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Search TAG: Nearer to God daily devotional

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Daily devotional

December 12 – Abraham (2): Looking forward from Mount Moriah
Daily devotional

December 11 – Abraham (1): Looking forward from Ur
Daily devotional

December 10 – Noah: Cleansing of creation through watery judgment
Daily devotional

December 9 – Enoch & Lamech: where loyalty leads
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Daily devotional

December 8 – Cain & Abel: Two lines, two heads, the first quake

“Adam knew his wife again, and she bore a son and named him Seth, ‘For God has appointed another seed for me instead of Abel, whom Cain killed.’”– Genesis 4:25  Scripture reading: Genesis 4:1-16, 25 Although Adam and Eve are no longer in Paradise, they still experience God's gracious goodness: they have God's promises, they are on God's side, and now they are the proud parents of two boys. Cain becomes a gardener; Abel a herdsman. Two different men. That's okay. Two different occupations. That's okay too. Not okay is that the two brothers stand on opposite sides of the spiritual fault-line because they are loyal to two different masters. The sacrifices show where their loyalties lie. God required their first and their best. Cain offered some of his produce. Not the first fruits, not the best fruits, just 'some.'  In contrast, Abel offered the firstborn from his flock and gave the fat portions, meaning the best portions, to God. Cain grew jealous and angry because God looked with favor upon Abel's sacrifice, but not on his. God warned Cain to master his sin lest sin masters him. But Cain didn't listen. Hatred quaked within his heart. His brother became the victim. And Eve, the mother of all living, became the mother of one dead. Her two sons stood on opposite sides of the spiritual fault-line. Cain represents those who are loyal to Satan. Abel represents those loyal to the Saviour. But Abel is now dead and Jesus was supposed to descend from Abel's line. Could God's people still look forward to the Advent of Christ?  Yes! God gave Eve another son, Seth, in place of Abel. From Seth's line, the Saviour would come (Luke 3:23, 38). Suggestions for prayer Thank God for keeping Advent hope alive when Satan sought to snuff it out. Ask God to reassure you that no matter how powerful Satan may be, God's plans will prevail and His kingdom will not fail. This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Brian Zegers has been serving the Lord by working with Word of Life Ministry as home missionary to the Muslim community in Toronto, Ontario since 2015....

Daily devotional

December 7 – One fault line, two lines of loyalty

“He has promised, saying, ‘Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.’”– Hebrews 12:26b  Scripture reading: Genesis 3:15; Hebrews 12:25-29  Geographical fault-lines are deep, lengthy cracks in the earth's crust. They run through countries and continents, forming crevices so deep and gaps so wide that they physically separate people onto opposite sides of an impassible divide. Spiritual fault lines are both similar and different. In Genesis 3:15, God established a spiritual fault-line which separates the entire human race into two sides: Satan's side and God's side. But it is not a physical or spatial separation; rather, it is a separation based on a person's loyalties. By obeying Satan, Adam and Eve showed allegiance to Satan and joined his side. But God quickly fractured that loyalty by placing enmity between them and their respective seed. This was a good kind of fracture! It broke apart a deadly allegiance, separating Adam and Eve from Satan by setting them on the Saviour's side. But fault-lines are also dangerous. Just as geographical fault-lines are places where two tectonic plates press against each other, causing deadly earthquakes, so spiritual fault-lines are places where extreme pressure between Satan and the Saviour and between those loyal to them, results in deadly fighting. Tomorrow we will see how pressure between these two sides quickly builds to a quaking point. Today we note that when Jesus returns, His mighty voice will shake the entire earth. The final separation will take place as the earth opens its mouth, swallowing all those on Satan's side, but leaving those on God's side to enjoy the green grass of God's new creation. Whose side do you stand on? Suggestions for prayer Praise God for Jesus Christ Who is the bridge that allows us to cross from Satan's side to the Saviour's side where there is eternal safety and security. This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Brian Zegers has been serving the Lord by working with Word of Life Ministry as home missionary to the Muslim community in Toronto, Ontario since 2015. ...

