Teaching the Gospel: Heart, Grace, and Community

 

Summary

In our discussion today, we delved into the profound task of conveying the Gospel to children, emphasizing the importance of addressing the heart and not just behavior. We explored how to present the concept of sin and grace in a way that resonates with young minds, highlighting the infinite offense of sin against a holy God and the incredible nature of His grace. This approach is not just about teaching morals but about nurturing a heart that understands and loves the Gospel. We also touched on the importance of integrating children into the life of the church, allowing them to experience the richness of worship and the community of believers from a young age.

We further examined the means of grace, discussing the Dutch Reformed tradition's emphasis on the preaching of the Word and the sacraments, while acknowledging the role of prayer in spiritual growth. This led to a reflection on the nature of grace itself, emphasizing that it is not a commodity but a means of drawing us closer to Christ.

The conversation also addressed the doctrine of hell and how to comfort believers troubled by it. We acknowledged the seriousness of hell and the need for a healthy fear of God, while also recognizing the assurance of salvation for those in Christ. This balance is crucial in pastoral care, where comfort is not always the immediate response, but sometimes a call to deeper reflection and repentance.

We explored the historical roots and ongoing relevance of Reformed theology, emphasizing its commitment to being re-formed by the Word of God. This tradition is not just a reaction against Catholic theology but a distinct way of reading Scripture that highlights God's sovereignty and the completeness of Christ's work.

Finally, we discussed the Ordo Salutis, the order of salvation, and its significance in understanding how God's grace is applied to sinners. This sequence, from foreknowledge to glorification, underscores the monergistic nature of regeneration and the necessity of faith and repentance as fruits of God's work in us.

Key Takeaways:

- Teaching the Gospel to children involves addressing the heart, not just behavior. It's about helping them understand the gravity of sin and the beauty of grace, fostering a love for the Gospel that goes beyond mere moral instruction. [02:32]

- The means of grace, particularly the preaching of the Word and sacraments, are external, objective ministries that draw us to Christ. Prayer, while subjective, is also a vital means of growing in grace, emphasizing the relational aspect of our faith. [08:34]

- The doctrine of hell is sobering and should instill a healthy fear of God. Comfort for believers comes from the assurance of salvation in Christ, but pastoral care sometimes requires allowing individuals to feel the weight of their sin before offering comfort. [16:49]

- Reformed theology is about being continually re-formed by the Word of God, emphasizing God's sovereignty and the sufficiency of Christ's work. It is a historical narrative that calls us to learn from the past and avoid the errors of individualism and novelty. [22:00]

- Understanding the Ordo Salutis helps us grasp how God's grace is applied to us, highlighting the monergistic nature of regeneration and the necessity of faith and repentance. This sequence ensures that the Gospel is not just an abstract concept but a transformative reality in our lives. [29:52]

Youtube Chapters:

- [00:00] - Welcome
- [00:27] - Introduction to the Panel
- [00:57] - Explaining the Gospel to Children
- [02:02] - Parenting with a Gospel Focus
- [03:31] - Challenges of Teaching Children
- [05:38] - Importance of Church for Children
- [07:00] - Means of Grace Discussion
- [09:17] - Understanding Grace
- [11:52] - Comforting Believers Troubled by Hell
- [14:20] - Preaching on Hell
- [17:58] - Reformed Theology's Purpose
- [21:23] - Historical Narrative of Reformed Theology
- [24:46] - The Ongoing Reformation
- [25:28] - Understanding the Ordo Salutis
- [29:52] - Application of Redemption

Study Guide

Bible Study Discussion Guide

Bible Reading:
1. Romans 8:29-30
2. Matthew 18:3-4
3. Ephesians 2:8-9

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Observation Questions:

1. How does the sermon suggest we should approach teaching the Gospel to children, and why is it important to address the heart rather than just behavior? [02:02]

2. What are the means of grace discussed in the sermon, and how do they differ in their application to believers? [08:34]

3. According to the sermon, what is the significance of the doctrine of hell, and how should it be addressed in pastoral care? [16:49]

4. How does the sermon describe the historical roots and ongoing relevance of Reformed theology? [22:00]

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Interpretation Questions:

1. In Romans 8:29-30, what does the sequence of foreknowledge, predestination, calling, justification, and glorification tell us about the nature of salvation? How does this relate to the sermon’s discussion on the Ordo Salutis? [26:35]

2. How does the sermon’s emphasis on addressing the heart in teaching children the Gospel align with Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 18:3-4 about becoming like little children to enter the kingdom of heaven? [02:32]

