Reformed Doctrine Daily Devotions

Today’s devotion comes from Deuteronomy 11:26-32.

“See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse:  the blessing, if you listen to the commandments of the Lord your God, which I am commanding you today;  and the curse, if you do not listen to the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside from the way which I am commanding you today, by following other gods which you have not known.

“It shall come about, when the Lord your God brings you into the land where you are entering to possess it, that you shall place the blessing on Mount Gerizim and the curse on Mount Ebal.  Are they not across the Jordan, west of the way toward the sunset, in the land of the Canaanites who live in the Arabah, opposite Gilgal, beside the oaks of Moreh?  For you are about to cross the Jordan to go in to possess the land which the Lord your God is giving you, and you shall possess it and live in it, and you shall be careful to do all the statutes and the judgments which I am setting before you today.”  Deuteronomy 11:26-32.

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Q. 115.  Why will God then have the ten commandments so strictly preached, since no man in this life can keep them? 

A.  First, that all our lifetime we may learn more and more to know our sinful nature, and thus become the more earnest in seeking the remission of sin, and righteousness in Christ;  likewise, that we constantly endeavour and pray to God for the grace of the Holy Spirit, that we may become more and more conformable to the image of God, till we arrive at the perfection proposed to us, in a life to come.  Heidelberg Catechism.

The blessing comes through faith in Christ, not through our own ability (which is really inability) to obey the Law.

“The Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “All the nations will be blessed in you.”  So then those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham, the believer.

For as many as are of the works of the Law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not abide by all things written in the book of the law, to perform them.”  Now that no one is justified by the Law before God is evident;  for, “The righteous man shall live by faith.”  However, the Law is not of faith;  on the contrary, “He who practices them shall live by them.”  Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”— in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we would receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.”  Galatians 3:8-14.

Today’s Scripture comes from Deuteronomy 11:18-25.

“18 “You shall therefore impress these words of mine on your heart and on your soul;  and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontals on your forehead.  19 You shall teach them to your sons, talking of them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road and when you lie down and when you rise up.  20 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, 21 so that your days and the days of your sons may be multiplied on the land which the Lord swore to your fathers to give them, as long as the heavens remain above the earth.  22 For if you are careful to keep all this commandment which I am commanding you to do, to love the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and hold fast to Him, 23 then the Lord will drive out all these nations from before you, and you will dispossess nations greater and mightier than you.  24 Every place on which the sole of your foot treads shall be yours; your border will be from the wilderness to Lebanon, and from the river, the river Euphrates, as far as the western sea.  25 No man will be able to stand before you;  the Lord your God will lay the dread of you and the fear of you on all the land on which you set foot, as He has spoken to you.”  Deuteronomy 11:18-25.

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The LORD our Almighty God and Faithful Father continues to do for us what we could not do.  Generally, as the Heidelberg Catechism teaches, He “will provide me with all things necessary for soul and body”.  Question and Answer 26.  Specifically, as today’s devotion shows, He puts His laws upon our hearts and writes them on our minds.  He puts His Spirit within us and causes us to walk in His statutes and to be careful to observe His ordinances.

“But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the Lord, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.  They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the Lord, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”  Jeremiah 31:33-34.

“Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you;  and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.  I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.  You will live in the land that I gave to your forefathers;  so you will be My people, and I will be your God.”  Ezekiel 36:26-28.

“This is the covenant that I will make with them
After those days, says the Lord:
I will put My laws upon their heart,
And on their mind I will write them,”

He then says,

“And their sins and their lawless deeds
I will remember no more.”  Hebrews 10:16-17.

Today’s devotion comes from Deuteronomy 11:13-17.

“It shall come about, if you listen obediently to my commandments which I am commanding you today, to love the Lord your God and to serve Him with all your heart and all your soul, that He will give the rain for your land in its season, the early and late rain, that you may gather in your grain and your new wine and your oil.  He will give grass in your fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied.  Beware that your hearts are not deceived, and that you do not turn away and serve other gods and worship them.  Or the anger of the Lord will be kindled against you, and He will shut up the heavens so that there will be no rain and the ground will not yield its fruit;  and you will perish quickly from the good land which the Lord is giving you.”  Deuteronomy 11:13-17.

