Fri.-Sabbath, 6/6-8/25 Devotion

Bless God—Sunday is almost here. We get to go back to church, to hear the fresh gospel of grace, and enjoy the ordinances of God! In order to help set our minds aright, here are some great words from the amazing John Owen. These come from his outstanding “The Doctrine of Justification By Faith” book. . . .

“[Justifying faith] includes in it a sincere renunciation of all other ways and means for the attaining of righteousness, life and salvation. This is essential to faith, (Acts 4:12; Hos. 14:2-3; Jer. 3:23). Ps. 71:16b: ‘I will remind them of Your righteousness, Yours alone,’ [italics mine]. When a person is in the condition before described, [i.e. under conviction of sin/having no hope in anything in himself or the law/being desperate/and without human resources, etc.], (and such alone are called immediately to believe, Matt. 9:13; 11:28; 1 Tim. 1:15), many things will present themselves to him for his relief; particu-larly his own righteousness (Rom. 10:3). A renunciation of them all as to any hope or expectation of relief from them, belongs to sincere believing, (Isa. 1:10-11).

“ . . . Trust in God, or the grace and mercy of God in and through the Lord Christ as set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, belongs here-to, or necessarily ensues hereon. For the person called to believing is, 1) con-vinced of sin, and exposed to wrath; 2) has nothing else to trust to for help and relief; 3) actually renounces all other things that tender [present] them-selves to that end . . . "

Thurs., 6/5/25 Devotion (Ps. 92:13-14)

Today's encouragement comes from Psalm 92:13 & 14, where we read these words:

"Those who are planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God. They shall still bear fruit in old age; they shall be fresh and flour-ishing . . . “

As someone who is getting older everyday, I really appreciate these verses. The promise (here) applies to every faithful regenerated Christian churchman. So long as we are in Christ, we are in His church, God’s “house.” We roam our Father’s “courts,” as we fellowship with Him via the Spirit’s grace all day long.

Every human being is “planted.” Some are planted in the house of the world; and some are planted in the house of the LORD. Let us find ourselves thriv-ing in Jesus today.

[Puritan quote of the day: "Observe the happy condition of every child of God. All things work for his good, the best and worst things.” —Thomas Watson, in, "All Things For Good"]

Wed., 6/4/25 Devotion (Isa. 36:4)

Today's encouragement comes from Isaiah 36:4, where we read these words:

"Then the Rabshakeh said to them, 'Say now to Hezekiah, "Thus says the great king, the king of Assyria: 'What confidence is this in which you

trust?' " ' "

Do we trust in the Lord, the Triune God of the Bible? Do we have full confi-dence in Christ alone? If so, then the world will not understand us, nor why we dare put our faith in God—and not in them. Here, the self-important king of Assyria reckoned himself invincible: "How dare Hezekiah would trust in a God, over me," he thought.

God is *very* pleased by our simple and sincere faith in Jesus. No matter what our situation may be today, we will do well to put all our faith in Christ. As we do so we can enjoy God in every way.

[Puritan quote of the day: "It is the honor of religion to have such disciples as will own her and stand for her at all times, and that with an undaunted cour-age.” —Jeremiah Burroughs, in, "The Excellency of a Gracious Spirit"]

Tues., 6/3/25 Devotion (Isa. 35:10)

Today's encouragement comes from Isaiah 35:10, where we read these words:

"And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with singing, with everlasting joy on their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away."

The blessedness of salvation in Christ leads to forgiveness and restoration. These graces bring on a great deal of supernatural heartfelt joy and pleasure. Only the redeemed know the deepest and most profound senses of bliss and contentment possible in this world (all in Jesus).

Therefore, let us try to look at our lives from the vantage point of what really matters. Are we forgiven people? Do we trust in Christ alone for our right-eousness? If so, then, we have reason and cause for much joy—even if a lot of other areas of our lives are difficult and trial-filled.

[Puritan quote of the day: "As God is the worst enemy, so He is the best friend, the truest friend, the most real friend in all the world.” —William Bridge, in, "A Lifting Up For the Downcast"]

Fri.-Sabbath, 5/23-25/25 Devotion

Praise God—Sunday is almost here again. We get to go back to church! In order to help us get ready for Sabbath Worship, here are good words from John Owen’s “Spiritual-Mindedness” book. . . .

“ . . . No thoughts of Christ born of faith in Him and accompanied with love for Him will ever be wasted. They that sow this seed will return with their minds full of sheaves. Christ will meet with them. He will assure them that He ac-cepts them and that He is delighted with them. He will pour out His love upon them. Those gracious promises which He has made of ‘coming’ to those that believe in Him, of ‘making His home with them,’ and of ‘dining with them’ as-sure believers that if they desire to have fellowship with Him, and show this desire by thinking much about Him, He will meet with them in a very real, spiritual way."

Thurs., 5/22/25 Devotion (1 Jn. 1:10)

Today's encouragement comes from 1 John 1:10, where we read these words:

"If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him [God] a liar, and His word is not in us."

Sin is an insidious thing. If we acknowledge it, we must confess it and repent of it. If we do not acknowledge it, we sin even worse (by pretending it does not exist in us). The best thing to do, in confessing sin, is to be as honest with God as we possibly can be. This requires God's assistance.

Confession of sin usually has these two temptations attached to it: 1) to say things to God that we do not really mean (just to ease our conscience); or, 2) to confess things to God which (in themselves) are really not sin at all. Again: the key is candor. May the Lord help us know our hearts well enough (as per Ps. 139:23-24), in order to make good confession to Him.

[Puritan quote of the day: "The eyes of our souls cannot be towards God un-less He has cast a gracious look upon us first.” —Richard Sibbes, in, "The Bruised Reed"]

Wed., 5/21/25 Devotion (2 Pet. 3:18a)

Today's encouragement comes from 2 Peter 3:18a, where we read these words:

" . . . But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. . . . "

How does a church full of regenerate Christians *grow* in "the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ"? Certainly, by being well-fed. The context of Peter's injunction (above) is largely that of the proper use and understanding of the word of God (the sacred scriptures)—particularly as they are preached.

Believers *grow* when we ingest Jesus as The Word—being hungry for Him alone. The written word, which is the basis and foundation of the church's preached word, always points everyone to The Incarnate Word (Jesus), (the "Logos," of Jn. 1:1). This "Word” (Christ) is The ultimate Revel-ation of God. Only He (Jesus) can "feed" us. He feeds us His own Person, His "flesh" and "blood," in the preached Gospel, and in the proper adminis-tration of the sacrament of The Lord's Supper.

[Puritan quote of the day: "Every godly, gracious man is a praying man.”

—William Bridge, in, "A Lifting Up For the Downcast"]