HEIDELBERG CATECHISM Baptist Version (Updateing)
HEIDELBERG CATECHISM Baptist Version (Updateing)
HEIDELBERG CATECHISM Baptist Version (Updateing)
A BAPTIST VERSION
2. What must you know to live and die in the joy of this comfort?
Three things: first, how great my sin and misery are; second, how I am set free from
all my sins and misery; third, how I am to thank God for such deliverance.
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(Romans 3:9; 10; 1 John 1:10; John 17:3; Acts 4:12; 10:43; Matthew 5:16;
Romans 6:13; Ephesians 5:8–10; 2 Timothy 2:15; 1 Peter 2:9, 10)
8. But are we so corrupt that we are totally unable to do any good and inclined
toward all evil?
Yes, unless we are born again, by the Spirit of God.
(Genesis 6:5; 8:21; Job 14:4; Isaiah 53:6; John 3:3–5)
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9. But doesn’t God do man an injustice by requiring in His law what man is
unable to do?
No, God created man with the ability to keep the law. Man, however, when tempted by
the devil, in reckless disobedience, robbed himself and his descendants of these gifts.
(Genesis 1:31; Ephesians 4:24; Genesis 3:13; John 8:44; Genesis 3:6;
Romans 5:12, 18, 19)
14. Can another creature–any at all– pay this debt for us?
No. To begin with, God will not punish another creature for man’s guilt. Besides, no
mere creature can bear the weight of God’s eternal anger against sin and release
others from it.
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(Ezekiel 18:4, 20; Hebrews 2:14–18; Psalm 49:7–9; 130:3)
15. What kind of Mediator and Deliverer should we look for then?
He must be truly human and truly righteous, yet more powerful than all creatures,
that is, He must also be truly God.
(Romans 1:3; 2 Corinthians 15:21; Hebrews 2:17; Isaiah 53:9; 2 Corinthians
5:21; Hebrews 7:26; Isaiah 7:14; 9:6; Jeremiah 23:6; John 1:1)
18. And who is this Mediator, who is truly God and at the same time truly
human and truly righteous?
Our Lord Jesus Christ, who was given us to set us completely free and to make us
right with God.
(Matthew 1:21–23; Luke 2:11; 1 Timothy 2:5; 1 Corinthians 1:30)
20. Are all men saved through Christ just as all were lost through Adam?
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No. Only those are saved who by true faith are grafted into Christ and by grace
receive all His blessings.
(Matthew 7:14; John 3:16, 18, 36: Romans 11:16–21)
25. Since there is but one God, why do you speak of three: Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit?
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Because that is how God has revealed Himself in His Word: these three distinct
persons are one, true, eternal God.
(Deuteronomy 6:4; 1 Corinthians 8:4, 6; Matthew 3:16, 17; 28:18, 19; Luke
4:18 [Isaiah 61:1]; John 14:26; 15:26; 2 Corinthians 13:14; Galatians 4:6;
Titus 3:5, 6)
26. What do you believe when you say: “I believe in God the Father, almighty,
maker of heaven and earth?
That the eternal Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who out of nothing created heaven
and earth and everything in them, who still upholds and rules them by His eternal
counsel and providence, is my God and Father because of Christ His Son. I trust Him
so much that I do not doubt He will provide whatever I need for body and soul, and He
will turn to my good whatever adversity He sends me in this sad world. He is able to do
this because He is almighty God; He desires to do this because He is a faithful Father.
(Genesis 1 & 2; Exodus 20:11; Psalm 33:6; Isaiah 44:24; 14:15; Psalm 104;
Matthew 6:30; 10:29; Ephesians 1:11; John 1:12, 13; Romans 8:15, 16;
Galatians 4:4–7; Ephesians 1:5; Psalm 55:22; Matthew 6:25, 26; Luke
12:22–31; Romans 8:28; Genesis 18:14; Romans 8:31–39; Matthew 7:9–11)
28. How does the knowledge of God’s creation and providence help us?
We can be patient when things go against us, thankful when things go well, and for
the future we can have good confidence in our faithful God and Father that nothing
will separate us from His love. All creatures are so completely in His hand that
without His will they can neither move nor be moved.
(Job 1:21, 22; James 1:3; Deuteronomy 8:10; 1 Thessalonians 5:18; Psalm
55:22; Romans 5:3–5; 8:38, 39; Job 1:12; 2:6; Proverbs 21:1; Acts 17:24–
28)
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29. Why is the Son of God called “Jesus” meaning “Savior”?
