Let us then turn to the back of our hymnals to read together our confession of faith as we look at Lord's Day 16 in the Catechism. Quite a little section in this Lord's Day as we are looking specifically at the death of our Savior and His descent into hell and what benefits that has for us as Christians. So let us read together our Confession of Faith, questions answer 40 through 44. Why was it necessary for Christ to suffer death? Because the justice and truth of God require that satisfaction for our sins could be made in no other way than by the death of the Son of God. Why was he buried? To show thereby that he was really dead. Since then Christ died for us, why must we also die? Our death is not a satisfaction for our sin, but a dying to sin and an entering into eternal life. What further benefit do we receive from the sacrifice and death of Christ on the cross? that by his power our old man is with him crucified, slain, and buried, so that the evil lusts of the flesh may no more reign in us, but that we may offer ourselves unto him a sacrifice of thanksgiving. Why is it added? He descended into hell. that in my greatest temptations I may be assured that Christ my Lord, by his inexpressible anguish, pains, and terrors, which he suffered in his soul on the cross and before, has redeemed me from the anguish and torment of hell. So, why was it necessary for Christ to suffer death? Because God is a just God. And justice for sin is death. Genesis 2.17, But of the tree of knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die. We deserve death. One of the things that people don't think about is original sin. that we all deserve death from the moment of conception. That we are all guilty in Adam's sin. We have to understand that. And the wages of sin is death, Romans 6.23. But the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. It was only through the death of the Son of God, Hebrews 2.9. But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone. Christ, made a little lower than the angels, a little lower than God, became flesh, dwelt among us to taste death. There was no other way for salvation to happen than by the death of the Son of God. And why was He buried? To show that He had really died. To show that salvation had been accomplished. And if we look, and one of the studies that I see again and again as we read around and the things that go on at the crucifixion is The total despair of the disciples, of the women, they did not act as people who saw perhaps a swoon or had done something wrong. They acted as those who had totally lost hope despite all of Jesus' promises. And we have to see that. Jesus was buried Because he was truly dead. We have that witness of the blood and the water coming from his side. That his blood had separated, the red blood cells had separated from the plasma. As we talk about it today. That we have a clear demonstration of his death. But then since Christ died for us, why do we have to die? Our death is not a satisfaction for our sin, but I miss the only here, but only a dying to sin and entering into eternal life. Paul says in Philippians 1.23, for I am hard pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and to be with Christ, which is far better. We have to understand that for Christians, death is not something that we have to avoid and run away from. The world around us is scared to death of death. They make fun of it. You look around at all the imagery of people with skull and crossbones and stuff like that. But if you really dig deep, and you don't have to dig very deep, the hearts of people are scared. Because they know that after death comes judgment. Even if they won't admit it to themselves. Romans chapter 1. You have to understand that. But we, as Christians, do not need to fear death. Jesus said, John 5, 24, Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears my word and believes in him who sent me has everlasting life and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life. We are no longer living in death. We are living in life. And again, Then, what further benefit do we receive from the sacrifice and death of Christ on the cross? That by his power, our old man is with him, crucified, slain, and buried, so that the evil lusts of the flesh may no more reign in us, but that we may offer ourselves unto him a sacrifice of thanksgiving. I think we forget about this too easily. Because we have died with Christ. Colossians 2.12. Buried with Him in baptism in which you were also raised with Him through faith in the working of God who raised Him from the dead. We are raised with Christ from the dead. And so God gives new life to our bodies so that we are no longer Stuck in sin. Yes, every work that we do is stained with sin, but we are able, by God's grace, to do good works. By God working in us. Romans 6, 6-8, Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. For he who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him. That we are raised up, our physical bodies on this world are able to live in obedience and in thanksgiving to God. One of the things that I am fully convinced of from Scripture is that God is sovereign in our salvation. that God saves by free grace, by mercy, through faith, because of Jesus. But if we look across world history, places where that gospel has been preached become licentious. People live in sin. If you look at Germany, if you look at the Netherlands, if you look at England, before all the Muslims covered those places. They were very licentious places. Think of, as well, Switzerland. Places that were at the heart of the Reformation, the realization of the Gospel truly returning. Yet sadly, because people realized and the truth of free grace was preached, people did not feel that they need to live thankful lives to God. As the Catechism says, it is impossible that those who are by true faith engrafted into Christ should not bring forth fruits of thankfulness. And I'm not sure where that disconnect happened. It's in us as human beings, not in God and His Word. But we need to live in thanksgiving to God, obedience to God. Not because it saves us. because we are truly thankful to God. Romans 12, verse 1, I beseech you therefore brethren, by the mercies of God that you present your body as a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. That is the reasonable thing to do. To live in thanksgiving to God. Romans 6.12, Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it and its lusts. You're called to fight sin. To fight to live in thanksgiving. And that God has given us the power to do that. This is not a, you know, the back of the trailer, way in the back, that falls off. This is part of who we are as Christians, having been saved, having been put to death with Christ, crucified with Him. God raises us up to live in thanksgiving to God. And why is it added, He descended into hell? Now people have misconstrued and misunderstood that this order of the Apostles' Creed was the order in time. And the Catechism clarifies that. That Christ's inexpressible anguish, pains, and terrors which He suffered in His soul on the cross and before. has redeemed me from the anguish and torments of hell. Christ has suffered the torments of hell for me, for us. He has paid in full our debt. He is the Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world. We read those things prophesied. Isaiah 53 10, Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him. He has put him to grief. When you make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed and prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. God made his son an offering for our sins, and he paid the debt in full, including hell. We see leading up to that, in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus looking into the mouth of hell. Looking at the sufferings He would pay in His body, but much more in His soul. We have to have that in our mind. The sufferings that Christ experienced according to His flesh were unbelievable. Unimaginable. But brothers and sisters, that doesn't do justice to the millionth of it. That Christ was suffering the wrath of God. Thus, as Christ cries out from the cross as we looked at L-O-I-L-O-I-L-A-M-A-S-A-B-A-H-T-H-E-N-I, that the sun was darkened for hours as the Son of God experienced the wrath of God laid upon him in full. So Lord, our Lord suffered for us the fullness of the penalty which we needed to pay if we were to be if we were to be saved, which we can't pay. But Christ could pay, being the true man and the true God. And so as we think about that, that is the culmination of His sufferings, that He suffered death and hell for us. And so that's why the Apostles' Creed puts it in that order. But it did not come afterward, as we've been seeing. Where did Jesus commit his spirit? Into your hands I commit my spirit. What did he say to the thief on the cross? Today, you will be with me in paradise. So Jesus' sufferings of hell was all of his life, but especially on the cross, and that he has redeemed us from the anguish and torment of hell. Hallelujah. What a Savior. Amen.