“John answered and said, Master, we saw one casting out devils in Thy name;
and we forbad him, because he followeth not with us. And Jesus said
unto him, forbid him not: for he that is not against us is for us.”
(Luke 9:49-50)
Mark how thoroughly conscious the Lord was of His utter rejection by man, so utter that He said: “He that is not against us is proved to be for us.”Christ was perfect, therefore He was a perfect test to men’s consciences, and as far as He is manifested in us we shall be so also.
Paul could say: “If our Gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost” (2 Corinthians 4:3). Why could he say so? Because it went out from him as pure as it went in. John said: “We forbade him, because he followeth not with us.” That tells the whole tale. They were thinking of themselves, not of Christ; of their own importance, and not His honour.
If it had been His importance they would have thought how blessed it was to find the effect of His Name, and rejoiced to know how His power was being exercised by man. But, no; they were looking at themselves as well as at the Messiah. Even John was thus using Christ Himself to further his own importance.
And is there not something in us of the same thing, a satisfaction at that which aggrandizes self as well as Christ, instead of seeking the honour of Christ alone? The Lord takes him up and answers him on the ground of His utter rejection which was coming. “He that is not against us is for us.”
And mark that the very selfishness of John brings out the grace of Christ. He says “us.” You do not know the lot you have with Me. If you find one who can use the power of My Name rejoice in it. (The Man of Sorrows - J.N. Darby)
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October 20
“Counsel is Mine, and sound wisdom: I am understanding; I have strength.
By Me kings reign, and princes decree justice.
By Me princes rule and nobles, even
all the judges of the earth.”
(Proverbs 8:14-16)
It is not that rulers always act according to understanding,
but that none rule at all save by the appointment of infinite wisdom.
“The Most High ruleth in the kingdoms of men,
and He giveth them unto
whomsoever He will.”
(Daniel 4:17)
This gives perfect rest to the man of faith in the midst
of all the changing political scenes of earth.
Let the form of the government be what it may;
the chief magistrate be of whatever character he will;
faith can bow in obedience, owning that:
The powers that be are
ordained of God.”
(Romans 13:1)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
(H.A. Ironside)
~~~~~~~~~~~~
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October 21
“I shall not want . . . I will fear no evil . . . I will dwell in the
house of the Lord forever.”
(Psalm 23:1,4,6)
Here are three bold assertions from this most beautiful psalm.
How could the psalmist be so confident?
The Lord is his Shepherd!
If such a Person is in control, how could it be otherwise?
We also are His sheep therefore we need not worry about want—
He will feed us.
We need not worry about the way—
He will take us safely through the valley of the shadow.
And we need not worry about the end—
we will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
What a wonderful Shepherd!
(Reg L. Jordan)
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October 22
“. . . the ass saw the angel of the Lord, she fell down under Balaam: and Balaam’s anger was kindled, and he smote the ass with a staff. And the Lord opened the mouth of the ass, and she said unto Balaam, what have I done unto thee, that thou smitten me these three times?”
(Numbers 22:27-28)
Truth is truth - - even when spoken by a donkey.
Hence, we should never despise it, no matter the means by which it is delivered,
and we should never be ashamed of it,
though we might well be ashamed of ourselves.
“Despise not prophesyings” (1 Thessalonians 5:20).
Moreover, God is perfect in all He does.
He chooses His messenger not only for the message but also for the receiver.
It was not a mere matter of convenience that God chose to speak to
Balaam through his donkey; and you and I ought to consider that
God’s messenger to us is always part of His message.
Don’t despise your donkey!
If you do, you may miss the message.
(Nuggets of Truth - with thanks - J. K.)
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October 23
“A man . . . caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words,
which it is not lawful for a man to utter.”
(2 Corinthians 12:3,4)
“Soon Thou wilt come again, Jesus, our Lord! We shall be happy then, Jesus, our Lord!
Then we Thy face shall see, then we shall like Thee be,
Then evermore with Thee, Jesus, our Lord.”
(Mary Bowley)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
God has not told us more about heaven because, with our present faculties,
we could neither receive nor reveal it, take it in or give it out—
as a child might try to understand nuclear physics.
Paul visited Paradise, but could not tell us what he heard.
Our present equipment of body and mind is not geared
to apprehend what God has prepared for us.
It is revealed by the Spirit and in the
Word as far as it has pleased God to make it known.
