Heidelberg 88-91 Dying and Living

Then he said to them all: "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. (Luke 9:23) 

Thoughts: To follow Christ- being genuinely converted- means we must die and we must live.  We must die to self and live to the new.  When we die to self we are set free from our lusts, from our belly-button gazing, from thinking only of ourselves.  We are consumed with ourselves naturally.  We may focus on how we are superior or we may focus on how we are inferior- but either way we focus on ourselves.  Christ sets us free from this.  There are two parts to dying to self: 1) denying self- this is self control; and 2) taking up our cross- this is willingness to suffer for the greater good of God and others.  We recognize freedom on the outside (national freedom) comes at great cost.  But freedom on the inside comes at a cost as well.  
      But part of being set free also means living the way we were meant to live.  A hammer that pretends it is a saw is not free to be the hammer it is meant to be.  We were created by God to live for Him- following Him.  Augustine said, "Our hearts are restless til they find their rest in Thee."
      When we are set free by dying to self and living to God we are set free to do good for God.  We  glorify Him with our gratitude and doing good. In our day good is often defined in differing ways.  For the Christian we are set free to do good for a higher purpose- the glory of God.  In the end, all good we do will fade except for what will last forever.  We are created to glorify God and enjoy Him forever- and the good we do should reflect that.
      On this fourth of July, let us be set free on the inside.   

Q & A 88

Q. What is involved in genuine repentance or conversion?

A. Two things: the dying-away of the old self, and the rising-to-life of the new.1

1 Rom. 6:1-11; 2 Cor. 5:17; Eph. 4:22-24; Col. 3:5-10

Q & A 89

Q. What is the dying-away of the old self?

A. To be genuinely sorry for sin and more and more to hate and run away from it.1

1 Ps. 51:3-4, 17; Joel 2:12-13; Rom. 8:12-13; 2 Cor. 7:10

Q & A 90

Q. What is the rising-to-life of the new self?

A. Wholehearted joy in God through Christ1 and a love and delight to live according to the will of God by doing every kind of good work.2

1 Ps. 51:8, 12; Isa. 57:15; Rom. 5:1; 14:17
2 Rom. 6:10-11; Gal. 2:20

Q & A 91

Q. What are good works? 

A. Only those which are done out of true faith,1 conform to God’s law,2 and are done for God’s glory;3 and not those based on our own opinion or human tradition.4

1 John 15:5; Heb. 11:6
2 Lev. 18:4; 1 Sam. 15:22; Eph. 2:10
3 1 Cor. 10:31
4 Deut. 12:32; Isa. 29:13; Ezek. 20:18-19; Matt. 15:7-9