"The difficulty we modern Christians face is not misunderstanding the Bible, but persuading our untamed hearts to accept its plain instructions. Our problem is to get the consent of our world-loving minds to make Jesus Lord in fact as well as in word. For it is one thing to say, 'Lord, Lord,' and quite another thing to obey the Lord’s commandments. We may sing, 'Crown Him Lord of all,' and rejoice in the tones of the loud-sounding organ and the deep melody of harmonious voices, but still we have done nothing until we have left the world and set our faces toward the city of God in hard practical reality. When faith becomes obedience then it is true faith indeed."

- A.W. Tozer

"Why do you call Me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?...Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven...If you love Me, you will keep My commandments...Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him."

- Jesus Christ (Luke 6:46; Matthew 7:21; John 14:15,21)

 

"The secret to the true Christian life is exchanging our own lives for the life of Jesus Christ; allowing our bodies to be completely overtaken by a foreign power – the very Spirit of Almighty God. And declaring along with Paul, '…it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.'

Most of us stand in the way of letting Christ truly live in and through us.

Instead of giving Him the ownership papers to our home – our body, mind, and spirit – we treat Him like a hired servant.

We come to Him when we need answers; we expect Him to provide us with quick solutions to our problems; we demand that He meet our needs and follow our self-made agendas. And when He doesn’t respond, we quickly dismiss Him and take matters into our own hands. We are led by our own whims and desires. We make our own choices, and then ask God to bless them.

We often believe we are submitted to God’s will, but in reality we expect Him to bend to our own plans. We follow our own hearts and desires, and then ask God to make our spiritual lives vibrant in the midst of it all.

But the true Christian life doesn’t work that way. When we exchange our lives for Christ’s, we lay our own agendas, dreams, desires, and plans at His feet. We get completely out of the way, and allow Him to live His life through us in whatever way He chooses.

This is a difficult life-change to make. For our entire lives, we have been the sole rulers of our internal home. We are used to making the decisions. We are used to calling the shots. But now we must take a lower position.

Our entire home – our body, mind, and spirit – now belongs to a new Ruler. We turn the ownership papers over to a new Master. He is not our servant; we are His servant. We come and go as He commands.

Even after two years in Christian ministry, Eric and I were amazed to discover how much of our lives were still under our control. We had been trying to overcome spiritual struggles using our own strength and willpower. Our joy and peace were conditional upon our circumstances. And as a result, our Christianity mirrored the defeated, mediocre spiritual existence of our modern times.

Before we were married, we had given God the pen to write our love story. But now we knew we must allow Him to write our life story. We needed to give up our entire existence, so that Christ could live through us.

And once we exchanged our lives for His, things began to dramatically change.

The still small whisper of God’s Spirit began directing our steps, rather than our own logic and human reasoning. The supernatural power of God’s Spirit began challenging and fortifying us to conquer sin and live lives that radiantly reflected the righteousness of Christ. And though that refining fire was painful, we gained the unquenchable joy that comes from a cleansed inner life."

- Leslie Ludy

http://setapartgirl.com/Devotional/Archive.html

 

"Take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God."—Ephesians 6:17.

"To be a Christan is to be a warrior. The good soldier of Jesus Christ must not expect to find ease in this world: it is a battle-field. Neither must he reckon upon the friendship of the world; for that would be enmity against God...Difficulties meet us even in standing our ground; for the apostle, two or three times, bids us—"Stand." In the rush of the fight, men are apt to be carried off their legs. If they can keep their footing, they will be victorious; but if they are borne down by the rush of their adversaries, everything is lost. You are to put on the heavenly armor in order that you may stand; and you will need it to maintain the position in which your Captain has placed you. If even to stand requires all this care, judge ye what the warfare must be! The apostle also speaks of withstanding as well as standing. We are not merely to defend, but also to assail. It is not enough that you are not conquered; you have to conquer: and hence we find, that we are to take, not only a helmet to protect the head, but also a sword, with which to annoy the foe. Ours, therefore, is a stern conflict, standing and withstanding; and we shall want all the armor from the divine magazine, all the strength from the mighty God of Jacob.

