Baptism doesn't make you a Christian, it's always been a core part of Christianity. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 71 Q. Where does Christ promise that we are washed with his blood and Spirit as surely as we are washed with the water of baptism? A. In the institution of baptism where he says: “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” This promise is repeated when Scripture calls baptism the washing of rebirth and the washing away of sins. Summary Matthew’s Gospel closes with Jesus giving the Great Commission to the Disciples. This passage has been quoted as the rallying cry behind countless outreach and discipleship efforts. While commanding the eleven remaining disciples to go and make more disciples, Jesus teaches them how to do this: by baptizing and teaching. Dig Deeper Jesus’ command to baptize new disciples in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit was taken seriously by the first disciples. In the history of the Christian Church, there is no time that we are aware of where the people of God were without baptism. On the Day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit poured out on the Disciples, Peter preached what is considered the first Christian sermon. This is the response of the crowd and Peter’s reply from Acts 2:37-38: When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Thousands came to faith in Christ that day and what was it they were commanded to do? Repent and be baptized. From the beginning, the Church has taken Jesus’ command to baptize seriously. It would be hard to deny that there has been a cultural shift in the United States in the last few decades. With the rise of the “nones” (those without a declared faith), there is an increasing number of people in the United States who are not baptized. As the Church reaches out to these people groups, the discussion around baptism will grow ever more important. Are we, the Body of Christ, ready for those discussions? If you have never been baptized yourself, what is holding you back from taking this step of faith? If you have been baptized, do you feel prepared to share the significance of baptism with someone who asks? AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who has equipped us His children and commissions us to gather those He's called into His Kingdom; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God for your baptism, or if you haven't been baptized, pray that you will step forward and request it; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Luke 2

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

gospels— Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John; the Acts of the Apostles; the fourteen letters of Paul— to the Romans

You can find immense comfort in the fact that Jesus' dead body was buried. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 41 Q. Why was he “buried”? A. His burial testifies that he really died. Summary Following the crucifixion, Joseph of Arimathea was granted permission by Pilate to take the body of Jesus so that he may be put to rest. Nicodemus, a Pharisee and member of the Sanhedrin, provided the myrrh and aloes that would be used as part of the burial process. This amount of burial spices, 75 lbs of myrrh and aloes, far exceeded the typical amount used for the burial custom. Using this many burial spices would have been considered a showing of respect towards Jesus; one that came at a very high price, since these ingredients were very expensive. Dig Deeper Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus took great personal risk in ensuring Jesus received a proper burial. And while their actions are commendable, the most important aspect of this passage was not their bravery, but the fact that Jesus indeed had died and was buried. Jesus' body created from dust seemed like it was well on the way to becoming dust again. The miracle of the resurrection is that Jesus, who had died and was buried, became alive again. The logical order of events dictates that indeed, if Jesus was going to rise from the dead, that He first be dead. This simple act of the burial of Jesus plays an important part in the Biblical accounts of the resurrection. This importance can be seen in how the burial account is included in all four of the Gospels. The reality of Jesus’ death and burial can also be seen in the chief priests’ response to the burial. Fearing that the disciples might try to steal away Jesus’ body, they asked Pilate to lend them soldiers to secure and guard the tomb (Matthew 27:62-66). Certainly, part of securing the tomb was to ensure that Jesus’ deceased body remained inside. Between the witnesses of Jesus’ death on the cross, those who prepared his body for burial, and those who secured his body in the tomb; there are more than enough witnesses to verify that Jesus really had died. Because Jesus had died and was buried, we rejoice in the miracle that on the third day he rose again from the dead. Today's catechism question, emphasizing the fact that Jesus was indeed buried, seems out of place in a year long study of what your only comfort in life and in death is. But this little question, with its seemingly simplistic answer - that Jesus' burial indicates that He was in fact actually dead - will give you immense comfort the next time you're looking at the casket of a loved one that's about to be lowered into the ground. Just as Jesus' lifeless body was made to live again after it had already been sealed in a tomb, so too will that loved one whose faith was in the resurrected Savior rise from the grave when Christ returns. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who seemed so distant and far away from Joseph and Nicodemus as they placed Jesus' body in the ground; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Both Joseph & Nicodemus had followed Jesus in secret. Pray that you will have the courage to follow Christ in a way that's visible to all. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Matthew 9