He has told us enough to whet our appetites.
The crumbs make us want the cake!
(All the Days - Vance Havner)
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October 24
"Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to Him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator".
(1 Peter 4:19)
"In Ethiopia there are very few bridges. Often it is necessary to wade through swollen streams to reach a destination. In this there is a constant danger of being swept off one's feet
into deeper waters among treacherous rocks.
As the weight of the human body is only slightly heavier than water,
it is difficult to maintain a foothold.
There is no problem though for the Ethiopian, he slings a sack of stones over his shoulder for ballast,
on reaching the other side, he empties the sack.
So, sometimes in order to keep us from falling the LORD places burdens on us,
no burden heavier than we are able to bear,
and He knows exactly what is necessary for our good."
(C.J.Feaver)
"The burden He gives may seem heavy, but it ne'er outweighs His grace;
It may keep my feet from stumbling until I see His blessed face.”
(Christian Truth - Volume 24)
"Keep yourselves in the love of God,
looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto
eternal life. Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling, and to
present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy,
To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power,
both now and ever. Amen".
(Jude 21,24,25)
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October 25
"Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.”
(Colossians 3:2)
A college youth was on the verge of making the supreme consecration when the tempter whispered,
“There is too much to be sacrificed,
for the path of the religious life is hard and stony,
and all the pleasures will have to be given up,
and you will be miserable to the end of your days.”
He slept, and upon awakening in the morning,
these words were impressed upon him with overpowering force:
“My yoke is easy and my burden is light; only follow Me,"
an all-persuading Voice seemed to say, “and all the years that haunt you shall vanish forever.”
Christ’s own path led up the hill of Calvary,
and there was roughness in the way,
but the glory lay beyond the Cross.
God give to you courage to climb up into the mountains where
the air is purer and sweeter than in the vales.
(Mountain Trailways for Youth)
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October 26
“The Lord hath appeared of old unto me saying, Yea,
I have loved thee with an everlasting love:
therefore with loving kindness have I drawn thee.”
(Jeremiah 31:3)
The work of Christ on the cross did not influence God to love us, did not increase that love by one degree, did not open any fount of grace or mercy in His heart. He had loved us from old eternity and needed nothing to stimulate that love.
The cross is not responsible for God's love; rather it was His love which conceived the cross as the one method by which we could be saved. God felt no different toward us after Christ had died for us, for in the mind of God Christ had already died before the foundation of the world. God never saw us except through atonement.
The human race could not have existed one day in its fallen state had not Christ spread His mantle of atonement over it. And this He did in eternal purpose long ages before they led Him out to die on the hill above Jerusalem. All God's dealings with man have been conditioned upon the cross."
-- A.W. Tozer, The Radical Cross: Living the Passion of Christ - J.K.
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October 27
“[The Soldiers] bring Him unto the place Golgotha, which being interpreted,
The place of a skull . . . [where] they crucified Him.”
(Mark 15:22,25)
THE GREATEST CRIME EVER COMMITTED
Golgotha was the place where the death penalty was usually carried out.
The Romans called it Calvary—today we would probably call it Skull Hill.
Here, an alleged criminal named Jesus was crucified. Who was He?
He was the Creator! (Colossians 1:16), the Son of God, who,
by being born in Bethlehem, had become a Jewish man.
At about age 30, He left His trade and began His ministry.
That is when all His troubles with the Jewish religious authorities began—
His teaching and His claims for Himself put Him on a collision course with them.
They had Him arrested and, after a sort of kangaroo court, turned Him over to the
Roman authorities to be crucified—they themselves did not have the authority to do this.
The Roman judge found Him not guilty, but then folded under pressure and turned
Him over to the execution squad (Matthew 27:20-26; Luke 23:21-25).
Who is to blame for this greatest crime ever committed?
Well, the religious leaders and the people were certainly to blame; the
Roman authorities and soldiers were to blame because they actually crucified Him,
an innocent man; but most of all, we are guilty!
It was our sins that caused Him to be nailed to the cross—
“For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God,
being put to death in the flesh. . ." (1 Peter 3:18).
But death and the grave could not hold Him—He arose!
And, He will come back again to take us to spend eternity with Him.
God has turned the worse crime ever committed int a way of blessing for all who will come to Him!
(R. Salcido)
"My conscience felt and owned the guilt, and plunged me in despair;
I saw my sins His blood had spilt and helped to nail Him there.”