Because He saves us from our sins. Salvation cannot be found in anyone else; it is
futile to look for any salvation elsewhere.
(Matthew 1:21; Hebrews 7:25; Isaiah 43:11; John 15:5; Acts 4:11, 12; 1
Timothy 2:5)
30. Do those who look for their salvation and security in saints, in themselves,
or elsewhere really believe in the only Savior Jesus?
No. Although they boast of being His, by their deeds they deny the only Savior and
Deliverer, Jesus. Either Jesus is not a perfect Savior, or those who in true faith
accept this Savior have in Him all they need for their salvation.
(1 Corinthians 1:12, 13; Galatians 5:4; Colossians 1:19, 20; 2:10; 1 John
1:7)
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5:16, 17; Ephesians 6:11; 1 Timothy 1:18, 19; Matthew 25:34; 2 Timothy
2:12)
33. Why is He called God’s “only begotten Son” when we also are God’s
children?
Because Christ alone is the eternal, natural Son of God. We, however, are adopted
children of God—adopted by grace through Christ.
(John 1:1–3, 14, 18; Hebrews 1; John 1:12; Romans 8:14–17; Ephesians 1:5,
6)
35. What does it mean that He “was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the
virgin Mary”?
That the eternal Son of God, who is and remains true and eternal God, took to
Himself, through the working of the Holy Spirit, from the flesh and blood of the virgin
Mary, a truly human nature so that He might become David’s true descendant, in all
things like us except for sin.
(John 1:1; 10:30–36; Acts 13:33 [Psalm 2:7]; Colossians 1:15–17; 1 John
5:20; Luke 1:35; Matthew 1:18–23; John 1:14; Galatians 4:4; Hebrews 2:14;
2 Samuel 7:12–16; Psalm 132:11; Matthew 1:1; Romans 1:3; Philippians 2:7;
Hebrews 2:17; Hebrews 4:15; 7:26,27)
36. How does the holy conception and birth of Christ benefit you?
He is our Mediator, and with His innocence and perfect holiness He removes from
God’s sight my sin—mine since I was conceived.
(1 Timothy 2:5, 6; Hebrews 9:13–15; Romans 8:3, 4; 2 Corinthians 5:21;
Galatians 4:4, 5; 1 Peter 1:18, 19)
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That during His whole life on earth, but especially at the end, Christ sustained in
body and soul the anger of God against the sin of the whole human race. This He did
in order that, by His suffering as the only atoning sacrifice, He might set us free,
body and soul, from eternal condemnation, and gain for us God’s grace,
righteousness, and eternal life.
(Isaiah 53; 1 Peter 2:24; 3:18; Romans 3:25; Hebrews 10:14; 1 John 2:2;
4:10; Romans 8:1–4; Galatians 3:13; John 3:16; Romans 3:24–26)
39. Is it significant that He was “crucified” instead of dying some other way?
Yes. This death convinces me that He shouldered the curse which lay on me, since
death by crucifixion was accursed by God.
(Galatians 3:10–13 [Deuteronomy 21:23])
42. Since Christ has died for us, why do we still have to die?
Our death does not pay the debt of our sins. Rather, it puts an end to our sinning and
is our entrance into eternal life.
(Psalm 49:7; John 5:24; Philippians 1:21–23; 1 Thessalonians 5:9, 10)
43. What further advantage do we receive from Christ’s sacrifice and death on
the cross?
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Through Christ’s death our old selves are crucified, put to death, and buried with
Him, so that the evil desires of the flesh may no longer rule us, but that instead we
may dedicate ourselves as an offering of gratitude to Him.
(Romans 6:5–11; Colossians 2:11, 12; Romans 6:12–14; Romans 12:1;
Ephesians 5:1, 2)
46. But isn’t Christ with us until the end of the world as He promised us?
Christ is true man and true God. In His human nature Christ is not now on earth; but
in His divinity, majesty, grace, and Spirit He is not absent from us for a moment.
(Matthew 28:20; Acts 1:9–11; 3:19–21; Matthew 28:18–20; John 14:16–19)
47. If His humanity is not present wherever His divinity is, then aren’t the two
natures of Christ separated from each other?
Certainly not. Since divinity is not limited and is present everywhere, it is evident that
Christ’s divinity is surely beyond the bounds of the humanity He has taken on, but at
the same time His divinity is in and remains personally united to His humanity.
