Gems from October 2011

"To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things to all men, that I might by all means save some."
(1 Corinthians 9:22)

No Affliction would trouble us if we knew God's reasons for permitting it.

God often uses a setback to move us forward.

God pours His love into our hearts to flow out to others.

Living in the past paralyzes the present and bankrupts the future.

You cannot start a fire in another's heart till it is burning in your own.
(Some Thoughts to Consider - R.K.)

N.J. Hiebert - 4567

October 1

"With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men: knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free."
(Ephesians 6:7-8)

Passing an ambulance doing nothing and parked in an odd location of our city I complained, "What a waste of taxpayers money!" I found out later that these ambulances are located strategically throughout the city, ready to respond in a moment's notice. In the same way, God has strategically located His servants everywhere as He would - ready, waiting for His direction. Christian, don't despair about where you are. He has placed you exactly where He wants you to be. Be ready to fulfill His purposes today. (Jerry Proctor)

N.J. Hiebert - 4573

October 2

"That I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being made conformable unto His death."
(Philippians 4:10)

"So often in the battle," says Austin-Sparks, "we go to the Lord, and pray, and plead, and appeal for victory, for ascendency, for mastery over the forces of evil and death, and our thought is that in some way the Lord is going to come in with a mighty exercise of power and put us into a place of victory and spiritual ascendency as in an act. We must have this mentality corrected. What the Lord does is to enlarge us to possess. He pets us through some exercise, through some experience, takes us by some way which means our spiritual expansion, and exercise spirituality so we occupy the larger lace spontaneously.

"I will not drive them out from before thee in one year; lest the land become desolate, and the beast of the field multiply against thee. By little and little I will drive them out before thee, until thou be increased." (Exodus 23:29-30)

"One day in the House of Commons, British Prime Minister Disraeli made a brilliant speech on the spur of the moment. That night a friend said to him, 'I must tell you how much I enjoyed your extemporaneous talk. It's been on my mind all day.' 'Madam,' confessed Disraeli, 'that extemporaneous talk has been on my mind for twenty years.' " (MJS - SL)

N.J. Hiebert - 4574

October 3

" . . . There is no discharge in that war . . ." (Ecclesiastes 8:8)

Years ago Sir. Wm. Robertson Nicol showed in a remarkable article that men died within eighteen months of their retirement because, having no hobby, they lost the zest of life that had been borne up in their life of labour. A famous insurance company doctor explained that men who retire don't live long because they are not prepared for leisure and it is a shock to them. Idleness is the greatest enemy of the aged and may easily present them with their ticket to death.

Our tasks may glow with jewels or scintillate like gems,
But once their motive is withdrawn, the deadly ebb begins;
We call it "hardened arteries," "pneumonia," and "flu,"
But men will die of "heartbreak," when they've nothing left to do.

Each stage of life has something peculiar to itself in possibility and achievement. To be victorious at each stage one must accept the fact of change and make out of that particular period through which he is passing something beautiful and effective.

Take courage in the words of a well know psychiatrist, "I have never seen a case of mental disease in the aged where they have a faith in God, are free from the fear of death, and are active."
(Traveling Toward Sunrise)

"I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith."
(2 Timothy 4:7)

N.J. Hiebert - 4575

October 4

"What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter."
(John 13:7)

Much is baffling and perplexing to us in God's present dealings. "What!" we are often ready to exclaim, "could not the cup have been less bitter - the trial less severe - the road less rough and dreary?" Hush thy misgivings, says a gracious God; arraign not the rectitude of My dispensations. Thou shalt yet see all revealed and made bright in the mirror of eternity. What I do - it is all My doing, My appointment. Thou hast but a a partial view of these dealings; thou canst seen nought but plans crossed and gourds laid low. But I see the end from the beginning. (Comforted of God - A.J. Pollock)

"Who is wise, and he shall understand these things? Prudent, and he shall know them? For the ways of the Lord are right, and the just shall walk in them."
(Hosea 14:9)

N.J. Hiebert - 4576

October 5

"If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me."
(Luke 9:23)

No one was ever saved through following Jesus. If you and I could be saved by following Jesus, then salvation would be the result of human efforts. We cannot be saved by imitating our blessed Lord. We are not told that we are saved by taking up our cross. But after we know that our sins are forgiven and that we have eternal life, we are called upon to follow Him. If you profess to have believed in Him and trusted Him as your Saviour, you are called upon to follow in His steps.

