Reformed Doctrine Daily Devotions

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 19:9-10.

 

“⁹ Then he *said to me, “Write, ‘Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.’”  And he *said to me, “These are true words of God.”  ¹⁰ Then I fell at his feet to worship him.  But he *said to me, “Do not do that;  I am a fellow servant of yours and your brethren who hold the testimony of Jesus;  worship God.  For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”  Revelation 19:9-10.

 

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“… Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.”  Verse 9. 

 

We are reminded on “Unconditional Election”, the “U” of “TULIP”, the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of Salvation.  We are reminded of Jesus’ parable of the Marriage Feast in Matthew Chapter 22.  “For many are called, but few are chosen.”  Matthew 22:14.

 

“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.  …”  Ephesians 1:3-4.

 

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

 

“For 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.

 

“… “These are true words of God.”  Verse 9.  

 

If you write, preach or teach, use the true words of God.  Pretty simple.  But, how often do we hear preaching or teaching, primarily based on man’s words, rather than based on the true words of God!

 

Man desperately wants to believe that his salvation is based on his works or at least his free-will choice of Christ.  Nothing but “the true words of God” will convince him of the truth of “Unconditional Election”. 

 

The only way to combat these natural feelings of what is fair is the true words of God.

 

“Is not My word like fire?” declares the Lord, “and like a hammer which shatters a rock?”  Jeremiah 23:29  

 

 

Jesus’ testimony is the spirit of prophecy.  “Jesus *said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.”  John 14:6.  Jesus was continually teaching.  Jesus was called “the Word” in John 1:1.  “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”  John 1:1.  “In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.”  John 1:4.  “Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you, for on Him the Father, God, has set His seal.”  John 6:27.

 

“For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God;  for He gives the Spirit without measure.”  John 3:34

 

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 19:7-8.

 

“Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready.”  It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean;  for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.”  Revelation 19:7-8.

 

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“Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing;  but that she would be holy and blameless.”  Ephesians 5:25-27. 

 

Today’s Scripture confirms that Christ (a/k/a “the Lamb”) deserves the glory (“give glory to Him”).  “It was given to her (“His bride”, the church) to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean”.

 

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.  Canons of Dordt SECOND HEAD OF DOCTRINE Of the Death of Christ, and the Redemption of Men Thereby.

God even deserves the glory for the “righteous acts of the saints” in today’s Scripture. 

“For 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.

 

“for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.”  Philippians 2:10.

 

Article 24:  Of man’s Sanctification and Good Works.

We believe that this true faith being wrought in man by the hearing of the Word of God, and the operation of the Holy Ghost, doth regenerate and make him a new man, causing him to live a new life, and freeing him from the bondage of sin.  Therefore it is so far from being true, that this justifying faith makes men remiss in a pious and holy life, that on the contrary without it they would never do anything out of love to God, but only out of self-love or fear of damnation.  Therefore it is impossible that this holy faith can be unfruitful in man:  for we do not speak of a vain faith, but of such a faith, which is called in Scripture, a faith that worketh by love, which excites man to the practice of those works, which God has commanded in his Word.  Which works, as they proceed from the good root of faith, are good and acceptable in the sight of God, forasmuch as they are all sanctified by his grace:  howbeit they are of no account towards our justification.  For it is by faith in Christ that we are justified, even before we do good works; otherwise they could not be good works, any more than the fruit of a tree can be good, before the tree itself is good.  Therefore we do good works, but not to merit by them, (for what can they merit?) nay, we are beholden to God for the good works we do, and not he to us, since it is he that worketh in us both to will and to do of his good pleasure.  Let us therefore attend to what is written:  when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, we are unprofitable servants; we have done that which was our duty to do. In the meantime, we do not deny that God rewards our good works, but it is through his grace that he crowns his gifts.  Moreover, though we do good works, we do not found our salvation upon them;  for we do no work but what is polluted by our flesh, and also punishable; and although we could perform such works, still the remembrance of one sin is sufficient to make God reject them.  Thus then we would always be in doubt, tossed to and fro without any certainty, and our poor consciences continually vexed, if they relied not on the merits of the suffering and death of our Savior.  Belgic Confession.

“Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready.”  Verse 7.

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 19:1-6.

 

“¹ After these things I heard something like a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying,

 

“Hallelujah!  Salvation and glory and power belong to our God;  ² 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.”  ³ And a second time they said, “Hallelujah!  Her smoke rises up forever and ever.”  ⁴ And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sits on the throne saying, “Amen.  Hallelujah!”  ⁵ And a voice came from the throne, saying,

 

“Give praise to our God, all you His bond-servants, you who fear Him, the small and the great.”  ⁶ Then I heard something like the voice of a great multitude and like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, saying,                     

                                                                                                              “Hallelujah!  For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.”  Revelation 19:1-6.

