Scripture Gleanings

This little book is a handful of gleanings. In your spare moments you may get some spiritual help by reading one of its pages or paragraphs. The pieces are short and varied, but the intention of them all is to cheer and comfort the hearts of God’s people, and to stir up their pace on the Way of Peace.

The Keynote

The keynote of the eternal praise song is this, “He loves us.” This note is learned upon earth. Where the sweetness of “He loves us” is heard, there are no dull, discordant voices. Prove your heart by this pitch, Christian! Such is the marvel of the sound that whenever it enters the soul, “singing and making melody in your hearts to the Lord” follow. The soul rests in “He loves me.” This is the sunshine which cheers, warms and renders the soul fruitful. “He loves us”; thus we get close to Jesus and, in spite of our shortcomings and doubts, find shelter from ourselves.

Many of the Lord’s people fail for years to sing His praises together, because they think “I love Him” is the keynote of praise. They try without success to tune their hearts to this note on their own and never succeed. The pitch is outside ourselves.

The love of Jesus to His people raises their love to Him. Rejoicing in His constant, abiding, ever-present love renders ours (small though it be) after the same fashion as His. However, as a matter of the day’s experience, it is often found that though we begin with His love to us, as the hours wear on, self intrudes and, “Do I love Him?” fills our hearts. As with ordinary singing by ear, the pitch gets lower as the song proceeds. Hence the need of again and again giving the unerring keynote, “He loves us,” for this revives and restores the song which God delights to hear.

Occupation with God’s love to us is the great secret of happy Christian experience; and by the study of God’s love to us, we grow in the knowledge of Him, and thus in resemblance to Him. We see the Eternal Word coming down from the glory about two thousand years ago, entering this world, becoming the lowly man, enduring shame and bearing what only He, the God-man, could bear. His whole course, otherwise a mystery and still a confusion to unbelief, is explained by these three words, “He loves us.”

We see Him upon Calvary, crucified between the thieves, sustaining God’s wrath, accomplishing the Father’s will, and the agony, the forsaken cry, is thus interpreted to our hearts, “He loves us.”

We see Him at God’s right hand in the glory where He has returned. There He lives before their God, the High Priest for His people, bearing them up, weak creatures as they are. When they sin, He pleads their cause in the presence of the Father! Why does He do all this? Where does this incessant care, mercy and grace come from? His activity on high for His people is summed up in these three sweet words — “He loves us.”

Give the motive for His action in preparing the home above for His own, and for His promised return to fetch them up on high and to display them beautiful and glorious with Him when He comes to the earth according to His Word. It is bound up in this simple sentence, which the youngest child can comprehend—“He loves us.”

The love of Jesus is present, ever-present, therefore everlasting. The love of Jesus is all eternal spring-time; it knows no change, runs on evenly through every year of this life, and follows its unbroken course right on to the glory.

“Jesus loves us” is the keynote. Because He loves us, He has washed us from our sins in His own blood. He has made us perfectly clean, taken away every single spot and stain, and fitted us for the glory. Because He loves us, He has made us kings and priests unto God and His Father. We are now enabled to worship the Father, now ready to wear the crown of glory. Therefore, fellow-Christian, praise Him: “To Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”

Glory is His now, but unseen by man; rule is His, but He waits in patience the day of dominion. He is coming, “yet a little while,” God says. Jesus, who loves us, will come from the throne and call us up to the bright cloud. Until He comes, we tune our hearts continually by the keynote, “He loves us.” There are, and will be, hindrances and drawbacks, temptations and snares, and the devil will strive to still that song he hates to hear; but never seek to raise your heart to praise by the force of your own feelings, for the love of Jesus to His people is the only and the unfailing resource of true worshippers.

Once more! Listen carefully to the keynote, “He loves us”; let it stir up our affections and quicken our love by and in His love.

Put Forth Your Graces

You may mistake a pippin apple tree for a crabapple tree in winter! And who can see the difference between a believer and an unbeliever, except by the grace of Christ which the believer expresses?

The Present Hour

Each day has its own peculiar difficulties and dangers for the true believer. Those of the present hour are not the same as those which tried our fathers; but God and His Word remain the same, and to Him and the Word of His grace we turn, as did the saints in olden times.

Unbelieving thoughts and principles allowed in Christian churches present one of the greatest difficulties and dangers for God’s people of this day. Men, even accredited Christian preachers and teachers, refuse to believe all that God says in His Word, and their congregations love to have it that way. Hence amusements and entertainments take the place which only the gospel should have in many places used for Christian worship, and movements are started by well-known Christian preachers for gathering the people together on the Lord’s day to hear fine music and fine speeches, and not to hear of God or of Christ.

Whatever men say of human progress, a thoughtful Christian is obliged to admit that the days are evil, and that “evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived” (2 Tim. 3:13). There may be material progress on the earth; there may be a great increase of mechanical and scientific knowledge; but if God is left out of man’s thoughts, and His Word refused, the end of such progress can only be apostasy from Him.

One thing strikes us most forcibly as to this present hour: Christians do not fully believe in the Holy Spirit. He has been “sent down from heaven” (1 Pet. 1:12). He is on earth (Acts 2:2); and He is the power for all good and true work for God (1 Cor. 2:4). Hence any and every kind of work called Christian which does not have God the Holy Spirit in it is false work.

No one who believed in God the Holy Spirit being on earth, and in His power, would go to such miserable ends as concerts and recitations in order to evangelize mankind, or to glorify God.

What then is the loyal Christian’s path? First of all he must clear himself from what is false. He is not loyal to his Lord if he pursues the popular course of amusing the people. Let another person do so, but let the loyal Christian seek glory, and, though his best friends be against him, let him stand for Christ, and Christ will stand by him. Next, let him stir up his soul to faith in the presence of God the Spirit on the earth, and to the fact that He will use the servant who honors Him. As to this great reality let there be no compromise in the soul, no turning away. It is a question of faith—God has given us of His Spirit, and we dare not deny Him. When this faith fills the soul, the servant of God becomes a new man in service. He knows God the Spirit is in him, and works through him, and by him. Yet it is God who works, the servant is only a vessel. In himself he is nothing; but through God the Holy Ghost, he is a power for God on the earth.

In this dark night, and in deepening darkness, we cry to our Christian brothers and sisters to stir up their hearts as to the great truth of God the Holy Ghost being on the earth and of His indwelling His saints, and of His being their power for all true service for God and for Christ!

Lest … He Find You Sleeping

“Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the Master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning: lest coming suddenly He find you sleeping” (Mark 13:35-36). What hour of the night is it now? Jesus, the Light of the world, left this earth about two thousand years ago, and the evening—even the midnight—is long gone. Has not the cockcrowing also passed away, and has not the watcher’s call awakened some, who now have fallen asleep again? Surely, fellow-Christian, it is the morning now—the Morning Star has arisen; the streaks of dawn are to be seen! Jesus is near; His coming is at hand.

Awake and watch—arouse and wait—give the soul no more to sleep: be ready! Thousands will be asleep when He comes—thousands now are indifferent to the reality of His coming; many, who say they believe He is coming, only speak as men that dream.

Will He find you awake and watching, or sleeping, when He comes? His are words of warning: “Lest coming suddenly”—for few will be expecting Him when He comes, few will be watching for Him—“Lest coming suddenly He find you sleeping.” Make it the great point in your life that Jesus, who loves you, who died for you, will find, at least in you, one true to Himself and watching for Him.

The Way of Peace

What beautiful words these are—“The dayspring from on high hath visited us, to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace” (Luke 1:78-79)! What a privilege it is to know the way of peace. It is God’s way, solely and wholly of His making, in Christ and our part in it is only to tread the firm road and to enjoy all the favor of God which shines upon it. First and foremost, in the consideration of the way of peace, lies the fact that it is all of God; when men turn to make peace, it is too evident “the way of peace have they not known” (Rom. 3:17).

Our first concern in considering this way will be—The way of peace for the guilty sinner. A peaceful state of soul is not to be spoken of until the feet are upon God’s ground for the guilty sinner.

In the third chapter of Romans, we read this solemn statement, “Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God” (Rom. 3:19).

“Guilty before God!” These three words should be deeply impressed upon our souls if we want to know the excellence of the way of peace! Indeed it is questionable whether anyone really wants to know the way of peace, until he has first learned that he is guilty before God.

God once looked at sinful man as under trial, and, when such is the case, the anxious question for man must be, “How will the trial end?” In the first three chapters of Romans, God shows us man as under trial, and in the verse we have referred to, we see how the trial ends—“guilty before God.” God judged the case of the godless, religious and philosophic man, and after considering the case from all sides, the holy Judge brought in this solemn verdict—“guilty before God.”

The Epistle to the Romans was written hundreds of years ago, the Word of God stands for eternity, and He has said of man, “guilty before God,” therefore to this present hour such is his position before Him.

The question then for us is: Do we really believe that this sentence relates to ourselves? Some professing Christians believe that it has to do with them, but in spirit say, “I really think I have turned over a new leaf, and am better than I used to be, and I hope yet to be acceptable to God.” Let us then test ourselves, and ask how many years have passed since we had the solemn conviction that we were guilty before God, because God has so spoken. What would the judge say of the guilty criminal, the case having been proved, who observed: “I will now begin and turn over a new leaf, and I will eventually be acceptable!” What should we say of him? Surely, that he was mad! Yet that is just what the sinner does who speaks about reform, or of changing his life or of becoming good after God has pronounced him to be guilty. The first thing we want to learn in regard to the way of peace is that, as sinners, we are “guilty before God.”

But if we are so dreadfully bad, and so hopelessly undone, surely there is no hope, no peace! Now God’s ways are not as man’s ways. The judge must condemn the man proved to be guilty, but God can proclaim full pardon instead of condemnation. He says, “There is no difference: for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:22-23), and therefore He can have mercy on all. There is no hope to amend matters, for, “By the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in His sight” (Rom. 3:20), but, though it be too late for man to improve his lost and hopeless state, God has in His mercy free pardon for the guilty. Now let us suppose that we are in a condemned cell and there is no hope, but that it pleases the President to say, “I will grant a free pardon.” It is no longer anything of ourselves that is our hope, but the sovereign’s proclamation. In this way the Lord God appears for the guilty sinner. He declares how he may be “justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 3:24), whom God hath set forth a mercy-seat. Whoever goes to this mercy-seat will not fear the judgment-seat. Everyone must confess to God, either at the mercy-seat or at the judgment-seat; every human being, either someday at the judgment-seat or now at the mercy-seat, must admit his guilt and meet the Lord Jesus Christ. The infinite, holy God now sets forth Jesus and His blood as a mercy-seat for the guilty. Jesus has died on account of our sins, and through what He has done, God pardons. God does not pass over, He does not wink at, He does not make light of our sins, but He pardons—He sees them all, to their fullest extent—and then He shows that the blood of His own beloved Son has glorified Him, the righteous God, on account of every sin, and that whosoever believes, He counts as righteous. This is the way of peace, that God has made for the guilty sinner to tread, and by faith treading that divine way we obtain pardon.

The pardon is unconditional.

We cannot be too earnest as to this. Man has nothing to do with the pardon whatever, except for stretching out his hand to receive it. If we were righteously in a condemned cell, our sins would have brought us there; and if a pardon were brought to us, it would not be our goodness that brought it to us; our only part in the pardon would be to receive it.

There was a man in a foreign land, who was condemned to death. The morning came and he was led to be executed. His friends had strained every nerve to obtain his release; unknown to him, they had obtained his pardon a few hours before the time settled for his death. Indeed, while he was being led to execution, a horseman was galloping as hard as he could to stop the execution. The man was already pardoned, even though he was being led to execution; but he did not know it, and he felt utterly miserable and hopeless. Just in time to stop the execution, the horseman arrived with the proclamation and the man was set at liberty. His liberty was due to the word of pardon, not to his feelings. In order to rest in God’s way of peace for the guilty sinner, we must thoroughly believe what God says. The way of peace cannot be found in what we feel, but in God’s Word.

A Song of Salvation

What joy it is to know

Our sins are all forgiven,

Our souls are whiter far than snow,

And we are bound for heaven.

Our souls we tried to save,

Our sins we sought to hide

But Christ Himself our ransom paid,

For us He bled, He died.

We mourned our bitter case,

Our hearts were filled with fear;

But now we glory in God’s grace,

And in our Lord most dear.

Joy to each heart belongs,

In God we will rejoice;

Encompassed with His freedom songs.

To Him we lift the voice.

Be glad then in the Lord,

Ye upright, shout for joy;

God’s perfect love,

His perfect Word

Shall all our hearts employ.

Not Feeling Our Need

The people most needy in spiritual things usually feel their need the least. This is certainly true with the sinner, and it is not far from the truth with the saint. Young Christians should beware of falling into the not-feeling-their-need state-of-soul. A man who rarely reads his Bible hardly realizes his need of the divine Word; he becomes content to forego opportunities of obtaining spiritual instruction, and is unaware of his true spiritual needs. One reason why some Christians get on so slowly is found in their not feeling their need of progress. “Ask, and ye shall receive,” says the Lord. It is always highly dangerous to reach the level of self-contentment—“Not as though I had already attained,” says the Apostle.

Christians living in close communion with God continually feel their need of nearness to God, and the nearer we are in spirit to God, the more we desire to know Him. The truth of the matter is we all need a great deal more than we think we do. When we become aware of our wants, we go to God, who gives grace to the humble, and who helps those who desire Him to help them.

Influence

We are constantly exercising an influence over those about us. Insensible influence is the strongest. The quiet consistency of private life is more convincing than the efforts of outward service. The general peacefulness of a man’s ways speaks more loudly than his most vigorous actions in the cause of good.

Evil Nature Delights in Evil

You hold your breath, while passing that stagnant ditch, fearful that a disease-carrying fog floats in the air. But the noisy frogs croak merrily in the slough; it is their nature to delight in mire. Fallen nature revels in iniquity in the same way. Christian, pass on. The noise of these rioters is only the croaking of the frogs.

His Fulness

We read in the epistle to the Colossians, “It pleased the Father that in Him should all fullness dwell” (Col. 1:19); or, as it may be rendered, “It was pleasing that in Him should all fullness dwell”; that is, it is the good pleasure of the Godhead that all fullness should dwell in the Son. Through the Son the fullness of the Godhead finds its expression.

