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发帖数: 6042 | 1 Bible Course - Christian Doctrine
Lesson 6
The Humiliation of Christ
Lord's Day 14 - 16
The humiliation of Christ
After discussing the names of the Mediator, the instructor now deals with
the states. "States" refer to the relationship with God. Lord's Days 14, 15
and 16 deal with the state of humiliation, which is divided into degrees. "
Degrees" view the ever-deepening process of Christ's suffering. Over against
this progressive humiliation, there is also a progressive exaltation.
Lord's Day 14
Q. 35. What is the meaning of these words "He was conceived by the Holy
Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary"?
A. That God's eternal Son, who is (a), and continueth (b) true and eternal
God, took upon Him the very nature of man, of the flesh and blood of the
Virgin Mary (c), by the operation of the Holy Ghost (d); that He might also
be the true seed of David (e), like unto His brethern in all things (f), sin
excepted (g).
(a) 1 John 5:20, John 1:1, 17:3, Romans 1:3, Colossians 1:15;
(b) Romans 9:5;
(c) Galatians 4:4, Luke 1:31,42,43;
(d) Matthew 1:20, Luke 1:35;
(e) Romans 1:3, Psalm 132:11, 2 Samuel 7:12, Luke 1:32, Acts 2:30;
(f) Philippians 2:7, Hebrews 2:14,17;
(g) Hebrews 4:15.
The humble birth
The first step of the humiliation of the Son of God was His humble birth.
The Lord Jesus took upon Himself the human flesh of the virgin Mary. Paul
says: "But when the fulness of time was come, God sent forth His Son, made
of a woman, made under the law" (Galatians 4:4). Jesus was born as a human
being in Bethlehem. His birth was quite ordinary, but His conception was
supernatural. By the operation of the Holy Spirit, the virgin Mary was with
child. This happened without the intervention of man. While we are conceived
and born in sin through the means of our father (see Lord's Day 3), Jesus
was conceived by the Holy Spirit. For that reason He had no sin. His birth
of the virgin Mary teaches us that He was truly man.
he human nature
The catechism teaches us that He is and continues to be true and eternal God
. He only took upon Himself the human nature. He took upon Himself that
human nature of the flesh and blood of the virgin Mary. He did not bring
that human nature out of heaven. It is therefore not true that Christ was
without sin because Mary was holy. Mary was, like all others, conceived and
born in sin. It was foretold that Christ would come from the lineage of
David: "so that He might be the true seed of David." Paul says of Him, "
Which was made of the seed of David, according to the flesh" (Romans 1:3).
God had promised this.
He became like His brothers in all things - a man, like all believers,
except without sin. He was perfectly holy.
Q. 36. What profit dost thou receive by Christ's holy conception and
nativity?
A. That He is our Mediator (a); and with His innocence and perfect holiness,
covers in the sight of God, my sins, wherein I was conceived and brought
forth (b).
(a) Hebrews 7: 26-27;
(b) 1Peter 1:18-19, 3:18, 1 Corinthians 1:30-31, Romans 8:3-4, Isaiah 53:11
, Psalm 32:1.
The Mediator
What profit do we have from Christ's birth? What blessing does it give us?
In the first place, that He is our Mediator. This is in agreement with Lord'
s Days 5and 6. There it is stated that in order for Him to save us He must
be very God and a real righteous man. Jesus Christ fulfils these
stipulations. He is the Son of God, who assumed our human nature. After the
fall in Paradise we had need of such a Mediator. A mediator is one who
stands between two parties in order to reconcile them. Christ is the
Mediator who has stood between an angry God and a guilty sinner. Through His
incarnation, He can be our Mediator and represent us before God. He is
Emmanuel (=God with us).
Innocent and holy
The second benefit is that Christ, with His innocence and perfect holiness,
covers in the sight of God, my sins, wherein I was conceived and brought
forth. Our conception and birth, the gate through which we enter into life,
is sinful. We are sinners from birth. Jesus began His redemptive work
exactly where our wrong begins, by conception and birth. The Mediator did
not just become our Mediator at the end of His life, when He suffered and
died. He is our Mediator from His conception.