You are not left to choose your own path. He has marked out the way that you are to go. It is to such that He says, "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me." What does it mean to deny oneself? What did it mean for Peter to deny our Lord? They came to Peter and said, "You are one of His disciples." Peter said, "I am not!" They said unto him again, "Of a truth this fellow also was with Him: for he is a Galilean. And Peter said, Man, I know not what thou sayest." Challenged a third time, Peter, with an oath, denied that he was one of Jesus' disciples. He refused to own Christ in any way.

What does it mean when Jesus said, "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow me?" You are to refuse to know yourself in order that He may have His way with you on this earth. I am no longer to seek my own interest, but I am to seek that which will glorify Him. I am to say, "I know not this man, but I do know that MAN, and for Him I will gladly surrender everything." (Selected)

N.J. Hiebert - 4577

October 6

"She gleaned in the field until even, and beat out what she had gleaned: and it was about an ephah of barley."
(Ruth 2:17)

Ruth was industrious and diligent in character, for she wanted to appropriate everything that divine grace had put at her disposal. She gleaned until evening. Are we this diligent too?

Ruth also beat out the ears she had gleaned. Grain cannot grow without straw. But straw is not food for human beings. Of necessity there must often be straw in messages and meditations. Illustrations are given to drive home a truth or a principle, and sometimes it is necessary to say something over agin two or three times so that it will be understood and remembered. Besides, we all have certain weaknesses in expressing ourselves. Sometimes a speaker deliberately tries to be interesting and popular. He tries to say things differently from everyone else; he tries to bring out new things, or the like. Then there may be so much straw that we will have to search for the grain.

There is only one way to give much grain. "If any man speak. let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 4:11). The words of the speaker not only must be in accord with the words of God, but the words must be spoken at the will of God, uttered at the time and place where God wants them to be uttered.

So often we take only the straw home with us after we have been at a meeting. We may remember the speaker's weaknesses and imperfections, or perhaps the beautiful external form of the message. But Ruth was not interested in the straw. She beat out the barley because this was what she wanted to sift out and take home. Only the barley was real food. (H.L Heijkoop)

N.J. Hiebert - 4578

October 7

Hopeless Despair

"And when neither sun nor stars in many days appeared, and no small tempest lay on us, all hope that we should be saved was then taken away."
(Acts 27:20)

Now everything is gone! - fun, excitement, peace, rest, cargo, furniture - one thing alone - HOPE - is left, and now that too is taken away. Please carefully notice the solemn words of scripture. Hope wasn't lost, it wasn't misused or misplaced - it was taken away. This is the final, awful price that is exacted from a life lived according to self-will and disregard for God's thoughts. Here it is that the fiery darts of the enemy find their mark in a disobedient Christian (Ephesians 6:16). After everything else had been lost or thrown away, hope, the one thing that those on the ship with the centurion absolutely could not afford to lose - the one thing to which they all were desperately clinging and dared not lose - was taken from them.

There was no sun, no stars, no indication whatever that the storm was lessening. Had they seen even one tiny star or ray of sunlight during those raging nights and days, they could have had the comfort of a little hope. But no, the cost of leaving Fair Havens was only hopeless darkness, wind, and waves.

You may not think that the self-willed decisions you have made during your journey of life will require the giving up or the losing of anything. The world and its angel of light - the god of this world - are masters at hiding the truth - blinding the minds of those that believe not. However, ". . . all hope that we should be saved was then taken away", is to be replaced by the wonderful words, "BE OF GOOD CHEER." (The Journey of life - D.N.)

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October 8

"Finally my brethren, rejoice in the Lord."
(Philippians 3:1)

"Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice."
(Philippians 4:4)

You may say, "I cannot rejoice;" but if the Spirit of God gives a command, He gives power too in connection with it. Looking at exhortations as coming from the Lord, one finds help by bringing in the thought of His power with them. My hands may hang down, but if the command comes, "Now are you to rejoice in the Lord," I can begin rejoicing, and I find He gives strength for it. (Gleanings of G.V. Wigram)

N.J. Hiebert - 4580

October 9

"Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ . . ." (Philippians 1:27).

Someone once said,
“If you are a Christian, you can expect folks to criticize, but you ought to live so nobody will believe them.” (S.L.)

