Work While You Can

"If I have any message to give from my own bed of sickness, it would be this—if you do not wish to be full of regrets when you are obliged to lie still, work while you can. If you desire to make a sick bed as soft as it can be, do not stuff it with mournful reflections that you wasted time while you were in health and strength. People said to me years ago, 'You will break your constitution down with preaching ten times a week,' and the like. Well, if I have done so I am glad of it. I would do the same again. If I had fifty constitutions I would rejoice to break them down in the service of the Lord Jesus Christ. You young men that are strong, overcome the wicked one and fight for the Lord while you can. You will never regret having done all that lies in you for our blessed Lord and master. Crowd as much as you can into every day, and postpone no work till tomorrow. 'Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with all thy might." ~C.H. Spurgeon

One Passion

"I have but one passion - it is He, it is He alone. The world is the field and the field is the world; and henceforth that country shall be my home where I can be most used in winning souls for Christ." - Count Zinzendorf

Fishers of Men

The best attraction is the gospel in its purity. The weapon with which the Lord conquers men is the truth as it is in Jesus. The gospel will be found equal to every emergency; an arrow can pierce the hardest heart, a balm which will heal the deadliest wound. Preach it, and preach nothing else. Rely implicity upon the old, old gospel. You need no other nets when you fish for men; those your Master has given you are strong enough for the great fishes, and have meshes fine enough to hold the little ones. Spread those nets and no others, and you need not fear the fulfillment of His Word, "I will make you fishers of men." C.H. Spurgeon

Can You Find Another Like Jesus?

The religion of our Lord Jesus Christ contains in it nothing so wonderful as Himself. It is a mass of marvels, but He is the miracle of it; the wonder of wonders is “the Wonderful” Himself. If proof be asked of the truth which He proclaimed, we point men to Jesus Christ Himself. His character is unique. We defy unbelievers to imagine another like Him.He is God and yet man, and we challenge them to compose a narrative in which the two apparently incongruous characters shall be so harmoniously blended-in which the human and divine shall be so marvelously apparent, without the one overshading the other. They question the authenticity of the four Gospels; will they try to write a fifth? Will they even attempt to add a few incidents to the life which shall be worthy of the sacred biography, and congruous with those facts which are already described? If it be all a forgery, will they be so good as to show us how it is done? Will they find a novelist who will write another biography of a man of any century they choose, of any nationality, or of any degree of experience, or any rank or station, and let us see if they can describe in that imaginary life a devotion, a self-sacrifice, a truthfulness, a completeness of character at all comparable to that of Jesus Christ Himself? Can they invent another perfect character even if the divine element be left out? They must of necessity fail, for there is none like unto Jesus Himself (Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of the New Testament).

Give Yourself to God

Give yourself to God, that out of your service, whether long or short, some light may break on people still in darkness, and some glory come to Christ our Lord.
~taken from "Tread Upon the Lion" by Sophie de la Haye

A Man of One Book!

"To candid, reasonable men, I am not afraid to lay open what have been the inmost thoughts of my heart. I am a creature of a day, passing through life as an arrow through the air. I am a spirit come from God, and returning to God: just hovering over the great gulf; till, a few moments hence, I am no more seen; I drop into an unchangeable eternity! I want to know one thing the way to heaven; how to land safe on that happy shore.God Himself has condescended to teach the way; for this very end He came from heaven. He hath written it down in a book. O give me that book! At any price, give me the book of God! I have it: here is knowledge enough for me. Let me be a man of one book!" ~John Wesley

The Living God

Listen to the recent message "The Living God" at:

lakeroadchapel.org

Other Sheep

"I have other sheep, which are not of this fold;
I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice;
and they will become one flock with one shepherd."
~John 10:16

Conformity to Christ

"If you think you have come to the mission field because you are a little better than others, or as the cream of your church, or because of your medical degree, or for the service you can render the African church, or even for the souls you may see saved, you will fail. Remember, the Lord has only one purpose ultimately for each one of us, to make us more like Jesus. He is interested in your relationship with Himself. Let Him take you and mold you as He will; all the rest will take its rightful place."

--told to Helen Roseveare, at the start of her missionary days in the Congo

I Have Decided

"Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who observe it begin to ridicule him." Luke 14:27-29

I was very encouraged and challenged this morning in thinking on the connection between following the Lord and calculating the cost. I have had times in the past where I have wondered things such as, "If such and such horrible thing happened, would I deny the Lord? I can only hope and pray that I wouldn't." But the Lord wants more than that from His followers. He says in effect, "Don't bother coming after Me at all if you're not intending to follow to the end/utmost." Our words and life ought rather to be a resounding "yes!" Rather than faltering prayers, let us give Him our all. "I have decided to follow Jesus--turning back is not an option." Surely He is worthy of much more than our indecision regarding what we would do if He didn't allow things to happen how we would like. He is KING Jesus. Oh, may we gladly and wholly give Him our all. And, by His sufficient and prevailing grace, we will follow till the end. ~Rachel Vann

Surprised by God’s Judgment

by Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758)

"The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites.
Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall
dwell with everlasting burnings?"—Isaiah 33:14.

There are two kinds of persons among God’s professing people: the one, those who are truly godly, spoken of in the verse following the text, "He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly" (Isa 33:15a). The other kind consists of "sinners in Zion" or hypocrites. It is to be observed that the Prophet in this chapter speaks interchangeably, first to the one and then to the other of these characters of men, awfully threatening and denouncing the wrath of God against the one and comforting the other with gracious promises.

It may be inquired, "Who are the sinners in Zion?" I answer, "They are those who are in a natural condition among the visible people of God." Zion, or the city of David of old, was a type of the church; and the church of God in Scripture is perhaps more frequently called by the name of Zion than by any other name. And commonly by Zion is meant the true church of Christ, or the invisible church of true saints. But sometimes by this name is meant the visible church, consisting of those who are outwardly, by profession and external privileges, the people of God. This is intended by Zion in this text.

