Scripture Proofs
All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. (2 Tim. 3:16, 17)
But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. (John 20:31)
But this I confess to you, that according to the Way, which they call a sect, I worship the God of our fathers, believing everything laid down by the Law and written in the Prophets. (Acts 24:14)
Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come. (1 Cor. 10:11)
The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. (Eccl. 12:13)
Since we are called and commanded to make use of the Scriptures, it's important to know what the Bible teaches. The answer to today's question is obviously far from a full doctrinal statement; for that, we'd have to go to a book of systematic theology, or a confession of faith. This question only seeks to answer what the primary topics of the Bible are: "What man is to believe concerning God and what duty God requires of man."
So what is man to believe concerning God? We are to "believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God," the reason being so that we "may have life in his name" (John 20:31). This idea of having life in Christ is prevalent throughout Scripture. John wrote 1 John "that you may know that you have eternal life" (5:13). That famous verse, John 3:16, says that "whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." Jesus "came that they may have life and have it abundantly" (John 10:10). This belief also results in other great blessing. Acts 10:43 says that "all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name." 1 Corinthians 6:11 says, "You were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God." So ultimately, we are to believe that Jesus is Christ who died for us to redeem us. This is the Gospel, the most important thing, the news on which all of Scripture rests.
So what is the duty that God requires of man? The best summary I see right now is "Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man" (Eccl. 12:13). That's it. Later on in the catechism we'll get to the Ten Commandments and what they teach, which I think will be very enlightening. But for now, let us remember that Jesus summed up all the commandments with these two: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And the second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets" (Matt. 22:37-40).
God has also given us examples of what happens to those who do not fear him and keep his commandments. The original people of Israel, those whom God has personally rescued out of slavery in Egypt, "desire[d] evil" (1 Cor. 10:6). As a result, "with most of them God was not pleased" (v. 5) and "they were destroyed by serpents" (v. 9) and "the Destroyer" (v. 10). Paul ends by saying, "Now these things happened to them as an example, but they were written down for our instruction, on whom the end of the ages has come" (v. 11). Ultimately, those who disobey God will meet his justice at the end of the age, and the things that happened to Israel serve as a precursor and a warning to us today. So we should be very serious about keeping his commandments. Like Paul, we should "worship the God of our fathers, believing everything laid down by the Law and written in the Prophets" (Acts 24:14), for this is what Scripture commands of us.
Thankfully, though, God's Word also serves as a training manual for us so we can keep his commandments; the Bible is "profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work" (2 Tim. 3:16, 17). God has given us his commands and told us how to fulfill them. In addition, the Spirit of God works in us to sanctify us more and more so we can follow his commandments more and more. God has not left us to our own devices, and we should be thankful for that; on our own, we cannot follow him. The natural man is too evil. "For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed" (John 3:20). But thankfully, "he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ" (Phil. 1:6) and we can be confident in the light.
This is Scripture's primary teaching: Jesus is God, and we must keep his commandments. It seems pretty simple, if you ask me.
To read the full catechism, click here.
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