1. We confess in the Second Article that Christ, the God-man, is our
Lord. In order to become our Lord, He had to redeem and purchase us from
the cruel masters to whom we belonged, from all our sins, from death,
and from the power of the devil. To purchase us He had to pay a price,
a very high price--His holy, precious blood, His life. To purchase us
He of His own free will gave up His life; He died on the cross. Christ
was dead and buried. Do we now believe in a dead and buried Lord and
Savior? What happened after His death, when He was still in His grave?
Where did He go after having been quickened by the Spirit? What was His
purpose in entering the habitation of Satan and his evil spirits? Christ
showed Himself to be the Victor over Satan and hell. For whose benefit
did He win this victory? From whose power are we free?
2. What happened on the third day after the death of our Lord? Christ
rose from the dead. What does that mean? Christ came forth from His
sepulcher. Who brought this glad message to the women? How did the Lord
convince His disciples that He was living? Even who could not deny His
resurrection? What makes us sure that Christ rose from the dead? What do
we therefore gladly confess? (Job 19,25.)--With what body did Christ
come forth from His grave? How can we prove that it was the same body
that was laid in the grave? But how was Christ's body after His
resurrection? His body, indeed, was glorified. What does this mean?--
The resurrection of our Lord is of great importance for us. It is full
of comfort and consolation. If Christ would still be dead and lying in
the grave, how could He be our Savior and King, and how would it be
possible for Him to help us? Our faith in Him would be vain; indeed, we
would be of all men most miserable. What does the Apostle Paul say about
this? (1 Cor. 15,17-19.) But Christ is risen indeed. What great comfort
for us! Whom has He conquered? Who alone is able to conquer this
powerful enemy? What, therefore, must our Lord be? Christ rose after He
had given His life a ransom for our sins. What, therefore, does the
resurrection of our Lord prove concerning our sins? Christ is risen and
lives forever. What comfort does this give us for our whole life? What
comfort does it give us in the hour of death?
3. How long did our Lord remain with His disciples after His
resurrection? Why did He repeatedly show Himself to them? What happened
on the fortieth day? Where did His ascension take place? What promise
did the Lord give His apostles just before His ascension? Why were they
to be endued with the power of the Holy Ghost? In what manner did the
ascension of our Lord take place?--Christ ascended into heaven as the
triumphant Victor over all His enemies. His enemies are our enemies.
What does His ascension prove concerning our enemies? For whose sake,
therefore, did Christ ascend into heaven?--Christ ascended into
heaven. Heaven is His Father's house. Why did our Lord go to His
Father's house for us? He has prepared a place for us in heaven. He has
opened the gates of heaven for us. What does our Lord say John 12,26?
Where will our Savior lead us, His disciples, too? Christ, our Treasure,
is in heaven; what, therefore, shall be there also?
4. Christ ascended into heaven, and He now sits at the right hand of God
in the glory of His Father. How does our Catechism explain this? Though
Christ is sitting at the right hand of God, He is always with us, His
disciples. In what manner is He with us? What must we use, read, hear,
and think about in order that our Lord may be with us? What promise did
He give us, John 14,18? The Lord sitting at the right hand of God reigns
over us; what does this mean? Of what does Christ's resurrection,
ascension, and the sitting at the right hand of God make us certain?
5. When our Lord ascended into heaven, two angels stood by the
disciples. They told them that Christ would come again in like manner as
they had seen Him taken up into His glory. What do we learn from these
words about the coming of our Lord? Who will see Him when He returns?
What is the difference between the first and the second coming of
Christ? Our Lord will come again with power and glory. What will all men
have to confess on that day, even His enemies? Who will escort the Lord
when He returns in His glory?--What is the purpose of His coming? Whom
will the Lord judge? What judgment will He pronounce on His sheep? How
do we become His sheep? Who, therefore, will stand before the Son of Man
on Judgment Day? What terrible sentence will His enemies hear? Our Lord
tells us that after the Judgment His enemies will go away into
everlasting punishment, but His sheep into everlasting life. How,
therefore, is this Judgment?--Who alone knows the day and hour of the
second coming of Christ? What should we therefore never try to do? What,
however, does Scripture tell us concerning the Last Day? When,
therefore, should we expect His coming and prepare for it? What does our
Lord Himself say to us, Matt. 25,13? Believe in Jesus Christ, and you
will be saved.
And we believe in Jesus Christ,
Son of God and Mary's Son,
Who from heaven above came down
And leads us to heaven's throne;
By whose blood and death are we
Rescued from all misery.