Gems from April 2013
April 1
"Come unto Me all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give your rest."
(Matthew 11:20)
There is a rest for the labouring, rest for the heavy laden, rest for the weary,
rest for the anxious, rest for the troubled, at the feet of Jesus.
It is REST of conscience. He gives you rest of conscience first of all, a
perfect clearing of all that you have done, through what He has done.
Have you been thinking you must do something to be saved?
Such a thought is a delusion of the devil, and a snare.
You can do noting but sin, and you have surely done plenty in that line already.
"God saw (what you never did, perhaps) that the wickedness of man was great in the earth,
and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart (not to name his acts)
was only evil continually" (Genesis 6:5).
This is your moral condition, and what fit for God can come from you, then?
Nothing, simply nothing.
"Yes" you reply, "I see that, and I have given up trying to do anything or to be better."
What are you waiting for now, then? "For what Christ will do."
This is another snare and delusion of the devil. Christ's work is already finished.
He will do no more for you than He has done.
He can, in this aspect, do no more. He has died once. He has suffered once.
He has borne sins once. He has atoned for them once. His blood has been shed once.
All this is finished, and never will or can be repeated.
God has accepted His sacrifice, and raised Him from the dead in token of His acceptance thereof,
and of His perfect delight in Christ.
(W.T.P. Wolston, M.D.)
N.J. Hiebert - 5116
April 2
"In Thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all." (1 Chronicles 29:12)
The first lesson to be learned is that the weakest can be made strong.
The second is that God strengthens through His Word.
Churches and individuals in them need to relearn this.
The little strength that the church at Philadelphia experienced was found in
keeping His Word and not denying His Name (Revelation 3:8).
Let us "hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches" (Revelation 3:13).
and be over-comers today.
(C.F. Anderson - Choice Gleanings)
Soldiers of Christ, arise and put your armour on,
Strong in the strength that God supplies through His eternal Son.
N.J. Hiebert - 5117
April 3
"This one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus."
(Philippians 3:13-14)
Created for Greatness
Hungry for greatness Lord guide my feet
My life is a race which I must complete
So many things my heart pursues
My course and Yours let me not confuse
Be my guide - so often I fall
For our sake You died You're my all in all
Lord of the universe guide my ways
For all of eternity Your name will I praise.
(Tom Hiebert - March 4. 2013)
N.J. Hiebert - 5118
April 4
"Then the whole multitude of the country of the Gadarenes round about besought [Jesus] to depart from them; for they were taken with great fear."
(Luke 8:37)
The world beseeches Jesus to depart,
desiring their own ease,
which is more disturbed by the presence and power
of God than by a legion of devils.
(J.N.D. - Footprints for Pilgrims)
N.J. Hiebert - 5119
April 5
"He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him."
(Psalm 126:6)
The End
Will not the End explain
The crossed endeavour, earnest purpose foiled,
The strange bewilderment of good work spoiled,
The clinging weariness, the inward strain,
Will not the end explain?
Meanwhile He comforteth
Them that are losing patience; 'tis His way.
But none can write the words they hear Him say,
For men to read; only they know He saith
Kind words, and comforteth.
Not that He doth explain
the mystery that baffleth; but a sense
Husheth the quiet heart, that far, far hence
Lieth a field set thick with golden grain,
Wetted in seedling days by many a rain;
The End, it will explain.
(Amy Carmichael)
April 6
"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."
(John 3:16)
Many
years ago a Victorian authoress, Miss Manning, was deeply in love with,
and was as deeply loved by, a young man of her own age. He was on the
point of leaving for India, and desired, before doing so, to propose
marriage to his friend.
He
was a very shy man; and, as he could not bear to think of a refusal,
said in his letter that, if she could not respond to his proposal, she
was not to answer: silence would be taken as refusal.
Being
in love, Miss Manning had no difficulty in answering the letter, and
wrote her reply within the hour. It was a pouring wet day, and her
brother undertook to post the letter at the local post-office. Her
lover never came, and she never saw him again.
Some years later she heard of his marriage, and of his remaining on in India, where he had an honourable and prosperous career.
Twenty-five
years after, the Manning family moved into a new house, and an old coat
belonging to the brother was dragged into the light. When the pockets
were turned out, there was the letter, yellow and crumpled, but with the
seal unbroken and the stamp untouched. He had omitted to post it, and
by his negligence had wrecked his sister's happiness.
