Baptist Catechism 19

Q. 19. Did all mankind fall in Adam’s first transgression?

A. The covenant being made with Adam, not only for himself but for his posterity, all mankind, descending from him by ordinary generation, sinned in him, and fell with him in his first transgression. 

Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 15:12–25

“Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.” (1 Corinthians 15:12–25, ESV)

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We have learned many things about the original condition of man. God made man male and female in his own image, in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness, with dominion over the creatures. We also have learned that God made a covenant with man. It was a covenant of works wherein eternal life was offered to Adam if he obeyed, death being threatened upon disobedience. We have also learned that Adam and Eve broke the covenant by sinning against God, sin being any lack of conformity unto or transgression of the law of God. This sin plunged Adam and Eve into ruin. They fell from a state of innocence and into a state of sin and death. 

But a very important question remains. What does all of that have to do with us?  How does the sin of our first parents impact those of us who live so many thousands of years later. That really is the question that Baptist Catechism 19 is seeking to answer. 

Again, the question: “Did all mankind fall in Adam’s first transgression?”

The short answer is, yes. The longer answer is, “The covenant being made with Adam, not only for himself but for his posterity, all mankind, descending from him by ordinary generation, sinned in him, and fell with him in his first transgression. 

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The answer to question 19 beings with the words, “The covenant”. This reminds us of what we learned back in Baptist Catechism 15. There we learned about the special way in which God governed Adam after he created him. “When God had created man, He entered into a covenant of life with him upon the condition of perfect obedience: forbidding him to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, upon pain of death.” Here in question 19 we learn more about this covenant. 

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In particular, we are taught that the covenant that God made with Adam was “not only for himself but for his posterity” too. Posterity means descendent, or future generations. In other words, Adam functioned as a representative for others in the covenant that God made with him. So the eternal life that was promised to Adam upon obedience would not only be for him, but for all who would descend from him. And the death that was threatened upon disobedience would fall, not only upon him, but upon all who would descend from him. As I have said, Adam functioned in that covenant as a representative of others. Indeed, he represented the whole of humanity in that covenant. 

Perhaps you have heard it put this way: Adam was our federal head. Federalism has to do with representation. Adam represented humanity. If Adam would have succeeded, all of humanity would have succeeded in him. When Adam sinned and fell from the state of innocence and into the state of sin and death, all of humanity fell in him. He was our head, our representative. 

The scriptures clearly teach this. 

Romans 5:12 says, “Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—” (Romans 5:12, ESV). Notice, Paul teaches that sin and death came into the world through Adam and spread to all. 

Paul says something similar in 1 Corinthians 15.  “For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.” Here Paul mentions another federal head, namely Christ.  We will return to this in a moment. For now, see that there are only two federal heads: Adam and Christ. We are either in Adam (under his representation) or in Christ (under his representation).

The Genesis narrative also presents Adam as a federal head or representative. Notice that when Adam sinned, both he and Eve were cursed and they were banished from the garden and from the tree of life. When they had children, their children were born, not in Eden, but outside of it. Their children were not given access to the tree of life but were barred from it from birth. They were born in a state of sin and death, and they themselves did sin. In other words, what Paul says in a didactic way, Geneses says in a narrative way – Adam represented the whole human race. When Adam broke the covenant of life, he broke it, not only for himself, but for all who would descend from him. 

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That is what our catechism says next. “The covenant being made with Adam, not only for himself but for his posterity, all mankind, descending from him by ordinary generation, sinned in him, and fell with him in his first transgression. 

This principle of representation might sound strange to you, but in reality, it is very common. The choices of others affect you all of the time. Think of the way that the choices of your parents have determined who and where you are today. Think of how the choices of kings and presidents affect a nation. Think of how the choices of a husband affect the wife. On and on I could go. This principle of representation is really baked into the natural order of things. 

In fact, this principle of representation is central to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Please hear me. Without this doctrine of representation, Christ would be of no benefit to you. How is it that Christ’s death benefits you? Answer: he died as your representative, that is to say, as your substitute. And how is it that Christ’s resurrection benefits you? How does his rising from the dead have anything to do with your rising from the dead? Answer: he rose as your representative or federal head. And what does the eternal reward which Christ has earned have to do with the hope that you have for an eternal reward? Answer: his reward is your reward, for he is your federal head or representative. This 

Just a moment ago I read from 1 Corinthians 15 where Paul compares and contrasts Adam and Christ. Certainly, Adam and Christ are very different in some regards. Adam failed and Christ succeeded. Adam brought sin and death, Christ brings righteousness and life. But Adam and Christ share something very important in common. They are both federal heads. They lived on behalf of others so that their success would mean success for others, and their failure would mean failure for others. Indeed, Christ as the second Adam even died and rose for others, as I have just said. 

So how does one come to be a federal head in this spiritual and eternal sense? Can men take it upon themselves to be representatives of others before God? Certainly not. God appoints men to this. And he appoints them to be federal heads through covenants. It was in the covenant of life made with Adam in the garden that he was appointed to function as the federal head for humanity. And it was in the covenant of redemption made with Son in eternity in which the son was appointed to become incarnate to live, die, and rise again in victory to redeem those given to him by the Father. 

