Gems from December 2022
Whereunto I am appointed a preacher, and an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles. 2 Timothy 1:11
The faithful in this day may indeed be a small and insignificant minority, even as the Apostle Paul and the few who were associated with him at the close of his life; nevertheless, in "that day" it will be found to be far better to have been with the despised few than with the unfaithful mass.
The vanity of the flesh likes to be popular and self important and make itself prominent before the world and the saints, but in view of that day it is better to take a lowly place in self-effacement rather than a pubic place in self-advertisement, for then it will be found that many that are first shall be last; and the last first.
We may indeed suffer for our own failure, and this should humble us. Nevertheless, with the example of the Apostle before us, we do well to remember that had we walked in absolute faithfulness we should have suffered still more, for it ever remains true that "all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. (3:12).
If we are faithful to the light that God has given us, and seek to walk in separation from all that is a denial of the truth, we shall find, in our little measure that we shall have to face persecution and opposition, and, in its most painful forms, from our fellow-Christians.
Well for us, when the trial comes, if we can, like Paul, commit all to the Lord, and wait for His vindication in that day. Too often we are fretful and impatient in the presence of wrongs and seek to have them righted in this day instead of waiting for "that day". If, in the faith of our souls, the glory of that day shines before us, instead of being tempted to rebel at the insults and wrongs that may be allowed, we shall "rejoice and be exceeding glad" for, says the Lord, "great is your reward in heaven" (Matthew 5:12) Hamilton Smith
N.J.Hiebert - 9047
December 1
But this cometh to pass, that the word might be fulfilled that is written in their law, they hated me without a cause. John 15:25
We love Him, because He first loved us. 1 John 4:19
He who was hated without a cause loved without a cause. In fact His love without cause both preceded and will outlast the hatred expressed toward Him. The Lord never states the reason for His love, but He always gives the reason for His judgment.
It is the wonder of all wonders that He loved us when we were unlovable and so much so that He gave His Son to die for us. Gary W. Seale
When I know that for me He the anguish bore,
That from sin He might set me free,
Oh, I know that I'll love Him forever more,
When I think of His love for me. Louis Paul Lehman, Jr.
The love of God is greater far than tongue or pen can ever tell;
It goes beyond the highest star, and reaches to the lowest hell.
Though guilty we, yet on the tree God gave His Son to win;
All who believe are reconciled, and pardoned from their sin.
Could we with ink the ocean fill, and were the skies of parchment made;
Were every stalk on earth a quill, and every man a scribe by trade;
To write the love of God above would drain the ocean dry;
Nor could the scroll contain the whole, though stretched from sky to sky.
Fredrick Martin Lehman
N.J.Hiebert - 9048
We love Him, because He first loved us. 1 John 4:19
He who was hated without a cause loved without a cause. In fact His love without cause both preceded and will outlast the hatred expressed toward Him. The Lord never states the reason for His love, but He always gives the reason for His judgment.
It is the wonder of all wonders that He loved us when we were unlovable and so much so that He gave His Son to die for us. Gary W. Seale
When I know that for me He the anguish bore,
That from sin He might set me free,
Oh, I know that I'll love Him forever more,
When I think of His love for me. Louis Paul Lehman, Jr.
The love of God is greater far than tongue or pen can ever tell;
It goes beyond the highest star, and reaches to the lowest hell.
Though guilty we, yet on the tree God gave His Son to win;
All who believe are reconciled, and pardoned from their sin.
Could we with ink the ocean fill, and were the skies of parchment made;
Were every stalk on earth a quill, and every man a scribe by trade;
To write the love of God above would drain the ocean dry;
Nor could the scroll contain the whole, though stretched from sky to sky.
Fredrick Martin Lehman
N.J.Hiebert - 9048
December 2
Thy Word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against Thee. Psalm 119:11
When we speak on that verse to the little people, we tell them that there you have the right word- Thy Word; in the right place--my heart; for the right purpose--that I might not sin against God. We older folk are the children of eternity; we, too, need to hide our Father's Word in our hearts; and so I pass on a few suggestions that may enable rightly to divide the Word of truth.
- When you are in sorrow, read John 14.
- When men fail you, read Psalm 27.
- When you have sinned, read Psalm 51.
- When you are worried, read Matthew 6.
- When God seems far away, read Psalm 139.
- When you are discouraged, read Isaiah 40.
- If you want to be fruitful, read John 15.
- To recount your blessings, read Psalm 103.
- When your faith is weak, read Hebrews 11.
- When you want courage, read Joshua 1.
- When feeling down and out, read Romans 8.
- When loved ones pass on, read Psalm 90.
- When inclined to be critical, read 1 Corinthians 13.
- Before undertaking a journey, read Psalm 121. Henry Durbanville
N.J.Hiebert - 9049
When we speak on that verse to the little people, we tell them that there you have the right word- Thy Word; in the right place--my heart; for the right purpose--that I might not sin against God. We older folk are the children of eternity; we, too, need to hide our Father's Word in our hearts; and so I pass on a few suggestions that may enable rightly to divide the Word of truth.
- When you are in sorrow, read John 14.
- When men fail you, read Psalm 27.
- When you have sinned, read Psalm 51.
- When you are worried, read Matthew 6.
- When God seems far away, read Psalm 139.
- When you are discouraged, read Isaiah 40.
- If you want to be fruitful, read John 15.
- To recount your blessings, read Psalm 103.
- When your faith is weak, read Hebrews 11.
- When you want courage, read Joshua 1.
- When feeling down and out, read Romans 8.
- When loved ones pass on, read Psalm 90.
- When inclined to be critical, read 1 Corinthians 13.
- Before undertaking a journey, read Psalm 121. Henry Durbanville
N.J.Hiebert - 9049
December 3
BEING WHERE GOD WANTS US TO BE
And the Lord spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land. Jonah 2:10
Initially, Jonah refused to do what he knew to be the will of God. Has that not been true of all of us? But God brought Jonah to his senses and delivered him! Jonah came up from the depths of the sea humbled and chastened, but scarcely broken, for the concluding chapter of his book shows that he still had much to learn. But he had experienced the power of God to lay low those who rise up against His will, and he was also assured that, come what may, God will never cast off His own.
We need not suppose that the great fish remained stationary during Jonah's imprisonment; the eye of the Creator was upon it, and it was guided to drop the prophet just where the Lord wanted him. The obedience of the humblest creatures, as recorded in Scripture, is deeply instructive. The Lord Jesus, when on earth, wanted a fish which possessed a shekel, and to have that particular fish--and no other--caught on Peter's hook (Matthew 17:27).
The colt upon which no man ever sat, an untamed novice for work, obediently carried the Lord through the streets of Jerusalem (Matthew 21:7). In like manner, this sea monster was at the appointed place when Jonah was cast out of the ship; it took care of him for the divinely appointed period, and then released him in God's time, and in the place where God required him. Alas that man, the most gifted of all earthy creatures, should be the arch rebel of this planet!
We are of the most use to God when we are where He wants us to be. God wanted Jonah to be in Nineveh. Where does He want you? Even when we are in the right place at the right time, we need the guidance of the Spirit constantly as to what we should say or do. We may know this truth, but it is essential that we put it into practice! W. W. Feredy
N.J.Hiebert - 9050
And the Lord spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land. Jonah 2:10
Initially, Jonah refused to do what he knew to be the will of God. Has that not been true of all of us? But God brought Jonah to his senses and delivered him! Jonah came up from the depths of the sea humbled and chastened, but scarcely broken, for the concluding chapter of his book shows that he still had much to learn. But he had experienced the power of God to lay low those who rise up against His will, and he was also assured that, come what may, God will never cast off His own.
We need not suppose that the great fish remained stationary during Jonah's imprisonment; the eye of the Creator was upon it, and it was guided to drop the prophet just where the Lord wanted him. The obedience of the humblest creatures, as recorded in Scripture, is deeply instructive. The Lord Jesus, when on earth, wanted a fish which possessed a shekel, and to have that particular fish--and no other--caught on Peter's hook (Matthew 17:27).
The colt upon which no man ever sat, an untamed novice for work, obediently carried the Lord through the streets of Jerusalem (Matthew 21:7). In like manner, this sea monster was at the appointed place when Jonah was cast out of the ship; it took care of him for the divinely appointed period, and then released him in God's time, and in the place where God required him. Alas that man, the most gifted of all earthy creatures, should be the arch rebel of this planet!
We are of the most use to God when we are where He wants us to be. God wanted Jonah to be in Nineveh. Where does He want you? Even when we are in the right place at the right time, we need the guidance of the Spirit constantly as to what we should say or do. We may know this truth, but it is essential that we put it into practice! W. W. Feredy
N.J.Hiebert - 9050
December 4
And they said unto me (Nehemiah) the remnant that are left of the captivity...are in great affliction and reproach...when I heard these words I wept...and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven. Nehemiah 1:3,4
Nehemiah's heart was very heavy as he went to his room in the royal palace. But he must have remembered his own name and its meaning: Nehemiah, The Lord is my comforter. He went to his Comforter...and he poured out all his sorrow to God. Suppose we walk through a conservatory and admire rare flowers of all types. We see a beautiful plant (azalea) covered with hundreds of pure white blossoms. But there is so much else to see that we scarcely notice it. We are not amazed to see it healthy and covered in blossoms, for we know that it has the ideal circumstances to grow.
But suppose, that walking through the slums of a huge city we see in an attic window a similar azalea. Now we are really surprised to see it, for it is in the most unlikely place; there is nothing to encourage its growth, yet there it stands, a marvel of beauty. Surely in Nehemiah we have seen the white flower in the attic. We expect fo find a man of God, breathing in the very atmosphere of purity, with godly people all around him...no one would be astonished to find a man of God in such a place.
But here was Nehemiah living in a heathen palace, in the midst of a wicked court, surrounded by drunkenness, and all that is vile and impure, breathing in the atmosphere of sin. Yet we find him a plant of the Lord, as pure as the azalea, a man of faith, prayer, a holy man of God. He was a flourishing plant in the garden of the Lord. Are we ever tempted to say in our hearts, I cannot serve the Master faithfully. If I were in another position, if my home life were favourable to my deciding for Christ, if I had different companions, a different job and surroundings then I would grow in grace.