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We know from Scripture that, sadly, many times the hearts of Israel was deceived and that they did turn away and serve other gods and worship them, and Israel was punished by famine.  We also know that we too, in our natural condition, have hearts and minds that are often deceived and prone to turn away and serve other gods and worship them.  Reformed Doctrine calls that condition “Total Depravity”.

But, there is hope!

“2 Thus says the Lord,
“The people who survived the sword
Found grace in the wilderness—
Israel, when it went to find its rest.”
3 The Lord appeared to him from afar, saying,
“I have loved you with an everlasting love;
Therefore I have drawn you with lovingkindness.
4 “Again I will build you and you will be rebuilt,
O virgin of Israel!
Again you will take up your tambourines,
And go forth to the dances of the merrymakers.”  Jeremiah 31:2-4.

And thus, we begin to see that our hope is in God’s “Irresistible Grace”, the “I” of “TULIP”, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation.

“31 “Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, 32 not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the Lord.  33 “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the Lord, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.  34 They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the Lord, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”  Jeremiah 31:31-34.

“25 Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean;  I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. 26 Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you;  and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.  27 I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances. 28 You will live in the land that I gave to your forefathers;  so you will be My people, and I will be your God.  29 Moreover, I will save you from all your uncleanness;  and I will call for the grain and multiply it, and I will not bring a famine on you.  30 I will multiply the fruit of the tree and the produce of the field, so that you will not receive again the disgrace of famine among the nations.”  Ezekiel 36:25-30.

“14 For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.  15 And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us;  for after saying,

16 “This is the covenant that I will make with them
After those days, says the Lord:
I will put My laws upon their heart,
And on their mind I will write them,”

He then says,

17 “And their sins and their lawless deeds
I will remember no more.”

18 Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin.”  Hebrews 10:14-18.

“All of us like sheep have gone astray,
Each of us has turned to his own way;
But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all
To fall on Him.”  Isaiah 53:6.

Today’s devotion comes from Deuteronomy 11:8-12.

“You shall therefore keep every commandment which I am commanding you today, so that you may be strong and go in and possess the land into which you are about to cross to possess it;  so that you may prolong your days on the land which the Lord swore to your fathers to give to them and to their descendants, a land flowing with milk and honey.  For the land, into which you are entering to possess it, is not like the land of Egypt from which you came, where you used to sow your seed and water it with your foot like a vegetable garden.  But the land into which you are about to cross to possess it, a land of hills and valleys, drinks water from the rain of heaven, a land for which the Lord your God cares;  the eyes of the Lord your God are always on it, from the beginning even to the end of the year.”  Deuteronomy 11:8-12.

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We should have great confidence.  We are not alone.  The eyes of the LORD our God are on us.  He guides us.  He protects us.  He also otherwise blesses us.

“He found him in a desert land, And in the howling waste of a wilderness;  He encircled him, He cared for him, He guarded him as the pupil of His eye.”  Deuteronomy 32:10.

“8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way which you should go;
I will counsel you with My eye upon you.
9 Do not be as the horse or as the mule which have no understanding,
Whose trappings include bit and bridle to hold them in check,
Otherwise they will not come near to you.
10 Many are the sorrows of the wicked,
But he who trusts in the Lord, lovingkindness shall surround him.
11 Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, you righteous ones;
And shout for joy, all you who are upright in heart.”  Psalm 32:8-11.

“18 Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him,
On those who hope for His lovingkindness,
19 To deliver their soul from death
And to keep them alive in famine.”  Psalm 33:18-19.

“The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous And His ears are open to their cry.”  Psalm 34:15.

“For the eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous, And His ears attend to their prayer, But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”  1 Peter 3:12.

“Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.”  1 Peter 5:6-7.

Today’s devotion comes from Deuteronomy 11:1-7.

