The Reformed Christian Muse

Q37: What do you understand by the word “suffered”?
A37: That all the time He lived on earth, but especially at the end of His life, He bore, in body and soul, the wrath of God against the sin of the whole human race; in order that by His suffering, as the only atoning sacrifice, He might redeem our body and soul from everlasting damnation, and obtain for us the grace of God, righteousness and eternal life.

I want to revisit this Q&A from Lord’s Day 15 of the Heidelburg Catechism. I have already posted this but did not comment on it. This clearly shows a more moderate Calvinistic view of the suffering of Christ for the sin of the “whole human race” than is found to be more popular today. This same idea of sufficiency is also expressed in the Cannons of Dort here:

The Canons of Dort, Second Head of Doctrine
The Death of Christ, and the Redemption of Men Thereby - Articles of Faith

Article 6
And, whereas many who are called by the gospel do not repent nor believe in Christ, but perish in unbelief, this is not owing to any defect or insufficiency in the sacrifice offered by Christ upon the cross, but is wholly to be imputed to themselves.

If we compare these two statements from the 3 Forms of Unity can we not properly infer that the unbelief and rejection of the gospel is “wholly to be imputed” to the unbeliever because there is nothing lacking in the atonement for him because the unbeliever, being a member of the human race, Christ in his place bore his wrath against his sin according to Q&A 37?

Blessings in Christ,
Terry W. West

Q59:  But what does it help you now, that you believe all this?
A59:  That I am righteous in Christ before God, and an heir of eternal life.[1]

1.  Hab. 2:4; Rom. 1:17; 5:1; 8:16; John 3:36; Titus 3:7

Q60:  How are you righteous before God?
A60:  Only by true faith in Jesus Christ:[1] that is, although my conscience accuses me, that I have grievously sinned against all the commandments of God, and have never kept any of them,[2] and am still prone always to all evil;[3] yet God, without any merit of mine,[4] of mere grace,[5] grants and imputes to me the perfect satisfaction,[6] righteousness and holiness of Christ,[7] as if I had never committed nor had any sins, and had myself accomplished all the obedience which Christ has fulfilled for me;[8] if only I accept such benefit with a believing heart.[9]

1.  Rom. 3:21-25; Gal. 2:16; Eph. 2:8-9; Phil. 3:9
2.  Rom. 3:9-10
3.  Rom. 7:23
4.  Titus 3:5
5.  Rom. 3:24; Eph. 2:8
6.  I John 2:2
7.  I John 2:1; Rom. 4:4-5; II Cor. 5:19
8.  II Cor. 5:21
9.  John 3:18; Rom. 3:28; 10:10

Q61:  Why do you say that you are righteous by faith only?
A61:  Not that I am acceptable to God on account of the worthiness of my faith, but because only the satisfaction, righteousness and holiness of Christ is my righteousness before God;[1] and I can receive the same and make it my own in no other way than by faith only.[2]

1.  I Cor. 1:30; 2:2
2.  I John 5:10; Isa. 53:5; Gal. 3:22; Rom. 4:16

Q57:  What comfort do you receive from the “resurrection of the body”?
A57:  That not only my soul after this life shall be immediately taken up to Christ its Head,[1] but also that this my body, raised by the power of Christ, shall be reunited with my soul, and made like unto the glorious body of Christ.[2]

1.  Luke 23:43; Phil. 1:21-23
2.  I Cor. 15:53-54; Job 19:25-27; I John 3:2

Q58:  What comfort do you receive from the article “life everlasting”?
A58:  That, inasmuch as I now feel in my heart the beginning of eternal joy,[1] I shall after this life possess complete blessedness, such as eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither has entered into the heart of man,[2] therein to praise God forever.[3]

1.  II Cor. 5:2-3
2.  I Cor. 2:9
3.  John 17:3; Rom. 8:23; I Peter 1:8

Q54:  What do you believe concerning the “Holy Catholic Church”?
A54:  That out of the whole human race,[1] from the beginning to the end of the world,[2] the Son of God,[3] by His Spirit and Word,[4] gathers, defends and preserves for Himself unto everlasting life a chosen communion [5] in the unity of the true faith;[6] and that I am and forever shall remain a living member of this communion.[7]

