*Loaded Down

"[M]y burden is light."  Christ's burden is not burdensome. It is our manufactured, self-imposed ones that weigh us down and cause us to stoop. We are to cast our heavy burden upon Him and take His light burden in exchange. God never intended for us to carry the worries, frustrations, and cares of this world. To do so is to end up like Martha.

"Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee..." When we are so burdened we cannot go on, to be sure, this is not the burden of the Lord. When God places His burden upon us, it is never more than we can carry. "For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust." Therefore He will not put upon us anything "above that ye are able...to bear."

A little boy, on Christmas Eve, was standing outside a store loaded down with packages. A passerby asked if he could help, to which the lad replied, “No, thank you, sir; my father gave them to me, and he never puts more on me than I can carry.”

Which Way?

"He shall direct thy paths.” Most certainly, Bible study and prayer should have top priority in seeking God’s direction in our lives, but these are foundational. Other ingredients go into the mix that does not seem to be as “spiritual.” Therefore, many neglect them leaving them confused.

I’m speaking of old-fashioned common sense. You’re not to throw away your head when you get saved. A sanctified mind can take you a long way in ascertaining God’s royal route. The importance of thinking something through cannot be exaggerated. Some are so worried they will take a wrong step; they take no step at all. God can and will correct a wrong decision (if the motive is right), but He can’t do anything if there is no decision at all.

A good illustration of this is found in Acts chapter sixteen. Paul knew you couldn’t take the gospel to the wrong door, so he attempted on two different occasions to go to places he felt were in need. Both times, God stopped him. Then the Lord spoke directly to him, showing the place of His choice.

We’re told in Matthew’s gospel on more than one occasion that when Joseph thought on certain things pertaining to God’s will, the Lord gave him direction. Beloved, let us put on our thinking caps!

Watch Your Step

“Though all men shall…yet will I never…” How little we know of ourselves, not realizing we are capable of anything and everything others do. Spiritual pride is a cancerous condition, to be guarded against continually. It caused Lucifer’s fall and is one of the main marks of a Pharisee. “I thank thee, that I am not as other men are.” Is it any wonder we are warned, “…let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.” We are least safe when we are most secure.

We need to be cautious of sudden resolutions. We can become over confident in our ability and stability. Peter found talk was easy at a distance, but was more difficult “up close and personal.” I have found over the years that they who are shallowest fall soonest.

Those who think themselves better than others oft time find themselves worse.

(R.D.S)

The Devil Deals to David

“And Satan...provoked David.” David’s sin with Bathsheba was a sin of the flesh, but in numbering the people, a sin of the spirit. By this proud act (consciously or unconsciously), David was ascribing to himself might, power, strength and greatness. Attributes that belong to God alone. God promised Abraham the people would be so great they could not be numbered. So why bother?

Numbering the people was not the real issue; doing it without orders from God was. It was an independent act that caused Lucifer’s fall, and this is what he successfully tempted Eve to do. But when he came to the Lord Jesus, he failed miserably. For this blessed One refused to take a breath without God’s permission.

When we attempt to flex our spiritual muscle before those around us by showing our spiritual superiority, you can be sure Satan is in the shadows egging us on. When the devil deals the cards, it’s always from the bottom.

The Simple Life

When I speak of the “Simple Life,” I am not advocating being a simpleton. As Oswald Chambers puts it, “Don’t mistake simplicity for stupidity.” It is not simplemindedness, but “simple- mindfulness.” Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in his book, Letters and Papers from Prison” tells us, “Simplicity is an intellectual achievement, one of the greatest.” The simple life requires a lot of thought.

Our Lord’s life was a very simple one in the midst of a complicated world. You might say His was a simple life on a higher plane. The reason for this was that God controlled it. Dr. Bob Jones Sr. used to say, “Simplicity is life’s most becoming garb.” Is this not why His life is so becoming to each of us who name His name?

Many of us have created our own clutter. We have a spiritual “junk yard,” where we have amassed so much litter that we can’t perform those few necessary things for all the unnecessary piled up. Many of us need a good housecleaning. Good minor things become bad the second they keep us from the major things.

Paul warned the “spiritual” and “intellectual” church at Corinth to beware lest their minds be corrupted from the “simplicity that is in Christ.” Our lives are to be lived childlike. Need I explain that?

God grant that I may live upon this earth

And face the tasks that every morning brings

And never lose the glory and the worth

Of humble service and the simple things.

(Edgar A. Guest)

Scarecrows

I have found that those who would intimidate others have an insecure spirit that hides behind a superior attitude. You need not ever be afraid of them. They are no more than scarecrows. You know, dressed in clothes like you and me, but who are full of straw. These empty vessels have always been around. Sanballat tried to spook Nehemiah; Rabshakeh tried it on Hezekiah; Jezebel attempted the same on Elijah, and the interrogating counsel on the disciples.

