Gems from June 21- 30, 2016

June 21

“For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.”

(Romans 8:18) 

If God should never again send any trials intended to point us and others to Him,

would all our sufferings cease? 

NO.

Left to ourselves, with our sinful natures unchecked,

greater harm would result. 

But as it is, He gives us only that which works for good 

and which will bring us closer to Him.

And there is something else:

If we know Him as our Lord and Saviour,

we will, at His time, go to heaven, where we will never suffer again.

(Corrie Ten Boom)

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June 22

“And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, He went out, 
and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.”

(Mark 1:35)

I Met God in the Morning

I met God in the morning, when my day was at its best

And His presence came like sunrise, like a glory in my breast.

All day long His Presence lingered; all day long He stayed with me;

And we sailed in perfecta calmness o’er a very troubled sea.

Other ships were blown and battered, other ships were sore distressed,

But the winds that seemed to drive them brought to us a peace and rest.

Then I thought of other mornings, with a keen remorse of mind.

When I too had loosed the moorings with His Presence left behind. 

So I think I know the secret, learned from many a troubled way;

You must seek Him in the morning if you want Him through the day.

(Ralph Spaulding Cushman)

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June 23

“And He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.” (Ephesians 4:11-12)  

It is quite possible that the two gifts (evangelists & pastors) may exist in the same 

person, as in Paul’s case; but whether this be so or not, 

each gift has its own specific sphere and object.

The business of the evangelist is to call out the brethren;

the business of the pastor is to look after them.

The evangelist goes first, and preaches the word of the Lord;

the pastor goes again and visits those upon whom that word has taken effect.

The former calls out the sheep;  the latter feeds and takes care of them.

The order of these things is divinely beautiful.

The Lord would not gather out His sheep, and leave them to wander uncared for and unfed.

This would be wholly unlike His gracious, tender, thoughtful way.

Hence He not only imparts the gift whereby His sheep are to be called into existence,

but also that whereby they are to be fed and maintained.

(C.H. Mackintosh)

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June 24

“So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”

(Romans 10:17)

Faith is not occupied with faith, 

nor godliness with godliness,

nor humility with humility, 

nor spirituality with spirituality, 

nor worship with worship.

Faith is occupied with its object; 

godliness with God, 

humility with service,

spirituality with God’s interests, and 

worship with Him who is worthy.

(John Kaiser)

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June 25

“. . . this Man hath done nothing amiss.”

(Luke 23:41)

It was just as if he (the thief) had known Christ all his life.

He had a divine perception of His character.

And so with the Christian now.

Have you such jealousy about the spotlessness and glory of 

Christ that you cannot help crying out when you hear Him slighted?

He believed that He was the Lord, the Son of God, 

and so could answer with assurance for what He had been as a man.

As completely a man as any other, 

the holy obedience of Christ was divine.

“This Man hath done nothing amiss.”

What a response in the renewed heart to the delight of sinlessness!

His eye glances, as it were, over the whole life of Christ;

He could answer for Christ anywhere, because 

he has learned to know himself.

(The Man of Sorrows - J.N. Darby)

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June 26

“Thou hast put gladness in my heart.”

(Psalm 4:7)

“The glad heart maketh a cheerful countenance.”

(Proverbs 15:14

I had a friendly smile, I gave that smile away - 

the postman and the milkman seemed glad of it each day.

I gave my smile away as happy as could be - 

and every time I gave it, my smile came back to me.

It would be foolish to think that all who smile are happy.

There are “smiles” and “smiles”: - smiles self-conscious, smiles self-complacent, smiles conceited, smiles sarcastic, smiles superficial, smiles satanic, smiles cynical, smiles critical, 

smiles occasional, smiles habitual, smiles spiritual.

There are smiles good, smiles better, and smiles best.  Each sort has its own peculiar value. It is the “best” sort of smile we advocate.  The “best” sort go deepest, last longest, and accomplish most good.

The best kind of smiles are not ”put on.”  They “come out” because they are “in.”  They are the result of a satisfied, thankful, and glad heart.

They are the exterior expression of an interior joy,
which glows and grows as the days go by. 

It is the satisfied and restful heart that makes a radiant face.

When we are contended at the center, the countenance will be calmly cheerful.

When the spirit is satisfied and glad, the glory is expressed in look and touch and tone.

Christ is the secret, the source, the substance, the center,
and the circumference of all true and lasting gladness. 

(Streams in the Desert)

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June 27

“For precept must be upon precept . . . line upon line . . .

here a little and there a little.”

(Isaiah 28:10)

Several years ago my husband received an apple tree as a Father’s Day gift.

It grew year by year and now bears abundantly,

unless hindered by a late frost.

Likewise, spiritual maturity is not an overnight occurrence.

Nutrition from the Scriptures, prayer and learning from others contribute to growth.

When we stray from the path or rebel at hardship,

a chilling occurs and growth is stunted.

The warmth of Christian fellowship helps restore development.

May we not be a disappointment to the Keeper of the vineyard but 

keep on bearing the fruit of the Spirit.

(E. Dyck)

I would draw near to Jesus, nothing withholding from Him,

Knowing He loves to be gracious, I would draw nearer to Him.

(R. Harness)

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June 28

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son,

that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish,

but have everlasting life.”

(John 3:16)

It may seem old-fashioned in these days to talk of souls, perishing souls, needing salvation.

But the study of John 3:16 is a motive power that accomplishes results in and through 

believers that all the wisdom and resources of the world cannot equal.

We may have more wealth in these days, better education, greater comfort in traveling and in our 

surroundings even as missionaries, but have we the spirit of urgency, 

the deep, inward convictions that move those who went before us;

have we the same passion of love, personal love for the Lord Jesus Christ?

If these are lacking, it is a loss for which nothing can compensate.

Let us see that we keep God before our eyes; that we walk in His ways and seek to please and glorify 

Him in everything, great and small.  Depend upon it,

God’s work, done in God’s way, will never lack God’s supplies.  

(Hudson Taylor’s Spiritual Secret)

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June 29

Prayer & Reality

“And there is none that calleth upon Thy name, 

that stirreth up himself to take hold of Thee.”

(Isaiah 64:7)

Prayer is an act in which we have immediately to do with the great God,

to whom we approach in prayer,  It is too sacred a duty to be performed between sleeping and waking,

with a heavy eye or a drowsy heart; this God complained of: (Isaiah 64:7 quoted above).

He counts it no prayer where the heart is not stirred up and awake.

Our behaviour in prayer hath an universal influence upon all the passages of our whole life;

as a man is in prayer, so he is likely to be in all the rest;

if he is careless in praying, then he is negligent in hearing and loose in his walking.

Prayer is a channel, in which the stream of divine grace, blessing, and comfort, 

runs from God into the heart; dam up the channel and the stream is stopped.

(William Gurnall - The Christian in Complete Armour -1617-1679)

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June 30

“Christ is become of no effect unto you, 

whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.”

(Galatians 5:4)

I do not care what it is you imagine you have to do in order to keep saved; whatever it is, 

you put yourself on legal ground if after believing on the Lord Jesus Christ you think 

that your salvation is made more secure by baptism,

by taking the Lord’s Supper, by giving money, 

by joining the church. 

If you do these things in order to help save your soul,

you have fallen from grace—you fail to realize that salvation is by grace alone,

God’s free unmerited favour.

Someone asks, “Don’t you believe in doing those things?”

Indeed, I do; not in order to save my soul,

but out of love for Christ.  

"I would not work my soul to save, that work my Lord has done;

But I would work like any slave from love to God’s dear Son.”

(H.A. Ironside)

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