Galatians 1:1–10 (NIV) Paul, an apostle—sent not from men nor by a man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead—2 and all the brothers and sisters with me, To the churches in Paul warns in 2 Corinthians 11:14 that Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light, so Christians Today: Acts 22

Find true forgiveness through true confession. 1 John 1:8-10 (NIV) 8 If we claim to be without sin, we Listen to passage & devotional: Belgic Confession of Faith, Article 21: The Atonement We believe that

Stand firm in your faith, but work as equals with Christians who disagree. 1 Corinthians 3:1-9 (NIV) 2:16 ...But we have the mind of Christ. 3 Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly—mere infants in Christ. 2  I gave you milk

God built you a house through Jesus, the Son of God and the son of David. 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 After David had fully established his kingdom in Israel, he expressed his desire to build a house for God, since God's presence still was within the tabernacle, a tent designed to move as Israel moved. David approached the prophet Nathan to be sure his idea of building a permanent temple was consistent with God's will. Nathan initially gave David the green light, telling David that the Lord was with him. But that night, the word of the Lord came to Nathan, revealing that David would not be the one to build Him a house, rather God would be the one who built a House - a never ending dynasty - for David. This passage is significant as it establishes the concept of the Davidic Covenant, which promises a lasting dynasty and kingdom for David's descendants, ultimately fulfilled in the person of Jesus Christ as the eternal king from the line of David. Dig Deeper Yesterday we were reminded of the importance of Jesus' miraculous virgin birth. The importance of this doctrine isn't necessarily the biological uniqueness of Jesus not having an earthly father, but as we'll focus on tomorrow, the point is that Jesus is a new Adam rather than a descendent of the first Adam. But at the same time, Jesus is fully human and through his mother Mary, He does have a biological heritage, and it's one that's very important: the fact that Jesus is a descendent of David fulfills the promise that David's throne will be established forever. It's often easy to just pray that Jesus will be with us in our horizontal relationships: our jobs, families and other immediate concerns. Of course Jesus will be with us in these things, and it is important to pray for them, but passages like this one remind us that God's concerns for us are much bigger than the particular challenges we struggle with on a day to day basis. God fulfilled this amazing promise to King David years about 1,000 later on Christmas morning, and what's more, He's included you in these promises! You have been chosen by God to be included in Christ, and so to reign with Him in a kingdom that will never end. God didn't need David to build a house for Him, rather God built a house for us through David! So whatever it is that's weighing you down today, take it to the Lord in prayer for sure, but even more so, be reminded that you're included in the Kingdom of God. Know that God will "plant you so that you can have a home of your own and no longer be disturbed (v10)." AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who rules over all things with His Son, who sits on David's throne forever. ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Ask God to continually remind you of your kingdom citizenship in the midst of worldly struggles. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - James 4

Scripture is the sufficient source for knowing and testing what is true. 1 John 4:1–6 (NIV) Dear friends spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2  to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life” (1 Today: Acts 24

DailyVerses.net Philippians 1:27-30 (NIV) CONTEXT: Paul writes this letter to the Philippians from prison "For to me," he writes in v21, "to live is Christ and to die is gain." 27  Whatever happens, conduct will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel 28 Canons of Dordt Point 1 - God's Unconditional Election 1 - God's right to condemn all people 2 - God Peter 2:2 ).

Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 1 Q. What is your only comfort in life and in death? A.

(Matthew 7:21-23) If reading these warnings cause you to worry, that's actually a good sign. them and return to Him; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - 2 to Him; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - 2 Corinthians 1

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

Ascension Day usually doesn't get the fanfare of Christmas or Easter, but it should! Read / Listen Listen to passage & devotional: Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 46 Q. What do you mean by saying, “He ascended to heaven”? A. That Christ, while his disciples watched, was lifted up from the earth to heaven and will be there for our good until he comes again to judge the living and the dead Summary The book of Acts is really a continuation of Luke's gospel, which is an investigative report Luke wrote for Theophilus. Since that Greek name literally means 'One who loves God,' it's hard to know if Theophilus was a real man or if Luke uses a pen name to reference all who love God and want to learn about the gospel of Jesus Christ. In any event, whereas Luke's first account covered Jesus' life, death and resurrection, this second report, inspired by the Holy Spirit, picks up at one of the most triumphant moments in history. Jesus is alive and reunited with His disciples (Luke notes in v3 that he gave 'many convincing proofs that he was alive'), and the disciples are likely eager to see Jesus establish the Kingdom of God. Sure enough, Jesus gathers them around and gives them instructions, but they're not what the disciples were expecting. Stay and wait, Jesus told them. Wait for how long, the disciples cried out. When, Jesus? When will you restore the kingdom to Israel? If ever Jesus displayed patience, it was here. After everything He had taught them, especially the last week of His life; after everything He demonstrated in His death, with the darkness for three hours in the afternoon and the torn curtain in the temple; after astounding all who saw Him alive after He was most certainly dead; after all that and more the disciples still think Jesus had done all of that just to make things the way they used to be in the good 'ol days when King David was on the throne. Don't worry about what, when and where, Jesus told them. You just witness to what you've seen and heard. And with that, almost anticlimactically, He was taken up and gone; hidden by a cloud. But Luke's new book is about the beginning of the Church, not the end of the gospel. Just as they did when Jesus was born, albeit it a bit less gloriously, angels come down to fill in the details. Stop staring into the sky, they told the stunned disciples. Just as you Jesus just was lifted up into heaven, He's going to come back. Dig Deeper As Reformed Christians, we don't pay as much attention to the Christian calendar the way our Anglican and Lutheran brothers and sisters do, although we gladly participate in Christmas festivities, as well as having a somber holy week service leading up to a joyous Resurrection Day celebration. But most Christians aren't even aware of a third observance that is nearly just as theologically important as what Jesus' birth and resurrection were: Ascension Day. As we continue our year long tour of the reasons for our only comfort, we'll spend this week understanding how amazing it is that at this very moment, there's a human body sitting at God's right hand, working out all things for God's covenant people. Ascension Day is coming on May 18. If your own congregation isn't able to have a special worship service to celebrate that, be sure to join up for the night with one that does! AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who welcomed His triumphant Son, the God-Man, back into heaven to sit at His right hand; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Ask God to empower you with the Holy Spirit to witness to all you've seen and heard regarding Jesus Christ. ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Matthew 18