One day, as I was passing into a field, this sentence fell upon my soul: ‘Thy righteousness is in heaven.’ And with the eyes of my soul, I saw Jesus at the Father’s right hand. ‘There,’ I said, ‘is my righteousness!’ So that wherever I was or whatever I was doing, God could not say to me, ‘Where is your righteousness?’ For it is always right before him.
I saw that it is not my good frame of heart that made my righteousness better, nor yet my bad frame that made my righteousness worse, for my righteousness IS Christ. Now my chains fell off indeed. My temptations fled away, and I lived sweetly at peace with God.
Now I could look from myself to him and could reckon that all my character was like the coins a rich man carries in his pocket when all his gold is safe in a trunk at home. Oh I saw that my gold was indeed in a trunk at home, in Christ my Lord. Now Christ was all: my righteousness, sanctification, redemption.
- John Bunyan
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Praising God
“Sing forth the honour of his name, make his praise glorious” Psalm 66:2
It is not left to our own option whether we shall praise God or not. Praise is God's most righteous due and every Christian, as the recipient of His grace, is bound to praise God day to day. It is true that we have not an authoritative formula for daily praise and no commandment prescribing certain hours for song and thanksgiving. But the law written upon the heart teaches us that it is right to praise God. The unwritten mandate comes to us with as much force as if it had been recorded on the tables of stone or handed to us from the top of thundering Mt. Sinai. Yes, it is the Christian's duty to praise God. It is not only a pleasurable exercise, but it is the absolute obligation of his life.
Do not think, you who are cast down or under trials, that you are guiltless regarding this, or imagine that you can discharge your duty to the Lord without songs of praise. You are bound by the bonds of His love to bless His name as long as you live and His praise should continually be in your mouth, for you are blessed, in order that you may bless Him: "This people have I formed for myself; they shall show forth my praise"; if you do not praise God, you are not bringing forth the fruit which He, as the divine Husbandman, has a right to expect at your hands and your voice. Let not your harp, then, hang on the willows, but take it down and strive with a grateful heart to bring forth its loudest music. Arise and chant His praise with every morning's dawn. Lift up your notes of thanksgiving and let every setting sun be followed by your song. Girdle the earth with your praises and surround it with an atmosphere of melody. God Himself will hearken from heaven and accept your music.
-- C. H. Spurgeon
What would happen in our lives if we began to discipline ourselves every five minutes or even every fifteen minutes, to give thanks and praise to the Lord with our voice? Just to stop, open our mouths, and give Him praise and thanks? The Lord, through the Psalmist, said, "Whoso offers praise glorifies Me." This must surely mean that when I open my mouth and offer praise and thanksgiving (not just doing it in my mind), I am directly and literally glorifying God.
I have seen opportunities open up to share the gospel, when, at the times I am asked how I am doing or am I having a good day, I respond with, "Yes, praise God; He has been good to me today; in fact, could I share a neat thing the Bible says, 'A man can receive nothing except it be given to Him from heaven'. So the reason my day is good is because God is being good and very gracious." People don't know how to respond to that. Some don't care, but some open up to talk. I have had full conversations about Christ with waiters or waitresses in restaurants simply because I chose to give thanks and praise to God as a result of their normal questions. It is really true--"Whoso offers praise glorifies Me."
- Mack Tomlinson
It is not left to our own option whether we shall praise God or not. Praise is God's most righteous due and every Christian, as the recipient of His grace, is bound to praise God day to day. It is true that we have not an authoritative formula for daily praise and no commandment prescribing certain hours for song and thanksgiving. But the law written upon the heart teaches us that it is right to praise God. The unwritten mandate comes to us with as much force as if it had been recorded on the tables of stone or handed to us from the top of thundering Mt. Sinai. Yes, it is the Christian's duty to praise God. It is not only a pleasurable exercise, but it is the absolute obligation of his life.
