Gems from August 2023
WEATHER WATCHERS
He that observeth the winds shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap. Ecclesiastes 11:4
If a farmer waited until he was sure of the weather he would never raise a crop. He has to reckon with the weather and contend with it, but he cannot be sure of it. So every year he makes a venture of faith.
We cannot let the wind and clouds of circumstance determine our course. We cannot grow a harvest for God with one eye on the weather. Just as with the farmer, circumstances are to be considered, and we shall not foolishly disregard them. But we must not let them be the main factors in making our decisions.
Too many saints live fearfully from one “weather report” to another, scanning the skies and watching the clouds, conscious of “conditions“ rather than of Christ. Faith goes ahead in fair weather and foul. It breaks up the fallow ground, sows the seed, cultivates the crop, and gathers the harvest.
There may be pests and floods and droughts, but the Lord of the Harvest will see to it that our labour is not in vain. Day by Day with Vance Havner
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August 1
Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. Ye are My friends.
John 15:13,14
What a Friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear! What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer!
O, what peace we often forfeit, O, what needless pain we bear; All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer!
Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere? We should never be discouraged; Take it to the Lord in prayer.
Can we find a Friend so faithful, Who will all our sorrows share? Jesus knows our every weakness—Take it to the Lord in prayer.
Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care? Precious Saviour, still our refuge,—take it to the Lord in prayer.
Do thy friends despise, forsake thee? Take it to the Lord in prayer; In His arms He’ll take and shield thee, thou wilt find a solace there.
Joseph M. Scriven (1819—1886)
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We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. 1 John 3:14
Sorrows and trials are not only like the sand and grit that polish a stone, but I shall be made to taste, through the trouble, what Christ is to me.
If an angel from heaven were to come to my bedside, and tell me that Christ was occupied with me, as a member of His body, should I be more certain of that love than I am?
It is no delusion but a fact, that Christ loves me, and will love me right on to the end; and He will not cease making me know it till He gets me into the Father’s house to be eternally in the full fruition of it.
What a happy people we should be if we were mirrors reflecting Christ, in the perfect consciousness of our weakness, but looking at Christ in heaven, bearing up amidst all the evil that is coming in like a flood, because He is up there!
Gleanings From the Teaching of - G. V. Wigram
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The heart knoweth his own bitterness. Proverbs 14:10
There is one heart that fits into that sentence; It is the heart that was broken by reproach; that was melted in the hot furnace of deepest affliction, and that experienced the unspeakable bitterness of Calvary’s woe.
The Father knows and understands what it meant to His Son to bear sin’s judgment, and the Holy Spirit can gauge the infinite depths of suffering into which He went when He suffered, the Just One for us the unjust; but none other in the wide universe can share with Him the knowledge of the mystery of those awful hours, the bitterness of the cup that He drank then, or know the cost that redemption laid upon Him.
The suffering is over now and the judgment is all exhausted for us forever, for He has been raised up from the dead, but His love abides in all its unchanging strength, and it can only be measured by what it suffered. J. T Mawson
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Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows. Matt. 10:29-31
There is nothing great or small to Him who rules the world. Page after page in God’s blessed Book reveals this. Those who delight to follow the unfolding of the Divine purpose, in the minute chain of circumstances developed there, will love to see God everywhere, and to find a speech and language in the daily events of life: the heart will be full of Him who filleth all creation.
When the stripling shepherd (1 Sam. 17;17) took corn and loaves to his brethren, it was his first step towards the throne. Ahasuerus’s sleepless night led to (Esther 6:1-10) Mordecai’s promotion. When Ruth went forth to glean in the fields of Boaz, (Ruth 2:2-3) she knew not that her foot was on her own fair inheritance.
When the woman of Samaria (John 4:6-39) carried her pitcher to the well, it was to meet One greater than her father Abraham, and One who gave unto her the living water.
The Lord, will be all things to us according to our faith. He manifests Himself as the Friend who sticketh closer than a brother. Whatever thy need; the almighty Lord can meet it.
He condescended to encourage the timid Gideon (Judges 6:37,39:713) by a twofold sign, and strengthen him by by the narration of a dream. He manifests Himself to the doubting Thomas (John 24-28) in the way best calculated to dispel his doubt and remove his unbelief. He is still the same Jesus. He knows the hearts He has to deal with. He knew what we were when He called us to follow Him. He foresaw that we should distrust Him, deny Him, forsake Him. But He is the Almighty God, and not man; He loves us with an everlasting love.
The Lord who said, “I will bring the blind by a way they know not,” (Isaiah 42:16) also promised, “Thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left” (Isaiah 30:21).
The Secret of the Lord - Anna Shipton
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Inclusive of all (or most) except God!
