A MONTHLY READING OF

INSIGHTS FROM RENOWNED CHRISTIANS

JANUARY

Day 1

A NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTION

Matthew Henry

Firmly believing that my times are in God's hand, I here submit myself and all my affairs for the ensuing year to the wise and gracious disposal of the divine providence. Whether God appoint for me health or sickness, peace or trouble, comforts or crosses, life or death, his holy will be done.

All my time, strength, and service, I devote to the honor of the Lord Jesus; my studies and all my ministerial labors, and even my common actions. It is my earnest expectation, hope, and desire, my constant aim and endeavor, that Jesus Christ may be magnified in my body.

In everything wherein I have to do with God, my entire dependence is upon Jesus Christ for strength and righteousness. And whatever I do in word or deed, I desire to do all in his name, to make him my Alpha and Omega. I have all by him, and I would use all for him.

If this should prove a year of affliction, a sorrowful year upon my account, I will fetch all my supports and comforts from the Lord Jesus and stay myself upon him, his everlasting consolations, and the good hope I have in him through grace.

And if it should be my dying year, my times are in the hand of the Lord Jesus. And with a humble reliance upon his mediation, I would venture into another world looking for the blessed hope. Dying as well as living, Jesus Christ will, I trust, be gain and advantage to me.

Oh, that the grace of God may be sufficient for me, to keep in me always a humble sense of my own unworthiness, weakness, folly, and infirmity, together with a humble dependence upon the Lord Jesus Christ for both righteousness and strength.

The Life of Matthew Henry and the Concise Commentary on the Gospels

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Day 2

PRIVATE PRAYER

Arthur W. Pink

"But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly." (Matt. 6:6)

Eight times in the space of this verse is the pronoun used in the singular number and the second person. It is a thing unique in all Scripture, as though to emphasize the indispensability, importance and value of private prayer. Private prayer is the test of our sincerity, the index to our spirituality, the principle means of growing in grace. It is the one thing, above all others, that Satan seeks to prevent, for he knows full well that if he can succeed at this point, the Christian will fail at every other.

Alas, how remiss we have been, how sadly we have failed to discharge this duty, and what irreparable losers are we by this sinful neglect. Shall this year witness a repetition of the sad failures of the past?

It is the exercising of ourselves in secret prayer that distinguishes us from hypocrites who go through their religious exercises merely to be seen of men. The hypocrite places a far higher value upon the applause of his fellows than he does upon the approbation of his Maker.

It is striking to note that God has often granted the freest communications of himself to those who were before him in secret. It was so with Moses on the mount when Jehovah gave him the Law, and again when he gave him the pattern for the tabernacle. It was while Daniel was engaged in private prayer that God sent his angel to reveal to him the secrets of his counsel concerning the restoration of Jerusalem and the duration thereof, even unto the Messiah. It is in the closet that God usually bestows his sweetest and choicest blessings. Cornelius was highly commended and graciously rewarded upon the account of his private prayer. Peter was granted that wondrous vision concerning the Gentiles while praying alone.

Let us now make a few suggestions on how this duty is to be performed. First, reverently. In all our approaches to God, we should duly consider his exalted majesty and ineffable holiness and humble ourselves before him. Second, sincerely. We cannot be too strongly or too frequently warned against that mere external worship to which we are so constantly prone. Third, submissively. Our petitions should ever be presented with the provision, "If it be Thy will." Fourth, confidently. He bids us "come boldly unto the Throne of Grace, that we may obtain mercy." Fifth, fervently. It is not sufficient that our tongues babble out a mere form; our hearts must be in this work. It is a striving in prayer.

"My voice you shall hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning I will direct it to you, and I will look up," (Psalm 5:3). Let this be our resolve, and, so long as we are spared, our practice throughout the year we have just entered.

eternallifeministries.org

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Day 3

"THOU SHALT NOT COVET"

Thomas Watson

There are two words in the Greek which set forth the nature of covetousness. Pleonexia, which signifies an 'insatiable desire of getting the world,' and philarguria, which signifies an 'inordinate love of the world.' Augustine's definition of covetousness is 'to desire more than enough.' I shall show in six particulars when a man may be said to be given to covetousness.

When his thoughts are wholly taken up with the world. He can think of nothing but his shop or farm. He is always plotting and projecting about the things of this life.

When he takes more pains for getting earthly things than heavenly. He will turn every stone, break his sleep, take many a weary step for the world, but will take no pains for Christ or heaven. He is loath to put himself to too much sweat or trouble to obtain Christ or salvation.

When all his discourse is about the world. It is a sign of godliness to be speaking of heaven. It is a sign of a man given to covetousness to speak always of secular things.

When he sets his heart upon worldly things. He would rather part with Christ than with all his earthly possessions.

When he overloads himself with worldly business. He has many irons in the fire, takes so much business upon him that he cannot find time to serve God. When a man overcharges himself with the world that he cannot have time for his soul, he is under the power of covetousness.

When his heart is so set upon the world that he cares not what unlawful means he uses to get it. He will wrong and defraud and raise his estate upon the ruins of another.

Were our hearts raised by the power of the Holy Ghost up to heaven, we should not be much taken with earthly things. Lord, let the magnet of thy Spirit draw my heart upward. Dig the earth out of my heart and teach me how to possess the world and not love it; how to hold it in my hand and not let it get into my heart.

A Body of Divinity

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Day 4

THE BEATITUDES

John Calvin

"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for my sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you." (Matthew 5:3-12)

Now let us see, in the first place, why Christ spoke to his disciples about true happiness. We know that not only the great body of the people, but even the learned themselves, hold this error: that he is the happy man who is free from annoyance, attains all his wishes, and leads a joyful and easy life. At least it is the general opinion that happiness ought to be estimated from the present state. Christ, therefore, in order to accustom his own people to bear the cross, exposes this mistaken opinion that those are happy who lead an easy and prosperous life according to the flesh. For it is impossible that men should mildly bend the neck to bear calamities and reproaches so long as they think that patience is at odds with a happy life. The only consolation which mitigates and even sweetens the bitterness of the cross and of all afflictions, is the conviction that we are happy in the midst of miseries, for our patience is blessed by the Lord and will soon be followed by a happy result.

This doctrine, I do acknowledge, is widely removed from the common opinion, but the disciples of Christ must learn the philosophy of placing their happiness beyond the world and above the affections of the flesh. Though carnal reason will never admit what is here taught by Christ, yet he does not bring forward anything imaginary, but demonstrates that those persons are truly happy whose condition is supposed to be miserable.

Let us remember that the leading object of the discourse is to show that those are not unhappy who are oppressed by the reproaches of the wicked and subject to various calamities. And not only does Christ prove that they are wrong who measure the happiness of man by the present state, since the distresses of the godly will soon be changed for the better, but he also exhorts his own people to patience by holding out the hope of a reward.

Calvin's Commentaries

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Day 5

THE WOMAN WHO WAS A SINNER

Alfred Edersheim

"Then one of the Pharisees asked him to eat with him. And he went to the Pharisee's house, and sat down to eat. And behold, a woman in the city who was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at the table in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of fragrant oil, and stood at his feet behind him weeping; and she began to wash his feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head; and she kissed his feet and anointed them with the fragrant oil. Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he spoke to himself, saying, 'This man, if he were a prophet, would know who and what manner of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner.'" (Luke 7:36-39)

The precise place and time of this event are undetermined, but it most likely occurred almost immediately following the raising of the young man at Nain. The invitation of Simon the Pharisee to Jesus does not necessarily indicate that he had been impressed by the teaching of Jesus. It would be only in accordance with the manners of the time for the leading Pharisee to invite the distinguished "teacher" to his table.

Let us picture the scene. They are all lying around the table, the body resting on the couch with the feet turned away from the table in the direction of the wall, while the left elbow rests on the table. And now from the open courtyard, up the veranda steps, perhaps through an antechamber and by the open door, passes the figure of a woman into the festive reception room and dining hall. How did she obtain access? Had she mingled with the servants or was access free to all? Or had she, perhaps, known the house and its owner? We must bear in mind the greatness of Jewish prejudice against any conversation with a woman, however lofty her character, and fully realize the absolute incongruity on the part of such a woman in seeking access to the Rabbi, whom so many regarded as the God-sent Prophet.

