My Victorian Year #46

From J.C. Ryle's Holiness, "Assurance"

• Here we see the apostle Paul looking three ways: downward, backward, forward — downward to the grave, backward to his own ministry, forward to that great day, the day of judgment! [2 Timothy 4:6-8]
• 1. He looks DOWNWARD to the grave — and he does it without fear. Hear what he says: “I am ready to be offered.” 2. He looks BACKWARD to his ministerial life — and he does it without shame. 3. He looks FORWARD to the great day of reckoning — and he does it without doubt.
• 1. An assured hope is a true and Scriptural thing. It is a positive gift of the Holy Spirit, bestowed without reference to men’s bodily frames or constitutions, and a gift which every believer in Christ ought to aim at and seek after.
• In matters like these, the first question is this: “What says the Scripture?” I answer that question without the least hesitation. The Word of God appears to me to teach distinctly that a believer may arrive at an assured confidence with regard to his own salvation.
• There never yet was a Scriptural truth without abuses and counterfeits. God’s election, man’s impotence, salvation by grace — all are alike abused.
• My answer to all who deny the existence of real, well-grounded assurance, is simply this: “What says the Scripture?” If assurance is not there, I have not another word to say.
• It cannot be wrong to feel confidently in a matter where God speaks unconditionally; to believe decidedly when God promises decidedly;
• 2. A believer may never arrive at this assured hope — and yet be saved.
• To believe and have a glimmering hope of acceptance is one thing; to have “joy and peace” in our believing, and abound in hope, is quite another.
• Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ — a man must have, beyond all question, if he is to be saved. I know no other way of access to the Father. A man must feel his sins and lost estate, must come to Jesus for pardon and salvation, must rest his hope on Him, and on Him alone.
• But if he only has faith to do this, however weak and feeble that faith may be, I will engage, from Scripture warrants, he shall not miss Heaven. Never let us make the gate more straight and the way more narrow, than pride and the love of sin have made it already.
• Reasons why an assured hope is exceedingly to be desired. Too many among those who believe, begin doubting and go on doubting, live doubting and die doubting, and go to Heaven in a kind of mist. 
• I would like to see fewer “perhaps” in the Lord’s family and more who could say, “I know and am persuaded.”
• 1. Let us remember that assurance is to be desired, because of the present comfort and peace it affords.
• 2. Assurance is to be desired, because it tends to make a Christian an active working Christian.
• 3. Assurance is to be desired, because it tends to make a Christian a decided Christian.
• 4. Assurance is to be desired, because it tends to make the holiest Christians.
• Some probable CAUSES why an assured hope is so seldom attained. 
• 1. One most common cause, I suspect, is a defective view of the doctrine of justification. 
• Many appear to forget that we are saved and justified as sinners, and only sinners, and that we never can attain to anything higher, if we live to the age of Methuselah.
• Redeemed sinners, justified sinners and renewed sinners doubtless we must be — but sinners, sinners, sinners, we shall be always to the very last!
• Our justification is a perfect finished work — and admits of no degrees. Our sanctification is imperfect and incomplete — and will be so to the last hour of our life.
• 2. Another common cause of the absence of assurance, is slothfulness about growth in grace.
• I believe it ought to be our continual aim and desire to go forward, and our watchword on every returning birthday and at the beginning of every year should be “more and more” — more knowledge, more faith, more obedience, more love.
• 3. Another common cause of a lack of assurance, is an inconsistent walk in life. It is vain to suppose you will feel assured and persuaded of your own pardon and acceptance with God, unless you count all God’s commandments concerning all things to be right, and hate every sin, whether great or small (Psalm 119:128).
• I would not have you judge of the Lord Jesus Christ, by His people. The best of servants can give you but a faint idea of that glorious Master.
• Neither would I have you judge of the privileges of His kingdom, by the measure of comfort to which many of His people attain.

J.C. Ryle's, Holiness, "Moses, An Example"

• Do we want to know what practical holiness is? Let us sit down and study the picture of an eminently holy man.
• To all who want to know what “living by faith” means, I offer Moses as an example.
• The faith of Moses comes nearer to us. It seems to operate in a way more familiar to our own experience.
• Moses gave up three things for the sake of his soul. He felt that his soul would not be saved if he kept them — so he gave them up. 1. He gave up rank and GREATNESS. 2. And more than this — he refused PLEASURE. 3. And more than this — he refused RICHES. 
• Moses chose three things for his soul’s sake, and I think his choices are as astonishing as his refusals. 1. Moses chose SUFFERING and AFFLICTION. 2. But he did more than this — he chose the COMPANY of a despised people. 3. But he did even more. He chose REPROACH and SCORN.
• Moses had faith. Faith was the mainspring of his astonishing conduct. Faith made him do as he did, choose what he chose and refuse what he refused.
• Faith was a telescope to Moses. It made him see the goodly land afar off — rest, peace and victory — when dim-sighted reason could only see trial and barrenness, storm and tempest, weariness and pain.
• Faith was an interpreter to Moses. It made him pick out a comfortable meaning in the dark commands of God’s handwriting — while ignorant sense could see nothing in it but mystery and foolishness.
• If you would ever be saved, you must make the choice that Moses made — you must choose God before the world.
• Do we believe all of the Bible? Let us ask ourselves that question. Depend on it — it is a much greater thing to believe all the Bible than many suppose.
• It is an dreadful truth, and worthy of all consideration, that Bible knowledge not acted upon — is not merely useless and unprofitable. It is much worse than that. It will add to our condemnation and increase our guilt in the judgment day!

From Charles Spurgeon's Morning and Evening:

• Nothing can fully satisfy a person—but the Lord’s love and the Lord’s own self. Saints have tried other pursuits—but they have been driven out of such fatal refuges.
• There is no remembrance of our follies. He does not cherish ill thoughts of us—but He pardons and loves as well after the offence—as before it!
• When you take the Word to them, you do so because God has ordained you to be the messenger of life to their souls, and they must receive it—for so the decree of predestination runs.
• God is not unfaithful to forget the price which His Son has paid.
• Tens of thousands of redeemed ones are not regenerated yet—but regenerated they must be! This is our comfort when we go forth to them with the quickening Word of God.
• Do not leave the throne of grace until all your needs have been spread before the Lord, and until by faith you have a comfortable prospect that they shall be all supplied.
• It is in vain that we possess the Scriptures unless we bind them around us like a belt, surrounding our entire nature, keeping each part of our character in order, and giving compactness to our whole man.
• Jesus died for sinners—cannot we live for them? Where is our tenderness? Where our love to Christ, if we don’t seek His honor in the salvation of men?

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible