Gems from July 1- 5, 2026

And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night.  Exodus 13:21 

What is of importance to notice here is that the people of Israel were divinely guided on their march.  He who selected their path guided them in it, went before them in the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night, in all their wanderings.  These gracious symbols of His presence He never took from them as long as they were in the wilderness. 

This is only an illustration of the truth, that the Lord is ever the guide of His people.  He who leads them out of Egypt may ever be seen before them in the path on which they have entered.  He never says, "Go"; but His word is always, "Follow Me."  He Himself is the Way, as well as the Truth and the Life (John 14:6). 

It is quite true that we have not the visible guidance which the children of Israel enjoyed; but it is no less discernible  and certain to the spiritual eye.  The Word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path (Psalm 119:105).  It is interesting to remark that there was no such guidance in Egypt or in the land. 

This brings out the important truth, that it is only in the wilderness that the indication of a way is needed.  And there it is in His tenderness and mercy that the Lord leads His own, showing them the way in which they should walk, where they should rest, and when they should march, leaving nothing to them, but Himself undertaking all for them, only requiring that their eyes should be kept fixed on their Guide.  Happy are the people who are thus led, and who are made willing to follow, who by grace are enabled to say, "Only Thou our Leader be, and we still will follow Thee."  Edward Dennett

N.J. Hiebert - 20356

July 1

My times are in Thy hands.  Psalm 31:15 - Rejoice, with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.  Be kindly  affectioned one to another...in honour preferring one another. Romans12: 10,15 - Look not ever man on his own things [interests] but every man also on the things [interests] of others. Philippians 2:4

Father, I know that all my life is portioned out for me,
And the changes that are sure to come I do not fear to see;
But I ask Thee for a patient mind, intent on pleasing Thee.

I ask Thee for a thoughtful love, through constant watching, wise,
To meet the glad with joyful smiles, and wipe the weeping eyes;
A heart at leisure from itself, to soothe and sympathize.

I ask Thee for the daily strength to none that ask denied,
A mind to blend with outward life while keeping at Thy side; 
Content to fill a little space if Thou be glorified.

In service which Thy love appoints there are no bonds for me;
My inmost heart is taught the truth that makes Thy children free:
A life of self renouncing love is one of liberty.

Wherever in the world I am, in whatsoever estate,
I have a fellowship with hearts to keep and cultivate;
And a work of lowly love to do for the Lord on whom I wait.

So I ask Thee for daily strength to none that ask denied,
And a mind to blend with outward life while keeping at Thy side;
Content to fill a little space if Thou be glorified.

There are briars besetting every path that call for patient care;
There is a cross in every lot, and an earnest need for prayer;
But a lowly heart that leans on Thee is happy anywhere.  Anna Waring 1823-1910

N.J. Hiebert - 20357

July 2

And thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thy heart.  Deuteronomy 8:2 

The wilderness life tends to bring out a great deal of the evil that is in our hearts.  We begin our Christian careers  with the joy of deliverance, but it is as we go on from stage to stage of our desert course that we become  acquainted with self.  But we are not to suppose that as we grow in self-knowledge our joy must decline.  Quite the opposite! For then our joy would depend on ignorance of self, whereas it really depends on our Knowledge of God.   

As the believer goes onward, he learns that sin is a reality; that divine grace is a reality; that salvation is a reality--a deep, personal reality; and that the advocacy of Christ is a reality. In a word, he learns the depth, the fullness, the power, the application of God's gracious resources.  As Moses said to Israel (vv.3-4), "He humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger [not that you might be driven to despair, but that he might feed] thee with the manna...thy raiment waxed (grew) not old upon thee, neither did thy foot swell, these forty years." 

"Thou shalt remember!" What a touching and beautiful appeal!  Remember forty years of evidence of what was in the heart of God toward His redeemed people whom He clothed, fed, and cared for in a vast and howling wilderness. What a noble and soul-satisfying display of the fullness of divine resources!  

