I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to hell. The third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty.  From there he will come to judge the living and the dead.

Like the saints of the Old Testament and those in the intertestamental periods who awaited Christ’s first incarnation, we too wait eagerly for Christ’s second coming.  For now, Christ is seated at the right hand of God.  This is not seat of rest from weariness.  It is taking a seat in satisfaction of what one has accomplished.  Christ’s position at the right hand of God is not only a display of power and rule but of completion.  The work Christ has wrought for our salvation is done; we now wait for our King to bring us home to enjoy the glory of that salvation righteously merited in our stead.

Consistent with the major theme of the Catechism, we find the word comfort again in question #52.  My comfort comes in the King’s return, because with, “…me and all his chosen ones he will take along with him into the joy and the glory of heaven.”  Heaven has been earned and my comfort resides in the King of Heaven who will bring me there as surely as He seats there even now.  In the meantime, He will keep me safe from my enemies and bless me with all the spiritual blessings of the heavenly realms.  I can also find comfort in the past because Jesus is, “the very One who has already stood trial in my place before God and so has removed the whole curse from me.”

To sum up Lord’s Day 19 then, we can say that our comfort is twofold.  First, Christ has removed our guilt and paid our punishment in the cross.  And finally, Christ reigns in the very place He will bring us home to for all eternity… heaven.  Jesus has borne our curse and earned for us perfect righteousness.  Hell is paid and removed, while heaven is earned and granted.  This is why my comfort resides in Christ alone both now and for all eternity, so I eagerly wait for my King’s return.

* * * * * * * * * *

Lord’s Day 19
Q & A 50
Q. Why the next words: “and is seated at the right hand of God”?
A. Christ ascended to heaven, there to show that he is head of his church, and that the Father rules all things through him.

Q & A 51
Q. How does this glory of Christ our head benefit us?
A. First, through his Holy Spirit he pours out his gifts from heaven upon us his members. Second, by his power he defends us and keeps us safe from all enemies.

Q & A 52
Q. How does Christ’s return “to judge the living and the dead” comfort you?
A. In all my distress and persecution I turn my eyes to the heavens and confidently await as judge the very One who has already stood trial in my place before God and so has removed the whole curse from me. All his enemies and mine he will condemn to everlasting punishment: but me and all his chosen ones he will take along with him into the joy and the glory of heaven.

The immediate context of Lord’s Day 18 is the section regarding Christ and our deliverance in the Apostles Creed.  Specifically LD 18 focuses in on the ascension of Christ and how that benefits us who believe in Him.  HC #26 states the Creed in full and notice the extra discussion dedicated to Jesus (bolded mine):

I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to hell. The third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty.  From there he will come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

So Christ was born, died on a cross, rose again, and has ascended.  Why is this important?  The HC has much encouragement to offer us regarding Christ’s ascension.

My greatest comfort in life and in death is that I belong both body and soul to my Savior.  The ascension of Christ gives flesh to this comfort.  Christ’s ascension gives me an ever-present hope of a glorious future; in other words, the ascension of Christ is hope-worthy because his ascension will be mine as well.  HC #29 describes this further:

First, he pleads our cause in heaven in the presence of his Father.
There is no one in heaven or on earth that I want to plead my cause, except Christ.  Why?  When Christ pleads my cause, He’s is presenting Himself in my stead.  He is not presenting my personal works.  Neither is He presenting His good works combined with my (so-called) good works.  No, He is presenting Himself.  He is presenting His perfect righteousness as my righteousness.  He is presenting His meritorious obedience to the Father as my obedience to the Father.  His garbs were washed white as snow by His precious crimson blood, and He now clothes me with those precious robes.  The Father sees Christ’s royal clothes and not my filthy rags.  Ultimately, the Father sees me the way He sees Christ.  There is no one else I want pleading my cause save Jesus.  The Father loves the Son and is perfectly pleased with Him.  Christ presents me as His and so, the Father loves me and is perfectly pleased with me in Christ.

Second, we have our own flesh in heaven—a guarantee that Christ our head will take us, his members, to himself in heaven.
Christ’s death was our death.  Christ’s resurrection is our resurrection.  So too is His ascension.  He is pleading our cause in heaven because that is where He is taking us.  My comfort in this life is that my next life is eternity with Him.  There is nothing more comforting than Him taking me not only to heaven and all its glory, but that Christ is taking me home to Himself and His radiant glory.

HC #29 challenges me to long for heaven, not because it’s heaven, but to long for Christ who reigns in heaven.

Third, he sends his Spirit to us on earth as a further guarantee. By the Spirit’s power we make the goal of our lives, not earthly things, but the things above where Christ is, sitting at God’s right hand.
Christ had to ascend so that the Comforter might apply all Christ’s benefits to me.  As soon as Christ’s obedience to the Father was perfectly completed, the Holy Spirit was to be sent.  Jesus had to leave so we could receive the deposit guaranteeing our salvation–the Holy Spirit.  A reward of Christ’s obedience was the gift of the coming of the Holy Spirit.  The beauty of the Spirit is that He drives us to Christ and molds us into His image.  All the benefits of Christ’s meritorious work are applied to us by the Spirit.