It is this crowd that was constantly after Jesus, snipping, as it were, at His heels. Everything concerning His Person, they attacked—His speech, lack of formal education, His trade as a carpenter, His birth, etc. But Jesus had the one thing that all intimidators fear to see in their would-be prey; He knew who He was. He was, as the saying goes, “comfortable in His own skin.” It did not bother Him to get down and wash the disciples feet, for He knew no matter what the position, whether in exaltation or humiliation, He was the same Person within. Intimidators have no clue as to their personal identity.

Therefore, we should never fear man. Why should clay be afraid of clay?

HIS PLACE

The story’s told that during the days of that great English preacher, Charles H. Spurgeon, Londoners who wanted to hear this orator would say, “Let’s go over to Charlie’s place.” Of course they were not referring so much to the Metropolitan Tabernacle where he ministered, but rather to the fact that is where they’d find him.

Just before our Lord went away, twice He mentioned “a place” He was going to prepare, and that He would be in that place, and that His people would be with Him in that place. There is much talk and speculation about what Heaven is like, almost to the extent that Jesus becomes a non-entity. It’s not the place, it’s the Person!

We hear talk of soul-sleep for a Christian, that is, the intermediate state between death and resurrection. But Paul tells us our soul can only be in one of two places: in the body or with the Lord. And the second necessitates a consciousness as much as the first. When Jesus told the thief that he would be with Him that very day in Paradise, he had to be conscious to realize the fact.

If all of this were not so, our Lord declares, “I would have told you so,” Someday, possibly in the near future, I’ll be going to “His Place.” And I can guarantee you, I for one will not be “looking the place over.” It is not the gates of pearl, the streets of gold, the river of life, or even the face of my blessed mother that I’ll be looking for, but the Altogether Lovely One, the Lover of my Soul, the “One” who gave His all for me!

In closing, I’d remind those who are prone to spiritualize such truths that the reality is always greater than the picture. So, whatever way you slice it, it’s going to be wonderful!

  

Money Talks

"The labourer is worthy of his hire." Being cheap is not Christ-like. Many churches and Christians need to realize this. Each laborer is to get what he or she is due, and sometimes double.

James tells us of those who kept back part of the hire of the laborers and how it "entered into the ears of the Lord." We are told that stones cry out, and that Abel's blood cried out from the ground. Well, in this case, money talks! Stolen salaries will not remain silent, for, in the courtroom of God, wages kept back will be a witness.

I've seen many churches and Christian institutions "rob Peter to pay Paul." For instance, some boast of how much they give to missions, while there are those on their staff who seriously lack. I have known cases where the missionary lived in luxury and the staff member in poverty. Charity begins at home. How many will have to someday sadly confess before God that they kept other's vineyards while neglecting their own (Song of Sol. 1:6).

Don't give a Believer crumbs when you have steaks in your freezer.

(R.D.S)

The Medicine for Misery

One of the reasons for the misery in the lives of many of today’s saints stems from the simple fact of not discerning between a healthy self-judgment and a morbid introspection. The former is when we agree with God’s estimation of something in our lives that displeases Him. At such times, we are to confess, repent, and then, as a transit, move on. In the latter, we take up lodging and dwell in a spiritual mortuary, daily inspecting a putrefying corpse.

Introspection is putting self on a plate and dissecting it, always analyzing oneself. We worry about everything we say or do and what affect each word or action may have. We’re always looking back—always regretting. We can’t let go of it. It is the chief theme of our lives. Everything centers upon us. We are forever telling others about our sins and shortcomings, while they patiently listen with a frown on their faces and disgust in their hearts.

Through the years, I have become more and more leery of those who habitually talk of wanting to be holy and godly. If I read my Bible right, we are to be spending our time speaking and thinking of Him and His attributes (Mal.3:16) not on imaginary fantasies of our own creation. To glorify God is to make Him look good, not ourselves.

If man at his best state is altogether vanity, then let’s call attention to the Altogether Lovely One.

(RDS)

A Personal Note To My Blog Readers

Dear Reader,

Just recently I discovered the Stats section on my blog. To my overwhelming surprise I found that in the month I checked it, I had over one thousand hits. What a blessing this was to me. I send out the Journal to a mailing list of a few hundred, but never dreamed we had this kind of audience.

The following is a list of the places where the T.J. is read: Canada, Russia, Germany, Bulgaria, Australia, France, U.K., Indonesia, Romania, Poland, New Zealand, Philippines, Ukraine, Netherlands, Tonga, Malaysia, and of course, the U.S.A.