With His innocense and holiness He has covered our sins, that is, atoned for
them. In one of his penitential psalms, David said, "Blessed is he whose
transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered" (Psalm 32:1).
Lord's Day 15
Q. 37. What dost thou understand by the words, "He suffered"?
A. That He, all the time that He lived on earth, but especially at the end
of His life, sustained in body and soul the wrath of God against the sins of
all mankind (a); that so by His passion, as the only propitiatory sacrifice
(b), He might redeem our body and soul from everlasting damnation (c), and
obtain for us the favor of God, righteousness and eternal life (d).
(a) Isaiah 53:4, 1 Peter 2:24, 3:18, 1Timothy 2:6;
(b) Isaiah 53:10, Ephesians 5:2, 1 Corinthians 5:7, 1 John 2:2, Romans 3:25
,
Hebrews 9:28, 10:14;
(c) Galatians 3:13, Colossians 1:13, Hebrews 9:12, 1Peter 1:18-19;
(d) Romans3:25, 2 Corinthians 5:21, John 3:16, 6:51, Hebrews 9:15, 10:19.
Body and soul
Immediately after Jesus' birth, the Apostle's Creed turns to His suffering.
He suffered in body and soul His entire lifetime, such as when He was
tempted in the desert by the devil and when He was reviled and mocked by
people. Christ came to suffer and to die. He had to suffer in soul and body
because we have sinned with soul and body. The heaviest part of His
suffering came on the cross, for there He bore the wrath of God against the
sin of all mankind. He cried, "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" (
Matthew 27:46).
The wrath of God
Although Christ bore the wrath of God which was against all mankind,
nevertheless He suffered only in place of His elect. Only those will be
saved from this wrath. The wrath of God remains on all others.
Christ said of Himself, "I am the good Shepherd: the good shepherd giveth
his life for the sheep" (John 10:11).
All-sufficiency
Even if Christ had suffered and had satisfied for all people, He would not
have had to suffer more. There is power in His sacrifice and an all-
sufficiency to save the entire world.
Christ had to bear the full wrath of God. This has in view the extent of the
wrath against the entire human race, which includes the elect. Isaiah might
see and prophesy, "Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows
4).
Christ brought an offering of atonement, for it was His suffering was the
sacrifice which brought reconciliation with God.
What purpose did He suffering accomplish? In the first place, Christ saves
us from the wrath of God, for it was because of sin that we deserved eternal
damnation. In the second place, He merited God's grace, righteousness, and
life eternal. God's grace is God's favor. Through His obedience and
atonement, Christ obtained righteousness, which He bestows upon to His
church. It was eternal life which God had promised upon the keeping of the
law.
Q. 38 Why did He suffer under Pontius Pilate as judge?
A. That He, being innocent, and yet condemned by a temporal judge (a), might
thereby free us from the severe judgment of God to which we were exposed (b
).
(a) John 18:38, Matthew 27:24, Luke 23:14-15, John 19:4;
(b) Psalm 69:4, Isaiah 53:4-5, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Galatians 3:13.
Pontius Pilate
Christ was sentenced by Pilate. That sentence was a sentence by a judge who
represented God's authority here on earth. In Pilate, Christ was condemned
by a legal authority. That judgment, although sinful, was binding. It was a
sentence by God, because God willed that He should die the death. Through
this means all those who believe in Him are freed from God's judgment. For
Christ was condemned, so that we would be acquitted.
Paul said, "For He hath made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we
might be made the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Corinthians 5:21).
God and His Church
Behind Pilate we must see God the Father, who sentenced Christ. Christ bore
the guilt of His people. Behind Christ we must see His elected Church, which
He saves in this way. God the Father pronounced the Son guilty, in order
that He could acquit the elect.
Q. 39. Is there anything more in His being crucified, than if He had died
some other death?
