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Westminster Catechism for Kids

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    Westminster Shorter Catechism Lesson #1

    Question #1: What is the chief end of man?

    Answer: Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever.

    Practice:

    Question #1: What is the chief end of man?

    What does 'chief end' mean? 'Chief end' means main purpose. The mainpurpose of man is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.

    Why does the catechism say 'man'? What about women? The word 'man'in the catechism is talking about all humansmen, women, and children. Themain purpose of all people is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.

    Fill in the blanks:

    What is your main purpose? My main purpose is to ____________________

    ___________ and to ___________________ Him forever.

    How long will you enjoy God? _____________________________

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    Practice:

    Question #1: What is the chief end of man?

    The Catechism summarizes the Bible in a way that is easy to understand andremember.

    Let's find out where the Bible says that our main purpose is to glorify God.

    I Corinthians 10:31: So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all forthe glory of God.

    This verse tells us that whatever we do, we should always do it for the glory ofGod.

    Let's find out where the Bible says that our other main purpose is to enjoy Godforever.

    Psalm 73:25-26: Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing Idesire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength ofmy heart and my portion forever.

    The songwriter says in this psalm that even if he is weak or afraid, he knows thatGod is with him always. We can see how much he loves and enjoys Godbecause he says that the whole earth has nothing that he wants as much as hewants God.

    Can you think of any other Bible verse that talks about glorifying or enjoyingGod?

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    Practice:

    Question #1: What is the chief end of man?

    Answer: Man's chief end is to ______________________ ____________,

    and to ________________________ ___________ ____________________.

    Think about how you glorify or enjoy God.

    Draw a picture:

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    Practice:

    Question #1: What is the chief end of man?

    Answer: Man's chief end is to ______________________ ____________,

    and to ________________________ ___________ ____________________.

    Some people think that the main purpose of life is to get a lot of money or otherfun things. Why are they wrong?

    Let's look at a story that Jesus told about this (Luke 12: 16-21):

    The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself,'What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.' Then he said, 'This is whatI'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store allmy grain and my goods. And I'll say to myself, "You have plenty of good thingslaid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry." But God said tohim, 'You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who willget what you have prepared for yourself?' This is how it will be with anyone whostores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.

    Was it wrong for the rich man to build a bigger barn? __________

    Who made the rich man? ________________

    Who gave him the good crops? ____________________

    Who decided when the rich man would die? __________________

    Did the rich man glorify God? ______________

    Why did God call the rich man a fool? ________________________________

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    Practice:

    Question #1: What is the chief end of man?

    Answer: Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever.

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    Westminster Shorter Catechism Lesson #2

    Question #2: What rule hath God given to direct us how we may glorify andenjoy Him?

    Answer: The Word of God, which is contained in the Scriptures of the Old andNew Testaments, is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy Him.

    Practice:

    Question #2: What rule hath God given to direct us how we may glorify andenjoy Him?

    What is the Word of God/the Scriptures? The Bible.

    Who wrote the Bible? Holy men who were taught by the Holy Spirit.

    Why does the catechism say 'hath'? 'Hath' is an old-fashioned way of saying'has'. The question could be said like this, What rule has God given to directand teach us in how to glorify and enjoy Him?

    Fill in the blanks:

    Can we do whatever we want and call it glorifying God? ___________

    What did God give us to teach us how to glorify and enjoy Him? ____________

    We call the Bible the Word of God. What else do we call it? _______________

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    Practice:

    Question #2: What rule hath God given to direct us how we may glorify andenjoy Him?

    Let's find out where the Bible says that Scripture is our guide to glorifying andenjoying God.

    Ephesians 2:20: built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, withChrist Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.

    The apostles and the prophets are the holy men who were taught by the HolySpirit. They wrote the Bible for us as God commanded them. We read it tolearn how to glorify and enjoy God. This verse compares it to a house, wherethe foundation is words of the apostles and prophets, and we are added on laterbuilt on the foundation that is firm and headed up by God HimselfChrist Jesus,the cornerstone.

    2 Timothy 3:16: All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching,rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.

    This verse tells us that all Scripture (both the Old Testament and NewTestament) is from God, so much so that it is like He breathed it out on us. Andit is useful for teaching people, training them to do right, and correcting themwhen they go the wrong way or don't obey God like they should.

    I John 1:3: We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you alsomay have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with hisSon, Jesus Christ.

    John was one of the apostles, the holy men who wrote the Scriptures by theteaching of the Holy Spirit. Here he tells us that the things that he wrote werethings that he saw with his own eyes and heard with his own ears. He hadknown Jesus when Jesus walked the earth, and he saw the miracles that Jesusdid and heard His teaching.

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    Practice:

    Question #2: What rule hath God given to direct us how we may glorify andenjoy Him?

    Answer: The __________ ___ _______, which is contained in the Scriptures of

    the ________ and ________ Testaments, is the only rule to direct us how we

    may _____________ and ___________ Him.

    Do you know your books of the Bible?

    Let's study them! We are going to memorize this poem. It is long, but don'tworry. We don't have to memorize it all at once. We will work on it a little at atime. The books of the Bible are underlined, and the poem helps youunderstand what each book is about.

    Old Testament

    In Genesis, the world was made

    In Exodus, the march is told

    Leviticus contains the law;

    In Numbers are the tribes enrolled.

    In Deuteronomy again,

    Were urged to keep Gods law alone;

    And these five Books of Moses make

    The oldest holy writing known.

    ******

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    Brave Joshua to Canaan leads;

    In Judges, oft the Jews rebel;

    We read of Davids name in Ruth

    And First and Second Samuel.

    In First and Second Kings we readHow bad the Hebrew state became;

    In First and Second Chronicles

    Another history of the same.

    In Ezra, captive Jews return,

    And Nehemiah builds the wall;

    Queen Esther saves her race from death.

    These books Historical we call.

    * * * * *

    In Job we read of patient faith;

    In Psalms are Davids songs of praise;

    The Proverbs are to make us wise;

    Ecclesiastes next portrays,

    How fleeting earthly pleasures are;

    The Song of Solomon is all

    About true love, like Christs; and these

    Five books Devotional we call.

    * * * * * *

    Isaiah tells of Christ to come,

    While Jeremiah tells of woe,

    And in his Lamentations mournsThe Holy Citys overthrow.