It is clear from our text that our defense and our conquest must be obtained by sheer fighting. Many try compromise; but if you are a true Christian, you can never do this business well. The language of deceit fits not a holy tongue. The adversary is the father of lies, and those that are with him understand the art of equivocation; but saints abhor it....Beloved, the Spirit of God has war with the Amalek of evil and error from generation to generation. He will spare none of the evils which now pollute the nations; his sword will never be quiet till all these Canaanites are destroyed. The Holy Spirit glorifies Christ not only by what he reveals, but also by what he overturns. The strife may be weary, but it will be carried on from age to age, till the Lord Jesus shall appear; for ever shall the Spirit of God espouse the cause of love against hate, of truth against error, of holiness against sin, of Christ against Satan. He will win the day, and those who are with him shall in his might be more than conquerors. The Holy Spirit has proclaimed war, and wields a two-edged sword...

The Word, we say, is the only sword which the Spirit uses. I know the Holy Ghost uses gracious sermons; but it is only in proportion as they have the Word of God in them. I know the Holy Ghost uses religious books; but only so far as they are the Word of God told out in other language. Conviction, conversion, and consolation still are wrought, and only by the Word of God...All arts and sciences are perfectly known to him, and infinitely more than men can ever discover. Yet he will not use these things in this holy controversy. In the quarrel of his covenant he neither uses philosophy, nor science, nor rhetoric. In contending against the powers of darkness, "The sword of the Spirit is the Word of God." "It is written" is his master-stroke. Words which God has spoken by holy men of old, and has caused to be recorded on the sacred page—these are the battle-axe and weapons of war of his Spirit. This Book contains the Word of God, and is the Word of God; and this it is which the Holy Ghost judges to be so effectual a weapon against evil that he uses this, and this only, as his sword in the great conflict with the powers of darkness.

The Word is the sword of the Spirit because it is of his own making. He will not use a weapon of human workmanship, lest the sword boast itself against the hand that wields it. The Holy Ghost revealed the mind of God to the minds of holy men; he spake the word into their hearts, and thus he made them think as he would have them think and to write what he willed them to write: so that what they spoke and wrote was spoken and written as they were moved by the Holy Ghost....The Holy Ghost has made this Book himself: every portion of it bears his initial and impress; and thus he has a sword worthy of his own hand, a true Jerusalem blade of heavenly fabric. He delights to use a weapon so divinely made, and he does use it right gloriously...

...By this the elect of God are known—that they love the Word of God, and they have a reverence for it, and discern between it and the words of man. Notice the lambs in the field, just now; and there may be a thousand ewes and lambs; but every lamb finds out its own mother. So does a true-born child of God know where to go for the milk which is to nourish his soul. The sheep of Christ know the Shepherd's voice in the Word, and a stranger will they not follow, for they know not the voice of strangers. God's own people have discernment to discover and relish God's own Word. They will not be misled by the cunning craftiness of human devices. Saints know the Scriptures by inward instinct. The holy life, which God has infused into believers by his Spirit, loves the Scriptures, and learns how to use them for holy purposes."

- C.H. Spurgeon, 1891.

  

"A haunting line is found tucked away in the little prophecy of Hosea chapter 4 and verse 17, and it refers to Israel by the name Ephraim and it says this, "Ephraim is joined to idols," so says God. The next line, "Leave him alone." Sounds out of character for God, doesn't it? "Ephraim is joined to idols, bring him back," might sound a little more like God. "Let him alone?"

People and nations, even the covenant nation Israel can come to a point where they are abandoned by God. Jesus reiterated this in Matthew 15 when He confronted the Pharisees and then described them to the disciples. He said this, "They're blind leaders of the blind. Let them alone." When God lets you go, it's serious. When Jesus pronounces over you abandonment, it's serious.

Now I'm going to say something, you're going to have to hold on to your seat a little bit. I'm convinced beyond doubt that in this same sense, God has abandoned America. I know that's a strong thing to say and I'm going to show you why I believe you can see that clearly in Scripture.

Open your Bibles to Romans 1...Romans 1....

Here in Romans chapter 1, beginning in chapter 18 running to the end of the chapter, you have the most clear presentation of God abandoning a nation, what that looks like, what happens and why He does it. This is the most graphic and the most detailed and the most comprehensive discussion of what it means for a people, a society to be abandoned by God. And it perfectly describes the moral chaos in our own nation today....

