Verses 29 & 30 are often referred to as the unbreakable 'golden chain' of our salvation: God foreknew

One short daily prayer can alleviate so much of your stress & anxiety. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 125 Q. What does the fourth request mean? A. “Give us today our daily bread” means, Do take care of all our physical needs so that we come to know that you are the only source of everything good, and that neither our work and worry nor your gifts can do us any good without your blessing. And so help us to give up our trust in creatures and to put trust in you alone. Summary The opening word to today's teaching from Jesus functions like a big STOP sign. When you see the word therefore, you have to stop and ask, what is it there for? In this case, Jesus is saying that because you should be focused on building up treasure in heaven rather than on earth, which is what He says in the preceding passage, therefore do not worry about your physical needs in this life. If even the birds of the air and the flowers of the field thrive by simply relying upon what your Father provides for them, you can too, since you're much more valuable than they are, says Jesus. But don't jump too far ahead here. Jesus isn't calling you to take a life long vacation as you count on your daily bread getting shipped down from heaven each day. His command here is to not worry, not to not work hard. Think of how busy the birds keep from dawn to dusk and how the flower is doing what it was created to do whenever the sun is shining. You don't need to look far - perhaps even within your own life - to see the awful result of running after all sorts of worldly stuff like the pagans do. They might gain a bunch of things, but they have no rest, no peace and no certainty that whatever they've accumulated today will be here tomorrow. In short, they're often drowning in anxiety. Instead, Jesus calls you to seek first His kingdom and righteousness, and He makes an extraordinary promise to those who do: all these things you need will be given to you as well. Dig Deeper Jesus here is telling you to make a shift in attitude more so than a change in your daily activities. If you're at the point in life where you're part of the workforce, don't quit your job. When you're at your job, keep your head down and be productive. Remember, working is one of the primary ways God calls us to worship Him! But do some quick mental math and tally up how many hours a day you spend productively working versus how many hours a day you spend worrying, stressing, and fretting about the gulf between what you have and what you want. How different would things look for you if you had focused your resources on seeking the kingdom rather than worrying about stuff? That's the brilliance of the short line that Jesus commanded you to pray: "give me each day the bread I need today." He goes on here to tell you to not worry about the other things in life, or even about what will happen tomorrow. It's not that other stuff or planning for the future isn't important, it's just not worth worrying about when you can be absolutely certain your Father will provide. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who created the birds and flowers, and provides for all His creatures' needs; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will seek first the Kingdom and that you'll be able to trust that your Father will give you the things you need; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Revelation 8

repeated seven times in Genesis 1, “And God saw that it was good” (Gen. 1:4, 10, 12, 18, 21, 25, & 31 universe is over, he looks it over and declares it is all—including human beings—very good (Gen. 1:31

In fact, Jesus' words in Matthew 22:39 appear to come as a direct quote of Leviticus 19:18.

Short prayers provide a comforting confidence when God's commands seem ridiculous to everybody else. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 122 Q. What does the first request mean? A. “Hallowed be your name” means, Help us to really know you, to bless, worship, and praise you for all your works and for all that shines forth from them: your almighty power, wisdom, kindness, justice, mercy, and truth. And it means, Help us to direct all our living— what we think, say, and do— so that your name will never be blasphemed because of us but always honored and praised. Summary You can imagine the tension present in Jerusalem. It was only a matter of time before the Babylonians would completely decimate the city. The market for real estate would have been zilch, since it's not very likely that the new Babylonian administration would have recognized the property deeds and titles issued by the kingdom they'd just defeated. Because of this, Jeremiah was able to buy the land for cheap (17 shekels of silver would be worth $160 in today's money), but even still, most of the guys who witnessed this transaction probably thought Jeremiah was nuts and was wasting $160. But this passage demonstrates Jeremiah's tremendous faith. Although he didn't know how or when, he had faith that someday God would restore His people, and that this land he'd just purchased would have value again. God answers Jeremiah's prayer with the assurance that He would do just that: He would "assuredly plant them in this land with all my heart and soul (v41)." Dig Deeper It's Jeremiah's prayer in v17-25 that brings us to this passage today. Several things stand out about it. First, notice that Jeremiah's prayer comes after he finalizes the land deal. I'm sure Jeremiah had lots of questions and doubt about why it was that God had given him such a strange command, but knowing it was the word of the Lord, he immediately obeyed and carried out God's orders. Second, most of the prayer is taken up with acknowledging who God is. Jeremiah didn't pray these words because God needed to be reminded who He was, Jeremiah prayed these words because he needed to be reminded who God is and that he could trust God, even when God's command seemed ridiculous. In a sense, Jeremiah's prayer was answered by the very words he was praying. Third, Jeremiah doesn't ask for anything in this prayer! Yet because Jeremiah is praying from the heart, God recognizes Jeremiah's unspoken confusion and provides him (and us) with a tremendously comforting reminder that as our covenant God, He will always restore His disobedient people. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our faithful covenant Father and sovereign Lord, nothing is too hard for you; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray for faith like Jeremiah's, that you would be able to fully obey God even when you don't fully understand why; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - 2 Thessalonians 2

