Reformed Doctrine Daily Devotions

Today’s devotion comes from Psalm 40:1-10.

“I waited patiently for the Lord;
And He inclined to me and heard my cry.
2 He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay,
And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm.
3 He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God;
Many will see and fear
And will trust in the Lord.

4 How blessed is the man who has made the Lord his trust,
And has not turned to the proud, nor to those who lapse into falsehood.
5 Many, O Lord my God, are the wonders which You have done,
And Your thoughts toward us;
There is none to compare with You.
If I would declare and speak of them,
They would be too numerous to count.

6 Sacrifice and meal offering You have not desired;
My ears You have opened;
Burnt offering and sin offering You have not required.
7 Then I said, “Behold, I come;
In the scroll of the book it is written of me.
8 I delight to do Your will, O my God;
Your Law is within my heart.”

9 I have proclaimed glad tidings of righteousness in the great congregation;
Behold, I will not restrain my lips,
O Lord, You know.
10 I have not hidden Your righteousness within my heart;
I have spoken of Your faithfulness and Your salvation;
I have not concealed Your lovingkindness and Your truth from the great congregation.”  Psalm 40:1-10.

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Other doctrine delights in it own alleged free-will.

But, Reformed Doctrine delights in God’s will.

Other doctrine proclaims its own righteosness whether it be through its works or through its will.

But, Reformed Doctrine proclaims God’s righteousness.

In today’s Scripture, we notice the emphasis of the pronoun “Your” referring to God’s qualities as in “Your righteousness”, “Your faithfulness”, “Your salvation”, “Your lovingkindness” and “Your truth”.

“I have not hidden Your righteousness within my heart;
I have spoken of Your faithfulness and Your salvation;
I have not concealed Your lovingkindness and Your truth from the great congregation.”  Verse 10.

Other doctrine delights to refer to “my” qualities (its own qualities).

But, Reformed Doctrine delights to refer to “Your” qualities (God’s qualities).

When we consider “TULIP”, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation, then we see such qualities of God throughout “TULIP”.

Above all, we see “Your salvation” in “TULIP”.  These Five Points of Calvinism should not be isolated from each other, but rather the points combine to teach of a God who totally saves from His “Unconditional Election” through His “Limited Atonement” through His “Irresistible Grace” through His “Preservation of the Saints”.

“For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.”  Romans 8:29-30.

Throughout Scripture, we see that “Salvation belongs to the Lord”.  Psalm 3:8.

“The Lord has bared His holy arm
In the sight of all the nations,
That all the ends of the earth may see
The salvation of our God.”  Isaiah 52:10.

“I looked, and there was no one to help,
And I was astonished and there was no one to uphold;
So My own arm brought salvation to Me,
And My wrath upheld Me.”  Isaiah 63:5.

“16 And He saw that there was no man,
And was astonished that there was no one to intercede;
Then His own arm brought salvation to Him,
And His righteousness upheld Him.
17 He put on righteousness like a breastplate,
And a helmet of salvation on His head;
And He put on garments of vengeance for clothing
And wrapped Himself with zeal as a mantle.
18 According to their deeds, so He will repay,
Wrath to His adversaries, recompense to His enemies;
To the coastlands He will make recompense.
19 So they will fear the name of the Lord from the west
And His glory from the rising of the sun,
For He will come like a rushing stream
Which the wind of the Lord drives.
20 “A Redeemer will come to Zion,
And to those who turn from transgression in Jacob,” declares the Lord.”  Isaiah 59:16-20.

Man cannot save himself.  We see it in today’s Scripture.

“He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay,
And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm.”  Verse 2.

Man is even more than weak.  Man is dead in sin.  “And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.”  Ephesians 2:1-2.

“10 as it is written,

“There is none righteous, not even one;
11 There is none who understands,
There is none who seeks for God;
12 All have turned aside, together they have become useless;
There is none who does good,
There is not even one.”  Romans 3:10-12.

This is “Total Depravity”, the “T” of “TULIP”.

“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.”  Ephesians 2:4-7.

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 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.  In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us.  …”  Ephesians 1:3-8.

“Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory blameless with great joy, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, before all time and now and forever.  Amen.”  Jude 1:24-25.

