The One through whom the Father created the world is the same One who died for you. John 1:1–3 (NIV) 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. Listen to passage & devotional: Belgic Confession of Faith, Article 12: The Creation of All Things We believe that the Father created heaven and earth and all other creatures from nothing, when it seemed good to him, by his Word— that is to say, by his Son. He has given all creatures their being, form, and appearance, and their various functions for serving their Creator. Even now he also sustains and governs them all, according to his eternal providence, and by his infinite power, that they may serve man, in order that man may serve God. He has also created the angels good, that they might be his messengers and serve his elect. Some of them have fallen from the excellence in which God created them into eternal perdition; and the others have persisted and remained in their original state, by the grace of God. The devils and evil spirits are so corrupt that they are enemies of God and of everything good. They lie in wait for the church and every member of it like thieves, with all their power, to destroy and spoil everything by their deceptions. So then, by their own wickedness they are condemned to everlasting damnation, daily awaiting their torments. For that reason we detest the error of the Sadducees, who deny that there are spirits and angels, and also the error of the Manicheans, who say that the devils originated by themselves, being evil by nature, without having been corrupted. Summary This is the second time this year that we've read this passage, and because it is such a beautiful and theologically rich part of scripture, it likely won't be the last time! As we read through the first part of this chapter, we find John has so much to say about our Lord and Savior and to teach us about Him. John begins his gospel by calling to mind the language of Genesis 1, using the exact same opening phrase “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.” What's crucial for our understanding of the creation narrative is what comes next. John continues, “All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made” (John 1:1-3 ESV). John tells us quite a bit about Christ in these opening three verses: that Jesus, who is the Word, existed already in the beginning; That Jesus is God; and that all things were made through Him. As we read from the Belgic Confession today, “We believe that the Father, when it seemed good to him, created heaven and earth and all other creatures from nothing, by the Word - that is to say, by the Son.” Here in John’s Gospel account, we are told that God the Father created all things by His Son, who is the Word, the Second person of the Holy undivided Trinity, and the One who carries out the will of the Father. Dig Deeper This One through whom God the Father accomplished creation, and the One who carried out the will of the Father in creation, is also the One who so many years ago came to this earth, took on our flesh, bore our infirmities, and went to the cross in your and my place. Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ paid the debt of our sins. He reconciled us to God, against whom we rebelled against all the way back in the Garden of Eden. He then rose again from the dead three days later, accomplishing the plan of redemption that has been from eternity. This One through whom the Father created all things humbled Himself willingly to the cross for us, and it is this One’s death and resurrection we celebrate this week. When you look at this One through whom the Father created the universe, you also see the One who lived, died, and rose again for you. When you feel as though our Lord is far off and distant; when the enemy lies to you that no one, not even our Lord cares, remember that the One through whom the Father created the universe, including the earth you are standing on, came to this very earth and showed how much He cares for you, how much He loves you! May you ever praise the Lord! AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who along with the Word existed in the beginning; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God for the Word made flesh, through whom all things were created, who gave His life to reconcile you to the Father; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Galatians 5

We believe & boldly declare that God made the universe from nothing. Hebrews 11:1–3 (NIV) 11 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were commended for. 3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. Listen to passage & devotional: Belgic Confession of Faith, Article 12: The Creation of All Things We believe that the Father created heaven and earth and all other creatures from nothing, when it seemed good to him, by his Word— that is to say, by his Son. He has given all creatures their being, form, and appearance, and their various functions for serving their Creator. Even now he also sustains and governs them all, according to his eternal providence, and by his infinite power, that they may serve man, in order that man may serve God. He has also created the angels good, that they might be his messengers and serve his elect. Some of them have fallen from the excellence in which God created them into eternal perdition; and the others have persisted and remained in their original state, by the grace of God. The devils and evil spirits are so corrupt that they are enemies of God and of everything good. They lie in wait for the church and every member of it like thieves, with all their power, to destroy and spoil everything by their deceptions. So then, by their own wickedness they are condemned to everlasting damnation, daily awaiting their torments. For that reason we detest the error of the Sadducees, who deny that there are spirits and angels, and also the error of the Manicheans, who say that the devils originated by themselves, being evil by nature, without having been corrupted. Summary There are many different languages in our world today that people desire to learn for one reason or another, whether it be for business, education, daily living, or just simply wanting to learn a new language, etc.  