We all understand eternal wrath, eschatological wrath, calamitous wrath, we all understand the...in the calamity of the Flood or God destroying Chorazin, Bethsaida, Capernaum, etc., etc. Throughout history these calamities continue to even happen and they all fit in the category of God's judgment of sin. But there's this other category of the wrath of abandonment, it is a form of God's wrath in which He lets go of a society and let's it catapult full speed without restraint in the direction of its own sinful desires and devices and choices. That's the wrath being described here. This is the cyclical reality of this wrath that has defined human history and will always until Jesus comes. As Paul said, in all the generations gone by, God permitted the nations to go their own way....

this massive concept of the wrath of abandonment I'm convinced is now at work in our society. We'd like to talk about the fact that America was founded on Christian principles and God was at the center of it, and all of that, whatever it might have been in our founding, it's no longer the way it is and I want to show you how you know that has happened...

There comes a time in a nation when God has had enough and He literally lets go and turns them over to the sentence that they have passed upon themselves by their incessant sinful choices. To see it another way, they are deprived of restraining grace....

The first thing you look for in a society you're trying to discern whether God has abandoned that society is whether or not that society has gone through a sexual revolution so that illicit sex, adultery, every form of immorality is accepted as normal in that society. And we're there.

The second step in the progression, verse 26, "God gave them over, not just to passions that are explicable because they're men and women, but to inexplicable degrading passions for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural." You know a society has been abandoned by God when it celebrates lesbian sex. God has given them over...gross affections, unnatural, unthinkable.

So you follow a sexual revolution with a homosexual revolution, and homosexuality becomes normalized. Verse 27 adds the male part, "In the same way the men abandon the natural function of the women burned in their desire toward one another.."....

interestingly enough, the Holy Spirit puts the women first here and the men after. Why? The Holy Spirit refers first to the degradation of women because they're usually the last to be affected in the decay of morals because their hearts are so naturally inclined toward a husband and toward the responsibility of nurturing children. But when they lead the parade, God has removed His restraint. And the amazing thing of it is this, verse 27, "The man abandoning the natural function of the women, burning in their desire toward one another, men with men, committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error." Right into this wrath of abandonment comes the wrath, the consequential wrath and even though it generates venereal disease and AIDS, they keep doing it. This is what step two looks like and we know this has come like a flood. But it's not the final step. The final step comes in verse 28, the middle of verse 28, "God gave them over to a depraved mind." 

Now the version of the Bible you have, I'm reading the New American Standard, might have a different translation for depraved, so let me tell you what the word means...non-functional. It doesn't work, useless, can't think, can't reason, can't comprehend. And you look at this world and you say, "Rampant sexual immorality, out of control, destroying people willy-nilly even in the church, even in the leadership of the church. Homosexuality, same thing, rampant, out of control, demanding to be accepted as normal and the society rushing to affirm that acceptance. Isn't there anybody in the system who would stand up and call this what it really is, a massive, moral disaster? Can't they see it? Can't they figure it out? No...no. First Corinthians 1 says, "Man by wisdom knew not God." Human wisdom just on its own doesn't get there. Then you add that the god of this world has blinded the minds of them that do not believe and you've got a compounding blindness. And then you add the fact that they are blinded by virtue of the sweeping, dominating elements of their culture and you're just not going to get anybody to rise up and take that position and have people rally around it. You're going to have more people in leadership in the country outing themselves as homosexuals. If you think you've seen a lot of that, you haven't seen any of it yet as it becomes more and more accepted...

This society will not tolerate you standing up and displaying righteous indignation against sin. How long is it going to be before if you preach against it in your pulpit the government is going to come in and tell you, you can't do that?...

What do you have to pray for? You have to pray for the Word of the living God to be proclaimed across this nation. And if it's not being proclaimed in churches, it's not going to be proclaimed anywhere else. This is not a time for weak men in weak ministries preaching weak messages. This is a time to call on God to raise up a generation of passionate faithful gracious loving preachers of the Word so that a nation can listen to God....

