Your sins are atoned because blood without defect was spilled. alittleperspective.com Leviticus 1:1-5 (NIV) 1 The LORD called to Moses and spoke to him from the tent of meeting. He said, 2  “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When anyone among you ( ʾādām ) brings an offering to the LORD, bring as your offering an animal from either the herd or the flock. 3  “ ‘If the offering is a burnt offering from the herd, you are to offer a male without defect. You must present it at the entrance to the tent of meeting so that it will be acceptable to the LORD. 4  You are to lay your hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it will be accepted on your behalf to make atonement ( kippur) for you. 5  You are to slaughter the young bull before the LORD, and then Aaron’s sons the priests shall bring the blood and splash it against the sides of the altar at the entrance to the tent of meeting. Canons of Dordt Point 1 - God's Unconditional Election Point 2 - Limited Atonement Article 1: God’s Right to Condemn All People Romans 5:12-14 - Mis-Markmanship Deuteronomy 28:15-20 - Not A Tame Lion Genesis 2:15-17 - Or Else Luke 15:11-16 - Prodigious Deprivation Psalm 143 - Aggressive Prayer Pattern ​ Article 2: The Manifestation of God’s Love Zephaniah 3:14-17 - The Mighty Warrior Who Saves Lamentations 3:19-23 - Great Is Thy Faithfulness John 3:16-18 - Simple Beauty 1 John 4:8-10 - This Is Love Psalm 103 - Praise the LORD! ​ Article 3: The Preaching of the Gospel 1 Timothy 2:1-7 - God Our Savior Isaiah 52.7 - Good News! Rom 10:14-17 - The Power of Preaching 1 Cor 1.23-24 - God's Foolishness Psalm 93 - Mightier Than Chaos ​ Article 4: A Twofold Response to the Gospel John 1:9-13 - The TRUE Light John 3:31-36 - Wrath Removed John 6:37-40 - Tensegral Theology John 12:42-50 - Buffet Theology Psalm 16 - In God We Trust ​ Article 5: The Sources of Unbelief and of Faith James 1:13-18 - The Devil (didn't) Make You Do It Ecclesiastes 7:25-29 - Many Schemes Ephesians 2:8 - The Gift of God Philippians 1:27-30 - Granted Psalm 95 - The LORD is OUR God ​ Article 6: God’s Eternal Decree Isaiah 45:21-25 - Irrevocable Ezekiel 36:24-27 - A Whole New Reality Romans 9:15-21 - God's Mercy, Not Your Effort 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12 - Love The Truth Psalm 81 - Call To Worship ​ Article 7: Election Ephesians 1:3-6 - Before the Foundation Deuteronomy 7:1-10 - Set Apart John 17:1-5 - Sovereign Submission John 17:6-12 - Given Psalm 115 - God Does What He Pleases ​ Article 8: A Single Decree of Election Romans 4:1-8 - One and the Same Romans 4:9-17 - Chicken or Egg? Romans 4:18-25 - Faithfully Face the Facts Hebrews 11:39-40 - Promises Kept Psalm 33 - God's Control, Authority & Presence Article 9: Election Not Based on Foreseen Faith John 10:22-30 - Listen Up! 2 Timothy 1:7-10 - Passive & Powered Titus 3:3-7 - Transformed Deuteronomy 9:4-6 - You're Not That Awesome Psalm 91 - The Shelter of the Most High Article 10: Election Based on God’s Good Pleasure Luke 2:13-14 - Christmas in March Galatians 4:1-7 - From Slave to Son Isaiah 53:6 - Herd Mentality 1 Peter 2:9-10 - You're The Best Thing God Has! Psalm 5 - The Morning Psalm Article 11: God’s election is unalterable. Malachi 3:6-7 - Keep It Simple Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchanging Anchor Hebrews 13:1-8 - Keep On Loving Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchangeable Blessing Psalm 110 - Victory in Jesus Article 12: The Assurance of election Hebrews 11:1-6 - Confident Assurance Malachi 3:14-18 - Childlike Fear 2 Corinthians 7:8-11 - Godly Sorrow Matthew 5:6 - Stay Hungry Psalm 65 - The Hearer of Prayers ​ Article 13/14: The Fruit of our assurance Isaiah 57:14-21 - God's Second Residence 2 Peter 1:3-10 - Make Every Effort Isaiah 42:1-9 - The Sovereign & His Servant Deuteronomy 29:29 - The Secret Things Psalm 96 - Soli Deo Gloria Article 2: The Satisfaction Made by Christ Since, however,  we ourselves cannot give this satisfaction  or deliver ourselves from God’s wrath,  God in boundless mercy has given us as a guarantee  his only begotten Son,  who was made to be sin and a curse for us,  in our place, on the cross,  in order that he might make satisfaction for us. Summary If you've ever tried to read the Bible from cover to cover, chances are it was here in the book of Leviticus that your plan went off the rails. Genesis and Exodus are full of narrative adventures that make the reading fun, but Leviticus trails off into seemingly endless lists of rules and regulations that seem irrelevant to New Testament Christianity. But these seemingly boring instructions contain the key to your salvation, so these words are worth the effort it takes to read them. The opening line of the book contains a critical clue about your relationship to God: The LORD called to Moses... For all of its mind numbing details, the primary purpose of Leviticus is to communicate what's necessary for man to be at peace with God, and notice that it's the LORD who initiates the process! God doesn't wait for mankind ( ʾādām ) to come crawling back to Him, He called out to His people! Although the book of Leviticus gives instructions for all sorts of different offerings and sacrifices, it begins with the most important. Without the kippur - the sacrifice of atonement which makes payment for sin - any other attempt for a sinner to come before the LORD is rendered moot. The kippur procedure the LORD lays out contains two significant symbolic acts. First, the one bringing the sacrifice was to lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering. As one commentator puts it, "the sacrificer identifies himself with the sacrifice, which becomes a substitute for him, to die in his place." Second, the blood of the sacrificed animal was to be splashed against the sides of the altar. Blood represents life, and the kippur makes clear what the writer of Hebrews would note thousands of years later: without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness ( Hebrews 9:14 ). Although all covenant people were welcome to - and required to - make a kippur sacrifice (Leviticus goes on to indicate a sliding scale of sacrificial animals so all income levels could participate), the specifications for the animal to be sacrificed was very specific: with was to be a male without defect... acceptable to the LORD.     Dig Deeper   The instructions given in the book of Leviticus guided the religious expression of God's people for centuries, but he book of Hebrews makes a shocking revelation about all of the rituals spelled out in Leviticus, stating that it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sin ( Hebrews 10:14 ). All that these kippur regulations were doing was painting a bloody picture of what was still needed to actually atone for people: It was man, not beast, who sinned therefore it would need to be the blood of a man without defect (physical & spiritual) that made the payment. The rituals and sacrifices described in Leviticus are no longer binding on God's covenant people. It's not that God changed His mind and no longer requires sin to be atoned for, but that in Christ that atonement has been fully made. The lasting importance of Leviticus is what it pointed towards: the coming Messiah who would become  the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world ( 1 John 2:2 ). AAA Prayer (About) A CKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS : Our Father, who calls His people to salvation; A LIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God that the blood of Jesus has fully atoned for your sin; A SK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Matthew 21

Repentance begins by understanding God's wrath has kissed His peace. Psalm 85 For the director of music. Of the Sons of Korah. A psalm. 1  You, Lord, showed favor to your land; you restored the fortunes of Jacob. 2  You forgave the iniquity of your people and covered all their sins. 3  You set aside all your wrath and turned from your fierce anger. 4  Restore us again, God our Savior, and put away your displeasure toward us. 5  Will you be angry with us forever? Will you prolong your anger through all generations? 6  Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you? 7  Show us your unfailing love, Lord, and grant us your salvation. 8  I will listen to what God the Lord says; he promises peace ( šā·lôm ) to his people, his faithful servants— but let them not turn to folly. 9  Surely his salvation is near those who fear him, that his glory may dwell in our land. 10  Love ( ḥěʹ·sěḏ ) and faithfulness meet together; righteousness and peace kiss each other. 11  Faithfulness springs forth from the earth, and righteousness looks down from heaven. 12  The Lord will indeed give what is good, and our land will yield its harvest. 