From Chinese to Japanese, to Spanish to Italian, to Creole to English, there are any number of languages for one to learn, and it takes hours of time and dedication. There are some languages, however, people are a bit less eager to learn, languages that have fallen by the wayside, one such being Latin.  It’s still used, but more so in fields such as judicial, medical, or scientific professions, and theological studies. As we turn to take a look at Article 12 of the Belgic Confession, which is titled “The Creation of All Things,” the first part deals with what is summarized by a short Latin phrase - ex nihilo. What this means is that, as our confession puts it, “We believe that the Father, when it seemed good to him, created heaven and earth and all other creatures from nothing…” We find this theological truth expressed at the beginning of Hebrews 11, in verse 3: “By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible” (ESV).  God did not make all of creation from some sort of pre-existent matter. We believe and boldly declare that the Lord made the universe from nothing. Dig Deeper Over the years, my wife and I have had the blessing and privilege to travel to various parts of the United States to take in and explore God’s beautiful creation. When we go on these trips, I often find myself at various points standing in awe of the Lord, whether it's viewing a breathtaking landscape, getting to see some of the different creatures God has made that we don’t normally get to see, or standing out under a night sky overflowing with stars. But it doesn’t always stay that way. The awe that I have experienced in those moments is fleeting, as when we come back from those trips, that awe and wonder can get lost in the day-to-day, week-to-week things of life. Maybe you’ve had the same. With how hard and long your work week is, your awe and wonder of the Lord easily falls by the wayside. So take that time to stand in awe of the Lord and continually, throughout your life, ask the Lord to help you foster that awe and wonder. Brothers and sisters, may we continually stand in awe of the God who created the universe from nothing, the One who sent His only Son to die for our sins. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who formed the universe at His command; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that God will strengthen your faith so that even in the midst of stress and busyness you will stand in awe of the God who created all things ex nihilo (out of nothing). ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Galatians 3

What's the spiritual difference between you and your dog? Psalm 104:27–30 (NIV) 27 All creatures look to you to give them their food at the proper time. 28 When you give it to them, they gather it up; when you open your hand, they are satisfied with good things. 29 When you hide your face, they are terrified; when you take away their breath, they die and return to the dust. 30 When you send your Spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of the ground. Listen to passage & devotional: Belgic Confession of Faith, Article 11: The Deity of the Holy Spirit We believe and confess also that the Holy Spirit proceeds eternally from the Father and the Son— neither made, nor created, nor begotten, but only proceeding from the two of them. In regard to order, he is the third person of the Trinity— of one and the same essence, and majesty, and glory, with the Father and the Son. He is true and eternal God, as the Holy Scriptures teach us. Summary The Psalms are such a blessing from God because of the way they take complex theological concepts and express them in beautiful poetry. There are some who do not think that God is actively involved in the universe anymore; that God, although He miraculously brought everything into being, has now removed Himself from the equation, leaving His creation to work things out on its own. Our Psalm today squashes these sort of deistic theories. Two words jump out of this passage: YOU: Referring to the actions of God. He: gives His creation its food; satisfies with good things; terrifies those He hides His face from; takes away the breath of dying creatures; Sends His Spirit to bring new life; THEY: Referring to God's creatures, including us. We: Look to God for our food at the proper time; Gather up our food from God; Are satisfied with good things from God; Are terrified when God hides His face; We die and return to dust when God takes our breath; Are created by God's life giving Spirit. Dig Deeper All throughout the Bible, both in the Hebrew of the Old Testament and the Greek of the New (two very different languages), there is a close correlation between the words for breath and spirit. Psalm 104 uses the Hebrew word rûaḥ twice, but all of the English translations properly translate each instance differently: 29 When you hide your face, they are terrified; when you take away their breath (rûaḥ), they die and return to the dust. 30 When you send your Spirit (rûaḥ), they are created, Just as these translators made a linguistic distinction, we need to make theological distinctions when understanding the relationship of the Holy Spirit to creation. All creatures that have life and breath are manifesting evidence of the Spirit. But although a dog certainly has breath in it, given to it by the Spirit, we certainly wouldn't say that a dog has the Holy Spirit in it! But those who are in Christ have a much deeper relationship with the Spirit than do other creatures; even other people! Yesterday we read that God "puts His Spirit in" His covenant people! Certainly this extends to much more than just breath! Give thanks for God's provision in your life; not just the food you have or the way God satisfies your needs, but for His life giving Spirit which He puts into all creatures, and especially those who are covenanted to Him! AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, to whom all creatures look to; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God for giving you His Spirit, and pray that more and more what's been put in you will be visible to others; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Galatians 3