Daily devotional

December 6 – Promise in paradise (2): Through a new set of clothing

“I will greatly rejoice in the LORD; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness.” – Isaiah 61:10a Scripture reading: Genesis 3:6-21; Isaiah 61:10 A second Advent promise was given in the garden in symbolic form through a new set of clothing. Immediately after eating the forbidden fruit, Adam and Eve suddenly realized they were naked. Their nakedness was not a problem before (Genesis 2:25), but now it suddenly becomes a source and symbol of shame. When we are ashamed of something, we try to cover it up. This all started with Adam and Eve. They tried to cover up the shame of their nakedness with skimpy loincloths. Did this solve their problem? No! Though covered by fig-leaves, they were still filled with fear. They hid their nakedness from each other. Then they tried to hide from God. But no matter what they did, they could not remove their fear, guilt and shame. Nor could they restore their relationship with God. But God could! He replaced their skimpy, fig-leaf loin-cloths with tunics that He tailored for them from leather. In doing so, the Tailor taught two truths. First, tunics cover far more than loin-cloths, teaching that clothing should conceal rather than reveal. Second, God taught that blood must be shed in order to cover sin. To make the leather tunics, God killed an animal. This was the first animal sacrifice. The animal's death taught that the penalty for sin is death. But the animal died instead of Adam and Eve, teaching that God graciously gives life to sinners by providing a substitute to die in their place. Suggestions for prayer Thank God the Father for this picture of Jesus given in the first sacrifice that took place in the Garden of Eden. Thank Jesus for sacrificing Himself on the cross as the Lamb of God Who takes away our sin. And thank Jesus for clothing us with the robes of His perfect righteousness. This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Brian Zegers has been serving the Lord by working with Word of Life Ministry as home missionary to the Muslim community in Toronto, Ontario since 2015....

Daily devotional

December 5 – Promise in paradise (1): Through a curse on the serpent

“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed. He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.” – Genesis 3:15 Scripture reading: Genesis 3:14-15; Romans 16:20; Galatians 3:15-16 Paradise was lost. But all hope was not lost. Before banishing Adam and Eve from Paradise, He graciously gave them promises that filled them with hope. One promise was embedded in the curse God pronounced upon Satan: “You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel” (Genesis 3:15). What hope for humanity is found in this curse! God broke the bonds of loyalty that bound Adam and Eve to Satan by placing enmity (enemy-likeness) between them and their respective descendants. God made them enemies, rather than friends, of Satan. God also condemned the serpent to crawl on his belly and eat dust all the days of his life. This symbolized Satan's subjugation, defeat and ultimate doom at the hands of a descendant of Eve. Galatians 3:16 tells us that this serpent-crushing descendant or seed is Jesus. He is the promised Saviour who would reverse the curse and rescue humanity from sin and death. What hope is found in God's words of curse upon Satan! They contain the first promise of Christ's coming, making this day in the Garden of Eden the very first day of Advent! God would keep repeating this same Advent promise in many different ways until Jesus came to ensure His people could keep looking forward to Christ's coming. Suggestions for prayer Ask God to help you hate Satan and all that is evil; pray for strength to love and cling to what is good. Thank God that He will soon crush Satan completely (Romans 16:20a). This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Brian Zegers has been serving the Lord by working with Word of Life Ministry as home missionary to the Muslim community in Toronto, Ontario since 2015....

Daily devotional

December 4 – Punishment

“The wages of sin is death.” – Romans 6:23a “Sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.” – James 1:15b Scripture reading: Genesis 2:16-17; 3:8-24 God liberally provided for Adam and Eve. They had permission to freely eat from all the trees in Paradise. Only one was off-limits. But the penalty for eating from the prohibited tree was death. God warned, “In the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Genesis 2:17b). Sadly, Adam and Eve ate. And they died. Immediately. Death is not just about hearts that stop beating or brains that stop functioning. Death is the separation of that which belongs together. Adam and Eve immediately experienced separation from God by trying to hide from His sight in a bunch of bushes. Separation from God climaxed when they were banished from Paradise and barred from re-entry. Separation from each other began as the formerly naked couple hid their nakedness from each other's view. Emotional separation was experienced as the blame-game began. Relational separation started as Eve soon resented her subordinate role as helper and as Adam soon abused his role as leader. Lastly, on that very day their immortal bodies became mortal. A process of decay was now underway. They were destined to return to the dust from which they were made and physical death would eventually separate body from soul. From marvelous to marred, from beautiful to broken, from endless life to decay and death, paradise was lost. Such were the tragic results of defying a good and generous God. But before banishing Adam and Eve from the garden, God made promises that filled them with hope. Suggestions for prayer Rejoice that in Christ's resurrection, death has been defeated and we can look forward to eternal life with Him in transformed bodies that will be like His glorious body. This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Brian Zegers has been serving the Lord by working with Word of Life Ministry as home missionary to the Muslim community in Toronto, Ontario since 2015....

