Gems from March 2024
"That we may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world." (Philippians 2:15)
Even in earthly things men look for guidance to the stars. A man lost on the prairie may find his way home by the stars. In navigation, sailors look to the stars, especially to the North Star.
In an important survey, we always run our base-lines by the stars, particularly the North Star: and so keep them from becoming crooked and distorted. Thus these 'luminaries”, these ‘heavenly lights' in this dark world, need to remember that those who walk in darkness have their eyes upon them: but just as other stars point to the North Star, let us ever have our eye fixed on 'The Bright and Morning Star, and then our path will not be crooked, and we shall not lead astray those watching us.
It was a star which led the wise men to the Saviour at Bethlehem when He was a Babe. How good if we too can be like that!
(G.Christopher Willis — Sacrifices of Joy)
N.J.Hiebert — 9501
"The fiery darts of the wicked." (Ephesians 6:16)
Be not surprised if doubts and fears assail you. They are to be expected like evil thoughts or disease germs. You cannot avoid being attacked and, if you are sore beset, remember that the Bible, the Word of God'‘ has told you they will come.
It is not wrong to be the target of their onslaughts, but you need not be overcome by them. It means that you are in real conflict and dangerous enough to the devil to bring in his hostility.
If you wonder why they seem to increase as you go on and grow older, it is because the fight gets hotter as you grow in grace and it never lets up. But greater is He that is in you than all your adversaries.
You are pressed by many a foe so that you may be all the more helpful to others who are not shadow boxing but are in the thick of the fight."
(Vance Havner - All the Days)
N.J.Hiebert — 9502
"One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in His temple." (Psalm 27:4)
As we come together to worship, what is the focus of our attention? Do we meditate upon the beautiful character and person of our Saviour? He never sinned and never had to ask forgiveness for His words or actions.
His words were full of grace and truth. His life was a life fragrant with love for all. His loving hands healed the sick. His loving lips spoke words of forgiveness to the broken sinner. His agonizing death for sinners proclaimed the amazing love of God.
He is a beautiful Saviour! Behold the beauty of the Lord! (Donald Norbie)
N.J.Hiebert — 9503
…Esau came from the field, and he was faint: and Esau said to Jacob, feed me, I pray thee… for l am faint... and Jacob said, sell me this day thy birthright. And Esau said, behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me... Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentils; and he did eat and
drink... Esau despised his birthright."
(Genesis 25:29-34)
Note the conduct of Esau in reference to the birthright, and all which it involved. The natural heart places no value on the things of God.
To it, God's promise is a vague, valueless, powerless thing, simply because God is not known. Hence it is that present things carry such weight and influence in man's estimation. Anything that man can see. he values, because he is governed by sight and not by faith.
To him, the present is everything; the future is a mere un-influential thing - a matter of the merest uncertainty. Thus it was with Esau. "I am at the point to die; and what profit shall this birthright do to me?" What strange reasoning! - the present is slipping from beneath my feet, I will therefore despise and entirely let go the future! - Time is fading from my view, I will therefore abandon all interest in eternity! "Thus Esau despised his birthright."
Man has no heart for the things of God. The present is everything to him. Food is better than a title to Canaan. Hence, the very reason why Esau made light of the birthright was the very reason why he ought to have grasped it with the greater intensity. The more clearly I see the vanity of man's present, the more I shall cleave to God's future.
(C.H. Macintosh - Notes onGenesis)
N.J.Hiebert — 9504
TRUSTING
When we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. Romans 5:6
Lord, Thou wilt ordain peace for us; for Thou also hast wrought all our works in us. Isaiah 26:12
What a long time it takes to come down to the conviction, and still more to the realization of the fact that without Him we can do nothing, (John 15:5) but that He must work all our works in us! This is the work of God, that ye believe in Him whom He hath sent. And no less must it be the work of God that we go on believing, and that we go on trusting.
Then, you who are longing to trust Him with unbroken and unwavering trust, cease the effort and drop the burden, and now entrust your trust to Him! He is just as well able to keep that as any other part of the complex lives which we want Him to take and keep for Himself.
