Lord's Day 16 — Monday: The Necessity of Christ's Death
Lord's Day 16: The Death of Christ
Monday — The Necessity of Christ's Death
The Catechism
Q40. Why was it necessary for Christ to humble himself even unto death?
Because of the justice and truth of God 1 satisfaction for our sins could be made in no other way than by the death of the Son of God. 2 1. Gen 2:17. 2. Rom 8:3; Phil 2:8; Heb 2:9, 14, 15.
Q41. Why was he buried?
His burial testified that he had really died. 1 1. Is 53:9; Jn 19:38-42; Acts 13:29; 1 Cor 15:3, 4.
Q42. Since Christ has died for us, why do we still have to die?
Our death is not a payment for our sins, but it puts an end to sin and is an entrance into eternal life. 1 1. Jn 5:24; Phil 1:21-23; 1 Thess 5:9, 10.
Q43. What further benefit do we receive from Christ's sacrifice and death on the cross?
Through Christ's death our old nature is crucified, put to death, and buried with him, 1 so that the evil desires of the flesh may no longer reign in us, 2 but that we may offer ourselves to him as a sacrifice of thankfulness. 3 1. Rom 6:5-11; Col 2:11, 12. 2. Rom 6:12-14. 3. Rom 12:1; Eph 5:1, 2.
Q44. Why is there added: He descended into hell?
In my greatest sorrows and temptations I may be assured and comforted that my Lord Jesus Christ, by his unspeakable anguish, pain, terror, and agony, which he endured throughout all his sufferings 1 but especially on the cross, has delivered me from the anguish and torment of hell. 2 1. Ps 18:5, 6; 116:3; Mt 26:36-46; 27:45, 46; Heb 5:7-10. 2. Is 53.
Today's Emphasis
Because of God's justice and truth, our sins required a satisfaction that only the death of the Son of God could provide. This is not cruelty but the necessary working out of divine holiness.
Scripture Readings
Genesis 2:17
But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
Romans 8:3
For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh.
Philippians 2:8
And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
Hebrews 2:9
But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.
From the Reformers
Zacharias Ursinus (Commentary on the Heidelberg Catechism)
"The justice of God required that the same nature which sinned should make satisfaction for sin, and that the same person who sinned should die."
Reflection Questions
• How does understanding God's justice help you appreciate the magnitude of what Christ accomplished on the cross?
• In what ways do you tend to minimize the seriousness of sin, and how does today's teaching correct that?
Growing in grace through the Catechism — The Hearthside Team 🔥