    Ezekiel speaks of mysteries;

    And Daniel foretells kings of old;

    Hosea over Israel grieves;

    In Joel blessings are foretold.

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    In Amos, too, are Israels woes;

    And Obadiahs sent to warn;

    While Jonah shows that Christ should die

    And Micah where he should be born.

    In Nahum Nineveh is seen;Habakkuk tells of Chaldeas guilt;

    In Zephaniah are Judahs sins;

    In Haggai the Temples built.

    Then Zechariah speaks of Christ,

    And Malachi, his sign;

    The prophets number seventeen,

    And all the books are thirty-nine.

    New Testament

    Matthew, Mark, Luke and John

    Tell what Christ did in every place;

    The Acts tell what the Apostles did,And Romans how were saved by grace.

    Corinthians instruct the Church;

    Galatians show us faith alone;

    Ephesians, true love, and in

    Philippians Gods grace is shown.

    Colossians tells us more of Christ,

    And Thessalonians of the end;In Timothy and Titus both

    Are rules for pastors to attend.

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    Philemon, Christian friendship shows.

    Then Hebrews clearly tell how all

    The Jewish law prefigured Christ;

    And these Epistles are by Paul.

    James shows that faith by works must live,And Peter urges steadfastness;

    While John exhorts to Christian love,

    For those who have it God will bless.

    Jude shows the end of evil men,

    And Revelation tells of Heaven.

    This ends the whole New Testament

    And all the books are twenty-seven

    Does that seem overwhelming? Work on it a little at a time. When youmemorize it, you will get a prize!

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    Practice:

    Question #2: What rule hath God given to direct us how we may glorify andenjoy Him?

    Answer: The Word of God, which is contained in the Scriptures of the Old andNew Testaments, is the only rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy Him.

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    Westminster Shorter Catechism Lesson #3

    Question #3: What do the Scriptures principally teach?

    Answer: The Scriptures principally teach what man is to believe concerningGod, and what duty God requires of man.

    Practice:

    Question #3: What do the Scriptures principally teach?

    Answer:

    What does 'principally' mean? Principally means 'mostly'. The Bible teachesa lot of things, but mostly it focuses on what people should believe about Godand how we should obey God.

    What is 'duty'? A 'duty' is something that we must do in order to do the rightthing. For example, it is the duty of a father to take care of his children. And it isthe duty of all people to obey God according to what the Bible teaches us.

    Fill in the blanks:

    The Scriptures mostly teach what we should ______________ about God and

    and what __________________ God requires of us.

    The Scriptures include the __________ Testament and the ______________Testament.

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    Practice:

    Question #3: What do the Scriptures principally teach?

    Answer: The Scriptures principally teach what man is to ____________

    concerning ____________, and what ____________ ________ ____________

    of man.

    Think back to some of the Bible stories. Do you remember the TenCommandments? What is an example of a duty that God requires in the TenCommandments?

    Draw a picture:

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    Practice:

    Question #3: What do the Scriptures principally teach?

    Answer: The Scriptures principally teach what man is to believe concerning

    God, and what duty God requires of man.

    And keep practicing your Bible poem!

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    Westminster Shorter Catechism Lesson #4

    Question #4: What is God?

    Answer: God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in His being,wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth.

    Practice:

    Question #4: What is God?

    This is a VERY important Catechism question because it tells us the attributesof God. In other words, it tells us what God is like. Is He weak? Is He evil?No, the Bible tells us clearly that God is strong and good and wise. He alwaysdoes the right thing, and He always speaks the truth.

    But this Catechism question can be a little difficult to understand. So let's take it

    one piece at a time.

    What does 'infinite' mean? 'Infinite' means that something is so big that thereis no end to it.

    What does 'eternal' mean? 'Eternal' means that something always existed andalways will exist.

    What does 'unchangeable' mean? 'Unchangeable' means that somethingcannot be changed.

    The Catechism applies each of these characteristics to the attributes of God.So each of the things about God's nature (being, wisdom, power, holiness,

    justice, goodness, and truth) are infinite, eternal, and unchangeable.

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    The graph below will help you understand this:

    infinite eternal unchangeable

    being Infinite being: God is sobig that nothing can

    contain Him. There is noplace without God.

    Eternal being: God hasalways existed and will

    always exist.

    Unchangeable being: Goddoes not change he will never

    get smaller or becomesomething else.

    wisdom Infinite wisdom: Godknows everything. Healways makes gooddecisions.

    Eternal wisdom: Godhas always knowneverything and will alwaysknow everything.

    Unchangeable wisdom:God's wisdom does notchange. He does not forgetthings.

    power Infinite power: God is sostrong that He can doanything.

    Eternal power: God hasalways been strong andHe will always be strong.

    Unchangeable power:God's power does notchange. He is not strongsometimes and weaksometimes.

    holiness Infinite holiness: Godnever sins. He alwaysdoes the right thing.

    Eternal holiness: Godhas never sinned and Hewill never sin.

    Unchangeable holiness:God's holiness does notchange. He will neverbecome sinful.

    justice Infinite justice: God isalways fair in Hisdecisions.

    Eternal ustice: God hasalways been fair and Hewill always be fair. In theend, He will makeeverything right.

    Unchangeable justice: Godwill never change to becomeunfair.

    goodness Infinite goodness: God'sgoodness is endless. He

    is always good ineverything He does.

    Eternal goodness: Godhas always been good,

    and He will always begood.

    Unchangeable goodness:God will never change in His

    goodness. He will neverbecome evil. He will alwaysbe good.

    truth Infinite truth: God neverlies. He always speaksthe truth. We can alwaysbelieve what He says.

    Eternal truth: God hasalways been truthful, andHe will always be truthful.

    Unchangeable truth: Godwill never change, and HisWord never changes. Wecan always trust God.

    If you are afraid, what can you remember about God?

    __________________________________________________

    In the Garden of Eden, the serpant told Eve that she should not believe whatGod said about the fruit of the tree. What should Eve have remembered aboutGod?

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    Sometimes people do bad things and they think God will not do anything aboutit. What should they remember about God?

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    Practice:

    Question #4: What is God?

    Answer: God is a Spirit, infinite, __________, and unchangeable,

    in His being, ___________, power, _______________, justice,

    goodness, and ________________.

