Correct Knowledge of Ourselves

Minister:
Date: AM
Text: Romans 3; Lord's Day 2
Psalters: 425, 1, 159, 364
  1. The knowing.
    1. The first question of this Lord’s Day assumes two things.
      1. First, the existence of misery.
      2. Second, misery is the experience of every class and kind of human living on the earth.
    2. The only correct way to deal with misery is to identify it properly.
      1. Man is generally striving to rid himself of misery, but cannot because he does not properly identify it.
      2. Misery is the symptom of a great problem.
  2. It is the law of God which correctly identifies sin to be the cause of man’s misery.
    1. The law reveals that something is wrong in the relationship between God and man.
      1. Misery and sin go together.
      2. The law reveals that misery is the experience of the consequence of sin.
    2. Why does God’s law do this work of identifying sin?
      1. With the law God commands conformity of His rational, moral creatures - on pain of His curse.
      2. God’s law, a perfect reflection of His own perfection, requires one thing: love (Rom. 13:10).
        1. We are to love God supremely.
        2. And we are to love our neighbor as ourselves.
  3. We learn not only that we cannot keep God’s law, but also that we naturally do the opposite it requires.
    1. The law shows that we are prone to hate God and our neighbor instead of having any love.
      1. We hate (not just love less) God.
      2. Anyone who does not fear and love God has no respect for his neighbor.
    2. The true believer is the only one with the ability to admit honestly his natural and constant depravity.
    3. The same faith which acknowledges sin, also acknowledges justification (5:1 and 8:1).
      1. God’s law becomes blessed to us as its terrors drive us to Christ.
      2. With sin is the promise of forgiveness in Jesus.