How is it possible that, with the history of Israel's desert wandering lying open before us, we could ever harbour a single doubt or fear!  Oh! that our hearts may be more completely emptied of self and more completely filled with Christ.  This alone brings true holiness and true happiness.  C. H. Mackintosh

N.J. Hiebert - 20358

July 3

And the child Samuel ministered unto the Lord before Eli...the Lord called Samuel (v.4)...the Lord called yet again, Samuel (v.6)...Samuel did not yet know the Lord, neither was the word of the Lord yet revealed unto him (v.7)...the Lord called Samuel again the third time (v.8)...Eli said unto Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if He call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, Lord; for thy servant heareth...(v.9). 

In chapter 1, Eli lacked discernment; in chapter 2, he lacked the moral courage to separate himself from evil; here, his eyes are dim and he cannot see, nevertheless the lamp of God had not yet gone out--a striking image of his moral condition. And what is more, this leader of the simple proves himself to be dull of understanding. It is not until the third call that "Eli perceived that Jehovah was calling the boy." Yes, "dull of hearing": that is exactly  what he had become. 

Samuel was simply ignorant, which is a thousand times better.  When there is godliness, God remedies ignorance.  If the new born babe desires "the pure milk of the word," he will not be refused.  Here on earth we know only in part and we will never know otherwise than only in part.  That we are not responsible for; but it is a question of growth: "that by it ye may grow" (1 Peter 2:2), and our responsibility is to seek, to this end, spiritual food. 

Here we find a feature of Eli's spiritual weakening: "For the iniquity which he hath known, because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not" (v13). Eli knew the evil, and he had authority to repress it in his sons, but he did not use it.  What profit was it to him that this authority had been entrusted to him by God? How often the spiritual weakening of the head of a family stems from his slackness when he should have maintained order and discipline in the sphere where his authority was meant to function?  This is a great cause of ruin, like Lot, Eli was "distressed with abandoned conversation [manner of life] of the godless." but like him, he displayed a sad forgetfulness of what was due to the Lord's holiness. 1 Samuel - H. L. Rossier

N.J. Hiebert - 20359

July 4

THE  REJECTED  ONE  WILL  GOVERN  THE  EARTH

And Joseph said unto Pharaoh...God hath showed Pharaoh what He is about to do.  Genesis 41:25  

The wise men of Egypt doubtless had their theories as to the future of Egypt, and shaped their policies and made their plans in accordance with their own ideas--even as today the leaders, of this world, whether political, religious, intellectual, capitalist, or labour, have their various theories of future government of the world. 

But there is one thing in common--all the theories of men leave God out of God's world.  Men will not own God as "the God of heaven and earth."  God is welcome to heaven, about which man knows nothing and cares less, but as for earth, the center of all man's affections, it must be governed according to man's ideal which enthrones the will of man as supreme to the total exclusion of God. 

Nevertheless, God has His plans for the future government of the world, and of these plans He has not left us in ignorance.  In Pharaoh's day, He showed Pharaoh by a dream what He was about to do.  In our day He has shown us still more plainly by direct revelation what He is about to do.  God was going to govern Egypt  by one who had been rejected by his brethren, cast out, and forgotten by the world.  And God has disclosed to us that according to His good pleasure He has purposed to head up all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth  (Ephesians 1:10). 

The One, who, when He entered the world, found "no room" even in a wayside inn, who, as He passed through it, was "a stranger in the land" and a "wayfaring man" with not where to lay His head, who when He went out of the world was nailed to a cross between two thieves, is the One of whom God has decreed, "The government shall be upon His shoulder" (Isaiah 9:6). 
Hamilton Smith

N.J. Hiebert - 20360

July 5

Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in Me. In my Father's house are many mansions...I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.  John 14:1-3 

Louisa and her husband were relaxing with their four-year old daughter on Long Island beach when they heard a desperate child's cry. A boy was drowning, and Louisa's husband tried to rescue him.  In the process, the boy pulled Mr. Stead under water, and both drowned as Louisa and her daughter watched. 

