Reformed Doctrine Daily Devotions

Today’s devotion comes from Psalm chapter 3.

“O Lord, how my adversaries have increased!
Many are rising up against me.
2 Many are saying of my soul,
“There is no deliverance for him in God.”  Selah.

3 But You, O Lord, are a shield about me,
My glory, and the One who lifts my head.
4 I was crying to the Lord with my voice,
And He answered me from His holy mountain.  Selah.
5 I lay down and slept;
I awoke, for the Lord sustains me.
6 I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people
Who have set themselves against me round about.

7 Arise, O Lord;  save me, O my God!
For You have smitten all my enemies on the cheek;
You have shattered the teeth of the wicked.
8 Salvation belongs to the Lord;
Your blessing be upon Your people!  Selah.  Psalm chapter 3.

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Salvation belongs to the LORD 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.

The LORD’s blessing is upon His people 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.

“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.

“And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”  Romans 8:28.

“He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?”  Romans 8:32.

“Who will bring a charge against God’s elect?  God is the one who justifies;  who is the one who condemns?  Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us.  Who will separate us from the love of Christ?  Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?”  Romans 8:33-35.

“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.

Today’s devotion comes from Psalm chapter 2.

“Why are the nations in an uproar
And the peoples devising a vain thing?
2 The kings of the earth take their stand
And the rulers take counsel together
Against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying,
3 “Let us tear their fetters apart
And cast away their cords from us!”

4 He who sits in the heavens laughs,
The Lord scoffs at them.
5 Then He will speak to them in His anger
And terrify them in His fury, saying,
6 “But as for Me, I have installed My King
Upon Zion, My holy mountain.”

7 “I will surely tell of the decree of the Lord:
He said to Me, ‘You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You.
8 ‘Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance,
And the very ends of the earth as Your possession.
9 ‘You shall break them with a rod of iron,
You shall shatter them like earthenware.’”

10 Now therefore, O kings, show discernment;
Take warning, O judges of the earth.
11 Worship the Lord with reverence
And rejoice with trembling.
12 Do homage to the Son, that He not become angry, and you perish in the way,
For His wrath may soon be kindled.
How blessed are all who take refuge in Him!”   Psalm chapter 2.

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Psalm 2 presents a vivid description of God’s tight and total sovereign reign over everything through Christ, the Son of God.

There are those who are content with God’s control over creation but who bristle and rebel against God’s control over their alleged free-will.  Through their doctrine, they try to tear apart God’s tight and total control over them.  “Let us tear their fetters apart And cast away their cords from us!”  Verse 3.

But, God does not bend to their wishes.

“4 He who sits in the heavens laughs,
The Lord scoffs at them.
5 Then He will speak to them in His anger
And terrify them in His fury, saying,
6 “But as for Me, I have installed My King
Upon Zion, My holy mountain.”

7 “I will surely tell of the decree of the Lord:
He said to Me, ‘You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You.
8 ‘Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance,
And the very ends of the earth as Your possession.
9 ‘You shall break them with a rod of iron,
You shall shatter them like earthenware.’”  Psalm 2:4-9.

“But these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slay them in my presence.”  Luke 19:27.

But, there are the blessed who take refuge in God in His “Unconditional Election”, in His “Limited Atonement”, in His “Irresistible Grace”, and in His “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 1.

“How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked,
Nor stand in the path of sinners,
Nor sit in the seat of scoffers!
2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
3 He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water,
Which yields its fruit in its season
And its leaf does not wither;
And in whatever he does, he prospers.

4 The wicked are not so,
But they are like chaff which the wind drives away.
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
6 For the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
But the way of the wicked will perish.”    Psalm chapter 1.

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“But his delight is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.”  Verse 2.

Other doctrine depends on its wisdom and alleged free-will and sense of duty and reward to motivate to read God’s Word.

But, Reformed Doctrine recognizes “Total Depravity” as the natural condition of man.  Man is not wise.  Man does not understand.  Man is not free, but rather, man is enslaved to sin and Satan.  Man is not good.  Man does not seek God.

“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.

Instead, Reformed Doctrine recognizes “Irresistible Grace” as God’s gift to His elect.  God gives His elect a love of truth and a desire to seek God and read God’s word.  God gives understanding of God’s Word to His elect.  And, God guides His elect into all truth. 

