Author: drthomasclothier

¹⁹ And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. ²⁰ But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” ²² All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: ²³ “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us). ²⁴ When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, ²⁵ but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.” (Matthew 1:19=25)

Not only do extraordinary circumstances occur in our lives, as they did with Joseph, but they may also present opportunities of grace. Joseph faced a dilemma. His betrothed wife, Mary, was pregnant and they both knew He was not the Father. What was he to do in light of her apparent infidelity?

Today’s text informs us that Joseph, her husband, was a righteous man. Joseph was intent on doing what was right. Joseph came to the “logical conclusion” that Mary had been unfaithful to him and he could not see a way to take Mary home with him and be married. He was a man of principle and wanted to live according to the will and Word of God.

However, Joseph did not want to disgrace her. Not wishing to expose her to public disgrace, he could either institute a lawsuit against Mary or he could send her away secretly. This is what he decided to do. He would divorce her quietly, which was an evidence of his love for her. This would not involve any judicial procedure.

Joseph considered what he should do. He reflected, pondered, deeply considered or contemplated in order to reach a conclusion about the matter. He loved Mary and wanted to be her husband. But he was finding it difficult to transition from principle to deed.

It was during those moments of thought and reflection on what he should do that an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. The text does not tell us who specifically the angel was, but I suspect it was Gabriel. The angel told Joseph not to be afraid about taking Mary as his wife. In other words, Joseph was not to hesitate or be anxious about marrying Mary. The reason being was that the child conceived in her was of the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:35). Mary had not been unfaithful at all.

The angel continued by saying that Mary would bear a Son, a fulfillment of Isaiah 7:14 which says, “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign; Behold a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name, Emmanuel.”

 In light of this news, the angel also said that Joseph was to call the boy’s name Jesus which meant Yahweh is salvation. The reason the angel gave was that Jesus would save His people from their sins. This promise is restated in Acts 4:12 which says, “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”

Joseph obeyed the Lord and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him. He took Mary as his wife. He took her into his home when the betrothal period was over and married her. However, the text goes on to say that he kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son. They did not consummate their marriage until after Jesus was born. Joseph also called the child’s name Jesus (Matthew 12:46-47; Mark 3:31-32; Mark 6:1-3; Luke 8:19-20; John 2:12; John 7:3-10; Acts 1:14).

Did Joseph and Mary have other children following the birth of Jesus? The Scriptures inform us that they did. Matthew 13:55 says, “Is this not the carpenter’s son? Is not his mother called Mary, and His brothers, James, and Joseph, and Simon, and Judas? And His sisters, are they not all with us?” Mark 6:1-3 also says, “Is this not the carpenter, the son of Mary, and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? Are not His sisters with us?”

Face with extraordinary circumstances, Joseph was obedient to the Lord. God calls us to that same obedience when we face our extraordinary circumstances. Let us resolve to do so.

May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here.

Soli deo Gloria!

¹⁸ Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit.” (Matthew 1:18)

 I have lived long enough to witness extraordinary circumstances. Extraordinary means “unusual or remarkable; unusually great; that which provides astonishment or admiration.” Circumstances mean “a fact; an occurrence or a condition.”

Here are a few “extraordinary circumstances” I have observed in my life!

• November 22, 1963 – The Assassination of President John F. Kennedy.
• April 1968 – The Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.
• June 1968 – The Assassination of Robert F. Kennedy.
• Graduating from high school. Believe me, this was an extraordinary accomplishment.
• Graduation from college, seminary, and receiving my doctorate.
• Getting married.
• Becoming a father.
• Becoming a father-in-law.
• Becoming a grandfather five times over.
• 9/11.
• Observing the northern lights in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.
• Serving the Lord as a pastor/teacher.

This is just a partial list. I am sure that you have encountered extraordinary circumstances in your lifetime. Joseph, the betrothed husband of Mary, certainly did. What I have discovered is that first of all, extraordinary circumstances “will” occur in your life. They may not be exactly the same as Joseph’s, but they’re extraordinary nevertheless. You may not know when, where or even why they may happen, but God does cause them to occur.

