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“Remove not the ancient landmark …” Proverbs 22:28 January - February - March

For additional copies of this FREE devotional, to receive a bulk mailing to your church, or to be removed from the mailing list, please contact us at: (863) 422-6493 landmarkbaptistcollege.com/deepandwide All scripture quotations are from the Authorized King James Bible Printed by: Landmark Baptist Press 2222 E. Hinson Ave., Haines City, FL 33844 Landmark Baptist College and Landmark Baptist Press are ministries of Landmark Baptist Church, Haines City, FL

January

The following devotionals are excerpts taken from the book “The Whole Armour of God” by Dr. Dennis Corle.

January 1 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 1, 2 How Big Is God To You? Matthew 1 Psalm 1 Isaiah 6:3 Notes: This question, seemingly vague, is of the utmost importance, for what comes to mind when ___________________ you answer is the most important thing about us. The chronicles of world history will show that ___________________ no person or people group has ever risen above its idea of God. For this reason the question ___________________ “how big is God to you?” and its answer is directly connected to our worship. Worship is solely ___________________ based on our concept of God. The greatest thoughts the mind can ponder are thoughts of God. ___________________ The most sacred word in any language is its word for God, for both thought and speech are gifts ___________________ from God to mankind. A right concept of God is foundationally important to practical Christian ___________________ living. Having a right concept of God is as important to worship as a level is to construction. ___________________ Only being slightly out of level will leave a building out of square and fragile at best. So the ___________________ Christian with a slightly-skewed concept of “how big God is” will find their walk outside God’s ___________________ will and their home built upon sinking sand. We must see God for who He is, seeing Him high and lifted up will bring us to a right concept of “how big is God to you?” This month we will focus on God, and build a right concept of the Almighty.

January 2 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 3, 4 Getting To Know God Matthew 2 Psalm 2 Matthew 6:33 Notes: In order to truly know someone or to get to know someone you must seek after them. God ___________________ is no different. You must seek Him to get to know Him. God has revealed Himself through ___________________ creation, through His Word, and through His Son the Lord Jesus Christ. In Matthew 6:33 the ___________________ key to the verse seems to be seeking God, but really it is the order of seeking that is the key to ___________________ knowing God. We are to seek Him first. He must become our priority, He must be sought first ___________________ in order to realize the true magnitude of the Lord. When God is high, holy, and lifted up in this ___________________ life people will see Him and turn to Him in salvation. ___________________ ___________________ Will you put God first? ___________________ ___________________ Will you seek the Lord today?

January 3 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 5, 6 God Knows Me Matthew 3 Psalm 3 Matthew 6:32 Notes: To know God we must seek Him, however God knows everything. Everything includes you ___________________ and me and our every need. All too often in this life we seek after our needs first and we only ___________________ seek God’s help when we reach the end of ourselves, the end of our strength, our knowledge, ___________________ and our wisdom. When we seek God first or when we put God before ourselves then God will ___________________ act on our needs. God knows our needs and because we seek Him first He will add unto you ___________________ and me out of need. To know that the Almighty knows my needs allows me to trust Him at His ___________________ Word and seek Him first and foremost. ___________________ ___________________ Will you seek God first? Knowing first that God knows your every need! ___________________ ___________________

January 4 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 7, 8 Getting In Line With God Matthew 4 Psalm 4 Matthew 6:33 Notes: We know already we must seek God first and foremost, but we must also seek after His ___________________ righteousness. God’s righteousness is the perfection or holiness of His nature; His faithfulness. ___________________ God says in I Peter 1:16, “Be holy for I am holy.” It is impossible for you or me to be holy on ___________________ our own but in Christ we are made holy through His blood known as positional holiness. Also ___________________ because of the indwelling Holy Spirit we can grow in our practical holiness in our day-to- ___________________ day actions and conversations. As believers we are to seek God first and His righteousness. ___________________ So before God begins to bless and heal through helping with my needs, I must first seek to ___________________ know Him and to be like Him in righteousness. Seeking after God’s righteousness may seem ___________________ unattainable but the Holy Spirit of God is available to guide us into all truth. Living a righteous, ___________________ holy life is what God wants for each of us. He knows that this is our greatest need thus He ___________________ encourages us to seek it first. Will you seek after God’s holiness through His holy Word? Will you be guided by the Holy Spirit of God?

January 5 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 9, 10 God In Three Persons Matthew 5 Psalm 5 I Peter 1:2 Notes: To know God we must realize that God is a Trinity. The Trinity is the union of three persons ___________________ in one Godhead. It is hard for us to comprehend God being one God but also three separate ___________________ persons. This doctrine of the trinity is very important because the triune Godhead has a singular ___________________ will and overall mission, yet each person has a separate part in the work of the mission. Man ___________________ was made in God's image, not that God is a man made of flesh, but a three part being made up ___________________ of one person with three separate parts; body, soul, and spirit. In our text verse we can see the ___________________ three parts of God at work in the will of God for all men to be saved. We see God the Father’s ___________________ knowledge of future events looking to man’s salvation. We see the Holy Spirit working in the ___________________ area of sanctification. We also see the Lord Jesus and His perfect blood being sprinkled upon ___________________ the mercy seat to pay our sin debt. To know God we must recognize the person of God at work ___________________ in our lives and surrender to His will. Will you look for God’s person at work in your life today?

January 6 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 11, 12 God The Father’s Work Matthew 6 Psalm 6 Ephesians 1:1-5 Notes: God the Father’s work is high and holy. It is the work of one on the throne in heaven who ___________________ sends out those under His command to fulfill His high and holy will. Our text verse gives a small ___________________ picture of the work of the Holy Father pointing to the Father’s choice as His mighty works, and ___________________ blessings on man. For God the Father chose all men to be saved before the foundation of the ___________________ world. To be saved you must be seen as holy and blameless before God. Because of man’s sin ___________________ he couldn’t be holy nor could he be found blameless, so God chose to act. The work of God the ___________________ Father is seen in His choice to exhaust the resources of heaven if necessary to redeem man from ___________________ his sins. Investing every part of Himself in the work of redemption started with a choice to seek ___________________ and to save that which was lost. To know God the Father we must realize His work is beyond ___________________ our comprehension but His choice was to complete the work of redemption for us. ___________________ Are you thankful for the work of the Father?