Louisa Stead was left with no means of support except the Lord.  She and her daughter experienced dire poverty.  One morning, when she had neither funds nor food for the day, she opened the front door and found that someone had left food and money on her doorstep.  That day she wrote this hymn.   

Sometimes we voice platitudes about our Christianity--glibly quoting Scripture and singing songs about trusting Jesus.  For Stead, there was nothing glib or superficial about it.  Her hymn remains a timeless reminder and comfort to all believers who have experienced this same  truth:  "Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him; how I've proved Him o'er and o'er!  Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus!  O for grace to trust Him more."   

'Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus, Just to take Him at His Word,
Just to rest upon His promise, Just to know "Thus saith the Lord."

O how sweet to trust in Jesus, Just to trust His cleansing blood,
Just in simple faith to plunge me 'neath the healing, cleansing flood!

Yes, 'tis sweet to trust in Jesus, Just from sin and self to cease.
Just from Jesus simply taking life and rest and joy and peace. 

I'm so glad I learned to trust Him, Precious Jesus, Saviour, Friend;
And I know that He is with me, will be with me to the end.

REFRAIN: Jesus, Jesus, how I trust Him! How I've proved Him o'er and o'er!
Jesus, Jesus, precious Jesus! O for grace to trust Him more!   Louisa Stead 1850-1917)    

       
N.J. Hiebert - 20361

July 6

The Lord hath His way in the whirlwind and in the storm.  Nahum 1:3

The fiercest wind that may blow on me is held in the hollow of His hand.  Behind what seems cruel chance, there is the love so wise and wisdom so loving of our God.

If God can send a storm through space; and dot with trees the mountain's face. 
If He the sparrow's course can trace, what can He do for you?

If God can hang the stars on high, can paint the clouds that drift on by,
Can send the sun across the sky, what can He do for you? 

If God can send us sunny days, and nature from her slumber raise
Till song birds lift their notes of praise, what can He do for you?

If God can do these many things, can count each little bird that sings,
Control the universe that swings, what can He do for you? 

If God can bring sweet peace to me and to my soul bring liberty. 
By Christ Who hung upon the tree, this He can do for you.  G. E. Wagoner 

God's eye has never yet become dimmed with age; His ear has never yet become dulled with the years; His arms have never yet been wanting in strength, nor have His footsteps ever faltered.  He is not changed; He is still the same immortal, immutable, invincible God, from all the ages.  He makes a commitment of Himself to me.  What a gift, what an offering, what a measureless, boundless condescension of the infinite God to give Himself.  (Unknown) 

N.J. Hiebert - 20362

July 7

Gems from June 21- 30, 2026

Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out [Cultivate] your own salvation with fear and trembling.  For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.  Philippians 2:12,13 

    It is many years since I worked on a farm, so I asked a dear farmer brother to help me out about "cultivating."  This is what he said:  "I have much enjoyed the thoughts you brought out about Philippians 2:12, and I'm sure it is a verse that has been a puzzle to many, and has been perhaps used in a wrong way by those who think Salvation is by works.
    "I believe the word cultivate means just what you said, to loosen the soil so the rain and air can get to the roots so the plant may grow strong and bear fruit.  One of the main purposes in cultivating too is to get rid of the weeds, for if they are allowed to grow, the tender plant is robbed of its vigour and cannot bear much fruit."  
    "Yes, I have followed the old horse drawn cultivator you speak of and sometimes the sun was pretty hot, and often it was dusty.  Of course corn and soybeans were the main crops we cultivated, and we nearly always cultivate them three times during the season."  
    "Father always said the first cultivation was the main one, when the plants were young and tender, to get rid of the weeds while they were young, for when they get well rooted it is almost impossible to get rid of them, unless by the hoe, which on big acreage is almost never done being impracticable; but the hoe is a tool for cultivation, and a good one too, as one can get close to the plants without harming them."  
    In a crop like strawberries it is about the only tool one can use and very important, for weeds and grass will soon take the strawberries if they aren't hoed. "It seems to me very interesting, and makes the passage much easier to understand, when you see that 'work out' means to cultivate.  The more valuable the crop is, the more carefully the farmer will cultivate it.  How carefully and diligently we should cultivate salvation."  Philippians - G. Christopher Willis