And oh, do not pass on, content with the thought, “Yes, that is good idea; perhaps I should find that a great help!” But, “Now, then, do it.” It is no help to the sailor to see a flash of light across a dark sea, if he does not instantly steer accordingly.
I am trusting Thee, Lord Jesus, trusting only Thee;
Trusting Thee for full salvation, great and free.
I am trusting Thee, Lord Jesus; never let me fall!
I am trusting Thee forever, and for all.
Opened Treasures - Frances Ridley Havergal
N.J.Hiebert - 9505
Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man, of Kabzeel, who had done many acts, he slew two lionlike men of Moab: he went down also had gone down and slew a lion in the midst of a pit in time of snow. 2 Samuel 23:20
On a snowy day
Benaiah was one of the men who accompanied David on his flight from King Saul. The Bible calls him a brave man and tells how he fought a lion in a pit on a snowy day. Benaiah performed a difficult task in a difficult place and under difficult circumstances.
God took note and made a point to record this feat in great detail in His Word. The external conditions under which Benaiah had to fight particularly highlight his courage of faith.
The Lord also knows the circumstances under which we serve Him and commit ourselves to His cause:
• He takes note of that Christian who takes the opportunity on a hot summer day to bring people into contact with Jesus Christ.
• He sees the Christian who sits for hours in a traffic jam because she wants to cheer up a sick sister in the faith by visiting her.
• He also notices how a believing mother wants to faithfully fulfil the task of caring for her children despite a headache.
• It does not escape His notice when a servant takes a long drive in the pouring rain to visit a small, lonely group of believers.
In heaven we will realise with amazement that the Lord has taken notice of all these details. It will be a joy for Him to reward the faith that overcame the difficulties with His help. The Good Seed.
N.J.Hiebert - 9506
IS YOUR HEART IN IT?
Whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men. Colossians 3:23
In Second Chronicles 31:21 we read of Hezekiah that in every work that he began he did it with all his heart and prospered. It is not merely much pleasanter to be bright and brisk about everything, but it is actually one of God's commands, written in His own Word. I know this is easier to some than to others. Perhaps it comes natural to you to do everything heartily. But even that is not enough.
What else? "Whatsoever ye do, do it heartily as to the Lord, and not unto men."
He knows whether you are seeking to please Him or whether He is forgotten all the while and you think only of the smiles of others. But perhaps it is hard for you to do
things heartily. You like better to take your time, and so you dawdle, and do things in an idle way, especially what you do not much like doing. Is this right? Whatsoever ye do, do it heartily! Is it not just as much disobeying God as breaking any other command?
Are you not guilty before Him? Very likely you never thought of it in this way, but there the words stand, and neither you nor I can alter them. May the Lord give us strength to obey this word of His. And then the last word of the verse about Hezekiah will be true of us to — we will be "prospered."
Jesus, Master! Wilt Thou use…One who owes Thee more than all? As Thou wilt! I would not choose,…Only let me hear Thy call.
Jesus, let me always be… In Thy service glad and free.
Frances Ridley Havergal - Opened Treasures
N.J.Hiebert - 9507
"No man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church." (Ephesians 5:29)
There is the special entrance of His mind, His careful interest in those that belong to Him. It is a great comfort that we know this to be true in the present state of the Church, when we think of the ruin of all around. Does Christ ever cease to nourish that which belongs to Him? Impossible. Spite of all the ruin, He has the same care for His people.
We never can pray too much for the Church; but it is another thing to be troubling our minds as if the Lord forgot her, and were not taking adequate care of the saints in their need and sorrow. The Lord has never failed; and what He here tells us to do in our earthly relationships is no more than what He perfectly does towards His Church. He loves the Church; He nourishes and cherishes it, and He does this because
"we are members of His body, of His flesh, and of His bones." (Ephesians 5:30)
Just as Eve was a part of Adam, so the Church is of Christ. The Lord took out of Adam's side that which He built into his wife. So we stand in this nearness of relationship to Christ. (William Kelly - Lectures on Ephesians)
N.J.Hiebert — 9508
What man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God" (I Cor. 2: II).