    Let's look at some of the Bible verses that talk about the attributes of God. Aftereach verse, fill in the attribute to which it is referring.

    John 4:24: God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.

    God is a ______________, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in His being,wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth.

    Job 11:7: Can you fathom the mysteries of God? Can you probe the limits of theAlmighty?

    God is a Spirit, ___________, eternal, and unchangeable, in His being, wisdom,

    power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth.

    Psalm 90:2: Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth andthe world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

    God is a Spirit, infinite, _____________, and unchangeable, in His being,wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth.

    James 1:17: Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the

    Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

    God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and ________________, in His being, wisdom,power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth.

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    Exodus 3:14: God said to Moses, "I am who I am. This is what you are to say tothe Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you.' "

    God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in His ________________,

    wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth.

    Psalm 147:5: Great is our Lord and mighty in power; His understanding has nolimit.

    God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in His being,

    _____________, _____________, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth.

    Exodus 34: 5-7: Then the LORD came down in the cloud and stood there withhim and proclaimed his name, the LORD. And he passed in front of Moses,proclaiming, "The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slowto anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, andforgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guiltyunpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathersto the third and fourth generation."

    God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in His being,

    wisdom, power, holiness, ____________, _____________, and ____________.

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    Practice:

    Question #4: What is God?

    Answer: God is a Spirit, infinite, eternal, and unchangeable, in His being,

    wisdom, power, holiness, justice, goodness, and truth.

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    Westminster Shorter Catechism Lesson #5

    Question #5: Are there more Gods than one?

    Answer: There is but one only, the living and true God.

    Practice:

    Question #5: Are there more Gods than one?

    This is an easy Catechism question with no big words! It is simple. There isonly one God, the living and true one. Any other gods that people worship donot really exist.

    Thought question: Sometimes Christians are afraid to see a picture of an idol

    because they think it might hurt them.

    Will it hurt them? _____________________

    Why should they not be afraid? _____________________________

    But should they worship the idol? ________________________

    Why or why not?

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    Practice:

    Question #5: Are there more Gods than one?

    I Kings 18 tells a wonderful story about the people of Israel. They were notconvinced whether God was the one true God or whether Baal was God. Theykept worshipping Baal, because the people who lived around them worshippedBaal. So Elijah, the prophet of God, called the people to meet with him.

    Elijah went before the people and said, "How long will you waver between twoopinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him."But the people said nothing.

    Then Elijah said to them, "I am the only one of the LORD's prophets left, but

    Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets. Get two bulls for us. Let them chooseone for themselves, and let them cut it into pieces and put it on the wood but notset fire to it. I will prepare the other bull and put it on the wood but not set fire toit. Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of theLORD. The god who answers by firehe is God."Then all the people said, "What you say is good."

    Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, "Choose one of the bulls and prepare it first,since there are so many of you. Call on the name of your god, but do not light

    the fire." So they took the bull given them and prepared it.Then they called on the name of Baal from morning till noon. "O Baal, answerus!" they shouted. But there was no response; no one answered. And theydanced around the altar they had made.

    At noon Elijah began to taunt them. "Shout louder!" he said. "Surely he is a god!Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and

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    must be awakened." So they shouted louder and slashed themselves withswords and spears, as was their custom, until their blood flowed. Middaypassed, and they continued their frantic prophesying until the time for theevening sacrifice. But there was no response, no one answered, no one paidattention.

    Then Elijah said to all the people, "Come here to me." They came to him, and herepaired the altar of the LORD, which was in ruins. Elijah took twelve stones,one for each of the tribes descended from Jacob, to whom the word of theLORD had come, saying, "Your name shall be Israel." With the stones he builtan altar in the name of the LORD, and he dug a trench around it large enough tohold two seahs of seed. He arranged the wood, cut the bull into pieces and laidit on the wood. Then he said to them, "Fill four large jars with water and pour iton the offering and on the wood."

    "Do it again," he said, and they did it again."Do it a third time," he ordered, and they did it the third time. The water ran downaround the altar and even filled the trench.

    At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: "OLORD, God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you areGod in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your

    command. Answer me, O LORD, answer me, so these people will know thatyou, O LORD, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again."

    Then the fire of the LORD fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stonesand the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench.

    When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, "The LORD -he isGod! The LORD -he is God!"

    Do you think the prophets of Baal really thought Baal was a god? Why or whynot?

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    Why did Elijah pour water on the altar?

    How easy was it for God to send fire from heaven? Did Elijah have to doanything crazy?

    Sometimes people think that if they jump around and shout enough, that willmake God do something. Are they right? Did Elijah do that?

    Who won? Why?

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    Practice:

    Question #5: Are there more Gods than one?

    Let's look at some of the Bible verses that tell us that there is only one God.

    Deuteronomy 6:4-5: Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with allyour strength.

    In Hebrew (the original language of the Old Testament Scriptures), this is calledthe Sh'ma, and it is very famous. It looks like this (remember that Hebrew readsfrom right to left):

    It is pronounced like this (and Mom can help you with this):

    Sh'ma Yishrael: Adonai Eloheinu Adonai Echad

    We will practice saying this until you remember it easily. But don't worry if youdon't get it right away. Hebrew is hard!

    Here is another Bible verse about God being the one living and true God:

    Jeremiah 10:10: But the LORD is the true God; He is the living God, the eternalKing. When He is angry, the earth trembles; the nations cannot endure Hiswrath.

    What is 'wrath'? 'Wrath' is an old word that means 'anger'. This verse is sayingthat God is so powerful that whole nations of people cannot stand up to Him.He is sovereign; He rules over everyone and everything.

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    Practice:

    Question #5: Are there more Gods than one?

    Answer: There is but one only, the living and true God.

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    Westminster Shorter Catechism Lesson #6

    Question #6: How many persons are there in the Godhead?

    Answer: There are three persons in the Godhead: the Father, the Son, and theHoly Spirit; and these three are one God, the same in substance, equal in powerand glory.

    Practice:

    Question #6: How many persons are there in the Godhead?

    Is the Father God? _________________

    Is the Son God? __________________

    Is the Holy Spirit God? __________________

    How many Gods are there? _________________

    How many person in the Godhead? _________________

    Who is the Son? __________________________

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    Practice:

    Question #6: How many persons are there in the Godhead?