For the terrible one is brought to nought, and the scorner is consumed, and all that watch for iniquity are cut off: That make a man an offender for a word, and lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate, and turn aside the just for a thing of nought. (Isaiah 29:20)
Some topics are very sensitive to many people. Some take offence at one ill chosen word. Public discourse is highly monitored and any carelessness is quickly pointed out and brought to light. Many have lost job or social position over some word or expression many a time gratuitously qualified as “hate speech”. Reminds me of God’s warning to such persecutors—(Isaiah 29:20)
We have new nouns and pronouns being promoted for people: non-binary person for one confused about their identity, gender fluid a similar confusion, they for her or him, birthing person for mother! Now, how about MAP, for Minor Attracted Person (not to be so bigoted as to call them pedophiles).
Is it not time to wake up and take note of the very perilous times we are in when good is called evil and evil is called good. (Isaiah 5:20)
God speaking through His prophet Isaiah says: Judgment is turned away backward, and justice stands afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter. Yea, truth fails; and he that departs from evil makes himself a prey: and the LORD saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment. (Isaiah.29:20).
Michel for Vision 2020 in 2023
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I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me. Galatians 2:20
One subject for which there is an open season for criticism, and often qualified as bigotry, closed mindedness or archaic beliefs is the Christian faith and the God it confides in. Berating the Lord Jesus Christ is not passible of any legal pursuit or public reproach. Yet the One to Whom all will have to answer to is still waiting in patience to eternally bless some ultimate lost soul.
There is judgment coming; make no mistake about it! But God is patient not willing that any should perish. You may ignore this message, pass it on (we hope), or send it to the trash box on your computer.
But, sincerely, our desire is only to afford you perhaps one last opportunity to turn to God and put you trust in One Who loves you and was ready to give His life for you by dying on the cross for your sins.
The Lord Jesus Christ is the only One Who can save you from the judgment which is soon to fall upon this guilty Christ rejecting world. They hated Him without a cause! yet, He loved them still!
His love constrains us to urge you to believe in Him and be able to say as the apostle Paul did: ”The Son of God Who loved me and gave Himself for me.”
Michel for Vision 2020 in 2023
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For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men. Titus 2:11
The Christian is not to
Receive the grace of God in vain (2 Corinthians 6:1)
Set aside the grace of God (Galatians 2:21)
Fall away from grace (Galatians 5:4)
Do despite unto the Spirit of grace (Hebrews 10:29)
Fall sort of the grace of God (Hebrews 12:15)
Turn the grace of God into lasciviousness (Jude 4)
But on the contrary, the Christian is to
1. Continue in the grace of God (Acts 13:43)
2. Stand in grace (Romans 5:2 Compare 1 Peter 5:12)
3. Be strengthened in the grace that is Christ Jesus (2 Timothy 2:1)
4. Draw near with boldness unto the throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16)
5. Be established in heart by grace (Hebrews 13:9)
6. Grow in the grace of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18) Meditations on Galatians - G. C. Willis
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For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:9
What a challenge it is to be taught by God Himself!
When we consider the school of God, we must acknowledge that there we not only have to learn many things, but that we also have to “unlearn” other things, because we entered His school with our minds set to our own ways. God speaks so His thoughts as being higher than our thoughts, and of His ways as different from ours. This is what we learn in the school of God.
God’s school places emphasis upon discipline, even for lovers of God. Perhaps we don’t like this subject, because in our minds it has negative connotations. However, discipline is positive; it is meant to draw us. Certain languages, like Dutch and German, have a word for discipline, the root of which refers to the basic thought of drawing. Discipline actually is kind of being drawn:
—drawn to the Father of lights, (James 1:17)
—drawn to the Lord of Glory, (1 Corinthians 2:8)
—drawn to the wisdom from above, (James 3:17)
—drawn through the Holy Spirit, who is in control. (Romans 8:9)
That is God’s principle of discipline. If we follow our own ways, God sometimes has to deal with us in a severe manner in order to remove hindrances and obstacles. He has to stop us, sometimes even force us, although He doesn’t like to do so.
God wants to act according to the principle of attraction, but at times He has to correct us or to punish us in His governmental dealings. A. E. Bouter
Submission to the will of Him Who guides me still is surety of His love revealed.
My soul shall rise above this world in which I move;
I conquer only where I yield. C. A, Miles
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Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of Me. John 5:39
The empire of Caesar is gone, the legions of Rome are mouldering in the dust; the avalanches that Napoleon hurled upon Europe have melted away; The pride of the Pharaohs is fallen; Tyre is a rock for bleaching fisherman’s nets; Sidon has scarcely scarcely left a wreck behind; but the Word of God still survives.
All things that threaten to extinguish it, have only aided it; and it proves every day how transient is the noblest monument that man can build, how enduring is the least word God has spoken. The old simile of the hammers and the anvil is one of the truest and best.
One day I passed beside a smithy’s door, and heard the anvil sound the vesper chime;
Then, looking in, I saw upon the floor, old hammers worn with beating years of time.
How many anvils have you here, said I, to wear and batter all these hammers so?
Just one, the blacksmith said, with twinkling eye; the anvil wears the hammers out, you know.