The more things change, the more they stay the same, right? Yes, and no. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 122 Q. What does the first request mean? A. “Hallowed be your name” means, Help us to really know you, to bless, worship, and praise you for all your works and for all that shines forth from them: your almighty power, wisdom, kindness, justice, mercy, and truth. And it means, Help us to direct all our living— what we think, say, and do— so that your name will never be blasphemed because of us but always honored and praised. Summary The more things change, the more they stay the same. This old adage has proven itself true time and time again. The pattern of God's people has been familiar and consistent: peril overtakes them and they cry out to God for rescue; God hears their prayers and delivers them to freedom; after a short interlude of faithfulness, the subsequent generations fall back into sin and God allows peril to overtake them until they once again cry out in repentance. But this time it would be different. Not the part about Israel falling into sin and invoking judgment upon themselves... that part is just as consistent as ever. But this time God's not going to rescue and restore them to the same old thing. He's going to break the pattern. The old covenant, in which the people would fulfill their obligation to God by keeping the laws He handed down through Moses, had never really worked. Sinful people can't be made holy by following rules. God would be faithful to His people. That part won't change either; as we saw a couple of weeks ago reading Daniel, God's people would repent, return and rebuild. But things would be different this time. A new covenant would be coming, one that would fulfill the old Mosaic covenant and bring true freedom to God's people. This time God's law will be put in our minds, and written on our hearts. This new covenant would restore the purpose you were created for in the first place, in which you truly know God, so that you can "bless, worship, and praise Him for all of His works (HC 122)" for all eternity. The more things change, the more they stay the same. God gave the same promise to Jeremiah that He gave to Adam, Abraham, Moses, David and many others. It's the same promise He gives to you: He will be your God, and we will be His people (v33). Dig Deeper When you pray the words "hallowed be your name," or words similar to it, you're praying that God will continue to make good on His promise to complete the purpose He created you for. As the Catechism puts it, you're praying "Help me to really know you." Praying that the Father's name be hallowed both acknowledges God's holiness - His perfection and separateness from creation - and it aligns your life with His will. You're not praying that God's name will be hallowed in general, because it already is and always has been. What you're praying is that His name will be hallowed in your life, so that all of your living - what you think, say, and do - will honor and praise God. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our faithful covenant Father, who has put His law in your heart and written it upon your mind; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that God's name will be hallowed in your life; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - 2 Thessalonians 1

