Quotes from David Brainerd

I am currently reading "The Life and Diary of David Brainerd," which was edited by Jonathan Edwards after Brainerd's death. The following are quotes taken from the pages of Brainerd's diary that I found very compelling and convicting.

"I felt my ingratitude, because I was not wholly swallowed up in God." pg 52

"Longed with intense desire after God; my whole soul seemed impatient to be conformed to him, and to become "holy, as he is holy." pg 55

"My soul seemed so to reach and stretch towards the mark of perfect sanctity, that it was ready to break with longings." pg 57

"My soul delighted to be a stranger and pilgrim on the earth; I felt a disposition in me never to have anything to do with this world." pg 58

"My soul felt a pleasing, yet painful concern, lest I should spend some moments without God. O may I always live to God!" pg 59

"But of late, God has been pleased to keep my soul hungry, almost continually, so that I have been filled with a kind of pleasing pain. When I really enjoy God, I feel my desires of him the more insatiable, and my thirstings after holiness the more unquenchable, and the Lord will not allow me to feel as though I were fully supplied and satisfied, but keeps me still reaching forward. I feel barren and empty, as though I could not live without more of God." pg 60

Isaiah 43:2

"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze." From what I have heard, the first portion of this verse is intended to relate to Israel being led out of Egypt across the red sea and the last half is referring to Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego being thrown into the furnace. However, I think this verse could have a broader application in addition to the traditional interpretation.

Trials come at any time, with any severity, and in any number. The flames of my trial may be hotter than yours; the waters of your trial may be deeper than mine. But God has promised to keep us through them all. Read the verse again the see how many promises you can find. 1) He will be with us through the waters, 2) the rivers will not sweep over us, 3) we will not be burned in the fire, and 4) the flames will not set us ablaze. But this raises a few questions: how literally can we take this verse and when we say that God will keep us, what does that really mean?

Roman Emperor Diocletian appeared on the scene in AD 303 and conducted one of the most bloody persecutions in Christian history. The Reformation, which began in 1517 sparked a new wave of persecution in Europe. Marcus and Narcissa Whitman were martyred in 1847 while endeavoring to reach the Indians of the Oregon Territory. Jim Elliot, Nate Saint, and their fellow missionaries died on the beaches of Ecuador on January 8, 1956. Graham Staines, a missionary to India and his two sons were burned to death in their Jeep, 1999. Did God keep all of these people? At first, it may not seem like it; these Christians were brutally killed for their faith. But what about their souls? The Christian's soul is not affected by what is done to his body. I think this is what is meant when we say that God "keeps us." He does not promise that we will never face trials; that life will not be hard; that we will not be persecuted or killed for the sake of Christ. But he does promise that no matter what trials he has for us, our soul is eternally secured. This is far more reassuring than a promise of a life without difficulty. Some of the most precious lessons are learned through trials. Along that same note, The Voice of the Martyrs has written a book called Hearts of Fire that I would highly recommend. It is about eight Christian women who were persecuted for their faith and about the lessons that they learned through trials. One of the women is Sabina Wurmbrand, another is Gladys Staines, wife of the formerly mentioned Graham Staines. This book was a real blessing to me in putting trials in perspective.

Hezekiah's Prayer

The other day I was reading a passage in Isaiah about King Hezekiah. At that particular time in history Sennacherib was breathing out threats and was assembling the Assyrian army to take over Jerusalem. This was a very frightening time for Israel no doubt, but probably much more frightening for King Hezekiah, who was responsible for the people of Israel. What I was really impressed with was Hezekiah's reaction to the seemingly impending doom. Isaiah 37:14-15 says this: "Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple of the Lord and spread it out before the Lord. And Hezekiah prayed to the Lord..." Directly following is one of the most beautiful prayers in all the Bible. The attitude that King Hezekiah assumes is one of total humility and dependence upon God. And you will notice that he did not turn to the prophets, or to his military officials, or to the opinions of other political powers that surrounded him-he turned to his God. When we are faced with hard times, difficult decisions, and pressing issues who do we turn to? What do we do? I hope that this passage will encourage us not to run first to other sources and save God for last, but to immediately turn to the one who holds our lives in his hands. I hope that we will learn to "spread it out before the Lord" in prayer and wait in humility and complete reliance for His sovereign answer.

The Blood of Christ

Today I was thinking about the blood of Christ and all that it represents. What do we know about his blood? We know that the blood he shed on the cross was symbolized in the Old Testament account of the Passover (Exodus chapter 12). "...and when I see the blood, I will pass over you." Exodus 12:13 We know that the wine given at the Lord's Supper was a symbol of the blood that he was about to shed on the cross. "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins." Matthew 26:28 We know that his blood atoned for our sins and also justified us. "God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood..." Romans 3:25 "Since we have now been justified by his blood..." Romans 5:9 We know that his blood has redeemed us. "In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace..." Ephesians 1:7 We know that his blood reconciled us and brought us peace with God. "For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross." Colossians 1:19 We know that the book of Hebrews deals extensively with all of the ways that blood mentioned in the Old Testament rituals symbolizes New Covenant fulfillment. We know that Peter speaks of how precious that blood is and how, since we are redeemed by that blood, we ought to be spurred on to a greater level of holiness and obedience. 1st Peter 1:13-25 We know that the book of Revelation, however mysterious it may be, mentions the blood of Christ several times. But I think that the verse I have gained the most encouragement from is found in Ephesians 2:13. It says this: "But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ." This sums it all up. All of the previously mentioned verses talk about the characteristics of the blood and what it accomplishes for the Christian, but this verse is so straightforward. It is by the blood of Christ that we are brought near. And what a marvelous thing it is!

