Delight in the Lord

• "My soul so much delighted to continue instant in prayer, at this blessed season, that I had no desire for my necessary food: even dreaded leaving off praying at all, lest I should lose this spirituality, and this blessed thankfulness to God which I then felt. I felt now quite willing to live, and undergo all trials that might remain for me in a world of sorrow: but still longed for heaven, that I might glorify God in a perfect manner." ~David Brainerd
• "His delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night." Psalm 1:2
• "Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4
• "I delight to do Your will, O my God; Your law is within my heart." Psalm 40:8
• "They seek Me day by day and delight to know My ways, as a nation that has done righteousness and has not forsaken the ordinance of their God. They ask Me for just decisions, they delight in the nearness of God." Isaiah 58:2
• "If we do not rejoice in God - if God is not our treasure and our delight and our satisfaction, then He is dishonored. His glory is belittled. His reputation is tarnished." ~John Piper

Through a Glass Darkly

As through a glass darkly
I catch a glimpse of Him,
A shadow of His person
As through candlelight dim

There appears to be a mist
Like a veil that hides His face,
I cannot see Him well
But here and there a trace

I know Him to be real
And at times my eyes can see,
A vision clear of Jesus
And of His reality

His Spirit guides my footsteps
As on the way I tread,
A sort of fiery pillar
That points the way ahead

As through this world I go
He gently guides the way,
And though I cannot see Him
He leads me day by day

When my life begins to flicker
And my race is almost run,
At the end there lies a trophy
When the triumph all is done

The triumph is not mine
And neither is the praise,
They both belong to God
Who keeps me all my days

Then I shall see His face
No longer faint or dim or hid,
In clear and shining Glory
I shall see Him as He is

Praying for a Nation

Today I was reading in the book of Jeremiah. The prophet had sent a letter to the people of Israel who were taken into exile in Babylon by King Nebuchadnezzer. In Jeremiah's letter I came across this verse: "Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf; for in its welfare you will have welfare." (Jeremiah 29:7)

We as Christians know that this world is not our true home, yet we are called to be here for a little while. What encouraged me about this verse is that we ought to be praying on behalf of our country and for it's welfare. There are many concerning things in a world-wide sense of course, but America is one of the most sinful countries in the world. I admit that praying for my country has not been a big priority until now, but I was greatly convicted by this verse. In Exodus 32 Moses made intercession to the Lord on Israel's behalf to keep the nation from being destroyed in God's anger. This demonstrates the power that effectual prayer can have on a nation and how important this type of prayer truly is.

Consider the Lilies

"Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; but I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass in the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, how much more will He clothe you? You men of little faith! And do not seek what you will eat and what you will drink, and do not keep worrying. For all these things the nations of the world eagerly seek; but your Father knows that you need these things. But seek His kingdom, and these things will be added to you. Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom. " Luke 12:27-32

I was thinking about how much God cares for His people and this verse came to mind. I know that it is usually used in the context of not worrying about anything, but I love so much the incentive behind that statement. "..how much more will he clothe you?" And later on in the passage "...your Father knows that you need these things." How encouraging that our Father knows us so well that He knows our needs even before we ask! Yet He sits and graciously listens to our requests, even encourages us to come to Him, and then blesses us richly and more abundantly than we could ever have hoped for. What glorious mercy and undeserved grace. After seeing Him clothe the lilies of the field, why do we doubt that He will give utmost attention to even our smallest need? "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask Him!" Matthew 7:11

Where Self is on the Throne

The earth has seen the rise and fall of a vast number of empires since God set it turning in its place. With each new ruler there was a renewed lust for glory, power, and conquest. Each of these leaders searched with all his might for something to quench his worldly appetite, but no matter what lengths they went to, none found satisfaction in the end. Finally, after the people of the earth had seen troubles and tyrants, kingdoms and kings, rebellion and rulers, one rose up from among them to which no other ruler in history could be compared. His roots sprang up in the beginning of time, and over the years he became more powerful. Self would soon win the hearts of earth’s people.

While the peoples and powers of the earth were occupied in searching for something to satisfy themselves, Self stood by quietly biding his time. Eventually the earth began to wage open war on its people, and Self began to covertly gather a following around him. Among his followers were the filthy, the vile, the criminals, the wicked, and the ungodly. The more that the earth pretended to search for truth, meaning, and satisfaction, the more Self added to his own army. How did Self draw such a myriad around himself? He appealed to the nature of the people. “What are your impulses, wants, lusts, longings, idols, aspirations, goals, and cravings?” Self would ask. “Whatever your heart desires, I will deny it nothing! Only come to me and I will provide you with whatever you wish.” The people were charmed by his words and delighted with his pleasures. Whatever they wanted, Self had promised them.

When he had gathered enough around him, Self overthrew the rulers of the earth one by one and created an empire of his own. The peoples of the earth were captivated by his many promises to them. In the beginning Self’s reign seemed wonderful and all the people were happy because they got whatever they wanted. But after a time the people began to demand more from Self and more from each other. They were unwilling to yield to those around them and the nation quickly became selfish. In order to keep his people pleased, Self began making new decrees. Self decided to do away with the good, ancient laws and make new laws no matter how evil, immoral, and thoughtless they were. Also, to keep the people from arguing over truth, he declared that there was no such thing as right and wrong and that the people should practice and believe in whatever pleased them most.

