Reformed Doctrine Daily Devotions

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah 32:1-27.  Here is a link to this chapter – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah+32&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“¹⁶ “After I had given the deed of purchase to Baruch the son of Neriah, then I prayed to the Lord, saying, ¹⁷ ‘Ah Lord God!  Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and by Your outstretched arm!  Nothing is too difficult for You, ¹⁸ who shows lovingkindness to thousands, but repays the iniquity of fathers into the bosom of their children after them, O great and mighty God.  The Lord of hosts is His name;  ¹⁹ great in counsel and mighty in deed, whose eyes are open to all the ways of the sons of men, giving to everyone according to his ways and according to the fruit of his deeds;  ²⁰ who has set signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, and even to this day both in Israel and among mankind;  and You have made a name for Yourself, as at this day.  ²¹ You brought Your people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs and with wonders, and with a strong hand and with an outstretched arm and with great terror; ²² and gave them this land, which You swore to their forefathers to give them, a land flowing with milk and honey.  ²³ They came in and took possession of it, but they did not obey Your voice or walk in Your law;  they have done nothing of all that You commanded them to do;  therefore You have made all this calamity come upon them.  ²⁴ Behold, the siege ramps have reached the city to take it;  and the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans who fight against it, because of the sword, the famine and the pestilence;  and what You have spoken has come to pass;  and behold, You see it.  ²⁵ You have said to me, O Lord God, “Buy for yourself the field with money and call in witnesses”—although the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans.’”

²⁶ Then the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah, saying, ²⁷ “Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh;  is anything too difficult for Me?”  Jeremiah 32:16-27.

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“‘Ah Lord God!  Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and by Your outstretched arm!  Nothing is too difficult for You,”  Verse 17.

“Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh;  is anything too difficult for Me?”  Verse 27.

Whatever the LORD promises, He can perform.  Nothing is too difficult for Him.

“And the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, saying, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, when I am so old?’  Is anything too difficult for the Lord?  At the appointed time I will return to you, at this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”  Genesis 18:13-14.

“Not one of the good promises which the Lord had made to the house of Israel failed;  all came to pass.”  Joshua 21:45.

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah 31:35-40.

“³⁵ Thus says the Lord,
Who gives the sun for light by day
And the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night,
Who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar;
The Lord of hosts is His name:
³⁶ “If this fixed order departs
From before Me,” declares the Lord,
“Then the offspring of Israel also will cease
From being a nation before Me forever.”

³⁷ Thus says the Lord,

³⁸ “Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when the city will be rebuilt for the Lord from the Tower of Hananel to the Corner Gate.  ³⁹ The measuring line will go out farther straight ahead to the hill Gareb;  then it will turn to Goah.  ⁴⁰ And the whole valley of the dead bodies and of the ashes, and all the fields as far as the brook Kidron, to the corner of the Horse Gate toward the east, shall be holy to the Lord;  it will not be plucked up or overthrown anymore forever.”  Jeremiah 31:35-40.

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The LORD compares His devotion to His elect to His devotion to the order of the universe.  We can take great hope in that revelation in today’s Scripture.

“Thus says the Lord,
Who gives the sun for light by day
And the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night,
Who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar;
The Lord of hosts is His name:
“If this fixed order departs
From before Me,” declares the Lord,
“Then the offspring of Israel also will cease
From being a nation before Me forever.”  Verses 35-36.

Other doctrine prefers the flaky god who bases his devotion on the frail, fleeting, and alleged free-will of man.

But, Reformed Doctrine sees the God of Scripture Who based His devotion for His elect and their eternal security on His own Same, Sovereign, and Almighty Will that established the order of the universe.

“³⁴ “My covenant I will not violate,
Nor will I alter the utterance of My lips.
³⁵ “Once I have sworn by My holiness;
I will not lie to David.
³⁶ “His descendants shall endure forever
And his throne as the sun before Me.
³⁷ “It shall be established forever like the moon,
And the witness in the sky is faithful.”  Selah.”  Psalm 89:34-37.

“9 “Remember the former things long past,
For I am God, and there is no other;
I am God, and there is no one like Me,
10 Declaring the end from the beginning,
And from ancient times things which have not been done,
Saying, ‘My purpose will be established,
And I will accomplish all My good pleasure’;
11 Calling a bird of prey from the east,
The man of My purpose from a far country.
Truly I have spoken;  truly I will bring it to pass.
I have planned it, surely I will do it.”  Isaiah 46:9-11.   

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah 31:27-34.  Here is a link to this Scripture – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah+31&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the Lord.  “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the Lord, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it;  and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.  They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the Lord, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”  Jeremiah 31:31-34.