Daily devotional

December 3 – Problems begin

“So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.” – Genesis 3:6 Scripture reading: Genesis 3:1-7 How long did the world stay picture-perfect? Not long. The third chapter in the Bible explains how this perfect Paradise was soon perplexed by a plethora of problems. When Satan tempted Eve to eat the fruit, she said to him, “Of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, 'You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die'” (Genesis 3:3). Eve remembered both the prohibition and the penalty, and she clearly communicated both to Satan. This means the act of eating the forbidden fruit was not an accident or the result of forgetfulness. Nor was it an act of desperation due to being deprived of food. It was a conscious decision to disobey God. This was defiance. Rebellion. High treason against the good and generous king of the universe! What a tragic day. Adam and Eve's relationship with God was fractured. That day a fault-line was formed. Not a fault-line that divided the earth's crust into two tectonic plates, but a fault-line that divided humanity into two sides: those loyal to Satan and those loyal to God. This fault-line would run the length of the human race. As Adam and Eve moved forward with their lives, they looked back with sadness. They regretted the choice they had made and the consequences they had to live with. But that is not the end of the story. God continued to be good and soon showed them undeserved favor, which the Bible calls grace. Suggestions for prayer Ask God to give you a discerning spirit that enables you to know right from wrong, and pray for the desire and the strength to do what is right when you are tempted to do wrong. This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Brian Zegers has been serving the Lord by working with Word of Life Ministry as home missionary to the Muslim community in Toronto, Ontario since 2015....

Daily devotional

December 2 – Permission & prohibition

“And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, ‘Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.’”– Genesis 2:16-17  Scripture reading: Genesis 2:16-25 Picture-perfect. That's how the world really was when God first created it. And Adam and Eve could have lived in this perfect state forever if they obeyed God's command not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Was God being miserly and restrictive by prohibiting this one tree? No! God gave Adam and Eve permission to eat from any and all of the multitude of trees in the garden. They had a buffet-sized selection of food to sustain and satisfy them. Only one was off-limits. This tells us something about God. He is not miserly nor stingy. Not at all! He is generous. He delights to bless His children with an abundance of good gifts. Consider how He lavishly provided Adam and Eve with a Paradise full of pleasures to enjoy: food, drink, fellowship, friendship, and the pleasures of sight, smell, sound, taste and touch, too! Would they delight in the abundance God had provided for them? Would they willingly obey His command? If so, they would continue to enjoy this state of peace, tranquility and harmony with God and with each other. Paradise would be theirs. Theirs forever! But if they disobeyed, Paradise would be lost. And they would surely die. God continues to bestow many blessings upon us each day. His mercies are new every morning. Will we accept the blessings He gives and find pleasure in them? Or will we look for pleasure in that which is forbidden? Suggestions for prayer Every good thing you have is ultimately a generous gift given to you by God (James 1:17). Name some of these gifts, thank God for them, and pray that you would delight in them. This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Brian Zegers has been serving the Lord by working with Word of Life Ministry as home missionary to the Muslim community in Toronto, Ontario since 2015....