(Jeremiah 23:23, 24; Acts 7:48, 49 [Isaiah 66:1]; John 1:14; 3:13; Colossians
2:9)
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First, He pleads our cause in heaven in the presence of His Father; second, we have
our own flesh in heaven—a guarantee that Christ our head will take us, His
members, to Himself in heaven; third, He sends His Spirit to us on earth as further
guarantee. By the Spirit’s power we make the goal of our lives, not earthly things, but
the things above where Christ is, sitting at God’s right hand.
(Romans 8:34; 1 John 2:1; John 14:2; 17:24; Ephesians 2:4–6; John 14:16; 2
Corinthians 1:21, 22; 5:5; Colossians 3:1–4)
49. Why the next words: “and sits at the right hand of God”?
Christ ascended to heaven, there to show that He is head of His church, and that the
Father rules all things through Him.
(Ephesians 1:20–23; Colossians 1:18; Matthew 28:18; John 5:22, 23)
50. How does this glory of Christ our head benefit us?
First, through His Holy Spirit He pours out His gifts from heaven upon us His
members; second, by His power He defends us and keeps us safe from all enemies.
(Acts 2:33; Ephesians 4:7–12; Psalm 110:1, 2; John 10:27–30; Revelation 19:11–
16)
51. How does Christ’s return “to judge the living and the dead” comfort you?
In all my distress and persecution I turn my eyes to the heavens and confidently
await as judge the very One who has already stood trial in my place before God and
so removed the whole curse from me. All His enemies and mine He will condemn to
everlasting punishment: but me and all His chosen ones He will take along with Him
into the joy and the glory of heaven.
(Luke 21:28; Romans 8:22–25; Philippians 3:20, 21; Titus 2:13, 14; Matthew
25:31–46; 2 Thessalonians 1:6–10)
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53. What do you believe concerning the “Holy Catholic Church”?
I believe that the Son of God through His Spirit and Word, out of the entire human
race, from the beginning of the world to its end, gathers, protects, and preserves for
Himself a community chosen for eternal life and united in true faith. And of this
community I am and always will be a living member.
(John 10:14–16; Acts 20:28; Romans 10:14–17; Colossians 1:18; Genesis
26:3b, 4; Revelation 5:9; Isaiah 59:21; 1 Corinthians 11:26; Matthew 16:18;
John 10:28–30; Romans 8:28–30; Ephesians 1:3–14; Acts 2:42–47;
Ephesians 4:1–6; 1 John 3:14, 19–21; John 10:27, 28; 1 Corinthians 1:4–9; 1
Peter 1:3–5)
57. How does the article concerning “life everlasting” comfort you?
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Even as I already now experience in my heart the beginning of eternal joy, so after
this life I will have perfect blessedness such as no eye has seen, no ear heard, no
man has ever imagined: a blessedness in which to praise God eternally.
(Romans 14:17; John 17:3; 1 Corinthians 2:9)
60. Why do you say that by faith alone you are right with God?
It is not because of any value my faith has that God is pleased with me. Only Christ’s
satisfaction, righteousness, and holiness make me right with God. And I can receive
this righteousness and make it mine in no other way than by faith alone.
(1 Corinthians 1:30, 31; Romans 10:10; 1 John 5:10–12)
61. Why can’t the good we do make us right with God, or at least help make us
right with Him?
Because the righteousness which can pass God’s scrutiny must be entirely perfect
and must in every way measure up to the divine law. Even the very best we do in
this life is imperfect and stained with sin.
(Romans 3:20; Galatians 3:10 [Deuteronomy 27:26]; Isaiah 64:6)
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62. How can you say that the good we do doesn’t earn anything when God
promises to reward it in this life and the next?
This reward is not earned; it is a gift of grace.
(Matthew 5:12; Hebrews 11:6; Luke 17:10; 2 Timothy 4:7, 8)
63. But doesn’t this teaching make people indifferent and wicked?
No. It is impossible for those grafted into Christ by true faith not to produce fruits of
gratitude.
(Luke 6:43–45; John 15:5)
64. You confess that by faith alone you share in Christ and all His blessings:
where does faith come from?
The Holy Spirit produces it in our hearts by the preaching of the holy gospel,
confirms it through our use of the holy sacraments, and strengthens it through prayer
and Scripture reading.