The shadow of her form must have fallen on all, but none spoke. It did not matter to her who was there or what they thought. It was Jesus to whom she had come. And so she "stood behind at his feet." Reverently bending, a shower of tears "bedewed" his feet. As if surprised, or else afraid to awaken his attention or defile him by her tears, she quickly wipes them away with the long tresses of her hair that had fallen down and touched him as she bent over. She had not come to wash his feet, but to show loving gratefulness and reverence as her poverty and humility would allow. And now that her faith had grown bold in his presence, continuing to kiss his feet, she begins to anoint them out of the flask of perfume which the women of her time carried around their necks.

Jesus had read Simon's unspoken thoughts. Presently he would show them to him. Yet not, as we might, by open reproof that would put him to shame before his guests, but with infinite delicacy and in a manner still that could not be mistaken.

Of two debtors, one of whom owed ten times as much as the other, who would best love the creditor who had freely forgiven them? Though to both the debt might have been equally impossible of discharge, and both might love equally, yet a Rabbi would, according to his Jewish notions, say that he would love most, to whom most had been forgiven. If this was the undoubted outcome of Jewish theology--so much for so much--let it be applied to the present case. If there were much benefit, there would be much love. If little benefit, little love. Conversely, in such a case much love would argue much benefit, little love small benefit. Let him then apply the reasoning by marking this woman and contrasting her conduct with his own.

On Simon's own reasoning, then, he must have received but little and she much benefit. Or, to apply the former illustration now to reality, Forgiven have been her sins, the many--with the knowledge on her part that they were many. And although the Lord does not actually express it, it would also hold true that Simon's little love showed that little is forgiven.

And now Jesus turns to her for the first time. "Thy sins have been forgiven." He does not heed the murmuring thoughts of those around who cannot understand who this is that forgives sins also. "Thy faith has saved thee. Go in peace."

The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

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Day 6

IMMANUEL

Charles Spurgeon

When once I mourned a load of sin,
When conscience felt a wound within,
When all my works were thrown away,
When on my knees I knelt to pray,
Then, blissful hour!--remembered well--
I learned Thy love, IMMANUEL.

When storms of sorrow toss my soul,
When waves of care around me roll,
When comforts sink, when joys shall flee,
When hopeless griefs shall gape for me,
One word the tempest's rage shall quell,
That word, Thy name — IMMANUEL.

When for the truth I suffer shame,
When foes pour scandal on my name,
When cruel taunts and jeers abound,
When "Bulls of Bashan" gird me round,
Secure within Thy tower I'll dwell,
That tower, Thy grace — IMMANUEL.

When hell, enraged, lifts up her roar,
When Satan stops my path before,
When fiends rejoice and wait my end,
When legion hosts their arrows send,
Fear not, my soul, but hurl at hell
Thy battle-cry — IMMANUEL.

When down the hill of life I go,
When o'er my feet death's waters flow,
When in the deepening flood I sink,
When friends stand weeping on the brink,
I'll mingle with my last farewell
Thy lovely name — IMMANUEL.

When tears are banished from my eye,
When fairer worlds than these are nigh,
When heaven shall fill my ravished sight,
When I shall bathe in sweet delight,
One joy all joys shall far excel--
To see Thy face, IMMANUEL.

members.aol.com/pilgrimpub/chshymn.htm

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Day 7

THE ENORMITY OF SIN

Arthur W. Pink

"How can a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed according to thy word. With my whole heart I have sought thee; oh, let me not wander from thy commandments! Thy word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against thee." (Psalm 119:9-11)

We may take a survey of everything in and on the earth, and we cannot find anything so vile as sin. The basest and most contemptible thing in this world has some degree of worth in it, as being the workmanship of God. But sin and its foul streams have not the least part of worth in them. Sin is wholly evil without the least mixture of good, vileness in the abstract. Its heinousness appears in its author: "He that commits sin is of the devil; for the devil sins from the beginning." Sin is his trade, and he practices it incessantly. Sin's enormity is seen in what it has done to man: it has completely ruined his nature and brought him under the curse of God. Sin is the source of all our miseries. All unrighteousness and wretchedness are its fruits. There is no distress of the mind, no anguish of the heart, no pain of the body, but is due to sin. All the miseries which mankind groans under are to be ascribed to sin. It is the cause of all penalty: "Thy way and thy doings have procured these things unto thee." Had there been no sin, there would have been no wars, no national calamities, no prisons, no hospitals, no insane asylums, no cemeteries! Yet who lays these things to heart?

Sin assumes many garbs. When it appears in its nakedness, it is seen as a black and misshapen monster. How God Himself views it may be learned from the various similitudes used by the Holy Spirit to set forth its ugliness and loathsomeness. Sin is likened to the scum of a seething pot in which is a detestable carcass, and to a dead and rotting body.

There is a far greater malignity in sin than is commonly supposed, even by the majority of church members. Men regard it as an infirmity and term it a human frailty or hereditary weakness. The majority regard it as a mere trifle. Tens of thousands of religionists see so little filth in sin that they imagine a few tears will wash away its stain. They perceive so little criminality in it that they persuade themselves that a few good works will make full reparation for it.

All comparisons fail to set forth the horrible malignity in that abominable thing which God hates. We can say nothing more evil of sin than to term it what it is.

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Day 8

TWO RELIGIONS

John G. Reisinger

There are basically only two religions in the world. One says, "If you will do such and such, God will graciously bestow his blessing upon you." The thousand and one varieties of this religion differ only on what the "such and such" is that you must be willing to do. One variety says bathe in a sacred river; another bids you kiss the sacred rock located in the holy city; still another says be baptized or some similar rite. In distinctly evangelical circles, this religion emphasizes, "If you will open your heart, then God..."

The ultimate success or failure of this religion is determined solely by the will of man. Everything depends on an "if," and on "you," and on "your willingness" to do your part. Redemption is always conditional since it depends on man's cooperation for success. The great work of salvation is not actually accomplished until God can find someone who is willing to "cooperate with Him."

The fallacy of this religion is revealed when we ask a simple and obvious question: "Why are not all men saved?" It is not the Father's fault, for he loves all men in the same way. It cannot be because Christ did not pay for their sins, since in the system of free will Christ has redeemed (but did not save?) all men. The Holy Spirit cannot be blamed, since He convicts all for whom Christ died; that is, every man without exception. Some may say, "I do not believe that last statement about the convicting work of the Holy Spirit." If you reject this, then you must reject the other two points also. You cannot believe in a universal love of the Father and a universal atonement by the Son, and then upset it all with a "limited" conviction by the Spirit. No, no; it is either universalism or particularism. You cannot have it both ways.

Now the second religion is the message of the Bible. It is the gospel of FREE GRACE. It does not look to God for the provision and then turn to man for the power, but it boldly proclaims that the same sovereign grace that planned salvation for helpless sinners also furnishes them with the ability to desire and receive it.

As you can see, the real battleground is the nature of man, and the prize to be won is the Crown of Credit for making redemption's plan actually work. Is free grace, given sovereignly by the Father, the decisive factor that causes the elect to believe in the first place? Or is man's will, exercised sovereignly by the individual, the decisive factor that causes God to choose these whom he "foresees" are willing to believe? Who wins the right to wear the crown of glory, God or man?

lgmarshall.org/authorindex.html

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Day 9

THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT

J. C. Ryle

"You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away. You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust." Matthew 5:38-45

You have here our Lord Jesus Christ's rules for our conduct one towards another. He that would know how he ought to feel and act towards his fellow men should often study these verses. They deserve to be written in letters of gold. They have extorted praise even from the enemies of Christianity. Let us mark well what they contain.

The Lord Jesus forbids everything like an unforgiving and revengeful spirit. A readiness to resent injuries, a quickness in taking offence, a quarrelsome and contentious disposition, a keenness in asserting our rights--all, all are contrary to the mind of Christ. The world may see no harm in these habits of mind. But they do not become the character of the Christian. Our Master says, "Resist not evil." The Lord Jesus enjoins on us a spirit of universal love and charity. We ought to put away all malice. We ought to return good for evil, and blessing for cursing. We ought to "love even our enemies." Moreover, we are not to love in word only, but in deed. We are to deny ourselves and take trouble in order to be kind and courteous. If any man "compels you to go one mile, go with him two." We are to put up with much and bear much, rather than hurt another or give offence. In all things we are to be unselfish. Our thought must never be, "How do others behave to me?", but "What would Christ have me to do?"