1.  Gen. 26:4
2.  John 10:10
3.  Eph. 1:10-13
4.  Rom. 1:16; 10:14-17; Isa. 59:21; Eph. 5:26
5.  Rom. 8:29-30; Matt. 16:18; Eph. 4:3-6
6.  Acts 2:46; Psa. 71:18; I Cor. 1:8-9; 11:26; John 10:28-30
7.  I John 2:19; 3:21; Gal. 3:28

Q55:  What do you understand by the “communion of saints”?
A55:  First, that believers, one and all, as members of the Lord Jesus Christ, are partakers with Him in all His treasures and gifts;[1] second, that each one must feel himself bound to use his gifts readily and cheerfully for the advantage and welfare of other members.[2]

1.  I John 1:3
2.  I Cor. 12:12-13, 21; 13:5-6; Phil. 2:4-6; Heb. 3:14

Q56:  What do you believe concerning the “forgiveness of sins”?
A56:  That God, for the sake of Christ’s satisfaction,[1] will no more remember my sins, nor the sinful nature with which I have to struggle all my life long;[2] but graciously imputes to me the righteousness of Christ, that I may nevermore come into condemnation.[3]

1.  I John 2:2
2.  II Cor. 5:19, 21; Rom. 7:24-25; 8:1-4; Psa. 103:3, 10, 12; Jer. 31:34
3.  John. 3:18; Eph. 1:7; Rom. 4:7-8; 7:18

Q53:  What do you believe concerning the “Holy Ghost”?
A53:  First, that He is coeternal God with the Father and the Son.[1] Second, that He is also given unto me:[2] by true faith makes me a partaker of Christ and all His benefits,[3] comforts me,[4] and shall abide with me forever.[5]

1.  Gen. 1:2; Isa. 48:16; I Cor. 3:16; 6:19; Acts 5:3-4
2.  Matt. 28:19; II Cor. 1:21-22
3.  I Peter 1:2; I Cor. 6:17
4.  Acts 9:31
5.  John 14:16; I Peter 4:14; I John 4:13; Rom. 15:13

Q51:  What does this glory of Christ, our Head, profit us?
A51:  First, that by His Holy Spirit He pours out heavenly gifts upon us, His members;[1] then, that by His power He defends and preserves us against all enemies.[2]

1.  Eph. 4:10-12
2.  Psa. 2:9; John 10:28-30; I Cor. 15:25-26; Acts 2:33

Q52:  What comfort is it to you that Christ “shall come to judge the living and the dead”?
A52:  That in all my sorrows and persecutions, I, with uplifted head, look for the very One, who offered Himself for me to the judgment of God, and removed all curse from me, to come as Judge from heaven,[1] who shall cast all His and my enemies into everlasting condemnation,[2] but shall take me with all His chosen ones to Himself into heavenly joy and glory.[3]

1.  Luke 21:28; Rom. 8:23-24; Phil. 3:20-21; Titus 2:13
2.  II Thess. 1:6, 10; Matt. 25:41
3.  I Thess. 4:16-18; Acts 1:10-11; Heb. 9:28

Q49:  What benefit do we receive from Christ’s ascension into heaven?
A49:  First, that He is our Advocate in the presence of His Father in heaven.[1] Second, that we have our flesh in heaven as a sure pledge, that He as the Head will also take us, His members, up to Himself.[2] Third, that He sends us His Spirit as an earnest,[3] by whose power we seek those things which are above, where Christ sits at the right hand of God, and not things on the earth.[4]

1.  I John 2:1; Rom. 8:34
2.  John 14:2; 20:17; Eph. 2:6
3.  John 14:16; Acts 2:33; II Cor. 5:5
4.  Col. 3:1; John 14:3; Heb. 9:24

Q50:  Why is it added: “And sitteth at the right hand of God”?
A50:  Because Christ ascended into heaven for this end, that He might there appear as the Head of His Church,[1] by whom the Father governs all things.[2]

