Gems from December 1- 10, 2017

December 1

“When he (Peter) saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink,

he cried, saying, Lord, save me.  And immediately Jesus 

stretched forth His hand, and caught him.”

(Matthew 14:30-32)  

But if from Him we turn the eye,

We see the raging floods run high,

Our hearts are full of fear;

Lord! we our unbelief confess,

Do Thou our little faith increase,

That we may fail no more—

But fix on Thee a steady eye, 

And on Thine outstretched arm rely,

Till all the storm is o’er.

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December 2

“I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”

(Philippians 4:13)

Apart from Christ we have no power.  The Lord can say, “Without me ye can do nothing”,

but, says the Apostle, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me” (Philippians 4:13).

It is, then, only as our souls are kept in secret communion with Christ that we shall be able 

to avail ourselves of the power that is in Him.

This being so, all Satan’s power will be directed to putting our souls out of touch with Christ,

and seeking to keep us from feeding on Him and walking in communion with Him.

It may be that He will seek to draw us out of communion with Christ by the cares and duties

of every-day life, or by sickness and weakness of the body.

He may seek to use the difficulties of the path, the contentions among the people of God,

 or the petty insults we have to meet, to depress the spirit and fret the soul.

If, however, instead of allowing all these things to come between our souls and the Lord,

we make them occasions for drawing near to the Lord, we shall learn what it is to 

be strong in the Lord, while realizing our own weakness; and we

shall learn the blessedness of the word —

“Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and He shall  sustain thee” (Psalm 55:22). 

(Hamilton Smith)

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December 3

“Casting all your care upon Him;

for He careth for you.”

(1 Peter 5:7)

Everywhere, always, close by my side,

Faithful, unchangeable, Christ will abide;

Through sunshine and shadow, through good and through ill,

Seeing me, knowing me, loving me still.

(Bells & Pomegranates - James M. S. Tait)

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December 4

“All the saints salute you, chiefly they that are of 

Caesar’s household.  The grace of our Lord

Jesus Christ be with you all.  Amen.”

(Philippians 4:22-23)

“Tho’ vice, flagrant and unblushing, Nero’s palace boldly trod,

In that vile court’s baleful precincts there were some who walked with God.

Like the few souls who, in Sardis kept unspotted from the world,

So these saints of Caesar's household held their stainless flag unfurled.

Trusting in their Saviour’s merits, leaning on their Saviour’s might,

They were proof against temptation; now they walk with Hm in white!

Lord, Thy power can keep Thy children in the most unlikely place.

There is no temptation sent them which is greater than Thy grace."

(Author unknown)

But let us never forget that all the saints in Rome sent greetings to all the saints in Phillippi:

and not the slightest distinction is made between a slave and one highborn.

All are ‘one in in Christ Jesus:’ ‘one spirit, one soul, one body, one loaf, one new man,

one flock’: just as there is ‘one Spirit, one hope of your calling, 

one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all 

who is above all, and through all, and in you all.’

(G. Christopher Willis)

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December 5

The Voyage of Life!

" . . . who walketh upon the wings of the wind.”

(Psalm 104:3)

“Who hath measured the waters in the hollow His hand . . .”

(Isaiah 40:12)

All true believers walk by the same rule, and mind the same things:  the Word of God is their compass, Jesus is both their polar star and their sun of righteousness, their hearts and faces are all set Zion-ward. 

Thus far they are as one body, animated by one Spirit. Yet their experience, formed upon these common principles—is far from being uniform. 

The Lord, in His first call, and His following dispensations, has a regard to the situation, temper, and talents of each— and to the particular services or trials which He has appointed them for. Though all believers are tried at times—

yet some pass through the voyage of life much more smoothly than others. 

But He "who walks upon the wings of the wind, and measures the waters in the hollow of His hand,” will not allow any of whom He has taken charge, to perish in the storms—though, for a season, perhaps, many of them are ready to give up all hopes.

