Reformed Doctrine Daily Devotions

 ¹⁷  The woman answered and said, “I have no husband.”  Jesus said to her, “You have correctly said, ‘I have no husband’;

 ¹⁸  for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband;  this you have said truly.”

 ¹⁹  The woman said to Him, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet.

 ²⁰  “Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you people say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.”

 ²¹  Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father.

 ²²  “You worship what you do not know;  we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.

 ²³  “But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth;  for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers.

 ²⁴  “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

 ²⁵  The woman said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming (He who is called Christ); when that One comes, He will declare all things to us.”

 ²⁶  Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am He.”  John 4:15-26.

How do we worship God in spirit?

We must have God’s Spirit, in order to worship God in spirit.

^“For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit.  For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God;  for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you.  But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.  If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness.  But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.

So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh–for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die;  but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live.

For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.  For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, “Abba! Father!”  The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.”  Romans 8:6-17.  (Emphasis added.)

How do we worship God in truth?

Here are two elements provided in today’s Scripture.

We must worship God in the truth of who we are, in order to worship God in truth.  We admit our sinful condition.  The woman of Samaria admitted her sinful condition when confronted by Jesus of her sinful condition.  Jesus said:  “You have correctly said, ‘I have no husband’;  for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; this you have said truly.”  The woman said to Him, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet.

We must worship God in the truth of Who He is, in order to worship God in truth.  The woman of Samaria ^“said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming (He who is called Christ);  when that One comes, He will declare all things to us.”  Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am He.” 

Here is an additional element provided elsewhere in Scripture.

We must worship God in the truth of how we are saved, in order to worship God in truth.  Having zeal or trying hard is not sufficient.  “Brethren, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God for them is for their salvation.  For I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but not in accordance with knowledge.  For not knowing about God’s righteousness and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God.”  Romans 10:1-3. 

In conclusion, Philippians 3:1-11 ties it together.  Notice how Paul writes about those “who worship in the Spirit of God”, meaning that we must have God’s Spirit in order to worship God in spirit.  Notice how Paul explains in detail the truth of who he is, the truth of Who God is, and the truth of how we are saved. 

“Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things again is no trouble to me, and it is a safeguard for you.

Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision;  for we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh,

although I myself might have confidence even in the flesh.  If anyone else has a mind to put confidence in the flesh, I far more:  circumcised the eighth day, of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the Law, a Pharisee;  as to zeal, a persecutor of the church;  as to the righteousness which is in the Law, found blameless.

But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ.  More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death;  in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.”  Philippians 3:1-11.  (Emphasis added.)

 ⁹  Therefore the Samaritan woman said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask me for a drink since I am a Samaritan woman?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.)

 ¹⁰  Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.”

 ¹¹  She said to Him, “Sir, You have nothing to draw with and the well is deep;  where then do You get that living water?

 ¹²  “You are not greater than our father Jacob, are You, who gave us the well, and drank of it himself and his sons and his cattle?”

 ¹³  Jesus answered and said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again;

 ¹⁴  but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst;  but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.”  John 4:7-14  (Emphasis added.) 

Deliverance follows misery;  today’s devotion titled “the gift of God” follows yesterday’s devotion titled “the wrath of God”.  The Heidelberg Catechism is divided in three parts:  “THE FIRST PART–OF THE MISERY OF MAN”, THE SECOND PART–OF MAN’S DELIVERANCE”, and “THE THIRD PART–OF THANKFULNESS”.  

Why can’t we skip “the wrath of God” to get to “the gift of God”?

God wants us to be humble. 

Isaiah 2:11
“The proud look of man will be abased And the loftiness of man will be humbled, And the LORD alone will be exalted in that day.”

Isaiah 66:2
“For My hand made all these things, Thus all these things came into being,” declares the LORD.  “But to this one I will look, To him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word.”

Matthew 23:12
“Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled;  and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.”

James 4:6
But He gives a greater grace.  Therefore it says, ” GOD IS OPPOSED TO THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE.”

God wants to contrast the deliverance (“the gift of God”) with the misery (“the wrath of God”), so we will better fear the LORD, so we will better believe in the LORD, and so we will better trust the LORD.

At the time God delivered Israel through the Red Sea, God made Israel look at the dead Egyptians on the shore (“the wrath of God”). 