What extraordinary circumstances occurred in Joseph’s life? Let’s see.

Matthew 1:18 says, “¹⁸ Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit.”

In several ways, Matthew’s account of Jesus’ incarnation parallels the birth narrative found in Luke 1:26ff. However, Matthew’s narrative focus in not on Mary but rather on Joseph.

Matthew mentions the one year betrothal period of engagement known as the Kuddushin. The actual wedding ceremony, referred to as the Huppa, had yet to take place.

Matthew also mentions that this betrothal period occurred “before they came together.” In other words, Mary and Joseph had not consummated their relationship (Luke 1:27-38). However, in a restricted sense theirs was essentially a marriage.

Dr. John Walvoord writes that, “The fact that Jesus was born “of Mary” only, as indicated in the genealogical record (v. 16), demanded further explanation. Matthew’s explanation can best be understood in the light of Hebrew marriage customs. Marriages were arranged for individuals by parents, and contracts were negotiated. After this was accomplished, the individuals were considered married and were called husband and wife. They did not, however, begin to live together. Instead, the woman continued to live with her parents and the man with his for one year. The waiting period was to demonstrate the faithfulness of the pledge of purity given concerning the bride. If she was found to be with child in this period, she obviously was not pure, but had been involved in an unfaithful sexual relationship. Therefore the marriage could be annulled. If, however, the one-year waiting period demonstrated the purity of the bride, the husband would then go to the house of the bride’s parents and in a grand processional march lead his bride back to his home. There they would begin to live together as husband and wife and consummate their marriage physically. Matthew’s story should be read with this background in mind.”

It was at this time that Mary was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. Mary became pregnant while remaining a virgin. The pregnancy occurred through the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit. The immediate cause of her condition was the powerful-life imparting creative work of God the Holy Spirit. Mary knew this pregnancy occurred because the angel told her this would happen (Luke 1:26-35). She knew Joseph was not the biological father because they had not consummated their relationship. So did Joseph. What an extraordinary set of circumstances Joseph was now facing.

Dr. Walvoord concludes by saying. “Mary and Joseph were in the one-year waiting period when Mary was found to be with child. They had never had sexual intercourse and Mary herself had been faithful (vv. 20, 23). While little is said about Joseph, one can imagine how his heart must have broken. He genuinely loved Mary, and yet the word came that she was pregnant.”

What will Joseph do in light of these extraordinary circumstances? That is what we will examine next. Suffice to say that Joseph will do that which is right and biblical. How about us?

May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here.

Soli deo Gloria!

 

 

 

³⁸ And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.” (Luke 1:38)

How do you respond when the Lord reveals His will to you? It may be through His Word, always the place to begin, by promptings through prayer, counsel from godly mentors, along with the providential circumstances of life. Regardless, how do you respond?

Are you reluctant? This means to be unwilling, unenthusiastic, and hesitant. You know what the Lord wants of you but you are unwilling, unenthusiastic and hesitant to submit to what He wants of you. Ultimately you serve but you’re not happy about it. You go kicking and screaming, figuratively or literally, as you submit to His sovereign leading.

Or maybe you are fearful of the unknown. Your fear is because of the many intangibles or questions you have in which there are no immediate answers. You submit but to say you are truly happy and contented is a stretch at best.

Or perhaps you submit willingly and gladly knowing that God can be trusted and that He will never leave you nor forsake you.

I often find that submitting to the Lord’s will involves a process of proceeding through all three of the aforementioned responses, along with many others. This process ultimately ends up with me being at peace because regardless where, when and how the Lord leads, He is always there.

Examining today’s text reveals to us Mary’s immediate reaction to Gabriel’s message and answers to her questions and concerns. She said, “I am the servant of the Lord.” She acknowledged her position before the Lord.