And, there are those who did not receive the love of the truth to be saved:  “and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved.”  2 Thessalonians 2:10.

But, for those who have received the Spirit of God:  “But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth;  for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak;  and He will disclose to you what is to come.  He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you.  All things that the Father has are Mine;  therefore I said that He takes of Mine and will disclose it to you.”  John 16:13-15.

“How blessed”!  Verse 1.

Today’s devotion comes from Job chapter 42.

“Then Job answered the Lord and said,

2 “I know that You can do all things,
And that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted.
3 ‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’
Therefore I have declared that which I did not understand,
Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.”
4 ‘Hear, now, and I will speak;
I will ask You, and You instruct me.’
5 “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear;
But now my eye sees You;
6 Therefore I retract,
And I repent in dust and ashes.”

7 It came about after the Lord had spoken these words to Job, that the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My wrath is kindled against you and against your two friends, because you have not spoken of Me what is right as My servant Job has.  8 Now therefore, take for yourselves seven bulls and seven rams, and go to My servant Job, and offer up a burnt offering for yourselves, and My servant Job will pray for you.  For I will accept him so that I may not do with you according to your folly, because you have not spoken of Me what is right, as My servant Job has.”  9 So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went and did as the Lord told them;  and the Lord accepted Job.

10 The Lord restored the fortunes of Job when he prayed for his friends, and the Lord increased all that Job had twofold.  11 Then all his brothers and all his sisters and all who had known him before came to him, and they ate bread with him in his house;  and they consoled him and comforted him for all the adversities that the Lord had brought on him.  And each one gave him one piece of money, and each a ring of gold.  12 The Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning;  and he had 14,000 sheep and 6,000 camels and 1,000 yoke of oxen and 1,000 female donkeys.  13 He had seven sons and three daughters.  14 He named the first Jemimah, and the second Keziah, and the third Keren-happuch.  15 In all the land no women were found so fair as Job’s daughters;  and their father gave them inheritance among their brothers.  16 After this, Job lived 140 years, and saw his sons and his grandsons, four generations.  17 And Job died, an old man and full of days.”  Job chapter 42.

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The temptation for us is to focus only on our own faith and righteousness.  We could easily focus only on Job’s confession of faith:  “I know that You can do all things, And that no purpose of Yours can be thwarted.”  Verse 2.  Certainly, it is true, and our mind races to our Scripture to support it.

But, we notice and find it interesting that the LORD did not immediately praise Job for his confession, retraction, and repentance.

Instead, immediately after Job’s confession and repentance, we read about the LORD addressing Eliphaz the Temanite, one of Job’s friends, informing him of His wrath against them and commanding that he offer up a burnt offering so that He would not punish them according to their folly.

We also notice that the LORD did not restore the fortunes of Job when Job made his confession, retraction, and repentance;  rather, “The Lord restored the fortunes of Job when he prayed for his friends, and the Lord increased all that Job had twofold.”  Verse 10.

We can be proud of our own wisdom and understanding of Reformed Doctrine.  We can be satisfied with our own faith and righteousness.

But, today’s Scripture leads us to care for and pray for others like Job did for his friends.

“I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.”  Luke 15:7.

We, Reformed Folk, tend to be like the older brother in the parable of The Prodigal Son.  We think:  “… Look!  For so many years I have been serving you and I have never neglected a command of yours;  and yet you have never given me a young goat, so that I might celebrate with my friends;  but when this son of yours came, who has devoured your wealth with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him.”  Luke 15:29-30.

And yet, we notice the father’s response:  “… Son, you have always been with me, and all that is mine is yours.  But we had to celebrate and rejoice, for this brother of yours was dead and has begun to live, and was lost and has been found.’”  Luke 15:31-32.

In conclusion, let us use today’s Scripture to seek to be a good Big Brother and care for and pray for our brothers rather than being content with our own faith and righteousness.

Today’s devotion comes from Job chapter 41.  Here is a link to this chapter – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Job+41&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“Can you draw out Leviathan with a fishhook?
Or press down his tongue with a cord?
2 “Can you put a rope in his nose
Or pierce his jaw with a hook?
3 “Will he make many supplications to you,
Or will he speak to you soft words?
4 “Will he make a covenant with you?
Will you take him for a servant forever?
5 “Will you play with him as with a bird,
Or will you bind him for your maidens?
6 “Will the traders bargain over him?
Will they divide him among the merchants?
7 “Can you fill his skin with harpoons,
Or his head with fishing spears?
8 “Lay your hand on him;
Remember the battle;  you will not do it again!
9 “Behold, your expectation is false;
Will you be laid low even at the sight of him?
10 “No one is so fierce that he dares to arouse him;
Who then is he that can stand before Me?
11 “Who has given to Me that I should repay him?
Whatever is under the whole heaven is Mine.”  Job 41:1-11.

