Fly Into The Bosom Of Christ For Refuge And Safety

Mat 18:4  Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

It is very sweet just to nestle down in the bosom of Christ ...to be as a little child with Him.

Those who come otherwise do not get near to Him...but the child-like always find a close place in His heart.

So the more like children we can be in our trust and in the simplicity of our faith, in humbleness of disposition, in willingness to do His will and to learn of Him the nearer to Him shall we get, and the more shall we enjoy of His love.

Some years ago, as I was passing along one of our streets one afternoon, I heard a fluttering of birds over my head and, looking up, saw a little bird flying wildly about in circles, chased by a hawk!

The bird flew down lower and lower, and then darted into my bosom, under my coat. 

I cannot quite express to you, the feeling which filled my heart at that moment...that a little bird, chased by an enemy, had come to me for refuge, trusting me in time of danger.

I laid my hand over the bird, which nestled as quietly and confidently under my coat, as a baby would in a mother's bosom.

I carried the little thing along for several blocks until I thought the way was clear of danger, and then let it out.  

It flew away into the air again, but showed no fear of me.

Ever since that experience, I have understood better what it is to fly into the bosom of Christ for refuge and safety in time of danger, or in time of distress.

All this helps me to understand better what it means to Jesus when we, hunted and chased by enemies, or suffering from weakness or pain...fly to Him and hide ourselves in His love.

That is all we need to do...just to creep into the bosom of Christ, and lie down there, with no fear, no anxiety, but with simple trust.

The lines of Wesley's old hymn have meant more ever since:

Jesus, lover of my soul, Let me to Thy bosom fly, While the nearer waters roll, While the tempest still is high.

Hide me, O my Savior, hide,Till the storm of life is past; Safe into the haven guide; Oh, receive my soul at last.

Other refuge have I none, Hangs my helpless soul on Thee; Leave, ah! leave me not alone, Still support and comfort me.

All my trust on Thee is stayed, All my help from Thee I bring; Cover my defenseless head With the shadow of Thy wing."

~J. R.  Miller~

Overturn Overturn Overturn!

                                                    
Are there not seasons in our experience when we can lay down our souls before God, and say, Let Christ be precious to my soul...

Let him come with power to my heart...

Let him set up his throne as Lord and King, and let self be nothing before him?

Well, we utter these prayers in sincerity and simplicity, we desire their fulfilment; but oh, the struggle!...

The conflict! when God answers these petitions. 

When our plans are frustrated, what a rebellion works up in the carnal mind! 

When self is cast down, what a rising up of the fretful, peevish impatience of the creature! 

When the Lord does answer our prayers, and strips off all false confidence...

When he does remove our rotten props...

And dash to pieces our broken cisterns...

What a storm-...what a conflict takes place in the soul! 

Angry with the Lord for doing the very work we have asked him to do...

Rebelling against him for being so kind as to answer those petitions that we have offered up..

And ready to fume and fret against the very teaching for which we have supplicated him. 

But he is not to be moved; he will take his own way...

I will overturn, let the creature say, let it think what it will. 

Down it shall go to ruin, it shall become a wreck, it shall be overthrown. 

My purpose shall be accomplished, and I will fulfil all my pleasure. 

But I will overturn, not to destroy, not to cast into eternal perdition...

But I will overturn the whole building to erect a far more goodly edifice. 

Self is a rebel, who has set up an idolatrous temple...

And I will overturn and bring the temple to ruin, for the purpose of manifesting my glory and my salvation...

That I may be your Lord and your God."

~J. C. Philpot~

We May Speak For GOD

Jer 15:19  Therefore thus saith the LORD, If thou return, then will I bring thee again, and thou shalt stand before me: and if thou take forth the precious from the vile, thou shalt be as my mouth: let them return unto thee; but return not thou unto them.

Poor Jeremiah!

Yet why do we say so?

The weeping prophet was one of the choicest servants of God and honored by Him above many. 