God's grace is so much more than plain ol' forgiveness. Ezekiel 36:24–27 (NIV) CONTEXT: After Israel had "defiled their land by their conduct and their actions... because they had shed blood in the land and because they had defiled it with their idols," God "dispersed them among the nations... and judged them according to their conduct and actions (Ezekiel 36:16-19)." God now comes to the prophet Ezekiel with a promise of salvation to announce. 22 “Therefore say to the Israelites, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: It is not for your sake, people of Israel, that I am going to do these things, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations where you have gone. 23 I will show the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, the name you have profaned among them. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord, declares the Sovereign Lord, when I am proved holy through you before their eyes. 24 “ ‘For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. 25 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. 26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. Listen to passage & devotional: Belgic Confession of Faith, Article 11: The Deity of the Holy Spirit We believe and confess also that the Holy Spirit proceeds eternally from the Father and the Son— neither made, nor created, nor begotten, but only proceeding from the two of them. In regard to order, he is the third person of the Trinity— of one and the same essence, and majesty, and glory, with the Father and the Son. He is true and eternal God, as the Holy Scriptures teach us. Summary We talk often, and rightfully so, about God's grace in our circles. It is His free, unmerited, undeserved gift of mercy and forgiveness. But we don't, as often, at least, talk about why God grants grace. You wouldn't be wrong to ground God's gracefulness in His character. Since God defines things like mercy, love and kindness, it makes sense that He demonstrates those traits by showing grace to sinners like us. But in promising His grace to His covenant people through His prophet Ezekiel, God gives a huge insight as to why He grants it. "It's not for your sake... that I am going to do these things, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations (v22)." God's people - who are not just His image bearers, but people that He's covenantly obligated Himself to, must prove God holy in the way we live (v23)! The only way we can prove God's holiness is to be "cleansed from all our impurities and from all your idols (v25)," which is exactly what grace does. It takes out our heart of stone and replaces it with a heart of flesh. Dig Deeper We often associate God's grace with the person and work of Jesus, again, rightfully so! But although grace certainly depends upon Christ's atonement for sin, notice that it's not where grace begins. Grace takes shape through the process of regeneration, in which God breaks through your stony-cold resistance and rebellion to Him and "puts a new spirit in you (v26)." But it's not just another, holier version of you that God installs. Since He's created you to prove His holiness to the nations (v23), He puts Himself into you! He said, "I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws." The Holy Spirit proceeds from both the Father and the Son, and He is a distinct person, but yet He's also true and eternal God. It's not just a portion of God that's been put into you, it's God Himself that's been put into you! So stop relying on your sinful self so much, and instead start proving God's holiness in your words and actions since He's "moving you" to do so! God's grace is so much more than plain ol' forgiveness. Grace is God the Father choosing you to be His own before He created the universe, then God the Son atoning for your sin, and God the Holy Spirit regenerating your heart so that you accept Christ's sacrifice and live in a way that proves God's holiness. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who gives us grace for His name's sake; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God for His Triune grace, and pray that your life proves God's holiness to the people around you; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Galatians 2

As a Spirit filled Christian, you have the unique ability to think correctly. 1 Corinthians 2:10–14 (NIV) The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. 11 For who knows a person’s thoughts except their own spirit within them? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. 12 What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. 13 This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words. 14 The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. 15 The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, 16 for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ. Listen to passage & devotional: Belgic Confession of Faith, Article 11: The Deity of the Holy Spirit We believe and confess also that the Holy Spirit proceeds eternally from the Father and the Son— neither made, nor created, nor begotten, but only proceeding from the two of them. In regard to order, he is the third person of the Trinity— of one and the same essence, and majesty, and glory, with the Father and the Son. He is true and eternal God, as the Holy Scriptures teach us. Summary Only you know exactly what's going on in between your ears. Others may think they know what you think, based on your reactions, behavior and other tells, but for lots of reasons these external impressions people have aren't always accurate. So it is with God. People have all sorts of notions about who and what God is, based upon their own interpretations of how they see (or even don't see) God act. But since God, as C.S. Lewis put it, is an "untamed lion," mankind's ability to decipher the mind of God based on the evidence we've collected from His creation is woefully inept (especially considering the noetic effect that sin has on our thinking capacity that we focused on earlier this year). But you can truly know God, and you can know Him through His Spirit, who "searches all things, even the deep things of God." As a Christian, you have received this Spirit, "who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us." This is why so many people have such a dim view of God, the Bible and Christianity. Since they don't have the Spirit of God, they consider the things that come from God as "foolishness." Dig Deeper The Holy Spirit has a massive impact on you. Perhaps our more Pentecostal friends look for evidence of the Spirit's presence in a person through certain 'charismatic' reactions, but passages like this one remind us that the Spirit's presence in a person more often has a much more subtle and nuanced effect. Simply put, the Holy Spirit enables you to think properly, in the way God designed mankind to think. He cures that pesky noetic effect so that once again you can "make judgments about all things." Not subjective judgments based on your own limited experiences, but true and correct judgments that reflect the very mind of God Himself! So, when you're well fed with God's Word, which is the mechanism by which God ordinarily fills you with His Spirit, have confidence in the conclusions you come to. Check your ideas for sure with other Spirit filled Christians who also know the mind of God, but then act confidently in the understanding you've been given, even if it's far different than what the world thinks. After all, since you have the Holy Spirit, who is of the same essence, majesty and glory as God the Father and God the Son, know that you "have the mind of Christ!" Now get out there and use it! AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who shares His thoughts with us through the indwelling of His Spirit; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray for the confidence to use your Spirit-renewed mind and share its wisdom with others; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Galatians 1

Christianity means living an 'all-in' life. Romans 8:9–11 (NIV) 9 You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. 10 But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you. Listen to passage & devotional: Belgic Confession of Faith, Article 11: The Deity of the Holy Spirit We believe and confess also that the Holy Spirit proceeds eternally from the Father and the Son— neither made, nor created, nor begotten, but only proceeding from the two of them. In regard to order, he is the third person of the Trinity— of one and the same essence, and majesty, and glory, with the Father and the Son. He is true and eternal God, as the Holy Scriptures teach us. Summary Romans 8 is the most significant chapter in the Bible's most significant book. I've often taught my students that when they're at the end of their rope and don't know where else to turn, turn to Romans 8 and God will speak to you from it. Today's short passage from it demonstrates its significance: As a Christian, you live in a completely different realm than the rest of the world. Throughout all of his letters, Paul uses one of the smallest words to convey this very big idea: ἐν (English: in). You are either in Adam or in Christ. Here Paul writes that you are either in the world or in the Spirit. This is what it means to be a Christian. There's no inbetween. You're either all in one, or you're all in the other; there's no inbetween. But it's the language Paul uses to describe the Spirit that catches our attention today. The very same Being is described as the "Spirit of God" and a few words later is called the "Spirit of Christ." In v11, the Spirit is described as having a very active role in the act that makes your salvation possible, when He's described as " the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead" (literally: 'The Spirit of the Raiser of Jesus...'). This is why our Confession, following the Nicene Creed, describes the Holy Spirit as proceeding from both the Father and the Son. In other words, the Holy Spirit isn't Jesus' little brother! Dig Deeper Maybe this discussion sort of feels like we've wandered a bit too far out into the theological weeds for you, with all this analysis of prepositions and pronouns. Certainly this topic is complicated and hard (even impossible!) to fully understand, but you'd be missing out on so much if you were to just skip it. Because you are now in this very same Spirit, you are given life even though your body is subject to death (v10). This life isn't something in the far off future when you've died and gone to heaven, you're given this life right now because you're in the Spirit of God and Christ! And there's even more to look forward to, especially as we draw closer to celebrating Resurrection Day: that even though the body you have will die, the same Spirit "who raised Christ's body from the dead will also give life to your mortal body!" All of this is possible "because His Spirit who lives in you" (see if you can figure out who "His" refers to in v11 - is it God or Jesus or both?). AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who's Spirit lives in us; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray for the strength and patience to understand these complicated things, so that you might fully realize the benefits you've gained by being placed in Christ; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Hebrews 13