“1 “You shall therefore love the Lord your God, and always keep His charge, His statutes, His ordinances, and His commandments.  2 Know this day that I am not speaking with your sons who have not known and who have not seen the discipline of the Lord your God—His greatness, His mighty hand and His outstretched arm, 3 and His signs and His works which He did in the midst of Egypt to Pharaoh the king of Egypt and to all his land;  4 and what He did to Egypt’s army, to its horses and its chariots, when He made the water of the Red Sea to engulf them while they were pursuing you, and the Lord completely destroyed them;  5 and what He did to you in the wilderness until you came to this place;  6 and what He did to Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, the son of Reuben, when the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them, their households, their tents, and every living thing that followed them, among all Israel— 7 but your own eyes have seen all the great work of the Lord which He did.”  Deuteronomy 11:1-7.

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We have not literally seen with our physical eyes the parting of the Red Sea and the other signs and wonders that Israel literally saw with their own physical eyes.  But, we have read about them in Scripture.  We have figuratively seen them with our eyes of faith.

And, we have seen much more.  We have seen all that is contained in Scripture from Genesis to Revelation.  Most importantly, we have seen our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ through our reading of Scripture.  We have seen the great work of salvation which the LORD did.

“What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life— and the life was manifested, and we have seen and testify and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us— what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us;  and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ.”  1 John 1:1-3.

“These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.  This is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.  And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him.”  I John 5:13-15.

“And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true;  and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ.  This is the true God and eternal life.”  1 John 5:20.

In summary, we too have seen all the great work of the Lord which He did, because we have the Scriptures and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ has given us understanding. 

Today’s Devotion comes from Deuteronomy 10:12-22.

“12 “Now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require from you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, 13 and to keep the Lord’s commandments and His statutes which I am commanding you today for your good?  14 Behold, to the Lord your God belong heaven and the highest heavens, the earth and all that is in it.  15 Yet on your fathers did the Lord set His affection to love them, and He chose their descendants after them, even you above all peoples, as it is this day.  16 So circumcise your heart, and stiffen your neck no longer.  17 For the Lord your God is the God of gods and the Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God who does not show partiality nor take a bribe.  18 He executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and shows His love for the alien by giving him food and clothing.  19 So show your love for the alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt.  20 You shall fear the Lord your God;  you shall serve Him and cling to Him, and you shall swear by His name. 21 He is your praise and He is your God, who has done these great and awesome things for you which your eyes have seen.  22 Your fathers went down to Egypt seventy persons in all, and now the Lord your God has made you as numerous as the stars of heaven.”    Deuteronomy 10:12-22.

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“11 I shall remember the deeds of the Lord;
Surely I will remember Your wonders of old.
12 I will meditate on all Your work
And muse on Your deeds.
13 Your way, O God, is holy;
What god is great like our God?
14 You are the God who works wonders;
You have made known Your strength among the peoples.
15 You have by Your power redeemed Your people,
The sons of Jacob and Joseph.  Selah.”  Psalm 77:11-15.

“3 Which we have heard and known,
And our fathers have told us.
4 We will not conceal them from their children,
But tell to the generation to come the praises of the Lord,
And His strength and His wondrous works that He has done.”     Psalm 78:3-4.

What god is great like our God?  What god works wonders?  What god has truly redeemed his people?

Is the god truly God who waits, wringing his hands, to see which ones will exercise his or her alleged free-will to do works or have faith?

Does that god work wonders?  Does that god truly redeem his people?

Or is the Sovereign Almighty God of Reformed Doctrine truly God Who initiates and works the wonder of making those dead in sin alive when there is no one else to intercede and help?

That Sovereign Almighty God of Reformed Doctrine is truly God Who does all of the works of wonder necessary to truly and fully redeem His people from “Unconditional Election” to “Limited Atonement” to “Irresistible Grace” to “Preservation of Saints”, the “U”, “L”, “I”, and “P” of “TULIP”, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation.

