Question 88: Of how many parts doth the true conversion of man consist?

Answer: Of two parts; of the mortification of the old, and the quickening of the new man.

Question 89: What is the mortification of the old man?

Answer: It is a sincere sorrow of heart, that we have provoked God by our sins; and more and more to hate and flee from them.

Question 90: What is the quickening of the new man?

Answer: It is a sincere joy of heart in God, through Christ, and with love and delight to live according to the will of God in all good works.

Question 91: But what are good works?

Answer: Only those which proceed from a true faith, are performed according to the law of God, and to His glory; and not such as are founded on our imaginations, or the institutions of men.

Eph. 4:22, 23, That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; and be renewed in the spirit of your mind.

Col. 3:5, Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry.

1 Cor. 5:7, Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us.

Psa. 51:3, 8, For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me; Make me to hear joy and gladness; that the bones which Thou hast broken may rejoice; The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise.

Luke 15:18, I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee.

Rom. 8:13, For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.

Joel 1:12, 13, The vine is dried up, and the fig tree languisheth; the pomegranate tree, the palm tree also, and the apple tree, even all the trees of the field, are withered: because joy is withered away from the sons of men. Gird yourselves, and lament, ye priests: howl, ye ministers of the altar: come, lie all night in sackcloth, ye ministers of my God: for the meat offering and the drink offering is withholden from the house of your God.

Rom. 14:17, For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.

Isa. 57:15, For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.

Rom. 6:10, 11, For in that He died, He died unto sin once: but in that He liveth, He liveth unto God. Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

1 Pet. 4:2, That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.

Gal. 2:20, I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me.

Rom. 14:23, And he that doubteth is damned if he eat, because he eateth not of faith: for whatsoever is not of faith is sin.

1 Sam. 15:22, And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.

Eph. 2:2, 10, Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience; For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

1 Cor. 10:31, Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.

Deut. 12:32, What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it.

Ezek. 20:18, But I said unto their children in the wilderness, Walk ye not in the statutes of your fathers, neither observe their judgments, nor defile yourselves with their idols.

Matt. 15:9, But in vain they do worship Me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

Question 92: What is the law of God?

Answer: God spake all these words, Exodus 20, Deut. 5, saying: I am the Lord thy God, which hath brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

Question 94: What doth God enjoin in the first commandment?

Answer: That I, as sincerely as I desire the salvation of my own soul, avoid and flee from all idolatry, sorcery, soothsaying, superstition, invocation of saints, or any other creatures; and learn rightly to know the only true God; trust in Him alone, with humility and patience submit to Him; expect all good things from Him only; love, fear, and glorify Him with my whole heart; so that I renounce and forsake all creatures, rather than commit even the least thing contrary to His will.

Question 95: What is idolatry?

Answer: Idolatry is, instead of, or besides that one true God, who has manifested Himself in His word, to contrive, or have any other object, in which men place their trust.

Deut. 4:13, And He declared unto you His covenant, which He commanded you to perform, even ten commandments; and He wrote them upon two tables of stone.

Deut. 10:3, 4, And I made an ark of shittim wood, and hewed two tables of stone like unto the first, and went up into the mount, having the two tables in mine hand. And He wrote on the tables, according to the first writing, the ten commandments, which the LORD spake unto you in the mount out of the midst of the fire in the day of the assembly: and the LORD gave them unto me.

1 Cor. 6:9, 10, Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

1 Cor. 10:7, 14, Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play; Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry.

Lev. 18:21, And thou shalt not let any of thy seed pass through the fire to Molech, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am the LORD.

Deut. 18:10, 11, There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the LORD: and because of these abominations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee.

Matt. 4:10, Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.

Rev. 19:10, And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellow-servant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

John 17:3, And this is life eternal, that they might know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent.

Jer. 17:5, 7, Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD; Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is.

Heb. 10:36, For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.

Col. 1:11, Strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness.

Rom. 5:3, 4, And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope.

Phil. 2:14, Do all things without murmurings and disputings."

1 Pet. 5:5, 6, Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time.

Psa. 104:27, These wait all upon Thee; that Thou mayest give them their meat in due season.