The greater part of the world are sinners: Christ’s flock is and ever hath been but a little flock. And the sinners of the world are of two sorts: those who are visibly of Satan’s kingdom, who are without the pale of the visible church; and those who do not profess the true religion nor attend the external ordinances of it. Beside these there are the sinners in Zion. Both are the objects of the displeasure and wrath of God; but His wrath is more especially manifested in Scripture against the latter. Sinners in Zion will have by far the lowest place in hell. They are exalted nearest to heaven in this world, and they will be lowest in hell in another. The same is meant by hypocrites. Sinners in Zion are all hypocrites, for they make a profession of the true religion. They attend God’s ordinances and make a show of being the worshippers of God; but all is hypocrisy.

They will hereafter be afraid: now many of them seem to have little or no fear. They are quiet and secure. Nothing will awaken them: the most awful threatenings and the loudest warnings do not much move them. They are not so much moved with them, but they can eat, and drink, and sleep, and go about their worldly concerns without much disturbance….Though now preaching will not awaken them, and the death of others will not make them afraid; though seeing others awakened and converted will not much affect them…yet the time will come, when they will be awakened and fear will take hold of them.

They will be surprised with fear: this seems to imply two things, viz., the greatness of their fear and the suddenness of it.

1. The greatness of their fear: surprise argues a high degree of fear. Their fears will be to the degree of astonishment. Some of the sinners in Zion are somewhat afraid now: they now and then have some degree of fear. They are not indeed convinced that there is such a place as hell; but they are afraid there is….They have at certain times inward molestations from their consciences, but they have no such degrees of fear as to put them upon thorough endeavors to escape future wrath.

However, hereafter they will have fear enough—as much, and a great deal more than they will be able to stand under….terrors will take hold on them as waters. Thus, we read of their fear coming as desolation and of distress and anguish coming upon them (Pro 1:27). It is also very emphatically said of the wicked that trouble and anguish shall prevail against him as a king ready to the battle (Job 15:24).

The stoutest heart of them all will then melt with fear. The hearts of those who are of a sturdy spirit, and perhaps scorn to own themselves afraid of any man, and are even ashamed to own themselves afraid of the wrath of God, will then become as weak as water, as weak as the heart of a little child. And the most reserved of them will not be able to hide his fears. Their faces will turn pale; they will appear with amazement in their countenances; every joint in them will tremble; all their bones will shake; and their knees will smite one against another. Nor will they be able to refrain from crying out with fear and from rending the air with the most dismal shrieks.

2. They will be suddenly seized with fear: the sinners in Zion often remain secure, until they are surprised as with a cry at midnight. They will be, as it were, awakened out of their secure sleep in a dismal fright. They will see an unexpected calamity coming upon them, far more dreadful than they were aware of and coming at an unexpected season.

With respect to the time when the wicked shall be thus surprised with fear: it is often so on a deathbed. Many things pass in their lifetime, which one would think might well strike terror into their souls; as when they see others die, who are as young as they, and of like condition and circumstances with themselves, whereby they may see how uncertain their lives are and how unsafe their souls. It may well surprise many sinners to consider how old they are grown and are yet in a Christless state, how much of their opportunity to get an interest in Christ is irrecoverably gone and how little remains…

But when death comes, then the sinner is often filled with astonishment. It may be, when he is first taken sick, he has great hope that he shall recover; as men are ready to flatter themselves with hopes that things will be as they fain would have them. But when the distemper comes to prevail much upon him, and he sees that he is going into eternity; when he sees that all the medicines of physicians are in vain, that all the care and endeavors of friends are to no purpose, that nothing seems to help him, that his strength is gone, that his friends weep over him and look upon his case as desperate; when he sees by the countenance and behavior of the physician, that he looks upon his case as past hope, and perhaps overhears a whispering in the room, wherein his friends signify one to another, that they look upon it that he is struck with death, or wherein they tell one another that his extreme parts grow cold, that his countenance and manner of breathing and his pulse show death, and that he begins to be in a cold death-sweat; and when perhaps by and by some one thinks himself bound in duty and faithfulness to let him know the worst, and therefore comes and asks him whether or no he be sensible that he is dying—then how doth fearfulness surprise the sinner in Zion! How doth his heart melt with fear!

At the same time, he cried to God to spare him and made promises how he would live, if God would spare him. And he hoped that God would hear him. He observed also that his friends and perhaps the minister seemed to pray earnestly for him; and he could not but hope that those prayers would be answered, and he should be restored. But now how doth his heart sink and die within him! How doth he look about with a frightened countenance! …How doth everything look to him when he sees pale, grim death staring him in the face and a vast eternity within a few hours or minutes of him… like a poor drowning man, he catches at slender and brittle twigs and clinches his hands about whatever he sees within his reach. But as death creeps more and more on him, he sees his twigs break, all his hopes of life fail, and he sees he must die. O! There is nothing but death before him! He hath been hoping, but his hopes are all dashed. He sees this world and all that belongs to it are gone. Now come the thoughts of hell into his mind with amazement. O! How shall he go out of the world? He knows he hath no interest in Christ. His sins stare him in the face. O the dreadful gulf of eternity! He had been crying to God, perhaps since he was sick, to save him. And he had some hope, if it were his last sickness, that yet God would pity him and give him pardoning grace before he should die. He begged and pleaded, and he hoped that God would have pity on his poor soul. At the same time he asked others to pray for him, and he had been looking day after day for some light to shine into his soul. But, alas! Now he is dying, and his friends ask him, how death appears to him. Whether any light appears? Whether God has not given him some token of His favor? And he answers, "No," with a poor, faltering, trembling voice, if able to speak at all.

Now death comes on him more and more, and he is just on the brink of eternity. Who can express the fear, the misgivings, the hangings back, and the horrible fright and amazement of his soul? Some who in such circumstances have been able to speak, have been known to err out, "O eternity! eternity!" and some, "O! A thousand worlds for an inch of time!" O! If they might but live a little while longer! But it must not be; go they must. They feel the frame of nature dissolving and perceive the soul is just going; for sometimes the exercise of reason seems to hold to the last.