A. Yes, there is; for thereby I am assured, that He took on Him the curse
which lay upon me (a); for the death of the cross was accursed of God (b).
(a) Galatians 3:3;
(b) Deuteronomy 21:23
A cursed death
Paul said "Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a
curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree"
(Galatians 3:13). Paul here reminds us of the pronouncement God made in the
Old Testament: "For he that is hanged is accursed of God" (Deuteronomy 21:
23).
The crucifixion was very shameful and dishonorable. The crucified one was
undressed, publicly exposed on the cross to everyone's scorn, as one cast
off from the earth and also not to be received by heaven. Only slaves who
had committed terrible crimes acts were allowed to be crucified by the
Romans. The punishment was also very painful, for it was a lingering torture
until death came. In the catechism, it is emphasized that the crucifixion
was a cursed death which came about by God's direction. It was an anathema,
a being cast out by God.
The curse deserved
Christ is our Mediator and Surety. We have deserved nothing else but the
curse by our transgression of the law. Paul wrote, "Cursed is everyone that
continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do
them" (Galatians 3:10).
When Christ indeed wanted to be our Savior, He had to endure this curse. And
this He has done. He was crucified, and therefore was cursed in order to
redeem us from the curse.
That curse rests upon us because we have not kept God's law. It is a well-
deserved curse. However, on Golgotha Christ was hung on the cross. He was
willing to be made a curse.
Lord's Day 16
Q. 40. Why was it necessary for Christ to humble Himself even unto death?
A. Because with the respect to the justice and truth of God (a),
satisfaction for our sins could be made no otherwise than by the death of
the Son of God (b).
(a) Genesis 2:17;
(b) Romans 8:3-4, Hebrews 2:14-15.
Sin had to be paid for
Death had to come upon the Son of God because of God's justice and because
of His truth. The justice of God demanded death. To Adam He had said: But of
the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for
in the day thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die. (Genesis 2: 17). Hath
God said it, and shall He not do it? His truth would then be violated. There
was no other way for the sins to be paid for than by the death of the Son
of God. Christ became the Surety. Just as a surety pays for the debt of
someone who cannot pay himself, so Christ took all the debt of His people
for His own account.
From eternity
Christ was already the Surety from eternity. He had taken all the guilt and
punishment of the elect upon Himself. He was born as the Surety and all His
life He was the Surety. Therefore Christ had to suffer everything for which
His people would have had to suffer. This included death, to its fullest
extent - not only physical, but also spiritual and eternal death.
Indispensable
This answer of the catechism teaches us how indispensable Christ is for each
of us. If we die without being converted and outside of Christ, we
ourselves will suffer eternally for our sins in hell. A poet once said, "
Outside of Christ there is no life, but eternal destruction of the soul."
Q. 41. Why was He also "buried"?
A. Thereby to prove that He was really dead (a).
(a) Acts 13:29, Matthew 27:59-60, Luke 23:53, John 19:38.
In the grave
The death of Christ is of great significance. It is only by it that God's
justice is satisfied and we reconciled with God. It is therefore of the
greatest importance that we know for certain that He died. That He was
buried means that He was in the grave and was therefore among the dead. This
is convincing proof that He had died.
Because of sin
It is written of Christ, "And when they had fulfilled all that was written
of Him, they took Him down from the tree, and laid Him in a sepulchre" (Acts
13:29). The burial is not only proof of the death of the Lord Jesus, but
also a step of His deep humiliation. Man was once created by God to live and
not to die. But because of sin man is one day brought to lie in the grave.
In the sentence upon the fall, God spoke to Adam and in him to every person,
"For dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return" (Genesis 3:19). That
is his extreme humiliation. This humiliation has also been Christ's portion.
He was also in the grave. Christians follow the example of Christ - for
that reason they reject the practice of cremation.
Q. 42. Since then Christ died for us, why must we also die?
A. Our death is not a satisfaction for our sins (a), but only an abolishing
of sin, and a passage into eternal life (b).