In this same chapter the glories of the Lord Jesus Christ are largely described. We read of Him as the Creator, making all things that are in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities or powers. We also read of Him as the One by whom all things are upheld. The mightiest angel in heaven and the smallest creature that exists on this earth were alike made by Him, and for Him also; whether it be the mighty sun in the heavens or the smallest flower on this earth, each created thing owes its present existence solely to the word of the eternal Son of God.

The Lord’s glories, in another sphere, are also spoken of in this chapter; glories which commenced with His resurrection from the dead and His ascension to heaven; glories which attach themselves to His manhood, as we read— “And He is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the first-born from the dead.” These glories, therefore, date their commencement from almost 2000 years ago. When the earth and the heavens have served their day, they will be laid aside by Him as a disused garment (Heb. 1:12); but the body, the church, will exist forever. We may surely say that His glories in relation to the church are dearer to His heart than the glories that pertain to Him as the Creator. His Creator-glories are the result of His wisdom and majesty; those that belong to Him as the head of the body, the church, arise from His sufferings and His death.

As the Creator, He is spoken of as the firstborn of every creature, because He is the Head, the chief of all; as arisen from the dead, He is spoken of as the beginning, the first-born from the dead, the head of the new race of the redeemed.

Whatever glory God has been pleased to display, He expresses it always through the Son. The Son is the fountain of joy for all people who love God, and through the Son He is made known and learned. This is true, not only in time, but in eternity; not only for man on earth, but for the angels in heaven; not only for man in this little lifetime, but for the redeemed through the countless ages of eternity.

It is well, indeed, for the heart to occupy itself with the glories of the Lord Jesus Christ, with His greatness and His majesty, His wisdom and His love; for it is the pleasure of the Godhead that all fullness should dwell in Him.

With these thoughts before us, we turn to a verse in the first chapter of John’s Gospel, “And of His fullness have all we received, and grace for grace” (John 1:16). Whoever the believer may be—whether an Apostle, a John, who laid his head upon the Lord’s breast, and to whom was given to see His glories as recorded in the book of Revelation; a Paul, who saw the Lord in His glory at God’s right hand, and who was caught up into paradise and there heard unspeakable things which it was not possible for man to utter; or whether the simplest of the simple, a little child who believes on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and who knows hardly more than that—all have received a portion of His fullness for “of His fullness have all we received.” It may be according to our experience, and thus only a very little portion of His fullness, but there is not one true believer who has not received something of it. The joy that fills the heart, the peace and the blessing spread abroad by the Holy Ghost within the soul, or the deep knowledge of God that is the portion of any who are willing to pursue and enjoy it, all come from the fullness that is in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Will our reader compare the occurrences of “all” in those two verses, “all” fullness dwells “in Him,” and “of His fullness have all we received”? The first “all” describes the unlimited fullness that dwells in Christ, the second “all” describes the vast company of the people of God, not one of whom is left out. When we think, therefore, of who Christ is and of what dwells in Him, what an appeal it is to our hearts to go more truly and frequently to Him in order to receive of His fullness! No believer need lament his poverty, his spiritual emptiness, his misery of soul, for he may receive, at any moment and at all times, of the fullness that dwells in Jesus.

Where this great reality is truly believed, the soul, instead of occupying itself with the poverty of self, would go in faith to the Lord Jesus Christ, with the blessed result of receiving from Him an abundance of blessing. Let the blessing already received from Jesus be our encouragement to go to Him for further supplies. “Grace for grace” is His way with us. He gives us one grace to prepare us to receive another. He bestows grace, and having bestowed, bestows grace again. With self-emptied, the longing heart becomes wealthy and possessed of blessings out of the divine abundance that everlastingly dwells in the Son, and lives this life on earth in the power of the possession of spiritual wealth.

Make a Beginning

A child learns how to walk by trying to walk, which is the simple mode of instruction we commend to such Christians who do no work for their Master because they are not clear for what kind of service they are fitted. Make a beginning, dear friend, try something, and keep on trying till you find out that for which you are specially fitted.

Dust Deaf

It is said of the adder that she stops her ears against the charmer’s music with dust. This is an apt emblem of him who, groveling in the world, becomes insensible to the melody of Divine love.

Everlasting

Unbelief is attacking the truths of the immortality of the soul and of future punishment. In its efforts to disprove what it cannot know except by the revelation of God, it seeks to overturn the meaning of the plain words “forever.” Yes, in a contemptible way for infidelity Christianized, or Christianized infidelity, accepts that God lives forever and that men will exist in heaven forever, yet denies that men will exist in hell forever. Now this is simply dishonest. If God uses the selfsame word for His own everlasting existence and for the everlasting happiness of such as love Him, as well as for the everlasting punishment of the wicked, to say that everlasting means what it says when applied to God and to happiness, but it does not mean what it says when applied to punishment is dishonest.

Note these passages of Scripture, where the identical words are used translated “for ever.”

“Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come....who liveth FOR EVER AND EVER” (Rev. 4:8-9).

“To whom be glory FOR EVER AND EVER” (2 Tim. 4:18).

“They shall reign FOR EVER AND EVER” (Rev. 22:5).

“Tormented day and night FOR EVER AND EVER” (Rev. 20:10).

Again—

“The EVERLASTING God” (Rom. 16:26).

“EVERLASTING life” (John 3:16).

“EVERLASTING destruction” (2 Thess. 1:9).

Again—

“ETERNAL Spirit” (Heb. 9:14).

“ETERNAL glory” (1 Pet. 5:10).

“ETERNAL damnation” (Mark 3:29).

The dishonesty of the doctrine is so evident that we should scarcely think it could gain ground were we not aware who is at the back of it—the father of lies. The rapid gaining of ground by the doctrine only shows how readily Satan is believed.

At the beginning, our first parent, Eve, believed the devil’s word, “Ye shall not surely die,” rather than God’s; and sadly many now prefer the devil’s doctrine of no eternal death, to fleeing from the wrath to come. Neither Adam nor Eve had seen a human being die when God warned them what would happen should they disobey His plain command. Death, therefore, was an unknown terror to them. The myriads of graves that this world now contains are each a witness to the fact of God’s truth, and because of the presence of death none disbelieve God’s word that “It is appointed unto man once to die.” No living man has seen hell nor a human being risen from the dead in a body that will endure forever. Should we then wait till the reality of the second death is before our very eyes to believe the plain Word of God respecting it, till hell and its inhabitants prove that God speaks the truth? When the future becomes the present, men will find no difficulty in understanding those truths which are now revealed to us to believe regarding it.

There is in the human heart a stubborn refusal against receiving the word of God respecting coming judgment. It was so with the sons-in-law of Lot. They would not believe the testimony of their father-in-law that God would destroy Sodom. All seemed normal when Lot sought to persuade them to escape from the coming wrath, the sun rose as usual upon the last day of Sodom. There was no sign of the approach of that which had never been before, and then a storm of fire poured from the sky. It may have been that even while those sons-in-law of Lot were gazing into the blue heavens and jesting at the idea of God destroying their city that the storm broke into the flames through which they perished.

We read the words of the prophets to transgressing Israel and find how determined the hearts of those people were not to credit the word of God about the judgments which He declared He would send on them. Over and over again judgments fell upon that people, and yet fresh generations walked in the ways of their erring fathers and despised and refused to believe Jehovah’s warnings.

Now we Christians are taught to look upon those fulfilled judgments as witnesses of the truth of the divine Word. Jerusalem trampled underfoot by the nations, the Jews scattered over the earth, the ten tribes lost and buried out of sight and mind as it were are obvious to us all! Tyre and Sidon, once flourishing cities of mighty influence and power in the world, now but a few huts for fishermen, proclaim even to children the truth of God’s word coming to pass. But when Tyre was in her prosperity, when her ships sailed on many seas, and all the world contributed to her exaltation when she was lifted up to heaven in her pride, do we think she believed the word of God that her glory would perish, and that her majesty would be but a memory on the earth?

It is easy to accept the testimony of God respecting past judgments upon the earth, for ruined cities and overturned kingdoms attest the truth of the prophetic word. Yet, notwithstanding the witness of Sodom, of Tyre and Sidon, and of Jerusalem, the very men who read the Bible are vain enough to deny that the future judgment of God against the sinner will ever be realized—no they say, there is not an eternal punishment.

It is conceded that too many die and pass out of time into eternity without God and without Christ. Sadly the fact is so awfully apparent that it could not be denied. But such being admitted, it is asked, “Is there, then, no hope?” And the whispered response is heard, “It would comfort us to think that there was hope for those whom we loved who lived wickedly and died without repentance.”

Do we believe that God is deceiving when He says forever? Do we credit that our blessed Lord was misguiding men when He said forever? Do we accept that the Holy Spirit of God is merely frightening us with dreadful tales when He says forever? Can man comfort himself with such notions of God the Father, Son and Holy Ghost? Such as do so have low conceptions of the character of God.

It is not necessary to be a scholar to understand the plain word of God. Our English Bible tells the truth with remarkable simplicity—indeed, with so much force and clearness that no uneducated man could be led astray by it. It is still as it was in the days of Eve: there is a willing ear for the Tempter’s insinuation, “Hath God said?” He has found his way into the professing church, as easily as he found the way into Paradise, and now, from the very heart of the professing Christian body, the voice is heard denying the letter and seeking to disprove the spirit of the Book.

“It is written,” said the Lord to Satan, and drove him back. “It is written” must ever be the Christian’s defense. “It is written,” “Forever.”

How to Grow Warm

We do not say, We are so cold that we must wait until we grow warm, before we come near the fire. The welcoming glow draws us close to itself. The love of God likewise draws the sinner, cold as he is, to God.

Busybodies

“But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing” (2 Thess. 3:13); but—for there were some in Thessalonica who were busy enough, unwearied too, and yet idle people—they were busybodies. How often is it the case that, as it was in Thessalonica, so it is here. Paul objected to such characters. “They learn to be idle,” he says, and a sorrowful schooling this was. The idleness they had learned brought a more mischievous accomplishment with it, namely, that of wandering about from house to house, and not only were they idle but “tattlers also and busybodies, speaking things which they ought not” (1 Tim. 5:13).

Christian mischief makers are a great hindrance in the church and to Christian work. The “sister,” who sits at her window watching her neighbors is an idle soul and her idleness usually ends in the exercise of wandering from house to house mischief-making. But, however troublesome a woman busybody is, a man busybody is worse. And really there are some whose main business in life seems to be to collect as much of the scraps of tattle as they can and, supplied with these old rags and refuse, they go about from house to house.

Can their friends not help to find these brethren another less objectionable occupation? There is one way of curing these people and that is by shutting the door upon them and the ear to their conversation. We never yet knew of a busybody carrying on his or her business of collecting the rags and refuse of the lives of others without an audience. Where there is no demand the supplies will not be kept up; therefore let us have nothing to do with these collectors of refuse and so starve them out of their business.

The Spirit of God most clearly places before us, in the chapter where our exhortation occurs, this duty: the true soul is to withdraw himself from the idlers and the tattlers. If we cannot remedy them, let us beware lest they spoil us. It is an infectious disease from which they suffer, and they should be isolated. Do not find fault with them or quarrel with them, certainly do not say a word behind their backs, simply leave them alone. The busybody has chosen to walk on the dirty side of the road, let those otherwise minded walk on the clean side. The idler has chosen the street corner; let those otherwise minded go quietly on in their work, without so much as wasting one word on the group at the idle corner.

“But,” says the Apostle in contrast with these most painful people and their idleness in good and activity in evil—“But ye, brethren, be not weary in well doing,” for it is strange that in evil work persons do not get tired, while in holy Christian work the heart and the hands will grow weary. How many a Christian grows sore of heart and foot in well doing! He becomes discouraged and downcast, and the life spring of his soul’s activity seems inclined to dry up. Even the growth of evil tends to render some saints indifferent to their duty of well doing. The very things which should stir up the soul to greater energy of zeal for God, become those which weary the heart and deter the believer from well doing.

God Is Faithful

The faithfulness of God is a theme of great joy to His people. God never changes. Whatever the changes may be in our hearts, whatever the follies may be of our lives, God abides faithful. Were it not so, what would be our end? How could we continue our journey homewards?

The manna that fell each day from heaven for the Israelites’ food in the wilderness is a most gracious evidence of divine faithfulness. However badly Israel behaved, or however obedient they might be, the manna was sent to them day by day. Their ways did not touch God’s grace. Even when they murmured at the manna, God gave it to them; even when they proposed to return to Egypt and its food, God sent them the manna.

He never neglected them, nor lost sight of their need for one single day during all the forty years they wandered in the wilderness. And God is the same God for His people today that He was for His people of old. And we may add, His people of today are very much like His people of old. Today are there not murmurings, and sometimes even thoughts such as Israel’s when they proposed to return to Egypt?

Let us look carefully at our path and surroundings, and we shall discover daily “how good is the God we adore.” Let us rest more simply on Him, and in His love, and let us make more and more of His Christ. He is our Manna, our Rock, our Shield; He goes before us, and He is our rearward, and He is always near to carry the weak and to heal the wounded. Our dullness, our difficulties alike call forth His pity and His care. He never leaves, He never forsakes; He always abides faithful.

Our Faithful Lord

O Jesus, Lord, I praise Thy love,

My Rest below, my Joy above;

My Calm in storms, my Peace in fear;

My Ease in toil, my Friend most dear.

Each early morn my Manna sweet

My cooling Shade thro’ noontide’s heat;

My springing Fount to satisfy

With depths of love that ne’er run dry.

My Guardian all the rugged way;

By night the Watch, my Shield by day;

No foe need now alarm my heart,

My Lord will ne’er from me depart.

By Thy kind hand so gently led,

My joy is in Thy steps to tread;

And as I go I’ll gladly sing

Till heaven shall with Thy praises ring.

Fault Finding

“Charity begins at home”; some add, “and ends there”; but let us take care that our fault finding begins with ourselves and ends there.

Faithful and Wise

The Lord had been teaching the disciples, in a parable, things concerning His coming again. He had said to them, “Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning; and ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that, when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately.”