What in such a case is felt in the soul in those last moments, when it is just breaking its bands with the body, about to fetch its leap on the edge of eternity and the very brink of hell without any Savior or the least testimony of divine mercy—I say, what is sometimes felt by Christless souls in these moments, none can tell nor is it within the compass of our conception.

The misery of the departed soul of a sinner, besides what it now feels, consists in a great part in amazing fears of what is yet to come. When the union of the soul and body is actually broken, and the body has fetched its last gasp, the soul forsakes its old habitation and then falls into the hands of devils, who fly upon it and seize it more violently than ever hungry lions flew upon their prey. And with what horror will it fall into those cruel hands!

And when the soul is carried to hell, and there is tormented, suffers the wrath of the Almighty, and is overwhelmed and crushed with it, it will also be amazed with the apprehensions of what shall yet remain. To think of an eternity of this torment remaining, O how will it fill, and overbear, and sink down the wretched soul! How will the thought of the duration of this torment without end cause the heart to melt like wax! How will the thought of it sink the soul into the bottomless pit of darkness and gloominess! Even those proud and sturdy spirits, the devils, tremble at the thoughts of that greater torment which they are to suffer at the Day of Judgment. So will the poor damned souls of men. They have already more than they will be able to bear: how then will they tremble at the thought of having their misery so vastly augmented.

Persons sometimes in this world are afraid of the Day of Judgment….O how then do the poor souls in hell fear it, who know so much more about it, who know by what they feel already and know certainly that whenever it comes they shall stand on the left hand of the Judge to receive the dreadful sentence…then, in soul and body, they must enter into those everlasting burnings which are prepared for the devil and his angels, and who probably know that their misery is to be an hundred-fold greater than it is now.

Fearfulness will surprise them at the last Judgment. When Christ shall appear in the clouds of heaven, and the last trumpet shall sound, then will the hearts of wicked men be surprised with fearfulness. The poor damned soul in expectation of it trembles every day and every hour from the time of its departure from the body. It knows not, indeed, when it is to be; but it knows it is to be. But when the alarm is given in hell that the day is come, it will be a dreadful alarm indeed. It will, as it were, fill the caverns of hell with shrieks; and when the souls of the damned shall enter into their bodies, it will be with amazing horror of what is coming! And when they shall lift up their heads out of their graves and shall see the Judge, it will be a most terrible sight. Gladly would they return into their graves and hide themselves there if that might be; and gladly would they return into hell, their former state of misery, to hide themselves from this awful sight, if that would excuse them.

So those sinners in Zion, who shall then be found alive on the earth, when they shall see this sight, will be surprised with fearfulness. The fear and horror, which many poor sinners feel when they are dying, is great and beyond all that of which we can have any idea. But that is nothing to the horror that will seize them when they shall come to see this sight.

There will not be a wicked man upon earth who will be able to bear it, let him be who he will. Let him be rich or poor, old or young, male or female, servant or master, king or subject, learned or unlearned; let him be ever so proud, ever so courageous, and ever so sturdy. There is not one who will be able at all to support himself. When he shall see this sight, it will immediately sink his spirit; it will loose the joints of his loins [and] make his countenance more ghastly than death. The rich captains, valiant generals, and princes, who now scorn to show any fear at the face of an enemy, who scorn to tremble at the roaring of cannon, will tremble and shriek when they hear the last trumpet and see the majesty of their Judge. It will make their teeth to chatter and make them fly to hide themselves in the caves and rocks of mountains, crying to the rocks and mountains to fall on them and cover them from the wrath of the Judge.

Fearfulness will surprise them when they shall be dragged before the judgment-seat. The wicked hang back when they are about to meet death; but in no measure as they will hang back when they come to meet their great Judge. And when they come to stand before the Judge and are put on His left hand, fearfulness and amazement will surprise them. The majesty of the Judge will be intolerable to them. His pure and holy eye, which will behold and search them and pierce them through, will be more terrible to their souls a thousand times than flashes of lightning piercing their hearts. There will they stand in a trembling expectation that by and by they shall hear the words of that dreadful sentence proceed out of the mouth of Christ: they will have a horrible expectation of that sentence. And what shall they do, whither shall they fly, so as to be out of its hearing? They cannot shut their ears so as not to hear it.

Fearfulness will surprise them when the sentence shall come to be pronounced. At the close of the Judgment, that dreadful doom will be uttered by the Judge. And it will be the most terrible voice that ever was heard.

Lastly, fearfulness will surprise them, when they shall come to see the fire kindle upon the world, in which they are to be tormented forever. When the sentence shall have been pronounced, Christ with His blessed saints and glorious angels will leave this lower world and ascend into heaven. Then will the flames begin to kindle, and fire will probably be seen coming down from heaven. And soon will the fire lay hold of that accursed multitude. Then will their hearts be surprised with fearfulness; that fire will appear a dreadful fire indeed….What shall they do, whither shall they go, to avoid those flames? Where shall they hide themselves? If they creep into holes, or creep into caves of the earth, yea if they could creep down to the center of the earth, it will be in vain; for it will set on fire the bottoms of the mountains and burn the lowest hell. They will see no place to fly to, no place to hide themselves….Then their hearts will be filled with fearfulness and will utterly sink in despair. Thus, it shall hereafter be with every one that shall then be found to be a sinner, and especially with sinners in Zion.

Do not fear or be dismayed because of this great multitude,
for the battle is not yours but God's. ~2 Chronicles 20:15

I love those that thunder out the Word. The Christian world is in a deep sleep! Nothing but a loud voice can awaken them out of it. ~George Whitefield

The Everlasting Gospel

The whole world is now my parish. Wheresoever my Master calls me I am ready to go and preach the everlasting Gospel. ~George Whitefield, 1739

Reaching the Lost

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKeOSclFi9I

"If you really believe that just to read a few verses and a short comment on them in a matter of five minutes, and to have a brief word of prayer, is adequate for your day, then I say that you do not know anything about the wiles of the devil."

