserve #1)

ERASE your former WRONG answer[s] & REPENT.

Glorify God

Man’s chief and highest end is to glorify God, and fully to enjoy Him forever.
Answer: Question #1 of The Westminster Larger Catechism

Go ahead — repent and erase your former wrong answer.

Glorify the Lord God – the only One who deserves our highest worship.

The chief end of YOUR mortal life is to finish God’s work for His Glory.

The chief end for those who love God, mere morals made in God’s image — men, women and children who’s chief relationship is the with Jesus Christ, Son of God — by His grace is eternal life.

By the mercy of God the Father, foreordaining His Only Son to die for our sins — the end of a mortal Son of man, Jesus sacrificed for our sin on the Cross ERASES our mortal end.

Christ’s resurrection of the body to eternal life assures us of God’s mercy, grace and love of those who love Him — those of us for whom He died.

YOU and I have a #1 chief end:

In heart and in deed WE must Glorify the One Person who has saved us to eternal life;

consequently through Christ, our highest end will be with GOD to enjoy Him forever.

Glorify the Lord God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, forever and ever. Amen.

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February 24, 2023
Creeds, Catechisms, Confessions & Christ – What do you believe?
Why Creeds, Confessions of Faith & Catechisms still matter to Christians

Today I invite you to examine what you believe through the eyes of centuries old teachings of the Christian faith. Maybe your worship service includes one of the obligatory Creeds or other Confession of faith ALL must recite. And by repetition these words flow from the tongue trippingly with little or no thought.

And what is a Catechism, anyway? (Isn’t that some old Catholic thing that no longer applies?)

Perhaps your contemporary gathering of ‘christians‘ has no need to follow the applause for your inspiring praise band with any such serious declarations (or perhaps even scripture beyond what your Pastor will paraphrase for our brief understanding).

ALL Christians in past more authoritarian days heard Creeds, Confessions of faith in Christ and even studied these clearly defined Doctrines of the Church.

I’ll answer your questions and for our mutual understanding of misunderstood terms, we will define each of these mostly affirmations of historical, Biblical Christian faith.

We will also READ what each of several Creeds and Confessions have to say. You can decide for yourself what you believe – what is relevant to your Christian faith.

Creeds

What is a Creed?

The word creed comes from the Latin word credo, meaning, “I believe.”
CHURCH HISTORY: THREE HISTORIC CHRISTIAN CREEDS

WHAT do you believe? Do you know? Can you verbalize your Christian faith?

Do you know what your ‘church’ community believes, preaches and witnesses to others?

Creed, also called confession of faith, an authoritative formulation of the beliefs of a religious community (or, by transference, of individuals). The terms “creed” and “confession of faith” are sometimes used interchangeably, but when distinguished “creed” refers to a brief affirmation of faith employed in public worship or initiation rites, while “confession of faith” is generally used to refer to a longer, more detailed, and systematic doctrinal declaration.
Lindbeck, George Arthur. “Creed”. Encyclopedia Britannica, 2 Jan. 2020, https://www.britannica.com/topic/creed. Accessed 25 August 2021.

Confessions
- A Creed – Your stated faith, basically brief enough to reaffirm in a worship service (whether weekly or occasionally)
- Confession of Faith – A longer extension of a creed more suited for the study of the Doctrines behind our foundational Christian beliefs stated in a creed.
  - Dismiss any notion that your confession of faith is private ONLY, i.e. your confession of sin may be private, but your Confession of Faith is PUBLIC, not only to your church but especially as witness to Christ in the presence of unbelievers (some sitting among you ‘in church’).
  - And as you can see below, some Confessions have both Short & Long Catechisms
https://protestantreformation.net/the-westminster-confession-1646-larger-and-shorter-catechisms-1647/

Catechisms
- So what is a Catechism?
  - Think of it as a class (really, classes – like going to school) covering what we ought to know about our beliefs.
YES, there will be a test (usually a public statement to ALL believers of your church that YOU have passed).

We AFFIRM that we have a reasoned faith in God, Christ Jesus, the Holy Spirit, Trinity; Sin, Judgment and Grace; etc.

From Judaism to Orthodox Christianity

Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith,
from which some, having strayed, have turned aside to idle talk, desiring to be teachers of the law,
understanding neither what they say nor the things which they affirm.
First Letter of Paul to Timothy 1:5-7 NKJV
- * Jews generally agreed by the time of Jesus Christ what Books to include in Scripture.
- * New Testament Books, ALL written by the end of the first century [A.D. 100], became generally accepted by the Church as the Authoritative Word of God.
  - *Some ‘Extra-Biblical,’ writings after A.D. 100 were written as heretical opposition to the Lord Christ Jesus, even as most of the Apostles had warned in the decades after Christ’s teachings and Ascension.
- (Reminder:} The Church initially divided into Orthodox (Eastern) and Roman (Catholic, meaning ‘universal’) at the time of the political division of the fallen Roman Empire, then formally after several (7) unified Church councils until A.D. 787 and finally at the Great Schism in A.D. 1084.
  - (Additional DEFINITION of Orthodox: conforming to established doctrine.., conventional..)
Chronology of Creeds, Confessions, & more

Of course Christians do NOT agree on everything, but MOST will not DENY the historical and Biblical basic beliefs of Christian faith.

By looking at some of the foundational creeds and confessions of Christian faith chronologically, you may better understand their role in keeping false teaching out of the Church in the more than two millennia since Christ died for our sins and rose from death on a Cross.
(more…)
August 28, 2021