Isa. 45:7, I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.

James 1:17, Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.

Deut. 6:5, And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.

Matt. 22:37, Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

Deut. 6:5, And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.

Matt. 10:28, And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.

Matt. 4:10, Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve.

Matt. 5:29, 30, And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.

Acts 5:29, Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men.

Matt. 10:37, He that loveth father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.

Matt. 5:19, Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

2 Chron. 16:12, And Asa in the thirty and ninth year of his reign was diseased in his feet, until his disease was exceeding great: yet in his disease he sought not to the LORD, but to the physicians.

Phil. 3:18, 19, (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.)

Gal. 4:8, Howbeit then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto them which by nature are no gods.

Eph. 2:12, That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world.

Question 96: What doth God require in the second commandment?

Answer: That we in no wise represent God by images, nor worship Him in any other way than He has commanded in His word.

Question 97: Are images then not at all to be made?

Answer: God neither can, nor may be represented by any means: but as to creatures; though they may be represented, yet God forbids to make, or have any resemblance of them, either in order to worship them or to serve God by them.

Question 98: But may not images be tolerated in the churches, as books to the laity?

Answer: No: for we must not pretend to be wiser than God, who will have His people taught, not by dumb images, but by the lively preaching of His Word.

Isa. 40:18, To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto Him?

Rom. 1:23, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and four footed beasts, and creeping things.

Acts 17:29, Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device.

1 Sam. 15:23, For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord, He hath also rejected thee from being king.

Deut. 12:30, Take heed to thyself that thou be not snared by following them, after that they be destroyed from before thee; and that thou enquire not after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise.

Deut. 4:15, 16, Take ye therefore good heed unto yourselves; for ye saw no manner of similitude on the day that the LORD spake unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire: lest ye corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure, the likeness of male or female.

Isa. 46:5, To whom will ye liken Me, and make Me equal, and compare Me, that we may be like?

Rom. 1:23, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and four footed beasts, and creeping things.

Ex. 23:24, Thou shalt not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do after their works: but thou shalt utterly overthrow them, and quite break down their images.

Ex. 34:13, 14, But ye shall destroy their altars, break their images, and cut down their groves: for thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.

Numb. 33:52, Then ye shall drive out all the inhabitants of the land from before you, and destroy all their pictures, and destroy all their molten images, and quite pluck down all their high places.

Deut. 7:5, But thus shall ye deal with them; ye shall destroy their altars, and break down their images, and cut down their groves, and burn their graven images with fire.

2 Tim. 3:16, All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.

2 Pet. 1:19, We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts.

Jer. 10:1, Hear ye the word which the Lord speaketh unto you, O house of Israel.

Hab. 2:18, 19, What profiteth the graven image that the maker thereof hath graven it; the molten image, and a teacher of lies, that the maker of his work trusteth therein, to make dumb idols? Woe unto him that saith to the wood, Awake; to the dumb stone, Arise, it shall teach! Behold, it is laid over with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in the midst of it.

Question 99: What is required in the third commandment?

Answer: That we, not only by cursing or perjury, but also by rash swearing, must not profane or abuse the name of God; nor by silence or connivance be partakers of these horrible sins in others; and, briefly, that we use the holy name of God no otherwise than with fear and reverence; so that He may be rightly confessed and worshipped by us, and be glorified in all our words and works.

Question 100: Is then the profaning of God's name, by swearing and cursing, so heinous a sin, that His wrath is kindled against those who do not endeavor, as much as in them lies, to prevent and forbid such cursing and swearing?

Answer: It undoubtedly is, for there is no sin greater or more provoking to God, than the profaning of His name; and therefore He has commanded this sin to be punished with death.

Lev. 24:11, And the Israelitish woman's son blasphemed the name of the Lord, and cursed. And they brought him unto Moses: (and his mother's name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan.)

Lev. 19:12, And ye shall not swear by My name falsely, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am the Lord.

Matt. 5:37, But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.

