Catechetical Preaching

by | Dec 5, 2013 | Catechesis, Preaching, Westminster Shorter Catechism

I am just in the process of finishing a catechetical sermon series, preaching through the topics of the Shorter Catechism. Since I have sometimes been asked how I do this, I figured I should put the whole outline right here!

If you want to hear or read any of these sermons, go over to our sermon page…

  1. SC 1                        Is 60/Ps 45/Rev 21               What Are You Doing Here?                October 7, 2012
  2. SC 2-3                     Jer 31/Ps 40/Heb 10            How Do You Know What to Believe and Do? Oct 14, 2012
  3. SC 4-6                     Dt 6/Ps 2/1 Cor 8                Why Does the Trinity Matter?              November 4, 2012
  4. SC 7-8                     Lam 3/Ps 148/Eph 1           What Are the Decrees of God?            November 11, 2012
  5. SC 9-11                   Gen 1/Ps 104/John 1          How Does God Govern the World?  November 18, 2012
  6. SC 12                      Gen 2/Ps 8/Col 1                 The Covenant of Life                            November 25, 2012
  7. SC 13-15                 Gen 3/Ps 127/1 Jn 3/Lk 1  What Is Sin?                                          December 2, 2012
  8. SC 16-19                 Gen 6/Ps 24/Rom 5/Lk 1   Why Am I Condemned in Adam?      Dec 9, 2012
  9. SC 20                      Jer 31/Ps 131/Heb 8/Lk 1   Covenant and Election                         December 16, 2012
  10. SC 21-22                 Is 7/Ps 80/Heb 2/Lk 1        Why Was He Born of a Virgin?           Dec 23, 2012
  11. SC 23-24                 Is 61/Ps 45/Luke 4               How Is Christ Our Prophet?               December 30, 2012
  12. SC 25                      Gen 14/Ps 110/Heb 7          How Is Christ Our Priest?                    January 6, 2013
  13. SC 26                      Jer 22-23/Ps 72/Lk 17          How Is Christ Our King?                    January 13, 2013
  14. SC 27-28                 Is 53/Ps 113/Phil 2              Humiliation and Exaltation                 January 20, 2013
  15. SC 29-30                 Ezek 36/Ps 19/Rom 6         Union with Christ                                 February 3, 2013
  16. SC 31                      Ezek 37/Ps 84/Jn 3              The Call                                                  February 10, 2013
  17. SC 32-33                 Lev 16/Ps 32/Rom 3            Justified in Christ                                  February 17, 2013
  18. SC 34                      Ex 3-4/Ps 2/Gal 3-4             Adopted in Christ                                 February 24, 2013
  19. SC 35                      Jer 17/Ps 1/1 Cor 10            Sanctified in Christ                                March 3, 2013
  20. SC 36                      2K 19/Ps 102/Rom 5          The Benefits of Christ in This Life      March 17, 2013
  21. SC 37                      Dt 30/Ps 118/1 Th 15          The Benefits of Christ at Death           March 24, 2013
  22. SC 38                      Is 25/Ps 16/1 Cor 15            The Benefits of Christ: Resurrection    March 31, 2013
  23. SC 39-40                 Amos 1, Ps 119, Rom 1-2    The Moral Law                                      April 7, 2013
  24. SC 41-42                 Dt 6, Ps 110, Mt 22               The Summary of the Law                     April 14, 2013
  25. SC 43-44                 Dt 11, Ps 105, Heb 3             Grace before Law: the Preface               April 28, 2013
  26. SC 45-48                 Ez 8, Ps 44, 1 Cor 10             The Lure and Cure of Idolatry             May 5, 2013
  27. SC 49-52                 Dt 4, Ps 96, Col 1                  The Image and the Word                     May 19, 2013
  28. SC 53-56                 Dt 14, Ps 106, 2Cor 6            God’s Holy Name                                 May 26, 2013
  29. SC 57-59                 Ex 31, Ps 84, Heb 4               God’s Holy Day                                    June 2, 2013
  30. SC 60-62                 Neh 13, Ps 92, Mt 12             Our Holy Rest                                       June 9, 2013
  31. SC 63-66                 Prov 1, Ps 128, Eph 5-6        Honor Your Father and Mother          June 16, 2013
  32. SC 67-69                 Gen 4, Ps 10, Lk 11               You Shall Not Kill                                July 7, 2013
  33. SC 70-72                 Prov 5, Ps 45, Matt 5             You Shall Not Commit Adultery        July 14, 2013
  34. SC 73-75                 Dt 23-24, Ps 15, Eph 4         You Shall Not Steal                               July 21, 2013
  35. SC 76-78                 Prov 6, Ps 64, 3 John            You Shall Not Bear False Witness       August 25, 2013
  36. SC 79-81                 1 K 21, Ps 119:33-40, Lk 15 You Shall Not Covet                             September 1, 2013
  37. SC 82-84                 Gen 6, Ps 14, 2 Pet 2-3          What Does Sin Deserve?                      September 8, 2013
  38. SC 85                      Dt 29-30, Ps 40, Acts 2          The Way of Salvation                            September 15, 2013
  39. SC 86                      Numbers 21, Ps 78, Phil 3    What Is Faith?                                       September 22, 2013
  40. SC 87                      Hos 13-14, Ps 51, 1 Jn 1       What Is Repentance?                             September 29, 2013
  41. SC 88-90                 Ez 20, Ps 81, Rom 10           How Does God Use Preaching to Save You? Oct 6, 2013
  42. SC 91-93                 Ex 24, Ps 27, 1 Co 10            How Does God Use the Sacraments to Save You? Oct 13
  43. SC 94                      Gen 6 Ps 42 1 Pet 3               How Does God Use Baptism to Save You?      Oct 27, 2013
  44. SC 95                      Jon 2, Ps 29, Col 3              Why Baptize Babies?                             November 3, 2013
  45. SC 96-97                 Prov 9 Ps 104 Mk 14             How Does God Use the Lord’s Supper to Save You? Nov 10
  46. SC 98-99                 2 Chr 6, Ps 116, Mt 6             How Does God Use Prayer to Save You?           Nov 17, 2013
  47. SC 100                    Ex 4 Ps 103, Jn 1                   The Lord’s Prayer: Our Father              November 24, 2013
  48. SC 101                    Is 6, Ps 99, Lk 1                     Hallowed Be Thy Name                       December 1, 2013
  49. SC 102-103             2 Sam 7, Ps 72, Lk 1              Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will Be Done           Dec 8, 2013
  50. SC 104                    Is 55, Ps 138, Lk 1                 Give Us Our Daily Bread                      December 15, 2013
  51. SC 105-106             Is 9, Ps 130, Lk 1                   Forgive Us Our Debts                          December 22, 2013
  52. SC 107                    1 Chr 29, Ps 73, Lk 2             Thine Is the Kingdom                         December 29, 2013