Daily devotional

December 1 – “Looking forward to the coming of Christ” series

Looking Forward: My guess is that as you turned the page on your calendar from November to December, your first thought might have been, “Wow! Christmas is almost upon us again!” For children and adults alike, Christmas day is often the first thing that comes to mind as we transition into the last month of the year. Understandably so because the celebration of Christ's birth is something that we look forward to with a sense of excitement and eager anticipation. Christmas lights come out. Christmas trees are put up. Christmas music is turned on. Jesus' birth is certainly an event worth remembering. While our thinking turns to Jesus' birth once again, we do well to remind ourselves that God began thinking about Christ's coming into the world long before the world even began. And did you know that the first promise about Christ's coming was given by God in the Garden of Eden over six thousand years ago? Jump in with us this month to journey through the Bible with the theme “Looking forward to the coming of Christ” as our tour guide. Since the first few chapters of Genesis are so foundational we will spend the first few days camping in the Garden of Eden. Our pace will then pick up as we travel into Egypt (Exodus), through the wilderness (Numbers), into the Promised Land (Joshua), then to a foreign land, and back to the Promised Land again where the long-promised Saviour is born. We will end our journey by looking forward to Christ's second Advent. Let's begin our journey. Picture perfect paradise “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good.” – Genesis 1:1, 31a Scripture reading: Genesis 1:1, 31; 2:1-15 When God created the universe, everything was perfect. Pristinely perfect! Adam and Eve lived in God's beautiful garden and pleasures abounded. Flowers to see and smell, birds to hear, playful animals to watch, satisfying sensations from the sense of touch, tasty food to savor, refreshing water to drink, cascading waterfalls, lush valleys and magnificent mountain vistas to view. And to top it all off – the closest of companionship with God and with a spouse in which to enjoy all these blessings. What a joy! Adam and Eve also worked the garden, but it was pure pleasure to work in God's service. It's been said, “Get a job you love and you'll never work a day in your life.” That's the way it was for Adam and Eve in Paradise. In this state of supreme happiness and contentment, they did not have to look forward to a better state. They were living in a picture-perfect world. But it wasn't just a picture. It was real! Sadly, our experience of life falls so very far short of this perfect Paradise. It is hard for us to even imagine what life was like for Adam and Eve. But take heart! God will restore this world to its pristine and perfect state when Jesus returns. “Behold,” He promises in Isaiah 65:17, “I will create new heavens and a new earth.” You will be among those who enjoy life in this renewed creation if you trust in Jesus as your Saviour and the Lord of all creation. Suggestions for prayer As you worship today on this first Sunday of Advent, thank God for the promise of Jesus' second coming and the new creation He promises to usher in when He comes again. This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Brian Zegers has been serving the Lord by working with Word of Life Ministry as home missionary to the Muslim community in Toronto, Ontario since 2015....

Daily devotional

November 30 – A certain knowledge

“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” – Romans 8:28 Scripture reading: Romans 8 Faith is not some blind leap in the dark. Christian faith is first and foremost a certain knowledge. Faith knows certain facts. First, faith knows the truth of this world. Faith deals with reality, this sad age is our fault. The problem in the world is our problem. Faith never says, “I know I do bad things, but deep down inside I’m a good person.” No, faith is honest, it knows that deep down is the problem. Faith also knows that we have been delivered from this problem. Faith knows that we are not alone. Faith knows that the Holy Spirit works in this sad age to bless us. It also trusts God’s omnipotence. Faith knows that “all things” includes “the sufferings of this present time.” Job sums up the “all things” best when He confessed in great adversity, “The Lord gives and the Lord takes away.” God makes the foulest clean. Faith knows that God is sovereign, which is a most comforting doctrine. The omnipotence of God is very practical. That’s right, I said doctrine is practical. Worried about your career? Your job is in His Almighty hands. Worried about your health? Your body is under His cosmic microscope. God’s providence undergirds and directs all of life. God’s power is not limited. Some ask, “if God is all-powerful, why pray?” We respond, “If He is not all-powerful, why pray?” Let me ask you, “Do you want a God in control of evil?” Before you answer, know that if He is not, then He cannot really ever help you. True faith rests in God’s omnipotent hands. Suggestions for prayer Pray that in church tomorrow your faith will be strengthened and pray that those without faith would find Christ as their only comfort in life and in death. This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Jared Beairdis the church planter and pastor of Covenant Reformed Church (URCNA) in Missoula, Montana, USA....

