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The one indispensable book!

March 24, 2020 by Steve 3 Comments

The one indispensable book!

(Daniel March, 1870)

The Bible is the oldest–and the newest of books.

The Bible surveys the whole field of time–and it looks farthest into the infinite depths of eternity.

The Bible lends the most vivid and absorbing interest to the scenes and events of the past–and it keeps us in the most active sympathy with the time in which we live.

The Bible gives us the most reliable record of what has been–and it affords us our only means of knowing what is yet to be.

The Bible is holy enough to denounce the very shadow and semblance of sin–and it is merciful enough to save the chief of sinners.

The Bible is full of God–and must therefore be read with a pure heart, or its true glory will not be seen.
The Bible is full of man–and must therefore always be interesting and instructive to all who would know themselves.

The Bible is the plainest of books–and yet it has depths of wisdom which no created mind can fathom.

The Bible is set up as a beacon to show all wanderers the safe way–and yet its light shines forth from thick clouds of mystery, and from abysses of infinite darkness.

The Bible describes all conditions of life–and it gives utterance to all desires and emotions of the soul.

The Bible has a song of triumph for the overcomer–and a wail of defeat for the overcome.

The Bible . . .
sparkles with the fervor and gladness of youth,
celebrates the strength and glory of manhood,
bewails the sorrows and infirmities of old age.

The Bible . . .
exults in the mighty deeds of kings and conquerors,
sympathizes with the poor and lowly,
lifts up the fallen,
delivers the oppressed, and
breathes the blessing of peace upon the quiet homes of domestic life.

The Bible describes with startling clearness . . .
the seductions of temptation,
the conflicts of doubt and
the miseries of skepticism.

The Bible . . .
searches the secret chambers of the heart,
brings to light its purest love and its darkest hate,
reveals its highest joy and its deepest grief.

The Bible compasses the utmost range of thought and feeling and desire–and it sounds the utmost depth of motive and characterand passion.

Thus in the Bible,
God and man,
earth and heaven,
time and eternity–
speak with one voice and teach the same truth.

The Bible sets forth the most spiritual and heavenly truths–in the lights and shadows of earthly scenes and human characters.

Thus the Bible is the one indispensable book . . .
for all ages–and all nations,
for all classes of men–and all states of society,
for all capacities of intellect–and all necessities of the soul!

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You must be born again!

March 17, 2020 by Steve 0 Comments

You must be born again!

(Don Fortner)

“You must be born again!” John 3:7

In order for God to save a sinner two things must be done:
God must do something FOR you, and God must do something IN you.

Redemption is the work of God FOR sinners.

Regeneration is the work of God IN sinners.

Both are the works of God. Man has nothing more to do with regeneration, than he has to do with redemption.

“You must be born again” because by nature we are fallen, sinful, depraved children of human flesh. All flesh is defiled. All flesh is corrupt. All flesh is sinful. All flesh is condemned. All flesh must die. Unless we are born of the Spirit, we will die in our sins, and our flesh shall be justly damned.

“You must be born again!”
You can reform your life without the new birth.
You can be baptized without the new birth.
You can join the church, be zealous in religion, teach a Bible class, serve as a deacon or elder; you can even preach with great success without being born again.

“You must be born again” for without the new birth . . .
you will never enter the kingdom of God,
you will never be a part of the family of God,
you will never have eternal life,
you will never be admitted into the presence of God’s glory in the bliss of Heaven.
Only new creatures will enter the New Jerusalem.
Only holy men will walk into the Holy City.
Only Heaven born citizens will possess the bliss of Heaven.

To be born again is to be made new creatures in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17).
In the new birth, God the Holy Spirit gives chosen, redeemed sinners . . .
a new heart to love God,
a new will to bow to the rule of Christ,
a new mind to understand the things of God,
a new spiritual nature to know, enjoy, and live upon spiritual things,
new eyes, eyes of faith, with which to see Christ,
new ears with which to hear His voice,
new hands, hands of faith, with which to lay hold of Christ and do His will,
new feet, with which to flee to Christ and walk with Him in the newness of life.

John 3:3, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again!”

