A Catechism for Little Children,

compiled and published by the Sunday School & Publication Board of the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina
Raleigh: W. W. Holden, Printer. 1864

CHILD'S CATECHISM.

LESSON I.

1. Can you tell me who made you?
God.

2. Who is God?
God is the maker of all things.

3. Out of what did he make all things?
Nothing.

4. How were they made?
God spake and it was done.

5. What did God make on the first day?
Light.

6. What did God call the light?
Day.

7. What did He call the darkness?

Night.

8. What did He Make on the second day?
The sky.

9. What shine in the sky at night?
The moon and stars.

LESSON II.

1. What did God make on the third day?
Land and water.

2. What did God make on the fourth day?
The sun, moon and stars.

3. What did God make on the fifth day?
Fishes and birds.

4. What did He make on the sixth day?
He made horses, cows, sheep, and any other animals.

5. What else did He make on the sixth day?
Man.

6. What was the name of the first man?
Adam.

7. What was the name of the first woman?
Eve.

8. Of what was Adam made?
Of the dust of the ground.

9. How did God make Eve?
Out of one of Adam's ribs.

LESSON III.

1. Where did Adam and Eve live?
God put them in a beautiful garden.

2. What was in that garden?
Good fruits and pretty flowers.

3. What did God tell them not do?
He told them not to eat of the fruit of one tree.

4. Did they obey God?
No, they did not.

5. How did they disobey God?
They ate the fruit which God told them they must not eat.

6. Did God see them?
Yes--God saw them, for He sees all things.

7. Did God punish them?
Yes. He drove them out of the garden.

8. How else did He punish them?
God said that they should die!

9. What did God promise them?
A Saviour.

LESSON IV.

1. Who was Cain?
Cain was the oldest son of Adam and Eve.

2. Who was Abel?
Abel was the brother of Cain.

3. Was Abel good?
Yes, Abel was good, he prayed to God, and he loved and trusted in Him.

4. Was Cain good?
No, Cain was wicked, and he did not love God.

5. Did Cain envy Abel?
Yes, Abel was a friend of God, and Cain envied him.

6. What did Cain do?
He killed Abel, and denied it.

7. Did God see Cain?
Yes, He saw Cain and punished him.

8. Have you been wicked?
Yes, I have often been wicked.

9. Does God see you when you do wickedly?
Yes, He sees all my wickedness.

10. Will God punish you?

Yes, He will punish me if I do not repent.

11. Does God love you?
Yes, He is my kind Father, and He will forgive me and make me happy, if I repent of my sins and believe in His Son.

LESSON V.

1. Who was Noah?
Noah was a good man who lived about 4,000 years ago.

2. Were all men good at that time?
No, all men were wicked, except Noah And his family.

3. Did God punish the wicked?
Yes, God caused a flood and destroyed all the wicked.

4. How was Noah saved?
Noah and his family were saved in the ark.

5. What was the ark?
It was a large boat.

6. How were the beasts and birds saved?
Some of each kind were brought into the ark and saved with Noah.

7. Who were the sons of Noah?
The sons of Noah were Shem, Ham, and Japhet.

8. Will there be another flood?
No, there will never be another flood.

9. Will the world be destroyed again?
Yes, the world will be destroyed by fire.

LESSON VI.

1. Who was Abraham?
Abraham was a good man, who loved God and trusted in Him.

2. What did God tell Abraham to do?
God told him to leave his home.

3. Did Abraham obey Him?
Yes, he obeyed God and went to Canaan with his family.

4. Who was Isaac?
Isaac was the only and beloved son of Abraham and Sarah.

5. What did God command Abraham to do to Isaac?
God commanded Him to sacrifice Isaac.

6. Why did God command Abraham to sacrifice Isaac?
Because God wished to try Abraham.

7. Did Abraham obey God?
Yes, he was about to sacrifice Isaac when an angel told him not to do so.

8. What did Abraham love most?
He loved God most.

9. Must you do like Abraham?
Yes, I must love God more than all things.

10. Why must you love God most?
Because God is the best of all beings.

11. Must you obey God like Abraham?
Yes, I must obey God in every thing I do.

LESSON VII.

1. Why must we obey God?
Because He has commanded us to obey him.

2. To whom did God first give His Commandments?
To Moses.

3. For whom did He give them?
For the Israelites.

4. And for whom else?
For us.

5. In what part of the Bible do we find the Commandments?

The 20th chapter of Exodus.

6. How many Commandments are there?
Ten.

7. Is it your duty to keep them?
Yes.

LESSON VIII.

1. What is the first Commandment?
Thou shalt have no other Gods before me.

2. What is the second commandment?
Thou shalt not make to thyself any graven image, or the likeness of any thing in heaven or in earth, to bow down and worship it.

3. What is the third Commandment?
Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.

4. What is the fourth Commandment?
Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.

5. What is the fifth Commandment?
Honor thy father and thy mother.

6. What is the sixth Commandment?
Thou shalt not kill.

7. What is the seventh Commandment?
Thou shalt not commit adultery.

8. What is the eighth Commandment?
Thou shalt not steal.

9. What is the ninth Commandment?
Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.

10. What is the tenth Commandment?
Thou shalt not covet any thing that is thy neighbor's.

11. Is not this law of the Ten Commandments divided into two parts?
Yes: the first part contains our duty to God; the second our duty to man.