(John 3:5; 1 Corinthians 2:10–14; Ephesians 2:8; Romans 10:17; 1 Peter 1:23–
25; Matthew 28:19, 20; 1 Corinthians 10:16; Ephesians 3:14–21; 1 Peter 2:1–
2)
66. Are both the Word and the sacraments then intended to focus our faith on
the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross as the only ground of our salvation?
Right! In the gospel the Holy Spirit teaches us and through the holy sacraments He
assures us that our entire salvation rests on Christ’s one sacrifice for us on the cross.
(Romans 6:3; 1 Corinthians 11:26; Galatians 3:27)
67. How many sacraments did Christ institute in the New Testament?
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Two: baptism and the Lord’s supper.
(Matthew 28:19, 20; 1 Corinthians 23:26)
72. How does the Lord’s supper remind you and assure you that you share in
Christ’s one sacrifice on the cross and in all His gifts?
In this way: Christ has commanded me and all believers to eat this broken bread and
to drink this cup. With this command He gave this promise: First, as surely as I see
with my eyes the bread of the Lord broken for me and the cup given to me, so surely
His body was offered and broken for me on the cross. Second, as surely as I receive
from the hand of him who serves, and taste with my mouth the bread and cup of the
Lord, given me as sure signs of Christ’s body and blood, so surely He nourishes and
refreshes my soul for eternal life with His crucified body and poured-out blood.
(Matthew 26:26–28; Mark 14:22–24; Luke 22:19, 20; 1 Corinthians 11:23–
25)
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73. Are the bread and fruit of the vine changed into the real body and blood of
Christ?
No. Just as the water of baptism is not changed into Christ’s blood and does not
itself wash away sins but is a sign of our union with Christ, so too the bread and fruit
of the vine of the Lord’s supper are not changed into the actual body and blood of
Christ in keeping with the nature and language of sacraments.
(Ephesians 5:26; Titus 3:5; Matthew 26:26–29; 1 Corinthians 10:16, 17; 11:26–
28; Genesis 17:10, 11; Exodus 12:11; 1 Corinthians 10:1–4)
74. Why then does Christ call the bread His body and the cup His blood, or the
new covenant in His blood?
Christ has good reason for these words. He wants to teach us that He established the
new covenant by His death and that as bread and drink nourish our temporal life, so
too His crucified body and poured-out blood truly nourish our souls for eternal life. But
more important, He wants to assure us, by this visible sign and pledge, that we,
through the Holy Spirit’s work, share in His true body and blood as surely as our
mouths receive these holy signs in His remembrance, and that all of His suffering and
obedience are as definitely ours as if we personally had suffered and paid for our sins.
(John 6:51, 55; 1 Corinthians 10:16,17; 11:26; Romans 6:5–11)
76. Are those who show by what they say and do that they are unbelieving and
ungodly to be admitted to the Lord’s supper?
No, that would dishonor God’s covenant and bring down God’s anger upon the entire
congregation. Therefore, according to the instruction of Christ and His apostles, the
Christian church is duty-bound to exclude such people, by the official use of the keys
of the kingdom, until they repent of their sins.
(1 Corinthians 11:17–32; Psalm 50:14–16; Isaiah 1:11–17)
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77. What are the keys of the kingdom?
The preaching of the holy gospel and Christian discipline toward repentance. Both
preaching and discipline open the kingdom of heaven to believers and close it to
unbelievers.
(Matthew 16:19; John 20:22, 23)
78. How does preaching the gospel open and close the kingdom of heaven?
According to the command of Christ: The kingdom of heaven is opened by
proclaiming and publicly declaring to each and every believer that, as often as he
accepts the gospel promise in true faith, God, because of what Christ has done, truly
forgives all his sins. The kingdom of heaven is closed, however, by proclaiming and
publicly declaring to unbelievers and hypocrites that, as long as they do not repent,
the anger of God and eternal condemnation rest on them. God’s judgment, both in
this life and in the life to come, is based on this gospel testimony.
(Matthew 16:19; John 3:31–36; 20:21–23)
79. How is the kingdom of heaven closed and opened by Christian discipline?
According to the command of Christ: If anyone, though called a Christian, professes
unchristian teachings or lives an unchristian life, if after repeated brotherly counsel,
he refuses to abandon his errors and wickedness, and, if after being reported to the
church he fails to respond also to their admonition—such a one the church must
exclude from the Christian fellowship and God Himself excludes him from the
kingdom of Christ. Such a person, when he promises and demonstrates genuine
repentance, is received again as a member of Christ and of His church.