N.J. Hiebert - 20346

June 21

Looking unto Jesus.  Hebrews 12:2 

Unto Jesus and not at the world, its customs, its example, its rules, its judgments;--

Unto Jesus and not at Satan, though he seek to terrify us by his fury, or to entice us by his flatteries.

--Oh! from how many useless questions we would save ourselves, from how many disturbing scruples, from how much loss of time, dangerous dallyings with evil, waste of energy, empty dreams, bitter disappointments, sorrowful struggles, and distressing falls, by looking steadily unto Jesus, and by following Him wherever He may lead us. 

Then we shall be too much occupied with not losing sight of the path which He marks out for us, to waste even a glance on those in which He does not think it suitable to lead us. 

Unto Jesus and not at our creeds, no mater how evangelical they may be.  The faith which saves, which sanctifies, and which comforts, is not giving assent to the doctrine of salvation; it is being united to the person of the Saviour. "It is not enough", said Adolphe Monod, "to know about Jesus Christ, it is necessary to have Jesus Christ."   

To this, one may add, that no one truly knows Him, if he does not first possess Him.  According to the profound saying of the beloved disciple, it is in the Life, there is Light, and it is in Jesus there is Life. (John 1:4) 
(Translated from the French of Theodore Monod by Helen Willis) 

N.J. Hiebert - 20347

June 22

Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year.  Exodus 12:5 

Israel was to be delivered from the bondage of Egypt by the great power of God. But before taking them out, God required that they must be redeemed by blood.  A sacrifice of a lamb was to take place, and the blood be put on the door posts and lintels of the houses.  Where no blood was applied, at least one person in the house died that night. 

The sacrifice must be a lamb, the figure of lowly submission.  It is a type of the Lord Jesus, the only sacrifice satisfactory to God. 

The lamb must be "without blemish."  Who can possibly fit this requirement among men?  Because of many spiritual and moral blemishes not one of us is suited to be such a sacrifice. The sacrifice must be pure, for no sinner could take away the sins of another.  The Lord Jesus is the only One who can qualify for this. 

The lamb must be a "yearling". It was to be eaten, and of course its tenderness is therefore implied.  Who was tenderhearted enough to offer Himself as a sacrifice for our sins?  Only the Lord Jesus.  He was not forced to do such a thing, but willingly gave Himself.  Wonderful grace and love! 

The lamb must also be "a male," the stronger of the two genders.  The emphasis therefore is on the fact that the sacrifice must be strong enough for the tremendous work of bearing sin and the sins of multitudes of people.  We may think that one person could only rightly be a substitute for one another.  If the Lord Jesus were merely man, this would be a difficulty. 

But He is the eternal Son of God, not a finite being such as we are, but infinite.  All the finite beings together could never reach an infinite number.  But Christ is strong enough to embrace an infinite number of people, and to redeem them all from their sins, because He Himself is infinite.  Wonderful is this pure, strong, willing sacrifice!  The Lord is Near 

N.J. Hiebert - 20348

June 23

Men ought always to pray, and not to faint.  Luke 18:1

Prayer which takes the fact that past prayers have not been answered as a reason for languor, has already ceased to be the prayer of faith. To the prayer of faith the fact that prayers remain unanswered is only evidence that the moment of the answer is so much nearer. 

From first to last, the lessons and examples of our Lord all tell us that prayer which cannot persevere and urge its plea importunately, and renew, and renew itself again, and gather strength from every past petition, is not the prayer that will prevail.  William Arthur.  