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“Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you;  and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.  I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.”  Ezekiel 36:26-27.

“I delight to do Your will, O my God;
Your Law is within my heart.”  Psalm 40:8.

Q. 1.  What is thy only comfort in life and death?

A.  That I with body and soul, both in life and death, am not my own, but belong unto my faithful Savior Jesus Christ;  who, with His precious blood, hath fully satisfied for all my sins, and delivered me from all the power of the devil;  and so preserves me that without the will of my heavenly Father, not a hair can fall from my head;  yea, that all things must be subservient to my salvation, and therefore, by His Holy Spirit, He also assures me of eternal life, and makes me sincerely willing and ready, henceforth, to live unto Him.”  Heidelberg Catechism.

“how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

For this reason He (Christ) is the mediator of a new covenant, so that, since a death has taken place for the redemption of the transgressions that were committed under the first covenant, those who have been called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.”  Hebrews 9:14-15.

“For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.  And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us;  for after saying,

He then says,

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah 31:15-26.

“¹⁵ Thus says the Lord,
“A voice is heard in Ramah,
Lamentation and bitter weeping.
Rachel is weeping for her children;
She refuses to be comforted for her children,
Because they are no more.”

¹⁶ Thus says the Lord,

²³ Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, “Once again they will speak this word in the land of Judah and in its cities when I restore their fortunes,

²⁴ Judah and all its cities will dwell together in it, the farmer and they who go about with flocks.  ²⁵ For I satisfy the weary ones and refresh everyone who languishes.”  ²⁶ At this I awoke and looked, and my sleep was pleasant to me.”  Jeremiah 31:15-26.

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“Is Ephraim My dear son?
Is he a delightful child?
Indeed, as often as I have spoken against him,
I certainly still remember him;
Therefore My heart yearns for him;
I will surely have mercy on him,” declares the Lord.”  Verse 20.

“For He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.”  So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy.  For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I raised you up, to demonstrate My power in you, and that My name might be proclaimed throughout the whole earth.”  So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires.”  Romans 9:15-18.

“for though the twins were not yet born and had not done anything good or bad, so that God’s purpose according to His choice would stand, not because of works but because of Him who calls, it was said to her, “The older will serve the younger.”  Just as it is written, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”  Romans 9:11-13.

“But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.  For by grace you have been saved through faith;  and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;  not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.”  Ephesians 2:4-9.

“just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him.  In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.”  Ephesians 1:4-6.

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah 31:1-14.

“At that time,” declares the Lord, “I will be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be My people.”

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah chapter 30.  Here is a link to this chapter – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah+30&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, ² “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Write all the words which I have spoken to you in a book.  ³ For behold, days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when I will restore the fortunes of My people Israel and Judah.’  The Lord says, ‘I will also bring them back to the land that I gave to their forefathers and they shall possess it.’”

…

⁸ ‘It shall come about on that day,’ declares the Lord of hosts, ‘that I will break his yoke from off their neck and will tear off their bonds; and strangers will no longer make them their slaves.  ⁹ But they shall serve the Lord their God and David their king, whom I will raise up for them.

…

¹⁸ “Thus says the Lord,
‘Behold, I will restore the fortunes of the tents of Jacob
And have compassion on his dwelling places;
And the city will be rebuilt on its ruin,
And the palace will stand on its rightful place.
¹⁹ ‘From them will proceed thanksgiving
And the voice of those who celebrate;
And I will multiply them and they will not be diminished;
I will also honor them and they will not be insignificant.
²⁰ ‘Their children also will be as formerly,
And their congregation shall be established before Me;
And I will punish all their oppressors.
²¹ ‘Their leader shall be one of them,
And their ruler shall come forth from their midst;
And I will bring him near and he shall approach Me;
For who would dare to risk his life to approach Me?’ declares the Lord.
²² ‘You shall be My people,
And I will be your God.’”

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah chapter 29.  Here is a link to this chapter – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah+29&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“⁴ “Thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon, ⁵ ‘Build houses and live in them;  and plant gardens and eat their produce.  ⁶ Take wives and become the fathers of sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters;  and multiply there and do not decrease.  ⁷ Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf;  for in its welfare you will have welfare.’  ⁸ For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘Do not let your prophets who are in your midst and your diviners deceive you, and do not listen to the dreams which they dream.  ⁹ For they prophesy falsely to you in My name;  I have not sent them,’ declares the Lord.

