Sponsored By: BSA Troop 457, Zelienople, PA
The
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The Neckerchief Challenge
© 2013, Boy Scout Troop 457, Moraine Trails, Zelien-ople, PA
Assembled and Edited by: Win Groseclose The content of this booklet may be reproduced freely and wuthout restriction so long as it is not reproduced
for profit.
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edicated in honor of those Scouts who have commit-ted their lives to living out the 12th point of the ScoutLaw in all that they do.
Table of Contents
Introduction ... 1
Requirements ... 3
Faith ... 7
Faith and Truth:
The Neckerchief ChallengeA Scout is Reverent
Reverence seems to have become a byword today, something that people look at with derision, particularly by those in the public sphere of entertainment. Miley Cyrus, Lady Gaga, Madonna, Alice Cooper, Kiss, etc… have all gone down the path of exchanging reverence for popularity and fame. Thus, it is especially important in today’s age, that the scout not only uphold the language of reverence in our law, but that we celebrate its importance to all we do.
In the Christian worldview, reverence for God is the beginning of both knowledge and wisdom (Proverbs 1:7 & 9:10 respectively); it prolongs life (Proverbs 10:27), provides confidence and a place of refuge (Proverbs 14:26), and turns people away from evil deeds (Proverbs 16:6). The reverence of the Lord, the Bible tells us, is more valuable than great treasure (Proverbs 15:16) and it is considered a mark of the early Christian church (Acts 9:31). As Job spoke to Bildad:“And he said to mankind:
‘Behold, the fear of the Lord — it is wisdom and to flee from evil is understanding.”
(Job 28:28)
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Creeds” that shape how we understand faith and in particular, the person of Christ. If completed, scouts will be able to earn an accompanying neckerchief slide with the Faith and Truth logo.
Requirements for Part 1: Faith
1. Name the first five books of the Old Testament and the first four books of the New Testament. What are each of these groups of books called? What is the Apocrypha and explain the difference between typical Protestant and Roman Catholic views on the authority of the Apocrypha. In what languages was the Bible originally written?
2. Define: a. Canon b. Gospel c. Scripture d. Inspiration
3. What two places can you find the 10 Commandments listed? 4. What is Jesus’ summary of the 10 Commandments? Where in
the Old Testament did he quote from when he summarized the 10 Commandments? Explain how the Ten Commandments help us understand the final phrase in the Scout Oath.
5. God is said to have created mankind in his image; what does this mean? Explain in your own words how this idea ties in with the Boy Scout Slogan.
6. Who was the oldest person in the Bible? What does his name mean? What major event took place in the year of his death? 7. Who is considered in the Old Testament as the “Father of the
Faithful”? Of which of his sons did God continue his covenant through?
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9. Name at least three Judges over early Israel. Name the three kings that ruled over Israel prior to the split between the king-doms. Who is the Old Testament prophet that is said to return before the coming of the Messiah? In whom is that promise fulfilled?
10. Recite John 3:16. Explain the meaning of the text.
11. Complete this phrase from Romans 1:17 and Galatians 3:11: “The Righteous shall live by __________________.” Based on Hebrews 11:1, please explain what this word that you have filled in means.
12. What is an Apostle? Name at least 3.
13. What is a Miracle? What was Jesus’ first recorded miracle? 14. What are the Fruit of the Spirit?
Requirements for Part 2: Truth
1. Recite the Apostles’ Creed.
2. Explain the difference between a Creed and a Confession. 3. Please explain the statement by St. Vincent of Lerins: Quod
ubique, quod semper, quod ab omnibus. What phrase did C.S. Lewis use to describe the same idea?
4. Recite Deuteronomy 6:4. This is the oldest recorded “Creed” in the Bible, please explain its significance to us today.
5. What is the significance to the first two words of the Apostles’ Creed?
6. What is the significance to the three things being affirmed about God in the Creed?
7. What does the name “Jesus” mean? What does the word “Christ” mean and what is the Hebrew equivalent? 8. Define:
a. Holy b. Catholic c. Church
9. The Council of Nicea was convened in 325 AD largely to refute the heresy of Arius. What was Arius’ view and why was it wrong? The Emperor Constantine is said to have contributed the word “homo-ousios” to the discussion; what does this term mean and why is it important?
10. Name two things that the Nicene Creed added to the Apostles’ Creed.
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we need to be saved from? How did Jesus work this salvation? Explain the difference between Jesus’ passive and active obedi-ence to God the Father in this context.
12. The original Nicene Creed of 325 contained an anathema. What is an anathema and what is your opinion of the use of such language?
13. The Council of Chalcedon was convened in 425 AD largely to refute the heresy of Nestorius. What was Nestorius’ view and why was it wrong? Which Emperor convened the Council and what was the purpose of the Christological statement that came out of it?
