Grace Church Sunday School

The only thing harder than finding the truth is not losing it once you have it. What was once fresh and precious becomes bland and stale. What was once an exciting discovery becomes mechanical. What once inspired sacrifice and passion in one generation becomes a source of rebellion and apathy in the next. Why do denominations and church movements almost always stray from their theological roots? Why do those who grew up in the church often express their beliefs less clearly than new Christians who come to Jesus at the age of forty-five? Why do those who were raised on creeds and confessions usually become the people who hate them the most?

Maybe it's because the truth is like the tip of your nose - it's so close to your eyes that you can hardly see it.

There is no doubt that the Western Church has much new to learn. But most of the time, what we need to learn is what we have forgotten. The main theological task facing the Western Church today is not innovation or relevance, but remembrance. We must remember the old story. We must remember the faith once delivered to the saints, and we must remember the truth that has fueled reformation, revival, and renewal.

On the surface, it may seem confusing that Christians and non-Christians alike need the gospel. We (Christians) do not need to be "saved" again from the gospel. We need the gospel to prevent us from falling into a performance-based mentality in our daily relationship with God. We need the gospel to remind us that we are still sinning sinners, and that our only hope for eternal life and present blessings from God is "the blood and righteousness of Jesus."

The Heidelberg Catechism, when properly reflected upon, will help us bring proper obedience to our lives through these concepts—our sinfulness, God’s grace, and our thankful response. Pastor DeYoung does an excellent job of showing us how these three concepts manifest in our daily lives.

Kevin DeYoung is a pastor of the Reformed Church in America, a denomination that grew out of the Dutch Reformed Church, and he writes from the perspective of that historic confessional tradition. Therefore, non-Reformed readers may disagree with some of the ideas in this book. However, do not let these few different ideas put you off. Overall, this is an exciting book that will be helpful to people of all theological convictions, as you will find in the reading. I recommend this book to you, as it will help all of us become better biblically grounded theologians.