^“Thus the LORD saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians,  and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore.  When Israel saw the great power which the LORD had used against the Egyptians, the people feared the LORD, and they believed in the LORD and in His servant Moses.”  Exodus 14:30-31. 

God wants to contrast the deliverance (“the gift of God”) with the misery (“the wrath of God”), so we will better understand and better appreciate the deliverance (“the gift of God”).

“What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction?  And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory, even us, whom He also called, not from among Jews only, but also from among Gentiles.”  Romans 9:22-24. 

Question and Answer 2 of The Heidelberg Catechism summarizes it.

Question 2.  How many things are necessary for thee to know, that thou, enjoying this comfort, mayest live and die happily?

Answer.  Three;  the first, how great my sins and miseries are;  the second, how I may be delivered from all my sins and miseries;  the third, how I shall express my gratitude to God for such deliverance.

 ³³  “He who has received His testimony has set his seal to this, that God is true.

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

 ³⁵  “The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand.

 ³⁶  “He who believes in the Son has eternal life;  but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”  John 3:31-36.

As a follow-up to the devotion dated October 6, 2010 titled “Does God love everybody?”, we read the conclusion in today’s Scripture which is also the conclusion of the chapter of John 3:  “but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”  

As I concluded that devotion, “… it is my hope that this devotion will guard against a smug and superficial understanding of John 3:16 and replace it by a reverent fear of the LORD and urgency to believe in Jesus as the only way of salvation.”, the conclusion for this Scripture today should be received by us as a warning to believe and obey Jesus Christ.  God does not love everybody, but rather the wrath of God abides on those who do not believe and obey His Son, Jesus Christ. 

We should not get lulled into thinking that the day of judgment will not come.

“For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment;  and did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly;  and if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes, having made them an example to those who would live ungodly lives thereafter;  and if He rescued righteous Lot, oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men (for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds), then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment,”  2 Peter 2:4-9. 

Psalm 2:10-12 provides a fitting conclusion for us all.

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

 ²⁴  for John had not yet been thrown into prison.

 ²⁵  Therefore there arose a discussion on the part of John’s disciples with a Jew about purification.

 ²⁶  And they came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, He who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified, behold, He is baptizing and all are coming to Him.”

 ²⁷  John answered and said, “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven.

 ²⁸  “You yourselves are my witnesses that I said, ‘I am not the Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent ahead of Him.’

 ²⁹  “He who has the bride is the bridegroom;  but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice.  So this joy of mine has been made full.

 ³⁰  “He must increase, but I must decrease.”  John 3:22-30. 

In this Scripture, John the Baptist shows no irritation nor resentment about Jesus baptizing others, particularly in the same area and particularly in apparent greater numbers.  Rather, John the Baptist acknowledged that Jesus was gifted from God, that he (John) was “not the Christ but rather an advance man to prepare Jesus’ way, that he (John) was filled with joy about Jesus’ presence, and that “He must increase, but I must decrease.”

Are we as gracious about the prominence and success of others in our field?  There certainly is a lesson of humility here to be learned by us. 

But, I want to focus the main theme of this devotion on the statement:  “A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven.”  This is a good reminder, because we tend to think that we receive things, because we earn them.  Most importantly, we tend to think we somehow earn salvation.

We may think that we earn salvation by our works.  But, Scripture teaches that salvation is not earned by our works.

^“3  For what does the Scripture say?  “ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.”

 ⁴  Now to the one who works, his wage is not credited as a favor, but as what is due.

 ⁵  But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness,

 ⁶  just as David also speaks of the blessing on the man to whom God credits righteousness apart from works:
    ⁷  “BLESSED ARE THOSE WHOSE LAWLESS DEEDS HAVE BEEN FORGIVEN,
         AND WHOSE SINS HAVE BEEN COVERED.
    ⁸  “BLESSED IS THE MAN WHOSE SIN THE LORD WILL NOT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT.”  Romans 4:3-8. 

We may even think that we earn salvation by our “free-will” faith.  But, Scripture teaches us that salvation is also not earned by our “free-will” faith.  

^“15  For He says to Moses, “I WILL HAVE MERCY ON WHOM I HAVE MERCY, AND I WILL HAVE COMPASSION ON WHOM I HAVE COMPASSION.”