Do not think, you who are cast down or under trials, that you are guiltless regarding this, or imagine that you can discharge your duty to the Lord without songs of praise. You are bound by the bonds of His love to bless His name as long as you live and His praise should continually be in your mouth, for you are blessed, in order that you may bless Him: "This people have I formed for myself; they shall show forth my praise"; if you do not praise God, you are not bringing forth the fruit which He, as the divine Husbandman, has a right to expect at your hands and your voice. Let not your harp, then, hang on the willows, but take it down and strive with a grateful heart to bring forth its loudest music. Arise and chant His praise with every morning's dawn. Lift up your notes of thanksgiving and let every setting sun be followed by your song. Girdle the earth with your praises and surround it with an atmosphere of melody. God Himself will hearken from heaven and accept your music.
-- C. H. Spurgeon
What would happen in our lives if we began to discipline ourselves every five minutes or even every fifteen minutes, to give thanks and praise to the Lord with our voice? Just to stop, open our mouths, and give Him praise and thanks? The Lord, through the Psalmist, said, "Whoso offers praise glorifies Me." This must surely mean that when I open my mouth and offer praise and thanksgiving (not just doing it in my mind), I am directly and literally glorifying God.
I have seen opportunities open up to share the gospel, when, at the times I am asked how I am doing or am I having a good day, I respond with, "Yes, praise God; He has been good to me today; in fact, could I share a neat thing the Bible says, 'A man can receive nothing except it be given to Him from heaven'. So the reason my day is good is because God is being good and very gracious." People don't know how to respond to that. Some don't care, but some open up to talk. I have had full conversations about Christ with waiters or waitresses in restaurants simply because I chose to give thanks and praise to God as a result of their normal questions. It is really true--"Whoso offers praise glorifies Me."
- Mack Tomlinson
Friday, October 2, 2009
How to Hear Sermons
Our Lord cautioned His people to take heed to what they hear. Nothing can be more necessary than to be on guard against error. But the caution how we hear was also necessary for the following reasons:
1. Because many hear sermons in a wrong way and with wrong attitudes.
Many are careless hearers by allowing their thoughts to roam toward other things during the preaching. Many also are critical, fault-finding hearers, and then many are carnal hearers and will not hear anything that rebukes them, makes them uncomfortable, or condemns them. So we all should take heed what we hear and how we hear.
2. Because God Himself speaks to us through the preacher.
True ministers are ambassadors for God and speak in Christ's authority. So what judgment should we expect if we neglect or despise their message?
3. Because every sermon increases either our salvation or condemnation.
Obeying our Lord's Caution
A humble mind will naturally receive instruction in a proper way. We should hear with wisdom and have our minds open to conviction. We should receive the Word in an honest and good heart and with meekness; we cannot hope to be profited if we do not cultivate this attitude.
We should hear with a desire to fully be benefited and helped. The Word of God is profitable for many blessed purposes; yet it cannot be serviceable to us if it is not received in faith. But when it is applied to the soul, its operation is very powerful. We should therefore at all times apply it to ourselves.
We should also hear the truth with humble dependence upon God's Spirit. It is God alone who teaches us to spiritually benefit from the truth; it is to Him, therefore, that we should look to the teaching of the Holy Spirit.
So, in relation to hearing the Word of God preached, our hearts should have the attitude and prayerfulness of the old Litany: "That it may please You, Lord, to give to all thy people an increase of grace, to hear meekly the Word, to receive it with pure affection, and to bring forth the fruits of the Spirit".
- Charles Simeon
1. Because many hear sermons in a wrong way and with wrong attitudes.
Many are careless hearers by allowing their thoughts to roam toward other things during the preaching. Many also are critical, fault-finding hearers, and then many are carnal hearers and will not hear anything that rebukes them, makes them uncomfortable, or condemns them. So we all should take heed what we hear and how we hear.
2. Because God Himself speaks to us through the preacher.
True ministers are ambassadors for God and speak in Christ's authority. So what judgment should we expect if we neglect or despise their message?
