Often feel like your work & efforts are useless? Learn how to experience shalom every day. 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 Notice the word in this short passage that gets repeated three times: vain. Vain isn't a word we use very often, and its definition has different senses. Often times we might refer to a pompous, arrogant person as being vain, but here the word is being used in a different sense, in that people's building, guarding and toiling are useless if they're not done in dependence upon the Lord. It's not that vain projects are deficient in and of themselves. Lots of beautiful developments and construction have been successfully completed, but they ultimately miss the mark. Here's how one commentator describes this: "Vain" here seems to mean “not producing the desired result.” Why do people build houses? Why do people strive to build safe communities? Why do people toil to earn a living? The answer appears to be found in the shalom that is a running motif in the Psalms of Ascent. People want “peace” in the full sense of the term, the absence of harm and the presence of tranquility with prosperity. When people strive for this good end without faith in God and in ways contrary to his principles, God is not “in it,” and they do not experience the shalom they are looking for. Dig Deeper We're generally people who work hard, and often have good things to show for it as a result. We live in prosperous communities, and most of us haven't had to worry about where our daily bread was coming from for a long time. We have a dualistic tendency in us as well, in which we tend to think of our physical needs as being different or separate from our spiritual needs, and that our pursuits to obtain food & shelter is somehow less 'godly.' Certainly there is a distinction between the two, but Psalm 127 helps remind us that true shalom depends upon God's presence and blessing in both the physical and spiritual aspects of our lives. Shalom is a tranquility in which everything - both physical and spiritual - is the way it's supposed to be. This is why Jesus taught you to pray each day for your daily bread, so that you will experience shalom as you're continually reminded of your dependence upon Him in every part of your life. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who builds our house, watches over our city, and grants shalom to those He loves; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Ask your father each day to grant you what you need both spiritually and physically for this day so that you'll experience His shalom; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Revelation 10

God is the overflowing fountain of all good. Who are you giving the credit to? 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 If you learned about the Greek gods in school, you likely remember how much drama was involved: from the intricate family feuds and love triangles to the epic battles and cunning schemes, their stories were full of intense and intrigue. There's a big difference between the mythological Greek pantheon and our Father, "who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything in them." Whereas the Greek gods were simply reflections of humanity, albeit with superhuman powers, the God of the Bible is the exact opposite. Humanity is created in His image, not vice versa. And although God certainly has superhuman powers, He is much more than an all powerful being; He is the very definition of goodness itself! The Belgic Confession, which we'll be learning about next year, describes God as being "the overflowing fountain of all good." Our Father shares this goodness with all people, both those who put their faith in Him and those who continue to rebel against Him. He shows kindness by plentifully providing for needs, sending rain from heaven even filling people's hearts with joy. We call this doctrine common grace. Dig Deeper Paul's awesome description of who God is comes in the context of a massive warning. Our sin impaired minds have always attributed the good blessings God gives to other things. In the past, fabricated idols were given credit. In our own day and age, governments, businesses or our own inflated egos are said to be the source of the good life we have. Whatever it is that you point to as the source of your abundance, if it's not the living God, then as Paul writes, it's a "worthless thing." "In the past," Paul writes, "He let the nations all go their own way (v16)." God keeps providing rain and joy to people regardless of who they attribute it to, but His patience will not continue forever. He will call all people to account. As you pray the simple words, "give us this day our daily bread," you're not just asking God for what you need, you're acknowledging that He is the only source of everything good in your life. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, the living God, who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything in them, and who is the overflowing fountain of all good; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will recognize Him as the source of blessing in your life and that He will continue to provide for your daily needs. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Revelation 9

