January 14 Friends “Bringing one sick of the palsy, which was borne of four.” —Mark 2:3 Read Mark 2:1-12 Most likely you have some close friends with whom you can laugh, and cry, and talk, sharing all your thoughts. But do you have friends that you can speak about the Lord Jesus with? Or is this the last thing you think of or speak about? Friends that bring you to the Lord Jesus are worth their weight in gold. Can you sing: I am a friend and traveler with those that fear His name? Or what about the hymn, What a Friend We Have in Jesus? The man in our Scripture passage could do absolutely nothing; he was totally dependent upon others. When Christ came into the area where he lived, he did not experience any sympathy from the crowds of people, only from his friends. No one wanted to move aside for him. But faith found a way to meet the Lord Jesus. And the Lord blessed him, first by delivering him from his sin, and then also by restoring him to health. And so, when an earthly friend fails us, we may sing the following: What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear; What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer. Oh, what peace we often forfeit, oh, what needless pain we bear, All because we do not carry, everything to God in prayer. Do you have friends that bring you to the Lord Jesus? Do you seek to do so for them as well? Everything we need is to be found in Him. We read that Andrew led his brother Simon Peter to Jesus, which is a most beautiful thing. Perhaps you have heard of the book titled “Leading Little Ones To Jesus.” Concretely, what does the title of this book actually mean? This devotional was taken from “The Time of Your Life” a daily devotional published by the Youth & Educational Committee of the FRC. To order a printed copy of this book, contact: bookorders@frcna.org. #Mark #Relationships

January 13 Faith “Then Jesus went with them.” —Luke 7:6 Read Luke 7:1-10 In our Scripture passage we come across a remarkable centurion. One would expect that he would be a Roman oppressor of Jews, but in fact, he was not. On the contrary, he was a learned man who had an interest in the Jewish people. He built a beautiful synagogue for them. But more importantly, he esteemed the God of Israel. He found something in the service of the Lord that he could not find with the false gods. As a result, he showed love for his neighbour. In those days, a slave was not worth any more than an animal. However, the centurion of our text loved his slave. When the slave became very ill, he sought for the Lord Jesus. In fact, he sought salvation for himself and for his servant. There are two more considerations: First, he did not go to the Lord himself, but sent elders of the Jews. He felt himself unworthy of the Lord’s attention. It was the Lord’s work which brought this centurion to see something of his unworthiness. The Lord continues His work and saves those who see sin and unworthiness in themselves. Second, take note of his faith: “But say in a word, and my servant shall be healed.” The Lord had not found such faith in all of Israel. And through this faith of the centurion his servant was healed. God worked miraculously in the life of this Gentile. How did the centurion show his high esteem for the Lord Jesus? This devotional was taken from “The Time of Your Life” a daily devotional published by the Youth & Educational Committee of the FRC. To order a printed copy of the book, contact: bookorders@frcna.org. #Faith #Luke

January 12 The Truth “Speak every man truth with his neighbour.” —Ephesians 4:25 Read Ephesians 4:17-32 When the old man is put off, our attention is directed to the lusts of our flesh. When the new man is put on, we are led by the Holy Spirit. After saying these things, Paul continues with the follow-ing words: “Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour” (v. 25). If things are right, the believer’s temptation, evil lusts and lying will be subdued. Practically speaking, those things must become evident in one’s everyday life. It is remarkable that, before everything else, Paul mentions speaking the truth. Apparently that’s where everything starts to go wrong. Just think of Genesis 3. Man’s fall began with a lie from the devil. The Lord Jesus called the devil the “father of lies.” He who tells lies, in a certain sense, is a child of the devil. Concerning God’s children, it is said, “True children will not lie.” This is taken very seriously in God’s kingdom. One ought not only to speak the truth among fellow believers, but also in the company of society in general as well. Christ called Himself “the Truth.” Let us therefore also befriend the Truth and guide our lives by this principle. That means no more telling white lies, or slandering one’s acquaintances, or gos-siping about others. To live this way, the guidance of the Holy Spirit is needed, Who will lead into all truth. What does it mean that the Holy Spirit will guide into all truth? This devotional was taken from “The Time of Your Life” a daily devotional published by the Youth & Educational Committee of the FRC. To order a printed copy of this book, contact: bookorders@frcna.org. #Ephesians #Truth

