Introducing the Learner Guide for Adults and Children (The Lordship Catechism, Part 4)
Series: The Lordship Catechism (Part 4)
Authors: Drs. John M. Frame and Steven L. Childers
Title: Introducing the Learner Guide for Adults and Children
Question: Who is God?
Answer: God is LORD, the one and only Creator, Redeemer, and Restorer of all things visible and invisible.
Scripture Verses for Bible Memory Work and Study
“I am the LORD … and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the LORD your God.” (Exod. 6:6-7)
“The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.” (Deut. 6:4-5)
“God has made him [Jesus] both Lord and Christ.” (Acts 2:36)
“If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Rom. 10:9)
Mind for Truth
When God appeared to Moses in a burning bush, Moses asked God to tell him his name so he could know who God is and what he is like.
God told Moses his personal name when he said, “I am the LORD” (Exod. 6:6). The way we say God’s special name that he gave to Moses in his language sounds like “Yahweh.” But the way we usually say God’s special name today in our language is to call God LORD.
In the New Testament we learn that God gives his special name “Lord” to his Son Jesus Christ. (Acts 2:36, Rom. 10:9)
Throughout the Bible God reveals who he is and what he does as LORD so we can know him, love him, and honor him as LORD. And God is LORD over everything, but there are three specific ways that God reveals who he is and what he does as LORD.
First, God reveals himself as LORD of Creation. The LORD is the one and only God who created all things that are visible and invisible, and who is now sustaining and ruling over all things he created so that his kingdom paradise will come on the earth forever.
God also reveals himself as LORD of Redemption. The LORD is the one and only God who redeems his fallen people and creation from their captivity to evil that entered the world through Satan when he enticed humanity to sin. Through God’s crucified and risen Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, God is redeeming his fallen people and creation from all their bondage to evil and sin.
Lastly, God reveals himself as LORD of Restoration. The LORD is the one and only God who is restoring his fallen and redeemed humanity and creation by the transforming presence and power of his Holy Spirit. By his Spirit, God is already restoring his people to himself by giving them a new heart and a new birth. And at the return of Jesus, God promises to fully restore all things lost in humanity and creation so that all things will flourish under his rule as LORD forever.
Heart for God
The Bible teaches us to know, love, and honor God as our Triune Lord for:
1) who he is as the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and for
2) what he does as the Creator, Redeemer, and Restorer of us and all things.
Prayer:
Praying to God the Father as Lord of Creation
Praise the Father for his amazing plan and for his beautiful creation of everything visible and invisible to be part of his plan for the world.
Praying to God the Son as Lord of Redemption
Praise Jesus, God’s Son, for his birth, life, death, resurrection, and ascension back to heaven so we can be forgiven and accepted by God.
Praying to God the Spirit as Lord of Restoration
Praise the Holy Spirit for living inside us and giving us a new heart with new desires so we can be restored to be more like Jesus and so the whole world can also be restored.
Hymn: At the Name of Jesus
At the Name of Jesus
Ev'ry knee shall bow,
Every tongue confess him
King of Glory now.
'Tis the Father's pleasure
We should call him Lord,
Who from the beginning
Was the mighty word.
Creation
At his voice creation
Sprang at once to sight,
All the angel faces,
All the hosts of light,
Thrones and dominations,
Stars upon their way,
All the heav'nly orders
In their great array.
Redemption
Humbled for a season
To receive a name
From the lips of sinners
Unto whom he came,
Faithfully he bore it
Spotless to the last,
Brought it back victorious,
When from death he passed.
Restoration
In your hearts enthrone him;
There let him subdue
All that is not holy,
All that is not true:
Crown him as your Captain
In temptation's hour:
Let his will enfold you
In its light and pow'r.
Brothers, this Lord Jesus
Shall return again,
With his Father's glory,
With his angel train;
For all wreaths of empire
Meet upon his brow,
And our hearts confess him
King of Glory now.
Life for Ministry
In the Bible, God reveals that he is Lord over everything. As Lord, God the Father is our Creator who made everything. After Adam and Eve sinned, God the Father sent Jesus, his only Son, to be our Redeemer so we can be forgiven and know God as Lord. And God sent the Holy Spirit to be our Restorer so we can know, love, and honor God as Lord with our whole heart.
Believing the Lord of Creation with our Minds (The Lyrics)
One way we can know, love, and honor God the Father as our Creator is by what we believe. There are a lot of lies that people believe about who God is, what God does, and what is right and wrong. When God created everything, he designed the way the world and humans are supposed to live and he revealed to us what is right and wrong. We honor God the Father as our Creator by believing that his word revealed to us in the Bible is true.
Obeying the Lord of Redemption with our Lives (The Dance)
We can know, love, and honor God the Son as our Redeemer by how we live. There are a lot of wrong ways that people live. Through Jesus as our Redeemer, God forgives us for all the wrong ways that we live and he shows us the right ways we should live. We honor Jesus the Son as our Redeemer by obeying his will revealed to us in God’s Word, the Bible.
Worshiping the Lord of Restoration with our Hearts (The Music)
We can know, love, and honor God the Spirit as our Restorer by what we love. There are a lot of things that people love and enjoy more than God. Through God’s Holy Spirit, he gives us new hearts with new desires to love and enjoy him above everything else in the world. We honor the Holy Spirit as our Restorer by worshiping and enjoying God as Lord above everything.