What does the Master say as He hears words like these? "My grace is sufficient for thee." "As thy day so shall they strength be." Even in most unlikely soil God can make His plants grow and flourish and fruitful. If I do not become a flourishing plant, it is not my position that is to blame. It is because I will not seek that grace which the Lord is ready to give me. "Ye have not because ye ask not. Ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full. (John 16:24) Mrs. O. F. Walton
N.J. Hiebert - 9051
Nehemiah's heart was very heavy as he went to his room in the royal palace. But he must have remembered his own name and its meaning: Nehemiah, The Lord is my comforter. He went to his Comforter...and he poured out all his sorrow to God. Suppose we walk through a conservatory and admire rare flowers of all types. We see a beautiful plant (azalea) covered with hundreds of pure white blossoms. But there is so much else to see that we scarcely notice it. We are not amazed to see it healthy and covered in blossoms, for we know that it has the ideal circumstances to grow.
But suppose, that walking through the slums of a huge city we see in an attic window a similar azalea. Now we are really surprised to see it, for it is in the most unlikely place; there is nothing to encourage its growth, yet there it stands, a marvel of beauty. Surely in Nehemiah we have seen the white flower in the attic. We expect fo find a man of God, breathing in the very atmosphere of purity, with godly people all around him...no one would be astonished to find a man of God in such a place.
But here was Nehemiah living in a heathen palace, in the midst of a wicked court, surrounded by drunkenness, and all that is vile and impure, breathing in the atmosphere of sin. Yet we find him a plant of the Lord, as pure as the azalea, a man of faith, prayer, a holy man of God. He was a flourishing plant in the garden of the Lord. Are we ever tempted to say in our hearts, I cannot serve the Master faithfully. If I were in another position, if my home life were favourable to my deciding for Christ, if I had different companions, a different job and surroundings then I would grow in grace.
What does the Master say as He hears words like these? "My grace is sufficient for thee." "As thy day so shall they strength be." Even in most unlikely soil God can make His plants grow and flourish and fruitful. If I do not become a flourishing plant, it is not my position that is to blame. It is because I will not seek that grace which the Lord is ready to give me. "Ye have not because ye ask not. Ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full. (John 16:24) Mrs. O. F. Walton
N.J. Hiebert - 9051
December 5
". . . According as He hath promised, . . ."
Exodus 12:25
Andrew Murray said "When you get a promise from God it is worth just as much as fulfillment. A promise brings you into direct contact with God. Honour Him by trusting the promise and obeying Him." Worth just as much as fulfillment!
Do we grasp that truth often? Are we not frequently in the state of trying to believe, instead of realizing that these promises bring us into contact with God? "God's promise is as good as His presence."
To believe and accept the promise of God is not to engage in some mental gymnastics where we reach down into our imaginations and begin a process of auto-suggestion, or produce a notional faith in which we argue with ourselves in an endeavour to believe God. It is absolute confidence in and reliance upon God through His Word.
By a naked faith in a naked promise I do not mean a bare assent that God is faithful, and that such a promise in the Book of God may be fulfilled in me, but a bold, hearty, steady venturing of my soul, body, and spirit upon the truth of the promise with an appropriating act.
"When once His word is past, when He hath said, 'I will,'
The thing shall come at last; God keeps His promise still."
"And God said . . . and it was so." (Genesis 1:9.) Mountain Trailways
N.J. Hiebert - 9052
Andrew Murray said "When you get a promise from God it is worth just as much as fulfillment. A promise brings you into direct contact with God. Honour Him by trusting the promise and obeying Him." Worth just as much as fulfillment!
Do we grasp that truth often? Are we not frequently in the state of trying to believe, instead of realizing that these promises bring us into contact with God? "God's promise is as good as His presence."
To believe and accept the promise of God is not to engage in some mental gymnastics where we reach down into our imaginations and begin a process of auto-suggestion, or produce a notional faith in which we argue with ourselves in an endeavour to believe God. It is absolute confidence in and reliance upon God through His Word.
By a naked faith in a naked promise I do not mean a bare assent that God is faithful, and that such a promise in the Book of God may be fulfilled in me, but a bold, hearty, steady venturing of my soul, body, and spirit upon the truth of the promise with an appropriating act.
"When once His word is past, when He hath said, 'I will,'
The thing shall come at last; God keeps His promise still."
"And God said . . . and it was so." (Genesis 1:9.) Mountain Trailways
N.J. Hiebert - 9052
December 6
And He spake many things unto them in parables, saying, behold a sower went forth to sow; and when he sowed, some seeds . . . fell upon stony places, where they had not much earth: and forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth: and when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because they had no root they withered away. Matthew 13:3-6
Many take up their godliness upon trust, and trade in religion with the credit they have gained from others' opinion of them. They believe themselves to be Christians, because others hope them to be such; and so their great business is, by a zeal in those exercises of religion that lie outermost, to keep up the credit they have abroad, but do not look to get a stock of solid grace within; and this proves their undoing at last.
They say trees shoot as much in the root underground as in the branches above, and so does true grace. Remember what was the perishing of the seed in stony ground! It lacked root; and why so because it was stony? Be willing that the plough go deep enough to humble you for sin, and rend your heart from sin.
A hypocrite never got pardon in the disguise of a saint. He will call you by your own name, though you come to Him in the semblance of a penitent: "Come in, thou, wife of Jeroboam; why feignest thou thyself to be another?" (1 Kings 14:6), said the prophet. Hypocrisy is too thin a veil to blind the eyes of the Almighty. You may put your own eyes out, so as not to see Him, but you can never blind HIS eyes so that HE should not see you.
The Christian In Complete Armour - William Gurnall (1617-1679)
N.J.Hiebert - 9053
Many take up their godliness upon trust, and trade in religion with the credit they have gained from others' opinion of them. They believe themselves to be Christians, because others hope them to be such; and so their great business is, by a zeal in those exercises of religion that lie outermost, to keep up the credit they have abroad, but do not look to get a stock of solid grace within; and this proves their undoing at last.
They say trees shoot as much in the root underground as in the branches above, and so does true grace. Remember what was the perishing of the seed in stony ground! It lacked root; and why so because it was stony? Be willing that the plough go deep enough to humble you for sin, and rend your heart from sin.
A hypocrite never got pardon in the disguise of a saint. He will call you by your own name, though you come to Him in the semblance of a penitent: "Come in, thou, wife of Jeroboam; why feignest thou thyself to be another?" (1 Kings 14:6), said the prophet. Hypocrisy is too thin a veil to blind the eyes of the Almighty. You may put your own eyes out, so as not to see Him, but you can never blind HIS eyes so that HE should not see you.
The Christian In Complete Armour - William Gurnall (1617-1679)
N.J.Hiebert - 9053
December 7
After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; and cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb" Revelation 7:9-10.
Thus, the following three scriptures may be read in most interesting and profitable connection.
- In Genesis 11, God gives various tongues as an expression of His judgment.
- In Acts 2, He gives various tongues as an expression of grace.
- In Revelation 7, we see all those tongues gathered around the Lamb in glory.
How much better it is, therefore, to find our place in God's association than in man's!
- The former ends in glory,
- The later in confusion;
- The former is carried forward by the energy of the Holy Ghost,
- The later by the unhallowed energy of fallen man;
- The former has for its object the exhalation of Christ,
- The later has for its object the exaltation of man, in some way or other.
Finally, I would say, that all who would sincerely desire to know the true character, object and issue of human associations, should read the opening verse of Genesis 11; and, on the other hand, all who desire to know the excellency, the beauty, the power, the enduring character of divine association, should look at that holy, living, heavenly corporation, which is called, in the New Testament, the Church of the living God--the body of Christ--the bride of the Lamb.
Notes on Genesis - C. H. Mackintosh
N.J.Hiebert - 9054
Thus, the following three scriptures may be read in most interesting and profitable connection.
- In Genesis 11, God gives various tongues as an expression of His judgment.
- In Acts 2, He gives various tongues as an expression of grace.
- In Revelation 7, we see all those tongues gathered around the Lamb in glory.
How much better it is, therefore, to find our place in God's association than in man's!
- The former ends in glory,
- The later in confusion;
- The former is carried forward by the energy of the Holy Ghost,
- The later by the unhallowed energy of fallen man;
- The former has for its object the exhalation of Christ,
- The later has for its object the exaltation of man, in some way or other.
Finally, I would say, that all who would sincerely desire to know the true character, object and issue of human associations, should read the opening verse of Genesis 11; and, on the other hand, all who desire to know the excellency, the beauty, the power, the enduring character of divine association, should look at that holy, living, heavenly corporation, which is called, in the New Testament, the Church of the living God--the body of Christ--the bride of the Lamb.
Notes on Genesis - C. H. Mackintosh
N.J.Hiebert - 9054
December 8
GOD'S ESTIMATE OF THE BLOOD, NOT OURS
When I see the blood, I will pass over you.
When I see the blood, I will pass over you.
Exodus 12:13
Where the blood was sprinkled, salvation was the result; and where no blood was seen, the plague fell. God passed through the land that night in judgment, and "there was not a house where there was not one dead" (Exodus 12:30). In the houses of Israel there was one dead: the lamb, the victim, the substitute. In the houses of Egypt there was one dead: the firstborn. In the houses of Israel the lamb had died instead of the firstborn, and that brought peace to many a household that night.
You might have gone up to a young man in one of the households of Israel, who was the firstborn, and asked him: How is it with you tonight? Have you peace?--Perfect peace! How do you feel?--I do not rest on my feelings, but on the word of Jehovah. The blood is upon the lintel. It was my father's work to put it there, but I assure you, I took good care to see that it was done; my life would go this night if the blood were not there. But the blood is there, and Jehovah has said, "When I see the blood, I will pass over you." And are you at rest? At perfect rest. The blood is the basis of my peace, not what I feel.
