************ Sermon on Heidelberg Catechism Q & A 91 ************
By: Rev. Adrian Dieleman
This sermon was preached on June 22, 2008
Q & A 91
Matthew 19:16-21
"What Do We Do That is Good?"
Introduction
A couple of years ago some friends of mine were cycling in Yokohl Valley. Some guy in a pickup truck decided it would be fun to run them off the road. So he comes roaring toward them and my friends end up in the ditch. The pickup turns around and this time he tries to scare them from behind. Again, my friends dive for the ditch. The pickup turns around again and comes towards them a third time. My friends are getting really scared and are prepared to jump the fence. But this time the pickup loses control, flips over, the passenger flies out of the truck and breaks his neck and dies, and the driver is cut and bleeding.
I could not believe what I saw on the news a couple of days later. The mother of the dead guy and the mother of the drunken driver both come on TV and tell us their boys are "good boys."
How come the mother of every murderer, rapist, serial killer, and drug dealer thinks their boy is a "good boy"? When you hear that, don't you just wish the mothers would be thrown into jail? At the very least, they are guilty of saying and believing lies. At the very most, they are guilty of enabling the sinful behavior of their sons and are doing a lousy job as parents.
When I hear someone described as "good," I immediately become suspicious, very suspicious. Did you take note of what Jesus said to the rich young man?
(Mt 19:17) "Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, obey the commandments."
Jesus warns us against throwing around that word "good." When it comes down to it, only God is good.
Let me remind you of where we are at in the Catechism. We have already looked at sin and misery. We have also examined in great detail our marvelous salvation in Christ. Now, we are looking at how we are to thank God for our deliverance.
How are we to thank God for deliverance? Last time, we learned that the thankful life includes conversion – I kept telling you that you must be converted. This time, we learn it also includes good works. Next time, we learn it includes obedience to the Ten Commandments. And, after that, we learn it involves prayer.
I Being Born-Again, Believers Can Do Good
A The Catechism asks about the good we do. We need to remind ourselves about what the Bible says,
(Rom 3:10-12) "There is no one righteous, not even one; (11) there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. (12) All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one." (cf Ps 14:1-3; 53:1-3)
I think, too, of what the Catechism says in earlier questions and answers:
-We all have a natural tendency to hate God and neighbor (A 5).
-We all are totally unable to do any good and inclined toward all evil (Q 8) unless we are born again by the Spirit of God (A 8).
Do you hear the message? No one is naturally good – not the boys in the pickup and not you or me either.
The Bible's message is that we are unable to do any good. The Bible's message is that we are naturally inclined toward all evil.
I was listening to someone on the radio who accepts Darwin's theories about the origin of the human species, the survival of the fittest, and the constant evolutionary improvement of all life-forms. He believes that human life and society will constantly improve because every person naturally wants to do good in and for his community. But that is not the Biblical message. Our natural disposition, says the Bible, is to do evil, not good; to show hate, not love.
B Yet, in Q & A 90 the Catechism tells us there are some people on this earth who "delight to do every kind of good as God wants (them) to." These people are Christians.
What has happened? How come Christians have been transformed from people whose natural disposition is to hate and do evil to people whose natural disposition now is to love and do good? What has brought about this wonderful transformation?
Q & A 8 tells us what has happened. Very simply, Christians delight to do good because they are "born again, by the Spirit of God." By God's grace new life has been planted in their heart. And, says the Catechism, Christians are people who cultivate that new life by conversion. Christians are people who make a U-turn because they realize they are headed down the wrong road. So, by the help of God, they change the direction of their life: they put off their old self of sin and put on their new self which rejoices in God and delights "to do every kind of good as God wants us to" (A 90).
II The Definition of Good
A Consider these deeds: in a couple of weeks we are asking the young people and the young adults to help build wheelchair ramps we were going to build as part of TASC; is this a good deed? A newspaper article told us about a young boy who found a wallet and returned it to its owner even though it was filled with credit cards and cash; is this a good deed? The office often gets phone calls asking for help to pay a utility bill; when we help, is this a good deed? About six months ago a sheriff's deputy was brutally murdered and people in the community gave donations of money to his family; is this a good deed?