12. What does the first part teach?
That I should love God with all my heart, soul, mind and strength.

13. What does the second part teach?
That I should love my neighbor as myself.

LESSON IX.

1. What is the character of all men?
All men are sinners.

2. What is a sinner?
A sinner is one who disobeys the law of God.

3. What has God said that He would do to sinners?
He has said that He would punish them forever.

4. Can they be saved from that punishment?
They can.

5. How can they be saved from it?
By forsaking their sins and becoming servants of Jesus Christ.

6. Who is Jesus Christ?
He is the Son of God and the Saviour of men.

7. How do you. know that be is the Son of God?
Because, when He was baptized, God said: This is my beloved Son.

8. Where was Jesus Christ born?
He was born in Bethlehem, a village in the land of Judea.

9. Were his parents rich or poor?
They were very poor.

10. Where was Jesus Christ before He came into our world?
He was in heaven with God his Father.

LESSON X.

1. When the Saviour was born, who were keeping watch over their flocks by night?
Shepherds.

2. Who are shepherds?
Shepherds are persons who take care of sheep.

3. Who appeared unto the shepherds?
The angel of the Lord.

4. What shone round about them?
The glory of the Lord.

5. How did the shepherds feel when they saw the angel?
They were much afraid.

6. Had they any reason to be afraid?
They had not.

7. How ought they to have felt?
They ought to have been very much pleased.

8. What did the angel say to the shepherds?
The angel said, "Fear not, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy!"

9. What were these good tidings?
"For unto you is born this day, in the city of David, a Saviour."

10. What place did he mean by "the city of David?"
He meant Bethlehem.

11. Why was Bethlehem called the city of David?
Because David, who became king of Israel, was born there.

12. What took place after the angel was done speaking?
A large number of angels suddenly appeared, and began praising God.

13. What did they sing?
Glory to God in the highest, on earth peace, good will towards men."

14. What does this glorious appearance of the angels teach us respecting Christ?
It teaches that He was a very great and glorious being.

15. Why does their appearance teach this?
Because, if He had not been a great and glorious being, angels would not have been sent to proclaim His birth.

LESSON XI.

1. Where did the shepherds go after the angels left them?

They went with haste to Bethlehem.

2. What did they find there?
They found Mary and Joseph and the infant Jesus.

3. Where did they find Jesus?
They found him lying in a manger.

4. What is a manger?
A place where they put food for horses and cattle to eat.

5. What did the shepherds tell Joseph and Mary?
They told them that angels had appeared to them, and what they said about Christ.

6. What effect had the story of the shepherds upon the people who heard it?
The people wondered.

7. Had they good reason to wonder?
They had, for it was a very wonderful thing for angels to appear and sing to men.

8. What did Mary, the mother of Jesus, do?
She kept all these things, and pondered Them in her heart.

9. What is meant by her pondering them in her heart?
It means that she thought about them with much feeling.

10. What did the shepherds do after they had seen the Saviour?
They returned, glorifying and praising God.

11. Why ought we to praise God as much as the shepherds?
Because Christ is our Saviour, as well as theirs.

LESSON XII.

1. Who came to see Jesus besides the shepherds?
Wise men from the East.

2. What had they seen in the east?
They had seen His star.

3. What did this star do?
It went before the wise men, and led them to the place where the infant Saviour was.

4. How did they feel, when they saw the star?
They rejoiced with exceeding great joy.

5. How did the wise men know in which house the Saviour was?
They knew it by the star stopping directly over it.

6. What did they do when they found the Saviour?
They fell down and worshipped Him.

7. What did they present to Him?
They presented to Him gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.

8. What are frankincense and myrrh?
They are sweet-smelling gums, obtained from trees.

9. Did the wise men show their reverence to Christ, by worshipping Him and giving Him these presents?
They did.

10. Do the angels worship Christ?
They do.

11. If it is right for angels to worship Christ, is it not right for us to worship Him?
It is.

LESSON XIII.

1. When the wise men departed who appeared to Joseph?
An angel.

2. What did he tell Joseph to do?
To arise and go away from Judea.

3. Where was he told to go?
Into Egypt.

4. Whom was he to take with him?
The infant Jesus and his mother.

5. Why was he told to take Jesus into Egypt?
To save His life.

6. Who wanted to kill Him?
King Herod.

7. When Herod died, what did Joseph do?
He returned to Judea.

8. In what town did Jesus live?
Nazareth.

9. How long did He live there?
Until He grew up.

10. Where is the town of Nazareth?
In Galilee.

11. Was Nazareth a large or a small place?
A small place.

LESSON XIV.