Can you see why I have said that this principle of representation is crucial to the gospel of Jesus Christ? If he is not your representative – he did not live for you, die for you, and rise for you, then all that he did would not benefit you in the least. It would benefit him, but not you if he did not function as your representative. 

Thanks be to God, Christ, the second Adam is the federal head of the covenant of grace. And this is why Paul stresses that we must be found “in him”. What does Paul mean when he says we must be found “in Christ”. He means that we must be united to him by faith in the covenant of grace. We are born in Adam, brothers and sisters. All who are born into this world have Adam as their head. And in Adam we inherit sin and the curses of the covenant which he broke. We must be reborn in Christ. This new birth is not natural, but spiritual. It comes through the preaching of the word of God and by the working of the Holy Spirit. I’ll let Paul tell you about the benefits that come to us through union with Christ in the covenant of grace, of which he is mediator and head.

 In Ephesian 1:3 he blesses God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ for blessing “us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.” (Ephesians 1:3–14, ESV)

Or to put it more succinctly, “in Adam all die… in Christ shall all be made alive” (1 Corinthians 15:22).

Let us be sure to be found in Christ united to him by faith. 

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Q. 19. Did all mankind fall in Adam’s first transgression?

A. The covenant being made with Adam, not only for himself but for his posterity, all mankind, descending from him by ordinary generation, sinned in him, and fell with him in his first transgression.

Baptist Catechism 18

Q. 18. What was the sin whereby our first parents fell from the estate wherein they were created?

A. The sin whereby our first parents fell from the estate wherein they were created, was their eating the forbidden fruit. (Gen. 3:6,12,13)

Scripture Reading: Genesis 2:4-9, 15-17, 3:1-7 

“These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens. When no bush of the field was yet in the land and no small plant of the field had yet sprung up—for the LORD God had not caused it to rain on the land, and there was no man to work the ground, and a mist was going up from the land and was watering the whole face of the ground— then the LORD God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature. And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. And out of the ground the LORD God made to spring up every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food. The tree of life was in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” (Genesis 2:4–9, ESV)

[2:15] “The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, ‘You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.’” (Genesis 2:15–17, ESV)

[3:1] “Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ” But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked…” (Genesis 3:1–7, ESV).

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Over the past few weeks, we have learned a lot of very important truths about man in his original condition. We have learned that God “created man male and female, after His own image, in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness, with dominion over the creatures.” We have learned that “When God had created man, He entered into a covenant of life with him upon condition of perfect obedience: forbidding him to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, upon pain of death.”

We then some bad news. “Our first parents, being left to the freedom of their own will, fell from the estate wherein they were created, by sinning against God”, sin being “any want of conformity unto, or transgression of, the law of God.”

The question that is before us today is, “What was the sin whereby our first parents fell from the estate wherein they were created?”

The answer is really simple: they ate of the forbidden fruit. 

You heard the of that read from Genesis 3 just a moment ago. Adam and Eve fell into sin when they ate of the tree of which God said, you shall not eat. They fell into a state of sin and death by eating the forbidden fruit. 

There are a few questions that come to mind as I consider this truth.

One, why was it a sin for Adam and Eve to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil? In other words, what was wrong with it. We do not typically say that eating fruit is sinful. Why was it a sin for Adam and Eve to do so?

Answer: Because God clearly and specifically told them not to do so.   

True, the act of eating fruit is not a moral decision. The act itself is neither good nor evil. But it was sin for Adam and Eve to eat of that fruit because God told them not to. If you remember, we call this kind of law “positive law”. Moral laws are those laws of God that are true and binding upon men and women in all times and places – do not murder is a moral law. Murder (properly understood) is always sinful. Do not commit adultery, lie, and steal. These are all moral laws. They are binding on all people, in all times and places. But God has also added other laws too. We call them positive laws because God has added them to the moral law. These are laws that God’s creatures are obligated to keep in addition to the moral law. These positive laws are filled with symbolism. These positive laws are associated with the covenants that God has made with man.  

Remember, we have defined sin as “any [lack] of conformity unto, or transgression of, the law of God.”

Notice, we do not say that sin is any lack of conformity unto, or transgression of, the moral law of God. That would be a true statement, but it would be incomplete, for we do not only sin against God when we violate his moral law. No, we also sin against him when we violate his positive laws. 

For example, God commanded that all of the male children of Abraham be circumcised on the eighth day. Circumcision is not a moral thing when considered but itself. But it was made to be a moral thing for Abraham and all his descendants when God added that law to them. The descendants of Abraham sinned when they failed to apply the sign of circumcision.  Other examples of positive laws are the seventh-day Sabbath from creation to the resurrection of Christ, and the first day Sabbath from the resurrection of Christ until the end of the world. Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are also positive laws. They are laws that were added – laws that are symbiotic in nature – laws connected to covenants. 