 ¹⁶  So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy.”  Romans 9:15-16.

Ephesians 2:8
“For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;”

2 Peter 1:1
“Simon Peter, a bond-servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ:”  (Emphasis added.)

Article 8 of The Canons of Dordt clearly explains that even faith is a gift of God, purchased by Christ for us by his death.

“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.”  (Emphasis added.)

We may even think that we earn our perfection by our efforts through our flesh.  But, Scripture teaches us that our perfection is not earned by our efforts through our flesh.     

^“3  Are you so foolish?  Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?

 ⁴  Did you suffer so many things in vain–if indeed it was in vain?

 ⁵  So then, does He who provides you with the Spirit and works miracles among you, do it by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith?”  Galatians 3:3-5.

In summary, “For who regards you as superior?  What do you have that you did not receive?  And if you did receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?”  1 Corinthians 4:7

 ²¹  “But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God.”  John 3:19-21. 

The last phrase “wrought in God”, reminds me of Ephesians 2:10:  “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”

Not only is it true that the works of Christians are “wrought in God”, a Christian “comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God”. 

In other words, a Christian likes to show off his works as coming from God to give glory to God.  “Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”  Matthew 5:16  

Psalm 138:8
“The LORD will accomplish what concerns me;  Your lovingkindness, O LORD, is everlasting;  Do not forsake the works of Your hands.”

Isaiah 60:21
“Then all your people will be righteous;  They will possess the land forever, The branch of My planting, The work of My hands, That I may be glorified.”

 ¹⁸  “He who believes in Him is not judged;  he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”  John 3:16-18.

Does God love everybody?

If one only read John 3:16, one could believe that God does love everybody.  But, when one reads further, one quickly sees the distinction between those who believe and are not judged (saved) and those who do not believe and have already been judged (not saved).  Even just within these verses, we can come to the conclusion that God does not love everyone.

And, we are commanded to not limit our study to just three verses.  “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.”  2 Timothy 2:15

“It is good to see the forest from the trees.”  One of the blessings of reading through the Old Testament, as tough as it is to read some of it, is the overall impression that one receives.  One impression is a strong and clear impression of God’s anger and judgment, not only against the heathen, but also against the nation of Israel.  God did save a remnant of the nation of Israel, but one can very clearly understand that God does not love everybody.

There are also specific verses that one can cite. 

“⁴  For You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness;
         No evil dwells with You.
    ⁵  The boastful shall not stand before Your eyes;
         You hate all who do iniquity.
    ⁶  You destroy those who speak falsehood;
         The LORD abhors the man of bloodshed and deceit.”  Psalm 5:4-6.  (Emphasis added.)

“Just as it is written, “JACOB I LOVED, BUT ESAU I HATED.”  Romans 9:13.

1 Peter 4:18
“AND IF IT IS WITH DIFFICULTY THAT THE RIGHTEOUS IS SAVED, WHAT WILL BECOME OF THE GODLESS MAN AND THE SINNER?”

So, what does it mean in John 3:16 that “God so loved the world”?

There was a need for the Apostle John and others to stress that not only the Jews would be saved.  God chose His elect from all of the nations, not just from the nation of Israel.  “After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands;  and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”  Revelation 7:9-10.

In summary, we can understand all of the Scripture for today.  First, the hope of John 3;16 is presented.  God does love people from every nation.  We are not necessarily shut out just because we are not a Jew.  Second, only those who believe in Jesus shall not perish, but have eternal life.  Third, unbelievers have already been judged.

In regards to this third point (unbelievers have already been judged), a Sermon by Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758) “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” is so helpful to a correct understanding.  Here is a link to the sermon in full, followed by a few quoted parts of it. 

