The most surprising thing about my journey into Christian academia was that there were so many old books that explained the faith so well. We often latch on to the new because our culture deems tradition of little use. However, reading books from authors like C.S. Lewis, G.K. Chesterton, Augustine, and others is significant for two reasons.
First, they have already done the research and thinking to answer the tough questions, so many of us wrestle with. It is good to acknowledge that we don’t have to come up with the answers. God, in His goodness, has already provided us with them through those who have gone before us.
Second, we must remember that Christianity has a rich and long history. We can take comfort in the fact that so many brothers and sisters have gone before us. Our striving to deepen our relationship with God links us with them in what the author of Hebrews calls “a great cloud of witnesses.” (Hebrews 12:1).
The Westminster Shorter Catechism was initially published in 1647, which makes it a relatively young Christian document. The WSC is simple; it asks and answers 107 core theological questions in an easy-to-understand format. I am using the WSC that was published in 1986 in modern English. It was translated by laymen for laymen like most of you and me. They have already done the work for us.
I will review two questions each week and put a short riff of my own under each question. If you have thoughts or questions, post them in the comments, and let’s wrestle with them together.
Here we go!
Questions 1 & 2
Q. 1. What is man’s primary purpose?
A. Man’s primary purpose is to glorify God and to enjoy him forever.
Matt: when Adam sinned, he brought a spirit of rebellion into the world that we have inherited, and now the thought of glorifying God can sound and feel oppressive. It is a mistake to think this way. God created us to glorify Him through everything we do. As we grow in likeness to Jesus, we are glorifying God. Still, we also experience a joy that is beyond what we can experience through our materialistic world. Because the glorifying and enjoying happen simultaneously, they end up begetting each other. Through the power of the Holy Spirit we end up longing to glorify God.
Q. 2. What authority from God directs us how to glorify him and enjoy him?
A. The only authority for glorifying and enjoying Him is the Bible, which is the word of God and is made up of the Old and New Testaments.
Matt: our glorification of God is made possible through understanding God’s written word. God’s word is supernatural, and the act of reading it puts us in communion with God. Daily reading of scripture is vital to the spiritual health of all Christians. Without the authority of scripture, we are doomed to glorify ourselves and not God.
Looking forward to this weekly series! I have never read the WSC but have heard people share both of these “answers” to the questions posed.
The WSC provides a great theological foundation for every Christian by synthesizing key concepts in the Bible into easy to handle questions and answers. I haven’t been through it for almost 30 years and have found it to be super edifying.
Great post Matt. I’ve been finding myself reading more and more in the area of Christian Academia. C.S. Lewis is one of my favorites. Currently reading Systematic Theology. I find so much enjoyment digging deeper into the word and learning about the history of our faith.
You hit it right on the head with daily reading of scripture being vital to spiritual health. I notice that distance from the Lord and life starting to go a little haywire every time I start lacking in my discipline to study his word and go to him in prayer.
Looking forward to the next read. Love you cousin.
Scripture is like water for an athlete. You can’t run a marathon without being hydrated and one cannot run the race God has set before them without being hydrated with scripture. Love you man!