And so, said I, the anvil of God’s Word, for ages skeptic blows have beat upon;
Yet, though the sound of hammers thus was heard, the anvil yet remains; the hammer’s—gone! The Wonderful Word - George Hnderson
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For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus the same night in which He was betrayed took bread: and when He had given thanks He brake it, and said, Take, eat: This is my body which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of Me. 1 Corinthians11:23-24
The Lord Jesus cannot bear to be forgotten by those He loves to the end. Worthless hearts, some may say truly. Yes, but Jesus cares for them: He has died to make them His, and counts on remembrance of Him—giving us only that which may be the sweet expression of Him and His death for us.
If the supper of the Lord means anything then, it meant this, that we love Him and miss Him in the world that cast Him out. He invests it with just this character Himself. “For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup ye do show the Lord’s death till He come.” (v.26).
It is in a scene that has been desolated for her by the death of Christ, and in which the Christ’s assembly finds no rest for her heart, only lingering around the spot where His cross and grave express the heart of the world towards Him. We know Him by faith in the glory, and have rest in communion with Him there. This only make us feel the world’s rejection of Him more keenly as we walk our path through it. It makes the cross that by which the world is crucified to us and we to the world.
We recoil in our hearts from this blighted scene, and get away in spirit as far as possible from it, for we are only seeking more complete identification with Him in His rejection, as the best and brightest portion He can give us in such a world.
This is not the attainment of an advanced Christian, but what Christ looks for from every heart that loves Him. Hear Him say “This do in remembrance of Me,“ and again,”Ye do show the Lord’s death till He come.” It is not as though He were saying, “Do they miss Me? Do they long for Me to come again? What answer do lour hearts give to these challenges of His Love? J. A. Trench
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Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth forever. 1 Peter 1:23
An old professor of Biology used to hold a little brown seed in his hand and say, “I know just exactly the composition of this seed.
It has in it nitrogen, hydrogen and carbon. I know the exact proportions. I can make a seed that will look exactly like it. But if I plant my seed it will come to nought: its elements will be absorbed in the soil.
If I plant the seed that God made, it will become a plant, because it contains the mysterious principle which we call “the life principle”.
The Bible looks like other books. We cannot understand altogether its marvellous power. Planted in good ground it shows that it has the life principle in itself; it brings forth spiritual fruit.”
Each page of thine hath true life in it,
And God’s bright mind expressed in print.
Christain Calendar
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But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced His side, and forthwith came there out blood and water.
John 19:34
QUESTION: Please explain why it was necessary that the spear should be thrust into the side of Christ, seeing He was already dead. Was His death not full payment to God for sin? Why is it said, "It is the blood [not the death] that maketh an atonement for the soul?
(Leviticus 17:11) .
ANSWER:The spear thrust into the side (the heart) of Christ showed to all that His death was real, and moreover drew out those tokens of atonement and purification (blood and water) on which we rest, and by which we are cleansed.
The death of Christ was a full atonement for sin, but blood out of the body, apart from it, is a proof of death (in the body, it is the life of it); and hence the blood is every where used for the atoning value of the death of Christ; not that blood is different from death, but because it is a proof of it.
The blood "making atonement" is a more beautiful thought than the death, because it means the perfect life given up in death. The blood which was the life, now poured forth in death, is that which is so precious in God's sight.
You will observe that when the death is spoken of, it is more often in connection with resurrection, presenting the truth of deliverance from sin (Romans 6), rather than atonement for sins (Romans 3) The Young Christian, 1932
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Giving things always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Ephesians 5:20
1 Thanks to God for my Redeemer,
Thanks for all Thou dost provide!
Thanks for times now but a mem’ry,
Thanks for Jesus by my side!
Thanks for pleasant, balmy spring-time,
Thanks for dark and dreary fall!
Thanks for tears by now forgotten,
Thanks for peace within my soul!
2 Thanks for prayers that Thou hast answered,
Thanks for what Thou dost deny!
Thanks for storms that I have weathered,
Thanks for all Thou dost supply!
Thanks for pain, and thanks for pleasure,
Thanks for comfort in despair!
Thanks for grace that none can measure,
Thanks for love beyond compare!
3 Thanks for roses by the way-side,
Thanks for thorns their stems contain!
Thanks for home and thanks for fire-side,
Thanks for hope, that sweet refrain!
Thanks for joy and thanks for sorrow,
Thanks for heavenly peace with Thee!
Thanks for hope in the tomorrow,
Thanks through all eternity!
August Ludvig Storm -1891
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Godliness with contentment is great gain.
1 Timothy 6:6
To give us Christ is more than if God had given us all the world. He can make more worlds, but He has no more Christs to bestow. If you have but daily bread enough to suffice, be content. Consider it is not having abundance that always makes life comfortable. A staff may help the traveler, but a bundle of staves will be a burden to him.
“What time I am afraid, I will trust in Thee.” (Pslam 56:3) Faith cures the trembling in heart; it gets above fear as oil swims above the water. To trust in God makes Him to be a God to us. God will turn all evils to our good (Romans 8:28). Joseph’s imprisonment was a means for his advancement.