Peace is not a feeling; it is not an emotion; it is not an experience; it flows from the fact that the claims of God have been met by the Lamb of God, and God respects His precious blood. As one has said, the blood of Jesus has reached, and touched, the very memory of God, "Their sins and iniquities will I remember no more." (Hebrews 10:17) Its value God alone knows. You and I do not know the value of the blood of Christ. We do value it surely, but our valuation of it is very poor and inadequate. God knows its value perfectly; He esteems its worth fully; and He says to you and me, "Trust that blood; get under its shelter."
W. T. P. Wolston
N.J.Hiebert - 9055
Where the blood was sprinkled, salvation was the result; and where no blood was seen, the plague fell. God passed through the land that night in judgment, and "there was not a house where there was not one dead" (Exodus 12:30). In the houses of Israel there was one dead: the lamb, the victim, the substitute. In the houses of Egypt there was one dead: the firstborn. In the houses of Israel the lamb had died instead of the firstborn, and that brought peace to many a household that night.
You might have gone up to a young man in one of the households of Israel, who was the firstborn, and asked him: How is it with you tonight? Have you peace?--Perfect peace! How do you feel?--I do not rest on my feelings, but on the word of Jehovah. The blood is upon the lintel. It was my father's work to put it there, but I assure you, I took good care to see that it was done; my life would go this night if the blood were not there. But the blood is there, and Jehovah has said, "When I see the blood, I will pass over you." And are you at rest? At perfect rest. The blood is the basis of my peace, not what I feel.
Peace is not a feeling; it is not an emotion; it is not an experience; it flows from the fact that the claims of God have been met by the Lamb of God, and God respects His precious blood. As one has said, the blood of Jesus has reached, and touched, the very memory of God, "Their sins and iniquities will I remember no more." (Hebrews 10:17) Its value God alone knows. You and I do not know the value of the blood of Christ. We do value it surely, but our valuation of it is very poor and inadequate. God knows its value perfectly; He esteems its worth fully; and He says to you and me, "Trust that blood; get under its shelter."
W. T. P. Wolston
N.J.Hiebert - 9055
December 9
And it came to pass, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed: and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses' hands were heavy; and they took a stone, and put it under him, and he sat thereon; and Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands, the one on the one side, and the other on the other side; and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. Exodus 17:11,12
That is the kind of prayer that is much assaulted. Moses' hands were heavy. So are ours often, and we are very apt to lean on Aaron and Hur to hold them up--in other words, to depend on others to help us by their earnestness and steadfastness.
There is something kindling to prayer in being with others who are praying, and all through the Bible this is recognized--even in Gethsemane our dear Lord seems to have wanted human companionship in prayer.
But He pressed through that sense of need as He must have done often before, and He can give it to us to press through. He can teach us more than we have yet learned of "In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of Him." (Ephesians 3:12).
He can draw us deep into His own blessed Presence, even as He drew many a man of old--and among them was Moses--and He can strengthen our hands so that they shall be steady until the going down of the sun.
Thou Givest...They Gather - Amy Carmichael
N.J.Hiebert - 9056
That is the kind of prayer that is much assaulted. Moses' hands were heavy. So are ours often, and we are very apt to lean on Aaron and Hur to hold them up--in other words, to depend on others to help us by their earnestness and steadfastness.
There is something kindling to prayer in being with others who are praying, and all through the Bible this is recognized--even in Gethsemane our dear Lord seems to have wanted human companionship in prayer.
But He pressed through that sense of need as He must have done often before, and He can give it to us to press through. He can teach us more than we have yet learned of "In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of Him." (Ephesians 3:12).
He can draw us deep into His own blessed Presence, even as He drew many a man of old--and among them was Moses--and He can strengthen our hands so that they shall be steady until the going down of the sun.
Thou Givest...They Gather - Amy Carmichael
N.J.Hiebert - 9056
December 10
And he (Eli) said unto them, why do ye such things?...it is no good report that I hear of your evil dealings...ye make the Lord's people to transgress. 1 Samuel 2:23,24
We are living in times characterized by a certain activity in service. This activity often presses itself upon ourselves and others, for it has the appearance of great zeal for the Lord and for His work. It may even be accompanied by eminent gifts, but the gifts and activity are of little significance, if there is not the corresponding moral character.
This moral character was grievously flawed in Eli's case; and without this character there can be no true service according to God. Samuel offers a striking contrast to this state of things in every detail. In his case, we may trace the uninterrupted development of a life of holiness despite more than one weakness, for perfection is found only in Christ.
1 - Samuel was still only a small child, "And he worshipped the Lord there.(v.28).
2. - "The child ministered unto the Lord before Eli the priest (v.2:11).
3 - "But Samuel ministered before the Lord." (v.2:18).
4 - "And the boy Samuel grew before the Lord." (v.21).
5 - "Samuel grew on, and was in favour with the Lord, and with men." (v.26). .
The relationship of affection between Samuel and the Lord caused his walk to draw the attention of men, who took note of it as a walk pleasing to the Lord. Intimacy with God was reflected in the face of this young boy. This is what is told us of John the Baptist (Luke 1:80), and for how much greater reason, of Jesus: "Jesus advanced in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man" (Luke 2:52). All the power of our Christian testimony depends on a secret life spent in the Lord's presence. May God grant us to resemble young Samuel in our conduct more than Eli. 1 Samuel - Henri L. Rossier
N.J. Hiebert - 9057
We are living in times characterized by a certain activity in service. This activity often presses itself upon ourselves and others, for it has the appearance of great zeal for the Lord and for His work. It may even be accompanied by eminent gifts, but the gifts and activity are of little significance, if there is not the corresponding moral character.
This moral character was grievously flawed in Eli's case; and without this character there can be no true service according to God. Samuel offers a striking contrast to this state of things in every detail. In his case, we may trace the uninterrupted development of a life of holiness despite more than one weakness, for perfection is found only in Christ.
1 - Samuel was still only a small child, "And he worshipped the Lord there.(v.28).
2. - "The child ministered unto the Lord before Eli the priest (v.2:11).
3 - "But Samuel ministered before the Lord." (v.2:18).
4 - "And the boy Samuel grew before the Lord." (v.21).
5 - "Samuel grew on, and was in favour with the Lord, and with men." (v.26). .
The relationship of affection between Samuel and the Lord caused his walk to draw the attention of men, who took note of it as a walk pleasing to the Lord. Intimacy with God was reflected in the face of this young boy. This is what is told us of John the Baptist (Luke 1:80), and for how much greater reason, of Jesus: "Jesus advanced in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man" (Luke 2:52). All the power of our Christian testimony depends on a secret life spent in the Lord's presence. May God grant us to resemble young Samuel in our conduct more than Eli. 1 Samuel - Henri L. Rossier
N.J. Hiebert - 9057
December 11
A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance. Proverbs 15:13
A merry heart doeth good like a medicine.
A merry heart doeth good like a medicine.
Proverbs 17:22
These things have I spoken unto you, that My joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full. Matthew 15:11
The wise man affirms that a merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance, and doeth good like a medicine. What is more refreshing than the merry laugh of a child?
It is the bubbling up of the fountain of innocence and simplicity in the little one's heart. Did not our Master bid us to become as little children? "Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.
(Matthew 18:3)
Be assured then that you will make your own life happier and better, and through your happiness the lives of others happier and better by using the faculty of cheerfulness.
- to heal dissensions,
- to solve anger,
- to mitigate suffering,
- to cheer adversity,
- to save us from the wearing action of petty troubles,
- to arm us with the brightness of spirit which makes the best, and not the worst, of everything! Winsome Christianity - Henry Durbanville
N.J.Hiebert - 9058
These things have I spoken unto you, that My joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full. Matthew 15:11
The wise man affirms that a merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance, and doeth good like a medicine. What is more refreshing than the merry laugh of a child?
It is the bubbling up of the fountain of innocence and simplicity in the little one's heart. Did not our Master bid us to become as little children? "Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.
(Matthew 18:3)
Be assured then that you will make your own life happier and better, and through your happiness the lives of others happier and better by using the faculty of cheerfulness.
- to heal dissensions,
- to solve anger,
- to mitigate suffering,
- to cheer adversity,
- to save us from the wearing action of petty troubles,
- to arm us with the brightness of spirit which makes the best, and not the worst, of everything! Winsome Christianity - Henry Durbanville
N.J.Hiebert - 9058
December 12
THE WORLD IN NOAH'S DAY
But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.
2 Peter 3:4-7
The busy world was pressing on its way
Intent to plant and build, to sell and buy:
And neither knew nor cared that every day
The Lord Himself came from His home on high,
The busy world was pressing on its way
Intent to plant and build, to sell and buy:
And neither knew nor cared that every day
The Lord Himself came from His home on high,
To walk with men.
And thus the course of time its way fast rolled,
Till soon three hundred years were fully gone.
While Enoch, prophet of the Lord, foretold
The Lord with thousands of His saints will come,
And thus the course of time its way fast rolled,
Till soon three hundred years were fully gone.
While Enoch, prophet of the Lord, foretold
The Lord with thousands of His saints will come,
Will come to judge.
Alas, the busy world still sped its way,
Nor thought, not cared, for God's most solemn cry.
Then, strangely, Enoch was not found one day,
For God had taken him to dwell on high,
Alas, the busy world still sped its way,
Nor thought, not cared, for God's most solemn cry.
Then, strangely, Enoch was not found one day,
For God had taken him to dwell on high,
To dwell with Him.
But Enoch's son still spread the message grave:
"When I shall die the judgment sure must fall."
And Noah build an ark their souls to save:
He, too, while building, preached the solemn call:
But Enoch's son still spread the message grave:
"When I shall die the judgment sure must fall."
And Noah build an ark their souls to save:
He, too, while building, preached the solemn call:
The judge is near.
The world sped on without a thought of God.
No time had they to hear what He might say.
Nor did they know until had come the flood
And took them all, yea, every one, away:
The world sped on without a thought of God.
No time had they to hear what He might say.
Nor did they know until had come the flood
And took them all, yea, every one, away:
The judge had come.