The point is this, we sin when we violate God’s moral law. We also sin when we violate the positive laws which God has determined to impose upon his people under certain covenants. When Adam ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, he broke a positive law, and it is right that we call this sin.  

A second question comes to mind. Some may wonder, what was so bad about Adam eating from that tree? How could this simple act bring about the curse that came upon Adam, and upon the whole human race that descended from him? In other words, is there more to the story? Was there more going on in Adam’s heart that lead to his eating the forbidden fruit which made his disobedience truly vile?

The answer is, yes, there is more to the story. Granted, the act of eating a piece of fruit is innocent enough when considered by itself. But we should not forget that God commanded Adam not to eat of that tree. Also, consider the narrative of Genesis three and the fact that another competing voice also spoke to Adam – the voice of the serpent through Eve. You can see, then, that this was no innocent eating, but an act of rebellion. Adam rebelled against his Maker in the heart when he listened to the voice of the serpent instead of the work of God. 

All sin is like this. The sins themselves might take only a moment. They might seem to some to be small. In fact, the thing that motivates all sin is rebellion against God in the heart.  

You know, there is another aspect to Adam’s sin that must also be considered. When Adam ate of the forbidden fruit he did not only sin a sin of commission, he sinned a sin of omission. What was Adam’s sin of commission? What sin did he actively commit? He listened to the voice of the serpent and ate of the tree that God said, not eat of it. And what was the sin of omission? He failed (or omitted) to obey God’s voice, to fill the earth with his offspring, to expand and keep the garden temple, and to eat of the tree of life. Not only did Adam do what God forbid, he also failed to do what God commanded when he rebelled against his Maker. 

Thirdly, and lastly, what difference does this make? Why does this matter? Well, it matters because we cannot understand the present condition of mankind apart from this doctrine. Also, it matters because we will not fully appreciate what Christ has accomplished for us apart from this doctrine. In short, where Adam failed Christ succeeded. And he succeeded, not for himself only, but for all who are united to him by faith. 

Q. 18. What was the sin whereby our first parents fell from the estate wherein they were created?

A. The sin whereby our first parents fell from the estate wherein they were created, was their eating the forbidden fruit. (Gen. 3:6,12,13)

Old Testament Reading: Exodus 20:12–17

“Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox, or his donkey, or anything that is your neighbor’s.” (Exodus 20:12–17, ESV)

New Testament Reading: Matthew 5:21–24

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.” (Matthew 5:27–30, ESV)

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Please excuse any typos and misspellings within this manuscript. It has been published online for the benefit of the saints of Emmaus Reformed Baptist Church but without the benefit of proofreading.

Introduction

In the introduction to this sermon on the seventh commandment, I wish to say a little about the interconnectedness of the Ten Commandments. At first glance, the Ten Commandments may seem to be ten individual and unrelated moral laws. Upon more careful examination, we see that each of the Ten Commandments are connected. 

Broadly speaking, the first four commandments and the last six are related in that to love God truly one must also love their fellow man, and to love man truly, one must first love God. To say that you love God but to hate your fellow man makes you a liar and shows that the truth is not in you. This is what John says in his first epistle: “If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother” (1 John 4:20–21, ESV). And in like manner, to claim to love your neighbor but without love for God in your heart makes your love for neighbor hollow and superficial. To love others truly, we must love them to the glory of God. To love others in a way that counts, we must love them with God’s love and urge them to love God too, through faith in Jesus the Messiah. This is what John means when he says, “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love” (1 John 4:7–8, ESV). So then, broadly speaking, though the first and second tables of God’s moral law may be distinguished from one another, they are interconnected. To love God truly, we must love our neighbor. And to love our neighbor truly requires the love of God.   

The first four commandments are also interrelated. The first commandment requires us to worship and serve YHWH alone as God, for he alone is God, and besides him there is no other. And commandments two through four have to do with the way of worship. What form is worship to take? Never are we to worship God with images. What should the attitude of our worship be? We are to have reverence for God and his names. And what about time? How are we to worship God as it pertains to time? Six days are to be devoted to God-honoring work, and one day out of seven is to be set apart as holy for rest and for worship – it is a day for the people of God to assemble and to give God praise. You can see, then, that the first four commandments are all intertwined. The first commandment is the head commandment. God alone is to be worshiped. And commandments two through four establish how God is to be worshiped. You cannot untangle these commandments. Together, they teach us to honor and to love God as God.

Now, I want for you to see that the last six commandments are interrelated too. The head commandment of the second table of the law is the fifth: “honor your father and mother”. As we have learned, this commandment requires all men to “[preserve] the honor, and [perform] the duties, belonging to everyone in their several places and relations, as superiors, inferiors, or equals” (Baptist Catechism, 69). Men and women, boys and girls, are to be honored, brothers and sisters. Human life is to be honored, for man is made in the image of God. The fifth commandment establishes this. 