My request is that many of you might drop me a brief line or two telling of the Journal’s blessing in your life, if it be so. As I jokingly say to some of my strong local church brethren at times, “I minister to the “Invisible Church.” Seriously, though, I miss seeing people grow in the Lord and their lives blessed, as I did when pastoring. So a note from you would be a great encouragement to this aged man. My e-mail: (click on) todaysjournal@sbcglobal.net

Thanks For Taking The Time,

An Old Disciple,

Brother Richard Sandlin

The Sure Word

To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” There is a type of mysticism that has moved into mainstream Christendom that concerns me greatly. Basically, it teaches that one can go from infancy to maturity without any growth in between, thereby negating the Bible as the means God uses to get from one place to the other. Those with mystical tendencies never speak of the necessity of the Word of God, but, rather, glory in their personal experiences. In other words, they short cut the God-ordained means for their individual experiences.

These types have a God of their own making. Their created Deity is characteristically known by feeling, not faith. Because of this, there is a necessity of constantly scraping their “innards” by morbid introspection. There is a habitual examining of every motive and action, leaving them very little time to live the Christian life.

The infallible Word of God is the only safeguard against one’s fallible feelings. It is the one and only source that the prophets, apostles, Jesus, and New Testament writers depended on. Peter had an experience on the Mt. of Transfiguration, where he heard a voice from Heaven. Yet when recounting this event in his second epistle, he says we have “a more sure word…” (The Word of God). And so do we!                                                           

The Backsliding Heifer

Note to readers: I feel the following article is of upmost importance, especially today. As a dear pastor friend (James Barnes) said to me many years ago, “Brother Sandlin, what passes for my best members today would be considered backsliders twenty-five years ago.”

“For Israel slideth back as a backsliding heifer.” Some believe this to mean withdrawing the neck from the yoke of service; still others that it is a regressing when being offered up for sacrifice. To be sure, the heifer is not submitting to what her master has planned for her. God is simply telling us that His people were unruly and ungovernable.

The word “backsliding” (in one form or another), is found seventeen times in the Old Testament. It is not used in the New, though the principle is. Oswald Chambers gives us a good definition of the word: “Backsliding is turning away from what we know to be best to what we know is second-best.” Or as another prolific writer says, “Good can be the enemy of the best."

Whenever we go from God we go to something or someone else. The backslider deliberately forsakes God. There is no nice way of putting it. It is a hideous sin! And the depth to which the backslider falls will be in proportion to the height he or she has gained. Lucifer’s original lofty height is a good example of the depth one can fall to spiritually.

An old preacher once said, “Never paint a picture of a forest without painting a way out.” And so I close with God’s promise to all those in this dire condition who are longing to return to the Lover of their souls, “I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely: for mine anger is turned away from him.”

The Great Things of the Lord

“They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great goodness”...“Tell them how great things the Lord hath done for thee.”

Rosalind Goforth was the wife of that remarkable missionary to China, Jonathan Goforth (1859-1936). In her book entitled, How I Know God Answers Prayer, The Personal Testimony of One Life-Time, the above two scriptures are found in the forward.

Upon reading them I was immediately struck by the fact that this is what we are to busy ourselves with. Telling hopeless individuals, “The Lord hath done great things for us; whereof we are glad.” To which they can echo, “The Lord hath done great things for them.”

Some, said Mrs. Goforth, after reading her book asked, “How could you tell such personal and sacred incidents in your life?’ Her answer was simple and direct, “I had to or disobey God.” She writes that for some time she wouldn’t tell these things, but got to the place she could no longer keep them in.

Jeremiah had a similar experience I think many of us can relate to also. “Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But [his word] was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not [stay].”

Our Great God, who does such “Great Things,” ought not to be kept a secret by us.

(R.D.S.)

It's Been Before

“The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun. Is there anything whereof it may be said, See, this is new? it hath been already of old time, which was before us."

The new truths ministers and writers are coming up with are, in reality, no more than unsubstantiated, unchallenged statements.  These pseudo-philosophers, who camp on Mars Hill, "spend their time in nothing else, but either to tell, or to hear some new thing." But Paul's testimony was that he said no other things than those truths of old spoken by the prophets.

Something may sound profound, but is it of the prophets? It may appear learned, but is it of the Law? It may be a new thought, but is it New Testament? Paul was not against dressing old truths in new clothes, but there was no attire in his wardrobe to clothe what some call "new truths."

If it's new, it's not true; and if it's true, it's not new.