And still the busy world runs its own way,
Intent to plant and build, to sell and buy:
And heed not, just as 'twas in Noah's day,
That God still sends abroad that solemn cry:
And still the busy world runs its own way,
Intent to plant and build, to sell and buy:
And heed not, just as 'twas in Noah's day,
That God still sends abroad that solemn cry:
The judge is near.
Before shall swiftly fall that judgment dire,
Like Enoch once, our God shall claim His own.
The world, and all its works, are burnt with fire;
But His shall walk with Him in white, at Home:
Before shall swiftly fall that judgment dire,
Like Enoch once, our God shall claim His own.
The world, and all its works, are burnt with fire;
But His shall walk with Him in white, at Home:
At home, with Him!
G. Christopher Willis (From the Chinese edition)
N.J.Hiebert - 9059
G. Christopher Willis (From the Chinese edition)
N.J.Hiebert - 9059
December 13
They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. Isaiah 40:31
It is important to discern both the distinction and the connection between mounting up with wings as eagles, and what it means to "run and not be weary." Running implies a closer touch with this present scene and our actual surroundings.
It is the effort to get through to reach a certain end. But we should know nothing of that end and certainly have no desire to reach it except, first of all, we "mount up with wings as eagles."
Apart from the first experience, the second would be impossible. When a person runs he usually has some object before him. And herein lies the connection between mounting up and and running. In mounting up we apprehend the true goal of the Christian calling, and this gives both the desire and energy to run the race set before us.
How necessary then to mount up; for the renewed spirit, to soar, so to speak, into its own domain, and breathe its native air! It is this that starts us on the race. Angels in White - Russell Elliott
N.J.Hiebert - 9060
It is important to discern both the distinction and the connection between mounting up with wings as eagles, and what it means to "run and not be weary." Running implies a closer touch with this present scene and our actual surroundings.
It is the effort to get through to reach a certain end. But we should know nothing of that end and certainly have no desire to reach it except, first of all, we "mount up with wings as eagles."
Apart from the first experience, the second would be impossible. When a person runs he usually has some object before him. And herein lies the connection between mounting up and and running. In mounting up we apprehend the true goal of the Christian calling, and this gives both the desire and energy to run the race set before us.
How necessary then to mount up; for the renewed spirit, to soar, so to speak, into its own domain, and breathe its native air! It is this that starts us on the race. Angels in White - Russell Elliott
N.J.Hiebert - 9060
December 14
But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you. Acts 1:8
Do Thou, the very God of peace, us wholly sanctify,
And grant us such a rich increase of power from on high,
That spirit, soul and body may, preservéd free from stain,
Be blameless until that great day; Lord Jesus Christ, Amen!
Unbelief is a barrier that shuts out the inflow of divine power.
A lady once called to see me and said, "I want you to tell me the secret of power." I replied, "It is being broken to pieces and the consciousness of that."
J.N.D. has somewhere said that when we are occupied wth past manifestations of the power of the Holy Ghost we are seldom in the current of His working at the present moment.
It is only by the Lord's own power that the smallest of His precepts can be translated into practice; while it is equally true that His largest requests are as easy of performance as the smallest, inasmuch as adequate power is always at the service of faith.
Unconscious testimony is always the most powerful. I often think that at the judgment seat of Christ we shall find a word we have spoken casually, a little sentence dropped, has been more used than all our preaching and lectures.
The humblest believer walking in obedience to the Lord and dependence upon Him is displaying the greatest spiritual power. Power is displayed by the coming out of Christ in daily life. Edward Dennett
N.J. Hiebert - 9061
Do Thou, the very God of peace, us wholly sanctify,
And grant us such a rich increase of power from on high,
That spirit, soul and body may, preservéd free from stain,
Be blameless until that great day; Lord Jesus Christ, Amen!
Unbelief is a barrier that shuts out the inflow of divine power.
A lady once called to see me and said, "I want you to tell me the secret of power." I replied, "It is being broken to pieces and the consciousness of that."
J.N.D. has somewhere said that when we are occupied wth past manifestations of the power of the Holy Ghost we are seldom in the current of His working at the present moment.
It is only by the Lord's own power that the smallest of His precepts can be translated into practice; while it is equally true that His largest requests are as easy of performance as the smallest, inasmuch as adequate power is always at the service of faith.
Unconscious testimony is always the most powerful. I often think that at the judgment seat of Christ we shall find a word we have spoken casually, a little sentence dropped, has been more used than all our preaching and lectures.
The humblest believer walking in obedience to the Lord and dependence upon Him is displaying the greatest spiritual power. Power is displayed by the coming out of Christ in daily life. Edward Dennett
N.J. Hiebert - 9061
December 15
For consider Him that endured such contradiction of sinners against Himself. Hebrews 12:3
We know that the wages of sin is death. We know that Adam and Eve were warned that the day they ate of the fruit of the tree, which would be sin, they would die. We also understand that all have sinned and there was nothing we could do to resolve this problem--neither riches, nor works, nor our own self-righteousness could make us right with God. So by faith we understand and gratefully accept the finished work of our substitute, the Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us.
But we wonder why such a cruel, painful, shameful, terrible death was necessary. Yes, we know that some of the Lord's sufferings were prophesied in the Old Testament, so these scriptures had to be fulfilled. But since God wrote the Bible, He could easily have written it without these prophesies so that they would not have to touch our dear Lord Jesus. The Old Testament requirement of capital punishment was by stoning, but the Lord's death was much more excruciating than that.
Besides all of the abuses of shame, abandonment, and deception before and during His death, He suffered immeasurable physical pain. His back was "plowed" with long furrows; His face was disfigured more than any man's; His beard hairs were ripped out; a crown of thorns was placed on and then beaten into His head; He was spat upon by an entire band of Roman soldiers; He died by crucifixion, with all that implies, as a common criminal between two criminals; and His clothing was divided between His executioners. Albert Blok
But... "The depth of all Thy suffering no heart could e're conceive;
The cup of wrath o'er flowing for us Thou didst receive;
And, oh! of God forsaken, on the accursed tree.
With grateful hearts Lord Jesus, we would remember Thee." G. W. Frazer
N.J.Hiebert - 9062
We know that the wages of sin is death. We know that Adam and Eve were warned that the day they ate of the fruit of the tree, which would be sin, they would die. We also understand that all have sinned and there was nothing we could do to resolve this problem--neither riches, nor works, nor our own self-righteousness could make us right with God. So by faith we understand and gratefully accept the finished work of our substitute, the Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us.
But we wonder why such a cruel, painful, shameful, terrible death was necessary. Yes, we know that some of the Lord's sufferings were prophesied in the Old Testament, so these scriptures had to be fulfilled. But since God wrote the Bible, He could easily have written it without these prophesies so that they would not have to touch our dear Lord Jesus. The Old Testament requirement of capital punishment was by stoning, but the Lord's death was much more excruciating than that.
Besides all of the abuses of shame, abandonment, and deception before and during His death, He suffered immeasurable physical pain. His back was "plowed" with long furrows; His face was disfigured more than any man's; His beard hairs were ripped out; a crown of thorns was placed on and then beaten into His head; He was spat upon by an entire band of Roman soldiers; He died by crucifixion, with all that implies, as a common criminal between two criminals; and His clothing was divided between His executioners. Albert Blok
But... "The depth of all Thy suffering no heart could e're conceive;
The cup of wrath o'er flowing for us Thou didst receive;
And, oh! of God forsaken, on the accursed tree.
With grateful hearts Lord Jesus, we would remember Thee." G. W. Frazer
N.J.Hiebert - 9062
December 16
The eternal God is thy refuge . . . Deuteronomy 33:27
One night during a terrific storm a man walked along the shore of the sea. The clouds hung low overhead. The wind howled. Thunders roared. Lightening flashed and the rain poured down in torrents.
The man pulled his overcoat closer around him, bent his body to the wind and hurried home. A little bird lost in the storm sought shelter under his coat; he took it in his hand, carried it home, placed it in a warm cage.
The next morning after the storm had subsided, and the clouds had cleared away, he took the little bird to the door. It paused on his hand for a moment; then lifting its tiny wings, it hurried back to its forest home.
Then it was that Charles Wesley caught the vision, and going back to his room he wrote the words to a song that is loved around the world today and will live on in time:
Jesus lover of my soul let me to thy bosom fly,
While the nearer waters roll, while the tempest still is high:
Hide me, O my Saviour, hide, till the storm of life be past;
Safe into the haven guide, O receive my soul at last!
Other refuge have I none, hangs my helpless soul on Thee;
Leave, ah! leave me not alone; still support and comfort me.
N.J.Hiebert - 9063
One night during a terrific storm a man walked along the shore of the sea. The clouds hung low overhead. The wind howled. Thunders roared. Lightening flashed and the rain poured down in torrents.
The man pulled his overcoat closer around him, bent his body to the wind and hurried home. A little bird lost in the storm sought shelter under his coat; he took it in his hand, carried it home, placed it in a warm cage.
The next morning after the storm had subsided, and the clouds had cleared away, he took the little bird to the door. It paused on his hand for a moment; then lifting its tiny wings, it hurried back to its forest home.
Then it was that Charles Wesley caught the vision, and going back to his room he wrote the words to a song that is loved around the world today and will live on in time:
Jesus lover of my soul let me to thy bosom fly,
While the nearer waters roll, while the tempest still is high:
Hide me, O my Saviour, hide, till the storm of life be past;
Safe into the haven guide, O receive my soul at last!
Other refuge have I none, hangs my helpless soul on Thee;
Leave, ah! leave me not alone; still support and comfort me.
N.J.Hiebert - 9063
December 17
For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure. Philippians 2:13
It is said that once Mendelssohn came to see the great Freiburg organ. The old custodian refused him permission to play upon the instrument, not knowing who he was.
At length however, he reluctantly granted him leave to play a few notes. Mendelssohn took his seat, and soon the most wonderful music was breaking forth from the organ. The custodian was spellbound.
He came up beside the great musician and asked his name. Learning it, he stood humiliated, self-condemned, saying, "And I refused you permission to play upon my organ!"
There comes One to us, who desires to take our lives and play upon them. But we withhold ourselves from Him, and refuse Him permission, when, if we would yield ourselves to Him, He would bring from our souls heavenly music.