So then, you can see that the first commandment is the head commandment of the first table of the law, and the fifth commandment is the head commandment of the second table of the law. Both, you will notice, have to do with honor. How are we relate to God? The first table of the law begins by saying, in essence, YHWH alone is to be honored as God. And how are we to relate to our fellow man? The second table of the law begins by establishing that honor is to be shown by children to parents. From here it may be deduced through reason and by the example of Holy Scripture, that honor is to be shown to all people in a way that fits their position in life. Or if you would prefer to use the word “love” instead of “honor”, the first and fifth commandments establish that God alone is to be loved as God, and that we are to love our neighbor as ourselves.

If the fifth commandment establishes that all men and women are to be honored and loved, how then do commandments six through ten relate to that head commandment? Well, they specify how this honor is to be shown. 

First, murder is forbidden. Human life is to be honored. Never is a human life to be taken unjustly. The fifth commandment establishes that honor is to be shown to all people in a way that fits their God-given position in life, and the sixth commandment builds upon this by forbidding the unjust taking of human life. Human life is to be honored in all stages, brothers and sisters. Human life is to be honored from the womb to the grave. No individual, acting as an individual, has the right to extinguish human life, except in the case of self-defense. This we considered in some detail in the previous sermon. 

Next, adultery is forbidden. How does the seventh commandment, which is, “you shall not commit adultery, relate to the head commandment, which is. “honor your father and mother”? Well, if the sixth commandment, “you shall not murder”, teaches us to honor human life as it pertains to its end, the commandment, “you shall not commit adultery”, teaches us to honor human life as it pertains to its beginning. 

Only God has the right to determine when a life will end. Sometimes he brings life to an end through his ministers in the civil realm who are tasked with upholding and executing retributive justice. No matter if death comes about naturally, by accident, or judicially, it is God who numbers our days. Individuals acting as individuals do not have the right to decide when the life of another will end. And though it is true that God also determines when a life will begin, human choice is involved in this. Human life is brought into existence through sexual intercourse. This is the means that God has determined to use to create new life. Adam and Eve were created directly by God in a unique way. All others are created by God through the natural process of procreation. God’s design is that humans be brought into this world by a man and woman coming together physically. Furthermore, God’s design is that the man and woman be joined together in the marriage covenant so that they do not only come together to create life, but they stay together all the days of their lives to nurture the life that has been brought into the world through them. This is God’s design. Men and women are to come together physically only after they have come together covenantaly in marriage. Human life is to be brought into the world in this way so that the new human being might be raised and nurtured by their father and mother to the glory of God. 

I’ll say more about this in a moment. For now, I am making the basic observation that the seventh commandment, “you shall not commit adultery” is related to the fifth in that it is about the honoring of human life as it pertains to the beginning of it. Yes, the seventh commandment requires individuals to maintain sexual purity. We will come to that in a moment. But there is something bigger going on here. When God says, “you shall not commit adultery” he does not only require sexual purity, he does also draw special attention to the sanctity of the marriage bond. To commit adultery is not only to be sexually immoral. It is to break the marriage covenant, you see. To commit adultery is to be unfaithful to cause another to be unfaithful to their spouse sexually. If God were only concerned with sexual purity, he could have said, “you shall not be sexually impure.” That would have forbidden the sin of adultery and much more. But in saying, “you shall not commit adultery”, he has both required sexual purity (by way of implication) while also drawing special attention to the sanctity of the marriage bond, and to the way in which he has designed new life to be brought into the world. The point is this: while the command, “you shall not murder”, is about honoring human life as it pertains to the end, the command, “you shall not commit adultery”, is about honoring human life as pertains to the beginning of it and to the nurturing of it in the family.

I will not say much about the relationship of the eighth, ninth, and tenth commandments to the fifth at this time. We will have the opportunity to elaborate on this in future sermons. In fact, it is not difficult to see the relationship between them. If the fifth commandment requires us to show honor to all image-bearers in a way that fits their God-given position in life, this means that we are not to steal from one another, lie to or about others, or covet what God has given to others. These are the particular ways in which we are to show honor and love to our neighbors, no matter if they are rich or poor, powerful or weak.

In just a moment we will ask, what does the seventh commandment require and forbid? But before we go there I wish to make to be sure that this is clear in your minds. The commandment, you shall not commit adultery, is ultimately about showing love and honor to our fellow human beings. The whole second table of the law is summed up with these words, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. This includes the seventh commandment. By abstaining from sex outside of the covenant of marriage, we honor and love our fellow man. Stated negatively, by engaging in sex outside the covenant of marriage, we dishonor and hate our fellow man. When a man engages in sexual relations with a woman who is not his wife, he dishonors the woman, he dishonors her future husband (if it is not to be him), he dishonors the child that will come into the world through her if she conceived. If she is a married woman, he greatly dishonors her husband, and her children, if she has any. And the very same thing may be said of the woman who willing participates as it pertains to the dishonoring of the man. Our culture calls sex outside of the bonds of marriage, “love”. In reality, it is dishonor and hate. And you would think that the world would wise up to this fact as they witness all of the death, destruction, and dysfunction that their promiscuity produces. Instead, they scoff at people like us, calling us old-fashioned, uptight, and prudish.  Deep down they know that they are miserable in their sin and that we are quite happy trusting in the Lord and walking in his ways. This is about love, brothers and sisters – true love, and true honor. When you violate the seventh commandment in thought, word, and deed, you do not love but hate. And the wages of sin is death. 