(a) Mark 8:37, Psalm 49:8;
(b) Philippians 1:23, John 5:24, Romans 7:24.
Payment
Christ died for His people. He has borne the punishment. His death was a
payment for their sins. He has conquered death. The suffering and death of
the Lord Jesus was substitutionary. He suffered and died instead of His
people. Why then must His people still have to die? For them, death is no
longer a punishment for their sins. The punishment has been completely taken
away. It is an abolishing of sin and a passage into eternal life. An
abolishing of sin means that at their death they are forever delivered from
sin. All their life long they have had to fight against sin. Believers are
never perfect here on earth. However, at their death they obtain complete
victory over sin. Dying is for them their deliverance. Then God's people
become perfect.
Everlasting life
Death is also a passage into eternal glory; that is everlasting life. In
order to enter heaven, God's children must pass through the valley of death.
After death God grants to them that life which they by faith already
possessed. Christ has said, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth
My word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and
shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life" (John
5:24).
They believe in the victory, but they must also yet die. Death brings them
in eternal life. It is a life of everlasting communion with God. It is
through death unto life. That is the way God keeps with His children.
Q. 43. What further benefit do we receive from the sacrifice and death of
Christ on the cross?
A. That by virtue thereof our old man is crucified, dead, and buried with
Him (a); that so the corrupt inclinations of the flesh may no more reign in
us (b), but that we may offer ourselves unto Him a sacrifice of thanksgiving
(c).
(a) Romans 6:6;
(b) Romans 6:6-12;
(c) Romans 12:1.
Crucifying the old man
Until now the catechism has emphasized the satisfaction of Christ. Now we
will take notice of the effect of this suffering and death in the life of
God's people. What significance does this have in the experiences of the
life of faith? The sacrifice and death of Christ have significance. For by
His power, our old man is crucified, dead, and buried with Him. It is thus
here considering the power of Christ's death on the cross in our lives.
The cross of Christ also has a crucifying effect on sin and the old man.
Crucifying is sin deadening. This is a painful process. Each person who has
learned, under the burden of his sins, to look upon the cross of Christ,
will by it also die to sin. Only then will we see how terrifying sin is, and
the love to sin will be crucified in us. The purpose of "being crucified,
dead, and buried with Him" is that the evil lusts of the flesh and the evil
thoughts will no longer reign in us.
Evil lusts reign in unregenerate people. They are the plaything of them.
They do not reign any longer in God's people, although they are still
present in them. But they are not slaves of sin.
Paul wrote, "Knowing this, that our old man (that is, the man before
regeneration) is crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be destroyed
, that henceforth we should not serve sin" (Romans 6:6).
Thankfulness
God's children are crucified with Christ and live to offer themselves for a
sacrifice of thanksgiving. They offer their lives, as it were, unto God.
They dedicate their lives unto Him to show thankfulness unto Him for the
sacrifice of Christ, by which they are reconciled. Not sin, but Christ
reigns in them. Therefore their lives are from that time on a sacrifice of
thankfulness. They desire to consecrate their gifts, their talents, indeed,
their entire life to the Lord Jesus. He entered into death for them in order
that they would live through Him.
Q.44. Why is there added, "He descended into hell"?
A. That in my greatest temptations, I may be assured, and wholly comfort
myself in this, that my Lord Jesus Christ, by His inexpressible anguish,
pains, terrors, and hellish agonies, in which He was plunged during all His
sufferings (a), but especially on the cross, hath delivered me from the
anguish and torments of hell (b).
(a) Psalm 18:4-5, 116:3, Matthew 26:38, 27:46, Hebrews 5:7;
(b) Isaiah 53:5.
Hellish agonies
By the descending into hell the Heidelberg Catechism is speaking of the
hellish agonies which Christ suffered before His death. For upon Him as
Surety, not only temporal death, but also spiritual and eternal death must
come. He had to suffer the hellish pains, which is the eternal punishment.