                                               

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What a good summary of Revelation!  “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.”  “Hallelujah!  For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.” 

What a good summary of Reformed Doctrine which emphasizes God and what He has done and His sovereign reign!

Other doctrine emphasizes man and his alleged free will.  Other doctrine teaches that salvation is dependent on man’s free-will, because God loves everyone, Christ died for everyone, and the only difference determining whether one is saved or not is whether he will choose Christ through his free-will.  Praise that good free-will choice, they teach.   

But, the “Hallelujahs” in today’s Scripture are reserved for God and what He has done.  Salvation and glory and power do not belong jointly to God and man;  they belong to our God.     

Today’s Scripture and Reformed Doctrine command:  “Give praise to our God, all you His bond-servants, you who fear Him, the small and the great.   … For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.”  

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 18:21-24.

 

“²¹ Then a strong angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying, “So will Babylon, the great city, be thrown down with violence, and will not be found any longer.  ²² And the sound of harpists and musicians and flute-players and trumpeters will not be heard in you any longer;  and no craftsman of any craft will be found in you any longer;  and the sound of a mill will not be heard in you any longer;  ²³ and the light of a lamp will not shine in you any longer;  and the voice of the bridegroom and bride will not be heard in you any longer;  for your merchants were the great men of the earth, because all the nations were deceived by your sorcery.  ²⁴ And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints and of all who have been slain on the earth.”  Revelation 18:21-24.

 

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We are blessed to learn a little more about God today as we search Scripture which interprets today’s Scripture.  Our “Lord is a God of recompense”. 

 

“⁵⁵ For the Lord is going to destroy Babylon,
And He will make her loud noise vanish from her.
And their waves will roar like many waters;
The tumult of their voices sounds forth.
⁵⁶ For the destroyer is coming against her, against Babylon,
And her mighty men will be captured,
Their bows are shattered;
For the Lord is a God of recompense,
He will fully repay.”  Jeremiah 51:55-56.

 

“Know therefore that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God, who keeps His covenant and His lovingkindness to a thousandth generation with those who love Him and keep His commandments;  but repays those who hate Him to their faces, to destroy them;  He will not delay with him who hates Him, He will repay him to his face.”  Deuteronomy 7:9-10.

 

Deuteronomy 32:41

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 18:9-20.

 

“⁹ “And the kings of the earth, who committed acts of immorality and lived sensuously with her, will weep and lament over her when they see the smoke of her burning, ¹⁰ standing at a distance because of the fear of her torment, saying, ‘Woe, woe, the great city, Babylon, the strong city!  For in one hour your judgment has come.’                                                                                            

                                              

¹¹ “And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn over her, because no one buys their cargoes any more— ¹² cargoes of gold and silver and precious stones and pearls and fine linen and purple and silk and scarlet, and every kind of citron wood and every article of ivory and every article made from very costly wood and bronze and iron and marble, ¹³ and cinnamon and spice and incense and perfume and frankincense and wine and olive oil and fine flour and wheat and cattle and sheep, and cargoes of horses and chariots and slaves and human lives.  ¹⁴ The fruit you long for has gone from you, and all things that were luxurious and splendid have passed away from you and men will no longer find them.  ¹⁵ The merchants of these things, who became rich from her, will stand at a distance because of the fear of her torment, weeping and mourning, ¹⁶ saying, ‘Woe, woe, the great city, she who was clothed in fine linen and purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls;  ¹⁷ for in one hour such great wealth has been laid waste!’  And every shipmaster and every passenger and sailor, and as many as make their living by the sea, stood at a distance, ¹⁸ and were crying out as they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, ‘What city is like the great city?’  ¹⁹ And they threw dust on their heads and were crying out, weeping and mourning, saying, ‘Woe, woe, the great city, in which all who had ships at sea became rich by her wealth, for in one hour she has been laid waste!’  ²⁰ Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you saints and apostles and prophets, because God has pronounced judgment for you against her.”  Revelation 18:9-20.

                     

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Belgic Confession Article 37:  Of the Last Judgment.

