Apr 25
9
The love of the truth
(J. C. Philpot, “The Valley of Achor”
1861)
“Them that perish because they received not the love of
the truth, that they might be saved.” 2 Thess. 2:10
There is a receiving of ‘the truth’, and a receiving of
‘the love of the truth’. These two things widely differ.
To receive the truth will not necessarily save; for many
who receive the truth, never receive ‘the love of the truth’.
Professors by thousands receive the truth into their
judgment, and adopt the plan of salvation as their creed;
but are neither saved nor sanctified thereby. But to receive
‘the love of the truth’ by Jesus being made sweet and
precious to the soul, is to receive salvation itself.
“Unto you therefore which believe He is precious.” 1 Peter 2:7
Call Him LORD
I notice that few preachers and writers use the expression “OUR LORD JESUS” or “THE LORD JESUS”. It is “Jesus said this” and “Jesus did that” or “Jesus died and rose again”. Brethren, HE IS THE LORD – HE IS THE LIVING GOD!
We need to acknowledge His deity, His dominion, and His divine anointing! He is “God over all, blessed forever” and we can never praise Him too much, speak too reverently of Him, or give Him a high title which He does not deserve.
You may feel that I am straining at a gnat but I sincerely do not think so. As for this preacher and this congregation, He is our LORD JESUS CHRIST and I shall continue to discourage any over-familiarity or lack of reverence for His person and work.
“Ye call me LORD and ye say well, for so I am.” And I urge all who use His glorious name, even in conversation, to use it most reverently and with full honours!
Henry Mahan
OUR LORD CAME ON PURPOSE
Our Lord came on purpose to save a particular people and He accomplished what He came to do!
If you are one of those particular people and if He accomplished for you, then He will notify you of it through the preaching of His word. In His notification, He will convince you of the fact that you are a sinner, the worst sinner you have ever known! That is the very reason why He had to die! It was to save you from your sins, His death was God the Father free to you. And in His free gift you are completely redeemed! It was all appointed by the Father and obtained by the Son. To Him be glory forever.
Gabe Stalnaker
Longing to See His Face
When our Lord came bodily to this world, He came in the “likeness of sinful flesh” Rom. 8:3. No one looked at His outward appearance and thought He was different from any other mortal man. On the Mount of Transfiguration, the veil of our Lord’s humanity was taken away so that the disciples had to hide their faces from the radiance of His glory. The Lord told Moses, no man can see my face and live. For now we see through a glass darkly; but then face to face. It doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him; FOR WE SHALL SEE HIM AS HE IS!
Greg Elmquist
A Servant of God
All believers are bond slaves of Jesus Christ (Romans 1:1). There are four ways a man can become a servant, and all of these are seen in the Gospel. (1) A man could be purchased to be a servant. We were purchased by the blood of Christ (I Peter 1:18). (2) A man could be captured, conquered, and made a slave. We were captured and conquered by the Lord Jesus Christ (Ephesians 4:8). (3) A man could be born a slave. We were born servants of Christ when we were born again. (4) A man could choose to be a bond-slave of the Master that he loved. We willingly choose to be servants of Christ (Exodus 21:1-6).
Todd Nibert
“The only begotten of
the Father, full of grace and truth!” John 1:14
(Charles Spurgeon)
Believer, you can bear your testimony that Christ is the only
begotten of the Father.
You can say, “He is truly divine. He has done that for me, which none but
a God could do!
He has . . .
subdued my stubborn will,
melted a heart of adamant,
opened gates of brass,
and snapped bars of iron!
He has turned my mourning into laughter, and my desolation into joy!
He has made my heart rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory!
Let others think as they will of Him – to me He must be the
only begotten of the Father!
And He is full of grace. Ah! had He not been, then I would never
have been saved! He drew me when I struggled to escape from His grace; and when
at last I came all trembling like a condemned culprit to His mercy-seat He
said, “Your sins which are many, are all forgiven!”
And He is full of truth. True have His promises been, not one has
failed.
I bear witness that . . .
never any servant had such a master as I have;
never any brother had such a kinsman as He has been to
me;
never any spouse had such a husband as Christ has been
to my soul;
never any sinner had a better Saviour;
never any mourner had a better comforter than Christ
has been to my heart.
I desire none beside Him!
In life, He is my true life.
In death, He shall be the death of death.
In poverty, Christ is my true riches.
In darkness, He is my sun.
He is my manna in this poor wilderness world.
He shall be heavenly manna when I come to the heavenly Canaan.
Jesus is to me . . .
all grace,and no wrath;
all truth, and no falsehood.
And of grace and truth He is full, infinitely
full!
“The only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth!”
John 1:14
Lord, I feel my own
utter helplessness!
(J. C. Philpot, “Sending Out of Light and Truth” 1841)
“O send out Thy light and Thy truth,
let them lead me.” Psalm 43:3
The Christian is often dissatisfied with his state. He
is well aware of the shallowness of his attainments
in the divine life, as well as of the ignorance and the
blindness that are in him. He cannot perceive the path
of life. He sees and feels so powerfully the workings
of sin and corruption, that he often staggers, and is
perplexed in his mind.