Brace yourself like a man as God takes you on a poetic tour of His power. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 121 Q. Why the words “in heaven”? A. These words teach us not to think of God’s heavenly majesty as something earthly, and to expect everything for body and soul from his almighty power Summary God addresses Job from "out of the storm." This may be a metaphorical reference to the storm that had enveloped Job's life, or it may just be the way God's people often experience theophanies (the localized presence of God on earth): A storm enveloped Mt. Sinai as God spoke His commandments to the Israelites; the temple was filled with a cloud when God's presence came into it; and the room shook with a violent wind as the apostles were filled with the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. But the storm was only the first indication that Job was dealing with something very otherworldly. God proceeds to take Job on a poetic tour of the universe He created and oversees that goes on for multiple pages. God's speech ends with Job humbled and repenant four chapters later. "Then Job replied to the LORD, 'I know that you can do all things; no purpose of yours can be thwarted.'" (Job 42:1-2) Dig Deeper Most of us will never endure a storm like what Job suffered through, but yet many people often begin to doubt God's existence when bad things happen. On the other extreme, our view of God becomes diminished when we begin to think of Him just as a friend when we need one, or the 'man upstairs.' One thing that's for certain, none of us want to hear God speak to us from a storm beginning with the words "brace yourself like a man," because somehow we've come to an inaccurate understanding of Him. One of the best ways to continually remind yourself of God's other worldliness, authority and power is to open your prayers to Him with the words 'My Father, in heaven.' These simple words teach you not to think of God's majesty as something earthly, and set the tone for the fear, reverence and awe that you should be praying with. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who is in heaven, who laid the earth's foundation and gives orders to the morning; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Humble yourself before the LORD as Job did and God will hear your prayers; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - 1 Thessalonians 2

There's no neutral in life. You're either building up or tearing down. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 106 Q. Does the fifth commandment refer only to killing? A. By forbidding murder God teaches us that he hates the root of murder: envy, hatred, anger, vindictiveness. In God’s sight all such are murder. Summary In many ways, the Sermon on the Mount is the defining blueprint for the Christian life. Jesus teaches that we must have surpassing righteousness, a feat we're not capable of on our own, but which He supplies on our behalf. Although this gift is pure grace, it does come with strings attached: we're now expected to live and look like the perfectly righteous people we've been declared to be. Not only does grace declare us to be righteous and holy, but it also equips us to live accordingly. This means that we no longer view God's law as a black and white list of do's and don'ts, but rather we're to align our attitudes with the Law's underlying principles of godliness. It's these foundational principles that Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount and elsewhere that Paul continues to build on in passages like what we're reading today. In this light, murder is not just an act that takes a person's physical life, but it's anything that is not "helpful for building others up according to their needs." This means that murder weapons have expanded from things like guns and knives to attitudes and behaviors like "bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, and every form of malice." Dig Deeper Anybody who's watched any sort of home improvement or remodeling show knows that the first step of a rebab project is demo day, where the old is torn out so the new can be installed. This is the entire premise of this chapter in Ephesians: your old sinful self must be removed so you can come to new life in Christ. Unlike the remodel project where demo day comes and goes, demolishing is an ongoing project for you as often new sins creep in and recontaminate areas you thought you'd already cleaned out. Paul often uses violent language to describe this ongoing process: you are to put to death the misdeeds of the body (Romans 8:13). But this license to kill comes with a significant restriction: for the most part, you must always be the victim. There certainly are times where it's not only appropriate but necessary for you to help others identify and kill off the sin in their lives, but those times are limited and must be done with great wisdom. Your words, thoughts and attitudes will always result in one extreme or the other: they will either build others up in Christ, or they will "grieve the Holy Spirit of God," as murderous behaviors like bitterness, rage, brawling and slander tear others apart. In general, keep your killing limited to your own sinful self (Sarx), and take advantage of the nearly limitless opportunities to build others up with wholesome talk, kindness and compassion. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father who has forgiven you in Christ; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that your thoughts, words and deeds will build others up, even as you kill off the indwelling sin in your own life; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - 2 John