LESSON 7: The Teachings of the Free Reformed Churches BIBLE READING: 2 Corinthians 3 (Click here for printable version) Our federation of Free Reformed churches have no special doctrines or teachings, and we make no claim to exclusivity. Coming directly from the Dutch Secession church of 1834, we want to abide by the Three forms of Unity (that is, the Heidelberg Catechism, Belgic Confession and the Canons of Dort). CONFESSIONALLY BALANCED The Free Reformed Churches have never adopted or emphasized a special doctrine at the expense of other doctrines of God’s Word. We wish to be confessionally balanced and Biblically experiential. We, in our doctrine and practice, want to live in full agreement with Scripture and the three Forms of Unity, and we do not want to fall into extremes. This implies that the Free Reformed Churches seek to have a Scriptural preaching with a balance of: Guilt, Grace and Gratitude. The work of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit in salvation. Redemption Accomplished and also Redemption Applied. DISCRIMINATING PREACHING In practice this means that we desire to be discriminating in our preaching. Not all members of the congregation are assumed to be saved or converted. There are sheep and goats within the Church. We feel compelled to emphasize the need for conversion. We preach the distinguishing marks of saving grace worked by the Holy Spirit. The unconverted must be called to repentance. Their hiding places and excuses must be uncovered; specific sins must be pointed out. The unconverted must be warned and earnestly admonished so that they might be awakened to their lost and undone state and might come to depend only upon the fulfilled work of Christ Jesus for salvation. COVENANTAL AND EXPERIENTIAL The promises of the Covenant of Grace are underlined as well as its demands. The promises are directed to all who are under the Gospel. The Lord earnestly calls them to grace. Also emphasizing the total depravity of man, we learn that man cannot convert himself, but must be saved by a sovereign work of God’s grace. Besides this we preach that God is willing and able to do what we cannot do. The balance of promise and demand produces a practical tension which casts the covenant child upon his knees pleading for the needed work of Gods gracious Spirit. The children of God also have to receive instruction, admonition and comfort in the various conditions of their spiritual life. They need to be warned against backsliding. Their life and walk with the Lord must be explained and their knowledge, faith, love, and hope must all grow. Their daily struggle against indwelling sin, calls for spiritual guidance in the preaching. All these elements lead to the necessity of experiential preaching. We stress the necessity of Scriptural, experiential, covenantal preaching. Such preaching is in full agreement with the Three Forms of Unity and in particular the Canons of Dort. WHY ARE WE SEPARATE? We find in other churches not only different emphases but also erroneous views. There are a number of churches which maintain a view of the congregation which is too optimistic and which assumes that the congregation is completely saved. The call to self-examination, as well as the call to repentance and faith, and also the different aspects of spiritual life are not preached. The work of the Holy Spirit is not explained and does not receive its proper emphasis. On the other hand, there are other churches which do not teach the free offer of grace. The promises of the covenant are offered only to the elect. As a result Gospel preaching, and in particular the offer of grace are restricted to the context of predestination. The Lord Jesus cried out to all who heard Him: “Come unto Me and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28). This means a call to repentance and then there is also a promise connected to this call. It is a general call to salvation, in which the promises are for all who are under the Gospel (Acts 2:39; Isaiah 45:22). But still some preach that the promises are only applicable to the elect and the sincere offer of grace is also only to the elect. ARMINIAN DANGERS We can even draw the line of distinction further as we look at the overall church situation. Sadly even Reformed churches (even churches which trace their roots to the Secession!) have compromised in the direction of Arminianism. They teach free will, or deny the doctrine of sovereign election. They deny the need for the saving work of the Holy Spirit in the heart of man. They give the impression that man’s salvation is in his own hands and thus preach a false doctrine, which gives no comfort and does not glorify God. Such teaching darkens the Biblical proclamation of the truth. Mainline churches do not preach man’s total depravity and God’s sovereign grace in the salvation of a sinner. There are few churches which still preach the total depravity of man, teach the sovereign work of God in saving sinners and uphold free grace. Within some Reformed denominations sovereign grace is officially confessed but in reality they pay only lip service to these truths. We too as churches must be careful to preach and to teach free grace and not to give in to the temptation to ease up on the Gospel of free grace. It is so easy to carve off the sharp edges of the Gospel and to slowly change the views of man and grace and of God and sin. The result is that we end up with another kind of preaching and church life. That is one of the greatest dangers which is threatening the churches of Reformed persuasion. Therefore it is good and necessary that we study the doctrines as they are portrayed in our confessions and especially in the Canons of Dort. EASY BELIEVISM A lot of what is aired on evangelical radio stations is free will. Much evangelical literature is free will. The gospel is promoted as if salvation is only a matter of man’s choice and dependent upon man. Also amongst us ideas are displayed: “Jesus offers salvation. You must believe and you must believe now. You are foolish if you do not believe now.” The danger is that we follow the reasoning we find in modern evangelical circles which states as follows: “You accept Jesus as your Saviour. You do so now. You believe the Gospel and you confess that you are a sinner. Then you are saved. It is as easy as ABC. Accept, believe and confess.” The impression left is: The choice is all up to you. The danger is that since election and total depravity are matters which are considered to be difficult and even gloomy, they end up neglected in the preaching. That is the trend which has affected the vast majority of churches. REFORMED UNITY AND FAITHFULNESS As a denomination, the Free Reformed Churches want to be one with those churches who sincerely desire, in their doctrine, practice and preaching, to adhere to God’s Word, the Three Forms of Unity and the Church Order as complied by the Synod of Dort 1618-1619. Essential to being Reformed is not merely an adherence to the infallibility of Scripture but also an emphasis on the personal appropriation of grace by the work of the Holy Spirit. We must stress that Christ is not only a Saviour for us but must work within us. Therefore we must stress the need for salvation by personal conversion and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. The Free Reformed Churches have nothing to boast about. We are very small and our strength is weak. We are prone to forsake the Lord and His Word and the precious heritage which our fathers left us. May the Lord be merciful and grant us the precious working of His Holy Spirit, that many sinners may be turned to the Lord and may learn to live in a new life with Him. It is very easy to slide into a form of Arminianism on the one side or to deny the offer of grace on the other side. There must be much prayer among us that God would grant grace to be and to remain faithful to Him and His Word. QUESTIONS: What is a godly sorrow? Explain the sorrow of the world? Which elements should be present in the preaching of God’s Word? What is the work of the Holy Spirit and how is this experienced? What are the characteristics of a Biblically Reformed church? * This Bible Study was produced by the Youth & Education Committee of the Free Reformed Churches,1997, under the title, “Church History.” It is aimed at a Senior Young Peoples level. Click on the tag “Bible Study: Free Reformed Church History” below for more lessons in this study. #2Corinthians #BibleStudy #FreeReformedChurchHistory