(H.A. Ironside)

A Delightful Day

It was June 8, 1958. They were singing a song of invitation. Mark Andrews, my Air Force buddy from Korea, who had gotten saved, and then been instrumental in my conversion (as well as my mother’s), was visiting, and standing next to me. I knew from the day of my salvation, God wanted me to preach, but was always fearful to make it known. We were standing in the back row of the church. Some 800 people were there that day. As they sang, I whispered to Mark, “I believe God has called me to preach, but I can’t speak well before people.” My dear friend said nothing. He simply put down his songbook, took up his Bible, and turned to Exodus 4:10-12. Then he handed it to me, saying, “Read this.”

“And Moses said unto the Lord, O my Lord, I am not

 eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken

 unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow

tongue. And the Lord said unto him,Who hath made man’s

mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing,

 or the blind? have not I the Lord? Now therefore go, and I

will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say.”

Needless to say, that was all it took. I went forward, took my pastor’s hand, and told him God had called me to preach. It has now been fifty-four years since that memorable day, and I’ve never regretted my decision once. There have been dark, dark times; but the good ones have shone so brightly, they made me forget most of bad ones. Multiplied hundreds have been saved, countless Christians have had their lives turned around, and scores of young people have entered the ministry.

Dear Lord, thank you for Your call upon my life, and thank you for bringing Mark into it at the two most important times—at my conversion and my call. Wherever he is, whatever he may be doing, give him an extra blessing today, just for me. Thank you. Amen.

 

Living Among Lepers

“And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him...And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.” I fear some of us have gotten too refined for this life on earth. True, a saint is a mixture of the Divine and human, but the human is never anything but human. God chose to reach humanity by indwelling the human. This is seen in the Incarnation.

You can always spot the “holier than thou” crowd. You’ll hear such statements as “How could anyone do something like that?” or, “I could never do that.” Not realizing that in the right situation, we all are susceptible to the same depravities of others. Peter never thought himself capable of what he did, but believed others were. Such an attitude always leads to a fall.

These high and holy seraphic types are powerless in helping lepers. O, they have compassion, but only at a distance. They will never come to where they are; they fear it may rub off.

Jesus was no worse off for touching the leper, but the leper was much better off because He did.”

RDS)

Square One

There are different opinions as to where and when this little idiom in our title originated, but all agree to its meaning. It’s simply defined as “going back to the beginning, to start again.” This is necessitated by our proneness to wander; to go our own way, if you please. As someone has said, “If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans.”

Because of this disposition to stray, God is constantly calling us back (dragging some) to His original intent for us. And this is true, not just in one area of our Christian life, but in all quarters. I believe most of the reason for this roaming is our not being objective enough in our reading, listening to teachers and our conversations in general.

Don’t you think much of this stems from our discontentment with God’s will for us? Many routinely want to be someone else, somewhere else, and doing something else. Thus, we are so easily influenced away from God’s design for our lives. The proverbial saying, “The grass is always greener on the other side,” must have originated with a Christian, one of His sheep.

It says of the prodigal, “When he came to himself,” he returned to the starting place. He, “Himself.” Not someone else!” Don’t try to return in someone else’s garb!

Foundational Truths

“If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?” When things begin to get hazy, and all around you is uncertainty; when the atmosphere is filled with questionable arguments, it is always wise to come back to your foundation. To major on minors will only bring frustration and cause unnecessary divisions between two good people or groups.

A casual reading of Paul’s epistle to the Corinthians proves this to be so. Secondary things were elevated to top priority. And when we put two in the place of one, it will always cause greater confusion, as any math student knows. There are basic, fundamental doctrines that are foundational to the Christian Faith. And when we leave these tenets, terrible things happen.

There are cardinal Christian doctrines that have been held to throughout the ages, which have never moved or been shaken. It is these we are to dearly hold to and defend. To make questionable things the issue will only rob the saints of their assurance, reliance, and enjoyment of the sure things.

Happy is the person who realizes non-essentials are not essential.

(R.D.S)

Imperfection's Perfection

Immediately after the resurrection Thomas saw the open wounds in our Lord’s body. John was transported to the present and described Him now in heaven as a freshly slain Lamb. And Zechariah tells us at His Second Coming, yet future, He will be asked, “What are these wounds in thy hands?” At the cost of being misunderstood as sacrilegious, I believe Jesus will be the only one in heaven with an imperfect body. That is, from our viewpoint, not God’s. For in God’s sight, those wounds are the epitome of perfection.

You see, this Blessed One’s seemingly imperfect body made it possible for us to have a perfect one. Is it any wonder then that the heavenly choir sings, “Worthy is the Lamb”? Apart from God’s glory, everything He ever did, and does, was and is, for our benefit, and ours alone. I like how Paul puts it: “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” Hallelujah, what a wonderful Saviour!