A standard of conduct like this may seem, at first sight, extravagantly high. But we must never content ourselves with aiming at one lower. We must observe the two weighty arguments by which our Lord backs up this part of his instruction. They deserve serious attention.

For one thing, if we do not aim at the spirit and temper which are here recommended, we are not yet children of God. Our "Father in heaven" is kind to all. He sends rain on good and on evil alike. He causes "his sun" to shine on all without distinction. A son should be like his father. But where is our likeness to our Father in heaven if we cannot show mercy and kindness to everybody? Where is the evidence that we are new creatures if we lack charity? It is altogether lacking. We must yet be "born again."

For another thing, if we do not aim at the spirit and temper here recommended, we are manifestly yet of the world. Even those who have no religion can "love those who love them." They can do good and show kindness, when their affection or interest moves them. But a Christian ought to be influenced by higher principles than these. Do we flinch from the test? Do we find it impossible to do good to our enemies? If that be the case, we may be sure we have yet to be converted. As yet we have not "received the Spirit of God."

There is much in all this which calls loudly for solemn reflection. There are few passages of Scripture so calculated to raise in our minds humbling thoughts. We have here a lovely picture of the Christian as he ought to be. We cannot look at it without painful feelings. We must all allow that it differs widely from the Christian as he is. Let us carry away from it two general lessons.

In the first place, if the spirit of these ten verses were more continually remembered by true believers, they would recommend Christianity to the world far more than they do. We must not allow ourselves to suppose that the least words in this passage are trifling and of small moment. They are not so. It is attention to the spirit of this passage which makes our religion beautiful. It is the neglect of the things which it contains by which our religion is deformed. Unfailing courtesy, kindness, tenderness, and consideration for others, are some of the greatest ornaments to the character of the child of God. The world can understand these things, if it cannot understand doctrine. There is no religion in rudeness, roughness, bluntness and incivility. The perfection of practical Christianity consists in attending to the little duties of holiness as well as to the great.

In the second place, if the spirit of these ten verses had more dominion and power in the world, how much happier the world would be than it is. Who does not know that quarrellings, strifes, selfishness, an unkindness cause half the miseries by which mankind is visited? Who can fail to see that nothing would so much tend to increase happiness as the spread of Christian love, such as is here recommended by our Lord? Let us all remember this. Those who fancy that true religion has any tendency to make men unhappy are greatly mistaken. It is the absence of it that does this, and not the presence. True religion has a directly contrary effect. It tends to promote peace, charity, kindness, and goodwill among men. The more men are brought under the teaching of the Holy Spirit, the more they will love one another and the more happy they will be.

Ryle's Expository Thoughts on the Gospels

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Day 10

LABOR NOT TO BE RICH

Matthew Henry

"Do not wear yourself out to get rich; have the wisdom to show restraint. Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle." (Proverbs 23:4,5)

How Solomon dissuades the covetous man from toiling and tormenting himself. "Do not aim to be rich, to raise an estate and to make what you have in abundance more than it is." We must endeavor to live comfortably and provide for our children and families, according as our rank and condition are, but we must not seek great things. Be not of those that will be rich, that desire it as their chief good and design it as their highest end. Covetous men think it is their wisdom, imagining that if they be rich to such a degree, they shall be completely happy. But it is a mistake; a man's life consists not in the abundance of the things which he possesses.

Those that aim at great things fill their hands with more business than they can grasp, so that their life is both a perfect drudgery and a perpetual hurry. But be not such a fool. What you have or do, be master of it and not a slave to it. Moderate labor, that we may have to give, is our wisdom and duty. Immoderate labor, that we may have to hoard, is our sin and folly.

Solomon dissuades the covetous man from cheating and deceiving himself by an inordinate love and pursuit of that which is vanity and vexation of spirit. The things of this world are things that are not. They have a real existence in nature and are the real gifts of Providence, but in the kingdom of grace they are things that are not. They are not a happiness and portion for a soul, are not what they promise to be nor what we expect them to be. They are a show, a shadow, a sham upon the soul that trusts in them. They perish in the using.

Riches are very uncertain things. They are not durable and abiding. They make themselves wings and fly away. Those that hold them ever so fast cannot hold them long; either they must be taken from us, or we must be taken from them. They go irresistibly and irrecoverably, as an eagle towards heaven, that flies out of sight and out of call. There is no bringing her back. Thus do riches leave men, and leave them in grief and vexation if they set their hearts upon them.

Matthew Henry's Commentary

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Day 11

A GODLY MAN IS A HUMBLE MAN

Thomas Watson

"A man's pride will bring him low,
but the humble in spirit will retain honor."
Proverbs 29:23

Question: How may a Christian know that he is humble and consequently godly?

A humble soul is emptied of all swelling thoughts of himself. He has lower thoughts of himself than others can have of him. David, though a king, still looked upon himself as a worm: 'I am a worm, and no man.'

A humble soul thinks better of others than of himself, and values others at a higher rate than himself. This is because he can see his own heart better than he can see another's. He sees his own corruption and thinks that surely it is not so with others; their graces are not so weak as his; their corruptions not so strong. 'Surely,' he thinks, 'they have better hearts than I.' A humble Christian studies his own infirmities and another's excellences, and this makes him put a higher value upon others.

A humble person bemoans not only his sins, but also his duties. When he has prayed and wept, 'Alas,' he says, 'how little I have done! God might damn me for all this.' He says, like good Nehemiah, 'Remember me, O my God, concerning this also, and spare me.'

A humble man is willing to have his name and gifts eclipsed so that God's glory may be increased. He is content to be outshone by others in gifts and esteem, so that the crown of Christ may shine the brighter. This is the humble man's motto: 'Let me decrease; let Christ increase.' A humble Christian is content to be laid aside if God has any other tools to work with which may bring him more glory.

A humble saint likes that condition which God sees best for him. A proud man complains that he has no more; a humble man wonders that he has so much. When the heart lies low, it can stoop to a low condition. A Christian looking at his sins wonders that it is no worse with him. He does not say his mercies are small, but that his sins are great. He knows that the worst piece God carves him is better than he deserves. Therefore, he takes it thankfully upon his knees.

The Godly Man's Picture

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Day 12

"THUS DID NOAH ;
ACCORDING TO ALL THAT GOD COMMANDED HIM, SO DID HE"
Genesis 6:22

Jonathan Edwards

Concerning these words, I would observe the following doctrine: We should be willing to engage in and go through great undertakings in order to [make] our own salvation [sure].

The building of the ark, which was enjoined upon Noah that he and his family might be saved, was a great undertaking. The ark was a vessel of vast size. It took Noah, with all the workmen he employed, a hundred and twenty years, or thereabouts, to build it. Men would esteem an undertaking very great which should keep them constantly employed for even half that time.

Noah's undertaking was of great difficulty, as it exposed him to the continual reproaches of all his neighbors for that whole one hundred and twenty years. None of them believed what he told them of a flood which was about to drown the world. Where is the man that can stand the shock of such a trial for twenty years?

But in such an undertaking as this, Noah, at the divine direction, engaged and went through it, that he and his family might be saved from the common destruction about to come on the world. He began and also made an end: "According to all that God commanded him, so did he." Length of time did not weary him. He did not grow weary of his vast expense. He stood the shock of the derision of all his neighbors and did not grow weary of being their laughing stock, but he persevered in it till the ark was finished. How great an undertaking, then, should men be willing to engage in and go through in order to [make sure] their eternal salvation--a salvation from an eternal deluge, from being overwhelmed with the billows of God's wrath, of which Noah's flood was but a shadow.

I shall particularly handle this doctrine under the following proposition: There is a work or business which must be undertaken and accomplished by men if they would be saved. Men have no reason to expect to be saved in idleness, or to go to heaven in a way of doing nothing. There is a race that is set before them which they must run, and in that race they come off victors in order to win the prize. Though it be not needful that we do anything to merit salvation, which Christ has fully merited for all who believe in him, yet God, for wise and holy ends, has appointed that we should come to final salvation in no other way but that of good works.

God did not save Noah on account of the labor and expense he was at in building the ark. Noah's salvation from the flood was an instance of the free and distinguishing mercy of God. Nor did God stand in need of Noah's care, cost, or labor to build an ark. The same power which created the world and brought the flood of waters upon the earth could have made the ark in an instant. Yet God was pleased to appoint that Noah should be saved in this way. So God has appointed us "to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling."