If you fail to warn others, their sin becomes your sin. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 99 Q. What is God’s will for us in the third commandment? A. That we neither blaspheme nor misuse the name of God by cursing, perjury, or unnecessary oaths, nor share in such horrible sins by being silent bystanders. In a word, it requires that we use the holy name of God only with reverence and awe, so that we may properly confess him, pray to him, and praise him in everything we do and say. Summary The prophet Ezekiel here is giving an account of God’s calling him to be a watchman for the people of Israel. A watchman was an individual who kept a lookout over the entrance of the city, announcing the arrival of messengers and warning of impending attacks on the city. The role of a watchman was an important one; they were there to protect the city. A watchman who failed to give warning of an attack would bear indirect responsibility for those who died. As a watchman appointed by God for the people of Israel, it was Ezekiel’s responsibility to deliver messages which he received from God to the people. Ezekiel was warned that his calling was to do more than just declare condemnation on the wicked, he was to first speak out and dissuade the people from their wicked ways. To fail to encourage his fellow Israelites to give up their sinful ways would leave Ezekiel accountable for their blood. If Ezekiel was faithful in warning others about these dangers and they ignored his warning, the fault would not lie with him. However, to do nothing, to not warn of the dangers of wicked living would leave Ezekiel liable. Dig Deeper Sometimes, as Ezekiel was warned, you can find yourself in violation of God’s law not because of what you have done, but for what you have left undone. One of the ways you can dishonor the name of God is by standing idly by while someone defames the name of God. Arguably, one of the most common curse words spoken in the English language is the misuse of the name of God. The use of terms such as “Jesus”, “Jesus Christ”, or “Oh My God” in a derogatory way is rampant in western media and the broader culture. And unfortunately, this misuse of the name of God can cause others to likewise share in the defaming of the name of our Lord. Many who misuse the name of God in this manner do not understand the defamatory nature of using the name of the Almighty in this way. This is where a gentle reminder can make a difference in someone’s life. Perhaps that person does not care about the misuse of the name of God; if that is the case then the fault of their actions does not lie with you. However, to not share the truth of their actions with someone who does not understand the defamatory nature of their misuse of the name of God would leave you with some level of accountability for their breaking of the third commandment. As you do your best to follow God’s law out of gratitude for all that Christ has done for you, remember to also be a help to those who are seeking to do the same. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, the great judge who calls us to warn of His impending wrath; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray for the wisdom and courage to not only live and speak righteously on your own, but to gently call those around you out of their sinful language; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - 2 Corinthians 12

Frivolous warning signs are easy to ignore, but not all warnings are frivolous. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 82 Q. Are those to be admitted to the Lord’s Supper who show by what they say and do that they are unbelieving and ungodly? A. No, that would dishonor God’s covenant and bring down God’s anger upon the entire congregation. Therefore, according to the instruction of Christ and his apostles, the Christian church is duty-bound to exclude such people, by the official use of the keys of the kingdom, until they reform their lives. Summary The celebration of the Lord's Supper in Corinth had become a farce. Earlier in this chapter, Paul writes of how some would go hungry while another would over indulge until he was drunk. After reiterating the instructions Jesus gave for participating in His body and blood, Paul lays down a stern warning: those who come to the table in an unworthy manner are guilty of sinning against the body and blood of Jesus! So serious is this sin that it may even cause the entire congregation to get sick and even die (v30)! This seems really harsh, but we're reminded that the Lord disciplines us now so that we will not be condemned with the rest of the world. The Lord's discipline, though sometimes painful, is actually an act of His grace! One important key to coming to the Lord's table in a worthy manner is given in v28: you must examine yourself beforehand. That means, as one lexicon put it, "to try to learn the genuineness" of your faith. This is why most Reformed churches announce their communion celebration well in advance, and then spend time corporately as also individually preparing, so that each member of the congregation can examine their faith, hope and love to make sure it's firmly rooted in Christ alone. Dig Deeper We get so used to warning signs being slapped on to everything due to the overabundant caution manufacturers exercise as the result of often frivolous lawsuits stemming from people who hurt themselves by abusing the company's product. We see WARNING, DANGER & CAUTION placards so often now that we rarely take the time to read them or understand the dangers they communicate. It's easy to convey that lackadaisical attitude toward scripture. Certainly there are all sorts of warnings, especially in the Old Testament but also in the New Testament, about the repercussions God's covenant people can expect if they transgress God's commands. But as Christians we're so accustomed to downplaying and flat out disregarding these warnings because we know in the end our sins have been atoned for and forgiven in Christ, and that somehow that makes us exempt from God's discipline. Don't make that mistake. Take the Bible's warnings against sin, and especially this warning regarding unworthy participation in the Supper seriously. Don't let it scare you away, but as you prepare for it, examine your life for indwelling sin and root it out as you ensure your faith is placed squarely in Christ. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who lovingly disciplines His children to save them from eternal condemnation; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you take all of the Bible's warnings against sin seriously; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Luke 22