Then Peter said to Him, “Lord, speakest Thou this parable unto us, or even to all?” And the Lord said, “Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his lord shall make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of meat in due season? Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.” “Faithful and wise,” faithful to the trust—wise in the execution of it. A steward of things committed unto him, things which he himself might enjoy, but which he is also called to share the enjoyment of with others. If a believer has rest of heart, if he knows the forgiveness of his sins, if his soul is at peace with God, it is not only for his own personal blessing that these are his, but as a steward he holds them on behalf of others.

It was not only to the apostles that these words were spoken; they were stewards, and stewards of great things, but we are stewards also, though it may be of little things. A great result follows in the believer’s soul when he recognizes, as a truth, that he is a steward of what God has granted to him. Every reader, who knows the pardon of his sins, must be aware that there are many persons around him, whose sins are not forgiven; also, he who has peace with God must know that very many, even of God’s children, with whom he mixes frequently, lack this great blessing. As a steward, it is his responsibility to seek to bring the joy of the forgiveness of sins and of peace with God before those who are without them. “Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.”

“Faithful and wise,” the Lord said; we need to challenge ourselves to be faithful to our trust, for there is a tendency in our hearts to settle down, and to enjoy what we possess, without thinking of what others lack. Wisdom in the execution of our trust is absolutely necessary, and this must be God-given. Whatever the need of the soul may be, it is utterly beyond the power of human ability to meet it. The steward therefore who sees the spiritual poverty around him, and who knows the blessing that is stored up in Christ, feels that it is only as God gives him divine wisdom to meet the peculiar need of each individual soul that he can really give the “meat in due season,” as the Lord enjoins upon him. There exists in some a greater spiritual appetite than there does in others, and also a larger capacity for receiving the truth of God than is the case with others. Some are very feeble in the faith and their souls require building up; to teach these difficult doctrines would be entirely out of place, they want the simplicity of the gospel. What should we say of the nurse who fed the new-born babe with strong meat? Strong meat might be its death; certainly it would vastly injure it. So with the invalid, food has to be given that will meet the condition of the sufferer. In like manner is it with the things of God: the state of the soul has to be earnestly considered. The feeble require establishing in gospel truth; the weak need nourishment in the faith. The Lord places before us as His stewards that it is our wisdom to give the portion of meat that is suited to the individual soul.

“In due season.” At some periods of our lives we are prepared to receive a truth of God which at other times we seem to have no capacity to take in. It is ever so in the growth of the spiritual man. The faithful and wise steward, who rejoices in the truths of God, must be able to discern the spiritual state of the soul to whom he speaks, in order that he may be able to give that special portion that meets the special need of the one he is addressing.

“Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.” Let these words of the Lord “so doing” find their full place in our hearts. Jesus would have us doing this gracious work and would have none idle in this business. On every hand there is a cry for help in this our day. All our energy is required on the behalf of others, and he who shall be found thus occupied when the Lord comes He pronounces to be a “blessed servant”—that is a happy servant, one upon whom the Lord’s smile rests, one who will receive His mark of approval, one who will hear the Master say, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant.” And, even in this lifetime, “blessed is that servant,” since he has a secret joy in his soul which no idler in the household possesses.

A dark and terrible picture is drawn in the verses that follow. They are commended to you, but not enlarged on here. Let the bright side of this parable rest upon our hearts, and let each of us be faithful, according to our measure, praying for wisdom to do what the Lord has called us to do worthily for Him, and thus even now, this very day, it shall be said of us, “Blessed is that servant.”

Self-Confidence

When the Gibeonites came to the princes of Israel they came with flattery and deceit, and their fair speeches smoothed over their deception. And what, provided it be done well, is so pleasing to self as flattery? Sadly this wretched art gets many a flatterer a place in the church as a devout person. The make-believe pilgrim gains the confidence of the princes, and they give him a place. Do you know, Christian reader, where this lack of wisdom lies? Do you know the reason why the princes were taken in? Surely, in the very thing accredited persons are the most likely to err—self-confidence. “They sought not counsel of the Lord.”

Glory to the Lamb

A Christian friend writes: “I spent most of the day in this majestic pile (Cologne Cathedral), revisited its chapels, and looked again at the relics, and in the evening attended the public service.”

“The responses were answered by hundreds of devotees, as the priest led the litany. The sermon, like the service, was in honor of the virgin Mary. The preacher told the congregation, which was composed chiefly of working men and poor women, how sorely they needed a friend, and how they should pray and attend service, even to the sacrifice of their money and their time, for the hours of prayer were sacred. The virgin, said he, would be their friend and their consoler. She heard their cries, for to her the triune God had delegated this office.”

“He had hardly ceased his sermon when the congregation lifted up its voice in a hymn, the men singing with their whole soul and voice. Then some two hundred persons went and knelt before the shrine of the virgin, and many drew near the altar. All were now bowing to the ground near me.”

“Then the women singers in the organ loft commenced with Ave Maria, the sweet, full tones of which literally rolled along and echoed from the lofty roof after the song had ceased: while before the echoes had died away, the organ led the congregation in a great volume of song praying to the virgin.”

“As they sang to her, the music made rhythm in my ears, and my heart whispered, Glory to the Lamb! Sadly, no strong, brave Luther, no noble reformer, as in days long since dead and gone, dared occupy the pulpit and confess Jesus, once slain but alive to die no more, in the midst of relic and virgin worship.”

Is this then Christianity? Are they indeed Christians who thus worship and pray to and proclaim the virgin?

Of what avail are such prayers? Are they better than those of the African to his fetish tree, or those addressed to blocks of wood and of stone?

Oh! Christians, men and women saved by the Son of God and washed in His blood who died upon the cross for you, lift up your souls and voices to magnify His Name in this our idolatrous Christendom. Christendom is going back into idolatry, and our own beloved land is giving up Christ. Away with these abominations, for none but Jesus is the Savior, and He is the Friend and the Consoler to whom our prayers shall arise. Heaven shall for endless ages echo “Glory to the Lamb,” and in that song shall all the redeemed, including the virgin, take their joyful part. Live to and sing His praise and His glory now.

Glory to the Lamb,

Honor to the Lamb,

Power to the Lamb,

World without end!

Of His pity, He has sought us,

With His own life-blood He bought us,

Peace, deep peace, in grace He brought us,

Hail! Mighty Friend.

Glory to the Lamb,

Honor to the Lamb,

Power to the Lamb,

Matchless His fame!

Grace, through Him, o’er sin abounded:

Foes before Him fall confounded,

Ever be His triumphs sounded -

Hail! Peerless Name.

Glory to the Lamb,

Honor to the Lamb,

Power to the Lamb,

Now throned above

Earth and hell shall bow before Him;

Saints in Heaven with love adore Him;

Sinners, now for grace implore Him;

Hail! Name of love.

Long Prayers at Prayer Meetings

When Christians are gathered together for prayer, it should be remembered that they do not come before God merely as units, but as a company of people whose hearts should be one. What is addressed to God on such occasions is not properly the private expression of the desires of the speaker, but it should be of such a kind that all present may be able to say “Amen” with united hearts. When we speak of united prayer, we mean the true union and agreement of heart of those who bow together before God expressed through the words of one and another. The Lord says, “If two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of My Father which is in heaven” (Matt. 18:19), and this, we take it, is truly united prayer, heart agreement wrought in Christians by the Holy Spirit; and, continues the Lord, the answer to such prayer shall come, “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them” (Matt. 18:20).

It is not that there is any power in our prayers to work wonders, but there is power in the name of Jesus, through which the Father loves to bless. Our united prayers are but our requests uttered in human language, and prayer is evidently a witness of our weakness. However, the agreement wrought in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, expressed in words to which we can and do say, “Amen,” does indeed call down a blessing.

We notice also the particularity, the distinctness, the evident point there is in the prayer of which the Lord speaks—“as touching any thing,” He says. This is some definite thing; the person so praying desires something, and asks respecting it, and this is surely not a vague ramble about all things. “Any thing” is the gracious width of the word, but he does desire a real, actual thing.

We often hear prayers so vague, that after twenty minutes, we are altogether unable to identify what was asked of God to which our hearts could respond, “Amen.” These long, weary sermons on the knee are a mistake. Usually the longer the prayer the less there is in it to which to say, “Amen.” We speak only of public meetings, for in the closet happy are they who can remain twice twenty minutes on their knees praying to God without distraction. There are exceptions to this, but in general the rule prevails, at least speaking from our own experience and also from that of many others.

One cause why meetings for prayer are so frequently dry and uninteresting is the long wearying prayers, or rather speeches on the knee, which are made in them. It is really almost an irreverence to inform God on different matters, to explain to Him things that are proceeding around us. Doth not God know?

Again, to use the opportunity of prayer in order to inform one another on matters of interest, or as an occasion to attack or run down our brethren is evil; certainly it is not asking God for anything. Again, a long exposition of Scripture, put into the form of an address to God, is not praying. In united prayer there should be the union of hearts, holy agreement as touching something. A remedy to some of the ills we have referred to will be found in remembering that we are not mere units in a meeting for united prayer, but the mouthpiece of those present, to give expression in words of the desires of those gathered together in Christ’s name.

To Evangelists

Little root—Little fruit.

The Way of Peace to an Erring Child of God

When a sinner believes, he is never called a sinner again in the Bible, but a saint.

What is it then that makes a person a saint? As an answer we will use an illustration. Here are two hundred books, and a person says, “I will buy three of them.” He pays for them, and puts them to one side. He has separated them from the other books, taken them from the mass, and made them a company by themselves. The simple meaning of the word saint is separated one. When we are purchased by God through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, we are separated from the rest of the world and we are thenceforth a separated people—saints.

Should the saint be a very holy person?

Certainly; but what makes a sinner a saint is what God does, not what the saint does.

Someone may say, “This may all be true, but I do not feel holy, or feel I am a saint.” Let us suppose a good judge of silver picking up a metal fork; it is tarnished and looks worthless to one who is not a judge, but tarnished as it is the good judge knows it to be silver. In the same way the believer may get tarnished, but he is a saint all the same, and nothing can alter that.

Does a saint ever sin?

Sadly, he does, but God says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Sadly it is an easy thing for us after we have done wrong to sink into a cold state of soul, and then we are apt to think that we are lost sinners and that we require pardon, just as we did when we first came to God to be forgiven. We may draw a lesson from daily life as to this. A child has done wrong, but does the mother say, “Tommy is not my boy, because he has done wrong”? No; she says, “My boy is a naughty boy.” To be sure the child should not have done wrong, nor should a child of God do wrong, yet we are still God’s children, even if naughty children.

What do we expect the child to do who has done wrong?

We expect him to tell the truth about it. Those who are God’s children should say they have done wrong, and not try to cover it up or shift the responsibility to someone else. Adam tried to push his wrong-doing on Eve. If we have done wrong, do not let us put it on someone else. The only way for the believer to regain peace when he has done wrong is for him to tell God the truth about it, as His child. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.”

Each one has some besetting sin. What is a temptation to one perhaps is not a temptation to another. A man who has a quick temper may say, “I have lost my temper three times today, once ought to be once too often”; or it may be he has the temptation to backbite or to indulge in some thoughts he should not indulge in. At night, while he is thinking over the day as in God’s sight, he says to God, “I did that same evil thing three times today; I am bitterly ashamed of myself.” This experience is true, sadly, in everyday life. This believer is not enjoying peace when he is thus judging himself. We will allow that he knows he is a child of God, but he is not in a peaceful state of soul. Now what must he do? The only way of peace for him is what God has put before us—confess the sin.

But it gets harder and harder each time, someone will say.

The man who does not tell God what he has done slips further and further away from God in his soul, and, if this continues, it may end in open sin. We do not lose the sense of the burden of sin on our conscience until we confess to God. Sometimes a child is “grumpy” for a day or two because he has some secret naughtiness going on in his heart. Likewise we may see children of God vexed in soul for a whole week at a time. At last the child’s parent says, “If you do not change, I will spank you.” It is very much the same with us; God shakes us out of our bad state of soul by His strong arm and then we get down on our knees and confess our sin to Him. It is most sad to think of a whole week out of this short lifetime spent in coldness and deadness of soul because of unconfessed sin. Yet it is true that there are people who have fallen into a cold, dead state and have continued in it for a long year. And why? Because they have not confessed their sins.

Where there is confession there is always pardon.

When we were children, we were forgiven upon telling our parents what we had done wrong, and in like manner God our Father says of the children who confess their sins to Him, “He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.”

God does really forgive sins.

It is a very delightful thing for the child of God to know that he is forgiven; it lifts a burden off his soul to know that all the unrighteousness is cleansed and that he has a fresh start. The way of peace, when we have done wrong, is to have it all out with God. Tell God all about it—make a true confession. We are quick to feel when any around us show, by their actions or the look on their faces, that they have something against us. How much more sensitive is the soul of the believer if there is a shadow between his soul and God? Let us be quick in self-judgment lest that which may have been at first but as a very slight cloud between us and God should grow into a mighty barrier.

Life

Life is a thread. Suspended by that thread the soul hangs over eternity, and God hath appointed the day, hour, and moment when the thread shall be cut.

Every Knee Shall Bow

“Every knee shall bow!” (Rom. 14:11). Every knee! Whether of angels or of men, loyal or disloyal, whether of infidels or of martyrs, whether that of Beelzebub or that of Michael—some, owning the power of His might; some, the power of His love; some, in willing obedience; some, because they have no choice. This is the decree of God the Father that at the name of Jesus “Every knee shall bow,” whether in heaven, on earth or under the earth, whether the holy angels, men or devils.

“Every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,” (Phil. 2:11). Yes, “Lord,” the Ruler, the Governor, the Supreme Authority! The confession must be made throughout all God’s universe as to the Lordship of Jesus, the Son of Man, though for the present the earth is a rebellious place, and the devil is at war with Him.

Had the Father’s decree been that this confession should be that Jesus is the Eternal Son, it might be said, His essential glories demand such honor, but the confession is to be made of Him as Jesus, as the Son of Man who was despised and rejected of men, as Jesus known upon earth as the carpenter’s son, as the Nazarene, the scorn of the religious. The reason for this universal confession to Jesus as the Lord, and of this universal bowing of the knee to Him, is thus given: though He was “in the form of God [He], thought it not robbery to be equal with God,” for this He was by His own right, being the eternal Son of God; “but made Himself of no reputation”; that is, He emptied Himself, He left the everlasting throne and laid aside His glories; instead of remaining the One before whom all bowed, He took upon Him the form of a servant, and learned to serve. Not such service as the mighty angels render to God was His, for He was made a “little lower than the angels” (Heb. 2:7). His servant-form was not in the likeness of the “flames of fire,” but in that of man.