There are many wise ends to be answered by the establishment of such a work as prerequisite to salvation. The glory of God requires it. For although God stands in no need of anything that men do to recommend them to his saving mercy, yet it would reflect much on the glory of God's wisdom and holiness to bestow salvation on men in such a way as tends to encourage them in sloth and wickedness.

It becomes the wisdom of God so to order it that things of great value and importance should not be obtained without great labor and diligence. Much human learning and great moral accomplishments are not to be obtained without care and labor. It is wisely so ordered to maintain in man a due sense of the value of those things which are excellent.

I would by no means flatter you concerning this work, or go about to make you believe that you shall find it an easy and light business. No, I would have you sit down and count the cost. And if you cannot find it in your heart to engage in a great, hard, laborious, and expensive undertaking, and to persevere in it to the end of life, then pretend not to be religious.

ondoctrine.com/02writin.htm

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Day 13

THE COUNCIL OF NICEA

Philip Schaff

Nicea, the very name which speaks of victory, was the second city of Bithynia, only twenty English miles from the imperial residence of Nicomedia, and easily accessible by sea and land from all parts of the empire. Here, in the year 325, the emperor summoned the bishops of the empire by a letter of invitation, putting at their service the public conveyances and liberally defraying from the public treasury the expenses of their residence in Nicea and their return home.

The formal opening of the council was made by the stately entrance of the emperor, Constantine the Great. After a brief salutatory address from the bishop on his right, the emperor himself delivered with a gentle voice in the official Latin tongue, the opening address.

"It was my highest wish, my friends, that I might be permitted to enjoy your assembly. I must thank God that in addition to all other blessings, he has shown me this highest one of all: to see you all gathered here in harmony and with one mind. May no malicious enemy rob us of this happiness. Discord in the church I consider more fearful and painful than any other war. As soon as I by the help of God had overcome my enemies, I believed that nothing more was now necessary than to give thanks to God in common joy with those whom I had liberated. But when I heard of your division, I was convinced that this matter should by no means be neglected, and in the desire to assist by my service, I have summoned you without delay. I shall, however, feel my desire fulfilled only when I see the minds of all united in that peaceful harmony which you, as the anointed of God, must preach to others. Delay not therefore, my friends, delay not, servants of God; put away all causes of strife and loose all knots of discord by the laws of peace. Thus shall you accomplish the work most pleasing to God and confer upon me, your fellow servant, an exceeding great joy."

The council of Nicea is the most important event of the fourth century, and its bloodless intellectual victory over a dangerous error is of far greater consequence to the progress of true civilization than all the bloody victories of Constantine and his successors. It forms an epoch in the history of doctrine, summing up the results of all previous discussion on the deity of Christ and the incarnation, and at the same time regulating the further development of the Catholic orthodoxy for centuries. The Nicene creed, in the enlarged form which it received after the second ecumenical council, is the only one of all the symbols of doctrine which, with the exception of the subsequently added filioque, is acknowledged alike by the Greek, Latin, and Evangelical churches, and to this day, after a course of fifteen centuries, is prayed and sung from Sunday to Sunday in all countries of the civilized world.

The wild passions and the weaknesses of men, which encompassed the Nicene council, are extinguished, but the faith in the eternal deity of Christ has remained.

History of the Christian Church, vol. III.

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Day 14

THE BOOK OF THE REVELATION AND
THE FIRST RESURRECTION

Samuel P. Tregelles

In Revelation 20, we read of "the first Resurrection". The whole scene is thus described: "I saw thrones, and they sat upon them; and judgment was given unto them; and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the Word of God, and [those] which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. (But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished.) This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that has part in the first resurrection: on such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years."

This is not only a vision, but also an explanation. John is taught what the thrones with certain sitting upon them meant. They are the faithful in Christ in general (i.e., the whole family of faith from Abel onward), and one special class--those suffering for the witness of Jesus. And the glory given to them is explained to be the first resurrection. This is in full accordance with other Scriptures, for instance, I Cor. 15:23 where the order of the resurrection is taught: "Every man in his own order: Christ the first-fruits; afterward (next in order), they that are Christ's at His coming."

Thus, in the teaching of Christ himself and of His apostles, the one object before the souls of believers is His own personal coming in manifested glory. This is our hope; for then, in body and in spirit, we shall share His glory. That coming will bring destruction on Gentile power then in its height of blasphemy and persecution. Then will Israel look on Him whom they pierced and mourn for Him. Then shall the spirit of grace and supplications be poured on them, and then shall they know the fountain for sin and for uncleanness to be opened for them.

If we receive this hope as taught us from the Word of God, we must also see that it is given to strengthen and sustain us during the intervening time; not as telling us that there is no such interval, but as sustaining us through it. So that while we learn of false teachers and evil in the Church, and while we know much of the course of sin and its fruits in the world, we have before us the brightness of the morning to sustain us during the darkness of the night.

The Hope of Christ's Second Coming

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Day 15

SEARCH THE SCRIPTURES

Charles Spurgeon

"Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and searched the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true." (Acts 17:11)

The Greek word translated search signifies a strict, close, diligent, curious search, the kind men make when they are seeking gold, or hunters when they are in pursuit of game. We must not be content with giving a superficial glance to one or two chapters, but with the candle of the Spirit we must deliberately seek out the meaning of the Word. Holy Scripture requires searching--much of it can only be learned by careful study. There is milk for babies, but also meat for strong men. The rabbis wisely say that a mountain of matter hangs upon every word. Tertullian declared, "I adore the fullness of the Scriptures."

The person who merely skims the Book of God will not profit from it. We must dig and mine until we obtain the treasure. The door of the Word only opens to the key of diligence. The Scriptures demand to be searched. They are the writings of God, bearing the divine stamp and imprimatur--who shall dare to treat them casually? To despise them is to despise the God who wrote them. God forbid that any of us should allow our Bibles to become witnesses against us in the great day of account.

The Word of God will repay searching. God does not ask us to sift through a mountain of chaff with only here and there a grain of wheat in it, but the Bible is sifted corn--we have only to open the granary door and find it. Scripture grows upon the student. It is full of surprises. Under the teaching of the Holy Spirit, to the searching eye, it glows with splendor of revelation, like a vast temple paved with gold and roofed with rubies, emeralds, and all manner of gems. There is no merchandise like the merchandise of scriptural truth.

Finally, the Scriptures reveal Jesus: "They that bear witness about me." No more powerful motive can be urged upon Bible readers than this: He who finds Jesus finds life, heaven, and all things. Happy are they who, in searching the Bible, discover their Savior.

Morning and Evening

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Day 16

DEATH AND BURIAL OF MOSES

Alfred Edersheim

All was now ready and Israel about to cross the Jordan and take possession of the Promised Land! It was only natural that Moses should have longed to share in what was before them. Looking back the long vista of these 120 years--first of life and trial in Egypt, then of loneliness and patient faith while feeding the flocks of Jethro, and lastly, of labor and weariness in the wilderness--it would indeed have been strange had he not wished now to have part in the conquest and rest of the goodly land. He had believed in it; he had preached it; he had prayed for it; he had labored, borne, fought for it. And now within reach and view of it, must he lay himself down to die?

"Then I pleaded with the LORD at that time, saying: 'O Lord GOD, You have begun to show your servant your greatness and your mighty hand, for what god is there in heaven or on earth who can do anything like your works and your mighty deeds? I pray, let me cross over and see the good land beyond the Jordan, those pleasant mountains, and Lebanon.'"

The deep feelings of Moses had scarcely bodied themselves in the language of prayer. Rather had it been the pouring forth of his inmost desires before his Father in heaven. "Nevertheless, not my will, but Thine be done." And it was the good will of God that Moses should lay himself down to rest without entering the land. Although it came in punishment of Israel's and of Moses' sin at the waters or Meribah, yet it was also better that it should be so--better for Moses himself. For on the top of Pisgah, God prepared something better for him than even entrance into the land of earthly promise.

And now, calmly, as a father sets his house in order, did Moses prepare for his departure. During his life all his thoughts had been for Israel, and he was faithful even unto the death. His last care also was for the people whom he had loved, and for the work to which he had been devoted: that Jehovah would provide a shepherd to lead them out and bring them in.

