Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 12 Q. Question & Answer 12 is a transition point in the Heidelberg Catechism.

be appointing Peter as the head of the Church, and they then extrapolate from this other doctrines like

Jesus' body created from dust seemed like it was well on the way to becoming dust again.

of Christ's virgin birth is so much more than an obscure doctrine that you can toss out if you don't like

You will likely never stand before a council and have to speak on behalf of your faith.

Jesus looks at two extremes when it comes to keeping God's law and says 'Nope.' Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 62 Q. Why can’t the good we do make us right with God, or at least help make us right with him? A. Because the righteousness which can pass God’s scrutiny must be entirely perfect and must in every way measure up to the divine law. Even the very best we do in this life is imperfect and stained with sin. Summary The Sermon on the Mount comes near the beginning of Jesus' earthly ministry, and right out of the gate He seeks to squelch the two biggest misunderstandings that people would have about Him. He begins by stating that He in no way, shape or form will be an excuse for sinners who seek to abolish God's Law. The latest incarnation of this in our own society comes from those who seek to pit Jesus' love against God's law by claiming that it's unloving, and therefore un-Christlike, to uphold Biblical standards that come into conflict with people's personal choices. Jesus lays out a stern warning to those who set aside even the least of God's commands, stating that they will be "called least in the Kingdom of Heaven." Next Jesus calls out those on the opposite end of the spectrum: those who think they're so high and mighty and righteous that they can ride their own awesome law keeping efforts right into the Kingdom of Heaven. Not so fast, warns Jesus. If this is your plan, your righteousness better far exceed the pseudo-righteousness of the Pharisees. But these super-duper rule followers were so hung up in dotting the i's and crossing the t's that Jesus mentioned in v18 that they missed the righteousness of God standing right in front of them. Trying to make yourself right with God on your own is hopeless. If this were the extent of Jesus' ministry, the gospel would be hopeless! Thank God it's not! Dig Deeper Last week we focused on one of the pillars of Reformed theology known as Sola Fide, a Latin phrase that simply means Faith Alone. By this we mean that you are made right with God solely because your faith in Christ and not because of works or rule keeping. But this understanding, while good, needs to be nuanced a bit. You actually are saved by works. God will not set aside His holy, righteous and perfect standards. The nuance comes in that you are not saved by your own works, rather you are saved by Christ's perfect obedience which has been credited to you. God's law must be kept - down to the smallest letter and the least stroke of a pen. Nobody born in Adam had the ability to keep this law since we were all conceived and born in sin, but Jesus Christ, born of a virgin, could and did. We'll spend most of the second half of 2023 looking at how you, as one who "can pass God's scrutiny" because you've been included in Christ, now relate to God's law. But suffice it to say for now, that although you are certainly saved by faith alone, you are not saved by a faith that is alone. As we'll see on Friday, true faith and trust in Christ produces a strong desire to live according to all of God's good and perfect law. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who defines goodness, holiness and righteousness and communicates them in His law; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that as your faith in Christ alone increases, that so will your desire to live according to God's law; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Ephesians 4

Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 122 Q. Instead, Luke writes that “the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved”.

God's expectations have been clear since day one: Obey Him and live. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 40 Q. Why did Christ have to go all the way to death? A. Because God’s justice and truth demand it: only the death of God’s Son could pay for our sin. Summary When Adam was placed into the Garden of Eden to work the land, God commanded him to not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Of all the fruit of the trees in the garden, only the fruit of this one tree was forbidden. This was a choice God did not have to give Adam. God could have hidden the tree of the knowledge of good and evil away from Adam, or created Adam without an ability to choose. Yet God did neither of these. Instead, God gave this command and Adam was given a choice between obedience and rebellion. The cost of rebellion was steep, for Adam and all whom he represented, disobedience meant that he would surely die. This consequence would not be an immediate physical death for Adam, but that death would become a certainty. Dig Deeper In Genesis 3 we find the account of the fall, where Adam and Eve as the first humans “fell” from grace through the first act of human disobedience. Despite God’s clear command that the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was off-limits and the warning of the consequences of rebellion, they chose to partake of it. With this act of disobedience death began its reign in mankind. The only remedy for the fallen state of mankind is the supervening grace of God. This is why Jesus was born into this world and suffered death, to intervene in the fate of a fallen humanity. With this first act of rebellion came the certainty of death. God’s justice and truth require payment for our debt of sin. And nothing else could pay for our sins except the death of the Son of God. Because of Jesus, the fall is more than the origin story of the misery of mankind and how we came to be in a state of rebellion against God. The fall is part of God’s larger plan of redemption. God certainly didn't want Adam to fail, yet He knew that Adam and Eve would disobey in the garden. This is why a means of grace was already part of God's plan of redemption. Jesus is God’s intervention for a fallen humanity. Only the Son of God could pay our debt of sin. Thank God that Jesus intervenes in humanity’s state of misery, rescuing us from the consequences of our rebellion of sin. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our covenant God, the creator of all that is who has called us to a life of righteousness. ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God that through Christ you've earned everlasting life, and pray for wisdom to fulfill your purpose of ensuring God's creation reflects His holiness. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Matthew 8

You're not just a citizen of the Kingdom of God, you've been given a title: Ambassador Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 38 Q. Why did he suffer “under Pontius Pilate” as judge? A. So that he, though innocent, might be condemned by a civil judge, and so free us from the severe judgment of God that was to fall on us. Summary The focus of 2 Corinthians 5 is reconciliation. Our sin has separated us from God, but those who confess their sins are reconciled to God, they are forgiven in Jesus Christ. Once reconciled, we become ambassadors for Jesus, that is, we represent Jesus in this world that we live in as exiles. We tell the world that we were once dead in our sin, but Jesus has set us free. Jesus died on the cross so that we could live. This passage is a beautiful invitation to live into the freedom we have in Jesus. Our freedom is not for our own personal gain, but for Christ, our redeemer! After all, And Christ died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for him who died for them and was raised again (v15). Dig Deeper The passage ends this way a few verses later in v21: God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. Yesterday we looked intently at Jesus’ innocence. Today we turn to our own guilt. Jesus was innocent, so He is the one person who has ever lived who did not deserve to die. So why was He crucified? Jesus was crucified due to our sin. God’s plan for salvation required satisfaction, and you cannot pay the price for your sin. No offering you sacrifice can atone for your sin. Just as your sin separates you from God, it condemns you to eternal punishment. Jesus took your sin on himself so that God’s wrath could be satisfied. He was the perfect sacrifice, offered once on the cross, for your sins and salvation. Through this amazing act of love, Jesus, who was unjustly condemned, became sin so that you might become the righteousness of God. This is why you are implored to be an ambassador for Christ. You should have been punished by God, but in Jesus, you've been given new life. This gift is available to all who call on the name of the Lord. It is your duty, as a child of God, to make him known to a sin filled world. You were condemned. In Jesus, you are given freedom. Let the world know what Christ has done! AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and then gave us the ministry of reconciliation ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray for the strength, desire and opportunities to be the ambassador of reconciliation that you've been called to be. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Matthew 6

Like David, recognize that not only have you hurt other people with your sins, but that you've especially Finally, like David you must desire more and more to strengthen your faith and lead a better life. But if God could forgive and restore David, who's terrible sin quite likely had far worse consequences steadfast spirit within you; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Luke