Grace and Peace Episode 4
Presbyterian Church of Easton
September 22, 2020
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:2
Heidelberg Catechism
6 Q. Did God create people so wicked and perverse?
A. No. God created them good and in his own image, that is, in true righteousness and holiness, so that they might truly know God their creator, love him with all their heart, and live with God in eternal happiness, to praise and glorify him.
7 Q. Then where does this corrupt human nature come from?
A. The fall and disobedience of our first parents, Adam and Eve, in Paradise. This fall has so poisoned our nature that we are all conceived and born in a sinful condition.
8 Q. But are we so corrupt that we are totally unable to do any good and inclined toward all evil? A. Yes, unless we are born again by the Spirit of God.
Last week we saw that all the misery we experience in our lives is a result of sin. Sin is coming up short in meeting God’s expectations. It is something we all do. And this leads us to an obvious question. Is this what God intended when he created us? Did God want us to sin and be miserable? The answer is no. This not at all what God intended for us. Let’s look at how things started and how things got so messed up.
We were created for a life of joy. We read in Genesis 2:8-9, “And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east; and there he put the man whom he had formed. Out of the ground the Lord God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” God made us and placed us in a beautiful garden where we would love and enjoy God forever.
God created for us a paradise to live in. We had everything we needed. We would live forever with God. But something happened that messed all this up. God told us how to live to enjoy abundant life. God explained to us what was good and what was evil. All we had to do was obey God. But we were arrogant and wanted to decide good and evil for ourselves. We ignored God’s instructions for life and began doing whatever we wanted. This is called sin. And the consequence of sin is misery.
Is there any hope for us? Yes, there is hope. For all who believe in Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit will come and will help us to begin the life long process of becoming obedient children of God. All we have to do is believe in Jesus Christ, be born again, and our transformation will begin. And we will experience the great comfort and joy of belonging to Jesus Christ as our Creator intended.
Let’s pray. Heavenly Father, we have sinned in thought, word, and deed. We ignore your instructions for life and do whatever we want. And we are miserable. Please, forgive us and send your Spirit upon us so that we may become your obedient children. This we pray in the name of our comfort and joy, Jesus Christ. Amen.
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