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God confronts those who try to argue with God or otherwise make rambling statements that show how little they know about God and how little they respect Him.

God presents His creature Leviathan, and how fierce and uncontrollable it is, in order to teach that if people have such fear for Leviathan, how much more fear they should have for God, its Creator!

“10 “No one is so fierce that he dares to arouse him;
Who then is he that can stand before Me?
11 “Who has given to Me that I should repay him?
Whatever is under the whole heaven is Mine.”  Job 41:10-11.

“But I will warn you whom to fear:  fear the One who, after He has killed, has authority to cast into hell;  yes, I tell you, fear Him!”  Luke 12:5.

And yet, man foolishly, casually, and sinfully speaks of God as “the man upstairs” and otherwise tries to degrade God to an image of man or animal.

“For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.  For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.  Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.”  Romans 1:20-23.

Scripture teaches us how to properly and respectfully think about God.

“Not to us, O Lord, not to us,
But to Your name give glory
Because of Your lovingkindness, because of Your truth.
2 Why should the nations say,
“Where, now, is their God?”
3 But our God is in the heavens;
He does whatever He pleases.
4 Their idols are silver and gold,
The work of man’s hands.”  Psalm 115:1-4.

“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.

“The Lord reigns, let the peoples tremble;
He is enthroned above the cherubim, let the earth shake!
2 The Lord is great in Zion,
And He is exalted above all the peoples.
3 Let them praise Your great and awesome name;
Holy is He.”  Psalm 99:1-3.

“Tremble, and do not sin;
Meditate in your heart upon your bed, and be still.  Selah.”  Psalm 4:4.

“… For God is in heaven and you are on the earth;  therefore let your words be few.”  Ecclesiastes 5:2.

Today’s devotion comes from Job chapter 40.  Here is a link to this chapter – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Job+40&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“Then the Lord said to Job,

2 “Will the faultfinder contend with the Almighty?
Let him who reproves God answer it.”

3 Then Job answered the Lord and said,

4 “Behold, I am insignificant;  what can I reply to You?
I lay my hand on my mouth.
5 “Once I have spoken, and I will not answer;
Even twice, and I will add nothing more.”

6 Then the Lord answered Job out of the storm and said,

7 “Now gird up your loins like a man;
I will ask you, and you instruct Me.
8 “Will you really annul My judgment?
Will you condemn Me that you may be justified?
9 “Or do you have an arm like God,
And can you thunder with a voice like His?

10 “Adorn yourself with eminence and dignity,
And clothe yourself with honor and majesty.
11 “Pour out the overflowings of your anger,
And look on everyone who is proud, and make him low.
12 “Look on everyone who is proud, and humble him,
And tread down the wicked where they stand.
13 “Hide them in the dust together;
Bind them in the hidden place.
14 “Then I will also confess to you,
That your own right hand can save you.”  Job 40:1-14.

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“Will you really annul My judgment?
Will you condemn Me that you may be justified?”  Verse 8.

Other doctrine futilely tries to annul God’s judgment of “Unconditional Election” and tries to condemn God by claiming that He is unjust by saving on that basis of “Unconditional Election”, the “U” of “TULIP”, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation.  And, this other doctrine futilely tries to condemn God and remove “Unconditional Election” in the vain hope that it will then be able to justify itself on the basis of its works or alleged free-will.

“14 What shall we say then?  There is no injustice with God, is there?  May it never be!  15 For He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.”  16 So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy.  17 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.”  18 So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires.

19 You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault?  For who resists His will?”  20 On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God?  The thing molded will not say to the molder, “Why did you make me like this,” will it?  21 Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for common use?  22 What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction?  23 And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory, 24 even us, whom He also called, not from among Jews only, but also from among Gentiles.”  Romans 9:14-23.

To use the language of verse 14, other doctrine falsely teaches that its right hand of works and alleged free-will can save itself.

But, the best of them cannot save themselves, much less save their disciples.