The One who seems to say the least actually tells you the most. John 15:26–16:15 (NIV) 26 “When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father—the Spirit of truth who goes out from the Father—he will testify about me. 27 And you also must testify, for you have been with me from the beginning. 16 “All this I have told you so that you will not fall away. 2 They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God. 3 They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me. 4 I have told you this, so that when their time comes you will remember that I warned you about them. I did not tell you this from the beginning because I was with you, 5 but now I am going to him who sent me. None of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ 6 Rather, you are filled with grief because I have said these things. 7 But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. 8 When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 about sin, because people do not believe in me; 10 about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; 11 and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned. 12 “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. 13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. 14 He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. 15 All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.” Listen to passage & devotional: Belgic Confession of Faith, Article 11: The Deity of the Holy Spirit We believe and confess also that the Holy Spirit proceeds eternally from the Father and the Son— neither made, nor created, nor begotten, but only proceeding from the two of them. In regard to order, he is the third person of the Trinity— of one and the same essence, and majesty, and glory, with the Father and the Son. He is true and eternal God, as the Holy Scriptures teach us. Summary Of the three members of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit seems the most mysterious to us. In fact, it's hard to know what English word best translates the word Jesus uses to refer to the Holy Spirit. The NIV uses the word Advocate, which has a legal connotation to it (think of how lawyers advocates for their clients). Other translations use the word Comforter and still others go with the word Helper. Actually, all of those English translations work! The Greek word used here is Paraklētos which literally means to call out from alongside, which fits, since He would come in Jesus' place (v7). One of the last things Jesus does before going off to die on the cross is to introduce His disciples to the Holy Spirit. Jesus doesn't speak of the Spirit as simply being another version of Himself. This is an ancient error that many have fallen into, that the God of the Old Testament morphed into Jesus, who later turned into the Holy Spirit. Although it's in this chapter late in Jesus' earthly life that we're formally introduced to the Spirit, He's been present from the very beginning. He hovered over the waters as God spoke the world into existence, He's quite active in the Old Testament, and He had made a physical appearance in the form of a dove descending upon Jesus as He was baptized. But even though the Spirit is clearly a unique individual person, He's also an inseparable part of the three-in-one God. Jesus speaks of that difficult to comprehend relationship, saying that all that belongs to the Father is His, and all that the Spirit makes known has been received from Him Dig Deeper The Holy Spirit has often been referred to as the 'shy' member of the Trinity, because His entire purpose is magnifying the glory of the Father and the Son and not in focusing attention on Himself. That may seem to be the case, but this isn't necessarily an accurate description. Certainly the Bible doesn't tell us as much about the Spirit as what it does about the Father and the Son, but remember that every word you read in the Bible was breathed out by the Holy Spirit (2 Timothy 3:16), which guides you into the truth. As we look at the sheer volume of information that the Spirit has spoken, we see that the Spirit isn't shy at all! This is tricky stuff that transcends logic: that God is both three and one. But the best way to experience the peace of God that is your only comfort in life and in death is to listen to the very expressive member of the Trinity: the Holy Spirit. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Triune God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God for speaking to you through the words breathed out by the Holy Spirit and pray for a growing desire to listen to Him more and more. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Hebrews 12

Jesus gets you. He also loves you & has freed you from your sin. Revelation 1:4–8 (NIV) Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits  before his throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood, 6 and has made us to be a kingdom and priests to serve his God and Father—to him be glory and power for ever and ever! Amen. 7 “Look, he is coming with the clouds,” and “every eye will see him, even those who pierced him”; and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him.” So shall it be! Amen. 8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.” Listen to passage & devotional: Belgic Confession of Faith, Article 10: The Deity of Christ We believe that Jesus Christ, according to his divine nature, is the only Son of God— eternally begotten, not made nor created, for then he would be a creature. He is one in essence with the Father; coeternal; the exact image of the person of the Father and the “reflection of his glory,” being in all things like him. He is the Son of God not only from the time he assumed our nature but from all eternity, as the following testimonies teach us when they are taken together. Moses says that God “created the world”; and John says that “all things were created by the Word,” which he calls God. The apostle says that “God made the world by his Son.” He also says that “God created all things by Jesus Christ.” And so it must follow that he who is called God, the Word, the Son, and Jesus Christ already existed when all things were created by him. Therefore the prophet Micah says that his origin is “from ancient times, from eternity.” And the apostle says that he has “neither beginning of days nor end of life.” So then, he is the true eternal God, the Almighty, whom we invoke, worship, and serve. Summary We often forget how shocking these words are: Grace and peace