The Christian Warfare by Martyn Lloyd-Jones

“Why art Thou Cast Down, O My Soul?”
(Extracts from an Address on Psalm 42:5, 11)
George Müller

“WHY art thou cast down, O my soul?” the Psalmist saith to himself. And so may we say to ourselves. Is there ever any ground to be cast down? There are two reasons, but only two: if we are as yet unconverted, we have ground to be cast down; or, if we are converted and live in sin, then we are rightly cast down. But except for these two things, there is no ground to be cast down, for all else may be brought before God in prayer with supplication and thanksgiving; and regarding all our necessities, all our difficulties, all our trials, we may exercise faith in the power of God, and in the love of God; and in His own time help will come in answer to prayer and faith.
“Hope thou in God.” Oh, remember this—there is never a time when we may not hope in God. Whatever our necessities, however great our difficulties, and though to all appearance help is impossible, yet our business is to hope in God. And it will be found that it is not in vain; in the Lord’s own time help will come.
Oh, the hundreds, yea, the thousands of times that I have found it thus within the past seventy years and four months! When it seemed impossible that help could come, help did come, for God has His own resources, and these resources may be counted by hundreds, by thousands. He is not confined to this thing or that thing, or to twenty things; in ten thousand different ways, and at ten thousand different times, God may help us. Our business is to spread our case before the Lord, in childlike simplicity to pour out all our heart before God, telling Him, “I do not deserve that Thou shouldst hear me and answer my requests, but for the sake of my precious Lord Jesus—in Whom alone I trust for the salvation of my soul, Thy perfect Servant, my Savior—for His sake answer my prayer and give my grace quietly to wait till it please Thee to answer my prayer, for I believe Thou wilt do it in Thine own time and way.” Thus invariably I have found that (with the exception of one case, for which I have prayed since November 10th, 1844) my prayer has been answered. And I cannot tell you what an effect this has had on my life, and how it has made me a happy man; and in my greatly advanced age it makes me a very happy man.
“For I shall yet praise Him.” More prayer, more exercise of faith, more patient waiting, and the result will be blessing, abundant blessing. Thus I have found it many hundreds of times, and therefore I continually say to myself, “Hope thou in God.”
“Who is...my God.” This is just the great point to remember, that this God is our God—Jehovah, the Almighty God—is our God. And, therefore, we must wait on Him longer and longer and longer, and exercise patience yet more and more and more; for in God’s own time it will be seen that it is not in vain.
Now the Psalmist tells God in all simplicity that his soul is cast down (v. 6). So may we tell God, our Father, tell the Lord Jesus Christ, and ask Him that He would now speak a word to us in season, because we are weary. That is His own precious promise in Isaiah 50:4. And when we are weary and tried, either through difficulty, sore temptation, losses, crosses, or greatly reduced through sickness—under such circumstances we may turn to the Lord Jesus, and remind Him, “My precious Lord Jesus, I am weary, wilt Thou now speak to me a word in season?” And He will comfort us, refresh our spirit, and so strengthen us by His Spirit in the inner man.
Oh! if you have never made trial of Him, make trial of Him, and you will find how ready He is to do this!

My Heavenly Friend by George Muller

THE PRECIOUS LORD Jesus Christ is our Friend. Oh, let us seek to realize this! It is not a mere religious phrase or statement, but VERILY HE IS OUR FRIEND. He is the Brother “born for adversity,” the One who “sticketh closer than a brother,” who will never leave and never forsake us.
How precious even on earth to have a heavenly Friend, for this brings the joys of heaven in a little degree into our hearts now. And this is just what our heavenly Father desires regarding His children, that they might be as happy as they are capable of being while here in the body. Do we enter into it, that the one who is “altogether lovely” is ready hour by hour to be our Friend, by day and by night to prove Himself to be our Friend?
When we cannot sleep at night, say, “My precious heavenly Friend, wilt Thou give me a little sleep?” When in pain, say, “My precious heavenly Friend, if it may please Thee, wilt Thou take away this pain?—but if not, if Thou seest better that it should continue, sustain, help and strengthen me, my precious heavenly Friend!” When we feel lonely or tired, turn to the precious Lord Jesus: He is willing to be our Friend in our loneliness. I have found it thus. For sixty-two years and five months I had a beloved wife, and now in my ninety-second year I am left alone. But I turn to my precious Lord Jesus as I walk up and down in my room, and say, “My precious Lord Jesus, I am alone, and yet not alone, Thou art with me; Thou art my Friend, now Lord comfort me, comfort me, strengthen me, give to Thy poor servant everything Thou seest he needs.”
Oh! this is a REALITY, not a fable, that the Lord Jesus Christ is our Friend.
And we should not be satisfied till we are brought to this, that we know the Lord Jesus Christ experimentally to be our Friend, habitually to be our Friend. Just ponder this. Habitually, never leaving, never forsaking us, at all times and under all circumstances ready to prove Himself to be our Friend.
And this He is willing not merely to grant for a few months, or a year or two, but to the very end of our earthly pilgrimage. David in Psalm 23, says, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me.” Oh, how precious this!
Now this “LOVELY ONE” is coming again, and soon, soon, soon, may He come again, and then He will take us home, and there we shall be forever with Him. Oh, how precious that bright and glorious prospect! And here again the practical point is, to appropriate this to ourselves. “He is coming to take ME, poor, guilty, worthless, hell-deserving ME,—He is coming to take ME to Himself.”
And in the degree in which we enter into and appropriate to ourselves these glorious things, in that degree the joys of heaven will be commenced already.

Cheerful Givers by George Muller

(Part of an Address at a Mildmay Park Conference.)

