This Weekend at VPC

Remember that Rev. Ron Horgan will be joining us this weekend.

First, we’ll have a church health workshop from 9AM to 12PM on Saturday. Lunch will follow.

Then, Ron will be with us again on Sunday to preach and serve communion, so come prepared! Remember Larger Catechism 171:

Q. 171. How are they that receive the sacrament of the Lord’s supper to prepare themselves before they come unto it?
A. They that receive the sacrament of the Lord’s supper are, before they come, to prepare themselves thereunto, by examining themselves of their being in Christ, of their sins and wants; of the truth and measure of their knowledge, faith, repentance; love to God and the brethren, charity to all men, forgiving those that have done them wrong; of their desires after Christ, and of their new obedience; and by renewing the exercise of these graces, by serious meditation, and fervent prayer.

If you want a little preview, here’s an interview Stated Clerk Dean Weaver did with Ron earlier this year:

Doctrine and Duty

Last week, we considered the sufficiency and authority of Scripture, and this leads us naturally to the next question in the Shorter Catechism:

Q. 3. What do the Scriptures principally teach?
A. The Scriptures principally teach what man is to believe concerning God, and what duty God requires of man.

Notice there are two parts. These two parts get all sorts of names: faith and life, doctrine and duty, dogma and devotion, etc. This two-part structure is how the Shorter Catechism itself is outlined. Questions 1-38 deal with doctrine, and questions 39-107 deal with duty. The same structure is used in the Larger Catechism and Confesssion of Faith as well. Also, a good sermon will engage these two parts, explaining the meaning of the text (doctrine) and giving application (duty). You can even find this in the Children’s Catechism:

Q. 4. How can you glorify God?
A. By loving him and doing what he commands.

But why are we using this division? Because it’s the same division Scripture uses! You find these two parts all over Scripture. If you look at the book of Romans, for example, chapters 1-11 deal with doctrine, and chapters 12-16 deal with practical application. The same structure is in several of Paul’s other letters.

But the clearest statement of this structure is found in 2 Timothy 3:16.

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.

We looked at the passage last time, but now, I want to hone in on these four things: teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness. If you pay attention, you’ll see the doctrine/duty pattern in these four. First, teaching and reproof are the positive and negative elements of doctrinal instruction. Along the same lines, correction and training are the negative and positive elements of instruction in duty. So this verse gives four things the Bible can say to us:

“Believe this” (teaching)
“Don’t believe that” (reproof)
“Don’t do that” (correction)
“Do this” (training in righteousness)

What all this means is that the Bible is where these two things meet. It’s where doctrine meets duty. Most people are wildly inconsistent. Our words don’t line up with our actions. One prime example of this is when politicians make a distinction between their private views and public views. But the Bible is perfectly consistent and calls us to the same consistency. Consider Romans again. The practical application in the last part of the book starts with a big “therefore” in 12:1. Why? Because our actions are supposed to be founded on our beliefs.

So that’s the journey on which the Shorter Catechism takes us, from belief to action.

Your friend in Christ,
Reid