Preparing
this message one feels somewhat in the position of Miss. Manning's
brother having been entrusted to proclaim the most wonderful message of
love that has ever fallen on human ears.
John 3:16
sets forth the greatness and universality of the love divine. This
verse is like the acorn, which is a pocket edition of the forest; for in
that matchless statement you have: God, Love, Mankind, Christ, Sin,
Death, Atonement, and Life eternal, held together in one mighty
utterance. (In Green Pastures)
April 7
"I seek my brethren . . . Joseph went after his brethren . . . and when they saw him afar off even before he came near unto them, they conspired against him to slay him. . . . we will say, some evil beast hath devoured him."
(Genesis 37:16-20
The evil heart of man is marked by corruption and violence.
Not only are the brethren ready to rid themselves of Joseph by violent acts,
but they were prepared to cover their violence by corrupt and lying words.
"Let us slay him." they say, "and we will say, some evil beast hath devoured him."
Violence and corruption are the outstanding marks of fallen man who is
shameless in his violence and corruption.
He is not simply overcome by some sudden temptation; but, as with Joseph's brethren,
they can deliberately plan their violent act and corrupt lies.
Man had not progressed far on his downward course before
"the earth was filled with violence", and "all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth."
In spite of laws and treaties, moral training and codes of honour, and notwithstanding
prisons and reformatories, violence and corruption are rampant in every part of the earth.
(Hamilton Smith)
N.J. Hiebert - 5122
April 8
"For Whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourges every son whom He receiveth, If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?"
(Hebrews 12:6-7)
There
is a child whose conduct breaks the heart of a parent. Every measure
fails to deal with him, and the "thorn" rankles deeply in the wounded
heart. It may be that God permits some disgrace. It may be that
slander has stung the soul with deeper pain. There may be, too, some
human weakness, which renders the afflicted one an object of pain to
those who love him, or of ridicule to others. Such things as these, and
the many sorrows of the way are used of the Father as the thorn, to
curb the energy of the flesh, to break the strength of "man".
Circumstances,
friends, relatives, health, good name, all are touched by divine wisdom
in this holy discipline of the soul. These things in the hand of the
Father are like the river banks which on either side guide the stream of
waters which are useful and productive, but which, if flowing onwards
without these guides, would devastate all around, instead of bearing a
blessing on their bosom.
How
often have we not thought what good Christians we might have been if
circumstances were different; in short, if the banks which carry the
river were broken down. No, these are the wise dealings of our Father
to keep us just in the channel and path where we are, in order to glorify Him.
There is a "three-fold cord" which must be found in the saint if he would serve the Lord aright: the motive, the energy, and the end.
At times the motive may be right and the end also, but the energy may
be but the human vessel working out (as it supposes) the things of the
Lord. All three must go together, and this is the object of this disciplinary process that all may be of the Father, and not of us. (F.G. Paterson)
April 9
"I desire fruit that may abound to your account."
(Philippians 4:17)
"Take my silver and my gold, not a mite would I withhold.
Take my love, my Lord, I pour at Thy feet its treasure store."
(F. Havergal)
The giver is always linked to the gift.
A colorful scrawl is a masterpiece, because the artist who gave it was a son or a daughter.
Even a tiny momento given in love is meaningful.
The Philippians had given a gift to Paul.
It may have been money but was also perhaps, clothing, food or books.
Whatever the gift, Paul was especially grateful for the givers.
He was moved that they took the time to think about his needs, then acted on those thoughts.
It is possible that we feel we have nothing to give, because we have limited funds.
Well, perhaps we have baking, a spare room,
part of our library or even just the time to lend a listening ear.
Give as you can!
(Norman Craig Funston)
N.J. Hiebert - 5124
April 10
Christ in Control
"They forsook all, and followed him."
(Luke 5.1-11)
Think of Peter and how he would have felt arriving back at the shore
having worked all night and achieved nothing,
Our lives can feel like that sometimes - nothing seems to work out despite our best efforts.
But if we let God work in our lives He can turn an empty life into a life of bounty.
What a contrast when the Lord was in control.
