Thursday, December 31, 2009
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Encouragement And Strength
A dear friend sent me these two encouraging messages from David Wilkerson Today:
THE LOVE OF GOD NEVER FAILS
When David penned the words of Psalm 13, he asked, “How long will you forget me, Lord? Forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long shall I have sorrow in my heart daily? How long will the enemy be exalted over me?”
It sounds as if David felt that God had altogether left him to suffer and wake up each day with a black cloud hanging over him. For a season, David spoke out of despair: “God, will this feeling of isolation go on forever? When will my prayers ever be answered?”
Beloved, when troubles assail us yet we know we love the Lord—when deliverance seems hopeless—we sink under the pressure. Right now, someone reading these words is sinking under the awful pressure of a situation that seems to be unsolvable. They are on the verge of total despair, hoping a calm will come if only for a break in their trial.
Next, David asked, “How long shall I take counsel in my soul?” He spoke of forming one plan after another, trying to plan ways out of his trouble—but all plans, all arrangements, failed. Now he had nothing else to think of, no workable solution. He was at the end of it all.
How did David arise from this pit of despair? “I will trust in your mercy…I will sing…”
Let me share with you several reasons to keep trusting your way through your present trials: No matter how the storms may rage, our precious Lord will still be feeding the fowls of the air, dressing the lilies of the field and supplying an ocean full of fish with their daily needs. “Your heavenly Father feedeth them…” Not one bird ever falls to the ground without the Father’s eye upon it.
What kind of Father would feed all the creatures of the earth and yet neglect his children? Jesus exhorted us to “give no thought” to everyday needs and problems, “for he careth for you.”
Truly the Lord loves you, and he will not turn a deaf ear to your cries. Hold on, move on, wait patiently. He will never fail you.
FULLY PERSUADED
Abraham didn’t stagger in his faith. Rather, he was “fully persuaded that, what (God) had promised, he was able to perform” (Romans 4:21). He recognized that God is able to work with nothing. Indeed, our Lord creates out of a void. Consider the Genesis account: out of nothing, God created the world. With just a single word, he creates. And he can create miracles for us, out of nothing.
When all else fails—when your every plan and scheme has been exhausted—that is the time for you to cast everything on God. It is time for you to give up all confidence in finding deliverance anywhere else. Then, once you are ready to believe, you are to see God not as a potter who needs clay, but as a Creator who works from nothing. And, out of nothing that is of this world or its materials, God will work in ways and means you could never have conceived.
How serious is the Lord about our believing him in the face of impossibilities? We find the answer to this question in the story of Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist. Zacharias was visited by an angel who told him that his wife, Elisabeth, would give birth to a special child. But Zacharias—who was advanced in years, like Abraham—refused to believe it. God’s promise alone was not enough for him.
Zacharias answered the angel, “Whereby (how) shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years” (Luke 1:18). Simply put, Zacharias considered the impossibilities. He was saying, “This isn’t possible. You’ve got to prove to me how it will happen.” It didn’t sound reasonable.
Zacharias’ doubts displeased the Lord. The angel told him, “Behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season” (1:20).
The message is clear: God expects us to believe him when he speaks. Likewise, Peter writes: “Let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator” (1 Peter 4:19, my italics).
THE LOVE OF GOD NEVER FAILS
When David penned the words of Psalm 13, he asked, “How long will you forget me, Lord? Forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long shall I have sorrow in my heart daily? How long will the enemy be exalted over me?”
It sounds as if David felt that God had altogether left him to suffer and wake up each day with a black cloud hanging over him. For a season, David spoke out of despair: “God, will this feeling of isolation go on forever? When will my prayers ever be answered?”
Beloved, when troubles assail us yet we know we love the Lord—when deliverance seems hopeless—we sink under the pressure. Right now, someone reading these words is sinking under the awful pressure of a situation that seems to be unsolvable. They are on the verge of total despair, hoping a calm will come if only for a break in their trial.
Next, David asked, “How long shall I take counsel in my soul?” He spoke of forming one plan after another, trying to plan ways out of his trouble—but all plans, all arrangements, failed. Now he had nothing else to think of, no workable solution. He was at the end of it all.
How did David arise from this pit of despair? “I will trust in your mercy…I will sing…”
Let me share with you several reasons to keep trusting your way through your present trials: No matter how the storms may rage, our precious Lord will still be feeding the fowls of the air, dressing the lilies of the field and supplying an ocean full of fish with their daily needs. “Your heavenly Father feedeth them…” Not one bird ever falls to the ground without the Father’s eye upon it.