13  Righteousness goes before him and prepares the way for his steps. Canons of Dordt Point 1 - God's Unconditional Election Point 2 - Limited Atonement Article 1: God’s Right to Condemn All People Romans 5:12-14 - Mis-Markmanship Deuteronomy 28:15-20 - Not A Tame Lion Genesis 2:15-17 - Or Else Luke 15:11-16 - Prodigious Deprivation Psalm 143 - Aggressive Prayer Pattern ​ Article 2: The Manifestation of God’s Love Zephaniah 3:14-17 - The Mighty Warrior Who Saves Lamentations 3:19-23 - Great Is Thy Faithfulness John 3:16-18 - Simple Beauty 1 John 4:8-10 - This Is Love Psalm 103 - Praise the LORD! ​ Article 3: The Preaching of the Gospel 1 Timothy 2:1-7 - God Our Savior Isaiah 52.7 - Good News! Rom 10:14-17 - The Power of Preaching 1 Cor 1.23-24 - God's Foolishness Psalm 93 - Mightier Than Chaos ​ Article 4: A Twofold Response to the Gospel John 1:9-13 - The TRUE Light John 3:31-36 - Wrath Removed John 6:37-40 - Tensegral Theology John 12:42-50 - Buffet Theology Psalm 16 - In God We Trust ​ Article 5: The Sources of Unbelief and of Faith James 1:13-18 - The Devil (didn't) Make You Do It Ecclesiastes 7:25-29 - Many Schemes Ephesians 2:8 - The Gift of God Philippians 1:27-30 - Granted Psalm 95 - The LORD is OUR God ​ Article 6: God’s Eternal Decree Isaiah 45:21-25 - Irrevocable Ezekiel 36:24-27 - A Whole New Reality Romans 9:15-21 - God's Mercy, Not Your Effort 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12 - Love The Truth Psalm 81 - Call To Worship ​ Article 7: Election Ephesians 1:3-6 - Before the Foundation Deuteronomy 7:1-10 - Set Apart John 17:1-5 - Sovereign Submission John 17:6-12 - Given Psalm 115 - God Does What He Pleases ​ Article 8: A Single Decree of Election Romans 4:1-8 - One and the Same Romans 4:9-17 - Chicken or Egg? Romans 4:18-25 - Faithfully Face the Facts Hebrews 11:39-40 - Promises Kept Psalm 33 - God's Control, Authority & Presence Article 9: Election Not Based on Foreseen Faith John 10:22-30 - Listen Up! 2 Timothy 1:7-10 - Passive & Powered Titus 3:3-7 - Transformed Deuteronomy 9:4-6 - You're Not That Awesome Psalm 91 - The Shelter of the Most High Article 10: Election Based on God’s Good Pleasure Luke 2:13-14 - Christmas in March Galatians 4:1-7 - From Slave to Son Isaiah 53:6 - Herd Mentality 1 Peter 2:9-10 - You're The Best Thing God Has! Psalm 5 - The Morning Psalm Article 11: God’s election is unalterable. Malachi 3:6-7 - Keep It Simple Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchanging Anchor Hebrews 13:1-8 - Keep On Loving Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchangeable Blessing Psalm 110 - Victory in Jesus Article 12: The Assurance of election Hebrews 11:1-6 - Confident Assurance Malachi 3:14-18 - Childlike Fear 2 Corinthians 7:8-11 - Godly Sorrow Matthew 5:6 - Stay Hungry Psalm 65 - The Hearer of Prayers ​ Article 13/14: The Fruit of our assurance Isaiah 57:14-21 - God's Second Residence 2 Peter 1:3-10 - Make Every Effort Isaiah 42:1-9 - The Sovereign & His Servant Deuteronomy 29:29 - The Secret Things Psalm 96 - Soli Deo Gloria Article 1: The Punishment Which God’s Justice Requires God is not only  supremely merciful,  but also supremely just.  This justice requires  (as God has revealed in the Word)  that the sins we have committed against his infinite majesty  be punished with both temporal and eternal punishments,  of soul as well as body.  We cannot escape these punishments unless satisfaction is given to God’s justice. Summary Psalm 85 poetically presents the process of repentance. Notice where repentance so often begins - conventional wisdom places its first steps in realizing the wrongness of your actions. Although such a realization is an important step, the psalmist in v1-3 places the first step of repentance in being reminded (or told the first time) of God's simultaneously righteous and gracious nature. The LORD showed favor, He restored the fortunes and forgave iniquity and covered sins. He set aside wrath (other translations: hot/burning/raging anger ) and turned from His fierce anger. It makes sense that repentance must begin with this theological understanding of who God is. Why else would one repent if there was no fear of punishment? Why would one repent if there was no possibility of the resulting hot/burning/raging anger and wrath being set aside? The superscriptions that precede many Psalms are different than the headings that appear before other passages in the Bible. Those headings have been added by the publisher as a handy convenience to help us locate and summarize passages. But the superscriptions in the psalms are an ancient indication of not only who wrote the psalm, but what the psalm was written for. There are 55 psalms (roughly 1/3) designated for the director of music. Among other things, it meant the psalm was a key part of ancient Hebrew liturgy - it was meant to be sung by all the people. Notice here that God wanted His people singing of His wrath! But not just singing about its hot/burning/raging nature, but about how God sets it aside in order to show favor, restore and forgive the sins which He has covered.   Dig Deeper   After completing this critical first step of coming to understand God's righteous / gracious nature, Psalm 85 walks us through the remaining aspects of repentance: Asking God our Savior to restore (v4) and revive (v6) us; Promising to listen to what God the LORD says ; Being certain that His salvation is near those who fear Him, and that somehow God doesn't compromise His holy nature as He forgives our sin. God's covenant requirements ( ḥěʹ·sěḏ ) are met by His faithfulness , and His righteousness [holy justice] and peace kiss each other. To the psalmist, this must have seemed impossible. Of course we know that God accomplished this through Christ! An assurance that upon our repentance, that the LORD will indeed give what is good. AAA Prayer (About) A CKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS : Our Father, God our Savior in whom love and truth are met together (KJV); A LIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that as you prepare for Lord's Day worship that your church's music and liturgy will remind you that God has set aside His wrath and calls you to repent before Him; A SK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Matthew 20

God presented Christ as an atonement ... what does that mean? Romans 3:20-26 (NIV) 20  Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin. 21  But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. 22  This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, 23  for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24  and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 25  God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith . He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— 26  he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus. Canons of Dordt Point 1 - God's Unconditional Election Point 2 - Limited Atonement Article 1: God’s Right to Condemn All People Romans 5:12-14 - Mis-Markmanship Deuteronomy 28:15-20 - Not A Tame Lion Genesis 2:15-17 - Or Else Luke 15:11-16 - Prodigious Deprivation Psalm 143 - Aggressive Prayer Pattern ​ Article 2: The Manifestation of God’s Love Zephaniah 3:14-17 - The Mighty Warrior Who Saves Lamentations 3:19-23 - Great Is Thy Faithfulness John 3:16-18 - Simple Beauty 1 John 4:8-10 - This Is Love Psalm 103 - Praise the LORD! ​ Article 3: The Preaching of the Gospel 1 Timothy 2:1-7 - God Our Savior Isaiah 52.7 - Good News! Rom 10:14-17 - The Power of Preaching 1 Cor 1.23-24 - God's Foolishness Psalm 93 - Mightier Than Chaos ​ Article 4: A Twofold Response to the Gospel John 1:9-13 - The TRUE Light John 3:31-36 - Wrath Removed John 6:37-40 - Tensegral Theology John 12:42-50 - Buffet Theology Psalm 16 - In God We Trust ​ Article 5: The Sources of Unbelief and of Faith James 1:13-18 - The Devil (didn't) Make You Do It Ecclesiastes 7:25-29 - Many Schemes Ephesians 2:8 - The Gift of God Philippians 1:27-30 - Granted Psalm 95 - The LORD is OUR God ​ Article 6: God’s Eternal Decree Isaiah 45:21-25 - Irrevocable Ezekiel 36:24-27 - A Whole New Reality Romans 9:15-21 - God's Mercy, Not Your Effort 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12 - Love The Truth Psalm 81 - Call To Worship ​ Article 7: Election Ephesians 1:3-6 - Before the Foundation Deuteronomy 7:1-10 - Set Apart John 17:1-5 - Sovereign Submission John 17:6-12 - Given Psalm 115 - God Does What He Pleases ​ Article 8: A Single Decree of Election Romans 4:1-8 - One and the Same Romans 4:9-17 - Chicken or Egg? Romans 4:18-25 - Faithfully Face the Facts Hebrews 11:39-40 - Promises Kept Psalm 33 - God's Control, Authority & Presence Article 9: Election Not Based on Foreseen Faith John 10:22-30 - Listen Up! 2 Timothy 1:7-10 - Passive & Powered Titus 3:3-7 - Transformed Deuteronomy 9:4-6 - You're Not That Awesome Psalm 91 - The Shelter of the Most High Article 10: Election Based on God’s Good Pleasure Luke 2:13-14 - Christmas in March Galatians 4:1-7 - From Slave to Son Isaiah 53:6 - Herd Mentality 1 Peter 2:9-10 - You're The Best Thing God Has! Psalm 5 - The Morning Psalm Article 11: God’s election is unalterable. Malachi 3:6-7 - Keep It Simple Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchanging Anchor Hebrews 13:1-8 - Keep On Loving Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchangeable Blessing Psalm 110 - Victory in Jesus Article 12: The Assurance of election Hebrews 11:1-6 - Confident Assurance Malachi 3:14-18 - Childlike Fear 2 Corinthians 7:8-11 - Godly Sorrow Matthew 5:6 - Stay Hungry Psalm 65 - The Hearer of Prayers ​ Article 13/14: The Fruit of our assurance Isaiah 57:14-21 - God's Second Residence 2 Peter 1:3-10 - Make Every Effort Isaiah 42:1-9 - The Sovereign & His Servant Deuteronomy 29:29 - The Secret Things Psalm 96 - Soli Deo Gloria Article 1: The Punishment Which God’s Justice Requires God is not only  supremely merciful,  but also supremely just.  