Reformed Doctrine Daily Devotions

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

I quote only the following verses.

“5 “Look at the heavens and see;
And behold the clouds—they are higher than you.
6 “If you have sinned, what do you accomplish against Him?
And if your transgressions are many, what do you do to Him?
7 “If you are righteous, what do you give to Him,
Or what does He receive from your hand?
8 “Your wickedness is for a man like yourself,
And your righteousness is for a son of man.”  Job 35:5-8.

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“The Lord knows the thoughts of man,
That they are a mere breath.”  Psalm 94:11.

“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.”  Psalm 39:4-6.

“7 For we have been consumed by Your anger
And by Your wrath we have been dismayed.
8 You have placed our iniquities before You,
Our secret sins in the light of Your presence.
9 For all our days have declined in Your fury;
We have finished our years like a sigh.
10 As for the days of our life, they contain seventy years,
Or if due to strength, eighty years,
Yet their pride is but labor and sorrow;
For soon it is gone and we fly away.
11 Who understands the power of Your anger
And Your fury, according to the fear that is due You?
12 So teach us to number our days,
That we may present to You a heart of wisdom.”  Psalm 90:7-12.

Other doctrine gets pumped up by man’s alleged free-will.

But, Reformed Doctrine recognizes that man’s thoughts are a mere breath and places its hope in God alone 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.

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

I quote only the following verses.

“10 “Therefore, listen to me, you men of understanding.
Far be it from God to do wickedness,
And from the Almighty to do wrong.
11 “For He pays a man according to his work,
And makes him find it according to his way.
12 “Surely, God will not act wickedly,
And the Almighty will not pervert justice.”  Job 34:10-12.

———————-

Elihu emphasizes God’s justice in this chapter to wrongly accuse Job of sin and rebellion.  Elihu makes the deduction and inference that Job must be in sin and rebellion, because Job is suffering so much.

Although Elihu’s deduction and accusations of Job were wrong, Elihu’s general point (that God is just) is right.

“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked;  for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.  For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.”  Galatians 6:7-8.

“For God is not unjust so as to forget your work and the love which you have shown toward His name, in having ministered and in still ministering to the saints.”  Hebrews 6:10.

“According to the grace of God which was given to me, like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building on it.  But each man must be careful how he builds on it.  For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.  Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each man’s work will become evident;  for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man’s work.  If any man’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward.  If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss;  but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.”  1 Corinthians 3:10-15.

“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.”  2 Corinthians 5:10.

Although God pays a man according to his work, which is terrrifying for the wicked, there is hope even in Elihu’s words at the end of verse 11 of today’s Scripture:  “And makes him find it according to his way.”  In other words, God makes His elect find the work that they should do according to his way.  Verse 11.

First, “… we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”  Ephesians 2:10.

Second, God instructs us and teaches us in the way which we should go;  God counsels us with His eye upon us.  Psalm 32:8.

Third, “for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.”  Philippians 2:13.

Fourth, “For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.”  Philippians 1:6.

Today’s devotion comes from Job chapter 33.  Here is a link to this chapter – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Job+33&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“14 “Indeed God speaks once,
Or twice, yet no one notices it.
15 “In a dream, a vision of the night,
When sound sleep falls on men,
While they slumber in their beds,
16 Then He opens the ears of men,
And seals their instruction,
17 That He may turn man aside from his conduct,
And keep man from pride;
18 He keeps back his soul from the pit,
And his life from passing over into Sheol.

19 “Man is also chastened with pain on his bed,
And with unceasing complaint in his bones;
20 So that his life loathes bread,
And his soul favorite food.
21 “His flesh wastes away from sight,
And his bones which were not seen stick out.
22 “Then his soul draws near to the pit,
And his life to those who bring death.

23 “If there is an angel as mediator for him,
One out of a thousand,
To remind a man what is right for him,
24 Then let him be gracious to him, and say,
‘Deliver him from going down to the pit,
I have found a ransom’;
25 Let his flesh become fresher than in youth,
Let him return to the days of his youthful vigor;
26 Then he will pray to God, and He will accept him,
That he may see His face with joy,
And He may restore His righteousness to man.
27 “He will sing to men and say,
‘I have sinned and perverted what is right,
And it is not proper for me.
28 ‘He has redeemed my soul from going to the pit,
And my life shall see the light.’

29 “Behold, God does all these oftentimes with men,
30 To bring back his soul from the pit,
That he may be enlightened with the light of life.”  Job 33:14-30.

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Five times, the image of man going down to the pit is presented in today’s Scripture.

