ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Luke 15

Zacharias Ursinus, 1563 - Age 29 AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who sent His invitation to His table; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Luke 13

Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 19 Q. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Acts 14

ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Luke 10

Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 16 Q. This imagery aligns with the requirement from Leviticus 23:10 for the Israelites to bring the firstfruits Dig Deeper In Q&A 16 the catechism raises an important question… why? from death to life ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Acts 10

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

ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Romans 11

You can't produce fruit if you're disconnected from Christ. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 64 Q. But doesn’t this teaching (that our works do not contribute to our salvation) make people indifferent and wicked? A. No. It is impossible for those grafted into Christ by true faith not to produce fruits of gratitude. Summary There are two words the Bible uses to describe how to live a fruitful life. The word used most often to describe successful Christians is the word Jesus uses in the example of a grape plant which bears fruit. This word has a passive feel to it. Jesus explains that as long as a branch remains connected to the vine, it will bear fruit. In other words, the fruit is going to come as long as the connection is maintained, just like a grape branch, when given the proper inputs, can't help but bear fruit. Sadly this isn't the case for every branch. Some grow off as long, wild shoots with lots of stem but no leaves or flowers. Others bury themselves under other branches, hidden from the sunlight. Still others seem to be in just the right condition, getting plenty of water, nutrients and sunlight, but for whatever reason nothing comes out of them. In each of these cases the unfruitful branches are cut of and thrown into the burn pile. In the second half of this passage, Jesus puts 'flesh' on this metaphor so to speak. He is the vine, and you and I are the branches. As long as we remain connected to Him - that is, as long as His Word and Spirit are flowing into our lives - He assures us that we will bear fruit. But some people are not content with this relationship, and shoot off on their own. Many bury themselves in the busyness of life, and although connected to the nutrients, do not absorb them. Apart from me, Jesus says, these people can do nothing, and their unfruitful lives will be cut off and thrown away. Dig Deeper Our instinct is to prefer the other word the Bible uses in regards to fruitfulness. We want to be people who produce fruit in our lives. Produce is a much more active word, and conjures up images of hard work, resourcefulness, and downright determination. Those are all good things, but most of the time the Bible uses the word produce, it does so in a negative way. Pharisees are quite often the people the Bible speaks of in connection with trying to produce fruit. They work super hard to impress their neighbors and appease their own consciences, but their reliance is totally on themselves, disconnected from the nutrients of the the true vine. The result is often like a Red Delicious apple: it looks really good and shiny on the outside, but not very appealing when the skin is peeled back. You've been created to be fruitful - to do and make things that reflect and glorify the image of God that you've been created in. Most of this world, separated from the vine by sin, is either desperately expending energy trying to produce fruit on their own, or they've given up trying and consequentially have very little meaning in their lives. So stay connected to the Vine - Jesus Christ. As you immerse yourself in the nutrients that flow from His Word, your life will naturally bear fruit. NOTE: The English Bible translations often use 'bear' and 'produce' interchangeably (even the Catechism uses the word produce). The contrast is much more noticeable in the Greek. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, the gardner, who cuts away unfruitful branches; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you remain connected to the vine so that your life bears the fruit it was designed for. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Philippians 2

said, and how David had also sent his son Solomon riding in on a donkey at the beginning of his reign (1 Kings 1:33).

Listen to passage & devotional: Belgic Confession of Faith, Article 1 We all believe in our hearts and Summary You can feel the pain being expressed in Psalm 102. One of the big points of Psalm 102 is that for those whose hope is grounded in God's unchangeable character This means that the descriptions of God we read in Psalm 102 are just as accurate today as they were His always perfect love for you "remains the same, yesterday and today and forever (Hebrews 13:8)."