God only wants one thing out of a nation. Listen and believe this book. I really get grieved even when I hear evangelical people in the media and the public eye kind of equivocating about the clarity of the gospel. It's all we've got. Or about the clarity of what Scripture says. Your prayer and mine has to be that God would raise up faithful preachers and people who would proclaim His Word across this land. Pray for this generation of young men that God will call and shape and send, pray for pastors everywhere. Pray for lay people, for Christians to be bold. There's only one solution and that's the truth...the truth by which God saves, by which God sanctifies, and if this nation will respond and listen to His truth, God will open the flood gates. We might be the greatest recovery story in history. But there's no other way..."

- John MacArthur

 

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art.
Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

Be Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true Word;
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son;
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.

Be Thou my battle Shield, Sword for the fight;
Be Thou my Dignity, Thou my Delight;
Thou my soul’s Shelter, Thou my high Tower:
Raise Thou me heavenward, O Power of my power.

Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine Inheritance, now and always:
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

High King of Heaven, my victory won,
May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heaven’s Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all.

- Words: At­trib­ut­ed to Dal­lan For­gaill, 8th Cen­tu­ry...trans­lat­ed from an­cient Ir­ish to Eng­lish by Ma­ry E. Byrne...versed by El­ea­nor H. Hull

www.cyberhymnal.org

 

"Wherefore, girding up your loins," "serve the Lord in fear" and truth, as those who have forsaken the vain, empty talk and error of the multitude, and "believed in Him who raised up our Lord Jesus Christ from the dead, and gave Him glory," and a throne at His right hand. To Him all things" in heaven and on earth are subject. Him every spirit serves. He comes as the Judge of the living and the dead. His blood will God require of those who do not believe in Him. But He who raised Him up from the dead will raise up us also, if we do His will, and walk in His commandments, and love what He loved, keeping ourselves from all unrighteousness, covetousness, love of money, evil speaking, falsewitness; "not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing," or blow for blow, or cursing for cursing, but being mindful of what the Lord said in His teaching: "Judge not, that ye be not judged; forgive, and it shall be forgiven unto you; be merciful, that ye may obtain mercy; with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again; and once more, "Blessed are the poor, and those that are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of God."

These things, brethren, I write to you concerning righteousness, not because I take anything upon myself, but because ye have invited me to do so. For neither I, nor any other such one, can come up to the wisdom" of the blessed and glorified Paul. He, when among you, accurately and stedfastly taught the word of truth in the presence of those who were then alive. And when absent from you, he wrote you a letter, which, if you carefully study, you will find to be the means of building you up in that faith which has been given you, and which, being followed by hope, and preceded by love towards God, and Christ, and our neighbour, "is the mother of us all." For if any one be inwardly possessed of these graces, he hath fulfilled the command of righteousness, since he that hath love is far from all sin.

"But the love of money is the root of all evils." Knowing, therefore, that "as we brought nothing into the world, so we can carry nothing out," let us arm ourselves with the armour of righteousness; and let us teach, first of all, ourselves to walk in the commandments of the Lord. Next, [teach] your wives [to walk] in the faith given to them, and in love and purity tenderly loving their own husbands in all truth, and loving all [others] equally in all chastity; and to train up their children in the knowledge and fear of God. Teach the widows to be discreet as respects the faith of the Lord, praying continually for all, being far from all slandering, evil-speaking, false-witnessing, love of money, and every kind of evil; knowing that they are the altar s of God, that He clearly perceives all things, and that nothing is hid from Him, neither reasonings, nor reflections, nor any one of the secret things of the heart.

Knowing, then, that "God is not mocked," we ought to walk worthy of His commandment and glory. In like manner should the deacons be blameless before the face of His righteousness, as being the servants of God and Christ, and not of men. They must not be slanderers, double-tongued, or lovers of money, but temperate in all things, compassionate, industrious, walking according to the truth of the Lord, who was the servant of all. If we please Him in this present world, we shall receive also the future world, according as He has promised to us that He will raise us again from the dead, and that if we live worthily of Him, "we shall also reign together with Him," provided only we believe. In like manner, let the young men also be blameless in all things, being especially careful to preserve purity, and keeping themselves in, as with a bridle, from every kind of evil. For it is well that they should be cut off from the lusts that are in the world, since "every lust warreth against the spirit; " and "neither fornicators, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, shall inherit the kingdom of God," nor those who do things inconsistent and unbecoming. Wherefore, it is needful to abstain from all these things, being subject to the presbyters and deacons, as unto God and Christ. The virgins also must walk in a blameless and pure conscience.