This justice requires  (as God has revealed in the Word)  that the sins we have committed against his infinite majesty  be punished with both temporal and eternal punishments,  of soul as well as body.  We cannot escape these punishments unless satisfaction is given to God’s justice. Summary It would be entirely possible for us as we read the Bible together this year to understand nearly every doctrine in the Canons of Dordt by only reading from the first couple of chapters of Ephesians and the first half of the book of Romans. These two epistles from Paul so clearly unpack and explain Christian theology, yet we've been intentionally 'throttling' these two books this year - only so that we can see that it's not just these two books that form our doctrine, but that the whole of God's Word echoes what is condensed in Paul's books. This year, we've focused on passages that aren't quite as familiar. But every so often, we need to dive back into these familiar passages which shine so much light on what God has done for us in Christ. Since we could spend the entire week unpacking this passage, and since this likely won't be the last time we read this awesome passage this year, we're only going to focus in on the first half v25 today. God One of the biggest themes of the Canons is that every aspect of our salvation, from beginning to end, is a product of God's sovereignty (His control, authority & presence). So it makes sense that this monumental sentence starts with what God did to make your salvation possible. presented This is one of those fascinating words that every version translates differently, yet they're all correct. God put forward (ESV), made publically available (LEB), publicly displayed (NET), and set forth Jesus. Christ Remember, Christ isn't Jesus' last name, it's His title. It seems awkward, but it would be more accurate for us to refer to Him as Jesus the Christ. The Greek word Christos means anointed, as does the Hebrew word Messiah. Jesus is anointed by God as our prophet (the One who represents God to us) and our King . But this passage focuses in on the fact that Jesus is also anointed to be our priest - the One who represents us to God. [as a sacrifice of] atonement This phrase translates one word, and it too is a fascinating one! Other translations use the older word propitiation (ESV, KJV) , which means payment. It's more literally translated as the mercy seat (LEB, NET), as it's the same word used to describe the seat of God formed by the angel wings above the Ark of the Covenant. It was on this seat that sacrificial blood was sprinkled once a year on Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement). through [the shedding of] His blood The NIV added the words the shedding of to help us understand what Paul meant here. Blood must be shed for sins to be forgiven because blood represents the life God grants contingent upon man's obedience and covenant faithfulness.   Dig Deeper   [to be received] by faith. Once again, the NIV uses an entire phrase to translate just two words: through faith. Faith is the conduit through which God's grace, earned for us by Christ, flows into your life. Without faith - that is, without your connection to God - Christ's atonement is just an empty, theoretical exercise. God has given you the faith you need as a gift (Ephesians 2:8), but He also expects you to make every effort to add to your faith goodness, knowledge, etc. (2 Peter 1:5) . In other words, God wants you to fully receive by faith the saving benefit that come through Christ's sacrifice of atonement , and He also wants those benefits to spill over into every aspect of your life. AAA Prayer (About) A CKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS : Our Father, who saved us by presenting His Son as a sacrifice of atonement; A LIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God for the faith He's given you to accept this salvation and pray that you will make every effort to add to it; A SK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Matthew 19

You ought to be afraid of Jesus. Very afraid. But you need not be frightened. Luke 12:4-7 (NIV) CONTEXT: Jesus is surrounded by a huge crowd, but His words are directed towards His disciples. 4  “I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. 5  But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after your body has been killed, has authority to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him. 6  Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. 7  Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. Canons of Dordt Point 1 - God's Unconditional Election Point 2 - Limited Atonement Article 1: God’s Right to Condemn All People Romans 5:12-14 - Mis-Markmanship Deuteronomy 28:15-20 - Not A Tame Lion Genesis 2:15-17 - Or Else Luke 15:11-16 - Prodigious Deprivation Psalm 143 - Aggressive Prayer Pattern ​ Article 2: The Manifestation of God’s Love Zephaniah 3:14-17 - The Mighty Warrior Who Saves Lamentations 3:19-23 - Great Is Thy Faithfulness John 3:16-18 - Simple Beauty 1 John 4:8-10 - This Is Love Psalm 103 - Praise the LORD! ​ Article 3: The Preaching of the Gospel 1 Timothy 2:1-7 - God Our Savior Isaiah 52.7 - Good News! Rom 10:14-17 - The Power of Preaching 1 Cor 1.23-24 - God's Foolishness Psalm 93 - Mightier Than Chaos ​ Article 4: A Twofold Response to the Gospel John 1:9-13 - The TRUE Light John 3:31-36 - Wrath Removed John 6:37-40 - Tensegral Theology John 12:42-50 - Buffet Theology Psalm 16 - In God We Trust ​ Article 5: The Sources of Unbelief and of Faith James 1:13-18 - The Devil (didn't) Make You Do It Ecclesiastes 7:25-29 - Many Schemes Ephesians 2:8 - The Gift of God Philippians 1:27-30 - Granted Psalm 95 - The LORD is OUR God ​ Article 6: God’s Eternal Decree Isaiah 45:21-25 - Irrevocable Ezekiel 36:24-27 - A Whole New Reality Romans 9:15-21 - God's Mercy, Not Your Effort 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12 - Love The Truth Psalm 81 - Call To Worship ​ Article 7: Election Ephesians 1:3-6 - Before the Foundation Deuteronomy 7:1-10 - Set Apart John 17:1-5 - Sovereign Submission John 17:6-12 - Given Psalm 115 - God Does What He Pleases ​ Article 8: A Single Decree of Election Romans 4:1-8 - One and the Same Romans 4:9-17 - Chicken or Egg? Romans 4:18-25 - Faithfully Face the Facts Hebrews 11:39-40 - Promises Kept Psalm 33 - God's Control, Authority & Presence Article 9: Election Not Based on Foreseen Faith John 10:22-30 - Listen Up! 2 Timothy 1:7-10 - Passive & Powered Titus 3:3-7 - Transformed Deuteronomy 9:4-6 - You're Not That Awesome Psalm 91 - The Shelter of the Most High Article 10: Election Based on God’s Good Pleasure Luke 2:13-14 - Christmas in March Galatians 4:1-7 - From Slave to Son Isaiah 53:6 - Herd Mentality 1 Peter 2:9-10 - You're The Best Thing God Has! Psalm 5 - The Morning Psalm Article 11: God’s election is unalterable. Malachi 3:6-7 - Keep It Simple Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchanging Anchor Hebrews 13:1-8 - Keep On Loving Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchangeable Blessing Psalm 110 - Victory in Jesus Article 12: The Assurance of election Hebrews 11:1-6 - Confident Assurance Malachi 3:14-18 - Childlike Fear 2 Corinthians 7:8-11 - Godly Sorrow Matthew 5:6 - Stay Hungry Psalm 65 - The Hearer of Prayers ​ Article 13/14: The Fruit of our assurance Isaiah 57:14-21 - God's Second Residence 2 Peter 1:3-10 - Make Every Effort Isaiah 42:1-9 - The Sovereign & His Servant Deuteronomy 29:29 - The Secret Things Psalm 96 - Soli Deo Gloria Article 1: The Punishment Which God’s Justice Requires God is not only  supremely merciful,  but also supremely just.  This justice requires  (as God has revealed in the Word)  that the sins we have committed against his infinite majesty  be punished with both temporal and eternal punishments,  of soul as well as body.  We cannot escape these punishments unless satisfaction is given to God’s justice. Summary We've noted before that Jesus' tone changes near the middle of each of the gospel accounts. It's at this point the crowds hoping to witness or experience a miracle begin to diminish and Jesus speaks more plainly with His disciples about the coming trials. Our text today focuses in on a warning Jesus issues. It would make sense at this point for the disciples to fear the future. Although the Pharisees were the minority party in the religious establishment, they were still plenty powerful and were growing more incensed with Jesus by the day. They could (and likely were) making the disciples' lives miserable at this point and they were already plotting to kill Jesus. However, Jesus here indicates that those who kill the body aren't the guys to be afraid of. It's not at all that they can't inflict lots of pain - after all, they can kill the body - it's just that there's a much bigger threat that ought to capture our attention. And that threat is God Himself! In the bigger context, Jesus tells His disciples they ought to be more afraid of Him than the Pharisees. Even though Jesus' statement here is stunning, His logic is simple. All our earthly enemies can do is kill the body , but after that can do no more . God, on the other hand can throw the one whose body has been killed into hell! In other words, people here and now can inflict serious pain and damage, even to the point of killing you, but even physical death pales in comparison to enduring the eternal suffering of Hell.   