3. Because every sermon increases either our salvation or condemnation.
Obeying our Lord's Caution
A humble mind will naturally receive instruction in a proper way. We should hear with wisdom and have our minds open to conviction. We should receive the Word in an honest and good heart and with meekness; we cannot hope to be profited if we do not cultivate this attitude.
We should hear with a desire to fully be benefited and helped. The Word of God is profitable for many blessed purposes; yet it cannot be serviceable to us if it is not received in faith. But when it is applied to the soul, its operation is very powerful. We should therefore at all times apply it to ourselves.
We should also hear the truth with humble dependence upon God's Spirit. It is God alone who teaches us to spiritually benefit from the truth; it is to Him, therefore, that we should look to the teaching of the Holy Spirit.
So, in relation to hearing the Word of God preached, our hearts should have the attitude and prayerfulness of the old Litany: "That it may please You, Lord, to give to all thy people an increase of grace, to hear meekly the Word, to receive it with pure affection, and to bring forth the fruits of the Spirit".
- Charles Simeon
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Deep Spiritual Struggles Are Often Right on Schedule
Recently, I received a letter from a godly, hungry, humble, and dear brother in the Lord who I have fellowship with regularly. With his permission, I want to share it with you and my response.
Dear Mack,
Over the weekend, I dove into John Bunyan's book, Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners, after seeing you mention it in our correspondence from last week. I wanted to share how I felt after reading it, and along with my wife, I feel you are the only other brother I can really share something like this with, in the hope of getting godly counsel.
The testimony of Bunyan's struggles prior to and after his conversion left me feeling uneasy, uncertain, and troubled about the state of my soul. This is not to say it wasn't a blessing, because much of what I read caused me to rejoice, though it was overruled by this sense of weight on soul. I know this might not be the clearest representation, but some of it is hard to put into words.
Philippians 2:12-13 'Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence, but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure'.
That verse in particular has been sounding in my mind for the past couple of days again and again. I am troubled about myself, my sin, and my weakness to do anything good. I feel crippled and helpless at times. The uneasiness comes from me looking back over my life. I had prayed with my pastor in his office at a Baptist church in December of 1997 to be saved. I have grown up most of my Christian life hearing his preaching and never really getting even a small picture of the "whole counsel of God" until my desire was ignighted a year ago or so. I have often thought about how maybe I wasn't really converted at 17 years old....maybe it was later on or even much later on (like a year or two ago). Then as I read Bunyan's testimony, seeing his struggles, his fight, but more so the sweetness of the numerous occasions where God illuminated things to him, I began to be greatly concerned, feeling like I have not had such experiences as he had.
I don't want to get into trouble by comparing my life solely with his life, but at the same time I feel a sadness that most of what I have learned is from reading the Scriptures and books; I do not really recall a time where I felt as though the Lord was personally teaching me, revealing or illuminating Scripture to me. Maybe I am off base, as I do feel I have learned much, but still see it as though I learned it from men. I realize also that there are Christians who speak the language very well and know the doctrines, even the doctrines of grace, yet are lost and without Christ. I do not want to be among that number.
Part of my concern and troubled feeling has to do with my life, my fruit...I feel like if I really believed the gospel, the realities / beauties of heaven, the horrors of hell, my union with Christ, and my position in the family of God, then my life would be radically different. I would not worry myself with the temporal, I would surrender my life to a much greater extent, I would give all away, I would be spent for the work of the kingdom, leaving nothing on the table and never looking back.
Even this morning, when I began to pray, I found it hard to pray...I feel like I can't even pray right at times. I also saw in Bunyan's book more of the craftiness of the devil than I had ever considered. I sure do not want to be deceived in thinking I have been born again and I sure do not want to be deceived or "cooled" as Bunyan described so that I am ineffective.
I am nearly to tears, as I type this, as I feel my heart only longs to be with the Lord, but I am utterly incapable of growing, believing, or surrendering. I don't want to be a fake. I know He must do this, but I feel alone right now. Thanks for listening and being there for me, brother. If you have any advice, I would be grateful.