My prayer is that the Spirit would drive my focus heavenward and give me the desire to embrace Christ in all His fullness.

* * * * * * * * * *

Lord’s Day 18
Q & A 46
Q. What do you mean by saying, “He ascended to heaven”?
A. That Christ, while his disciples watched, was lifted up from the earth to heaven and will be there for our good until he comes again to judge the living and the dead.

Q & A 47
Q. But isn’t Christ with us until the end of the world as he promised us?
A. Christ is truly human and truly God. In his human nature Christ is not now on earth; but in his divinity, majesty, grace, and Spirit he is not absent from us for a moment.

Q & A 48
Q. If his humanity is not present wherever his divinity is, then aren’t the two natures of Christ separated from each other?
A. Certainly not. Since divinity is not limited and is present everywhere, it is evident that Christ’s divinity is surely beyond the bounds of the humanity he has taken on, but at the same time his divinity is in and remains personally united to his humanity.

Q & A 49
Q. How does Christ’s ascension to heaven benefit us?
A. First, he pleads our cause in heaven in the presence of his Father. Second, we have our own flesh in heaven—a guarantee that Christ our head will take us, his members, to himself in heaven. Third, he sends his Spirit to us on earth as a further guarantee. By the Spirit’s power we make the goal of our lives, not earthly things, but the things above where Christ is, sitting at God’s right hand.

1 How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?
How long will you hide your face from me?
2 How long must I take counsel in my soul
and have sorrow in my heart all the day?
How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?
3 Consider and answer me, O Lord my God;
light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death,
4 lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him,”
lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken.
5 But I have trusted in your steadfast love;
my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
6 I will sing to the Lord,
because he has dealt bountifully with me.

Record: The psalmist is caught in the difficulties of life and wants to free of his enemy.  His heart is heavy all day long, because he feel the Lord has abandoned him.  He believes the Lord’s face has been hidden from him.

Reflect:  The distress that the psalmist is feeling is purposefully vague, which allows for numerous connections.  Whatever his lot may be, the psalmist is pleading for the Lord’s help.  He wants an answer from the Lord and help from his enemy.

Respond:  My response is one of prayer hoping that verses 5-6 will always be my response.  No matter what the situation may bring forth, I would hope to trust in the Lord’s steadfast love because of the joyous salvation I have in the Lord and the infinite blessings that come with that pricey and priceless salvation.

This psalm tells that any difficult situation can finds its comfort in the gospel, that the Lord truly does hear me and ultimately answers me with the cross.  Notice that actual deliverance from the difficult situation in which the psalmist found him may not have even occurred.  In the end, God is still good.  My enemy may seem to be winning but the final victory (the one that matters) has been secured in the victorious work of Christ’s life, death, and resurrection.

Trueman lecture here.

THERE is no member of a household whose individual piety is of such importance to all the rest as the father or head. And there is no one whose soul is so directly influenced by the exercise of domestic worship. Where the head of a family is lukewarm or worldly, he will send the chill through the whole house. And if any happy exception occur, and one and another surpass him in faithfulness, it will be in spite of his evil example. He, who ought by his instructions and life, to afford a perpetual incitement to his inferiors and his juniors, is made to feel in case of such delinquency, that they must look elsewhere for guidance, even if they do not weep in secret places over his neglects. Where the head of the family is a man of faith, of affection, and of zeal, consecrating all his works and life to Christ, it is very rare to find all his household otherwise-minded. Now one of the chief means of promoting such individual graces in the head is this: his daily exercise of devotion with the members. It is more to him, than to others. It is he who presides and directs in it, who selects and delivers the precious Word, and who leads the common supplication, confession, and praise. To him, it is equal to an additional act of personal devotion in the day; but it is more. It is an act of devotion, in which his affection and duty to his house are particularly brought before his mind; and in which he stands in the place and pleads the cause, of all that he holds dearest upon earth. No one need wonder then, that we place family-prayer among the most important means of reviving and maintaining the piety of him who conducts it.

Check out his booklet here.

1 Blessed is the man
who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
2 but his delight is in the law the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.
3 He is like a tree
planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.
4 The wicked are not so,
but are like chaff that the wind drives away.
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;
6 for the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will perish.

Record:  As Book 1 of the Psalms begins, the psalmist describes the blessed in light of three negatives:

1. who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
2. nor stands in the way of sinners,
3. nor sits in the seat of scoffers;

The psalmist then shifts to the positive giving definition to the true blessed man of God.  Verse 2 describes him as one:

• who delights in the law of the LORD
• who meditates on his law day and night.