Our salvation is solely and ultimately dependent on God’s “Unconditional Election”.  “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.”  Romans 9:15-16.

Not only is “Unconditional Election” taught in Scripture as stated above in Romans 9:14-23, “Unconditional Election” logically makes sense, because Scripture also teaches “Total Depravity”:

“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.

“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.

Because Scripture teaches man does not produce any works or will which motivate God to save him (man is “dead in sin”), man’s only chance for salvation is that God will unconditionally elect some for salvation and do everything else to accomplish salvation from “Unconditional Election” to “Limited Atonement” to “Irresistible Grace” to “Preservation of the Saints”, the “U”, “L”, “I”, and “P” of “TULIP”, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation.

For those who still rebel against God’s absolute rule, Scripture warns:

“2 The kings of the earth take their stand
And the rulers take counsel together
Against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying,
3 “Let us tear their fetters apart
And cast away their cords from us!”

4 He who sits in the heavens laughs,
The Lord scoffs at them.
5 Then He will speak to them in His anger
And terrify them in His fury, saying,
6 “But as for Me, I have installed My King
Upon Zion, My holy mountain.”  Psalm 2:2-6.

“But these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slay them in my presence.”  Luke 19:27.

Today’s devotion comes from Job chapter 39.

““Do you know the time the mountain goats give birth?
Do you observe the calving of the deer?
2 “Can you count the months they fulfill,
Or do you know the time they give birth?
3 “They kneel down, they bring forth their young,
They get rid of their labor pains.
4 “Their offspring become strong, they grow up in the open field;
They leave and do not return to them.

5 “Who sent out the wild donkey free?
And who loosed the bonds of the swift donkey,
6 To whom I gave the wilderness for a home
And the salt land for his dwelling place?
7 “He scorns the tumult of the city,
The shoutings of the driver he does not hear.
8 “He explores the mountains for his pasture
And searches after every green thing.
9 “Will the wild ox consent to serve you,
Or will he spend the night at your manger?
10 “Can you bind the wild ox in a furrow with ropes,
Or will he harrow the valleys after you?
11 “Will you trust him because his strength is great
And leave your labor to him?
12 “Will you have faith in him that he will return your grain
And gather it from your threshing floor?

13 “The ostriches’ wings flap joyously
With the pinion and plumage of love,
14 For she abandons her eggs to the earth
And warms them in the dust,
15 And she forgets that a foot may crush them,
Or that a wild beast may trample them.
16 “She treats her young cruelly, as if they were not hers;
Though her labor be in vain, she is unconcerned;
17 Because God has made her forget wisdom,
And has not given her a share of understanding.
18 “When she lifts herself on high,
She laughs at the horse and his rider.

19 “Do you give the horse his might?
Do you clothe his neck with a mane?
20 “Do you make him leap like the locust?
His majestic snorting is terrible.
21 “He paws in the valley, and rejoices in his strength;
He goes out to meet the weapons.
22 “He laughs at fear and is not dismayed;
And he does not turn back from the sword.
23 “The quiver rattles against him,
The flashing spear and javelin.
24 “With shaking and rage he races over the ground,
And he does not stand still at the voice of the trumpet.
25 “As often as the trumpet sounds he says, ‘Aha!’
And he scents the battle from afar,
And the thunder of the captains and the war cry.

26 “Is it by your understanding that the hawk soars,
Stretching his wings toward the south?
27 “Is it at your command that the eagle mounts up
And makes his nest on high?
28 “On the cliff he dwells and lodges,
Upon the rocky crag, an inaccessible place.
29 “From there he spies out food;
His eyes see it from afar.
30 “His young ones also suck up blood;
And where the slain are, there is he.”  Job chapter 39.

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God speaks of some of His awesome creativity in His creation to prove His wisdom and the lack of Job’s understanding in stark contrast.

“24 O Lord, how many are Your works!
In wisdom You have made them all;
The earth is full of Your possessions.
25 There is the sea, great and broad,
In which are swarms without number,
Animals both small and great.”  Psalm 104:24-25.

“3 Great is the Lord, and highly to be praised,
And His greatness is unsearchable.
4 One generation shall praise Your works to another,
And shall declare Your mighty acts.
5 On the glorious splendor of Your majesty
And on Your wonderful works, I will meditate.
6 Men shall speak of the power of Your awesome acts,
And I will tell of Your greatness.
7 They shall eagerly utter the memory of Your abundant goodness
And will shout joyfully of Your righteousness.”   Psalm 145:3-7.