His last words were a blessing upon Israel. Then, amid the respectful silence of a mourning people, he set out alone upon his last pilgrim journey. All the way up to the highest top of Pisgah, the eyes of the people must have followed him. They could watch him as he stood there in the sunset, taking his full view of the land, there to see for himself how true and faithful Jehovah had been. Still could they descry his figure, as, in the shadows of even, it moved towards a valley apart. After that, no mortal eye ever beheld him until, with Elijah, he stood on the mount of transfiguration. Then indeed was the longing wish of Moses, uttered many, many centuries before, fulfilled far beyond his thinking or hoping at that time. He did stand on "the goodly mountain" within the Land of Promise, worshiping and giving testimony to Him in "Whom all the promises are yea and amen." It was a worthy crowning of such a life.

Bible History Old Testament

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Day 17

MAN'S IMPOTENCE

Arthur W. Pink

"And you he made alive,
who were dead in trespasses and sins."
Ephesians 2:1

It is of the utmost importance that people should clearly understand and be made thoroughly aware of their spiritual impotence, for thus alone is a foundation laid for bringing them to see and feel their imperative need of divine grace for salvation. So long as sinners think they have it in their own power to deliver themselves from their death in trespasses and sins, they will never come to Christ that they might have life; for "the whole need not a physician, but they that are sick." So long as people imagine they labor under no insuperable inability to comply with the call of the gospel, they never will be conscious of their entire dependence on Him alone who is able to work in them "all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power."

Nevertheless, the fact remains that this is a doctrine which is little understood, and rarely insisted upon. The actual conditions of men, their alienation from God, and their sinful inability to return to Him, are feebly apprehended and seldom heard, notwithstanding the clear and uniform testimony of the Scriptures.

Not only does the appalling ignorance of our generation cause the servant of God to labor under a heavy handicap when seeking to present the scriptural account of man's total inability for good, but he is also placed at a serious disadvantage by virtue of the marked distastefulness of this truth. The subject of man's moral impotence is far from being a pleasing one to the natural man. He wants to be told that all he needs to do is exert himself, that salvation lies within the power of his will, that he is the determiner of his own destiny. Pride, with its strong dislike of being a debtor to the sovereign grace of God, rises up against it. Self esteem, with its rabid repugnance of anything which lays the creature in the dust, hotly resents what is so humiliating.

However repellent this truth may be, it must not be withheld from men. The minister of Christ is not sent forth to please or entertain his congregation, but to declare the counsel of God, and not merely those parts of it which may meet with their approval and acceptance.

eternallifeministries.org

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Day 18

UNPROFITABLE SERVANTS

John Calvin

"And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, 'Come at once and sit down to eat'? But will he not rather say to him, 'Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink'? Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not. So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, 'We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.'" (Luke 17:7-10)

The object of this parable is to show that God claims all that belongs to us as his property, and possesses an entire control over our persons and services. Therefore, all the zeal that may be manifested by us in discharging our duty does not lay him under obligation to us by any sort of merit, for as we are his property, so he on his part can owe us nothing. He adduces the comparison of a servant who, after having spent the day in severe toil, returns home in the evening and continues his labors till his master is pleased to relieve him. Christ speaks not of such servants as we have in the present day who work for hire, but of the slaves that lived in ancient times. Their condition in society was such that they gained nothing for themselves, but all that belonged to them--their toil, application, industry, even their very blood--was the property of their masters. Christ now shows that a bond of servitude not less rigorous binds and obliges us to serve God, from which he infers that we have no means of laying him under obligations to us.

It is an argument drawn from the less to the greater. If a mortal man is permitted to hold such power over another man as to enjoin upon him uninterrupted services by night and by day, and yet contract no sort of mutual obligation, as if he were that man's debtor, how much more shall God have a right to demand the services of our whole life to the utmost extent that our ability allows, and yet be in no degree indebted to us? We see, then, that all are held guilty of wicked arrogance who imagine that they deserve anything from God, or that he is bound to them in any way. And yet no crime is more generally practiced than this kind of arrogance, for there is no man that would not willingly call God to account. Hence, the notion of merits has prevailed in almost every age.

But we must attend more closely to the statement made by Christ, namely, that we render nothing to God beyond what he has a right to claim, but are so strongly bound to his service that we owe him everything that lies in our power. It consists of two clauses. First, our life, even to the very end of our course, belongs entirely to God, so that, if a person were to spend a part of it in obedience to God, he would have no right to bargain that he should rest for the remainder of the time. Then follows the second clause on which we have already touched, that God is not bound to pay us wages for any of our services. Let each of us remember that he has been created by God for the purpose of laboring, and of being vigorously employed in his work; it is not only for a limited time, but till death itself.

With respect to merit, we must remove the difficulty by which many are perplexed, for Scripture so frequently promises a reward to our works that they think it allows them some merit. The reply is easy: A reward is promised, not as a debt, but from the mere good pleasure of God. By the engagements of the Law, I readily acknowledge, God is bound to men if they were to discharge fully all that is required from them. But still, as this is a voluntary obligation on God's part, it remains a fixed principle that man can demand nothing from God, as if he had merited anything. And thus the arrogance of the flesh falls to the ground, for, granting that any man fulfilled the Law, he cannot plead that he has any claims on God, having done no more than he was bound to do. When he says we are unprofitable servants, his meaning is that God receives from us nothing beyond what is justly due, but only collects the lawful revenues of his dominion.

There are two principles, therefore, that must be maintained. First, that God naturally owes us nothing, and that all the services which we render to him are not worth a single straw. Second, that according to the engagements of the Law, a reward is attached to works, not on account of their value, but because God is graciously pleased to become our debtor. It would evince intolerable ingratitude if on such a ground any person should indulge in proud boasting. The kindness and liberality that God exercises toward us only lay us under deeper obligations to him.

Whenever we meet with the word reward, let us look upon this as the crowning act of the goodness of God to us, that though we are completely in his debt, he condescends to enter into a bargain with us.

Calvin's Commentaries

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Day 19

A GODLY MAN IS A LOVER OF THE WORD

Thomas Watson

"Oh, how I love Thy law!
It is my meditation all the day."
Psalm 119:97

A godly man shows his love to the written Word by diligently reading it. The noble Bereans 'searched the Scriptures daily' (Acts 17:11). The Word shows what is truth and what is error. It is the field where the pearl of price is hidden. How we should dig for this pearl!

He shows his love by frequently meditating on it. He has not only a few transient thoughts, but he leaves his mind steeping in the Scriptures. He delights in the Word. 'Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of my heart' (Jer. 15:16). Never did a man take such delight in a dish that he loved as the prophet did in the Word.

The godly man prefers the Word above things most precious: food, riches, and worldly honor. King Edward the Sixth, on the day of his coronation when presented with three swords signifying that he was monarch of three kingdoms, said, 'There is still one sword missing.' On being asked what that was, he answered, 'The Holy Bible, which is the "sword of the Spirit" and is to be preferred before these ensigns of royalty.'

Do we love the written Word? What sums of money the martyrs gave for a few leaves of the Bible! But alas, how can they who are seldom conversant with the Scriptures say they love them?

The Godly Man's Picture

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Day 20

JACOB AND ESAU

Charles Spurgeon

Do not imagine for an instant that I pretend to be able thoroughly to elucidate the great mysteries of predestination. There are some men who claim to know all about the matter. They twist it round their fingers as easily as if it were an everyday thing. But depend upon it, he who thinks he knows all about this mystery knows but very little.

Now it is one thing to refute another man's doctrine, but a very different matter to establish my own views. I shall try tonight, if I can, to go safely, if I do not go very fast, and keep simply to the letter of God's Word.

The truth is, neither you nor I have any right to want to know more about predestination than what God tells us. That is enough for us. If it were worthwhile for us to know more, God would have revealed more. I shall now endeavor, by the help of the Holy Spirit, to throw the light of God's Word upon this great doctrine of divine sovereignty, and give you what I think to be a Scriptural statement of the fact that some men are chosen and other men are left; the great fact that is declared in this text, "Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated."

Why was it that God loved Jacob and hated Esau? We will take one question at a time. I will tell you why God loved Jacob, and then I will tell you why he hated Esau. But I cannot give you the same reason for two contradictory things. That is wherein a great many have failed.

The first question: Why did God love Jacob? I am not at a loss to tell you that it could not be for any good thing in Jacob that God loved him, because I am told that "the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God, according to election might stand, not of works but of him that calleth." There was nothing in Jacob that could make God love him. There was everything about him that might have made God hate him. But it was because God was infinitely gracious that he loved Jacob, and because he was sovereign in his dispensation of this grace.