(From "Sanctification - What It Really Is.")
N.J.Hiebert - 9064
It is said that once Mendelssohn came to see the great Freiburg organ. The old custodian refused him permission to play upon the instrument, not knowing who he was.
At length however, he reluctantly granted him leave to play a few notes. Mendelssohn took his seat, and soon the most wonderful music was breaking forth from the organ. The custodian was spellbound.
He came up beside the great musician and asked his name. Learning it, he stood humiliated, self-condemned, saying, "And I refused you permission to play upon my organ!"
There comes One to us, who desires to take our lives and play upon them. But we withhold ourselves from Him, and refuse Him permission, when, if we would yield ourselves to Him, He would bring from our souls heavenly music.
(From "Sanctification - What It Really Is.")
N.J.Hiebert - 9064
December 18
REPORT OR REALITY?
But Him they saw not. Luke 24:24
The Emmaus disciples had the testimony of the women, the angels and other disciples, but, like these other disciples, they had not seen the risen Lord Himself to know Him. Something had happened. Jesus was not in the grave. But they had not seen Him.
There is a lot of talk about the resurrection that gets no farther than that. Something happened. The grave is empty. But there is lacking the vibrant witness, "We have seen the Lord!" (John 20:25).
Much is said about the return of Christ that lacks the warmth of His person. We discuss the program of events, what is going to happen, "but Him we see not."
That goes for all the great truths about Him. We tell what others have said. We discuss the matter. But Him we see not. Our "eyes are holden" (24:16). A few minutes later these Emmaus disciples were not like the same persons. They had a glowing testimony, and as they related it He appeared again! (Luke 24,35,36) His resurrection was no longer a Report but a Reality!
Day by Day with Vance Havner
N.J.Hiebert - 9065
But Him they saw not. Luke 24:24
The Emmaus disciples had the testimony of the women, the angels and other disciples, but, like these other disciples, they had not seen the risen Lord Himself to know Him. Something had happened. Jesus was not in the grave. But they had not seen Him.
There is a lot of talk about the resurrection that gets no farther than that. Something happened. The grave is empty. But there is lacking the vibrant witness, "We have seen the Lord!" (John 20:25).
Much is said about the return of Christ that lacks the warmth of His person. We discuss the program of events, what is going to happen, "but Him we see not."
That goes for all the great truths about Him. We tell what others have said. We discuss the matter. But Him we see not. Our "eyes are holden" (24:16). A few minutes later these Emmaus disciples were not like the same persons. They had a glowing testimony, and as they related it He appeared again! (Luke 24,35,36) His resurrection was no longer a Report but a Reality!
Day by Day with Vance Havner
N.J.Hiebert - 9065
December 19
Now the end of the commandment is charity (love) out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned. 1 Timothy 1:5
We shall only be kept as we hold the truth in conjunction with "love out of a pure heart, a good conscience, and faith unfeigned." Sound doctrine can only be maintained with a right moral condition. Speculative questions can be raised and discussed by the human mind apart from a right moral condition of soul, for they leave the conscience and affections untouched, and therefore do not bring the soul into the presence of God.
In contrast to man's speculations, the truth of God can only be apprehended by faith. Acting upon the conscience and the heart, the truth leads to the strengthening of the moral relations of the soul with God. Thus the truth edifies by leading to love out of a pure heart, a good conscience, and faith unfeigned. To exhort to these practical results was the great end of the charge to the Ephesian believers. The charge was not to do some great service or make some great sacrifice.
It was not "doing" great things before men, but "being" in a right condition before God. Love in the heart, "a good conscience" and "faith unfeigned" are qualities which God alone can see, though others may see the effect they produce in the life.
Thus, in these opening verses, the Apostle brings before us the charge to teach no other doctrines than the doctrines of grace, and the necessity of a right spiritual condition in order to maintain the truth and be preserved from error. The First Epistle to Timothy by Hamilton Smith
N.J.Hiebert - 9066
We shall only be kept as we hold the truth in conjunction with "love out of a pure heart, a good conscience, and faith unfeigned." Sound doctrine can only be maintained with a right moral condition. Speculative questions can be raised and discussed by the human mind apart from a right moral condition of soul, for they leave the conscience and affections untouched, and therefore do not bring the soul into the presence of God.
In contrast to man's speculations, the truth of God can only be apprehended by faith. Acting upon the conscience and the heart, the truth leads to the strengthening of the moral relations of the soul with God. Thus the truth edifies by leading to love out of a pure heart, a good conscience, and faith unfeigned. To exhort to these practical results was the great end of the charge to the Ephesian believers. The charge was not to do some great service or make some great sacrifice.
It was not "doing" great things before men, but "being" in a right condition before God. Love in the heart, "a good conscience" and "faith unfeigned" are qualities which God alone can see, though others may see the effect they produce in the life.
Thus, in these opening verses, the Apostle brings before us the charge to teach no other doctrines than the doctrines of grace, and the necessity of a right spiritual condition in order to maintain the truth and be preserved from error. The First Epistle to Timothy by Hamilton Smith
N.J.Hiebert - 9066
December 20
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. John 1:1
"From the beginning," (1 John 2:14) is not the same as, "In the beginning." You and I could not know Him in the beginning; God the Father alone knew Him in the past eternity. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." But when we say, "From the beginning," that means from the time He became incarnate here on earth.
Now John says, "Ye have known Him that is from the beginning." Sweet to trace His toiling footsteps as He walks the sands of earth, to see Him in His wonderful perfection down here, God manifest in the flesh, and to know Him now as the One who passed through death, who was raised by the glory of the Father, and has ascended to heaven, and sits exalted at God's right hand, our great High Priest, our advocate.
Does your soul long to know Him, do you seek to get better acquainted with Him through the years? How do you get to know a person? By living with him day by day. How do you get to know Christ? By living in intimate fellowship with Him throughout the days and years. H. A. Ironside
Living for Jesus a life that is true, striving to please Him in all that I do.
Yielding allegiance, glad-hearted and free, this is the pathway of blessing for me.
Living for Jesus who died in my place, bearing on Calvary my sin and disgrace,
Such love constrains me to answer His call, follow His leading and give Him my all.
Living for Jesus through earth's little while, my dearest treasure, the light of His smile,
Seeking the lost ones He died to redeem, Bringing the weary to find rest in Him.
Thomas O. Chisholm
N.J.Hiebert - 9067
"From the beginning," (1 John 2:14) is not the same as, "In the beginning." You and I could not know Him in the beginning; God the Father alone knew Him in the past eternity. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." But when we say, "From the beginning," that means from the time He became incarnate here on earth.
Now John says, "Ye have known Him that is from the beginning." Sweet to trace His toiling footsteps as He walks the sands of earth, to see Him in His wonderful perfection down here, God manifest in the flesh, and to know Him now as the One who passed through death, who was raised by the glory of the Father, and has ascended to heaven, and sits exalted at God's right hand, our great High Priest, our advocate.
Does your soul long to know Him, do you seek to get better acquainted with Him through the years? How do you get to know a person? By living with him day by day. How do you get to know Christ? By living in intimate fellowship with Him throughout the days and years. H. A. Ironside
Living for Jesus a life that is true, striving to please Him in all that I do.
Yielding allegiance, glad-hearted and free, this is the pathway of blessing for me.
Living for Jesus who died in my place, bearing on Calvary my sin and disgrace,
Such love constrains me to answer His call, follow His leading and give Him my all.
Living for Jesus through earth's little while, my dearest treasure, the light of His smile,
Seeking the lost ones He died to redeem, Bringing the weary to find rest in Him.
Thomas O. Chisholm
N.J.Hiebert - 9067
December 21
Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth! and the tongue is a fire. James 3:5-6
A sign post along a beautifully wooded highway in Ontario reads, "Thoughtless people cause 80% of all forest fires." As we ponder the staggering loss of trees, wildlife, property, and even human lives through the flick of a match, we ask ourselves how people can be so careless with a thing as dangerous as fire.
And then we begin to grasp the implications of the biblical comparison between fire and the tongue. For if it is difficult to calculate the losses resulting from a forest fire, it is even more difficult to calculate the losses caused by an uncontrolled tongue. Reputations, friendships, self-esteem--the very testimony of God among men--have fallen charred and ruined before the onslaught of that little member which is "set on fire of hell." (v.6)
And no man can tame tame the tongue. But God can! He does not simply neutralize it, but he transforms it into an instrument of His praise. Desiring such a transformation, the psalmist prayed, "O Lord, open Thou my lips; and my mouth shall show forth thy praise." (Psalm 51:15). God also transforms the tongue into an instrument of blessing to others.
"Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another.... Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers." (Ephesians 4:25,29). A consecrated life includes a consecrated tongue as expressed so beautifully in the hymn by Francis Ridley Havergal G. W. Steidl
Take my lips and let them be filled with messages for thee.
Take my voice and let me sing always, only for my King. F. R. Havergal
N.J.Hiebert - 9068
A sign post along a beautifully wooded highway in Ontario reads, "Thoughtless people cause 80% of all forest fires." As we ponder the staggering loss of trees, wildlife, property, and even human lives through the flick of a match, we ask ourselves how people can be so careless with a thing as dangerous as fire.
And then we begin to grasp the implications of the biblical comparison between fire and the tongue. For if it is difficult to calculate the losses resulting from a forest fire, it is even more difficult to calculate the losses caused by an uncontrolled tongue. Reputations, friendships, self-esteem--the very testimony of God among men--have fallen charred and ruined before the onslaught of that little member which is "set on fire of hell." (v.6)
And no man can tame tame the tongue. But God can! He does not simply neutralize it, but he transforms it into an instrument of His praise. Desiring such a transformation, the psalmist prayed, "O Lord, open Thou my lips; and my mouth shall show forth thy praise." (Psalm 51:15). God also transforms the tongue into an instrument of blessing to others.
"Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another.... Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers." (Ephesians 4:25,29). A consecrated life includes a consecrated tongue as expressed so beautifully in the hymn by Francis Ridley Havergal G. W. Steidl
Take my lips and let them be filled with messages for thee.
