Reformed Doctrine Daily Devotions

“Make friends quickly with your opponent at law while you are with him on the way, so that your opponent may not hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the officer, and you be thrown into prison.  “Truly I say to you, you will not come out of there until you have paid up the last cent.”  Matthew 5:23-26.  

Our relationships with others is most important.  “And he answered, ” YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND; AND YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.”  Luke 10:27 

At first thought, we may wrongly think a religious exercise is more important than our relationship with our Christian brother.  We can even use the prior verse of Luke 10:27 to justify such preference.  After all, we are worshipping God which is more important than getting along with our Christian brother.  But, Jesus makes it clear in the Matthew 5:23-26 passage where our first duty lies.

Similarly, remember the story of the Good Samaritan.  We could wrongly think that the religious exercises of the priest and the Levite were most important, but we know that it was only the Good Samaritan who was praised as the one whom we should imitate.  “Jesus replied and said, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, and they stripped him and beat him, and went away leaving him half dead.  “And by chance a priest was going down on that road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.  “Likewise a Levite also, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.  “But a Samaritan, who was on a journey, came upon him; and when he saw him, he felt compassion, and came to him and bandaged up his wounds, pouring oil and wine on them; and he put him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn and took care of him.  “On the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper and said, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I return I will repay you.’  “Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the robbers’ hands?”  And he said, “The one who showed mercy toward him.” Then Jesus said to him, “Go and do the same.”  Luke 10:31-36. 

1. 1 John 3:10
   By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother.
   1 John 3:9-11 (in Context) 1 John 3 (Whole Chapter)
2. 1 John 3:17
   But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?
   1 John 3:16-18 (in Context) 1 John 3 (Whole Chapter)
3. 1 John 4:20
   If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.
   1 John 4:19-21 (in Context) 1 John 4 (Whole Chapter)
4. 1 John 4:21
   And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also.
    

We also need to recognize the special relationship that we have with our Christian brothers and sisters.  Matthew 5:23 above does recognize this special relationship that we have with our brothers.  “So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.”  Galatians 6:10  (Emphasis added.)

Finally, as an attorney, I can confirm the great value of the general advice of Jesus to “Make friends quickly with your opponent at law”.  Whether it be a criminal case or a civil case, settlement should be vigorously pursued.  I do not think this Scripture commands us to accept a settlement no matter what the terms are.  There are exceptions to this general advice.  However, it is good general advice to try to settle all court cases, particularly criminal cases where one can often obtain no prison time or much less prison time than if no settlement is reached.

The foregoing verse 22 gives us three examples of how our righteousness must surpass that of the scribes and the Pharisees as stated in Matthew 5:20:  “For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” 

We can speculate that the scribes and Pharisees viewed themselves as quite righteous, because they thought they obeyed the Ten Commandments.  They may have smugly thought:  “We have not murdered anyone!”. 

But, Jesus gives us these three examples of the strict Law’s requirements.

We may tend to dismiss such a strict teaching by secretly thinking:  “He is kidding?!  Right???  He is exaggerating to make a point.”

No, Jesus is not kidding nor exaggerating.  Notice by the fact that  Jesus gives us three examples, he is emphasizing his prior point that our righteousness must surpass that of the scribes and Pharisees in order to enter the kingdom of heaven. 

Notice that Jesus is also demonstrating by his actions, the importance of His prior words in verse 19.   “Whoever then annuls one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”  Matthew 5:19.

However, we should not leave our comments to these two points:  the Law’s strict requirements and that Jesus practiced what He taught.  This might leave us in a state of hopelessness.  If we can’t obey even the Ten Commandments, then how can we obey the much stricter requirements of the Law?!  If we too often excuse human behavior, and at best are just silent in teaching the Ten Commandments, then how can we teach the strict Law’s requirements as we should?! 

This strict Law should drive us to Christ.  There is no way that we ourselves (through our own strength, knowledge, and willpower) can obey the Law’s strict requirements.  There is no way that we ourselves can teach the Law as we should.  But, there is hope.  “Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith.”  Galatians 3:24.

 ²⁰  “For I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.”  Matthew 5:17-20.

Some wrongly think that the Old Testament represents God’s justice and that the New Testament represents God’s mercy. 

Some wrongly think that God somehow changed from a God of justice to a God of mercy.

The cross should serve as a stark and strong reminder that if there ever was a time for God to ease up on His demands for justice, it would be when His beloved Son was on the cross.  And yet, we know that God did not ease up the slightest on His demands for justice but imposed the full punishment of justice on His beloved Son Who took on our sins.

But, for us naked sinners (the elect), our Savior Jesus Christ did not only take upon Himself the full wrath of God for the guilt of our sins, Jesus Christ clothed us with His righteousness.  “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”  2 Corinthians 5:21 .

This imputed righteousness is the only way that “our” righteousness will “surpass” the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees and be sufficient to allow us to enter the kingdom of heaven. 