There is a fountain filled with blood
Drawn from Immanuel's veins
And sinners plunged beneath that flood
Lose all their guilty stains
~There is a Fountain, by William Cowper

Bearing shame and scoffing rude
In my place condemned he stood
Sealed my pardon with his blood
Hallelujah, what a Savior
~Man of Sorrows, by Philip Bliss

And can it be that I should gain
An interest in my Savior's blood
Died He for me who caused His pain
For me who Him to death pursued
~And Can it Be, by Charles Wesley

Nothing of merit possessing
All helpless before Him I lay
But in the precious blood flowing
He washed all my sin stains away
~His Grace Aboundeth More, by Kate Ulmer

Lord Jesus for this I most humbly entreat
I wait blessed Lord at thy crucified feet
By faith for my cleansing I see thy blood flow
Now wash me and I shall be whiter than snow
~Whiter Than Snow, by James Nicholson

Marvelous grace of our loving Lord
Grace that exceeds our sin and our guilt
Yonder on Calvary's mount outpoured
There were the blood of the Lamb was spilt
~Grace Greater Than Our Sin, by Julia Johnston

For nothing good have I
Whereby His grace to claim
I'll wash my garments white
In the blood of Calvary's Lamb
~Jesus Paid it All, by Elvina Hall

Striving Against Sin

Today Jon Greene from Mt Pleasant, TX was a guest speaker at our church. Something that he mentioned in his message caused me to start thinking a little more on the responsibility of the believer to put away sin. He was talking about how a Christian is given a new nature, and by grace his life is changed. But he also stressed the fact that the Christian needs to be actively fighting against sin in his life. Now there is a tightrope to walk in the subject he was dealing with and I think he had great balance in his perspective. Some would say that the Christian needs to rely totally on Grace to deal with sin; in other words, just sit back and Grace will do all the work for you in ridding your life of sin. Others would say that it is entirely up to the Christian to purify himself; a matter of willing yourself into submission as I've heard it put before. Again, there must be balance. And I don't profess to know a great deal on the subject, but here is what I believe to be true based on the teaching and reading that I've been exposed to.

One side of the coin is this: "For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin..." Romans 6:6 Christ accomplished a work on the Cross that guarantied the Christian victory over sin. This does not mean victory 100% of the time, but victory in a broad, overall sense. Anyone who is truly in Christ has a new nature. This new nature still struggles with sin because we are still living on earth and we are still human, but sin is no longer a consistent lifestyle. This is the kind of victory I am talking about. The Christian cannot help but wage war on sin because it now contradicts the new life that he has in Christ. It goes against his new, regenerate nature.

The other side of the coin: the Christian does have a responsibility to struggle against sin. "Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires." Romans 6:12 It is not a walk in the park to break habits that you've kept during your years as an unbeliever. Nor is it easy to resist temptation. The words "do not let" (or in some versions allow) imply that the Christian must be determined that sin will not reign in his life. He must strive against sin, in other words. It is an ongoing battle. And while we are "not letting sin reign" we ought to also practice Romans 13:14. "Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature." What difficult things to do, but if any of us are able to obey these commands it is because we have help from a most powerful God. That brings the thought full circle to the issue of balance. What a fine line, and this is only a scratch on the surface! If anyone is interested in learning more on this subject and others pertaining to it and the book of Romans, I would encourage you to buy a copy of Charles Leiter's "Justification and Regeneration." He explains these things more clearly than I have ever heard them explained before and it is very easy reading for anyone who desires to learn more on the topic.

A Lesson from David Brainerd

David Brainerd was a missionary to the American Indians in the mid 1700s. His ministry to the Indians began in 1743 and lasted til 1747, when he died of tuberculosis at the age of 29. A biography of Brainerd's life entitled "The Life and Diary of David Brainerd" was compiled by Jonathan Edwards in 1749, shortly after Brainerd's death. As you may have guessed, the book consists partly of Brainerd's journal entries. Many well known Christians such as John Wesley, William Carey, David Livingstone, Andrew Murray, and Jim Elliot considered David Brainerd to be the most influential factor, other than the Bible, on their practices in missions (The Hidden Smile of God, John Piper pg 131-132). Here is an excerpt from his journal (taken from Piper's book) that I read tonight.

Wednesday, April 20, 1743
"Set apart this day for fasting and prayer, to bow my soul before God for the bestowment of divine grace; especially that all my spiritual afflictions and inward distresses might be sanctified to my soul. And endeavored also to remember the goodness of God to me the year past, this day being my birthday. Having obtained help of God, I have hitherto lived and am now arrived at the age of twenty-five years. My soul was pained to think of my barrenness and deadness; that I have lived so little to the glory of the eternal God. I spent the day in the woods alone, and there poured out my complaint to God. Oh, that God would enable me to live to His glory for the future!"