¹⁰ “For thus says the Lord, ‘When seventy years have been completed for Babylon, I will visit you and fulfill My good word to you, to bring you back to this place.  ¹¹ For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.  ¹² Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.  ¹³ You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.  ¹⁴ I will be found by you,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will restore your fortunes and will gather you from all the nations and from all the places where I have driven you,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will bring you back to the place from where I sent you into exile.’”  Jeremiah 29:4-14.

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“For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.”  Verse 11.

We also notice that the LORD of hosts identified Himself as “the God of Israel”.  Verse 4.

In the midst of seventy years of captivity in Babylon, the exiles were given this wonderful promise by “the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel”, their God.  The exiles were commanded by God to build houses and families, to plant gardens and eat their produce, and seek the welfare of Babylon, for in its welfare they too would have welfare.  And, this wonderful promise of their God (that He has plans for welfare for the exiles to give them a future and a hope) gave them additional motivation to do all of these things.

We too may be in the midst of troubles and trials, even afflictions.  But, we too can be patient and prosper.  We too can rejoice that the LORD of hosts is our God and that this wonderful promise of our God is for us today.  

The righteous live by faith.  The righteous Abraham lived by faith.  The righteous exiles lived by faith.  And, the righteous today live by faith.

And so, we too live out our lives abundantly and joyfully, believing that God will bless us.

“For when God made the promise to Abraham, since He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself, saying, “I will surely bless you and I will surely multiply you.”  Hebrews 6:13-14.

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah chapter 28.  Here is a link to this chapter – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah+28&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“The prophet who prophesies of peace, when the word of the prophet comes to pass, then that prophet will be known as one whom the Lord has truly sent.”

Then Hananiah the prophet took the yoke from the neck of Jeremiah the prophet and broke it.  Hananiah spoke in the presence of all the people, saying, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Even so will I break within two full years the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon from the neck of all the nations.’”  Then the prophet Jeremiah went his way.

The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah after Hananiah the prophet had broken the yoke from off the neck of the prophet Jeremiah, saying, “Go and speak to Hananiah, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord, “You have broken the yokes of wood, but you have made instead of them yokes of iron.”  For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, “I have put a yoke of iron on the neck of all these nations, that they may serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and they will serve him.  And I have also given him the beasts of the field.”’”  Then Jeremiah the prophet said to Hananiah the prophet, “Listen now, Hananiah, the Lord has not sent you, and you have made this people trust in a lie.  Therefore thus says the Lord, ‘Behold, I am about to remove you from the face of the earth.  This year you are going to die, because you have counseled rebellion against the Lord.’”

So Hananiah the prophet died in the same year in the seventh month.”  Jeremiah 28:9-17.

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“The prophet who prophesies of peace, when the word of the prophet comes to pass, then that prophet will be known as one whom the Lord has truly sent.”  Verse 9.

“Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.  You will know them by their fruits.  Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they?  So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit.  A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit.  Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.  So then, you will know them by their fruits.

“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter.  Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’  And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you;  depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’”  Matthew 7:15-23.

“Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.  By this you know the Spirit of God:  every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God;  and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God;  this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world.  You are from God, little children, and have overcome them;  because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.  They are from the world;  therefore they speak as from the world, and the world listens to them.  We are from God;  he who knows God listens to us;  he who is not from God does not listen to us.  By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error.”  1 John 4:1-5.

“Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come forth from God and was going back to God,” said “From now on I am telling you before it comes to pass, so that when it does occur, you may believe that I am He.”  John 13:3 and 19.

“Q. 43. How doth Christ execute the office of a prophet?

A.  Christ executeth the office of a prophet, in his revealing to the church, in all ages, by his Spirit and Word, in divers ways of administration, the whole will of God, in all things concerning their edification and salvation.  Westminster Larger Confession.

“So when it comes to pass—as surely it will—then they will know that a prophet has been in their midst.”  Ezekiel 33:33.

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah chapter 27.  Here is a link to this chapter – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah+27&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“It will be, that the nation or the kingdom which will not serve him, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and which will not put its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, I will punish that nation with the sword, with famine and with pestilence,” declares the Lord, “until I have destroyed it by his hand.  But as for you, do not listen to your prophets, your diviners, your dreamers, your soothsayers or your sorcerers who speak to you, saying, ‘You will not serve the king of Babylon.’  For they prophesy a lie to you in order to remove you far from your land;  and I will drive you out and you will perish.  But the nation which will bring its neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and serve him, I will let remain on its land,” declares the Lord, “and they will till it and dwell in it.”’”  Jeremiah 27:8-12.

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“Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right.  For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men.  Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God.  Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king.