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We have seen such a tragic repetition of it in our own days

April 14, 2019 by Steve 0 Comments

We have seen such a tragic repetition of it in our own days

(Arthur Pink)

“With their silver and gold they make idols for themselves to their own destruction!” Hosea 8:4

Sad indeed is the above passage–and the more so, because we have seen such a tragic repetition of it in our own days.

Oh what earthly-mindedness, what indulging of the flesh, what sinful extravagance–are now seen among professing Christians today!

How practical godliness has waned;
how the denying of self has disappeared;
how covetousness, pleasure and worldliness now possess the great majority of those calling themselves the people of God.

Yet as great as the sin of the people is–far greater is that of most of the preachers, who, instead of warning, admonishing, rebuking, and setting before their people an example of sobriety and contentment–criminally remain silent upon the crying sins of their hearers, while they themselves encourage the reckless indulgence of worldly lusts.

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The annals of hell—or the biography of devils!

July 15, 2018 by Steve 0 Comments

The annals of hell—or the biography of devils!

(Samuel Davies, “The Universal Judgment!”)

Though we are too apt to think that we are not accountable for our words—He who is to be our Judge, has plainly told us that “for every careless word which men speak, they shall give an account in the day of judgment.” Matthew 12:36

“For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.” Ecclesiastes 12:14

What astonishing discoveries will this trial of every hidden thing make!

On the one hand—what noble dispositions which never shone in full beauty to mortal eyes! What generous purposes crushed in embryo for lack of power to execute them! What pious and noble actions concealed under the veil of modesty, or misconstrued by ignorance and prejudice! What affectionate aspirations, what devout exercises of heart, which lay open only to the eyes of Omniscience, are now brought to full light, and receive the approbation of the Supreme Judge before the assembled universe”!

But on the other hand—what works of shame and darkness are then revealed! What hidden things of dishonesty! What dire secrets of treachery, hypocrisy, lewdness, and various forms of wickedness—all artfully and industriously concealed from human sight! What horrid exploits of sin now burst to light in all their hellish colors—to the confusion of the guilty, and the astonishment and horror of the universe!

Surely the history of mankind must then appear like the annals of hell—or the biography of devils! Then the mask of deceit will be torn off—and men will appear in their true characters. Their hearts will be, as it were, turned outwards—and all their secrets exposed to full view!

The design of this judicial inquiry will not be to inform the omniscient Judge—but to convince all worlds of the justice of His proceedings. And this design renders it necessary that all these ‘secret things’ should be laid open to their sight, that they may see the grounds upon which He passes sentence.

Does not the prospect of such a ‘revealing’ fill some of you with horror? For many of your actions, and especially of your thoughts—will not bear the light. How would it confound you, if all your secret thoughts were now all published, even in the small circle of your friends! How then, can you bear to have them all fully exposed before God, angels, and the universe! Will it not confound you with shame, and make you objects of everlasting contempt to all worlds!

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Church Quotes, Daily Christian Quotes, Daily Devotional, Food 42day, GraceGems, Hell, Judgement, King Jesus, Quote 4 2day!, Samuel Davies, Sinners

See the cause of my happiness

July 13, 2018 by Steve 1 Comment

See the cause of my happiness

(James Smith, “My Savior!” 1860)

My soul, meditate for a few moments on what Jesus is to you, and what Jesus has done for you. Look back and glance at the circumstances in which He found you — and the deliverance which He wrought for you.

1. The circumstances in which Jesus found you. Jesus found me out of the way. God by His law had marked out a way in which His creatures should walk — its character was holiness, and its end His glory. But all we like sheep had gone astray, we had turned every one to his own way. We were in the path of death and destruction, and on the way to Hell.

We were not only out of the way — but we were enslaved. We were . . .
slaves of sin,
the drudges of the world, and
led captive by the Devil at his will.

We were diseased — as well as enslaved. We were leprous from head to foot. We had the plague of the heart! The whole head was sick, and the whole heart was faint.

We were imprisoned, as well as diseased. We were shut up in unbelief and sin. Our cell was cold and damp, dark and narrow — and our imprisonment was not merely for a few years — it was forever!

We were dead, though still conscious, and to some things alive. Dead in trespasses and sins.