Take my voice and let me sing always, only for my King. F. R. Havergal
N.J.Hiebert - 9068
December 22
God remembered Noah. Genesis 8:1
God remembered Abraham. Genesis 19:29
God remembered Rachel. Genesis 30:22
God remembers His people, whether on the grand earthly scale as with Noah, on a more local scale as with Abraham, or on a personal scale as with Rachel. He remembers that we are but dust and can by no means redeem ourselves. (Psalm 103:14) Because of this, He demonstrated His ultimate remembrance of us at the cross of Christ.
Now He says, "Their sins and iniquities will I remember no more" (Hebrews 10:17) When we come together, we should remember Him as He requested, "This do in remembrance of Me." (1 Corinthians 11:25)
Tom Steere
On that same night Lord Jesus,
When all around Thee joined
To cast its darkest shadow
Across Thy holy mind,
We hear Thy voice, blest Saviour,
"This do, remember Me:"
With joyful hearts responding,
We do remember Thee.
G. W. Frazer
N.J.Hiebert - 9069
God remembered Abraham. Genesis 19:29
God remembered Rachel. Genesis 30:22
God remembers His people, whether on the grand earthly scale as with Noah, on a more local scale as with Abraham, or on a personal scale as with Rachel. He remembers that we are but dust and can by no means redeem ourselves. (Psalm 103:14) Because of this, He demonstrated His ultimate remembrance of us at the cross of Christ.
Now He says, "Their sins and iniquities will I remember no more" (Hebrews 10:17) When we come together, we should remember Him as He requested, "This do in remembrance of Me." (1 Corinthians 11:25)
Tom Steere
On that same night Lord Jesus,
When all around Thee joined
To cast its darkest shadow
Across Thy holy mind,
We hear Thy voice, blest Saviour,
"This do, remember Me:"
With joyful hearts responding,
We do remember Thee.
G. W. Frazer
N.J.Hiebert - 9069
December 23
Every one that is of the truth heareth My voice.
John 18:37
The confession of a man, that he has not heard the voice of Jesus, is a tacit confession that he has not got the truth. Now I say again, above all things get the truth. I do not care what things I lose, or what I have not got, if I have got the truth. Give me the truth--the truth about everything, about God, about myself, about righteousness, about the claims, and the heart of God.
"God is love!" (1John 4:8) How do you know that? you ask. He gave His Son. "God is light!" (1John 1:5) What is the meaning of that? Light reveals all that is unlike, or opposed to itself; it touches the root of things, because light makes manifest. "God is love." The birth of Jesus, and the cross--the death of Jesus, prove the love of God. They are the demonstrations of that wonderful truth.
"God is light." Will He pass over sin? Impossible! The Word of God is simple and plain upon this point. "All have sinned;" (Romans 5:12) furthermore it says, "The wages of sin is death." (Romans 6:23) People try to explain death away, but you cannot.
You may gild your hearses, drape your coffins with costliest flowers, decorate your graveyards, and put up magnificent monuments on your tombs, but you cannot get rid of death; and death, we are told, entered into the world by sin (Romans 5:12)--the sin of the first man--Adam.
Seekers for Light - W. T. P. Wolston, M.D.
"For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23).
N.J.Hiebert - 9070
The confession of a man, that he has not heard the voice of Jesus, is a tacit confession that he has not got the truth. Now I say again, above all things get the truth. I do not care what things I lose, or what I have not got, if I have got the truth. Give me the truth--the truth about everything, about God, about myself, about righteousness, about the claims, and the heart of God.
"God is love!" (1John 4:8) How do you know that? you ask. He gave His Son. "God is light!" (1John 1:5) What is the meaning of that? Light reveals all that is unlike, or opposed to itself; it touches the root of things, because light makes manifest. "God is love." The birth of Jesus, and the cross--the death of Jesus, prove the love of God. They are the demonstrations of that wonderful truth.
"God is light." Will He pass over sin? Impossible! The Word of God is simple and plain upon this point. "All have sinned;" (Romans 5:12) furthermore it says, "The wages of sin is death." (Romans 6:23) People try to explain death away, but you cannot.
You may gild your hearses, drape your coffins with costliest flowers, decorate your graveyards, and put up magnificent monuments on your tombs, but you cannot get rid of death; and death, we are told, entered into the world by sin (Romans 5:12)--the sin of the first man--Adam.
Seekers for Light - W. T. P. Wolston, M.D.
"For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23).
N.J.Hiebert - 9070
December 24
". . . which keepeth truth forever:" Psalm 146:6
God never forgets His Word. Long ago He promised a Redeemer; and although He waited four thousand years, the promise at last was most surely fulfilled. He promised Abraham a son; and although a quarter of a century of testing intervened, the promise at last came literally true.
He promised Abraham the land of promise as an inheritance; and although four hundred years of trial intervened, at last the land was possessed. He promised Jeremiah that after seventy years the captives should return from Babylon; and on the very hour, the action answered to the Word.
He promised Daniel that at a definite time Messiah should appear; and the most extraordinary evidence that we have to offer to the doubting Hebrew today that Jesus is His Messiah, is the literal fulfillment of the prophecy of Daniel.
Just as true are God's promises to the believer. They are all "Yea and Amen" (2 Corinthians 1:20) in Christ Jesus. He has guaranteed them. The promises of God form a great cheque-book. Every one is endorsed by the Mediator, and His Word and honour are pledged to their fulfillment. To make them yours you must sign your name upon the back of the promise and then personally appropriate it.
Whosoever believeth on Him shall not be ashamed. Romans 10:11
Springs in the Valley
N.J.Hiebert - 9071
God never forgets His Word. Long ago He promised a Redeemer; and although He waited four thousand years, the promise at last was most surely fulfilled. He promised Abraham a son; and although a quarter of a century of testing intervened, the promise at last came literally true.
He promised Abraham the land of promise as an inheritance; and although four hundred years of trial intervened, at last the land was possessed. He promised Jeremiah that after seventy years the captives should return from Babylon; and on the very hour, the action answered to the Word.
He promised Daniel that at a definite time Messiah should appear; and the most extraordinary evidence that we have to offer to the doubting Hebrew today that Jesus is His Messiah, is the literal fulfillment of the prophecy of Daniel.
Just as true are God's promises to the believer. They are all "Yea and Amen" (2 Corinthians 1:20) in Christ Jesus. He has guaranteed them. The promises of God form a great cheque-book. Every one is endorsed by the Mediator, and His Word and honour are pledged to their fulfillment. To make them yours you must sign your name upon the back of the promise and then personally appropriate it.
Whosoever believeth on Him shall not be ashamed. Romans 10:11
Springs in the Valley
N.J.Hiebert - 9071
December 25
Ye have compassed this mountain long enough: turn you northward. Deuteronomy 2:3
It would take too long to tell what this word has said to me. I will only say it spoke about a mountain of thought round which I have walked rather often. It is time to stop compassing that mountain.
After settling that matter, I remembered one who for two whole years has been walking around a certain Mountain of Desire. When the desired thing was not given at the expected time, there was great disappointment.
Perhaps the Lord is saying to that one and to others who are constantly praying about something personally desired, Leave the matter to Me: you have prayed enough about it. You have compassed that mountain long enough.
I know another who always seems to be walking round a mountain of rubble. Self and the feeling of self, doubts, and questions, grumblings, little piled-up ingratitudes--what are these but rubble? Is it not very dull to keep on compassing so dull a mountain?
Hear the heartening word of the Lord, "Ye have compassed this mountain long enough: turn you northward. "Rise ye up, take your journey," (v.24) "Fight the good fight of faith," (1 Timothy 6:12) begin to "possess your possessions." (Obadiah 17) Edges of His Ways - Amy Carmichael
N.J.Hiebert - 9072
It would take too long to tell what this word has said to me. I will only say it spoke about a mountain of thought round which I have walked rather often. It is time to stop compassing that mountain.
After settling that matter, I remembered one who for two whole years has been walking around a certain Mountain of Desire. When the desired thing was not given at the expected time, there was great disappointment.
Perhaps the Lord is saying to that one and to others who are constantly praying about something personally desired, Leave the matter to Me: you have prayed enough about it. You have compassed that mountain long enough.
I know another who always seems to be walking round a mountain of rubble. Self and the feeling of self, doubts, and questions, grumblings, little piled-up ingratitudes--what are these but rubble? Is it not very dull to keep on compassing so dull a mountain?
Hear the heartening word of the Lord, "Ye have compassed this mountain long enough: turn you northward. "Rise ye up, take your journey," (v.24) "Fight the good fight of faith," (1 Timothy 6:12) begin to "possess your possessions." (Obadiah 17) Edges of His Ways - Amy Carmichael
N.J.Hiebert - 9072
December 26
HIS COMING AGAIN
Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven" Act 1:11
Angels usually call Him Lord. Yet when He ascended in glory the angels say, "This same Jesus." Now that our Lord has gone to heaven, clothed with all the majesty that rightly belongs to Him, our God does not want us to think that He is not still the same as when He walked the roads of Judea and Galilee, dispensing mercy and healing everywhere. Though shining with a glory above the brightness of the sun, He is the very same Saviour as when He sat on Sychar's well.
John, who leaned on Jesus' bosom, has not lost the Friend with a tender heart. Thomas who said, "My Lord, and my God," could still look for Him who said, "Reach hither thy finger and behold My hands, and reach hither thy hand and thrust it into My side, and be not faithless but believing" (John 20:27).
Peter, who held Him by the feet, and who said, "Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life" (John 6:68), will see that same blessed Saviour unchanged in the glory. Lazarus, who sat at the table with Him, and Zacchaeus of the sycamore tree can look for the very same Jesus to come back again. And Mary, who sat at His feet, will enjoy such a place forever.
The words of the angels would impress the hearts of each of the disciples with the precious fact that the One they had known would be eternally the same. None of them had lost the Saviour who spoke peace to their hearts. Not one had lost the Friend who so tenderly cared for him. It would have been so natural for all the disciples to feel that their exalted Lord, so marvellously transported to heaven, would not be the same as when He fed them with loaves and and fishes in the wilderness.