The word servant (δούλη; doule) in this context means female slave or slave woman. Mary recognized her humble positon before the Lord. She solely belonged to the Lord. The word Lord (κύριος; kyrios) means ruler, owner and one who commands. In other words, Mary acknowledged that she was a slave of the sovereign God of the universe. Whatever He wanted, that is what she was willing to do.

Mary then said, “Let it be to me according to your word.” This statement revealed her heart. She was willingly submissive to whatever the Lord wanted of her.

One commentator writes that, “Mary expresses her submission to the Lord’s will in regular Old Testament terms for submission or acquiescence (e.g., 1 Sam 1:18; 25:41; 2 Sam 9:6, 11; 2 Kings 4:2; 2 Sam 7:25).”

Dr. John MacArthur writes that, “Mary was in an extremely embarrassing and difficult position. Betrothed to Joseph, she faced the stigma of unwed motherhood. Joseph would obviously have known that the child was not his. She knew she would be accused of adultery—an offense punishable by stoning (Deut. 22:13–21; cf. John 8:3–5). Yet she willingly and graciously submitted to the will of God.”

Submitting to the Lord’s will may not always be easy. Doing the Lord’s will may be even harder. However, submitting to and carrying out the will of God for our lives is always best.

May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here.

Soli deo Gloria!

 

 

 

 

³⁵ And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. ³⁶ And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. ³⁷ For nothing will be impossible with God.” (Luke 1:35–37)

What do we mean by the phrase the providence of God? You probably noticed that a variation of the word providence is contained in the title of today’s blog.

Providence, means to see in advance, beforehand and/or to provide for. It means that God is not a mere spectator in the world’s events. Rather than just being the creator of the universe, the Lord is also the sustainer of the same. The universe, and all its inhabitants, are not only dependent upon God for its origin but also for its continued existence.

Dr. R. C. Sproul writes that, “The central point of the doctrine of providence is the stress on God’s government of the universe. He rules His creation with absolute sovereignty and authority. He governs everything that comes to pass, from the greatest to the least. Nothing ever happens beyond the scope of His sovereign, providential government. He makes the rain to fall and the sun to shine. He raises up kingdoms and brings them down. He numbers the hairs on our head and the days of our life.”

Therefore, there are no chance events. There is no such thing as chance, luck or fate. With respect to Mary and the virgin birth of Christ, it was not by chance that God had Gabriel visit her with the news that she would conceive and give birth to the Messiah. It was also not be chance how God would bring this event to pass.

In response to Mary’s questions concerning how this virgin birth would occur, Gabriel said, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God.” There are three key phrases Luke used to describe this miraculous event.

“The Holy Spirit will come upon you.” The virgin birth will be the result of a divine act by God the Holy Spirit. The first person of the Trinity, God the Father, will direct the third person of the Trinity, God the Holy Spirit, to participate in the incarnation of the second person of the Trinity, God the Son.

To come upon means to arrive or to cause to happen. The Greek word ἐπέρχομαι (eperchomai) refers to the general conception of life. The Holy Spirit would miraculously cause the conception of life to occur within the womb of the Virgin Mary.

“The power of the Most High will overshadow you.” The word power (δύναμις; dynamis) means ability or supernatural energy. This power and energy originates from and is solely sourced in the Most High, which is name for God stressing His majesty and supreme authority. This creative, active and productive power solely belonging to God would overshadow (ἐπισκιάζω; episkiazo) Mary and resembling the Shekinah glory of God in the Old Testament mysteriously conceive the virgin birth of the Christ.

“Therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God.” The result of this miraculous work of the Holy Spirit is that the Holy One who is to be born of Mary will be the incarnate Son of God. To be called the Holy One means One who is separate, a cut apart or a cut above.

Jesus Christ would be transcendentally separate from other human beings. He would be different in unique way. He would be consecrated and set apart unto purity. He would be inherently separate from sin but would become the object of God the Father’s wrath by bearing the curse of the sinner’s sin (2 Corinthians 5:21).