From a nil catch to the biggest catch they no doubt had ever seen -
the boats nearly sank with the weight of it. Having experienced the miracle,
it had a profound effect on their lives: "they forsook all, and followed him".
They had seen enough to know that the source of the power was not human but divine.
They were able to put their full confidence in the Man, Christ Jesus.
He was able to do more than they could think or imagine.
How wonderful to think of their faith: leaving all they owned, all they knew, they stepped out into the unknown, unsure of what would befall them but confident in Him in whom they had believed.
What about us? Do we have the same confidence in Christ,
the faith to go through every circumstance in life with the assurance they had,
when they left all and followed Him?
(Selected)
N.J. Hiebert - 5125
April 11
"If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever shall lose his life for My sake shall find it."
(Matthew 16:24-25)
Within the human heart things have taken over.
Men have now by nature no peace within their hearts, for God is crowned there no longer,
but there, in the moral dusk, stubborn and aggressive usurpers fight among
themselves for first place on the throne.
This is not a mere metaphor, but an accurate analysis of our real spiritual trouble.
There is within the human heart a tough,
fibrous root of fallen life whose nature is to possess, always to possess.
It covets things with a deep and fierce passion.
The pronouns my and mine look innocent enough in print,
but their constant and universal use is significant.
They express the real nature of the old Adamic man better than a thousand volumes of theology could do.
They are verbal symptoms of our deep disease. The roots of our hearts have grown down into things, and we dare not pull up one rootlet lest we die.
Things have become necessary to us, a development never originally intended.
God's gifts now take the place of God,
and the whole course of nature is upset by the monstrous substitution.
(The Pursuit of God - A.W. Tozer)
N.J. Hiebert - 5126
April 12
"See then that ye walk circumspectly (carefully), not as fools, but as wise."
(Ephesians 5:15)
Either we have let go of "self" or we have not.
The proof is in our reactions to that which happens to us.
Many people are correct in their actions, but not in their reactions.
Those around us are watching for our reactions.
Do we realize that these may cause others to turn to Jesus or to turn away from Him?
(This Day is the Lord's - Corrie Ten Boom)
N.J. Hiebert - 5127
April 13
"The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations . . . "
(2 Peter 2:9)
Temptation happens to the purest; but it fascinates and imperils only as it finds a welcome in the soul itself.
No temptation becomes sin until it is tolerated or welcomed. Sin consists in yielding to temptation. So
long as temptation finds no sympathy within, no sin enters, and the
soul remains unharmed, no matter how long or severe the fiery trial may
prove.
The
bushmaster in South America is the most terrible of all serpents: it is
not only highly venomous, it also grows to be of great length, and it
is very aggressive. For its venom there seems absolutely no antidote.
He who has the misfortune to be bitten by it seldom lives longer than
twenty minutes; all of his blood is turned to a frightful corruption.
Yet
this creature is most beautiful - a sort of living rainbow, every
colour being beautifully shown with superb iridescence as it glides and
shimmers in the sunlight - a meet symbol of evil transfigured in the
imagination and passions of faithless souls! Temptation will attract
you at your weakest spot.
Beware of selling your birthright for a mess of pottage!
"And when our hands should bar the gate we parley with the foe."
(Mountain Trailways for Youth - 1954)
"There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man:
But God is faithful who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able;
but will with the temptation also make a way of escape,
that ye may be able to bear it."
(1 Corinthians 10:13)
N.J. Hiebert - 5128
April 14
"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you.
(John 14:27)
Peace like a river is flooding my soul, since Christ my Saviour maketh me whole.
Sweet peace abiding my portion shall be, Jesus my Saviour is precious to me."
(Grant C. Tullar)
What an amazing blessing the Lord gave to His disciples when all around them was chaos and unrest.
They were soon to experience sadness as the rulers of the world united to crucify Jesus!
What the Lord Jesus gave to His disciples He gives to those who put their trust in Him today!
No matter the circumstances or experience we are called to pass through,
we can enjoy His abiding peace within.
Let the peace of God rule in your hearts! (Colossians 3:15).
(Jim Paul)
N.J. Hiebert - 5129
April 15
"Ye are the epistles of Christ written with . . . the Spirit of God."