Out of the bitterest drug He will distil His glory and our salvation. In short, He will be our guide to death, our comfort in death, and our reward after death. “Happy is that people, whose . . . God is the LORD”
(Psalm 144:15).
Thomas Watson
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For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:9
My host asked if I liked the painting on his wall. I stammered something polite. Amused, he suggested I step back a few feet. To my amazement, what was once blurry and nondescript, suddenly became clear and beautiful!
Perhaps there is something in your life that seems hard to decipher and difficult to understand. God sees the bigger picture. From His point of view, the seemingly mismatched colours and randomly drawn shapes all are at work to create a beautiful masterpiece.
Allow the Lord to have His way, and trust the final product to Him.
Lynn Shatford
Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, but trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence, He hides a smiling face.
His purposes will ripen fast, unfolding every hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste, but sweet will be the flower.
Blind unbelief is sure to err, and scan His work in vain;
God is His Own interpreter, and He will make it plain.
William Cowper
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And we know that all things work together for good to them that love of God, to them who are the called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28
Years ago, before the advent of chemistry, a science called alchemy existed, and alchemist had a passion: finding a way to transform worthless metals into gold. Of course, they never succeeded. But God is the master alchemist. He has a passion for taking all things and working them for good.
Charles Spurgeon tells about one man who had complete faith that God would work everything for his good. During the reign of Queen Mary 1 of England, this man was captured for preaching the Gospel. He received the sentence of being burned alive at the stake in London.
When he heard the sentence, he said, “Well, never mind. God will work all things together for my good. I don’t know how, but He will.” On his way to London, the guards treated the man roughly. In fact they they even threw him down to the ground, and broke his leg. Then they mocked the man, saying, "well, tell us how this will work together for your good." He said, "I don't know,
but it will."
Before they could continue their trip, the guards had to take time to put the man’s leg into a splint. Because of this delay, the group arrived in London a day later than the guards had planned.
But the night before they arrived, Queen Mary died, and Elizabeth had taken the throne. Instead of burning the man at the stake, Elizabeth pardoned him. So, although his broken leg was a bad thing, God used it for his good, saving his life through the delay it caused.
Remember that God is in charge. He sees the big picture; He knows the future. He controls all things, and He loves you more than you can imagine. Trust Him and even thank Him for situations that seem bad, because He works all things together for your good. With thanks, F. Charters
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But this Man (Jesus), after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God. Hebrews 10:12
The cross was the manifestation of goodness, in the midst of the wickedness of the world, in a way never to be found anywhere else.
During Christ’s lifetime the heavens would open upon Him, and testify to His perfection and the Father’s delight in Him; and thus I learn the terrible evil of the heart that could resist such goodness.
When I come to the cross, what a wretched creature I see myself to be; I have hated this blessed One, and, more than that, my sins brought Him there.
But He is not there now! I come to the cross, and there is no Christ on it. Where is He? He is sitting at the right hand of God. But my sins brought Him to the cross; they were on Him there. Has He gone to God’s right hand in glory with them upon Him? No!
What has become of them? I find in the cross that God has dealt with my sins when they were upon Christ. It was when He had by Himself purged our sins that He sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high. (Hebrews 1:3)
The Jewish priests were standing daily, offering oftentimes the same sacrifices but this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins, forever sat down. J. N. Darby
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His delight is in the law of the LORD; and in His law doth He meditate day and night. Psalm 1:2
Meditation is the soul’s retiring of itself, that by a serious and solemn thinking upon God, the heart may be raised up to heavenly affections.
Meditation OPPOSED BY THE DEVIL
The devil is an enemy to meditation; he cares not how much people read and hear, nor how little they meditate; he knows that meditation is a means to compose the heart, and to bring it into a gracious frame; now the devil is against that; Satan is content that you should be hearing and praying Christians, so that you be not meditating Christians, he can stand your small shot, provided that you do not put in this bullet.
Meditation HINDERED BY THE WORLD
A Christian when he goes to meditate, must lock up himself from the world. The world spoils meditation; Christ went "apart" into the mount to pray, so go apart when you are to meditate; "Isaac went out to meditate in the field" (Genesis 24:63). He sequestered and retired himself that he might take a walk with God by meditation. The world's music will either play us asleep, or distract us in our meditations.
When a mote is gotten into the eye, it hinders the sight; when worldly thoughts, as motes, are gotten into the mind, which is the eye of the soul, it cannot look up so steadfastly to heaven by contemplation.
When Abraham went to sacrifice he left his servant and the donkey at the bottom of the hill (Genesis 22:5), so, when a Christian is going up the hill of meditation, he should leave all secular cares at the bottom of the hill, that he may be alone, and take a turn in heaven. This is the first thing, lock and bolt the door against the world. Meditation - Thomas Watson
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The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness; but is long-suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9
Warning shots (Part 1)
The warship fires its guns pointing its turrets to the sea. This signals that should the pursed ship or shore facility not respond immediately and adequately, the next shots will be on target.