N.J. Hiebert - 4581

October 10

"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen."
(Hebrews 11:1)

When we exercise spiritual faith, we are trusting in the integrity and invincible character of God. Our heart is established on the eternal truth that God is holy love. We fling ourselves in reckless confidence in the unchanging infinite truth of His Word. Faith operates from a singleness of heart, a definitive purpose to pursue without wavering, a life that is abandoned to His will, and seeks to magnify His name in all of our life.

Faith by its very nature must be tried. When we encounter some trying experience, it will reveal the reality of our faith. It will bring to light whether our faith is an intellectual assent to the truth, or if our faith proceeds from a personal relationship with Christ. God tries us to purify our faith, our life, and our relationship with Him (1 Peter 1:7).

Faith is the whole man rightly related to God by the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit that finds expression in trusting God when we have nothing to lean on but God. Faith rests alone on the verity and validity of Almighty God. Faith is not of us; it is the operation of God, whereby all believers are endowed from above.

It is faith that lifts us "above" our circumstances while we are yet "in" them. It enables us to live with things that are future and invisible. It gives sustenance to the believer, provides evidence of the truth, and reality that will secure him from falling, whatever the trial may be.

When we exercise faith, we are putting our confidence, trust, and reliance in the "infallible character and integrity of God," and the merits of His Son Jesus Christ. "And this is the victory that overcomes the world, even our faith" (1 John 5:4). (R.L.)

N.J. Hiebert - 4582

October 11

"And He spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others."
(Luke 18:9)

We cannot come to God on the ground of our own righteousness; we have no title to approach Him in that way. All our righteousnesses are as filthy rags in His sight. We can come to God only as confessed sinners, recognizing that all He does for us must be on the ground of grace.

These two men had gone to the temple which God had ordained as a house of prayer for all men. One was a Pharisee, a self-righteous man, giving himself credit for exceptional merit. Significantly we read: "[He} prayed thus with himself." That is, his prayer never went up to God at all; it went no higher than the ceiling, because he was simply speaking of his own goodness. Yes it was a prayer of THANKSGIVING.

Is it not right to come to God with THANKSGIVING? We are taught again and again that is the way we should approach God. But notice this man was not THANKING God for what grace had done for him; he was THANKING God for what he himself had done, and that is the wrong attitude. When I approach God my heart should be filled with THANKSGIVING because of what He has done for me, recognizing that everything I have comes by divine grace. But this man said, "I thank Thee for my own goodness; I thank Thee, that I am not as other men are."

You, perhaps, would not use the same language, but do you approach God in that attitude? "I thank Thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers." Then the Pharisee looked and saw the publican standing there, and he said, "Or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess." Surely these things are all good, but no man has a right to plead his own goodness as the reason why God should hear his cry. And, actually, most of his prayer was just pretense, claiming a righteousness he did not possess. (Adapted)

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October 12

"Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine? There are not found that returned to give glory to God, save this stranger."
(Luke 17:17)

There is so little real worship on the part of Christian people today. Even when believers come together so often it is not to worship God. Do we realize God is seeking worshipers? Too many have the idea that God is seeking workers, but there is something that must come before work, and that is worship. To be in the presence of God with a heart filled with adoration means more to Him than to busy ourselves in His service. We shall not serve any less acceptably or earnestly because we worship first, rather than if we gave all our time to service. The Lord Jesus is still saying, "Where are the nine?" He appreciates those who come into His presence with worshipful hearts, but He misses those who have been saved by His grace and do not return to give Him glory. (H.A. Ironside)

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October 13

"I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase."
(1 Corinthians 3:6)

Do not attempt to do too much.
Let quality, not quantity, be the desire of your heart as to your service.

The great secret of all blessing is to come from the Lord. . . . The Lord draw your heart so to Himself that you may come from Him to do every service.

You may find Christians . . . who are really thinking more of themselves than of the Lord, exacting love and consideration instead of truly in the fear of the Lord labouring to confer it.

Whenever a soul makes itself the object, the Lord is far from it.

