​ Article 4: A Twofold Response to the Gospel John 1:9-13 - The TRUE Light John 3:31-36 - Wrath Removed 6: God’s Eternal Decree Isaiah 45:21-25 - Irrevocable Ezekiel 36:24-27 - A Whole New Reality Romans 9: Authority & Presence Article 9: Election Not Based on Foreseen Faith John 10:22-30 - Listen Up! 14 - Christmas in March Galatians 4:1-7 - From Slave to Son Isaiah 53:6 - Herd Mentality 1 Peter 2:9- years later: without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness ( Hebrews 9:14 ).

There are no good examples in the Bible of 'Lone Ranger' believers. 2 Chronicles 30:1-9 (NIV) CONTEXT Serve the LORD your God, so that his fierce anger will turn away from you. 9  If you return to the LORD He will not turn His face from you if you return to Him" (v8-9).

BibleHub.com Romans 9:16-21 (NIV) 15  God says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy

John 1:9-14 (NIV) 9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was

did after their sin was to worry about their lack of clothing and how God would react (Genesis 3:6-9)

Stand firm in your faith, but work as equals with Christians who disagree. 1 Corinthians 3:1-9 (NIV) and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. 9 

Daniel makes the emphasis of his prayer acknowledging who God is (v4, 7, 9, 12, 15) and making sure that

Confession of sin seems scary, but it always leads to relief and joy. Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 126 Q. What does the fifth request mean? A. “Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors” means, Because of Christ’s blood, do not hold against us, poor sinners that we are, any of the sins we do or the evil that constantly clings to us. Forgive us just as we are fully determined, as evidence of your grace in us, to forgive our neighbors Summary Generally, confession isn't something most people look forward to. It's hard to admit guilt even to other people, much less than to our God and Father! So it's not surprising that most people do all they can to keep themselves distracted from their guilt rather than subject themselves to the anticipated pain of confession. But as we read David's inspired words today, it certainly doesn't appear that his confession of one of the most heinous sins committed in the Bible is a painful process! Quite the opposite! Confession is a cathartic - that is, purifying - process. David asks our Father to cleanse him so that he will be clean, and to wash him and make him whiter than snow. He writes of the relief from the bone crushing weight of the guilt that had been pressing down on him. Imagine the transformation necessary for crushed bones to rejoice! (Side note: notice there in v8 that God was the one using David's guilt to crush his bones! In this way, God graciously used pain to bring David to salvation.) Ultimately, confession of sin doesn't just polish up our transgressions so they don't seem so bad, rather it completely removes them. That's what David, inspired by the Holy Spirit, asks for here: for God to blot out all of his iniquity. Dig Deeper It seems to make sense: big sins require big confessions. David's sin was much more than a tryst with a beautiful woman; it drove him into a conspiracy that led to betrayal, treason, and murder, which ultimately caused his entire country's downfall. But then we behold the overwhelming beauty of his confession here in Psalm 51, and our perception of David drastically improves. Just like in a cheesy romantic movie, the wayward protagonist eloquently apologizes to the woman he loves, and just like that, all is better. But that's not what's going on here at all. God didn't accept David's confession because somehow its beauty was sufficient to overcome the sin being confessed. God accepted David's confession because of His unfailing love and compassion, which we read about a couple of days ago. Here's a few things to keep in mind about confession: Since poetic beauty doesn't improve a confession's efficacy, you don't need to worry about making them eloquent. You just need to demonstrate sincerity and admit your guilt. Notice David never mentions any of the particulars of his sin in his confession. Confession is less about giving God a list of what you've done wrong, and more about demonstrating sorrow and repentance. While there generally should be some correlation between the magnitude of a particular sin and the process you utilize to confess it, remember that all sins, big and small, must be confessed (even the sins you're unaware of). The best way to do this well is to follow Jesus' simple command: Continually repent and pray often that God will forgive your debts as you trust in Christ's atoning blood. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father; who crushes our bones when we hide our guilt, but then causes them to rejoice when we confess our sin; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Confess your sins and pray that God will forgive your debts as you trust in Christ alone. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Revelation 15

As Hebrews 9:22 puts it, without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness. But Hebrews goes on to report that "It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins

Happy Thanksgiving! Pray for your city; when it has shalom, so will you! Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 122 Q. What does the first request mean? A. “Hallowed be your name” means, Help us to really know you, to bless, worship, and praise you for all your works and for all that shines forth from them: your almighty power, wisdom, kindness, justice, mercy, and truth. And it means, Help us to direct all our living— what we think, say, and do— so that your name will never be blasphemed because of us but always honored and praised. Summary In our era of instant communications, most of us have lost the sense of excitement that comes when a letter arrives, especially if we're starved for information and the letter will help us fill in the gaps. So imagine how excited the exiles in Babylon were to receive word from the homeland; and not just from anyone, this letter carried the Word of the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel! Certainly the letter would contain the good news that God had relented from His anger and bring His people back home again, or so the people hoped. But that's not at all what the letter said. Jeremiah, who penned the letter, did his duty as a messenger of God's Word. As preachers, we are not at liberty to tell congregations what we think, or what we hope people want to hear, rather we must convey exactly what God has said. Jeremiah does just that. While they don't hear the good news they wanted - that they'd be rescued - God's Word isn't necessarily bad news either. God tells His people to get comfortable, because they're going to be in Babylon for awhile. He orders them to settle down, build houses, plant gardens and raise families. Work to bring shalom (peace & prosperity) to the city that was now their home. God gives them two overarching commands: 1) Pray for their new city, which is what grabs our attention today, and 2) don't listen to the 'prophets' among them; these were the guys who presented God's will as being whatever the popular opinions of the day were. Dig Deeper When you pray "hallowed be thy name," you're praying that your own life will reflect God's holiness in every way: that what you "think, say and do" will honor and praise God's name. God's message to His exiled covenant children (that's us, by the way, not just those Israelites living in Babylon thousands of years ago) is to cast a wider net as you pray. Certainly pray that God's name will be hallowed in your own life, but also pray that God's name will be hallowed in your city (or town, or acreage, or wherever you call home until Christ returns you to your Homeland). Chances are, you have lots to be thankful for regarding the city in which you live. But keep praying that God's name will be praised and never blasphemed where you live, which will bring the true shalom that every city needs. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: The LORD Almighty, the God of Israel; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that your city will praise God's name in every way; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - 2 Thessalonians 3