In this state we were — and we loved it well. We neither desired, nor sought deliverance. Left to ourselves . . .
we would have wandered on in darkness, until we had perished in our sins;
we would have continued the slaves of sin and Satan forever;
our disease would have preyed upon our vitals to all eternity;
our prison walls would have enclosed us still;
we would have remained dead in sin,
we would have suffered all the pangs of damnation forever!

2. The deliverance which Jesus wrought for you. Jesus saved me!

He saved me from the roaring lion, who goes about seeking to devour me!

He saved me from my raging lusts, so that sin shall not have dominion over me!

He saved me from righteous wrath, and I, being justified by His blood, shall be saved from wrath through Him!

He saved me from death, the ‘king of terrors,’ depriving the monster of his sting, and giving me the victory over him!

He has also saved me from the flaming furnace of Hell — from that lake of fire, and those floods of flame in which the lost must welter forever!

See the cause of my happiness —
I have a Savior!
A Savior who is divine.
A Savior who has ever loved me.
A Savior who lived, labored, and died for me.
A Savior who pleads for me before the throne of His Father.
A Savior who is in His Father’s house, preparing a place for me.
A Savior who will soon come and receive me to Himself, that so I may be forever with Him! Yes, I have a Savior — one who . . .
watches over me,
walks through the wilderness with me,
and rejoices to do me good.

Reader, have you a Savior?
Can you use these two precious words, “My Savior”?
Have you realized that you were lost?
Have you fled to His cross?
Have you fallen into His arms?
Have you been cleansed by His blood, and clothed in His righteousness?
Do you possess His Holy Spirit?

Make sure work, O make sure work!
Eternity is just at hand!
Death is coming!
Judgment follows!
And then — an eternity of happiness or woe!
Your eternal all depends on having Jesus for your Savior!
No one can save you but Jesus.
No one can . . .
support you in sickness,
comfort you in death, or
give you victory over the grave — but Jesus!

Food 4 2day!, GraceGems, Quote 4 2day!, Verse 4 2day!

Christian Life, Daily Christian Quotes, Daily Devotional, Darkness, Food 42day, God’s wrath, GraceGems, Happiness, Hell, Holy Spirit, James Smith, Judgement, King Jesus, Quote 4 2day!, Roaring Lion, Saviour, Sinners

Like a concealed worm at the root of a flower

June 27, 2018 by Steve 0 Comments

Like a concealed worm at the root of a flower

(John Angell James)

It may be that your hindrances to a more rapid
growth in grace, arise from some specific cause,
some sin indulged, some corruption cherished. Is
there not some sacrifice which you are unwilling
to make, or something which you are unwilling to
surrender? You must give up the forbidden thing,
or your growth in grace is impossible! That one sin
will, like a concealed worm at the root of a
flower–eat out the very life of your piety, and
cause it to droop, wither, and decay.

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The fruits and effects He produces

June 17, 2018 by Steve 1 Comment

The fruits and effects He produces

(J.C. Ryle, “The Holy Spirit“)

“When He comes, He will convict the world about sin, righteousness, and judgment.” (John 16:8)

Where the Holy Spirit is, there will always be deep conviction of sin — and true repentance for it. It is His special office to convict of sin.

He shows the exceeding holiness of God.

He teaches the exceeding corruption and infirmity of our nature.

He strips us of our blind self-righteousness.

He opens our eyes to our awful guilt, folly and danger.

He fills the heart with sorrow, contrition, and abhorrence for sin — as the abominable thing which God hates.

He who knows nothing of all this, and saunters carelessly through life, thoughtless about sin, and indifferent and unconcerned about his soul — is a dead man before God! He has not the Holy Spirit.

The presence of the Holy Spirit in a man’s heart can only be known by the fruits and effects He produces. Mysterious and invisible to mortal eye as His operations are — they always lead to certain visible and tangible results.

Just as you know there is life in a tree by its sap, buds, leaves and fruits — just so you may know the Spirit to be in a man’s heart by the influence He exercises over his thoughts, affections, opinions, habits, and life. I lay this down broadly and unhesitatingly. I see it clearly marked out in our Lord Jesus Christ’s words, “Every tree is known by his own fruit.” Luke 6:44

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Why Christ offends men

May 31, 2018 by Steve 1 Comment

Why Christ offends men
The following is from Spurgeon’s sermon,
“Unbelievers stumbling; Believers rejoicing”

There are some who stumble at Christ because of his holiness.