 

“Peter Wallace in Plaid and Skinny Jeans” (or, Why You Should Love Catechism, Psalmody and the Sabbath)

by | Feb 17, 2013 | Catechesis, Pastor Peter Wallace, Pastoral Notes, Pastoral Practice, Psalmody, Sabbath

Jamie Stoltzfus linked to this article on Facebook (though it was Jacob’s comment, “Trying to picture Peter Wallace in plaid and skinny jeans” that called my attention to it and convinced me to read it!):

http://marc5solas.wordpress.com/2013/02/08/top-10-reasons-our-kids-leave-church/

It is a good reminder of why we are doing what we do — and a challenge to work on doing it even better!
1) Why do the catechism quiz every week (10:10 a.m.)? Because we are working on instilling within ourselves (and our children) the basic grammar of Christian doctrine. Don’t assume that this is only for children. I never memorized the catechism until we started doing it at MCPC, but I find that the repetition is really helping me to get it stuck in my head and heart (especially as we have added the scripture memory verses). And for those who may say, “Yeah, I did that once,” — I would ask, “Do you still know it?” If not, come back, let’s do it again — and again — and again! Is it perfect? No, but if we wait for perfection we’ll never do anything!

2) Sing. Paul says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” (Colossians 3:16). Notice that in Colossians 3, Paul isn’t talking about what we do in public worship — he’s talking about what we do in daily life! Do you know these songs well enough to sing them in your daily life? Do you incorporate them into your daily life? These are the sorts of customs and practices that sink deep into a person’s soul. If the only place you ever encounter this is on Sunday morning, then don’t expect it to get any further than one day a week in your life!
But Sunday morning is still a good place to start. Come and sing at 10 a.m. We generally sing through the most challenging piece of music that we’ll be singing in the morning service and work on it part by part. And as your children get older, bring them along to work on parts as well (and for those without kids, find a kid — or an adult who wants to learn how to sing — and take them under your wing to help them along). If you want to know how to sing better, stand next to [or in front of] someone who sings well.
And yes, we are planning on making sure that we have enough copies of the new psalter that you can have copies at home!

