In Me

John 16:33  These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.  

There is a vast difference between happiness and blessedness. 

Paul had imprisonments and pains, sacrifice and suffering up to the very limit; but in the midst of it all, he was blessed. All the beatitudes came into his heart and life in the midst of those very conditions.

Paganini, the great violinist, came out before his audience one day and made the discovery just as they ended their applause that there was something wrong with his violin. He looked at it a second and then saw that it was not his famous and valuable one.

He felt paralyzed for a moment, then turned to his audience and told them there had been some mistake and he did not have his own violin.

He stepped back behind the curtain thinking that it was still where he had left it, but discovered that some one had stolen his and left that old second-hand one in its place.

He remained back of the curtain a moment, then came out before his audience and said:

Ladies and Gentlemen: I will show you that the music is not in the instrument, but in the soul.

And he played as he had never played before; and out of that second-hand instrument, the music poured forth until the audience was enraptured with enthusiasm and the applause almost lifted the ceiling of the building, because the man had revealed to them that music was not in the machine but in his own soul.

It is your mission, tested and tried one, to walk out on the stage of this world and reveal to all earth and Heaven that the music is not in conditions, not in the things, not in externals, but the music of life is in your own soul.

If peace be in the heart, The wildest winter storm is full of solemn beauty, The midnight flash but shows the path of duty, Each living creature tells some new and joyous story, The very trees and stones all catch a ray of glory, If peace be in the heart.

~Charles Francis Richardson~

Wonderfully Made

Psa 139:1  To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David. O LORD, thou hast searched me, and known me.

Psa 139:2  Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.

Psa 139:3  Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.  

Psa 139:4  For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether.

Psa 139:5  Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me.

Psa 139:6  Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it.

Psa 139:7  Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?

Psa 139:8  If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.

Psa 139:9  If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;

Psa 139:10  Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.

Psa 139:11  If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me.

Psa 139:12  Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.

Psa 139:13  For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb.

Psa 139:14  I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

Psa 139:15  My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

Psa 139:16  Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them.

Psa 139:17  How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them!

Psa 139:18  If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am still with thee.

Psa 139:19  Surely thou wilt slay the wicked, O God: depart from me therefore, ye bloody men.

Psa 139:20  For they speak against thee wickedly, and thine enemies take thy name in vain.

Psa 139:21  Do not I hate them, O LORD, that hate thee? and am not I grieved with those that rise up against thee?

Psa 139:22  I hate them with perfect hatred: I count them mine enemies.
 
Psa 139:23  Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:

Psa 139:24  And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.

Avoid That Slip

                                                   
That is to say, if we follow the ways of wisdom and holiness we shall be preserved in them.

He who travels by daylight along the highway is under some protection.

There is a way for every man, namely, his own proper calling in life, and if we devoutly walk therein in the fear of GOD He will preserve us from evil.

We may not travel luxuriously, but we shall walk safely.

We may not be able to run like young men, but we shall be able to walk like good men.

Our greatest danger lies in ourselves: our feeble foot is so sadly apt to stumble.

Let us ask for more moral strength that our tendency to slip may be overcome. Some stumble because they do not see the stone in the way: divine grace enables us to perceive sin and so to avoid it.

Let us plead this promise and trust in Him who upholds His chosen.

Alas! Our worst peril is our own carelessness, but against this the LORD Jesus has put us on our guard, saying, "Watch and pray."

Oh, for grace to walk this day without a single stumble!

It is not enough that we do not actually fall; our cry should be that we may not make the smallest slip with our feet but may at the last adore Him "who is able to keep us from stumbling." 

~Charles Spurgeon~

Blow Upon My Garden That The Spices Thereof May Flow Out

Song of Solomon 4:16  Awake, O north wind; and come, thou south; blow upon my garden, that the spices thereof may flow out. Let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits.

Some of the spices mentioned in this chapter are quite suggestive.

The aloe was a bitter spice, and it tells of the sweetness of bitter things, the bitter-sweet, which has its own fine application that only those can understand who have felt it.