The policeman fires his gun into the air warning the fleeing criminal that the next shots will wound or even be fatal should he not stop and surrender.
Have you noticed the warning shots lately? Forest fires across Europe and North America even lately Hawaii, the paradise island? Flooding here and there! Excessive heat, record-breaking in many places. All this is attributed in the media to climate change. This could very well be the means God is using but, make no mistake, He is behind these warning shots.
We need to stop and surrender to God. He is warning us of much more severe judgments now appearing clearly on the horizon. Do not be negligent of His patience. He is not willing that any should perish but some will and we pray you would not be part of those. (2 Peter 3:9)
The moral and political atmosphere of this world has never been more opposed to the God now revealed from heaven. Take notice of the warning shots; stop and listen to the instructions following these. God has manifested Himself in the blessed person of the Lord Jesus Christ Who came into the world to save sinners.
He saves them by paying for their sins on the cross by the sacrifice of Himself. This has been done, completed, accepted, never to be repeated, and has been preached all over the world. (1 Timothy 1:15). Michel for Vision 2020 in 2023
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Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and Thou shalt be saved. Acts 16:31
Warning Shots - Part 2
You already have heard the message of God’s love? Or you may be hearing it for the first time? No matter!
He is calling you to repentance and acceptance of His undertaking for your salvation by delivering His own Son to the torments of the cross to spare you from His judgments: the soon coming ones and the eternal one. This earth is soon to experience the judgments described in the book of Revelation and elsewhere in the Bible.
And after God’s final plans for the earth come to pass, there will be eternal judgment for those who will not have believed in His Son the Lord Jesus Christ. “Whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire” (Revelation 20:15).
Warning shots are loud. They are meant to be heard and affect those being warned; that is the intent.Are you listening? Have you heard them?
There have been many since the beginning of this new decade: a world wide pandemic, major catastrophes in many places, even reminding us again across the world of the sad fate of any pretension linked to the Titanic.
We pray you will have taken notice and act accordingly, that is, repent from your sins and accept the free gift of forgiveness and eternal life God graciously offers and gives to those who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved”. (Acts 16:31). Jesus alone can deliver us from the wrath to come (1 Thessalonians 1:10) . Michel for Vision 2020 in 2023
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Peter said, “Man, I know not what though sayest.” And immediately, while he yet spake, the cock crew. And the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter and Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said unto him, “Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.” and Peter went out, and wept bitterly.
Luke 22:60-62
THE RESTORING LOOK OF CHRIST
What kind of a look do you think the Lord gave Peter? Was it a withering look of scorn and contempt? Did it say, “Evil doer, liar!” In its glance?Peter deserved that it should; but oh, no, it was a look of broken-hearted love, of love so tender and strong. A look that said, "I love you still, Peter; if you do not know Me, I know I love you." And Peter went out and wept bitterly.
I am not surprised that he wept bitterly. The grace of the heart that he had wounded broke him down. Then afterwards we are told of the Lord's meeting and restoring this backsliding one. He appeared to Peter after His resurrection. The fact is recorded, but did you ever wonder how He restored him? Did you ever wonder what passed between the Lord and Peter that day? He does not tell us. We only know the fact. The Lord does not tell out all that goes on between a soul and Himself.
He not only restores Peter, but He brings him to judge the thing that led him away, and them He trusts him again. The backslider never gets right with God till he has it all out with Him. When you get back and judge the point of departure, then He restores the soul.
The Lord does what we never do. We say, “I could never trust so-and-so again after what has happened.” The Lord shows out to all how He can trust Peter after He has made him to judge himself. W. T. P. Wolston
My soul He doth restore again: and me to walk doth make
Within the paths of righteousness, e’en for His own Name’s sake. F. Rous
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Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it. Proverbs 22:6
The whole business of Christian education is summed up in two brief sentences: Count on God for your children, and, Train your children for God. The first without the second is lawlessness; the second without the first is legality; to take both together is sound, practical Christianity.
It is the privilege of all Christin parents to count upon God for their children with all confidence. There is, however, in the government of God, an inseparable link connecting this privilege with solemn responsibility as to training.
For parents to speak of counting on God for the salvation of their children and for the moral integrity of their future career in this world while the duty of training is neglected is simply a miserable delusion.
We press this solemnly upon all Christian parents, especially upon those who have just entered upon the relationship. There is great danger of shirking our duty to our children, shifting it over upon others, or neglecting it altogether. We do not like the trouble of it; we shrink from the constant worry.
But we shall find that the trouble, worry, sorrow, and heart-scalding arising from the neglect of our duty will be a thousand times worse than all that can be involved in the discharge of it.
To every true lover of God there is a deep delight in treading the path of duty.Every step taken in that path we can always count upon the infinite resources that we have in God when we are keeping His commandments.