I remember looking at a busy ant colony on a broiling summer day in Australia. My thoughts ran as follows. The distance between a man and an ant is very great,
but after all it is but a finite distance. You can weigh the substance of a man and that of an ant, and you can find out how much heavier a man is than an ant. But can an
ant understand what is passing through a man's mind? Can an ant understand the achievements of men? We know it cannot. But the distance between God and
man is infinitely greater than that between man and ant. God is the Creator. Man is the creature. The distance between them is infinite. No arithmetic is of any use
here. Is it possible that the mind of man can understand and comprehend God? He is " the only Potentate, the King of kings, and the Lord of lords; who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting.
Amen (I Tim 6: 15, 16).
We may well re-echo the words of Zophar, " Canst thou by searching find out God? canst thou find out the Almighty unto perfection? It is as high as heaven;
what canst thou do? deeper than hell; what canst thou know? The measure thereof is longer than the earth, and broader than the sea " (Job II: 7-9).
If I could understand the Bible through and through I should not and could not believe it to be a revelation from God. That there are mysteries insoluble is what my faith feeds upon. As the Christian poet expressed it:
“They are darkness to my intellect,
But sunshine to my heart”
N.J.Hiebert - 9509
King Agrippa… Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you, that God should raise the dead? Acts 26:7,8.
Why did Christ die?
He died for sinners. That is the wonderful news which the gospel brings to us, that "when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly" (Rom. 5:6). Paul had got hold of the blessed news that the Son of God had become incarnate; had become a man in this world; that He passed through it a blessed, holy, sinless man; and that at length, in grace, He died on the cross for man.
It is quite true, man put Him there, but when there, He died to make atonement for sin. But God raised Him from the dead. Wickedness nailed Him to the tree. Hatred slew Him; love took Him down from the cross, and buried Him; and fear sealed Him in the tomb. Do not forget that! They rolled a great stone to the mouth of the tomb, and set a watch over it. Was not that a strange thing?
They put aguard around a dead man. And why? Because, they were afraid He would rise; and thank God, that was what happened. He has been raised. If hatred slew Him, love buried Him, and fear sealed Him in the tomb, what raised Him? Righteousness.
It was His due, and He got it. The glory of the Father raised Him, as we read “Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father " (Rom. 6:4). God took that sinless man out of death, and put Him into glory. Paul had seen Him there, and been commissioned to proclaim the news. He had been preaching it to the Gentiles, and for that dire offence he is accused of the Jews, and cast into prison. Strange that man should refuse the most blessed tidings that ever fell on mortal ears!
Resurrection is the very backbone of the gospel: it is the evidence
- that the work of redemption is accomplished;
- that the power of the enemy has been broken;
- that death has been annulled;
- that sins are wiped away;
- that God’s claims in righteousness are met. Seekers for Light - W.T.P. Wolston M.D
N.J.Hiebert — 9510
"And he (Mephibosheth) bowed himself, and said, What is thy servant, that thou shoudest look upon such a dead dog as I am? (2 Samuel 9:8)
When Mephibosheth was five years old, an unfortunate accident caused him to become lame on both feet.
Today we would extend every effort to make such a one have a quality of life as normal as possible. But Mephibosheth's estimation of himself was "a dead dog" as he stood before the king.
Are we any different as we stand before the King of kings? We come dead in trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2) and the Lord gives us life. But more! David made Mephibosheth sit at his table and enjoy the bounty of the king.
Our Lord makes the same offer. May we accept His invitation today. (Charlie Tempest)
N.J.Hiebert — 9511
"Consider Him that endured such contradiction of sinners against Himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds." (Hebrews 12:3)
I once heard a marathoner tell how there comes a point in a race when the runner "hits the wall," meaning that his body cannot go on, and every muscle is crying out to give up.