    Answer: There are ___________ persons in the Godhead: the

    _____________, the ____________, and the _____________________; and

    these ____________ are ______________ God, the same in substance,

    equal in _____________ and ____________________.

    This three-in-one concept is called the Trinity. It is not easy to understand. Infact, it is what we call a mystery. This means that we realize that we do notunderstand everything about God, but we believe what He tells us aboutHimself. If we cannot quite understand how God can be one God and threepersons, then it is because our minds are small compared to God. He knowseverything, and He understands everything, but we do not. But we trust Godthat what He says is true.

    In the early days of the church, many people were confused about theTrinity.Some people thought that Jesus was not God or that He had not always existed.Finally, the church held a council at Nicaea in 325 AD to try to understand thisbetter. The main views were held by Arius and Athanaseus. Arius argued thatJesus had not always existed but that God had created Him out of nothing andthat He was of a different substance than God. Athanaseus was the hero oforthodoxy. He explained that Jesus is the same substance as God the Fatherand the Holy Spirit and that He is eternal and equal in power and glory with theFather and Holy Spirit. And why did Athanaseus believe this? Because Jesus

    said so (John 8:58), and if Jesus was not what He said He was, then He couldnot have saved us all from our sins. Athanaseus believed God's Word, and heknew that even if he didn't quite understand everything about the Trinity, he stillcould always trust God.

    The Nicene Council discussed each of the views and finally concluded thatAthanaseus was correct. They wrote a creed that explains the doctrine of theTrinity and condemns Arius's views (you don't have to memorize this creed, but

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    it is good to read it so you know what it says):

    Nicene Creed (325 AD)

    We believe in one God the Father Almighty,Maker of all things visible and invisible;and in one Lord Jesus Christ,

    the only begotten of the Father,that is, of the substance of the Father,

    God of God,light of light,

    true God of true God,begotten not made,

    of the same substance with the Father,

    through whom all things were made both in heaven and on earth;who for us men and our salvation descended,

    was incarnate, and was made man,suffered and rose again the third day,

    ascended into heaven,and cometh to judge the living and the dead.

    And we believe in the Holy Spirit.Those who say:

    There was a time when He was not,

    and He was not before He was made;and that He was made out of nothing;or who maintain that He is of another substance

    or essence than the Father,or that the Son of God is created,

    or changeable, or alterable--these the church condemns.

    There is another Nicene Creed written later, but this one was written and signedspecifically by and for the council held in 325 AD. Notice that it specifically

    condemns Arius and those who held his view, and it states that Jesus is thesame substance as the Father and that He is God.

    Questions:

    The doctrine that teaches that God is one but three persons is called the

    _______________________.

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    At the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD, the proper view of the Trinity was

    represented by __________________________.

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    Practice:

    Question #6: How many persons are there in the Godhead?

    Answer: There are three persons in the Godhead: the Father, the Son, and the

    Holy Spirit; and these three are one God, the same in substance, equal in powerand glory.

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    Westminster Catechism Lesson #7

    Question #7: What are the decrees of God?

    Answer: The decrees of God are His eternal purpose, according to the counselof His will, whereby, for His own glory, He hath fore-ordained whatsoever comesto pass.

    Practice:

    Question #7: What are the decrees of God?

    This is another very important Catechism question with a lot of big words!

    Do you remember what 'eternal' means? If not, look back at Lesson #4:

    Eternal means __________________________________________________

    So let's consider the first piece of the catechism answer:

    The decrees of God are His eternal purpose.

    This means that the decrees of Godare purposes that last forever and ever.He always determines what will happen.

    Now we will consider the next portion.

    What does 'counsel' mean? The word 'counsel' means 'opinion' or 'advice' or'plan'.

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    What does 'will' mean? Will means 'desire' or 'choice'.

    So let's put this together:

    The decrees of God are His eternal purpose, according to the counsel of Hiswill.

    This means that the decrees of Godare purposes that last forever and ever,and He decides these things according to what He wants. God does not goaround asking people what they think about His decisions or whether somethingis a good idea. He makes all of the decisions Himself. Remember that God isinfinitely wise, so all of His decisions are good decisions.

    What does 'whereby' mean? 'Whereby' is an old word that means that this is

    how something happens.

    What does 'fore-ordained' mean? 'Fore' is short for 'before', and 'ordained'means something is decided by God. So 'fore-ordained' means that Goddecides things before they happen.

    What does 'whatsoever' mean? 'Whatsoever' means 'everything'.

    What do we mean when we say that something 'comes to pass'? If we say

    that something comes to pass, we mean that it happens.

    Okay, now we know what all the words mean, so let's put the whole sentencetogether.

    The decrees of God are His eternal purpose, according to the counsel of Hiswill, whereby, for His own glory, He hath fore-ordained whatsoever comes topass.

    This means that the decrees of Godare purposes that last forever and ever,

    and He decides these things according to what He wants, and this is how (forHis glory) He has decided everything before it happens.

    We often refer to this as the sovereignty of God. God is king over all theuniverse and beyond. He rules over everything, and He decides everythingbefore it happens. Everything happens because God already decreed that itwill happen.

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    Question #7: What are the decrees of God?

    Answer: The _______________ _____ ___________ are His ______________

    purpose, according to the ____________ of His will, whereby, for His own

    _________________, He hath __________________________whatsoever

    comes to pass.

    Let's look at a Bible verse that talk about the decrees of God.

    Ephesians 1:11-12: In Him we were also chosen, having been predestinedaccording to the plan of Him who works out everything in conformity with thepurpose of His will, in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, mightbe for the praise of His glory.

    This verse tells us that we were chosen by God and given salvation in Christ,because God decided it, according to His own plan and purpose, so that wewould glorify God.

    Remember from Lesson #1: What is your main purpose?

    According to Ephesians 1:11-12, what has God done so that we might be for thepraise of His glory?

    Those that God chose for salvation in Christ are called His elect.

    Let's read the next verse in Ephesians 1:

    Ephesians 1:13: And you also were included in Christ when you heard the wordof truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in Him

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    with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit.