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What Does The Seventh Commandment Require And Forbid?

What then does the seventh commandment forbid of us?

Answer 77 of our catechism says, “The seventh commandment [forbids] all unchaste thoughts, words, and actions.”

And what does the seventh commandment require of us?

Answer 76 of our catechism says, “The seventh commandment [requires] the preservation of our own and our neighbor’s chastity, in heart, speech, and behavior.”

Again, our catechism helps us to get to the heart of the issue. Adultery, technically speaking, is when a husband or wife is unfaithful to their spouse physically. When two unmarried individuals engage in sex outside the bonds of marriage, they do not commit adultery but engage in sexual immorality, technically speaking. But the seventh commandment does not only require marital faithfulness and forbid marital unfaithfulness. By way of implication, or necessary consequence, it forbids any and all perversion of God’s design for sex in the context of marriage.  Again, the summary of God’s moral law is this: “you shall not commit adultery.” Adultery is the sin that is named because it draws our attention to the ideal or design, namely, sexual union in the context of covenantal union, while also forbidding all perversions of this ideal.   

The seventh commandment forbids unchastity and requires chastity. This means that we are to maintain sexual purity.  For those who are not married, this requires abstinence. For those married, this requires faithfulness to one’s spouse. 

You will notice that our catechism says that “the seventh commandment [requires] the preservation of our own and our neighbor’s chastity…” How can we preserve our neighbor’s chastity? Answer: by not being a source of temptation to them by the way that we dress, the way that we speak, or the way that we interact with them. Have you thought about this, brothers and sisters? You have a moral obligation not only to maintain your own chastity but also your neighbors, so far as it depends upon you. 

And notice also the phrase,  “…in heart, speech, and behavior.” “The seventh commandment [requires] the preservation of our own and our neighbor’s chastity, in heart, speech, and behavior.” Adultery, properly speaking, is a behavior. It is an act wherein one spouse is unfaithful to the other physically. But in this sermon series on the Ten Commandments, we have learned how to properly interpret and apply God’s moral law. These moral laws are summaries. The implications of them are meant to be fleshed out. Also, these moral laws are meant to be applied to the heart. 

When Christ said, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart”, he did not say something new. No, when he said, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery’” he was referring to the superficial and false interpretation of the law which was predominate in his day.  And when he added, “but I say to you…”, he was not countering Moses or the original intent of the law. Rather, he was giving the right and true interpretation. The law of Moses was always to be applied within the heart, brothers and sisters. The summary of it was always “love”. “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might” (Deuteronomy 6:5, ESV), and “you shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Leviticus 19:18, ESV).

Lust in the heart is not adultery. But lust in the heart is adultery in the heart and in seed form. That is the point. Lust in the heart leads to adultery if left unchecked. Also, we may say that the sin of adultery is present in the heart when lust is present there. Just as an oak tree is present in the ground where an acorn is present, soo too the sin of adultery is present where lust is present. There is a great deal of difference between an acorn and an oak. And there is a great deal of difference between the sin of lust and the sin of adultery. But both are sins. And the one will grow into the other if left unchecked. Brothers and sisters, the sin of adultery is to be rooted out of our lives in all of its forms, and we must begin with the heart. 

The words of James are appropriate here. “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God,’ for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death” (James 1:13–15, ESV). This is true of all sin. It is certainly true of the sin of adultery. It begins in the heart and in the realm of desires.

The scriptures warn often against the sin of sexual immorality in general, and adultery in particular. In the book of Proverbs, we find very strong warnings against this sin. You may read Proverbs chapters 1-9 for yourself. Listen now to Proverbs 5:1-14, 20-23. 

“My son, be attentive to my wisdom; incline your ear to my understanding, that you may keep discretion, and your lips may guard knowledge. For the lips of a forbidden woman drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil, but in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword. Her feet go down to death; her steps follow the path to Sheol; she does not ponder the path of life; her ways wander, and she does not know it. And now, O sons, listen to me, and do not depart from the words of my mouth. Keep your way far from her, and do not go near the door of her house, lest you give your honor to others and your years to the merciless, lest strangers take their fill of your strength, and your labors go to the house of a foreigner, and at the end of your life you groan, when your flesh and body are consumed, and you say, ‘How I hated discipline, and my heart despised reproof! I did not listen to the voice of my teachers or incline my ear to my instructors. I am at the brink of utter ruin in the assembled congregation…’ [verse 20] Why should you be intoxicated, my son, with a forbidden woman and embrace the bosom of an adulteress? For a man’s ways are before the eyes of the LORD, and he ponders all his paths. The iniquities of the wicked ensnare him, and he is held fast in the cords of his sin. He dies for lack of discipline, and because of his great folly he is led astray” (Proverbs 5:20–23, ESV). Of course, the same warning must be delivered to our daughters too regarding the seductive man. 

