Gems from May 1- 10, 2020

May 1

Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.   Romans 6:11

Regeneration is a new birth - the imparting of a new life - the implantation of a new nature - the formation of a new man.  The old nature remains in all its distinctness; and the new nature is introduced in all its distinctness.

The new nature has its own habits, its own desires, its own tendencies, its own affections.  All these are spiritual, Heavenly, Divine.  Its aspirations are all upward.  It is ever breathing after the heavenly source from which it has emanated.

It partakes of the nature of its source.  A child partakes of the nature of its parents; and the believer is made "a partaker of the divine nature (2 Peter 1:4).  "Of His own will begat He us. (James 1:18).

Regeneration or the new birth, is not a change of man's fallen nature, but the imparting of a new - a Divine nature.  In a word, then, regeneration is God's own work, from first to last.  God is the Operator, man is the happy, privileged subject.  His cooperation is not sought in a work which must ever bear the impress of one almighty hand.

God was alone in creation - alone in redemption - and He must be alone in the mysterious and glorious work of regeneration.
C. H. Macintosh

N.J. Hiebert - 8103  

May 2

Thou wilt show me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at Thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.  Psalms 16:11

Tell the birds amidst the buds of spring not to sing;
Tell the waters welling from the depths not to flow;
Tell the happy child not to laugh and jump;
Tell the sun and the stars not to shine;

And when these have obeyed you, then tell the soul which has new life through the love of God that it must not speak of Him!  It cannot  but speak what it has seen and heard.
Dr. F. B. Meyer - Mountain Trailways

N.J. Hiebert - 8104

May 3

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God."  Romans 8:28

How wide is this assertion of the Apostle Paul!  He does not say, "We know that some things," or " most things," or "joyous things," but "ALL things."  From the minutest to the most momentous; from the humblest event in daily providence to the great crisis hours in grace.

And all things "work" - they are working; not all things have worked, or shall work; but it is a present operation.

At this very moment, when some voice may be saying, "Thy judgments are a great deep," (Psalm 36:6), the angels are watching the development of the great plan.  "The Lord is righteous in all His ways, and holy in all His works." (Psalm 145:17).

And then all things "work together."  It is a beautiful blending.  Many different colours, in themselves raw and unsightly, are required in order to weave the harmonious pattern.

Many separate tones and notes of music, even discords and dissonances, are required to make up the harmonious anthem.

Many separate wheels and joints are required to make up the piece of machinery.  Take a thread separately, or a note separately, or a wheel or a tooth of a wheel separately, and there may be neither use nor beauty discernible.

But complete the web, combine the notes, put together the separate parts of steel and iron, and you will see how perfect and symmetrical is the result. Here is the lesson for faith: "What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter." (John 13:7).
Macduff - Streams in the Desert

In 1000 trials it is not 500 of them that work for the believer's good, but 999 of them, and 1 beside. 
George Mueller        

N.J. Hiebert - 8105

May 4

If God be for us, who can be against us?    Romans 8:31
This I know; for God is for me.   Psalm 56:9

What an encouragement to the believer to know that "God is for us" in all the circumstances and situations of life.  Old Jacob cried, "All these things are against me,"  (Genesis 42:36), but he soon learned that even in his  darkest hour, God was for him.

David reminds us that God knew all his "wanderings" and "tears," (Psalm 56:8), and then sums it all up, "This I know; for God is for me."  No matter how difficult the path is today, God is still for you and me!
Jim Comte

Why should I feel discouraged?  Why should the shadows come?
Why should my heart be lonely, and long for heav'n and home,
When Jesus is my portion?  My constant Friend is He:
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.
Civilla D. Martin

N.J. Hiebert - 8106   

May 5

Go home  to thy friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee, and hath had compassion on thee.  Mark 5:19

There were three requests made in Mark 5:
- The demons requested to be sent into the swine (v.12)
- The people asked the Lord to leave their region (v.17)
- The man who had been demon-possessed requested to follow the Lord (v.18)

The first two requests were granted, but not the third. The Lord was free to send the demons into the pigs, or to any other place He might choose.  Why to the swine?  First, it proved to those watching that the man had really been freed from the demons, and assured the man himself that the demons had actually departed from him.

Most importantly, the drowning of 2000 pigs demonstrated the power of Satan,  and showed that to him man and swine are the same.  The owners of the pigs asked the Lord to leave, rather than stay and perform more miracles and healings, because they only cared about their business.  The Lord departed, for He would not impose Himself on anyone, and would not stay in a place where He was not welcome.

The Lord did not permit the man to accompany Him because he knew that this man belonged to his city and people, where He could be a testimony for the One who had saved him.  Effective Christian testimony must start in the place where we live.  From there the Lord may expand our area of influence.
William S. Ibrahim - The Lord is near.