Today’s Scripture comes from Deuteronomy 10:1-11.  Here is a link to this Scripture – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy+10&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“1 “At that time the Lord said to me, ‘Cut out for yourself two tablets of stone like the former ones, and come up to Me on the mountain, and make an ark of wood for yourself.  2 I will write on the tablets the words that were on the former tablets which you shattered, and you shall put them in the ark.’  3 So I made an ark of acacia wood and cut out two tablets of stone like the former ones, and went up on the mountain with the two tablets in my hand.  4 He wrote on the tablets, like the former writing, the Ten Commandments which the Lord had spoken to you on the mountain from the midst of the fire on the day of the assembly; and the Lord gave them to me.  5 Then I turned and came down from the mountain and put the tablets in the ark which I had made; and there they are, as the Lord commanded me.”

6 (Now the sons of Israel set out from Beeroth Bene-jaakan to Moserah.  There Aaron died and there he was buried and Eleazar his son ministered as priest in his place.  7 From there they set out to Gudgodah, and from Gudgodah to Jotbathah, a land of brooks of water.  8 At that time the Lord set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord, to stand before the Lord to serve Him and to bless in His name until this day.  9 Therefore, Levi does not have a portion or inheritance with his brothers;  the Lord is his inheritance, just as the Lord your God spoke to him.)  …”  Deuteronomy Chapter 10:  Verses 1-9.

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Levi’s brothers (tribes of Israel) all received large areas of land in the Promised Land, mostly west of the Jordan River.  But, Levi received no such land.  Instead, “the Lord is his inheritance”.

Like Levi, we are a priesthood.  Like Levi, we are called to serve the LORD and bless Him.  “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;”  1 Peter 2:9.

And like Levi, the LORD is our inheritance.

“5 The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and my cup;
You support my lot.

6 The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places;
Indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me.

7 I will bless the Lord who has counseled me;
Indeed, my mind instructs me in the night.
8 I have set the Lord continually before me;
Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
9 Therefore my heart is glad and my glory rejoices;
My flesh also will dwell securely.
10 For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol;
Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.
11 You will make known to me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.”  Psalm 16:5-11.

Today’s Scripture comes from Deuteronomy 9:6-29.  Here is a link to this Scripture – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy+9&version=NASB

I quote only the following verses.

“6 “Know, then, it is not because of your righteousness that the Lord your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stubborn people.  7 Remember, do not forget how you provoked the Lord your God to wrath in the wilderness;  from the day that you left the land of Egypt until you arrived at this place, you have been rebellious against the Lord.  8 Even at Horeb you provoked the Lord to wrath, and the Lord was so angry with you that He would have destroyed you.  9 When I went up to the mountain to receive the tablets of stone, the tablets of the covenant which the Lord had made with you, then I remained on the mountain forty days and nights;  I neither ate bread nor drank water.  10 The Lord gave me the two tablets of stone written by the finger of God; and on them were all the words which the Lord had spoken with you at the mountain from the midst of the fire on the day of the assembly.  11 It came about at the end of forty days and nights that the Lord gave me the two tablets of stone, the tablets of the covenant.  12 Then the Lord said to me, ‘Arise, go down from here quickly, for your people whom you brought out of Egypt have acted corruptly.  They have quickly turned aside from the way which I commanded them;  they have made a molten image for themselves.’  13 The Lord spoke further to me, saying, ‘I have seen this people, and indeed, it is a stubborn people.  14 Let Me alone, that I may destroy them and blot out their name from under heaven;  and I will make of you a nation mightier and greater than they.’”  …

25 “So I fell down before the Lord the forty days and nights, which I did because the Lord had said He would destroy you.  26 I prayed to the Lord and said, ‘O Lord God, do not destroy Your people, even Your inheritance, whom You have redeemed through Your greatness, whom You have brought out of Egypt with a mighty hand.  27 Remember Your servants, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob;  do not look at the stubbornness of this people or at their wickedness or their sin. 28 Otherwise the land from which You brought us may say, “Because the Lord was not able to bring them into the land which He had promised them and because He hated them He has brought them out to slay them in the wilderness.”  29 Yet they are Your people, even Your inheritance, whom You have brought out by Your great power and Your outstretched arm.’”  Deuteronomy Chapter 9:  Verses 6-14 and 25-29.