We have simply to take ourselves, morning by morning, hour by hour, to our Father's exhaustless treasury, and there get all we want in the way of grace and wisdom and moral power, to enable us to discharge aright the holy functions of our responsibilities as Christian parents. C. H Mackintosh
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My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise Thee with joyful lips.
Psalm 63:5
For He satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness. Psalm 107:9
I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with Thy likeness. Psalm 17:15
Thou satisfying Portion, the object for our hearts,
To fill with joy and gladness, and peace, which faith imparts.
In Thee alone is comfort, in Thee is perfect rest,
Thy love soothes every sorrow, and calms the troubled breast.
The longing soul is nurtured, by Thy great grace supplied,
And with Thy love and goodness, is fully satisfied.
Beside the quiet waters, Thy hungry sheep are led,
With marrow and with fatness, are satisfied and fed.
With joyful lips we praise Thee, for all Thy mercies shown,
For all Thy loving kindness to us, made daily known.
And when we reach the Glory, and Thy blest face we see,
Awaking with Thy likeness, how satisfied we’ll be! Selected
“The Lord shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul.” — Isaiah 58:11
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And he (the priest) shall take of it his handful, of the flour of the meat offering, and of the oil thereof, and all the frankincense which is upon the meat-offering, and shall burn it upon the altar for a sweet savour, even the memorial of it, unto the Lord. (Leviticus 6:15)
Take note particularly that all the frankincense was consumed on the altar. And why was this? Because that frankincense typified the fragrance of Christ’s manhood as enjoyed exclusively by God Himself.
Every thought, every look, every word, every movement, every act of the man Christ Jesus emitted a fragrance which went up directly to the throne of God and refreshed the heart of Him who sat thereon.
This is a spring of joy and comfort to the spiritual. When we think of how the blessed Lord was depreciated in this world, of how the rarest and most exquisite touches of His perfect humanity were lost upon a rude and unbelieving world, and of how little even His own disciples understood or valued Him—what a comfort it is to remember that He was perfectly understood and appreciated by the Father in heaven.
The primary application of the incense is unquestionably to Christ; however, it has a secondary application to the believer. True Christianity is the outflow of the character of Christ in the believer’s practical ways—this is most precious to God. There is not an expression of the life of Christ in the believer, of what He is, of the smallest manifestation of His grace that we exhibit, that does not ascend, directly, as the odour of sweet incense to the throne of God.
May God lead us into the experimental understanding of these things and into producing a brighter and fuller manifestation of Christ to the glory of God the Father.C. H. Macintosh
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When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straightened (the way shall open up before thee). Proverbs 4:12
And the Lord shall guide thee continually.
(Isaiah 58:11) .
A father and his son were camped in a wooded area a little ways from the nearest village. The father had a letter which needed mailing and asked his son to take it to the post office in the village. The father took his son to the edge of camp and showed him the trail which led to the village. “But father,“ said the little boy, “I don’t see how that path will ever reach town.”
The father took his hand in his and pointed explaining, “See down the trail to that big tree where the trail seems to come to an end?” “Oh, yes, I see that the path goes that far; but the village is not there!” “Well, when you get to that big tree, you will see further on around the bend and down the trail.
Just go to the tree and then follow the trail until you come to the next corner, then look ahead and follow it some more until you see some houses. When you come to the houses, you will see the post office. There you can mail my letter!”
I know not when or where I go from this familiar scene;
But He is here and He is there, and all the way between.
And when I pass from all I know, to that dim, vast unknown,
Though late I stay or soon I go, I shall not go alone.
The love of God quite as often withholds the view of the entire distance of the winding path through life. He reveals it to us step by step and from corner to corner. Hence it is necessary to trust Him to lead, for He can see around the bend in the road.
He knows what lies ahead, and whether we can cope with the situation now or later. He consults our wants, not our wishes, like a wise and loving Father. His corners are not the end of the way. Corners discipline faith, teach us patience to walk step by step, and fit us for blessing. Because our vision is limited, it causes us to continually seek His guidance. (Selected)
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And Joseph was the governor over the land, and he it was that sold to all the people of the land: and Joseph’s brethren came, and bowed down themselves …and Joseph saw his brethren, and he knew them…but they knew not him. Genesis 42:6-8
The brethren protest that it is their need that brings them into Egypt.
“We have come to buy food” (v.10). They have indeed, come to the right person, but they have come with a wrong plan and with a wrong plea. Their plan is to buy, and their plea “we are true men” (v.11). As yet they know neither the love of Joseph’s heart, nor the evil of their own hearts. They must learn that Joseph is too rich to sell to his own, and that they have nothing in themselves to plead. Their money shall not buy corn, and of merit they have none whereby to claim it.
They must learn that while Joseph is ready to bestow every blessing, he is one upon whom they have forfeited every claim. Love is a giver when worthlessness has nothing to plead. The love of Joseph’s heart will shut out all mere barter, and the evil of their hearts exclude all plea of merit. If they think they are true men then Joseph will put them to the test.