He was hated for speaking the truth.

The word which was so sweet to him was bitter to his hearers...

Yet he was accepted of his LORD.

He was commanded to abide in his faithfulness...

And then the LORD would continue to speak through him.

He was to deal boldly and truthfully with men... 

And perform the LORD's winnowing work upon the professors of his day...

And then the LORD gave him this word: "Thou shalt be as my mouth." 

What an honor!

Should not every preacher, yea, every believer, covet it?

For God to speak by us, what a marvel!

We shall speak sure, pure truth; and we shall speak it with power.

Our word shall not return void...

It shall be a blessing to those who receive it...

And those who refuse it shall do so at their peril.

Our lips shall feed many.

O dear reader, pray that it may be so with all the sent servants of our LORD. 

~Charles Spurgeon~

This Protecting Faith Has To Be Taken Up

Ephesians 6:16  Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

One should notice, too, that this protecting faith is one that we require to make our own.

In the apostle's words, we have to take it up, in the same way as we take up our cross.

There is a faith that is part and parcel of our being.

It is ours without any conscious effort.

We believe quite naturally when the sower sows his seed that there will be a harvest in the autumn.

But to believe, when life is stern and sorrowful, that God is with us and loves us as a Father, that is not natural to sinful man.

We have to take it up, in the apostle's words.

We have to use our will in a deliberate effort, if such a faith is to be part of life.

And it is just there that the Lord Jesus makes all the difference to us in our weakness, for God commendeth His love to us in this, that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.

~George H. Morrison~
 

Satan's Lie

What is Satan's lie in connection with life? 

He offers false life, another kind of life that looks like the true one. 

Satan falsifies true life, and, instead of being spiritual life, it is just soul life. 

Do you know the difference between spiritual life and soul life?

Satan attacked the soul life of Adam. 

You know what the soul is, do you not?

It is your reason, your emotions, your will. 

Satan began by REASONING with Adam, and, oh, what a dangerous thing it is to argue with Satan! 

Never reason with the devil, or, in other words, do not listen to his arguments! 

There is a sting in his tail! 

So Satan first came to man's reason and started an argument: "Yea, hath God said?" (Genesis 3:1). 

Immediately a question about God was lodged in the mind. 

There is a terrible destiny bound up with that question!

Then Satan appealed to Adam's FEELINGS, and, pointing to the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, he said: 'You see how lovely and full of juice that fruit is! How much it is to be desired!' 

So Adam looked at the fruit and said: 'How lovely! I think I would like some of that.' 

His emotions went out to it, and when Satan has got your mind and your emotions, it is not far to your WILL!

The next thing was that Adam took the fruit. 

He used his will, and the damage was done.

It is all symbolic, but, you see, it contains eternal principles. 

The whole kingdom and reign of Satan are built upon that basis. 

The mind, the heart and the will of humanity are captured by the devil, but it is false life. 

What about all the emotion in the world, even in Christianity? 

There is a vast difference between spiritual, eternal life, and soul life. 

There is such a thing as false life, and that thing is the master-stroke of Satan! 

You will remember that there was a time in the history of Israel in the wilderness when certain sons of Aaron brought false fire and offered it upon God's altar. 

You know what happened! 

You know all about God's jealousy. 

There is a vast amount of false fire in this world today. 

It looks like true life, true fire, what is of God, but there is a lie in it, and the fruit of that tree is bitter fruit in the end. 

~T. Austin Sparks~

God Repays

Pro 19:17  He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the LORD; and that which he hath given will he pay him again.

We are to give to the poor. 

Not to be seen and applauded, much less to get influence over them; but out of pure sympathy and compassion we must give them help.

We must not expect to get anything back from the poor, not even gratitude; but we should regard what we have done as a loan to the LORD. 

He undertakes the obligation, and, if we look to Him in the matter, we must not look to the second party.

What an honor the LORD bestows upon us when He condescends to borrow of us!

That merchant is greatly favored who has the LORD on his books.

