Doing The Impossible (The New City Catechism #12)

In Romans 8:8, speaking of those who do not have the Spirit of God and so they are still chiefly described as, “Those who are in the flesh,” Paul writes that they, “Cannot please God.” In other words, it is impossible for such persons to do what God requires in the way he wants, to the extent he wants, and for the purposes he wants. This means that no one can obey God’s Law and carry out his will on their own.

None of the Ten Commandments remind us of just how impossible it is to do them on our own any more than the last two. Consider what they require as explained in the twelfth question and answer of The New City Catechism: “What does God require in the ninth and tenth command- ments? Answer: Ninth, that we do not lie or deceive, but speak the truth in love. Tenth, that we are content, not envying anyone or resenting what God has given them or us.” 

Many of us are either good at truth-telling or we are good at speaking in love. Very few of us are good at speaking the truth in love, and those who are have been grown and equipped by the Lord.

All ten commandments deal with not just our words and actions, but also the desires of our heart. The last commandment particularly emphasizes this. To be content in God and not to envy or resent certainly is a heart issue. And this is clearly not something we can do on our own.

So, if we cannot keep the Law, summarized in the Ten Commandments, on our own, how can we do it? Paul answers this question in Romans 8:1-4:

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 3 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

In other words, those who have trusted Jesus Christ as Savior know that not only has Jesus paid the full penalty for us and our Law-breaking, he also lived the perfect life in our place and his righteousness is credited to us. This leads to his pouring his Spirit out upon us and the Spirit enables us to do the things God requires, in the ways he wants, to the extent he wants, and for the purposes he wants. This does not mean that we will live perfectly, but it does mean we will live differently, for we will want to obey God. 

And, when we sin, the blood of Jesus Christ continually cleanses us from our sin (1 John 1:7), which means we can confess our sin, rest in his forgiveness, and in confidence we can go forward and serve our Lord.

Joyfully Doing The Impossible With You In Christ,

Tom