From Morning and Evening:
- Labor to maintain a sense of your entire dependence upon the Lord’s good will and pleasure, for the continuance of your richest enjoyments. Never try to live on the old manna, nor seek to find help in Egypt.
- Today you may be upon the summit of the mount of God—but He who has put you there—must keep you there, or you will sink far more speedily than you dream.
- If you will give yourself wholly up to Christ and trust Him, then you are one of God’s chosen ones; but if you stop and say, “I want to know first whether I am elect,” you ask you know not what. Go to Jesus, just as you are—be you ever so guilty.
From Expository Thoughts on Matthew, chapters 2 through 4
The conduct of the wise men is a striking example of faith. They saw no miracles to convince them. They heard no teaching to persuade them. They beheld no signs of divinity and greatness to overawe them. They saw nothing but a new-born infant, helpless and weak, and needing a mother's care like any one of ourselves. And yet when they saw that infant, they believed that they saw the divine Savior of the world. "They fell down and worshiped Him." We read of no greater faith than this in the whole volume of the Bible.
John the Baptist spoke plainly about sin. We are naturally dead, and blind, and asleep in spiritual things. We are ready to content ourselves with a mere formal religion, and to flatter ourselves, that if we go to church we shall be saved. We need to be told, that except we "repent and are converted" we shall all perish.
John the Baptist spoke plainly about our Lord Jesus Christ. We need to be sent direct to Christ. We are all ready to stop short of this. We want to rest in our union with the church, regular use of the sacraments, and diligent attendance on an established ministry. We ought to be told the absolute necessity of union with Christ Himself by faith. He is the appointed fountain of mercy, grace, life, and peace. We must each have personal dealings with Him about our souls.
John the Baptist spoke plainly about the Holy Spirit. He preached that there was such a thing as the baptism of the Holy Spirit. We need to be told that forgiveness of sin is not the only thing necessary to salvation. There is another thing yet; and that is the baptizing of our hearts by the Holy Spirit. There must not only be the work of Christ FOR us, but the work of the Holy Spirit IN us.
There must not only be a title to heaven by the blood of Christ, but a preparedness for heaven wrought in us by the Spirit of Christ. Let us never rest until we know something by experience of the baptism of the Spirit.
John the Baptist spoke plainly about the dreadful danger of the impenitent and unbelieving. We need to be reminded, that there is a hell as well as a heaven, and an everlasting punishment for the wicked, as well as everlasting life for the godly. We are fearfully apt to forget this. We talk of the love and mercy of God, and we do not remember sufficiently His justness and holiness. It is good for us all to be taught that it is possible to be lost forever, and that all unconverted people are hanging over the brink of the pit.
In the last place, John the Baptist spoke plainly about the safety of true believers. This again is a teaching which human nature greatly requires. The best of believers need much encouragement. They ought to be often reminded, that Jesus will never leave them nor forsake them. He will guide them safely through this life, and at length give them eternal glory. They shall be hidden in the day of wrath. They shall be safe as Noah in the ark. We live in a day of much false teaching. Let us never forget the leading features of a faithful ministry.
It was the whole Trinity, which at the beginning of creation said, "let us make man." It was the whole Trinity again, which at the beginning of the Gospel seemed to say, "let us save man."
Let us learn in the first place, what a real and mighty enemy we have in the devil. He is not afraid to assault even the Lord Jesus Himself. Let us remember every day, that if we would be saved, we must not only crucify the flesh, and overcome the world, but also "resist the devil." Let us learn in the next place, that we must not count temptation a strange thing. To be tempted is in itself no sin. It is the yielding to the temptation, and giving it a place in our hearts, which we must fear.
Let us learn in the next place, that the chief weapon we ought to use in resisting Satan is the Bible. The Word is the sword of the Spirit. We shall never fight a good fight, if we do not use it as our principal weapon. The Word is the lamp for our feet. We shall never keep the king's highway to heaven, if we do not journey by its light. It may well be feared, that there is not enough Bible-reading among us. It is not sufficient to have the Book. We must actually read it, and pray over it ourselves. It will do us no good, if it only lies still in our houses. We must be actually familiar with its contents, and have its texts stored in our memories and minds. Knowledge of the Bible never comes by intuition. It can only be obtained by diligent, regular, daily, attentive, wakeful reading.
Let us learn in the last place, what a sympathizing Savior the Lord Jesus Christ is. "In that he himself has suffered being tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted." (Heb. 2:18.)
Let us notice the first doctrine which the Lord Jesus proclaimed to the world. He began to say "repent!" The necessity of repentance is one of the great foundations, which lie at the very bottom of Christianity.
He is a most compassionate Savior. He rejected no one who came to Him. He refused no one, however loathsome and diseased. He had an ear to hear all, and a hand to help all, and a heart to feel for all. There is no kindness like His. His compassions fail not.
© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible
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