3. The sermon discusses the means of grace as external, objective ministries. How does this understanding impact the way believers should view their spiritual growth and relationship with Christ? [09:17]

4. How does the sermon’s discussion on the doctrine of hell challenge or affirm your understanding of God’s justice and mercy? [15:37]

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Application Questions:

1. Reflect on your approach to teaching or discussing the Gospel with children. How can you ensure that you are addressing their hearts and not just their behavior? What changes might you need to make in your approach? [02:02]

2. Consider the means of grace in your own spiritual life. How can you more intentionally engage with the preaching of the Word, sacraments, and prayer to grow closer to Christ? [08:34]

3. The sermon highlights the importance of a healthy fear of God in understanding the doctrine of hell. How does this perspective influence your view of sin and repentance in your own life? [16:49]

4. Reformed theology emphasizes being continually re-formed by the Word of God. How can you incorporate this principle into your daily Bible study and spiritual practices? [22:00]

5. The sermon discusses the assurance of salvation for those in Christ. How can you find comfort in this assurance, especially when faced with doubts or fears about your faith? [13:07]

6. Reflect on the historical narrative of Reformed theology and its emphasis on learning from the past. How can you apply this understanding to avoid the errors of individualism and novelty in your faith journey? [22:30]

7. The sermon discusses the transformative reality of the Gospel in our lives. Identify one area of your life where you need to experience this transformation and consider practical steps you can take to allow God’s grace to work in that area. [29:52]

Devotional

Day 1: Nurturing a Heart for the Gospel
Teaching the Gospel to children is not merely about instilling moral behavior but about reaching their hearts with the profound truths of sin and grace. It involves helping them understand the gravity of sin as an infinite offense against a holy God and the beauty of grace as an incredible gift. This approach fosters a love for the Gospel that transcends mere moral instruction, encouraging children to develop a genuine relationship with God. By integrating children into the life of the church, they can experience the richness of worship and the community of believers, which reinforces their understanding and love for the Gospel. [02:32]

"And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise." (Deuteronomy 6:6-7, ESV)

Reflection: How can you intentionally incorporate discussions about sin and grace into your daily interactions with the children in your life?


Day 2: The Means of Grace as Pathways to Christ
The means of grace, particularly the preaching of the Word and sacraments, serve as external, objective ministries that draw believers closer to Christ. These practices are not merely rituals but are vital for spiritual growth, emphasizing the relational aspect of faith. Prayer, while subjective, is also a crucial means of growing in grace, allowing believers to communicate with God and deepen their relationship with Him. Understanding these means of grace helps believers appreciate the ways God draws them into a closer relationship with Himself. [08:34]

"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God." (Colossians 3:16, ESV)

Reflection: In what ways can you more fully engage with the means of grace in your daily life to deepen your relationship with Christ?


Day 3: Balancing Fear and Comfort in the Doctrine of Hell
The doctrine of hell is a sobering reality that should instill a healthy fear of God. It is important to recognize the seriousness of hell while also finding comfort in the assurance of salvation for those in Christ. Pastoral care sometimes requires allowing individuals to feel the weight of their sin before offering comfort, encouraging deeper reflection and repentance. This balance is crucial in helping believers understand the gravity of sin and the incredible gift of salvation. [16:49]

"Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others. But what we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience." (2 Corinthians 5:11, ESV)

Reflection: How can you cultivate a healthy fear of God that leads to a deeper appreciation for the assurance of salvation in Christ?


Day 4: Reformed Theology and the Call to Be Re-formed
Reformed theology emphasizes the importance of being continually re-formed by the Word of God. It is not merely a reaction against other theological traditions but a distinct way of reading Scripture that highlights God's sovereignty and the sufficiency of Christ's work. This tradition calls believers to learn from the past and avoid the errors of individualism and novelty, encouraging a commitment to the historical roots and ongoing relevance of Reformed theology. [22:00]

"Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." (Romans 12:2, ESV)

Reflection: In what ways can you allow the Word of God to continually re-form your understanding and practice of faith?


Day 5: Understanding the Ordo Salutis and the Application of Grace
The Ordo Salutis, or order of salvation, provides a framework for understanding how God's grace is applied to sinners. This sequence, from foreknowledge to glorification, underscores the monergistic nature of regeneration and the necessity of faith and repentance as fruits of God's work in believers. Understanding the Ordo Salutis ensures that the Gospel is not just an abstract concept but a transformative reality in the lives of believers, highlighting the comprehensive nature of God's redemptive work. [29:52]

"And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified." (Romans 8:30, ESV)

Reflection: How does understanding the Ordo Salutis deepen your appreciation for the transformative work of God's grace in your life?

