Plentiful Refreshment, August 29
Author: Charles H. Spurgeon From the book: Faith's Checkbook
"Their soul shall be as a watered garden" - Jeremiah 31:12
Oh, to have one's soul under heavenly cultivation; no longer a wilderness but a garden of the LORD! Enclosed from the waste, walled around by grace, planted by instruction, visited by love, weeded by heavenly discipline, and guarded by divine power, one's favored soul is prepared to yield fruit unto the LORD. But a garden may become parched for want of water, and then all its herbs decline and are ready to die. O my soul, how soon would this be the case were the LORD to leave thee! In the East, a garden without water soon ceases to be a garden at all: nothing can come to perfection, grow, or even live. When irrigation is kept up, the result is charming. Oh, to have one's soul watered by the Holy Spirit uniformly -- every part of the garden having its own stream; plentifully -- a sufficient refreshment coming to every tree and herb, however thirsty by nature it may be; continually -- each hour bringing not only its heat, but its refreshment; wisely -- each plant receiving just what it needs. In a garden you can see by the verdure where the water flows, and you can soon perceive when the Spirit of God comes. O LORD, water me this day and cause me to yield Thee a full reward for Jesus' sake. Amen.
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Dwell on the refreshment of the Lord and grow in His power. Grace&Peace.
02 September 2009
Out of Any Circumstance
Out of Any Circumstance, August 28
Author: Charles H. Spurgeon From the book: Faith's Checkbook
"As for me, I will call upon God; and the LORD shall save me" - Psalm 55:16
Yes, I must and will pray. What else can I do! What better can I do? Betrayed, forsaken, grieved, baffled, O my LORD, I will call upon Thee. My Ziklag is in ashes, and men speak of stoning me; but I encourage my heart in the LORD, who will bear me through this trial as He has borne me through so many others. Jehovah shall save me; I am sure He will, and I declare my faith. The LORD and no one else shall save me. I desire no other helper and would not trust in an arm of flesh even if I could. I will cry to Him evening, and morning, and noon, and I will cry to no one else, for He is all sufficient. How He will save me I cannot guess; but He will do it, I know. He will do it in the best and surest way, and He will do it in the largest, truest, and fullest sense. Out of this trouble and all future troubles the great I AM will bring me as surely as He lives; and when death comes and all the mysteries of eternity follow thereon, still will this be true: "the LORD shall save me." This shall be my song all through this autumn day. Is it not as a ripe apple from the tree of life? I will feed upon it. How sweet it is to my taste!
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Amen. The security we have in the Lord is absolutely beautiful and can be found in no other place. Agape.
Author: Charles H. Spurgeon From the book: Faith's Checkbook
"As for me, I will call upon God; and the LORD shall save me" - Psalm 55:16
Yes, I must and will pray. What else can I do! What better can I do? Betrayed, forsaken, grieved, baffled, O my LORD, I will call upon Thee. My Ziklag is in ashes, and men speak of stoning me; but I encourage my heart in the LORD, who will bear me through this trial as He has borne me through so many others. Jehovah shall save me; I am sure He will, and I declare my faith. The LORD and no one else shall save me. I desire no other helper and would not trust in an arm of flesh even if I could. I will cry to Him evening, and morning, and noon, and I will cry to no one else, for He is all sufficient. How He will save me I cannot guess; but He will do it, I know. He will do it in the best and surest way, and He will do it in the largest, truest, and fullest sense. Out of this trouble and all future troubles the great I AM will bring me as surely as He lives; and when death comes and all the mysteries of eternity follow thereon, still will this be true: "the LORD shall save me." This shall be my song all through this autumn day. Is it not as a ripe apple from the tree of life? I will feed upon it. How sweet it is to my taste!
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Amen. The security we have in the Lord is absolutely beautiful and can be found in no other place. Agape.