And therefore, labouring under the feeling of . . .
his own shortcomings for the past,
his helplessness for the present,
and his ignorance for the future,
he wants to go forward wholly and solely
in the strength of the Lord, to be . . .
led,
guided,
directed,
kept,
not by his own wisdom and power—but by
the supernatural entrance of light and truth
into his soul.
When thus harassed and perplexed, he will at times
and seasons, as his heart is made soft, cry out with
fervency and importunity, as a beggar that will not
take a denial, “O send forth Your light and Your truth,
let them guide me!” As though he would say, “Lord,
I feel my own utter helplessness! I know I must go
astray, if You do not condescend to guide me. I have
been betrayed a thousand times when I have trusted
my own heart. I have been entangled in my base
lusts. I have been puffed up by presumption. I have
been carried away by hypocrisy and pride. I have
been
drawn aside into the world. I have never taken a single
step aright when left to myself. And therefore feeling
how unable I am to guide myself a single step of the
way, I come unto You, and ask You to send forth Your
light and Your truth, that they may guide me, for I
am utterly unable to lead myself.”
The child of God—feeling his own ignorance, darkness,
blindness, and sinfulness—causes him to moan, and
sigh, and cry unto God—that he might be . . .
led every step,
kept every moment,
guided every inch.
“O send out Thy light and Thy truth,
let them lead me.” Psalm 43:3
Man hates the gospel
with all his heart!
Spurgeon, “Fire: the Want of the Times” #854
Brethren, there is nothing in the
gospel, apart from the Spirit of God,
which can save a man, for man
hates the gospel with all his heart!
Though the reasonableness of the gospel
of Jesus ought to make the belief of it
universal, yet its plain dealing with human
sin excites deadly antagonism. Therefore,
the gospel itself would make no progress
were it not for the divine power.
There is an invisible arm which pushes forward
the conquests of the truth. There is a fire unfed
with human fuel, which burns a way for the truth
of Jesus Christ into the hearts of men.
What man needs
(Horatius
Bonar)
It is not ‘opinions’ which man needs—it is TRUTH!
It is not ‘theology’ which man needs—it is GOD!
It is not ‘religion’ which man needs—it is CHRIST!
The crown of universal monarchy!
“He is Lord of lords and King of kings!” Revelation 17:14
Jesus Christ is King in the world today!
The Lord reigns! Let the earth rejoice!
Jesus Christ wears the crown of universal monarchy!
Nothing happens but that which Jesus permits, ordains, and overrules!
Let empires go to wreck – it is Christ who breaks them with a rod of iron and shivers them like potters’ vessels.
Let conflagrations burn down
cities,
let diseases devastate nations,
let war follow war,
let pestilence follow to famine-
yet still Jesus rules all things well, and we know that all things work
together for good to those who love God, who are called according to His
purpose!
All these foes and fears?
(J. C. Philpot, “King Of Kings”)
We daily and hourly feel the
workings of….
mighty sins,
raging lusts,
powerful temptations,
besetting evils,
against the least and feeblest of which we
have no strength. But as the eye of faith
views our blessed Lord at the right hand
of the Father, we are led by the power of
His grace to look unto Him, hang upon Him,
and seek help from him.
Trials in providence,
afflictions in the family,
sickness and infirmities in the body,
crooked things in the church,
opposition and persecution from the world,
a vile, unbelieving heart, which we can neither sanctify nor subdue,
a rough and rugged path, increasing in difficulty as we journey onward,
doubts, fears, and misgivings in our own bosom,
inward slips and falls,
wanderings,
startings aside,
hourly backslidings from the strait and narrow path,
jealous enemies watching for our halting,
with no eye to pity, nor arm to help.
How all these foes and fears
make us feel our
need of an enthroned King, Head, and Husband,
whose tender heart is soft to pity, whose mighty
arm is strong to relieve!
The absolute Monarch
of the universe!
by Don Fortner
To worship a god…
…whose purpose can be defeated,
…whose will can be thwarted,
…whose work can be overturned, and
…whose grace can be frustrated is to worship an idol.
Such a god is no GOD at all!
Jesus Christ our Lord is the unrivaled Sovereign of the
universe (Matt. 28:18; John 17:2). He who is God our
Saviour does as he will in the army of heaven and among
the inhabitants of the earth. He makes one a vessel of
honour and another a vessel of dishonour, one a vessel of
mercy and another a vessel of wrath, one to show forth
the riches of his grace and another to show forth the severity
of his justice, exactly as it pleased him from all eternity.
To deny that Christ created all things and rules all things
is to deny that he is God. To deny that he is God is to
mock him, blaspheme him, and attempt to deny him his glory.
To deny that Christ is God, sovereign upon his throne is to
deny hope to needy sinners who look to him alone for grace,
salvation, and eternal life (John 17:2; Rom. 14:9).
None but an absolute sovereign Lord can save.
None but an absolute sovereign can be trusted implicitly.
None but an absolute sovereign will be worshipped.
Jesus Christ, our God and Saviour, rules all things absolutely
(Ps. 76:10; 115:3; 135:6; Pro.16:1, 33; 21:1).
Jesus Christ is the absolute Monarch of the universe!
Our Saviour is the great King! Nothing more fully shows
forth the unrivalled excellence of Christ than his total
sovereignty, “upholding all things by the word of his power.”