The motto of David Livingstone was in these words, "I determined never to stop until I had come to the end and achieved my purpose."  By unfaltering persistence and faith in God he conquered.

In shady, green pastures, so rich and so sweet, God leads His dear children along;
Where the water's cool flow bathes the weary one's feet,
God leads His dear children along. 

Some through the waters, some through the flood, some through the fire,
But all through the blood; some through great sorrow, but God gives a song,
In the night season and all the day long. 

Some times on the mount where the sun shines so bright,
God leads His dear children along; sometimes in the valley,
In darkest of night, God leads His  dear children along. 

Though sorrows befall us and evils oppose,
God leads His dear children along; through grace we can conquer,
Defeat all our foes, God leads His dear children along.  G.A. Young

N.J. Hiebert - 20349

June 24

YE  ARE  NOT  YOUR  OWN

Ye are not your own for ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.  1 Corinthians 6:19,20 

Let us remember as such who have been reconciled and have redemption through His blood that we are bought with a price. Through His death we are positionally dead; all who believe on Him have died.  We are dead to the law, to the world, to sin.  But are we truly living, walking and acting as such who  have died, dead to sin and alive unto God? 

A child of God who walks after the flesh practically denies the power and value of the blessed finished work of Christ on the cross.

Let us exalt in our ives, by our words and deeds, the cross of Christ.  "But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world" Galatians 6:14.
The Work of Christ - A. C. Gaebelein

N.J. Hiebert - 20350

June 24

YE  ARE  NOT  YOUR  OWN

Ye are not your own for ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.  1 Corinthians 6:19,20 

Let us remember as such who have been reconciled and have redemption through His blood that we are bought with a price. Through His death we are positionally dead; all who believe on Him have died.  We are dead to the law, to the world, to sin.  But are we truly living, walking and acting as such who  have died, dead to sin and alive unto God? 

A child of God who walks after the flesh practically denies the power and value of the blessed finished work of Christ on the cross.

Let us exalt in our ives, by our words and deeds, the cross of Christ.  "But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world" Galatians 6:14.
The Work of Christ - A. C. Gaebelein

N.J. Hiebert - 20350

June 25

I thank Thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.  Matthew 11:25

Christ could never lack divine wisdom.  But with us it  is very possible that wisdom may be lacking, even when will is subject, and we truly desire to do the will of God.  Therefore the promise follows, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not." (James 1:5) Absence of will, obedience, and the spirit of confiding dependence which waits on God, characterise  the new life.

We pass through tribulation in the world; but this life develops itself in these qualities.  But it is necessary this confidence should be in exercise; otherwise we can receive nothing.  It does not honour God to distrust HIm. 

Such a man is double-minded, like a wave of the sea driven by the wind.  He is unstable, because his heart is not in communion with God; he does not live in a way known to Him; such an one is, of course, unstable (James 1:6-8). 

If a believer keeps in the presence of God, near Him, he knows Him, and will understand His will; he will not have a will of his own, and will not wish to have one; not only on the ground of obedience, but because he has more confidence in the thoughts of God concerning him than he has in his own will. 
James - J.N. Darby

Submission to the will of Him Who guides me still,
Is surety of His love revealed; my soul shall rise above,
This world in which we move; I conquer only where I yield.
C. Austin Miles

N.J. Hiebert - 20351

June 26

God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way...but it displeased Jonah exceedingly and he was very angry.  And he prayed.  Jonah 3:10, 4:1

Displeasure and anger do not make a very good beginning to prayer, so perhaps we need not wonder when we hear what he prayed. Though he addressed his words to God, it is only too evident that his eyes were on himself, and on what he fancied were his wrongs.  This is not the first prayer of Jonah to which we have listened. 