My Reply
My brother,
Your letter is real, special, and very important because it addresses the deepest issues of the spiritual and emotional struggles many Christians go through when they really begin to see and experience the deeper workings of God in their soul.
One thing we need to realize is that we (meaning most believers during the 20th and 21st centuries) have grown up in a shallow atmosphere regarding the depth of spiritual reality that happened in previous centuries. When we first become stirred and hungry for God in a real way, and then begin to read the lives of Christians from the past and see their experiences, we suddenly see that what they went through is often foreign to those of our shallow generation. We read of the deep struggles and spiritual battles of a Bunyan, a David Brainerd, a Robert Murray M'Cheyne or a Jim Elliott, and we begin immediately to say to ourselves, "I've never experienced that; I've never known that kind of conviction of sin, I've never felt the depths that he felt; God has never been that real to me--I must not be a real Christian because I've never experienced what he's talking about."
So when we then begin to compare our experience with theirs, it is here that we can fall into a subtle trap--that of thinking that all Christian experience, if it is genuine, will somehow be uniform--that is, the same always for every Christian. It is true that such struggles do come to lost people when God begins to draw them to Christ and show them they are lost. But also we must realize that different people can and do have differing levels of understanding and experience in their conversion experience, and in their s anctification, growth, and spiritual experiences. There is no set pattern. Some people are overwhelmed mainly by the deepest guilt and sense of evil within them, and feel the wrath of God is going to swallow them up, and are utterly crushed by a sense of vileness and unworthiness. Others are overwhelmed by a sweet sense of the love and free mercy of God in Christ and how free God's grace is, and suddenly the goodness of God deeply leads them to repentance.
It is true that there will be conviction, surrender, self-denial, etc in every genuine conversion, but the level, depth, degree, and even the particular truth that is made real at such times can vary with every Christian. There is no set experience or even one particular emphasis the Holy Spirit always uses in a person's conversion and deeper growth. If the work of the Spirit is compared to the wind, as Jesus told Nicodemus, then there can be gentle breezes at times, stronger currents at times, then even stronger winds, and then sometimes powerful gales of His workings. His work is not uniform or static, though its nature and essence will always be the same. Wind is always wind, whether a small gentle breeze or a tornado or hurricane. The quantity, degrees of intensity, and the resulting effects may vary, but it is still wind. This is God's way with the workings of the Holy Spirit in the souls of men. Experience may vary widely and often does, and we should not compare ourselves with others, which is often unwise and can bring us into bondage and defeat.
Many true Christians do not know exactly when they were saved; the time you think it may have happened is not nearly as important as the reality that a real change has occurred; we don't have to know when--we just have to be able to truly say, "Once I was blind, but now I see." Few people have the kind of experience Bunyan had; if all were measured by his experience, many true Christians would have to be judged as being still unconverted.
The real issue now is, as stated in your own words--"your desire was ignited"; are you now being taught of God? Is truth being made real to your heart that you now rejoice in? Do you hate sin and love the Saviour? It is not just truth to the mind that we intellectually see, but truth ignites our affections and our hearts love Christ and all His truth.
What you are going through is what Jesus meant when he talked about "blessed are the poor in spirit"; the fact is, deep spiritual struggles are often right on schedule in our lives and are the greatest proof one can have of real grace.
The true Christian often feels the way you have expressed; we mourn over our lack, we grieve over our need, we feel utterly incapable--this sense of our utter helplessness in ourselves drives us to Christ and casts us upon Him alone; Unbelievers don't care about holiness or any of these realities; they are not concerned about their hearts, only in the sense of how much more sin they can have; it's the godly ones, real Christians, who feel these things and grieve, become concerned, and then fight the good fight of faith.
What you feel and are going through is one of the best signs you could have--no unbeliever even cares at all about any of these things.
So keep seeking the Lord, keep praying, cry out to Him for grace; He's teaching you to walk by faith, not feelings, etc;
Even the godliest Christians there are often don't feel like praying and feel coldness at times; the very fact that a person is concerned about it and wants to be different is the great sign of having a heart for the Father;
Let's keep talking about this as you need to;
Read the Psalms and pray them; and seek the Lord!
