Heidelberg Catechism Archives - Understand the Bible

Baptism pt 2 – baptising infants (Heidelberg 27)

Posted on 1st February 20211st February 2021 by Phill Sacre

We continue thinking about baptism in this session (following on from the previous session) and there are two important questions: (1) does baptism just work in and of itself, and (2) should we baptise infants?

The question of baptising infants is something which churches do not agree on today. At the time of the Reformation (when the Heidelberg Catechism was written), it was the practice of Reformed churches such as the Church of England to retain this practice. In this session we’ll take a brief overview of why the Reformers believed this was right. I do not wish to be divisive! But it can be helpful to look at other perspectives and remember that Christians may disagree on certain things without it being an issue of critical importance.

There are three questions in this session:

Q72: Does this outward washing with water itself wash away sin?
Q73: Why then does the Holy Spirit call baptism the washing of regeneration and the washing away of sin?
Q74: Should infants, too, be baptised?

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If you enjoy this, you can do the whole series right here on the website, or on the app (see links on the right hand side of the page). Alternatively, I am uploading them regularly to YouTube and Facebook. All sessions on YouTube are available on this playlist.

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What is baptism? (Heidelberg 26)

Posted on 25th January 2021 by Phill Sacre

In this session we start looking at baptism – what baptism represents and how it links in with the gospel. Baptism is one of the sacraments, which we started looking at last time. In that session we started to think about how the sacraments have been given to help us understand the gospel. This is exactly what baptism is about.

There are three questions in this session:

Q69: How does baptism signify and seal to you that the one sacrifice of Christ on the cross benefits you?
Q70: What does it mean to be washed with Christ’s blood and Spirit?
Q71: Where has Christ promised that he will wash us with his blood and Spirit as surely as we are washed with the water of baptism?

This last question gets to the heart of a sacrament: it reminds us that the spiritual cleansing from sin offered in Christ is as real as taking a bath or shower! Jesus cleanses us truly on the inside, as surely as water cleanses us on the outside.

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What are Sacraments? (Heidelberg 25)

Posted on 18th January 2021 by Phill Sacre

What are the sacraments and why are they important for Christians? In this session we start to look at the sacraments and how God uses them to help us to understand the gospel.

There are four questions in this session:

Q65 – Since faith alone makes us share in Christ and all his benefits, where does this faith come from? (In other words, is even faith itself something which is to our own credit?)
Q66 – What are the sacraments?
Q67 – Are both the Word and the sacraments then intended to focus our faith on the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross as the only ground of our salvation?
Q68 – How many sacraments has Christ instituted in the new covenant?

This last question is one where particularly Roman Catholics and protestants will disagree. Protestant churches believe there are only two sacraments. It’s no surprise that the Heidelberg Catechism, being a Reformed / protestant catechism, takes this line.

The sacraments were one of the key battle grounds in the middle ages between Catholic and protestant theology, and it’s important to understand what they are and why they’re important. I hope that the Heidelberg Catechism in looking at the sacraments warms your heart and enlivens your faith as you think through these things.

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Why are good deeds not enough? (Heidelberg 24)

Posted on 11th January 2021 by Phill Sacre

Having heard that we are made right with God through faith alone, in this session we think about two questions people often ask: why can we not please God through good works? And if our good works don’t earn anything – doesn’t that mean we can just do what we like?

This is such an important issue to be thinking about. If good works don’t earn anything with God, does that just mean we can act however we like? It’s a good question, and it’s one which a lot of people ask.

The Heidelberg breaks it down into three questions:

Q62 “Why can our good works not be our righteousness before God, or at least a part of it?”
Q63 “But do our good works earn nothing, even though God promises to reward them in this life and the next?”
Q64 “Does this teaching not make people careless and wicked?”

I think that final question is the one which people ask – if our good works don’t earn anything, why not just do whatever you like? Why not just live any way you choose? What does the Bible have to say to that question…

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Faith Alone (Heidelberg 23)

Posted on 4th January 2021 by Phill Sacre

In this session we are looking at one of the most fundamental doctrines of the Christian faith – that we are right with God (or “justified”) by faith alone. Not through the good works that we do or by earning in any way.