Gabriel concluded his message to Mary by informing her of what God was doing in the life of her relative Elizabeth. She too would bear a child who would be intricately involved in the life of the child Mary would conceive and deliver. The conclusion is that nothing is impossible with God. He is in control.

Both pregnancies were within the providential plan and design of God. So also is everything which occurs in our own lives. He still is in providential control.

May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here.

Soli deo Gloria!

 

 

 

 

 

²⁸ And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” ²⁹ But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. ³⁰ And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. ³¹ And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. ³² He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, ³³ and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.” (Luke 1:28–33)

God chooses ordinary people to serve Him. People just like you and me. People just like a girl named Mary. How does God go about choosing people to serve Him? First of all, He finds you. Second, God reveals His will to you.

In the case of Mary, God’s will was revealed to her by the angel Gabriel. As we noticed with Zechariah, an angel is a sent one from God. They are God’s messengers who possess an unqualified surrender to God’s will. Gabriel, as one who stood in the presence of God, was one such angel. God actively sought out Mary. Gabriel came to her and said, “Greetings” meaning glad tidings.

Gabriel addressed Mary as a favored one. It is the Greek word κεχαριτωμένη (kecharitomene) meaning kindness and graciousness. God was bestowing kindness and grace upon Mary. Gabriel also said that the Lord was with her. As a devout Jew, Mary would know the Lord was with her.

Mary’s reaction was typical. She was greatly troubled. This would be not only because she saw that she was in the presence of holiness, but also because of what she heard from the angel. Consequently, she tried to think out carefully and reason thoroughly what was occurring.

Why did the angel come specifically to her? The principle of Scripture interpreting Scripture comes into focus in this scene. Consider the words from the following Old Testament passages to receive insight upon the character of Mary.

• Psalm 138:6 – “Though the LORD is on high, Yes He regards the lowly; but the proud He knows from afar.”
•  Isaiah 57:15 – “For thus says the high and lofty One, Who inhabits eternity, whose name is holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite.”

It was at this moment that Gabriel communicated his message to Mary from God. “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. ³¹ And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. ³² He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, ³³ and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

 First of all, Gabriel told Mary not to fear because God had favored her.

Second, he told her that she would conceive in her womb and give birth to a son. Remember, this visit was in the days prior to ultrasound technology. There was no way to accurately determine a child’s gender until their birth. Yet, the angel revealed to Mary that she would give birth to a son, a fulfillment of prophecy from Isaiah 7:14 and 9:6.

Third, her son’s name would be Jesus.

Fourth, Jesus would be great and called the Son of the Highest. This title refers to Yahweh’s majesty and sovereignty. In effect, Mary’s child would be God incarnate.

Fifth, the Lord God would give Jesus the throne of His ancestral father David. This would fulfill the prophecies from 2 Samuel 7:12-14, Psalm 89:29, Psalm 132:11, Jeremiah 23:5-6 and Isaiah 11:1-10.

Sixth, Jesus would reign and rule over the house of Jacob forever. This would fulfill the prophecies contained in Genesis 49:10 and Numbers 24:17.

Finally, Gabriel told Mary that Jesus’ kingdom would never end. It would not be an earthly kingdom nor a political kingdom, Rather, Jesus’ kingdom would be one of love and grace initially established in the hearts of men and ultimately extending to the entire universe.

God communicates His will through His Word. Gabriel’s message from God was in complete harmony with the Old Testament Scriptures. There was no contradiction.

God’s will for our lives is always in harmony with how He has gifted and equipped us for the task He has in mind for us to accomplish. This was certainly the case with Mary. It also true for you and me.

May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here.

Soli deo Gloria!

 

^26 “In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, ²⁷ to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary.” (Luke 1:26-27)

Let’s take a quiz? And you thought we were done with surprises? Surprise!