(John Newton)
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October 28
“And Israel said unto Joseph, Do not thy brethren feed the flock in
Shechem? come, and I will send thee unto them.
And he said to him, Here am I.”
(Genesis 37:13)
Jacob may have special affection for his son Joseph,
nevertheless his other sons have a real place in his affections, and
Joseph is to become the witness of the father’s love to the brethren.
Accordingly Jacob desires that Joseph shall leave the home in the vale of
Hebron and journey to distant Shechem, there, as the sent one of the father,
to enquire of his brethren’s welfare and bring Jacob word again.
Joseph on his part is ready to obey, though he has experienced the hatred of his brethren.
Jacob’s request meets with Joseph’s immediate response,
“Here am I.”
So we read Israel “sent him out of the vale of Hebron” and Joseph “came to Shechem.”
In this journey there is a foreshadowing of that far greater journey undertaken by the
Son of God when, leaving the Father’s home of light and love,
He came into this world of death and darkness, well knowing the evil into which He came.
And yet He turned not back. Even as at the cross we read,
“Jesus therefore, knowing all things that should come upon Him went forth”(John 18:4).
If the love of the Father would sen Him, then the love of the Son is ready to do the Father’s bidding.
“Lo, I come to do Thy will, O God” (Hebrews 10:9).
He comes as the sent One of the Father to declare the Father’s love.
(Hamilton Smith)
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October 29
"Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith."
(Hebrews 10:22)
What is the character of this biblical faith beautifully portrayed in God’s Word?
It is not mere show, but real substance. Show is full of self and schemes and psychology.
Faith is full of God, has no clever plan of its own, and is founded on sound biblical doctrine.
It does not ask God, “Does it work?”
It waits until the work of grace is done and accepts no cheap substitutes.
When in prison, faith sings.
Faith may be stricken with the divine hand in holy judgment, but it puts its hands over its mouth,
like Aaron when he lost two sons in one solemn minute (Leviticus 10:3).
The faith of which the Bible speaks is no leap in the dark; rather it is a walk in heavenly light.
It sets aside statistical probability, or even coincidence, chance, or luck,
and rests firmly on the acts of a sovereign God.
It does not labour to fashion a master plan; it surrenders to the Master’s plan.
It experiences His sweet calm in the enemy’s raging storm.
It is not primarily a negative position against Satan,
although of necessity faith is ever mindful of that deceiver,
but faith is a positive stand for Christ,
firmly established on the Word in which He is revealed to us.
The arm of flesh will result in utter failure.
Goliath was not felled by a warrior mightier than himself,
by treachery among his own people, or by a strategic ambush.
It took just a good-sized pebble picked in faith.
Every circumstance that man could discern weighed decidedly against young David.
But he came in the name of a God who
does not speak our language of “circumstances beyond my control.”
The invisible God was behind it all. He had a plan. He had work to be done.
He would glorify His name, and He found a man, a boy, after His own heart for this very hour.
(N. Oloniyo (D.H.) (The Lord is near.)
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October 30
“The heavens declare the glory of God;
and the firmament showeth His handiwork.”
(Psalm 19:1)
So let our lips and lives express,
The holy gospel we profess;
So let our words and virtues shine,
To prove the doctrine all divine.
This Psalm reveals three of the ways that God speaks to mankind.
1. He speaks through the sky and its glittering array of celestial orbs— a testimony of His greatness.
2. He speaks through the Scriptures and its timeless truths—a testimony of His goodness.
3. He speaks through the saint and His godly life—a testimony of His grace.
Each declaration gets more personal and intimate.
The first two witnesses are faithful, consistent, and constant.
Are you?
(Craig Funston)
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October 31
“Shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?"
(Hebrews 12:9)
Your character may not be vindicated down here.
Jesus died under a cloud.
He was never cleared in this world of the false accusations
that had been made against Him.
The will of God was the only law of Christ’s life.
He was never governed by human considerations or affections.
Are we set upon this—that the will of God should be our only law?
A soul who is in the secret of the divine mind
must be content to be unappreciated and to walk alone.
If we are not in the path of God’s will
we are not in the path of power.
Our true wisdom is in subjection to the will of our Lord.
To human eyes no plan of taking Jericho could
have been more foolish than that
which Joshua adopted; but
it was God’s plan,
and hence its complete success.
(Edward Dennett - Footprints for Pilgrims)
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