to you. Many of us hear these words at least once a week on the Lord's Day, and often twice. But as he introduces the greatest story ever told - not just a story, but the entire history of man's creation, redemption, salvation and consummation - John begins by reminding us of exactly who and what offers grace and peace to you: Him who is, and who was, and who is to come; The seven-fold (meaning the complete) Spirit before His throne; Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of earth. These triune members of the Godhead speak with a unified voice at the end of this greeting, calling Himself the A and the Ω (first and last letters of the Greek alphabet), and then repeating the claim of being the is, the was and the is to come. The reason the expression grace and peace to you is so shocking is because we in no way deserve it. This is the very God from whom we've rebelled in sin, and we go to great lengths to suppress any knowledge of Him and to subvert His control, authority and presence. We are the very ones "who pierced Him." But yet we hear this oft repeated blessing of grace and peace because it's made possible for the three key reasons listed in the second half of v5 and into v6: Christ loved you; He freed you from your sins by His blood; He has made you part of His kingdom and a priest to serve God. Dig Deeper Our society generally has a favorable opinion of Jesus of Nazareth, the man who lived 2,000 years ago. He lived out the principles of kindness, justice and mercy alongside society's most downtrodden members. He spoke truth to power and healed the sick. Yes, He encourages us to clean up our act, but He's not pushy; He gets us, and so many conclude that if we want to just keep doing what we're doing, that's cool too. The world wants nothing to do with anything that challenges this limited understanding of who Jesus is, especially anything that speaks of His exclusivity or divine authority. But John, along with every other New Testament author, tells it as it is. Our Confession echoes these truths, claiming that Jesus "is the true eternal God, the Almighty, whom we invoke, worship, and serve." You're likely reading this at the end of another work week. You're tired and exhausted. You've repeatedly fallen back into sin, and the world around you presses in hard. Praise God that in just a couple of days you can gather with the saints on the Lord's Day and hear this Triune greeting you need to hear so desperately: "Grace and peace to you, from the one who is, who was, and who is to come," which has been made possible by a fully divine Savior who doesn't just get you, but you loves you, frees you from your sin, and has made you part of His Kingdom. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: The Alpha and Omega, the Triune Lord God Almighty; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God for the grace and mercy He greets you with, and pray that it will fuel you as a citizen and priest of His kingdom set apart to serve Him; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Hebrews 11

The last thing you need is just more of the same. Micah 5:1–5 (NIV) 5  Marshal your troops now, city of troops, for a siege is laid against us. They will strike Israel’s ruler on the cheek with a rod. 2 “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times.” 3 Therefore Israel will be abandoned until the time when she who is in labor bears a son, and the rest of his brothers return to join the Israelites. 4 He will stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. And they will live securely, for then his greatness will reach to the ends of the earth. 5 And he will be our peace... Listen to passage & devotional: Belgic Confession of Faith, Article 10: The Deity of Christ We believe that Jesus Christ, according to his divine nature, is the only Son of God— eternally begotten, not made nor created, for then he would be a creature. He is one in essence with the Father; coeternal; the exact image of the person of the Father and the “reflection of his glory,” being in all things like him. He is the Son of God not only from the time he assumed our nature but from all eternity, as the following testimonies teach us when they are taken together. Moses says that God “created the world”; and John says that “all things were created by the Word,” which he calls God. The apostle says that “God made the world by his Son.” He also says that “God created all things by Jesus Christ.” And so it must follow that he who is called God, the Word, the Son, and Jesus Christ already existed when all things were created by him. Therefore the prophet Micah says that his origin is “from ancient times, from eternity.” And the apostle says that he has “neither beginning of days nor end of life.” So then, he is the true eternal God, the Almighty, whom we invoke, worship, and serve Summary Micah speaks his prophecy into a hopeless situation: not only would Israel's enemies be able to taunt Israel's ruler by slapping him in the face, so to speak, but they would lay siege. A siege, where a city is surrounded and nobody gets in or out, is about as hopeless of a situation as there is. Micah is almost being a bit sarcastic here by calling to "marshal the troops." The troops have been defeated by this point, leaving nothing but a miserable countdown to starvation. But Micah, a prophet inspired by the Holy Spirit, shines the light of hope into this hopeless situation. A Savior would, and now has come! And from Bethlehem, no less! This small and otherwise insignificant town did have a claim to fame: it it was the city of David, the greatest king Israel had and a model of the King who would come. But this King would be very different than David. Like David, King Jesus could trace his lineage all the way back to the beginning, but unlike David, King Jesus' lineage predates the beginning. As Micah writes, "His origins are from of old, from everlasting (KJV)." It's this King, writes Micah, hundreds of years before that still morning when the skies surrounding Bethlehem would be filled with