The myrrh was used to embalm the dead, and it tells of death to something. It is the sweetness which comes to the heart after it has died to its self-will and pride and sin.

Oh, the inexpressible charm that hovers about some Christians simply because they bear upon the chastened countenance and mellow spirit the impress of the cross, the holy evidence of having died to something that was once proud and strong, but is now forever at the feet of Jesus.

It is the heavenly charm of a broken spirit and a contrite heart, the music that springs from the minor key, the sweetness that comes from the touch of the frost upon the ripened fruit.

And then the frankincense was a fragrance that came from the touch of the fire. It was the burning powder that rose in clouds of sweetness from the bosom of the flames.

It tells of the heart whose sweetness has been called forth, perhaps by the flames of affliction, until the holy place of the soul is filled with clouds of praise and prayer.

Beloved, are we giving out the spices, the perfumes, the sweet odors of the heart?

~The Love-Life of Our LORD~

Wait Quietly

Heb 6:15  And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise.

Abraham was long tried, but he was richly rewarded. The Lord tried him by delaying to fulfill His promise.

Satan tried him by temptation; men tried him by jealousy, distrust, and opposition; Sarah tried him by her peevishness.

But he patiently endured. He did not question GOD'S veracity, nor limit His power, nor doubt His faithfulness, nor grieve His love;

But he bowed to Divine Sovereignty, submitted to Infinite Wisdom, and was silent under delays, waiting the LORD'S time.

And so, having patiently endured, he obtained the promise.

GOD'S promises cannot fail of their accomplishment.

Patient waiters cannot be disappointed.

Believing expectation shall be realized.

Beloved, Abraham's conduct condemns a hasty spirit, reproves a murmuring one, commends a patient one, and encourages quiet submission to GOD'S will and way.

Remember, Abraham was tried; he patiently waited; he received the promise, and was satisfied.

Imitate his example, and you will share the same blessing.

~Selected~

What Wilt Thou Have Me Do, LORD?

This represents a new position and a new relationship with Christ. How very different from that of the old Saul!

Hitherto his life and activity had been out from himself...what he thought he would do, what he proposed, purposed, planned, determined, and desired.

Self-determination had been his way of life, although he would have said that it was done in a good cause-even done for GOD.

What an example Saul was of the fact that a man’s very best intentions and devotions, in what he believes to be God’s interests, may yet be doing GOD the greatest disservice and he himself be totally blind to the fact.

We see here, then, that one thing is a clear evidence of a life truly acceptable to GOD; it is the absolute LORDSHIP of Jesus Christ.

Paul first used that word, “LORD”, at his conversion; it came out spontaneously when he realized that Jesus lives!

From that moment Jesus was his LORD, his Master.

We know from his life afterward how utter was that surrender and change of government.

Everything from that hour was on the basis of “What wilt Thou?”

Yes, it is the hall-mark of a true Christian life when, with the same inward realization and abandonment, we say to Jesus, “LORD”, and thenceforth have our whole lives governed by Him as Master.

~T. Austin Sparks~

No One Can ‘Join’ the Church

To become a Christian is not to join an institution called ‘The Church’. 

If the truth were known, there is no such thing as ‘joining’ the Christian Church.

We never took any steps, either of word or deed, in order to get our limbs to become members of our bodies. 

There is no distinction between our members and our bodies - our members comprise our bodies; but they do so, not by organization, invitation, examination, interrogation or catechism, but simply by life.

So, in the Church of Christ, provided that a true life-relationship exists, a ‘membership’ in the technical sense is a superfluity, and may be a menace.

If there is not that relationship, then no ‘membership’ can constitute the Church of Christ.

There are multitudes, we fear, who have ‘membership’ in what is called the ‘Church’, who are not able to stand up to the test which will be presented when we come to speak of what a Christian is.

But let us say here that when we appeal to people to become Christians we are not asking them to ‘join the Church’.