Dig Deeper   This isn't the kind of statement that's made Jesus the most popular individual to have ever lived. The crowds surrounding Jesus wanted to hear more teachings like the Golden Rule or to have Him to supernaturally change their circumstances in life. The crowds only want teaching that makes them feel warm and fuzzy, which is why the crowds get smaller and smaller in the second half of the gospels, up until the point that Jesus stands all alone. Jesus here isn't trying to manipulate you into trusting Him by using fear to control you. Quite the opposite. He wants you to know the truth, and the truth is there is so much more to life than that which we presently see. He wants you to focus more on your eternal destiny than your fear of what might happen to you in this world. Jesus also wants you to know your worth. If not one of the sparrows is forgotten by God, how much more are you loved by the One who knows the number of hairs on your head! So Jesus doesn't teach you to fear Him in order to scare you, He tells you this to set you free from fear altogether. You need not fear those who can kill the body because you are held tightly in the hands of the One who controls both the present and the eternal future. AAA Prayer (About) A CKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS : Our Father, who knows how many hairs are on our heads; A LIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will fear God rather than fearing the world; A SK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Matthew 18

Hell is a paradox. By God's grace you don’t need to figure it out. BibleHub.com 2 Thessalonians 1:3-10 (NIV) 3  We ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing. 4  Therefore, among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring. 5  All this is evidence that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. 6  God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you 7  and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. 8  He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9  They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might 10  on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you. Canons of Dordt Point 1 - God's Unconditional Election Point 2 - Limited Atonement Article 1: God’s Right to Condemn All People Romans 5:12-14 - Mis-Markmanship Deuteronomy 28:15-20 - Not A Tame Lion Genesis 2:15-17 - Or Else Luke 15:11-16 - Prodigious Deprivation Psalm 143 - Aggressive Prayer Pattern ​ Article 2: The Manifestation of God’s Love Zephaniah 3:14-17 - The Mighty Warrior Who Saves Lamentations 3:19-23 - Great Is Thy Faithfulness John 3:16-18 - Simple Beauty 1 John 4:8-10 - This Is Love Psalm 103 - Praise the LORD! ​ Article 3: The Preaching of the Gospel 1 Timothy 2:1-7 - God Our Savior Isaiah 52.7 - Good News! Rom 10:14-17 - The Power of Preaching 1 Cor 1.23-24 - God's Foolishness Psalm 93 - Mightier Than Chaos ​ Article 4: A Twofold Response to the Gospel John 1:9-13 - The TRUE Light John 3:31-36 - Wrath Removed John 6:37-40 - Tensegral Theology John 12:42-50 - Buffet Theology Psalm 16 - In God We Trust ​ Article 5: The Sources of Unbelief and of Faith James 1:13-18 - The Devil (didn't) Make You Do It Ecclesiastes 7:25-29 - Many Schemes Ephesians 2:8 - The Gift of God Philippians 1:27-30 - Granted Psalm 95 - The LORD is OUR God ​ Article 6: God’s Eternal Decree Isaiah 45:21-25 - Irrevocable Ezekiel 36:24-27 - A Whole New Reality Romans 9:15-21 - God's Mercy, Not Your Effort 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12 - Love The Truth Psalm 81 - Call To Worship ​ Article 7: Election Ephesians 1:3-6 - Before the Foundation Deuteronomy 7:1-10 - Set Apart John 17:1-5 - Sovereign Submission John 17:6-12 - Given Psalm 115 - God Does What He Pleases ​ Article 8: A Single Decree of Election Romans 4:1-8 - One and the Same Romans 4:9-17 - Chicken or Egg? Romans 4:18-25 - Faithfully Face the Facts Hebrews 11:39-40 - Promises Kept Psalm 33 - God's Control, Authority & Presence Article 9: Election Not Based on Foreseen Faith John 10:22-30 - Listen Up! 2 Timothy 1:7-10 - Passive & Powered Titus 3:3-7 - Transformed Deuteronomy 9:4-6 - You're Not That Awesome Psalm 91 - The Shelter of the Most High Article 10: Election Based on God’s Good Pleasure Luke 2:13-14 - Christmas in March Galatians 4:1-7 - From Slave to Son Isaiah 53:6 - Herd Mentality 1 Peter 2:9-10 - You're The Best Thing God Has! Psalm 5 - The Morning Psalm Article 11: God’s election is unalterable. Malachi 3:6-7 - Keep It Simple Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchanging Anchor Hebrews 13:1-8 - Keep On Loving Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchangeable Blessing Psalm 110 - Victory in Jesus Article 12: The Assurance of election Hebrews 11:1-6 - Confident Assurance Malachi 3:14-18 - Childlike Fear 2 Corinthians 7:8-11 - Godly Sorrow Matthew 5:6 - Stay Hungry Psalm 65 - The Hearer of Prayers ​ Article 13/14: The Fruit of our assurance Isaiah 57:14-21 - God's Second Residence 2 Peter 1:3-10 - Make Every Effort Isaiah 42:1-9 - The Sovereign & His Servant Deuteronomy 29:29 - The Secret Things Psalm 96 - Soli Deo Gloria Article 1: The Punishment Which God’s Justice Requires God is not only  supremely merciful,  but also supremely just.  This justice requires  (as God has revealed in the Word)  that the sins we have committed against his infinite majesty  be punished with both temporal and eternal punishments,  of soul as well as body.  We cannot escape these punishments unless satisfaction is given to God’s justice. Summary Things were going well for this young Thessalonian church. Paul writes that their faith is growing more and more, and because of this the love they had for one another is increasing. It's interesting here how Paul makes a direct link between growing faith and increasing love! Ironically, the best way to increase love isn't by focusing on love itself, but rather by focusing on building faith so that love is generated as a byproduct. But despite their faith and love, the Thessalonians were enduring all sorts of persecutions and trials. This doesn't seem to make sense; the Thessalonians are doing exactly what they were supposed to be doing - growing in faith and love - but rather than getting the blessings one might expect for their obedience, all they had to show for it were persecutions and trials. Yet it's this seemingly flipped situation that Paul points to as evidence that God's judgment is right! What Paul is teaching them (and us) here is that present circumstances are not necessarily indicative of eternal results. In other words, blessings now may or may not point to blessings in eternity, but godly perseverance in the midst of suffering indicates worthiness of the Kingdom of God. God will payback troublers with trouble and give relief to the troubled for sure, and by His grace many of us may experience this relief here and now. But even if you don't, you can be absolutely certain that this will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven!   Dig Deeper   It's Paul's inspired description of Christ's return that grabs our attention today. Too many people think only of Jesus' kindness, empathy and tenderness. They see Him as a friend when they need one and a shining example of how people ought to live. And of course Jesus is all of those things! Praise God! But He's more than those things. He'll be revealed from heaven in blazing fire with His powerful angels, and one of His top priorities will be to punish those who do not know God and who do not obey His gospel. Do you see why it is that doing the hard work of studying and learning about God is so critical, and why demonstrating your belief in the gospel message is so important? And it's not just a slap on the wrist that Jesus will dole out to those who've stubbornly clung to their ignorance; They will be punished with everlasting destruction. That's an oxymoron (two words that seem incompatible, like 'jumbo shrimp' or 'act naturally'). How can something be both everlasting and destroyed? Yet that's exactly what those who've rejected Christ will face. Worse yet, such people will be shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His might for all of eternity. The Canons remind us that this is the treatment that all people deserve, but they also point us to a way to escape: satisfaction must be given to God’s justice . In other words, your sins must be atoned for. This is the wonderful doctrine we'll be exploring here in Point Two of the Canons of Dordt as we learn that God's grace is stronger than we are. AAA Prayer (About) A CKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS : Our Father, who is just and whose judgment is right; A LIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray for an eagerness and desire to know God and to obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus; A SK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Matthew 17