He said that at that point it is the mind that will determine if the race will continue. So it is spiritually. If our minds have not been disciplined and directed by the Word of God on an ongoing basis, when we "hit the wall” in our spiritual life, we will fail.
May we determine to fill our minds with His Word, and so to discipline our thought life in such a way that we will have victory in the crises of life. (Wm. Burnett)
N.J.Hiebert — 9512
"Thy word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against Thee." (Psalm 119:11)
The word of God should not only be a check on our thoughts, but the source of them, which is a far deeper thing. We see it in Christ, the only perfect one. He only could say, "By the word of Thy lips I have kept me from the path of the destroyer." (Psalm 17:4) "Thy word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against Thee."
There is preserving power in the word, to keep the feet from sliding, which those only know who receive the truth in the love of it. Merely having the word hid in the memory and mind will not do. There must be the action of the truth on the heart and conscience, separating from all defilement, otherwise its preserving power cannot be experienced.
There is nothing more dangerous than to use the Word when it has not touched my
conscience. I put myself into Satan's hands if I go beyond what I have from God, handling the Word apart from the guidance of the Spirit.
I know of nothing that separates more from God than truth spoken out of communion with God. (J.N.Darby)
N.J.Hiebert — 9513
"Abraham said, My son, God will provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together." (Genesis 22:8)
"Can two walk together, except they be agreed?" (Amos 3:3)
Abraham and Isaac were united as they made their trek to the altar on the top of Mount Moriah. So too, in that long walk from heaven to Calvary, that place of divine sacrifice for our sin, God the Father and God the Son were in perfect harmony and total agreement in the great plan of salvation.
Who were the objects of this unified, unsurpassed, and undeserved love? You and me! How much we owe! (D. Logan)
Lest I forget Gethsemane; lest I forget Thine agony;
Lest I forget Thy love for me, lead me to Calvary.
(J.E. Hussey)
N.J.Hiebert — 9514
"Is there yet any that is left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan's sake? ... Is there not yet any of the house of Saul, that I may show the kindness of God unto him? (2 Samuel 9:1,3)
King Saul had not been kind to David, but all that is forgotten. David remembers the one lovely thing that came from that house. "Whatsoever things are...lovely..think on these things." (Philippians 4:8); leave the rest - forget them - that is the word that shines forth here.
Would it not be good to get into the way of looking out for chances to show kindness over and above duties? These words might be well written up, if not on the walls of our rooms, then on the walls of our hearts. "is there any that I might show him kindness? Is there any that I might show the kindness of God unto him?"
(Amy Carmichael - Edges of His Ways)
N.J.Hiebert — 9515
"Thou wilt show me the path of life: in Thy presence is fullness of joy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.
(Psalm 16:11)
In His hand for salvation- Isaiah 59:1-2
In His hand for security- John 10:29
In His hand for succor- Ezra 8:31
In His hand for submission- 1 Peter 5:6
In His hand for service - Isaiah 49:1-4
In His hand for sustenance- Psalm 145:14-16
In His hand for severity- Hebrews 10:30-31
In His hand for supremacy- Acts 5:30-31
N.J.Hiebert — 9516
"When Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus. But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me."
(Matthew 14:29,30)
Peter had a little faith in the midst of his doubts, says Bunyan; and so with crying and coming he was brought to Christ. But here you see that sight was a hindrance: the waves were none of his business when once he had set out; all Peter had any concern with, was the pathway of light that came gleaming across the darkness from where Christ stood.
If it was tenfold Egypt beyond that, Peter had no call to look and see. When the Lord shall call to you over the waters, "Come," step gladly forth. Look not for a moment away from Him.
Not by measuring the waves can you prevail; not by gauging the wind will you grow strong; to scan the danger may be to fall before it; to pause at the difficulties, is to have them break above your head. Lift up your eyes unto the hills (Psalm 121:1), and go forward - there is no other way. (Streams in the Desert)
N.J.Hiebert — 9517
He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God.
Micah 6:8
As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him.