God not only credits us and views us with the righteousness of Christ;  God sanctifies us (makes us holy), and leads us in the paths of righteousness through His Holy Spirit which produces fruit of righteousness.  God is not only concerned about how He views us, but He “works out” in our daily lives the righteous behavior befitting such His concern for righteousness.

Although we do not behave perfectly, and we still sin, God has made us slaves of righteousness.  ^“But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness.”  Romans 6:17-18. 

“For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, so that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”  Romans 8:3-4.  (Emphasis added). 

As we walk in the Spirit, we know what fruit is produced by the Spirit.  “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”  Galatians 5:22-23. 

In conclusion, by the foregoing we better understand God who states:  “… I am the LORD who exercises lovingkindness, justice and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things,” declares the LORD.”  Jeremiah 9:24.

¹⁵  nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.

¹⁶  “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 5:13-16.  

We are the salt of the earth.  We are unique.  Believers should “stand out” as being different than the unbelievers.  But, individual believers should also “stand out” as being different from other believers. 

Salt flavors.  Salt makes one thirsty.  Salt preserves. 

Salt flavors.  ^“For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing;  to the one an aroma from death to death, to the other an aroma from life to life.  And who is adequate for these things?”  2 Corinthians 2:15-16.

Salt preserves.  “So the LORD said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare the whole place on their account.”  …  Then he said, “Oh may the Lord not be angry, and I shall speak only this once; suppose ten are found there?”  And He said, “I will not destroy it on account of the ten.”  Genesis 18:26-32. 

However, too often, we want to be like everybody else.  We want to blend into the crowd. 

Or, we want to be like someone else.  Speaking about the members of the Body of Christ, “the ear” wants to be “the eye”.  “The eye” wants to be “the tongue” etc. 

“But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually just as He wills.  For even as the body is one and yet has many members, and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ.  For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.  For the body is not one member, but many.  If the foot says, “Because I am not a hand, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body.  And if the ear says, “Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body.  If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were hearing, where would the sense of smell be?  But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired.  If they were all one member, where would the body be?  But now there are many members, but one body.”  And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; or again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.”  1 Corinthians 12:11-21.  

We are also the light of the world.  We are unique.  Believers should “stand out” as points of light in a dark world.  But, churches and denominations should also “stand out” as “beacons of light” to assist fellow believers to find their way back safely to harbor.

There is a lot more that could be taught about being salt and light.  But, there is only space herein for one more thought.

There are very few Reformed believers, very few Reformed churches, and very few Reformed denominations.  God has entrusted us, Reformed believers, with the treasure, salt, and light of sound doctrine.  God has given us at least a special understanding of His sovereignty and His salvation.  Although we are not perfect in that special understanding nor perfect in general sound doctrine, we need to faithfully teach it and promote it. 

We may not be as good evangelists as the Baptists nor as good mission workers as the Methodists, at least as to the means of how they intend to accomplish it, but we should not fall to temptation in trying to be just like them and lose our salt and light.  I am not saying that we do not need to be concerned about evangelism and missions, but I am saying that above all, we need to do our own job of being the salt and the light of Reformed doctrine.

 Today’s devotion was Matthew 5:1-12.  

“¹  When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him.

 2  He opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying,

 3  “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

 4  “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

 5  “Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.

 6  “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

 7  “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

 8  “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

 9  “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

10  “Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11  “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.

12  “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”  Matthew 5:1-12.

The temptation is to read these Beatitudes as we would read the Ten Commandments.  But, how can we ignore the blessings?

Notice that Jesus did not teach in this way:  “THOU SHALT BE HUMBLE.  THOU SHALT BE GENTLE.  THOU SHALT BE MERCIFUL.  and so on,”  Rather, Jesus taught:  “Blessed are the poor in spirit.  Blessed are the gentle.  Blessed are the merciful.  and so on.”  (Emphasis added.)

You can call it “leading with a carrot rather than a stick”.  But, there is more to it than just holding forth the promise of blessings if we act in a certain way.

Jesus said: “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.  Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and YOU SHALL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.  For My yoke is easy, and My load is light”. Matthew 11:28-29.

What is a yoke?  According to Oxford American Dictionary, published in 1980 by Oxford University Press, a yoke is a “wooden crosspiece”.  It is a foundation for pulling or work.

After reading this definition of yoke, I thought of the cross.  The cross is a wooden crosspiece that was fastened to Christ as a foundation for His work of carrying away the sins of the world.  The yoke that Christ endured was the cross, but the yoke that Christ give us is His Spirit.

The Pharisees lay law upon law on the people: “And they tie up heavy loads, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger.” Matthew 23:4.

In contrast, Christ tied up the heavy loads of the law and laid them on His own shoulders and gave us His Spirit as a yoke: “in order that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit”.  Romans 8:4.

As we know, “… the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”  Galatians 5:22-23.  Doesn’t this fruit of the Spirit sound a lot like those blessed behaviors and actions?! 

Psalm 23:3 summarizes it:  “He restores my soul;  He guides me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake.” 