Such an image of man going down to the pit vividly shows man’s helpless state.

Other doctrine portrays man as helpful and capable of saving himself or at least portrays man as somehow attractive to God.

But, Reformed Doctrine presents the “Total Depravity” of man, very similar to this image of man going down to the pit. 

Canons of Dordt speak of “one common misery” of all men and that those who were saved were not saved because of any “foreseen faith, and the obedience of faith, holiness, or any other good quality of disposition in man”.  Articles 7 and 9 in FIRST HEAD OF DOCTRINE Of Divine Predestination of Canons of Dordt.

Those that were saved from going down to the pit were saved because of God’s “Unconditional Election” of them, the “U” of “TULIP”, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation.

“O Lord, You have brought up my soul from Sheol;
You have kept me alive, that I would not go down to the pit.”  Psalm 30:3.

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.  FIRST HEAD OF DOCTRINE Of Divine Predestination of Canons of Dordt.

“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.

Today’s devotion comes from Job chapter 32.  Here is a link to this chapter – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Job%2032&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“Then these three men ceased answering Job, because he was righteous in his own eyes.  2 But the anger of Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite, of the family of Ram burned;  against Job his anger burned because he justified himself before God.  3 And his anger burned against his three friends because they had found no answer, and yet had condemned Job.  4 Now Elihu had waited to speak to Job because they were years older than he.  5 And when Elihu saw that there was no answer in the mouth of the three men his anger burned.

6 So Elihu the son of Barachel the Buzite spoke out and said,

“I am young in years and you are old;
Therefore I was shy and afraid to tell you what I think.
7 “I thought age should speak,
And increased years should teach wisdom.
8 “But it is a spirit in man,
And the breath of the Almighty gives them understanding.
9 “The abundant in years may not be wise,
Nor may elders understand justice.
10 “So I say, ‘Listen to me,
I too will tell what I think.’”  Job 32:1-10.

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There are those who are “always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.”  2 Timothy 3:7.

They are like “…  children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming;”  Ephesians 4:14.

They may be in church every Sunday and attend every Sunday School class thinking that they are quite righteous just because they attend.

They will listen to sound doctrine but form no conviction.  They will listen to unsound doctrine but not resist nor refute.

Just because a preacher or teacher claims to be Christian and quotes Scripture, it does not necessarily mean that he is preaching the gospel.  “Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many.”  Matthew 24:11.

“‘But in vain do they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.’”  Matthew 15:9 and Mark 7:7.

So, what is the gospel?

The gospel is good news.

It certainly is not good news for your salvation to be dependent on your works or even your will.

“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 3:11-12.

It certainly is good news for your salvation to be dependent on God alone 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.

The gospel is all about grace, God’s grace to us.

What is a better expression of grace?

A gospel in which man deserves some credit?

Or, the gospel in which man deserves no credit? 

“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.

In conclusion, the gospel is summarized by “TULIP”, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation.

Why are so many ashamed of it?

Why are so many willing to entertain different doctrines? 

“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.  For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false, in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness.

But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth.  It was for this He called you through our gospel, that you may gain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.  So then, brethren, stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught, whether by word of mouth or by letter from us.”  2 Thessalonians 2:10-15.

Today’s devotion comes from Job chapter 31.  Here is a link to this chapter – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Job%2031&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“I have made a covenant with my eyes;
How then could I gaze at a virgin?
2 “And what is the portion of God from above
Or the heritage of the Almighty from on high?
3 “Is it not calamity to the unjust
And disaster to those who work iniquity?
4 “Does He not see my ways
And number all my steps?

5 “If I have walked with falsehood,
And my foot has hastened after deceit,
6 Let Him weigh me with accurate scales,
And let God know my integrity.
7 “If my step has turned from the way,
Or my heart followed my eyes,
Or if any spot has stuck to my hands,
8 Let me sow and another eat,
And let my crops be uprooted.

9 “If my heart has been enticed by a woman,
Or I have lurked at my neighbor’s doorway,
10 May my wife grind for another,
And let others kneel down over her.
11 “For that would be a lustful crime;
Moreover, it would be an iniquity punishable by judges.

…

16 “If I have kept the poor from their desire,
Or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail,
17 Or have eaten my morsel alone,
And the orphan has not shared it
18 (But from my youth he grew up with me as with a father,
And from infancy I guided her),
19 If I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing,
Or that the needy had no covering,
20 If his loins have not thanked me,
And if he has not been warmed with the fleece of my sheep,
21 If I have lifted up my hand against the orphan,
Because I saw I had support in the gate,
22 Let my shoulder fall from the socket,
And my arm be broken off at the elbow.
23 “For calamity from God is a terror to me,
And because of His majesty I can do nothing.