Colossians 2:6
We see many older people using a cane to help them walk safely, and I am one of them. In the spiritual context, we all want to carry on with our spiritual walk in accordance with the verses quoted above — humbly before God, and in the power of the new life within us. But, like the person who needs a cane we often stumble, fail to lean on the Lord and struggle to keep our life in balance. To walk properly
before God, we need to lean on the Spirit of God. He is like my cane.
Stability - For this we need firm footing and a solid foundation. It's much easier to walk safely when we select a clear path or solid sidewalk. The best path for the believer is upon the basis of the holy scriptures - certainly we find therein a firm footing and a solid foundation. “That He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to he strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man. That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love…” Ephesians 3:16-17.
Support —there are many rich promises in the scriptures, and here is one of them: “Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling . . .” Jude 24 We little know just how much we are protected from. The Holy Sport is like a hedge around us, very often preventing us from stumbling into the ways of Satan.
(Lorne Perry) (More tomorrow)
N.J.Hiebert — 9518
About Walking - (Part 2 ) (The Holy Spirit is our constant resource)
Walking in the right direction - It is my frequent experience when out walking that my steps wander away from where I want to go. My cane helps get me back on track. When we fail to stay vigilant, our lives can quickly veer away from the narrow way that leadeth up to God. Matthew 7:13. If we quickly turn to the Lord, His Spirit will bring us back into line. “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” Romans 8:1.
Balance - The older we get, the harder it is to maintain our balance. A cane can be a big help. It's something to lean on when you start to tip to one side or the other. Our spiritual life, at any age, can easily get out of balance. We do have to study, work, bring up children, etc., but we also need to spend time in the scriptures, in prayer and in worship. “Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established. Turn not to the right hand nor to the left.” Proverbs 4:26-27. Once more, it will be the Holy Spirit who will direct us in maintaining the desired balance.
The Canopy of Love - Charity shall cover a multitude of sins. 1 Peter 4:8. It was the love of the Lord Jesus that took care of our sins, and now it hovers above all that goes on in our lives, and affects every detail. Then what follows is its activity within us to extend that love to those around.
That activity is prompted by the Holy Spirit within us. An example is found in Acts 8:29: “Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near and join thyself to this chariot.” Philip explained the scripture the official was reading aboard his chariot and the man was saved. A wonderful display of love, under the direction of the Lord by His Spirit. When we allow the Spirit to be active, there will be blessing. Lorne Perry
N.J.Hiebert — 9519
"When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers,
they shall not overflow thee; when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt
not be burned, neither shall the flame kindle upon thee." (Isaiah 43:2)
We are never staying in the valley or the rough waters; we are always only passing through them, just as the bride in the Song of Solomon is seen coming up from the wilderness leaning upon her Beloved. (Song of Solomon 8:5)
So whatever the valley is, or however rough the waters are, we won't fear. Leaning upon our Beloved we shall come up from the wilderness and, as Psalm 84:6 says,
"Passing through the valley of weeping they make it a place of springs (make it a well).” even use the valley as a well, make it a well. We shall find the living waters there and drink of them. (Amy Carmichael - Candles in the Dark).
N.J.Hiebert — 9520
"My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of Him."
(Hebrews 12:5)
The famous oriental philosopher, Lokman, while a slave, being presented by his master with a bitter melon, immediately ate it all. "How was it possible,”
said his master, "for you to eat so nauseous a fruit?" Lokman replied, "I have received so many favours from you, it is no wonder I should, for once in my life, eat a bitter melon from your hand."
The generous answer of the slave struck the master so forcibly, that he immediately gave him his liberty. Unlike Lokman's master, however, our God never chastens arbitrarily or unnecessarily. He always chastens for our profit,
"For they verily for a few days chastened us (as they thought best); but He for our profit, that we might be partakers of His holiness." (Hebrews 12:10); and the recognition of that grand fact will act as a mighty deterrent in the soul that is in danger of "despising the chastening of the Lord."