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

The Bible doesn't tell us much about angels, but it tells us all we need to know. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 124 Q. What does the third request mean? A. “Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” means, Help us and all people to reject our own wills and to obey your will without any back talk. Your will alone is good. Help us one and all to carry out the work we are called to, as willingly and faithfully as the angels in heaven. Summary Chances are your idea of what an angel is has been shaped more by culture than by the Bible. This is not only because so many books, movies and TV shows have stereotyped angels in certain ways, but also because when it comes down to it, although the Bible certainly affirms the existence of angels & demons, it doesn't really tell us much about who they are or what they do. The final stanza of Psalm 103 gives us some insight. All of our major English translations render these words slightly differently, so it's good to look at them all to get a full picture: Angels are: Mighty ones (NIV, ESV) / Mighty heroes (LEB) / Powerful warriors (NET) / Ones who excel in strength (KJV) Do the LORD's bidding & obey His word (NIV) / Do the LORD's word, obeying the voice of His word (ESV) / Do His word by obeying the sound of His word (LEB) / Carry out His decrees and obey His orders (NET) / Do His commandments, hearkening unto the voice of His word (KJV) Are servants (NIV, NET) / ministers (ESV, KJV) / attendants (LEB) who do the LORD's will. The author of Hebrews indicates the mission of the angelic host is to serve those who inherit salvation. That's us! What a blessing & honor to know God's entire angel army exist to serve & minister to us! Finally, Peter informs us that the angels long to look at the beauty of our salvation in Christ. Dig Deeper When you pray the words "your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven," you're asking God to equip you to carry out His work just as "willingly and faithfully as the angels in heaven." That might seem intimidating, since you don't have the same supernatural powers that the angels have. But notice that the catechism isn't calling you to do the same thing the angels do, rather it's calling you to have the same willing and faithful attitude that they have. The idea continues to persist that when we die, we get a promotion of sorts and become angels. This isn't what the Bible teaches. Even if this was the case, it wouldn't be a promotion, since you in a sense already outrank the angels. They weren't created in God's image as you have been. They were created to serve you, not vice versa! So be content with the talents and abilities you've been blessed with, but be sure to model the eager desire to "hearken unto the the voice of the LORD's word," just as the angels revealed in scripture do. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who is praised by angels, the heavenly host, and all of His works; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God for the angels who serve on your behalf (though we rarely know how they do so), and pray that you'll model their eager attitude to carry out God's will; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Revelation 7

Evaluate your position in life from God's perspective, not the world's. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 124 Q. What does the third request mean? A. “Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” means, Help us and all people to reject our own wills and to obey your will without any back talk. Your will alone is good. Help us one and all to carry out the work we are called to, as willingly and faithfully as the angels in heaven. Summary Some consider this passage to be controversial, alleging that the 19th century American church used it as an excuse to continue the practice of slavery. But this allegation doesn't hold much water, since immediately after telling slaves to be content in their situation, Paul encourages them to gain their freedom if possible (v21). Far from being a rationale for the oppressors to continue their oppression (as so many in our day and age want to think the Bible does), this passage completely dismantles the human class system that supposedly defines the level of a person's status in society. As Christians, you are to consider yourself as the Lord eternally defines you, rather than the way others see you based on your current temporal situation. Our sinful instinct is to see the wealthy upper crust as intrinsically better people than the poor and downtrodden, so, especially as Americans, we do all we can to improve our upward mobility. While it's not wrong in and of itself for you to want to better yourself, this desire quickly turns into a dominating sin when your entire self image becomes based on the subjective standards that have been foisted upon you by society rather than responding to God's calling. Dig Deeper The entire doctrine taught in this passage is encapsulated in the opening verse (v17): Each person should live as a believer in whatever situation the Lord has assigned to them, just as God has called them. In other words, be content no matter what your societal status is, with two very important caveats. First, be certain that the Lord has "assigned" you the position that you're in. If you can fully serve the Lord and grow in faith in your current life situation, it's a good indication that you're where the Lord has assigned you to be, no matter what the rest of the world thinks about it. But if you sense growth opportunities which require doing the hard work to change stations in life by moving either up or even down(!!) the societal ladder, then perhaps God is changing your assignment in life and you must respond. Second, and somewhat similarly, are you where God has "called" you? You may have found a very comfortable niche in life that you'd just as soon remain in, but by doing so you might be evading God's calling, putting you in a dangerous situation. Think of how comfortable Jonah was sleeping in the hold of the ship before God sent a storm to remind Jonah of his calling. Evaluating life from a divine perspective rather than the world's wisdom is massively difficult. Just remember, it doesn't matter what other people think. "Keeping God's commands is what counts (v19)." This is why your prayers must often include the words "Thy will be done." AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who called you and assigned you the life you're living; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that God's will be done, on earth as it is in heaven, and that He'll help you to discern where He's assigned you to be; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Revelation 6