Pull a sheet of paper out of the memory bank of your mind and answer the following questions:

1. Who taught Max Lucado to write?
2. Who visited Dwight L. Moody at a Chicago shoe store and spoke to him about Christ?
3. Who gave Michael W. Smith piano lessons?
4. Who refreshed the Apostle Paul in that Roman dungeon as he wrote his last letter to Timothy? (2 Timothy 4:17).
5. Who was responsible for leading R.C. Sproul to Christ?
6. What art teachers encouraged Terry Redlin and Thomas Kinkade to pursue their dreams and refine their God given talents?
7. Who were the parents of the godly and gifted prophet Daniel?
8. Who encouraged John MacArthur to pursue the pastoral ministry?
9. Who encouraged Charles Billingsley to sing?
10. Who was the elderly woman who prayed for Billy Graham for over twenty years?

Before you excuse your inability to answer these questions by calling this quiz “trivia”, let’s stop and think. Had it not been for these unknown people, a huge chunk of church history would be missing and a lot of lives would remain untouched.

You will notice I refer to these individuals as unknown people. Unknown to us perhaps, but not to their loved ones and certainly not unknown to God. By the way, they are not, and were not, nobodies. They were “somebodies” God used and perhaps is still using. In short, they are (were) servants. In many ways, servants of God. They were obedient to His leading, and fervent in their serving.

So today, as we ponder the thought of “When God Chooses You to Serve Him”, ask God what He wants you to do. If you listen closely, and pray obediently, He will reveal His answer.

God chooses ordinary people to serve Him. People just like you and me. People just like a girl named Mary. How does God go about choosing people to serve Him? First of all, He finds you. What do we know about Mary the young girl God found and chose to use?

To begin with, she lived in Nazareth. Nazareth was a town located approximately 22 miles east from the Mediterranean Sea and 15 miles west of the Sea of Galilee. It was located in the lower region of Galilee. It was surrounded by hills. It was a small town: not a capital but rather a village.

Nazareth had a reputation during the first century. It was known for bad morals and bad religion. The overall perspective of Jewish people at the time regarding Nazareth can best be summed up by Jesus’ disciple Nathaniel: “And Nathanial said to him (Phillip), Can anything good come out of Nazareth” (John 1:46)? Yet the Prophet Isaiah wrote that the Messiah would be called a Nazarene. This was a Hebrew reference of the Messiah being from the “branch of David.”

Second, she was a virgin. The Greek word for virgin, παρθένον (Parthenon), means an unmarried person, in this case a female. In other words, Mary had never engaged in sexual intercourse: voluntary or otherwise.

Third, she was engaged or betrothed to a man named Joseph. The Jewish betrothal period, called the Kuddushin, was an arranged engagement. Their legally bound marriage ceremony had yet to take place. This was called the Huppa. It would be like our modern weddings and receptions. However, the celebration would often last seven days. This would be what Jesus and His disciples attended in John 2:1-11.

Mary and Joseph would not have had any physical relationship. They lived in separate homes. The Kuddushin lasted approximately a year. The purpose of this engagement period of time was to prove the fidelity of both individuals.

Mary had been solemnly promised to a man whose name was Joseph. He belonged to the family of David (Matthew 1:1-17). They in a real sense were “legally married.” If either partner proved unfaithful, or other problems arose, then a formal bill of divorcement was required to nullify the betrothal contract.

Mary could very well have been in her teens. Marriages and betrothals in their culture were arranged at a young age. Betrothals often occurred when girls were as young as twelve or thirteen. Perhaps because of her maturity, Mary could have been in her late teens. We can only speculate.

What about you? Where, when and how did God find you? What were the circumstances which led Him to not only convert you but to begin using you? Take time to reflect on God’s usage of you through the years. Thank Him for the privilege it is to serve the One, True God.

May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here.

Soli deo Gloria!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

^“67 And his father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying, ⁶⁸ “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people ⁶⁹ and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David, ⁷⁰as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old, ⁷¹ that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us;  ⁷² to show the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant, ⁷³ the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us ⁷⁴ that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear, ⁷⁵ in holiness and righteousness before him all our days. ⁷⁶ And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways, ⁷⁷ to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins, ⁷⁸ because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high ⁷⁹ to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.” ⁸⁰ And the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day of his public appearance to Israel.” (Luke 1:67-80)

The prophecy of Zechariah (Lk. 1:68–79), the Benedictus, is so named from the first word in the Latin version. Benedictus means “invocation.”