24 “If I have put my confidence in gold,
And called fine gold my trust,
25 If I have gloated because my wealth was great,
And because my hand had secured so much;
26 If I have looked at the sun when it shone
Or the moon going in splendor,
27 And my heart became secretly enticed,
And my hand threw a kiss from my mouth,
28 That too would have been an iniquity calling for judgment,
For I would have denied God above.

…

38 “If my land cries out against me,
And its furrows weep together;
39 If I have eaten its fruit without money,
Or have caused its owners to lose their lives,
40 Let briars grow instead of wheat,
And stinkweed instead of barley.”

The words of Job are ended.”  Job 31:1-11 and 16-28 and 38-40.

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Job realized that God is the Almighty and Just Judge Who sees and knows everything and punishes sin.  Job also realized that there were many different types of sin, so Job was very careful to not sin.  Job inferred that his suffering was not caused by God as a punishment for sin.  To paraphrase Job, a summary of what he is saying in this chapter is:  “If I sinned, let me be punished.  But, I have not sinned, so why am I being punished?”

O Lord, You have searched me and known me.
2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
You understand my thought from afar.
3 You scrutinize my path and my lying down,
And are intimately acquainted with all my ways.
4 Even before there is a word on my tongue,
Behold, O Lord, You know it all.
5 You have enclosed me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is too high, I cannot attain to it.

…

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me and know my anxious thoughts;
24 And see if there be any hurtful way in me,
And lead me in the everlasting way.”  Psalm 139:1-6 and 23-24.

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

I quote only the following verses.

“10 “They abhor me and stand aloof from me,
And they do not refrain from spitting at my face.

…

“15 “Terrors are turned against me;
They pursue my honor as the wind,
And my prosperity has passed away like a cloud.

16 “And now my soul is poured out within me;
Days of affliction have seized me.

17 “At night it pierces my bones within me,
And my gnawing pains take no rest.

…

26 “When I expected good, then evil came;
When I waited for light, then darkness came.
27 “I am seething within and cannot relax;
Days of affliction confront me.

28 “I go about mourning without comfort;
I stand up in the assembly and cry out for help.

29 “I have become a brother to jackals
And a companion of ostriches.
30 “My skin turns black on me,
And my bones burn with fever.”  Job 30:10 and 15-17 and 26-30.

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Job is humiliated, persecuted, and otherwise afflicted.  He is in physical pain and in mental anguish.  He is scarred and lonely.  He is in mourning without comfort.

Job may feel totally alone.  But, he is not alone.  When we read the Psalms, we read of similar experiences of the righteous.  We too may feel some of what Job experienced.

“22 But for Your sake we are killed all day long;
We are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.
23 Arouse Yourself, why do You sleep, O Lord?
Awake, do not reject us forever.
24 Why do You hide Your face
And forget our affliction and our oppression?
25 For our soul has sunk down into the dust;
Our body cleaves to the earth.
26 Rise up, be our help,
And redeem us for the sake of Your lovingkindness.”  Psalm 44:22-26.

Other doctrine places its hope that there is something attractive about us (maybe our works, our wisdom, our will, or that we are just cute) that will attract God to us and motivate Him to save us.

But, Reformed Doctrine knows that there is nothing attractive about us in our natural condition.  We were dead in sin, hostile to God, and enslaved to sin and Satan as taught by “Total Depravity”, the “T” of “TULIP”, the  Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation.

Reformed Doctrine places its hope that despite our “Total Depravity”, God elected us for salvation.

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.  FIRST HEAD OF DOCTRINE Of Divine Predestination of Canons of Dordt.

“For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.  For one will hardly die for a righteous man;  though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die.  But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”  Romans 5:6-8.

“Who will separate us from the love of Christ?  Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?  Just as it is written,

“For Your sake we are being put to death all day long;
We were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”

But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us.  For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”  Romans 8:35-39.

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

I quote only the following verses.