How happy the man whose heart is set free,
The people that can be joyful in Thee!
Their joy is to walk in the light of Thy face,
And ever to talk of Thy mercy and grace.
Charles Wesley

N.J. Hiebert - 8107     

May 6

T H  E   G R E A T  S H E P H E R D 

Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, Make you perfect in every good work to do His will.  Hebrews 13:20-21

Redemption accomplished, He is now alive for evermore, and so we would have our young Christian friends - especially them - observe what He says of them in John 10.

In verse 27 He describes the two marks which distinguish all His sheep: the mark on the ear - they hear His voice; and the mark on the foot - they follow Him.

And then, in verse 28, He says: "I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand."

What assurance and comfort do these soul - emancipating words impart!  They tell us that the mighty Hand, which brought the universe into being and guides the planets in their lonely way, upholds and sustains the feeblest lamb in the flock of Christ; that "The very hand our sins had pierced is now our guard and guide."

Because eternal life is a gift, it can never be earned; because it is the gift of God it can never be forfeited.  "The Lord is Thy keeper" - we are "kept by the power of God." (Psalm 121:5; 1Peter 1:5).
The Pearl of Psalms - George Henderson

N.J. Hiebert - 8108   

May 7

Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of Thy wings.  Psalm 17:8

Have you ever heard a hen cluck urgently and then watched as the baby chicks immediately scurried under the protection of her wings?  One rebellious chick would face danger from the predator, alone and vulnerable.  The space under the mother hen's wings provided protection, security, warmth and companionship.

While our Lord was on earth He admonished Jerusalem in these words: "how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not." (Luke 13:34).  That same security and companionship afforded by a mother hen is what the Lord Jesus wants us to experience.  We who are born again belong to HIm.  Do we come when He calls?

David wrote Psalm 17.  In His day, He could not enjoy the full security and protection of our Father like we do.  David's protection depended upon his faithfulness.  Ours depends on the faithfulness of the Lord Jesus, and that is unlimited and generous.  His death, essential to pay for our sins, imparts new life to all who  believe.  As a result, we are always the apple of His eye, and have no need to request Him to keep us there.  Rather, we might say: keep me aware that I am the apple of Thine eye.

Solomon, King David's son, wrote in his Song, 2:3 "As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons.  I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste."  The apple tree needs the sun to grow and for its fruit to mature.  Then we can recline in its shadow and enjoy the fruit.  This verse delightfully links the two thoughts in Psalm 17; the apple of the eye and the shadow of those wings, and he adds this thought "O taste and see that the Lord is good."  (Psalm 34:8).
Lorne Perry

Though the restless foe accuses sins recounting like a flood;
Every charge our God refuses: Christ has answered with His blood.

In the refuge God provided, tho' the world's destruction lowers,
We are safe - to Christ confided, everlasting life is ours.
Mary Bowley

N.J. Hiebert - 8109     

May 8

Make this valley full of ditches.  2 Kings 3:16

Do we say, "Lord, I want my life to be a channel through which Thy power may flow?"  Then let the spade of His Word go down into the depths of your heart, that the hidden things may be revealed.

Blessing must be prepared for.  You can hinder it, and shirk it; you can shut your ears to His voice; or you can get alone with the Lord Jesus and let Him have His way.

God has a glorious work to do in every yielded life; He has a glorious fulness to bestow.  

But there is also a work for us to do; there must be a digging down into the depths of our heart; we must resolve to get rid of all the rubbish, and to prepare for the living water.
H. Earnshaw Smith  

N.J. Hiebert - 8110

May 9

M E L O D Y  I N  O U R  H E A V I N E S S 

For there they that carried us away captive required of us a song; and they that wasted us required of us mirth, saying, Sing us one of the songs of Zion.  Psalm 137:3.  

I do not think that such heaviness as was felt by the people who were led captive into Babylon is meant to be lightened by melody; but there is another kind of heaviness, the tired-out feeling that may come, and that our Lord knew when He sat on the well.  (John 4:6)

I am quite sure that sometimes this kind of heaviness has to be.  If it were not so, we should not know how to help other tired people.  These words, "Melody in our heaviness," show us one of the quickest ways out of heaviness that depresses the spirit, even though all may be clear between us and our Lord.

Try melody--try singing.  If you cannot sing aloud, sing in your heart- "singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord." (Ephesians 5:19) 

Sometimes we cannot sing much, but we can look up to our God and say a word or two.  He calls that little word a song. ". . . in the night His song shall be with me, and my prayer unto the God of my life."  (Psalm 42:8)  Prayer is song to God. 

If you be tempted, rise on the wings of prayer to your Beloved, and He will take that poor little prayer and turn it into a song.  Fred Arnot, who was the Livingstone of Central Africa, wrote, "I am leaning never to be disappointed, but to praise."
Amy Carmichael

N.J. Hiebert - 8111  

May 10

When I consider Thy heavens, the work of Thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which Thou hast ordained; what is man, that Thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that Thou visitest him?  Psalm 8:3-4

We can look up to the heavens and see God's glory in the starry host.  We can also look around at nature - the changing seasons and see God's handiwork revealed in all its beauty and splendour.