14. The Chalcedonian Creed retains the word homo-ousios and adds it to the human nature of Jesus except for one thing. What was that one thing and why is it important?
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The Neckerchief Challenge: Faith
1. Name the first five books of the Old Testament and the first four books of the New Testament. What are each of these groups of books called? What is the Apocrypha and explain the difference between typical Protestant and Roman Catholic views on the authority of the Apocrypha.
The First five books of the Old Testament are Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Collectively, they are referred to as “The Books of Moses” or the “Law.” In the most narrow sense, this is what the Hebrew people refer to as “Torah,” which is the Hebrew word for Law. These books introduce the Bible with creation and the people of God with a history from Adam to Moses and the arrival at the border of the Promised Land.
It should be noted that in a broader sense, the Hebrew people sometimes refer to the whole of their Bible (the Christian Old Testament) as Torah because the Torah begins their scriptures. In the same way, they sometimes refer to the collection of works known collectively as “the Writings” as the Psalms because the Psalms constitutes the first book in this grouping. We even find Jesus referring to the traditional “three-fold” grouping of the Hebrew Scriptures (Luke 24:44) as “The Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms.”
The first four books of the New Testament are Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Collectively, these are referred to as “the Gospels.” They record the life, the death, the teachings, and the miracles of Jesus the Messiah.
The Apocrypha consists of a series of books written between the close of the Hebrew Canon and the opening of the Christian Canon. These books are 1&2 Esdras, Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Sirach, Baruch, and 1&2 Maccabees along with longer endings to Esther, Daniel, and 2 Chronicles. Typically, Protestant churches do not see these books as “Inspired” and thus they are not considered authoritative while the Roman Catholic church holds them to be authoritative.
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each book are also in the Aramaic language.
2. Define:
a. Canon: Taken from the Greek and Hebrew words that refer to a measuring reed. Thus, in Christian thought, “Canon” are those books of the Bible that provide a standard of measurement for the church and for the individual. The Jewish Canon consists of the 39 books of the Christian Old Testament. The Christian Canon consists of the 66 books of the Old and New Testament unless you are Roman Catholic; then you add the 9 books of the Apocrypha to make a total of 75.
b. Gospel: The first four books of the New Testament. The term Gospel comes from an Old English word meaning, “Good News.” This comes in turn from the Greek word “euangelion,” meaning the same. Sometimes people confuse the Old English term, thinking it means “News of God,” and though the Gospel is news about God, that is not the meaning of the term. The English term “Evangelical” comes from the Greek, “euangelion.”
c. Scripture: The compiled writings of Canon. Another term for the Bible.
d. Inspiration: Literally, “breathed into.” This refers to the means by which God “breathed” his word into the lives of the Biblical writers. There are three views as to the nature of the inspiration of the scriptures:
i. Mechanical Inspiration: God dictated the scriptures to the author and the author penned them exactly as he was given without his personality being seen in the text of the Scripture
ii. Dynamical Inspiration: God inspired the ideas of the author but not the words, permitting the author to use whatever words he chose to convey God’s ideas.
fully human and fully divine.
3. What two places can you find the 10 Commandments listed?
Exodus 20:1-17 and Deuteronomy 5:6-21.
4. What is Jesus’ summary of the 10 Commandments? Where in the Old Testament did he quote from when he summarized the 10 Commandments? Explain how the Ten Commandments help us understand the final phrase in the Scout Oath.
Jesus summarized the 10 commandments with two phrases from the Old Testament (Matthew 22:34-40; Mark 12:28-33; Luke 10:25-28) by saying that, “You shall love the Lord your God with all of your heart, soul, mind, and strength” and “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” The first of these statements comes from Deuteronomy 6:5 and the second comes from Leviticus 19:18.
The final phrase in the Boy Scout Oath is to be “Morally Straight.” The word “straight” refers to being upright or righteous. Morals are ethical guidelines by which a person lives. As a scout who is a Christian, being morally straight means to seek to live by these 10 Commandments — the moral law given by God.
5. God is said to have created mankind in his image; what does this mean? Explain in your own words how this idea ties in with the Boy Scout Slogan.
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dignity that they personally have, even when you serve “the least” in society (Matthew 25:31-46).
6. Who was the oldest person in the Bible? What does his name mean? What major event took place in the year of his death?
The oldest person in the Bible was a man named Methuselah, who was the son of Enoch and the grandfather of Noah (Genesis 5:21-27). His name means, “He sends death.” And in the year of Methuselah’s death, the worldwide flood came. He was 969 years old.
7. Who is considered in the Old Testament as the “Father of the Faithful”? Of which of his sons did God continue his covenant through?
Abraham is considered the Father of the Faithful (Galatians 3:7). It was his son, Isaac, through whom the promise comes. Note that the Muslims trace their lineage back to another son of Abraham, namely to Ishmael.