I HAVE been for fifty years, by God’s grace, acting on the principle of Christian giving according to the Scriptures, and I cannot tell you the abundance of spiritual blessing I have received to my own soul through acting thus; that is, seeking to be a cheerful giver; seeking to give as God has been pleased to prosper me.
I began when I had comparatively very, very little to spare; but as I gave, God increased my ability to give more and more: until at last God has been pleased, in the riches of His grace, to condescend to use a poor worthless worm like me, and has entrusted me year by year with very large sums to expend. Many beloved saints are depriving themselves of wondrous spiritual blessing by not giving as stewards what is entrusted to them. They act as if it were all their own, as if all belonged to them, as if already they were in possession of the inheritance incorruptible and undefiled; forgetting that they have nothing whatever which is their own, that they are bought by the precious blood of Christ, and all they possess—their bodily strength, their time, their talents, their business, their professions, their eyes, their hands, their feet, all belong to the Lord Jesus Christ; because He has bought them with His precious blood.
Therefore may I affectionately beseech and entreat my beloved Christian friends to take this to heart, and consider that hitherto they have been depriving themselves of vast spiritual blessings, because they have not followed the principles of giving systematically, and giving as God prospers them, and according to a plan; not merely just according to impulse—not as they are moved by a missionary or charity sermon, but systematically and habitually giving on principle, just as God enables them. If He entrusts to them one pound, to give accordingly a proportion; if they are left a legacy of a thousand pounds, to give accordingly; if He entrusts them with ten thousand pounds, or whatever it may be, to give accordingly. Oh, my brethren, I believe if we realized the blessing, we would give thus on principle; and, if so, we should give a hundred times more than we do now.
Just as we are constrained by the love of Christ, so God condescends to use us; and as we give, He is pleased to entrust to us more and more. It is impossible for us to say to what amount God may entrust us, or how largely He may give unto us the joy and honor, the precious privilege, of communicating to others.
And here allow me to refer to my own experience. The first year I began giving, God entrusted me with about fifty pounds; but this afterwards increased, until now He has entrusted me with about two thousand pounds a year. The poor man George Müller, known by everybody as a poor man, who is this very day as a poor man, who stands before you a poor man, and yet by the grace of God has been enabled to give about forty thousand pounds sterling —that is altogether since I began.
Of late, God has allowed me to receive one legacy after another, and thus sometimes two thousand and even three thousand a year have I been enabled to give; and see the blessedness, the privilege, the wondrous honor, that a poor man as I am should thus be entrusted by Him! By the grace of God I desire to be nothing but poor. I wish to be nothing else than a poor man, having nothing, no house of my own, no money in the Funds, not an acre of land—a poor man altogether; day by day waiting on God for everything, and yet He has allowed me the great honor and blessed privilege of giving more than forty thousand pounds sterling within the last fifty years. I began in the year 1830 to live thus as steward for the Lord. In the little way I could I gave, but God increased my ability more and more, until now He is allowing me to give in His service, year by year, two or three thousand pounds. Now, why do I say it? To encourage the hearts of my beloved brethren to seek to give systematically. If you have not done so hitherto, do begin now. It is a blessed thing for the soul, it is a blessed thing for your purse and God will entrust to you more and more.
Now I do not say imitate me, George Müller; but I say, seek to give, if it be ever so little, to give systematically; if it be only the twentieth part of your income, give systematically, and you will find a blessing to your soul; and the blessing with regard to stewardship will be such that you will be encouraged more and more to go on in this way.

Be thankful!

Oh, you that have passed from death to life, you have reason indeed to be thankful! Remember what you once were by nature—dead. Think what you are now by grace—alive. Look at the dry bones thrown up from the graves. Such were you; and who has made you to differ? Go and fall low before the footstool of your God. Bless Him for His grace, His free distinguishing grace. Say to Him often, “Who am I, Lord, that you have brought me to this time? Why me? Why have you been merciful towards me?”

~ J.C. Ryle

Spurgeon's Prayer for Missions

Awake, Thou Spirit, who of old,
Didst fire the watchman of the church's youth;
Who faced the foe, unshrinking bold,
Who witnessed day and night the eternal truth,
Whose voices through the world are ringing still
And bringing hosts to know and do Thy will.


Oh, that Thy fire were kindled soon,
That swift from land to land its flames might leap,
Lord, give us but this priceless boon
Of faithful servants, fit for Thee to reap the harvest of the soul,
Look down and view how great the harvest, yet few the laborers.


Oh, haste to help, ere we are lost,
Send forth evangelists in spirit strong,
Armed with Thy Word, a dauntless host,
Bold to attack the rule of ancient wrong
And let them all the earth for Thee reclaim,
To be Thy kingdom and to know Thy name.

C. H. Spurgeon

Silent Preachers

The great 19th century preacher Charles Spurgeon said:
"I well remember distributing them in a town in England where tracts had never been distributed before, and going from house to house, and telling in humble language the things of the kingdom of God. I might have done nothing, if I had not been encouraged by finding myself able to do something ... [Tracts are] adapted to those persons who have but little power and little ability, but nevertheless, wish to do something for Christ. They have not the tongue of the eloquent, but they may have the hand of the diligent. They cannot stand and preach, but they can stand and distribute here and there these silent preachers ... They may buy their thousand tracts, and these they can distribute broadcast.

"I look upon the giving away of a religious tract as only the first step for action not to be compared with many another deed done for Christ; but were it not for the first step we might never reach to the second, but that first attained, we are encouraged to take another, and so at the last ... There is a real service of Christ in the distribution of the gospel in its printed form, a service the result of which heaven alone shall disclose, and the judgment day alone discover. How many thousands have been carried to heaven instrumentally upon the wings of these tracts, none can tell ...

"Let each one of us, if we have done nothing for Christ, begin to do something now. The distribution of tracts is the first thing."