1. Who came to tell of Christ beforehand?
John the Baptist.

2. What was John's clothing?
Camel's hair.

3. What was his food?
Locusts and wild honey.

4. What did he preach?
He told the people to repent of their sins.

5. What did he do to the people?
He baptized them.

6. Did Jesus go to be baptized by him?
Yes.

7. Why did He do so?
For an example to us.

8. Does Jesus command all his followers to be baptized?
He said, "Go make disciples of all nations, baptizing them."

9. What is baptism?
An immersion in water, in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

10. What does the use of water in baptism signify?
That the person's sins have been washed away.

11. Does the water wash away sin?
No; it is the blood of Christ.

12. What does the action of immersion signify?
That the person is dead to sin, and risen to a new life.

13. What does the doing of this in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost signify?
That the person devotes himself to the service of God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost.

14. What should all who are baptized do?
They should lead a new life.

15. Who should be baptized?
Those that repent and believe.

16. Should infants be baptized?
No; God has not commanded it.

17. Is there any case of infant baptism mentioned in the Bible?
No; not one.

18. Are there different ways to baptize?
There is but one way.

19. What then must we say of those who have had water only sprinkled or poured upon them?
That they are not baptized.

LESSON XV.

1. When Jesus was about thirty years old what did He do?

He began to teach the people.

2. How long did He teach them?
Three years.

3. Did He do any thing besides teach the people?
Yes He worked miracles.

4. What are miracles?
Wonderful works.

5. Can you tell me some miracle which Jesus did?
Yes, He raised the dead.

6. And what else?
He cleansed lepers.

7. What did He do for the lame?
He made them to walk.

8. What did He do for the dumb?
He made them to speak.

9. What did He do for the blind?
He gave them sight.

10. Did the wind and waves obey Him?
Yes.

11. What did His working miracles prove?
That God had sent him.

LESSON XVI.

1. Whom did Jesus choose to go about with Him?
Twelve men.

2. What did He Call them?
Apostles.

3. What did He tell them to do?
To preach the Gospel.

4. What did He give them power to do?
To work miracles.

5. Did the Jews all love Christ?
No; many of them hated Him.

6. What did they determine to do to Him?
To kill Him.

7. How did they find Him?
Judas showed them where He was.

8. How did he make Him known to them?
He kissed Him and said, Hail Master!

9. Who was Judas?
One of the twelve Apostles.

10. Where was Jesus when these wicked men found Him?
In the Garden of Gethsemane.

11. Why had He gone there?
To pray.

LESSON XVII.

1. After Christ was betrayed where was He carried?
First before the High Priest, then before the Roman Governor, Pontius Pilate.

2. Did Pilate find Christ guilty of any crime?
No. He said, " I find no fault in Him."

3. Why then did He not let Him go?
Because the Jews were not willing for him to do so.

4. What did they say?
Crucify Him—crucify Him.

5. Where did they carry Jesus to crucify Him?
To Calvary.

6. How was He crucified?
He was fastened to the cross.

7. In what way?
By nails driven through His hands and feet.

8. How long did He hang on the cross?
Six hours.

9. What took place while Jesus was on the cross?
For three hours the sun was hid, and there was great darkness.

10. Did Jesus feel angry with those who crucified Him?
No; He prayed to God to forgive them.

11. Why did He die?
That poor sinners might be saved.

12. If Christ had not died could any of us go to heaven?
No, because we are all sinners.

LESSON XVIII.

1. On what day did Jesus arise from the dead?
On the third day after He was crucified, which was the first day of the week, and is now our Sabbath.

2. To whom did Jesus appear after He arose from the dead?

To many of His disciples.

3. How did they know it was Jesus?
He ate, drank, and talked with them.

4. What command did He give to His disciples?
He said, "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature."

5. How long did Jesus stay on the earth after He arose from the dead?
Forty days.

6. How did Jesus ascend to Heaven?
He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.

7. Will Jesus again come down from Heaven?
Yes, He will come at the last day to judge us and all mankind.

8. What do we learn from Jesus' rising from the dead?
That our bodies will be raised from the dead at the last day.

9. What else will take place?
We will before the judgment seat of Christ.

10. For what purpose?
To be judged according to our works.

11. What will become of the wicked?
They will go away into everlasting punishment.

12. What will become of the good?
They will go away into life eternal.

THE LORD'S PRAYER.

Our Father who art in Heaven. Hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; But deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever and ever. AMEN.

EVENING PRAYER.

Now I lay me
Down to sleep.
I pray the Lord
My life to keep.
If I should die
Before I wake,
I pray the Lord
My soul to take.

MORNING PRAYER.

Now I awake
And see the light,
'Tis God has kept me
Through the night;
To Him I lift
My voice and pray
That He will keep me
Through the day.

 

HYMN.

Jesus high in glory,
Lend a listening ear;
When we bow before
Thee, Infant praises hear.

Though Thou art so holy,
Heaven's Almighty King,
Thou wilt stoop to listen
When thy praise we sing.

We are little children,
Weak, and apt to stray;
Saviour! guide and keep us
In the Heavenly Way.

Save us Lord, from sinning,
Watch us day by day;
Help us now to love Thee,
Take our sins away.

Then, when Jesus Calls us
To our Heavenly home,
We would gladly answer:
Saviour, Lord, we come!

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