Next the psalmist gives two illustrations to further describe the righteous man as opposed to the wicked man.  The righteous person is like a tree, while the wicked person is like chaff.  The righteous person is like a tree planted by streams of water with fruit coming in its season, never whithering away.  All that the righteous man does prospers, because the Lord knows his way.

The wicked man is not like this.  He is easily blown away by the wind.  He will not be able to stand in judgment, nor before the righteous, but his way will ultimately perish.

Reflect and Respond: The psalms were poetry meant to be sung.  The very first psalm that we find in book 1 tells us to avoid the wicked, sinners, and scoffers, and instead to delight and meditate upon the law of the Lord day and night.  The song the Scriptures want me to sing is to delight and mediate upon God’s very Word.  There is nothing more righteous than the true words of God; furthermore God wants me to sing His righteous Word into my heart and to respond in righteousness.

Ultimately though, this psalm brings me to the most righteous, most blessed man, namely Jesus.  His delight was fully in the law of the Lord, because He perfectly upheld every aspect of the law.  Jesus’ drive was to obey the Father’s will, and His will was set forth in the law of God.  To keep the law is to love and delight in it, which Christ did so clearly.  He had the deepest delight in the law because He sought to obey it in every way.  Failure to obey the law is fundamentally a hatred for the law and the giver of the law… God.  Jesus loved the Father and kept his commandments.  He who kept the law, was the very Word of God, and is now the righteous man who blesses his people because of his perfect obedience to the Father’s will.

That name is “Jesus”.  This is the basic background of the meaning of the name that Jesus bears.  His name is the Greek form of the Hebrew name of Joshua, which means the LORD saves.  Jesus came to save and his name was to mark that accomplished reality.

After the many biblical figures perceived to be the savior seed of the women (as noted in Seth’s line of Matthew 1) who were ultimately unworthy to save, Matthew emphatically presents Jesus as the Savior who is the promised Seed of the Woman.  Matthew 1:21 says,

“21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

At this point in Mathew’s Gospel, Jesus has yet to make his bodily appearance, but already he is the noted victor and the pinnacle of Scripture’s entire message. The Father has ordained that the Spirit pronounce the name of Jesus on a baby yet to be born.  I find it encouraging that the omniscience of the Father is so intricately tied to the perfect and perpetual obedience of the Son with the giving of this saving name “Jesus.”  Behind the name of Jesus is:

• the Father sending the Son
• the Son obeying the Father
• the Spirit pronouncing victory and applying the Son’s work to God’s people

When we call upon the name of Jesus in faith, we are asking for the very salvation which he has secured for his people.  Jesus is that Savior and there is everlasting comfort in his name.

Thankfully, Jesus is my Savior.

***************

Part II: Deliverance: God the Son
Lord’s Day 11
Q & A 29
Q. Why is the Son of God called “Jesus,” meaning “savior”?
A. Because he saves us from our sins.  Salvation cannot be found in anyone else; it is futile to look for any salvation elsewhere.

Q & A 30
Q. Do those who look for their salvation and security in saints, in themselves, or elsewhere really believe in the only savior Jesus?
A. No.  Although they boast of being his, by their deeds they deny the only savior and deliverer, Jesus.  Either Jesus is not a perfect savior, or those who in true faith accept this savior have in him all they need for their salvation.

Patience.  Thankfulness.  Confidence.

These are the blessings from God’s creation and providence.  In this post I simply want to supply biblical passages which reflect these three words.

Patience.
Scripture never promises freedom from adversity and suffering in this life, but in the Father’s care, we can be patient in the Lord.  In our sufferings we can be patient because the end result for those in Christ is hope… the biblical notion of hope that is rooted in the work of Christ, a hope that is as sure as the breath you are now breathing:

3 Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. (Romans 5:3-5)

Thankfulness.
Because the Father’s care is always good, thankfulness is a fitting disposition and response in every season.  I pray for this response, to know His comfort in all circumstances, always:

18 give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 5:20)

3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. 5 For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows. 6 If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. 7 And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort. (2 Corinthians 1:3-7)

Confidence.
Our confidence comes in the wonderful promise that nothing can separate us from the love of God.  These are some of the most encouraging words in all the Bible:

35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:
“For your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.  (Romans 8:35-39)

***************

Lord’s Day 10
Q & A 27
Q. What do you understand by the providence of God?
A. Providence is the almighty and ever present power of God by which he upholds, as with his hand, heaven and earth and all creatures, and so rules them that leaf and blade, rain and drought, fruitful and lean years, food and drink, health and sickness, prosperity and poverty—all things, in fact, come to us not by chance but from his fatherly hand.

Q & A 28
Q. How does the knowledge of God’s creation and providence help us?
A. We can be patient when things go against us, thankful when things go well, and for the future we can have good confidence in our faithful God and Father that nothing will separate us from his love.  All creatures are so completely in his hand that without his will they can neither move nor be moved.