January 11 Love “Love worketh no ill to his neighbour.” —Romans 13:10 Read Romans 13:8-14 The various commandments Paul mentions in this Scripture passage can only be fulfilled when a person is filled with love, for love is the fulfilling of the law. Love guarantees that no evil will befall our neighbour. After the fall, this guarantee was no longer self-evident. Evil is now not only a bitter reality in the world at large, but is also revealed in a smaller way in our relationships with our neighbours. Concerning those who do evil and their relationship to their neighbour, verse 4 states, “But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid.” The Lord has given us ways to resist evil and yet ultimately, all power and authority are His. The more evil we commit, the more we need to fear. We need to confess time and again: “I come short; my case is hopeless if it depended upon me. When I desire to do good, evil is with me. Thankfully, I do not need to earn salvation by doing good to my neighbour, for then it would be impossible.” Paul reveals to us the way out of our dilemma in verse 14: “Put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ.” This exhortation reveals the way to be one with the Lord – united to Him by faith. These words of Scripture were the means used for Augustine’s conversion. When his eyes focused precisely upon this text, he found peace and joy. His own words in response to the Lord’s grace were, “Then my heart was flooded by the light of certainty and all the darkness and doubts were driven away.” What were the consequences of Augustine’s conversion? This devotional was taken from “The Time of Your Life” a daily devotional published by the Youth & Educational Committee of the FRC. To order a printed copy of this book, contact: bookorders@frcna.org. #Love #Romans

January 10 Meekness “Wherefore smitest thou thy fellow?” —Exodus 2:13 Read Exodus 2:11-25 Moses was faced with a choice in Egypt: either enjoy riches there or suffer affliction with the people of God. By faith he chose the latter, the good part. However, in his haste, he killed an Egyptian and tried to conceal the evidence of his crime. The following day he asked a fellow Hebrew why he was beating his fellow man. Strictly speaking, he was not in any position to ask this question, since he had killed an Egyptian the day before. The reaction of the Israelite recorded in verse 14 was justified. This episode makes us think of the beam and the splinter, doesn’t it? What is shown here in Moses’ life is often true of us as well. We must be careful that we do not pass judgment by hastily condemning Moses due to his temper. Of course, Moses stands to be corrected, especially when we see that Christ did not strike back against His adversaries who hit and killed Him without reason. He bore the greatest suffering most patiently! He was wounded for our transgressions, and He was smitten for our iniquities; yet He opened not His mouth. Moses had much to learn. Near the end of his life we read that he was the meekest man upon the earth. This meekness was learned through the power of the Holy Spirit, by which even wolves are changed into lambs. This will also be shown in our relationships with our neighbours. Are you still a wolf? Look to the Lamb of God and ask, “Oh Lord Jesus, transform me into Thy image.” In what way was Moses a type of Christ? This devotional was taken from “The Time of Your Life” a daily devotional published by the Youth & Educational Committee of the FRC. To order a printed copy of this book, contact: bookorders@frcna.org. #Exodus #Meekness

