Beloved,
Below is a family worship devotion for question 3 of the Shorter Catechism. It is a fitting theme for us to consider as we continue to look at God’s revealed will for Israel in Exodus 21:1-11 this coming Sunday. It is a difficult text on the knotty subject of slavery, and I ask that you pray for the preacher to have wisdom and boldness to preach it rightly, so that we might be led to glorify and enjoy our Lord through it!
Yours in Christ,
Pastor Nick
Recite
Q. 3. What do the Scriptures principally teach?
A. The Scriptures principally teach what man is to believe concerning God, and what duty God requires of man.
Read
Deuteronomy 10:12–13; 2 Timothy 3:15–16; Psalm 119:105; Galatians 5:6
Reflect
If you come to the Bible in search of an anatomy textbook detailing the intricacies of the human body or a how-to guide for fixing your bicycle, you will be disappointed. Like every book, the Bible was written for a particular purpose, and that purpose determines what it sets out to teach. If an author’s purpose is to teach her readers how to bake, you would expect the book to be filled with baking tips and recipes for delicious cakes and cookies. God’s purpose in giving us the Scriptures, as we have seen, is that we might glorify and enjoy Him. So it should not surprise us that the Bible is principally about Him and His will for our lives.
In a school, the principal is the chief leader who oversees the entire organization. Similarly, when we talk about the principal teaching of the Bible, we mean the chief subject it conveys. According to the catechism, that chief subject is twofold: who God is and how He wants us to live. That does not mean the Bible teaches nothing else. For example, it provides many details about the ancient world that do not directly reveal the nature of God or His will for us. But those two themes—faith and practice—are the highest and most important subjects God gives us in His word. The rest of the catechism is structured accordingly: questions 4–38 focus on faith (what we are to believe), and questions 39–107 focus on practice (how we are to live).
The order is important. For if we try to live for God without knowing God, it is like trying to drive a car without gasoline—we will not get anywhere. Consider a husband who has studied every book on marriage, understands the biblical teaching about his role, and is absolutely determined to love his wife as Christ loves the church. That sounds good, doesn’t it? But imagine this man does not know anything about his wife—not even her name, appearance, or likes and dislikes. How well will he do at loving her? Not very well at all. A husband must first know his wife, and from that intimate knowledge and enjoyment of her, lovingly lead her each and every day. In the same way, if we are ignorant of God, we cannot live as He requires. Only as we know Him intimately through the gospel do our hearts begin to burn with a desire to please Him. Faith must come before practice.
But practice must also follow faith. It is not enough to have a head full of knowledge about God. It is not enough merely to agree with the Bible’s teaching. There is no such thing as a Christian mind without a Christian life. True faith in who God is and what He has done in Jesus Christ necessarily leads to true obedience. That obedience will always be imperfect in this life, yet it is real and sincere in every believer. For you cannot know God in Christ without longing to honor and glorify Him in all you say, think, and do. And thankfully, God has given us His word as a map to guide us in what that looks like. We must read it, meditate on it, believe it, and walk in it—for this is the path of life!
- What does the catechism mean when it refers to the “principal” teaching of Scripture?
- How does the purpose of the Bible help us understand what its primary teachings are?
- Why must faith come before practice? Why must practice follow faith?