Every servant knows the past of of our Lord, and many know the future, but what really helps is knowing Him in the present.
(Footprints for Pilgrims)

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October 14

"How excellent (precious) is Thy loving kindness, O God!"
(Psalm 36:7)

The Lord intercedes for us without our even asking.
We do not gain Him to intercede for us because of our repentance or prayers.
He did not intercede for Peter when he repented, but before he sinned.
He interceded for Peter because he needed it. "If any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father."
. . . It is the exercise of grace in His own heart towards us to restore our souls.
(J.N. Darby)

N.J. Hiebert - 4586

October 15

"How can ye believe, which receive honour one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God only?"
(John 5:44)

The whole course of our lives will be upset by failure to put God where He belongs. We exalt ourselves instead of God and the curse follows!

Consider the very disturbing question that Jesus asked of men when He was on earth: "How can we believe, which receive honour of one another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God alone?" Christ taught here the alarming doctrine that the desire for honour among men made belief impossible! Is this sin at the root of religious unbelief?

Could it be that those "intellectual difficulties" which men blame for their inability to believe are but smoke screens to conceal the real cause that lies behind them? Was it this greedy desire for honour from man that made men into Pharisees and Pharisees into Deicides (crucifixion of Christ)? Is this the secret back of religious self-righteousness and empty worship? I believe it may be.

Men and women who will make the honest once-for-all decision to exalt and honour God and His Christ over all are precious to God above all treasures of earth or sea, for He knows that His honour is safe in such consecrated hands! (A.W. Tozer - Renewed Day By Day)

N.J. Hiebert - 4587

October 16

“For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.”
(Psalm 86:5)

“But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, long suffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth.” (Psalm 86:15)

“The LORD…saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.”
(Jeremiah 31:3)

The life of a Christian has periods of waiting. Sometimes like Daniel, God asks us to wait and trust Him in the dark. Daniel waited 21 days for an answer.
If you do, you will receive His song in the night. Someone once said, “God gives a song in the night, but it must first be night.”

“When a tear is wept by you, think not your Father does not behold; for, “Like as a father pities his children so the Lord pities them that fear Him.”
Your sigh is able to move the heart of Jehovah; your whisper can incline His ear unto you; your prayer can stay His hands; your faith can move His arm.
Oh! Think not that God sits on high in an eternal slumber, taking no account of you.” (C.H. Spurgeon)

“Though I walk in the midst of trouble, thou wilt revive me: thou shalt stretch forth thine hand…and thy right hand shall save me.
The LORD will perfect that which concerneth me: thy mercy, O LORD, endureth for ever: forsake not the works of thine own hands.”
(Psalm 138:7-8)

“I wait for the LORD, my soul doth wait, and in his word do I hope.”
(Psalm 130:5)

“I’m standing on the promises of God.
Standing on the promises that cannot fail,
When the howling storms of doubt and fear assail,
By the living Word of God I shall prevail,
Standing on the promises of God.”(R.K. Carter)
(Adapted)
“O my God, incline thine ear, and hear; open thine eyes…for we do not present our supplications before thee for our righteousnesses, but for thy great mercies.” (Daniel 9:18)

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October 17

"Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
(Matthew 11:28)

The words of the Lord Jesus were like the heavens that declare the glory of God, and like the firmament that shows His handiwork. They are like the stars that shine forever.

We get so used to the stars being there that we seldom look at them, and completely forget their glory. When some of Napoleon's generals were contending that there was no God, the Emperor led them outside the tent and pointed to the stars, "If there be no God," said Napoleon, "who made all these?"

In the same spirit we would point to the words of Jesus the Christ, and say to those who doubt the truth of the gospel story; "Who spoke all these?" The miracles of Christ are not more wonderful than His words.

There is a fly in the ointment of the words of the best of men.

- Moses spoke unadvisedly with his lips (Psalms 106:33).
- Peter was guilty of dissimulation, and Paul had to rebuke him (Galatians 2:13).
- Paul himself had to retract what he said in the courtroom (Acts 23:5).
- Job, the patient one, opened his mouth and cursed his day (Job 3:1).
- Elijah uttered words of discouragement and had to be reproved (1 Kings 19:9-10).