In summary, we see God’s salvation, God’s lovingkindness, God’s righteousness, God’s faithfulness, and God’s truth in these Scriptures and other Scripture showing God’s “Unconditional Election”,  God’s “Limited Atonement”, God’s “Irresistible Grace”, and God’s  “Preservation of the Saints”, the “U”, “L”, “I”, and “P” of “TULIP”, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation.

Today’s devotion comes from Psalm chapter 39.

“I said, “I will guard my ways
That I may not sin with my tongue;
I will guard my mouth as with a muzzle
While the wicked are in my presence.”
² I was mute and silent,
I refrained even from good,
And my sorrow grew worse.
³ My heart was hot within me,
While I was musing the fire burned;
Then I spoke with my tongue:
⁴ “Lord, make me to know my end
And what is the extent of my days;
Let me know how transient I am.
⁵ “Behold, You have made my days as handbreadths,
And my lifetime as nothing in Your sight;
Surely every man at his best is a mere breath.  Selah.
⁶ “Surely every man walks about as a phantom;
Surely they make an uproar for nothing;
He amasses riches and does not know who will gather them.

Today’s devotion comes from Psalm chapter 38.

“O Lord, rebuke me not in Your wrath,
And chasten me not in Your burning anger.
2 For Your arrows have sunk deep into me,
And Your hand has pressed down on me.
3 There is no soundness in my flesh because of Your indignation;
There is no health in my bones because of my sin.
4 For my iniquities are gone over my head;
As a heavy burden they weigh too much for me.
5 My wounds grow foul and fester
Because of my folly.
6 I am bent over and greatly bowed down;
I go mourning all day long.
7 For my loins are filled with burning,
And there is no soundness in my flesh.
8 I am benumbed and badly crushed;
I groan because of the agitation of my heart.

9 Lord, all my desire is before You;
And my sighing is not hidden from You.
10 My heart throbs, my strength fails me;
And the light of my eyes, even that has gone from me.
11 My loved ones and my friends stand aloof from my plague;
And my kinsmen stand afar off.
12 Those who seek my life lay snares for me;
And those who seek to injure me have threatened destruction,
And they devise treachery all day long.

13 But I, like a deaf man, do not hear;
And I am like a mute man who does not open his mouth.
14 Yes, I am like a man who does not hear,
And in whose mouth are no arguments.
15 For I hope in You, O Lord;
You will answer, O Lord my God.
16 For I said, “May they not rejoice over me,
Who, when my foot slips, would magnify themselves against me.”
17 For I am ready to fall,
And my sorrow is continually before me.
18 For I confess my iniquity;
I am full of anxiety because of my sin.
19 But my enemies are vigorous and strong,
And many are those who hate me wrongfully.
20 And those who repay evil for good,
They oppose me, because I follow what is good.
21 Do not forsake me, O Lord;
O my God, do not be far from me!
22 Make haste to help me,
O Lord, my salvation!”  Psalm chapter 38.

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Other doctrine maintains that there is hope within us:  “You can be and do whatever you want!”   

But, today’s Scripture crushes any such hope that there may be inside of us.

Our only hope is outside of us, namely, in the LORD as Reformed Doctrine maintains.

There is no strength nor wisdom within us to give us hope;  there is only sin within us and punishment by the LORD for our sin within us.

“My heart throbs, my strength fails me;
And the light of my eyes, even that has gone from me.”  Verse 10.

“13 But I, like a deaf man, do not hear;
And I am like a mute man who does not open his mouth.
14 Yes, I am like a man who does not hear,
And in whose mouth are no arguments.”  Verses 13-14.

“4 For my iniquities are gone over my head;
As a heavy burden they weigh too much for me.
5 My wounds grow foul and fester
Because of my folly.
6 I am bent over and greatly bowed down;
I go mourning all day long.
7 For my loins are filled with burning,
And there is no soundness in my flesh.
8 I am benumbed and badly crushed;
I groan because of the agitation of my heart.”  Verses 4-8.

Moreover, we have enemies outside of us.

“But my enemies are vigorous and strong,
And many are those who hate me wrongfully.”  Verse 19.

Our only hope is outside of us, namely in the LORD, our salvation, as Reformed Doctrine teaches.