After years under the reign of Self, where right and wrong were no longer acknowledged, the people became more wicked than any the earth had ever seen. Entertainment, passions, and gluttony were the favorite pastimes of the people, who had become lazy. No longer devoting themselves to work and providing for their families, they became idle and fell into all kinds of mischief. Murder, adultery, stealing, lawbreaking, and destruction were rampant among the people. They began to prey on the helpless, taking the lives of the innocent and unborn, and taking advantage of the weak. The people even began to ignore the natural and moral in regard to marrying one another. All of this took place because, blinded by charm and enticed by desires, the people worshiped Self instead of God.

The reign of Self probably sounds familiar--it closely resembles the condition of American culture today, where the people glory in wickedness and the existence of truth is denied. In order to restore the earth’s people to favor with God, Self must be overthrown by another ruler--one who would make a Way for them, hold Truth out to those in darkness, and raise the dead to Life. “…You shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” Matthew 1:21

A. Leiter 11/07/08

Thomas Wilcox on the Righteousness of Christ

In reading tonight I came across this and was really refreshed by it. Any amount of self-sufficiency is clearly condemned by these truths found in Thomas Wilcox's tract, Honey Out of the Rock, where the focus is entirely on Christ. The first paragraph is found on page 5, the second is on page 7.

When you believe and come to Christ, you must leave behind you your own righteousness, all your holiness, sanctification, duties, tears, humblings, etc., and bring nothing but your sins, your wants and miseries, else Christ is not fit for you, nor you for Christ. Christ will be a perfect Redeemer and Mediator, and you must be an undone sinner, or Christ and you will never agree. It is the hardest thing in the world to take Christ alone for righteousness; that is, to acknowledge Him Christ.

Stand with all your weight upon Christ's righteousness. Take heed of having one foot on your righteousness, another on Christ's. Till Christ come and sit upon a throne of grace in the conscience, there is nothing but guilt, terrors, secret suspicions, the soul hanging between hope and fear, which is not an evangelical state. Whoever is afraid to see sin's utmost vileness, and confess the desperate wickedness of his heart, suspects the merits of Christ.

Quotes on Missions

• "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit..." Matthew 28:19
• "I have but one candle of life to burn, and I would rather burn it out in a land filled with darkness than in a land flooded with light." -- John Keith Falconer, Arabia
• "God's work, done in God's way, will never lack God's supply." -- Hudson Taylor, China
• "To know the will of God, we need an open Bible and an open map." -- William Carey, India
• "He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose." -- Jim Elliot, South America
• "If a commission by an earthly king is considered a honor, how can a commission by a Heavenly King be considered a sacrifice?" -- David Livingstone, Africa
• "Missions is the overflow of our delight in God because missions is the overflow of God's delight in being God." --John Piper, United States
• "You can give without loving. But you cannot love without giving." -- Amy Carmichael, India
• "People who do not know the Lord ask why in the world we waste our lives as missionaries. They forget that they too are expending their lives ... and when the bubble has burst, they will have nothing of eternal significance to show for the years they have wasted." -- Nate Saint, South America
• "Today Christians spend more money on dog food then missions." -- Leonard Ravenhill, United States
• "Oh, that I had a thousand lives, and a thousand bodies! All of them should be devoted to no other employment but to preach Christ to these degraded, despised, yet beloved mortals." -- Robert Moffat, Africa
• "If God has fit you to be a missionary, I would not have you shrivel down to be a king." -- Charles Spurgeon, England
• "The primary qualification for a missionary is not love for souls, as we so often hear, but love for Christ." -- Vance Havner, United States
• "I believe that in each generation God has called enough men and women to evangelize all the yet unreached tribes of the earth. It is not God who does not call. It is man who will not respond!" -- Isobel Kuhn, China

The Branch and the Branches

"Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, and a branch from his roots will bear fruit." Isaiah 11:1

"Behold, the days are coming," declares the Lord, "When I will raise up for David a righteous Branch; and He will reign as king and act wisely and do justice and righteousness in the land. In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely; and this is His name by which He will be called, 'The Lord our Righteousness.' (Jeremiah 23:5-6)

"In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch of David to spring forth; and He shall execute justice and righteousness on the earth." Jeremiah 33:15

"Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire and they are burned." John 15:4-6

The three Old Testament passages that mention the "Branch" are of course referring to Christ and how God was planning to raise him up from the house of David to rule over Israel, the symbol of the Church or the elect. The John 15 passage is the one that we are most familiar with. Here Jesus is talking about how we as Christians are dependent on Him entirely. We can have no part of Him unless we bear the same fruit that He did. If we are rooted in Christ we cannot help but bear fruit because our roots are very much alive! This does not imply that fruit will come effortlessly, but what an encouragement it is that our life and fruit is not dependent on ourselves. I chose this picture because I think that it depicts perfectly the life that we have in Christ. This branch is flourishing because it is well rooted and nurtured.