Grace does much more than just save you, it teaches you to pray that God's will be done in your life. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 124 Q. What does the third request mean? A. “Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” means, Help us and all people to reject our own wills and to obey your will without any back talk. Your will alone is good. Help us one and all to carry out the work we are called to, as willingly and faithfully as the angels in heaven. Summary We live in a day and age that seeks to limit the gospel's effect in our lives, that as long as a person is vaguely familiar with Jesus, then they can count themselves a Christian regardless of their lifestyle. The truth is, while this "Christianity Lite" attitude is certainly present in our day and age, it has always been a factor; it's nothing new! Paul had to instruct one of the earliest pastors on how to counteract this warped thinking. The grace that God offers certainly does offer salvation to each and every person who "declares with their mouth that 'Jesus is Lord' and believes in his heart that God raised him from the dead (Romans 10:9)." It is just that easy to be saved! But here we read that after bringing a person to a knowledge of their salvation, grace keeps on working! Grace goes on to "teach us to say 'no' to ungodliness and worldly passions (v12)." In other words, it teaches us that, as the catechism puts it, "God's will alone is good." So God's grace not only teaches you about salvation, it teaches you to "live a self-controlled, upright and godly life in this present age (v12)." Dig Deeper Christianity is much more than a 'deep relationship' with Jesus. It's a lifelong process, in which grace begins by turning your obstinate heart of stone into a believing heart of flesh (a moment that most of us who were raised in the church may not remember in particular). The Christian life - fueled from the very beginning by this gift of grace alone, delivered through faith alone, because of the work of Christ alone - is a life that increasingly learns how to pray with conviction one simple prayer in every realm of life: Thy will be done. You have been "redeemed from all wickedness and been purified by Christ to be his very own." Therefore, be a disciple who is "eager to do what is good (v14)." Since only God's will is good, pray often that His will be done in your life as it is in heaven. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who by grace offers salvation to all people; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that God's will be done, on earth as it is in heaven; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Revelation 5

It's good to pray for what you want, but it's better to pray that you'll want what God wants. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 124 Q. What does the third request mean? A. “Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” means, Help us and all people to reject our own wills and to obey your will without any back talk. Your will alone is good. Help us one and all to carry out the work we are called to, as willingly and faithfully as the angels in heaven. Summary Jesus explains the discipleship paradox: if you want to be Jesus' disciple, you must deny what you want. He goes on to explain that whoever wants to get what they want will not only not get what they want, but they'll end up getting what they don't want. When viewed on their own, Jesus' words here don't make very much sense. But when we look at the context they come in, in which Peter is trying to make Jesus into the savior that both he the world really wants, rather than one who provides sacrificial obedience, then what Jesus is saying here comes into sharper focus. What Jesus is telling Peter, and us, is that if you want to be His disciple, then you must want what Jesus wants, not what the world wants. He says that following Him requires you to stop wanting worldly things which end up sucking the life out of your soul. Instead, you must want to nail these worldly wants to the cross. Yet even as you follow Him, you'll get what you both truly want and need: eternal reward from the Son of Man. Dig Deeper If all of this talk about what you want seems confusing, Jesus presents this entire concept much more simply when He taught us to pray: "Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." When you pray those very simple words, or ones like them, you're praying for a very profound thing: that God, through the Holy Spirit, will help you to reject your sin-stained will and obey God's holy and perfect will without any hesitation or back talk. This is the simplest definition of what a disciple is: a person who wants to do what God wants done. Make alignment a key element in every prayer that you pray, that you would deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow Jesus. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, whose Son will come in His Father's glory with His angels to reward each person according to what they have done; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you would not want worldly things, but would instead want what your Father wants. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Revelation 4

