Heidelberg 92- Deut. 5:6-21

Q & A 92

Q. What is God’s law?

A. God spoke all these words:

THE FIRST COMMANDMENT

“I am the Lord your God,

who brought you out of the land of Egypt,
out of the house of slavery;

you shall have no other gods before me.”

THE SECOND COMMANDMENT

“You shall not make for yourself an idol,

whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above,
or that is on the earth beneath,
or that is in the water under the earth.

You shall not bow down to them or worship them;

for I the Lord your God am a jealous God,
punishing children for the iniquity of parents,

to the third and fourth generation
of those who reject me,

but showing love to the thousandth generation of those

who love me and keep my commandments.”

THE THIRD COMMANDMENT

“You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God,

for the Lord will not acquit anyone
who misuses his name.”

THE FOURTH COMMANDMENT

“Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy.
Six days you shall labor and do all your work.
But the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God;
you shall not do any work—

you, your son or your daughter,
your male or female slave,
your livestock,
or the alien resident in your towns.

For in six days the Lord made

the heaven and earth, the sea,
and all that is in them,

but rested the seventh day;
therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day
and consecrated it.”

THE FIFTH COMMANDMENT

“Honor your father and your mother,

so that your days may be long
in the land that the Lord your God is giving to you.”

THE SIXTH COMMANDMENT

“You shall not murder.”

THE SEVENTH COMMANDMENT

“You shall not commit adultery.”

THE EIGHTH COMMANDMENT

“You shall not steal.”

THE NINTH COMMANDMENT

“You shall not bear false witness

against your neighbor.”

THE TENTH COMMANDMENT

“You shall not covet your neighbor’s house;
you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife,

or male or female slave,
or ox, or donkey,
or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”1

1 Ex. 20:1-17; Deut. 5:6-21

Thoughts: This is an interesting answer to an interesting question . God's Law is not the 4,000 plus commands found in scripture- but these Ten Commands contain the Law. These commands were written in stone for a reason.  There are other laws in scripture- cultural/national laws having to do with the legal code for the nation of Israel;  dietary laws to help with hygiene and identity; sacrificial laws- describing the cult of Temple worship;  The national laws are helpful for understanding about right and wrong but do not directly apply to us. Dietary Laws are no longer valid as Christ described in Mark 7 (Peter confirmed in Acts 10:9-16).  Sacrificial Laws are fulfilled in Christ our ultimate sacrifice- and there is no longer any Temple in which to sacrifice.  But the Moral Law found in the Ten Commandments have both principle and content that apply to us today.  Reformed people have seen the Law not as something that just convicts us of sin but also is a valid guide for the way we should live. To not heed this law is to be in disobedience or breaking the law of God. 

Prayer: Lord, give me ears to hear what you say to the churches and to your people today through your Law.  Help me to understand that the grass withers and the flowers fade but your Word endures forever.  

Heidelberg 3 & 4

Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God's sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin. (Romans 3:20)

Thoughts: The Law of God shows us how to live.  But it also reveals to us our sin and how this life is not what it is made up to be.  It is ironic that some secularists say "heaven is a place on earth."  But some others (or the same people in difference time and circumstance) say "I believe there is no worst hell than right here."  Such thoughts really show the limits of our ability to think beyond our circumstances.  But often the things we thought were perfect turn out to be miserable.  So the "marriage made in heaven" can seem like a trap formed in hell.  The job we thought was just right is uninteresting, tedious and difficult.  The Law of God is like the outside  reminder that things are meant to be better.  We were meant to be honest and not lie.  We were meant to be faithful people not wishy washy adulterers who abuse those we said we loved.  The Law shows us our weakness- our problem- and thus we are called to account to be better people. Yet we have a tendency to not want to listen to rebuke or anyone telling us how we should live- or that we might be wrong.  Yet we know from school and from business that not listening to others to correct, rebuke, and help us leads us naively down the wrong path.  We are called to love- but even there we know we mess up and are apathetic and indifferent to God and neighbor.  The Law shows us how we fall short.  It is like a mirror that shows us where our cuts, bruises, pimples, and flaws are.  Mirrors do not solve our problem - but they are helpful to teach us where our flaws are. 

Prayer: Thank you Lord, that your Law shows me where my weakness is.  

Q & A 3

Q. How do you come to know your misery?

A. The law of God tells me.1

1 Rom. 3:20; 7:7-25

Q & A 4

Q. What does God’s law require of us?

A. Christ teaches us this in summary in Matthew 22:37-40:

“‘You shall love the Lord your God
with all your heart,
and with all your soul,
and with all your mind.’1
This is the greatest and first commandment.

“And a second is like it:
‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’2

“On these two commandments hang
all the law and the prophets.”

1 Deut. 6:5
2 Lev. 19:18

Q & A 5

Q. Can you live up to all this perfectly?

A. No.1
I have a natural tendency
to hate God and my neighbor.2

1 Rom. 3:9-20, 23; 1 John 1:8, 10
2 Gen. 6:5; Jer. 17:9; Rom. 7:23-24; 8:7; Eph. 2:1-3; Titus 3:3

Man in the mirror song- Michael Jackson youtube

3/15/12- Requiring What Can't Be Done

23- 3/15-HDBG- 3,4,5

Q. 3. Where do you learn of your sin and its wretched consequences?

A. From the Law of God.

Q. 4. What does the Law of God require of us?

A. Jesus Christ teaches this in a summary in Matthew 22:37–40: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets.” (Cf. Luke 10:27.)

Q. 5. Can you keep all this perfectly?

A. No, for by nature I am prone to hate God and my neighbor

Thoughts: What if you were required to do something you could not do?  What if you had to walk across a 300 foot tightrope to escape an oncoming and overwhelming enemy?  The bad news is we can see what needs to be done, and we can see our need to do it- but one little slip and our end is near.  It doesn’t matter if we slip on the first step, the 100^th or right before we make the other side.  The Law reminds us of the narrow walk. It reminds us that we cannot do it- it is an impossible task.  The grace of God is that when we couldn’t walk it, Christ the tightrope walker came and got us- bringing us over to the other side. 

Prayer: Help me O God, to see my helplessness and to see your helpfulness.  Keep me from trusting in myself. 

(The Great Blondin (Francois Gravelot) walking across Niagara Falls.  An 1,100 foot tightrope that took about twenty minutes to cross)