And let the presbyters be compassionate and merciful to all, bringing back those that wander, visiting all the sick, and not neglecting the widow, the orphan, or the poor, but always "providing for that which is becoming in the sight of God and man ; " abstaining from all wrath, respect of persons, and unjust judgment; keeping far off from . all covetousness, not quickly crediting [an evil re port] against any one, not severe in judgment, as knowing that we are all under a debt of sin. If then we entreat the Lord to forgive us, we ought also ourselves to forgive; for we are before the eyes of our Lord and God, and "we must all appear at the judgment-seat of Christ, and must every one give an account of himself." Let us then serve Him in fear, and with all reverence, even as He Himself has commanded us, and as the apostles who preached the Gospel unto us, and the prophets who proclaimed beforehand the coming of the Lord [have alike taught us]. Let us be zealous in the pursuit of that which is good, keeping ourselves from causes of offence, from false brethren, and from those who in hypocrisy bear the name of the Lord, and draw away vain men into error."

- Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians (chapters 2-6)

 

The Day of the Lord

"Dear friends, this is now my second letter to you. I have written both of them as reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking. I want you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the command given by our Lord and Savior through your apostles.

First of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water. By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.

But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.

Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness.

So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him. Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. 16 He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction.

Therefore, dear friends, since you already know this, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen."

2 Peter 3:1-18 NIV 1984

'The World's Wonder Woman finds value in being admired.
The Weak Woman values being pitied.
The Wise Woman takes her value from being loved by the Father (1 John 4:9).

The World's Wonder Woman acquires things for status.
The Weak Woman hoards things for security.
The Wise Woman receives things for the eventual blessing of sharing (Proverbs 11:25).

The World's Wonder Woman wants to control the future.
The Weak Woman fears the future.
The Wise Woman trusts God with the future, depending on Him to be a refuge, strength, and help in trouble (Prsalm 46:1).

The World's Wonder Woman manipulates people for her gain.
The Weak Woman wants people to meet her neediness.
The Wise Woman gives of herself to others (Proverbs 31:20).

The World's Wonder Woman resists adversity.
The Weak Woman whines about her adversity.
The Wise Woman looks to God in adversity, giving thanks in all circumstances as helping her grow spiritually (1 Thessalonians 5:18).

The World's Wonder Woman drops people who offend or oppose her.
The Weak Woman broods over people who offend or oppose her.
The Wise Woman loves people who offend or oppose her, seeking to show that love covers a multitude of sins (1 Peter 4:8).

The World's Wonder Woman hurtles toward her goals.
The Weak Woman gives up on her goals.
The Wise Woman seeks God's counsel for her goals, then presses on: "I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me" (Philippians 3:12).

The World's Wonder Woman considers time a commodity in her planner.
The Weak Woman fritters away time.
The Wise Woman invests her time in serving God and gaining a heart of wisdom (Psalms 90:12)."

- Jeanne Zornes

 

"Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves;" Philippians 2:3

"and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf." 2 Corinthians 5:15

"So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience;" Colossians 3:12

"The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons." (1 Timothy 4:1)

"But what could these "things taught by demons" actually look like? How would we know we are under such a ministry, teaching or preacher? When I look at the New Testament as a whole and see the tenor of teachings that relate to the faith of the Gospel, I see that the truth is shared over and over that the Gospel will result in us living different then we were before. This is important to see that the message of salvation in Jesus Christ will make you a holy person and there will be a marked difference in your life as you progress in this faith. A salvation that does not make men holy is a doctrine of demons and we must beware of such doctrines. George Whitefield the famous open air preacher of the Great Awakening stated on this subject: "It is an undoubted truth that every doctrine that comes from God leads to God; and that which doth not tend to promote holiness is not of God."