And it must be realized that Christianity is not just one more institution or society. You may go to many places called ‘churches’, and never really meet Christ, or find satisfaction. Of course, that is negative.

We must realize, however, that when we become Christians, we share one new life in Christ with all other born-again believers, and thus we become one in Christ. That really is the Church.

It is for us, then, to cherish that relationship and jealously watch over its sacredness. There are immense values in it.

~T. Austin Sparks~

Pierced

Isa 53:5  But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

If we would enjoy peace, grow in grace, and walk with GOD...there is one object on which the eye of the mind should be constantly fixed.

Therefore it is written, as the language of our crucified Lord, "They shall look upon Me whom they have pierced!" Zechariah 12:10

WHO pierced Him?

WE did...and pierced Him to the heart! Nor were we satisfied with piercing Him once - for we have pierced Him often, and pierced Him through and through!
 

Our unbelief pierces Him; our ingratitude pierces Him; the coldness of our love pierces Him;
 

Our forgetfulness pierces Him; our preferring the world to Him pierces Him;
 

Our disobedience to His Word pierces Him; and our doubting of His love pierces Him! 

It was WE who pierced Him on Calvary!

We put the nails and the hammer into the hands of the executioners!
 

We put the spear into the hand of the Roman soldier!
 

Yes, it was we who gathered the thorns,  picked out the sharpest, formed them into a mock crown, thrust it on His head, and with the staff beat the thorns into His temples! 

See, see, there He hangs! Pierced in His head, hands, feet, and side - pierced for us - pierced by us! 

Look, my soul, at the pierced One!

GOD'S holy Son hangs on that cross! 

O my soul, look at Jesus! He is your Substitute. He is there for you!

He is suffering death for you! He is bearing the desert of your sins in His body on the tree!

He is enduring your curse, being made accursed for you! 

He is revealing what is in man's nature, what is in GOD''S heart, and what He is willing to do and suffer - rather than I should perish! 

Yes, Jesus is there for me! He represents my person! He answers for my crimes! He dies in my stead! 

O Savior, was ever any love, was ever any agony, was ever any death - like Yours! 

Look, my soul, look to Jesus, the pierced One! 

Look, and mourn - because your sins degraded, disgraced, and put Him to grief! 

Look, and rejoice, for you shall have dignity - by His degradation, honor - by His disgrace, and life - by His death!

Look, and be sorry that you have ever sinned, and so caused Jesus to suffer!

Look, and rejoice that you shall live forever to glorify and praise His name! 

O my soul, Jesus was wounded for your transgressions, and bruised for your iniquities!

His blood has made your peace with GOD, His righteousness gives you a title to eternal life, and His death delivers you from dying!

I fix my eye intently on Jesus on the Hill Calvary, and marking all His tears, wounds, and agonies - I feel that I was the cause of all. I myself did it!

Yes, I MYSELF bruised Him, scourged Him, spit on Him, crowned Him with thorns, smote Him with the fist, and nailed Him to the cursed tree! I inflicted it all.

Yet, O wonder of wonders! I derive pardon, holiness, and eternal life from it!

~James Smith~

Joy For The Cast-Out

Possibly this text may not apply to one in a thousand of the readers of this little book of promises; but the LORD cheers that one in such words as these.

Let us pray for all such as are cast out wrongfully. May the LORD appear to their joy!

The text applies to truly gracious men who tremble at the word of the LORD.

These were hated of their brethren and at length cast out because of their fidelity and their holiness. 

This must have been very bitter to them; and all the more so because their casting out was done in the name of religion and professedly with the view of glorifying God.

How much is done for the devil in the name of God!

The use of the name of Jehovah to add venom to the bite of the old serpent is an instance of his subtlety.

The appearing of the LORD for them is the hope of His persecuted people.

He appears as the advocate and defender of His elect; and when He does so it means a clear deliverance for the God-fearing and shame for their oppressors.

O LORD, fulfill this word to those whom men are deriding!

~Charles Spurgeon~