He is too strict for them; they would like to be Christians,
but they cannot renounce their sensual pleasures; they
would like to be washed in his blood, but they desire still
to roll in the mire of sin.

Willing enough the mass of men would be to receive Christ,
if, after receiving him, they might continue in their drunkenness,
their wantonness, and self-indulgence. But Christ lays the axe
at the root of the tree; he tells them that these things must be
given up, for “because of these things the wrath of God comes
upon the children of disobedience,” and “without holiness no
man can see the Lord.”

Human nature kicks at this.

“What! May I not enjoy one darling lust? May I not indulge
myself at least now and then in these things? Must I altogether
forsake my old habits and my old ways? Must I be made a
new creature in Christ Jesus?”

These are terms too hard, conditions too severe, and so the
human heart goes back to the flesh pots of Egypt, and clings
to the garlic and the onions of the old estate of bondage, and
will not be set free even though a greater than Moses lifts up
the rod to part the sea, and promises to give to them a Canaan
flowing with milk and honey.

Christ offends men because his gospel is intolerant of sin.

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Christ, Christian Life, Christian Lifestyle, Daily Christian Quotes, GraceGems, Preacher Quotes, Sanctification, Sinners, Spiritual Life

SIN

May 22, 2018 by Steve 1 Comment

SIN
The following is from Spurgeon’s sermon,
“The Smoke of Their Torments”
No. 602. Genesis 19:27, 28.

See the blackness of your sin by the light of hell’s fire!

Hell is the true harvest of the sowing of iniquity.

Come, lost sinner, I charge you to look at hell–
Hell is what sin brings forth.
Hell is the full-grown child.
You have dandled your sin.
You have kissed and fondled it.
But see what sin comes to.
Hell is but sin full-grown, that is all.

You played with that young lion; see how it roars and how
it tears in pieces now that it has come to its strength.

Did you not smile at the azure scales of the serpent?
See its poison; see to what its stings have brought those
who have never looked to the brazen serpent for healing.

Do you account of sin as a peccadillo, a flaw
scarcely to be noticed, a mere joke, a piece of fun?
But see the tree which springs from it.
There is no joke there- no fun in hell.

You did not know that sin was so evil.
Some of you will never know how evil it is until the
sweetness of honey has passed from your mouth,
and the bitterness of death preys at your vitals.

You will count sin harmless until you
are hopelessly stricken with its sting!

My God, from this day forward help me to see through the
thin curtain which covers up sin, and whenever Satan tells
me that such-and-such a thing is for my pleasure, let me
recollect the pain of that penalty wrapped up in it. When
he tells me that such a thing is for my profit, let me know
that it can never profit me to gain the whole world and lose
my own soul. Let me feel it is no sport to sin, for only a
madman would scatter firebrands and death, and say it is sport.

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The Delilah in the bosom!

May 15, 2018 by Steve 0 Comments

The Delilah in the bosom!

(Thomas Watson, “The Lord’s Prayer“)

If you would not come short of the kingdom of heaven,
take heed of indulging any sin. One millstone will drown,
as well as more. One sin lived in will damn, as well as more.
If any one sin reigns—it will keep you from reigning in the
kingdom of heaven.

Especially keep from sins of your natural constitution;
your darling sin. “I kept myself from my iniquity”—that
sin which my heart would soonest decoy and flatter me
into. As in the hive there is one master bee—so in the
heart there is one master-sin. Oh, take heed of this!

How may this darling-sin be known?

1. That sin for which a man cannot endure the arrow of
a reproof, is the bosom-sin. Men can be content to have
other sins declaimed against; but if a minister puts his
finger upon the sore, and touches upon that one special
sin—then their eyes flash with fire, they are enraged,
and spit the venom of malice!

2. That sin which a man’s heart runs out most to, and he
is most easily captivated by—is the Delilah in the bosom!
One man is overcome with wantonness, another by worldliness.
It is a sad thing for a man to be so bewitched by a beloved sin
that he will part with the whole kingdom of heaven—to gratify
that lust!