The Benedictus is one of six visions (Luke 1:5–25, 26–38; 2:1–20), and prophecies (Lk. 1:46–56; 2:29–35) in the Gospel of Luke’s Birth of Christ Narrative. It is a recurrent pattern in Hebrew prophecy to reflect upon or elaborate former revelations (cf. Ps. 105; Micah 4:4; Zechariah. 3:10). Therefore, the Benedictus refers to a number of passages from the Psalms and the Prophet Isaiah.

The first section of the passage (Lk. 1:68–75), which is characteristic of Jewish poetry parallelism, praises God for His Messianic deliverance of sinners. The second section (Lk. 1:76–79) describes the role which John will have in this unfolding drama of redemption by God.

In the Benedictus, Messiah’s work is particularly a spiritual deliverance. That is significant because the majority of Jews at that time, and today, viewed and view the Messiah as a political Redeemer. Even though the Messiah’s role as a religious or priestly Redeemer was not absent in Judaism, it was obscured and overshadowed by the Jews desire to be liberated from Roman rule.

Significant words and phrases which occur in the Benedictus are steeped in Old Testament imagery and theology. These include horn of salvation, redeemed, saved, mercy, holy covenant, holiness, righteousness, prophet of the Most High, to go before the Lord to prepare His ways, to give knowledge of salvation, forgiveness of their sins, the tender mercy of our God, sunrise shall visit us from on high, light to those in darkness, the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

The CD Glory to the Holy One by Craig Courtney, Dan Forrest, Jeff Lippencott and narrated by R.C. Sproul, contains a song entitled Variant on Benedictus. Its lyrics are as follows.

Chosen first among the priests
To serve within the temple walls
Zacharias stood in awe
As he heard the angel call.

Refrain

Benedictus
Benedictus
Blessed is the Lord
Benedictus
Benedictus
God’s incarnate Word.

Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God
Will come to raise salvation’s horn
God Incarnate, Word made flesh
To a virgin shall be born.

Christ brings light to sin’s dark night
Our Dayspring, Jesus, from on high
Saints and angels sing God’s praise
All the earth and heav’ns reply.

God’s incarnate Word
Benedictus
Benedictus.

May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here.

Soli deo Gloria!

 

 

 

 

 

On each Lord’s Day this year, we will display the 52 devotionals taken from the Heidelberg Catechism which are structured in the form of questions posed and answers given.

The Heidelberg Catechism was originally written in 1563. It originated in one of the few pockets of Calvinistic faith in the Lutheran and Catholic territories of Germany. Conceived originally as a teaching instrument to promote religious unity, the catechism soon became a guide for preaching as well.

Along with the Belgic Confession and the Canons of Dordt, it forms what is collectively referred to as the Three Forms of Unity.

The devotional for LORD’S DAY 43 is as follows. Please take note of the biblical references given in each answer. This morning’s devotional addresses The Ten Commandments.

Q. What is the aim of the ninth commandment?

A. That I never give false testimony against anyone, twist no one’s words,
not gossip or slander, nor join in condemning anyone rashly or without a hearing.¹

Rather, in court and everywhere else, I should avoid lying and deceit of every kind; these are the very devices the devil uses, and they would call down on me God’s intense wrath.² I should love the truth, speak it candidly, and openly acknowledge it.³ And I should do what I can to guard and advance my neighbor’s good name.⁴

¹ Ps. 15; Prov. 19:5; Matt. 7:1; Luke 6:37; Rom. 1:28-32.
² Lev. 19:11-12; Prov. 12:22; 13:5; John 8:44; Rev. 21:8a.
³ 1 Cor. 13:6; Eph. 4:25.
⁴ 1 Pet. 3:8-9; 4:8.

May the Lord’s truth and grace be found here.

Soli deo Gloria!