Your sins have been paid for, but that payment comes with an obligation. BibleHub.com Hebrews 10:26-31 (NIV) 26  If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, 27  but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. 28  Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29  How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? 30  For we know him who said, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” q and again, “The Lord will judge his people.” 31  It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. Canons of Dordt Point 1 - God's Unconditional Election Point 2 - Limited Atonement Article 1: God’s Right to Condemn All People Romans 5:12-14 - Mis-Markmanship Deuteronomy 28:15-20 - Not A Tame Lion Genesis 2:15-17 - Or Else Luke 15:11-16 - Prodigious Deprivation Psalm 143 - Aggressive Prayer Pattern ​ Article 2: The Manifestation of God’s Love Zephaniah 3:14-17 - The Mighty Warrior Who Saves Lamentations 3:19-23 - Great Is Thy Faithfulness John 3:16-18 - Simple Beauty 1 John 4:8-10 - This Is Love Psalm 103 - Praise the LORD! ​ Article 3: The Preaching of the Gospel 1 Timothy 2:1-7 - God Our Savior Isaiah 52.7 - Good News! Rom 10:14-17 - The Power of Preaching 1 Cor 1.23-24 - God's Foolishness Psalm 93 - Mightier Than Chaos ​ Article 4: A Twofold Response to the Gospel John 1:9-13 - The TRUE Light John 3:31-36 - Wrath Removed John 6:37-40 - Tensegral Theology John 12:42-50 - Buffet Theology Psalm 16 - In God We Trust ​ Article 5: The Sources of Unbelief and of Faith James 1:13-18 - The Devil (didn't) Make You Do It Ecclesiastes 7:25-29 - Many Schemes Ephesians 2:8 - The Gift of God Philippians 1:27-30 - Granted Psalm 95 - The LORD is OUR God ​ Article 6: God’s Eternal Decree Isaiah 45:21-25 - Irrevocable Ezekiel 36:24-27 - A Whole New Reality Romans 9:15-21 - God's Mercy, Not Your Effort 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12 - Love The Truth Psalm 81 - Call To Worship ​ Article 7: Election Ephesians 1:3-6 - Before the Foundation Deuteronomy 7:1-10 - Set Apart John 17:1-5 - Sovereign Submission John 17:6-12 - Given Psalm 115 - God Does What He Pleases ​ Article 8: A Single Decree of Election Romans 4:1-8 - One and the Same Romans 4:9-17 - Chicken or Egg? Romans 4:18-25 - Faithfully Face the Facts Hebrews 11:39-40 - Promises Kept Psalm 33 - God's Control, Authority & Presence Article 9: Election Not Based on Foreseen Faith John 10:22-30 - Listen Up! 2 Timothy 1:7-10 - Passive & Powered Titus 3:3-7 - Transformed Deuteronomy 9:4-6 - You're Not That Awesome Psalm 91 - The Shelter of the Most High Article 10: Election Based on God’s Good Pleasure Luke 2:13-14 - Christmas in March Galatians 4:1-7 - From Slave to Son Isaiah 53:6 - Herd Mentality 1 Peter 2:9-10 - You're The Best Thing God Has! Psalm 5 - The Morning Psalm Article 11: God’s election is unalterable. Malachi 3:6-7 - Keep It Simple Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchanging Anchor Hebrews 13:1-8 - Keep On Loving Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchangeable Blessing Psalm 110 - Victory in Jesus Article 12: The Assurance of election Hebrews 11:1-6 - Confident Assurance Malachi 3:14-18 - Childlike Fear 2 Corinthians 7:8-11 - Godly Sorrow Matthew 5:6 - Stay Hungry Psalm 65 - The Hearer of Prayers ​ Article 13/14: The Fruit of our assurance Isaiah 57:14-21 - God's Second Residence 2 Peter 1:3-10 - Make Every Effort Isaiah 42:1-9 - The Sovereign & His Servant Deuteronomy 29:29 - The Secret Things Psalm 96 - Soli Deo Gloria Article 1: The Punishment Which God’s Justice Requires God is not only  supremely merciful,  but also supremely just.  This justice requires  (as God has revealed in the Word)  that the sins we have committed against his infinite majesty  be punished with both temporal and eternal punishments,  of soul as well as body.  We cannot escape these punishments unless satisfaction is given to God’s justice. Summary We live in a culture in which close enough is good enough. On the interstate, 75 MPH seems close enough to the speed limit of 70. As the end of a work day draws near, 4:55 seems close enough to 5 PM to pack up and go home. Since the effects of bending the speed limit a bit or knocking off a few minutes early don't seem catastrophic, we often apply the same attitude toward keeping God's law. Keeping eight of the commandments seems close enough to keeping all ten. But we don't have a 'close enough' God. Because He defines the very concept of goodness, He must defend it by responding with holy wrath against anything that infringes upon or even slightly compromises that which He has decreed to be righteous. He will respond with a raging fire that will consume His enemies - even those enemies who kept 80% of His law but rejected the rest. Many of the Israelites who experienced God's justice as they wandered through the wilderness kept most of God's law, but anyone who rejected the law of Moses (even a little bit) died without mercy. So often it seems like God doesn't care that much about sin; after all, so many people completely ignore God's Law and are doing just fine. Even the prophet Jeremiah wondered why the wicked prosper (Jeremiah 12:1). But the writer to the Hebrews reminds us what God has said, and therefore what God will do: He will avenge, repay, and judge His people. And in one of the most haunting lines of scripture, we're told that it is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.   Dig Deeper   But as a Christian - that is, one who has been given the knowledge of truth, you need not fear God's holy wrath, despite your sin. This is because a sacrifice has been made on your behalf. Literally translated, One was killed and offered His blood in order to satisfy God's justice on account of your sin. So far this year we've come to understand that we've experienced God's grace because He unconditionally elected us to receive it. The next stage in our journey is understanding that we've been made right with God because a payment - an atonement - was made on our behalf. Christ's blood of the covenant has sanctified you (made you holy and acceptable to God). Quite literally, you were bought at a price and now you belong, as the Heidelberg Catechism begins so beautifully, in body and soul, in life and in death, to your faithful Savior Jesus Christ . So if you deliberately keep on sinning , you are rejecting Christ's ownership over your life and as a consequence, no sacrifice for sins is left. A lackadaisical, 'close enough' attitude towards God's Law is tantamount to trampling the Son of God underfoot. The best way to free yourself from the fearful expectation of judgement that rejecting Christ results in is to live every moment of your life demonstrating your gratitude for Christ's atoning for your sin by keeping God's good and perfect commandments. AAA Prayer (About) A CKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS : Our Father, who will consume His enemies in judgment and raging fire; A LIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that the Holy Spirit will cure you from having a 'close enough' attitude towards keeping God's Law; A SK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Matthew 16

The world will always be stressful, but you don't need to be stressed! Psalm 131 (NIV) A song of ascents. Of David. 1  My heart is not proud, Lord, my eyes are not haughty; I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me. 2  But I have calmed and quieted myself, I am like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child I am content. 3  Israel, put your hope in the Lord  both now and forevermore. Canons of Dordt Point 1 - God's Unconditional Election Articles 1-14 Article 1: God’s Right to Condemn All People Romans 5:12-14 - Mis-Markmanship Deuteronomy 28:15-20 - Not A Tame Lion Genesis 2:15-17 - Or Else Luke 15:11-16 - Prodigious Deprivation Psalm 143 - Aggressive Prayer Pattern ​ Article 2: The Manifestation of God’s Love Zephaniah 3:14-17 - The Mighty Warrior Who Saves Lamentations 3:19-23 - Great Is Thy Faithfulness John 3:16-18 - Simple Beauty 1 John 4:8-10 - This Is Love Psalm 103 - Praise the LORD! ​ Article 3: The Preaching of the Gospel 1 Timothy 2:1-7 - God Our Savior Isaiah 52.7 - Good News! Rom 10:14-17 - The Power of Preaching 1 Cor 1.23-24 - God's Foolishness Psalm 93 - Mightier Than Chaos ​ Article 4: A Twofold Response to the Gospel John 1:9-13 - The TRUE Light John 3:31-36 - Wrath Removed John 6:37-40 - Tensegral Theology John 12:42-50 - Buffet Theology Psalm 16 - In God We Trust ​ Article 5: The Sources of Unbelief and of Faith James 1:13-18 - The Devil (didn't) Make You Do It Ecclesiastes 7:25-29 - Many Schemes Ephesians 2:8 - The Gift of God Philippians 1:27-30 - Granted Psalm 95 - The LORD is OUR God ​ Article 6: God’s Eternal Decree Isaiah 45:21-25 - Irrevocable Ezekiel 36:24-27 - A Whole New Reality Romans 9:15-21 - God's Mercy, Not Your Effort 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12 - Love The Truth Psalm 81 - Call To Worship ​ Article 7: Election Ephesians 1:3-6 - Before the Foundation Deuteronomy 7:1-10 - Set Apart John 17:1-5 - Sovereign Submission John 17:6-12 - Given Psalm 115 - God Does What He Pleases ​ Article 8: A Single Decree of Election Romans 4:1-8 - One and