It would seem a pity to have such a name down for a paltry pittance; let us make it a heavy amount. 

The next needy man that comes this way, let us help him.

As for repayment, we can hardly think of it, and yet here is the LORD's note of hand. 

Blessed be His name, His promise to pay is better than gold and silver.

Are we running a little short through the depression of the times? 

We may venture humbly to present this bill at the bank of faith...

Has any one of our readers [oppressed] the poor? 

Poor soul. May the LORD forgive him. 

~Charles Spurgeon~

Every Man's Work Will Be Tried In The Fire!

1Co 3:13  Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.

I have no doubt that you love the Lord.

I am not raising any question about that. 

But, I do say again, we are involved in a great system which is a very complicated thing...

And a great deal of it is not of the Lord.

It is something that man has brought in. 

Man has put his hand upon the things of the Lord...

And man has made things according to his own mind...

And therefore a great deal has come in which is of man and not of the Lord. 

And when we say that, we are not only thinking of Christianity in general, we are thinking of ourselves.

This is true of ourselves. 

We have all come into something called Christianity...

And we have all taken on something of Christianity...

And there may be a great deal that we have to get rid of...

And come back to the simple fundamental reality. 

And the fundamental reality of all realities is the Presence Of The LORD. 

We have got to know that the Lord is with us...

And that the Lord is with us in all that we do...

That this did not originate in our mind. 

It did not originate in our will, it did not originate in our emotion.

It did not come from our soul, this thing has come from the Lord in every detail, like the tabernacle. 

Just like Jesus Christ, in every detail it has to come to us from God.

That ought to send us back to our knees – to go through all our work. 

It may be necessary for us, from time to time, to stand back and ask the Lord about all that we are doing...

Is this out from God, or is it something out from ourselves?

Is this way of doing things the mind of God, or is it our mind?

Is the Lord in this, or have we come into it?

You see, that is a great deciding matter. 

Make no mistake about it! 

Everything that is only of man is going to perish. 

Sooner or later it will be shaken.

Every man's work shall be tried in the fire, says the Word of God.

~T. Austin Sparks~

The King's Highway

Isa 35:8  And an highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness; the unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for those: the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein. 

The way of holiness is so straight and plain that the simplest minds cannot go astray if they constantly follow it. 

The worldly wise have many twists and turns, and yet they make terrible blunders and generally miss their end. 

Worldly policy is a poor, shortsighted thing, and when men choose it as their road, it leads them over dark mountains. 

Gracious minds know no better than to do as the LORD bids them...

But this keeps them in the King's highway and under royal protection.

Let the reader never for a moment attempt to help himself out of a difficulty by a falsehood or by a questionable act...

But let him keep in the middle of the high road of truth and integrity, and he will be following the best possible course. 

In our lives we must never practice circular sailing nor dream of shuffling. 

Be just and fear not, Follow Jesus and heed no evil consequences. 

If the worst of ills could be avoided by wrongdoing, we should, in the very attempt, have fallen into an evil worse than any other ill could be. 

God's way must be the very best way. 

Follow it though men think you a fool, and you will be truly wise.

LORD, lead Thy servants in a plain path because of their enemies.

~Charles Spurgeon~

Have Faith In GOD!

Mark 11:22  And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God.

Faith is the foot of the soul by which it can march along the road of the commandments. 

Love can make the feet move more swiftly; but faith is the foot which carries the soul. 

Faith is the oil enabling the wheels of holy devotion and of earnest piety to move well...

And without faith the wheels are taken from the chariot, and we drag heavily. 

With faith I can do all things...

Without faith I shall neither have the inclination nor the power to do anything in the service of God.

If you would find the men who serve God the best, you must look for the men of the most faith. 

Little faith will save a man, but little faith cannot do great things for God. 

Poor Little-faith could not have fought "Apollyon;" it needed "Christian" to do that. 

Poor Little-faith could not have slain "Giant Despair;" it required "Great-heart's" arm to knock that monster down. 

