The Weekend Word
To Be A Christian: An Anglican Catechism
SALVATION
1. What is the Gospel?
The Gospel is the good news of God loving and saving lost mankind through the ministry in word and deed of his Son, Jesus Christ. (1 Cor. 15:1-4; Romans 5:15; John 1:12; 1 John 5:11-12)
2. What is the human condition?
The universal human condition is that, though made for fellowship with our Creator, we have been cut off from him by self-centered rebellion against him, leading to guilt, shame, and fear of death and judgment. This is the state of sin. (Genesis 3; Romans 3:23)
3. How does sin affect you?
Sin alienates me from God, my neighbor, God’s good creation, and myself. I am hopeless, guilty, lost, helpless, and walking in the way of death. (Isaiah 59:2; Romans 6:23)
4. What is the way of death?
The way of death is a life empty of God’s love and life-giving Holy Spirit, controlled by things that cannot bring me eternal joy, but that lead only into darkness, misery and eternal condemnation. (Romans 1:25; Proverbs 14:12; John 8:34)
5. Can you mend your broken relationship with God?
No. I have no power to save myself, for sin has corrupted my conscience and captured my will. Only God can save me. (Ephesians 2:1-9; John 14:6; Titus 3:3-7)
6. What is the way of life?
The way of life is a life directed toward loving and responding to God the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ, in the power of God’s indwelling Holy Spirit, and leading to eternal life. (John 14:23-26; Colossians 1:9-12; Ephesians 5:1-2; Romans 12:9-21)
7. What does God want to give you?
God wants to reconcile me to himself, to free me from captivity to sin, to fill me with knowledge of him, to make me a citizen of his Kingdom, and to enable me to worship, serve, and glorify him now and forever. (1 John 5:11-12; 1 Corinthians 5:19; Ephesians 2:19; 3:19; Colossians 1:9)
8. How does God save you?
God saves me by grace, which is his undeserved love given to me in and through Jesus. “God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)
9. Who is Jesus Christ?
Jesus is my Savior, fully divine and fully human. He bore my sins, dying in my place on the cross, then rose from the dead to rule as anointed king over me and all creation. (Colossians 1:15-26)
10. Is there any other way of salvation?
No. The Apostle Peter said of Jesus, “There is salvation in no one else” (Acts 4:12). Jesus is the only one who can save me and reconcile me to God. (1 Timothy 2:5)
“The Anglican Church in North America is pleased to announce the release of To Be a Christian: An Anglican Catechism produced by the provincial Catechesis Task force.
Led by the Rev. Dr J.I. Packer, the Task Force has developed a unique and powerful resource for helping inquirers come to an understanding of the Christian faith, and for helping disciples deepen their relationship with God. Written in a “Question and Answer” format, this Catechism, in the words of Packer, “is designed as a resource manual for the renewal of Anglican catechetical practice. It presents the essential building blocks of classic catechetical instruction: the Apostles’ Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, and the Ten Commandments (the Decalogue). To these is added an initial section especially intended for those with no prior knowledge of the Gospel; as such, this catechism attempts to be a missional means by which God may bring about both conversion to Christ and formation in Christ.”
Nicely phrased and succinct, but isn’t the ACNA a small group among the larger Anglican/ Episcopal community? Would the larger groups be in agreement with these statements, especially the Episcopal Church?
EricL,
This is the breakaway group that formed after the gay ordination issue split the Anglicans.
This is who Packer is affiliated with, thus these are the true Anglicans. 🙂
I don’t want to start anything – so I just say this in a joking way.
Isn’t it funny that the true Anglicans are the ones who did not dialogue – but booted the homosexuals to the curb? 🙂
MLD,
No, you want to start something and you rejoice even more if it might look like my revered Dr. Packer and I are on different sides of an issue.
We’re not….and in reality there was much dialog and every attempt to explain the position he took with clarity, but also with love.
He didn’t compromise and it cost him…but the way he did it was the way I want to do things as well.
I was actually joking, really, but… when you say much dialogue (because i have a meaning of dialogue) that there was on the table from Packer’s side a possibility of allowing in the homosexual agenda if a good enough case could be made?
I don’t think so – I think the dialogue must have been a repetitive No – No – No – No – No – No – from the Packer group.
MLD,
You are clueless in this matter…and I refuse to engage you anymore.
Well Packer called the Anglican bishops heretics for their acceptance of homosexuality – so I have a feeling (and remember, this is coming from a clueless person) that there was no chance, zero, nada that he was going to have discussion with LGBT groups about entering his new Anglican wing.
But you are right, we don’t need to engage.
Packer was right.
The difference is between how he expressed it.
He did so with humility, grace, love, and as a Gospel issue.
You are right – I need to spend more time reading Packer as I have never been able to develop the fine are of calling the bishops heretics with humility, grace, love, and as a Gospel issue. 🙂
“Packer was right.
The difference is between how he expressed it.
He did so with humility, grace, love, and as a Gospel issue.”
Excellent!