the Same Romans 4:9-17 - Chicken or Egg? Romans 4:18-25 - Faithfully Face the Facts Hebrews 11:39-40 - Promises Kept Psalm 33 - God's Control, Authority & Presence Article 9: Election Not Based on Foreseen Faith John 10:22-30 - Listen Up! 2 Timothy 1:7-10 - Passive & Powered Titus 3:3-7 - Transformed Deuteronomy 9:4-6 - You're Not That Awesome Psalm 91 - The Shelter of the Most High Article 10: Election Based on God’s Good Pleasure Luke 2:13-14 - Christmas in March Galatians 4:1-7 - From Slave to Son Isaiah 53:6 - Herd Mentality 1 Peter 2:9-10 - You're The Best Thing God Has! Psalm 5 - The Morning Psalm Article 11: God’s election is unalterable. Malachi 3:6-7 - Keep It Simple Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchanging Anchor Hebrews 13:1-8 - Keep On Loving Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchangeable Blessing Psalm 110 - Victory in Jesus Article 12: The Assurance of election Hebrews 11:1-6 - Confident Assurance Malachi 3:14-18 - Childlike Fear 2 Corinthians 7:8-11 - Godly Sorrow Matthew 5:6 - Stay Hungry Psalm 65 - The Hearer of Prayers ​ Article 13/14: The Fruit of our assurance Isaiah 57:14-21 - God's Second Residence 2 Peter 1:3-10 - Make Every Effort Isaiah 42:1-9 - The Sovereign & His Servant Deuteronomy 29:29 - The Secret Things Psalm 96 - Soli Deo Gloria Article 18: The Proper Attitude Toward Election and ­Reprobation To those who complain about this grace of an undeserved election and about the severity of a just reprobation, we reply with the words of the apostle, “Who are you, O man, to talk back to God?” (Rom. 9:20), and with the words of our Savior, “Have I no right to do what I want with my own?” (Matt. 20:15). Summary A Psalm of ascents is one that Jewish pilgrims sang as they traveled to worship in the Jerusalem temple from whatever far flung village they called home. Since Jerusalem sits at a higher elevation than most of the surrounding areas, these folks had an uphill climb - an ascent . They would sing these short psalms as they moved up the mountain with other worshipers. Although your day to day life certainly looks different than those early Israelites (we don't have many ascents here in the upper Midwest!), they - just like so many of us - were stressed out. Maybe an ancient, agrarian lifestyle in a temperate climate seems like the antidote to anxiety, but David shows that people in all times and places have that one, ugly aspect in common: as sinners, we all are crushed by stress. But David also demonstrates stress can be defeated. He first identifies two key sources of stress that he has learned to avoid. The first is pride / haughtiness - that innate tendency we all have to think of ourselves more highly than we ought. Pride is a contentment killer. Your work assignments will always seem less significant than you think they should be; your house never be quite as impressive as the one down the street; your kids won't measure up to the goals you have for them or you won't measure up to goals your parents had for you; and on and on and on. Life will continually seem to be pressing down on you because your proud heart and haughty eyes will make you think you're getting the shaft. The second stressor David has learned to eliminate is worrying about great matters and things too wonderful [NET: things beyond] himself. How worried are you right now about wars that are world away or silly things a politician did or said on TV? Can you do anything about such things? It's not wrong for you to be concerned, or to have an informed opinion, but worrying about things you have no control over only adds stress to your life.   Dig Deeper   Instead of letting his life be consumed with pride and things beyond, David has learned the key to contentment: calming and quieting himself in a hectic and noisy world. David doesn't give specific how-to's here in this short psalm of ascents , rather he sums it all up in the final verse: put your hope in the LORD both now and forevermore. The world has all sorts of remedies for the stresses you (and everyone else) are being crushed by: vacations, conveniences, luxuries, escapes, distractions... there's no end to it. Certainly not all of those things are worthless in and of themselves, but at best all they can offer is temporary relief. But if you want true freedom from the stress that's continually afflicted mankind from the moment that Adam succumbed to the serpent, follow David's - really, the Holy Spirit's - advice here: eliminate the sin that makes you so susceptible to stressors, learn to quiet yourself in the midst of noise, and above all, put your hope in the LORD! AAA Prayer (About) A CKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS : Our Father, whose grace is stronger than we are, and who is worthy of all of our hope; A LIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray for strength and wisdom to eliminate sinful stressors, quiet yourself in the midst of the chaos, and to put your hope in the LORD; A SK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Matthew 15

You've been unconditionally elected by a sovereign God whose grace is stronger than you are. Romans 11:33-36 (NIV) CONTEXT: Romans 9-11 are some of the most difficult chapters in the Bible as they explain that in His sovereignty, God has chosen some for salvation, and has passed over others, leaving them eternally liable for their sin. This short doxology comes at the end of this difficult section. 33  Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! 34  “Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?”  35  “Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them?”  36  For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen. Canons of Dordt Point 1 - God's Unconditional Election Articles 1-14 Article 1: God’s Right to Condemn All People Romans 5:12-14 - Mis-Markmanship Deuteronomy 28:15-20 - Not A Tame Lion Genesis 2:15-17 - Or Else Luke 15:11-16 - Prodigious Deprivation Psalm 143 - Aggressive Prayer Pattern ​ Article 2: The Manifestation of God’s Love Zephaniah 3:14-17 - The Mighty Warrior Who Saves Lamentations 3:19-23 - Great Is Thy Faithfulness John 3:16-18 - Simple Beauty 1 John 4:8-10 - This Is Love Psalm 103 - Praise the LORD! ​ Article 3: The Preaching of the Gospel 1 Timothy 2:1-7 - God Our Savior Isaiah 52.7 - Good News! Rom 10:14-17 - The Power of Preaching 1 Cor 1.23-24 - God's Foolishness Psalm 93 - Mightier Than Chaos ​ Article 4: A Twofold Response to the Gospel John 1:9-13 - The TRUE Light John 3:31-36 - Wrath Removed John 6:37-40 - Tensegral Theology John 12:42-50 - Buffet Theology Psalm 16 - In God We Trust ​ Article 5: The Sources of Unbelief and of Faith James 1:13-18 - The Devil (didn't) Make You Do It Ecclesiastes 7:25-29 - Many Schemes Ephesians 2:8 - The Gift of God Philippians 1:27-30 - Granted Psalm 95 - The LORD is OUR God ​ Article 6: God’s Eternal Decree Isaiah 45:21-25 - Irrevocable Ezekiel 36:24-27 - A Whole New Reality Romans 9:15-21 - God's Mercy, Not Your Effort 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12 - Love The Truth Psalm 81 - Call To Worship ​ Article 7: Election Ephesians 1:3-6 - Before the Foundation Deuteronomy 7:1-10 - Set Apart John 17:1-5 - Sovereign Submission John 17:6-12 - Given Psalm 115 - God Does What He Pleases ​ Article 8: A Single Decree of Election Romans 4:1-8 - One and the Same Romans 4:9-17 - Chicken or Egg? Romans 4:18-25 - Faithfully Face the Facts Hebrews 11:39-40 - Promises Kept Psalm 33 - God's Control, Authority & Presence Article 9: Election Not Based on Foreseen Faith John 10:22-30 - Listen Up! 2 Timothy 1:7-10 - Passive & Powered Titus 3:3-7 - Transformed Deuteronomy 9:4-6 - You're Not That Awesome Psalm 91 - The Shelter of the Most High Article 10: Election Based on God’s Good Pleasure Luke 2:13-14 - Christmas in March Galatians 4:1-7 - From Slave to Son Isaiah 53:6 - Herd Mentality 1 Peter 2:9-10 - You're The Best Thing God Has! Psalm 5 - The Morning Psalm Article 11: God’s election is unalterable. Malachi 3:6-7 - Keep It Simple Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchanging Anchor Hebrews 13:1-8 - Keep On Loving Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchangeable Blessing Psalm 110 - Victory in Jesus Article 12: The Assurance of election Hebrews 11:1-6 - Confident Assurance Malachi 3:14-18 - Childlike Fear 2 Corinthians 7:8-11 - Godly Sorrow Matthew 5:6 - Stay Hungry Psalm 65 - The Hearer of Prayers ​ Article 13/14: The Fruit of our assurance Isaiah 57:14-21 - God's Second Residence 2 Peter 1:3-10 - Make Every Effort Isaiah 42:1-9 - The Sovereign & His Servant Deuteronomy 29:29 - The Secret Things Psalm 96 - Soli Deo Gloria Article 18: The Proper Attitude Toward Election and ­Reprobation To those who complain about this grace of an undeserved election and about the severity of a just reprobation, we reply with the words of the apostle, “Who are you, O man, to talk back to God?” (Rom. 9:20), and with the words of our Savior, “Have I no right to do what I want with my own?” (Matt. 20:15). Summary Paul wrote these beautiful words to wrap up his most difficult teaching (Romans 9 - 11), so it's good for us to glorify God with these words as we finish the longest and most difficult teaching contained in the Canons of Dordt. Next week we'll move on to the second canon (point) out of five. We've read 84 passages together now this year, all of them focused on God's unconditional election of those He's ordained for salvation. We've also wrestled through the corresponding reality that if God chose some, He necessarily passed over others, leaving them in their sin. So it's good to pause here for a moment, and with Paul stand in awe of the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God. One aspect that continually comes to the forefront of so many passages, regardless of the topic, is the need for the faithful to continually grow in this divine knowledge. Learning ought to be a lifelong pursuit for those who've been unconditionally elected as we come to share in the rich wisdom and knowledge of the one in whose image we've been created (and now re-created) in! This year we've also found the end of some of those intellectual roads as well - times when we so badly wanted to know more, but where God closed His mouth, so to speak. So too we sing out with the Apostle as he acknowledges that God's judgments are unsearchable, and His paths are beyond tracing out!   