Little faith will go to heaven most certainly, but it often has to hide itself in a nut-shell, and it frequently loses all but its jewels. 

Little-faith says, "It is a rough road, beset with sharp thorns, and full of dangers; I am afraid to go;"... 

But Great-faith remembers the promise, "Thy shoes shall be iron and brass; as thy days, so shall thy strength be:"

And so she boldly ventures. Little-faith stands desponding, mingling her tears with the flood...

But Great-faith sings, "When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee:" and she fords the stream at once.

Would you be comfortable and happy?

Would you enjoy religion? 

Would you have the religion of cheerfulness and not that of gloom?...

Then "have faith in God." 

If you love darkness, and are satisfied to dwell in gloom and misery, then be content with little faith...

But if you love the sunshine, and would sing songs of rejoicing, covet earnestly this best gift, "great faith."

~Charles Spurgeon~

Giving Without A Whisper

Mat 6:3  But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:

Mat 6:4  That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.

No promise is made to those who give to the poor to be seen of men.
 
They have their reward at once and cannot expect to be paid twice.

Let us hide away our charity...

Yes, hide it even from ourselves.
 
Give so often and so much as a matter of course that you no more take note that you have helped the poor than that you have eaten your regular meals.

Do your alms without even whispering to yourself, How generous I am!

Do not thus attempt to reward yourself.

Leave the matter with God, who never fails to see, to record, and to reward.

Blessed is the man who is busy in secret with his kindness...

He finds a special joy in his unknown benevolences.

This is the bread, which eaten by stealth, is sweeter than the banquets of kings.

How can I indulge myself today with this delightful luxury?

Let me have a real feast of tenderness and Row of soul.

Here and hereafter the LORD Himself will personally see to the rewarding of the secret giver of alms.

This will be in His own way and time...

And He will choose the very best.
 
How much this promise means it will need eternity to reveal.

~Charles Spurgeon~

To Walk With God, Is To Live Ever As In His Presence!

Heb 4:13  Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.

Pro 15:3  The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.

To walk with God, is to live ever as in His presence! 

To realize His presence, to abide continually under His eye, to recognize our Father as close by our side...is the secret of much peace. 

We must ever regard Him, not as if He were far away in some inaccessible abode...but nearer to us than our nearest friend. 

In our chamber, by the wayside, at our work, in our recreation, when mingling with others, or all alone...we must see One whom the world sees not, we must hear a voice that the world hears not.

In the life of the sweet Psalmist of Israel, the same truth was ever the joy of his heart.

As he lay down to rest, it was his joy to know that the sleepless Guardian of His people was by him: "I will both lay me down in peace and sleep, for You O Lord alone make me to dwell in safety." 

As he arose, he still rejoiced in the almighty Friend who was ever near him: "When I awake, I am still with You." 

Surrounded by malicious foes, it is still his confidence, "You are near, O Lord." 

Under all the circumstances of his eventful life, the nearness of God was the rock on which he reposed: "I have set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved."

Whether beneath the eye of man or not, let all things be done under the eye of Him to whom...all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hidden!

A few plain principles have been given to assist us in carrying this out in daily practice... 

Say nothing you would not like God to hear. 

Do nothing you would not like God to see.

Write nothing you would not like God to read.

Go to no place where you would not like God to find you.

Read no book of which you would not like God to say, "Show it to Me."

Never spend your time in such a way that you would not like God to say, "What are You doing?"

To consciously live in God's presence, will aid us in cultivating thorough genuine devout and godly character.

~George Everard~

Golden Calf Christianity Any Objections?

Any objection to the evangelistic methods of our present golden-calf Christianity, is met with the triumphant reply, "But we are winning the lost!"

And what are you winning them to?

To true discipleship?

To cross-carrying?

To self-denial?

To separation from the world?

To crucifixion of the flesh?

To holy living?

To nobility of character?

To a despising of the world's treasures?