Now the next question is a different one. Why did God hate Esau? Why does God hate any man? I defy anyone to give any answer but this: Because that man deserves it. No reply but that can ever be true. There are some who answer, 'divine sovereignty'; but I challenge them to look that doctrine in the face. Do you believe that God created man and arbitrarily, sovereignly--it is the same thing--created that man with no other intention than that of damning him? Made him for no other reason that that of destroying him for ever? Well, if you can believe it, I pity you; you deserve pity that you should think so meanly of God, whose mercy endures forever.

Now, let us look at Esau's character. Someone says, "Did he deserve that God should cast him away?" I answer, "He did." What we know of Esau's character clearly proves it. Esau lost his birthright. He sold it himself, he sold it for a mess of pottage. Did God influence Esau to do that? God forbid; God is not the author of sin. Esau voluntarily gave up his own birthright. And the doctrine is that every man who loses heaven gives it up himself. Every man who loses everlasting life rejects it himself. God does not deny it to him, but that man will not come that he may have life. No man is saved by his own free will, but every man that is damned is damned by it. He does it of his own will, no one constrains him. You know, sinner, that when you go away from here and put down the cries of conscience, that you do it yourself. Your being still in a state of sin is voluntary, and the blame lies at your own door. But if you are saved, it cannot be by your merits. It must be by grace--free, sovereign grace.

"Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved." May grace now be given you to yield to this glorious command. May you now believe in him who came into the world to save sinners. Free grace carried the cunning Jacob into glory and made him white as the angels of heaven, and shall carry many a black sinner there also. May God prove this doctrine to be true in your experience.

spurgeon.org/sermons/0239.htm

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Day 21

THE WORK OF CONVERSION

John Flavel

In nothing does Providence shine forth more gloriously in this world than in ordering the occasions, instruments, and means of conversion of the people of God. However skilfully its hand had molded your bodies, however tenderly it had preserved them, and however bountifully it had provided for them, if it had not also ordered some means or other for your conversion, all the former favors and benefits it had done for you had meant little. This, oh this, is the most excellent benefit you ever received from its hand. You are more indebted to Providence for this than for all your other mercies. And in explaining this performance of Providence, I cannot but think your hearts must be deeply affected. This is a subject which every gracious heart loves to steep its thoughts in. It is certainly the sweetest history that ever they repeated. They love to think and talk of it. The places where and instruments by whom this work was wrought are exceedingly endeared to them. For many years afterward, their hearts have melted when they have but passed occasionally by those places, or but seen the faces of those persons that were used as instruments in the hand of Providence for their good.

But lest any poor soul should be discouraged by the display of this Providence, because he cannot remember the time, place, instruments and manner when and by which his conversion was wrought, I will therefore premise this necessary distinction to prevent injury to some, while I design benefit to others.

Conversion, as to the subjects of it, may be considered two ways: either as it is more clearly wrought in persons of riper years--who in their youthful days were more profane and vile--or upon persons in their tender years, into whose hearts grace was more imperceptibly and indiscernibly instilled by God's blessing upon pious education.

In the former sort, the distinct acts of the Spirit--illuminating, convincing, humbling, drawing them to Christ and sealing them--are more evident. In the latter, these are more obscure and confused. They can remember that God gave them an esteem and liking of godly persons, care of duty and consciousness of sin, but as to the time, place, instruments and manner of the work, they can give but a slender account of them. However, if the work is savingly wrought in them, there is no reason they should be troubled simply because the circumstances of it are not so evident to them as they are to others. Let the substance and reality of the work appear, and there is no reason to afflict yourselves because of the lack of evidence of such circumstances.

The Mystery of Providence

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Day 22

THE MARKS OF A TRUE WORSHIPPER

Matthew Henry

"LORD, who may abide in your tabernacle? Who may dwell in your holy hill? He who walks uprightly, and works righteousness, and speaks the truth in his heart; he who does not backbite with his tongue, nor does evil to his neighbor, nor does he take up a reproach against his friend; in whose eyes a vile person is despised, but he honors those who fear the LORD; he who swears to his own hurt and does not change; he who does not put out his money at usury, nor does he take a bribe against the innocent." (Psalm 15)

Here is a very serious and weighty question concerning the character of a citizen of Zion. Not, who by name, but, who by description.

He is one that contrives to do all the good he can to his neighbors and is very careful to do hurt to no man. He is, in a particular manner, tender of his neighbor's reputation. He does no evil at all to his neighbor willingly or designedly--nothing to offend or grieve his spirit, nothing to prejudice the health or ease of his body, nothing to injure him in his estate or secular interests, or in his family or relations. This man walks by that golden rule of equity--To do as he would be done by. He is especially careful not to injure his neighbor in his good name, though many, who would not otherwise wrong their neighbors, make nothing of that. If any man in this matter bridles not his tongue, his religion is vain.

The man who shall abide in God's tabernacle knows the worth of a good name, and, therefore, he backbites not, defames no man, speaks evil of no man, makes not others' faults the subject of his common talk (much less of his sport and ridicule), nor speaks of them with pleasure, nor at all but for edification. He makes the best of everybody and the worst of nobody. He does not take up a reproach, that is, he neither raises it nor receives it; he gives no credit nor countenance to a false accusation, but frowns upon a backbiting tongue and so silences it. If an ill-natured representation of his neighbor be given him, or an ill-natured story be told him, he will disprove it if he can. If not, it shall die with him and go no further. His charity will cover a multitude of sins.

Matthew Henry's Commentaries

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Day 23

INWARD IMPRESSIONS

Arthur W. Pink

By inward impressions, we have reference to some passage of Scripture or some verse of a hymn being laid upon the mind with such force that it rivets the attention, absorbs the entire inner man, and is accompanied by such an influence that the partaker thereof is deeply affected. So deep is the impression, he cannot shake it off, and he is convicted of his lost condition and made to seek the Savior.

No doubt each one who reads the above has heard or read some such case. And quite possibly a number of our readers are distressed in that there has been nothing in their own experience which corresponds thereto, and because there is not, they greatly fear they have never been truly converted. But such an inference is quite unwarranted. God does not act uniformly in the work of regeneration any more than he does in creation or in providence. We have met many who never had any such experience, yet whose salvation we could not doubt for a moment. "The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit" (John 3:8). Sometimes the wind blows with great velocity, at other times very gently and almost imperceptibly. But how foolish I would be if, seeing the leaves moving in the breeze, I denied the wind was blowing at all merely because it came not with hurricane intensity!

Some are probably inclined to say, 'Until I experience something like what you describe in the opening paragraph, I shall be afraid to regard myself as genuinely converted. I must be sure that the Gospel has come to me not "in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit"' (I Thess. l:5).

Whether or not the Gospel has come to me "in power and in the Holy Spirit," is to be ascertained by the effects produced in me: not transient effects, but permanent; not simply in my consciousness, but in my life. If the Gospel has come to me "in power," it has made me realize that I am a lost sinner, guilty and undone. It has made me realize that I can do nothing to save myself, nothing which can win God's favor. If the Gospel has come to me "in power," it has shut me up to Christ. It has not only revealed my dire need of him, but has shown me how perfectly suited he is to my case, and how ready and willing he is to cleanse me from my sins. If the Gospel has come to me "in power," it has made me come to Christ as an empty-handed beggar, casting myself on his mercy and closing with his gracious offer to receive me and by no means cast me out. If I have done this, it matters not an iota whether some particular verse of Scripture has been deeply impressed on my mind or not.

A Divinely-given faith will honor God and his word without impressions, comfortable feelings, or even the endorsement of reason--yea, against the dictate of reason. Such was the faith of Abraham. Look well, my reader, to your faith--to its origin, to the foundation it rests upon, and to its enduring power.

eternallifeministries.org

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Day 24

PARABLE OF THE GOOD SAMARITAN

Alfred Edersheim

"A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him." (Luke 10:30-34)

This parable is connected with a question addressed to Jesus by a lawyer, probably an expert in Jewish Canon Law. The question was one of theoretic, not of practical interest, nor was it a matter of deep personal concern, as it was to the rich young ruler who, not long afterwards, addressed a similar inquiry to the Lord.

"Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" At the foundation of this question lay the notion that eternal life was the reward of merit, of works. The only question was what these works were to be. The idea of guilt had not entered his mind, as he had no conception of sin within. Jesus responds using the common Rabbinic expression, "What readest thou?" which pointed him to the Scriptures of the Old Testament. "Thou shalt love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself." Jesus answers him, "You have answered rightly. Do this and you will live."