    Are you elect? ____________

    How do you know that you are elect? ________________________________

    The apostle Peter wrote a letter to the elect as he was taught by the Holy Spirit.He sent his letter specifically to believers in certain places called Pontus,

    Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia. Here is how he began the letter:

    I Peter 1:1-2: Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,To God's elect, strangers in the world, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia,Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, who have been chosen according to theforeknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, forobedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by His blood:Grace and peace be yours in abundance.

    'Foreknowledge' means that something is known before it happens. 'Sprinkling

    of His blood' refers to sins being forgiven through the blood of Christ. Peter istelling all of those elect that they were chosen by God through the work of theHoly Spirit that changes their hearts, and that God knew this and decided itbefore it happened.

    According to this Bible verse, what should the elect do because they are chosen

    by God? ______________________________________________________

    Are you elect because you obey God? ___________________

    Why are you elect? _________________________________________

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    Who changes your heart so that you are sorry for your sins?________________

    Why do you want to obey God? ________________________

    God chose you and forgave your sins through the blood of Christ, so whatshould you do?

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    Question #7: What are the decrees of God?

    Answer: The decrees of ___________ are His eternal __________________,

    according to the _________________ _____ ________ _____________,

    whereby, for His own _____________________, He hath fore-ordained

    _____________________ ______________ ______ ________________.

    Do you remember the story of Joseph?

    The book of Genesis tells a story of a young man named Joseph. The storybegins when Joseph was seventeen years old and lived with his eleven brothersand his father Jacob (also called Israel) in the land of Canaan.

    Now Israel loved Joseph more than any of his other sons, because he had been born to

    him in his old age; and he made a richly ornamented robe for him. When his brothers

    saw that their father loved him more than any of them, they hated him and could notspeak a kind word to him.

    Joseph had a dream, and when he told it to his brothers, they hated him all the more. Hesaid to them, "Listen to this dream I had: We were binding sheaves of grain out in the

    field when suddenly my sheaf rose and stood upright, while your sheaves gatheredaround mine and bowed down to it."

    His brothers said to him, "Do you intend to reign over us? Will you actually rule us?"

    And they hated him all the more because of his dream and what he had said.

    Then he had another dream, and he told it to his brothers. "Listen," he said, "I had

    another dream, and this time the sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down tome."

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    When he told his father as well as his brothers, his father rebuked him and said, "What is

    this dream you had? Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow

    down to the ground before you?" His brothers were jealous of him, but his father keptthe matter in mind.

    Now his brothers had gone to graze their father's flocks near Shechem, and Israel said toJoseph, "As you know, your brothers are grazing the flocks near Shechem. Come, I am

    going to send you to them."

    "Very well," he replied.

    So he said to him, "Go and see if all is well with your brothers and with the flocks, and

    bring word back to me." Then he sent him off from the Valley of Hebron.

    When Joseph arrived at Shechem, a man found him wandering around in the fields andasked him, "What are you looking for?"

    He replied, "I'm looking for my brothers. Can you tell me where they are grazing theirflocks?"

    "They have moved on from here," the man answered. "I heard them say, 'Let's go to

    Dothan.' "

    So Joseph went after his brothers and found them near Dothan. But they saw him in the

    distance, and before he reached them, they plotted to kill him.

    "Here comes that dreamer!" they said to each other. "Come now, let's kill him and

    throw him into one of these cisterns and say that a ferocious animal devoured him. Then

    we'll see what comes of his dreams."

    When Reuben heard this, he tried to rescue him from their hands. "Let's not take hislife," he said. "Don't shed any blood. Throw him into this cistern here in the desert, butdon't lay a hand on him." Reuben said this to rescue him from them and take him back to

    his father.

    So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robethe richly

    ornamented robe he was wearing- and they took him and threw him into the cistern.

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    Now the cistern was empty; there was no water in it.

    As they sat down to eat their meal, they looked up and saw a caravan of Ishmaelites

    coming from Gilead. Their camels were loaded with spices, balm and myrrh, and theywere on their way to take them down to Egypt.

    Judah said to his brothers, "What will we gain if we kill our brother and cover up his

    blood? Come, let's sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him; after all, heis our brother, our own flesh and blood." His brothers agreed.

    So when the Midianite merchants came by, his brothers pulled Joseph up out of thecistern and sold him for twenty shekels of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to

    Egypt.

    When Reuben returned to the cistern and saw that Joseph was not there, he tore hisclothes. He went back to his brothers and said, "The boy isn't there! Where can I turn

    now?"

    Then they got Joseph's robe, slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood. They

    took the ornamented robe back to their father and said, "We found this. Examine it to see

    whether it is your son's robe."

    He recognized it and said, "It is my son's robe! Some ferocious animal has devouredhim. Joseph has surely been torn to pieces."

    Then Jacob tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and mourned for his son many days. All his

    sons and daughters came to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. "No," he said,"in mourning will I go down to the grave to my son." So his father wept for him.

    Meanwhile, the Midianites sold Joseph in Egypt to Potiphar, one of Pharaoh's officials,the captain of the guard.

    The book of Genesis tells us many things that happened to Joseph after he wastaken to Egypt. He was a slave for a while, and then he was falsely accused ofa crime, and he went to prison for a long time. But God was with Joseph

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    through everything, and eventually, the Pharoah released Joseph from prisonand made him a great man in Egypt, second only to the Pharoah himself.

    Later Joseph's brothers traveled to Egypt because there was no food in Canaan.When they realized that Joseph was a powerful man in Egypt, they were afraid

    that he was going to take revenge on them for selling him as a slave. Josephsaid that he forgave them, and he took care of them and their families and gavethem food, but his brothers were still worried that maybe he was only waitinguntil their father died before he showed how angry he was.

    So when Jacob died, here is what happened:

    When Joseph's brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, "What if Joseph holds

    a grudge against us and pays us back for all the wrongs we did to him?" So they sentword to Joseph, saying, "Your father left these instructions before he died: 'This is whatyou are to say to Joseph: I ask you to forgive your brothers the sins and the wrongs theycommitted in treating you so badly.' Now please forgive the sins of the servants of the

    God of your father." When their message came to him, Joseph wept. His brothers thencame and threw themselves down before him. "We are your slaves," they said.

    But Joseph said to them, "Don't be afraid. Am I in the place of God? You intended to

    harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the savingof many lives. So then, don't be afraid. I will provide for you and your children." Andhe reassured them and spoke kindly to them.