Daily devotional

November 29 – The Tree of Life

“There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” – Romans 8:1 Scripture reading: Romans 8 Romans 8 has been called the “tree of life in the midst of the Garden of Eden.” This chapter is a comprehensive study on how to live and die in the comfort of the Lord. It is the tree of life that sustains us in our earthly pilgrimage. Romans 8 concerns the blessings and privileges every believer has in Christ. These benefits result in Christianassuranceand assurance is the key to Christian living. Why? Because assurance comforts the weary soul, it relieves the wayward Christian of guilt, it provides confidence to those struggling with faith, it gives the peace that passes beyond this sad world, and takes us into the world to come. Romans 8 takes us into the Garden of Eden that we might continue to eat from the tree of life, that is to consume the Word in joyful service to the Glory of God and our enjoyment of Him forever. With evil close at hand, (Rom. 7:20) Paul says later in Romans, “who will bring a charge against God’s elect?” The answer? None! Why none? Because of two promises, Romans 8 promises: (1) no more condemnation; (2) no more separation. These promises are grounded in the gospel “for those in Christ Jesus.” What is the opposite of condemnation? Being in Christ Jesus. In Christ, we are the righteousness of God. Suggestions for prayer Give thanks to the Lord for His grace endures forever. This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Jared Beairdis the church planter and pastor of Covenant Reformed Church (URCNA) in Missoula, Montana, USA....

Daily devotional

November 28 – A new nature

“Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being…” – Romans 7:20–22 Scripture reading: Romans 7 We don’t want to sin but rather we are charged to fight against that old self because it is not really us. This is not an excuse to sin but it is something else. We don’t want evil close at hand, yet as with Paul, the old self hasn’t completely died off. Our old nature was mortally wounded on the cross, as good as dead, always dying, however, it still clings to us like a dying soldier fighting to carry as many enemies with him into the grave. That is the evil that lies close at hand, dead, and no longer a part of us. So we might fight to put it to death once and for all. We want to be saints. Here is our twofold life, the Christian “inner being.” This is our new nature in Christ, not I who live, but Christ in me. The “inner me” is the me in Christ or Christ in me. The “inner me”, the true me, is the one regenerated by the Holy Spirit who truly loves God’s law. The Christian delights in God’s law, embraces it with gladness, and loves it as the revelation of God’s good and merciful will. The Psalms are for the songs of the “inner me”. They are the words of our new life. Our true voice in worship is found in the heart of God, which the Psalms reflect. Suggestions for prayer Pray that your church would worship God according to His Word alone. Pray that your home would follow that same Word and say with the saints of old, “As for me and my house we will serve the Lord.” This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Jared Beairdis the church planter and pastor of Covenant Reformed Church (URCNA) in Missoula, Montana, USA....

Daily devotional

November 27 – A twofold life

“For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing.” – Romans 7:15–19 Scripture reading: Romans 7 Notice the two “I’s” in these verses: one “I” is my renewed self and the other is my old self. The one “I” hates the other. The Christian hates his sinful life because it is evil. What is the greatest evil? Death, which is where all sin leads. What is the greatest evil ever? The death of Christ, which is where our sin led Jesus. Here is why we hate evil: it is not only our enemy, we are its servants. We are the culprits that killed our Savior. Our sin led Christ to the cross which now saves us. Delivered, we no longer want to trample under our foot this grace of God. We hate that we try to keep Christ on the cross. We hate evil because it killed our Savior. We hate evil because we love Christ more, Who died for our sins. Here we see the difference between unbelief and believers hatred of evil. Unbelievers hate evil deeds because it upsets their best life now. We hate evil because we have the best promise now – Christ became sin for us so that we might be the righteousness of God. Once you truly accept that by faith, you will learn more and more to hate sin. Suggestions for prayer Augustine said, “our hearts are restless until they rest in God.” Pray that you would rest in God’s grace and from there seek to live for Him more and more. Pray that you would put to death your old self. This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Jared Beairdis the church planter and pastor of Covenant Reformed Church (URCNA) in Missoula, Montana, USA....