A Plant of Renown - Leonard Sheldrake
N.J.Hiebert - 9073
Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven" Act 1:11
Angels usually call Him Lord. Yet when He ascended in glory the angels say, "This same Jesus." Now that our Lord has gone to heaven, clothed with all the majesty that rightly belongs to Him, our God does not want us to think that He is not still the same as when He walked the roads of Judea and Galilee, dispensing mercy and healing everywhere. Though shining with a glory above the brightness of the sun, He is the very same Saviour as when He sat on Sychar's well.
John, who leaned on Jesus' bosom, has not lost the Friend with a tender heart. Thomas who said, "My Lord, and my God," could still look for Him who said, "Reach hither thy finger and behold My hands, and reach hither thy hand and thrust it into My side, and be not faithless but believing" (John 20:27).
Peter, who held Him by the feet, and who said, "Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life" (John 6:68), will see that same blessed Saviour unchanged in the glory. Lazarus, who sat at the table with Him, and Zacchaeus of the sycamore tree can look for the very same Jesus to come back again. And Mary, who sat at His feet, will enjoy such a place forever.
The words of the angels would impress the hearts of each of the disciples with the precious fact that the One they had known would be eternally the same. None of them had lost the Saviour who spoke peace to their hearts. Not one had lost the Friend who so tenderly cared for him. It would have been so natural for all the disciples to feel that their exalted Lord, so marvellously transported to heaven, would not be the same as when He fed them with loaves and and fishes in the wilderness.
A Plant of Renown - Leonard Sheldrake
N.J.Hiebert - 9073
December 27
- I am not able. Numbers 11:14
- He is able. 2 Timothy 1:12
Does the burden you bear seem too heavy for you? Moses declared, "I am not able to bear all this people alone, because it is too heavy for me." (Numbers 11:14) He wanted the Lord to just end his life and relieve him of his wretchedness.
But rather than removing the burden, God added His grace. How? through:
- His presence, "I will come down and talk with thee" Numbers11:17
- His power, "The spirit rested upon them." (v.25).
- His promise, "My word shall come to pass" (v.23).
The Lord has given us the very same resource! Today, let's be sure to enjoy the Lord's presence, draw on His power and rest in His promises.
Brian Cretney
He giveth more grace when the burdens grow greater,
He sendeth more strength when the labours increase.
A. J. Flint
N.J.Hiebert - 9074
- He is able. 2 Timothy 1:12
Does the burden you bear seem too heavy for you? Moses declared, "I am not able to bear all this people alone, because it is too heavy for me." (Numbers 11:14) He wanted the Lord to just end his life and relieve him of his wretchedness.
But rather than removing the burden, God added His grace. How? through:
- His presence, "I will come down and talk with thee" Numbers11:17
- His power, "The spirit rested upon them." (v.25).
- His promise, "My word shall come to pass" (v.23).
The Lord has given us the very same resource! Today, let's be sure to enjoy the Lord's presence, draw on His power and rest in His promises.
Brian Cretney
He giveth more grace when the burdens grow greater,
He sendeth more strength when the labours increase.
A. J. Flint
N.J.Hiebert - 9074
December 28
A certain man...fell among thieves which...wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead...But a certain Samaritan...came where he was...and had compassion on him, and went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.
(Luke 10:30-35).
Yesterday I was admitted to hospital for pacemaker surgery. Today, Lorne Perry sent the following message:
"Speaking of hearts, some dozen years before the invention of the heart pacemaker, there was a Pacemaker fast freight service between Chicago and New York, with dedicated boxcars. I remember some of those cars gravitating to my neighbourhood, long after this special service had been discontinued.
Now you have the latest model. The results are usually quite positive. Just a silent partner until needed.
Wonderful that our hearts can just keep ticking for so long. Something like our marriages, where heartfelt love beats just as strongly. The Lord is in charge. I have thought of medical procedures this way: when the Lord was here He spoke about the Good Samaritan who went to where the needy traveller lay wounded, pouring in oil (for soothing) and wine (as an antiseptic).
This was the best medical practice of the day, and endorsed by the Lord. So now we can, with confidence of His encouragement, accept the best that today's medical practitioners offer". Lorne Perry
"My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion forever." Psalm 73:26
N.J.Hiebert - 9075
Yesterday I was admitted to hospital for pacemaker surgery. Today, Lorne Perry sent the following message:
"Speaking of hearts, some dozen years before the invention of the heart pacemaker, there was a Pacemaker fast freight service between Chicago and New York, with dedicated boxcars. I remember some of those cars gravitating to my neighbourhood, long after this special service had been discontinued.
Now you have the latest model. The results are usually quite positive. Just a silent partner until needed.
Wonderful that our hearts can just keep ticking for so long. Something like our marriages, where heartfelt love beats just as strongly. The Lord is in charge. I have thought of medical procedures this way: when the Lord was here He spoke about the Good Samaritan who went to where the needy traveller lay wounded, pouring in oil (for soothing) and wine (as an antiseptic).
This was the best medical practice of the day, and endorsed by the Lord. So now we can, with confidence of His encouragement, accept the best that today's medical practitioners offer". Lorne Perry
"My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion forever." Psalm 73:26
N.J.Hiebert - 9075
December 29
But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. Galatians 4:4-5
What an exciting thought-- "When the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth His Son." For centuries, which grew darker, the faithful people of God waited for the promised Messiah who would reign, according to Isaiah 9:6, as "Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."
Isaiah goes on to say that "of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end...to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even forever. (v.7)
But when would He come? When would be this "fullness of the time"? It is not too difficult for us today to identify with the desire and longing expressed in the prophesies of the Old Testament that speak of a Redeemer who would come to deliver His people from the oppression and trouble all around them. We too live in similar times. While there are a few bright spots of hope, they are quickly overshadowed by the vast amounts of selfishness, misery, strife, despair, and destruction all around us.
But there is one great difference between then and now. The "fullness of the time" has come! And all who believe "God sent His Son...that we might receive the adoption of sons" can join with the writer Phillips Brooks and sing that "The hopes and fears of all the years are met in Thee tonight."
The millennial time is yet to come when our Lord will reign physically upon the earth in the manner described by Isaiah and the other prophets. But the time is here and now for each one of us to receive "the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:7). We can enjoy Him now if we recognize and own Him as the One sent to redeem us from our sins. L. J. Ondrejack
N.J.Hiebert - 9076
What an exciting thought-- "When the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth His Son." For centuries, which grew darker, the faithful people of God waited for the promised Messiah who would reign, according to Isaiah 9:6, as "Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."
Isaiah goes on to say that "of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end...to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even forever. (v.7)
But when would He come? When would be this "fullness of the time"? It is not too difficult for us today to identify with the desire and longing expressed in the prophesies of the Old Testament that speak of a Redeemer who would come to deliver His people from the oppression and trouble all around them. We too live in similar times. While there are a few bright spots of hope, they are quickly overshadowed by the vast amounts of selfishness, misery, strife, despair, and destruction all around us.
But there is one great difference between then and now. The "fullness of the time" has come! And all who believe "God sent His Son...that we might receive the adoption of sons" can join with the writer Phillips Brooks and sing that "The hopes and fears of all the years are met in Thee tonight."
The millennial time is yet to come when our Lord will reign physically upon the earth in the manner described by Isaiah and the other prophets. But the time is here and now for each one of us to receive "the peace of God, which passes all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:7). We can enjoy Him now if we recognize and own Him as the One sent to redeem us from our sins. L. J. Ondrejack
N.J.Hiebert - 9076
December 30
And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
John 1:14
Living in obscurity at Nazareth, our Lord began His public ministry when about thirty years of age. That wonderful ministry only lasted a brief time. What a wonderful three-and-a-half years it was! His life was unique. No life was ever like His.
He healed the sick. He raised the dead. He cast out devils. The common people heard Him gladly. They wondered at the gracious words that fell from His lips. He answered questions with a wisdom none could gainsay. He never apologized.
He never withdrew a single thing that He did. He never uttered a word He had to withdraw. His life was without reproach. Nay, every step He took, every word He spoke, was music to heaven. A stream of miracles followed Him wherever He went.
He undid the works of the Devil. And He went on to the cross of Calvary to die the sacrificial death, to be the mediator, the Saviour. The Christian religion is the only religion that presents a Saviour to mankind. All man-made religions appeal to the pride of man in that they put salvation before him as the climax of his own endeavours. A. J. Pollock - Why I believe the Bible
N.J.Hiebert - 9077
Living in obscurity at Nazareth, our Lord began His public ministry when about thirty years of age. That wonderful ministry only lasted a brief time. What a wonderful three-and-a-half years it was! His life was unique. No life was ever like His.
He healed the sick. He raised the dead. He cast out devils. The common people heard Him gladly. They wondered at the gracious words that fell from His lips. He answered questions with a wisdom none could gainsay. He never apologized.
He never withdrew a single thing that He did. He never uttered a word He had to withdraw. His life was without reproach. Nay, every step He took, every word He spoke, was music to heaven. A stream of miracles followed Him wherever He went.
He undid the works of the Devil. And He went on to the cross of Calvary to die the sacrificial death, to be the mediator, the Saviour. The Christian religion is the only religion that presents a Saviour to mankind. All man-made religions appeal to the pride of man in that they put salvation before him as the climax of his own endeavours. A. J. Pollock - Why I believe the Bible
N.J.Hiebert - 9077
December 31
Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in His law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not whither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. Psalm 1:1-3.
One day, deep in the forest, we came upon a rock in midstream scooped by the backwash of immemorial waters to a hollow like the palm of a man's hand. Over this rock fell a crystal sheet of water, and through that moving clearness we saw maidenhair fern growing in lovely profusion in the hollow of the hand.
It was not the place where we should have planted a fern; at any moment it might have been tossed, a piteous, crumpled mass, down the shouting river--this is how it seemed to us. But it was safe. The falls flowed over it, not on it. And it was blessed.
When the fern on the bank shrivelled in heat, it was green, for it was watered all the year long by dust of spray. So does our wonderful God turn that which had seemed to be a perpetual threat to a perpetual benediction. Is there anything to fear with such a God? Rose From Briar - Amy Carmichael
Be not dismayed what e'er betide, God will take care of you;
Beneath His wings of love abide, God will take care of you.
