If you feel different than the world around you, realize it's because your head is wet. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 74 Q. Should infants, too, be baptized? A. Yes. Infants as well as adults are in God’s covenant and are his people. They, no less than adults, are promised the forgiveness of sin through Christ’s blood and the Holy Spirit who produces faith. Therefore, by baptism, the mark of the covenant, infants should be received into the Christian church and should be distinguished from the children of unbelievers. This was done in the Old Testament by circumcision, which was replaced in the New Testament by baptism. Summary The grand finale of God freeing His people from their slavery in Egypt was Israel passing through the Red Sea on dry ground. Centuries later, the Apostle Paul would come to understand that this tremendous miracle was a type of national baptism, that as God's people passed through the sea, they came to belong to Him (1 Corinthians 10:1-2). Indeed God understood it this way as well, telling Moses that He had carried His people on eagles' wings and brought them to Himself. Now, at the foot of Mt. Sinai, God once again establishes His covenant with His people: they will be his treasured possession and a holy nation (a people separate from all others). But remember, a covenant is a solemn agreement between two parties based on a contingency. There's a big 'ol if in God's words to Moses: He says they will be a holy nation if they "fully obey me and keep my covenant." In the next chapter, Exodus 20, God expresses these covenantal stipulations in 10 categories we often refer to as the ten commandments, and then much of what follows in the Torah (the first five books of the Bible) give laws and regulations that seem really strange to us. Well, they seemed really strange to the Israelites as well, and by design. One of the key purposes in all of those Old Testament laws was to make God's people look really different than the nations who lived around them. Dig Deeper Today we're focusing on one of the key reasons we baptize the children of believers in Reformed churches is to distinguish them from the children of unbelievers. We understand that these are covenant children, and that the same promises the God made to the Israelites in the desert thousands of years ago now apply to them - only now the contingency (the 'if' part) has been fulfilled by Christ. This means that we must raise our children differently than the world does, and that they from the moment they are received into God's covenant family must live holy lives - that is, lives that are separate from the world. Thankfully on this side of the cross, we no longer need to abide by strange dietary regulations or participate in all sorts of ritualistic ceremonies as we worship. Nor does being a holy nation mean that we ignore the rest of the world, and we must also realize the word nation here has nothing to do with a particular country or geographic borders. But we give our children the mark of the covenant, just as God has always commanded His covenant people to mark & distinguish their children. Just as the prince of England is treated as royalty from the moment he's born, so to must we treat our children as princes and princesses of the King, separated from the sinful world by His grace. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who carries His covenant children on eagles' wings; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God for including you in His covenant promises, that Christ fulfilled your obligation, and pray that you would live as the holy person (saint) that you've been declared to be; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Luke 8

Matthew 3:13–17 (NIV) 13 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. 14 But John Today: Hebrews 3

Genesis 3:22 (NIV) 22 And the Lord God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and Sometimes the Council of Nicaea, which met in 325 A.D. and drafted the Nicene Creed, is errantly said Likewise in Genesis 3:22, God says, “Behold, the man has become like one of us”.

Baptism symbolizes you've been washed with the costliest of all detergents. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 70 Q. What does it mean to be washed with Christ’s blood and Spirit? A. To be washed with Christ’s blood means that God, by grace, has forgiven my sins because of Christ’s blood poured out for me in his sacrifice on the cross. To be washed with Christ’s Spirit means that the Holy Spirit has renewed me and set me apart to be a member of Christ so that more and more I become dead to sin and increasingly live a holy and blameless life. Summary In his letter to the church in Ephesus Paul writes of the redemption we have through the blood of Christ. Redemption is deliverance through a price or ransom that is paid. The redemption to which Paul is speaking is the deliverance from the guilt of sin which has been paid by the blood of Christ shed for us on the cross. Redemption is not free; there is a price that must be paid. That price has been paid by Jesus and is offered freely to those who believe in Him for salvation. Dig Deeper When Katie and I were first married, she worked for a ministry out of Sioux Falls, SD named LifeLight. LifeLight’s claim to fame is being the largest outdoor free Christian music festival. Being a free music festival there was no required entrance fee, however that does not mean that there were no costs. As you can imagine, it can be quite expensive to hire some of the best Christian bands in the world to come sing at the festival, plus all the other costs (electricity, water, etc.) that come with hosting a festival. And while entry was free, these costs still had to be paid. LifeLight ran on donations. While many enjoyed a free experience, others would donate above and beyond to make sure there was enough to cover the festival. Essentially, some people gave more than the value they received in order that others could come for free and hear the gospel proclaimed. In this case, some paid for the many. When it comes to redemption it is not some, but the one who has paid for all. The people of God receive this gift via the grace of God seen in the blood of Christ poured out for us in his sacrifice on the cross. In baptism, we are reminded of Christ’s death on our behalf. This sacrament points to the redemption found in Christ and the price paid for our deliverance. Recognizing the price that has been paid on your behalf, live as one who has been forgiven, turning away from the vices of this world and living a life full of gratitude for the gift of grace found in Christ. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who lavishes grace and forgiveness of sin upon us, His children; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will understand more and more the cost of your salvation so that more and more your life will reflect the necessary gratitude for such a gift; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Philemon

