Shine as Lights # 2
A lesson here never to be forgotten! Let every believing child of unbelieving parents follow the example of this Syrian youth. There is no more likely way of bringing an unconverted father or mother to the Saviour, than a constant effort in things small and great, to show to them the loving obedience and tender affection to which the Word of God so plainly calls us.
Nor is this true only in the filial relation - it is so in every relationship of life. A holy life is very frequently the instrument of the conversion of those afar off. The careless wife is awakened and turned to God by the Christ-like spirit of the husband. The child is drawn heavenward by the sight of the father or mother walking steadfastly in the way of life. The servant is surprised and aroused to thought by seeing a master or mistress ruling the household in a way which she had never seen before.
In fact, a truly Christian life is a perpetual sermon to all around. A clergyman may preach two or three sermons a week to any who may be willing to come and hear - but a holy life speaks to those who never set foot within the house of God. It can be preached in the house or on the street, in the workshop or in the market place. It reaches the most heedless and indifferent, and sends many an arrow of conviction to the heart of the sinner. It awakens the slumbering Christian to more self-denial and activity, as he cannot but notice the difference between his own life and that of some zealous follower of the Lamb. It encourages young beginners by the sight of a reality in religion, and makes them more earnest in seeking to possess it.
Ah! believe it, my brother, my sister in Christ, God has put into your hand a marvelous power for good! You may be but weak in the faith - you may only of late have come to the Saviour; but by His grace enabling you, you may be continually sowing around you seeds of endless blessing. If you are living hourly, daily for Christ, your words and deeds, your very looks, your silence as well as your conversation, may be doing an amount of good of which you are quite unconscious. Eternity alone will reveal the good which the Lord in His mercy enables to accomplish.
But we must not forget the other side of the picture. Who shall tell the amount of harm which is done by Christians failing to live as Christ would have them?
At a post on an American lake there were two tiers of lights. On one occasion by some neglect the lower lights were not burning. This led to a mistake by the captain of a steamer, and the noble ship was wrecked in consequence.
Ah, how it teaches us a lesson! The humbler graces of a Christian life must not be neglected; the quiet home duties of everyday life must not be forgotten. Our daily walk, must prove our religion to be a great reality.
Not long ago I met a young man on a bus, with whom I entered into conversation. He readily accepted a book I offered him, and listened very attentively while I spoke a word to him about the Saviour. Then he told me of the stumbling block in his way. His parents made a high profession; but he saw in his own home there was no reality about it. Their daily walk seemed to him to make it clear that it was only a pretense and a sham - so he had given it all up. He wished to live a moral and upright life, ut nothing would ever induce him to go back to the old paths.
I never felt more sad in my life. I tried my utmost to show him we must judge Christians by the Book - and not judge the doctrines of the Gospel by the lives of Christians. I told him that a bad Englishman did not prove the laws of England were bad - neither did the inconsistencies of Christians prove anything against the doctrine of the law of Christ; but it was all of no avail. Here was the stumbling block over which he fell. Had his parents followed more in the steps of the Master, it is very probable his views might have been far different. I am sure this is not a solitary example.
When we find the children of professing Christians turning out badly, it is usually through some evil thing which has caused them to fall. When the secrets of home life are all laid bare, we shall have many a sorrowful tale of the sins of parents bringing forth bitter fruit in the lives of their children.
Ah, dear reader, be on your guard day by day, if you value the souls of those who live with you! Put no stumbling block in the way of others; keep your lamp bright and clear; live blamelessly and harmlessly in a corrupt and evil generation.
Let not your religion be a mask, or a Sunday dress which you fold up and lay by when Sunday is over, or as an article of jewelry which you wear on special occasions. Nay, let it be that which it goes with you at all times and in all companies. Let it be worn close to your heart, and never laid aside even when you go to rest at night. At home or abroad, in days of trouble and in days of comfort, in the society of God's people or amidst the children of this world, keep the light ever burning. Remember your solemn responsibilities. Shine as a lamp on earth, and you shall by and by shine as a star forever and ever.
But how can this be? By what means can you, who in yourself are all darkness and evil, thus manifest the light?
~George Everard~
(continued with # 3)
Saturday, May 18, 2019
Saturday, May 11, 2019
Shine As Lights # 1
Shine As Lights # 1
"Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in Heaven" (Matthew 5:16).
"That you may be blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world" (Phil. 2:15).
"That they will adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in every respect" (Titus 2:10).
Around the coast of Great Britain and Ireland are found more than 200 light-houses. They are so placed that while ships are within ten to fifteen miles of shore one or more of them may usually be seen; so that guidance is afforded to ships that need it, and many a vessel is thereby saved from the rock and the quicksand, and brought safely into the desired haven.
It were well if Christian people in a similar way were fulfilling their office to be as lights in the world. It were well if nowhere in our country could a man's lot be cast - but some earnest, devoted servant of the Lord were to be found not far distant; so that by the light of a holy example, or a word of friendly counsel, he might be warned in the hour of danger, and guided into the safe harbor of salvation by Christ.
Shine as lights in the world! It is the plain command of Christ that you should do so. Carry a bright and clear light, so that all around may see it. Do not "hide it under bushel" of timidity, of sloth, of self-indulgence, of worldly-mindedness - but hold it up aloft. Let it be like the light from the lighthouse, firmly resting on the solid rock beneath; so let your soul be resting on the firm foundation of a true faith in the word and work of Christ - trusting only in the name and merit and mediation of God's dear Son. Hold forth the light, that numbers of life's wearied voyagers, tossed hither and thither over the dark and surging billows, may see it and be saved, and rejoice forever in the help which you have afforded them.