(2 Corinthians 3:3)
The World's Bible
Christ has no hands but our hands to do His work today,
He has no feet but our feet to lead men in His way,
He has no tongue but our tongues to tell men how He died,
He has no help but our help to bring them to His side.
We are the only Bible the careless world will read,
We are the sinner's gospel, we are the scoffer's creed,
We are the Lord's last message, given in deed and word.
What if the type is crooked? What if the print is blurred?
What if our hands are busy with other work than His?
What if our feet are walking where sin's allurement is?
What if our tongues are speaking of things His lips would spurn?
How can we hope to help Him and hasten His return?
(Annie Johnson Flint)
April 16
"Follow peace with all . . . and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord."
(Hebrews 12:14)
The Christian's care should be to keep, as his conscience pure, so his name pure,
which is done by avoiding all appearance of evil.
Bernard's three questions are worth the asking ourselves in any enterprise:
An liceat? andeceat? an expediat?
"Is it lawful?" May I do it and not sin?
"Is it becoming me, a Christian?" May I do it and not wrong my profession?
Lastly, "Is it expedient?" May I do it and not offend my weak brother?
(William Gurnell - The Christian in Complete Armour 1616 -1679)
April 17
His Summer in The World's Winter
"And because the haven was not commodious to winter in, the more part advised to depart
thence also, if by any means they might attain to Phenice, and there to winter; which is
an haven of Crete, and lieth toward the south west and north west."
(Acts 27:12)
Do not allow the blessed Christ and real Christianity seem like a dull and boring place to spend the winter
which marks the world through which you pass! You hear many false,
catchy sayings - "Life is short, play hard" - "Live the moment" - "This
is your world, make the most of it" - "It's your life, enjoy it to the
fullest". What folly! What falsehood these things present!
If you listen to them, your heart will surely grow as cold as the wintertime. Seeking to find something apart from Christ to warm and satisfy, your every natural sense and yearning does what the more part advised the centurion to do - leave the safety of Fair Havens and seek for a more pleasant port to spend the winter.
However,
something more pleasant, more exciting, more satisfying than the
Christian pathway cannot be found. Do you think, that He who suffered
those agonies and forsaking of God on the cross in order that He might
redeem you and have your company for all eternity, will give you less joy and less happiness than this poor, judgment bound world can give?
Such reasoning is Satan's lie. He tells you the grass is greener on the other side of the fence -
Christianity is a hard, cold, boring path. You will miss out on all
the fun and excitement available in the world. It is all a horrible,
deadly lie.
To which will you listen? - The Son of God who left paradise and eternal bliss to die on the cross that He might have you as His own special treasure - or - the angel of light, a liar and a murderer, whose object is to ruin the joy and testimony your life can render for the Lord Jesus Christ. "We walk by faith, not by sight" (2 Corinthians 5:7). (The journey of Life - Doug Nicolet)
N.J. Hiebert - 5132
April 18
"Children obey your parents in all things, for this is well pleasing unto the Lord."
(Colossians 3:20)
In childhood days parents stand in relation to their children as God Himself in relation to the parent.
Children who do not obey their parents when young will not obey God when older.
The natural heart is ever rebellious against authority, and perhaps never more strikingly
has this been manifested than in these democratic days in which we live.
But Christian children should be examples of godly submission to father and mother
or whoever may be in authority over them, and parents are responsible to instill into their hearts
the divine requirement of obedience.
For young people professing piety, to ignore this principle of obedience is to manifest
utter insubjection to the One they own as Lord.
(H.A. Ironside)
N.J. Hiebert - 5133
April 19
"I cried to Thee, O Lord; and unto the Lord, I made supplication."
(Psalm 30:8)
Prayer is the unfailing resource of God's people.
If they are driven to their wits' end, they may still go to the mercy seat.
When an earthquake makes our mountain tremble,
the throne of grace still stands firm, and we may come to it.
Let us never forget to pray, and let us never doubt the success of prayer.
The hand that wounds can heal; let us turn to Him who smites us, and He will be entreated of us.
Prayer is better solace than Cain's building a city, or Saul's seeking for music.
Mirth and carnal amusements are a sorry prescription for a mind distracted and despairing:
prayer will succeed where all else fails.
(C.H. Spurgeon)
"What a Friend we have in Jesus. All our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer!