I love you, brother
Mack
Dear Mack,
Over the weekend, I dove into John Bunyan's book, Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners, after seeing you mention it in our correspondence from last week. I wanted to share how I felt after reading it, and along with my wife, I feel you are the only other brother I can really share something like this with, in the hope of getting godly counsel.
The testimony of Bunyan's struggles prior to and after his conversion left me feeling uneasy, uncertain, and troubled about the state of my soul. This is not to say it wasn't a blessing, because much of what I read caused me to rejoice, though it was overruled by this sense of weight on soul. I know this might not be the clearest representation, but some of it is hard to put into words.
Philippians 2:12-13 'Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence, but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure'.
That verse in particular has been sounding in my mind for the past couple of days again and again. I am troubled about myself, my sin, and my weakness to do anything good. I feel crippled and helpless at times. The uneasiness comes from me looking back over my life. I had prayed with my pastor in his office at a Baptist church in December of 1997 to be saved. I have grown up most of my Christian life hearing his preaching and never really getting even a small picture of the "whole counsel of God" until my desire was ignighted a year ago or so. I have often thought about how maybe I wasn't really converted at 17 years old....maybe it was later on or even much later on (like a year or two ago). Then as I read Bunyan's testimony, seeing his struggles, his fight, but more so the sweetness of the numerous occasions where God illuminated things to him, I began to be greatly concerned, feeling like I have not had such experiences as he had.
I don't want to get into trouble by comparing my life solely with his life, but at the same time I feel a sadness that most of what I have learned is from reading the Scriptures and books; I do not really recall a time where I felt as though the Lord was personally teaching me, revealing or illuminating Scripture to me. Maybe I am off base, as I do feel I have learned much, but still see it as though I learned it from men. I realize also that there are Christians who speak the language very well and know the doctrines, even the doctrines of grace, yet are lost and without Christ. I do not want to be among that number.
Part of my concern and troubled feeling has to do with my life, my fruit...I feel like if I really believed the gospel, the realities / beauties of heaven, the horrors of hell, my union with Christ, and my position in the family of God, then my life would be radically different. I would not worry myself with the temporal, I would surrender my life to a much greater extent, I would give all away, I would be spent for the work of the kingdom, leaving nothing on the table and never looking back.
Even this morning, when I began to pray, I found it hard to pray...I feel like I can't even pray right at times. I also saw in Bunyan's book more of the craftiness of the devil than I had ever considered. I sure do not want to be deceived in thinking I have been born again and I sure do not want to be deceived or "cooled" as Bunyan described so that I am ineffective.
I am nearly to tears, as I type this, as I feel my heart only longs to be with the Lord, but I am utterly incapable of growing, believing, or surrendering. I don't want to be a fake. I know He must do this, but I feel alone right now. Thanks for listening and being there for me, brother. If you have any advice, I would be grateful.
My Reply
My brother,
Your letter is real, special, and very important because it addresses the deepest issues of the spiritual and emotional struggles many Christians go through when they really begin to see and experience the deeper workings of God in their soul.
One thing we need to realize is that we (meaning most believers during the 20th and 21st centuries) have grown up in a shallow atmosphere regarding the depth of spiritual reality that happened in previous centuries. When we first become stirred and hungry for God in a real way, and then begin to read the lives of Christians from the past and see their experiences, we suddenly see that what they went through is often foreign to those of our shallow generation. We read of the deep struggles and spiritual battles of a Bunyan, a David Brainerd, a Robert Murray M'Cheyne or a Jim Elliott, and we begin immediately to say to ourselves, "I've never experienced that; I've never known that kind of conviction of sin, I've never felt the depths that he felt; God has never been that real to me--I must not be a real Christian because I've never experienced what he's talking about."