Having become a man, He humbled Himself even as such. He did not stoop from the everlasting throne on high to become a king on this earth or to move among its mighty princes, but to become a poor man, associated with publicans and sinners! Yet, even more than this, such was the wonder of His grace, He became obedient unto death! It is impossible for our minds to conceive what death was to the Lord of life and glory! There was no necessity for Him to die, save that which the love of His heart imposed upon Him, but, in His loving service, death stood in the way, as He said, “Even so must the Son of Man be lifted up” (John 3:14); death waited at the end of His career of service, hence He became obedient even unto death. Yet Jesus did not merely die, however immeasurably beyond human thought that humiliation is, He stooped to the most shameful death that man could die, the lowest and most bitter form of death—“even the death of the cross.”

In answer to this obedience and willing humility, God the Father has highly exalted Him, and has given Him the name which is above every name. No man nor angel shall ever bear a name so glorious, so wonderful as He. God has also seated Him upon His throne in glory, and has decreed, that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, and that every tongue shall confess that He is Lord.

In these days of Christianized infidelity, when the very atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ is openly discredited in not a few Christian pulpits and when His humiliation and obedience are used by those who hold the Bible in their hands as weapons against His divinity, the heart of the true believer finds satisfaction and strength in the contemplation of the coming glories and honors that attend the name of Jesus. Infidelity can only be met by Scripture. To argue with infidelity is to come down to its level. The man of faith stands on a higher platform altogether than that occupied by the infidel, and it is his duty to use the sword of the Spirit above, which is the Word of God, to cut asunder man’s pride, and to pierce and divide his thoughts and intentions.

The Man Christ Jesus, despised and rejected of men, is seated on the throne of God the Father; declare then boldly to your friends and neighbors, who may question the truth of the Word of God, how God has exalted Jesus on His throne and has decreed that they, each one of them, must bend the knee to Him, the Lord; that they, each one of them, must with their very tongues confess the glory of His name. Say to them, this is the decree of God the Father; that they will have no choice. Infidel and scorner a man may be, but tell him plainly that infidelity can last no longer than the brief span of this lifetime, that “honest doubts,” as men call their willful unbelief of God’s Word, will not save them from the awful penalty of their disobedience. Explain that when the breath passes out of a man’s body, and his spirit goes into the world of spirits, that then, forever and forever, infidelity is a thing of the past. Either in heaven, on earth, or in hell, every knee will bow to Jesus and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord. His name of Lord does of necessity contain in it the sweetness of His title, Savior. Happy are they who now, in this lifetime, have bowed in loving worship at His once pierced feet, for they shall in heaven cast their crowns before the throne and declare Him Lord.

No Help

I saw a sheep upon her back as I came over the hill. There she lay, the picture of helplessness, and around her was a group of her own kind watching her struggles, but, like sheep, giving no assistance.

What a picture of too many of us in God’s flock! We stand, like the senseless sheep, eyeing our brother as he lies upon his back, but have no help to render. But, unlike sheep, we inspect and criticize his position, adding mischief to impotence.

Liberty in God's Presence

There can be no liberty in the presence of God until freedom from the condemnation attached by God to sin be known. Man may avoid or shirk the question of sin; but God is holy, man is sinful, and sinful man cannot enjoy freedom in the presence of the holy God.

Ponder Hebrews 10:1-22, and observe there that the nature of the sacrifices under the Jewish dispensation was such that they could never bring the worshipper into liberty. They were not designed by God to effect this end as Hebrews 9:8 teaches. If those sacrifices could really have taken away sins they would have stopped being offered. The worshipper, once purged by them, should have had no more conscience of sins, and therefore no further need of sacrifices for sin. The blood of the sacrifice would have purged him and, being purged, his conscience would have been at rest before God—that is to say, so far as his guilt as a sinner and God’s righteous claims in relation to the sinner are concerned. We do not refer to the heart being at rest as a dear child before the Father, but simply to the conscience of a man who is a sinner, being purged, and now at rest before the holy God in the spirit of liberty.

Without a purged conscience (Hebrews 10:1-2) was the state that marked the Jewish worshiper; a great mass of professing Christians in our day render God religious homage, but, like the Jewish worshiper of old, they also lack a purged conscience. They come to God to have their sins forgiven, rather than to praise Him for forgiveness. Thus it is that there is so little remembrance of Jesus, who died to put away our sins.

Now God says of believers, their sins “are forgiven” (1 John 2:12). He says they have been “once purged”; and are, so far as their liberty before Him is concerned, “perfect.” They are “sanctified,” set apart to God by virtue of the sacrifice of Christ, therefore their portion is to praise God and to remember what Jesus has done for them.

Every man has a conscience; he knows something concerning right and wrong. The conscience of the professing Christian, enlightened by the Word of truth, makes him tremble, unless he knows how perfectly the blood of Christ has purged him. “If the blood of bulls and of goats...sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: how much more shall the blood of Christ...purge your conscience?” (Heb. 9:13-14).

Now, the sacrifice of Christ has been once offered, and it will never be repeated. By “one offering He hath perfected forever them that are sanctified” (Heb. 10:14). The sacrifice is absolutely perfect in itself, and its effects are eternal. Once and forever offered, Jesus has, by His blood, put away our sins once and forever. There is no truth more necessary to hold with all our spiritual energy than this, that since Christ’s sacrifice is perfect, its effects are perfect. Since He has died once and for all, His work is forever completed. And, as our souls delight in the perfection of Christ’s work for us on the cross, thus we enter into liberty of conscience before God. He who is ever trying to make himself good is never at rest, but he who simply believes God’s Word has rest and is before God in liberty.

“Without shedding of blood is no remission” (Heb. 9:22). Sins can only be expiated by death. Such is the decree of God, and it is made upon the basis of His own holiness. Tears and prayers can never take away sins. No work or toil can remove them. Sins must be cleansed by blood.

The ancient sacrifices were but types. There was nothing in them of intrinsic value. Their actual worth consisted simply in what they foreshadowed, and as types they did not even give the very image of what they foreshadowed. They were not an exact likeness of the reality. The worshipers who offered them received a blessing, because they offered them in faith and in obedience to the word of God. Faith in God always receives blessing. But the word is plain, “It is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins” (Heb. 10:4).

But the sacrifice of Christ is perfect. When He offered Himself, the end for which He did so was accomplished completely. The sins for which He died have been removed, and now there can be no further sacrifice for sins, for “where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin,” (Heb. 10:18).

Soaring and Singing

People say, “Cut a bird’s wings and it no longer sings”; and Satan says of the Christian, “Let not his heart to heaven soar, then he’ll be dumb and sing no more.”

Prospect of the Resurrection

The Christian loves to look forward; not as the man of the world to the morrow, for the morrow is in the hands of God; but, unlike the man of the world, to a day after death, even that of the resurrection of the just.

What a day will that be when the children and parents, the friends and the companions, who are in Christ, shall meet again on the other side of death! The contemplation of that triumphant day stirs the soul with inexpressible peace and joy. Christ is risen from among the dead. He is the resurrection and the life, and all who are His shall be raised and be made like Him. His voice shall awaken those who sleep. “The trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible,” and we who do not sleep shall be “changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump.” Then “death is swallowed up in victory” (1 Cor. 15:54).

What a victory will this be! And the day is near. The secret of the hour of this glorious triumph is with the Father, but the hour is near. Our tears are about to be turned into everlasting smiles; those whom we wept over as they left this world of tears, and whose bodies are gone to corruption, soon “shall have put on incorruption” and our mortal frames soon “shall have put on immortality.” The Lord is waiting for the day; let us respond to Him in answer to His cheering words, “Surely I come quickly,” “Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.”

The Day of Victory

Hail great day of victory,

When like Christ His own shall be,

When the sea shall yield her trust,

Earth give up the precious dust.

Hallelujah!

Sing, ye ransomed, bought with blood,

Soon shall sound the trump of God,

Soon our Lord shall lift His voice,

Christ will come—rejoice! rejoice!

Hallelujah!

Soon the saints of God shall meet

Round about their Savior’s feet;

God will wipe our tears away

On the resurrection day.

Hallelujah!

Lo! the dead in Christ arise,

Fair and glorious for the skies;

Oh how swift they soar above

In, triumph, through His love.

Hallelujah!

In the twinkling of an eye

Comes our immortality;

Changed and robed in glory fair,

We shall join them in the air.

Hallelujah!

Each and all made like the Lord,

Sing His love with one accord;

Blessed Lord, our bliss shall be

Thine own smile of peace to see.

Hallelujah!

Haste, oh resurrection day;

Lord, we long to speed away;

In our home we yearn to be

All with Thee eternally.

Hallelujah!

Make the World Better by One

In a day when, without doubt, Christian things are at a low ebb, and when many a Christian is more than half asleep and when others are feeble and cold-hearted, it is plainly the duty of each loyal heart to seek to improve the state of things by making the world better by one. A practical view of life is the need of the hour. We may sink so far down into indifference as to hear and as to speak of the low state of the church without being affected thereby to the extent of stirring up our own hearts to vigor and to earnestness. Make the world better by one, dear Christian reader, and mind that that one is yourself. Do not try to mend matters till you have amended your own ways. It is quite possible to lose the opportunity of doing good, which God gives, by spending one’s time in throwing stones at others. It is quite possible to be so careful in showing where this evil and the other lies that the golden moments for coming to God about one’s own state of soul are lost.

“Prayer is hardly prayer now-a-days,” say some. Then “Shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly” (Matt. 6:6), and “Ask, and it shall be given you” (Matt. 7:7).

How cold are the hearts of Christians, how changed from the old times, say others. “Remember, therefore, from whence thou art fallen, and repent” (Rev. 2:5).

The Bible is not the theme of private conversation as it once was; instead religious matters are discussed in a sadly external way. It requires no spirituality to criticize a sermon or query the style of a preacher. Be it so! But gather inspiration to do differently from such a text as this. “Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon His name” (Mal. 3:16).

There is room for improvement in our daily lives, and the Scriptures will show us the remedy for the evils over which we grieve; but one thing is certain, every Christian reader, if he knows anything about the evil of the day, knows more about the evil of his own heart, and the only way to help matters is by oneself becoming more earnest, more prayerful, more true to the Scriptures, more true to Christ.

Make the world better by one.

Redeemed to God by Blood

So the atonement of Christ is regarded by the advanced “Christians” of our day as a doctrine beneath their dignity, and the divine word, “Ye are bought with a price” (1 Cor. 6:20), is looked upon by them as inconsistent with their ideas of what the Almighty ought to be! This is advanced indeed! We were once galloping over the sands when our horse “advanced” into a quicksand, and plunged us in up to his girths: we escaped with our life; but this mad haste of unbelief will engulf man, spirit, soul and body, into eternal ruin.

One of songs of heaven sets its sweetest music to these words, “Thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by Thy blood” (Rev. 5:9). His redemption, His bringing men to God by His blood, shall make all heaven echo with His praise. None shall sing in that company who are not brought to God by the blood of Jesus; none shall play upon the harps in the glory save the redeemed, and since Satan would, if he could, bar men from entering the pearly gates, no wonder he drags them on earth from the sight of Christ crucified.

In the Book of the Revelation, our Lord Jesus is spoken of twenty-eight times (7 by 4) as the Lamb—little lamb—as if to teach us that in the glory of God Jesus shall be owned and magnified as the once suffering sacrifice on earth in all perfection and completeness. God has shown us the glory of the Lamb—that little lamb—upon the throne, yet man in his pride would now dishonor God and discredit the work of His Son by casting slurs and scorns upon His atoning work.

Another glimpse of a company of the redeemed is given to us in the book of Revelation: it is a white-robed throng. How did they come to tread the sacred courts, and to stand before the throne? Sinners they were once on earth, what then is it that fits them for such a holy place? They “have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (Rev. 7:14)!

Again a vision of overcomers is seen in heaven, of men who were martyred for “they loved not their lives unto death,” but by what power is the victor’s crown theirs?—“they overcame him [the enemy] by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony.” The Bible is the testimony and the Bible testifies from beginning to end of the blood of the Lamb. Men must choose whether they will have the dreams of proud dust and ashes or the atonement of Christ for their hope and stay.

Results

The sower plants his seed in the field; leaving to others the care of the seed sown, and the watching of the tender plants. “In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand, for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.”

Spring Lessons

Whether there was growth in grace last year or not, I hardly know, and yet a year is a long time out of the short season allotted to us here.

Nature has taught us that “March winds and April showers bring forth May flowers,” which, translated into spiritual language, signifies that the rough east wind of self-learning, the breaking of the branches and rotten boughs, the garden strewn with the rubbish, and the tears shed thereupon along with the Sun of Righteousness shining through them are used to clear away what would obstruct the bringing forth of heavenly graces in the soul. The Master calls up sweetness where least expected. He makes the prickly, hard blackthorn gracious with white blossoms in early spring, and there are trees of His planting which bloom excellently and that, too, earlier than do many less rugged characters. But the retiring and modest spirits, like the humble primroses in their sheltered nooks, blossom all through the second winter, and by their lowliness escape many of the necessary blasts which so severely test the tall trees.

How the Lord Will Come for Us

Every Christian believes that at some time or other Christ will come again, but there are many opinions as to where, how and when He will come. One express scripture statement upon the matter ought to suffice to set the Christian’s mind entirely at rest, and such a statement, so far as it relates to the “where” and “how” of His coming for believers, we have in these words: “The Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord” (1 Thess. 4:16-17).

Where He comes is thus distinctly told us—to “the air.” True, He will come in due season also to the earth, for it is written, “His feet shall stand...upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east” (Zech. 14:4).

If we are among those spoken of in the passage quoted from the Epistle to the Thessalonians, then we “shall be caught up...to meet the Lord in the air.” And if, by grace, we indeed believe in our hearts upon Jesus the Savior, then we are made ready by Him for this moment to meet Him when He comes from heaven with the voice of the archangel and the trump of God in the air.