Daily devotional

November 26 – Compelled by love

“For while we were living in the flesh, our sinful passions, aroused by the law, were at work in our members to bear fruit for death. But now we are released from the law, having died to that which held us captive, so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit and not in the old way of the written code.” – Romans 7:5-6 Scripture reading: Romans 7 Sin is an attempt to be a better god. The deception of sin is this, “I am powerful.” Our flesh loves the law because we think the power to overcome resides in our hearts. This “power trip” leads many to invent even more laws, which God has not made. What is the power of temptation? “You can be like God.” Behind sin is self and the fruit of self is death. Why do we love the gospel so much? Because it is the power of God unto sanctification. The gospel strengthens us to serve. Paul begins “But now” (vs.6). This is a famous Pauline “but now.” It is his way of contrasting our pre-Christian life with our Christian life. In that old life we were enslaved to the law, but now “in Christ” we are free. We are free not to do what we want, but to serve God. Paul contrasts freedom with bondage, the old life was bondage. Notice, we still serve. We are enslaved to righteousness. Just because the law is powerless does not mean it has no place in Christianity. It has a place, not of power but of leading. The gospel sets us free and the law then shows us the way. The gospel leads the Christian in sanctification. Christian obedience follows Christ. Suggestions for prayer Pray the Lord would expose your secret and hidden sins that you might with godly sorrow turn more and more away from sin and love God more and more instead. This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Jared Beairdis the church planter and pastor of Covenant Reformed Church (URCNA) in Missoula, Montana, USA....

Daily devotional

November 25 – Enslaved to love

“For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” – Romans 6:20–23 Scripture reading: Romans 6 “Christ Jesus our Lord” is the last word in salvation. What can we do for such a great Savior? Only what God requires. We are enslaved to thankfulness. We do not obey God out of compulsion, fear, or greed. That would mean we hate sin and fear God only because we fear hell or because we want something – we want our best life now in return. That is enslavement to selfishness. That is not the fruit of justification. Those justified want to be enslaved to righteousness because Christ Jesus our Lord died for us sinners. We want to be enslaved because the Father chose us in Christ Jesus and because the Holy Spirit has sealed us into Christ Jesus. Why do we want to be enslaved to righteousness? Because God first loved us. We are enslaved to the gospel, enslaved to Christ Jesus our Lord, Who suffered and died not only for others but for us also. Heis greater than my shame. What else can I do, but offer my life as a sacrifice of thanksgiving. I am enslaved to righteousness and willingly and joyfully submit to God’s everlasting love and care in Christ Jesus my Lord. Amen. Suggestions for prayer Fix your eyes on Christ as your only hope and make it your aim in prayer to please Him all the days of your life. The highest praise is reserved for His great deeds of redemption that Christ has worked in us poor sinners. This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Jared Beairdis the church planter and pastor of Covenant Reformed Church (URCNA) in Missoula, Montana, USA....

Daily devotional

November 24 – Devoted to grace

“What then? Are we to sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Do you not know that if you present yourselves to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?” – Romans 6:15–16 Scripture reading: Romans 6 Amazing grace might tempt the flesh to think grace leads to freedom to sin (cf. Rom 6:1). The answer is obvious. While we cherish God’s mercy, we don’t cheapen it by thinking we should sin to get more. That would mean we sin because of grace. Just because grace guts the law of its power, does not mean we are free to do whatever we want. There is a greater purpose behind justification—justified to become slaves of righteousness. We don’t cheapen grace, no, we devote ourselves to it. Jesus said where your treasure is, there your heart will follow. Well, there is no greater treasure on earth than grace. It is greater in every way. In the ancient Greco-Roman world, needy people often sold themselves into slavery as a way to avoid financial danger. These were voluntary submissions and often wise choices. Masters promised to provide all that the slaves needed if the slaves devoted themselves completely to their masters. The masters then devoted themselves to the slaves’ care. We are likewise bound either devoted to the master of death or to the Lord of life. You must serve someone and there is no third-party option. If you do your own thing, you are serving the master of death. You want to be slaves of righteousness because there is no hope without it. Suggestions for prayer Pray that you and your church would be devoted to God’s grace that works in us together with a love for God and one another. May our love for one another show the watching world the greatness of grace. This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Jared Beairdis the church planter and pastor of Covenant Reformed Church (URCNA) in Missoula, Montana, USA....