One thing that surpasses it all is God's infinite love in sending His Son to become a man and to be our Saviour.  May our hearts be filled with Him today.
Jim Paul

There's the wonder of sunset at evening,
The wonder of sunrise I see;
But the wonder of wonders that fills my soul,
Is the wonder that God loves me.

There's the wonder of spring time and harvest,
The sky, the stars, and the sun;
But the wonder of wonders that thrills my soul,
Is a wonder that's just begun.
G. B. Shea

N.J. Hiebert - 8112  

May 11

"Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests, and said unto them, what will ye give me, and I will deliver Him (Jesus) unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver."  Matthew 26:14-15  

It was the utter lack of appreciation of the worth and work of the Shepherd that caused the loss to Israel of all that was lovely toward God, and of all that was so good and pleasant among His people.  (Zechariah 11:12-13)

Yes, thirty pieces of silver was the stipulated compensation for a slave (Exodus 21:32).  This was the very least value that could be set on the head of a human being. It was these thirty pieces of silver that marked Judas out as a despiser of God's Christ, and a traitor.

This act of callous blindness, putting the lowest price on the priceless love and service of the Best of heaven, was the calm and unnoticed act that blighted every beauty and every blessing of the favoured people.  It was the price of His worth in the minds of the priests as well.
Leonard Sheldrake 

A crowd of tourists contemplating a painting of Christ in Oxford College was stridently told by the guide,  "The original of this painting sold for 5000 pounds."  Without a moment's hesitation Mr. Harold St. John standing near by stepped forward and said very quietly, "Ladies and Gentlemen, may I say that the true Original of this painting was sold for 30 pieces of silver?"  After a moment's silence the crowd of people passed out of the gallery without another word.

Thirty pieces of silver for the Lord of life they gave:
Thirty pieces of silver - only the price of a slave -
But it was the priestly value of the Holy One of God:
They weighed it out in the temple, the price of the Saviour's blood.     
William Blane

N.J. Hiebert  - 8113

May 12

PATIENT SUFFERING

Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.  (3 John 2)

Joseph, being a prosperous man (Genesis 39:2), became a witness for the Lord in the house of bondage. His testimony, too, was the testimony of his life rather than his lips.  Potiphar was impressed by what he "saw" rather than by what he heard.

"His master saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord made all that he did to prosper in his hand,"  (Genesis 39:3).

Had Joseph been for ever complaining of his hard lot, or enlarging upon his high destiny, he would have been no witness for the Lord in the house of Potiphar.  The Egyptian cared nothing about his past, and, even if set before him, would comprehend nothing of his future, but his daily life of whole hearted attention to his duties Potiphar could see and appreciate.

Nor is it otherwise today.  For a Christian servant to be often grumbling at his lot before his unconverted master, and saying that the day is coming when he will judge the world  and even angels, would be wholly out of place. To an unconverted master it would not only be the wildest folly but also the grossest impertinence. To speak to the world of the glorious purposes of God is only "to cast pearls before swine" (Matthew 7:6). 

These are things totally beyond the comprehension of the natural man.  But to see a Christian servant living a quiet, consistent, uncomplaining life, in the faithful discharge of daily duties, is indeed a true witness for the Lord, and is something that the unconverted master can appreciate.  
Joseph - Hamilton Smith 

N.J. Hiebert - 8114 

May 13

TO GOD BE THE GLORY

I will extol Thee, my God, O King; and I will bless Thy name forever and ever.  Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; and His greatness is unsearchable.  One generation shall praise Thy works to another, and shall declare Thy mighty acts.  Psalm 145:1,3-4.  

It was hard to discourage Fanny Crosby.  Joy was a characteristic of her life.  When English hymn writer Frances Havergal asked someone about Crosby, she received the reply, "She is a blind lady whose heart can see splendidly in the sunshine of God's love."

Crosby herself acknowledged, "Darkness may throw a shadow over my outer vision, but there is no cloud that can keep the sunlight of hope from a trustful soul."

Probably written in 1872, this song was taken to England by Ira Sankey, who led the singing for D. L. Moody's evangelistic campaigns.
The One Year Book of Hymns

To God be the glory - great things He hath done!
So loved He the world that He gave us His Son,
Who yielded His life an atonement for sin,
 And opened the life-gate that all may go in.

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the earth hear His voice!
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the people rejoice!
O come to the Father through Jesus the Son,
And give Him the glory - great things He hath done!

O perfect redemption, the purchase of blood!
To every believer the promise of God;
The vilest offender who truly believes,
That moment from Jesus a pardon receives.

Great things He hath taught us, great things He hath done,
And great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son;
But purer, and higher, and greater will be
Our wonder, our transport,  when Jesus we see.
Fanny J. Crosby  (1820 - 1915)

N.J. Hiebert - 8115  

May 14