Reformation 500 WEEK 24: Heidelberg Catechism QA’s
62-64
Question 62: But why
cannot our good works be the whole or part of our righteousness before God? Because the righteousness which can stand before the judgment seat of
God must be perfect throughout and entirely conformable to the divine law, but
even our best works in this life are all imperfect and defiled with sin.
We have learned
that, “to justify” means “to declare one righteous.” The key question is: on
what basis does God declare the believer in Christ to be righteous?
For the Roman
Catholic Church, God declares someone righteous only if they are first
sanctified, that is, made inwardly righteous by an infusion of
grace (which happens by baptism) and then they cooperate with infused grace by
doing righteous things (good works). As long as they keep doing good works, God
will keep declaring them righteous. Those who commit a mortal sin lose the
grace of justification. But they can be restored to a state of justification
through the sacrament of penance. Therefore, for Rome, we are justified on the
basis of an imperfect righteousness done by us.
How does Rome
interpret Paul’s statement in Romans 3:28: “a man is justified by faith apart
from the works of the law”? They argue that “works of the law” refers only to
the ceremonies of the law (e.g. circumcision, animal sacrifices, etc.),
and not the moral law (i.e. the Ten Commandments). Therefore, they maintain
that no one is justified by the ceremonial works of the law, but they are
justified by doing the good works required in the NT. With this understanding,
they appeal to James 2:24, “a man is justified by works [i.e. good
works], and not by faith only.”
But Rome
misinterprets both Paul and James. First of all, nowhere does Paul say a
man is not justified by ceremonial works but he is
justified by good works. Second, James uses the term justify
differently than Paul. “To be justified” has another meaning besides “to be declared
righteous before God.” It can also mean “shown to be righteousness
before men” (e.g. Luke 7:35; Rom. 3:4). Therefore, Paul speaks “of that
righteousness by which we are justified before God…but James speaks of
that righteousness by which we are justified before men by our works”
(Ursinus, 338). James is rebuking the person who claims to believe in
Jesus, but does not have good works to show for it. “What does it profit, my
brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works?”
(James 2:14). True believers bear fruit out of thankfulness for salvation:
“every good tree produces good fruit” (Matt. 7:17). Therefore, “faith by
itself, if it does not have works, is dead” (2:17). James challenges the professing
believer without good works, to “show me your faith without
your works, and I will show you my faith by my works”
(2:18). Thus, the correct way to understand James 2:24 is: “a man is justified
[shown to be righteous] by works, and not by faith only.”
Rome’s fatal
mistake is to refuse to accept the biblical truth that perfect righteousness is
the requirement for eternal life (Gal. 3:21), which is precisely why we need
Christ’s perfect righteousness imputed to us!
Thus, our “works,
as they proceed from the good root of faith, are good and acceptable in the
sight of God, forasmuch as they are all sanctified by His grace. Nevertheless, they
are of no account towards our justification, for it is by faith in Christ
that we are justified, even before we
do good works (Belgic Confession, Article 24).
Question 63: Do
our good works merit [DESERVE] nothing, even though it is God's
will to reward them in this life and in that which is to come? The reward comes not of merit, but of grace.
The Bible says that God will reward
our good works, both in this life and in that which is to come (Psalm 18:20; 19:10-11;
Mark 10:28-29; Matt. 5:11-12; 6:6; Heb. 6:10; 11:6; Rev. 22:12). The
rewards include peace, joy, and spiritual prosperity (Deut. 12:28; Psalm 1:1-3;
Psalm 119:165; Prov. 3:13-17; John 10:10; 14:21).
But this does not mean our good
works deserve to be rewarded. Only perfect righteousness deserves
to be rewarded. “Therefore, we do good works, but not to merit by them (for
what can we merit?); nay, we are indebted to God for the good works we do, and
not He to us, since it is He who works in us both to will and to do of His
good pleasure [Phil. 2:13]. Let us therefore attend to what is written: When
you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, we are
unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do [Luke 17:10].
In the meantime, we do not deny that God rewards good works, but it is through
His grace that He crowns His gifts” (Belgic Confession, article 24).
Question 64: But
does not this doctrine make men careless and profane? No, for it is impossible that those who are
implanted into Christ by true faith, should not bring forth fruits of
thankfulness.
The Roman Catholics
slander the reformed doctrine of justification by saying that it makes men
careless and profane. They maintain that if you teach people to believe they are
justified by faith in Christ even before they do good works, then that will
make them care less about doing good works and encourage them to live in sin.
But the easy
reply is that being set free from eternal condemnation makes us thankful,
not profane! For when we are united to Christ by true faith we receive both
justification and sanctification (1 Cor. 6:11; see again Question 43). God
first justifies us by declaring us perfectly righteousness in Christ, and then by
His Holy Spirit He begins the process of sanctification which
restores God’s holy image in us, purifying us from the inward corruption
of sin, and making us inwardly righteous and holy, so that we hate sin and do
good works out of thankfulness for salvation (Eph. 4:24-25; Tit. 2:14; 1 John
2:4; 3:10). True believers are “those who hear the word, accept it, and bear
fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some hundred” (Mark 4:20). “For we
are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God
prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (Eph. 2:10). Good works are the
fruit of justification – which is the fruit of the Holy Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23);
“the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth” (Eph.
5:9). Since the Holy Spirit is producing good fruit in our lives (He “makes
me heartily willing and ready to live unto Him,” Question 1), it is impossible
that those who are implanted into Christ by true faith, should not bring forth
fruits of thankfulness (Jer. 32:40; Ezek. 36:27).
“He, therefore,
who boasts of having applied to himself by faith the death of Christ, and yet
has no desire to live a holy and godly life… gives conclusive evidence that the
truth is not in him; for all those who are justified are willing and ready to
do those things which are pleasing to God” (Ursinus, 227).
NOTE: These Posts were written and designed as bulletin inserts by Pastor David Fagrey of the Grace Reformed Church of Rapid City, SD .
Link to this blog entry as a bulletin insert: Reformation 500 Heidelberg Catechism 62-64
For a double-sided PDF for easy printing: Reformation 500 Week 24
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