have compassion.” 16 It does not, therefore, depend on man's desire or effort, but on God’s mercy. 17 love) while not only Esau, but also his descendents after him, would be set apart from it (Malachi 1:

A maskil.  1  Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. 2   Blessed long. 4  For day and night your hand was heavy on me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. 5  Canons of Dordt Point 5, Article 7: Renewal to Repentance God preserves in those saints when they fall

Photo credit: Mads Schmidt Rasmussen via Unsplash Psalm 15 A psalm of David. 1 L ORD , who may dwell honors those who fear the Lord;   who keeps an oath even when it hurts,   and does not change his mind; 5  

violates not just the one particular command, but every commandment in the second table of the law: 5th that cause you to "stumble," even if that means gouging out your eye or cutting off your hand (Matthew 5: things of this world; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - 1 this world; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - 1 Peter 5

Like David's model prayer of confession in Psalm 51, he cries out God be merciful to me, the sinner. This paraphrase from John Calvin's commentary on this passage sums up today's lesson from Jesus: At first

Here John calls men “darkness.” (Genesis 4:1, ESV).

BibleHub.com Jonah 4 (NASB95) 1 But it (Nineveh's repentance) greatly displeased Jonah and he became 5 Then Jonah went out from the city and sat east of it.

A song. 1  God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. 2  Therefore whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. 5   But it is spread and dispersed throughout the entire world, though still joined and united in heart

It's as David joined with his people coming before God in worship that David beheld God's power and glory you back to worship; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - John

Will your Lord's Day activities make you even more tired, or will they bring you joy and delight? Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 103 Q. What is God’s will for you in the fourth commandment? A. First, that the gospel ministry and education for it be maintained, and that, especially on the festive day of rest, I regularly attend the assembly of God’s people to learn what God’s Word teaches, to participate in the sacraments, to pray to God publicly, and to bring Christian offerings for the poor. Second, that every day of my life I rest from my evil ways, let the Lord work in me through his Spirit, and so begin already in this life the eternal Sabbath. Summary Early in Jesus' ministry with His disciples, the Pharisees think they've trapped Jesus in a 'gotcha' moment because He and the disciples picked a few heads of grain to eat on the Sabbath. Jesus rejects their man-made rules, famously telling them that "the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath (Mark 2:27)." Because the New Testament doesn't give a particular list of do's and don'ts as to how Christians ought to observe the Sabbath, it might be tempting after reading Jesus' reply to conclude that you can do whatever you like on the Sabbath day since it was made for you. But such a conclusion would be a costly mistake. There are multiple, and often conflicting, Christian perspectives on how the Sabbath ought to be kept, even within Reformed circles. But our passage today makes clear that only those who "do not go their own way, and do not do as they please, or speak idle words" will truly benefit from this gift God has given to us. Certainly, the Sabbath was given to us that we might "find our joy," but you won't find that joy "from doing as you please on God's holy day," rather, you'll "find your joy in the Lord." Dig Deeper What's your attitude regarding Sunday? Do you dread going to church, wishing you could spend your time on things that seem more enjoyable to you? Do you go to church simply out of obligation, since that's what you've done every Sunday since the day you were born? Are you looking forward to a day of genuine rest, or do you plan to fill it with so many activities that you'll be left more tired on Monday morning than what you were Friday afternoon? Align your life with what God says here through Isaiah. Call "the Sabbath a delight and the LORD's holy day honorable." What mental, physical and spiritual adjustments must you make in order for you to honestly be able to look forward to the Lord's Day in this way? Whatever changes you need to make will be worth it, for look at what your God promises those who find their joy in Him by keeping the Sabbath: He will "cause you to ride in triumph... and feast on your inheritance." God seeks to give you these gifts as you "attend the assembly of God's people to learn what God's Word teaches, to participate in the sacraments, to pray to God publically, and to bring Christian offerings to the poor (HC QA 103)." You're likely reading this at the halfway point of the week. Start praying now that you will eagerly anticipate the coming Lord's Day and pray that God will help you do whatever you must in order to make the Sabbath your joy and delight. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who invites us to find our joy in Him; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you can let go of your desire to "do as you please" on the Lord's Day so that you can begin to "delight" in meeting with the saints and truly find joy as you rest in God's promises; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - 2 Timothy 2