How different was this prayer, from the one sent up to God from the belly of the great fish!  At that time his eyes were toward God's holy mountain.  He was looking away from self to God, but now he was looking away from God to self.  It may be that we have prayed in a very similar state of mind.  It may be that we have gone to God to complain or to accuse, instead of to beseech.  It may be that instead of lifting up our eyes to heaven, as our Lord did when He prayed (John 17:1), we have turned our eyes down to ourselves, or around to our brethren, and the sights that we see in either case almost surely make us displeased and angry. 

Let us look for a moment at Jonah's prayer.  Surely it was only grace that could call it a prayer, for we will see that there was little about it that conformed to a true prayer.  He begins: "Ah, Jehovah, was not this my saying when I was yet in my country?" This is a question, not a prayer--and a question put to Jehovah in order to justify himself for the very sin and disobedience that had already brought such terrible chastisement on him, and of which we thought he had truly repented. Then note these words, "my saying...my country." (Jonah 4:2). 

Can we not see the pride of self and pride of country, just, sticking out here?  Are we any better?  Which of us does not naturally like to speak of himself, and repeat "my saying," tell what I have said, and prove that I was right?   It might have been one of us speaking, instead of Jonah the prophet: only then we would not be so hard on the speaker.  And Jonah had quite forgotten that, after all, the country was God's country, and not his.  The Lord had definitely said, of that particular country,
"The land is Mine." (Leviticus 25:23)   Lessons from Jonah - G. C, Willis          

N.J. Hiebert - 20352

June 27

USELESS  OR  USEFUL  OCCUPATION

Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in Thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my Redeemer. 
Psalm 19:14 

What about our letter writing?  Have we not been tempted (and fallen before the  temptation), according to our various dispositions, to let the hand that holds the pen move at the impulse to write an unkind thought of another;

- or to say a clever and sarcastic thing,
- or a slightly, exaggerated thing, which will make our point more telling;
- or to let out a grumble or a suspicion;
- or to let the pen run away with us into flippant and trifling words, unworthy of
  our  high and holy calling?

Have we not drifted away from the golden reminder, "Should he reason with unprofitable talk? or with speeches wherewith he can do no good?" (Job 15:3)  Why has this been, perhaps again and again?  Is it not for want of putting our hands into our dear Master's hand, and asking and trusting Him to keep them?  He could have kept; He would have kept!  Whatever our work or our special temptations may be, the principle remains the same, only let us apply it for ourselves. 

I look up to my Father, and know that I am heard,
And ask Him for the glowing thought, and for the fitting word;
I look up to my Father, for I cannot write alone.
'Tis sweeter far to seek His strength than lean upon my own
Opened Treasures - Frances Ridley Havergal

N.J. Hiebert - 20353

June 28

SPIRITUAL  REFRESHMENT  FROM  THE  ROCK

And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.  1 Corinthians 10:4 

Water was in the rock, but until smitten, it did not give forth water--so it was with Christ.  And now He is revealed to us in heaven as the eternal Son of God, who was smitten for us.  We can turn to Him and say, "There is our spring of living water; He is ours.  We have got eternal life in Him as a well of water springing up."  All the way through the wilderness, the water flowed to slake their thirst, to refresh them; all the way, and it spoke blessedly of Christ. 

The freshness of heart in Christ was always the same.  You and I get so weary in our experience of the wilderness, but Christ's heart is never wearied.  It is as freshly set on the bride as when God chose us in Him before the foundation of the world. 

Whatever the mind is most fixed upon, and is ever turning to, gives its impression to the mind. If my feelings and thoughts are fixed on Christ, I get the imprint of Christ. If I am ever turning to Him in all His heavenly measure of love, I shall get the impression of it.