Daily devotional

November 23 – Baptism saves

“Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.” – Romans 6:3–4 Scripture reading: Romans 6 Christian living follows baptism. Baptism saves? Not the water, but the thing signified (“into Christ Jesus” and “into His death”). Baptism clothes us in Christ’s life and death. We are really united to Christ’s body so that His death brings forth fruit in our bodies. His flesh powers over our flesh that we might be changed. We are united to Christ not to increase in sin but to destroy it. Baptism is the means to the power of the Gospel Kingdom. Many hear this and think “baptismal immersion” as if this text speaks of submersion and emersion. Yet what does it say? Baptism is the means by which we were buried somewhere—where? In Christ! This text says nothing about the ritual of baptism or the application, but the event. Baptism is a burial event. It places us into Christ’s death. It is gospel, it is history—Christ’s death becomes our present reality. Here is its power to change—“It is no longer I who live, but Christ in me.” Baptism places us into the resurrection. Baptism is gospel, where the history of Christ’s resurrection becomes our present reality. What took place with Christ, what happened to His body and blood has taken place in us through baptism. In baptism, we are sacramentally judged with Christ, raised, gone into heaven, and are there hidden with Christ. We will also come again with Christ in glory. Here is the power to change. We are now in glory and sin’s power has forever been rendered powerless. Here is the power to change. The power is the gospel. Suggestions for prayer Pray that you never forget your baptism, but remember that you belong to Christ and therefore may grow and increase daily in the faith that is at work in every good deed. This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Jared Beairdis the church planter and pastor of Covenant Reformed Church (URCNA) in Missoula, Montana, USA....

Daily devotional

November 22 – The Gospel of the Kingdom of God

“What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?” – Romans 6:1–2 Scripture reading: Romans 6 Over two thousand years have passed since Christ promised the Kingdom of God. Does it affect our lives today? According to Romans 6, the Kingdom of God has everything to do with the Christian life. In Romans 5, Paul explains how the gospel of the Kingdom has delivered us from the penalty of sin. Now in Romans 6, we learn how the gospel of the Kingdom saves us from sin’s power. In Adam, sin stormed into the world bringing with it destruction and death. Now, in Christ, grace has destroyed sin’s control. Christ has overcome this destruction and death with a grace greater than sin. The greatness of grace effects our justification and affects our sanctification. We live godly and quiet lives because we live in Christ. I’m not talking about perfection. Our lives are still messy. We are justified sinners. Evil still lies close at hand. How close? Too close, danger close, not beside, but in us, all around us, contacting and influencing our daily lives. We have carried into the Kingdom of God old baggage. We live with old habits that need to be broken – no, no, no, that need to be destroyed. Already sin is defeated, yet we must be killing sin or it will be killing us. We must put sin to death in our sanctification, not by our might or power but by the Spirit of the Lord. Suggestions for prayer Pray for continued victory over your sin and temptation. Here the Lord’s Prayer in helpful, “lead me not into temptation.” This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Jared Beairdis the church planter and pastor of Covenant Reformed Church (URCNA) in Missoula, Montana, USA....

Daily devotional

November 21 – Total love

“For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” – Romans 5:10–11 Scripture reading: Romans 5 The power of God’s love is total: totally depraved we are now totally saved because Christ is a complete Savior. Paul has substituted the word “justified” for “reconciled.” Justification is forensic, legal language. It pictures the believer being declared innocent of all charges. Reconciliation language, on the other hand, comes from the world of personal relationships. “To reconcile” means to bring together or make peace between two hostile parties. The cross makes peace. It destroys sinners and makes us believers. It takes us from the kingdom of darkness and transfers us into the Kingdom of light. Who belongs to the Kingdom of God? Those who have been washed “by His blood,” that is, those who are presently clean “by the death of His Son” and whose final salvation is “by His life.” Salvation from beginning to end is all in, with, by, and through Christ. By His death, our sins forgiven, we have peace with God. By His life, our righteousness, we have access to God. Because Christ is a whole Savior, our salvation is secure now and forever. Christ is the assurance of faith. If Hewas only a half-Savior, then there would be cause for concern. Our half – have we met our half of the bargain? Have we done enough, loved enough, progressed enough? Our half would rob us of His love, yet because Heis our whole Savior, we have no fear of being cut off from His love in the middle of our Christian life. Suggestions for prayer Pray that you would see how much you have been forgiven that you might love more and hate sin more and turn from it. This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Jared Beairdis the church planter and pastor of Covenant Reformed Church (URCNA) in Missoula, Montana, USA....