But Jesus of Nazareth never uttered a word that revealed any of the frailties and faults of the whole human race. Like the Passover lamb, His words were "without blemish"; and like the Bride's description of Him, "Altogether lovely."
(Leonard Sheldrake - A Plant of Renown)

N.J. Hiebert - 4589

October 18

Useless . . . Unless

"Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves."
(2 Corinthians 13:5)

To examine ourselves is good, but useless unless we also examine environment.
To bewail our weakness is right, but not remedial.
The cause must be investigated as well as the result.
(A Thought for Every Day - Henry Drummond)

N.J. Hiebert - 4590

October 19

GOD OUR SHIELD

"Our soul waiteth for the Lord: He is our help and our shield."
(Psalm 33:20)

In Himself man is weak and vulnerable; therefore, he often needs a shield to protect him. Today we hear of the special equipment which is necessary to preserve human life in atomic plants and in space travel. We're also told of a radar shield, consisting of many military bases encircling American territory, which is needed to warn us of approaching danger from enemy attack. Everywhere there is talk of the envelope of air that guards the earth and its inhabitants from deadly rays and meteors that bombard us from outer space.

Spiritually, too, man is certain to fall before the onslaughts of the powers of evil unless he has a "hedge" built about him by the love and providence of God. When we are saved we may claim the promise of Christ's abiding presence and protection, and we may confidently say, "He is our help and our shield." Nothing can touch us that is outside His perfect will.

There is a sweet story that illustrates what it means to have Christ between us and everything else. A lady in England tells of being awakened one morning by a very strange noise. It sounded like the pecking of a bird. When she got up she saw a butterfly flying back and forth inside the windowpane in great fright. Outside a sparrow was frantically pecking and trying to get in. The butterfly did not see the glass, and expected every moment to be caught; the sparrow did not see the window either and expected every minute to catch the butterfly. Yet all the while the butterfly was as safe as if it had been miles away, because of the glass which came between it and the sparrow.

So it is with Christians who are abiding in Christ. His presence is between them and every danger. How blessed to be able to look into the future confidently and say with assurance, "Thou art my hiding place and my shield" (Psalm 119:114). (Adapted)

N.J. Hiebert - 4591

October 20

"Now our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, and God, even our Father . . . comfort your hearts, and establish you in every good word and work."  (2 Thessalonians 2:16,17)

We are as dependent upon God when we speak to one soul as when we preach to a thousand. I have learned this by experience; I have gone to see a sick person in great self-confidence and found I had nothing to say. And then the Lord taught me I must wait upon Him for the message for a single soul as much as when I was going to preach. May we ever remember this, that there may be no trace of self-confidence remaining in the heart.

The wonder is that the Lord condescends to use anything which He gives one to say, seeing that we so often adulterate it with our own thoughts.

It is so gracious of Him to give us any encouragement in our service, but I am convinced that, in the issue, the fruit of our labours which we have not seen will be far more abundant than that which we have been permitted to know of, and hence it is that we have to scatter the seed in faith.

I am certain that we must leave results until the judgment seat of Christ. In the mean time our one desire must be to gain his approbation and be content with that. Nothing else is worth seeking for.

I suspect that we shall see in the future that the meetings we thought the least of were among the best. We may therefore take courage and go forward in the knowledge that He who can appraise them at their true value is the One who will praise us most for what we have really done for Him. (Edward Dennett)

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October 21

"Wherefore hast thou afflicted Thy servant? and wherefore have I not found favour in Thy sight that Thou layest the burden of all this people upon me (Moses)?"
(Numbers 11:11)

"And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope."
(Romans 5:3,4)

- We would not hear the music of the harp--if the strings were left untouched.
- Enjoy the juice of grapes if not trodden in the winepress.
- Nor the sweet scent of cinnamon if it were not crushed and beaten.
- We would not feel the warmth of the fire if the logs were not burned.

Our present afflictions tend to heighten our joy for the future.
Peace is much sweeter after conflict and rest more welcome and deep after hard work.
Charles Spurgeon (P.S.)

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October 22

"But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."
(1 Corinthians 17:57)

There are many things in the Christian experience that might almost cause us to think that we are in constant defeat: sickness, persecution, death. But Paul closes this noble chapter with words of thanksgiving for victory. Victory, not through our own efforts, but through the Lord Jesus Christ. It is easy to be overwhelmed with our circumstances and to fall prey to a failing of our faith. Thankfully our victory is already assured. Let's get out from under our circumstances and enter into our Lord's victory today. (Reg L. Jordan)

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October 23

“For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.”
(Romans 15:4)

As we experience the comfort of God's word in the midst of a trial we gain the wisdom and understanding we need in order to have something to share with others who are going through difficult times.

“Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.”
(2 Corinthians 1:3-4)

“The comfort God has given us
He wants us all to share
With others who, with broken hearts,
Are caught in deep despair.”
(David Sper)

A kind word and an arm around the shoulder, when from the heart,
can do much and maybe even save a life.
(With thanks - S.L.)

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October 24

Yield Not to Temptation

"Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation."
(Matthew 26:41)

Temptations are common to everyone, even mature Christians. The noblest souls are often the ones most tempted. It seems that Satan assaults Christians in positions of leadership with his strongest weapons. Therefore, we must all be on our constant spiritual guard.

Jesus' forty-day temptation in the wilderness dramatically instructs us how to overcome Satan's attacks. In each temptation, Jesus answered the Devil with Scripture. All of the scriptural quotations Jesus used were from the book of Deuteronomy, an indication of the importance of being well-acquainted with the Old Testament (Deuteronomy 8:3; Matthew 4:4).

It is impossible to isolate ourselves from all of life's temptations. The allurements of modern living are ever near. But we are not alone in this struggle because "For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin" (Hebrews 4:15). "For in that He Himself hath suffered being tempted, He is able to succour them that are tempted" (Hebrews 2:18). Regardless of the temptation, our Lord understands what we are facing and stands ready to provide the strength to resist and to emerge victorious.

Horatio R. Palmer, author and composer, was an American musician. One day while he was working on a music theory exercise, the idea for this hymn suddenly came to him. He wrote it down as quickly as possible and with few exceptions the hymn has remained as it was written. The hymn has been an excellent teaching song for both young and old in learning how to face the daily temptations of life.

Yield not to temptation for yielding is sin; each vict'ry will help you some other to win;
Fight manfully onward, dark passions subdue; look ever to Jesus - He'll carry you through.

Shun evil companions, bad language disdain; God's name hold in rev'rence, nor take it in vain; Be thoughtful and earnest, kind-hearted and true; look ever to Jesus - He'll carry you through.

To him that o'ercometh God giveth a crown; thru faith we will conquer tho often cast down; He who is our Saviour our strength will renew; look ever to Jesus-He'll carry you through.

Chorus: Ask the Saviour to help you, comfort, strengthen and keep you;
He is willing to aid you-He will carry you through.

(From - Amazing Grace by Kenneth W. Osbeck)

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October 25

"Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence."
(Luke 16:25-26)

The thought is really over-powering. The heart is crushed by the appalling contemplation. Do let us entreat of you, to turn, this very hour, to a dear, loving Saviour who stands with open arms and open bosom to receive all who come to Him, and who assures you that "him that cometh unto Me I will in no wise cast out." Do come and trust in God's faithful Word and Christ's finished work.

Here lies the precious secret of the whole matter. Look away from self, look straight to Jesus, confide simply in Him, and in what He has done for you on the Cross, and all your sins shall be blotted out, Divine righteousness shall be yours, eternal life, sonship, and indwelling Spirit, and all-prevailing Advocate, a bright home in heaven, a portion in Christ's eternal glory - if you will but believe in Jesus all shall be yours - Himself the best of all.

May the Holy Spirit lead you, this moment, to the feet of Jesus, and enable you to cry out, in holy triumph, "If God be for us, who can be against us?" God grant it for Jesus Christ's Sake! (C.H. Mackintosh)

N.J. Hiebert - 4597

October 26

"I have found no cause of death in HIM: I will therefore chastise HIM, and let HIM go. And they were instant with loud voices, requiring that HE might be crucified. And the voices of them and of the Chief Priests prevailed. And Pilate gave sentence that it should be as they required."
(Luke 23:22-24)

As we consider the inspired account of the condemnation and crucifixion of our blessed Lord, we may well approach the subject with repentant hearts and broken spirits while we remind ourselves afresh that it was for our sins that HE went to the cross. Apart from this solemn fact there was no power on earth or in hell that could have forced JESUS CHRIST to die as He did. HE need not have died at all. HE was the sinless SON of GOD. But He chose to die as our substitute. He voluntarily became our Surety and undertook in grace to pay the debt we owed. The pitiable thing is that men, led on by Satan, should have raised wicked hands against HIM and heaped such shame and ignominy upon HIM.