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

Be reminded why Jesus' death & resurrection were possible in the first place. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 36 Q. How does the holy conception and birth of Christ benefit you? A. He is our mediator, and with his innocence and perfect holiness he removes from God’s sight my sin—mine since I was conceived. Summary Old Testament worship was a bloody affair, because God wanted Israel to know what so many of us as Christians have forgotten: that forgiveness requires blood be spilled. Had we kept reading Hebrews 9 for just a bit longer, we would have been reminded that "the law requires that everything be cleansed by blood, and without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness (v22). But not just any blood will do. The way that the Torah describes it over and over, the animals offered to atone for sin had to be without defect, or in other words, they had to be unblemished. This is a big reason why so many people missed the point when Jesus hung on the cross, and why so many Jewish Biblical scholars rejected the message of the gospel. They knew it would be impossible for any man to make payment even for his own sins, much less the sins of others, because every son and daughter of Adam has been born defective, being totally infected with sin. And they were right. But Jesus Christ is not just any man. Remember, "he was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary," and so he didn't share the same defect every other person inherited from Adam. Not only was Jesus born unblemished, that is, sin-free, He remained so throughout his life. Because it conveys this concept, v14 is one of the most important of the entire Bible: The blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, will cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death. Dig Deeper As you approach Resurrection Sunday, you've seen in this past week that the idea of Christ's virgin birth is so much more than an obscure doctrine that you can toss out if you don't like it. It is, in fact, the bedrock foundation that makes Christ's saving work on the cross and victory over death possible in the first place. As if that weren't important enough, knowing that Jesus was born, lived and died, and came to new life unblemished results in huge additional benefits for you. You've been put into a new covenant (v15). You were born into God's covenant with Adam in which you only gain ongoing life if you perfectly obey God (which you failed to do before you were even born). But Christ died as a ransom to set you free from that arrangement, and so as one who has been called to Christ, you will receive the promised eternal inheritance of the new covenant! But understand that all of these benefits come with strings attached. You obviously can't continue to live in the sins of the world, but just as importantly, you can't just sit and passively wait for the promised eternal inheritance to show up. Circle the words 'so that' near the end of v14, because they indicate why you've been cleansed and set free: "so that you may serve the living God." AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our holy and perfectly righteous Father, who justly requires unblemished obedience ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God for your mediator who had no defects and pray that you will serve the living God since you've been set free. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Matthew 2

Christ's virgin birth is more than just trivial doctrine. Your confidence depends on it! Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 35 Q. What does it mean that he “was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary”? A. That the eternal Son of God, who is and remains true and eternal God, took to himself, through the working of the Holy Spirit, from the flesh and blood of the virgin Mary, a truly human nature so that he might become David’s true descendant, like his brothers in every way except for sin. Summary We've often ended up here in the book of Hebrews this year as we've been reminding ourselves what our only comfort in life and in death is: the fact that in life and in death we belong to Jesus Christ. One of the key themes of this book, and the reason it has the name Hebrews, is that it shows how Jesus fulfilled all of the requirements the Old Testament priests (remember, Jesus is anointed (christos) as a prophet, priest, and king). As our high priest, Jesus is our perfect mediator - He stands between us and God, so that when God looks at you, He sees Christ! Often skepticism grabs ahold of us with the temptation that since Jesus was so perfect, and never fell into sin, that He really doesn't know what it is that you're struggling with on a day to day basis. Be sure to memorize v15, so that when this doubt sets in, these words will remind you that your Savior does empathize with you, since He faced the same temptations that you do. This verse is given to comfort you, not to intimidate you. Jesus knows first hand the difficulty you face every day, but yet He doesn't just leave you to try and work through things on your own. Rather, He invites you to confidently approach God's throne of grace so that you can overcome trials and temptations in His strength, and through His grace and mercy. Dig Deeper The fact that Jesus had no earthly father may not seem as important as the fact that He was resurrected from the grave, but it really is. If Jesus had descended from Adam, as every other human being has, then He would have inherited Adam's sin, just as every other human being has. If that were the case, He wouldn't be qualified to pay for the sins of others, since He also would have been born sinful, and His death and subsequent resurrection really wouldn't matter. But Jesus didn't descend from Adam. Jesus, the only begotten Son of God, is a brand new Adam. Because 'He was conceived by the Holy Spirit, and born of the virgin Mary,' He was born holy and blameless. Although He suffered great temptations, He never succumbed to them, and instead lived the sinless, perfect life that God had originally commanded Adam to live. Jesus didn't become man just to prove that He could live sinlessly even though everyone else couldn't. He didn't come to Earth just to give an example so that you could live perfectly like Him if you would just try harder. He did it so that He could give you the one thing that you need more than anything else, and the one thing that you'll never attain on your own as a descendent of Adam. When you put your trust in Him, you go from being in Adam to being in Christ. He gives you that perfect righteousness that God demands that only He was able to accomplish, so you can confidently approach God's throne! AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who sits on the throne of grace where we can receive mercy and grace. ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God that you have a Savior that can empathize with your weakness, and ask for the strength you need to overcome it as He did. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - James 5