January 7 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 13, 14 The Work Of The Son of God Matthew 7 Psalm 7 Ephesians 1:5-10 Notes: The work of the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ is easy to see. It is recorded in the Word ___________________ of God and recorded in human history. It’s recorded through His miracles. From His incarnate ___________________ birth to His resurrection from the dead, the Son of God changed the world's future. His perfect ___________________ birth produced perfect blood that could purchase an imperfect people back from their sins. ___________________ God the Father’s choice was to see man born again spiritually as verse five says “as unto the ___________________ adoption of children by Jesus Christ.” For God the Father so loved the world that He sent His ___________________ only begotten Son into the world so that the world through His redemptive work might be saved. ___________________ Sin can’t be forgiven without the shedding of blood and Jesus the Son of God came and shed ___________________ His blood on Calvary. The work of God is vast but the work of the Son was to redeem man with ___________________ His own blood. ___________________ Are you thankful for the work of God's Son?

January 8 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 15, 16 The Work of the Holy Spirit Matthew 8 Psalm 8 Ephesians 1:11-14 Notes: The work of the Holy Spirit is as big as God is. He is a Spirit that can’t be seen by human ___________________ eyes, but His touch can be felt and His actions can be seen as He draws all men to Christ. The ___________________ work of the Holy Spirit in salvation is in calling and drawing men to be saved. It is the Holy ___________________ Spirit that reveals truth to those blinded to it by the world, the flesh, and the devil. Once a man ___________________ knows the truth and he accepts God’s Son as his Savior the Holy Spirit’s work is inward. At ___________________ salvation the Holy Spirit indwells the believer and His first action is to seal your salvation till the ___________________ day of redemption. This means that the work of God the Holy Spirit is to seal each believer's ___________________ salvation. Many believe they can lose their salvation because they don’t realize God the Holy ___________________ Spirit is aways keeping it sealed. ___________________ ___________________ Are you thankful for the work of God the Holy Spirit?

January 9 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 17, 18 God is Always the Same Matthew 9 Psalm 9 Malachi 3:6 Notes: One thing we need to realize about our great God is that He is always the same. This is ___________________ a great comfort to know our God doesn’t change like the tide. Yet He is day-to-day consistent ___________________ in His resolve to bring the sinners of the world to salvation through the acceptance of his Son. ___________________ Too many think of God the Father as one of the Greek gods who is given to sin or tempted to ___________________ give into fleshly desires, but God is unchangeable: no temptation will ever change our God. ___________________ Some believe God Almighty changes like other fake gods that toy with people for their own ___________________ amusement. God the Father is high upon the throne in heaven. He is focused upon His will, ___________________ and His will is for all men to be saved. You can trust a God that never changes. ___________________ ___________________ Will you rest upon His unchanging Word? ___________________

January 10 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 19, 20 God is Always the Same in the Son Matthew 10 Psalm 10 Hebrews 13:8 Notes: God the Father is truly unchangeable but Jesus the Son of God is the same yesterday, ___________________ today, and forever. Yes, this is two different ways of being the same, but it gives a slightly ___________________ different picture in the mind. God is one in three persons, a Trinity, an unchanging God that ___________________ operates together in will and separately to complete that will. Our focus for this devotion is ___________________ our Lord Jesus Christ. He is unchanging, meaning He is always the same. When we think of ___________________ someone being the same on earth, this thought is regulated by time. We even have a saying ___________________ “time changes all things.” However, Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Time can’t ___________________ touch the one who conquered death, Hell, and the grave. He came to give those who believe ___________________ in Him power to become the sons of God. Jesus is described as being the same in the past, ___________________ present, and the future and is the only one who can make that claim. Why believe in Jesus? ___________________ Because He is always the same! Why trust His will for your life? Because He is God in the past, present and future!

January 11 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 21, 22 God is Always the Same as the Holy Spirit Matthew 11 Psalm 11 John 16:13 Notes: God the Father is unchangeable, Jesus the Son is always the same, and the Holy Spirit of ___________________ God is truth and truth never changes. The truth is a constant. Truth is truth in any age, therefore ___________________ it is timeless. The Holy Spirit is truth according to the Scripture. Webster defines “the truth” ___________________ as “conformity to fact or reality; exact accordance with that which is, or has been, or shall be.” ___________________ That sounds a lot like being the same yesterday, today, and forever. The Holy Spirit is timeless ___________________ truth and is also the part of God that reveals truth. In John 16:13 Jesus calls the Holy Spirit the ___________________ Spirit of Truth. He tells His disciples that when the Spirit of Truth comes He will guide you into ___________________ all truth. The Holy Spirit is truth and is unchangeable. As believers this helps us realize when ___________________ we were saved and the Holy Spirit came into us and sealed us we were sealed by truth. Now ___________________ the unchanging Holy Spirit of truth guides us into all truth. ___________________ Will you follow the truth today? Will you be guided daily into all truth?

January 12 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 23, 24 Why God Created Man Matthew 12 Psalm 12 Revelations 4:11 Notes: God created man and all things to bring Him pleasure. However, God does not seek ___________________ pleasure in the way we often think of pleasures. When God receives glory, honor, and power ___________________ these three bring Him pleasure. When man gives God the glory for something it means God ___________________ receives praise ascribed to Him in adoration. Adoration is simply paying homage to God as the ___________________ supreme being. We should often as His creation pay homage or reverently worship God, for ___________________ this brings Him glory. We should also seek to honor our God. A Christian honors God when ___________________ we tell others about His goodness. Honor is defined as a testimony of esteem, or an expression ___________________ of respect. God deserves to receive honor from His people through their testimony of God’s ___________________ goodness to each other or through our witness of Him to others. ___________________ ___________________ Will you give God glory and honor today? Will you be a witness to others of God’s goodness?

January 13 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 25, 26 Why God Redeemed Men Matthew 13 Psalm 13 Titus 2:13-15 Notes: God redeemed man from all iniquity so He could purify unto Himself a peculiar people. ___________________ The word “peculiar'' today has taken on the meaning to be strange or different, but that is not ___________________ what the word meant when the Bible was translated into English. The word peculiar according ___________________ to Webster’s 1828 dictionary means “appropriate; belonging to a person and to Him only.” ___________________ The verse doesn’t mean that God redeemed us to be strange or different but to belong to Him ___________________ alone. So to answer the question, “Why did God redeem men?,” was so he could purchase ___________________ and purify peculiar people to Himself. Yet these peculiar people are also or should be zealous ___________________ of good works. God redeemed man to purchase and purify a people unto Himself that would ___________________ zealously walk for His cause. One of my favorite hymns is “Redeemed.” “Redeemed how I love ___________________ to proclaim Him, redeemed by the blood of the Lamb, redeemed through His infinite mercy, His ___________________ child and forever I am.” Thank God for His redemption! Will you be peculiar today for the Lord?