You know, it is interesting how the book of Proverbs highlights sins of sexual immorality in general and adultery, in particular, to show foolish they are. In fact, though I do not have the time to go into great detail about this now, the first 9 chapters of Proverbs set forth the sins of sexual immorality and adultery as the epitome of foolish living. The seductive woman represents the way of folly, whereas wisdom is personified by the excellent and faithful wife. In brief, the reason is this. To live a life of wisdom means living according to God’s design for things and in obedience to his moral law. To live a life of foolishness involves being driven by your passions, your fleshly cravings, and your sinful desires.  There is no better illustration of this than the sin of adultery. For a moment of pleasure men and women plunge themselves into ruin. This is the epitome of the way of folly, which leads to death, apart from the grace of God in Christ Jesus. 

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Suggestions For Application

I think I have said enough about the sin of adultery and about what the seventh commandment requires and forbids, generally speaking. Please allow me now to offer some suggestions for application. 

First of all, we must think correctly about gender and sex. 

This is especially difficult in our culture given the perversity that is all around us. It may not be so difficult for those who are older, but our young people have been raised in a culture that is exceedingly perverse as it pertains to sex and sexuality. Christian parents must have a clear understanding of what the scriptures say about sex and sexuality, and they must instruct their children. God’s Word is our authority for truth, brothers and sisters. Our belief is that God created the world in a particular way, that he made men and women to correspond to one another, that he instituted marriage, and that sex is to be enjoyed within that context. In other words, we have this fundamental belief that God designed the world to function in a particular way, that morality is fixed, that it is wise to live according to God’s design and his law, and it is sin and folly to rebel. This way of thinking is very much out of style today. We ourselves must be comfortable with being out of style, and we must raise our children in such a way that they are comfortable with being out of style in the eyes of the culture. The way to do this is to teach them God’s word and to show them that God’s law is good, beautiful, and lovely. We can do this by showing them how good it is to live according to God’s design, and how ultimately miserable it is to rebel. Teach them these things with your words. Teach them also by your way of life. Lead by good example, and where you have failed be appropriately honest with them concerning the folly of your ways. Tell them about the grace of God shown to us in Christ. Urge them to repent and believe upon him. Lovingly urge them to walk in God’s ways in Christ Jesus. Do this as it pertains to all of God’s moral laws, but especially as it pertains to matters of sex and sexuality. Urge them to marry, and to marry in the LORD.

Single people and married people must think correctly about sex. We must remember that sex is not only for pleasure. It is for procreation. The two things go together. I was careful with my wording. Again I said, sex is not only for pleasure. It is for pleasure, brothers and sisters. It is meant to be enjoyed, physically, emotionally, and spiritually, by a husband and his wife. It is a very important part of the marriage relationship. In fact, the scriptures warn husbands and wives not to neglect it. You may go to 1 Corinthians 7 to read about that. There Paul says, among other things, “Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control” (1 Corinthians 7:5, ESV). In the sexual union between a husband and wife the spiritual, emotional, relational, and covenantal union is consummated or made complete. If I may speak in this way, the sexual union seals the marriage covenant. In the marriage covenant, the husband and wife become one flesh. They are no longer two individuals, but one in the marriage band. And the sexual union seals that covenant bond. By the way, this is one reason it is so inappropriate to engage in sex outside of marriage. To engage in sexual intercourse outside of the bonds of marriage is to apply the seal of the one-flesh union without the covenantal reality of it. It can be compared to applying baptism or giving the Lord’s Supper to those who do not believe in Christ. To do so would be to profane the sacraments. Why? Because these sacraments are signs of the New Covenant. It is those who are partakers of the Covenant of Grace through faith in Christ who are to receive the ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s Supper along with their spiritual benefits. They are not for the world. And the same can be said regarding the gift of sex. It seals the marriage covenant. It is to be enjoyed by those who have entered into the covenant of marriage. In fact, I would argue that it only can be truly enjoyed by those who are in the covenant of marriage. The substantial part of the marriage relationship is the covenant. The physical act of sex seals it. To partake of the seal without the substance is hollow, not to mention profane. That is why those who engage in sex outside of the marriage covenant feel hollow and relationally empty after the thrill of the fornication wears off. Sex is meant to be enjoyed, brothers and sisters. It is to be enjoyed by a man and woman bound together as one flesh in the covenant of marriage. It is be enjoyed physically, emotionally, and relationally.

In our culture, the problem is on the other side of the spectrum, though. Many act as if sex is only for pleasure. They forget that it is also for procreation. This is the way that new life is created – through sexual union. Think about that for a moment. Human beings have the ability to procreate. What an awesome power this is. What an awesome responsibility this is. Think of it. God is the Creator of all things seen and unseen. He is the source of all life. But he has given man, made in his image, the ability to create life. This is an awesome power, and with great power comes great responsibility.   