1.  Eph. 1:20-23; Col. 1:18
2.  John 5:22; I Peter 3:22; Psa. 110:1

Q45:  What benefit do we receive from the “resurrection” of Christ?
A45:  First, by His resurrection He has overcome death, that He might make us partakers of the righteousness which He has obtained for us by His death.[1] Second, by His power we are also now raised up to a new life.[2] Third, the resurrection of Christ is to us a sure pledge of our blessed resurrection.[3]

1.  I Cor. 15:15, 17, 54-55; Rom. 4:25; I Peter 1:3-4, 21
2.  Rom. 6:4; Col. 3:1-4; Eph. 2:5
3.  I Cor. 15:12, 20-21; Rom. 8:11

Q46:  What do you understand by the words “He ascended into heaven”?
A46:  That Christ, in the sight of His disciples, was taken up from the earth into heaven,[1] and continues there in our behalf [2] until He shall come again to judge the living and the dead.[3]

1.  Acts 1:9; Matt. 26:64; Mark 16:9; Luke 24:51
2.  Heb. 4:14; 7:24-25; 9:11; Rom. 8:34; Eph. 4:10
3.  Acts 1:11; 3:20-21; Matt. 24:30

Q47:  But is not Christ with us even unto the end of the world,[1] as He has promised?
A47:  Christ is true man and true God. According to His human nature He is now not on earth,[2] but according to His Godhead, majesty, grace, and Spirit, He is at no time absent from us.[3]

1.  Matt. 28:20
2.  Matt. 26:11; John 16:28; 17:11
3.  John 14:17-18; 16:13; Eph. 4:8; Matt. 18:20; Heb. 8:4

Q48:  But are not, in this way, the two natures in Christ separated from one another, if the manhood is not wherever the Godhead is?
A48:  Not at all, for since the Godhead is incomprehensible and everywhere present,[1] it must follow that it is indeed beyond the bounds of the manhood which it has assumed, but is yet nonetheless in the same also, and remains personally united to it.[2]

1.  Acts 7:49; Jer. 23:24
2.  Col. 2:9; John 1:48; 3:13; 11:15; Matt. 28:6

Q40:  Why was it necessary for Christ to suffer “death”?
A40:  Because the justice and truth [1] of God required that 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.  Heb. 2:9; Rom. 6:23

 Q41:  Why was He “buried”?
A41:  To show thereby that He was really dead.[1]

1.  Matt. 27:59-60
2.  John 19:38-42; Acts 13:29

Q42:  Since, then, Christ died for us, why must we also die?
A42:  Our death is not a satisfaction for our sin, but only a dying to sin and an entering into eternal life.[1]

1.  John 5:24; Phil. 1:23; Rom. 7:24-25

Q43:  What further benefit do we receive from the sacrifice and death of Christ on the cross?
A43:  That by His power our old man is with Him crucified, slain and buried;[1] so that the evil lusts of the flesh may no more reign in us,[2] but that we may offer ourselves unto Him a sacrifice of thanksgiving.[3]

1.  Rom. 6:6-8; Col. 2:12
2.  Rom. 6:12
3.  Rom. 12:1;  II Cor. 5:15

Q44:  Why is it added: “He descended into hell”?
A44:  That in my greatest temptations I may be assured that Christ my Lord, by His inexpressible anguish, pains and terrors, which He suffered in His soul on the cross and before, has redeemed me from the anguish and torment of hell.[1]

1.  Isa. 53:10; Matt. 27:46; Psa. 18:5; 116:3

Q37:  What do you understand by the word “suffered”?
A37:  That all the time He lived on earth, but especially at the end of His life, He bore, in body and soul, the wrath of God against the sin of the whole human race;[1] in order that by His suffering, as the only atoning sacrifice,[2] He might redeem our body and soul from everlasting damnation, and obtain for us the grace of God, righteousness and eternal life.