To total committal to Christ?

Of course, the answer to all these questions is NO!

~A. W. Tozer~

Got To Take That Step Of Faith Before The Waters Are Parted

Joshua 3:13  And it shall come to pass, as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests that bear the ark of the LORD, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of Jordan, that the waters of Jordan shall be cut off from the waters that come down from above; and they shall stand upon an heap.

The people were not to wait in their camps until the way was opened, they were to walk by faith. 

They were to break camp, pack up their goods, form in line to march, and move down to the very banks before the river would be opened.

If they had come down to the edge of the river and then had stopped for the stream to divide before they stepped into it, they would have waited in vain. 

They must take one step into the water before the river would be cut off.

We must learn to take God at His Word, and go straight on in duty, although we see no way in which we can go forward.

The reason we are so often balked by difficulties is that we expect to see them removed before we try to pass through them.

If we would move straight on in faith, the path would be opened for us. 

We stand still, waiting for the obstacle to be removed, when we ought to go forward as if there were no obstacles.
 
~Evening Thoughts~

What a lesson Columbus gave to the world of perseverance in the face of tremendous difficulties!
 
Behind him lay the gray Azores, Behind the gates of Hercules;
 
Before him not the ghost of shores, Before him only shoreless seas.
 
The good Mate said: "Now we must pray, For lo! the very stars are gone.
 
Brave Admiral, speak, what shall I say?" "Why, say, 'Sail on! sail on! and on!'"
 
My men grow mutinous day by day; My men grow ghastly wan and weak!"
 
The stout Mate thought of home; a spray Of salt wave washed his swarthy cheek.
 
What shall I say, brave Admiral, say, If we sight naught but seas at dawn?
 
Why, you shall say at break of day,'Sail on! sail on! sail on! and on!'"
 
They sailed. They sailed. Then spake the Mate: 

This mad sea shows its teeth tonight. He curls his lip, he lies in wait, With lifted teeth, as if to bite!
 
Brave Admiral, say but one good word; What shall we do when hope is gone?
 
The words leapt like a leaping sword: "Sail on! sail on! sail on! and on!"
 
Then, pale and worn, he kept his deck And peered through darkness. 

Ah! that night Of all dark nights! And then a speck--A light! A light! A light! A light!
 
It grew, a starlit flag unfurled! It grew to be Time's burst of dawn.
 
He gained a world; he gave that world Its grandest lesson: "On! sail on!"
 
~Joaquin Miller~

Faith that goes forward triumphs.

I Give Them All

People are not willing to pay that price, and that is why so many Christians must be described as "common." 

Most Christians talk piously about the cost of Christianity in terms of the unclean, injurious and grossly sinful things they have "surrendered."

But if they never get beyond that they are still common Christians.

They talk about having given up the bad things, but the Apostle Paul said that for Christ's sake he surrendered the good things as well as the bad.

What things were gain to me I count but loss, he said. 

He meant things to which he still had a legal and moral right, things about which he could have said, These are mine and Christianity is not going to take them from me!

I yield them all, I give them all because I have found That which is so much better, he wrote. 

He had found "That" which was with the Father, Jesus Christ, the fountain from Whom flows all wisdom and beauty and truth and immortality!
 
Paul knew something that many Christians still have not learned...that the human heart is idolatrous and will worship anything it can possess. 

Therein lies the danger of the "good" things.
 
We have surrendered evil things, bad things, but we hold on to the good things and these we are prone to worship. 

Whatever we refuse to surrender and count but loss we will ultimately worship. 

It may be something good, but it gets between you and God,,,whether it be property or family or reputation or security or your life itself.
 
Jesus warned us about our selfishness in grasping and hanging on to our own lives. 

He taught that if we make our life on earth so important and so all-possessing that we cannot surrender it gladly to Him, we will lose it at last.

He taught that plainly...

And He also warned us about trusting earthly security rather than putting our complete confidence in God.
 
~A. W. Tozer~