the angelic army of heaven triumphantly singing gloria-in-excelsis-deo, that will finally bring peace. Dig Deeper Certainly Micah's prophecy is about much more than a particular geo-political situation in the ancient near east in which enemy armies would blockade a city. Micah here describes our situation; having been defeated by sin and now held under siege until every last drop of goodness has been squeezed out and evil triumphs. We're past the point of marshalling the troops, Micah tells us. We need an external Savior. But it won't do us any good to find that Savior from within our own ranks. Certainly people do follow lots of different internal leaders, each time thinking that this one will be different. We try rebuilding our kingdoms by carefully constructing family, activities, careers and amassing possessions. But none of these saviors pan out. None of them leads to true and lasting peace. But our Savior doesn't come from within. It's not that He's not part of us - He very much is, so much so that as a man He perfectly represents us. But He's different. His "origins are from old..." In other words, He's eternal. Take confidence in that although it seems that Satan's siege is prevailing, your Savior from old will "stand and shepherd His flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD His God." AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who sent His Son, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times to be our King; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray for the confidence to soldier on, knowing that in Christ you "will live securely as His greatness reaches the ends of the earth;" ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Hebrews 10

Jesus certainly is a friend when you need one, but He's so much more! Colossians 1:15–20 (NIV) 15 The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. 19 For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross. Listen to passage & devotional: Belgic Confession of Faith, Article 10: The Deity of Christ We believe that Jesus Christ, according to his divine nature, is the only Son of God— eternally begotten, not made nor created, for then he would be a creature. He is one in essence with the Father; coeternal; the exact image of the person of the Father and the “reflection of his glory,” being in all things like him. He is the Son of God not only from the time he assumed our nature but from all eternity, as the following testimonies teach us when they are taken together. Moses says that God “created the world”; and John says that “all things were created by the Word,” which he calls God. The apostle says that “God made the world by his Son.” He also says that “God created all things by Jesus Christ.” And so it must follow that he who is called God, the Word, the Son, and Jesus Christ already existed when all things were created by him. Therefore the prophet Micah says that his origin is “from ancient times, from eternity.” And the apostle says that he has “neither beginning of days nor end of life.” So then, he is the true eternal God, the Almighty, whom we invoke, worship, and serve Summary It's not a stretch to say that Jesus is the most popular man who's ever lived. Throughout all of the cultural, political and social shifts that have occured over the last two millennia, the majority of people have always had a positive view of Him. He's our friend when we need one, and He provided a beautiful example of how every ought to live sacrificially. Certainly society would be much better if we just do what Jesus did. After all, 'He gets us.' But although Jesus certainly 'gets us,' very few people truly 'get Him.' While nearly everybody likes Jesus, most people have an extremely limited view of who (and what) He is. These verses in Colossians make some stunning claims about Jesus: He is God: He's the very "image of the invisible God," and "all of God's fullness dwells in Him. He is eternal: "He is before all things." As we've already read this week, Jesus has been an active member of the Trinity from the very first words of the Bible: "In Him all things were created," and not just in Him, but "all things have been created through Him and for Him." He is sovereign: In other words, He has full control and power over all that happens. "Thrones and powers and rulers and authorities have been created through Him and for Him," and "in Him all things hold together." He is our Savior: He's "reconciled to Himself all things... by making peace through His blood, shed on the cross." He is the head of the Church: The Church is not just a human institution that Christians can take or leave, it is the body of which Christ is the head, and through which He rules all things. Dig Deeper Jesus certainly is the things society would like Him to be: a good example for people to follow, a friend of sinners, and the one whom you can count on when you're at the end of your rope. But you've been given so much more insight and knowledge than most people. The Holy Spirit has opened your eyes to the truth of who Jesus really is through the reading and preaching of His Word, so it only makes sense that your relationship to Him should look far different than it does for those who simply think of Him as the man upstairs. One of the best ways you can do that is by meditating on His Word all day long. Meditation often has a bad connotation, since to many it means sitting in a funny position contemplating your own navel or some other nonsense. But it simply means to think about and mentally chew on something substantial. Make times of silence and solitude throughout your day to meditate on who Jesus actually is as He's revealed to us in His Word. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who is pleased to have all of His fullness dwell in Jesus Christ; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God He's made clear to you who Jesus is, and pray for the motivation and ability to stay focused on this truth as you go about your business; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Hebrews 9