So when we then begin to compare our experience with theirs, it is here that we can fall into a subtle trap--that of thinking that all Christian experience, if it is genuine, will somehow be uniform--that is, the same always for every Christian. It is true that such struggles do come to lost people when God begins to draw them to Christ and show them they are lost. But also we must realize that different people can and do have differing levels of understanding and experience in their conversion experience, and in their s anctification, growth, and spiritual experiences. There is no set pattern. Some people are overwhelmed mainly by the deepest guilt and sense of evil within them, and feel the wrath of God is going to swallow them up, and are utterly crushed by a sense of vileness and unworthiness. Others are overwhelmed by a sweet sense of the love and free mercy of God in Christ and how free God's grace is, and suddenly the goodness of God deeply leads them to repentance.
It is true that there will be conviction, surrender, self-denial, etc in every genuine conversion, but the level, depth, degree, and even the particular truth that is made real at such times can vary with every Christian. There is no set experience or even one particular emphasis the Holy Spirit always uses in a person's conversion and deeper growth. If the work of the Spirit is compared to the wind, as Jesus told Nicodemus, then there can be gentle breezes at times, stronger currents at times, then even stronger winds, and then sometimes powerful gales of His workings. His work is not uniform or static, though its nature and essence will always be the same. Wind is always wind, whether a small gentle breeze or a tornado or hurricane. The quantity, degrees of intensity, and the resulting effects may vary, but it is still wind. This is God's way with the workings of the Holy Spirit in the souls of men. Experience may vary widely and often does, and we should not compare ourselves with others, which is often unwise and can bring us into bondage and defeat.
Many true Christians do not know exactly when they were saved; the time you think it may have happened is not nearly as important as the reality that a real change has occurred; we don't have to know when--we just have to be able to truly say, "Once I was blind, but now I see." Few people have the kind of experience Bunyan had; if all were measured by his experience, many true Christians would have to be judged as being still unconverted.
The real issue now is, as stated in your own words--"your desire was ignited"; are you now being taught of God? Is truth being made real to your heart that you now rejoice in? Do you hate sin and love the Saviour? It is not just truth to the mind that we intellectually see, but truth ignites our affections and our hearts love Christ and all His truth.
What you are going through is what Jesus meant when he talked about "blessed are the poor in spirit"; the fact is, deep spiritual struggles are often right on schedule in our lives and are the greatest proof one can have of real grace.
The true Christian often feels the way you have expressed; we mourn over our lack, we grieve over our need, we feel utterly incapable--this sense of our utter helplessness in ourselves drives us to Christ and casts us upon Him alone; Unbelievers don't care about holiness or any of these realities; they are not concerned about their hearts, only in the sense of how much more sin they can have; it's the godly ones, real Christians, who feel these things and grieve, become concerned, and then fight the good fight of faith.
What you feel and are going through is one of the best signs you could have--no unbeliever even cares at all about any of these things.
So keep seeking the Lord, keep praying, cry out to Him for grace; He's teaching you to walk by faith, not feelings, etc;
Even the godliest Christians there are often don't feel like praying and feel coldness at times; the very fact that a person is concerned about it and wants to be different is the great sign of having a heart for the Father;
Let's keep talking about this as you need to;
Read the Psalms and pray them; and seek the Lord!
I love you, brother
Mack
Beware of Doubting His Love
"He who spared not His own Son but freely gave Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?" Romans 8:32
If God has given His Son to die for us, let us beware of doubting His kindness and love in any painful providence of our daily life. Let us never allow ourselves to think hard thoughts of God or suppose that He can give us anything that is not really for our good.
Let us see, in every sorrow and trouble of our earthly pilgrimage, the hand of Him who gave Christ to die for our sins. That hand can never smite us except in love! He who gave His Son to die for our sins will never withhold anything from us that is really for our good. Let us lean back on this thought and say to ourselves in the darkest hour of trial, 'This also is ordered by Him who gave Christ to die for my sins. It cannot be wrong! It is done in love! It must be well'.
- J. C. Ryle
If God has given His Son to die for us, let us beware of doubting His kindness and love in any painful providence of our daily life. Let us never allow ourselves to think hard thoughts of God or suppose that He can give us anything that is not really for our good.