We must not, therefore, make the experience of others, in all respects—a rule to ourselves. 

Nor are we to make our own experience—

a rule to others. 

(Adapted - John Newton’s Autobiography)

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December 6

"The God of glory appeared unto our father Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Charran.”

(Acts 7:2)

After Abraham had this experience with God, the brightest earthly glories were tawdry by comparison.

So it was with Moses at the burning bush;

Isaiah and his vision of the Lord “high and lifted up;”

Ezekiel and his vision of the one having the appearance of a man,

seated above the firmament.

Stephen, at the moment of martyrdom, saw the glory of God.

For all of these men, earthly glories had been eclipsed by the glory of Christ.

We take up the words of Moses, “Show me Thy Glory!”

The answer will surely come, if we are ready for it,

and our lives will never be the same.

(W. H. Burnett)

"Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face,

And the things of earth, will grow strangely dim,

in the light of His glory and grace."

(Helen Howarth Lemmel)    

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December 7

“. . . The time is short.”

(1 Corinthians 7:29)

“It is an ill time to caulk the ship when at sea, tumbling up and down in a storm: 

this should have been looked to when on her seat in the harbour.

And as bad it is to begin to trim a soul for heaven, when tossing on a sick bed.

Things that are done in a hurray are seldom done well.

These poor creatures, I am afraid, go in an ill dress to 

another world who begin to provide for it when on a dying bed . . .  

There is but one heaven: miss that, and where can you take up your lodging

but in hell?  One Christ that can lead 

you thither: reject Him, 

"and there remains no more sacrifice for sin.”  

(Hebrews 10:26)

(William Gurnall - 1617 - 1679)

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December 8

“For by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are

 in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, 

or dominions, or principalities, or powers: 

all were created by Him and for Him.”

(Colossians 1:16)

In our days, man and his achievements are increasingly being 

brought into the center of people’s thinking.

This may seem to be the right thing, because man 

has indeed achieved much.

However, if we really think man is on top of 

everything, we make a mistake.

We forget that all man’s thinking is nothing but afterthought,

copying what God has originally thought long, long ago.

(This Day is the Lord’s - Corrie Ten Boom) 

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December 9

“The wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal 

life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”

(Romans 6:23)

If an angel came straight from the throne of God,

and proclaimed that God has sent him to offer us any one thing we 

might ask—that each one should have his own petition granted—what would be your cry?  

There would be but one response, and the cry would make Heaven ring: "Eternal life! 

eternal life!"  Everything else would float away into nothingness.

It is life men want, and value most.  Let a man worth a million dollars be on

a wrecked vessel, and if he could save his life for six months by 

giving that million, he would give it in an instant. But the 

gospel is not a six months’ gift; 

“The gift of God is eternal life.” 

And is it not one of the greatest marvels that men have to stand and plead and

pray and beseech their fellow men to take this precious gift of God?

(Dwight  L. Moody)

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December 10

“Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:

But made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant,

and was made in the likeness of men: and being found in fashion as a 

man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death,

even the death of the cross.”

(Philippians 2:5-8)   

Strange thought for the heart of man, 

that none but the very highest could go down low enough! 

None so high as He, but none other could stoop so low.

None save that One could measure out what sin is in

the creature; bear its penalty and settle our account with God.

The believer is brought before God in a way altogether peculiar.

A way, the peculiarity of which—! learned at His hand—turns out 

to be the most blessed way that could possibly have been conceived. 

(G. V. Wigram)

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December 11

"They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength;

they shall mount up with wings as eagles;

They shall run, and not be weary; and

they shall walk, and not faint.”

(Isaiah 40:31)

“Brethren, be not weary in well doing.”

(2 Thessalonians 3:13) 

Yes! He knows the way is dreary, knows the weakness of our frame,

Knows that hand and heart are weary; He, in all points, felt the same;

He is near to help and bless; be not weary; onward press.

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