What kind of Father would feed all the creatures of the earth and yet neglect his children? Jesus exhorted us to “give no thought” to everyday needs and problems, “for he careth for you.”
Truly the Lord loves you, and he will not turn a deaf ear to your cries. Hold on, move on, wait patiently. He will never fail you.
FULLY PERSUADED
Abraham didn’t stagger in his faith. Rather, he was “fully persuaded that, what (God) had promised, he was able to perform” (Romans 4:21). He recognized that God is able to work with nothing. Indeed, our Lord creates out of a void. Consider the Genesis account: out of nothing, God created the world. With just a single word, he creates. And he can create miracles for us, out of nothing.
When all else fails—when your every plan and scheme has been exhausted—that is the time for you to cast everything on God. It is time for you to give up all confidence in finding deliverance anywhere else. Then, once you are ready to believe, you are to see God not as a potter who needs clay, but as a Creator who works from nothing. And, out of nothing that is of this world or its materials, God will work in ways and means you could never have conceived.
How serious is the Lord about our believing him in the face of impossibilities? We find the answer to this question in the story of Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist. Zacharias was visited by an angel who told him that his wife, Elisabeth, would give birth to a special child. But Zacharias—who was advanced in years, like Abraham—refused to believe it. God’s promise alone was not enough for him.
Zacharias answered the angel, “Whereby (how) shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years” (Luke 1:18). Simply put, Zacharias considered the impossibilities. He was saying, “This isn’t possible. You’ve got to prove to me how it will happen.” It didn’t sound reasonable.
Zacharias’ doubts displeased the Lord. The angel told him, “Behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season” (1:20).
The message is clear: God expects us to believe him when he speaks. Likewise, Peter writes: “Let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator” (1 Peter 4:19, my italics).
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Monday, December 21, 2009
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Friday, December 18, 2009
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Monday, December 14, 2009
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Supremely Precious
"Yes, He is very precious to you who believe!" - 1 Peter 2:7
If Christ is truly precious to us—we shall prefer Him above every other object; He will have the chief place in our affections. The love which a Christian has to his Savior, penetrates and possesses his heart. This distinguishes it from the pretended love of hypocrites, which is only in word, or in some external actions, while their hearts are full of sinful self-love; so that it may be said of them, "This people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me."
We may possibly delight in some objects of an inferior nature, as they contribute to our health, our ease, or our comfort. Our homes, our food, and our other temporal enjoyments are dear to us, because they minister to our comfort and convenience in the present life. But true love for Christ, does not allow any other object to hold the chief place in the heart. This chief place is for Jesus, whom we ought to love with supreme ardor. The choicest affections of our souls ought to be supremely fixed upon Him.
As it is impossible for any man to love an unknown object—so it cannot be expected that Christ should be supremely precious unto us, unless we know Him to be excellent and desirable, beyond whatever may be compared with Him. We shall not esteem Him above all things—if we have not elevated views of His transcendent worth. Our esteem of Him rises in proportion to the knowledge we have of Him. Godly men therefore ardently desire to increase in the knowledge of Him—that their affections may be more intensely fixed upon Him.
That love, which has but created things for its object, is degrading to the soul. It is a cleaving to that which can neither give happiness to our souls, nor repose to our minds. For to love any object ardently, is to seek our felicity in it, and to expect that it will answer our desires. It is to call upon it to fill that deep void which we feel in ourselves, and to imagine that it is capable of giving us the satisfaction we seek. It is to regard it as the resource of all our needs, the remedy of all the troubles which oppress us, and the source of all our happiness. Now, as it is God alone in whom we can find all these advantages, it is a debasing of the soul, it is idolatry to seek them in created objects! "I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ!" Philippians 3:8
If Christ is truly precious to us—we shall be induced to devote our souls and our bodies, our talents, our abilities and our faculties—as a living sacrifice to Him. To contemplate His adorable perfections will be our highest joy. We shall be ready to obey Him—in opposition to all the threats and the solicitations of men. We shall rely upon Him, though all outward appearances seem to be against us. We shall rejoice in Him, though we have nothing else to comfort us. If we enjoy health and plenty, friends and reputation, the Lord is still the object of our earnest desires and our supreme delight. "Whom have I in heaven but you? There is none upon earth that I desire besides you! As the deer pants for the water-brooks, so longs my soul after you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God!"