    Was it a sin for Joseph's brothers to sell him as a slave? _____________

    Did God plan for them to sell Joseph as a slave? ____________

    How do you know that God planned it? ________________________________

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    Does this mean that God sinned? _____________

    Why or why not? _________________________________________________

    Did Joseph always have a good life in Egypt? _________________

    Do you think it hurt Joseph to be put in prison for a long time for something that

    wasn't his fault? _________________

    Does this mean that God had forgotten Joseph? ________________

    How did Joseph explain to his brothers about God's decrees?

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    Let's read another Bible verse about this:

    Romans 8:28: And we know that in all things God works for the good of thosewho love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.

    This verse tells us that no matter what happens, God is working things out forthe good of His elect and that includes you!

    We are going to practice this verse until you can easily remember it. It is veryimportant to always remember that God works everything for good. Even if we

    do not understand His plan, we can always trust that He will do what is right.

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    Question #7: What are the decrees of God?

    Answer: The _______________ of God are His ________________

    ____________________, according to the counsel of His ________________,

    _________________, for ___________ own glory, He hath fore-ordained

    whatsoever comes to ___________.

    When we talk about the will of God, we are talking about what God wants tohappen. Do thing always happen the way God wants them to happen?

    Well, yes and no. It depends on what we mean by that.

    There are two way that we talk about the will of God.

    God's Revealed Will

    Let consider an example. Have you ever sinned? Of course you have. Did youever tell a lie or yell at your sister or disobey your mom or dad? Everybody hasdone these things sometimes.

    Did God want you to do those bad things? ______________

    How do you know God doesn't want you to sin?

    God tells us what He wants us to do in the Bible, and so this is called God'srevealed will, because God has revealed to us (this means that He showed us)how He wants us to live.

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    The decretal will of Godis always done. When people do not obey therevealed will of God, this is STILL part of the decretal will of God. Thismeans that everything that happens is part of God's overall plan, including goodthings and bad things and things that aren't necessarily either good or bad.

    The graph below will help you understand.

    Are there things that are NOT in the revealed will of God?_________________

    Which things are NOT in the revealed will of God? _______________________

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    Is there anything that is NOT in the decretal will of God? _________________

    Why is there nothing outside of the decretal will of God?

    Next to each of the sentences below, write whether it is referring to the decretalwill of God or the revealed will of God.

    ______________ 1. God told Adam and Eve not to eat the fruit from a tree inthe Garden of Eden.

    ______________ 2. God gave Abraham and Sarah a son.

    ______________ 3. The Sixth Commandment says, You shall not kill.

    ______________ 4. Jesus was killed on the cross as part of God's plan ofsalvation.

    ______________ 5. You are a Christian because God chose you as one ofHis elect.

    ______________ 6. The Bible tells you to love God with all your heart, soul,mind, and strength.

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    Write an example of something that the Bible tells you that you should do.

    This is (circle one) the revealed will of God the decretal will of God

    If you obey this commandment, are you in the decretal will of God? ________

    If you DON'T obey this commandment, are you in the decretal will of God?

    ___________

    How do you know whether something is in the revealed will of God?

    How do you know whether something is in the decretal will of God?

    What is outside of the decretal will of God? ____________________

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    Thought Question:

    Sometimes people think that if they sin, they have messed up God's plan fortheir life. Is this true? Why or why not?

    Remember:

    The commandments that God gives us in the Bible are the _______________

    will of God,

    BUT

    EVERYTHING is part of God's plan and happens according to His eternal

    decrees (the ___________________ will of God).

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    Westminster Catechism Lesson #8

    Question #8: How doth God execute His decrees?

    Answer: God executeth His decrees in the works of creation and providence.

    Practice:

    Question #8: How doth God execute His decrees?

    Why does the catechism say 'doth'? 'Doth' is an old word that means 'does'.It could read 'How does God execute His decrees?'

    Why does the catechism say 'execute'? In old language, 'execute' means'work'. Today, the word 'execute' means 'kill', so don't get that confused! Thisquestion could read, 'How does God work his decrees?' In other words, howdoes He put His plans into action?

    The answer tells us that God puts His plans into action through the works of

    ____________________ and _____________________.

    What is creation? Creation is making things. God works out His plan bymaking things.

    What is providence? Providence is providing for things, giving them what theyneed to live and do well.

    God not only makes us, but He gives us everything that we need.

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    Question #8: How doth God execute His decrees?

    Answer: God executeth His decrees in the works of __________________ and

    ___________________ .

    Let's look at some Bible verses about God's works of creation and providence.

    Revelation 4:11: You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honorand power, for You created all things, and by Your will they were created andhave their being.

    What has God created? _______________________________________

    Here is what Jesus tells us about providence:

    Matthew 6: 25-34: Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what youwill eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life moreimportant than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at thebirds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet yourheavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Whoof you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? And why do you worry aboutclothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tellyou that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. Ifthat is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrowis thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Sodo not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'Whatshall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenlyFather knows that you need them. But seek first His kingdom and Hisrighteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not

    worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enoughtrouble of its own.

    What are pagans? ___________________________________________

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    What do the pagans worry about that we should not worry about?

    Why do we not need to worry?

    Jesus gives two examples of ways that God provides for His creatures. Whatare these examples?

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    Practice:

    Question #8: How doth God execute His decrees?

    Answer: God executeth His decrees in the works of creation and providence.

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    Westminster Catechism Lesson #9

    Question #9: What is the work of creation?

    Answer: The work of creation is, God's making all things of nothing, by the wordof His power, in the space of six days, and all very good.

    Practice:

    Question #9: What is the work of creation?

    What did God use to make everything? _______________________

    How did He create all things? _____________________________________

    God is good, and all things that He made are ______________.

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    Practice:

    Question #9: What is the work of creation?

    Answer: The work of ______________ is, God's ________________ all things

    of ________________, by the word of His ________________, in the space of

    _____________ days, and all very _________________.

    Let's read about God's work of creation.

    In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth wasformless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit ofGod was hovering over the waters. And God said, "Let there be light," and therewas light. God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from thedarkness. God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." Andthere was evening, and there was morningthe first day.

    And God said, "Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water

    from water." So God made the expanse and separated the water under theexpanse from the water above it. And it was so. God called the expanse "sky."And there was evening, and there was morningthe second day.