Servants, be submissive to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and gentle, but also to those who are unreasonable.  For this finds favor, if for the sake of conscience toward God a person bears up under sorrows when suffering unjustly.  For what credit is there if, when you sin and are harshly treated, you endure it with patience?  But if when you do what is right and suffer for it you patiently endure it, this finds favor with God.”  1 Peter 2:13-20.

There comes a time when one should rebel. 

“All the nations shall serve him and his son and his grandson until the time of his own land comes;  then many nations and great kings will make him their servant.”  Verse 7.

“There is an appointed time for everything.  And there is a time for every event under heaven—

…
A time to love and a time to hate;
A time for war and a time for peace.”  Ecclesiastes 3:1 and 8.

“First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.  This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”  1 Timothy 2:1-4.

Today’s devotion comes from Jeremiah chapter 26.  Here is a link to this Scripture – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah+26&version=NASB

“In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came from the Lord, saying, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Stand in the court of the Lord’s house, and speak to all the cities of Judah who have come to worship in the Lord’s house all the words that I have commanded you to speak to them.  Do not omit a word!  Perhaps they will listen and everyone will turn from his evil way, that I may repent of the calamity which I am planning to do to them because of the evil of their deeds.’  And you will say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord, “If you will not listen to Me, to walk in My law which I have set before you, to listen to the words of My servants the prophets, whom I have been sending to you again and again, but you have not listened;  then I will make this house like Shiloh, and this city I will make a curse to all the nations of the earth.”’”

The priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of the Lord.  When Jeremiah finished speaking all that the Lord had commanded him to speak to all the people, the priests and the prophets and all the people seized him, saying, “You must die!  Why have you prophesied in the name of the Lord saying, ‘This house will be like Shiloh and this city will be desolate, without inhabitant’?”  And all the people gathered about Jeremiah in the house of the Lord.

…

Then Jeremiah spoke to all the officials and to all the people, saying, “The Lord sent me to prophesy against this house and against this city all the words that you have heard.  Now therefore amend your ways and your deeds and obey the voice of the Lord your God;  and the Lord will change His mind about the misfortune which He has pronounced against you.  But as for me, behold, I am in your hands;  do with me as is good and right in your sight.  Only know for certain that if you put me to death, you will bring innocent blood on yourselves, and on this city and on its inhabitants;  for truly the Lord has sent me to you to speak all these words in your hearing.”  Jeremiah 26:1-9 and 12-15.
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In the beginning, chapter 1 of the book of Jeremiah, the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah.

“I will pronounce My judgments on them (against all of the cities of Judah) concerning all their wickedness, whereby they have forsaken Me and have offered sacrifices to other gods, and worshiped the works of their own hands.  Now, gird up your loins and arise, and speak to them all which I command you.  Do not be dismayed before them, or I will dismay you before them.  Now behold, I have made you today as a fortified city and as a pillar of iron and as walls of bronze against the whole land, to the kings of Judah, to its princes, to its priests and to the people of the land.  They will fight against you, but they will not overcome you, for I am with you to deliver you,” declares the Lord.”  Jeremiah 1:16-19.

When Jeremiah was seized by the priests and the prophets, and they said “You must die!”, I am not sure if Jeremiah remembered the words:  “They will fight against you, but they will not overcome you, for I am with you to deliver you,” declares the Lord.”, because Jeremiah did say to them:  “But as for me, behold, I am in your hands;  do with me as is good and right in your sight.  Only know for certain that if you put me to death, you will bring innocent blood on yourselves, and on this city and on its inhabitants;  for truly the Lord has sent me to you to speak all these words in your hearing.”  Verses 14-15.

Jeremiah seemed to forget himself and the things that were his.  But, Jeremiah remembered and spoke every word of what the LORD commanded him to speak to the people. 

The following is one of the “slide show” quotes at the Home Page of the web site of the Protestant Reformed Churches.  Here is a link – http://www.prca.org/

“We are not our own;  therefore, let us not make it our end to seek what may be agreeable to our carnal nature.  We are not our own; therefore, as far as possible, let us forget ourselves and the things that are ours.” ~ John Calvin.

“Q. 1.  What is thy only comfort in life and death?

 A.  That I with body and soul, both in life and death, am not my own, but belong unto my faithful Savior Jesus Christ;  who, with His precious blood, hath fully satisfied for all my sins, and delivered me from all the power of the devil;  and so preserves me that without the will of my heavenly Father, not a hair can fall from my head;  yea, that all things must be subservient to my salvation, and therefore, by His Holy Spirit, He also assures me of eternal life, and makes me sincerely willing and ready, henceforth, to live unto Him.”  Heidelberg Catechism.

“for if we live, we live for the Lord, or if we die, we die for the Lord;  therefore whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s.”  Romans 14:8.