In conclusion, do not read the Beatitudes as the Ten Commandments and depend on your own resolve and will-power to act accordingly.  Rather, read the Beatitudes as they were written and with the provisions given to you:  the blessings, the Holy Spirit, the fruit of the Holy Spirit, and the overall promise that God will lead and guide you in these paths of righteousness.  Thank you.

 ²⁰  Immediately they left their nets and followed Him.

 ²¹  Going on from there He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and He called them.

 ²²  Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.”  Matthew 4:18-22.

Was Jesus’ words “Follow Me” an irresistible command or a resistable invitation? 

Let us examine this Scripture.  First, we note the absence of the word “If” in front of “Follow Me” and the absence of “then” in front of “I will make you fishers of men”.  Second, we also note the effect of Jesus’ words.  They immediately followed Him.  Third, we note the comparison between what Peter and Andrew left versus what James and John left.  We note that Peter and Andrew only left their nets.  Whereas, James and John left much more valuable “items” that would be harder to leave:  the boat and their father. 

Let us examine other Scripture.  ^“Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for common use?”  Romans 9:21.  A Potter does not invite his clay to choose whether or not it will comply.  The clay becomes whatever the Potter makes it.  “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.  Likewise, we perform whatever works God created us and prepared us to do.

As Reformed believers, we believe in the doctrine of salvation summarized by the acronym “TULIP” including “I” of “Irresistible Grace”.  Is it any more difficult to believe that God can and does irresistably command and cause us to follow Him and do whatever works that He causes us to do than it is to believe that He irresistably saves us?  

In conclusion, this should give us great comfort and assurance that “… He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus”  Philippians 1:6.

 ¹⁴  This was to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet:
      ¹⁵  “THE LAND OF ZEBULUN AND THE LAND OF NAPHTALI,
         BY THE WAY OF THE SEA, BEYOND THE JORDAN, GALILEE OF THE ^[b]GENTILES–
      ¹⁶  “THE PEOPLE WHO WERE SITTING IN DARKNESS SAW A GREAT LIGHT,
         AND THOSE WHO WERE SITTING IN THE LAND AND SHADOW OF DEATH,
         UPON THEM A LIGHT DAWNED.”

 ¹⁷  From that time Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”  Matthew 4:12-17.

There have been times when we too were sitting in darkness.  Although there are all kinds of examples, I think most readily of sitting in darkness watching television.  Although I am not making a blanket condemnation of television, some of us may think of times when our view of life was so warped by television that such a description is appropriate.  Whatever “sitting in darkness” may mean to us, Paul includes all of us and pinpoints the true gloom and doom of our condition when he states:  ^“And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.  Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.”  Ephesians 2:1-3.

But then, upon us, a light dawned.  Maybe, someone opened the curtains, and the light rushed in and we looked outside and saw a beautiful day.  We turned off the television.  We stood up.  We walked outside.  We played outside in the light with much joy.  We then wondered why we were ever so foolish to waste so much time inside sitting in darkness.

“But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”  Ephesians 2:4-7. 

Isaiah 60:1-2 provides the fitting conclusion.

“Arise, shine; for your light has come,
         And the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. 
     “For behold, darkness will cover the earth
         And deep darkness the peoples;
         But the LORD will rise upon you
         And His glory will appear upon you.”  Isaiah 60:1-2.

And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illumine them; and they will reign forever and ever.”  Revelation 22:1-5.  (Emphasis added).

In regards to “a river of the water of life, clear as crystal“, Rev. Herman Hoeksema in his book Behold he Cometh!  An Exposition of the Book of Revelation at page 710 on his commentary of Revelation 22:1-5 states:  “The river of the water of life, therefore, is symbolic of a constant flow of life, of the continuous operation of the life-giving Spirit of God in Christ which the glorified saints constantly and by a constant act on their part receive and appropriate.  …  Or, if you will, the reference is to that stream of the blessings of grace, – the blessings of knowledge of God, righteousness, and holiness, of the favor of God, and of all that is implied in life in the true sense of the word, – a constant stream of blessings which flow to the saints through the Spirit of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

In regards to “the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit“, Rev. Herman Hoeksema in his book Behold he Cometh!  An Exposition of the Book of Revelation starting at page 711 on his commentary of Revelation 22:1-5 compares this heavenly tree of life with the tree of life in the Garden of Eden and states about this heavenly tree of life:   “In the first place, it symbolizes the perfected life of heavenly fellowship with God, which means that the saints constantly taste God’s covenant friendship.  … And, in the second place, the tree of life represents the perpetuation of the glorious life in the resurrection body.  …   There is never any want of fruit, and therefore never any want of life and immortality, for the church.  …”.

In regards to “and they will reign forever and ever“, Rev. Herman Hoeksema in his book Behold he Cometh!  An Exposition of the Book of Revelation at page 714 on his commentary of Revelation 22:1-5 states:  “With and in Christ the saints shall participate in the reign over all creatures in the new creation.  …  All things shall serve them, that they may serve their God in Christ.  Forever they shall reign!  …  There will be no possibility of an end, no possibility of a fall any more.  …”