How will He come to the air? He will descend from heaven but not as He did over 2000 years ago—to enter this world in weakness, to become the Man of Sorrows, and to die a sacrifice for our sins upon the tree—but as the risen Man, glorious, triumphant, to call to the Father’s house on high the blessed company of all saints.

“The Lord Himself,” Scripture says, and these words win the heart. Himself, who washed us from our sins in His own blood—Himself, who is now our daily strength and hope—Himself, the Jesus whom we love, will come.

How will He descend?

“With a shout.” Such a shout as a commander gives to his troops and which his men understand. This assembly-call, this rallying cry, this voice of the Lord each one of His people, whether asleep or awake, shall hear and all shall respond to it in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye.

“With the voice of the archangel.” Mortal man is weak; the angels “excel in strength”; at that day the mightiest of them shall pass on the Lord’s word and angels shall see men who sleep in Christ leave earth’s dust, and rise victoriously to the clouds, as did Jesus Himself.

“With the trump of God.” “For the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” That great assembly-call of the Lord shall bid the saints enter into the full blessedness of His resurrection; the “redemption of our body shall have come, and with those silver tones shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: Death is swallowed up in victory.”

But when shall these things be? We ask not when shall the times and seasons be fulfilled, and Jesus come to this earth. We inquire, when will He come to the air? His own words supply the answer: “Surely I come quickly” (Rev. 22:20).

“Surely”; there is no mistake, it may seem to be a long time, but He says, “I come quickly.” For a wise purpose the hour of His coming is hidden. If we knew the secret, it may be we would forsake the daily expectant attitude, and watch and wait no longer for Him. May our hearts respond with our “Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus,” to His sure word, “Come quickly.”

The Secret of Spiritual Prosperity

No believer can possibly remain at a standstill. Day by day he is either growing in grace and becoming, practically, more like Christ, or he is going backwards, and becoming like the world. There are in him two powers at work—one rising upward and Christward, the other dragging downward and worldward. The Word of God exhorts continually, and in the most earnest manner, not to love the world, but to live for Christ.

The most earnest man who ever lived, when he was first converted, counted all things loss for Christ and some thirty years after his conversion he still counted them dung, that he might win Christ (Phil. 3:8). The secret of spiritual success is a heart set upon Christ. The most instructed assembly of Christians mentioned in the Bible—a company abundant in labor and jealous over doctrine—had in it the germs of spiritual decay, and the Lord thus reveals the secret, “I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love” (Rev. 2:4). Take from the Christian heart love for Christ, and the keystone is gone from the arch, which neither knowledge of God’s Word nor zeal in labor can preserve from falling. The appearance of strength may be maintained for a while, even intimate Christian friends may fail to detect the weakness, yet wherever the heart’s love for Jesus has cooled, the word has gone forth from the Lord’s lips, “I have somewhat against thee.”

The Lord searches and examines His people. Let us test ourselves, and “call to remembrance the former days.” Was there ever a time in our spiritual life when there was more care for the Lord’s felt presence, and less interest in the things of the world than now? If so, we have gone backwards from what we once were.

As the Christian grows older, he receives many personal evidences of the Lord’s unchanging love and faithfulness, and his faith is confirmed by frequent tokens of the Lord’s grace; and sad it is if, with such goodness surrounding him, the freshness of his early love for Christ departs and the simplicity of his first tenderness of spirit fades.

This departure is spiritual degeneracy and decay, and, when such is the case, the Christian has not been at a standstill—the heart has gone back. Let us beware of this backsliding spirit. A man may go astray with much Bible knowledge in his head, but with Christ filling his heart he cannot go wrong. Doctrinal intelligence may guard the mind from error, but only as Christ dwells in the heart by faith will evil be prevented from entering therein. Employment in the service of “good works” may hinder us from doing that which brings outward discredit upon our profession, but, while busy in religious occupation, the heart may be sluggish in its affection to the person of the Lord.

How important then it is that the Christian should examine himself and note how his heart responds to the heart of his Lord! Sadly this examination is too seldom made. Let us enter then into our closet, and, alone with our Lord, speak to Him concerning ourselves and our true regard for Him.

Am I getting on in the things of God?

The answer shall be found in the state of the soul towards Christ.

Expecting Blessing

There are some preachers who assert that the state of mind which does not look for blessing is higher than that which expects to see souls converted. This high doctrine is very cold, Who gathers or looks for fruit on the tops of snow-clad mountains?

The Way of Peace About Our Old Man

The acknowledgment of the great truth of the “old man” having been condemned by God in the cross of Christ is most important for our practical Christian life, for it is written: “Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin” (Rom. 6:6).

What is meant by our “old man”? It is evident that before we had a new life in Christ, we were just simply natural men. The Christian, therefore, only is in question when it is written, “Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with Him.” All believers know, mourn over and get miserable at times about the old man.

Now, our old fallen nature is just that of which we once were proud. For example, a man is strong and can fell almost anybody with a blow; he is naturally proud of his ability to exercise this power. But, God gives him new life in Christ, and after that when he is tempted to use his strength as before, the temptation makes him feel miserable. Again, there is a young Christian woman who before conversion was full of vanity; but now having the new life, she says in her heart, “I am ashamed of my folly.” How is this? She is the same person, but God has implanted a new life within her, and she feels it would be a very sad thing to indulge now in that which was once her delight. The true Christian reader knows by experience what the old man is.

The Bible says, knowing this, that our old man is crucified with Him! Yes, but crucified with Christ. The cross is the great symbol of shame and dishonor. There is nothing more emphatically the mark of sin and disgrace upon the face of the earth than the cross. It is very much the same as with the gallows in England. The law of the land does not take the noblest of the people and declare of him, “He is only fit for the death of the gallows.” This land does not say of him whose whole life is excellent and beautiful, “The due of the vilest is your proper reward.” But the Son of God went down into the lowest place for us. He took upon Him the cross, with all its shame and dishonor. This is beyond human conception, but the Christian knows it is true, yet owns that the mind cannot enter into it. We know the Son of God endured the cross because we deserved it; yes, we ourselves, of whom we were once so proud, our very self, that we once thought so much of, deserved the very worst, the lowest, the most dreadful judgment that could possibly be; and, because He loved us, the Lord Jesus Christ was crucified for us, and God now says, “Our old man is crucified with Him.”

What! Does God indeed say, “Our old man is crucified with Christ”? When we were first born again, we endeavored to improve ourselves. We formed resolutions, we made curbs and restraints, and we went to various lengths in the endeavor to change self. But does God say anything in His gospel about changing our “old man”? No! He has condemned sin in the flesh on the cross; passed His sentence of judgment upon it. “Our old man is crucified with Christ.”

Now, God would not speak of our old man as crucified unless something worthy of death had been done. No law of any country, where there is the sense of right, would condemn a man to death unless he had done something wrong. God is speaking of His own Son being crucified and He judges us as having been worthy of the cross. What then is the lesson? The very self we spent so much care upon, in trying to improve and to change, God says He has judged as worthy of death—nay, He has carried out the sentence in Christ.

What possible peace can this give to the heart? Is it not a doctrine of disappointment and of despair?

The moment we know by the teaching of God the Spirit that “our old man” is as bad as God has described it, our hearts respond, by saying, “I will give up trying to change myself.” We give up the effort, because we believe God, who says, “Our old man is crucified with Christ.” To attempt to make better that which is already condemned is evidently useless. We believe, and therefore give up all hope of changing ourselves, and this is the high road to receiving power from Christ for practical holiness. The acknowledgment hereof is a starting point for our souls in living to God. So long as a child of God is trying to change himself, he will never prosper in his soul, because God says that “self” is crucified with Christ.

God says, “Our old man is crucified with Him [Christ], that the body of sin might be destroyed [or have its power removed], that henceforth we should not serve sin; for he that is dead is freed [or discharged] from sin.” Before we had new life in Christ, we were under the mastership of sin. The strong man indulged in overwhelming his enemy; the vain person indulged in the sin of vanity and delighted in the occupation; they were servants of sin and fulfilled its bidding. But when the man of great strength is dead to sin, his power is gone, for dead men cannot overthrow people. When the vain person is dead to sin, there is no longer self-admiration, for dead people cannot enjoy the mirror! Thus, by being dead with Christ, there is freedom from the power of sin. The old man is crucified with Christ, and, by death with Christ, the believer is discharged from the service of his old master.

Now Scripture expressly states, as a divine fact, that our old man has been crucified with Christ; and the Apostle says, “Ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you” (Rom. 6:17). Hence it is not our realization that is to occupy us; for we may, or we may not, realize the truth, but we are to obey from the heart what God bids us to believe.

The path of practical victory starts from the gate of faith in the Word of God.

With Me

“With Me!” These are test words. We are either with Christ, or against Him. There can be no neutrality in matters of loyalty. Not to be loyal is to be disloyal; not to be for, is to be against. “He that is not with Me is against Me,” says the Lord Jesus.

The Pharisees professed to be for God and the Scriptures; but when the people saw the mighty works of Christ enabling both the blind to see and the dumb to speak, and said “Is not this the Son of David?” the Pharisees replied, “This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils” (Matt. 12:23-24) Teachers of the law though they were, they were against Christ, and for the devil. And in our day, as in their day, he who is not with Jesus is against Him. The careless, the indifferent and the lukewarm professor as well as the blasphemer and the apostate are against Him, and are on Satan’s side. The open infidel and the nominal worshipper of God—everyone, everywhere, who is not for Christ—is against Him. The forces on the earth arrange themselves into two hostile camps—the one with, the other against, Jesus.

Those who have not cast in their lot with Him are against Him; those who, like the Pharisees, profess to believe in Christ, and the explanation of the Scriptures as their occupation, but who in heart and soul are disloyal to Jesus Christ, the Son of God, unfaithful to His banner, and against Him. Let there be no uncertainty in this matter. We each are either for the army of Satan, or the soldiers of Christ. Jesus says, “He that is not with Me is against Me.”

When David was awaiting his promised glory and was uncrowned, unrecognized and disowned by Israel—when he was despised by the many, and esteemed by the few; regarded as but an adventurer and a pretender to the throne by the tens of thousands—a handful of men came over to his side. “David went out to meet them, and answered and said unto them, If ye be come peaceably unto me to help me, mine heart shall be knit unto you”; then, responding to his words, “the spirit came upon...[the] chief of the captains,” who thus replied, “Thine are we, David, and on thy side, thou son of Jesse: peace, peace be unto thee, and peace be to thine helpers; for thy God helpeth thee. Then David received them” (1 Chron. 12:17-18).

Our David is despised and rejected of men, disowned and disbelieved—the coming glories of His kingdom are treated lightly—and, as He is hidden in the heavens, His rights to His earthly crown and throne are ridiculed by the tens of thousands in Christendom. Such being the case, it is the moment to go out to Him, and to cry to Him with loyal love and reverence, “Peace, peace unto Thee, thou Son of God and Son of Man! Glory be to Thy Name; peace be to Thine helpers—to everyone who is with Thee—for Thy God hath highly exalted Thee.” Yes, and as we so cry to Him and cast ourselves at His feet, we tell Him, gazing upon the marks of wounds, “Thou, Thou art worthy, O Son of God and Son of Man.”

Be loyal to Jesus; go out to Him, the despised and the rejected Man; stand up bravely and honorably for Him, though the forces of the world be against Him, and the power of Satan set itself against His side. Have no part with temporizing; have no good words for the neutral, for they are but His enemies in disguise; pander not to the religious infidelity of the times, be it in pulpit or in private, but always, and at all costs, be loyal to the Lord. Always remember His words, “He that is not with Me is against Me.”

The Friend of Sinners

What! the Friend of sinners dies,

Jesus, Lamb of God,

And we still His name despise,

Jesus, Lamb of God!

Come by faith to Calvary,

There His love, His sorrow see,

For our Friend indeed is He,

Jesus, Lamb of God.

Oh! His soul was sore opprest,

Jesus, Lamb of God;

Grief on grief upon Him pressed,

Jesus, Lamb of God;

Sharp: the crown of woven thorn,

Sharper still man’s hate and scorn,

When our griefs, our sins were borne,

Jesus, Lamb of God.

We, like sheep, had gone astray,

Jesus, Lamb of God;

Choosing each his sinful way,

Jesus, Lamb of God;

But griefs our hearts arrest,

While the love that fills His breast

Draws us to His feet for rest,

Jesus, Lamb of God.

At His feet we humbly fall,

Jesus, Lamb of God;

Weep our thanks, and on Him call,

Jesus, Lamb of God;

Now our fears and tremblings cease,

Through His blood comes our release,

For His wounds all whisper peace,

Jesus, Lamb of God.

He has left the silent grave,

Jesus, Lamb of God:

Now, He lives lost souls to save,

Jesus, Lamb of God.

But my song shall ever be,

Now and through eternity,

Thou didst give Thyself for me,

Jesus, Lamb of God.

Self-Occupation

Self-occupation is a dreary study, a life-long pursuit to bring a clean thing out of an unclean. I am evil, cries the student of self, and repeats himself continually. He is ever before the mirror and the more he sees of himself, the longer grows his countenance. Or again, he has picked up the broken pieces of the once-beautiful ornament and, having carefully placed them under a glass shade, is mourning over the fragments, and ever occupied with that which cannot be mended. Wiser far to cast away as worthless that which cannot be restored; and happier far to turn away from the mirror to behold the face of Jesus Christ. True Christian wisdom lies in occupation with Christ, in studying the glorified Jesus, and in believing God’s word, “In Christ.”

Complete in Christ

Christ has perfectly glorified God as a Man on this earth. He has accomplished the work of salvation, and now sits upon the throne of God in glory. The believer is accepted in Christ, he is complete in Him. Christ Himself, as Man in heaven, having finished the work of salvation, is the measure of the believer’s acceptance by God.

Life More Abundantly

“I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” (John 10:10). In these words the Lord Jesus is speaking of His sheep, of those who, from amongst men, know His voice and are known of Him. He laid down His life for the sheep. He came that they might have life. He died that they might live. And, whoever the sheep may be, and in whatever age of the world’s history they may live, they owe the life everlasting which they possess to Jesus. This all believe and rejoice in.

But to whom, or to what time, does the Lord refer when He says that they might have this life “more abundantly”?

To His sheep, without doubt—to such as have the life.

But do the words relate to all sheep?