So our concern should be that in these End Times we are not following ministries and teachers who are tickling our ears but not progressing us into maturity in the Faith of Jesus Christ. May we not follow any false Gospels that do not lead towards the walk of Discipleship and growth into the likeness of Jesus Christ (1 John 2:5). For such a gospel then is a false gospel. May we realize the Gospel of Jesus Christ is a Gospel of Love yet this love when understood fully in our lives will lead us to grow in His character and ways by His grace."

- Greg Gordon

"If anyone teaches otherwise and does not agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching, they are conceited and understand nothing...
But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called..." 1 Timothy 6:3-4,11

"The Bible contains the mind of God, the way of man, the doom of sinners, and the happiness of believers. Its doctrines are holy, its precepts are binding, its histories are true, and its decisions are immutable. Read it to be wise, believe it to be safe, and practice it to be holy. It contains light to direct you, food to support you, and comfort to cheer you.

It is the traveler's map, the pilgrim's staff, the pilot's compass, the soldier's sword, and the Christian's Charter. Here paradise is restored, Heaven opened, and the gates of hell disclosed.

Christ is its grand subject, our good the design, and the glory of God its end.

It should fill the memory, rule the heart, and guide the feet. Read it slowly, frequently and prayerfully. It is a mind of wealth, a paradise of glory, and a river of pleasure. It is given you in life, will be opened in judgment, and be remembered forever. It involves the highest responsibility, will reward the greatest labor, and will condemn all who trifle with its sacred contents."

- Powerful preface found in the Gideon pocket NT with Psalms and Proverbs

 "Union with Christ is fundamental truth every Christian must know in their heart if they are to live a Christ-like life. Even a casual reading of the New Testament reveals that Christ in the believer, living through the believer, is a Christian’s only hope for a God pleasing life. Every attempt without this heart knowledge is hopeless and vain. There is absolutely no other way. If this truth is taught consistently, meditated upon regularly and believed tenaciously, then its reality will take root and all of your life becomes opportunity to allow Christ to be who He is through your unique personality. Abiding in Christ so He can abide in you in all of His fullness is God’s glorious way for your daily living. Your part is to believe God’s Word steadfastly, and trust Him to do it. Do you?"

- Jerald R. White, Jr.

“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit...Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.

I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned. If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples."

John 15:1-8

 

“In patience possess your souls.”
“Ye have need of patience.”
“Let patience have its perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire.”

Such words of the Holy Spirit show us what an important element in the Christian life and character patience is. And nowhere is there a better place for cultivating or displaying it than in waiting on God. There we discover how impatient we are, and what our impatience means. We confess at times that we are impatient with men, and circumstances that hinder us, or with ourselves and our slow progress in the Christian life.

If we truly set ourselves to wait upon God, we shall find that it is with Him we are impatient, because He does not at once, or as soon as we could wish, do our bidding. It is in waiting upon God that our eyes are opened to believe in His wise and sovereign will, and to see that the sooner and the more completely we yield absolutely to it, the more surely His blessing can come to us.

“It is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.” Rom 9:16.

We have as little power to increase or strengthen our spiritual life, as we had to originate it. We “were born not of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of the will of God.”

Even so, our willing and running, our desire and effort, avail nought; all is “of God that sheweth mercy”. All the exercises of the spiritual life, our reading and praying, our willing and doing, have their very great value. But they can go no farther than this, that they point the way and prepare us in humility to look to and to depend alone upon God Himself, and in patience to wait His good time and mercy.

The waiting is to teach us our absolute dependence upon God’s mighty working, and to make us in perfect patience place ourselves at His disposal. They that wait on the Lord shall inherit the land; the promised land and its blessing. The heirs must wait; they can afford to wait.

“Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him.” The margin gives for “Rest in the Lord”, “Be silent to the Lord”, or R. V., “Be still before the Lord”. It is resting in the Lord, in His will, His promise, His faithfulness, and His love, that makes patience easy. And the resting in Him is nothing but being silent unto Him, still before Him. Having our thoughts and wishes, our fears and hopes, hushed into calm and quiet in that great peace of God which passeth all understanding.

That peace keeps the heart and mind when we are anxious for anything, because we have made our request known to Him. The rest, the silence, the stillness, and the patient waiting, all find their strength and joy in God Himself.