8. Who is Melchizedek? Where do we find him in Genesis and what does his name mean? Is there a connection between Melchizedek and Jesus?
9. Name at least three Judges over early Israel. Name the three kings that ruled over Israel prior to the split between the kingdoms. Who is the Old Testament prophet that is said to return before the coming of the Messiah? In whom is that promise fulfilled?
There were a total of 13 people who held the title of Judge over the people of Israel in the Old Testament. Twelve of these are found in the book of Judges and the final one is Samuel, found in 1 Samuel. The Judges are as follows (in order of their appearance): Othniel, Ehud, Shamgar, Deborah, Gideon, Tola, Jair, Jephthah, Ibzan, Elon, Abdon, Samson, Samuel.
There were only three kings that can be said to have ruled over a united Israel: Saul, David, and Solomon. After the end of Solomon’s reign, because of the greed of his son, Rehoboam, the kingdom was split into two — a northern and a southern kingdom (10 tribes of Israel uniting in the north and 2 in the south).
The prophet Malachi prophesies that before the Messiah will come, Elijah will return to herald his coming (Malachi 4:5-6). Jesus states that John the Baptist is the Elijah foretold to come (Matthew 17:11-13).
10. Recite John 3:16. Explain the meaning of the text.
By phrase:
• “For God so loved the world” — “World” is a very general
term in the Greek and can describe anything from the human race to the totality of the cosmos. Different people hold different opinions of how John is using this word in this verse, but it seems that regardless of whether you take this then to refer to men or all of the cosmos, the overall meaning remains the same. Literally the text reads: “This is the way in which God loved the world.”
• “that he gave his only-begotten Son” — Jesus is a begotten
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with the Father. Believers are adopted (Romans 8:15) into the family of God, but Jesus is begotten of him — the same stuff.
• “that whomsoever should believe in him” — The word
“belief” speaks of faith. Our faith has an object (Jesus) and that object is the source of the power of faith. And the gift that follows is given to those who possess this faith.
• “should not perish” — The rightful punishment
for sins is to perish in the fires of hell.
• “but to have eternal life.” — Heaven through faith in Christ.
11. Complete this phrase from Romans 1:17 and Galatians 3:11: “The Righteous shall live by __________________.” Based on Hebrews 11:1, please explain what this word that you have filled in means.
“Faith”
Hebrews 11:1 describes faith as the essence or the assurance of the things we hope for — that is eternal life with God — and it is the proof of things not seen — that is, the faith you have is evidence of the work of the invisible God in your life.
12. What is an Apostle? Name at least 3.
13. What is a Miracle? What was Jesus’ first recorded miracle?
A Miracle is any event where God directly causes something to take place that ordinarily would not have done so. They are meant as signs from God as to his hand being at work in a particular event and when done by Christ, they are a sign that he is God as well as a promise of a future reality free from the effects of sin. Examples of miracles are people being healed or raised from the dead, storms being stopped, walking on water, feeding 5,000 people with a few loaves of bread and some small fish, etc…
Jesus’ first miracle can be found in John 2:1-2, and it is the turning of water into wine.
14. What are the Fruit of the Spirit?
These are characteristics of a believer: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These can be found in Galatians 5:22-23.
15. What is the last command that the Apostle John gives in his first letter? How does this command tie in with the 12th point of
the Scout Law?
“Keep yourself from idols.” 1 John 5:21
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The Neckerchief Challenge: Truth
1. Recite the Apostles’ Creed.
Apostles’ Creed
(7th Century Formulation)
I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth.
And in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord;
Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the virgin Mary; Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried; he descended into Hell;
The third day he rose from the dead;
He ascended into heaven; and sits on the right hand of God the Father Almighty;
From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. I believe in the Holy Ghost;
The Holy catholic Church; The communion of the saints; The forgiveness of sins; The Resurrection of the body; And life everlasting. Amen.
2. Explain the difference between a Creed and a Confession.
A Creed speaks of those things that all Christians hold in common and is designed to unite Christians together regardless of their denominational background.
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3. Please explain the statement by St. Vincent of Lerins: Quod ubique, quod semper, quod ab omnibus. What phrase did C.S. Lewis use to describe the same idea?
Literally, the Latin statement means: (That which has been believed) everywhere, always, and by all. In other words, St. Vincent was speaking of those doctrines that have been affirmed by all Christians regardless of where they live, what era they live in, and what background they may have.
C.S. Lewis used the phrase, “Mere Christianity,” to express St. Vincent’s idea, a phrase that Lewis borrowed from the Puritan, Richard Baxter.
4. Recite Deuteronomy 6:4. This is the oldest recorded “Creed” in the Bible, please explain its significance to us today.