He does not forget us toiling through the wilderness and the sands of the desert.  He is with us all the way, and all freshness is in Him.  I may be a way-worn pilgrim, but there I shall find freshness--a spring of cold water to refresh me just when fainting in the wilderness.  Oh, that love in the heart of Christ that knows no weariness, no dragging steps, no hanging down of the hands.  Oh, the freshness of Christ's love and the brightness of that water forever flowing in incomparable purity and freshness!   G. V. Wigram

On to Canaan's rest still wending, e'en thy wants and woes shall bring
Suited grace from high descending, thou shalt taste of mercy's spring.   J.N.Darby

N.J. Hiebert - 20354

June 29

And He said unto them, with desire I have desired to eat this passover with you before I suffer.   Luke 22:15 

The storm was gathering outside, preparations for his arrest and condemnation and crucifixion were being rapidly completed, and Judas, who knew all about it, sat there at the table with Him, with the price of his treachery in his bag.  And Jesus knew all this.  Never before had the powers of darkness been so stirred; this was the supreme hour; men were but the puppets on the stage, guilty puppets, playing their part with willing hearts; but behind them were the forces of evil determined to crush that one lowly Man, and to finish forever at one blow their long fight with God--and Jesus knew this. 

But His disciples, and we, were His one thought.  They loved Him, but He loved them more; and it was His desire, not theirs, that had brought them together for that sacred occasion.  The Passover Feast commemorated the deliverance of Israel from Egypt; the lamb roasted with fire upon which they fed year by year turned the eye of faith forward to His coming.  And now He had come, and there He sat to share with them that meal which spoke so eloquently of what He would do. 

It was at the Passover Feast that He instituted the supper, which we know and love as the Lord's Supper (1 Corinthians 11); and this He did entirely in view of His absence from them.  He was to be no more with them, and they would miss His blessed company; and the measure in which they would miss Him would show the measure of their love to Him. 

And so it is now: the Lord is not here; He has no place in the world; its politics, social circles, pleasures, and schemes have no room for Him.  Are we conscious of His absence, and of this?  If we love Him we shall miss Him and shall long for the time when He shall come to take us to His Father's house, that where He is we may be also.  J. T, Mawson

N.J. Hiebert - 20355

June 30

And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night.  Exodus 13:21 

What is of importance to notice here is that the people of Israel were divinely guided on their march.  He who selected their path guided them in it, went before them in the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night, in all their wanderings.  These gracious symbols of His presence He never took from them as long as they were in the wilderness. 

This is only an illustration of the truth, that the Lord is ever the guide of His people.  He who leads them out of Egypt may ever be seen before them in the path on which they have entered.  He never says, "Go"; but His word is always, "Follow Me."  He Himself is the Way, as well as the Truth and the Life (John 14:6). 

It is quite true that we have not the visible guidance which the children of Israel enjoyed; but it is no less discernible  and certain to the spiritual eye.  The Word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path (Psalm 119:105).  It is interesting to remark that there was no such guidance in Egypt or in the land. 

This brings out the important truth, that it is only in the wilderness that the indication of a way is needed.  And there it is in His tenderness and mercy that the Lord leads His own, showing them the way in which they should walk, where they should rest, and when they should march, leaving nothing to them, but Himself undertaking all for them, only requiring that their eyes should be kept fixed on their Guide.  Happy are the people who are thus led, and who are made willing to follow, who by grace are enabled to say, "Only Thou our Leader be, and we still will follow Thee."  Edward Dennett

N.J. Hiebert - 20356

July 1

My times are in Thy hands.  Psalm 31:15 - Rejoice, with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.  Be kindly  affectioned one to another...in honour preferring one another. Romans12: 10,15 - Look not ever man on his own things [interests] but every man also on the things [interests] of others. Philippians 2:4

Father, I know that all my life is portioned out for me,
And the changes that are sure to come I do not fear to see;
But I ask Thee for a patient mind, intent on pleasing Thee.

I ask Thee for a thoughtful love, through constant watching, wise,
To meet the glad with joyful smiles, and wipe the weeping eyes;
A heart at leisure from itself, to soothe and sympathize.

I ask Thee for the daily strength to none that ask denied,
A mind to blend with outward life while keeping at Thy side; 
Content to fill a little space if Thou be glorified.

In service which Thy love appoints there are no bonds for me;
My inmost heart is taught the truth that makes Thy children free:
A life of self renouncing love is one of liberty.

