1. Why did God create us?

All the nations you have made shall come and worship before you, O Lord, and shall glorify your name. For you are great and do wondrous things; you alone are God. — Psalm 86:9, 10*

Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. — Psalm 37:4

We were created to love God and be loved by him, all for his glory. This is good, for only he is worthy of our worship, and only he is able to satisfy our souls.

2. How did God create the world?

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth . . . God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. — Genesis 1:1, 31

. . . the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature. — Genesis 2:7

The world was created in the space of six days, all very good. We were created from the dust of the ground, male and female, in the likeness of God. Adam and Eve were the original human couple, our first parents.

3. What is God?

To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen. — 1 Timothy 1:17

God is the creator and ruler of everything. He is infinite, eternal and unchangeable in his knowledge and wisdom, goodness and glory, power and authority, holiness and justice. There is only one God and no other.

4. How has God revealed Himself to us?

For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. — Romans 1:20

. . . the sacred writings . . . are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God . . . — 2 Timothy 3:15, 16

The works of God in nature, and our being made in the likeness of God, clearly reveal the goodness, wisdom and power of God, leaving us without excuse. However, only by the Word of God, and by the help of his Holy Spirit, can we effectively find the way of salvation.

5. What is the Word of God?

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. — Psalm 119:105

Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. — Matthew 4:4

The Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, commonly known as the Bible, are the Word of God. The Bible instructs us as to how we ought to live to glorify God.

6. How can we glorify God?

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. — Deuteronomy 6:5

If you love me, you will keep my commandments. — John 14:15

We glorify God by delighting in him and obeying his law.

7. What is the law of God?

The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple . . . Moreover, by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward. — Psalm 19:7, 11

The law of God is his perfect rule of righteousness, to be obeyed by us completely. That which is good is commanded, and that which is evil is forbidden. Life is promised upon our perfect fulfilment of the law; death is threatened upon the breach of it. The law is outlined in the Ten Commandments.

8. What are the Ten Commandments?

And he declared to you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, that is, the Ten Commandments, and he wrote them on two tablets of stone. — Deuteronomy 4:13

You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make or worship any type of idol. You shall not use the name of God in vain. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Honour your father and mother. You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not give false testimony. You shall not covet.

9. What is the sum of the law of God?

And [Jesus] said to him, “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 a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” — Matthew 22:37-40

The sum of the law of God is that we love him completely, and that we love our neighbour as ourselves.

10. Are we able to keep the law of God perfectly?

Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins. — Ecclesiastes 7:20

. . . out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person. — Mark 7:21-23

We are not able to keep the law of God perfectly, but are sinners who break it daily in thought, word and deed. When Adam committed the first sin, as our representative, he broke covenant with God on our behalf, so that we fell in him. Therefore, having been born in sin, we sin continually.

11. What is sin?

Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. — 1 John 3:4

Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. — Galatians 5:19-21

Sin is disobedience to the law of God in thought, word or deed.

12. What was the first sin?

The Lord God took [Adam] and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” . . . when [Eve] saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes . . . she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to [Adam] who was with her, and he ate. — Genesis 2:15; 3:6

The first sin was the eating of the forbidden fruit by our first parents.

13. What is the penalty of sin?

Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned. — Romans 5:12

The penalty of sin is death, curse and misery, executed by God for this life and forever in the next, in Hell. The wrath of God justly falls upon sinners, for God is a perfect and righteous judge, and all sin is unspeakably criminal against God.

14. What is Hell?

. . . In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. — Matthew 13:50

. . . Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire. — Jude 1:7

Hell is the place of tremendous suffering and anguish that God has reserved for sinners, for their eternal punishment.

15. What hope is there of escaping the penalty of sin?

For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ. Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous. — Romans 5:17-19

Just as death came into the world because of the sin of one man, so has life come into the world because of the righteousness of another man, Jesus Christ, the hope of humanity.

16. Who is Jesus?

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made . . . And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. — John 1:1-3, 14

Jesus is the only eternal Son of God. Jesus became a man by being born of a virgin. He is, and will forever remain, truly God and truly human.

17. Why did Jesus become human?

Christ Jesus . . . though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. — Philippians 2:5-8

Jesus became human that he may perfectly fulfil the requirements of the law on behalf of many sinners. By living a life of perfect righteousness, Jesus attained the promise of life reserved for perfect obedience.

18. Why did Jesus die?

[Jesus] himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness . . . Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God . . . — 1 Peter 2:24; 3:18

Jesus died to completely pay the penalty of sin on behalf of many sinners. By dying the death of a criminal on the cross, Jesus abolished the threat of death reserved for disobedience.

19. Why did Jesus come back to life on the third day?

But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. — 1 Corinthians 15:20-22

Jesus raised himself from the dead, by his own power, to declare victory over death. He proved himself to be truly the Son of God, and to have satisfied divine justice.

20. Where is Jesus now?

But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. — Hebrews 10:12, 13

Jesus is seated on his throne in Heaven above, ruling over all the earth, and interceding for many sinners, and will continue to do so until Judgement Day.

21. What is Judgement Day?

Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it . . . And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done . . . And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire. — Revelation 20:11, 12, 15

Judgement Day is the time God has appointed to raise the dead and judge all of us in accordance with the law of God. Each and every person found to have violated the law will be cast into Hell to experience the wrath of God for all eternity. No enemy of God will escape their due sentence, to the praise of his glorious justice.

22. Who will be found innocent on Judgement Day?

For our sake [God] made him [Jesus] to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. — 2 Corinthians 5:21

In [Jesus] we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace . . . — Ephesians 1:7

No one will be found innocent on Judgement Day on the account of their own works. However, all sinners to whom the righteousness of Jesus has been applied will be declared by God to be innocent, to the praise of his glorious grace.

23. How can we have the righteousness of Jesus applied to us?

And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. — Joel 2:32

For 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

We can have the righteousness of Jesus applied to us by repenting of our sins and placing our faith in him as Lord and Saviour, for the forgiveness of our sins. Genuine faith accepts, receives and rests upon Jesus alone for our complete salvation, by virtue of his life, death and resurrection. Upon placing our faith in Jesus, we are granted the indwelling of his Holy Spirit, who seals for us the promises of God.

24. How then should we live?

So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. — 1 Corinthians 10:31

Upon being reconciled to God by faith, we should strive to live for his glory. We should regularly study the Bible to better know God and his will for us. We should join an evangelical and reformed church, that we may partake in those things that will strengthen our faith and joy, including teaching and preaching, prayer and praise, baptism and communion, fellowship and encouragement.