No subject can outweigh in importance, this matter of light-bearing. Holy, devoted, self-denying lives, springing from the principle of a living faith - are the very glory of Christianity.
May the good Spirit of our God guide our thoughts and meditations! May we be determined, by God's grace, more than ever to give ourselves to the service of God, and to let our light so shine before men, that they may glorify our Father who is in Heaven.
Let it be forever imprinted on our remembrance, how greatly the holiness of Christian people concerns the glory of God and the welfare of His Church.
We Christians are representatives on earth, of a living, exalted, glorified Saviour. When Christ dwelt here below, He said of Himself, "As long as I am in the world, I am the Light of the world." He has now gone back to the Father's house to prepare our home, and to intercede on our behalf - but He has left His servants to take His place, and to do His work on earth. "You are the light of the world," He declares. By a holy, consistent walk, you are to show forth to sinners around, something of the Christ you love and obey.
True, you can give comparatively but a feeble light. What is a candle compared to the noonday sun? Still less is your light compared to that of Christ. Nevertheless it is not in vain. You may adorn the doctrine of the Gospel; you may let men see something of its mighty efficacy in raising you above selfishness and sin; you may manifest something of the fair beauty of the Saviour's image.
This is that which is most needed to convince men of the truth of the Gospel. We should pray indeed that God would raise up men fitted to answer the daring and skillful assaults made upon the authority of Holy Scripture and the doctrines of Christianity. But the best books, and the most eloquent sermons - are holy, loving Christians - copies of Christ, spending their lives in doing good, and making even the enemies of the Gospel inquire as to the power for good which they possess.
At Tripoli, the son of a Syrian woman embraced the truth of the gospel and was baptized. But the mother was very bigoted, and refused to listen to a word he said. She could not, however, but notice how kind and dutiful he became after his conversion. This led her to consider whether or no the Bible was true; and she, too, at length believed in Christ. She said to herself, "A religion which makes my son so dutiful and kind, cannot be a bad one." She lives from that time as a true Christian, and died with a note of praise upon her lips.
~George Everard~
(continued with # 2)
"Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in Heaven" (Matthew 5:16).
"That you may be blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world" (Phil. 2:15).
"That they will adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in every respect" (Titus 2:10).
Around the coast of Great Britain and Ireland are found more than 200 light-houses. They are so placed that while ships are within ten to fifteen miles of shore one or more of them may usually be seen; so that guidance is afforded to ships that need it, and many a vessel is thereby saved from the rock and the quicksand, and brought safely into the desired haven.
It were well if Christian people in a similar way were fulfilling their office to be as lights in the world. It were well if nowhere in our country could a man's lot be cast - but some earnest, devoted servant of the Lord were to be found not far distant; so that by the light of a holy example, or a word of friendly counsel, he might be warned in the hour of danger, and guided into the safe harbor of salvation by Christ.
Shine as lights in the world! It is the plain command of Christ that you should do so. Carry a bright and clear light, so that all around may see it. Do not "hide it under bushel" of timidity, of sloth, of self-indulgence, of worldly-mindedness - but hold it up aloft. Let it be like the light from the lighthouse, firmly resting on the solid rock beneath; so let your soul be resting on the firm foundation of a true faith in the word and work of Christ - trusting only in the name and merit and mediation of God's dear Son. Hold forth the light, that numbers of life's wearied voyagers, tossed hither and thither over the dark and surging billows, may see it and be saved, and rejoice forever in the help which you have afforded them.
No subject can outweigh in importance, this matter of light-bearing. Holy, devoted, self-denying lives, springing from the principle of a living faith - are the very glory of Christianity.
May the good Spirit of our God guide our thoughts and meditations! May we be determined, by God's grace, more than ever to give ourselves to the service of God, and to let our light so shine before men, that they may glorify our Father who is in Heaven.
Let it be forever imprinted on our remembrance, how greatly the holiness of Christian people concerns the glory of God and the welfare of His Church.
We Christians are representatives on earth, of a living, exalted, glorified Saviour. When Christ dwelt here below, He said of Himself, "As long as I am in the world, I am the Light of the world." He has now gone back to the Father's house to prepare our home, and to intercede on our behalf - but He has left His servants to take His place, and to do His work on earth. "You are the light of the world," He declares. By a holy, consistent walk, you are to show forth to sinners around, something of the Christ you love and obey.
True, you can give comparatively but a feeble light. What is a candle compared to the noonday sun? Still less is your light compared to that of Christ. Nevertheless it is not in vain. You may adorn the doctrine of the Gospel; you may let men see something of its mighty efficacy in raising you above selfishness and sin; you may manifest something of the fair beauty of the Saviour's image.
This is that which is most needed to convince men of the truth of the Gospel. We should pray indeed that God would raise up men fitted to answer the daring and skillful assaults made upon the authority of Holy Scripture and the doctrines of Christianity. But the best books, and the most eloquent sermons - are holy, loving Christians - copies of Christ, spending their lives in doing good, and making even the enemies of the Gospel inquire as to the power for good which they possess.