(Matthew 18:15–20; 1 Corinthians 5:3–5, 11–13; 2 Thessalonians 3:14, 15;
Luke 15:20–24; 2 Corinthians 2:6–11)
80. We have been delivered from our misery by God’s grace alone through
Christ and not because we have earned it: Why then must we still do good?
To be sure, Christ has redeemed us by His blood. But we do good because Christ by
His Spirit is also renewing us to be like Himself, so that in all our living we may show
that we are thankful to God for all He has done for us, and so that He may be
praised through us. And we do good so that we may be assured of our faith by its
fruits, and so that by our godly living our neighbors may be won over to Christ.
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(Romans 6:13; 12:1, 2; 1 Peter 2:5–10; Matthew 5:16; 1 Corinthians 6:19,
20; Matthew 7:17, 18; Galatians 5:22–24; 2 Peter 1:10, 11; Matthew 5:14–
16; Romans 14:17–19; 1 Peter 2:12; 3:1, 2)
81. Can those be saved who do not turn to God from their ungrateful and
impenitent ways?
By no means. Scripture tells us that no unchaste person, no idolater, adulterer, thief,
no covetous person, no drunkard, slanderer, robber, or the like is going to inherit the
kingdom of God. (1 Corinthians 6:9, 10; Galatians 5:19–21; Ephesians 5:1–20; 1 John 3:14)
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you shall not bow down to them or serve them; for I the Lord your God am a jealous
God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and the fourth
generation of those who hate Me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those
who love Me and keep My commandments.
You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain; for the Lord will not hold
him guiltless who takes His name in vain.
Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your
work; but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God; in it you shall not do
any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your manservant, or your maidservant,
or your cattle, or the sojourner who is within your gates; for in six days the Lord
made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested the seventh day;
therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it.
Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land which the
Lord your God gives you.
You shall not kill.
You shall not commit adultery.
You shall not steal.
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife,
or his manservant, or his maidservant, or his ox, or his ass, or anything that is your
neighbor’s.
(Exodus 20:1–17; Deuteronomy 5:6–21)
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(1 Corinthians 6:9,10; 10:5–14; 1 John 5:21; Leviticus 19:31; Deuteronomy
18:9–12; Matthew 4:10; Revelation 19:10; 22:8, 9; John 17:3; Jeremiah 17:
5, 7; Psalm 104:27, 28; James 1:17; 1 Peter 5:5, 6; Colossians 1:11; Hebrews
10:36; Matthew 2:37 [Deuteronomy 6:50]; Proverbs 9:10; 1 Peter 1:17;
Matthew 4:10 [Deuteronomy 6:13]; Matthew 5:29, 30; 10:37–39)
92. But may not images be permitted in the churches as teaching aids for the
unlearned?
No, we shouldn’t try to be wiser than God. He wants His people instructed by the
living preaching of His Word—not by idols that cannot even talk.
(Romans 10:14, 15, 17; 2 Timothy 3:16, 17; 2 Peter 1:19; Jeremiah 10:8;
Habakkuk 2:18–20)
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(Leviticus 24:10–17; Leviticus 19:12; Matthew 5:37; James 5:12; Leviticus
5:1; Proverbs 29:24; Psalm 99:1–5; Jeremiah 4:2; Matthew 10:32, 33:
Romans 10:9, 10; Psalm 50:14, 15; 1 Timothy 2:8; Colossians 3:17)
94. Is blasphemy of God’s name by swearing and cursing really such serious
sin that God is angry also with those who do not do all they can to help
prevent it and to forbid it?
Yes, indeed. No sin is greater, no sin makes God more angry than blaspheming His
name. That is why He commanded the death penalty for it.
(Leviticus 5:1; 24:10–17)
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4:13; 1 Corinthians 11:23, 24; Colossians 3:16; 1 Timothy 2:1; Psalm 50:14;
1 Corinthians 16:2; 2 Corinthians 8, 9; Isaiah 66:23; Hebrews 4:9–11)
101. Is it enough then that we do not kill our neighbor in any such way?
No. By condemning envy, hatred, and anger God tells us to love our neighbor as
ourselves, to be patient, peace–loving, gentle, merciful, and friendly to him, to protect
him from harm as much as we can, and to do good even to our enemies.