                                     

“… And therefore the consideration of this judgment, is justly terrible and dreadful to the wicked and ungodly, but most desirable and comfortable to the righteous and elect:  because then their full deliverance shall be perfected, and there they shall receive the fruits of their labor and trouble which they have borne.  Their innocence shall be known to all, and they shall see the terrible vengeance which God shall execute on the wicked, who most cruelly persecuted, oppressed and tormented them in this world;  and who shall be convicted by the testimony of their own consciences, and being immortal, shall be tormented in that everlasting fire, which is prepared for the devil and his angels.  But on the contrary, the faithful and elect shall be crowned with glory and honor;  and the Son of God will confess their names before God his Father, and his elect angels;  all tears shall be wiped from their eyes; and their cause which is now condemned by many judges and magistrates, as heretical and impious, will then be known to be the cause of the Son of God. And for a gracious reward, the Lord will cause them to possess such a glory, as never entered into the heart of man to conceive.  Therefore we expect that great day with a most ardent desire to the end that we may fully enjoy the promises of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.  AMEN.

                                   

“Even so, come, Lord Jesus.” – Revelation. 22:20.  

                                 

                                   

“¹ Then Hannah prayed and said,

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 18:1-8. 

 

“¹ After these things I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was illumined with his glory.  ² And he cried out with a mighty voice, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great!  She has become a dwelling place of demons and a prison of every unclean spirit, and a prison of every unclean and hateful bird.  ³ For all the nations have drunk of the wine of the passion of her immorality, and the kings of the earth have committed acts of immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich by the wealth of her sensuality.”

 

⁴ I heard another voice from heaven, saying, “Come out of her, my people, so that you will not participate in her sins and receive of her plagues;  ⁵ for her sins have piled up as high as heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities.  ⁶ Pay her back even as she has paid, and give back to her double according to her deeds;  in the cup which she has mixed, mix twice as much for her.  ⁷ To the degree that she glorified herself and lived sensuously, to the same degree give her torment and mourning; for she says in her heart, ‘I sit as a queen and I am not a widow, and will never see mourning.’  ⁸ For this reason in one day her plagues will come, pestilence and mourning and famine, and she will be burned up with fire;  for the Lord God who judges her is strong.”  Revelation 18:1-8.

 

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Today’s Scripture reveals God’s justice.  Nothing escapes God’s attention.  Nothing unjust escapes God’s thorough and perfect punishment.  In the following Question and Answer 7 of the Westminister Larger Catechism, we read that God is almighty, knows all things, and is most just.

Question 7:  What is God?

Answer:  God is a Spirit, in and of himself infinite in being, glory, blessedness, and perfection;  all-sufficient, eternal, unchangeable, incomprehensible, everywhere present, almighty, knowing all things, most wise, most holy, most just, most merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth.

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 17:15-18. 

                                                                                                                                                    “¹⁵ And he *said to me, “The waters which you saw where the harlot sits, are peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues.  ¹⁶ And the ten horns which you saw, and the beast, these will hate the harlot and will make her desolate and naked, and will eat her flesh and will burn her up with fire.  ¹⁷ For God has put it in their hearts to execute His purpose by having a common purpose, and by giving their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God will be fulfilled.  ¹⁸ The woman whom you saw is the great city, which reigns over the kings of the earth.”  Revelation 17:15-18. 

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                                                                                                                                                 Today’s Scripture reminds us of God’s sovereignty, particularly verse 17:  “For God has put it in their hearts to execute His purpose by having a common purpose, and by giving their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God will be fulfilled.” 

God accomplishes all of His good purpose.  Total Perfect Triumph.

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 17:1-14.

 

“¹ Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and spoke with me, saying, “Come here, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters, ² with whom the kings of the earth committed acts of immorality, and those who dwell on the earth were made drunk with the wine of her immorality.”  ³ And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness;  and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full of blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten horns.  ⁴ The woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a gold cup full of abominations and of the unclean things of her immorality, ⁵ and on her forehead a name was written, a mystery, “BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.”  ⁶ And I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus.  When I saw her, I wondered greatly.  ⁷ And the angel said to me, “Why do you wonder?  I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns.

 

⁸ “The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction.  And those who dwell on the earth, whose name has not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will wonder when they see the beast, that he was and is not and will come.  ⁹ Here is the mind which has wisdom.  The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits,  ¹⁰ and they are seven kings;  five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come;  and when he comes, he must remain a little while.  ¹¹ The beast which was and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven, and he goes to destruction.  ¹² The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but they receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour.  ¹³ These have one purpose, and they give their power and authority to the beast.

 

¹⁴ These will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those who are with Him are the called and chosen and faithful.”  Revelation 17:1-14

 

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At first reading of today’s Scripture, we think we may be disturbed.  We think we may wonder.

 

But, we read it again, and we pick up certain things that we did not notice before. 