At Tripoli, the son of a Syrian woman embraced the truth of the gospel and was baptized. But the mother was very bigoted, and refused to listen to a word he said. She could not, however, but notice how kind and dutiful he became after his conversion. This led her to consider whether or no the Bible was true; and she, too, at length believed in Christ. She said to herself, "A religion which makes my son so dutiful and kind, cannot be a bad one." She lives from that time as a true Christian, and died with a note of praise upon her lips.
~George Everard~
(continued with # 2)
Classic Christian Quotes from Classic Ministers
Classic Christian Quotes from Classic Ministers
I have this against you!
(Archibald Alexander, "Returning to Our First Love")
"Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love." Revelation 2:4
Declensions in vital piety are owing to a variety of causes, internal and external.
The whole, however, may be attributed to . . .
the temptations of Satan,
the allurements of the world, and
the inbred corruptions of the heart.
Such declensions are very commonly produced by too much interaction with a careless, money-loving, pleasure-seeking world. Vital religion is a delicate plant, and being surrounded by many unfavorable circumstances, is liable to receive injury from contact with a polluted world. Worldly company and too much occupation in secular affairs, are almost sure to deaden our pious affections and to disqualify us for spiritual exercises.
He who is clothed in white and clean garments, will find it difficult to avoid contracting spots which deform and defile his robes, when he is obliged to live in a filthy house.
It is hard to pursue the world just as far as duty calls--and then to stop. When the efforts to acquire money or property are successful, a pleasure is naturally experienced in the acquisition of such things. After a while, anundue love of the world is apt to be generated insensibly--and the evil creeps in insidiously.
But the undue love of the world, whether of its riches, its honors, or its pleasures--will soon injuriously influence the love of the soul to its Savior. The thoughts are too much drawn off from the contemplation of divine things, and the relish for spiritual duties and enjoyments is insensibly diminished. The duties of the prayer closet are no longer anticipated with delight; and the hours consecrated to private devotion, which used to be the most pleasant in the whole day, do not now afford the same comfort as formerly. The lack of enjoyment in pious duties, the wandering thoughts in the midst of them, and the lack of lively feeling--naturally tend to produce a backwardness to engage in them; so that were not the person forced, as it were, by conscience to enter his closet, he would often omit the duty altogether.
The most common means of restoring backsliders, is God's rod of affliction. The reason why God scourges every son who He receives, is that all have faults and imperfections, which a kind Father aims to correct by the use of the rod.
By affliction, the vanity of the world is seen--and the infatuation produced by the love of the world is broken. The backslider is filled with sorrow for having departed from the fountain of living water, and is driven to seek refuge and comfort in the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ.
____________________
Dust you are and to dust you will return!
(Charles Spurgeon)
"By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return." Genesis 3:19
"All go to the same place; all come from dust, and to dust all return!" Ecclesiastes 3:20
Augustine used to say he did not know whether to call it a dying life--or a living death. I leave the choice between those two expressions to you.
This is certainly a dying life--its march is marked by graves.
Nothing but a continuous miracle keeps any one of us from the sepulcher!
Were omnipotence to stay its power but for a moment--we would return to our native dust.
It is a dying life--and it is equally true that it is a living death.
We are always dying.
Every beating pulse we count, leaves but the number less.
The more years we count in our life--the fewer remain.
Are you afraid of dying? Oh! never be afraid of that--be afraid of living.
Living is the only thing which can do any harm--dying can never hurt a Christian.
Christian! You are nearer your eternal home than you thought you were--and every moment you are getting nearer still!
Oh, it would be indeed horrible if we could not die!
Who wants to be chained to this poor life for centuries?
"For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain."
"I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far!"
I have this against you!
(Archibald Alexander, "Returning to Our First Love")
"Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love." Revelation 2:4
Declensions in vital piety are owing to a variety of causes, internal and external.
The whole, however, may be attributed to . . .
the temptations of Satan,
the allurements of the world, and
the inbred corruptions of the heart.
Such declensions are very commonly produced by too much interaction with a careless, money-loving, pleasure-seeking world. Vital religion is a delicate plant, and being surrounded by many unfavorable circumstances, is liable to receive injury from contact with a polluted world. Worldly company and too much occupation in secular affairs, are almost sure to deaden our pious affections and to disqualify us for spiritual exercises.
He who is clothed in white and clean garments, will find it difficult to avoid contracting spots which deform and defile his robes, when he is obliged to live in a filthy house.
It is hard to pursue the world just as far as duty calls--and then to stop. When the efforts to acquire money or property are successful, a pleasure is naturally experienced in the acquisition of such things. After a while, anundue love of the world is apt to be generated insensibly--and the evil creeps in insidiously.
But the undue love of the world, whether of its riches, its honors, or its pleasures--will soon injuriously influence the love of the soul to its Savior. The thoughts are too much drawn off from the contemplation of divine things, and the relish for spiritual duties and enjoyments is insensibly diminished. The duties of the prayer closet are no longer anticipated with delight; and the hours consecrated to private devotion, which used to be the most pleasant in the whole day, do not now afford the same comfort as formerly. The lack of enjoyment in pious duties, the wandering thoughts in the midst of them, and the lack of lively feeling--naturally tend to produce a backwardness to engage in them; so that were not the person forced, as it were, by conscience to enter his closet, he would often omit the duty altogether.
The most common means of restoring backsliders, is God's rod of affliction. The reason why God scourges every son who He receives, is that all have faults and imperfections, which a kind Father aims to correct by the use of the rod.