January 14 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 27, 28 The Whole Duty of Man: Part I Matthew 14 Psalm 14 Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 Notes: God used Solomon, the wisest man to walk the earth other than the God man Jesus ___________________ Christ, to write the Book of Ecclesiastes. In Ecclesiastes we see Solomon recording, under ___________________ the inspiration of God, His search for wisdom under the sun. At the end of his searching he ___________________ concludes the whole discussion with the whole duty of man. He said that the whole duty of man ___________________ is to fear God and to keep His commandments. Let us first look at fearing God. This fear is ___________________ not to be scared of God, but to reverence Him and His power. The Bible has much to say about ___________________ fearing the Lord. Proverbs 9:10 tells us, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and ___________________ the knowledge of the holy is understanding.” Much is said in the Book of Proverbs about the fear ___________________ of the Lord. Each verse paints a clear picture of why the fear of the Lord is the first duty of men ___________________ to God. Duty is something that is owed to another, by nature or by moral or legal obligation. ___________________ Each of us owes God a reverential respect called the fear of the Lord. Will you give back the respect He deserves? Will you fulfill your duty?

January 15 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 29, 30 The Whole Duty of Man: Part II Matthew 15 Psalm 15 Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 Notes: Yesterday we looked at the fear of the Lord, but today we will look at the second duty ___________________ of man. Which is to keep God's commandments. You may be thinking there are too many ___________________ commandments to keep up with. However Jesus made it easy in Matthew 22:37-39. These ___________________ verses bring it down to two commandments. First he said in Matthew 22:37 that we are to keep ___________________ God’s commands to love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all the soul, and with all ___________________ thy mind. This is God’s command for us to love him with all three parts of ourselves. We can’t ___________________ keep God's commandments and keep back part of ourselves from Him. Second, after putting ___________________ God first in love we are to love our neighbor as ourselves. Neither of these two parts of keeping ___________________ God’s commands are easy, yet each deal with love. Because God knows that what has our love ___________________ will also have our focus and will demand action in our lives. Loving God with everything that ___________________ we are is attainable; we just have to decide to put God before ourselves. Loving our neighbor as ourselves is always putting God first and then putting others before ourselves. This is a life of surrender and service to keeping God's commandments which is the whole duty of men. Will you love God and your neighbor today? Will you love God with all your heart today?

January 16 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 31, 32 Walking With God Matthew 16 Psalm 16 Amos 3:3 Notes: Walking with God means you are in agreement with Him and His Word. Our text verse ___________________ poses a question, “Can two walk together, except they be agreed?” To be walking with someone ___________________ you must be heading in the same direction. Direction is always set by destination so to walk ___________________ with someone you must be headed for the same place. God has a plan and a direction! He ___________________ is heading in a direction to bring all things to the destination of His will. So to walk with God ___________________ we must be in agreement with His direction and follow Him to His destination. Many times we ___________________ think that God’s path will lead us to a pleasant place of prosperity. However, this is not always ___________________ the case. Many times we do not start this walk without a few bumps and bruises. The scars and ___________________ marks of sin, though forgiven are not magically gone when we begin walking with God. Still, ___________________ this walk is the greatest path to walk; it is the one God prepared for you and you for the path. ___________________ Will you choose to walk with God? Will you choose the path God has for you?

January 17 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 33, 34 Choosing the Right Path Matthew 17 Psalm 17 Proverbs 4:11-18 Notes: Choosing the right path is so much more than choosing to head in God’s direction. ___________________ Choosing Jesus at salvation is a choice to be redeemed from sin and reconciled to God. This ___________________ choice which is referred to as being born again, births you into God’s family. Now comes the ___________________ choice of path. Now your options are vastly different yet can be summed up in three different ___________________ paths: God’s path, your path and the world’s path. These three represent a choice, yet only ___________________ God’s path is the right path to choose. Many times when preparing to make a choice of paths ___________________ we think this is a “one-and-done'' choice, but that is far from the truth. Much like Dorothy in ___________________ the Wizard of Oz, a choice to follow the yellow brick road is a day-to-day choice, step-after-step ___________________ and person-after-person that comes into our life’s choices. Choosing God’s path is trusting ___________________ God’s wisdom over my own, and trusting in God’s goodness and wisdom over the world’s. For ___________________ if I choose my path, I am lifting myself up over God, in wisdom and ability. If I choose the world over God’s path I am choosing the pleasures of sin for a season, rather than a reward of God’s faithfulness. What will you choose?

January 18 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 35, 36 Choosing God’s Path Will Come with Opposition! Matthew 18 Psalm 18 Psalm 27:11-12 Notes: Many young Christians often think that choosing God's path for their lives will come with ___________________ no opposition, when just the opposite is true! Why would the devil attack those going his way ___________________ or those floating along with the current course of this world? The devil doesn’t focus his limited ___________________ resources on those already outside of God’s will. When a Christian chooses to follow Jesus ___________________ in salvation, then surrender everything to God, that is when the devil puts a target on you. ___________________ The world will target you for their father the devil has put it in their heart to oppose you and ___________________ your work for the Lord. The fallen angel, at the devil’s command, will shoot fiery darts at you. ___________________ However, “greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world,” 1 John 4:4. Living for the ___________________ Lord Jesus Christ is a great blessing, but it is also a battle. II Timothy 3:12 says, “Yea, and all ___________________ that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” We must strengthen our heart and ___________________ mind with the resolve of no matter what comes I will faithfully follow my Saviour. I will seek to do His will and His way in the midst of the battle. Will you follow Jesus? Will you stay true even against opposition?