Let us see, in every sorrow and trouble of our earthly pilgrimage, the hand of Him who gave Christ to die for our sins. That hand can never smite us except in love! He who gave His Son to die for our sins will never withhold anything from us that is really for our good. Let us lean back on this thought and say to ourselves in the darkest hour of trial, 'This also is ordered by Him who gave Christ to die for my sins. It cannot be wrong! It is done in love! It must be well'.
- J. C. Ryle
Monday, September 28, 2009
The Straight Gate and the Narrow Way
"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction--and many go in there; but small is the gate and narrow is the way that leads to life--and few there are that find it." -- Matthew 7:13-14
alking along the narrow way means for the heart and life to be constantly regulated by Christ's holy teaching. It denotes a steady perseverance in faith and obedience to the Lord Jesus, overcoming all opposition, and rejecting every temptation to forsake the path of fidelity to Him. It is called the "Narrow Way" because all self-pleasing and self-seeking is shut out.
It is right here that the testing point is reached. To the natural man, it is much easier and far more pleasant to indulge the flesh and follow our worldly propensities. The Broad Road, where the flesh is indulged, is easy, smooth, and attractive! But it ends in destruction! Though the narrow way leads to eternal life, only FEW are walking on it. Remember--it was the Lord Jesus Himself who said that.
Multitudes make a profession and claim to be saved, but their lives give no evidence that they are "strangers and pilgrims" here on earth, and that their "treasure" is in heaven. They are afraid of being thought narrow and strict. Satan has deceived them--they imagine that they can get to heaven by an easier route than by denying self, taking up their cross daily, and following Christ!
There are multitudes of 'religionists' who are attempting to combine the two "ways," making the best of both worlds and serving two masters. They wish to gratify self in time and enjoy the happiness of heaven in eternity. Crowds of nominal Christians are deluding themselves into believing that they can do so, but they are terribly deceived!
The reason why so few will enter eternal life is because the multitudes are not seeking it in the way of God's appointing. None seek it aright except those who pass through the narrow gate and who, despite many discouragements and falls, continue to press forward along the narrow way.
- A. W. Pink
alking along the narrow way means for the heart and life to be constantly regulated by Christ's holy teaching. It denotes a steady perseverance in faith and obedience to the Lord Jesus, overcoming all opposition, and rejecting every temptation to forsake the path of fidelity to Him. It is called the "Narrow Way" because all self-pleasing and self-seeking is shut out.
It is right here that the testing point is reached. To the natural man, it is much easier and far more pleasant to indulge the flesh and follow our worldly propensities. The Broad Road, where the flesh is indulged, is easy, smooth, and attractive! But it ends in destruction! Though the narrow way leads to eternal life, only FEW are walking on it. Remember--it was the Lord Jesus Himself who said that.
Multitudes make a profession and claim to be saved, but their lives give no evidence that they are "strangers and pilgrims" here on earth, and that their "treasure" is in heaven. They are afraid of being thought narrow and strict. Satan has deceived them--they imagine that they can get to heaven by an easier route than by denying self, taking up their cross daily, and following Christ!
There are multitudes of 'religionists' who are attempting to combine the two "ways," making the best of both worlds and serving two masters. They wish to gratify self in time and enjoy the happiness of heaven in eternity. Crowds of nominal Christians are deluding themselves into believing that they can do so, but they are terribly deceived!
The reason why so few will enter eternal life is because the multitudes are not seeking it in the way of God's appointing. None seek it aright except those who pass through the narrow gate and who, despite many discouragements and falls, continue to press forward along the narrow way.
- A. W. Pink
Sunday, September 27, 2009
All Things
"We know that all things work together for good, to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." Romans 8:28
All the afflictions, all the temptations, all the oppressions, all the oppositions, and all the persecutions which comes to a Christian, shall work for his good.