By affliction, the vanity of the world is seen--and the infatuation produced by the love of the world is broken. The backslider is filled with sorrow for having departed from the fountain of living water, and is driven to seek refuge and comfort in the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ.
____________________
Dust you are and to dust you will return!
(Charles Spurgeon)
"By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return." Genesis 3:19
"All go to the same place; all come from dust, and to dust all return!" Ecclesiastes 3:20
Augustine used to say he did not know whether to call it a dying life--or a living death. I leave the choice between those two expressions to you.
This is certainly a dying life--its march is marked by graves.
Nothing but a continuous miracle keeps any one of us from the sepulcher!
Were omnipotence to stay its power but for a moment--we would return to our native dust.
It is a dying life--and it is equally true that it is a living death.
We are always dying.
Every beating pulse we count, leaves but the number less.
The more years we count in our life--the fewer remain.
Are you afraid of dying? Oh! never be afraid of that--be afraid of living.
Living is the only thing which can do any harm--dying can never hurt a Christian.
Christian! You are nearer your eternal home than you thought you were--and every moment you are getting nearer still!
Oh, it would be indeed horrible if we could not die!
Who wants to be chained to this poor life for centuries?
"For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain."
"I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far!"
Classic Christian Quotes from Classic Ministers
Classic Christian Quotes from Classic Ministers
There are so many lean Christians who devour hundreds of sermons!(Edmund Calamy)
"His delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night." Psalm 1:2
"I meditate on Your precepts and consider Your ways." Psalm 119:15
It is not merely hearing a sermon that does you good, but meditating on what you hear. So when you hear a sermon, if you do not meditate and ponder upon what you hear, you will never get any good.
There are so many lean Christians who devour hundreds of sermons--and are never any better, never any fatter in grace. They never meditate, ponder and consider what they hear--that is the reason why they are so lean in grace.
Pray unto God to enlighten your understandings, to quicken your devotion, to warm your affections--that by meditation on holy things . . .
you may be made more holy,
you may have your lusts more mortified,
you may have your graces more increased,
you may better behold the vanity of the world,
you may lifted up to Heaven and eternal realities.
"Meditate upon these things." 1 Timothy 4:15
_______________________
There are so many lean Christians who devour hundreds of sermons!(Edmund Calamy)
"His delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night." Psalm 1:2
"I meditate on Your precepts and consider Your ways." Psalm 119:15
It is not merely hearing a sermon that does you good, but meditating on what you hear. So when you hear a sermon, if you do not meditate and ponder upon what you hear, you will never get any good.
There are so many lean Christians who devour hundreds of sermons--and are never any better, never any fatter in grace. They never meditate, ponder and consider what they hear--that is the reason why they are so lean in grace.
Pray unto God to enlighten your understandings, to quicken your devotion, to warm your affections--that by meditation on holy things . . .
you may be made more holy,
you may have your lusts more mortified,
you may have your graces more increased,
you may better behold the vanity of the world,
you may lifted up to Heaven and eternal realities.
"Meditate upon these things." 1 Timothy 4:15
_______________________
And every branch that beareth fruit he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit (John 15:2).
A child of God was dazed by the variety of afflictions which seemed to make her their target. Walking past a vineyard in the rich autumnal glow she noticed the untrimmed appearance and the luxuriant wealth of leaves on the vines, that the ground was given over to a tangle of weeds and grass, and that the whole place looked utterly uncared for; and as she pondered, the Heavenly Gardener whispered so precious a message that she would fain pass it on:
"My dear child, are you wondering at the sequence of trials in your life? Behold that vineyard and learn of it. The gardener ceases to prune, to trim, to harrow, or to pluck the ripe fruit only when he expects nothing more from the vine during that season. It is left to itself, because the season of fruit is past and further effort for the present would yield no profit. Comparative uselessness is the condition of freedom from suffering. Do you then wish me to cease pruning your life? Shall I leave you alone?"
And the comforted heart cried, "No!"
--Homera Homer-Dixon
--Homera Homer-Dixon
It is the branch that bears the fruit,
That feels the knife,
To prune it for a larger growth,
A fuller life.
Though every budding twig be lopped,
And every grace
Of swaying tendril, springing leaf,
Be lost a space.
O thou whose life of joy seems reft,
Of beauty shorn;
Whose aspirations lie in dust,
All bruised and torn,
Rejoice, tho' each desire, each dream,
Each hope of thine
Shall fall and fade; it is the hand
Of Love Divine
That holds the knife, that cuts and breaks
With tenderest touch,
That thou, whose life has borne some fruit
May'st now bear much.
--Annie Johnson Flint
That feels the knife,
To prune it for a larger growth,
A fuller life.
Though every budding twig be lopped,
And every grace
Of swaying tendril, springing leaf,
Be lost a space.
O thou whose life of joy seems reft,
Of beauty shorn;
Whose aspirations lie in dust,
All bruised and torn,
Rejoice, tho' each desire, each dream,
Each hope of thine
Shall fall and fade; it is the hand
Of Love Divine
That holds the knife, that cuts and breaks
With tenderest touch,
That thou, whose life has borne some fruit
May'st now bear much.
--Annie Johnson Flint
~L. B. Cowman~
___________________________
MORNING
The Lord giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.
Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own under-standing. - If any of you lack wisdom let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally and upbradeth not; and it shall be given him. - The fool-ishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men. - God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise. That no flesh should glory in his presence.