Moreover Joseph’s brethren must learn that all their blessing depends upon the man of whom they say “one is nought” (v.13).They say, as it were, “We have not seen him for twenty years; he has entirely passed out of our lives, as far as we are concerned “he is not.” (v.13)
”So, too, in a day to come the Jew will have to learn that all their blessing depends upon One that they have set at nought.”
“This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” (Acts 4:11,12). Joseph - Hamilton Smith
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WHERE NO ANXIETY EXISTS
Under His wings shall thou trust. Psalm 91:4
When the little eaglets, that have not yet a feather to fly with, are under the great wings of the parent eagle, how safe they are! Who would dare touch them? If a bold climber put his hand into the nest, then those powerful wings would beat him in a minute from his hold, and he would fall down the rocks and be dashed to pieces.
So safe shall you be under His wings, nothing shall by any means hurt you there. When the wild snow storms rage around the eyrie (nest) that is death to an unprotected sleeper, how warm the little eaglets are kept! Not an arrow of the keen blast reaches them, poor little featherless things, not a snowflake touches them.
So warm shall you be kept under His wings when any cold and dark day of trouble comes, or even any sudden little blast of unkindness or loneliness. “Under His wings shalt thou trust!” Not shalt thou see!”
If one of the eaglets wanted to see for itself what was going on, and thought it could take care of itself for a little while, and hopped from under the shadow of the wings, it would be neither safe nor warm. The sharp wind would chill it, and the cruel hand might seize it then.
So you are to trust, rest quietly and peacefully under His wings; stay there, not be peeping out and wondering whether God really is taking care of you! You may be always safe and happy there. Safe, for “in the shadow of Thy wings will I make my refuge.” (Psalm 57:1). Happy, for “in the shadow of Thy wings will I rejoice.” (Psalms 63:7).
Upon Thy word I rest, so strong, so sure; so full of comfort blest, so sweet, so pure.
The word that changeth not, that faileth never! My King! I rest upon Thy Word forever.
Opened Treasures - Frances Ridley Havergal
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Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that beliveth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. John 11:25
Lightly tread, the day is breaking, dwell not on your sorrows now;
Soon shall cloudless morn awaking chase the sadness from your brow:
He is coming—heart and knee to Jesus bow!
Did not Mary lay her sorrow low before the Master’s feet?
Sore her wound, and dark her morrow, bereft on earth of love so sweet:
With her burden, thus she came her Lord to meet.
‘Tis the great I AM who standeth now beside that rocky tomb;
‘Tis His voice that loud commandeth Lazarus from the dead to come!
Thus His glory shines above the deepest gloom.
Precious Saviour! through Thy dying, vanquished are the foe’s dark powers;
And, Thy name still magnifying, grace brings forth exhaustless stores:
At Thy coming, life and incorruption ours.
Eyes to see Thee, ears to hear Thee, voices tuned to heavenly lays;
Thus to dwell forever near Thee, learning all Thy wondrous ways;
To Thee rendering, adoration, worship, praise!
Author Unknown
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My voice shalt Thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto Thee, and will look up. Psalm 5:3
Experience shows that the best time for prayer is the early morning. The day-break blessing is the day-long gain. George Müller, who knew more about prayer than
most, says: “The morning is the gate of the day and should be well guarded by prayer. It is one end of the thread on which the days’s actions are strung, and should be well knotted with devotion.”
“If we felt more the majesty of life, we should be more careful of its mornings. He who rushes from his bed to his business and waits not to worship is as unwise as he who dashes into battle without armour.”
“Be it ours to bath in the softly flowing river of communion with God, before the heat of the wilderness and the burden of the way begin to oppress.”
Henry Durbanville - The Best Is Yet To Be
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41 And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and beheld how the people cast money into the treasury: and many that were rich cast in much.
42 And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing. 43 And He called unto Him His disciples, and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury:
44 for all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living. Mark 12:41-44
What a contrast this charming sketch supplies to the picture of the Pharisees, which Jesus has just drawn!
In the eyes of the world the service of the poor widow was meager and worthless, and the gifts of the hypocrites were costly and great; but in the eyes of the Lord these offerings were comparatively worthless and she had given more than they all.
As a matter of fact she had given but two small coins, worth less than half a cent; but they were all she had and she gave them both.
With this scene in mind we should be careful not to call our offerings "mites," unless they are all that we possess; we should be encouraged, however, to know that our Lord looks upon the heart and estimates the gift by the motive and the love and the sacrifice involved; above all, we should be reminded that we can best measure our offerings not by what we give but by how much we keep. The influence of this woman is still moving multitudes toward the treasury of the Lord.
Gospel of Mark - Charles R. Erdman
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He, (Jesus) bearing His cross, went forth into a place called the place of a skull…where they crucified Him. John 19:17-18
Matthew’s Gospel describes the Lord twice as One who “went out” (Matt.13:1;24:1). These instances were followed by His going out, carrying His own cross (Jn 19:17). Solemn event! On that cross, the sinless One was going to be made sin for us
(2 Cor. 5:21) during the three hours of darkness. The Lord went out Himself: although they took Him, He was in charge, as seen in His going out.