Why did Christ seem to give his assent to the lawyer's answer, as if it really pointed to the right solution of the great question? We reply, no other answer could have been given him. On the ground of works, if that had been tenable, this was the way to heaven. To understand any other answer would have required a sense of sin, and this could not be imparted by reasoning but must be experienced.

The lawyer replies, "But who is my neighbor?" He wished to vindicate his original question, showing that it was not quite so easily settled as the answer of Jesus seemed to imply. And here it was that Christ could, in a parable, show how far orthodox Judaism was from even a true understanding, much more from such perfect observance, of this Law as would gain heaven. Thus might he bring even this man to feel his shortcomings and sins and awaken in him a sense of his great need.

The parable is familiar to us all. The priest and Levite both passed by the stricken man. The Samaritan, on the other hand, not only tended to his injuries, but brought him to an inn, paying for his care. The lawyer is then himself made to enunciate its lesson. Jesus asks, "Which of these three seems to you to have become neighbor to him that fell among the robbers?" Though unwilling to take the hated name of Samaritan on his lips, especially as the meaning of the parable and its anti-Rabbinic bearing were so evident, the lawyer was obliged to reply, "He that showed mercy on him."

The parable implies a complete change of Jewish ideas. It is truly a Gospel parable, for the whole old relationship of mere duty is changed into one of love. Thus, matters are placed on an entirely different basis from that of Judaism. The question now is not, "Who is my neighbor?" but "Whose neighbor am I?" The gospel answers the question of duty by pointing us to love.

Would you know who is your neighbor? Become a neighbor to all by the utmost service you can do them in their need. The parable points to Christ who, in our greatest need, became neighbor to us, even at the cost of all he had.

The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

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Day 25

GEHENNA
AND THE DOCTRINE OF HELL

Robert Culver

The word 'hell,' found often in Scripture as a name for the place wherein the wicked go immediately after they die, is also the commonest English translation of other terms for the place wherein they are to be punished forever. Among the Jews, when our Lord walked among men, a common name for this place was evidently 'Gehenna.'

At this point, an interesting, if somewhat horrifying, story about words and geography is appropriate and seems necessary. When the Land of Canaan was apportioned to the twelve tribes under Joshua, the border between Judah and Benjamin was run just south of Jerusalem 'by the valley of the son of Hinnom.' This valley was very near a south gate of Jerusalem. Its proximity to Jerusalem and relative isolation, owing to the fact of its being a rather narrowly confined ravine, made it a convenient center for a particularly heinous form of apostate religious cult-practice in ancient Israel.

Here two apostate kings, both under the influence of Syrian and Mesopotamian religion, carried out human sacrifice--the burning of infants to the worship of Moloch, a fire god specially honored by the Ammonites. Ahaz and Manasseh made their children to 'pass through the fire' to Moloch in this ravine before idols and altars erected therein at a place called Tophet.

Josiah put an end to these wretched ceremonies, but they were shortly thereafter briefly revived. In late times, according to Jewish sources, when the Jewish people were cured of idol-worship, the defiled gully was used as a city dump for Jerusalem with fires constantly smoldering there. It served also as a place for disposal of corpses of beasts and unwanted, unclaimed human corpses. It has been said that Jesus' body would have ended up there had not friends lovingly provided otherwise.

It is most significant that Gehenna, what we would today call a city dump, the place of discarded, corrupt and useless things, is the biblical name most frequently used by Jesus for hell. Hell is the place of discard, of uselessness, of abandonment, of eternal destruction; hell is the final smoldering trash-heap of the universe.

The doctrine of hell has great importance for the moral life of mankind. Jesus spoke of hell many times, always by way of supporting some moral imperative. Some striking language in a tract I selected from a literature rack in an Episcopal church (author unknown), renders this poignantly:

For this reason, then, I believe that hell has a very practical importance in our Christian lives. Most of us treat life entirely too lightly. We say, 'What difference does it make what I do or choose or think?' Hell reminds us it does make a difference. Life is earnest...every day we choose between life and death, every hour we look toward God or toward destruction, we stand between heaven and hell. This is why Jesus had such an offensive earnestness as he looked at Gehenna: 'If thy hand offend thee, cut it off; if thy foot offend thee, cut it off; if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out.' Did he mean to mutilate our bodies? Not at all. He meant that what our hand may choose, our foot may do, or our eye may see, can take us moment by moment on the road either to heaven or to hell. That's how important our decisions are in this life; they determine character, and character stands for all eternity.

Systematic Theology

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Day 26

A GODLY MAN IS A ZEALOUS MAN

Thomas Watson

"For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for himself his own special people zealous for good works." (Titus 2:11-14)

Zeal is a mixed affection, a compound of love and anger. It carries forth our love to God and anger against sin in the most intense manner. But there is something that looks like zeal which is not. I shall therefore show some differences between a true and a false zeal.

A false zeal is a blind zeal. 'They have a zeal of God but not according to knowledge' (Rom. 10:2). This is not the fire of the spirit, but wildfire.

A false zeal is a self-seeking zeal. Jehu cries, 'Come, see my zeal for the Lord!' (2 Kgs. 10:16). But it was not zeal, but ambition; he was fishing for a crown. Demetrius pleads for the goddess Diana, but it was not for her temple. It was her silver shrines that he was zealous for. It is probable that many in King Henry VIII's time were eager to pull down the abbeys, not out of any zeal against popery, but that they might build their own houses upon their ruins.

True zeal will encounter the greatest difficulties. When the world holds out danger to discourage us, zeal casts out fear. It is quickened by opposition, and will march in the face of death. Let news be brought to Paul that he was waylaid: 'in every city bonds and afflictions' awaited him. This set a keener edge upon his zeal: 'I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die for the name of the Lord Jesus' (Acts 21:13).

Christian, as you would be found in the catalog of the godly, strive for zeal. It is better to be of no religion than not to be zealous in religion. Beware of sloth, which is an enemy to zeal. What do you reserve your zeal for? Is it for your gold that perishes, or your passions that will make you perish? Can you bestow your zeal better than upon God? Was not Jesus Christ zealous for you? He sweat drops of blood, he conflicted with his Father's wrath. How zealous he was for your redemption, and have you no zeal for him?

Zeal makes all our religious performances prevail with God. When the iron is red hot, it enters best, and when our services are red hot with zeal, they pierce heaven soonest.

The Godly Man's Picture

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Day 27

TEMPTATION

Charles Spurgeon

"Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness
to be tempted by the devil."
Matthew 4:1

A holy character does not prevent temptation. Jesus was tempted. When Satan tempts us, his sparks fall upon tinder. But in Christ's case, it was like striking sparks on water, yet the enemy continued his evil work. Now, if the devil goes on striking when there is no result, how much more will he do it when he knows what inflammable stuff our hearts are made of.

Though you become greatly sanctified by the Holy Spirit, expect that the great dog of hell will bark at you still. In the haunts of men we expect to be tempted, but even seclusion will not guard us from the same trial. Jesus Christ was led away from human society into the wilderness, and was tempted by the devil. Solitude has its charms and its benefits, and may be useful in checking the lust of the eye and the pride of life. But the devil will follow us into the most lovely retreats. Do not suppose that it is only the worldly minded who have dreadful thoughts and blasphemous temptation. Spiritually minded persons endure the same. In the holiest position, we may suffer the darkest temptation.

The utmost consecration of spirit will not insure you against satanic temptation. Christ was consecrated through-and-through. It was His meat and drink to do the will of Him that sent Him, and yet He was tempted! Your hearts may glow with an angelic flame of love for Jesus, and yet the devil will try to bring you down to lukewarm uselessness. If you will tell me when God permits a Christian to lay aside his armor, I will tell you when Satan has left off temptation. Like the old knights in wartime, we must sleep with helmet and breastplate buckled on, for the arch-deceiver will seize our first unguarded moment to make us his prey.

May the Lord keep us watchful in all seasons, and grant us a final escape from the jaw of the lion and the paw of the bear.

Morning and Evening

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Day 28

COVETEOUSNESS

William Gouge

Covetousness being such a sin in its nature, practice, and heinousness, it concerns every Christian to consider how far it has seized him and how guilty he stands thereof.