“And Job again took up his discourse and said,

2 “Oh that I were as in months gone by,
As in the days when God watched over me;
3 When His lamp shone over my head,
And by His light I walked through darkness;
4 As I was in the prime of my days,
When the friendship of God was over my tent;
5 When the Almighty was yet with me,
And my children were around me;
6 When my steps were bathed in butter,
And the rock poured out for me streams of oil!
7 “When I went out to the gate of the city,
When I took my seat in the square,
8 The young men saw me and hid themselves,
And the old men arose and stood.
9 “The princes stopped talking
And put their hands on their mouths;
10 The voice of the nobles was hushed,
And their tongue stuck to their palate.
11 “For when the ear heard, it called me blessed,
And when the eye saw, it gave witness of me,
12 Because I delivered the poor who cried for help,
And the orphan who had no helper.
13 “The blessing of the one ready to perish came upon me,
And I made the widow’s heart sing for joy.
14 “I put on righteousness, and it clothed me;
My justice was like a robe and a turban.
15 “I was eyes to the blind
And feet to the lame.
16 “I was a father to the needy,
And I investigated the case which I did not know.
17 “I broke the jaws of the wicked
And snatched the prey from his teeth.”  Job 29:1-17.

——————–

“I will rejoice greatly in the Lord,
My soul will exult in my God;
For He has clothed me with garments of salvation,
He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness,
As a bridegroom decks himself with a garland,
And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.”  Isaiah 61:10.

“7 You have put gladness in my heart,
More than when their grain and new wine abound.
8 In peace I will both lie down and sleep,
For You alone, O Lord, make me to dwell in safety.”  Psalm 4:7-8.

“11 For the Lord God is a sun and shield;
The Lord gives grace and glory;
No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly.
12 O Lord of hosts,
How blessed is the man who trusts in You!”  Psalm 84:11-12.

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

I quote only the following verses.

“12 “But where can wisdom be found?
And where is the place of understanding?
13 “Man does not know its value,
Nor is it found in the land of the living.
14 “The deep says, ‘It is not in me’;
And the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’
15 “Pure gold cannot be given in exchange for it,
Nor can silver be weighed as its price.
16 “It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir,
In precious onyx, or sapphire.
17 “Gold or glass cannot equal it,
Nor can it be exchanged for articles of fine gold.
18 “Coral and crystal are not to be mentioned;
And the acquisition of wisdom is above that of pearls.
19 “The topaz of Ethiopia cannot equal it,
Nor can it be valued in pure gold.
20 “Where then does wisdom come from?
And where is the place of understanding?
21 “Thus it is hidden from the eyes of all living
And concealed from the birds of the sky.
22 “Abaddon and Death say,
‘With our ears we have heard a report of it.’

23 “God understands its way,
And He knows its place.
24 “For He looks to the ends of the earth
And sees everything under the heavens.
25 “When He imparted weight to the wind
And meted out the waters by measure,
26 When He set a limit for the rain
And a course for the thunderbolt,
27 Then He saw it and declared it;
He established it and also searched it out.
28 “And to man He said, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom;
And to depart from evil is understanding.’”  Job 28:12-28.

———————

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.”  Proverbs 9:10.

“Thus says the Lord, “Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches;  but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord who exercises lovingkindness, justice and righteousness on earth;  for I delight in these things,” declares the Lord.”  Jeremiah 9:23-24.

Other doctrine seeks to know man.

But, Reformed Doctrine seeks to know God.

Other doctrine fears man.

But, Reformed Doctrine fears God.

Other doctrine seeks to know man’s works and man’s alleged free-will.

But, Reformed Doctrine seeks to know God’s works and God’s will 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.

Article 8.  For this was the sovereign counsel, and most gracious will and purpose of God the Father, that the quickening and saving efficacy of the most precious death of his Son should extend to all the elect, for bestowing upon them alone the gift of justifying faith, thereby to bring them infallibly to salvation:  that is, it was the will of God, that Christ by the blood of the cross, whereby he confirmed the new covenant, should effectually redeem out of every people, tribe, nation, and language, all those, and those only, who were from eternity chosen to salvation, and given to him by the Father; that he should confer upon them faith, which together with all the other saving gifts of the Holy Spirit, he purchased for them by his death;  should purge them from all sin, both original and actual, whether committed before or after believing;  and having faithfully preserved them even to the end, should at last bring them free from every spot and blemish to the enjoyment of glory in his own presence forever.  SECOND HEAD OF DOCTRINE Of the Death of Christ, and the Redemption of Men Thereby.  Canons of Dordt.

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

“11 “I will instruct you in the power of God;
What is with the Almighty I will not conceal.
12 “Behold, all of you have seen it;
Why then do you act foolishly?

