Why should I read through the Institutes in 2009? Let me try and rephrase the question for you. Why should I spend fifteen minutes every weekday reading the most important book written in the past five hundred years?
We can answer this question with the motto, "Know what you believe and why you believe it." It is the motto of the White Horse Inn and those of you that are familiar with Michael Horton and the White Horse Inn have heard it time and time again. This year is a great year to use Calvin's Institutes of Christian Religion as a tool to help us know better what we believe and why we believe it. Let's do it! You see, the better we know God, the better equipped we are to worship Him. This is something we all desire.
We could answer the question with a catechism question as well. The Westminster Shorter Catechism's first question is, "What is the chief end of man?" And the answer is, "Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever." The Institutes will help us do just that. We will bring glory to God as we read through the greatest book of Christian doctrine, written by the best exegete in the history of Christianity, and one of the greatest theologians of all time. As we learn more about the awesome God we worship, we will also be better equip to enjoy Him more in the lives that He has given us to live.
Another way to answer the question is, reading through this work will bring you joy as you grow closer to God and those Cornerstone families that choose to partake in this great adventure together. Imagine our conversations after church on Sundays and Wednesdays filled with talk about doctrine.
I am sure that you are familiar with scheduled reading plans that help keep you on track to read the entire Bible in one year. You may have used one of these before and experienced the joy of reading the entire Word in a given period of time. Well this reading program is not meant to replace the Holy Scriptures but if you stick with it through the year I guarantee that you will understand the Holy Scriptures better than you ever have before. The text will be provided every weekday on the blog, and you are invited to leave feedback and questions as we make our way through this great book. If you would like to purchase a copy, links of suggested booksellers, that have very good prices for the "Institutes", are provided on the bottom of this site.
It is my prayer that you grow with me this year as we read through and discuss the Institutes of Christian Religion.
CORAM DEO,
Jason Bull
2 comments:
Hey Jason, Thanks you for starting this. I suppose we will receive our first reading tomorrow. Will this be a daily reading or a weekly one? Either way I look forward to it.
Spencer it will be a daily reading. (Monday-Friday posted @12:01AM PST. Is that 9:01PM the day before in Equador?) I'm so glad that you will be able to join us. We sure miss you.
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