The last thing you want to hear back from Jesus when you say 'amen' is "Get behind me, Satan!" Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 124 Q. What does the third request mean? A. “Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven” means, Help us and all people to reject our own wills and to obey your will without any back talk. Your will alone is good. Help us one and all to carry out the work we are called to, as willingly and faithfully as the angels in heaven. Summary Peter's recognition that Jesus is the Son of God forms a hinge in all three of the synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark & Luke); it's the point at which things change significantly in Jesus' earthly ministry. This is noticeable in the way that Matthew begins this passage which immediately follows Peter's confession with the words "from that time on...". Many of the people, including the disciples, thought that Jesus had come in order to make life on earth a little better. Perhaps someday He'd even be their king like what David was and would free them from Rome's oppressive yoke. But Jesus makes clear that His purpose is different: He was headed to Jerusalem to "suffer many things... be killed and on the third day be raised to life. (v21)" Suffering and being killed didn't match up with what Peter's concept of Jesus' ministry should be (notice that Peter is so taken aback by Jesus saying He'd be killed that he completely misses Jesus saying He'd be raised to life!). Peter, being the speak first and think later type of guy he was, "rebuked" Jesus! Suffering and death didn't fit into any sort of picture of worldly success. We're used to seeing Jesus respond to the Pharisees and other bad guys with sharp language, but the most stinging of all of Jesus' words are the ones He spoke to His chief disciple: "Get behind me, Satan!" Dig Deeper Imagine the look of horror on Peter's face upon hearing the very man he'd just identified as the Messianic Son of God call him Satan. Certainly Peter's outburst could be considered back talk, to borrow language from the catechism, but why did it warrant such a dramatic response from our Lord? Theologian Louis Berkhof writes, "The name 'Satan' points to him as 'the Adversary,' not in the first place of man, but of God." In other words, anytime our own will becomes, as Jesus called it, "a stumbling block" to what God has ordained, our actions are by definition satanic. How much of your life is consumed with the things of man rather than the things of God? How often are your prayers filled with trying to lobby God to support your own concerns rather than praying that His will be done in your own life just as it is in heaven? How many times would Jesus be justified in responding "Get behind me, Satan," the moment you say "amen?" This is why it is so critically important that you pray consistently and often that your will is aligned with God's will. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who is in heaven and whose name is holy; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Your will be done, on earth (and in my life) just as it is in heaven; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Revelation 3

We pray "your Kingdom come," but the firstfruits already have come! Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 122 Q. What does the second request mean? A. “Your kingdom come” means, Rule us by your Word and Spirit in such a way that more and more we submit to you. Keep your church strong, and add to it. Destroy the devil’s work; destroy every force which revolts against you and every conspiracy against your Word. Do this until your kingdom is so complete and perfect that in it you are all in all. Summary Jesus has been raised from the dead and is the firstfruits of the resurrection. Paul is referring back to the harvest time offering made by the Israelites. At harvest, the Israelites were required to bring an offering from the firstfruits (the first part) of their crop. This offering symbolized how the entirety of the harvest belonged to God. By comparison, Jesus is the firstfruits of the resurrection as he was the first to be raised from the dead. And just as the first part of the harvest was a token of the entire harvest belonging to God, Jesus’ resurrection serves as a token that we too belong to God and will be raised in a resurrection like his. In addition to the promise of the resurrection for those who belong to Christ, Paul also expresses the fate of God’s enemies. Christ will destroy all his enemies; with the last of these enemies being death itself. With his enemies destroyed, the rule of God will be universally acknowledged, so that he may be all in all. Dig Deeper In verse 22 Paul addresses our dual solidarity by writing, “For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.” We all die in Adam, the first human, in that we are united with him in sin and death. With that first disobedience in the Garden by Adam and Eve, sin entered the world. We, as Adam’s descendants, inherit this original sin. However, despite being united with Adam in sin and death, God offers grace. For we are also united with Christ by grace through faith. The resurrection is not an isolated event with a limited scope. The resurrection is the culmination of God’s plan of redemption. The resurrection of Jesus affects everything and will not be fully complete until Christ “has put everything under his feet.” One of the comforts we have as God’s people is knowing that our eternity is secure in the hands of Jesus. This is one of the reasons why the funeral of a faithful saint is different from that of an unbeliever. There is hope present. Hope in what is to come, including the promise of the resurrection. And while we look forward to the resurrection and being in the presence of Christ; Paul gives us something else to look forward to with anticipation. For we also wait for the day when the enemies of Jesus, including the devil and even death itself, will be no more. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father God, who is all in all; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God that since you have been included in Christ, you have been made alive in Him; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Revelation 2

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