[Written by Ben Halbrooks]
As we’ve been making our way through the catechism (or “cazzy” as my kids call it), one particular question/answer pair stood out to me recently: Question 82. It’s the culmination of a large section of the catechism that’s all about God’s law and its meaning and application in our lives. For the record, here it is:
Q: Can anyone perfectly keep the commandments of God?
A. Since the fall no ordinary man can perfectly keep the commandments of God in this life but breaks them every day in thought, word, and action.
That’s what we call a hard “NO.” How’s that for some uplifting motivation? I mean, literally every preceding catechism question outlining the requirements and expectations of the law just hit a brick wall.
So let’s think about this for a minute. Do you like being told what you can’t do? And how badly you can’t do it? We’re not talking about something you’re not supposed to do, but something you absolutely cannot do, no matter how hard you try.
Everything in ourselves, in our fallen natures, resists this. We’re steeped in a sea of messages that tell us that Anything Is Possible If You Work Hard, Never Give Up, Use Willpower and Positive Thinking, Decide to Win, Achieve Your Goals, Manifest Your Dreams, Believe in Yourself, and Follow a 5-Step Plan to Success. And we’re Americans, for crying out loud! Self-reliance is a national past-time. But the truth of Question 82 remains. And in the face of it, two great worldly myths crumble to dust:
That there is such thing as a “good person.” In a spiritual sense – that is, as it relates to ultimate reality – no one is good. (Rom. 3:10-12)
We also tend to believe that the problems of the world are “outside” of ourselves, and we look “within” ourselves for the solution. Question 82, and the Gospel as a whole, show us that this assumption is fundamentally backwards. The ultimate problem is the problem of the human heart, within ourselves, and the ultimate solution must come from something, Someone, outside ourselves.
In the wreckage of these illusions, one thing is clear: our desperate need of a Savior. And thankfully, the catechism answer gives us a hopeful hint in this direction when it says “no ordinary man” can do this. Because there was one who stepped into human history as more than just an ordinary man: “When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.” (Gal. 4:4-5)
So you know what’s good about being told what we can’t do in this case? It relieves us from the unbearable burden of seeking in vain to prove ourselves, as our Savior takes all our burdens and our sins upon Himself to the cross and fulfills the demands of the law – perfectly.
As the story goes, a disgruntled man wrote an editorial, published in the local newspaper, about his plans to quit participating in church. He pronounced, “I’ve been going to church about 50 Sundays each year for decades and I don’t know if I can recall what the message was last week let alone 2 years ago. I don’t think it is having any impact on my spiritual health so I’m finished!” A few days later another fella wrote into the same paper and shared, “I’ve been eating the meals my wife has prepared for 365 days each year for decades, and I don’t know if I can recall what the meal was last week, let alone 2 years ago. But I know I’d be dead if I did not eat!” A humorous reminder of the nature of spiritual growth.