Church, Catechize Your People

Question: “How many Persons are there in God?”

Answer: “There are three Persons in One God. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” 

Those are the lyrics to the most popular catechism song among the children of Northside Neighborhood Church (EFCA), the church that I pastor. Through catechism, the children of our church are learning about the Lord who created them and promises to redeem all who turn to Him. This education into the basics of the Christian faith is a prerequisite for the work of living justly. 

Often people do not see the connection between sound theology and justice; yet, a pursuit of justice without sound theology is rarely just. 

Last Monday during morning prayer, a sister in our church asked God to lead the youth to know him, “Because they are the future and how can they lead us if they don’t know You?”

In the last several years of living and ministering on the Northside of Minneapolis, I have seen firsthand the destruction that comes from the ideas of good-intentioned people who do not have a handle on the basic teachings of God’s Word. 

I have seen fentanyl addictions subsidized by charities that have no commitment to helping the whole person; I have seen abusers set free to continue terrorizing their victims by judges and prosecutors who have a wrong understanding of sinful nature; I have seen youth from mixed-ethnicity families dishonor their parents after drinking from the poisoned well of modern prejudice.   

Sadly, there are Christians who have promoted many of these supposedly “just” actions and ideas. 

We must train up solid biblical thinkers, and one way to do that is through a formal catechism class. Catechism is not an end in itself. Catechism is a mechanism used to transform minds by God’s Word so people can grow to seek God’s ways in God’s world.  

What do I mean by catechism?

When I use the word “catechism,” I am simply talking about the transmission of the basics of the Christian faith to new and young believers—often done formally, through a class, a book or both. 

As descendants of the Reader Movement, we can sometimes fear a word like “catechism” due to its formality and rigor. Many churches long ago dumped formal catechism classes because they were viewed as lifeless.

The classes might have been lifeless, but that is not the fault of catechism. “Formal” and “lifeless” are not synonyms. 

Currently, children in the church I pastor are being blessed by the New City Catechism, which teaches the basics of the Christian faith through 52 questions and answers. 

There are a number of resources for sound catechism to choose from. Whatever resource is used, it is imperative that churches and families take great care to pass on the faith to children and young believers. 

Believers must understand the basic storyline of Scripture because the gospel that is preached through this storyline is where we find our hope and our future.

Let me give an example of a way to break down the storyline of Scripture: 

Creation: God is the Creator of heaven and earth. Humans were His most precious creation. 

Fall: The first humans turned against God. The result of this decision to sin was chaos and death, which continues to this day.

Redemption: The Son took on flesh and lived a perfect life, died a substitutionary death, rose from the grave and now reigns as King.  

Restoration: The Son will return to defeat His enemies and unite all things in heaven and on earth. 

A catechized framework of poverty alleviation

Article 8 of our Statement of Faith includes a call to show compassion toward the poor. In my experience, most Christians want to be part of this work. The question, though, is how do we best help a person become free from poverty. 

Imagine there is an able-bodied man named Jim who is experiencing poverty. Jim wants help, and there is a well-catechized person who wants to help Jim. The well-catechized person will know several things about creation and the Fall (the first two items on the catechism framework) that equips them to help Jim without hurting Jim: 

Creation—Dignity

The well-catechized person knows that Jim is made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27), and because of this, the well-catechized person will view Jim’s inherent dignity as a fellow human and not as a pet-project. 

Creation—Work

The well-catechized person will know that work is not a four letter word (well, you know what I mean). Work is a good gift from God (Genesis 1:26). If Jim is not working, the well-catechized person will help Jim eliminate obstacles that are coming between himself and the workforce (not having an address for his job applications; not having clothes suitable for a job interview; not having transportation).

Creation—Stewardship

The well-catechized person will know that, as an image bearer of God, Jim has been entrusted with the vocation of stewarding the resources God has entrusted to him (Genesis 1:29-30). If Jim is wasting his resources on amoral yet foolish places, the well-catechized person can point that out (check cashing services that charge an arm and a leg to get your own money). 

If Jim is wasting his money on sinful vices, like drugs or gambling, the well-catechized person can show Jim that it is a holy calling to wisely manage God’s money.

A real interruption

I was interrupted by my nextdoor neighbor immediately after finishing the previous sentence. He asked me to come outside to see my blue car that he finished detailing. He asked if he could do it for free and use it for an online ad for the detailing business he started last month. (An easy offer for me to accept!) 

Fifty-three weeks ago, this brother was released from prison. He moved to Minneapolis and started coming to our church after we met in late June of last year. When we first met, we assisted him in some basic things he needed, but he wasn’t looking to live on a diet of handouts. 

A few months ago, he told me that he was receiving a tax return. Too often, tax returns are seen as “free money” and blown on substances and casinos. This brother chose a better way. 

After months of being discipled, this brother knew he could approach me about stewardship. On this day we worked out a vision statement for his life: “I want to be the head of a holy, healthy and happy household.” Working from this vision statement, we broke down the areas that would help him get to where he wanted to be. This included his wise decision to pay off some debt and invest in detailing supplies so that he could start his side business. 

If you drive down on our block, do not be surprised to see him detailing a car as worship music plays loudly through his speaker. 

Conclusion

To best help people, we need to know the God who made people in His image. We need to know His Word, a lamp unto our feet in this dark world (Ps. 119:105). 

When we apply God’s wisdom to the world’s pain, people will see our good works and glorify our Heavenly Father (Matt. 5:16). 

To be wise justice-seekers, we must be trained in the truth. When people are trained in God's truth, our churches will be prepared to seek God's justice upon the earth (Micah 6:8).