 

The bookends of today’s Scripture are comforting.  At the beginning, we read that the summary of today’s Scripture is God’s judgment (which includes punishment) of the harlot of immorality.  (“… “Come here, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot …”  Verse 1)  At the end, we read that God’s enemies will wage war against Him (God, the Son, Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God) and “… the Lamb will overcome them …”.  Verse 14.

                                         

We also notice in the middle:  “The beast … is about to … go to destruction …” Verse 8.  And, those who wonder are those “… whose name has not been written in the book of life …”  Verse 8.

It is important that we do not get lost in all the figurative language of the Book of Revelation.  The theme of the Book of Revelation was expressed in the title of two book commentaries of Revelation:  Behold He Cometh by Rev. Herman Hoeksema and More than Conquerors by William Hendricksen. 

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 16:8-21.

 

“⁸ The fourth angel poured out his bowl upon the sun, and it was given to it to scorch men with fire.  ⁹ Men were scorched with fierce heat;  and they blasphemed the name of God who has the power over these plagues, and they did not repent so as to give Him glory.

 

¹⁰ Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom became darkened;  and they gnawed their tongues because of pain, ¹¹ and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores;  and they did not repent of their deeds.

 

¹² The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river, the Euphrates;  and its water was dried up, so that the way would be prepared for the kings from the east.

                         

¹³ And I saw coming out of the mouth of the dragon and out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits like frogs;  ¹⁴ for they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them together for the war of the great day of God, the Almighty.  ¹⁵ (“Behold, I am coming like a thief.  Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame.”)  ¹⁶ And they gathered them together to the place which in Hebrew is called Har-Magedon.

 

¹⁷ Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl upon the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, “It is done.”  ¹⁸ And there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder;  and there was a great earthquake, such as there had not been since man came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake was it, and so mighty.  ¹⁹ The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell.  Babylon the great was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath. ²⁰ And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.  ²¹ And huge hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, *came down from heaven upon men;  and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, because its plague *was extremely severe.”  Revelation 16:8-21.

 

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Today, we read more about God’s fierce wrath.  We also read that they blasphemed God, and they did not repent of their deeds.  And, we remember Revelation 16:5-7. 

 

“And I heard the angel of the waters saying, “Righteous are You, who are and who were, O Holy One, because You judged these things;  for they poured out the blood of saints and prophets, and You have given them blood to drink.  They deserve it.”  And I heard the altar saying, “Yes, O Lord God, the Almighty, true and righteous are Your judgments.”  Revelation 16:5-7.

 

“⁸ O Lord God of hosts, who is like You, O mighty Lord?
Your faithfulness also surrounds You.
⁹ You rule the swelling of the sea;
When its waves rise, You still them.
¹⁰ You Yourself crushed Rahab like one who is slain;
You scattered Your enemies with Your mighty arm.

Today’s devotion comes from Revelation 15:5 through Revelation 16:7.

 

“⁵ After these things I looked, and the temple of the tabernacle of testimony in heaven was opened, ⁶ and the seven angels who had the seven plagues came out of the temple, clothed in linen, clean and bright, and girded around their chests with golden sashes.  ⁷ Then one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever.  ⁸ And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from His power;  and no one was able to enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were finished.

 

¹ Then I heard a loud voice from the temple, saying to the seven angels, “Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God.”

 

² So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth;  and it became a loathsome and malignant sore on the people who had the mark of the beast and who worshiped his image.

 

³ The second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it became blood like that of a dead man;  and every living thing in the sea died.

 

⁴ Then the third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs of waters;  and they became blood.  ⁵ And I heard the angel of the waters saying, “Righteous are You, who are and who were, O Holy One, because You judged these things;  ⁶ for they poured out the blood of saints and prophets, and You have given them blood to drink.  They deserve it.”  ⁷ And I heard the altar saying, “Yes, O Lord God, the Almighty, true and righteous are Your judgments.”  Revelation 15:5 through Revelation 16:7.

 

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Today’s Scripture provides visual support for the conclusion that God’s judgments are true and righteous.

 

The angels were not some dark grim reapers, but “the seven angels who had the seven plagues came out of the temple, clothed in linen, clean and bright, and girded around their chests with golden sashes.”  Revelation 15:6.

 

The place where these events were planned was not some secret hidden room, but “the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from His power”.  Revelation 15:8.

 

We tend to think of God’s wrath as a dark side of God.  But, today’s Scripture teaches us that God’s wrath is true and righteous.  “They deserve it.”  Revelation 16:6.

    

“³ And they *sang the song of Moses, the bond-servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying,

“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.