Are all of these "good" deeds? That depends, says the Catechism, on the why, the how, and the what. Behind the work lies a motive, a guideline, and a purpose that determines whether or not it can be called "good."
The Catechism asks, "What do we do that is good?" Whatever is truly good, says the Catechism, must proceed from faith, conform to God's law, and aim at His glory. A good work is like a young tree: it grows out of the soil of faith, it is kept straight by the stake of the law, and it shoots up and up to heaven. This is a very strict, God-centered definition of a good work. But, as we shall find out, the Catechism is being no stricter than the Bible.
B First of all, the Catechism tells us the why of works that are truly good. The question is, "Why did I mow the lawn of the widow in the hospital? Why did I return the wallet to its owner? Why did I pay the electric bill of the single mother? Why did I give cows to the dairyman who lost his? Why do I give money to a needy family? Why do I visit the sick or the lonely?" What is the root or source of my good deed? What impulse moved me to do this?
The Catechism says for an act to be truly good it must "arise out of true faith." A true faith, of course, is one which looks to Jesus, is centered on Jesus, and loves and serves Jesus. For an act to be truly good, then, it must arise out of our relationship with Jesus.
Topic: Works
Subtopic: Good
Index: 3902-3905
Date: 11/2001.101
Title:
I always think here of Albert Schweitzer, the great theologian, philosopher, musician, and missionary doctor who worked for 35 years in the Cameroons, Africa, establishing a hospital and a leper colony. Millions of Africans had their lives spared or helped as a direct result of his work. Surely, you would say, his deeds can be called "good."
However, and this is the sad part, Albert Schweitzer did not have a true faith. He did not believe in the Jesus of the Gospels. He built the hospital and established the leper colony because of his deep-rooted "reverence for life." Albert Schweitzer did the right thing, a commendable thing, but for the wrong reason. The good he did, it did not arise out of true faith.
When it comes to living a God-pleasing life, Jesus' prescription is very clear:
(John 15:5) I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.
Notice, Jesus does not say that when we go it alone we are bound to miss the mark now and then; nor does He say that apart from Him we can still produce some good fruit; rather, what He says is, "Apart from me you can do nothing."
Only when ours is a living relationship with Christ, only when we have true faith in Christ, are our words and deeds and persons acceptable to God. Think of the rich young man in our Bible reading who wanted to know what good he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus advised him to get rid of his idol god of money and wealth; "Then come, follow me" (Mt 19:21). To live for Jesus, to have a relationship with Jesus, to follow Jesus, is the key to living a "good" and "perfect" life. You need to have faith in order to do good.
C Second, the Catechism tells us the how of works that are truly good. The question here is, "How did I shape my deed? By what norm or guideline do I judge its rightness?"
According to the Catechism a good act is one that "conforms to God's law."
We see this in our passage. The rich young man asked Jesus, "Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?" (Mt 19:16). Jesus replied,
(Mat 19:17-19) ... If you want to enter life, obey the commandments. (18) ... Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not give false testimony, (19) honor your father and mother, and love your neighbor as yourself.
For an act to be good it must conform to God's law. God's spoken will must the be norm or guideline by which I form my deed.
Topic: Works
Subtopic: Good
Index: 3902-3905
Date: 11/2001.101
Title:
In a Seminary class we were presented with an ethical dilemma. Imagine you are a woman in a German prisoner-of-war camp. If you are willing to sleep with one of the German guards your children will be fed and protected. If you are unwilling to sleep with one of the German guards you will end up in the gas chamber and your children will starve to death. What will you do?
Many would argue that the right thing to do, the good thing to do, would be to sacrifice your pride and principles in order to save your children. After all, they say, what could possibly be better than to protect the innocent?