Quotes

I have selected 12 quotes from the transcript that align with the key takeaways provided. Here they are:

"I love them very much and I want to help them see, not simply that they do wrong, but that their sin offends a Holy God, as we have talked about in this conference, and so it is thus an infinite offence against God. It is not simply a matter of them getting their Ps and Qs right with their mother and me, day to day, but this is a matter of the heart." [00:01:24]

"So, in other words, we are trying to approach parenting as if it is a heart issue, but then also make sure that they do understand what proper behavior is. So if I am setting this conversation in the context of their sin, of a great God who is justly offended, infinitely offended, by sin, I then have the door wide open to show them the glories of the God-man and the incredible nature of His Grace, and I am praying for them every day that they will take this to heart and love it." [00:02:03]

"I think we vastly under-estimate what children are able to process and learn, particularly a 10-year-old – a 5-year-old is another matter – but I think, if memory serves me right, my younger son at the age of about 7 or 8 came out of a catechism sermon on the justification and said it was like God reached out and touched me. It was not a children’s sermon, so I think, as Luther said, we never know when the Holy Spirit is going to do His work, so we must not skip even the most poor of sermons." [00:05:44]

"Speaking definitively, from the Dutch Reformed tradition, there are two means of Grace – the preaching of the Word and the sacraments of the church. Now there will be Presbyterians who will suggest that there is a third means of Grace, namely prayer. And they mean well by that. And certainly, we are agreed that prayer is gracious in the life of a Christian and so we don’t actually have to separate over this point." [00:07:08]

"Sometimes we can speak of the means of Grace as though somehow it suggests that grace is a commodity, a thing, that can be transferred, and it’s almost subtly Roman Catholic although it’s got evangelical terminology, but it’s almost like a medieval Roman Catholic – I can hear Sinclair Ferguson in my ears when he said famously, at a Ligonier Conference I think – there’s no such thing as Grace, that Grace isn’t a thing that you can convey physically and tangibly through some means, there’s only Christ." [00:09:18]

"There should be the fear of God within us as we consider the subject of hell, and RC has said, ‘if we really concentrated on hell for more than five minutes, we would go crazy.’ So it is a very serious and sobering subject that we do not take lightly. I would need to more about the question and the questioner so I would have to ask follow-up questions because that is still so broad and generic to understand the intent of the question and what they are expressing." [00:11:53]

"Of course they should be comforted from the fact that ‘there is now therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus’ and it may well be that they are simply not well taught doctrinally and theologically, is one possibility. The second may be that – I can’t remember the question – whether they genuinely have a true assurance of their salvation, if there is some lingering doubt, then I could understand that they would still be uncomfortable with the subject if this is not sealed to their heart yet." [00:12:45]

"Reformed theology has a narrative, a very distinct narrative, going back to Augustine. Therefore the shape of these doctrines have a trajectory through history and we are doomed to repeat the errors of history if we don’t know them. So Reformed Theology is a way of expressing, perhaps the importance of a historical narrative, and I wonder if you wanted to comment on that in the wake, say, of a postmodern view of history that sometimes infiltrates the church?" [00:21:23]

"Reformed theology calls us to recognize that there is no salvation in and of ourselves, it is extra nos, it is outside of us. And so there is this sense in which, in terms of Catholicism and Islam and Mormonism and even just do-it-yourself American pragmatism, the Reformation continues and it requires this generation, my generation frankly, to take up the torch and continue boldly preaching the Word, even as preachers 500 years ago began to do so, preaching Book by Book and verse by verse." [00:24:46]

"It is the sequence by which God applies His grace to a sinner beginning with God’s initiative in eternity past in bringing about the reality of regeneration and applying the merits of Christ, and it can be any number, depending upon the one who is answering it, of how many sub-categories that there are." [00:25:28]

"So in Romans 8:29,30 you have an embryonic Ordo Salutis. Now the various strands of the Ordo Salutis that you can pull out and sort of identify are effectual calling, regeneration, faith, repentance, adoption, justification, sanctification. We can talk about two parts of sanctification: positional and progressive. Perseverance and so on. So you can identify these." [00:27:28]

"So I see it as an extremely useful tool in ensuring that the Gospel isn’t just something that’s up there and something objective, but it must touch my heart and soul, it must impact me, so that which Christ has achieved on the cross must, in some way, be applied to me as an individual according to a certain trajectory from God’s foreknowledge and predestination to His effectual call to my final glorification." [00:30:28]

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Transcript
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