January 19 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 37, 38 Choosing God’s Path Comes with Reward! Matthew 19 Psalm 19 I Corinthians 15:57-58 Notes: It is true that walking with God in His way and in His will comes with opposition, but it also ___________________ comes with reward. Our text verse lets us know that we have no need to lose hope in the battle ___________________ for God has already given us the victory through the Lord Jesus Christ. One of the hardest ___________________ things in life is to fight a losing battle, to stay true and be a good sport when all is lost. The ___________________ Christian, no matter how dark the circumstances, never has to worry or fear for the victory is ___________________ already won. So with no worry or fear, as good soldiers of Jesus Christ our focus should be on ___________________ faithful conduct in each conflict of the battle, for with the victory already being won, we look to ___________________ receive rewards for our service in the battle. In Colossians 3:23-24 the Bible teaches us this ___________________ truth, “And whatsoever you do, do it heartily as to the Lord, and not unto men; knowing that of ___________________ the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.” With the ___________________ victory won and rewards awaiting the faithful at the end of the conflict, let us do all as unto the Lord. Let us spend ourselves for the cause of Christ, and one day hear, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant.” Will you do all heartily unto the Lord today? Will you hear “well done” at the end of the battle?

January 20 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 39, 40 Separation Unto God Matthew 20 Psalm 20 II Corinthians 6:16-18 Notes: Separation in many churches today is not preached for they think it is mean spirited. ___________________ They think that separation is about the law of the Old Testament instead of a New Testament ___________________ relationship with a holy God. Today those who teach and hold standards of separation are ___________________ labeled as “legalists” or “legalistic.” This term was in its original state used to describe those ___________________ who added the works of the law to the finished work of Christ for salvation. While there are still ___________________ those that practice this today, we are not “legalist” for believing in separation. Liberal Christians ___________________ use this term to describe others who have standards higher than their own, for they have ___________________ watered down the high standard of Christian living. Much like Lot, they have pitched their tent ___________________ towards Sodom. True biblical Christian living will always separate us from the world and unto ___________________ God. In I Peter 1:14 we see the separation, “as obedient children not fashioning yourselves ___________________ according to the former lust in your ignorance: but as he which has called you is holy, so be ye Sholy in all manner of conversation.” eparation is about a believer who stops using the world as his standard of living and replaces the world with a holy God. Separation is not about being better than someone else; it's about being more and more like our holy God. Will you separate unto God today? Will you seek to live holy unto the Lord?

January 21 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 41, 42 Serving God: Part I Matthew 21 Psalm 21 Luke 16:13 Notes: Our service to God must come first. Don’t get me wrong, each of us has an obligation to ___________________ our families and our homes. However, putting God first will strengthen our families and our ___________________ homes. Often we tend to think of our service to God and our family and home as separate things. ___________________ The scripture clearly commands us how to raise our children in the nurture and admonition of ___________________ the Lord. It also teaches us how to deal with money so that we can prosper, yet everything in ___________________ God’s Word puts God first and foremost for us to serve God the right way. Too many times we ___________________ take the good things God has given us and try to argue that they should come before God when ___________________ that is far from the truth. We are not to make family our God, or any other good thing an idol ___________________ in our lives. “No man can serve two masters'' is the way the Bible says it. When anything else ___________________ in my life is equal to God, they will be at war inside me until one becomes my God. Serving ___________________ God is more than church or Sunday or tithing to His local church; it is putting God first, period! Will you put God first? Will you surrender to serve God first or will you continue to try and serve two masters?

January 22 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 43, 44 Serving God: Part II Matthew 22 Psalm 22 Galatians 5:13-14 Notes: Service to God for the Christian should come naturally. After we first get saved we desire to ___________________ share Christ with our family and friends, but how am I to serve God on a consistent basis? The ___________________ answer is by serving others! Joy in this life is often broken down into Jesus, others, and you. It ___________________ is by setting order to your service that joy appears. We first and foremost serve the Lord Jesus ___________________ Christ in obedience to His commands and seeking to fulfill His will. Secondly, we serve others! ___________________ While serving Jesus and while doing His will others come into the equation. Jesus wants others ___________________ to be saved, He wants others to grow in the truth of God’s Word, and He wants us to become ___________________ witnesses and for others to learn about Christ. Lastly, yourself! Our text verse teaches us that ___________________ because we have liberty in Christ Jesus, we shouldn’t use liberty or spend it on ourselves, but ___________________ on others. ___________________ Will you spell joy out in your Christian life? Will you reinvest the liberty you have into someone else?

January 23 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 45, 46 Praising God Matthew 23 Psalm 23 Psalm 50:22-23 Notes: Praise in today’s world too often is connected with flattery. Flattery is simply false praise. ___________________ We pass compliments back and forth on a daily basis without offering praise to our God. Praise ___________________ is commendations bestowed on someone of virtue or worthy of the action. Praise should be ___________________ seen to the believer as a daily offering. Praise is not first or foremost an action of the body but ___________________ an action of the soul. Praise is fueled by thankfulness. Praise is not present in those who go ___________________ to church on Sunday and on Monday forget God and go back to worldly devices. Praise is an ___________________ offering that according to our text glorifies the Lord. When we testify of God’s goodness in the ___________________ open or behind closed doors we are praising Him. Praising God is simply offering up the truth ___________________ on a daily basis! ___________________ ___________________ Will you praise God for all you see today?

January 24 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 47, 48 Worshiping God: Part I Matthew 24 Psalm 24 Luke 4:6-8 Notes: Worship is an action paid to the object of love or honor, supreme respect and adoration. This ___________________ is an action that should only be directed toward the only true God. However, many throughout ___________________ our history and many today still seem to offer their worship to much lesser beings than the ___________________ Almighty. Choosing to worship with a creator rather than the creator most of the world worships ___________________ is at the altar of self- gratification. Whether religious or atheistic they worship something, ___________________ and it will predominantly be something that makes them feel better physically, mentally or a ___________________ combination of both. Worship is not about the worshiper, but the one being worshiped. Our ___________________ text records the greatest of all heresies when it comes to worship. It records Satan, who was ___________________ a creation of God, asking the Creator, Jesus Christ, to worship him. Jesus rebukes Satan with ___________________ scripture, and this should remind us all that worship is reserved for God and God alone. ___________________ Who or what do you worship?