“For I hope in You, O Lord;
You will answer, O Lord my God.”  Verse 15.

Consistent with today’s Scripture showing the lack of strength and wisdom and the presence of the heavy burden of sin too much for us, Reformed Doctrine teaches “Total Depravity”, the “T” of “TULIP”, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation.
 
Consistent with today’s Scripture which shows that our only hope is in the LORD and which refers to the LORD as “my salvation”, Reformed Doctrine teaches that the LORD provides everything that we need for our salvation from His “Unconditional Election” to His “Limited Atonement” to His “Irresistible Grace” to His “Preservation of the Saints”, the “U”, “L”, “I”, and “P” of “TULIP”, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation.

“Make haste to help me,
O Lord, my salvation!”  Verse 22.

Today’s devotion comes from Psalm 37:35-40.

“³⁵ I have seen a wicked, violent man
Spreading himself like a luxuriant tree in its native soil.
³⁶ Then he passed away, and lo, he was no more;
I sought for him, but he could not be found.
³⁷ Mark the blameless man, and behold the upright;
For the man of peace will have a posterity.
³⁸ But transgressors will be altogether destroyed;
The posterity of the wicked will be cut off.
³⁹ But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord;
He is their strength in time of trouble.
⁴⁰ The Lord helps them and delivers them;
He delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
Because they take refuge in Him.”    Psalm 37:35-40.

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Whose salvation is truly from the LORD?

Who truly takes refuge in Him?

The one who clings to his own wisdom and his own alleged free-will to obey the Law or to choose Christ?

Or, the one, who recognizing his own “Total Depravity”, clings to the LORD alone (his refuge) to provide all that he needs for salvation from the LORD’s “Unconditional Election” to the LORD’s  “Limited Atonement” to the LORD’s “Irresistible Grace” to the LORD’s  “Preservation of the Saints”, the “U”, “L”, “I”, and “P” of “TULIP”, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation?

“Salvation belongs to the Lord;
Your blessing be upon Your people!  Selah.”  Psalm 3:8.

Today’s devotion comes from Psalm 37:12-22.

“12 The wicked plots against the righteous
And gnashes at him with his teeth.
13 The Lord laughs at him,
For He sees his day is coming.
14 The wicked have drawn the sword and bent their bow
To cast down the afflicted and the needy,
To slay those who are upright in conduct.
15 Their sword will enter their own heart,
And their bows will be broken.

16 Better is the little of the righteous
Than the abundance of many wicked.
17 For the arms of the wicked will be broken,
But the Lord sustains the righteous.
18 The Lord knows the days of the blameless,
And their inheritance will be forever.
19 They will not be ashamed in the time of evil,
And in the days of famine they will have abundance.
20 But the wicked will perish;
And the enemies of the Lord will be like the glory of the pastures,
They vanish—like smoke they vanish away.
21 The wicked borrows and does not pay back,
But the righteous is gracious and gives.
22 For those blessed by Him will inherit the land,
But those cursed by Him will be cut off.”  Psalm 37:12-22.

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There is a sharp distinction throughout today’s Scripture between the righteous and the wicked in today’s Scripture.  There is no middle man.  There is either the righteous or the wicked.  There is either those who are blessed, or there is those who are cursed.

This sharp distinction between the righteous and the wicked is inconsistent with other doctrine, but this sharp distinction between the righteous and the wicked is consistent with Reformed Doctrine.

Other doctrine teaches that God loves everybody, man is basically good, and man can even improve himself more through his alleged free-will and his wisdom.  Accordingly, other doctrine maintains there are many within this middle range between wicked and righteous.

Reformed Doctrine puts all people within the wicked pool in their natural condition of “Total Depravity”, the “T” of “TULIP”, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation.  But, God pulls out certain people from this wicked pool according to His “Unconditional Election”, the “P” of “TULIP”, and infallibly does everything for them to make them righteous by His “Limited Atonement”, by His “Irresistible Grace”, and by His “Preservation of Saints”, the “L”, “I” and “P” of “TULIP”.  Accordingly, there is only the wicked or the righteous with no one in between these two groups of people.