Our Way or the Highway

“Master, we saw one…and he followeth not us: and we forbad him, because he followeth not us. But Jesus said, Forbid him not.” The disciples had a problem with anyone who was not just like them. It was not good enough that they had their own ways; they wanted to impose them upon everyone else. They could not grasp the fact that anyone not like themselves could be used of God.

Because a man or a woman took a Nazarite vow, must everyone else do it also? Should other families adhere to the tradition of the Rechabites passed down by their father? Can all believers meet the standards laid down for church officers in the New Testament? Any spiritually intelligent, thinking person knows that the answer to these questions is an emphatic, “No!”

Since all of us come way short in one area or the other in our lives and ministries, we would be wise to give others a little elbow room. Room to breathe in, if you please.  

Some peoples’ standards would suffocate an angel. 

The Youthful Yoke

“It is good for a man that he bear the yoke in his youth.” The aged patriarch had experienced tough times in his younger years, and knew the benefits it could bring in later life. If one would only submit to the suffering of their times, and silently endure, the fruit would be patience and great calm in later years.

It says of our Lord, “Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered.” Is it any wonder the people of His day thought He may have been Jeremiah? Both men knew suffering and deep deprivation in their young lives. Taking the easy way, and the one of least resistance, makes for soft sons.

Parents need to learn not to overly protect their children during troubled times. For it is not easy to bend a neck stiffened with age or a heart hardened by custom. Such people are like “…a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke.” Truly great people have the marks of the yoke upon their necks that they bore in their youth.

You can make life easy for your children; but it will be harder for them when they’re old.

(R.D.S)

*A New Trend in Christianity

There is a legitimate place for the psychological as long as it is not camouflaged and substituted for the spiritual. Today there is a trend to transfer spiritual problems over into the psychological realm. We are led to believe our problem is not a spiritual one, but only psychological. Therefore, personal responsibility is diminished. The blame is placed upon someone or something else. It’s because of our “genes,” a disease, or whatever—it is definitely not our fault.

The old Puritans of three-hundred years ago were experts in this matter of the Christian’s problems. They always went directly to the root. They had a thorough knowledge of the workings of the human heart and the Lord’s dealings with His people. Read John Owen, John Bunyan, or John Newton. These men probed the dark depths of the human heart. When you put down their books, you’ll be tempted to say, “This man knows me.” If you plan to go to these spiritual physicians for help, don’t expect a comfortable couch and analysis of the mind; instead, be prepared for the knife and open-heart surgery.

God promises to give us a “new heart”; it’s clear; He knows where the trouble lies.

(R.D.S)

Our Vested Authority

“...and set him [Christ] at his [God’s] own right hand in heavenly places, Far above all...dominion.” “God...hath raised us up together, and made us to sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” When Jesus raised Lazarus, He didn’t leave him in a grave yard. The next time we see this risen saint, he is seated with our Lord. And so it is with us; we are called from the grave, in grace, to be seated with Him in Glory. Our union with Him necessitates this. The text is not a prophecy of the future but a fact of the present. We are seated with Him now in Heavenly places.

Because of this, we are no longer under Satan’s dominion. We have been translated out of his earthly kingdom of darkness into the Heavenly kingdom of God’s dear Son. We have been turned “...from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God.” We have been delivered “...from this present, evil world.”

Adam lost his dominion power to the devil. We regain it in Christ. We need not run from him but use our God-given authority to make him flee from us. Once we accept, by faith, our Heavenly, God-given position in Christ, we can exercise our rightful authority over the power of darkness, both in our lives and the lives of our loved ones. Satan is not fearful of our vested authority as long as we do not exercise it.

The Cost of Closeness to God

Without question, one, if not the greatest of life’s blessings is being close to God. But coupled with this closeness is a tremendous price to be paid.

Listen to the testimony of a few Bible saints who drew near to God. Job said, “I am vile”; Isaiah cried, “Woe [is] me! for I am undone; because I [am] a man of unclean lips”; Peter pleaded with Christ, “Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” And what of the great apostle Paul? “O wretched man that I am!” says he. Prior to these heartrending sobs, we would have considered each of these to be good and godly men.

All the sinful dirt and religious filth in one’s heart is shined upon in the glorious light of His presence. Is it any wonder then we love the security of the shadows, where we can pass ourselves off as being something we’re not? To live in His presence means we must daily carry in our bosoms the stigma of who we really are. And to what end is this purpose? “That no flesh should glory in his presence.”

When you hear someone say they thank God they’re not as other men, mark it down, you’re listening to a person who is “standing afar off” from God!

Lost in the Croud

“Thus have they loved to wander.” The people of God did not go astray because of adversity; it was not necessitated by something outside themselves. They wandered because they loved it. They delighted in it. Their very disposition was to do so. The song-writer knew this when he penned, “Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it/Prone to leave the God I love.”