To all who receive Him, and thus the life He gives; since He came, as He says, that they might have life, and have it abundantly. There is a fullness of blessing for the sheep, declared in John 10, which neither the law nor the prophets ever breathed, and that this should be so is but in consonance with the Lord’s own mission and dignity. He had come, of whom the prophets spake, and being come, He had words to utter that none of His messengers had ever spoken. He is the Life, and the record of Him on earth is, “the Life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and show unto you that Eternal Life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us” (1 John 1:2). When reading the Lord’s own words, we ought to expect things more wonderful than those brought to us by the servants of God, who preceded His steps. The “more abundantly” refers, without doubt, to all the sheep who know Him, since He came to this earth that His sheep might have life.

But to what time do the words refer? Do they look on to the future state when the believer, having left this world, shall in paradise abide in Christ’s presence, or to that day when, after the resurrection, he shall be clothed in Christ’s glory and shall dwell in heaven with Him?

No doubt it will be then life, and life more abundantly for all. Life and glory will then be bound together. Eternal life, in its full marvel, will then be rejoiced in.

Does, then, “more abundantly” refer only to a day not yet present?

Surely it speaks of our own day, of this very present time, when the body is weak, when the world is strong, when temptations surround the children of God, and when their hearts sink oftentimes within them. Yes, even now, this day, in this lifetime, since He who is the Life has come, it is we who are to possess the life He gives, and to have it, as He says, even “more abundantly.”

The chapter wherein the words occur helps us to lay hold of the “abundantly” Jesus connects with the life. In the words recorded in the fourth verse there is an abundance mentioned in the life before unknown. “He,” the good Shepherd Himself, “goeth before them.” Not prophets, priests, or kings, but Jesus is the leader and the guide, and in the presence of the life He gives, “the sheep follow Him.” This joyful nearness, this positive peace, this personal love, were never known till He came. Here, in its enjoyment, is life “more abundantly” than was known by His flock till He, the good Shepherd, came.

They “shall go in and out, and find pasture.” Were these gifts of liberty, and of food, known to the sheep till the good Shepherd came? No, they could not be, but they are ours now! He has led His sheep out of the legal fold, and brought them into the liberty of grace, and into pasture of His own providing. Life “more abundantly” is thus seen as the portion of the sheep. And such as these have languished for years in the barren places of legality, and know in their souls, when brought out of that barrenness into the green pastures of His grace, the meaning of a past life of spiritual distress, and a present one of spiritual abundance.

One further fruit of the life more abundantly we note, as taught in His words, “I am the good Shepherd, and know My sheep, and am known of Mine. As the Father knoweth Me, even so know I the Father” (John 10:14-15), for so these wonderful words of life should be read. Never, until they fell from His own lips, were such words heard upon this earth! They teach the perfect intimacy which exists between the Lord and His own. No distance whatever abides between the good Shepherd and the flock, and, though experimentally, we may say, we know too little of the intimacy, yet none the less it does exist.

Life, and life more abundantly, is our portion, and ours today. As we draw near to Jesus our Lord, we shall hear with quickened ears His words, and so discover what is the abundance of the life.

Everlasting Life

Life! Yes, “Hath life everlasting!”

Holy, blest, assuring word!

Who to thee has thus now spoken?

Oh! tis Jesus—tis my Lord!

Yes, my Father, I believe Thee;

Yes, my Lord, Thy word I hear

Thou, O Jesus, died to save me,

Gone is all my doubt and fear.

“They shall never, never perish!”

Words of comfort, words of balm;

Oh my soul, tis Jesus speaking!

Raise to Him thy sweetest psalm.

“From My hand no one shall pluck them!”

’Tis my mighty Shepherd’s word;

Jesus, o’er all powers triumphant,

Has His feeble sheep cared.

Free indeed the Son shall make you!

Never let me from Thee roam;

Happy in my Father’s presence,

Dwelling like a child at home.

The Probe

A soldier of the great Napoleon, who had a passionate regard for the Emperor and had followed him through many battles, rushed at length to the front for the last time—the enemy’s bullet lodged in his breast, and he was carried dying to the hospital.

The ball was deep in; and as the probe sought it in vain, the veteran, seemingly insensible to the agony, fixing his eyes upon the surgeon, exclaimed, “Probe deeper, sir, probe deeper, and you will find the Emperor!” Let the probe reach his very heart, and it would find not the bullet of the foe, but love to the master. Let his very soul be bared, and there, in his inmost being, his Emperor would be seen! And this—shall we term it admiration or love? —was for a despot, a man whose self-glory willed the death of thousands.

Christian! shall the soldier’s devotion for his chief speak to us? Let the Word of God be the probe. What does it discover in the depths of our heart?

Observe an aged man, a veteran, a soldier of Christ; he has warred a good warfare, he has fought a good fight, and his time is come. The Word of God probes into his inmost being, it penetrates between joints and marrow, and it reveals the secrets and intents of his heart. He cries, “To me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” Probe deeper than suffering, than self, and Christ shall be found in his heart! Christ, deeper down than anything else, the Christ who loved him, who gave Himself for him, who died to save him.

Christian reader, what does the probe discover in you?

Sweet Singing

The song of faith begins on earth. It is often like the uneven twitter of the lark as she leaves her nest; but, as the lark’s song waxes louder and more full, the higher she soars, and the farther she reaches into the deep, blue sky, so the song of faith becomes more sweet and loud, as the believer enters higher and higher into the truths of the divine Word, and into the exhaustless fullness of the love which passes knowledge.

Capacity

Every man has a given capacity. We are like differently sized vessels, and hold no more than our measure. It is very unpleasant to hear the little cup talking about spiritual attainment as if it held the ocean.

They Which Live Should … Live … Unto Him

If regrets were possible, where all is perfect blessing and perfect peace, we might suppose the Christian in glory looking back with tears upon a life spent on earth without devotion to Christ. We were dead in sins, dead to God—without hope, without strength—but Christ died for us, and now we live through Him, and in Him; therefore we should indeed heed the exhortation, which says, “They which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto Him which died for them, and rose again” (2 Cor. 5:15).

The world of sinners is a dead world, and every activity of man’s fallen mind has no particle of divine life in it. Christ’s death has proved in a divine way the state of man, and we who believe “thus judge, that if One died for all, then were all dead.” We perceive that Christ’s death was not to help or to reform, to elevate or to improve man, but the solemn witness of man’s dead state. We see, in the light of the death of Christ, that modern Christianity, which refuses the divine verdict on the human race as pronounced by Christ’s death, is but rebellion against God and Christ—a vain and a delusive religion; it is but a theory of those dead in sins.

Life or death—life in Christ risen, or death in sins, a new creation in Christ, or the old dead nature state—marks each and every child of Adam on the earth. The notion of growing up out of the dead nature state into a new life state is infidelity to the truth of Christ’s death and resurrection, and the life that the believer has in Him risen from among the dead. Christ lives to die no more on the other side of death; man, outside of Christ, lives in his natural state of death on this side of death. It is utterly impossible for death to unite itself to life—utterly impossible for sinners, dead in sins, by efforts of their own to reach to Christ risen from among the dead.

“They which live” are true believers. “He that hath the Son hath life” (1 John 5:12). “The hour...now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live” (John 5:25). “Christ...is our life” (Col. 3:4). Being then no more of the dead, but of the living, having the gift of God—eternal life in Christ (Rom. 6:23)—the responsibility to live on earth a practical life, different from our old selfish course before our conversion to God, is upon us. We “should not henceforth live unto [our]selves.” It is utterly false to Christ and to God for the Christian so to do. The believer is taken up out of the world of dead sinners to be all and wholly for Christ, to “live...unto Him.”

To live unto Him! —to Christ Himself, the Lord in glory! How differently does religion appear before the soul when “unto Him” shines within the affections. “Unto Him!” Not unto a scheme, a theory, a round of religious duties, but unto Himself—a Person! How much of the present-day Christianity would remain if all that is not “unto Him” could be sifted out therefrom? How much of our own religious life would remain when so tested? Yet nothing is sound, and real, and worthy but what is “unto Him.” “They which live should...henceforth...live...unto Him” (2 Cor. 5:15).

Christ displaces self! They which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto Him. As Christ practically displaces self, so does our Christianity become noble and exalted. True, the world may not recognize the nobility of suffering for Christ, or see the exaltation of self-sacrifice and self-refusal for Him; but God the Father has His eye of approval upon the life of a saint who is not for self, but for Christ. As Christ becomes the object of the heart, so does self fade out of mind. Selfishness, living unto ourselves, decreases in the warmth of His love, as winter snow disappears under the rays of the spring sun. Living for self-gratification, in all its varied forms, is to be abhorred, whether it be religious self, or worldly or sensual self. Sadly we soon build up the idol, self, which had fallen down, broken, before the ark, and set it up in its place again!

A godless sinner is converted, and begins with Christ. He is altogether a new man. But after a while he becomes a boaster in his piety and advertises his good state of soul. He then is no longer living unto Christ, but unto himself. When we are really living unto Him, self is out of sight and out of mind; we are absorbed with the object of our faith—we think not of self, but of Him.

Christ’s death for us is always to be before the heart. He Himself is who died for us! No motive is like the present memory of His death. Keep before the soul His blessed wounds and sorrows, and the object of them, all “for us,” and there is a motive introduced into the heart of the strongest kind. There is a divine power for our daily life in the grace of His cross, and a strength in the memory of His death, which the energy of the world cannot bestow. We live because He died for us, therefore we should live to Him who thus died.

Christ lives on the other side of death. He “rose again.” The memories of the cross are living memories, realities in the soul, indeed, but Jesus “rose again.” We do not live to a dying Christ, but to Him who died for us and rose again; we live to a living Christ. He is a living Friend, a present Friend; to Him we are attached by unbreakable ties—all God-made, and all everlasting. We do love to dwell on His sufferings and to meditate upon His death, but even as we do so, we rejoice to exclaim, “He rose—He who died for us rose again!” Christ lives beyond the boundaries of death; He is in heaven, and in Him we live. We are living for Him and to praise Him.

We are responsible to be true to Christ. What lives ours should be! “They which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto Him.” A solemn call to live to Christ is made to us—a burning responsibility is here present. How shall we spend our lifetime in this world where sinners are dead in sins, and where Christ, the Living One, is rejected?

Let the Christian make time to enter into his closet and shut the door, and there, in the secret of his God’s presence, give his answer.

Like Sheep

“Like sheep” says the Scripture—“All we like sheep have gone astray.” “This their way is their folly; yet their posterity approve their sayings....Like sheep they are laid in the grave” (Psalm 49:13-14). Sinners on their way to death are following their leaders like sheep. Sheep are timid creatures; but let the butcher drag one up his narrow passage, and the flock will follow. And it matters not where the devil is dragging poor sinners, “like sheep” others will follow.

No one working for the salvation of souls fails to see and mourn over this “like sheep,” this “follow-the-leader” character in men. Sadly how many, who once professed to seek salvation and peace, have gone down to eternal destruction because they would do what some friend did. “Like sheep” they have gone to the slaughter, although, unlike sheep they knew where their friend was going.

Punctuality at Religious Meetings

An unpunctual person is a nuisance. He is worse, he is an abstracter of that which belongs to others, and is of more value than gold—time. He is a selfish character, for he is too lazy to feel the amount of misery his unpunctuality imposes upon others. What shall be done with him? Were he a servant he should be dismissed; were he a child he should, if possible, be heavily punished. But unpunctual persons in general shall not concern us, only unpunctual persons in particular, that is, such as are unpunctual at religious meetings.

Oh you squanderers of time! You robbers of our quiet of mind, and, far worse, you triflers with the solemn sense of God’s presence among His people, what shall be done to you? Do anything we cannot, but say something we will. Would that we could shame you into at least as much interest in the hour for prayer or praise as you possess in the hour the train leaves the station! Your own interests would not allow you to be late for the train; shall the interests of Christ and His people be so neglected by you that you can afford to be late for the prayer or praise meeting? Your idleness is a sin.

But you are inclined to make light of our warmth, and to cry out against our protests, or to smile away, with your easy looks, our denunciations. Well, be sure of this, that if you were in sympathy with those of God’s people who agree to be present at an announced hour for prayer, you could not be unpunctual; and if you had the interest of Christ as the first thing upon your heart in reference to the occasion, you would arrive at the meeting in question promptly. So take to your heart your want of sympathy with your brethren, and your lack of interest in the things of Jesus Christ, and have done with your idle, sinful habit, and be punctual at all religious meetings.

A Solemn Consideration

The strong are prone to despise the weak; the weak to judge the strong. But strong or weak, we shall all have to give an account of our behavior one towards another before the judgment seat of Christ. (Read Rom. 14.)

Beware of Dogs

The Apostle says, “Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision.” He warns us to beware of religious teachers who make something of the flesh, who trust in it, or who trust in the works of the law. As the Jews called the Gentiles dogs, so does God the Spirit designate Jewish-minded teachers whose teaching exalts self. It may seem to be humility to seek in self something good, but such doctrine is the result of pride of heart. Beware of it, shun it; Christ and Christ only is the ground of confidence before God. Christ was crucified for us, and in His death is the condemnation of sin in the flesh by God. Christ is risen from the dead and is in heaven, and everyone who is in Christ is risen with Him. Faith lays hold of the fact that in Christ’s death is the divine judgment of what man is in himself, and hence faith abhors everything which in any way brings in self—either good self or bad—as worthy of the favor of God; and more, faith sees in Christ true righteousness and all that satisfies the will of God.

The Bright and Morning Star

Our gracious Lord, in His final words to His people, spoken from heaven, and recorded on the last page of the holy Scriptures, names Himself the Bright and Morning Star. “I Jesus have sent Mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches”—things relating to the last hours of the world’s ways, and to the end of Christless Christendom —“I am the root and the offspring of David, and the Bright and Morning Star.” The title, “the Root and Offspring of David,” relates to His earthly people—to Jews; the title, “the Bright and Morning Star,” relates to His heavenly people—to Christians.

The Lord Jesus shall yet reign over His ancient people gloriously; the distracted East shall yet smile beneath His scepter. God will make good the title which scornful man blasphemously set over the cross, “This is Jesus the King of the Jews.” Jesus is the Root of David—from Him King David gained his greatness, Jehovah-Jesus upheld him. As the root of David, Jesus was David’s Lord. As root—in His own divine power—all that David ever was for God upon this earth, sprang from his Lord. Jesus is also the offspring of the royal line of Israel, for as a man He sprang from king David. In the coming day the kings of the earth shall bow down and own Jesus as their Prince, and His ancient people, the Jews, as the chosen nation of Jehovah.