Be strengthened in the name of Christ, the one & only source of salvation. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 29 Q. Why is the Son of God called “Jesus,” meaning “Savior”? A. Because he saves us from our sins. Salvation cannot be found in anyone else; it is futile to look for any salvation elsewhere. Summary Following the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, the Disciples ventured out into the streets of Jerusalem actively preaching and healing in the name of Jesus. After healing a crippled man unable to walk since birth, Peter shared that this man was healed by the name of Jesus. This was followed by a declaration that Jesus is the Messiah, which included a critique of the Jewish rulers. These same rulers had charge of the temple and played a role in pressuring Pilate to execute Jesus. Word of this made it to the captain of the temple, who had the disciples arrested. After being held in custody overnight, they were then brought before a group of leaders from the Jewish religious council known as the Sanhedrin. In response to their questioning about what had taken place Peter does not back down from his prior declaration, despite knowing the role these men played in Jesus’ crucifixion and the danger they posed for him. Instead, Peter makes a bolder declaration in their midst: “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” Not only was Peter stating outright that salvation is found in Jesus, but that salvation is ONLY found in Jesus. Dig Deeper The Book of Acts is one of my favorite books of the Bible. I have always been drawn to the fact that the miracles did not stop after the resurrection. Despite Jesus having already ascended to heaven, the Disciples were out healing the sick and making the lame walk. These miracles were a sign to the people that what the Disciples spoke of Jesus was true. These signs also protected the Disciples in this instance, for while it would have been easier to “get rid” of the Disciples, the council’s hands were tied, since the people had already seen the miracles, with thousands coming to faith in Jesus as a result. Instead this group of leaders on the council tried to compel the Disciples to stop telling people about Jesus. Despite the council being a powerful enemy to have, Peter refused. Peter had seen the risen Jesus and been filled with the Holy Spirit. He was not going to give in to the demands of the council; they could not offer him salvation. Instead, Peter held firm and trusted in Jesus, the only one who saves. You will likely never stand before a council and have to speak on behalf of your faith. However, you might be put in a position someday where you are asked to compromise on your faith and values. If that day comes, remember Peter’s example of standing firm on your faith in Jesus and his reason for doing so: “for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Almighty God, who raised Jesus from the dead; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will build your life with Christ as the cornerstone. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Hebrews 9

Know that whatever happens today, nothing can thwart the purposes of our Sovereign God. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 26 Q. What do you believe when you say, “I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth”? A. That the eternal Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who out of nothing created heaven and earth and everything in them, who still upholds and rules them by his eternal counsel and providence, is my God and Father because of Christ his Son. I trust him so much that I do not doubt he will provide whatever I need for body and soul, and he will turn to my good whatever adversity he sends me in this sad world. He is able to do this because he is almighty God; he desires to do this because he is a faithful Father. Summary The story of God's covenant people in the Old Testament is one episode after another of their pagan neighbors threatening their security. While it's true that at times God enabled these nations to rise up against His sinful people in order to punish them, God would consistently answer the Israelites' prayers for salvation when they finally came around. This section of the book of Isaiah is full of God's promises for deliverance, containing oracles against powerful enemies like Babylon and Moab. This particular passage concerning God's promise to crush Assyria is one of the shortest passages in this section, but it's also one of the most pointed and significant. God, through His prophet Isaiah, reminds His people - Israel then, and us now - that whatsoever God plans and purposes will happen, because there is no created being powerful enough to thwart Him or turn back His outstretched hand (v24 & 27). Dig Deeper We refer to this doctrine of God's absolute dominance using several different terms, but among the most common are the words omnipotent, meaning all powerful, and sovereignty. Sometimes we refer to a king or other head of state as being a sovereign, meaning they have total control over their domain. Simply put, God always gets what He wants. Understanding the concept of God's sovereignty is essential to properly understand Christian theology. We see it in every major theme in the Bible: yesterday we saw that God powerfully spoke reality into being through His Son; God demonstrates His righteous authority by cursing Adam's sin; God's omnipotence is made clear by raising Christ from the dead; and the Bible ends with God sovereignly establishing a new heavens and earth. People tend to be skeptical of promises, because they are so easy to make but hard to keep. Know that you can absolutely trust the promises God has made to you, because passages like this one in Isaiah demonstrate that He not only has the desire to make good on the promises He made, but the omnipotent ability to follow through on them as well, just as He did for Israel time and time again. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our powerful, omnipotent, sovereign God: no one can thwart Him; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God for reminders like today's passage that build up your trust in His sovereignty. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Acts 26