Oh, what peace we often forfeit, Oh, what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer."
(Joseph M. Scriven - 1855)
N.J. Hiebert - 5134
April 20
"For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself
shall be exalted."
(Luke 14:11)
The only thing which can enable me thus to go on is to have Christ the object before me,
and just in proportion as it is so can I be happy.
There may be a thousand and one things to vex me if self is of importance;
they will not vex me at all if self is not there to be vexed.
The passions of the flesh will not harass us if we are walking with God.
What trials we get when not walking with God and thinking only of self!
There is no such deliverance as that of having no importance in one's own eyes.
Then one may be happy indeed before God.
(J.N. Darby)
April 21
". . . brethren be not weary in well doing."
(2 Thessalonians 3:13)
" . . . for He is faithful that promised."
(Hebrews 10:23
We may become faint and grow weary,
but our God is all-powerful and knows no weariness.
Our feelings may fluctuate, but our loving God is steadfast.
(Adapted)
"God's work done in God's way will never lack God's supply."
(Hudson Taylor)
N.J.- Hiebert - 5136
April 22
"O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God - how unsearchable are His judgments, and His ways past finding out! For who hath know the mind of the Lord, or who hath been His counsellor; or who hath first given to Him, and it shall be recompensed unto Him again? For of Him, and through Him, and to Him are all things: to Whom be glory for ever. Amen."
(Romans 11:33-36)
Christ is our Peace; the sins of yesterday
By His most precious blood are washed away.
Christ is our Life; the trials of to-day
He bears for us Who walked life's toilsome way.
Christ is our Hope; the future all unknown
Is in His care Who watches from the throne.
Christ is our all ; eternity will prove
The height, the depth, and breadth of His unfailing love.
(Heaven's Cure for Earth's Care)
N.J. Hiebert - 5137
April 23
"And it shall come to pass that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be delivered."
(Joel 2:32)
Why do not I call on His name?
Why do I run to this neighbour and that when God is so near and will hear my faintest call?
Why do I sit down and devise schemes and invent plans?
Why not at once roll myself and my burden upon the Lord?
Straightforward is the best runner - why do not I run at once to the living God?
In vain shall I look for deliverance anywhere else; but with God I shall find it;
for here I have His royal "shall" to make it sure.
I need not ask whether I may call on Him or not, for that word
"Whosoever" is a very wide and comprehensive one. Whosoever means me,
for it means anybody and everybody who calls upon God.
I will therefore follow the leading of the text,
and at once call upon the glorious Lord who has made so large a promise.
My case is urgent, and I do not see how I am to be delivered; but this is no business of mine.
He who makes the promise will find ways and means of keeping it.
It is mine to obey His commands; it is not mine to direct his counsels.
I am His servant, not His solicitor.
I call upon Him, and He will deliver.
(C.H. Spurgeon)
April 24
"Search the Scriptures."
(John 5:39)
Although the Bible differs from other books in that,
to master its deeper secrets, you must personally know its Author,
it resembles other books in that, to be understood it must be studied,
to be know it must be read.
(The Wonderful Word)
N.J. Hiebert - 5139
April 25
Christianity is No Longer Producing Saintliness
"But grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ."
(2 Peter 3:18)
It is possible for a whole generation of professing Christians to be victims of poor teaching,
low moral standards and unscriptural or extra-scriptural doctrines,
resulting in stunted growth and retarded development.
It is less than stark tragedy that an individual Christian may pass from youth
to old age in a state of suspended growth and all his life be unaware of it!
Those who would question the truth of this have only to read the first Epistle to the Corinthians
and the Epistle to the Hebrews; and church history adds all the further proof that is needed.
In today's Christianity, we have measured ourselves by ourselves
until the incentive to seek higher plateaus in the things of the Spirit is all but gone!
. . . we are making converts to an effete (barren) type of Christianity
that bears little resemblance to that of the New Testament.
. . . converts must be led into a state of heart purity, fiery love, separation
from the world and poured-out devotion to the Person of Christ.
Only in this way can the low level of spirituality be raised again to where it should be
in the light of the Scriptures and of eternal values.
(A.W. Tozer - Renewed Day By Day)
April 26
"I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live." (John 11:25)
"Lazarus, come forth."
(John 11:43)
When the Lord commands, tears give way to triumph.