The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple. - Thy word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against thee.
All bare him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth. - Never man spake like this man. - Of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanc-tification, and redemption.
PROV. 2:6. Prov. 3:5. -Jas. 1:5. -I Cor. 1:25. -I Cor. 1:27,29. Psa. 119:130. Psa. 119:11. Luke 4:22. -John 7:46. I Cor. 1:30.
EVENING
The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple. - Thy word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against thee.
All bare him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth. - Never man spake like this man. - Of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanc-tification, and redemption.
PROV. 2:6. Prov. 3:5. -Jas. 1:5. -I Cor. 1:25. -I Cor. 1:27,29. Psa. 119:130. Psa. 119:11. Luke 4:22. -John 7:46. I Cor. 1:30.
EVENING
The year of my redeemed is come.
Ye shall hallow the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof: it shall be a jubilee unto you; and ye shall return every man unto his possession, ... and unto his family.
Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs and the earth shall cast out the dead.
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.
I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction.
Their Redeemer is strong; the Lord of hosts is his name.
ISA. 63:4. Lev. 25:10. Isa. 26:19. I Thes. 4:16,17. Hos. 13:14. Jer. 50:34.
Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs and the earth shall cast out the dead.
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.
I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction.
Their Redeemer is strong; the Lord of hosts is his name.
ISA. 63:4. Lev. 25:10. Isa. 26:19. I Thes. 4:16,17. Hos. 13:14. Jer. 50:34.
Saturday, May 4, 2019
The Great Account # 3
The Great Account # 3
But to those found in Christ the verdict shall be everlasting life and felicity. The debt has been paid by their Surety - who then shall demand it of them? Their sins and offences have already been punished when their Substitute died, the Just for the unjust - who then shall require a second reparation to the Holy law which had been broken? The everlasting merits and righteousness of the Son of God is theirs - who then shall object to their entrance upon the glory prepared for them? "Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died - more than that, who was raised to life - is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us!" (Romans 8:33-34).
The glory to be the portion of the true Christian is not yet manifest - what it shall be surpasses comprehension. The rest of a felt security in the Fathers house; every holy desire fulfilled; every labor, and gift, and prayer, receiving its recompense through the same grace that first prompted it; this shall be much - yet still more there be.
The death-blow will have been given to the evil that yet abides in us; the perfect likeness of the glorified Redeemer will be upon us, body and soul alike being transformed into His image. The tenderest ties will then be re-knit - Christians parted for many a long year will then see each other face to face.
The open vision of Christ will then shed eternal sunshine upon His saints. Now His people see Him, but it is as through the lattice or the colored glass. It is by means of ordinances, prayer, and in the inspired Word; but then it will be in the immediate sight, "We know that when He appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is!" (1 John 3:2).
What joyful hope should this raise in our hearts. The miner working in the dark mine, far below the surface of the earth, feels his arm strengthened for toil, and his heart throb quicker in anticipation of the evening hour - as he remembers that above ground there is the little cottage, and a dear wife and beloved children longing for His return.
So may it be with Christian people, now toiling below in this dark world, as we remember that far above this present scene there is the Father's house, and there we shall see One whom long we have known and loved, and with whom we shall then forever dwell.
It was a touching word of one who lately had become blind. When assured that he never would regain his sight he answered, "Then the next person I shall see will be my Savour!"
Behold the speedy approach of "that day!" Surely I am coming quickly!" "Behold, the Judge stands at the door." It is a strong expression. It reminds us how near at hand He may be.
The thief is sleeping within, dreaming of some midnight revel, but the officer of justice who has tracked his steps is at the door, about to knock, and then to convey him away to prison.
The wife in mourning an absent husband, who in a foreign land has been toiling for her welfare, and she fears lest she may never again see him - when, behold! he stands by the door, and her long awaited is at end.
So for judgment or for mercy, the Bridegroom will quickly com. It is not for us to fix the times and the seasons, but many are the signs that tell of His approach. Long has He tarried beyond the expectation of His Church, but it cannot be forever. In great likelihood the outburst of error and infidelity in our day, may be that foretold before His appearing.
But this is certain - Christ will come, and every eye shall see Him. Whether it be to us in the flash, or after our summons by death, will be of little importance. Strive then, Christian, ever to be looking for that blessed hope. Realize, as if present now, the Advent of the Redeemer. Arising in the morning, consider that before the glorious sun, now shedding its early beams, shall sink in the West - the day of the world's history may be over. As you retire to rest, speak to your own heart, that before another day shall dawn the trumpet may sound, and the sign of the Son of man appear in Heaven.
As the Sabbath-bell calls you forth to meet with the assembled congregation - remember that from the earthly sanctuary you may be called to commence the Jubilee of the everlasting Sabbath.
~George Everard~
(The End)
But to those found in Christ the verdict shall be everlasting life and felicity. The debt has been paid by their Surety - who then shall demand it of them? Their sins and offences have already been punished when their Substitute died, the Just for the unjust - who then shall require a second reparation to the Holy law which had been broken? The everlasting merits and righteousness of the Son of God is theirs - who then shall object to their entrance upon the glory prepared for them? "Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died - more than that, who was raised to life - is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us!" (Romans 8:33-34).