1. That they were always exposed to destruction; as one that stands or walks in slippery places is always exposed to fall. This is implied in the manner of their destruction coming upon them, being represented by their foot sliding. The same is expressed, Psalm 72:18. “Surely thou didst set them in slippery places; thou castedst them down into destruction.“
2. It implies, that they were always exposed to sudden unexpected destruction. As he that walks in slippery places is every moment liable to fall, he cannot foresee one moment whether he shall stand or fall the next; and when he does fall, he falls at once without warning: Which is also expressed in Psalm 73:18,19. “Surely thou didst set them in slippery places; thou castedst them down into destruction: How are they brought into desolation as in a moment!“
3. Another thing implied is, that they are liable to fall of themselves, without being thrown down by the hand of another; as he that stands or walks on slippery ground needs nothing but his own weight to throw him down.
4. That the reason why they are not fallen already and do not fall now is only that God’s appointed time is not come. For it is said, that when that due time, or appointed time comes, their foor shall slide. Then they shall be left to fall, as they are inclined by their own weight. God will not hold them up in these slippery places any longer, but will let them go; and then, at that very instant, they shall fall into destruction; as he that stands on such slippery declining ground, on the edge of a pit, he cannot stand alone, when he is let go he immediately falls and is lost.”

In conclusion, it is my hope that this devotion will guard against a smug and superficial understanding of John 3:16 and replace it by a reverent fear of the LORD and urgency to believe in Jesus as the only way of salvation.  Thank you.

 ¹¹  “Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know and testify of what we have seen, and you do not accept our testimony.

 ¹²  “If I told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things?

 ¹³  “No one has ascended into heaven, but He who descended from heaven:  the Son of Man.

 ¹⁴  “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must he Son of Man be lifted up;

 ¹⁵  so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life.”  John 3:9-15.  (Emphasis added.)

Let us live “in Him”! 

Let us always think of ourselves “in Him”. 

Let us always remember that all of the promised blessings are “in Him”.

Never allow Satan, that “accuser of our brethren” (Revelation 12:10), to make you think that you are or should be outside of Him!

Colossians 3:3
“For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”

 ³  Jesus answered and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

 ⁴  Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old?  He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he?”

 ⁵  Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

 ⁶  “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

 ⁷  “Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’

 ⁸  “The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going;  so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”  John 3:1-8. 

God saves Whom He wills to save.  That is the essential meaning of Jesus’ statement:  “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

We read also earlier in the Book of John:  “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.”  John 1:12-13.  (Emphasis added.)

Racial lineage (which is “blood”) does not save.  Works do not save.  “Free-will” (which is “will of the flesh”) does not save.  Nothing produced by the flesh of man saves.  Only God saves. 

^“For He says to Moses, “I WILL HAVE MERCY ON WHOM I HAVE MERCY, AND I WILL HAVE COMPASSION ON WHOM I HAVE COMPASSION.”  So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs, but on God who has mercy.”  Romans 9:15-16.

Doesn’t this foregoing Romans 9:15-16 resound in truth with the following John 3:8.   “The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going;  so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”  Like we can’t trace where the wind will blow, we can’t trace the works of man or the free-will of man to determine whom God will save.

This is “Unconditional Election”, the “U” of “TULIP” which is the Five Points of Calvinism, the Reformed Doctrine of salvation.  There is no condition produced by man which motivates God to save him or her. 

Moreover, this is also logically consistent with “Total Depravity”, the “T” of “TULIP”. 

If it is true (and it is true):                     

”as it is written,
“THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NOT EVEN ONE;
THERE IS NONE WHO UNDERSTANDS,
THERE IS NONE WHO SEEKS FOR GOD;
ALL HAVE TURNED ASIDE, TOGETHER THEY HAVE BECOME USELESS;
THERE IS NONE WHO DOES GOOD,
THERE IS NOT EVEN ONE.”  Romans 3:10-11:

“And you were dead in your trespasses and sins,”  Ephesians 2:1,

then our only “chance” for salvation is to be “born of the Spirit” which is “Unconditional Election”.

“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.

 ²⁵  and because He did not need anyone to testify concerning man, for He Himself knew what was in man.”  John 2:23-25.

Reformed doctrine a/k/a Calvinism, specifically “TULIP” teaches us what is in man:  “Total Depravity”, the “T” in “TULIP”.

Man is spiritually dead in his sin, not just wounded.  Man does not possess “free will”.  Man is bound to Satan who has taken man’s will captive.  Man is hostile to God. Man cannot please God.  Man cannot understand the things of God.  Man is in bondage to sin and Satan.  As a result of the fall, sin has totally affected all the faculties of man, making man unable to contribute anything towards his own salvation.  As the following Scriptures state, man does not seek after God, but rather man is dead in sin.                    