I’m afraid that men and women have forgotten about the power and responsibility of procreation. Many in our culture wish to use sex for pleasure while ignoring the power a great responsibility of procreation. When a man and women come together and create life, they are then responsible to nurture that life to bring it to maturity. Our children are to be raised in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. They are to learn to live for God’s glory and in obedience to his moral law. They must learn of their need for Christ because of their sin. The point is this, as we consider the seventh commandment, “you shall not commit adultery”, we must remember the great power and responsibility of procreation. Sex is to be enjoyed by a husband and wife in the covenant of marriage in part because sex is for procreation. And the children that are brought into this world through procreation are to be nurtured to maturity by a father and mother. As I have said, the seventh commandment is about honoring life in the beginning stages.     

We must think correctly about gender, sex, marriage, and procreation. This will become ever more difficult and important for the church as the culture around us continues to run full speed down the path of sin and folly. 

Secondly, those who have sinned as it pertains to the seventh commandment and those who have been sinned against in this regard, must not be given over to despair but must run to Christ and abide in him from this day forward. I’m especially thinking of those who have been sinned against as pertains to marital unfaithfulness who are now raising their children alone. Yes, ideally husbands and wives will remain together for life. Yes, ideally children will be raised by fathers and mothers committed to one another in the covenant of marriages. It is important that this idea be preached for the sake of current and future generations. But we know that things are not always ideal in this world. Sin is a rebellion against the ideal, and its consequences are devastating. But we must not forget that God is able to bring much good from evil, and much light from darkness. Those who are living now in the aftermath of sin – either their own or the sin of another – must not forget that. You must remember that God is able to work all things for good for those who love him and are called according to his purposes. I’m speaking now both to single parents and to the children of single-parent homes. I think it is safe to say that life in this fallen world is never ideal. The idea of God’s design and of God’s law must be proclaimed! But the gospel must be proclaimed too. And what is the gospel except that God has provided a Savior so that our sins might be forgiven and our hearts renewed? One of the blessings of the gospel is the knowledge that our heavenly Father works all things for good for those who love him and are called according to his purposes. I trust that the Lord is able to work powerfully in situations that are less than ideal. We must be strong in faith, brothers and sisters. We cannot allow ourselves to be given over to despair.   

Thirdly, I wish to exhort married people to be very careful to protect the sanctity of the marriage covenant. In the spirit of 1 Corinthians 7 I say, be generous with each other. Be kind and compassionate to each other always. Be tenderhearted and forgiving. And be sure that you are faithful to one another, not only physically, but in the mind and heart too. There is so much at stake, brothers and sisters.

Fourthly, I wish to say that the church has the opportunity and the responsibility to be salt and light to the culture around us. We are to shine forth the light of the gospel, but we also have the privilege of showing how good life is when lived according to God’s design. The family is breaking down in our culture, friends. Let us show the world how good the family can be. The institution of marriage has been degraded. Let us show the world how wonderful a Christ-centered marriage can be?  We must proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ with our lips, but let us be sure to also show the world how good and pleasant it is to walk with God in obedience to his laws. May the Lord use us in this way to show the world the folly of their sinful ways. 

Fifth, I wish to speak specifically to the sin of abortion which plagues this land. While abortion is a direct violation of the sixth commandment, “you shall not murder”, it should not be difficult to see that viuolatioons of the seventh commandment are a leading cause. The vast majority of the children murdered in the womb through abortion are murdered because they are ”unwanted”. Here I am simply making the observation that if the seventh commandment were kept – if men and women were to engage in sex only within the covenant of marriage – then there would not be so many “unwanted” pregnancies. I agree that men and women ought to have the choice to bring a child into this world, but the choice must be made before conception and not afterward. Y

es, abortion ought to be outlawed in this land. It is a great evil and ought to be a crime. But the problem is bigger than this. The problem is sin. Only Christ can solve that problem, friends. Men and women need Christ. They need to hear the gospel. They need to be exhorted to turn from their sin and to Christ for forgiveness. They need to be taught to observe that he has commanded from there. Lord, have mercy on us.  

Baptist Catechism 17

Q. 17. What is sin?

A. Sin is any want of conformity unto, or transgression of, the law of God. (1 John 3:4; Rom. 5:13)

Scripture Reading: 1 John 3:1–10

“See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure. Everyone who makes a practice of sinning also practices lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. You know that he appeared in order to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen him or known him. Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil. No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God. By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.” (1 John 3:1–10, ESV)

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Introduction

I should remind you of what the last question and answer said, for this one builds upon the last one. 

Question 16 askes, “Did our first parents continue in the estate wherein they were created?” Answer: “Our first parents, being left to the freedom of their own will, fell from the estate wherein they were created, by sinning against God.” We discussed the meaning of this Q&A last Sunday. Here I want you to remember that our first parents fell from their state of innocence…  “by sinning against God.” Now, or catechism asks, “what is sin.”

By the way, this is one reason a catechism like this is such a useful tool for Christain discipleship. Not only is the teaching of Holy Scripture summarized for us in this document, it is done so in an orderly way so that we might understand the Christian faith. The most foundational truth are laid down first and then they are built upon. And as you can see, important terms are defined along the way. 