The glory to be the portion of the true Christian is not yet manifest - what it shall be surpasses comprehension. The rest of a felt security in the Fathers house; every holy desire fulfilled; every labor, and gift, and prayer, receiving its recompense through the same grace that first prompted it; this shall be much - yet still more there be.
The death-blow will have been given to the evil that yet abides in us; the perfect likeness of the glorified Redeemer will be upon us, body and soul alike being transformed into His image. The tenderest ties will then be re-knit - Christians parted for many a long year will then see each other face to face.
The open vision of Christ will then shed eternal sunshine upon His saints. Now His people see Him, but it is as through the lattice or the colored glass. It is by means of ordinances, prayer, and in the inspired Word; but then it will be in the immediate sight, "We know that when He appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is!" (1 John 3:2).
What joyful hope should this raise in our hearts. The miner working in the dark mine, far below the surface of the earth, feels his arm strengthened for toil, and his heart throb quicker in anticipation of the evening hour - as he remembers that above ground there is the little cottage, and a dear wife and beloved children longing for His return.
So may it be with Christian people, now toiling below in this dark world, as we remember that far above this present scene there is the Father's house, and there we shall see One whom long we have known and loved, and with whom we shall then forever dwell.
It was a touching word of one who lately had become blind. When assured that he never would regain his sight he answered, "Then the next person I shall see will be my Savour!"
Behold the speedy approach of "that day!" Surely I am coming quickly!" "Behold, the Judge stands at the door." It is a strong expression. It reminds us how near at hand He may be.
The thief is sleeping within, dreaming of some midnight revel, but the officer of justice who has tracked his steps is at the door, about to knock, and then to convey him away to prison.
The wife in mourning an absent husband, who in a foreign land has been toiling for her welfare, and she fears lest she may never again see him - when, behold! he stands by the door, and her long awaited is at end.
So for judgment or for mercy, the Bridegroom will quickly com. It is not for us to fix the times and the seasons, but many are the signs that tell of His approach. Long has He tarried beyond the expectation of His Church, but it cannot be forever. In great likelihood the outburst of error and infidelity in our day, may be that foretold before His appearing.
But this is certain - Christ will come, and every eye shall see Him. Whether it be to us in the flash, or after our summons by death, will be of little importance. Strive then, Christian, ever to be looking for that blessed hope. Realize, as if present now, the Advent of the Redeemer. Arising in the morning, consider that before the glorious sun, now shedding its early beams, shall sink in the West - the day of the world's history may be over. As you retire to rest, speak to your own heart, that before another day shall dawn the trumpet may sound, and the sign of the Son of man appear in Heaven.
As the Sabbath-bell calls you forth to meet with the assembled congregation - remember that from the earthly sanctuary you may be called to commence the Jubilee of the everlasting Sabbath.
~George Everard~
(The End)
The Great Account # 2
The Great Account # 2
Whether an outward obedience has been paid to the letter of the law, what duties have been neglected, what has been left undone, which ought to have been done, what has been the employment of the talents bestowed, what use has been made of the years we have lived, of the influence we have possessed, of the wealth committed to us, of the opportunities for receiving or doing good which may have been placed in our way, what words have fallen from our lips and what thoughts and desires cherished in our hearts, what has been the chief motive and principle by which we have been actuated - nothing of all this can avoid the eye of our omniscient Judge!
Above all things solemn in the coming Day, will be the laying bare of that which is now altogether hidden and secret. "God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil." "In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men, by Jesus Christ, according to my Gospel." "Judge nothing before the time until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and make manifest the counsels of the heart."
Is there not a voice that comes to us from the remains of ancient Pompeii? Does it not remind us that "The time is coming when everything that is covered up will be revealed, and all that is secret will be made known to all!"
Does it not set before our eyes, as in a picture, the fact that our present life, with all that belongs to it, shall yet have a resurrection? Do we not see here that centuries may pass by after the grave has become our resting place - and yet that all we have been and done, our names, our dwellings, and their testimony for good or for evil, may stand out as fresh as while we were alive?
Oh, what secrets will then, for the first time, be disclosed! It many a home, in many a little knot of companions, evil has been concocted and accomplished almost passing belief! Schemes of fraud have been planned and carried out; foul iniquities, deeds of darkness, have been committed in secret, which it might well make us shudder even to contemplate. The authors of these may be undetected, they may never here reap their just reward, but they are known of God, and the deeds they have done; and to the everlasting shame of the men and women who have thus acted, shall their crimes be made manifest before the universe!
Yet not only iniquities done in secret, but the the innermost feelings of the heart shall be laid bare. Where there has been no commission or thought of such acts as have been named - yet within the heart there may still be lurking the most deadly evils. In the sight of the Most High, how revolting must be those heart-sins which are often unthought of and unchecked, even among those who pay as external deference to His commands, and are found continually as worshipers in His sanctuary.
A determined selfishness, a secret aversion to His service, a willful forgetfulness of all His daily benefits, a cherished dislike of spiritual religion, and a thorough cleaving to the things of the earth - may exist side by side with a life upon which, it would be difficult to cast a shadow or reproach.
Is it not our wisdom to be willing before "that Day" to know the utmost of the evil in us, at present it may be, unknown by others or even by ourselves?
Behold the two-fold issue of the judgment.
There can be, in any case, but one or other of two sentences.
To those who have died in their sins, the outcome must be a sentence of "eternal damnation."