January 25 Daily Bible Reading: Genesis 49, 50 Worshiping God: Part II Matthew 25 Psalm 25 Luke 4:8 in John 4:23-24 Notes: As we continue our focus of worshiping God, let me direct your attention to the fact that ___________________ worship is an action taken toward the object of worship. To sum up our last devotion which we ___________________ will build upon, there is only one true focus for our worship and that is the Almighty God. Let ___________________ me call your attention to verse eight of Luke chapter four. The last few words are, “and him ___________________ only shalt thou serve.” Worship is action taken in service to the object of our worship. Giving is ___________________ a part of worship, singing praises to His name is a part of worship and serving the Almighty in ___________________ obedience to His word and His will is also worship. Today’s worship, so-called, is focused on ___________________ the raising of hands and the moving of the body in an action that seems much like a dance and ___________________ is passed off as worship. In John chapter four Jesus shows us the woman at the well and what ___________________ God the Father desires and requires for true worship. The Father must be worshiped in spirit ___________________ and in truth. All too often our service to the Lord is done in the flesh. Meaning, I went through the motions, my heart nor my spirit was engaged, totally submitting to the guiding hand of the Almighty. When we give it should be given by my hand dropping it on the plate but also with a spirit of joy and thanksgiving to God. When I sing my lips and vocal cords produce the sounds that people hear but the joyful noise comes from my inside offered to God from my spirit. When I trust and obey God’s Word and His will my body takes action but the joy comes from a submitted spirit to fulfill God’s plan. Is your worship done in spirit and in truth? If not, will you start today?

January 26 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 1, 2 Seeking God’s Grace Matthew 26 Psalm 26 John 1:17 Notes: Grace is defined as the free unmerited love and favor of God. Many throughout history ___________________ have sought for a way to earn God's grace. Some have even invented systematic ways of ___________________ attaining God’s grace. Yet, for all the labor spent on grace it still did not appear unto men ___________________ until Jesus Christ came. Our text verse tells us this saying that “grace and truth came by Jesus ___________________ Christ.” The Old Testament law given by Moses was a schoolmaster that pointed towards grace ___________________ in Jesus Christ. Grace if sought today should be sought by coming to Jesus Christ. It is hard for ___________________ many to believe that the only price on grace is belief in Jesus Christ, belief that He is the only ___________________ begotten of God the Father, who lived a perfect life, died for the sins of others, and rose again ___________________ in victory over death and hell. Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace are you saved through faith; ___________________ and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” ___________________ God’s grace is a gift, will you receive it today?

January 27 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 3, 4 Seeking God’s Deliverance Matthew 27 Psalm 27 Luke 4:18-19 Notes: Deliverance means to be set free or released from captivity, or from any restraint. Jesus ___________________ came to set the world free from sin, and from the bondage and penalty of sin. Deliverance for ___________________ the soul and spirit of a man comes from accepting the finished work of Christ on Calvary. This ___________________ delivers us from the penalty of sin, it delivers us from an eternity of hell and gives us eternal ___________________ life. However, accepting Christ for salvation does not deliver us from the physical bondage of ___________________ sin. When we receive Jesus Christ as our personal Saviour, spiritual deliverance occurs at once, ___________________ but physical deliverance comes through daily submission to God’s Word and His will. Can ___________________ Christ deliver us from the bondage of addictions? The answer is yes! Can Christ deliver the ___________________ brokenhearted? Yes! Can Christ deliver the godly out of all his troubles? Yes, II Peter 2:9 says, ___________________ “the Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust until ___________________ the day of judgment to be punished.” If God has delivered you from sin and the penalty of sin will you allow God to deliver you from sin’s temptations?

January 28 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 5, 6 Seeking True Wealth Matthew 28 Psalm 28 I Timothy 6:7-11 Notes: The rat race of this world seems to run after money. This is not sinful, for money itself is ___________________ not the root of all evil. It is the “love” of money which is the root of all evil. “All'' is a very vast ___________________ and encompassing word. This word “all'' is used in God’s Word to tell us that every type of evil ___________________ is rooted in the love of money. Just look at the corruption in government today; it is founded in ___________________ the love of money. It happens when the love for country falls to the love of money. Go down the ___________________ list of evil and you will find that the love of money is the root of every evil under the sun. True ___________________ wealth in verse 11 of our text is seeking righteousness, godliness, faith, love of God, patience ___________________ and meekness. Love of money is a focus of the mind and heart upon financial gain above all ___________________ else. But the seeking of true wealth is to free this mindset and set your affections upon godly ___________________ values. To follow righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience and meekness, they lead us to ___________________ prosperity in a right or godly way. You can prosper in business in the community or in whatever you do to provide for your family through honorable means. True wealth is living God's way and following Him and allowing Him to bless your life. Will you seek after true wealth today?

January 29 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 7, 8 Seeking the Lord Through Thanksgiving Mark 1 Psalm 29 Psalms 105:1-5 Notes: Seeking the Lord through giving thanks is what our text suggests. God is worthy of our ___________________ thanksgiving. We should look back on what God has done and praise His holy name, giving ___________________ thanks. Thanks, according to this passage of scripture, comes in many forms. If we are not ___________________ careful we will only give God thanks when we pray to Him. We should give thanks to the Lord ___________________ when we witness of Him. Verse one says, “make known his deeds among the people.” We ___________________ can sing our thanks to God in verse two and talk of His wondrous works. Our conversations ___________________ should be full of thanksgiving. We should glory when His name is mentioned by others and give ___________________ thanks for others’ testimony of God’s goodness. Seeking the Lord through thanksgiving has a ___________________ benefit for the believer in verse three. The reward is a rejoicing heart for those who seek the ___________________ Lord. Seeking the Lord through thanksgiving allows us to live in victory, counting our blessings, ___________________ instead of focusing on moments of defeat. It keeps us looking for God's footprints and keeps us focused on His strength and looking for His face. Will you seek the Lord through thanksgiving?

January 30 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 9, 10 Seek the Lord and Understand Mark 2 Psalm 30 Proverbs 28:4-5 Notes: Often in this life the search for knowledge crosses all borders of age, background and ___________________ religion. Yet knowledge for most of the world today is defined as “learning; illumination of the ___________________ mind.” This is why the Bible describes these last days in II Timothy 3:7 as, “ever learning and ___________________ never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.” In these last days knowledge is the knowing ___________________ of things, not the knowledge of truth. Webster’s 1828 dictionary gives a true definition of ___________________ knowledge saying, “a clear and certain perception of that which exists, or of truth and facts.” ___________________ Most of the world's schools and colleges teach theory and distorted history, not truth and facts. ___________________ Our text verse teaches of the importance of seeking the Lord. Verse four shows us the importance ___________________ of having the truth or true knowledge. When truth becomes relative and not a constant, man ___________________ will not obey God’s law nor man’s law. That’s why when he is brought to justice or judgment, he ___________________ doesn’t understand. However, for those of us who know the truth, we contend for the truth, and those that seek the Lord understand all things. This means that the Lord, through His wisdom, will reveal truth to those that seek Him. This will be revealed clearly enough to not just know about the truth but to understand it. The world seeks to understand the origins of the universe, but the believer already understands how it was made!