Before this world will be destroyed in the coming ultimate judgment ( 2 Pet 3), the sinless Sin-bearer took the judgment on Himself, vicariously (as a substitute), for all who would put their trust in Him. For those who reject Him, a terrible judgment remains. His going out was the consequence of the religious, political, and cultural world rejecting Him. Yet, in unfathomable grace, He took the consequences of this rejection upon Himself
-- that is, for those who would believe in Him.
The cross is the most awful form of execution: the Lord was willing to take that place in order to save us. In that path of rejection, He indicated and paved the way of salvation; He paid the needed price and through it all glorified God. Alfred E. Bouter
Alone He bore the cross, alone its grief sustained;
His was the shame and loss, and He the victory gained;
The mighty work was all His own,
Though we shall share His glorious throne. Joseph Swain
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Be careful (anxious) for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God, and the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:6-7
THINGS THAT MAKE PEOPLE ANXIOUS
Ill health is often another fruitful source of care.Your very success in life may depend upon good health, and that seems denied. Or you may have others depending upon you, and you are feeling less and less equal to the strain.
Perhaps few things are more trying than to feel unequal, physically and mentally, to the demands of your calling, and yet to be obliged to face them day after day.
Under such circumstances everything is apt to become draped in black. All we look at is in varying shade of India ink. Heavens blue is forgotten, and cold grey mist envelopes everything. The thistle-down, lighter than a feather seems to our distorted imagination a ton weight.
All this may be purely physical; and there is the physical side of getting free from care as well as the spiritual, for man is body as well as soul and spirit. To pay due attention to each is one of the great problems of life.
But the very remembrance that your feeling of depression has no real cause in circumstances, but only in some transitory condition of your body, will enable you to arise and shake yourself free from it. There is one text too, which has often been like a sheet-anchor under pressure of this kind.
"God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation (trial) also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it. 1 Corinthians 10:13 Angels in White - Russell Elliott
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When thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light. Luke 11:34
We all know how easily our poor heart persuades itself of the rightness of any step which it desires to take, and how the devil furnishes plausible arguments to convince us of its rightness. He comes with arguments which the moral condition of the soul causes us to regard as clear, forcible and satisfactory.
The very fact of our thinking of such a thing proves our unfitness to weigh, with a well-balanced mind and spiritually adjusted conscience, the solemn consequences of such a step.
If the eye were single (that is, if we were governed by but one object, namely, the glory and honour of the Lord Jesus Christ), we should have no difficulty or perplexity about the matter.
A racer whose eye is resting on the crown will not be troubled with any perplexity as to whether he ought to stop and tie a hundred-pound weight around his neck. Such a thought would never cross his mind.
Whenever I am in perplexity as to my path, I have reason to suspect that my eye is not single, for, assuredly, perplexity is not compatible with a body “full of light.”
We frequently go to pray for guidance in matters with which, if the eye were single and the will subject, we would have nothing whatever to do, and hence we should have no need to pray about them. To pray about anything concerning which the Word of God is plain marks the activity of a rebellious will.
As a writer has well remarked, “We sometimes seek God’s will, desiring to know how to act in circumstances in which it is not His will that we should be found at all; if conscience were in real healthful activity, its first effect would be to make us quit them.
It is our will which sets us there, and we should like, nevertheless, to enjoy the consolation of God’s direction. Be assured that if we are near enough to God, we shall have no trouble to know His will.” The Lord is Near
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He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; He leadeth me beside the still waters. Psalm 23:2
The real power to do great things for Christ must come from secluded places, where men commune with God.
Let us remember, to range over the whole garden of Scripture and not to confine ourselves to a few particularly wealthy spots; for the green pastures are everywhere. By the anointed eye, Christ is as really beheld in the types of the pentateuch (First five books of the O.T.) as in the later portions of the inspired Word.
He is enfolded in the Old Testament and unfolded in the New. “Search the Scriptures . . .” said Jesus, “for they are they which testify of Me”. (John 5:39) “Had ye believed Moses ye would have believed Me; for he wrote of Me.” (John 5:46).
And after His resurrection He joined the two disconsolate ones on their way to Emmaus, and, “beginning at Moses and all the prophets, He expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.” (Luke 24:27)
Oh, what a Bible-reading have we here, not barren theory—musty, dry and drear—
But Christ, the “altogether lovely”, full in view. Himself the Preacher, text and sermon too.
And thus we learn that if our souls are to be kept healthy, vigorous, and strong; that if our work for God is to be of an enduring character; that if we are to combat successfully the principalities and powers which are arrayed against us and which are determined to resist every advance we attempt to make in the knowledge of God—we must read and study the Word of God. Pearl of the Psalms - George Henderson
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posted by soundwords at
August 01, 2023
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