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Moses rightly prayed emphasizing the sake of God’s name as you can see repeatedly in bold italic font in the last paragraph of today’s Scripture.

And, God indeed acted for the sake of His name as He declared.  “But I acted for the sake of My name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations, before whose sight I had brought them out (of Egypt).”  Ezekiel 20:14.

Other doctrine focuses on man for the sake of man.

Reformed Doctrine focuses on God for the sake of God.

Other doctrine seeks that man be improved.

Reformed Doctrine seeks that God be glorified.

Other doctrine asks:  “What will attract seekers in worship?”

Reformed Doctrine asks:  “How will God be glorified in worship?  What pleases God?”

When man sins, other doctrine asks:  “What is the effect on man?”

When man sins, Reformed Doctrine asks:  “What is the effect on God?”

Other doctrine simply wants man to be saved and is only interested in God’s lovingkindness.

Reformed Doctrine teaches that God’s whole purpose will be accomplished including all of God’s justice, God’s lovingkindness, and God’s righteousness.

Other doctrine wants man to be saved according to man’s desire, man’s control, and man’s glory.

Reformed Doctrine teaches that man will be saved according to God’s desire, God’s control, and God’s glory.

Other doctrine want a god who is their puppet.

Reformed Doctrine teaches that God is their Potter.

Today’s devotion comes from Deuteronomy 9:1-5.

“1  “Hear, O Israel! You are crossing over the Jordan today to go in to dispossess nations greater and mightier than you, great cities fortified to heaven, 2 a people great and tall, the sons of the Anakim, whom you know and of whom you have heard it said, ‘Who can stand before the sons of Anak?’  3 Know therefore today that it is the Lord your God who is crossing over before you as a consuming fire.  He will destroy them and He will subdue them before you, so that you may drive them out and destroy them quickly, just as the Lord has spoken to you.

4 “Do not say in your heart when the Lord your God has driven them out before you, ‘Because of my righteousness the Lord has brought me in to possess this land,’ but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is dispossessing them before you.  5 It is not for your righteousness or for the uprightness of your heart that you are going to possess their land, but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord your God is driving them out before you, in order to confirm the oath which the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.”  Deuteronomy 9:1-5.

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Today’s Scripture makes us contemplate on God punishing the wicked.  We like to solely dwell on God rewarding the righteous, but today’s Scripture repeatedly informs us:  “It is not for your righteousness or for the uprightness of your heart that you are going to possess their land, but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord your God is driving them out before you …”.  Verse 5.

We read similar motivation of God in Leviticus 18:24-25:  “‘Do not defile yourselves by any of these things;  for by all these the nations which I am casting out before you have become defiled.  For the land has become defiled, therefore I have brought its punishment upon it, so the land has spewed out its inhabitants.”

There are two perspectives to salvation.  The first, which we like the most, is that the LORD loved us and seated us in the heavenly places.  See, for example, Ephesians 2:4-7.  The second, which is given in today’s Scripture, is that the LORD hated the wicked and punished them, and in a sense, we were left behind.  We escaped the wrath of God.

“See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking.  For if those did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape who turn away from Him who warns from heaven.”  Hebrews 12:25.

“For if the word spoken through angels proved unalterable, and every transgression and disobedience received a just penalty, how will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?”  Hebrews 2:2-3.

“The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.”  2 Timothy 2:24-26.

“For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.”  2 Peter 1:4.

“And if it is with difficulty that the righteous is saved, what will become of the godless man and the sinner?”  1 Peter 4:18.

The fictional book and movie series on eschatology called “Left Behind” portrays salvation as the righteous beamed up to heaven with the wicked “left behind”.  But, today’s Scripture and Jesus’ parable on the wheat and tares and other Scripture should make us contemplate the perspective of salvation that the LORD hated the wicked and punished them, and in a sense, we were left behind.  We escaped the wrath of God.