1.  I Peter 2:24; Isa. 53:12
2.  I John 2:2; 4:10; Rom. 3:25-26; 5:6; Psa. 22:14-16; Matt. 26:38

Q38:  Why did He suffer “under Pontius Pilate” as judge?
A38:  That He, being innocent, might be condemned by the temporal judge,[1] and thereby deliver us from the severe judgment of God, to which we were exposed.[2]

1.  Acts 4:27-28; Luke 23:13-15; John 19:4
2.  Psa. 69:4; II Cor. 5:21; Matt. 27:24

Q39:  Is there anything more in His having been “crucified” than if He had suffered some other death?
A39:  Yes, for thereby I am assured that He took upon Himself the curse which lay upon me,[1] because the death of the cross was accursed of God.[2]

1.  Gal. 3:13-14
2.  Deut. 21:22-23; Phil. 2:8

Q35:  What is the meaning of “conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the virgin Mary”?
A35:  That the eternal Son of God, who is [1] and continues true and eternal God,[2] took upon Himself the very nature of man, of the flesh and blood of the virgin Mary,[3] by the operation of the Holy Ghost;[4] so that He might also be the true seed of David,[5] like unto His brethren in all things,[6] except for sin.[7]

1.  John 1:1; Rom. 1:3-4
2.  Rom. 9:5
3.  Gal. 4:4; John 1:14
4.  Matt. 1:18-20; Luke 1:35
5.  Psa. 132:11
6.  Phil. 2:7
7.  Heb. 4:15: I John 5:20

Q36:  What benefit do you receive from the holy conception and birth of Christ?
A36:  That He is our Mediator,[1] and with His innocence and perfect holiness covers, in the sight of God, my sin, wherein I was conceived.[2]

1.  Heb. 2:16-17
2.  Psa. 32:1; I John 1:9

Q196:  What doth the conclusion of the Lord’s prayer teach us?
A196:  The conclusion of the Lord’s prayer (which is, For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.),[1] teaches us to enforce our petitions with arguments,[2] which are to be taken, not from any worthiness in ourselves, or in any other creature, but from God;[3] and with our prayers to join praises,[4] ascribing to God alone eternal sovereignty, omnipotency, and glorious excellency;[5] in regard whereof, as he is able and willing to help us,[6] so we by faith are emboldened to plead with him that he would,[7] and quietly to rely upon him, that he will fulfil our requests.[8] And, to testify this our desire and assurance, we say, Amen.[9]

1.  Matt. 6:13
2.  Rom. 15:30
3.  Dan. 9:4, 7-9, 16-19
4.  Phil. 4:6
5.  I Chr. 29:10-13
6.  Eph. 3:20-21; Luke 11:13
7.  II Chr. 20:6, 11
8.  II Chr. 14:11
9.  I Cor. 14:16; Rev. 22:20-21

Q33:  Why is He called God’s “only begotten Son,” since we also are the children of God?
A33:  Because Christ alone is the eternal, natural Son of God,[1] but we are the children of God by adoption, through grace, for His sake.[2]

1.  John 1:14, 18
2.  Rom. 8:15-17; Eph. 1:5-6; I John 3:1

Q34:  Why do you call Him “our Lord”?
A34:  Because not with silver or gold, but with His precious blood, He has redeemed and purchased us, body and soul, from sin and from all the power of the devil, to be His own.[1]

1.  I Peter 1:18-19; 2:9; I Cor. 6:20; 7:23; Acts 2:36; Titus 2:14; Col. 1:14

Q195:  What do we pray for in the sixth petition?
A195:  In the sixth petition (which is, And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil,)[1] acknowledging, that the most wise, righteous, and gracious God, for divers holy and just ends, may so order things, that we may be assaulted, foiled, and for a time led captive by temptations;[2] that Satan,[3] the world,[4] and the flesh, are ready powerfully to draw us aside, and ensnare us;[5] and that we, even after the pardon of our sins, by reason of our corruption,[6] weakness, and want of watchfulness,[7] are not only subject to be tempted, and forward to expose ourselves unto temptations,[8] but also of ourselves unable and unwilling to resist them, to recover out of them, and to improve them;[9] and worthy to be left under the power of them:[10] we pray, that God would so overrule the world and all in it,[11] subdue the flesh,[12] and restrain Satan,[13] order all things,[14] bestow and bless all means of grace,[15] and quicken us to watchfulness in the use of them, that we and all his people may by his providence be kept from being tempted to sin;[16] or, if tempted, that by his Spirit we may be powerfully supported and enabled to stand in the hour of temptation;[17] or when fallen, raised again and recovered out of it,[18] and have a sanctified use and improvement thereof:[19] that our sanctification and salvation may be perfected,[20] Satan trodden under our feet,[21] and we fully freed from sin, temptation, and all evil, forever.[22]