Dig Deeper   Many of us get so used to seeing the word that we don't even notice it any more, but it seems so odd to others. As they look at the name of our church, they become curious. It makes sense to see words like grace or faith in a church's name; even words like catholic, methodist, or presbyterian just seem to fit a church, even if most people don't really know what they really mean. But why on earth, people want to know, do so many of our churches have the word REFORMED in our names? Often their assumption is that we're something like the old word for prisons - a reformatory - in which bad people are made good. I guess that's not the worse thing in the world for them to think of us. One of the hallmarks of Reformed churches is that we focus on God's sovereignty - His control, authority and presence in every aspect of life. Paul captures the concept of God's sovereignty so well in the final verse of his doxology: For from Him and through Him and for Him are all things . You've been unconditionally elected by a sovereign God whose grace is far stronger than you are. This means that there is no place that you can go and nothing you can do or that can be done to you that could ever separate you from God's loving grace. The more you learn about and understand this awesome reality (especially the deep & difficult parts), the more you will experience the unspeakable peace that comes with this knowledge. AAA Prayer (About) A CKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS : Our Father, to whom be the glory forever! A LIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will continue to grow in the wisdom and knowledge of God; A SK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Matthew 14

God has foreordained all that comes to pass, yet you're fully responsible for your choices. BibleHub.com Jeremiah 18:1-10 (NIV) 18 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD: 2  “Go down to the potter’s house, and there I will give you my message.” 3  So I went down to the potter’s house, and I saw him working at the wheel. 4  But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him. 5  Then the word of the LORD came to me. 6  He said, “Can I not do with you, Israel, as this potter does?” declares the LORD. “Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, Israel. 7  If at any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down and destroyed, 8  and if that nation I warned repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned. 9  And if at another time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be built up and planted, 10  and if it does evil in my sight and does not obey me, then I will reconsider the good I had intended to do for it. Canons of Dordt Point 1 - God's Unconditional Election Articles 1-14 Article 1: God’s Right to Condemn All People Romans 5:12-14 - Mis-Markmanship Deuteronomy 28:15-20 - Not A Tame Lion Genesis 2:15-17 - Or Else Luke 15:11-16 - Prodigious Deprivation Psalm 143 - Aggressive Prayer Pattern ​ Article 2: The Manifestation of God’s Love Zephaniah 3:14-17 - The Mighty Warrior Who Saves Lamentations 3:19-23 - Great Is Thy Faithfulness John 3:16-18 - Simple Beauty 1 John 4:8-10 - This Is Love Psalm 103 - Praise the LORD! ​ Article 3: The Preaching of the Gospel 1 Timothy 2:1-7 - God Our Savior Isaiah 52.7 - Good News! Rom 10:14-17 - The Power of Preaching 1 Cor 1.23-24 - God's Foolishness Psalm 93 - Mightier Than Chaos ​ Article 4: A Twofold Response to the Gospel John 1:9-13 - The TRUE Light John 3:31-36 - Wrath Removed John 6:37-40 - Tensegral Theology John 12:42-50 - Buffet Theology Psalm 16 - In God We Trust ​ Article 5: The Sources of Unbelief and of Faith James 1:13-18 - The Devil (didn't) Make You Do It Ecclesiastes 7:25-29 - Many Schemes Ephesians 2:8 - The Gift of God Philippians 1:27-30 - Granted Psalm 95 - The LORD is OUR God ​ Article 6: God’s Eternal Decree Isaiah 45:21-25 - Irrevocable Ezekiel 36:24-27 - A Whole New Reality Romans 9:15-21 - God's Mercy, Not Your Effort 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12 - Love The Truth Psalm 81 - Call To Worship ​ Article 7: Election Ephesians 1:3-6 - Before the Foundation Deuteronomy 7:1-10 - Set Apart John 17:1-5 - Sovereign Submission John 17:6-12 - Given Psalm 115 - God Does What He Pleases ​ Article 8: A Single Decree of Election Romans 4:1-8 - One and the Same Romans 4:9-17 - Chicken or Egg? Romans 4:18-25 - Faithfully Face the Facts Hebrews 11:39-40 - Promises Kept Psalm 33 - God's Control, Authority & Presence Article 9: Election Not Based on Foreseen Faith John 10:22-30 - Listen Up! 2 Timothy 1:7-10 - Passive & Powered Titus 3:3-7 - Transformed Deuteronomy 9:4-6 - You're Not That Awesome Psalm 91 - The Shelter of the Most High Article 10: Election Based on God’s Good Pleasure Luke 2:13-14 - Christmas in March Galatians 4:1-7 - From Slave to Son Isaiah 53:6 - Herd Mentality 1 Peter 2:9-10 - You're The Best Thing God Has! Psalm 5 - The Morning Psalm Article 11: God’s election is unalterable. Malachi 3:6-7 - Keep It Simple Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchanging Anchor Hebrews 13:1-8 - Keep On Loving Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchangeable Blessing Psalm 110 - Victory in Jesus Article 12: The Assurance of election Hebrews 11:1-6 - Confident Assurance Malachi 3:14-18 - Childlike Fear 2 Corinthians 7:8-11 - Godly Sorrow Matthew 5:6 - Stay Hungry Psalm 65 - The Hearer of Prayers ​ Article 13/14: The Fruit of our assurance Isaiah 57:14-21 - God's Second Residence 2 Peter 1:3-10 - Make Every Effort Isaiah 42:1-9 - The Sovereign & His Servant Deuteronomy 29:29 - The Secret Things Psalm 96 - Soli Deo Gloria Article 18: The Proper Attitude Toward Election and ­Reprobation To those who complain about this grace of an undeserved election and about the severity of a just reprobation, we reply with the words of the apostle, “Who are you, O man, to talk back to God?” (Rom. 9:20), and with the words of our Savior, “Have I no right to do what I want with my own?” (Matt. 20:15).  Summary Once again the Bible utilizes the metaphor of a potter turning clay to describe God's sovereignty over creation, but this one is a bit different than the others. This description doesn't feature the purposefully ridiculous premise of a pot talking back, complaining about the form it's being given. This time, though, the clay got marred in the potter's hands, so the potter would rework the clay into another kind of pot as he saw fit (NET). The LORD was giving Jeremiah more than just a lesson in pottery here. God explains to him that Israel is like clay in the hands of the potter. What God says next is quite remarkable: just as pottery is a dynamic process in that the clay's reaction to the potter's forming influences its final shape, so it is with the people God is shaping. When the LORD announces destruction but the people repent, as did the Ninevites in Jonah's day, then He relents and does not inflict on it the disaster He had planned. Conversely, when God announces blessings, yet the people rebel and disobey, then He will reconsider the good He had intended to do for it. So although the potter certainly retains full control over the forming process, the pot retains some say in the matter as well.   Dig Deeper   A fatalist is someone who believes that everything in life is predetermined and unchangeable, so no matter what choices we make, the outcome is already set. Often people conclude that those who embrace these doctrines of grace (Calvinism / TULIP) that we've been studying this year must be fatalists, since we believe that God's eternal, unchanging will is being sovereignly worked out to its end. The future has been foreordained, so whatever was planned to happen will happen regardless of our actions. But we're not fatalists. Yes, the Bible teaches that God, from all eternity, did, by the most wise and holy counsel of his own will, freely, and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass ( Westminster Confession , Chapter 3). Yet God works out His will in a way that preserves people's responsibility. To help explain this, theologians make a distinction in how we describe God's will. God's decretive will is that which God has decreed from before creation, all of which will work out exactly as God intends. These decrees include things like who He has elected to salvation and the exact moment that Christ will return to judge the living and the dead. God's preceptive will are the things He has commanded (precepts), but yet which He allows us to either follow or disobey. These choices we make have consequences that are either good or bad. Passages like today's help explain that God allows history to work itself out in ways that are contingent upon our choices, yet which ultimately conform to His foreordained decrees. If that sounds confusing, don't worry... it is. But to remain Biblically faithful, you must hold the tension between these two ideas: God sovereignly works out all things according to His eternal plan, but the choices you make and the way you respond to Him matters significantly. AAA Prayer (About) A CKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS : Our Father, who sovereignly controls all that comes to pass; A LIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will obey all that God has commanded; A SK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Matthew 13

