heavenly Father, not so much as a hair may fall from my head, yea, all things must serve for my salvation. Wherefore by His Spirit He also assureth me of everlasting life, and maketh me ready and willing that henceforth I may live to Him.”
The second question gives a lucid division of personal and practical religious truth:
Quest. 2. “How many things are necessary for thee to know that thou, enjoying this consolation, mayest live and die happily? — Ans. Three — the first, what is the greatness of my sin and misery; the second, how I am redeemed from all sin and misery; the third, what thanks I owe unto God for this redemption.”
The Catechism is divided into three portions accordingly. The first portion concludes with
Quest, 11. “Is not God merciful? — Ans. Yes, verily He is merciful, but so that He is also just. Wherefore His justice requireth that the sin which is committed against the Divine Majesty of God should also be recompensed with extreme, that is, everlasting punishments both of body and soul.”
The following is the appropriate introduction to the second department:—
Quest. 12. “Is there yet any way or means remaining whereby we may be delivered from these punishments and be reconciled to God? — Ans. God will have His justice satisfied, wherefore it is necessary that we satisfy either by ourselves, or by another. Quest. 13. Are we able to satisfy for ourselves? — Ans. Not a whit. Nay, rather we do every day increase our debt.”
We pass on to
Quest. 21. “What is true faith? — Ans. It is not only a certain knowledge, whereby I surely assent to all things which God has revealed unto us in His word, but also an assured trust, kindled in my heart by the Holy Ghost through the Gospel, whereby I repose myself upon God, being assuredly persuaded that remission of sins, everlasting righteousness and life, is given not to others only, but even to me, and that freely through the mercy of God for the merit of Christ alone. Quest. 22. What then is necessary for a Christian to believe? — Ans. All that is promised in the Gospel, which the Articles of the Apostles' Creed, being the Catholic and undoubted Christian belief, teach us in one sum.”
Then follows a catechetical exposition of the Creed — which being completed, we have arrived at
Quest. 59. “But now what profit redoundeth thence unto thee that thou believest all this? — Ans. That I am righteous in Christ before God, and an heir of eternal life. Quest. 60. How art thou righteous before God? — Ans. Only by a true faith in Jesus Christ, insomuch that if my conscience accuse me, that I have grievously trespassed against all the Commandments of God, nor have kept any one of them, and moreover am still prone to all evil, nevertheless the full and perfect satisfaction, righteousness, and holiness of Christ is given and imputed to me without any merit of mine, of the mere mercy of God (if only I accept this boon with a true confidence of heart) even as if I had never committed any sin, or as if no spot at all did cleave unto me — yea, as if I myself had perfectly performed that obedience which Christ performed for me. Quest. 61. How affirmest thou that thou art made righteous by faith only? — Ans. Not that I please God through the worthiness of my faith; but only because the satisfaction, righteousness, and holiness of Christ is my righteousness in God’s presence, and I cannot take hold of this righteousness, or apply it unto myself in any other way than by faith.”
This second department winds up with the Sacraments, and good specimens of Protestant definitions are supplied by Questions 67 and 80.
Quest. 67. “Do not then both the word and sacraments tend to this end — to lead our faith to the sacrifice of Christ finished on the Cross as to the only ground of our salvation? — Ans. It is even so. For the Holy Ghost teacheth us by the Gospel, and assureth us by the Sacraments, that all our salvation standeth in that only sacrifice of Christ offered up for us on the Cross. Quest. 80. What difference is there betwixt the Lord’s Supper and the Popish mass? — Ans. The Lord’s Supper testifieth unto us that we have perfect remission of all sins, for the sake of that only sacrifice of Christ, which Himself once fully performed on the Cross — also, that we by the Holy Ghost arc ergrafted into Christ, who now according to his human nature is not on earth but only in heaven at the right hand of His Father, and will have our worship addressed to Him there. But in the Mass it is denied that the quick and dead have remission of sins for the only Passion of Christ, except Christ be still daily offered on their behalf by the Mass Priests; it is also further taught, that Christ is bodily under the species of bread and wine, and ought therefore to be worshipped in them. And so the very foundation of the Mass is nothing else but an utter denying of that only sacrifice and passion of Christ Jesus, and is accursed idolatry.”