But, notice, this action does not conform to God's law. Nor, does it take into account God's providence which is more than able to use a dozen other ways to feed and protect your children. For an act to be good it must conform to God's law.
D Third, the Catechism tells us the what of works that are truly good. The question is, "What was my purpose? What was my purpose in mowing the lawn of the widow? What was my purpose in giving donations to the family of the sheriff's deputy?"
According to the Catechism, a good act is one that "is done for (God's) glory."
Many American corporations give sizable amounts of money to the United Way and to other community projects. Surely these must be good acts. But, if you notice, large corporations never give anything away without generating favorable publicity. They have found it is good for a corporation's image, it is good for business, to be generous. We would have to say that their donations are not good works because they are not done for God's glory.
Quite often individuals, like corporations, have selfish and self-centered goals in mind when they do good. Someone may give to a worthwhile charity hoping that they will win the draw for a new car. Someone else may lend a helping hand so that he maintains a good reputation. Another may lend his lawn mower out so that he keeps good relations with the neighbor. All of these are legitimate human goals but do not make a deed "good" in the eyes of God.
The Apostle Paul tells us what makes a deed "good" in the sight of God:
(1 Cor 10:31) So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.
If our behavior glorifies God's name, we are doing good.
E The Catechism asks, "What do we do that is good?" Its answer:
Only that which
arises out of true faith,
conforms to God's law,
and is done for his glory ...
Did you notice what the Catechism adds to this? It says, as a warning to each one of us,
and not that which is based
on what we think is right
or on established human tradition.
We live in a farming community. We have a tradition of helping each other. But this does not make an act good.
Think about Christmas time. At Christmas time people try to be nice, polite and helpful to each other – even those who are mean and surly the rest of the year. They exchange presents, distribute food baskets, contribute to the Angel Tree project, stop for broken down vehicles, and drop money into the Salvation Army kettles. At such times you hear about the Christmas spirit. It is wonderful that people can be this way. It helps to make Christmas a special time of the year. But it is not a "good" work in the eyes of God if it is done only because it is a tradition to be nice at Christmas.
F I know that many in Trinity love to do good. I know of members who visit the shut-ins and the sick, the mourning and the hurting. I know of many who, being informed of a need, either dig out their wallet or help out in person. I know of those who bring food when there is an accident or a death or an illness. I know many of our widows help out at the thrift store or Used Treasures or the hospital.
My brothers and sisters, I would like to ask you to take a close look at the good you do. Ask yourself: what is its motive, its guideline, and its purpose? Ask yourself: does it arise out of true faith, conform to God's law, and is done for His glory?
III Unbelievers Excluded
A By its definition of "good," the Catechism excludes the possibility that your unbelieving but friendly neighbor does what is good in God's sight. An unbeliever, of course, is not born again, does not live the converted life, his old man is not dying-away, and no new man is coming-to-life within him. An unbeliever does nothing out of true faith or for the glory of God. If you don't have a relationship with Jesus, you cannot do good.
B Yet, either by accident or by design, there are many unbelievers who do live lives that conform to many parts of God's law. In so far as they do, they can be held up as examples to those who know Christ Jesus. Jesus Himself frequently referred to unbelieving Samaritans as examples of neighborly love and gratitude (cf Lk 10:33; 17:16). Or, think of Gandhi: his life of non-violence, love, and peace are an example and a challenge to every Christian. And, all of us would do good to follow the example of Albert Schweitzer.
Only Christians can do "good" in God's sight. Yet, there are many unbelievers whose lives are far more moral than the lives of many Christians. Every one of us has experienced the disappointing behavior of fellow Christians. And, more than once I have been told I would get a real eye opener if I were to have business dealings with some of my fellow believers. My brothers and sisters, if this describes you, you should hang your head in shame.
Conclusion
As born-again people, Christians do good that is grounded in faith, shaped by God's law, and directed to God's glory. The Bible's message is that this ought to be as natural for us as eating, sleeping, and breathing.