But it only told out the vileness of the sinful heart of man and the malignity of Satan. As we follow our LORD in HIS mock trials before Pilate and Herod, and from Pilate's judgment hall to Calvary with its bitter cross, it should surely break down our pride and subdue us as we reflect upon what sin really is, when we see the lengths to which men like ourselves could go when under its power. (H.A.Ironside)

N.J. Hiebert - 4598

October 27

"Christ is all, and in all" (Colossians 3:11).

Christ is all to us that we make Him to be.
I want to emphasize that word all.
Some men make Him to be "A root out of a dry ground," "Without form or comeliness" (Isaiah 53:2).
He is nothing to them; they do not want Him.

Some Christians have a very small Saviour, for they are not willing to receive Him fully, and let Him do great and mighty things for them.
Others have a mighty Saviour, because they make Him to be great and mighty." (D.L. Moody)

N.J. Hiebert - 4599

October 28

"And I am sure that, when I come unto you, I shall come in the fullness of the blessing of the gospel of Christ."
(Romans 15:29)

Worldliness and selfishness have no power to breathe the atmosphere of the kingdom of God.

Are our hearts upon such enjoyments as God can sanction and Jesus share with us?

We need not so much to covet information about Him as power to use divinely what we know.
(J.G. Bellett)

N.J. Hiebert - 4600

October 29

"Choose you this day whom ye will serve."
(Joshua 24:15)

How can I determine whether something that I find attractive is legitimate or illegitimate pursuit?

Getting sidetracked into secondary pursuits is the bane of our lives. Joshua reminds us that we must each deliberately choose whom we will serve (Joshua 24:15). That's why it is crucial to Identify, describe, and mark down your life's goal. It becomes the measuring stick to determine whether attractions and distractions are legitimate or illegitimate. Susanna Wesley, mother of John and Charles Wesley, once gave wise counsel here: "Whatever weakens your reasoning, impairs the tenderness of your conscience, obscures your sense of God, or takes away your relish for spiritual things; in short, if anything increases the authority and power of the flesh over the Spirit, then that to you becomes sin, however good it is in itself." (The Grand Weaver - Ravi Zacharias)

N.J. Hiebert - 4601

October 30

"All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way . . . "
(Isaiah 53:6)
"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
(Matthew 11:28)

In answer to the question: Does God Exist? Someone wrote . . .

A man went to a barbershop to have his hair cut and his beard trimmed. As the barber began to work, they began to have a good conversation. They talked about many things and various subjects.
When they eventually touched on the subject of God, the barber said: 'I don't believe that God exists.'

'Why do you say that?' asked the customer. 'Well, you just have to go out in the street to realize that God doesn't exist. Tell me, if God exists, would there be so many sick people? Would there be abandoned children?'

'If God existed, there would be neither suffering nor pain. I can't imagine a loving God who would allow all of these things.'

The customer thought for a moment, but didn't respond because he didn't want to start an argument. The barber finished his job and the customer left the shop.

Just after he left the barbershop, he saw a man in the street with long, stringy, dirty hair and an untrimmed beard. He looked dirty and unkempt.
The customer turned back and entered the barber shop again, and he said to the barber: 'You know what? Barbers do not exist.'

'How can you say that?', asked the surprised barber. 'I am here, and I am a barber. And I just worked on you!'

'No!', the customer exclaimed. 'Barbers don't exist because if they did, there would be no people with dirty, long hair and untrimmed beards, like that man outside.'

'Ah, but barbers DO exist! Said the barber. ‘That's what happens when people do not come to me.'

'Exactly!', affirmed the customer. 'That's the point! God, too, DOES exist! That's why there's so much pain and suffering in the world.'
That's what happens when people do not go to Him and don't look to Him for help. (Author Unknown - Submitted by S.L.}

N.J. Hiebert - 4602

October 31

"What man of you having an hundred sheep, if he loose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and goeth after that which is lost, until he find it? And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing ... saying, ... rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost."
(Luke 15:4-6)

The strayed sheep would not let itself be caught by the shepherd who would lift it into his bosom.
And here we get what I call the aggressive character of God's love.
I won't have Him; but He says, "I will and must have you, struggle as you may to escape from my arms.
I have prepared a place for you up there, and I must have you there with Me for ever."
It is the heart God wants.
He has done all that love could do in the cross of Christ to lead the heart of poor sinners to Himself.
He has thrown Himself open to your hearts to draw you into joy and blessing-the whole door wide opened to receive you. (G.V. Wigram)

N.J. Hiebert - 4603