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(Matthew 7:12; 22:39; Romans 12:10; Matthew 5:3–12; Luke 6:36; Romans
12:10, 18; Galatians 6:1, 2; Ephesians 4:2; Colossians 3:12; 1 Peter 3:8;
Exodus 23:4, 5; Matthew 5:44, 45; Romans 12:20, 21 [Proverbs 25:21, 22])
103. Does God, in this commandment, forbid only such scandalous sins as
adultery?
We are temples of the Holy Spirit, body and soul, and God wants both to be kept
clean and holy. That is why He forbids everything which incites unchastity, whether it
be actions, look, talk, thoughts, or desires.
(1 Corinthians 15:33; Ephesians 5:18; Matthew 5:27–29; 1 Corinthians 6:18–
20; Ephesians 5:3, 4)
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106. What is God’s will for us in the ninth commandment?
God’s will is that I never give false testimony against anyone, twist no one’s words, not
gossip or slander, nor join in condemning anyone without a hearing or without a just
cause. Rather, in court and everywhere else, I should avoid lying and deceit of every
kind; these are devices the devil himself uses, and they would call down on me God’s
intense anger. I should love the truth, speak it candidly, and openly acknowledge it.
And I should do what I can to guard and advance my neighbor’s good name.
(Psalm 15; Proverbs 19:5; Matthew 7:1; Luke 6:37; Romans 1:28–32.
Leviticus 19:11, 12; Proverbs 12:22; 13:5; John 8:44; Revelation 21:8; 1
Corinthians 13:6; Ephesians 4:25; 1 Peter 3:8, 9; 4:8)
108. But can those converted to God obey these commandments perfectly?
No. In this life even the holiest have only a small beginning of this obedience.
Nevertheless, with all seriousness of purpose, they do begin to live according to all,
not only some, of God’s commandments.
(Ecclesiastes 7:20; Romans 7:14, 15; 1 Corinthians 13:9; 1 John 1:8–10;
Psalm 1:1, 2; Romans 7:22–25; Philippians 3:12–16)
109. No one in this life can obey the ten commandments perfectly: why then
does God want them preached so pointedly?
First, so that the longer we live the more we may come to know our sinfulness and
the more eagerly look to Christ for forgiveness of sins and righteousness. Second,
so that, while praying to God for the grace of the Holy Spirit, we may never stop
striving to be renewed more and more after God’s image, until after this life we reach
our goal: perfection.
(Psalm 32:5; Romans 3:19–26; 7:7, 24, 25; 1 John 1:9; 1 Corinthians 9:24;
Philippians 3:12–14; 1 John 3:1–3)
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110. Why do Christians need to pray?
Because prayer is the most important part of the thankfulness God requires of us.
And also because God gives His grace and Holy Spirit only to those who pray
continually and groan inwardly, asking God for these gifts and thanking Him for them.
(Psalm 50:14, 15; 116:12–19; 1 Thessalonians 5:16–18; Matthew 7:7, 8;
Luke 11:9–13)
111. How does God want us to pray so that He will listen to us?
First, we must pray from the heart to no other than the one true God, who has
revealed Himself in His Word, asking for everything He has commanded us to ask
for. Second, we must acknowledge our need and misery, hiding nothing, and humble
ourselves in His majestic presence. Third, we must rest on this unshakable
foundation: even though we do not deserve it, God will surely listen to our prayer
because of Christ our Lord. That is what He promised in His Word.
(Psalm 145:18–20; John 4:22–24; Romans 8:26, 27; James 1:5; 1 John 5:14,
15; 2 Chronicles 7:14; Psalm 2:11; 34:18; 62:8; Isaiah 66:2; Revelation 4;
Daniel 9:17–19; Matthew 7:8; John 14:13, 14; 16:23; Romans 10:13; James
1:6)
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Our fathers do not refuse us the things of this life; God our Father will even less
refuse to give us what we ask in faith. (Matthew 7:9–11; Luke 11:11–13)
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119. What does the fifth request mean?
And forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors means, because of Christ’s
blood, do not hold against us, poor sinners that we are, any of the sins we do or the
evil that constantly clings to us. Forgive us just as we are fully determined, as
evidence of Your grace in us, to forgive our neighbors.
(Psalm 51:1–7; 143:2; Romans 8:1; 1 John 2:1, 2; Matthew 6:14, 15; 18:21–35)
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