Tell Them of Jesus

"Do you want arguments for soul winning? Look up to Heaven, and ask yourself how sinners can ever reach those harps of gold and learn their everlasting song, unless they have someone to tell them of Jesus, who is mighty to save. But the best argument of all is to be found in the wounds of Jesus. You want to honor Him, you desire to put many crowns upon His head, and this you can best do by winning souls for Him. These are the spoils that He covets, these are the trophies for which He fights, these are the jewels that shall be His best adornment."
~C.H. Spurgeon

No More Sorrow in Heaven

Blessed be God! There shall be no sorrow in heaven. There shall not be one single tear shed within the courts above. There shall be no more disease and weakness and decay. The coffin, the funeral and the grave shall be things unknown. Our faces shall no more be pale and sad. No more shall we go out from the company of those we love and be parted asunder – that word, ‘farewell’, shall never be heard again. There shall be no anxious thought about tomorrow to mar and spoil our enjoyment. There shall be no sharp and cutting words to wound our souls. Our needs will have come to a perpetual end, and all around us shall be harmony and love.

~J.C. Ryle

The Reading of Good Books

Why does today's Christian find the reading of great books always beyond him? Certainly intellectual powers do not wane from one generation to another. We are as smart as our fathers, and any thought they could entertain we can entertain if we are sufficiently interested to make the effort. The major cause of the decline in the quality of current Christian literature is not intellectual but spiritual. To enjoy a great religious book requires a degree of consecration to God and detachment from the world that few modern Christians have. The early Christian Fathers, the Mystics, the Puritans, are not hard to understand, but they inhabit the highlands where the air is crisp and rarefied, and none but the God-enamored can come.

A.W. Tozer

"The strongest support of the doctrine of Endless Punishment is the teaching of Christ, the Redeemer of man."
~William G.T. Shedd

Ministers Should Be Sons of Thunder

"When men don't preach much about the danger of damnation, there is want of good preaching...If sinners don't hear often of Judgment and Damnation, few will be converted...Ministers should be sons of thunder: men had need have storms in their hearts, before they will betake themselves to Christ for refuge....If they be but thoroughly convinced of their danger, that will make them go to God and take pains."

--Samuel Stoddard, predecessor of Jonathon Edwards, Northhampton, Massachusettes, 1723, as quoted in "Daniel Rowland And The Great Evangelical Awakening In Wales," by Eifion Evans

Sacrifice

“Where are the young men and women of this generation who will hold their lives cheap and be faithful even unto death? Where are those who will lose their lives for Christ’s sake — flinging them away for love of him? Where are those who will live dangerously and be reckless in his service? Where are his lovers — those who love him and the souls of men more than their own reputations or comfort or very life?

Where are the men who say ‘no’ to self, who take up Christ’s cross to bear it after him, who are willing to be nailed to it in college or office, home or mission field, who are willing, if need be, to bleed, to suffer and to die on it?

Where are the adventurers, the explorers, the buccaneers for God, who count one human soul of far greater value than the rise or fall of an empire? Where are the men who are willing to pay the price of vision? Where are the men of prayer? Where are God’s men in this day of God’s power?” - Howard Guinness, Sacrifice, pages 59-60.

The Bible is “God-breathed”

“The Bible is “God-breathed” (2 Timothy 3:16). In this respect it is utterly unlike all other writings. God taught the writers of it what to say. God put into their minds thoughts and ideas. God guided their pens in writing down those thoughts and ideas. When you read it, you are not reading the self-taught compositions of poor imperfect men like yourself, but the words of the eternal God. When you hear it, you are not listening to the erring opinions of short-lived mortals, but to the unchanging mind of the King of kings. The men who were employed to write the Bible did not speak themselves. They “spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:21). All other books in the world, however good and useful in their way, are more or less defective. The more you look at them the more you see their defects and blemishes. The Bible alone is absolutely perfect. From beginning to end it is “the Word of God.”
J.C. Ryle

The Great Emancipator: the Lord Jesus Christ

“The divine Spirit wounds before He heals, He kills before He makes alive. We usually draw a distinction between law-work and Gospel-work; but law-work is the work of the Spirit of God, and is so far a true Gospel-work that it is a frequent preliminary to the joy and peace of the Gospel. The Law is the needle which draws after it the silken thread of blessing, and you cannot get the thread into the stuff without the needle: Men do not receive the liberty wherewith Christ makes them free till, first of all, they have felt bondage within their own spirit driving them to cry for liberty to the great Emancipator, the Lord Jesus Christ. This sense or spirit of bondage works for our salvation by leading us to cry for mercy.”—C. H. Spurgeon

What is the Christian Faith?

-Adapted from the writings of John G. Reisinger


1. CHRISTIANITY IS A PERSON

Christianity is not a set of rules. It has some very important rules, but Christianity is neither preaching nor obeying rules. There is a very simple but effective way of testing every preacher we hear. The false preacher is always reminding us of what we must do. His message is constantly focused on man's efforts and is always "do" centered. The true preacher keeps reminding us of what Christ has done for us, and his message is focused on Christ and is "done" centered. One threatens with law and the other appeals by the cross.

Christianity is not a series of ceremonies. It has ceremonies such as baptism and communion, but the essence of the Christian faith is not in the ceremonies and symbols. You may be baptized and take communion every day and still be as lost as the worst pagan in the world.

Christianity is not a certain feeling that we get that enables us to smile and be at peace with ourselves and our fellow man. If we truly receive the forgiveness of sins through faith in the gospel, we will surely feel differently; but the Christian faith is not a feeling, it's a Person.

Christianity is not joining a group. You may even join the right group, but that will not make you a Christian. Becoming a Christian is far more than joining a church or any other organization.

Christianity is not a cause. Many people in our day are trying to make a revolutionary cause to be synonymous with the Christian faith. God is said to "be on the side of the poor," so every movement or cause that is aimed at helping the poor becomes the gospel. The cause may be on the left or the right and may involve the correction of a grave injustice against our fellow man. However, no matter how just the cause, it cannot be equated with the gospel or Christianity.