January 31 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 11, 12 The Wisdom of God Mark 3 Psalm 31 I Corinthians 1:22-25 Notes: Wisdom is the right use or exercise of true knowledge. All wisdom is from God and ___________________ according to James 1:5 He will give to all men liberally if they ask God for wisdom. Our text ___________________ describes God’s wisdom in contrast with the wisdom of men. It explains that the foolishness of ___________________ God is wiser than man’s wisdom. Man’s wisdom is limited to what God has revealed; God is ___________________ not limited at all. Yet, I feel that the most profound things related to wisdom that we can learn ___________________ about God’s wisdom is from our text verses and is found in verse 24. This verse says that the ___________________ Lord Jesus Christ is revealed to the believer as the power of God and the wisdom of God. This ___________________ reveals to a Christian that my wisdom is in my Saviour and that power is also in my Saviour. This ___________________ affects my witness, for when I share Christ I am trying to give others power and wisdom. When ___________________ I need strength or if I need wisdom I know Who to call on night or day. ___________________ Christ is the power of God in the wisdom of God!

February

February 1 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 13, 14 What Happened to Holiness? Mark 4 Psalm 32 II Corinthians 7:1 Notes: The church in the twenty-first century is alive, but she is not well. She is sick. She is ___________________ “lukewarm,” in the words of our Founder and Head, the Lord Jesus Christ, and she makes Him ___________________ sick. He says to His modern-day church, “I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: ___________________ I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, ___________________ I will spue thee out of my mouth” (Revelation 3:16). The word “spue” is just a more polite, ___________________ gentler, King James Bible word for “throw up,” or “vomit.” This is what the Lord Jesus thinks of ___________________ modern-day so-called Christianity. Thankfully, her sickness is “not unto death,” and could be ___________________ turned “for the glory of God, that the Son of God might be glorified” (John 11:4). Her sickness ___________________ is not terminal, but it is terrible. It is not fatal, but it is frightening. It is caused by forgetfulness. ___________________ We have forgotten about holiness. We have forgotten about God's commandment to “be ye ___________________ holy, for I am holy.” We have neglected our walk with God and forgotten our calling to be Christlike. We have forgotten our God-given mandate to “live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world” (Titus 2:12). Our preachers do not preach it. Our people do not live it. Very few even seek it, and no one seems to miss it. But God has not forgotten about holiness. He is holy still. He commands His people to be holy still. And His Word reminds us and encourages us that we are to be “perfecting holiness in the fear of God” (II Corinthians 7:1).

February 2 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 15, 16 God is Holy Mark 5 Psalm 33 Psalm 145:17 Notes: Holiness is not something that is difficult to find in the Scriptures. It is not something God ___________________ mentions once or twice in passing and never mentions again. The words “holy” and “holiness” ___________________ are found nearly seven hundred times in the Bible. The first time the word “holy” is found in ___________________ the Scriptures in is Exodus 3:5, and the last time is in Revelation 22:19. Holiness is found in ___________________ the beginning of the second Book in the Bible and in the third verse from the end of the Bible. ___________________ God's Word literally begins and ends with holiness! What is holiness? What does it mean to be ___________________ holy? Holiness is the very essence, nature and character of God. His holiness speaks of His ___________________ absolute purity, His moral perfection, His complete sinlessness and the total flawlessness of His ___________________ character. God's holiness speaks of His goodness and righteousness. Our God has revealed ___________________ Himself to us through His Word as a holy God. Augustus Strong said, “Holiness is the inherent ___________________ opposition of God to all that is sinful.” The psalmist said, “The LORD is righteous in all his ways, and holy in all his works” (Psalm 145:17). Holiness is not just one of God's attributes. The holiness of God is His very nature, and all of His other attributes are in complete conformity to His holiness. His love is a holy love. His love for sinners does not override His holy opposition to sin. Sinful man is in no position and no condition to approach a holy God. It is the holiness of God that separates Him from sinful men. There will be no sin in God's wonderful, perfect heaven. Revelation 21:27 tells us, “There shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth.

February 3 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 17, 18 God's Word is Holy Mark 6 Psalm 34 Psalm 119:9 Notes: The Word of God, the Bible, refers to itself as being holy. Psalm 105:42 says that God's ___________________ Word is His “holy promise.” Daniel 11:28 calls the Word of God “the holy covenant.” In Romans ___________________ 1:2 and 2 Timothy 3:15, the apostle Paul calls the Bible “the holy scriptures.” In Romans 7:12 ___________________ Paul said, “The law (God's Word) is holy, and commandment holy, and just, and good.” God is ___________________ holy. He is pure. He is perfect. He is flawless. God's Word is holy. It is pure. It is perfect. It is ___________________ flawless. A holy God gave us His holy Word in order that we, too, might be holy. Psalm 119:9 ___________________ poses this question: “Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way?” And then in the same ___________________ verse of Scripture the psalmist answers his own question: “By taking heed thereto according to ___________________ thy word.” In John 17:17 the Lord Jesus prayed that our heavenly Father would make us holy ___________________ by His holy Word. “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” In John 15:3 the Lord ___________________ Jesus told us, “Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.” Paul told the Ephesian church that it would be sanctified and cleansed “with the washing of water by the word” (Ephesians 5:26). One commentator said, “Holiness flows from a sincere following of the Word of God.” The Bible is the spiritual food and nourishment we need to nurture and sustain holiness in our lives. The Bible gives us a perfect standard of holiness from which we learn and by which we are to live. We find encouragement in the promises of God to help us stay faithful in our walk with the Lord in the paths of righteousness.