Here is what the Canons of Dordt state in part in its FIRST HEAD OF DOCTRINE Of Divine Predestination:

Article 7.  Election is the unchangeable purpose of God, whereby, before the foundation of the world, he hath out of mere grace, according to the sovereign good pleasure of his own will, chosen, from the whole human race, which had fallen through their own fault, from their primitive state of rectitude, into sin and destruction, a certain number of persons to redemption in Christ, whom he from eternity appointed the Mediator and Head of the elect, and the foundation of Salvation.

This elect number, though by nature neither better nor more deserving than the others, but with them involved in one common misery, God hath decreed to give to Christ, to be saved by him, and effectually to call and draw them to his communion by his Word and Spirit, to bestow upon them true faith, justification and sanctification;  and having powerfully preserved them in the fellowship of his Son, finally, to glorify them for the demonstration of his mercy, and for the praise of his glorious grace; as it is written:  “According as he hath chosen us in him, before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy, and without blame before him in love;  having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, to the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved,”  Ephesians 1:4,5,6.  And elsewhere:  “Whom he did predestinate, them he also called;  and whom he called, them he also justified;  and whom he justified, them he also glorified,”  Romans 8:30.

Article 15.  What peculiarly tends to illustrate and recommend to us the eternal and unmerited grace of election, is the express testimony of sacred Scripture, that not all, but some only are elected, while others are passed by in the eternal election of God;  whom God, out of his sovereign, most just, irreprehensible and unchangeable good pleasure, hath decreed to leave in the common misery into which they have willfully plunged themselves, and not to bestow upon them saving faith and the grace of conversion; but leaving them in his just judgment to follow their own ways, at last for the declaration of his justice, to condemn and punish them forever, not only on account of their unbelief, but also for all their other sins.  And this is the decree of reprobation which by no means makes God the author of sin (the very thought of which is blasphemy), but declares him to be an awful, irreprehensible, and righteous judge and avenger thereof.

Today’s devotion comes from Psalm 37:1-11.

“Do not fret because of evildoers,
Be not envious toward wrongdoers.
2 For they will wither quickly like the grass
And fade like the green herb.
3 Trust in the Lord and do good;
Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.
4 Delight yourself in the Lord;
And He will give you the desires of your heart.
5 Commit your way to the Lord,
Trust also in Him, and He will do it.
6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light
And your judgment as the noonday.

7 Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him;
Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,
Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.
8 Cease from anger and forsake wrath;
Do not fret;  it leads only to evildoing.
9 For evildoers will be cut off,
But those who wait for the Lord, they will inherit the land.
10 Yet a little while and the wicked man will be no more;
And you will look carefully for his place and he will not be there.
11 But the humble will inherit the land
And will delight themselves in abundant prosperity.”   Psalm 37:1-11.

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In today’s Scripture, we are commanded three times:  “Do not fret”.

“Do not fret because of evildoers,
Be not envious toward wrongdoers.”  Verse 1.

“… Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,
Because of the man who carries out wicked schemes.”  Verse 7.

“… Do not fret;  it leads only to evildoing.”  Verse 8.

And yet, many still do fret, thinking that it is OK and that it is their duty to fret as a protective parent or leader etc.  They think that they only suffer.

But, today’s Scripture warns that fretting only leads to evildoing.  Verse 8.

We can readily understand that fretting may cause one to over-react, leading to bad behavior and bad policies and even bad laws.

Fretting shows that the persons fretting does not really trust God.  They believe that they must take things into their own hands rather than trust the Sovereign Almighty LORD.

Today’s Scripture assures us:

“For they (evildoers) will wither quickly like the grass
And fade like the green herb.”  Verse 2.

“For evildoers will be cut off,
But those who wait for the Lord, they will inherit the land.”  Verse 9.

Which doctrine is most consistent with today’s Scripture?

Other doctrine which relies on its own alleged free-will, its own wisdom, and its own works and urges us to “Just do it.”

Or, Reformed Doctrine which continually focuses on the LORD and trusts the LORD and His works?

Today’s devotion comes from Psalm chapter 36.

“Transgression speaks to the ungodly within his heart;
There is no fear of God before his eyes.
2 For it flatters him in his own eyes
Concerning the discovery of his iniquity and the hatred of it.
3 The words of his mouth are wickedness and deceit;
He has ceased to be wise and to do good.
4 He plans wickedness upon his bed;
He sets himself on a path that is not good;
He does not despise evil.