No language could have been used stronger than that employed by Christ to declare this. He speaks of "the worm that dies not, and the fire that is not quenched." He employs, with reference to it, the same word "eternal" that is employed as to the happiness of the righteous. "Depart from Me, you cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels." These shall go away into eternal punishment - but the righteous into eternal life."
Throughout the whole of Scripture there is not the least intimation of a second judgment, or of a reversal of the sentence to be passed by Christ at His coming. If on that solemn day, therefore, the sentence is "eternal punishment" - how, or when, shall it ever be changed?
~George Everard~
(continued with # 3)
Whether an outward obedience has been paid to the letter of the law, what duties have been neglected, what has been left undone, which ought to have been done, what has been the employment of the talents bestowed, what use has been made of the years we have lived, of the influence we have possessed, of the wealth committed to us, of the opportunities for receiving or doing good which may have been placed in our way, what words have fallen from our lips and what thoughts and desires cherished in our hearts, what has been the chief motive and principle by which we have been actuated - nothing of all this can avoid the eye of our omniscient Judge!
Above all things solemn in the coming Day, will be the laying bare of that which is now altogether hidden and secret. "God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil." "In the day when God shall judge the secrets of men, by Jesus Christ, according to my Gospel." "Judge nothing before the time until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and make manifest the counsels of the heart."
Is there not a voice that comes to us from the remains of ancient Pompeii? Does it not remind us that "The time is coming when everything that is covered up will be revealed, and all that is secret will be made known to all!"
Does it not set before our eyes, as in a picture, the fact that our present life, with all that belongs to it, shall yet have a resurrection? Do we not see here that centuries may pass by after the grave has become our resting place - and yet that all we have been and done, our names, our dwellings, and their testimony for good or for evil, may stand out as fresh as while we were alive?
Oh, what secrets will then, for the first time, be disclosed! It many a home, in many a little knot of companions, evil has been concocted and accomplished almost passing belief! Schemes of fraud have been planned and carried out; foul iniquities, deeds of darkness, have been committed in secret, which it might well make us shudder even to contemplate. The authors of these may be undetected, they may never here reap their just reward, but they are known of God, and the deeds they have done; and to the everlasting shame of the men and women who have thus acted, shall their crimes be made manifest before the universe!
Yet not only iniquities done in secret, but the the innermost feelings of the heart shall be laid bare. Where there has been no commission or thought of such acts as have been named - yet within the heart there may still be lurking the most deadly evils. In the sight of the Most High, how revolting must be those heart-sins which are often unthought of and unchecked, even among those who pay as external deference to His commands, and are found continually as worshipers in His sanctuary.
A determined selfishness, a secret aversion to His service, a willful forgetfulness of all His daily benefits, a cherished dislike of spiritual religion, and a thorough cleaving to the things of the earth - may exist side by side with a life upon which, it would be difficult to cast a shadow or reproach.
Is it not our wisdom to be willing before "that Day" to know the utmost of the evil in us, at present it may be, unknown by others or even by ourselves?
Behold the two-fold issue of the judgment.
There can be, in any case, but one or other of two sentences.
To those who have died in their sins, the outcome must be a sentence of "eternal damnation."
No language could have been used stronger than that employed by Christ to declare this. He speaks of "the worm that dies not, and the fire that is not quenched." He employs, with reference to it, the same word "eternal" that is employed as to the happiness of the righteous. "Depart from Me, you cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels." These shall go away into eternal punishment - but the righteous into eternal life."
Throughout the whole of Scripture there is not the least intimation of a second judgment, or of a reversal of the sentence to be passed by Christ at His coming. If on that solemn day, therefore, the sentence is "eternal punishment" - how, or when, shall it ever be changed?
~George Everard~
(continued with # 3)
Saturday, April 27, 2019
The Great Account # 2
The Great Account # 2
A captain was within a few weeks of death. A friend was speaking to him of a future state. "Were you to be tried by a Court Martial as to your conduct as an officer and a gentleman - would you be afraid?"
"I would not!" said he emphatically, rising up in his bed as he spoke it. "But you are not to be tried by a Court Martial, but at the bar of Christ, and what shall you answer when He asks: "What have you done for Me?"
"Nothing! I have never done anything for Christ" said the captain thoughtfully. The arrow had reached his conscience. He was now brought to deep conviction, and through it to find rest in Christ.
There will be a "blind guide" - the man solemnly pledged to feed the flock, yet who knew not himself "the unsearchable riches of Christ," nor unfolded them to others.
There will be the faithful under-shepherd, who himself followed the Master, and day by day, in public and in private, exalted Christ and Him alone.
There will be hearers of the Word, who vainly imagined that their duty was done, when for half an hour they had hearkened to the sermon.
There will be doers of the Word, who practiced as well as heard, and only grieved that they did it so little.
There will be those who believe not the Gospel of salvation. It has come to them, but has not been received. Through prejudice, or presuming upon their own endeavors, or a future repentance - they have put away from them the offered blessing.
There will be those who have believed and embraced it. When speaking of the judgment, Paul excludes not himself or other believers. Though sin be forgiven, though for them there can be no condemnation - yet for the glory of Christ and their justification before a world that has trampled upon them, shall they appear before the Judge.
Of all earth's teeming myriads, not one shall be absent!
However difficult to form a conception of the manner in which it can be brought about - of the locality in which it may take place - of the lengthened period of "that day" - yet of this be assured, not one solitary individual shall escape its awful solemnity.