    And God said, "Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dryground appear." And it was so. God called the dry ground "land," and thegathered waters he called "seas." And God saw that it was good.

    Then God said, "Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and treeson the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds." And itwas so. The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their

    kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And Godsaw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morningthe thirdday.

    And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the dayfrom the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days andyears, and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on theearth." And it was so. God made two great lightsthe greater light to govern theday and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. God set

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    them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth, to govern the day andthe night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good.And there was evening, and there was morningthe fourth day.

    And God said, "Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly abovethe earth across the expanse of the sky." So God created the great creatures of

    the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems, accordingto their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that itwas good. God blessed them and said, "Be fruitful and increase in number andfill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth." And there wasevening, and there was morningthe fifth day.

    And God said, "Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds:livestock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, eachaccording to its kind." And it was so. God made the wild animals according totheir kinds, the livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move

    along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good.Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let themrule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over allthe earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground."

    So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him;male and female he created them.

    God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill theearth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air andover every living creature that moves on the ground."

    Then God said, "I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the wholeearth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creaturesthat move on the groundeverything that has the breath of life in itI giveevery green plant for food." And it was so.

    God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening,and there was morningthe sixth day.

    This is a beautiful, beautiful story, so lovely and simple that there is very littlethat your Mom can think to say about it. The language in Hebrew is almost likea lovely poem that paints a picture. If you close your eyes while you listen to thewords, you can almost see it.

    In the beginning, the eternal God was already there. And there was nothing butdarkness and deep water, and the Spirit of God hovered over the surface of the

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    water. And then (hold your breath and think of it), God said:

    (Pronounced 'ye-hi or': Let there be light).

    And suddenly there was light!

    What was the order of God's creation?

    Day 1: __________________________________________

    Day 2: __________________________________________

    Day 3: __________________________________________

    Day 4: __________________________________________

    Day 5: __________________________________________

    Day 6: __________________________________________

    And what did God do on the seventh day?

    Who was made in the image of God?

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    How do we know that this is a wrong idea? Let's look at Genesis 1.

    When God made the world, what did He say about it?

    Did God create bad things at all?

    Did God say that spirits and invisible things were better?

    Everything that God created was _________________.

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    Practice:

    Question #9: What is the work of creation?

    Answer: The work of creation is, God's making all things of nothing, by the wordof His power, in the space of six days, and all very good.

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    Westminster Shorter Catechism Lesson #10

    Question #10: How did God create man?

    Answer: God created man male and female, after His own image, inknowledge, righteousness, and holiness, with dominion over the creatures.

    Practice:

    Question #10: How did God create man?

    In this catechism question, you can see clearly that the word 'men' in olderEnglish refers to both men and women. It says that God created 'man' bothmale and female, both men and women.

    Why the catechism say that God created man 'after His own image'? Thismeans that God created men and women in some ways like Himself. We arenot God, but we are made to be like Him in some ways. Notice that we are theonly things God made like Himself. The plants are not like Him and the animalsare not like Him and the stars are not like Him. But we are created to be likeHim.

    How did God make man like Himself? God created men and women to be

    like Him in knowledge (what they know), righteousness (doing the right things),holiness (not sinning), and with dominion over the creatures (ruling over theother things that God had made).

    We will talk about these things more in the next part of this lesson.

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    Practice:

    Question #10: How did God create man?

    Answer:

    God created man ______________ and _____________ , after His own

    ________________ , in knowledge, _________________ , and holiness, with

    dominion over the ________________.

    Let's find out what the Bible says about God making us in His image.

    Genesis 1:27: So God created man in his own image, in the image of God hecreated him; male and female he created them.

    (Psssst Kaylee, the first chapter of Genesis is one of your mom's favoriteScriptures ever. It is breathtakingly beautiful!)

    In Hebrew, the verse looks like this:

    - : ,

    And it is pronounced like this (your mom can read this to you).

    Vayivra Elohim et-ha'adam betsalmo,betselem Elohim bara oto, zachar unekevah bara otam.

    Notice something about this text. Vayivra Elohim (And created God) et-ha(roughly translated 'the') what? Adam (man). Where have you heard that wordbefore? That's right! The first man was named 'man'. Bible names often haveimportant meanings in Hebrew.

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    Thought Question: Some people think that God only created men in His image,but not women. They say that this shows that men are more important thanwomen.

    Are they wrong? Why or why not?

    Another beautiful chapter in the Bible about God's creation of man is Psalm 8.The psalms were songs that people sang in worship, much like the hymns thatwe sing in church today. In fact, many of our hymns are based on psalms. Thisparticular one was written by King David (yes, that's right, King Davidthe onewho started as a shepherd boy, fought the giant Goliath, and in the end, becameking of Israel). Here is David's song about creation:

    O LORD, our Lord,how majestic is your name in all the earth!

    You have set your gloryabove the heavens.

    From the lips of children and infantsyou have ordained praisebecause of your enemies,

    to silence the foe and the avenger.

    When I consider your heavens,the work of your fingers,the moon and the stars,

    which you have set in place,

    what is man that you are mindful of him,the son of man that you care for him?

    You made him a little lower than the heavenly beingsand crowned him with glory and honor.

    You made him ruler over the works of your hands;you put everything under his feet:

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    Practice:

    Question #10: How did God create man?

    Answer: ______________ created _____________ male and female, after His

    own image, in _________________ , ______________, and ______________,

    with ______________ over the creatures.

    What does it mean to say that man (meaning all humans--men and womenand children) is made in the image of God in knowledge, righteousness,and holiness, with dominion over the creatures?

    Let's consider something that one of our best theologians named John Calvinsays about this:

    But our definition of the image seems not to be complete until it appears moreclearly what the faculties are in which man excels, and in which he is to beregarded as a mirror of the divine glory... It cannot be doubted that when Adamlost his first estate he became alienated from God. Wherefore, although wegrant that the image of God was not utterly effaced and destroyed in him, it was,however, so corrupted, that any thing which remains is fearful deformity; and,therefore, our deliverance begins with that renovation which we obtain fromChrist, who is, therefore, called the second Adam, because he restores us totrue and substantial integrity.

    This is a little difficult to understand, so we will look at the meaning verycarefully. We will study it a little bit today and also in the next part of this lesson.