27 August 2009
Choice Men
Choice Men, August 27
Author: Charles H. Spurgeon From the book: Faith's Checkbook
"I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction" - Isaiah 48:10
This has long been the motto fixed before our eye upon the wall of our bedroom, and in many ways it has also been written on our heart. It is no mean thing to be chosen of God. God's choice makes chosen men choice men. Better to be the elect of God than the elect of a whole nation. So eminent is this privilege, that whatever drawback may be joined to it we very joyfully accept it, even as the Jew ate the bitter herbs for the sake of the Paschal Lamb. We choose the furnace, since God chooses us in it. We are chosen as an afflicted people and not as a prosperous people, chosen not in the palace but in the furnace. In the furnace beauty is marred, fashion is destroyed, strength is melted, glory is consumed, and yet here eternal love reveals its secrets and declares its choice. So has it been in our case. In times of severest trial God has made to us our calling and election plain, and we have made it sure: then have we chosen the LORD to be our God, and He has shown that we are assuredly His chosen. Therefore, if today the furnace be heated seven times hotter, we will not dread it, for the glorious Son of God will walk with us amid the glowing coals.
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What do you all think of this? Many people see the Doctrine of Election and get very confused and sometimes upset. But when you look at it from this perspective, knowing that you are chosen, elected by God - how amazing is that? It totally takes the pressure off of you, knowing that you did nothing to deserve God's grace, you've done nothing to merit salvation, yet God chose you. What an amazing blessing. We can go more into this if you want to, just let me know. Grace&Peace.
Author: Charles H. Spurgeon From the book: Faith's Checkbook
"I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction" - Isaiah 48:10
This has long been the motto fixed before our eye upon the wall of our bedroom, and in many ways it has also been written on our heart. It is no mean thing to be chosen of God. God's choice makes chosen men choice men. Better to be the elect of God than the elect of a whole nation. So eminent is this privilege, that whatever drawback may be joined to it we very joyfully accept it, even as the Jew ate the bitter herbs for the sake of the Paschal Lamb. We choose the furnace, since God chooses us in it. We are chosen as an afflicted people and not as a prosperous people, chosen not in the palace but in the furnace. In the furnace beauty is marred, fashion is destroyed, strength is melted, glory is consumed, and yet here eternal love reveals its secrets and declares its choice. So has it been in our case. In times of severest trial God has made to us our calling and election plain, and we have made it sure: then have we chosen the LORD to be our God, and He has shown that we are assuredly His chosen. Therefore, if today the furnace be heated seven times hotter, we will not dread it, for the glorious Son of God will walk with us amid the glowing coals.
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What do you all think of this? Many people see the Doctrine of Election and get very confused and sometimes upset. But when you look at it from this perspective, knowing that you are chosen, elected by God - how amazing is that? It totally takes the pressure off of you, knowing that you did nothing to deserve God's grace, you've done nothing to merit salvation, yet God chose you. What an amazing blessing. We can go more into this if you want to, just let me know. Grace&Peace.
26 August 2009
He of Tender Conscience
He of Tender Conscience, August 26
Author: Charles H. Spurgeon From the book: Faith's Checkbook
"I will judge between cattle and cattle" - Ezekiel 34:22
Some are fat and flourishing, and therefore they are unkind to the feeble. This is a grievous sin and causes much sorrow. Those thrustings with side and with shoulder, those pushings of the diseased with the horn, are a sad means of offense in the assemblies of professing believers. The LORD takes note of these proud and unkind deeds, and He is greatly angered by them, for He loves the weak. Is the reader one of the despised? Is he a mourner in Zion and a marked man because of his tender conscience? Do his brethren judge him harshly? Let him not resent their conduct; above all let him not push and thrust in return. Let him leave the matter in the LORD's hands. He is the Judge. Why should we wish to intrude upon His office? He will decide much more righteously than we can. His time for judgment is the best, and we need not be in a hurry to hasten it on. Let the hard-hearted oppressor tremble. Even though he may ride roughshod over others with impunity for the present, all his proud speeches are noted, and for every one of them account must be given before the bar of the great Judge. Patience, my soul! Patience! The LORD knoweth thy grief. Thy Jesus hath pity upon thee!
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Lets dwell on these thoughts. Agape.
Author: Charles H. Spurgeon From the book: Faith's Checkbook
"I will judge between cattle and cattle" - Ezekiel 34:22
Some are fat and flourishing, and therefore they are unkind to the feeble. This is a grievous sin and causes much sorrow. Those thrustings with side and with shoulder, those pushings of the diseased with the horn, are a sad means of offense in the assemblies of professing believers. The LORD takes note of these proud and unkind deeds, and He is greatly angered by them, for He loves the weak. Is the reader one of the despised? Is he a mourner in Zion and a marked man because of his tender conscience? Do his brethren judge him harshly? Let him not resent their conduct; above all let him not push and thrust in return. Let him leave the matter in the LORD's hands. He is the Judge. Why should we wish to intrude upon His office? He will decide much more righteously than we can. His time for judgment is the best, and we need not be in a hurry to hasten it on. Let the hard-hearted oppressor tremble. Even though he may ride roughshod over others with impunity for the present, all his proud speeches are noted, and for every one of them account must be given before the bar of the great Judge. Patience, my soul! Patience! The LORD knoweth thy grief. Thy Jesus hath pity upon thee!