Romans 3:10-11:
” as it is written,
“THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NOT EVEN ONE;
THERE IS NONE WHO UNDERSTANDS,
THERE IS NONE WHO SEEKS FOR GOD;
ALL HAVE TURNED ASIDE, TOGETHER THEY HAVE BECOME USELESS;
THERE IS NONE WHO DOES GOOD,
THERE IS NOT EVEN ONE.”

Ephesians 2:1: “And you were dead in your trespasses and sins,” (Emphasis added.)

Consider then the following Questions and Answers from The Heidelberg Catechism.

Question 6.  Did God then create man so wicked and perverse?

Answer.  By no means; but God created man good, and after his own image, in true righteousness and holiness, that he might rightly know God his Creator, heartily love him and live with him in eternal happiness to glorify and praise him. 

Question 7.  Whence then proceeds this depravity of human nature?

Answer.  From the fall and disobedience of our first parents, Adam and Eve, in Paradise;  hence our nature is become so corrupt, that we are all conceived and born in sin.  

Question 8.  Are we then so corrupt that we are wholly incapable of doing any good, and inclined to all wickedness?

Answer.  Indeed we are;  except that we are regenerated by the Spirit of God. 

So then, what does Scripture state concerning trusting man?

Psalm 118:8
“It is better to take refuge in the LORD Than to trust in man.”

Psalm 146:3
“Do not trust in princes, In mortal man, in whom there is no salvation.”

Proverbs 29:25
“The fear of man brings a snare, But he who trusts in the LORD will be exalted.”

In conclusion, we need to trust God, rather than trust man.  Consider Jeremiah 17:5-8.   

⁵  Thus says the LORD,
         “Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind
         And makes flesh his strength,
         And whose heart turns away from the LORD.
    ⁶  “For he will be like a bush in the desert
         And will not see when prosperity comes,
         But will live in stony wastes in the wilderness,
         A land of salt without inhabitant.
    ⁷  “Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD
         And whose trust is the LORD.
    ⁸  “For he will be like a tree planted by the water,
         That extends its roots by a stream
         And will not fear when the heat comes;
         But its leaves will be green,
         And it will not be anxious in a year of drought
         Nor cease to yield fruit.”  Jeremiah 17:5-8.

 ¹⁹  Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”

 ²⁰  The Jews then said, “It took forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?”

 ²¹  But He was speaking of the temple of His body.

 ²²  So when He was raised from the dead, His disciples remembered that He said this;  and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had spoken.”  John 2:18-22. 

This Scripture teaches the importance of speaking the truth, including the truth of Scripture.  Not only is it “the right thing to do” for its own sake, speaking the truth, including truth of Scripture, leads and helps others to believe.

^“28  “The prophet who has a dream may relate his dream, but let him who has My word speak My word in truth.  What does straw have in common with grain?” declares the LORD.

 ²⁹  “Is not My word like fire?” declares the LORD, “and like a hammer which shatters a rock?

 ³⁰  “Therefore behold, I am against the prophets,” declares the LORD, “who steal My words from each other.

 ³¹  “Behold, I am against the prophets,” declares the LORD, “who use their tongues and declare, ‘The Lord declares.’

 ³²  “Behold, I am against those who have prophesied false dreams,” declares the LORD, “and related them and led My people astray by their falsehoods and reckless boasting;  yet I did not send them or command them, nor do they furnish this people the slightest benefit,” declares the LORD.  Jeremiah 23:28-32. 

These are the things which you should do …

Zechariah 8:16
‘These are the things which you should do: speak the truth to one another; judge with truth and judgment for peace in your gates.”

Consider the example of Jesus.

 Luke 20:21
“They questioned Him, saying, “Teacher, we know that You speak and teach correctly, and You are not partial to any, but teach the way of God in truth.”

On the other hand, consider the nature of the devil.

John 8:44-46:
“You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father.  He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him.  Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.  “But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me.  “Which one of you convicts Me of sin? If I speak truth, why do you not believe Me?”

Consider the work of the Holy Spirit.

John 16:13
“But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth;  for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak;  and He will disclose to you what is to come.”

Speaking the truth in love helps us to avoid being tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine.  

Ephesians 4:14-15:
“As a result, we are no longer to be 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;  but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ,”

Therefore …

Ephesians 4:25
“Therefore, laying aside falsehood, SPEAK TRUTH EACH ONE of you WITH HIS NEIGHBOR, for we are members of one another.”