3) Talk with others about the sermon. Go deeper. Think together about what the scripture says about who Jesus is and what he has done. Let his story become the center of your conversation (it is, after all, the center of everything else!). Use the order of service throughout the week to encourage your daily prayers at home and with others. I include it here in the pastoral notes so that you can make use of it. Obviously, if you already have a thriving family worship time, then there is no need to alter it for this — but if you are looking for a place to start, it may help.

4) Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. The point of the Sabbath has to do with how we think about time. God said to work for six days and rest on the seventh. Do we set aside our labors for a whole day? God did. This was the pattern of creation. No, we don’t keep the same Sabbath as Israel (and we shouldn’t think about the Sabbath in terms of the whole Mosaic code — any more than we should think about theft in the same way as the whole Mosaic code!), but how do we use time? In the same way that we give to God the first of our produce, we should give to God the first of our time. Are we calling the Sabbath a delight? Or are we so focused on our own agendas that we squeeze God’s time out? Again — these sorts of practices and customs are crucial for shaping our life together before God.

Obviously, if these practices and customs do not really touch the core of our lives, then the children will see it — and will decry it as the hypocrisy that it is. But if they see the joy of the Spirit in us — if they see our thankful obedience reflected in our grace-filled walk, then perhaps by God’s grace they, too, will walk with us in the way of Christ.

Why Catechize?

by | Apr 15, 2012 | Catechesis, Pastoral Notes, Westminster Shorter Catechism

At 10:00 a.m. every Sunday morning we have a our weekly singing practice and catechism quiz. This week I would like to suggest some reasons why you should participate.

I should start by providing some background: around eight years ago, the elders decided to have a weekly catechism quiz, working through the Shorter Catechism together. We decided that if we were going to have the children memorize the catechism, then we should do it together with them. Since then we have worked through the Shorter Catechism four times (next fall we will start on our fifth time around!). In this last cycle, we have added a really helpful practice of memorizing a couple of scripture verses each week that show where the scriptures teach the doctrines of the catechism.

I would especially like to address fathers and mothers in the congregation (though others may take note as well). If you are like me, then you did not grow up with the catechism. I was a latecomer to Reformed theology and only started memorizing the catechism eight years ago with my children. Since I didn’t grow up with the catechism, I didn’t think of it as something that was very important — but there are a number of observations that I have noticed over the years:

  1. The catechism provides a vocabulary that overflows into other conversations as well. I cannot count the number of times that we have talked about “the estate of sin and misery”! When dealing with sin, the catechism’s exposition of the Ten Commandments encourages both the memorization of the Ten Commandments, and the application of the commandments in daily life. Likewise, I frequently use the language of the catechism now in talking with my children about repentance and faith. And because they have worked through it many times, they are beginning to understand what it means.
  2. Parents often wonder, “if they don’t understand the words, what’s the point?” Well, they probably don’t understand the words “hallowed,” “debtors,” “substance,” or “apostolic” — but we still teach them the Lord’s Prayer and the Nicene Creed. And over time, as we continue praying, confessing, and reciting, we learn more and more about them. If you wait until they understand the vocabulary before you use it, some other vocabulary will have already taken root in their hearts. Language plays a powerful role in shaping the way we think.
  3. Catechism memorization works best when it is connected with regular family worship. We have also included it in the children’s home-school work, but when Daddy is also working with the kids on their catechism, it makes a big difference. And when you show up for the catechism quiz on Sunday morning, you send a major signal to your children (and for those without children — you send perhaps an even louder signal!) that this is important.
  4. The discipline required to keep the practice going in our home for eight years has been useful in other areas of life as well. Family worship, catechism memorization, elder visits — all these things are part of an “older” way of doing things that our culture has rejected — a way of living that embodies the principles of the scriptures and seeks to exhibit them publicly in the life of the church.


And particularly as fathers we are often so busy with our careers — with “providing” for our families — that when we have time for our children, we just want to “have fun” with them. But what do we communicate to our children that way? That “fun” is the meaning of life? If we are to teach our children the great works of God — if we are to lead them in loving God with all our heart, all our soul, and and all our strength — then leading them in the study of the scriptures is our first priority. And the catechism provides a really useful summary of the biblical teaching on “what man is to believe concerning God, and what duty God requires of man.”