He bore this hellish anguish in all His sufferings, but especially on the
cross. Inexpressible anguish, pains, terrors, and hellish agonies came over
Him. His suffering in Gethsemane was so severe that His sweat was as it were
great drops of blood. On the cross He had to cry out, "My God, My God, why
hast Thou forsaken Me?" (Matthew 27:46).
The temptations were fierce assaults of Satan. Satan disputes our right to
heaven. The Lord Jesus knows that His people have temptations. The psalmist
says, "The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold
upon me: I found trouble and sorrow" (Psalm 116:3).
Comfort
The Lord Jesus suffered these hellish agonies so that God's children, in all
their soul's agonies, should believe that the everlasting punishment would
never come upon them. That is their comfort and assurance. The prophet
Isaiah spoke in amazement, "But He was wounded for our transgressions, He
was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon Him;
and with His stripes we are healed" (Isaiah 53: 5)
Questions to go with Lesson 6. (Lord's Day 14, 15, and 16)
1. What was the first step of the humiliation of the Son of God? (answer 35)
2. How did He obtain the human nature? (answer 35)
3a. Why was Mary sinful? (answer 35)
3b. Why was the Lord Jesus without sin? (answer 35)
4. What does the text of Romans 1:3 mean?
5. Between which two "parties" is Christ the Mediator? (answer 36)
6. For whom did the Lord Jesus suffer? (answer 37)
7. What did the judge Pontius Pilate do? (answer 38)
8. Why was it that the Lord Jesus had to die by crucifiction? (answer 39)
9. What is the connection between the death of Christ and Genesis 2:17?
10a. Why did Christ have to be buried? (answer 41)
10b. Where in the Bible do we read about this burial? (answer 41)
10c. Who buried Him? Read John 19
11. What does it mean that the suffering and death of the Lord Jesus was
substitutionary?
(answer 42).
12. What is 'abolishing of sin'? (answer 42)
13a. What is the old nature in a child of God? (answer 43)
13b. What must happen to this old nature? Read: Romans 6:6
14a. What does it mean that He descended into hell? (answer 44)
14b. What is the comfort of this article? (answer 44) | x****g
发帖数: 4008 | 2 Thanks for sharing
15
against
【在 G*M 的大作中提到】
: Bible Course - Christian Doctrine
: Lesson 6
: The Humiliation of Christ
: Lord's Day 14 - 16
: The humiliation of Christ
: After discussing the names of the Mediator, the instructor now deals with
: the states. "States" refer to the relationship with God. Lord's Days 14, 15
: and 16 deal with the state of humiliation, which is divided into degrees. "
: Degrees" view the ever-deepening process of Christ's suffering. Over against
: this progressive humiliation, there is also a progressive exaltation.
| j********1
发帖数: 2073 | 3 Thanks for sharing
15
against
【在 G*M 的大作中提到】
: Bible Course - Christian Doctrine
: Lesson 6
: The Humiliation of Christ
: Lord's Day 14 - 16
: The humiliation of Christ
: After discussing the names of the Mediator, the instructor now deals with
: the states. "States" refer to the relationship with God. Lord's Days 14, 15
: and 16 deal with the state of humiliation, which is divided into degrees. "
: Degrees" view the ever-deepening process of Christ's suffering. Over against
: this progressive humiliation, there is also a progressive exaltation.
| m****u
发帖数: 1689 | 4 Thanks for sharing
15
against
【在 G*M 的大作中提到】
: Bible Course - Christian Doctrine
: Lesson 6
: The Humiliation of Christ
: Lord's Day 14 - 16
: The humiliation of Christ
: After discussing the names of the Mediator, the instructor now deals with
: the states. "States" refer to the relationship with God. Lord's Days 14, 15
: and 16 deal with the state of humiliation, which is divided into degrees. "
: Degrees" view the ever-deepening process of Christ's suffering. Over against
: this progressive humiliation, there is also a progressive exaltation.
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