Wherever in the world I am, in whatsoever estate,
I have a fellowship with hearts to keep and cultivate;
And a work of lowly love to do for the Lord on whom I wait.

So I ask Thee for daily strength to none that ask denied,
And a mind to blend with outward life while keeping at Thy side;
Content to fill a little space if Thou be glorified.

There are briars besetting every path that call for patient care;
There is a cross in every lot, and an earnest need for prayer;
But a lowly heart that leans on Thee is happy anywhere.  Anna Waring 1823-1910

N.J. Hiebert - 20357

July 2

And thou shalt remember all the way which the Lord thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thy heart.  Deuteronomy 8:2 

The wilderness life tends to bring out a great deal of the evil that is in our hearts.  We begin our Christian careers  with the joy of deliverance, but it is as we go on from stage to stage of our desert course that we become  acquainted with self.  But we are not to suppose that as we grow in self-knowledge our joy must decline.  Quite the opposite! For then our joy would depend on ignorance of self, whereas it really depends on our Knowledge of God.   

As the believer goes onward, he learns that sin is a reality; that divine grace is a reality; that salvation is a reality--a deep, personal reality; and that the advocacy of Christ is a reality. In a word, he learns the depth, the fullness, the power, the application of God's gracious resources.  As Moses said to Israel (vv.3-4), "He humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger [not that you might be driven to despair, but that he might feed] thee with the manna...thy raiment waxed (grew) not old upon thee, neither did thy foot swell, these forty years." 

"Thou shalt remember!" What a touching and beautiful appeal!  Remember forty years of evidence of what was in the heart of God toward His redeemed people whom He clothed, fed, and cared for in a vast and howling wilderness. What a noble and soul-satisfying display of the fullness of divine resources!  

How is it possible that, with the history of Israel's desert wandering lying open before us, we could ever harbour a single doubt or fear!  Oh! that our hearts may be more completely emptied of self and more completely filled with Christ.  This alone brings true holiness and true happiness.  C. H. Mackintosh

N.J. Hiebert - 20358

July 3

And the child Samuel ministered unto the Lord before Eli...the Lord called Samuel (v.4)...the Lord called yet again, Samuel (v.6)...Samuel did not yet know the Lord, neither was the word of the Lord yet revealed unto him (v.7)...the Lord called Samuel again the third time (v.8)...Eli said unto Samuel, Go, lie down: and it shall be, if He call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, Lord; for thy servant heareth...(v.9). 

In chapter 1, Eli lacked discernment; in chapter 2, he lacked the moral courage to separate himself from evil; here, his eyes are dim and he cannot see, nevertheless the lamp of God had not yet gone out--a striking image of his moral condition. And what is more, this leader of the simple proves himself to be dull of understanding. It is not until the third call that "Eli perceived that Jehovah was calling the boy." Yes, "dull of hearing": that is exactly  what he had become. 

Samuel was simply ignorant, which is a thousand times better.  When there is godliness, God remedies ignorance.  If the new born babe desires "the pure milk of the word," he will not be refused.  Here on earth we know only in part and we will never know otherwise than only in part.  That we are not responsible for; but it is a question of growth: "that by it ye may grow" (1 Peter 2:2), and our responsibility is to seek, to this end, spiritual food. 

Here we find a feature of Eli's spiritual weakening: "For the iniquity which he hath known, because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not" (v13). Eli knew the evil, and he had authority to repress it in his sons, but he did not use it.  What profit was it to him that this authority had been entrusted to him by God? How often the spiritual weakening of the head of a family stems from his slackness when he should have maintained order and discipline in the sphere where his authority was meant to function?  This is a great cause of ruin, like Lot, Eli was "distressed with abandoned conversation [manner of life] of the godless." but like him, he displayed a sad forgetfulness of what was due to the Lord's holiness. 1 Samuel - H. L. Rossier

N.J. Hiebert - 20359

July 4