1.  Matt. 6:13; II Chr. 32:31
2.  I Chr. 32:31
3.  I Chr. 21:1
4.  Luke 21:34; Mark 4:19
5.  James 1:14
6.  Gal. 5:17
7.  Matt. 26:41
8.  Matt. 26:69-72; Gal. 2:11-14; II Chr. 18:3; 19:2
9.  Rom. 7:23-24; I Chr. 21:1-4; II Chr. 16:7-10
10. Psa. 81:11-12
11. John 17:15
12. Psa. 51:10; 119:133
13. II Cor. 12:7-8
14. I Cor. 10:12-13
15. Heb. 13:20-21
16. Matt. 26:41; Psa. 19:13
17. Eph. 3:14-17; I Thess. 3:13; Jude 1:24
18. Psa. 51:12
19. I Peter 5:8-10
20. II Cor. 13:7, 9
21. Rom. 16:20; Zech. 3:2; Luke 22:31-32
22. John 17:15; I Thess. 5:23

Q31:  Why is He called “Christ,” that is, Anointed?
A31:  Because He is ordained of God the Father and anointed with the Holy Ghost [1] to be our chief Prophet and Teacher,[2] who has fully revealed to us the secret counsel and will of God concerning our redemption;[3] and our only High Priest,[4] who by the one sacrifice of His body has redeemed us, and ever lives to make intercession for us with the Father;[5] and our eternal King, who governs us by His Word and Spirit, and defends and preserves us in the redemption obtained for us.[6]

1.  Heb. 1:9
2.  Deut. 18:15; Acts 3:22
3.  John 1:18; 15:15
4.  Psa. 110:4; Heb. 7:21
5.  Rom. 5:9-10
6.  Psa. 2:6; Luke 1:33; Matt. 28:18; Isa. 61:1-2; I Peter 2:24; Rev. 19:16

Q32:  But why are you called a Christian?
A32:  Because by faith I am a member of Christ [1] and thus a partaker of His anointing,[2] in order that I also may confess His Name,[3] may present myself a living sacrifice of thankfulness to Him,[4] and with a free conscience may fight against sin and the devil in this life,[5] and hereafter in eternity reign with Him over all creatures.[6]

1.  Acts 11:26; I John 2:20, 27
2.  Acts 2:17
3.  Mark 8:38
4.  Rom. 12:1; Rev. 5:8, 10; I Peter 2:9; Rev. 1:6
5.  I Tim. 1:18-19
6.  II Tim. 2:12; Eph. 6:12; Rev. 3:21

Q29:  Why is the Son of God called “Jesus,” that is, Savior?
A29:  Because He saves us from our sins,[1] and because salvation is not to be sought or found in any other.[2]

1.  Matt. 1:21; Heb. 7:25
2.  Acts 4:12; Luke 2:10-11

Q30:  Do those also believe in the only Savior Jesus, who seek their salvation and welfare from “saints,” themselves, or anywhere else?
A30:  No; although they make their boast of Him, yet in their deeds they deny the only Savior Jesus;[1] for either Jesus is not a complete Savior, or they who by true faith receive this Savior, must have in Him all that is necessary to their salvation.[2]

1.  I Cor. 1:13, 30-31; Gal. 5:4
2.  Isa. 9:7; Col. 1:20, 2:10; John 1:16; Matt. 23:28

Q194:  What do we pray for in the fifth petition? 
A194:  In the fifth petition (which is, Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors,)[1] acknowledging, that we and all others are guilty both of original and actual sin, and thereby become debtors to the justice of God; and that neither we, nor any other creature, can make the least satisfaction for that debt:[2] we pray for ourselves and others, that God of his free grace would, through the obedience and satisfaction of Christ, apprehended and applied by faith, acquit us both from the guilt and punishment of sin,[3] accept us in his Beloved;[4] continue his favor and grace to us,[5] pardon our daily failings,[6] and fill us with peace and joy, in giving us daily more and more assurance of forgiveness;[7] which we are the rather emboldened to ask, and encouraged to expect, when we have this testimony in ourselves, that we from the heart forgive others their offenses.[8]