Every cross, every loss, and every disease which comes to the believer shall work for his good. Every device, every snare, every deceit, every stratagem, and every enterprise of Satan against the saint of God shall work for his good.
They shall all help to make him more humble, more holy, more heavenly, more spiritual, more faithful, more fruitful, and more watchful.
Every prosperity and every adversity; every storm and every calm; every bitter and every sweet; every cross and every comfort--shall ALL work for your good, if you love God and are among the called according to His purpose.
When God gives a mercy, that shall work for your good and when God takes away a mercy, that shall also work for your good.
Yes, even all the falls and all the sins of the saints shall work for their good. Oh, the care, the fear, the watchfulness, the tenderness, the zeal, which God raises in the souls of His saints by their very falls! Oh the hatred, the indignation, and the detestation, which God raises in the hearts of His children against sin by their very falling into sin!
Oh what love to Christ, what thankfulness for Christ, what admiration of Christ, what cleaving to Christ, what exalting of Christ, what drawings from Christ's grace are saints led to by their very falls!
It is the glory of God's holiness that He can turn spiritual diseases into holy remedies! He can turn soul poisons into heavenly cordials! He can prevent sin by sin, and cure falling by falling!
O Christian! What, though friends and family frown upon you, what though enemies are plotting and conspiring against you, what though needs, like armed men, are breaking in upon you, what though men rage, and devils roar against you, what though sickness is devastating your family, what though death stands every day at your elbow--yet there is no reason for you to fear nor faint, because all these things shall work for your good! Yes, there is wonderful cause of joy and rejoicing in all the afflictions and tribulations which come upon you, considering that they shall ALL work for your good.
O Christians! I am afraid, I am afraid, that you do not run as often as you should to the breasts of this promise, nor draw that sweetness and comfort from it, that it would yield, and that your circumstances may require. "We know that all things work together for good, to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." But the condition of God's people calls for the strongest encouragements and the choicest and sweetest comforts.
- Thomas Brooks
All the afflictions, all the temptations, all the oppressions, all the oppositions, and all the persecutions which comes to a Christian, shall work for his good.
Every cross, every loss, and every disease which comes to the believer shall work for his good. Every device, every snare, every deceit, every stratagem, and every enterprise of Satan against the saint of God shall work for his good.
They shall all help to make him more humble, more holy, more heavenly, more spiritual, more faithful, more fruitful, and more watchful.
Every prosperity and every adversity; every storm and every calm; every bitter and every sweet; every cross and every comfort--shall ALL work for your good, if you love God and are among the called according to His purpose.
When God gives a mercy, that shall work for your good and when God takes away a mercy, that shall also work for your good.
Yes, even all the falls and all the sins of the saints shall work for their good. Oh, the care, the fear, the watchfulness, the tenderness, the zeal, which God raises in the souls of His saints by their very falls! Oh the hatred, the indignation, and the detestation, which God raises in the hearts of His children against sin by their very falling into sin!
Oh what love to Christ, what thankfulness for Christ, what admiration of Christ, what cleaving to Christ, what exalting of Christ, what drawings from Christ's grace are saints led to by their very falls!
It is the glory of God's holiness that He can turn spiritual diseases into holy remedies! He can turn soul poisons into heavenly cordials! He can prevent sin by sin, and cure falling by falling!
O Christian! What, though friends and family frown upon you, what though enemies are plotting and conspiring against you, what though needs, like armed men, are breaking in upon you, what though men rage, and devils roar against you, what though sickness is devastating your family, what though death stands every day at your elbow--yet there is no reason for you to fear nor faint, because all these things shall work for your good! Yes, there is wonderful cause of joy and rejoicing in all the afflictions and tribulations which come upon you, considering that they shall ALL work for your good.
O Christians! I am afraid, I am afraid, that you do not run as often as you should to the breasts of this promise, nor draw that sweetness and comfort from it, that it would yield, and that your circumstances may require. "We know that all things work together for good, to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose." But the condition of God's people calls for the strongest encouragements and the choicest and sweetest comforts.
- Thomas Brooks
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