There is much concern today about the sheep who have wandered from the flock. My burden is for those who are wandering within the flock. They are always looking and longing—wanting something other than the Good Shepherd. You can stake out a sheep with a hundred yards of rope, with green pastures all around him, yet he will go to the limit of his line, even to the point of choking himself in his attempt to go beyond his shepherd’s care and control. Only love for the Shepherd can cure our love for wandering.

Hearts in Heaven

“Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.” If Christ is truly our treasure then our hearts will be where He is. It is only when we see the “...things on the earth” from heavens viewpoint that we can live our lives aright on this earth. Paul did not look at the things which are seen but those things that are not seen. The one is temporal and will pass away, the other, eternal.

Things of the earth are not to be despised, neglected, or rejected, unless they stand between us and Christ. He is to be our one and only desire. David knew this truth when he penned, “...there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee”. Our affection is to have wings and constantly be flying heavenward.

Why would anyone try to hold to things they cannot keep? It would be well for us to remember the words of the old patriarch. “Naked came I out of my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return thither.” One was asked how much his rich friend left when he died, and the reply was, “All of it.”

We are not to “…love the things that are in the world” but the One who gave them.

                                                                                                   

Wasting Time in Prayer

“Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest…” Jesus said external worship cannot make up for internal wrong. Outward sacrifice doesn’t impress Him if there is inward sin. Ceremonial cover-ups will not suffice if there’s a callous condition of the heart. Trying to balance evil with good, thinking the latter will make up for the former, just won’t fly.

God knows our inward disposition and deals with us accordingly. “If our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.” We are not to scrape up morbid things, because we are overly sensitive, but we are to face-up to the conviction of conscience placed there by the Spirit of God. To disregard this will be disastrous.

I speak with the utmost reverence when I say, until we right our wrongs, we should leave God waiting at the altar. I said, “I say,” but actually, “He said.” If we remember at the altar and neglect to take care of that thing, we’ll regret it.

Heard, but Not Seen

“Who art thou?/ What sayest thou of thyself? /I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness.” John knew both who and what he was. He didn’t consider himself with the greats, such as Elias of old, but he did know he had a place in God’s plan. The people’s testimony of him was, “John did no miracle, but all things that John spake of this man [Christ] were true.” Because he could not do the spectacular, did not silence him.

One need not have the effect of “a great and strong wind,” nor to shake foundations as “an earthquake,” or be a consuming “fire.” A “still, small voice” can get the job done when God is in it. Though a man is Divinely confined to the solitary wilderness, such a one will still have an audience to articulate the awesomeness of God.

The Blood of Jesus Christ

Paul speaks of having, “faith in His blood.” Like many other cardinal doctrines, we hear very little of the blood of Christ today. But certain truths are to be repeated over and again. Peter puts it this way, “Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know [them], and be established in the present truth.”

I do not know how many lambs were sacrificed in the Old Testament picturing Christ upcoming death in the New.  Hundreds of thousands, I imagine, during that long period. I’m sure, had they all been killed at one time it would have produced a mighty river of blood. But the writer of Hebrews tells us not one drop of any animal’s sacrifice could ever take away sin. As the song writer so aptly put it, “What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.”

To put one’s faith in His blood will accomplish a number of treasured things, advantageous to a Believer. To list only a few: it redeems us to God; cleanses from daily defilement; it justifies, freeing us from all condemnation; brings peace to our souls; draws us nigh to God; gives us boldness in our approach to God; and makes us overcomers of Satanic powers. There is not a second of any day when we do not need His life-giving blood to sustain us. O, THANK YOU, GOD, FOR YOUR SON’S PRECIOUS BLOOD!

An old preacher was getting a blood transfusion. The attending nurse said, “It’s amazing, we can now keep blood for almost a hundred years without it losing its effect.” To which he replied, “Dear, I know of a blood that is over two-thousand years old and is as powerful now as the day it was shed.” ALLELUIA, ALLELUIA, ALLELUIA!

Mountain Climbing

“Give me this mountain.” These are the words of an 85 year old man. When others were petering out, Caleb was pressing on. This is the man who had the testimony; he had wholly followed the Lord all the days of his life. Caleb was Bunyan’s Mr. Greatheart, which is the meaning of his name. He was not looking for comfort in his last years, but for challenge. He never stopped growing. He was not a spiritual retiree.

The caliber of this man is fast becoming extinct in our day. He could stand alone. The old man had a godly, optimistic faith. He had spiritual ambition to the end. His motto was: “It is never too late.”

Men with Caleb’s character make it possible for those with lesser  to hide behind. He was a pillar of strength to a younger generation, who had never seen any example of courage like this aged man displayed. This ancient of days is the only one who expelled utterly every giant that faced him. Just think if he had stopped half-way up the mountain.