January 9 The Fruit of Faith “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” —Leviticus 19:18 Read Leviticus 19:11-18 One can recognize a true Christian by his deeds; they are a fruit of faith. Sometimes we can win over our neighbour by our godly walk. Can this also be said of you and me? Perhaps you were somewhat annoyed as you read today’s Scripture passage. But why? Was it because deep down you felt somewhat accused? You realized that God’s Word was a portrait of yourself? Stealing, lying, dishonest practices, oppression, acting unjustly; do you stand guilty of all these things? Ultimately, when we do not truly love God, it influences our neighbours. We do not desire the best for their lives, we do not “love them as ourselves.” In contrast with the many “thou shalt nots” we have but one “thou shalt” in the Scripture passage before us. This is a divine charge, a royal law (James 2:8). Indeed, you are not able to fulfill these things of yourself. And yet the Lord mentions twice, “I am the LORD”, I am that I am. God has revealed Himself to us using this name and through it He uncovers our guilt, also in our trespass of the second table of the Law. The Lord demands righteousness and He will also give this to us through His Son. What are the fruits of faith? This devotional was taken from “The Time of Your Life” a daily devotional published by the Youth & Educational Committee of the FRC. To order a printed copy of this book, contact: bookorders@frcna.org. #Faith #Leviticus

January 8 Forgiveness “Am I my brother’s keeper?” —Genesis 4:9 Read Genesis 4:1-16 Yesterday we were confronted with a moving example of neighbourly love. Today we are faced with a bad example; the first family that existed was confronted with a murder committed by a son. Two sons in this family had the same parents and therefore experienced the same upbringing, care, and parental advice. They had both been taught the fear of God. But what a great difference there was between the two! The one was self-willed and would rather do evil than good, which caused his parents much sorrow and grief. Cain’s sin grieved God and dishonored Him. The second son, however, was thankful for the good advice given by his parents; he desired to serve the Lord. This had great consequences. Cain was hardhearted toward his brother, and remained deaf to the loving warnings of God. He was consumed with jealousy, especially after the Lord accepted Abel’s offering. As a result, he murdered his brother. Who do you resemble? You say, “But, I am not a murderer.” And yet, the Lord Jesus says, “Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer” (1 John 3:15). Entertaining thoughts of hatred and resentment are actually sins against the sixth commandment. Cain was careless in his answer to the Lord with respect to Abel’s whereabouts: “Am I my brother’s keeper?” Did he think that he would be able to get away with his crime? Did God not know what he had done? When you see this sin in your own life, do not react as Cain did in his response to the Lord’s perfect sense of justice: “My punishment is greater than I can bear” (v. 13). Instead, confess your sin earnestly so that you might also be forgiven. The blood of Christ speaks of better things than the blood of Abel (Hebrews 12:24). Do you understand what Cain meant by his response? This devotional was taken from “The Time of Your Life” a daily devotional published by the Youth & Educational Committee of the FRC. To order a printed copy of this book, contact: bookorders@frcna.org. #Forgiveness #Genesis

January 7 Am I a Neighbour? “Go, and do thou likewise.” —Luke 10:37 Read Luke 10:25-37 In verse 25 we read the most important question that we can ask: “What shall I do to inherit eternal life?” Was this question raised merely out of curiosity, or to cause a disturbance, or for some other reason? That is not the real issue here. This question has to do with our salvation! Furthermore, closely connected to this central question is the fact that we ought to love our neighbour. But the scribes only regarded their own countrymen and those that held to the same religion as their neighbours. They saw the need to love them, but at the same time felt at ease in hating their enemies. Do we also have such a narrow-minded view regarding who must be considered our neighbour? Our neighbour is actually anyone who is placed on our life’s path. In this parable, the Saviour does not give us any detailed informa-tion of the individual that fell into thieves’ hands. He speaks of a “certain man.” Nevertheless, it was a person who experienced great hardship from his attackers; he was a human being with a soul. If you have experienced God’s mercy in your personal life, wouldn’t you then also show mercy to a person who crossed your path? This is demonstrating true love to God and your neighbour. The Lord Jesus actually turned the question around when He said, “Which now of these three…was neighbour unto him,” instead of asking “Who is my neighbour?” Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. What can we do for our neighbours? This devotional was taken from “The Time of Your Life” a daily devotional published by the Youth & Educational Committee of the FRC. To order a printed copy of this book, contact: bookorders@frcna.org. #Luke