Thro' days of toil when heart doth fail, God will take care of you;
When dangers fierce your path assail, God will take care of you.
All you may need He will provide, God will take care of you;
Nothing you ask will be denied, God will take care of you.
No matter what may be the test, God will take care of you;
Lean, weary one upon, His breast, God will take care of you. C. D. Martin
N.J.Hiebert - 9078
One day, deep in the forest, we came upon a rock in midstream scooped by the backwash of immemorial waters to a hollow like the palm of a man's hand. Over this rock fell a crystal sheet of water, and through that moving clearness we saw maidenhair fern growing in lovely profusion in the hollow of the hand.
It was not the place where we should have planted a fern; at any moment it might have been tossed, a piteous, crumpled mass, down the shouting river--this is how it seemed to us. But it was safe. The falls flowed over it, not on it. And it was blessed.
When the fern on the bank shrivelled in heat, it was green, for it was watered all the year long by dust of spray. So does our wonderful God turn that which had seemed to be a perpetual threat to a perpetual benediction. Is there anything to fear with such a God? Rose From Briar - Amy Carmichael
Be not dismayed what e'er betide, God will take care of you;
Beneath His wings of love abide, God will take care of you.
Thro' days of toil when heart doth fail, God will take care of you;
When dangers fierce your path assail, God will take care of you.
All you may need He will provide, God will take care of you;
Nothing you ask will be denied, God will take care of you.
No matter what may be the test, God will take care of you;
Lean, weary one upon, His breast, God will take care of you. C. D. Martin
N.J.Hiebert - 9078
January 1
COVERED by the MOST HIGH
For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more. Hebrews 8:12
- The beach does not cover itself.
- It is covered by the sea.
- The shore does not change itself.
- It is shaped by the tides.
- The sea edge does not diminish its own size.
- The ocean does this as it sweeps in upon it.
- The alterations and rearrangements of the coast are the eternal work of the eternal tides.
And in my life as one who lies open, exposed and receptive to the action of The Most High, it is He who will cover and conform me to His own pattern of ultimate perfection.
- He does not relent.
- He does not rest.
- He neither slumbers nor sleeps.
It is He who is at work upon my soul and within my spirit both to will and to do according to His own grand designs.
The incoming of Christ by His sublime Sprit always changes the contours of our lives. Once we have been filled with all the fullness of His grace and goodness we are never the same again. His presence can inundate every crevice, can fill every corner of our convoluted lives. Songs of My Soul - W. Phillip Keller
N.J.Hiebert - 9079
For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more. Hebrews 8:12
- The beach does not cover itself.
- It is covered by the sea.
- The shore does not change itself.
- It is shaped by the tides.
- The sea edge does not diminish its own size.
- The ocean does this as it sweeps in upon it.
- The alterations and rearrangements of the coast are the eternal work of the eternal tides.
And in my life as one who lies open, exposed and receptive to the action of The Most High, it is He who will cover and conform me to His own pattern of ultimate perfection.
- He does not relent.
- He does not rest.
- He neither slumbers nor sleeps.
It is He who is at work upon my soul and within my spirit both to will and to do according to His own grand designs.
The incoming of Christ by His sublime Sprit always changes the contours of our lives. Once we have been filled with all the fullness of His grace and goodness we are never the same again. His presence can inundate every crevice, can fill every corner of our convoluted lives. Songs of My Soul - W. Phillip Keller
N.J.Hiebert - 9079
January 2
THE BIBLE
For the Word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Hebrews 4:12
My Book! my Book! my grand old Book! by inspiration given! There every page from age to age, reveals the path to heaven; My Lamp of Light! in nature's night, thy un-beclouded ray Has turned the gloom of death's cold tomb to everlasting day.
My Chart! my Chart! my changeless Chart by thee I guide my bark, A simple child on ocean wild, o'er mountain billows dark; By thee I steer my safe career, with canvas all unfurled, And onward sail before the gale, to yonder blissful world.
My Staff! my Staff! my trusty Staff! I'll grasp thee in my hand, As faint and weak on Pisgah's peak, I view the promised land; Not sadly told, as one of old, to see--but to explore, My hold I'll keep through Jordan's deep till safe on Canaan's shore.
My Sword! my Sword! my two-edged sword! by thy unerring might, I deal my foe the deadly blow, in faith's unequal fight; Thy tempered blade, that lent me aid in every conflict past, Shall make me more than conqueror, through Him who loved, at last.
My Book! my Chart! my Staff! my Sword! heaven speed thee on thy way From pole to pole, as ages roll, the harbinger of day, Till Christ "the Light," shall banish night from this terrestrial ball,
And earth shall see her Jubilee, and God be all in all.
(Author unknown) Christian Treasury December 1990
N.J. Hiebert - 9080
For the Word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Hebrews 4:12
My Book! my Book! my grand old Book! by inspiration given! There every page from age to age, reveals the path to heaven; My Lamp of Light! in nature's night, thy un-beclouded ray Has turned the gloom of death's cold tomb to everlasting day.
My Chart! my Chart! my changeless Chart by thee I guide my bark, A simple child on ocean wild, o'er mountain billows dark; By thee I steer my safe career, with canvas all unfurled, And onward sail before the gale, to yonder blissful world.
My Staff! my Staff! my trusty Staff! I'll grasp thee in my hand, As faint and weak on Pisgah's peak, I view the promised land; Not sadly told, as one of old, to see--but to explore, My hold I'll keep through Jordan's deep till safe on Canaan's shore.
My Sword! my Sword! my two-edged sword! by thy unerring might, I deal my foe the deadly blow, in faith's unequal fight; Thy tempered blade, that lent me aid in every conflict past, Shall make me more than conqueror, through Him who loved, at last.
My Book! my Chart! my Staff! my Sword! heaven speed thee on thy way From pole to pole, as ages roll, the harbinger of day, Till Christ "the Light," shall banish night from this terrestrial ball,
And earth shall see her Jubilee, and God be all in all.
(Author unknown) Christian Treasury December 1990
N.J. Hiebert - 9080
January 3
INSISTING OR SUFFERING
But and if ye suffer for righteousness' sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid ... neither be troubled." 1 Peter 3:14 "The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished." 2 Peter 2:9
It is recorded that 80% of the town of Meulaboh in Aceh (part of Indonesia) was destroyed by the Tsunami that struck on December 26, 2004. Meulaboh, also lost over 80% of its population--souls instantly swept into eternity in that awful disaster. Though the majority of Meulaboh's residents follow the practices of Islam, among them are 400 professing Christians.
The Christians had wanted to come together on December 25th for an all day 'Christian' celebration. Evidently, religious authorities in Meulaboh forbade such a gathering. The Christians were told that if they wanted to be together for a special celebration on December 25th, they should go outside the city of Meulaboh, climb a rugged mountain where, at the top, they could meet together for the day.
Rather than complaining or going to 'civil' authorities to demand their 'legal' rights, the 400 Christians, submitting to religious persecution, left the city on December 25th and climbed to the mountain top, there spending the day together. Because of the arduous climb, they stayed at the top that night.
On Sunday morning, December 26, 2004, the terrible magnitude 9 earthquake struck, followed by Tsunami waves which are estimated to have taken well over a quarter million lives in that vast area. When the Tsunami struck Meulaboh, most of the city was destroyed and thousands were killed. The 400 Christians, however, who had submitted to religious harassment and persecution were still on the mountain top, safe from the destruction. Not one life was lost.
Our hearts ache for all the suffering caused by this terrible disaster allowed by God. How solemn to think of the vast number of souls swept so suddenly into eternity. God is surely speaking plainly, warning this Christ rejecting world of a far worse, coming judgment. May dear souls take heed (see Acts 17:31, Romans 12:19).
Let us soberly ask ourselves an obvious question. What would have happened to the 400 Christians had they demanded their 'rights' and received permission from the civil authorities to remain in the town of Meulaboh for their December 25th gathering? The Christian Shepherd - Doug Nicolet - March 2007
N.J.Hiebert - 9081
But and if ye suffer for righteousness' sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid ... neither be troubled." 1 Peter 3:14 "The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished." 2 Peter 2:9
It is recorded that 80% of the town of Meulaboh in Aceh (part of Indonesia) was destroyed by the Tsunami that struck on December 26, 2004. Meulaboh, also lost over 80% of its population--souls instantly swept into eternity in that awful disaster. Though the majority of Meulaboh's residents follow the practices of Islam, among them are 400 professing Christians.
The Christians had wanted to come together on December 25th for an all day 'Christian' celebration. Evidently, religious authorities in Meulaboh forbade such a gathering. The Christians were told that if they wanted to be together for a special celebration on December 25th, they should go outside the city of Meulaboh, climb a rugged mountain where, at the top, they could meet together for the day.
Rather than complaining or going to 'civil' authorities to demand their 'legal' rights, the 400 Christians, submitting to religious persecution, left the city on December 25th and climbed to the mountain top, there spending the day together. Because of the arduous climb, they stayed at the top that night.
On Sunday morning, December 26, 2004, the terrible magnitude 9 earthquake struck, followed by Tsunami waves which are estimated to have taken well over a quarter million lives in that vast area. When the Tsunami struck Meulaboh, most of the city was destroyed and thousands were killed. The 400 Christians, however, who had submitted to religious harassment and persecution were still on the mountain top, safe from the destruction. Not one life was lost.
Our hearts ache for all the suffering caused by this terrible disaster allowed by God. How solemn to think of the vast number of souls swept so suddenly into eternity. God is surely speaking plainly, warning this Christ rejecting world of a far worse, coming judgment. May dear souls take heed (see Acts 17:31, Romans 12:19).
Let us soberly ask ourselves an obvious question. What would have happened to the 400 Christians had they demanded their 'rights' and received permission from the civil authorities to remain in the town of Meulaboh for their December 25th gathering? The Christian Shepherd - Doug Nicolet - March 2007
N.J.Hiebert - 9081
January 4
posted by soundwords at
December 01, 2022
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