3. That sin which a man is least inclined to part with, is the
endeared sin. Of all his sons, Jacob could most hardly part with
Benjamin. “Will you take Benjamin away!” Gen 42:35. So says
the sinner, “This and that sin I have left—but must Benjamin go
too? Must I part with this delightful sin? That goes to my heart!”

Take heed especially of this master-sin. The strength of sin
lies in the beloved sin, which, like a cancer striking at the
heart, brings death.

I have read of a monarch, who being pursued by the enemy,
threw away the crown of gold on his head—that he might run
the faster. Just so, the sin which you wore as a crown of gold
must be thrown away—that you may run the faster to the
kingdom of heaven.

Oh, if you would not lose glory, mortify the beloved sin! Set it,
as Uriah—in the forefront of the battle to be slain. By plucking
out this right eye—you will see the better to go to heaven!

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The Trojan horse

May 14, 2018 by Steve 2 Comments

The Trojan horse

(Thomas Watson, “The Lord’s Prayer“)

“Deliver us from evil.” Matthew 6:13

In this petition, we pray to be delivered from the
evil of our heart, that it may not entice us to sin.

The heart is the poisoned fountain, from whence
all actual sins flow. “For from within, out of the heart
of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft,
murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit,
sensuality, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness.”
Mark 7:21-22.

The cause of all evil lies in a man’s own bosom—all
sin begins at the heart. Lust is first conceived in the
heart—and then it is midwifed into the world. Whence
comes rash anger? The heart sets the tongue on fire.
The heart is the shop where all sin is contrived and
hammered out.

The heart is the greatest seducer “Each one is
tempted when he is carried away and enticed by
his own lust.” James 1:14. The devil could not hurt
us—if our own hearts did not give consent. All that
he can do is to lay the bait—but it is our fault to
swallow it! How needful, therefore, is this prayer,
“Deliver us from the evil of our hearts!”

It was Augustine’s prayer, “Lord, deliver me from
that evil man—myself!”

Beware of the bosom traitor—the flesh. The heart
of a man is the Trojan horse—out of which comes
a whole army of lusts! O let us pray to be delivered
from the lusts and deceits of our own heart!

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We are all living monuments of God’s goodness and patience!

June 20, 2017 by Steve 0 Comments

We are all living monuments of God’s goodness and patience!

(Ralph Venning, “The Plague of Plagues!” 1669)

“The Lord’s loving kindnesses indeed never cease–for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning! Great is Your faithfulness!” Lamentations 3:22-23

If sin is so exceedingly sinful–so contrary to, and displeasing to God–then surely . . .

His patience is exceedingly great,
His goodness is exceedingly rich, and
His long-suffering is exceedingly marvelous
–even such as to cause astonishment!

We are all living monuments of God’s goodness and patience! It is of the Lord’s mercies that all of us are not altogether and utterly consumed–and that in eternal Hell!

Such is . . .

the power of His patience,
the infiniteness of His mercy and compassion,
and the riches of His unsearchable grace!

Consider the multitude of sinners in the world. If it were only one or two sinners–then they might be winked at and passed by. But all the world lies in wickedness (1 John 5:19). There is none righteous–no, not one! If there had been only ten righteous ones–then God would have spared Sodom, although ten thousand sinners might be there. Yet there is not a single man to be found who does not sin. All have sinned–and that continually. What grace, then–what patience is this!

Consider the multitude of sins committed by every sinner. Every sinner commits innumerable sins! If all men had sinned only once–it would have mitigated the matter. Sin, however, has grown up with men. Not a single good thought is to be found in their hearts! (Genesis 6:5) Sin grows up faster than men do–they are old in sin, when still young in years. They are adding iniquity to iniquity, and drawing sin on with cords and ropes, committing it with both hands greedily, as if they could not sin enough! They dare God Himself to judge them. They drink down iniquity like water, as if it was their element and nourishment and pleasure also. Yet, behold, how miraculously patient is God!

God sees sin–He is sensible of it and angered about it–for it grieves and vexes Him. God is able to avenge Himself whenever He pleases–yet He forbears with sinners. Be astonished at it!

It is a wonder that men are spared so long–especially if we consider how quickly God cast the angels that sinned down to Hell!

O the wonder of sovereign grace!

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