Mt. Hebron was a powerful stronghold. It was fortified, and the giants in it were not a few. But it was his rightful inheritance. Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob, and Leah were all buried there. The enemy had no right to that ground. It belonged to his forefathers, and to him.

Mountain climbing can be dangerous. It’s uphill all the way. But it is a wonderful thing when you finally reach the top. To view the valley of despair that you came from, to breathe the celestial air, is worth it all. But the most thrilling of all is to stake down your banner and see it unfurled in the heavenly breeze, for all who are in the valley to see. How blessed to realize that it is still possible for an impossible man to do impossible things. Don’t content yourself with the good, but the best, in life. KEEP CLIMBING!

Infallibility

“Therefore I esteem all thy precepts concerning all things to be right.” David believed in the infallibility of God’s Word. That is, it is incapable of error. But herein lies a great danger for the child of God. Because we believe the Bible is infallible, we are prone to think of ourselves as impeccable (without defect or error, flawless). Only the Scriptures are infallible. For a saint to believe otherwise causes him to become inflatable.

This is the reason the Bible is its own interpreter. For God to have committed this to a defective church (Rome) or deficient individuals (Fundamentalists, Evangelicals, Dispensationalists, or Reformed), would have been disastrous. God’s Word is always right, but because of various influences in our backgrounds and the nature of our temperaments, we are not. Balaam’s dumb ass spoke God’s Word, but that didn’t change what he was.

You can’t tell a know-it-all anything.

*The Miracle of Means

"Yet doth he [God] devise means.” Many times when we think only a miracle will get us out of our dilemma, the means is staring us straight in the face, right under our nose, as they say. We see this illustrated in the book of Judges. It may be an ox-goad, a nail, a barley cake, a pitcher and trumpet, a piece of a millstone, or the jaw-bone of an ass. Look and see what’s around you, what’s available. It may be a means to a miracle!

We need to heed the preaching of the old Puritan: “Man cannot do anything without God; but God will not do anything without man.” Man is God’s means to accomplish His purpose on earth. Paul said of himself that he used “all means” to fulfill God’s purpose in building up His Kingdom.

God promises to make my bed in all my sickness, but He uses loved ones or a nurse to do it.

(R.D.S)

Twin Promises

“There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus…Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?” Romans chapter eight is believed by many to be the greatest chapter in the Word of God. It begins with no condemnation and concludes with no separation.

These are two of Satan’s most effective tools for discouraging a Christian. His condemnation comes by way of accusation. We are told in the last book of The Book that he accuses us before our God day and night. The second Satanic tactic comes during those times of isolation we experience, making us believe that it is separation from God’s love.

But God has provided us with two Royal resources to combat these twin lies. In dealing with the accuser we use our judicial weapon, the Blood of the Lamb. That is always a sure cure for overcoming him. During those times we feel alone, for one reason or another, we are to cling to God’s parental promise that He loves us with an everlasting love. Remind your adversary that there is nothing you can ever do to make God stop loving you.

The reason there is no condemnation by God or separation from God is because of our justification in Christ.

When Right is Wrong

“O God…renew a right spirit within me…Then will I teach…thy ways.” The prerequisite for my teaching right is my being right. Someone said, “What’s wrong with being right?” Plenty, if you’re not right! Who wants to eat a sweet apple that’s been stored in a bucket of vinegar? And who wants to hear truth that has been preserved in a bitter vessel?

Year ago, I remember someone describing a certain preacher who spoke on hell often. They said, “He seemed as though he enjoyed the fact that people were going there.” But having said this, we should remember that just because someone has a wrong attitude does not justify us disobeying the truth. Jesus, speaking to His disciples concerning the Pharisees, who had some accurate truths, but with the wrong spirit, said, “…whatsoever they bid you…observe and do; but do ye not after their works: for they say, and do not.”

But how is one to know when they are in such a wretched condition as the Pharisees? Simple, you know you’re wrong when you’re head says you’re right, but your heart still condemns you.

He's Already Been There

“I will send mine angel before thee!” Are we fearful of the future, of what lies up the road? We need not be, for our Lord has gone on ahead of us. He is a Pioneer—a great Maker of roads. He is our Scout, our advance Man; He will always open the way before us.

The Lord will look after the road. Our job is to travel it. When we hit rough places, you can be sure He knows all about it. But still he left them for us, knowing it would be for our good. Rough places make us appreciate the smooth ones.

Wherefore, as we journey down the King’s highway, let us not be forgetful that all we may experience, He has already faced. If we watch for the signs He has left, there is no reason to be anxious about what awaits us around the next bend. Certainly there are some warning signs, but there are also a lot of rest places. And who doesn’t enjoy pulling over when he sees a scenic sign to behold all the beauty that lies before him?