1.  Matt. 6:12
2.  Rom. 3:9-22; Matt. 18:24-25; Psa. 130:3-4
3.  Rom. 3:24-26; Heb. 9:22
4.  Eph. 1:6-7
5.  II Peter 1:2
6.  Hosea 14:2; Jer. 14:7
7.  Rom. 15:13; Psa. 51:7-10, 12
8.  Luke 11:4; Matt. 6:14-15; 18:35

Q27:  What do you understand by the providence of God?
A27:  The almighty, everywhere-present power of God,[1] whereby, as it were by His hand, He still upholds heaven and earth with all creatures,[2] and so governs them that herbs and grass, rain and drought, fruitful and barren years, meat and drink,[3] health and sickness,[4] riches and poverty,[5] indeed, all things come not by chance, but by His fatherly hand.

1.  Acts 17:25-26
2.  Heb. 1:3
3.  Jer. 5:24; Acts 14:17
4.  John 9:3
5.  Prov. 22:2; Psa. 103:19; Rom. 5:3-5a

Q28:  What does it profit us to know that God created and by His providence upholds all things?
A28:  That we may be patient in adversity,[1] thankful in prosperity,[2] and for what is future have good confidence in our faithful God and Father, that no creature shall separate us from His love,[3] since all creatures are so in His hand, that without His will they cannot so much as move.[4]

1.  Rom. 5:3; James 1:3; Job 1:21
2.  Deut. 8:10; I Thess. 5:18
3.  Rom. 8:35, 38-39
4.  Job 1:12; Acts 17:25-28; Prov. 21:1; Psa. 71:7; II Cor. 1:10

Q26:  What do you believe when you say: “I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth”?
A26:  That the eternal Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who of nothing made heaven and earth with all that in them is,[1] who likewise upholds and governs the same by His eternal counsel and providence,[2] is for the sake of Christ His Son, my God and my Father,[3] in whom I so trust as to have no doubt that He will provide me with all things necessary for body and soul;[4] and further, that whatever evil He sends upon me in this troubled life, He will turn to my good;[5] for He is able to do it, being Almighty God,[6] and willing also, being a faithful Father.[7]

1.  Gen. 1:31; Psa. 33:6; Col. 1:16; Heb. 11:3
2.  Psa. 104:2-5; 115:3; Matt. 10:30; Heb. 1:3; Acts 17:24-25
3.  John 1:12; Rom. 8:15; Gal. 4:5-7; Eph. 1:5; 3:14-16; Matt. 6:8
4.  Psa. 55:22; 90:1-2; Matt. 6:25-26; Luke 12:22-24
5.  Rom. 8:28; Acts 17:27-28
6.  Rom. 10:12
7.  Matt. 7:9-11; Num. 23:19

Q193:  What do we pray for in the fourth petition? 
A193:  In the fourth petition (which is, Give us this day our daily bread,)[1] acknowledging, that in Adam, and by our own sin, we have forfeited our right to all the outward blessings of this life, and deserve to be wholly deprived of them by God, and to have them cursed to us in the use of them;[2] and that neither they of themselves are able to sustain us,[3] nor we to merit,[4] or by our own industry to procure them;[5] but prone to desire,[6] get,[7] and use them unlawfully:[8] we pray for ourselves and others, that both they and we, waiting upon the providence of God from day to day in the use of lawful means, may, of his free gift, and as to his fatherly wisdom shall seem best, enjoy a competent portion of them;[9] and have the same continued and blessed unto us in our holy and comfortable use of them,[10] and contentment in them;[11] and be kept from all things that are contrary to our temporal support and comfort.[12]

1.  Matt. 6:11
2.  Gen. 2:17, 3:17; Rom. 8:20-22; Jer. 5:25; Deut. 28:15-68
3.  Deut. 8:3
4.  Gen. 32:10
5.  Deut. 8:17-18
6.  Jer. 6:13; Mark 7:21-22
7.  Hosea 12:7
8.  James 4:3
9.  Gen. 28:20; 43:12-14; Eph. 4:28; II Thess. 3:11-12; Phil. 4:6
10. I Tim. 4:3-5
11. I Tim. 6:6-8
12. Prov. 30:8-9