Here are the words I found so amazing: "I have lived so little for the glory of the eternal God." This is the man who has influenced missions in a drastic way, including the lives of the well known Christians mentioned above. Yet he speaks of "barrenness and deadness" and living "so little to the glory of the eternal God!" Brainerd was expelled from Yale for standing firm on religious issues, was eventually ordained in the ministry, set out to preach the gospel to the American Indians, was known for spending days in prayer and fasting, and later died of disease in the wilderness that was his mission field. That, to me, sounds like the farthest thing from barrenness and deadness. I think what really struck me in all of this was his humility. After hearing about Brainerd's life, we would tend to label him a "great Christian." But he was not a great Christian at all-and Brainerd recognized that. He had no merits of his own; Christ was the reason he accomplished so much. I hope that no matter what we do in life we are able to keep in mind that our efforts succeed not because of our greatness, but because of the greatness of our God. This should prompt us to glorify Him all the more!

The Lord is My Strength

This week was an especially hard one for me; I had seven tests to take, one speech to deliver, and all the homework for next week to think about. With so much work to do it's very hard to study appropriately and find enough time to study for all those tests. This is where prayer comes in. I knew that I didn't have the time or strength to be fully prepared for this week. "But God...." He brought Psalm 73:26 to my mind and I was so encouraged! "My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." I knew that in my own strength I would do so poorly on those tests, but God blessed me with this verse and He also prompted me to pray. "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let you requests be made known to God." Philipians 4:6 My anxiety was gone, He enabled me to do well, and He truly did prove to be my Strength.

Is God Exalted Above All?

Even John Bunyan confessed that he struggled with this issue when he said "I am somewhat too fond of these great Mercies," (referring to his wife and children). Bunyan later stated that he thought the 12 plus years he spent in prison were meant, in part, to keep him from cherishing anything more than Christ. The following quote of his is along that same subject:

"I was made to see that...I must first pass a sentence of death upon everything that can be properly called a thing of this life, even to reckon myself, my wife, my children, my health, my enjoyment, and all, as dead to me, and myself as dead to them. The second was, to live upon God that is invisible."

Along these same lines, I was thinking about the rich young ruler (Mark 10:17-31). In this passage the man comes to Jesus and asks "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" Jesus tells him to keep the commandments, which the man says he has already done from his youth. Later we find out that he had kept all of the commandments except the one concerning idolatry. Jesus said to him "One thing you lack: go and sell all you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me." (verse 21) In other words, this man was idolizing something and it needed to be dealt with. The fact that he'd kept all of the other commandments was pointless, since he was unwilling to give up his idol (in this case, riches) in order to have Jesus. I took this as a challenge for the Christian to periodically search himself, making sure that he is not elevating anything higher than Christ. We should all strive to "live upon God that is invisible."

Sweet Relief

When grace and mercy found me
I was bound in chains of sin;
Darkness did surround me
And hopelessness crept in

Aimlessly I wandered
In search of some relief
And finding none, I wondered
"Is there any hope for me?"

Then at last I found myself
At the foot of Calvary;
There a precious Savior
Had suffered all for me

When I beheld His wounds
And saw His bleeding side,
His crown and nails spoke to me
And said "For you I died"

Then I knelt before the cross,
Repented and believed;
Instantly I felt a peace
And found my sweet relief

Because my Savior's risen
I live now justified;
I'll bless my great Redeemer
My Lord the Crucified

Courage and the Cross

Today I was reminded of Luke's account of the garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:39-46). Here it describes Jesus in the garden "praying fervently" and being in "great agony." He says "Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done." Luke also says that Jesus was distressed to the point of sweating drops of blood. I think this is an excellent indication that He knew what turmoil, suffering, and ridicule was in store for him at the cross. But rather than dodging or finding some way to deliver himself, as he easily could have done, he approached the cross as lamb to the slaughter and without resisting (Isaiah 53:7). Even though Jesus knew that beating, spitting, mocking, blaspheming, false accusation, thorns, nails, and a spear awaited Him, He also knew what the will of His Father was. And He obeyed.

Now to apply this passage to the Christian. It is safe to say that Jesus endured more suffering than we could ever dream of since he bore the sin of the elect on his shoulders. This was a massive weight compared to the trials within the life of the Christian. But how many of us have chosen to shrink from the will that God has for us? I know I am guilty of this on more than one occassion. Trial and difficulty are not easily embraced.

So how should trials be approached in the mind of a Christian? Here is a thought that a friend of mine pointed out: she said "this world is as close to hell as a Christian will ever get." By this she meant that in this world we will face suffering and difficulty, but after death Christians get to spend eternity in heaven adoring the Savior they served on earth. I found this to be a great comfort and it spurred me on to endure trials and testings with an attitude of acceptance and joy rather than grumbling and despair. If Jesus had not had courage in the face of the cross, I would have no hope of heaven.