13 “This is the portion of a wicked man from God,
And the inheritance which tyrants receive from the Almighty.
14 “Though his sons are many, they are destined for the sword;
And his descendants will not be satisfied with bread.
15 “His survivors will be buried because of the plague,
And their widows will not be able to weep.
16 “Though he piles up silver like dust
And prepares garments as plentiful as the clay,
17 He may prepare it, but the just will wear it
And the innocent will divide the silver.
18 “He has built his house like the spider’s web,
Or as a hut which the watchman has made.
19 “He lies down rich, but never again;
He opens his eyes, and it is no longer.
20 “Terrors overtake him like a flood;
A tempest steals him away in the night.
21 “The east wind carries him away, and he is gone,
For it whirls him away from his place.
22 “For it will hurl at him without sparing;
He will surely try to flee from its power.
23 “Men will clap their hands at him
And will hiss him from his place.”  Job 27:11-23.

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Other doctrine portrays a god who wants to save everyone but is powerless to save any one unless that one exercises his or her alleged free-will to choose that god.

But, Reformed Doctrine points to the God of Scripture Who only wants to save His Elect ones (also known as the righteous) and Who wants to destroy every one of the rest (also known as the wicked) and Who has full power to save all of His Elect and destroy all the wicked.

In today’s Scripture, we see some vivid descriptions of how God utterly destroys the wicked.

“5 You have rebuked the nations, You have destroyed the wicked;
You have blotted out their name forever and ever.
6 The enemy has come to an end in perpetual ruins,
And You have uprooted the cities;
The very memory of them has perished.”  Psalm 9:5-6.

“But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne.  All the nations will be gathered before Him;  and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats;  and He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left.”  Matthew 25:31-33.

“The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, and will throw them into the furnace of fire;  in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”  Matthew 13:41-42.

“And He will send forth His angels with a great trumpet and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.”  Matthew 24:31.

“… “Hallelujah!  Salvation and glory and power belong to our God;  because His judgments are true and righteous;  for He has judged the great harlot who was corrupting the earth with her immorality, and He has avenged the blood of His bond-servants on her.”   Revelation 19:1-2.

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

I quote only the following verses.

“7 “He stretches out the north over empty space
And hangs the earth on nothing.
8 “He wraps up the waters in His clouds,
And the cloud does not burst under them.
9 “He obscures the face of the full moon
And spreads His cloud over it.
10 “He has inscribed a circle on the surface of the waters
At the boundary of light and darkness.
11 “The pillars of heaven tremble
And are amazed at His rebuke.
12 “He quieted the sea with His power,
And by His understanding He shattered Rahab.
13 “By His breath the heavens are cleared;
His hand has pierced the fleeing serpent.
14 “Behold, these are the fringes of His ways;
And how faint a word we hear of Him!
But His mighty thunder, who can understand?”  Job 26:7-14.

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We may not know how God does these awesome things.  But, these awesome things testify to the existence of an awesome God.

Which doctrine glorifies God?

Other doctrine which, despite these awesome things, still focuses on man, man’s works, and man’s alleged free-will and whose god is a figment of their own imagination, their “man upstairs”?

“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.

Or, Reformed Doctrine which, based on both their observations of creation and Scripture, focuses on God, God’s works, and God’s will?

Consider the following from the Belgic Confession.

Article 1:  That there is One Only God.

We all believe with the heart, and confess with the mouth, that there is one only simple and spiritual Being, which we call God;  and that he is eternal, incomprehensible, invisible, immutable, infinite, almighty, perfectly wise, just, good, and the overflowing fountain of all good.

Article 2:  By what means God is made known unto us.

We know him by two means:  first, by the creation, preservation and government of the universe; which is before our eyes as a most elegant book, wherein all creatures, great and small, are as so many characters leading us to contemplate the invisible things of God, namely, his power and divinity, as the apostle Paul saith, Romans 1:20.  All which things are sufficient to convincemen, and leave them without excuse.  Secondly, he makes himself more clearly and fully known to us by his holy and divine Word, that is to say, as far as is necessary for us to know in this life, to his glory and our salvation.

“You who fear the Lord, praise Him;
All you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him,
And stand in awe of Him, all you descendants of Israel.”  Psalm 22:23.

“Let them praise the name of the Lord,
For He commanded and they were created.”  Psalm 148:5.

“8 There is no one like You among the gods, O Lord,
Nor are there any works like Yours.
9 All nations whom You have made shall come and worship before You, O Lord,
And they shall glorify Your name.
10 For You are great and do wondrous deeds;
You alone are God.”  Psalm 86:8-10.

“3 … “Great and marvelous are Your works,
O Lord God, the Almighty;
Righteous and true are Your ways,
King of the nations!
4 “Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify Your name?
For You alone are holy;
For all the nations will come and worship before You,
For Your righteous acts have been revealed.”  Revelation 15:3-4.