“Jesus presented another parable to them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field.  But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went away.  But when the wheat sprouted and bore grain, then the tares became evident also.  The slaves of the landowner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field?  How then does it have tares?’  And he said to them, ‘An enemy has done this!’ The slaves *said to him, ‘Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up?’  But he *said, ‘No; for while you are gathering up the tares, you may uproot the wheat with them.  Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up;  but gather the wheat into my barn.”’”  Matthew 13:24-30.

In conclusion, God will certainly gather His righteous and bring them to heaven, so in that sense, we will not be left behind.  But, let us also not forget the just wrath of God, “a consuming fire“, in punishing the wicked and that we escape this punishment not based on any righteousness of our own.  In that sense, we escaped;  we were left behind.

We are called to not only rejoice but also to tremble.

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

“For in the day of trouble He will conceal me in His tabernacle;  In the secret place of His tent He will hide me;  He will lift me up on a rock.”  Psalm 27:5.

“119 You have removed all the wicked of the earth like dross;
Therefore I love Your testimonies.
120 My flesh trembles for fear of You,
And I am afraid of Your judgments.”  Psalm 119:119-120.

“Be gracious to me, O God, be gracious to me, For my soul takes refuge in You;  And in the shadow of Your wings I will take refuge Until destruction passes by.”  Psalm 57:1.

“Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe;  for our God is a consuming fire.”  Hebrews 12:28-29.

“20 Come, my people, enter into your rooms
And close your doors behind you;
Hide for a little while
Until indignation runs its course.
21 For behold, the Lord is about to come out from His place
To punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity;
And the earth will reveal her bloodshed
And will no longer cover her slain.”  Isaiah 26:20-21.

Today’s devotion comes from Deuteronomy 8:11-20.

“11 “Beware that you do not forget the Lord your God by not keeping His commandments and His ordinances and His statutes which I am commanding you today;  12 otherwise, when you have eaten and are satisfied, and have built good houses and lived in them, 13 and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and gold multiply, and all that you have multiplies, 14 then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.  15 He led you through the great and terrible wilderness, with its fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty ground where there was no water;  He brought water for you out of the rock of flint.  16 In the wilderness He fed you manna which your fathers did not know, that He might humble you and that He might test you, to do good for you in the end.  17 Otherwise, you may say in your heart, ‘My power and the strength of my hand made me this wealth.’  18 But you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, that He may confirm His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.  19 It shall come about if you ever forget the Lord your God and go after other gods and serve them and worship them, I testify against you today that you will surely perish.  20 Like the nations that the Lord makes to perish before you, so you shall perish; because you would not listen to the voice of the Lord your God.”  Deuteronomy 8:11-20.

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When we get our first job, we may get proud and forget about God.  When we get our first promotion, we may get proud and forget about God.  When we buy our first dream house, we may get proud and forget about God.  When we start buying stocks and bonds, we may get proud and forget about God.  When we saved enough for retirement, we may get proud and forget about God.

“But you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, that He may confirm His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.”  Verse 18.  “Otherwise, you may say in your heart, ‘My power and the strength of my hand made me this wealth.’”  Verse 17.

Verse 18 teaches us that God gives us the power to make wealth, not so that we become independent and forget God, but rather so that His covenant (“I will surely bless you and I will surely multiply you.” in Hebrews 6:14) is confirmed.  God can surely bless us in many different ways, but one of the ways that He may bless us is to give us the power to make wealth.  That does not mean that God makes every believer wealthy or equally wealthy.  It also does not mean that everyone who is wealthy is blessed by God.

But, when we believers become wealthy, we need to use it to build our faith more than to build our bank account.  We need to turn our focus to God and remember that it is He Who has made us wealthy to confirm His covenant that He will surely bless us and multiply us.

“It is the blessing of the Lord that makes rich,
And He adds no sorrow to it.”  Proverbs 10:22.