Today’s devotion comes from Job chapter 38.  Here is a link to this chapter – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Job+38&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“Then the Lord answered Job out of the whirlwind and said,

2 “Who is this that darkens counsel
By words without knowledge?
3 “Now gird up your loins like a man,
And I will ask you, and you instruct Me!
4 “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?
Tell Me, if you have understanding,
5 Who set its measurements?  Since you know.
Or who stretched the line on it?

…

8 “Or who enclosed the sea with doors
When, bursting forth, it went out from the womb;
9 When I made a cloud its garment
And thick darkness its swaddling band,
10 And I placed boundaries on it
And set a bolt and doors,
11 And I said, ‘Thus far you shall come, but no farther;
And here shall your proud waves stop’?

12 “Have you ever in your life commanded the morning,
And caused the dawn to know its place,
13 That it might take hold of the ends of the earth,
And the wicked be shaken out of it?

…

15 “From the wicked their light is withheld,
And the uplifted arm is broken.

…

25 “Who has cleft a channel for the flood,
Or a way for the thunderbolt,
26 To bring rain on a land without people,
On a desert without a man in it,
27 To satisfy the waste and desolate land
And to make the seeds of grass to sprout?

…

31 “Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades,
Or loose the cords of Orion?
32 “Can you lead forth a constellation in its season,
And guide the Bear with her satellites?
33 “Do you know the ordinances of the heavens,
Or fix their rule over the earth?

34 “Can you lift up your voice to the clouds,
So that an abundance of water will cover you?
35 “Can you send forth lightnings that they may go
And say to you, ‘Here we are’?

…

39 “Can you hunt the prey for the lion,
Or satisfy the appetite of the young lions,
40 When they crouch in their dens
And lie in wait in their lair?
41 “Who prepares for the raven its nourishment
When its young cry to God
And wander about without food?”  Job 38:1-5 and 8-13 and 15 and 25-27 and 31-35 and 39-41.

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“Bless the Lord, O my soul!
O Lord my God, You are very great;
You are clothed with splendor and majesty,”  Psalm 104:1.

“O Lord, how many are Your works!
In wisdom You have made them all;
The earth is full of Your possessions.”  Psalm 104:24.

“31 Let the glory of the Lord endure forever;
Let the Lord be glad in His works;
32 He looks at the earth, and it trembles;
He touches the mountains, and they smoke.
33 I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.
34 Let my meditation be pleasing to Him;
As for me, I shall be glad in the Lord.
35 Let sinners be consumed from the earth
And let the wicked be no more.
Bless the Lord, O my soul.
Praise the Lord!”  Psalm 104:31-35.

“Q. 26.  What believest thou when thou sayest, “I believe in God the Father, Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth”?

A.  That the eternal Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (who of nothing made heaven and earth, with all that is in them;  who likewise upholds and governs the same by His eternal counsel and providence) is, for the sake of Christ His Son, my God and my Father;  on whom I rely so entirely, that I have no doubt but He will provide me with all things necessary for soul and body;  and further, that He will make whatever evils He sends upon me, in this valley of tears, turn out to my advantage;  for He is able to do it, being Almighty God, and willing, being a faithful Father.”  Heidelberg Catechism.

Today’s devotion comes from Job chapter 37.  Here is a link to this chapter – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Job+37&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“23 “The Almighty—we cannot find Him;
He is exalted in power
And He will not do violence to justice and abundant righteousness.
24 “Therefore men fear Him;
He does not regard any who are wise of heart.”  Job 37:23-24.

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Other doctrine relies on the wisdom of man to find and choose God through his alleged free-will.

Reformed Doctrine relies on the wisdom of God to find and choose man through His “Unconditional Election”, the “U” of “TULIP”, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation.

“18 For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.  19 For it is written,

“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
And the cleverness of the clever I will set aside.”

20 Where is the wise man?  Where is the scribe?  Where is the debater of this age?  Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?  21 For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.  22 For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom;  23 but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, 24 but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.  25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

26 For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble;  27 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, 28 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, 29 so that no man may boast before God.  30 But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, 31 so that, just as it is written, “Let him who boasts, boast in the Lord.”  1 Corinthians 1:18-31.