Questioning God isn’t wrong, but asking them the wrong way might kill you. Isaiah 45:9-13 (NET) 9  One who argues with his creator is in grave danger, one who is like a mere shard among the other shards on the ground! The clay should not say to the potter, “What in the world are you doing? Your work lacks skill!” 10  Danger awaits one who says to his father, “What in the world are you fathering?” and to his mother, “What in the world are you bringing forth?” 11  This is what the Lord says, the Holy One of Israel, the one who formed him, concerning things to come: “How dare you question me about my children! How dare you tell me what to do with the work of my own hands! 12  I made the earth, I created the people who live on it. It was me—my hands stretched out the sky, I give orders to all the heavenly lights. 13  It is me—I stir him [King Cyrus] up and commission him; I will make all his ways level. He will rebuild my city; he will send my exiled people home, but not for a price or a bribe,” says the Lord who commands armies. Canons of Dordt Point 1 - God's Unconditional Election Articles 1-14 Article 1: God’s Right to Condemn All People Romans 5:12-14 - Mis-Markmanship Deuteronomy 28:15-20 - Not A Tame Lion Genesis 2:15-17 - Or Else Luke 15:11-16 - Prodigious Deprivation Psalm 143 - Aggressive Prayer Pattern ​ Article 2: The Manifestation of God’s Love Zephaniah 3:14-17 - The Mighty Warrior Who Saves Lamentations 3:19-23 - Great Is Thy Faithfulness John 3:16-18 - Simple Beauty 1 John 4:8-10 - This Is Love Psalm 103 - Praise the LORD! ​ Article 3: The Preaching of the Gospel 1 Timothy 2:1-7 - God Our Savior Isaiah 52.7 - Good News! Rom 10:14-17 - The Power of Preaching 1 Cor 1.23-24 - God's Foolishness Psalm 93 - Mightier Than Chaos ​ Article 4: A Twofold Response to the Gospel John 1:9-13 - The TRUE Light John 3:31-36 - Wrath Removed John 6:37-40 - Tensegral Theology John 12:42-50 - Buffet Theology Psalm 16 - In God We Trust ​ Article 5: The Sources of Unbelief and of Faith James 1:13-18 - The Devil (didn't) Make You Do It Ecclesiastes 7:25-29 - Many Schemes Ephesians 2:8 - The Gift of God Philippians 1:27-30 - Granted Psalm 95 - The LORD is OUR God ​ Article 6: God’s Eternal Decree Isaiah 45:21-25 - Irrevocable Ezekiel 36:24-27 - A Whole New Reality Romans 9:15-21 - God's Mercy, Not Your Effort 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12 - Love The Truth Psalm 81 - Call To Worship ​ Article 7: Election Ephesians 1:3-6 - Before the Foundation Deuteronomy 7:1-10 - Set Apart John 17:1-5 - Sovereign Submission John 17:6-12 - Given Psalm 115 - God Does What He Pleases ​ Article 8: A Single Decree of Election Romans 4:1-8 - One and the Same Romans 4:9-17 - Chicken or Egg? Romans 4:18-25 - Faithfully Face the Facts Hebrews 11:39-40 - Promises Kept Psalm 33 - God's Control, Authority & Presence Article 9: Election Not Based on Foreseen Faith John 10:22-30 - Listen Up! 2 Timothy 1:7-10 - Passive & Powered Titus 3:3-7 - Transformed Deuteronomy 9:4-6 - You're Not That Awesome Psalm 91 - The Shelter of the Most High Article 10: Election Based on God’s Good Pleasure Luke 2:13-14 - Christmas in March Galatians 4:1-7 - From Slave to Son Isaiah 53:6 - Herd Mentality 1 Peter 2:9-10 - You're The Best Thing God Has! Psalm 5 - The Morning Psalm Article 11: God’s election is unalterable. Malachi 3:6-7 - Keep It Simple Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchanging Anchor Hebrews 13:1-8 - Keep On Loving Hebrews 6:13-20 - Unchangeable Blessing Psalm 110 - Victory in Jesus Article 12: The Assurance of election Hebrews 11:1-6 - Confident Assurance Malachi 3:14-18 - Childlike Fear 2 Corinthians 7:8-11 - Godly Sorrow Matthew 5:6 - Stay Hungry Psalm 65 - The Hearer of Prayers ​ Article 13/14: The Fruit of our assurance Isaiah 57:14-21 - God's Second Residence 2 Peter 1:3-10 - Make Every Effort Isaiah 42:1-9 - The Sovereign & His Servant Deuteronomy 29:29 - The Secret Things Psalm 96 - Soli Deo Gloria Article 18: The Proper Attitude Toward Election and ­Reprobation To those who complain about this grace of an undeserved election and about the severity of a just reprobation, we reply with the words of the apostle, “Who are you, O man, to talk back to God?” (Rom. 9:20), and with the words of our Savior, “Have I no right to do what I want with my own?” (Matt. 20:15).  Summary Isaiah stacks up a couple of ridiculous scenarios at the beginning of our passage which set forth questions that are obviously inappropriate. In the first one, Isaiah utilizes a well used Biblical metaphor in which a pot being formed begins to question the skill and purpose of the potter . The second scenario, which is even more jarring, has parents being insultingly questioned as to their children. Three times the same question rings out: what in the world are you doing?!? But Isaiah here isn't just listing off a couple of social faux pas that the well manored ought to avoid. These are questions that will kill you! The one who argues with his creator is in grave danger , writes Isaiah. He goes on to warn that danger awaits those who put forth such inquiries. If Isaiah were preaching these words rather than writing them, he'd likely pause for a few moments after laying out those examples - the awkwardness of silence often focuses the audience's attention. Then he would thunder out that famous and awesome Biblical reprise that's been translated into modern English in v11, but sounds so much better in the old King James vernacular: Thus sayeth the LORD... ! And the LORD doesn't mince words. If it's utterly ridiculous for a pot to question its shape or to ask parents what kind of monster they're bringing forth, then God demands to know how dare you question me about my children! How dare you tell me what to do with the work of my own hands!!!   Dig Deeper   Isaiah isn't responding to a hypothetical situation here. We looked at the beginning of this chapter late last year and were shocked to learn that the messiah God would raise up to save His covenant people from the exile they would experience was none other than the polytheistic, pagan King Cyrus of Persia, who is again referred to at the end of today's passage. So it makes sense that the reaction Isaiah's first readers would have had is what in the world are you doing, God?!? Certainly the ancient Israelites haven't been the only people to ever ask such an inappropriate question of their Creator. We do it constantly; especially as we wrestle with the difficult concepts related to God's Unconditional Election of some to salvation, even as He passes over others and leaves them in the mess we created. It doesn't seem fair or right to us that God would do such a thing in which He seems to arbitrarily save a few rather than all. What in the world have you brought forth, God?!? Interestingly, The LORD doesn't attempt to rationalize His choices or explain the intricacies of His plan here. He doesn't call for patience or remind His people that even if things look blurry now it will all makes sense in the end. Rather, He just asserts His sovereign authority. He plainly states, I made the earth, I created the people who live on it. It was me - my hands stretched out the sky. I give orders to all the heavenly lights. This 'pot' belongs to the LORD and He'll do with it as He sees fit. Period. Now we know, as the Apostle Paul will famously conclude , that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him . There is a method to what often seems to us to be madness. But that's not the reason you're given today to bite your tongue instead of firing off inappropriate questions to God. Today, in the words of the psalmist , just be still and know that the LORD is God. AAA Prayer (About) A CKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS : Our Father, the LORD who commands armies; A LIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will humbly trust God's decisions and will even when you don't understand it; A SK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year! Today: Matthew 12