Who minds a rough road, if it leads home to the Father’s house?

*Patience and the Eternal

“...God waited...” Isaiah tells us what to do at a time like this: “And therefore will the Lord wait...blessed are all they that wait for him.” It is not easy for we who are eternally impatient time-checkers to wait on an eternal, timeless God. One of whom it is said, a day in His sight is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. God is never in a hurry—we are. You see, if you have eternity on your side, you can afford to wait.

There is no” Big Ben” in Heaven, everything is measured by eternity. God’s clock has no hands and His calendar has no days. Therefore, settle it; our eternal God is going to take His good old time, and nothing or no one is going to hurry Him up. If we will but patiently wait for Him to accomplish our deepest desires, we will find, “He [makes] everything beautiful in his time.”

“To lengthen my patience is the best way to shorten my trouble.”

Puritan saying

                                                             

*Powerful Words

“…they…so spake.” These believers spoke in such a way as to influence and bless a great number of people. They were not necessarily eloquent words, but their articulated breath burned in the hearts of those who heard them. Their words knocked at the gates of a man’s soul.

One of our great needs today is that Christians will individually speak with inspirational impact. Or, as the old Quakers used to say, “Speak to the condition.” But, sad to say, too many of our words “fall to the ground.”

If we are to “so speak” as the early Christians, then, of necessity, we must also be anointed by the Spirit, as they were. For Jesus plainly told His disciples that it was the Holy Ghost that teaches one when, how, and what to speak.

Wholesome words can make a person whole.

(R.D.S)

*It's Habit-forming

Someone has figured out it takes twenty-one days to form or break a habit. I don't know about that, but it seems to have worked for Daniel (chap.10).We are told both Daniel and David had a habit of praying three times a day. Anything continual will soon become habitual.

It was said of one of the Puritans that after he died, they found two grooves in the hardwood floor next to his bed that were made by his knees from praying throughout the years. That’s not a bad habit to get into. It’s one habit you wouldn't want to break.

"The act of prayer is blessed, the habit of prayer is more blessed..."

Transformed Lives and Ministries

“And the Lord said unto him, What is that in thine hand?” “Cast it on the ground.”

In the front of one of my old Bibles, I pasted in the fly-leaf a little saying: “LET GO AND LET GOD.” I have come to realize through the years that to God it is not what we have given up that is so important, but, rather, what we are holding to. How we love to keep back something for ourselves.  We are like little children, who, when a parent reaches out to take something from them, clutches it to their bosom, turns away, and says, “MINE!”

Moses found what God could do when one is willing to let go of something they’re clinging to. You will remember his rod was supernaturally changed by simply letting go of the natural. The one thing that could be hindering our relationship with God may be that person or thing we are unwilling to let go of. If we seriously long to see a real transformation in our lives and ministries, then we must, at this very minute, “LET GO AND LET GOD!”

*God's feeble People

“For he knoweth our frame: he remembereth that we are dust.” It is for this reason we are told our Heavenly Father pities His children. For our frames were not made of steel nor our dusty substance from iron ore. Why would our Creator make His creatures with such frail frames as bone and feeble flesh from dust? The answer is found in just one word: dependence. God intended for man to always look to Him for his every need. He was not created to go it alone, but to always look to his Divine Helper.

When Jehovah formed man out of the dust of the ground, and framed his body, He knew its limitations and how much he could bear. Because of this, we can be assured He will never put upon us more than we can handle. Contrary to what we sometimes think, we can always carry those heavy packages our Father places in our arms. If we can’t, it is proof we are carrying something He didn’t place there.

The only thing God will ever weigh us down with is an “eternal weight of glory.” All else is but “light affliction” (2Cor. 4:17).

(R.D.S)

It's the Face in the Mirror

“Wilt thou not revive us again..?” “...revive thy work.” “...thou wilt revive me.” There is a national, institutional, and personal revival. Great masses are praying for the first, some for the second, but few for the latter. There is debate as to the probability of the first; a number will concede to the second; but all agree that the third can be had. It’s doubtful the first two will ever happen until the third is experienced. You generally start a fire with one match or an individual spark.

Why is it we pray for national and institutional revival, but not a personal one? Oswald Chambers answers this question profoundly. He states, “A revival adds nothing; it simply brings back what had been lost and a confession of failure.” And here lies our problem. We are more than willing, in our self-righteous pride, to say that others need reviving, but never us, for that would be an admission that we are not as close to the Lord as we would like others to believe we are.

The prayer that brings personal revival is, “It’s not my brother, or my sister, but me, O Lord.”

(RDS)