“Sin” is one of those important terms. In fact, you cannot understand the gospel of Jesus Christ without understanding what sin is? Why did Jesus Christ come to live, die, and raise again? Why do the scriptures tell us that we must trust in him to be saved? Saved from what? My point is this: The story of scripture and the Christian faith do not make sense without this concept of sin and its consequences. 

Our first parents, Adam and Eve, fell from the state of innocence and into a state of corruption, guilt, and depravity by sinning against God. 

All who are born into this world after them are born into this same condition. We are born corrupt, depraved, and guilty before God because Adam was our representative, as we will soon learn. In other words, we are born into a state (or condition) of sin. 

And all who are born into this world in this state of sin do they themselves sin (Christ was not from Adam’s seed, remember. He was born into this world, yet without sin, being virgin-born).

And sin, as we will soon learn with the help of our catechism, has devastating and eternal consequences. I’ll refrain from saying more. We will come to all of this in catechism questions 18 through 22. Each of these questions and answers will help us to learn more about sin and it effects. 

But we must begin here with the most basic question, “What is sin?” Again, the answer: “Sin is any want of conformity unto, or transgression of, the law of God.”

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The Law Of God Is The Mark

The first thing that I want you to understand about sin is that to sin is to miss a mark, and God’s law is the mark. 

Here I am using archery terms to describe what sin is. Can you picture an archer with a bow and arrow in their hands? In a tournament, what will the archer try to do except hit a mark? We might call the mark a bullseye. And when an archer misses the mark, we may say that the archer has sinned. That is what the word means. To sin is to miss the mark. 

But we are not talking about archery, are we? No, we are talking about hitting the mark of God’s moral standard for us. And here I am asking, what is God’s standard? What is the bullseye, if you will? What is the mark that God has called us to hit? 

The answer that our catechism gives is the right one. The mark is God’s law. If I were to speak in a more technical way, I would say that the mark is God’s law, and that includes both the moral law (which was written on man’s heart at creation)  and any positive laws that God chooses to add to it. The command that God gave to Adam to not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is an example of a positive law. God added that law to the moral law (which was written on man’s heart when God created him) when he entered into the Covenant of Life (or Works) with him. 

So then, the standard is God’s law, both moral and positive. And we sin when fail to hit, or live up to, that standard. 

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Want Of Conformity Unto, Or Transgression

But that is not all our catechism says. Again, the answer to the question, what is sin? “Sin is any want of conformity unto, or transgression of, the law of God.”

Want means “lack” or “failure”. So “sin is any [lack] of conformity unto, or transgression of, the law of God.”

The word “any” seems important to me. Men and women sometimes fool themselves into thinking that only the “big” sins are a problem. Yes, it is true that there are bigger and smaller sins. But both big and small sins are sins. 

The phrase, “want [lack] of conformity unto… God’s law” helps us to understand that God’s law requires us to do certain things. Some laws are stated positively. For example, “honor your father and mother” and “keep the Sabbath day”. These laws are stated positively so they are telling you what must be done. The negative side – that is to say, that which ought not to be done – is implied. And some commandments are stated negatively. “You shall not murder” and “you shall not steal” are examples of these. When commandments are stated positively, the negative things that should not be done are implied. 

The point is this: God’s law requires us to do things. His law does not only tell us what not to do, but what we are to do. We are to love God with all that we are, and our neighbor as ourselves. That requires action. And sin is “any [lack] of conformity unto… the law of God.” In other words, we sin when we fail to do what God has commanded us to do. Children do not only sin when they dishonor their parents. They also sin also when they fail to give the honor to their parents which is due to them.  We call these “lack-of-conformity” sins, sins of omission. For in these we omit or fail to do that which God’s law requires. 

The phrase, “sin is any…  transgression of, the law of God” helps us to see that we sin when do that which God’s law forbids. When God’s law says, don’t do this or that, and then we do this or that, we sin against God. When Adam was told not to eat of that one tree and he ate of it, he sinned. And when we lie we sin, for God’s law has told us not to lie. We call these “transgression-of-God’s law” sins, sins of commission, for these are sins that we do actively commit.   

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Conclusion

I hope you can see why it is important for us to have a proper understanding of what sin is. 

Not only will we be unable to properly understand the gospel of Jesus Christ – and indeed, the whole story of scripture, and the Christian faith – without a proper understanding of sin.  A deficient understanding of sin will lead to many other problems too.

Brothers and sisters, if you take anything away from this little sermon I hope it is this: Our standard for right and wrong, good and evil, is not for us to determine. Our standard is not the opinions of man, or the customs of culture. No, our standard is God’s law, and he has revealed it in nature and much more clearly by his Word. We sin when we fail to conform to, or transgress, that standard – the standard of God’s law.

If we understand this, we will be in a good place to understand why we need a Savior, Christ the Lord, and how it is that we are to live in this world in a way that is pleasing to our Great God and King.