George Henderson - The Pearl of Psalms)
N.J.Hiebert — 9521
“... Esau came from the field, and he was faint: and Esau said to Jacob, feed me, I pray thee... for l am faint... and Jacob said, sell me this day thy birthright. And Esau said, behold, I am at the point to die: and what profit shall this birthright do to me... Jacob gave Esau bread and pottage of lentils; and he did eat and drink... Esau despised his birthright.”
(Genesis 25:29-34)
Note the conduct of Esau in reference to the birthright, and all which it involved. The natural heart places no value on the things of God. To it, God's promise is a vague, valueless, powerless thing, simply because God is not known. Hence it is that present things carry such weight and influence in man's estimation.
Anything that man can see, he values, because he is governed by sight and not by faith. To him, the present is everything; the future is a mere uninfluential thing - a matter of the merest uncertainty. Thus it was with Esau. "I am at the point to die; and what profit shall this birthright do to me?" What strange reasoning! - the present is slipping from beneath my feet, I will therefore despise and entirely let go the future! - Time is fading from my view, I will therefore abandon all interest in eternity! "Thus Esau despised his birthright."
Man has no heart for the things of God. The present is everything to him. Food is better than a title to Canaan. Hence, the very reason why Esau made light of the birthright was the very reason why he ought to have grasped it with the greater intensity. The more clearly I see the vanity of man's present, the more I shall cleave to God's future. (C.H. Macintosh - Notes on Genesis)
N.J.Hiebert — 9522
"Yet a little while, and the world seeth Me no more." (John 14:19)
We must be broken off from the world. He gives us everything needed in the way, but never presents that as our end. This world is neither Canaan nor Egypt, but a wilderness.
By clinging to it we are not in the wilderness but in Egypt, and that is why we need chastening; for if we make a Canaan of this world, then it becomes Egypt to us. The moment we make it our home, and settle down in it, it is our Egypt.
The Lord must break our will. He says, "A little while and the world seeth Me no more." It is all done with. He puts a distinction between Himself and the world; therefore if we take Him we cannot have the world, and if we take the world we cannot have the enjoyment of Him - we cannot have both. "Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world." (2 Timothy 4:10)
(J.N. Darby - Lectures on the First Epistle of John)
N.J.Hiebert — 9523
"The Lord God hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary." (Isaiah 50:4)
If God had passed over the sin of Adam and Eve in the garden, I should have been able to say, Sin is no matter, but when I look at the cross I cannot. (J.N. Darby)
N.J.Hiebert — 9524
"These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may KNOW that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God." (1 John 5:13)
An old gentleman who was leaving for the Continent called upon his lawyer to have his will attested. Everything in the will was clearly stated; and he concluded it with these words: "I wish to testify that I die trusting the merits of my Saviour, Jesus Christ, and hope that I am accepted by God for His sake."
The lawyer was a Christian man and said to him: "Mr.-, why do you only hope that you are accepted when God says that "He hath made us accepted in the beloved?" - Ephesians 1:6. He answered: "Because it would be presumption." "Well," said the solicitor, "if it be presumption, God has endorsed it." There is the word: "He hath made us accepted in the beloved."
Without another word, the aged man drew his pen through the word "hope" and wrote the word "KNOW." "I die trusting in the merits of my Saviour, Jesus Christ, and KNOW that I am accepted by God for His sake."
(George Henderson - In Pastures Green)
N.J.Hiebert — 9525
"When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee." (Isaiah 43:2)
"Precious thought, my Father knoweth, in His love I rest,
For whate'er my Father doeth, must be always best;
Well I know the heart that planneth naught but good for me,
Joy and sorrow interwoven - love in all I see.
We should remember, that the husbandman is never so near the vine as when He is pruning it. It is the experience of all deeply-taught Christians that God is never so real, or so consciously near, as He is in times of trial.
"When through the deep waters I call thee to go,
The rivers of sorrow shall not overflow,
For I will be with thee thy trials to bless,
And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress.