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Lets dwell on these thoughts. Agape.
25 August 2009
Food and Rest
Food and Rest, August 25
Author: Charles H. Spurgeon From the book: Faith's Checkbook
"I will feed My flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the LORD God" - Ezekiel 34:15
Under the divine shepherdry saints are fed to the full. Theirs is not a windy, unsatisfying mess of mere human "thought," but the LORD feeds them upon the solid, substantial truth of divine revelation. There is real nutriment for the soul in Scripture brought home to the heart by the Holy Spirit. Jesus Himself is the true life-sustaining Food of believers. Here our Great Shepherd promises that such sacred nourishment shall be given us by His own self. If, on the LORD's Day, our earthly shepherd is empty-handed, the LORD is not. When filled with holy truth the mind rests. Those whom Jehovah feeds are at peace. No dog shall worry them, no wolf shall devour them, no restless propensities shall disturb them. They shall lie down and digest the food which they have enjoyed. The doctrines of grace are not only sustaining but consoling: in them we have the means for building up and lying down. If preachers do not give us rest, let us look to the LORD for it. This day may the LORD cause us to feed in the pastures of the Word and make us to lie down in them. May no folly and no worry but meditation and peace mark this day.
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Dwell in the Lord, this day! Grace&Peace.
Author: Charles H. Spurgeon From the book: Faith's Checkbook
"I will feed My flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the LORD God" - Ezekiel 34:15
Under the divine shepherdry saints are fed to the full. Theirs is not a windy, unsatisfying mess of mere human "thought," but the LORD feeds them upon the solid, substantial truth of divine revelation. There is real nutriment for the soul in Scripture brought home to the heart by the Holy Spirit. Jesus Himself is the true life-sustaining Food of believers. Here our Great Shepherd promises that such sacred nourishment shall be given us by His own self. If, on the LORD's Day, our earthly shepherd is empty-handed, the LORD is not. When filled with holy truth the mind rests. Those whom Jehovah feeds are at peace. No dog shall worry them, no wolf shall devour them, no restless propensities shall disturb them. They shall lie down and digest the food which they have enjoyed. The doctrines of grace are not only sustaining but consoling: in them we have the means for building up and lying down. If preachers do not give us rest, let us look to the LORD for it. This day may the LORD cause us to feed in the pastures of the Word and make us to lie down in them. May no folly and no worry but meditation and peace mark this day.
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Dwell in the Lord, this day! Grace&Peace.
God Above Human Philosophy
God Above Human Philosophy, August 24
Author: Charles H. Spurgeon From the book: Faith's Checkbook
"For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent" - 1 Corinthians 1:19
This verse is a threatening so far as the worldly wise are concerned, but to the simple believer it is a promise. The professedly learned are forever trying to bring to nothing the faith of the humble believer, but they fail in their attempts. Their arguments break down, their theories fall under their own weight, their deep-laid plots discover themselves before their purpose is accomplished. The old gospel is not extinct yet, nor will it be while the LORD liveth. If it could have been exterminated, it would have perished from off the earth long ago. We cannot destroy the wisdom of the wise, nor need we attempt it, for the work is in far better hands. The LORD Himself says, "I will," and He never resolves in vain. Twice does He in this verse declare His purpose, and we may rest assured that He will not turn aside from it. What clean work the LORD makes of philosophy and "modern thought" when He puts His hand to it! He brings the fine appearance down to nothing; He utterly destroys the wood, hay, and stubble. It is written that so it shall be, and so shall it be. LORD, make short work of it. Amen, and amen.
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"The old gospel is not extinct yet, nor will it be while the LORD liveth. If it could have been exterminated, it would have perished from off the earth long ago. We cannot destroy the wisdom of the wise, nor need we attempt it, for the work is in far better hands. The LORD Himself says, "I will," and He never resolves in vain." This says it all. Let me believe in the wisdom you provide and nothing else. Agape.