Within a man's own breast, has God fixed a faithful witness to it. Why is it that within, there is that which chides or approves? Is there not a little judgment seat set up there - I mean conscience - which bears a clear testimony to the judgment to be administered hereafter?
Nor in any way can the guilty one flee from the presence of his Judge. "It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment." "For the Lord Almighty has purposed, and who can thwart Him? His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back?"
Behold the Character of the Judgment Which God Has Appointed
In every court of Justice there must be a certain fixed rule of standard, by which people accused may be tried. In our own land, for example, every prisoner is acquitted or condemned according to the code of laws. It is not in accordance with any idea of justice in their own mind - or in that of the judge or jury - but by a clear definite code, known and recognized among us.
So likewise will it be at the Great Day. Various are the standards by which men judge themselves now, so as to quiet conscience and build up themselves in a false security. They cherish certain views of their own, with respect to moral duty, and imagine that if they fairly come up to them, nothing more can be required. Or they judge themselves by the ordinary walk of those with whom they dwell. Or they compare themselves with those who seem greater transgressors than they are - and so they hope that they may not fall far short of the mark.
All such vain imaginations will vanish in a moment before the brightness of Christ's solemn throne. The only standard will be the Word of God. That word contains within it the great rule of duty - supreme love to God, and true genuine love to our neighbor. It reveals also the free promise of life, and eternal salvation to every one who believes in the name of Christ. It declares that true faith works by love, and that none truly believe in the Son of God, who are not led by the Spirit, and bring not forth the fruits of that Spirit in their lives. Such is the rule by which all those will be judged to whom the message of the Gospel has come. Hear the Word of Christ: "He who rejects Me and receives not My words, has one who judges him - the word that I have spoken the same shall judge him at the last day."
Bear in mind not only what is to be the one standard - but that the judgment has respect to the whole course of a man's life.
~George Everard~
(continued with # 3)
A captain was within a few weeks of death. A friend was speaking to him of a future state. "Were you to be tried by a Court Martial as to your conduct as an officer and a gentleman - would you be afraid?"
"I would not!" said he emphatically, rising up in his bed as he spoke it. "But you are not to be tried by a Court Martial, but at the bar of Christ, and what shall you answer when He asks: "What have you done for Me?"
"Nothing! I have never done anything for Christ" said the captain thoughtfully. The arrow had reached his conscience. He was now brought to deep conviction, and through it to find rest in Christ.
There will be a "blind guide" - the man solemnly pledged to feed the flock, yet who knew not himself "the unsearchable riches of Christ," nor unfolded them to others.
There will be the faithful under-shepherd, who himself followed the Master, and day by day, in public and in private, exalted Christ and Him alone.
There will be hearers of the Word, who vainly imagined that their duty was done, when for half an hour they had hearkened to the sermon.
There will be doers of the Word, who practiced as well as heard, and only grieved that they did it so little.
There will be those who believe not the Gospel of salvation. It has come to them, but has not been received. Through prejudice, or presuming upon their own endeavors, or a future repentance - they have put away from them the offered blessing.
There will be those who have believed and embraced it. When speaking of the judgment, Paul excludes not himself or other believers. Though sin be forgiven, though for them there can be no condemnation - yet for the glory of Christ and their justification before a world that has trampled upon them, shall they appear before the Judge.
Of all earth's teeming myriads, not one shall be absent!
However difficult to form a conception of the manner in which it can be brought about - of the locality in which it may take place - of the lengthened period of "that day" - yet of this be assured, not one solitary individual shall escape its awful solemnity.
Within a man's own breast, has God fixed a faithful witness to it. Why is it that within, there is that which chides or approves? Is there not a little judgment seat set up there - I mean conscience - which bears a clear testimony to the judgment to be administered hereafter?
Nor in any way can the guilty one flee from the presence of his Judge. "It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment." "For the Lord Almighty has purposed, and who can thwart Him? His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back?"
Behold the Character of the Judgment Which God Has Appointed
In every court of Justice there must be a certain fixed rule of standard, by which people accused may be tried. In our own land, for example, every prisoner is acquitted or condemned according to the code of laws. It is not in accordance with any idea of justice in their own mind - or in that of the judge or jury - but by a clear definite code, known and recognized among us.
So likewise will it be at the Great Day. Various are the standards by which men judge themselves now, so as to quiet conscience and build up themselves in a false security. They cherish certain views of their own, with respect to moral duty, and imagine that if they fairly come up to them, nothing more can be required. Or they judge themselves by the ordinary walk of those with whom they dwell. Or they compare themselves with those who seem greater transgressors than they are - and so they hope that they may not fall far short of the mark.
All such vain imaginations will vanish in a moment before the brightness of Christ's solemn throne. The only standard will be the Word of God. That word contains within it the great rule of duty - supreme love to God, and true genuine love to our neighbor. It reveals also the free promise of life, and eternal salvation to every one who believes in the name of Christ. It declares that true faith works by love, and that none truly believe in the Son of God, who are not led by the Spirit, and bring not forth the fruits of that Spirit in their lives. Such is the rule by which all those will be judged to whom the message of the Gospel has come. Hear the Word of Christ: "He who rejects Me and receives not My words, has one who judges him - the word that I have spoken the same shall judge him at the last day."
Bear in mind not only what is to be the one standard - but that the judgment has respect to the whole course of a man's life.
~George Everard~
(continued with # 3)
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