This is really taking the things we’ve looked at over the past few weeks (the Apostle’s Creed) and asking, “Why is it important to believe all of this? And how do we benefit from it?”

There are three questions in this Lord’s Day:

Q59 “But what does it help you now that you believe all this?”
Q60 “How are you righteous before God?”
Q61 “Why do you say that you are righteous only by faith?”

“Faith alone” is one of the most important topics that Christians can think about – it makes a huge difference to the Christian life. It’s hard to overstate how important it is.

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Eternal Life (Heidelberg 22)

Posted on 21st December 202021st December 2020 by Phill Sacre

In this session we finish off looking at the Apostle’s Creed: what does eternal life look like, and what comfort should we take from it?

There are two questions in this session. They’re based on the final lines of the Apostles’ Creed, “I believe in the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting”.

Q57 “What comfort does the resurrection of the body offer you?”
Q58 “What comfort do you receive from the article about the life everlasting?”

A lot of people have questions about what eternal life / heaven looks like. The Bible doesn’t tell us everything we want to know – yet at the same time, there are things we can know. And it’s not about floating around in the clouds with a harp!

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The Church and Forgiveness (Heidelberg 21)

Posted on 14th December 2020 by Phill Sacre

In this session we take a closer look at the church – what is the church, and what does it mean for us to be part of it? We also think about forgiveness of sins and how struggling can be a good sign in the Christian life…

There are three questions in this session, focussing on the lines in the Apostles’ creed: “I believe in the Holy Catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins”. These are the main things we look at:

Firstly – a note about the “Catholic” church. This just means ‘universal’ rather than the Roman Catholic church.
Q54: What do you believe concerning the holy catholic church? – what the church is, and what it means for us to be a member of it.
Q55: What do understand by the communion of saints? – how do we relate as Christians to other members of the church?
Q56: What do you believe concerning forgiveness of sins? – it feels a bit tacked on at the end but it’s fundamental! What is forgiveness in the Christian life, in summary?

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The Holy Spirit (Heidelberg 20)

Posted on 7th December 20207th December 2020 by Phill Sacre

What can we know about the Holy Spirit, and why does it matter to us as Christians? The Apostle’s Creed doesn’t have much detail about the Spirit but in this session we look at a few Bible verses which help introduce us to the work of the Spirit.

There is just one Q&A in this session, as the Apostles’ Creed only has the line: “I believe in the Holy Spirit”! But we look into it in a bit more detail, as it’s vital to understand the Holy Spirit in the Christian life.

We focus in on these points:

The Spirit is eternal God, along with the Father and the Son;
He has been given to us personally;
He makes us share in Christ and his blessings;
He comforts us;
He is with us forever.

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Our King and Judge (Heidelberg 19)

Posted on 23rd November 2020 by Phill Sacre

This is another topic most Christians don’t spend enough time thinking about: where is Christ now – and when will we next see him?

There are three questions in this session, focussing on the lines in the Apostles Creed:

he is seated at the right hand of the Father,
and he will come to judge the living and the dead.

The questions are:

Why is it added, “and sits at the right hand of God?”
How does the glory of Christ our head benefit us?
What comfort is it to you that Christ will come to judge the living and the dead?

Where did session 18 go? I posted session 18 up a few months ago as I recorded it on Ascension Day!

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Raised to new life (Heidelberg 17)

Posted on 16th November 2020 by Phill Sacre

In this session we look at the best news ever – the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. Why is it the best news? Let’s look into it!

There is only one question in this session: “How does Christ’s resurrection benefit us?” But there are three parts to the answer:

First, by his resurrection he has overcome death, so that he could make us share in the righteousness which he had obtained for us by his death.
Second, by his power we too are raised up to a new life.
Third, Christ’s resurrection is to us a sure pledge of our glorious resurrection.

The key thing is that the resurrection is not simply a future event, but something that makes a difference for our lives in the here and now.

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