Trembling with grief and loss, Mary, Martha, and the disciples could only look to the Lord.
He did not disappoint.
He flooded their stricken souls with the light of resurrection.
To the skeptical Jews standing nearby, He not only displayed His love, but also His deity.
What power!
Death Annulled!
The grave thwarted!
"Many believed on Him."
His love and power are still able to bring light to the darkness.
Will you come into the light?
(Neil Dougal)
"Help us, O Lord, to praise Thee thus,
For all Thy boundless love to us."
N.J. Hiebert - 5141
April 27
"The spirit of a man will sustain his infirmity; but a wounded spirit who can bear?"
(Proverbs 8:14)
A
lovely story is told about a very poor family who had the faculty of
making the best of everything. A rich woman was interested in helping
them, and one day a neighbour of the poor family told her that they were
imposing on her.
Said
the neighbour, "I often hear the children of that family talking about
the good things they have to eat, luxuries that I can't afford at all."
The rich woman thereupon called on the poor family at noon, and as she
stood outside the door she heard a little girl ask, "Will you have roast
beef today?" Then another girl's voice answered, "No; I guess I'll
take cold chicken."
Thereupon
the rich woman rapped at the door and entered at once, finding the two
girls seated at a table on which were a few slices of dry bread, two
cold potatoes, a pitcher of water, and nothing else.
In
answer to her questions, the girls explained that they pretended their
poor fare was all sorts of good things, and the play made it really feel
like a feast. "You don't know," said one, "how good bread tastes when
you call it strawberry shortcake!" "But it tastes a lot better when
you call it ice-cream," said the other little girl.
The
rich woman went away with new ideas of contentment. She had discovered
that happiness is not in things but in thoughts. She had learned what
Solomon said so long ago, that the spirit can be made to sustain
infirmities; but when the spirit is broken, all is lost. (J.R. Wells - Think on These Things)
"Ask not for our lot to be transformed;
rather that we be transformed instead.
rather that we be transformed instead.
Then we will see in our lot the blessings awaiting there for us."
April 28
"Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us,
by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost."
(Titus 3:5)
Works have their place; fruit has its place,
but it is found at the end of the branches, it grows on a living tree.
Not one work of ours can help to obtain life.
God never says, "Give me anything," to an unconverted person;
and there is all the difference in the world between coming to Him as a lost,
ruined creature, and coming to him as bringing something.
There was not one work of mine.
I am a ruined sinner saved by grace,
"not according to works."
(G.V. Wigram)
N.J. Hiebert - 5143
April 29
"In all these things we are more than conquerors."
(Romans 8:37)
This is one of the greatest chapters in the Bible.
If doubt overtakes you, read it.
If your sorrows have been too consuming, this chapter has a message for you.
If you are weak, it will give you strength.
If you are discouraged, hope will be restored by its inescapable logic.
Read it often; become familiar with its truths, its reasoning process, its conclusion.
Believe it. - Live it.
Here is not only promised victory, but more than victory!
How can we be "more than conquerors"?
Temptation victoriously met increases our spiritual strength and equipment.
It is possible not only to defeat the enemy but to capture him and make him fight in our ranks.
God wants all His children to turn the storm clouds into chariots.
The ministry of THORNS has often been a greater ministry to man
than the ministry of THRONES.
Appropriate this truth.
Face the forces of darkness today Fearlessly!
(Springs in the Valley)
N.J. Hiebert - 5144
April 30
"He took a child, and set him in the midst."
(Mark 9:36)
"He . . . took a towel, and girded Himself."
(John 13:4)
"He took bread, and . . . break it."
(Luke 22:19)
He made nothing of Himself, took on a servant's form;
Found in likeness as a man, on the cross He died forlorn.
(S. Peterson)
Humility marked our Lord Jesus.
He took a child to illustrate the humble attitude necessary to be His disciple.
He took a towel and washed His disciples' feet, to teach them humility in service.
He took bread and broke it to symbolize His humility in salvation.
He humbled Himself when He condescended from heaven's glories to a manger in Bethlehem.
But His ultimate humility, was in dying on a cross at Calvary for His enemies.
(Milton Haack)
N.J. Hiebert - 5145
posted by soundwords at
April 01, 2013
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