A. Because God's justice and truth demand it; only the death of God's Son could pay for our sin.
41. Q. Why was He "buried"?
A. His burial testifies that He really died.
42. Q. Since Christ has died for us, why do we still have to die?
A. Our death does not pay the debt for our sins. Rather, it puts an end to our sinning and is our entrance into eternal life.
43. Q. What further advantage do we receive from Christ's sacrifice and death on the cross?
A. Through Christ's death our old selves are crucified, put to death, and buried with Him, so that the evil desires of the flesh may no longer rule us, but that instead we may dedicate ourselves as an offering of gratitude to Him.
44. Q. Why does the creed add "He descended into Hell"?
A. To assure me in times of personal crisis and temptation that Christ my Lord, by suffering unspeakable anguish, pain, and the terrors of the soul, especially on the cross but also earlier; has delivered me from the anguish and torment of hell.
"Death is our entrance into eternal life. We know that. But have you stopped to think that death also puts an end to our sinning? I don't think I've ever comforted the dying with this thought. But I should.
"Granted, there are aspects of dying that frighten us. But the Catechism reminds us of an aspect of the good news that we often forget. After death, we won't think another proud thought; we won't snap at our children again; we won't face another temptation to lust ever again. What sweet relief."
"Christ's death not only pays for our sins and assures us of sinless eternal life, it also means that our sinful natures have been put to death in this life. Progressive sanctification is built on the atonement. We have been crucified with Christ. We have been buried with Him. We died to sin in His death. This doesn't mean the fight for holiness is over but rather that the fight can now begin. It is only Christ's finished work on the cross that frees us and inspires us to a life of good works, piety, and gratitude.
The Good News We Almost Forgot, Kevin DeYoung, Moody Publishers, 2010, pp. 86-87. (emphasis mine)
I was just talking with my husband about this.
ReplyDelete42. Q. Since Christ has died for us, why do we still have to die?
A. Our death does not pay the debt for our sins. Rather, it puts an end to our sinning and is our entrance into eternal life.
Paul says the wages of sin IS death, so wouldn't our death pay for our sin? We die, sin has gotten it's wage. Why then would someone still need to pay for sin after death? (in the case of the unsaved?)
@Ma: I believe Paul is talking about more than physical death but spiritual death and eternal separation from God. The reality of hell is a horrible thing which is all the more reason to pray for the lost and share the only deliverance that what we all deserved.
ReplyDeleteHere's a quote from John Piper's "Jesus The Only Way to God" , which explains it better than I could -
"Hell is a dreadful reality. To speak of it lightly proves we do not grasp its horror. I know of no one who has overstated the terrors of hell. We can scarcely surpass the horrid images Jesus used. We are meant to shudder. Why? Because the infinite horrors of hell are intended by God to be a vivid demonstration of the infinite value of his glory which sinners have belittled. The biblical assumption of the justice of hell is the clearest testimony to the infiniteness of the sin of failing to glorify God. All of us have failed. All the nations have failed. Therefore the weight of infinite guilt resets on every human head because of our failure to delight in God more than we delight in our own self sufficiency... The essential thing is that the degree of blameworthiness comes not from how long you offend dignity but from how high the dignity you offended."
Piper quotes Jonathan Edwards - " Our obligation to love, honor, and obey any being, is in proportion to his loveliness, honorableness, and authority... But God is a being infinitely lovely, because he hath infinite excellence and beauty... So that sin against God being a violation of infinite obligation must be a crime infinitely heinous; and so deserving of infinite punishment. "
correcting typo:
ReplyDeleteto pray for the lost and share the only deliverance from what we all deserved.
Thank you Persis, I will think about these quotes.
ReplyDeleteWhere is 'eternal separation' from God mentioned in Scripture if you know?
2 Thess 1:7-10 refers to eternal destruction away from the presence of the Lord. But at the same time God is omnipresent, which is implied by Revelation 14:9-12 but His presence is unbearable to those in Hell because they go to eternity still hating God. Perhaps separation in the sense of no hope of repentance and being bound to sin for eternity, because I don't believe that scripture teaches that repentance is possible after death.
ReplyDeleteGreat post and comments! Blessings on all!
ReplyDeleteEternal destruction is a strange concept, as the word destruction there denotes actual destruction. see BLB here
ReplyDeleteAs far as Revelation goes, I'm back to the drawing board in that book! WHEW it is difficult!
There is the annihilationism view which would hold to the soul being destroyed after death. I don't find it consistent with the rest of scripture. Piper interprets "olethros" as "ruin" rather than "obliteration".
ReplyDeleteBut you're right,Ma. This is a difficult topic let alone looking at Revelation as a whole. That is a whole 'nother can of beans!