Christianity is nothing more or less than Christ Himself! And understanding the Christian faith begins with the biblical facts about Christ. The Christ who is Christianity is the Christ of "biblical" and "historical" facts. The Christ who is Christianity was born of a virgin (Matt 1:18-25), lived a sinless life (I Pet 2:22), was crucified for sinners (Rom 5:8), rose again from the dead (Luke 245.6), ascended into heaven (Acts 1:11),and is coming again (I Thess 4:16). There are three words that depict the whole story of the biblical and historical Christ: the cradle, the cross, and the crown. The one who was born of a virgin and died on the cross is now raised in power and glory on a throne. Christ is no longer a babe in His mother's arms nor is He still hanging on a cross or crucifix, and He is surely not still in the grave. He is exalted as Lord of lords and sits on a throne at the Father's right hand.

The Bible is the interpretation of these facts about this Person. Why was Christ born of a virgin? Why did He suffer such a death? Why is His resurrection essential? These are the kinds of questions that must be answered before the gospel of Jesus Christ has any meaning and significance.

Did you ever try to summarize the essential message of the whole Bible in a few sentences? The theme would go something like this: "Behold, Someone is coming!" The whole Old Testament is the story about the coming Messiah. Then the four gospels proclaim: "Behold, Someone is here!" Finally, Acts through Revelation says: "Behold, Someone is coming again!" The Bible, from its beginning to its end, is a story about the Lord Jesus Christ. The message of the gospel is nothing less than a clear and precise interpretation of this story.

2. CHRISTIANITY IS AN EXPERIENCE

"For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake" (I Thess 1:4, 5). Here Paul first reminds us that truth always comes in words. The gospel does not come in dreams, visions, or ceremonies. It comes to us in words. However, in order for the words of the gospel to effect the saving of our soul, those words must be accompanied by the power and demonstration of the Spirit. The carnal mind can just as easily hear and mentally believe the facts set forth in the gospel as it can believe that Columbus crossed the Atlantic Ocean in 1492; but only the Holy Spirit can make the inward man experience the spiritual power of the gospel facts.

The biblical facts are essential, but by themselves, they are not enough. If Christianity is a Person, then becoming a Christian is receiving that Person in an act of living faith. We do not receive facts in order to get saved; we receive a Person and enter into a vital relationship. The facts give us the necessary information about the Person and how and why we must come to Him, but coming to Christ is not just an act of the mind believing some facts. In coming to Christ, we give our whole being to Christ as our Lord and Savior.

When someone gets married, they gladly receive a person, not a set of facts. The preacher does not say, "Do you receive this fact as certainly true?" No, he says. "Will you receive this person to be your wedded mate?" The same thing happens when a person is married to Christ, united by faith. We receive Him as a person just as truly as He receives us as a person. It is much more than a mental transaction involving simply our brains. God did not say. "You admit these facts are true and you will be saved." No, my friend. He said, "You repent from your rebellion and receive my Son and you will be saved." This is done by believing in (literally believing into) Christ. There is a great difference between mental assent to facts and receiving Christ in true faith.

When we receive Christ. we receive everything that God has to give, and when we miss Christ, we miss everything there is that is worth having. The Scriptures always put forgiveness and every other blessing in Christ Himself. Our experiencing any of those blessings is only possible as we are literally united to Christ in a living union. Notice how John emphasizes that we receive a Person: "But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God" (John 1:12). The Holy Spirit indeed uses facts, but He uses the facts to draw us to a living Person and not to the impersonal facts as an end in themselves. "All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out" (John 6:37). "Come unto me…and I will give you rest" (Matt 11:28).

The error to be avoided is confusing the mere knowledge of facts, even though the facts may be biblical, with the reality of experiencing the power of the truth explained in the facts. This was the tragic mistake made by the Jews (Rom 2:17-27). They were convinced the Bible was the very Word of God and therefore assumed that they had obeyed its message simply by acknowledging its truthfulness. Some of you who are reading this tract, I'm sure, can explain the way of salvation. but have never personally and knowingly gone to Christ with empty hands and pleaded His mercy alone to save your soul. If this is true of you. then you will perish with the gospel in your mind and in your mouth without its power being in your affections and will.

The promises of God, or the gospel facts, are like sign posts on the highway. You do not sit on top of a sign and expect the sign to take you to your destination. Instead, by faith in the message on the signpost, you follow its direction and move toward where it points. Just so, God's promises point us to Christ and assure us that we will be received and forgiven if we go to Him in true repentance and faith. However, merely believing that Christ will receive all who come to Him, and actually going to Him, are two different things; yet both are essential to salvation. "This is the record [facts], that God hath given us eternal life [experience], and this life is in His Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life" (I John 5:11, 12).

3. CHRIST MUST BE RECEIVED AS HE IS PRESENTED IN THE BIBLE

Did you know that the Bible speaks of "another gospel" (Gal 1:6-9), "another Jesus" (2 cor 11:3), and "false Christs" (Mark 13.22)? You may sincerely trust a false Jesus and be lost, and believe me, there are a lot of phony Christs being peddled today. Many people are preaching a Jesus that bears no authentic resemblance to the Jesus of the New Testament.

Some men preach a false healing message in the name of Jesus and make millions of dollars off the miseries of their fellow human beings. Some cruel tyrants claim to have been duly authorized by Christ to run God's church. They control the consciences of insecure and timid people and destroy many lives. Super church builders in the "nickels and noses" business use a utilitarian Jesus and manipulate people by the thousands. We must be sure that we understand exactly who Jesus is and what He is like before we dare speak in His name.

People are usually surprised to find out that the Bible nowhere talks about "accepting Jesus as your Savior." Christ is not offered to us in the Bible as only a Savior. He is offered to us as the Lord who is, by virtue of His finished work, a sufficient Savior.

Christ fulfills the office of Prophet, Priest, and King. When we receive Him, we receive Him as our Prophet to teach us the truth, as our Priest to take away our guilt, and as our King to rule over us. When we receive Christ as our Savior, we also receive Him as our Lord. It's just as biblical to say, "I trusted Christ as my Prophet, Priest, and King," as it is to say, "I trusted Christ as my Savior."