January 6 The True Vine “I am the true vine.” —John 15:1 Read John 15:1-17 In the parable before us, the Lord Jesus speaks about the fruits of the Holy Spirit’s work, that the disciples must also learn to recognize in their lives. The Saviour, who is the Son of Righteousness as well as the brightly shining Morning Star, compares Himself with a vine. A vine in itself is not overly beautiful. The prophet Isaiah said it already: There is no beauty or comeliness in the Saviour that we should desire Him. But a vine is also a plant that spreads rapidly. In a similar way, the salvation which Christ brings will spread over the length and width of the earth. The fruit of the vine, the grapes, cheers humanity. Similarly, the fruit of Christ’s work of mediation cheers the soul. This vine is better than fine gold, for He is the true vine. You and I are also called to produce fruit in our lives. However, in our fallen nature, we produce unfruitful works that do not please God. True fruit can only be produced when we are implanted into the true vine, the Lord Jesus Christ. But before we can be grafted into the Vine, much trimming of our own vines must take place, and every part that bears no fruit before His holy countenance must be cut away. A severe pruning leaves nothing left of our life, causing much pain and sorrow. But this pruning is very necessary—otherwise, you would never be able to bear fruit. For what reason does the Lord Jesus use His pruning knife in His peoples’ lives? This devotional was taken from “The Time of Your Life” a daily devotional published by the Youth & Educational Committee of the FRC. To order a printed copy of this book, contact: bookorders@frcna.org. #John #Salvation

January 5 The Resurrection and the Life “I am the resurrection, and the life.” —John 11:25 Read John 11:11-28 The Lord Jesus spoke these words to Martha, the sister of Mary, shortly after their brother Lazarus had died. They had informed the Lord a few days earlier that their brother was seriously ill. However, the Saviour did not go immediately to their home to heal His friend even though He dearly loved Mary, Martha and Lazarus. A few days after having received the message, the Lord finally made His way towards Bethany with His disciples. On the way there, He said to His followers: “Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep” (v. 11). When they arrived in Bethany, Martha said, “Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died” (v. 21). But then she also confessed, “But I know that even now, whatsoever thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee” (v. 22). And then the Lord Jesus replies with the following words: “Thy brother shall rise again” (v. 23). Following this exchange, we have the actual words of our text: “I am the resurrection, and the life.” By these words, the Lord Jesus makes known that He is the fountain of life, but also has power over it. He is even able to resurrect life. What an indescribable comfort this is for those who know the Lord. They that truly love Him have hope of being raised from the dead to be given eternal life! Why did the Lord Jesus remain away so long? This devotional was taken from “The Time of Your Life” a daily devotional published by the Youth & Educational Committee of the FRC. To order a printed copy of this book, contact: bookorders@frcna.org. #John #Salvation

The Good Shepherd “I am the good shepherd.” —John 10:11 Read John 10:10-18 Who does not know this parable? We are all familiar with this story from our childhood, the story of a shepherd who looks after his sheep. Beautiful images appear in our minds when we read this parable. Rich lessons can also be learned from it. Which shepherd do we follow in life? Do you realize that in our fallen nature we will follow a shepherd different than Christ? That other “shepherd” is Satan, the great adversary. We will listen to his voice. He likes to present life as one big party. But the reality is very different! I hope you have realized this. In light of God’s Word, you need to come to the conclusion that life in the service of Satan ends in hell. Life outside of the Lord Jesus ends in eternal sadness and despair! However, in His goodness, the Father has sent His Son, the Lord Jesus, to this sin-cursed earth. He has come to be the Good Shep-herd of sheep who cannot stand the tyranny of Satan any more. Look at what we read in verse 16: “And they shall hear my voice.” The Holy Spirit works in sinners’ hearts so that they are made able to hear the Good Shepherd’s voice and to follow Him. He will protect and guard His sheep against the wolves in this world, for He has given His life for His sheep. What are the characteristics of sheep? This devotional was taken from “The Time of Your Life” a daily devotional published by the Youth & Educational Committee of the FRC. To order a printed copy of this book, contact: bookorders@frcna.org. #John