    Calvin is saying that man was created with special abilities. Our catechism tellsus what some of these are:

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    Why is this your main purpose?

    I was created as a mirror of ______________'s ________________.

    How did God create humans to reflect his glory?

    In __________________, ____________________, and _________________,

    with _______________________ over the creatures.

    God created the first man and woman in perfect righteousness and holiness,with godly knowledge, and with dominion over the creatures.

    But sadly, the first man and woman did not last in this state of perfection. Wewill talk about this in the next section.

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    Practice:

    Question #10: How did God create man?

    Answer: God _______________________ _____________ male and female,

    after __________ ___________ _____________, in knowledge,

    _____________________ , and holiness, with dominion over the ___________.

    In yesterday's part of this lesson, we talked about how God created man asmirrors of His glory.

    But do we reflect God's glory the way that we should? Do we do foolish things?Do we sin? Do we always rule over animals and plants the way that we wantto?

    We will be talking more about this in Lesson #13, but you already know thatAdam and Eve did not obey God, even though God gave them that ability inrighteousness and holiness. Now, we are fallen. This means that we have lostour perfect image of God.

    This is the rest of Calvin's quote:

    It cannot be doubted that when Adam lost his first estate he became alienatedfrom God. Wherefore, although we grant that the image of God was not utterlyeffaced and destroyed in him, it was, however, so corrupted, that any thingwhich remains is fearful deformity; and, therefore, our deliverance begins with

    that renovation which we obtain from Christ, who is, therefore, called the secondAdam, because he restores us to true and substantial integrity.

    Calvin is saying that Adam became alienated from God (this means that hebecame like a stranger far away from God). And when that happened, theimage of God was not entirely lost, but it was twisted and broken.

    Have you ever looked into a broken mirror? You can still sort of see your

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    reflection in the pieces, but it is smashed and broken. That is how man is now.Humans still have a lot of knowledge and some understanding of right andwrong and some dominion over creatures. But there is a lot of damage. Nowanimals bite us sometimes and some plants are poisonous. Now we sin evenwhen we know that we should not. And some people have become so foolish

    that they don't even understand that God exists!

    But Calvin goes on to say that we obtain a 'renovation' from Christ. This meansthat Christ remakes us into His image, so that we are made new.

    If you are remade in the image of Jesus Christ, are you in the image of God?Why?

    What special title for Jesus does Calvin talk about?

    _____________________________ _______________________

    Why do we refer to Jesus as the second Adam?

    We will be talking more about these ideas in future catechism lessons!

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    Practice:

    Question #10: How did God create man?

    Answer: God created man male and female, after His own image, inknowledge, righteousness, and holiness, with dominion over the creatures.

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    Westminster Shorter Catechism Lesson #11

    Question #11: What are God's works of providence?

    Answer: God's works of providence are His most holy, wise, and powerfulpreserving and governing all His creatures, and all their actions.

    Practice:

    Question #11: What are God's works of providence?

    This catechism lesson tells us that God not only creates things, but alsopreserves and governs them. This mean that He provides for them and rulesover them. In fact, the word 'providence' indicates that God provides. Forexample, when God made Adam and Eve, he did not put them in an emptydesert. He put them in the beautiful Garden of Eden that had everything theyneeded to be comfortable and happy.

    Fill in the blanks:

    God's providence is described as __________________ , ________________,

    and ________________________.

    God creates, but then he also _____________________ and

    __________________________ His creatures and their actions.

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    Let's read it:

    The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.He makes me lie down in green pastures,

    He leads me beside quiet waters,He restores my soul.

    He guides me in paths of righteousnessfor His name's sake.

    Even though I walkthrough the valley of the shadow of death,

    I will fear no evil,for You are with me;

    Your rod and your staff,

    they comfort me.You prepare a table before mein the presence of my enemies.

    You anoint my head with oil;my cup overflows.

    Surely goodness and love will follow meall the days of my life,

    and I will dwell in the house of the LORDforever.

    This psalm pictures God as a _________________________ and us as

    ___________________________.

    What does it mean when it talks about the Lord making us to lie down ingreen pastures and leading us beside quiet waters?

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    The psalm says that God leads his 'sheep' in certain paths. Which paths?

    Sometimes these paths that God guides us along go through scary places (the'valley of the shadow of death', the psalm says). But why should we not beafraid?

    What do shepherds carry in their hands to guide the sheep? Which part ofthe psalm mentions this?

    The psalm goes on to say that the Lord prepares a table for us even when ourenemies are all around.

    So does God promise that we won't have enemies? ________________

    But what will He do even when enemies are all around?

    The Lord is said to anoint our heads with oil. In those days, oil was used asmedicine to heal wounds. It also symbolized the Holy Spirit. This is saying thatGod provides for us, heals us, and gives His Holy Spirit to us.

    What is the last promise of the psalm?

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    I will __________________________________________________________.

    This is God's ultimate provision. He loves us so much that He brings us to livein His household, as sons and daughters. He provides for us like a Father. Thisis why we can pray 'Our Father' and ask Him for things that we need. God'slove is amazing!

    We will be learning a song for Psalm 23! We will sing it during our evening Biblereading time. It is a lovely song.

    Practice:

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    Question #11: What are God's works of providence?

    Answer: God's _________________ of _____________________ are His most

    _____________, wise, and _____________________ preserving and

    __________________ all His ___________________, and all their actions.

    The Heidelberg Catechism (another important Catechism) begins with adiscussion of God's providence. Let's read the first Question and Answer.

    Question 1. What is your only comfort in life and death?Answer. That I, with body and soul, both in life and death, am not myown, but belong unto my faithful Savior Jesus Christ; who with hisprecious blood has fully satisfied for all my sins, and delivered me fromall the power of the devil; and so preserves me that without the will ofmy heavenly Father not a hair can fall from my head; yea, that allthings must be subservient to my salvation, wherefore by his Holy Spirithe also assures me of eternal life, and makes me heartily willing and

    ready, henceforth, to live unto him

    To whom do you belong? ______________________________

    How has Christ provided for you? ___________________________________

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    Think of some examples of God's providence in your life.

    Draw a picture:

    Practice:

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    Question #11: What are God's works of providence?

    Answer: God's works of providence are His most holy, wise, and powerfulpreserving and governing all His creatures, and all their actions.


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