Author: Charles H. Spurgeon From the book: Faith's Checkbook
"For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent" - 1 Corinthians 1:19
This verse is a threatening so far as the worldly wise are concerned, but to the simple believer it is a promise. The professedly learned are forever trying to bring to nothing the faith of the humble believer, but they fail in their attempts. Their arguments break down, their theories fall under their own weight, their deep-laid plots discover themselves before their purpose is accomplished. The old gospel is not extinct yet, nor will it be while the LORD liveth. If it could have been exterminated, it would have perished from off the earth long ago. We cannot destroy the wisdom of the wise, nor need we attempt it, for the work is in far better hands. The LORD Himself says, "I will," and He never resolves in vain. Twice does He in this verse declare His purpose, and we may rest assured that He will not turn aside from it. What clean work the LORD makes of philosophy and "modern thought" when He puts His hand to it! He brings the fine appearance down to nothing; He utterly destroys the wood, hay, and stubble. It is written that so it shall be, and so shall it be. LORD, make short work of it. Amen, and amen.
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"The old gospel is not extinct yet, nor will it be while the LORD liveth. If it could have been exterminated, it would have perished from off the earth long ago. We cannot destroy the wisdom of the wise, nor need we attempt it, for the work is in far better hands. The LORD Himself says, "I will," and He never resolves in vain." This says it all. Let me believe in the wisdom you provide and nothing else. Agape.
Love and Seek True Wisdom
Love and Seek True Wisdom, August 23
Author: Charles H. Spurgeon From the book: Faith's Checkbook
"I love them that love Me; and those that seek Me early shall find Me" - Proverbs 8:17
Wisdom loves her lovers and seeks her seekers. He is already wise who seeks to be wise, and he has almost found wisdom who diligently seeks her. What is true of wisdom in general is specially true of wisdom embodied in our LORD Jesus. Him we are to love and to seek, and in return we shall enjoy His love and find Himself. Our business is to seek Jesus early in life. Happy are the young whose morning is spent with Jesus! It is never too soon to seek the LORD Jesus. Early seekers make certain finders. We should seek Him early by diligence. Thriving tradesmen are early risers, and thriving saints seek Jesus eagerly. Those who find Jesus to their enrichment give their hearts to seeking Him. We must seek Him first, and thus earliest. Above all things Jesus. Jesus first and nothing else even as a bad second. The blessing is that He will be found. He reveals Himself more and more clearly to our search.... Happy men who seek One who, when He is found, remains with them forever, a treasure growingly precious to their hearts and understandings. LORD Jesus, l have found Thee; be found of me to an unutterable degree of joyous satisfaction.
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I long to have my life full of the truth. I want to live the truth, breathe the truth and speak the truth. Lord, help me to rise early and seek your face first thing so that the rest of my life will follow suit and I will grow in your truth and knowledge. Grace&Peace.
Author: Charles H. Spurgeon From the book: Faith's Checkbook
"I love them that love Me; and those that seek Me early shall find Me" - Proverbs 8:17
Wisdom loves her lovers and seeks her seekers. He is already wise who seeks to be wise, and he has almost found wisdom who diligently seeks her. What is true of wisdom in general is specially true of wisdom embodied in our LORD Jesus. Him we are to love and to seek, and in return we shall enjoy His love and find Himself. Our business is to seek Jesus early in life. Happy are the young whose morning is spent with Jesus! It is never too soon to seek the LORD Jesus. Early seekers make certain finders. We should seek Him early by diligence. Thriving tradesmen are early risers, and thriving saints seek Jesus eagerly. Those who find Jesus to their enrichment give their hearts to seeking Him. We must seek Him first, and thus earliest. Above all things Jesus. Jesus first and nothing else even as a bad second. The blessing is that He will be found. He reveals Himself more and more clearly to our search.... Happy men who seek One who, when He is found, remains with them forever, a treasure growingly precious to their hearts and understandings. LORD Jesus, l have found Thee; be found of me to an unutterable degree of joyous satisfaction.
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I long to have my life full of the truth. I want to live the truth, breathe the truth and speak the truth. Lord, help me to rise early and seek your face first thing so that the rest of my life will follow suit and I will grow in your truth and knowledge. Grace&Peace.
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