Covetousness does especially consist in the inward desire of a man, which is best known to himself. A man's desire is one of the things which no man knows, 'save the spirit of man which is in him,' 1 Cor. 2:11. It is so hereditary a disease that no man is altogether free from it. It will, in some degree or other, be found in the best of men if they thoroughly sift themselves. Certainly he found himself addicted to it who prayed to God, 'Incline my heart unto thy testimonies, and not to covetousness,' Psalm 119:36. Yet he was 'a man after God's own heart,' Acts 13:22.

It is such a deceiving sin--covering itself under the veil of prudence, providence, good husbandry, thriftiness, harmlessness, and sundry other presences--that if it be not thoroughly examined, it will hardly be discerned. If it be not searched out but suffered to lurk and grow, it may prove like the thorns which soak out the heart of the earth and make the seed fruitless. However, it is in vain for any to search after that which he knows not how to find out. God himself, having exhorted Joshua and the elders of Israel to search out the accursed thing that was hid in the camp, gave him advice and direction how to do it. I hold it needful, therefore, to add a direction.

Observe the inward wishes of your heart. If they be especially for the things of this world, they argue a covetous disposition. Covetousness is styled 'the lust of the eye,' an inward inordinate desire arising from the sight of something. Many things may be seen which are not desired, but if desired, and that inordinately, there is covetousness.

In things which differ, mark what is preferred. If earthly things be preferred before heavenly, temporal before spiritual, that disposition is covetous. Such was the disposition of those who were invited to the king's supper and refused to go.

In the means of getting, consider whether they be just and right. All unjust and undue ways of getting arise from covetousness. A mind free from it will rest content with that portion which by the divine providence shall be allotted to him.

Weigh carefully the effects of your desire of riches. If thoughts of them break your sleep, care of them consume your flesh, and labor and toil for them take up all your time and impair health and strength, that desire is immoderate--it is plain covetousness.

Take notice of your disposition in hoarding up and keeping wealth, and your reluctance to spend it; for covetousness consists as much (if not more) in keeping as in getting.

puritansermons.com/gouge/gouge10.htm

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Day 29

CONCERNING ANXIETY

John Calvin

"Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?" "Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?" (Matthew 6:25,26)

In the above passage, Christ reproves that excessive anxiety about food and clothing with which men torment themselves, and at the same time applies a remedy for curing this disease. When he forbids them to be anxious, this is not to be taken literally, as if he intended to take away from his people all care. We know that men are born on the condition of having some care, and, indeed, this is not the least portion of the miseries which the Lord has laid upon us as a punishment in order to humble us. But immoderate care is condemned for two reasons. First, in so doing, men tease and vex themselves to no purpose by carrying their anxiety farther than is proper. Second, they claim more for themselves than they have a right to do, and place such a reliance on their own industry that they neglect to call upon God. We ought to remember this promise: Though unbelievers shall "rise up early and sit up late and eat the bread of sorrows," yet believers will obtain, through the kindness of God, "rest and sleep" (Psalm 127:2). Though the children of God are not free from toil and anxiety, yet, properly speaking, we do not say that they are anxious about life, because, through their reliance on the providence of God, they enjoy calm repose.

Hence it is easy to learn how far we ought to be anxious about food. Each of us ought to labor as far as his calling requires and the Lord commands. And each of us ought to be led by his own needs to call upon God. Such anxiety holds an intermediate place between indolent carelessness and the unnecessary torments by which unbelievers kill themselves. But if we give proper attention to the words of Christ, we shall find that he does not forbid every kind of care, but only what arises from distrust. Be not anxious about what you shall eat or what you shall drink. That belongs to those who tremble for fear of poverty or hunger, as if they were to be in need of food every moment.

Is not the life of more value than food? He argues from the greater to the less. He had forbidden them to be excessively anxious about the way in which life might be supported, and he now assigns the reason. The Lord, who has given life itself, will not suffer us to lack what is necessary for its support. And certainly we do no small dishonor to God when we fail to trust that he will give us necessary food or clothing, as if he had thrown us on the earth at random. He who is fully convinced that the Author of our life has an intimate knowledge of our condition, will entertain no doubt that he will make abundant provision for our needs. Whenever we are seized by any fear or anxiety about food, let us remember that God will take care of the life which he gave us.

Calvin's Commentaries

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Day 30

THE BLESSED MAN

Arthur W. Pink

"Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and in his law he meditates day and night." (Psalm 1:1)

Now it is very striking to observe that God has opened this book of Psalms by describing to us the one whose "praises" are alone acceptable to him. In all that follows to the end of verse 3, the Holy Spirit has given us a portrait of the man on whom the Divine benediction rests; the only man who can worship the Father "in spirit and in truth."

The first characteristic of the "blessed man" is his walk--a walk in separation from the wicked. Ah, my reader, it is there and nowhere else that personal piety begins. But notice exactly how it is expressed. It is not "who walks not in the open wickedness" or even "in the manifest folly," but who "walks not in the counsel of the ungodly." How searching that is! How it narrows things down!

The ungodly are ever ready to "counsel" the believer, seeming to be very solicitous of his welfare. They will warn him against being too strict and extreme, advising him to be broadminded and to make the best of both worlds. No matter how plausible it sounds, the blessed man shuns it. Why? Because Divine grace has taught him that he has something infinitely better to direct his steps. God has given him a Divine revelation, dictated by unerring wisdom, suited to his every need and circumstance, designed as a "lamp unto his feet and a light unto his path."

The second characteristic is, "nor stands in the path of sinners." Here we have the associations of the blessed man. He fellowships not with sinners. No, rather does he seek communion with the righteous. Precious examples of this are found in Abram's leaving Ur of the Chaldees, Moses turning his back on the honors and treasures of Egypt, and Ruth's forsaking Moab to accompany Naomi.

The third characteristic is, "nor sits in the seat of the scornful." The seat here speaks of relaxation and delectation: to sit not in the scorner's seat means that the blessed man takes not his ease, nor seeks his joy, in the recreations of the world.

"But his delight is in the Law of the LORD." The worldly man seeks his delight in the entertainment furnished by those who scorn spiritual and eternal things. Not so the blessed man. His delight is in something infinitely superior to what this perishing world can supply, namely, in the Divine Oracles. God's Word is the daily bread of the blessed man. Is it so with you?

eternallifeministries.org

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Day 31

GOD'S PROVIDENCE

John Flavel

"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me." (Psalm 23:4)

Now we shall consider how God's Providence will be of singular use to us in our dying hour: It will sweeten our death to us and greatly assist our faith in this last encounter. We find that when Jacob died, he reflected upon the dealings of God with him in the various providences of his life. In like manner, we find Joshua recording the providences of God when at the brink of the grave. They were the subject of his dying discourse. And I cannot but think it is a sweet close to the life of any Christian. It must needs sweeten the deathbed to recount there the several remarkable passages of God's care and love to us from our beginning to that day, to reflect upon the mercies that went along with us all the way when we are come to the end of it. Oh, Christian, treasure up these instances for such a time as that is, that you may go out of the world blessing God for all the goodness and truth he has performed for you all your life long.

The time of death is when souls are usually most violently assaulted by Satan with horrid temptations and black suggestions. We may say of that figurative, as it is said of the natural serpent, 'he never exerts his utmost rage till the last encounter,' and then his great design is to persuade the saints that God does not love them, has no care nor regard for them or their cries. Though they pray for ease and cry for sparing mercy, they see none comes. He handles them with as much roughness and severity as other men; yea, many of the vilest and most dissolute wretches endure less torments and are more gently handled than they. 'There are no bands in their death,' whereas you must go through a long lane of sickness to the grave.

But what credit can these plausible tales of Satan obtain with a Christian who has been treasuring up all his life-long the memorials of God's tender regard, both to his needs and prayers, and who has carefully marked the evident returns of his prayers and gracious condescensions of God to him from his beginning to that moment? In this case, his faith is mightily assisted by thousands of experiences which back and encourage it, and will not let the soul give up so easily a truth that he has so often felt and tasted. I am sure, says he, God has had a tender fatherly care of me ever since I became His. He never failed me yet in any former difficulty, and I cannot believe He will do so now. I know His love is like Himself, unchangeable. 'Having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end.'

At death the saints are engaged in the last and one of the most eminent works of faith--even the committing of themselves into the hands of God--when they are launching forth into that vast eternity and entering into that new state which will make so great a change in a moment. Oh, what a sweet thing then it will be to close our lives with an honorable account of the ways of God, and to go out of the world blessing Him for all the mercies and truth that He has performed to us!

The Mystery of Providence

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