The needs be, and the reasonableness, and the blessedness of patience will be opened up to the waiting soul. Our patience will be seen to be the counterpart of God’s patience. He longs far more to bless us fully than we can desire it. But, as the husbandman has long patience till the fruit be ripe, so God bows Himself to our slowness and bears long with us.

Let us remember this, and wait patiently: of each promise and every answer to prayer the word is true:

“I the Lord will hasten it in its time.” Isa 60:22.

“Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him.”

Yes, for HIM. Seek not only the help, the gift, thou needest seek: HIMSELF; wait for HIM. Give God His glory by resting in Him, by trusting him fully, by waiting patiently for Him. This patience honours Him greatly; it leaves Him, as God on the throne, to do His work; it yields self wholly into His hands. It lets God be God."

- Andrew Murray

 

A woman of Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give Me a drink.” For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.

Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.

Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.”

The woman said to Him, “Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water? Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?”

Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.” (John 4:10-14)


The Promise of the Holy Spirit

"On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified." (John 7:37-49)

 “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples." - John 15:5-8

This passage of Scripture has a tremendous implication for all who follow Jesus Christ. It is simply this: Your works will produce nothing but firewood! All the energies of the flesh, men's methods and big ministry plans will come to nothing if Jesus Christ is not fully involved. Not even that but if Jesus is not the author and finisher of the work it will still not produce the works that God has ordained for each of his own (Ephesians 2:10). A dead work is a work that does not have faith in it and is not birthed out of a relationship with Jesus Christ. A dead work is something we do for God but not through God. The sad truth is some of us without even knowing it are building a large pile of firewood for that day when God will judge everything by fire (1 Corinthians 3:13).

How do we save ourselves from such a shame and embarrassment from a life that is lived for self even in the service of Christ. I believe the key is to stay in a continuing abiding relationship with Jesus Christ. Daily, hourly knowing His presence, voice and promptings of His Spirit. Washing yourself in the words of God so that He may light your path in the way you should go. (Psalm 119:105). Such an abiding relationship is not something we can muster in our own energy it must come from a spiritual poverty in us. Jesus said blessed are the poor in Spirit (Matthew 5:3). Are you a beggar in Spirit, do you need Jesus daily? Is His person your trust or are you trusting in your faith and abilities?

It is interesting that our Lord gives us an very powerful earthly example of our relationship with Him. He is the vine, we are not the vine. Some Christians live as though they are the vine, branches and even the roots and its God's job to bless their growth. Yet the truth is we are simply the "branches" a small "twig" perhaps! What an absurdity to see a branch thinking it supports the vine! The works of the flesh (Galatians 5:19) are a contrast to the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). A fruit does not work to grow it just abides and naturally it grows as God intended it. When we work and strive it is usually us and not the work of God. The works that God desire to manifest through us are works that are impossible (Mark 10:27), So that He can get all the glory. Such a "work" is by faith and therefore it is pleasing to God and is a fruit borne by Him (the vine) and not our self-effort and striving.

Hudson Taylor stated this truth well: ‎"The branch of the vine does not worry, and toil, and rush here to seek for sunshine." Are you resting dear believer in this rest of God? Are you trusting the Lord to bear "much fruit" in your life? It is only as we allow the life of Jesus Christ to flow through us that we will be pleasing to Him and accomplish His perfect will. Many of us speak of the desire to glory God and even pray it much. Let us realize the best way to glorify Him will be to even stop working and rest in His grace and sufficiency. Come to Jesus Christ today, speak to Him tenderly from your heart. Let Him know your weariness and strivings (Matthew 11:28), he knows and understands and wants to release you to be very fruitful in His Fathers vineyard.

Lord Jesus, I come to you right now with a weary heart. I am worn. I am tired. I know I have strived in my energy so much apart from you. Forgive me for not coming to you, not abiding in you. Grant me your abiding presence, allow me to hear your still small voice again. Forgive me the sin of self-reliance, self-effort, self-dependence. Allow me to bear much fruit again in your vineyard for your glory. Amen.

The Lord will respond willingly to all who will rest from their works and desire the greater way of trusting and yielding their rights to have the abiding power and presence of Christ.

- Greg Gordon