February 4 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 19, 20 God's People Are To Be Holy Mark 7 Psalm 35 Proverbs 9:10 Notes: When the Bible uses the word “holy” in reference to God, it speaks of His absolute ___________________ perfection and purity, His complete sinlessness and flawlessness of character. When referring to ___________________ men, holiness is the desire to be like our God. It is the active pursuit of holiness in our own lives. ___________________ It is our conformity to the holy attributes of God. Eight times in the Bible God commands us to ___________________ “be ye holy, as I am holy.” How are we to obey His command? How are we to be holy, even as He ___________________ is holy? We can be holy as He is holy by coming to know our holy God. Proverbs 9:10 says, “The ___________________ fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.” ___________________ Understanding the holiness of God is key to understanding how to be holy, as He is holy. We ___________________ mentioned before that all of God's attributes are in conformity to and governed by His holiness. ___________________ We are called to be holy, as He is holy. We are called to be godly, to be Christlike. I wonder, are ___________________ all of our attributes, our character, our nature, and all that we are governed by our holiness? If we are holy, as He is holy, we will love what He loves, and hate what He hates. The Bible says in Psalm 97:10, “Ye that love the LORD, hate evil.” Why? Because evil is the exact opposite of God. Evil is all that a holy God is opposed to. If we are holy, as He is holy, we also will hate the evil that He hates, and we will love righteousness as He loves righteousness.

February 5 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 21, 22 Our Holy God is a Jealous God Mark 8 Psalm 36 Deuteronomy 6:14-15 Notes: Y“ e shall not go after other gods, of the gods of the people which are round about you; ___________________ (For the LORD thy God is a jealous God among you) lest the anger of the LORD thy God be ___________________ kindled against thee, and destroy thee from off the face of the earth” (Deuteronomy 6:14,15). ___________________ In His holiness God is jealous over the hearts, the affection, and the devotion of His people. ___________________ He seeks to jealously protect us from the snares and dangers of the devil and his false gods. ___________________ Jealousy is a passion, an uneasiness, a fear that a rival may rob us of the affection of one whom ___________________ we love. Jealousy can be an ugly emotion, a painful emotion, a sinful, carnal emotion, as we ___________________ all know from experience. But God is jealous over us with a godly jealousy. God has a rival, ___________________ who is out to steal our affection and our love for Him. That rival is our adversary, the devil. He ___________________ doesn't want your love; he just doesn't want God to have it. He doesn't care where your heart ___________________ is fixed, just as long as it is not fixed on God. He doesn't care what catches your eye, as long as you are not caught up with gazing upon the face of God. God is only jealous when we provoke Him to jealousy, when we give our devotion or our affection or our love to another. God is only jealous over us when our hearts are fixed on something or someone other than Himself. God is only jealous when something or someone else catches our eye, or captures our hearts.

February 6 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 23, 24 God's Love is a Holy Love Mark 9 Psalm 37 John 15:13-14 Notes: B“ eloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of ___________________ God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love” (I John 4:7,8). ___________________ God's love is a holy love. It transcends the shallow, selfish, so-called “love” of this world, which ___________________ is usually given only when it is reciprocated. The love of this world says, “I will love you as long ___________________ as you love me.” But God's love is pure love, unselfish love, sacrificial love. In John 3:16 the ___________________ Bible says, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever ___________________ believeth in him, should not perish, but have everlasting life.” Romans 5:8 tells us, “But God ___________________ commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” And the ___________________ Lord Jesus said in John 15:13,14 “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down ___________________ his life for his friends. Ye are my friends.” God's love is indescribable. It is unfathomable. ___________________ It is incomprehensible. God's love is inexplicable. It is illogical. It is supernatural. Though many through the ages have tried to adequately speak or write or sing of the love of God, the songwriter Frederick Lehman probably said it as well as anyone else ever has: “The love of God is greater far then tongue or pen can ever tell; It goes beyond the highest star and reaches to the lowest hell... O love of God, how rich and pure. How measureless and strong. It shall forever more endure, the saints' and angels' song.” How wonderful it is to be loved by the unconditional, everlasting love of God!

February 7 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 25, 26 God's Character is Holy Mark 10 Psalm 38 Luke 4:14 Notes: Holiness is displayed in the character of God, and nowhere is God's characteristic holiness ___________________ more fully expressed than in the life and earthly ministry of His Son the Lord Jesus Christ. As a ___________________ child, He “grew, and waxed strong in the spirit, filled with wisdom: and the grace of God was ___________________ upon him” (Luke 2:40). As a youth the Lord Jesus was about His Father's business (Luke 2:49). ___________________ As He grew to maturity, He “increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man” ___________________ (Luke 2:52). From the earliest days of His public ministry, He sought “to fulfill all righteousness” ___________________ (Matthew 3:15). Jesus was “full of the Holy Ghost” when He was “led up of the Spirit into the ___________________ wilderness to be tempted of the devil” (Luke 4:1; Matthew 4:1). Even the unbelieving Jews were ___________________ compelled to acknowledge that there was something unique and special about Him, that God ___________________ was with Him. In John 3:1,2 we read: “There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, ___________________ a ruler of the Jews: The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.” He conducted Himself and His ministry “in the power of the Spirit” (Luke 4:14). Even His detractors, when they heard His words, testified: “Never man spake like this man” (John 7:46). Even the devils recognized Him as “the Holy One of God” (Mark 1:24). You might be asking, “What does any of this have to do with me?” As a Christian, you are called to be like Christ. If Christ's holiness was exemplified in every area of His life, holiness should be exemplified in every area of our lives as well.

February 8 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 27, 28 Christ, the Holy One of God Mark 11 Psalm 39 Mark 1:35 Notes: The holy life of the Lord Jesus Christ was a life saturated in prayer. The height of our ___________________ personal holiness as believers in Christ will never rise above the depth of our prayer lives. We're ___________________ told in the Scriptures that Jesus often “continued all night in prayer to God” (Luke 6:12). Mark ___________________ 1:35 says, “And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed ___________________ into a solitary place, and there prayed.” (*Many of us couldn't live up to that! We have a hard ___________________ time “rising up a great while before day,” whether it's to pray or whether it's to do something ___________________ else!) In Luke 5:16 we read: “And he withdrew himself into the wilderness, and prayed.” “He ___________________ took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray” (Luke 9:28). “And when ___________________ he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the ___________________ evening was come, he was there alone” (Matthew 14:23). It is evident from the Word of God ___________________ that the life and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ were saturated in prayer. Jesus was in constant communion with His Father in heaven. “And he came out, and went, as he was wont (as was His custom, His habit) to the mount of Olives... and kneeled down, and prayed.” Oh, that much prayer would become our custom, our habit. If you and I are ever to be conformed into the image of Christ, if you and I are ever to be used of God as a “vessel unto honour” (2 Timothy 2:21), we must first emulate His prayer life, we must first learn to “pray without ceasing” (I Thessalonians 5:17), as was demonstrated in the life of our Lord.