- John Fawcett
If Christ is truly precious to us—we shall prefer Him above every other object; He will have the chief place in our affections. The love which a Christian has to his Savior, penetrates and possesses his heart. This distinguishes it from the pretended love of hypocrites, which is only in word, or in some external actions, while their hearts are full of sinful self-love; so that it may be said of them, "This people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me."
We may possibly delight in some objects of an inferior nature, as they contribute to our health, our ease, or our comfort. Our homes, our food, and our other temporal enjoyments are dear to us, because they minister to our comfort and convenience in the present life. But true love for Christ, does not allow any other object to hold the chief place in the heart. This chief place is for Jesus, whom we ought to love with supreme ardor. The choicest affections of our souls ought to be supremely fixed upon Him.
As it is impossible for any man to love an unknown object—so it cannot be expected that Christ should be supremely precious unto us, unless we know Him to be excellent and desirable, beyond whatever may be compared with Him. We shall not esteem Him above all things—if we have not elevated views of His transcendent worth. Our esteem of Him rises in proportion to the knowledge we have of Him. Godly men therefore ardently desire to increase in the knowledge of Him—that their affections may be more intensely fixed upon Him.
That love, which has but created things for its object, is degrading to the soul. It is a cleaving to that which can neither give happiness to our souls, nor repose to our minds. For to love any object ardently, is to seek our felicity in it, and to expect that it will answer our desires. It is to call upon it to fill that deep void which we feel in ourselves, and to imagine that it is capable of giving us the satisfaction we seek. It is to regard it as the resource of all our needs, the remedy of all the troubles which oppress us, and the source of all our happiness. Now, as it is God alone in whom we can find all these advantages, it is a debasing of the soul, it is idolatry to seek them in created objects! "I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ!" Philippians 3:8
If Christ is truly precious to us—we shall be induced to devote our souls and our bodies, our talents, our abilities and our faculties—as a living sacrifice to Him. To contemplate His adorable perfections will be our highest joy. We shall be ready to obey Him—in opposition to all the threats and the solicitations of men. We shall rely upon Him, though all outward appearances seem to be against us. We shall rejoice in Him, though we have nothing else to comfort us. If we enjoy health and plenty, friends and reputation, the Lord is still the object of our earnest desires and our supreme delight. "Whom have I in heaven but you? There is none upon earth that I desire besides you! As the deer pants for the water-brooks, so longs my soul after you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God!"
- John Fawcett
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Friday, December 11, 2009
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Wednesday, December 09, 2009
Monday, December 07, 2009
Sunday, December 06, 2009
Friday, December 04, 2009
Into The Depths Of The Sea!
The sinner outside of Christ is bound over to the wrath of God; he is under an obligation in law to go to the prison of hell, and there to lie until he has paid the utmost farthing.
"There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus." Romans 8:1
The believer's sins are pardoned, the guilt of them is removed. The bond obliging him to pay his debt is canceled. God the Father takes the pen, dips it in the blood of His Son, crosses off the sinner's accounts, and blots them out of His debt-book.
Being united to Christ, God says, "Deliver him from going down to the pit; I have found a ransom!" Job 33:24. The sentence of condemnation is reversed, the believer is absolved, and set beyond the reach of the condemning law. His sins, which before were set before the Lord, Psalm 90:8, so that they could not be hidden—God now takes and casts them all behind His back, Isaiah 38:17. Yes, "You will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea." Micah 7:19.
What falls into a brook may be retrieved—but what is cast into the sea cannot be recovered. But there are some shallow places in the sea; true—but their sins are not cast in there—but into the depths of the sea. The depths of the sea are devouring depths, from whence their sins shall never come forth again. But what if they do not sink? He will hurl them in with force, so that they shall go to the bottom, and sink as lead in the mighty waters of the Redeemer's blood!
They are not only forgiven—but forgotten, Jer. 31:34, "I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more." And though their after-sins do in themselves deserve eternal wrath, and do actually make them liable to temporal strokes, and fatherly chastisements, according to the tenor of the covenant of grace, Psalm 89:30-33—yet they can never be actually liable to eternal wrath.
- Thomas Boston
"There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus." Romans 8:1
The believer's sins are pardoned, the guilt of them is removed. The bond obliging him to pay his debt is canceled. God the Father takes the pen, dips it in the blood of His Son, crosses off the sinner's accounts, and blots them out of His debt-book.
Being united to Christ, God says, "Deliver him from going down to the pit; I have found a ransom!" Job 33:24. The sentence of condemnation is reversed, the believer is absolved, and set beyond the reach of the condemning law. His sins, which before were set before the Lord, Psalm 90:8, so that they could not be hidden—God now takes and casts them all behind His back, Isaiah 38:17. Yes, "You will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea." Micah 7:19.