Lev. 5:4, Or if a soul swear, pronouncing with his lips to do evil, or to do good, whatsoever it be that a man shall pronounce with an oath, and it be hid from him; when he knoweth of it, then he shall be guilty in one of these.

Isa. 45:23, 24, I have sworn by Myself, the word is gone out of My mouth in righteousness, and shall not return, That unto Me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear. Surely, shall one say, in the LORD have I righteousness and strength: even to Him shall men come; and all that are incensed against Him shall be ashamed.

Matt. 10:32, Whosoever therefore shall confess Me before men, him will I confess also before My Father which is in heaven.

1 Tim. 2:8, I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.

1 Cor. 3:16, 17, Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

Lev. 5:1, And if a soul sin, and hear the voice of swearing, and is a witness, whether he hath seen or known of it; if he do not utter it, then he shall bear his iniquity.

Lev. 24:15, And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, Whosoever curseth his God shall bear his sin.

Question 101: May we then swear religiously by the name of God?

Answer: Yes: either when the magistrates demand it of the subjects; or when necessity requires us thereby to confirm fidelity and truth to the glory of God, and the safety of our neighbor: for such an oath is founded on God's word, and therefore was justly used by the saints, both in the Old and New Testament.

Question 102: May we also swear by saints or any other creatures?

Answer: No; for a lawful oath is calling upon God, as the only one who knows the heart, that He will bear witness to the truth, and punish me if I swear falsely; which honor is due to no creature.

Neh. 13:25, And I contended with them, and cursed them, and smote certain of them, and plucked off their hair, and made them swear by God, saying, Ye shall not give your daughters unto their sons, nor take their daughters unto your sons, or for yourselves.

Deut. 6:13, Thou shalt fear the LORD thy God, and serve Him, and shalt swear by His name.

Heb. 6:16, For men verily swear by the greater: and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife.

Gen. 21:24, And Abraham said, I will swear.

Jos. 9:15, 19, And Joshua made peace with them, and made a league with them, to let them live: and the princes of the congregation sware unto them; But all the princes said unto all the congregation, We have sworn unto them by the Lord God of Israel: now therefore we may not touch them.

1 Sam. 24:22, And David sware unto Saul. And Saul went home; but David and his men gat them up unto the hold.

2 Cor. 1:23, Moreover I call God for a record upon my soul, that to spare you I came not as yet unto Corinth.

Rom. 1:9, For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of His Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers.

2 Cor. 1:23, Moreover I call God for a record upon my soul, that to spare you I came not as yet unto Corinth.

Matt. 5:34, 35, But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God's throne: nor by the earth; for it is His footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King.

Question 103: What doth God require in the fourth commandment?

Answer: First, that the ministry of the gospel and the schools be maintained; and that I, especially on the sabbath, that is, on the day of rest, diligently frequent the church of God, to hear His word, to use the sacraments, publicly to call upon the Lord, and contribute to the relief of the poor, as becomes a christian. Secondly, that all the days of my life I cease from my evil works, and yield myself to the Lord, to work by His Holy Spirit in me: and thus begin in this life the eternal sabbath.

Tit. 1:5, For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee.

1 Tim. 3:14, 15, These things write I unto thee, hoping to come unto thee shortly: but if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.

1 Cor. 9:11, If we have sown unto you spiritual things, is it a great thing if we shall reap your carnal things?

2 Tim. 2:2, And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.

1 Tim. 3:15, But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.

Lev. 23:3, Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the sabbath of rest, an holy convocation; ye shall do no work therein: it is the sabbath of the LORD in all your dwellings.

Acts 2:42, 46, And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers; And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart.

1 Cor. 14:19, Yet in the church I had rather speak five words with my understanding, that by my voice I might teach others also, than ten thousand words in an unknown tongue; Let the prophets speak two or three, and let the other judge; For ye may all prophesy one by one, that all may learn, and all may be comforted.

1 Cor. 11:33, Wherefore, my brethren, when ye come together to eat, tarry one for another.

1 Tim. 2:1, I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men.

1 Cor. 16:2, Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.

Isa. 66:23, And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before Me, saith the LORD.

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