February 9 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 29, 30 Christ's Holiness Displayed in His Compassion Mark 12 Psalm 40 Matthew 9:11,13 Notes: Jesus showed compassion for the sinful, the fallen, and the outcast. There was a woman ___________________ from Samaria, married five times, and living in adultery with a sixth man. Jesus loved her ___________________ and won her to Himself (John 4). He cleansed a man, considered hopelessly and terminally ___________________ unclean and untouchable, of his incurable leprosy. (He) “put forth his hand, and touched him, ___________________ saying... be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed” (Matthew 8:3). He ate with ___________________ publicans and sinners, and called them to repentance (Matthew 9:11,13). He had compassion ___________________ on the multitudes, “because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no ___________________ shepherd” (Matthew 9:36). He had compassion on a widow who had lost her only son (Luke ___________________ 7:12-15). He had compassion on the hungry (Matthew 15:32). He had compassion on the ___________________ blind, the deaf, the lame, the sick, the bereaved, and those afflicted and oppressed by the devil. ___________________ One of the evidences of holiness in our lives will be our compassion for those on whom Jesus had compassion. In Jude 22 we read: “And of some have compassion, making a difference.” Our holiness, manifested in our Christlike compassion for others – others who are hurting, others who are grieving, others who are suffering, others who are lost without Christ – will make a difference in the lives of those we are trying to influence for the Lord Jesus Christ. The life and ministry of the Lord Jesus were marked by His compassion. Jesus made a difference everywhere He went, because He was a man of compassion, and compassion makes the difference!

February 10 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 31, 32 Christ's Holiness Demonstrated in His Testimony Mark 13 Psalm 41 John 19:4 Notes: Christ's testimony before the world was spotless. He was above reproach, blameless. He ___________________ was often falsely accused, although the accusations were always baseless and without merit. To ___________________ the Pharisees who accused Him of being a liar, He said, “Which of you convinceth me of sin?” ___________________ (John 8:46). Obviously, no one could. Pilate, the Roman governor, examined Him at His trial, ___________________ and concluded: “I find in him no fault at all” (John 18:38). You, too, can examine Him and try ___________________ Him, and you, too, will find in Him no fault at all! Pilate then brought Him before the angry mob, ___________________ as they cried out for His blood, and said to them, “I bring him forth to you, that ye may know ___________________ that I find no fault in him” (John 19:4). And yet a third time, when the chief priests and officers ___________________ cried out, “Crucify him, crucify him... Pilate saith unto them, Take ye him, and crucify him: for I ___________________ find no fault in him” (John 19:6). Maybe that's why the angels cry out, “Holy, holy, holy, is the ___________________ Lord of hosts ...” (Isaiah 6:3). You, like Pilate, can examine Him three times, or three thousand times, and you'll find no fault in Him at all. What about your testimony before the world, my Christian friend? If the world were to examine you as closely as Pilate examined Jesus, would their conclusion be, “I find in him no fault at all”? Are you and I demonstrating holiness by our testimony as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ?

February 11 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 33, 34 Holiness Demanded in God's People Mark 14 Psalm 42 Romans 6:22 Notes: God said to the people of Israel, “And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an ___________________ holy nation” (Exodus 19:6). What made the nation of Israel holy? God had chosen them for ___________________ Himself, and called them to be holy. They had an obligation to be holy. “But ye are a chosen ___________________ generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the ___________________ praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light” (I Peter 2:9). “But ___________________ now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, ___________________ and the end everlasting life” (Romans 6:22). What makes the people of God holy today? God ___________________ has chosen us for Himself, and called us to be holy. We have an obligation to be holy. The ___________________ God Who made us in His own image, the God Who saved us by giving His only begotten Son ___________________ to die for us, the God Who calls us to be conformed into His own likeness, is a holy God, Who ___________________ commands us to be holy, as He is holy.

February 12 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 35, 36 Holiness is a Condition of the Heart Mark 15 Psalm 43 Ephesians 1:4 Notes: Holiness is primarily inward; it is a condition of the heart. Such ideas as “wholly dedicated ___________________ to God” and “fully consecrated unto the Lord” would accurately describe holiness. The apostle ___________________ Paul wrote to the Christians in Ephesus and to all Christians everywhere that “we should be holy ___________________ and without blame before him (before God) in love” (Ephesians 1:4). We should be holy and ___________________ without blame before the God Who made us, the God Who knows our thoughts, our ways, our ___________________ hearts, and our motives, the God from Whom we can hide nothing. But one cannot be holy ___________________ on the inside and unholy on the outside. Nor can one be unholy on the inside and holy on the ___________________ outside. As the people of God, “an holy nation,” we are commanded to “shew forth the praises ___________________ of him who hath called us out of darkness into his marvellous light” (I Peter 2:9). If you are ___________________ holy on the inside, it will have a definite effect on the outside! If you are holy on the outside, it ___________________ is merely a reflection of your heart's condition on the inside. Holiness in the heart will “shew forth”! This is practical, everyday holiness. This is the holiness that people can see, the holiness that people, both saved and unsaved alike, need to see in you.

February 13 Daily Bible Reading: Exodus 37, 38 Our Bodies are to be Holy, Living Sacrifices unto God Mark 16 Psalm 44 Romans 12:1 Notes: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a ___________________ living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service” (Romans 12:1). ___________________ Our bodies are not for us to use (or abuse) as we please or as we see fit. Our bodies are to ___________________ be used to glorify God, and the only way our bodies can glorify God is if we are holy in our ___________________ outward lives, holy in our behavior. “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy ___________________ Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with ___________________ a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's” (I Corinthians ___________________ 6:19,20). In Romans 6:19 we are told to “yield (our) members servants of righteousness unto ___________________ holiness.” Our “members” are our body parts, the outward us, that part of us that people can ___________________ know and see – our hands, feet, eyes, ears, tongue. Romans 6:19 is talking about what we do, ___________________ where we go, what we allow ourselves to see and hear, what we say, and even how we say it. We are to “yield (our) members as servants of righteousness unto holiness.” God demands that our bodies be holy. Our members are to be holy. Some people have the idea that, “As long as I am right with God on the inside, I can do whatever I want to do on the outside.” But that idea is completely foreign to God's Word and God's will. If you are right with God on the inside, if your heart is right on the inside, what you will want to be and what you will be is holy on the outside!