(His Last Word - Henry Durbanville)
N.J.Hiebert — 9526
"And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. And He (Jesus) was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake Him, and say unto Him, Master, carest Thou not that we perish?" (Mark 4:37,38)
"Faith delights in "man's extremity," simply because it is "God's opportunity." It delights in being "shut up" to God - in having the platform thoroughly cleared of the creature in order that God may display His glory - in the multiplying of empty vessels in order that God may fill them. (2 Kings 4:1-7)
Such is faith. It would, we may surely say, have enabled the disciples to lie down and sleep beside their Master in the midst of the storm. Unbelief, on the other hand, rendered them uneasy; they could not rest themselves, and they actually aroused the blessed Lord out of His sleep by their unbelieving apprehensions. He, weary with incessant toil, was snatching a few moments repose while the vessel was crossing the sea. He knew what fatigue was; He had come down into all the circumstances.
He made Himself acquainted with all our feelings and all our infirmities, being in all points tempted like as we are, sin excepted. He was found as a man in every respect, and as such, He slept on a pillow, and was rocked by the sea's wave. The storm beat upon the vessel, and the billows rolled over it, although the Creator was on board in the Person of that weary, sleeping Workman. (Christian Truth - Vol. 22 December 1969)
N.J.Hiebert — 9527
"He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver."
(Malachi 3:3)
He sat by a fire of seven-fold heat,
As He watched by the precious ore
And closer He bent with a searching gaze
As He heated it more and more.
He knew He had ore that could stand the test,
And He wanted the finest gold
To mould as a crown for the King to wear,
Set with gems with a price untold.
So He laid our gold in the burning fire,
Tho' we fain would have said Him 'Nay,’
And He watched the dross that we had not seen,
And it melted and passed away.
And the gold grew brighter and yet more bright,
But our eyes were so dim with tears,
We saw but the fire - not the Master's hand,
And questioned with anxious fears.
Yet our gold shone out with a richer glow,
As it mirrored a Form above,
That bent o'er the fire, tho' unseen by us,
With a look of ineffable love.
Can we think that it pleases His loving heart
To cause us a moment's pain?
Ah, no! but He saw through the present cross
The bliss of eternal gain.
So He waited there with a watchful eye,
With a love that is strong and sure,
And His gold did not suffer a bit more heat,
Than was needed to make it pure.
(Author Unknown)
N.J.Hiebert — 9528
All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the Lord hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all. Isaiah 53:5,6
Here we have the entire story of the Bible epitomized: Man's ruin both by nature and practice, and God's marvelous and all-sufficient remedy. The verse
begins with all and ends with all. An anxious soul was directed to this passage and found peace. Afterward he said, "I bent low down and went in at the first all. I
stood up straight and came out at the last." The first is the acknowledgment of our deep need. The second shows how fully that need has been met in the Cross of
Christ. How happy to be numbered among those who have put in their claim and found salvation through the atoning work which there took place!
N.J.Hiebert — 9529
"When I brake the five loaves among five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments took ye up? They say unto Him, Twelve. And when the seven among four thousand, how many baskets full of fragments took ye up? They said, Seven. And He sald unto them, How is it that ye do not understand?" (Mark 8:19-21)
When the multitude was greater and the supply less, they had twelve large baskets of fragments; and, on the other hand, when the multitude was less and the supply greater, they had only seven small baskets. The greater the demand, and the deeper the need, the more the magnificence of divine grace shines out. Eternal and universal homage to the peerless name of our adorable Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ!
(C.H. Macintosh)
N.J.Hiebert — 9530
"Who His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by Whose stripes ye were healed."
(1 Peter 2:24)
I see in the cross the power which meets everything in me. If I turn to the cross, saying, "How horribly unlike I am to that Christ who died there!" the answer is, it is because you are so that He died there. Was not the death of Christ the perfect expression of God's holiness?
All the perfect attributes of God shine out through the cross of Christ. If Satan had got man into a position in which it was impossible for God to bless him, and all was broken up in connection with the first Adam, it was only that it might all drop into the hands of the last Adam (Christ). All was accomplished at the cross.
(Gleanings From the Teaching of G. V. Wigram)
N.J.Hiebert — 9531
"And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God,
and into the patient waiting for Christ."