5 Your lovingkindness, O Lord, extends to the heavens,
Your faithfulness reaches to the skies.
6 Your righteousness is like the mountains of God;
Your judgments are like a great deep.
O Lord, You preserve man and beast.
7 How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God!
And the children of men take refuge in the shadow of Your wings.
8 They drink their fill of the abundance of Your house;
And You give them to drink of the river of Your delights.
9 For with You is the fountain of life;
In Your light we see light.

10 O continue Your lovingkindness to those who know You,
And Your righteousness to the upright in heart.
11 Let not the foot of pride come upon me,
And let not the hand of the wicked drive me away.
12 There the doers of iniquity have fallen;
They have been thrust down and cannot rise.”  Psalm chapter 36.

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The wickedness of man is contrasted with the lovingkindness of God in today’s Scripture.

“Why do you boast in evil, O mighty man?
The lovingkindness of God endures all day long.
2 Your tongue devises destruction,
Like a sharp razor, O worker of deceit.
3 You love evil more than good,
Falsehood more than speaking what is right.  Selah.
4 You love all words that devour,
O deceitful tongue.

5 But God will break you down forever;
He will snatch you up and tear you away from your tent,
And uproot you from the land of the living.  Selah.
6 The righteous will see and fear,
And will laugh at him, saying,
7 “Behold, the man who would not make God his refuge,
But trusted in the abundance of his riches
And was strong in his evil desire.”

8 But as for me, I am like a green olive tree in the house of God;
I trust in the lovingkindness of God forever and ever.
9 I will give You thanks forever, because You have done it,
And I will wait on Your name, for it is good, in the presence of Your godly ones.”  Psalm chapter 52.

Today’s devotion comes from Psalm chapter 35.  Here is a link to this chapter – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+35&version=NASB

I quote only verses 1-9.

“Contend, O Lord, with those who contend with me;
Fight against those who fight against me.
2 Take hold of buckler and shield
And rise up for my help.
3 Draw also the spear and the battle-axe to meet those who pursue me;
Say to my soul, “I am your salvation.”
4 Let those be ashamed and dishonored who seek my life;
Let those be turned back and humiliated who devise evil against me.
5 Let them be like chaff before the wind,
With the angel of the Lord driving them on.
6 Let their way be dark and slippery,
With the angel of the Lord pursuing them.
7 For without cause they hid their net for me;
Without cause they dug a pit for my soul.
8 Let destruction come upon him unawares,
And let the net which he hid catch himself;
Into that very destruction let him fall.

9 And my soul shall rejoice in the Lord;
It shall exult in His salvation.”  Psalm 35:1-9.

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Other doctrine wants to dictate how the LORD saves.

Other doctrine forms its doctrine of salvation according to its desires so that man gets partial credit for being an indispensable part of “their” salvation whether it be by man’s works or by man’s alleged free-will choice of Christ.

Other doctrine teaches that man’s works or alleged free-will choice of Christ is a link in the chain of salvation.  If man does not provide that link, then man will not be saved.

Other doctrine wants to distinguish their disciples as deserving salvation above the others so they can boast.

But, Reformed Doctrine simply points to what Scripture shows how the LORD saves.

Reformed Doctrine sees that Scripture teaches that it is “His” salvation, verse 9, that the LORD provides everything needed for “His” salvation from His “Unconditional Election”, to His  “Limited Atonement”, to His “Irresistible Grace”, to His  “Preservation of the Saints”, the “U”, “L”, “I”, and “P” of “TULIP”, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation.

Reformed Doctrine also recognizes that it is necessary and makes logical sense that the LORD provides everything needed for “His” salvation, because Scripture shows “Total Depravity” of man, that is, man is dead in sin, hostile to the LORD, and enslaved to sin and Satan.  Man cannot contribute the link or anything that is needed for salvation.  “Total Depravity” is the “T” of “TULIP”.

Reformed Doctrine teaches that man provides nothing by which they could possibly boast.

“For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble;  but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God.  But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, “Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord.”  1 Corinthians 1:26-31.

Reformed Doctrine exults in His salvation.

“And my soul shall rejoice in the Lord;
It shall exult in His salvation.”  Verse 9.