“Hear, O Israel, the Lord, our God, the Lord is One.”
This statement ultimately speaks of our relationship to God — he is God and we are his people. As God, then, he has the right to place expectations upon our life in terms of the way we live and act.
5. What is the significance of the first two words of the Apostles’ Creed?
“I Believe…”
6. What is the significance to the three things being affirmed about God in the Creed?
“The Father”, “Almighty”, and “maker of heaven and earth.”
God is the spiritual Father of believers, implying a relationship is present where he has adopted them into his family.
God is Almighty, meaning that he can do anything that is consistent with his character.
God is the Maker of heaven and earth, meaning that God is the maker of all things that are in both the physical and in the spiritual realms.
7. What does the name “Jesus” mean? What does the word “Christ” mean and what is the Hebrew equivalent?
“Jesus” means “the one who saves.” “Christ” is a Greek word that means “the Anointed one.” The Hebrew equivalent to “Christ” is the word “Messiah.”
8. Define:
• Holy: Means to be set apart for God’s use and for God’s use alone • Catholic: Means “universal” — extending its borders to the ends
of the earth
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9. The Council of Nicea was convened in 325 AD largely to refute the heresy of Arius. What was Arius’ view and why was it wrong? The Emperor Constantine is said to have contributed the word “homo-ousios” to the discussion; what does this term mean and why is it important?
Arius held that Jesus was neither truly God nor truly man, but was a kind of demi-god in the Greek mythological tradition. It is wrong on several levels — first, it makes Jesus a created being and second, for Jesus to redeem mankind, he must be fully God and fully man (fully God because it takes God to be able to make a perfect sacrifice, live a sinless life, and bear the sins of his people on his shoulders; fully man because he had to be a man to die as well as to identify with us as our Mediator).
Homoousios means “of the same substance.” It is a statement that Jesus is of the same “stuff” of God as well as of mankind. Again, this is important because it signifies who Christ is — that he is not simply like God or man, but was truly God and truly man in every way.
10. Name two things that the Nicene Creed added to the Apostle’s Creed.
• “All things visible and invisible” — an affirmation that God is the creator of the spiritual world as well as the physical world; this was to refute the Gnostics who held to the idea of pre-existent matter before the creation and to refute the Greeks who held to the pre-existence of the soul.
• Statements on Christ’s Divinity — Emphasis especially on Jesus’ eternal Sonship, eternally Begotten by the Father before all worlds
• According to the Scriptures — a reinforcing to the idea that all we know about God comes from the Scriptures
version holds that the Spirit proceeds from the Father alone) and who works to apply salvation to believers and who spoke to the prophets on God the Father’s behalf.
• Apostolic Church — in addition to holy and catholic
• “Baptism for the Remission of Sins” — baptism is connected to forgiveness
• Anathema — the close of the creed contains a curse against those who would reject or teach against the teaching of the creeds
11. Please explain the phrase from the creed: “Who, for us men, and four our salvation, came down from heaven.” What did we need to be saved from? How did Jesus work this salvation? Explain the difference between Jesus’ passive and active obedience to God the Father in this context.
The statement means that Jesus’ purpose in coming to earth was to save men. Saved from what? Saved from our sin and the righteous judgment that we have earned for that sin. Jesus worked that salvation on the Cross and by raising from the dead on the third day. Jesus’ active obedience deals with the way he lived a perfect life and fulfilled the Law of God completely. His passive obedience deals with his receiving the judgment for the sins of his people on the cross.
12. The original Nicene Creed of 325 contained an anathema. What is an anathema and what is your opinion of the use of such language?
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13. The Council of Chalcedon was convened in 425 AD largely to refute the heresy of Nestorius. What was Nestorius’ view and why was it wrong? Which Emperor convened the Council and what was the purpose of the Christological statement that came out of it?
Nestorius held that the while Jesus was one person, his two natures (God and Man) were different and separable, thus in some cases seeing only the divine Son act or the human Son suffer. Amongst other things, this makes the sacrifice of Christ an entirely human action and thus not a perfect sacrifice being made. It also makes the Son a created being.
The Council of Chalcedon was convened by Emperor Marcian in the hopes of drawing up a statement that would put Nestorius in his place as well as theologically unite the Empire.
14. The Chalcedonian Creed retains the word homo-ousios and adds it to the human nature of Jesus except for one thing. What was that one thing and why is it important?
Sin. This is important because it took a sinless life and sacrifice to redeem fallen men from our sins.
15. In your own words, explain the “Hypostatic Union.”
“Hypostatic” refers to the essential nature of a person or being. The “hypostatic union” addresses the question of Jesus’s two essential natures — both united together in a way that they don’t get blurred or blended nor are they divided or separable.
16. Explain the Christian significance of the fleur-de-lis.