Jesus came to both save and destroy. Be sure to pray for both. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 122 Q. What does the second request mean? A. “Your kingdom come” means, Rule us by your Word and Spirit in such a way that more and more we submit to you. Keep your church strong, and add to it. Destroy the devil’s work; destroy every force which revolts against you and every conspiracy against your Word. Do this until your kingdom is so complete and perfect that in it you are all in all. Summary In this letter John is writing to a church during a time of struggle to encourage them after a time of doubt brought on by false teachings. John reaffirms what the false teachers tried to deny: the full divinity and humanity of Christ. In the third chapter of this letter, John addresses how to respond to what had occurred. In verse 7 he gives a gentle reminder to not let anyone lead you astray. The devil and his forces are at work against the truth of the Gospel. However, Jesus came into the world to destroy the devil’s work. Listen to those that align with Christ, not those who are aligned with the devil. John gives a means of testing to see where one’s allegiance lies, writing that “anyone who does not do what is right is not God’s child.” Do not be led astray, verify what you hear against the Word of God and consider the source and what their actions say about their intent. Dig Deeper John lays out the difference between those whom he labels the children of God and the children of the devil. The children of God practice righteousness while the children of the devil do not. And while the choice between the ways of righteousness and the ways of the devil seems like an easy one, keep in mind that the devil cheats. It is not always a decision between doing something righteous and doing something unrighteous. Sometimes the devil works to simply present an easy way out of doing what you know to be right. As the catechism teaches, praying “your kingdom come” is a way of asking God to destroy the devil’s work by destroying every force which revolts against him and every conspiracy against his holy Word. You must pick a side in this conflict: either you align with Christ, or you align with the devil. Where your allegiance lies will be seen in the choices you make. Take to heart John’s encouragement from today’s scripture passage by living lives of righteousness because you are the children of God. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who sent His Son to destroy the devil's work; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will not be led astray, and pray that God's kingdom will come; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Revelation 1

Can you trust your friends & family? Are you sure? Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 112 Q. What is God’s will for you in the ninth commandment? A. God’s will is that I never give false testimony against anyone, twist no one’s words, not gossip or slander, nor join in condemning anyone without a hearing or without a just cause. Rather, in court and everywhere else, I should avoid lying and deceit of every kind; these are devices the devil himself uses, and they would call down on me God’s intense anger. I should love the truth, speak it candidly, and openly acknowledge it. And I should do what I can to guard and advance my neighbor’s good name. Summary Sometimes the best way to know something is to study its opposite. In other words, if we want to understand what it means to "love the truth and speak it candidly," we can begin by examining the consequences of doing the opposite: what happens when people who "taught their tongues to lie... and in their deceit refused to acknowledge the Lord (v5-6)?" As we see so often in scripture, there's a direct link between your tongue and your overall actions. The truthfulness of your words is directly correlated to the honesty of your daily living. As God describes it, a life steeped in deceit has terrible consequences: trust is shattered and slander abounds. Even as the people "all speak cordially to their neighbors, in their hearts they set traps for them (v8)." Israel's descent into falsehood left God no choice. "What else can I do?" asks God in v7, "I will refine and test them." He continues, "Should I not punish them for this? ...Should I not avenge myself on such a nation as this?" In many ways, the constant lies and deception you are bombarded with - both from the media and from the people around you - are nothing new. But be on guard: Know that God will punish people severely, both in this life and the next, who continually exchange the truth for a lie. Dig Deeper Truth is much more than giving an accurate accounting or a correct definition. Truth is a bedrock upon which a solid community can be built, but that solid bedrock quickly turns to shifting sand when truth is replaced with deception. When that happens, you can't trust even your friends or family, because no one speaks the truth (v4-5). Although deception can take many forms, it always springs from the same source. God refers to this source twice in today's passage: "in their deceit they refuse to acknowledge me (v3, 6)." When people lose their knowledge of God, they lose their grip on truthfulness, and it doesn't take long after that for entire societies to implode. The best way to reverse our own society's implosion is to restore people's knowledge of God so that they turn to Him in repentance and once again find solid footing in the bedrock of truth. And the best way for you to restore other people's knowledge of God is to continue building up your own! You can't stop other people from sliding unless you're firmly planted in the truth! AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: The LORD God, who will punish those who do not acknowledge Him; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that your knowledge of God will increase so that your influence will cause others to find the bedrock of truth once again; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - John 9

away from sin; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Luke 3

John 3 illustrates this supernatural work of God and where the often used phrase “born again” originates

Q&A 7 and Genesis 3 then direct us to the source of sin: the fall and disobedience of our first parents Genesis 3 is a sharp turn from the first two chapters. The pollution had already contaminated a 30-mile stretch of the river as it seeped into the nearby riverbanks

Summary We're jumping into a discussion here in 1 Corinthians 3 in which Paul is helping these early