(2 Thessalonians 3:5)
There are two things which constitute the joy of a Christian. The first is the hope of the coming of the Lord; the second is present communion and fellowship with God the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. And these two cannot be separated without loss to our souls, for we cannot have all the profit without both of them.
If we are not looking for the coming of the Lord, there is nothing whatever that can separate us in the same way from this present evil world; neither will Christ Himself be so much the object before the soul; nor yet shall we be able, in the same measure, to apprehend the mind and counsels of God about the world.
(Christian Truth - Vol. 14. February 1991)
N.J.Hiebert — 9532
"For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye through His poverty might be rich.
(2 Corinthians 8:9)
Time is short, remember "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich" (in all the glory which He had with the Father before the world was),
"yet for your sakes He became poor" (even to the shedding His precious blood on Calvary's cross to make us His own and fit us for Himself), "that ye through His poverty might be rich." (Selected)
N.J.Hiebert — 9533
"There came a messenger unto (King) Saul, saying, Haste thee, and come; for the Philistines have invaded the land. Wherefore Saul returned from pursuing after David, and went against the Philistines: therefore they called that place Sela-ham-mahlekoth" (that is, the rock of divisions or escape). And David went up from thence." (1 Samuel 23:27-29)
Saul was pressing David very close. It seemed as if Saul had captured his long pursued quarry on this occasion — "Saul and his men compassed David and his men round about to take them" (verse 26)”.
But suddenly a messenger appeared, saying to Saul, "Haste thee, and come." Saul was called away, and thus one of the spots of David's greatest danger became henceforth a monumental place of divine deliverance; for in all this the believer sees God's intervention in David's escape. Are there not places in our own experience over which we too might write as truly as these Hebrews did, the long and difficult word, "SELA-HAM-MAHLEKOTH"?
God was no more David's deliverer than He is the deliverer in these days of those who put their trust in Him. Let us not forget the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, "The very hairs of your head are all numbered." (Matthew 10:29-30)
(Christian Truth - Vol. 21 - March 1968)
N.J.Hiebert — 9534
"Whatsoever things are true." (Philippians 4:8)
The Word says of us: "As he thinketh in his heart, so is he" (Proverbs 23:7). If a man constantly thinks of something, the time will come when he cannot stop thinking of it: and woe be it to him, if these thoughts are evil and impure and false.
Our thoughts form us; and it is “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh” (Matthew 12:34) And let us not forget that our thoughts are formed by what we read, and look at, and hear. How much about us is superficial, or false. Our newspapers, the radio, the magazines about the house: do these help us to meditate on whatsoever things are true?
Do we realize what a terrific influence these things have on our children, as well as on ourselves? And how much of all this is not true, but utterly false, as we very well know. Little wonder the Spirit of God exhorts us to think on, to meditate on, to calculate, “whatsoever things are true”.
The Word here tells us to calculate. Let us calculate the awful loss to one who does not heed this admonition. It may mean the loss of a soul: if not your own soul, it may be the soul of one you love even better than yourself. It has been well said:
"Light obeyed increaseth Light.
Light refused, but bringeth night.
Who shall give us power to choose,
If the love of Light we lose?"
(G. Christopher Willis - Sacrifices of Joy -Philippians)
N.J.Hiebert — 9535
Jesus, when He had cried again with aloud voice, yielded up the ghost . . . and behold the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent.
(Matthew 27:50-54)
When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, He said, it is finished: and He bowed His head and gave up the ghost.” (John 19:30)
“And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, He said, Father, into Thy hands I commend My spirit: and having said thus He gave up the ghost.” Luke 23:46
His be “the Victor’s name,“ Who fought the fight alone;
Triumphant saints no honour claim, His conquest was their own.
By weakness and defeat He won the meed and crown;
Trod all our foes beneath His feet by being trodden down.
Bless, bless the Conqueror slain, slain in His victory;
Who lived, who died, who lives again — for thee, His church, for thee!
Whitlock Gandy
N.J.Hiebert - 9536
posted by soundwords at
March 01, 2024
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