All guides are listed below. Select a topic heading to collapse or open its guides.
Bible Study
4 guides
- How to Read the BibleHow to read the Bible for yourself with prayer and understanding, where a new reader should start, a plan for the whole Bible, and helps worth having.3 min read
- How to Meditate on and Memorize ScriptureHow to meditate on Scripture the biblical way, not by emptying the mind, with a simple method for one verse and a plan to memorize in small moments.7 min read
- How to Read the Bible RightlyHow to tell what in the Bible is literal and what is figurative. Kinds of biblical writing, Scripture interpreting Scripture, and Christ at the center.8 min read
- How to Read Prophecy and RevelationHow to read Bible prophecy and Revelation. Amillennialism and postmillennialism set out fairly, premillennialism, and why not to set dates.8 min read
Prayer and Growth
6 guides
- How to PrayWhat prayer is, how to pray in the name of Christ, how to use the Lord’s Prayer as a pattern, what displeases God in prayer, and how to make it a habit.4 min read
- How to Examine YourselfHow to examine yourself as Scripture commands, with questions from the Larger Catechism, a short daily habit, and a caution for the anxious.4 min read
- How to RepentHow to repent of sin, by the Shorter Catechism. Godly sorrow, confessing sins by name, restitution, and the Father who runs to meet the prodigal.7 min read
- How to FastHow to fast biblically. Fasting with prayer, what Isaiah 58 says it is not, how to begin with one meal, and health cautions.7 min read
- How to Forgive and Seek ForgivenessHow to forgive as a Christian and how to ask forgiveness. Matthew 18, restitution, reconciliation, and why forgiving never means staying in danger.7 min read
- How to Share the GospelHow an ordinary Christian shares the gospel. Know the message, pray, ask questions, call for repentance and faith, and invite people to church.3 min read
Church and Worship
7 guides
- How God Is to Be WorshipedThe regulative principle of worship explained plainly. What God commands in worship, elements and circumstances, psalm singing, and why it matters.6 min read
- How to Hear a SermonHow to listen to a sermon by the Larger Catechism. Preparing, listening with children, the parable of the sower, and doing what you hear.7 min read
- How to Prepare for the Lord’s SupperHow to prepare for communion by the Larger Catechism. Examining yourself, eating unworthily, doubting believers, and what to do at the table.7 min read
- How to Keep the Lord’s DayWhy the Lord’s Day is the Christian Sabbath, how to keep it holy, works of necessity and mercy, and how to make it a delight for a family.3 min read
- How to Tell a True Church From a False OneThe three marks of a true church, what makes a church false and why, warning signs to look for, and when you must leave.5 min read
- How to Leave a Church WellWhen is it right to leave a church, and how? Good and bad reasons, talking with the elders, letters of transfer, and healing after church hurt.7 min read
- How to Find a Faithful ChurchHow to find an RPCNA Reformed Presbyterian church near you, what to expect when you visit, what to do if none is near, and questions to ask any church.3 min read
Discernment
6 guides
- How to Spot a False TeacherHow to spot a false teacher. Seven questions to test any preacher by Scripture, common warning signs today, and what to do about it.4 min read
- How to Spot Real HeresyThe difference between heresy, serious error, and disagreement among the faithful, the truths that mark the line, and how to respond.5 min read
- How to Answer Arminianism and PelagianismA Reformed answer to Arminianism and Pelagianism. Free will, election, the atonement, and grace from Scripture, and how to talk with an Arminian friend.30 min read
- How to Weigh “God Told Me”Does God still speak today? The sufficiency of Scripture, prophecy and tongues, how God guides believers, and how to test a claimed word.7 min read
- How to Test Books, Music, and Preachers OnlineChristian discernment for books, podcasts, music, films, and online preachers. Testing by Scripture, your own elders, and guarding your time.7 min read
- How to Disagree With a BrotherHow Christians should disagree. Matters of faith, serious error, and liberty, Romans 14, online arguments, and church disputes.7 min read
Family
9 guides
- How to Lead Family WorshipHow to lead family worship in a few minutes a day. Read the Bible, sing a psalm, and pray, with plain counsel for starting and keeping on.2 min read
- What the Bible Says About MarriageWhat the Bible says about marriage. One man and one woman for life, headship and submission, marrying in the Lord, divorce, and singleness.15 min read
- What the Bible Says About SexWhat the Bible says about sex. A good gift for marriage alone, what the seventh commandment forbids, purity for the single, and pardon in Christ.14 min read
- What the Bible Says About Homosexuality and GenderWhat the Bible says about homosexuality and transgender identity, help for Christians who struggle, and how to love a gay or trans family member.14 min read
- What the Bible Says About Birth ControlWhat the Bible says about birth control. Children as a blessing, where Reformed believers differ, Onan, motives, and methods that can end a life.14 min read
- What the Bible Says About IVF and InfertilityWhat the Bible says about infertility and IVF. Comfort for the childless, the moral problems in IVF, frozen embryos, donors, and adoption.15 min read
- What the Bible Says About Raising ChildrenWhat the Bible says about parenting. Covenant children, teaching the faith at home, fathers and mothers, the teen years, and Proverbs 22:6.17 min read
- What the Bible Says About Spanking and DisciplineWhat the Bible says about spanking and disciplining children. The rod in Proverbs, guardrails against anger and abuse, and discipline as love.15 min read
- What the Bible Says About AbortionWhat the Bible says about abortion and the unborn child, answers to common objections, help if you are pregnant and afraid, and forgiveness in Christ.12 min read
Daily Life
8 guides
- The Ten Commandments for a BelieverWhy a Christian keeps the Ten Commandments, how to read them, what each one requires and forbids by the Shorter Catechism, and how to use them.4 min read
- What the Bible Says About WorkWhat the Bible says about work. Every lawful calling as service to God, diligence, a hard boss, overwork and rest, and losing a job.15 min read
- What the Bible Says About Money and DebtWhat the Bible says about money and debt. Stewardship, contentment, giving and the tithe, credit and loans, cosigning, and getting out from under.15 min read
- What the Bible Says About GamblingWhat the Bible says about gambling. Covetousness, lotteries and betting apps, casting lots, friendly bets, and help when gambling has hold of you.14 min read
- What the Bible Says About AlcoholWhat the Bible says about alcohol. Wine as a gift, drunkenness as sin, freedom to drink or abstain, marijuana and drugs, and help for the addicted.15 min read
- What the Bible Says About TattoosWhat the Bible says about tattoos. Leviticus 19:28 in its setting, moral and ceremonial law, Christian liberty, piercings, and parents.12 min read
- What the Bible Says About GovernmentWhat the Bible says about government. Rulers as God’s ministers, the kingship of Christ over nations, taxes, and obeying God rather than men.16 min read
- What the Bible Says About Death, Burial, and CremationWhat the Bible says about death. What happens when we die, the resurrection of the body, burial and cremation, euthanasia, and preparing to die.15 min read
For reports that apply these tests to popular preachers, read Teachers Weighed.
About these guides
Before you begin
About These Guides
Practical teaching for things Christians have to do or decide. Some pages give a brief answer. Others take time to work through. Choose what you need today.
They are not a new rule. Scripture is the rule, and the Westminster Confession and Catechisms are the summary of it this site holds. These guides only put that teaching into plain steps. Where a guide says more than Scripture says, trust Scripture and leave the guide.
Each guide stands on its own. Browse by topic, or use the search to find one answer.
None of them replaces your elders. Take hard questions to the men Christ set over you. If you have no church yet, start with How to Find a Faithful Church.