What falls into a brook may be retrieved—but what is cast into the sea cannot be recovered. But there are some shallow places in the sea; true—but their sins are not cast in there—but into the depths of the sea. The depths of the sea are devouring depths, from whence their sins shall never come forth again. But what if they do not sink? He will hurl them in with force, so that they shall go to the bottom, and sink as lead in the mighty waters of the Redeemer's blood!
They are not only forgiven—but forgotten, Jer. 31:34, "I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more." And though their after-sins do in themselves deserve eternal wrath, and do actually make them liable to temporal strokes, and fatherly chastisements, according to the tenor of the covenant of grace, Psalm 89:30-33—yet they can never be actually liable to eternal wrath.
- Thomas Boston
Thursday, December 03, 2009
Does God Really Care For Us?
"I am poor and needy—yet the Lord thinks upon me!" Psalm 40:17
Did God really care for him? And does God care for us, and think upon us—when we are poor and needy? Does God really care for us, as individuals? Does He give personal thought to any of us—to you, to me—according to our condition? Does pain or trouble in us—cause pity in His heart? Does God care? Does He see the individual in the crowd? When you are passing through some great trouble, enduring pain or adversity—does God know it, and does He care?
A daughter had a bitter sorrow, a sore disappointment. The mother knew just what her daughter was passing through. Her love for her child, entered into and shared all the child's experiences. The mother cared. Is there ever anything like this in the heart of God—as He looks upon His children and knows that they are suffering?
When we turn to the Bible, we find on every page the revelation—that God does care—and has personal interest in His people.
Christ assured His disciples, that the very hairs of their heads are all numbered; meaning that God personally cares for all the minutest affairs of our lives—He cares for us as individuals. His love is as personal and individual, as the love of a mother for each one of her children.
Paul took the love of Christ to himself—as if he were the only one Christ loved! "He loved me—and gave Himself up for me!" God's love is personal. He cares for us—for me!
Whatever your need, your trial, your perplexity, your struggle may be—you may be sure that God knows and cares—and that when you come to Him with it, He will take time amid all His infinite affairs, to help you—as if He had nothing else in all the world to do!
God cares! His love for each one of His children is so deep, so personal, so tender—that He has compassion on our every pain, every distress, every struggle. "As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him." Psalm 103:13. God is our Father, and His care is gentler than a human father's—as His love exceeds human love.
Much human care has no power to help—but when God cares—He helps omnipotently. When human friendship can give no relief—then God will come. When no one in all the world cares—then God cares! "Cast all your cares upon Him, because He cares about you!" 1 Peter 5:7
J.R. Miller - 1912
Did God really care for him? And does God care for us, and think upon us—when we are poor and needy? Does God really care for us, as individuals? Does He give personal thought to any of us—to you, to me—according to our condition? Does pain or trouble in us—cause pity in His heart? Does God care? Does He see the individual in the crowd? When you are passing through some great trouble, enduring pain or adversity—does God know it, and does He care?
A daughter had a bitter sorrow, a sore disappointment. The mother knew just what her daughter was passing through. Her love for her child, entered into and shared all the child's experiences. The mother cared. Is there ever anything like this in the heart of God—as He looks upon His children and knows that they are suffering?
When we turn to the Bible, we find on every page the revelation—that God does care—and has personal interest in His people.
Christ assured His disciples, that the very hairs of their heads are all numbered; meaning that God personally cares for all the minutest affairs of our lives—He cares for us as individuals. His love is as personal and individual, as the love of a mother for each one of her children.
Paul took the love of Christ to himself—as if he were the only one Christ loved! "He loved me—and gave Himself up for me!" God's love is personal. He cares for us—for me!
Whatever your need, your trial, your perplexity, your struggle may be—you may be sure that God knows and cares—and that when you come to Him with it, He will take time amid all His infinite affairs, to help you—as if He had nothing else in all the world to do!
God cares! His love for each one of His children is so deep, so personal, so tender—that He has compassion on our every pain, every distress, every struggle. "As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him." Psalm 103:13. God is our Father, and His care is gentler than a human father's—as His love exceeds human love.
Much human care has no power to help—but when God cares—He helps omnipotently. When human friendship can give no relief—then God will come. When no one in all the world cares—then God cares! "Cast all your cares upon Him, because He cares about you!" 1 Peter 5:7
J.R. Miller - 1912
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