If you're a Christian, you're a born-again Christian. 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 Nicodemus was a Pharisee who had shown respect for Jesus because of the signs, also known as miracles, that Jesus had done. It was during this discussion that Jesus explained to Nicodemus how he needed to be born again. This rebirth was not a second physical birth, but a birth of water and spirit. Jesus makes this spiritual rebirth an absolute necessity, proclaiming that “unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God." Unless is a strong word, setting an absolute condition that must be met for one to enter the kingdom of God. This spiritual rebirth is not an optional addition to one’s faith, instead this rebirth has been set apart by Jesus as an essential part of following Him. Without this spiritual rebirth, one cannot enter God’s kingdom. Dig Deeper Regeneration is the theological term we use to describe this spiritual rebirth. Much like how Jesus’ physical body had died and was raised to new life on the third day, regeneration points to one’s spiritual death and new life in Christ. This is not an action you take as a believer, since regeneration is the work of the Holy Spirit. This regeneration, or rebirth, is more than a change of heart; it is an entrance into a new life. Where you were once spiritually dead in your trespasses and sins, you are now made alive. This spiritual rebirth is your entryway into a new life, one receptive and inclined towards God. Regeneration originates with God, it is not something we can initiate for ourselves or for others. While this lack of personal control may spark different feelings in various individuals, I feel an appropriate response to this regeneration is to turn to God in prayer. For those who have either a long held or newly formed faith in Christ, we pray out of gratitude for God’s work of regeneration in their lives. For those who do not yet have faith in Christ, we pray that God may work in their lives, planting a desire for Christ where there previously was none. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, the King, whose kingdom we long to enter into; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will recognize and live into the regeneration (rebirth) you've been given by the Holy Spirit signified and sealed in your baptism ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Luke 1

To fully enjoy the comfort & assurance of your fully accomplished salvation, you must make every effort! Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 1 Q. What is your only comfort in life and in death? A. That I am not my own, but belong— body and soul, in life and in death— to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ. He has fully paid for all my sins with his precious blood, and has set me free from the tyranny of the devil. He also watches over me in such a way that not a hair can fall from my head without the will of my Father in heaven: in fact, all things must work together for my salvation. Because I belong to him, Christ, by his Holy Spirit, assures me of eternal life and makes me wholeheartedly willing and ready from now on to live for him. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Summary Maybe you've heard the trite little Christian saying that "Jesus + nothing = everything." Peter would have loved it! It nicely summarizes the opening statement of his second letter: Christ's power: has given us everything we need; through our knowledge of Him; since: He called us by His own glory and goodness and He has given us His promises. It's truths like this that provide you with the 'assurance of eternal life' that the Catechism mentions. Your certainty comes from the fact that Christ has fully accomplished your salvation, and there's nothing you need to add to it. Yet Peter prescribes more addition! In v5 he writes, make every effort to add... not to your salvation, because that's complete in Christ, but add to your faith. He repeats this command to make every effort again in v10, and this time he explains why: to confirm your calling and election. So certainly be assured of your salvation, but at the same time make every effort to live a godly life. The good works that result from these efforts will bolster the assurance and confidence you've already been given. Dig Deeper This famous first question and answer of the Catechism is like a warm blanket in a cold world, reminding you that your future is fully secured in Christ. But notice that even these words of comfort end with a call to action to 'wholeheartedly live for Him.' This is one of the great tensions of Christianity. Certainly rest in the thought that Christ is 'your only comfort in life and in death,' but in order to fully enjoy this rest you must continually make every effort to gratefully respond to the gift you've been given. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father who has set His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ over His eternal kingdom (v11); ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray for the strength to make every effort to live wholeheartedly for Christ. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Mark 4

ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Romans 3

In the beginning of chapter 3, Peter is understood to be speaking to the Christian women in these congregations AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: 1 Peter 3:12 - For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous

Psalm 36:9 Psalm 36 For the director of music. before their eyes. 2  In their own eyes they flatter themselves too much to detect or hate their sin. 3   Canons of Dordt Point 1 - God's Unconditional Election Point 2 - Limited Atonement Point 3 - Total Depravity But notice how Psalm 36 is weighted. Today: Colossians 1

Paul— to the Romans; the two letters to the Corinthians; to the Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians

And he named them “Mankind” ( ʾā·ḏām ) when they were created. 3  When Adam had lived 130 years, he had Canons of Dordt Point 1 - God's Unconditional Election Point 2 - Limited Atonement Point 3 - Total Depravity Today: Colossians 2

write to you, 2  for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3   Listen to passage & devotional: Belgic Confession of Faith, Article   37: The Last Judgment (Part 1) Each church that Paul wrote to, be it the Corinthians, Galatians or Colossians, had their own particular had to throttle them back a little bit in his second letter, since many had quit their jobs (2 Thess. 3:

Today: Colossians 2

14-17 - The Mighty Warrior Who Saves Lamentations 3:19-23 - Great Is Thy Faithfulness John 3:16-18 - Article 3: The Preaching of the Gospel 1 Timothy 2:1-7 - God Our Savior Isaiah 52.7 - Good News! Mightier Than Chaos ​ Article 4: A Twofold Response to the Gospel John 1:9-13 - The TRUE Light John 3: Thessalonians 2:10-12 - Love The Truth Psalm 81 - Call To Worship ​ Article 7: Election Ephesians 1:3- 2 Timothy 1:7-10 - Passive & Powered Titus 3:3-7 - Transformed Deuteronomy 9:4-6 - You're Not That Awesome