Daily devotional

November 20 – Justification

“Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.” – Romans 5:9 Scripture reading: Romans 5 Justification is history. Everyone who belongs to the kingdom of God has this history, the moment you believed all charges were dropped, and you have been declared righteous. The adverb “now” demonstrates that justification is a present reality. There are some who say you have to earn justification. They are dead wrong – matter of fact, they are still dead in their sins. From Paul’s perspective, he and the Roman Christians were justified in the past, a declaration that continues into the present. How so? Faith, by faith they were received into the kingdom of God and by faith, so too, we are now resting in that kingdom. Faith is our history, faith is our present, and faith is our future and this faith is a gift of God, not of works, because God first loved us. Our faith is not self-caused, it is God caused, a gift of grace. It has to be faith because Jesus’ work that earned the Kingdom of God is history, “His blood.” The cross is our history. Our past, present, and future is history, “it is finished.” Christ died and we were justified. Christ died and we are justified. Christ died and we will be justified. Everything here is past and present tense except this “the wrath to come.” This is the eschatological wrath of God to come. This is Kingdom time too—when the Kingdom comes to judge the living and the dead. In Christ, we will be on the right side of that judgment. Suggestions for prayer Pray for the fullness of God’s Kingdom, that He would pour out His Spirit upon all flesh, and cause multitudes who neglect salvation to seek after Christ and find it. This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Jared Beairdis the church planter and pastor of Covenant Reformed Church (URCNA) in Missoula, Montana, USA....

Daily devotional

November 19 – True love

“…but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” – Romans 5:8 Scripture reading: Romans 5 In case we fail to see the greatness of God’s love for us, Paul spells it out. Paul compares the greatness of God’s love by the smallness of man’s love. It is indeed rare to find someone willing to die for another, but it happens. It happens on the battlefield when an unknown hero becomes known to all by diving on the grenade to save his troops. We’ve all heard the story of the man risking is life, even giving his life to run into the burning building or jumping in the frozen lake. There are exceptional men and women in the world; total depravity does not rule that out. Yet as loving as that may be, rarer indeed, perhaps unheard of, is the one who dies for someone who hates him. You don’t hear of the hero jumping on the grenade for the enemy. Yet this is exactly what Christ has done. In contrast to the very best of human love is God’s love. God sent His Son to die for a people who hated Him. God loves the unlovely. This dying “for us” is proof. Christ never dies for us in Scripture apart from the Father’s first loving us. The Father never loves us apart from Christ’s dying on the cross. God’s love is active, it moves to remove sin. It loves by preparing, protecting, and providing for us all we need in life and death. It is a sacrificial love. Christ died not for Himself but for us. He was our Substitute. He suffered in our place. Suggestions for prayer Thank God for the abundance of His loving-kindness, Who has sustained us with every spiritual blessing by giving us His grace. This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Jared Beairdis the church planter and pastor of Covenant Reformed Church( URCNA) in Missoula, Montana, USA....

Daily devotional

November 18 – Made by love

“For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person – though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die.” – Romans 5:6–7 Scripture reading: Romans 5 In ourselves, we have no access to God. We are sinners “while we were” in this lost state, God provided a solution. While we were unlovely and weak, “Christ died for” sinners. The solution is Christ’s love for undeserving sinners. We call this grace; grace is the self-caused love of God. Self-caused, He doesn’t love us because of some worth in us. We are unworthy. His love actually confers worth upon us. This means grace is greater than our sin. God makes us worthy of the kingdom of God. His love makes us. Who belongs to the Kingdom of God? Those who do not deserve it. So, contrary to popular opinion, Christ did not die on the cross to “help those who help themselves.” Grace does not wait for us to start helping ourselves. That is not grace. It is works. Salvation by grace, in Christ, without any merits of our own says, “God sent His Son to die for us while our life was off track.” Christ died for us while we were ungodly, while we were altogether helpless. Who belongs to the Kingdom of God? Christians who now remain in themselves completely sinners, yet by grace in the eyes of God are completely righteous. Who belongs? Those who put away their good works that they might have grace instead. Faith is not another good work among many. No, faith is the alternative to good works. Faith is access to the Kingdom of God. Suggestions for prayer Pray that the Lord would sustain all yesterday’s new converts to the faith around the world. Pray for the unity of our faith and love. This daily devotional is available in a print edition you can buy at Nearer to God Devotional. Rev. Jared Beairdis the church planter and pastor of Covenant Reformed Church (URCNA) in Missoula, Montana, USA....

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