The title Bright and Morning Star conveys ideas unlike either of those of Root or Offspring. Above this earth’s turmoil, in the deep and far-off sky, hang the shining stars; yonder, away and above earth’s cloud and gloom are suspended the lamps of night. The star speaks of heaven.

Who has seen the morning star? We need to rise before the sun to behold its beauty. When the sun arises, the light of the morning star is seen no longer. The morning star is the herald of the coming day. When the Lord shall reign upon this earth, He will be the Sun of Righteousness, healing will be in His wings, the sorrow and the misery of a sin-stricken earth will fly before His beams. Then no one will dispute the light of His sunshine. But now before the day, now while it is night, the Morning Star is to be seen by the eye of faith; now, while He is rejected of men, the Lord is the Bright and Morning Star for His people.

Those who sleep, see Him not thus; those who reason that this 21st century is ushering in the world’s peace, see Him not thus; those who call darkness light, see Him not thus. To such Jesus is no Morning Star. Those alone who are awake in this night, and who look for His coming again, know Him as the Morning Star.

How welcome are the signs of coming day to such as watch for the morning! The weary sufferer longs for the morning, and to how many at this moment is life like a long and weary night! But Jesus is the Morning Star; He Himself has promised He will come again, and when He comes every sigh of His people shall be forever hushed: when He comes their song will begin, and it will never end.

Jesus Himself is the Morning Star, and as the eye is fixed on Him, His love and grace fill the soul with joyful anticipation. As the eye is fixed on Him, we are lifted up from our circumstances and our trials. As the eye is fixed on Him, we cry, “Come, Lord Jesus!”

How bright to those who watch for Him is the Bright and the Morning Star! How brilliantly does He shine in His beauty as the coming One to them! The Day Star has risen in their hearts, and they long for the glory.

The people of God have the heavens for their home, and Christ coming for their hope. The bright prospect of soon being caught away from this cloud-clad earth is their expectation.

Himself, in His own brightness, Himself, in His promise of coming quickly, calls forth their cry, “Come!” “And the Spirit and the bride say, Come.” This is their echoing love for Him who loves us. The Spirit of God who is in us, says, “Come!” “Come, Lord Jesus!” is a God-given cry in the soul.

“Let him that heareth say, Come!” Perhaps someone reading this book hears for the first time in his heart that Jesus is the coming One, and is awakened to the truth of our coming Lord; he has not said hitherto from the heart to the Lord Jesus, “Come!” Let him say it now.

Directly connected with true desires after the Lord who is coming are true longings for the conversion of sinners. The desire for Christ’s return, and the sense that He may come at any moment, ever leads to intense earnestness for the souls of men. Therefore this gracious word follows, “And let him that is athirst come”—let him come to Jesus; yes, come now, this moment, for He waits to welcome the lost to Himself and His God. The world does not satisfy the soul, then come, athirst as you are, to the Savior, and He will satisfy you for time and for eternity. Come now, and thirst no more.

The gracious invitation flows out to the whole world, “Whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.” Whoever desires—for perhaps not all could say they thirst—but whoever desires, whoever wills, or wishes, may take the water of life freely. Oh, take it now! It is flowing in a broad river, clear as crystal, from the throne of God and the Lamb. Drink, and you will never thirst again, save for Himself who died for you. Then you shall look up from this world and its darkness to the bright and gladdening Star in the sky, Jesus our Lord, and as you look; you too will say from your heart, “Come, Lord Jesus!”

Never Forgotten

When a child is born into a family he becomes at once the object of care and love. His little wants are always heeded, and his very weakness is thus his strength. And is it otherwise in God’s family? When a soul is born to God, he becomes the care of the Father; never left, never forgotten, but always, in every state, the object of the unwearied, unvarying love of the Father.

The Path of Faith

The path of faith is necessarily trying, for it is intended by God that our faith should be tried. Untried faith is unknown power; tried faith is God proved. There are times when God so deals with us that we have, practically, no outlook, no future. All around is fog. We cannot see one step before us, and if we try to look ahead, our hearts are ready to break. Now in such seasons the wisest response is not to think of tomorrow, but to rest in God. When we do this there will soon be found sufficient light to brighten the one spot where we stand, just enough for that one small place. And, fellow Christian, what more light for yourself do you require? If you are enjoying that ray, which comes straight from the throne above and shines upon you, is not that sufficient? So long as you are enjoying this, you will not be distressed by the fog which closes the next step from your view.

Let us remember, too, that where our God is the light is ever the same. He is above the clouds. He is the God of peace; and He knows what our next step will be and what lies before us. The great thing in life’s trials is to have the God of peace with us and His peace in our hearts. This is a reality and can only be known in its full sustaining power in our trials. Give your cares to God, and He will give you His peace and His presence; and when this is so you can bless Him, even in the trials, and for the trials.

A First Principle of the Gospel

God has pardoned us absolutely, of His own grace, when we were in our sins and afar from Him. What kind of life shall we lead then in response to such grace?

Many a one has said of the gospel grace, “It is too cheap! When you were bad you were saved, therefore, the best thing you can do is to go on being bad—to continue in sin, so that God may be able to show what a good God He is.”

This was an argument raised in the time of the Apostle, and it drew forth this question, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?”

The inspired answer is, “God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?” (Rom. 6:2). These words, “dead to sin,” relate to our very selves; we are dead, or have died to sin. We ourselves, who by nature love sin, have died to sin! A great difference is to be observed between a man’s sins and the man himself. The fruit on the tree is one thing, the tree that bears the fruit is another. There could not be the fruit without the tree. Each tree bears its own fruit. The fruit is the outcome of its nature. It is exactly the same with man; we sin because we are sinners, and our sins are the outcome of our evil nature. No human power can alter the apple tree and make a pear tree or a vine. No man can alter the nature of the tree, much less can any man alter his own nature! Further, God shows us in His gospel that He does not propose to alter man’s sinful nature, but He says to His people, who have the new life in Christ, “Ye are dead,” or have died to sin. When Christ died for sins, we died with Him, hence we are “dead to sin,” or, “have died to sin.”

“I do not feel dead to sins, I feel very much alive to it,” some will say, “for, even this very day I have felt wicked, and therefore I am conscious of being painfully alive to sin.” But faith must triumph over feelings; the first thing necessary for the prosperity of the soul is to take God’s Word as He utters it. In the world we believe what we see, but in God’s kingdom we see what we believe.

There was a lady who had been living for the world and its pleasures; she became a Christian and knew that her sins were forgiven; yet she would say, “What a miserable creature I am! I am a Christian, and yet I have worldly feelings in my heart, and I have no power to overcome them.” She felt that though she was one of the trees God has planted, yet she was bearing fruit not according to the will of God.

“God says you are dead to sin,” she was told. Her reply was, “I do not feel dead to sin, and how can I be so, for I am alive to it?”

“But we are first to believe, then to feel,” was the answer. However, no progress was made, until one day someone said to this lady, “Just try God’s word for a few days; God says you have died to sin with Christ, and this is a fact, and the fact being so, He bids you by faith to reckon yourself to be dead unto sin, and alive unto Himself in Christ Jesus. Now try what God says, and do not fight with yourself. Do not try to make the apple tree bear pears, do not try to make your old self bear heavenly fruit; self never will do this; count yourself to be dead indeed unto sin and alive unto God in Christ, instead of trying to improve yourself.” She replied, “I cannot do it, it is ridiculous, it is imagination.”

A few days afterward the lady was quite like another person. She said, “I have been trying this wonderful thing, to believe what God says, not to improve myself, but to seek by His grace to count myself dead to sin, because He says I have died with Christ, and I found in this a way of victory over myself!”

The first thing for us is to believe.

What does being “dead to sin” mean? We take the illustration of a man who is passionately fond of music, whether it be the music of the human voice or the song of the birds. He will go anywhere or do anything to hear the lovely strains, which charm his ear. Later on in life, however, he becomes deaf, and then wherever he goes, even if the most beautiful music is performed, or the nightingales sing ever so sweetly in the summer night, still, in one way, he is dead to it. Sound has no effect upon him, no charm for his ear. Is there any change in the beautiful sounds? Do not the birds sing as sweetly as they did before? The change is in the man, not in the things about him! This is not a perfect illustration, but it may help toward the understanding of what is meant by one’s being dead to a thing.

Now, saith the Scripture, “How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?” We have died with Christ; and we are by faith to count ourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ.

Jesus has died for us, and we have died with Him in God’s sight on the cross. Therefore there is the death of us on the cross with our Lord Jesus Christ. God’s record is that the end of the flesh is come, and that no good thing shall ever arise out of it.

This is a very humiliating truth as to self, but a very exalting one as to Christ. Christianity does not profess to reform man, to make him rise up out of his fall, to be good or holy. Rather, it condemns sin in the flesh and gives the believer a new life, and says to him, “You are dead, Christ having died; you are now a new man in Christ, who rose from among the dead.”

God’s starting point is not merely the forgiveness of our sins, but our being dead with Christ and our being alive in Christ.

We must seek faith to believe, and to carry out what God says. He says you are dead—“dead with Christ,” therefore to faith there is an end of all further efforts to make self good.

What a relief this is! What a revelation “you have died with Christ” is to the one who has been trying with all his power to improve himself! It is useless to try to be good in our own strength, but the moment we give up trying, we find the blessing of being thrown entirely upon God. “Reckon ye yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God in Christ Jesus.” Cultivate the old tree no more, try to change self or make self better no more. Say of faith, “Christ died for me, and I have died with Him; henceforth it must be the life of Christ in me.”

Endeavoring and struggling to be good, or trying to die to oneself or to this or that pleasure is not Christian doctrine. God’s door into Christianity is that we are dead, not by our effort, but by having died with His Son, who died for us, and that we are alive to God in Christ.

No Strength

The law says to the sinner, “Do this, and thou shalt live”; but there is no power in the sinner to obey its commands, and the effect of the command upon the sinner who sincerely tries to obey is to convince him of his powerlessness to obey. To bid the sinner, Have done with your sins, leave the service of Satan, and you will live, is like saying to the prisoner chained to the wall, Get up, cast off your chain and leave the dungeon, and you will be free. The gospel, on the other hand, is God’s good news to us of salvation, of life, of liberty, and is brought to helpless man by the Lord Jesus Christ.

Saved From Wrath, and Saved for Glory

“When my heart is inclined to grow cold I think of what I am saved from and the wondrous love of God in delivering me from hell,” exclaimed a young Christian. “And I love to think of what I am saved for—to be near Christ and like Christ.” “When I get down in my soul I seek to dwell upon what I am brought to in the grace of God,” said another.

Let us suppose there is a kind, rich man walking through the streets of a city, one dark and cheerless night. It is bitterly cold, and, as he hurries to the brightness and warmth of his home, he wraps his ample coat about him. Presently he sees a kind of bundle in a dark corner of the street—what can it be? It is a poor, ragged child, starving and freezing in the pitiless night. Touched with compassion, he brings the little wanderer into his home, and saves him from the death that was so near; but more, in the love of his soul, he adopts the child into his own family, and invites the boy to call him father.

Now what will occupy the boy’s heart most? The street, the rags, the misery from which he was saved? or, the home, the wealth, the treasures, the glories into which, being saved, he has been brought?

There is more said in God’s Word about what we are saved for, than what we are saved from. And while we should ever be blessing God for rescuing us from misery, we should never fail to bless Him for the glory for which we are saved. “If children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ.”

The once ragged boy, made at home in the love of him who adopted him as his child, by heart and mind occupation with the father and his new home, loses all trace of the manners of the street whence he came, and grows to become like his father.

Let us fix our hearts upon God and rejoice in what He has done for us, and we shall find such wealth and gladness in this portion, that the world will be to us only what the cold, dark, street became to the child.

Immeasurable Love

The measure of Thy love to me,

My blessed God, what tongue shall tell?

Ah! could I reach the heights of bliss,

And cast from thence a line to hell,

That unknown length would fail to prove

The measure of Thy wondrous love.

The measure of Thy love to me

Shall all Thy works, my God, declare?

Nay, all the wealth of countless worlds

Cries constantly, “It is not there!”

Thy works of wisdom, though divine.

Discover not what love is Thine.

The measure of Thy love to me—

O God, My God! —tis Jesus’ cross!

His bitter pains, His agony,

His weakness, shame, affliction, loss!

In Jesus’ cross, my God, I see

Thy love immeasurable to me.

The cross of Christ, Thy blessed Son,

Exceeds all powers of human speech;

The measure of Thy love to me

No thought of man shall ever reach;

My God, O teach me to adore,

And dwell in love for evermore.

Habit and Dress

Habit and dress are kindred words, and in certain portions of our attire are used to convey the same idea, namely, a covering of the body; and, in things spiritual, habit and dress have a close resemblance. Our habit of life is the dress in which we appear daily before our fellows; we wear the style of dress which custom demands, and we attain to habits of living in accordance with the claims of our circle of society. But let us lay aside our habit and view ourselves as we really are. Clothe men as you will, yet the dress does not change them; and the habit of church-going and religious observance does not alter the inner man. Why, then, are habits contracted? Why is the Bible in the house? Why is the place of worship attended? Why is God owned? Is it because love to God is in the heart, or is it merely that such is our habit? Search and see.

How to Live Peaceably

Never say behind a man’s back what you would not say before his face; and never say before his face what you would be ashamed for Christ to hear.

Priest and King

The miracle of feeding the five thousand is the only one which is told by each of the four evangelists; it has therefore a peculiar import. There was a prophecy concerning the Messiah, that He would feed His poor with bread (Psa. 132:15); and we may be sure that the promise of plenty, connected with His reign, would be one which the poor of Judah would naturally remember. And so it was, for when they saw how Jesus fed the five thousand, through the hands of His disciples, they exclaimed, “This is of a truth that Prophet that should come into the world” (John 6:14), and, accordingly, they were set upon making Him a king (John 6:15).

The day of His kingly glory and reign over this suffering and troubled earth is yet to dawn; the promises connected with His Messiahship are yet to be fulfilled. The poor shall in God’s time be fed; but there is connected with Jesus a glory more excellent than that of supplying our earthly or bodily wants. Jesus is the Bread of Life, the Food of the heart, the Satisfaction of the soul. Before the day of His earthly kingdom He supplies every need of the heart, and not one hungry soul coming to Him is sent away empty. The poor in spirit find in Jesus the Bread of Life, and those who seek from Him the bread which endures to everlasting life never hunger (John 6:35).

Now when the Lord saw that the people, who had eaten of His bread, would by force make Him a king, would in their own will and by their own hands, and before the Father’s time, set up His kingdom, He departed into a mountain Himself alone. Man’s time was that present hour, because of the bread; and who does not welcome the temporal gifts of God? But the Lord’s hour for rule had not arrived, and how few there are who willingly wait God’s time!

Instead of becoming the king, Jesus, as it were, became the Priest. He went up by Himself to the mountain. What was figured by His action is now a fact. God has said to Him, “Sit Thou at My right hand, until I make Thine enemies Thy footstool,” (Psalm 110:1) and while there waiting for His kingdom, He is the Priest on high. The Lord has not gone up to heaven merely to wait for His kingdom, for His Messiah glory; He has gone up to heaven to intercede for His poor, tried and tempted people on earth, and to support them in their affliction and their weakness. “For in that He Himself hath suffered being tempted, He is able to succor them that are tempted” (Heb. 2:18).

When the Lord was upon that mountain alone, the night closed in and darkness shrouded Him from the sight of His disciples. They entered a ship, and thrust out upon the waters. Jesus was not come to them, and, lo, the wind was contrary and the sea arose by reason of a wind that blew. Circumstances were against them. What a different scene than a few hours before, when out of His fullness they had received sufficient for their own need, and also plenty to feed five thousand!

The day when He was here, healing the sick and helping the poor, is past. He is not on earth, as is evident by earth’s circumstances, for sorrow and buffeting are bitterly well-known incidents to every toiler upon the waves of this life’s rough sea. It is night, and He is in heaven. Circumstances are often adverse to us, but in them we can learn His sufficiency and His care in adverse things. We may say even of the bitterest sorrows of our souls, that in going through them with His support the bitter becomes sweet.

Yes, it is night; but let us not forget that the night is far spent, nor live as if forgetting, as if Time’s voyage had no end or life’s sea had no shore. Toiling rowers, your vessel nears the land, you labor on to a haven of rest. The disciples of the Master are unlike the worldly ones crossing life’s sea, who know not whither they go. To a worldly person, there is no object beyond these waves. It is night and loneliness here, with no heavenly Friend in the difficulty, and no heavenly home beyond storms.

From His mountain the Lord watched the laborers and saw the difficulties of His beloved disciples; His heart was with them, and He came down from the mountain, and, lo, His way was upon the waves. Being Lord of all, all the powers of His creation obeyed Him. The unstable and stormy sea bore upon her bosom the feet of Him who is her Creator, as He neared the toiling vessel, whither He hasted to prove Himself a Friend indeed to those He loved.

At first the disciples feared when they saw Him, but when they recognized Him their fear vanished. His presence ever casts out fear from the hearts of those who love Him. The laboring rowers received Him into the ship, and, lo, immediately they were at the land whither they went. In an instant they were at their journey’s end.

So will it be in that day with the faithful remnant of His people Israel. He came to His own as King, but He was rejected by His people; He will come again to them in their night of sorrow and will deliver them. To this future scene, by the incident before us, we are directed. However, we, too, are toilers on life’s sea. We, too, need Him in this night, and He is coming, and will soon bring us whither we would be—He will bring us home. In the interval He is engaged with the difficulties of each one of His disciples; from heaven He looks down and beholds our trials, and He assuredly proves Himself a Friend in need to us, as each of His own can testify.

The Coming One draws nigh. He will soon descend from heaven, and we shall hear His voice—“It is I.” And then immediately, in the twinkling of an eye, we shall have reached the end of our voyage—we shall be at home.

The Bright Side

The darkest cloud has a bright side to it, and even that which casts the deepest shadow across our path has a sunny face! Too often we see only the dark side with, it may be at times, a silver lining, but the silver lining should remind us that one side of the cloud is altogether bright. He who has ascended the mountain has seen the bright side of the clouds; he has watched their brilliancy as they hang above the valley under his feet. And how white have the little clouds then appeared, those flecks which ever hide the sunbeams from the valley, those dark spots with silver rims!

The troubles of life have their framing of silver, their heaven-lit edges, but they have more, they have their bright side. To see this, the mountain must be ascended, for the valley does not give the view of their shining face. We need to be above them, not under them, to see this. Our mountain is God’s presence, nearness to Himself; the rays of light which make the heaven-side of the cloud bright are His thoughts, His purposes, His plans. We need grace to mount above our troubles to get God’s mind about them, to be so near to Him that we may look down upon them. Not that earthly troubles will be the less sorrowful in themselves because of nearness to God, but they will be rejoiced in to His glory. “I take pleasure in infirmities,” said the Apostle; and why? because the Lord in glory was magnified in the trial to which the Apostle was subjected upon earth.

How many a believer is bemoaning the little troubles or worries of daily life! Climb the mountain, and you shall see that there is a bright side to every cloud. Seek that spiritual eminence from whence is seen the light of God shining upon the trouble. It is in these everyday difficulties that we are to glorify God. Seek that ye may live so in God’s presence as to be above the power of your cares, rather than having a fair sky and nothing to try your faith. Thus the very things which now are dark to you shall be bright; they shall prove your nearness to God; in them it shall be seen that the power of Christ rests upon you, and those who formerly saw how troubled your daily life was shall own the difference in you—the vast difference, which living near God on high produces, the change arising from being above the trial instead of being under it.

Child and Servant

The privileges of a child, and the responsibilities of a servant pertain to every true believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. All true believers are children of God, and being children, all the blessings of the family are theirs. Babes, young men, and fathers in Christ there are, but from the youngest and most immature to the eldest and most established, all are alike loved with the same love of the Father, yes, loved as the Son is loved; even as the Lord has said: “Thou...hast loved them, as Thou hast loved Me” (John 17:23). Also for all the children is the same glory: “If children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ” (Rom. 8:17). The love and the glory are equally for all the children of God. Believing in this truth sanctifies the soul. Faith in the love withdraws the heart from the world; dwelling in the love and looking forward to the glory render the child of God practically of the spirit of Christ, who has prayed thus for His own to the Father: “Sanctify them through Thy truth: Thy word is truth” (John 17:17). Never should we allow any sense of our own unfaithfulness to cloud our faith in our Father’s love to us, nor in our God’s faithfulness to His own word respecting us. It is evil enough to be unfaithful, it is but adding to that sin if we cast a reproach upon our God’s grace because we feel the sin.

In his home a child may be sick, but he is none the less the child; nay, he may be disobedient, still he is as always the child. The relationship remains. The child does not make the relationship, for that is of birth. Nor does the child of God made the relationship with God, “Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:13). God effects and establishes the relationship, and He does so in pure grace. Were we born of the will of our flesh we might forfeit the life, but we are born of God, and the life is eternal, and in the Son of God. One truth does not destroy another truth: that would be impossible. The sun does not displace the moon; and as there is harmony in the heavens God has made, so is there harmony in the Book in which God has recorded His mind. Hence, while all the exquisite grace of the truth of the believer’s childhood be rejoiced in, none the less the solemn truth of the believer’s servant-ship should be considered.

We are servants as well as children, and the very idea of service carries with it thoughts of responsibility. No doubt the idea of being a child implies responsibility, but not exactly the same as that of being a servant. We are servants, and are to walk and live as such. The great Apostle over and over again describes himself as a servant—or rather slave—of the Lord Jesus Christ. He speaks of himself as the Lord’s bondsman. We are bought with a price, even the blood of our Redeemer, and we are His, and He is our Master. We are not freed from the service of Satan to be allowed to serve our own lusts, but to serve our Lord. And He is our Governor, and we are responsible to Him for our time, our talents, our all.

The servant has his privileges, and the greater his responsibilities the greater his privileges. We see this in the world. Those who stand nearest the king—his councilors, his generals, his judges—are most privileged by reason of the very weight of their responsibilities. And so it is with Christians there are some to whom places of more important trust are committed than to others, and their responsibility is greater, in one sense, than that of their brethren. In one sense, we say, for whether it be an Apostle or the least among the servants, all are equally responsible to do their own particular work aright; and whether it be preaching the gospel, or eating or drinking, whatever we do, we are enjoined to do all to the glory of God.

The sense of responsibility makes man noble. The humble sentry on duty becomes a very hero under the knowledge of the weight of his responsibility. Some of the noblest deeds that men have ever wrought have been accomplished by the poorest and simplest, because it was their duty! Now when a Christian enters into the sense of his responsibility to his Lord, his service becomes ennobled by the effect on him of the highest considerations. The most insignificant act becomes great because it is done to the Lord. And little things get done well and wisely, to the very best of our utmost power, because they are done for our Master. We serve the Lord Christ.

Slovenly, half-and-half Christian work is an impossibility when our work is done to our gracious and beloved Lord. He searches the heart, and studies the motives that actuate us; and with Him it is not so much how great but how true to Himself the service. We must not judge as the world judges in serving Christ, but seek as servants to find out from His Word what are His wishes, and then to begin to please Him.

Christians, Awake!

Christians, awake! The night will soon be past,

Awake, arise, this hour may be your last,

The last for labor, and the last for prayer;

Then rise, and for your coming Lord prepare.

Awake! awake! Redeem the time, be wise;

Up from among the dead, ye saints, arise.

Life glides away, the precious time redeem;

Up to the work, ye dare not lie and dream;

Your loins gird; obey the Master’s voice—

Wait—work—and watch—and so His heart rejoice!

A little while, the privilege shall cease

To find the lost, and lead them into peace;

The time to sympathize will soon be spent;

Then cheer and comfort, with Christ’s smile content.

Live to be missed, the Master served for you,

Follow His footsteps, thus be His servant true;

Where sorrow dwells, where pain and tears abound,

There, in the Master’s name, be serving found.

Christians, awake, eternity is nigh,

This world will soon be left for heaven on high:

Soon shall the Savior call us hence away

To rest in all the sunshine of God’s day.

Attraction

As I passed through a glade of trees upon a summer’s day I heard the hum of bees. Ah! thought I, there is sweetness near! Presently I smelt the lime, the odor of the flowers that had attracted the bees. They did not stop at the other trees, but made direct for their favorite. What a bright little lesson, Christian, for us. Are we sought after because there is the savor of Christ in us, or are we passed by like the scentless trees?

Quit You Like Men, Be Strong

It is understandable that a feeble, flabby young man would be unable to speak above a whisper or to move beyond the pace of a tortoise. But a strong, vigorous young man who makes his way in the world and pushes himself forward by the force of his character, and who, being a Christian, is dull, timid, and, for all intents and purposes, next to useless in the battles of the Lord, this is an unaccountable mystery. How is it that there are so many Christian young men of the feeble and the flabby type? Too timid to give away a tract—too slow to move to do even menial service for their Lord and Master! What ails them? Are they incurable?

We met, some twenty years ago, a young man who was looking for work. Over and over again we saw him on this painful quest. A few days ago, we saw this same individual once again—no longer young, but grown to be a portly, middle-aged man. He was still looking for work—still on the same old quest! He made us think of men of a similar type in Christian things—men who spend a lifetime in looking for work, by looking the wrong way, and who are busy doing nothing for Christ till their hair grows gray, and who give promise of dying, while doing nothing. There must be a purpose of soul and determination, by God’s grace, to effect the purpose, or there will be no result.

“Quit you like men, be strong” (1 Cor. 16:13), said the Apostle to the well-to-do and easy-living saints of Corinth. They needed stirring up to zeal and self-sacrifice; they knew little of the Apostle’s hardship, and but little of his spirit burned in their hearts. “I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ’s sake,” he said, “for when I am weak, then am I strong” (2 Cor. 12:10).

In the things of God, we have seen useless young men—as the world reckons value —thoroughly useful for God; though not favored with half the usual gift of wits, they served God with what wits they had, while clever, bright, well-educated Christian young men by their side were notable in work for God only for doing nothing.

We most earnestly appeal to young Christian men to lay themselves out for God’s service—to pray and to labor, to pray and to search the Scriptures, to shake themselves out of their ease and selfishness, and to give themselves up to hearty work for the Lord!

Influence

A man is known by the company he keeps, says the proverb, and real greatness affects those who approach it. If we would be like Christ, we need to be much in His company. When the wisdom and boldness of the apostles staggered their enemies, there was but one explanation— “They took knowledge of them that they had been with Jesus.”

Scripture Gleanings

Table of Contents

Introduction

The Keynote

Put Forth Your Graces

The Present Hour

Lest … He Find You Sleeping

The Way of Peace

A Song of Salvation

Not Feeling Our Need

Influence

Evil Nature Delights in Evil

His Fulness

Make a Beginning

Dust Deaf

Everlasting

How to Grow Warm

Busybodies

God Is Faithful

Our Faithful Lord

Fault Finding

Faithful and Wise

Self-Confidence

Glory to the Lamb

Long Prayers at Prayer Meetings

To Evangelists

The Way of Peace to an Erring Child of God

Life

Every Knee Shall Bow

No Help

Liberty in God's Presence

Soaring and Singing

Prospect of the Resurrection

The Day of Victory

Make the World Better by One

Redeemed to God by Blood

Results

Spring Lessons

How the Lord Will Come for Us

The Secret of Spiritual Prosperity

Expecting Blessing

The Way of Peace About Our Old Man

With Me

The Friend of Sinners

Self-Occupation

Complete in Christ

Life More Abundantly

Everlasting Life

The Probe

Sweet Singing

Capacity

They Which Live Should … Live … Unto Him

Like Sheep

Punctuality at Religious Meetings

A Solemn Consideration

Beware of Dogs

The Bright and Morning Star

Never Forgotten

The Path of Faith

A First Principle of the Gospel

No Strength

Saved From Wrath, and Saved for Glory

Immeasurable Love

Habit and Dress

How to Live Peaceably

Priest and King

The Bright Side

Child and Servant

Christians, Awake!

Attraction

Quit You Like Men, Be Strong

Influence