There are two things set forth in Scripture as Siamese twins. First, the apostles never present the Saviorhood of Christ apart from His Lordship; or, stated another way; they never offer Christ's saving benefits apart from His Person as Lord. Second, the same apostles never appeal to a sinner's will through his emotions to choose, without first instructing that sinner's intellect with truth; or, stated another way, they insisted that every part of man's being: his mind, his heart, and his will, had to be affected by the power of the gospel before there was true conversion. The mind must be illuminated by the truth and the Spirit; the heart, or affections, must be penetrated by the truth and the Spirit; and the will must be liberated by the truth and the Spirit.

Our whole person, consisting of mind, heart and will (Rom 6:17), receives a whole Christ as Prophet, Priest, and King. Imagine someone saying, "I like and respect Christ's teaching and will gladly submit to it, but I do not believe in that blood atonement business." We would say, "Sir, if you will not have Christ as your Priest to take away your guilt by His shed blood, then you cannot have Him as your Teacher." Someone else may say, "I love the truth that my sins were punished on the cross, but I do not believe that Jesus was right on His view of women." Again, we would say, "Sir, if you reject Christ as your Prophet and Teacher, then you cannot have the benefits of His Priestly work of atonement." Still another person says, "I will trust Christ's blood of atonement and 1 will accept every single doctrine that He teaches, however, 1 will not submit the total control of my life, goals, and money into His hands." Again, we must say, "Sir, God will not save you on such grounds."

Imagine you are at a wedding and the preacher says to the prospective bride, "Will you take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?" She thinks for a moment, and says, "I will be glad to wear his name and will accept and use his credit cards, but I have no intention of washing his clothes, sleeping with him, and bearing his children." Could the preacher say, "That is fine, 1 will still pronounce you man and wife"? Such would be a mockery of everything that marriage stands for! The same is true of conversion. Taking Christ's benefits (as Savior) while refusing His person (as Lord) would mock every purpose of God in our salvation. God will not wed His Son in a saving union to a person who has no intention of loving and serving Christ as Lord. I am fully aware that many preachers today teach that you can "trust Christ as your Savior but not as your Lord," but that is blatant heresy. The "Carnal Christian" doctrine of our day is deadly!

The apostles emphasized the Lordship of Christ and grounded their statements in the fact that God raised His Son from the dead and seated Him at His own right hand with all power and authority. Both the truth of the resurrection and the ascension are prominent in all apostolic preaching in the book of Acts. It is because Christ sits on the throne that men are told to fall down before Him in repentance and faith.

Notice carefully the following four truths that run all the way through the NT Scriptures. These sample texts demonstrate how the apostles preached Christ and His saving work: (1)Christ was announced at His birth as LORD: "For unto you is born…a Savior, which is Christ the Lord (Luke 2:11). (2) Christ was preached by the apostles to both the Jews and the Gentiles as LORD: "If thou shalt confess with thy mouth Jesus as Lord. .." (Rom 10:9); "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ" (Acts 16:31); "Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye crucified, both Lordand Christ" (Acts 2:36). (3) Christ was received in saving faith at conversion as LORD: "As you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in Him" (Col 2:6)(4) All creation will someday bow and acknowledge that Jesus Christ is LORD: "And every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Phil 2:11).

God's controversy with men and women today is over the sin of rebellion to the rightful claims of Christ as LORD. The gospel of the apostles demands that man must repent from that rebellion if there is to be true forgiveness. The problem is not merely that sinners refuse to believe that certain things are true, but rather, it is their refusal to bow their heart and life to the Lord that those truths set forth. It's not a question of merely believing that Jesus was born of a virgin or that He was true Deity made flesh. Nearly the whole world gladly professes that those things are true every year at Christmas time. It's not just a willingness to verbally confess that Christ has truly risen from the dead. Most people joyfully acknowledge that at Easter time. It's obvious that most of these people do not believe these truths in their affections and will (Rom 10: 9, 10). They ardently confess they believe the facts, but they also vehemently reject Christ Himself. Romans 8:7 is still the mark of every unbeliever no matter how religious he may be: "The carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be."

God commands sinners to submit in repentance and faith to the authority of His Son. Read the second Psalm and the second chapter of Acts. The matter boils down to the claims of Christ's Lordship. If you, my dear reader, are not saved by the grace of God, the problem is not in your brain or mind, but in your heart and will. It is true that you must understand with your mind the historical facts about Jesus Christ and His death on the cross for our sins. However, salvation only comes when you, as a whole person, submit yourself and all that you are to Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Has this transaction taken place between you and the Lord Jesus Christ? If not, bow to Him right now and receive Him into your heart and life in true repentance and faith.

The Bible exhorts you to come to Christ, but not before it clearly tells you who He is and where you might find Him. Christ is not up front at the altar; nor is He in the communion cup or baptistery. He will not be found as the logical conclusion to a series of questions; nor will you find Him as the result of an intellectual decision made by your will. Christ is the Lord of Glory, and as such, He is seated on a throne in heaven at the right hand of God the Father. Coming to Christ is bowing to Him on His throne as both Lord and Savior in repentance and faith. It is to gladly submit to His rightful claims of Lordship over you and receive His gracious benefits promised to you as you trust Him.

In order to have a well-grounded assurance of salvation, we must be sure that the true Christ of Scripture is in us and that we are in Him. When we look into the Bible, we see Christ on the throne with all power and authority. We then look into our personal experience and see if that same Christ is on the throne of our hearts.

In closing, let's clear up a popular misconception. Christ is every man's Lord right now. We do not make Christ Lord by trusting Him as our personal Lord. We merely acknowledge, gratefully and willingly, what is already true as we submit to Him as the Lord.

Christ is not in the sinner's hand to do with as the sinner chooses. The reverse is true. God put His Son in our hands one time and we unitedly cried out, "Crucify Him." God then highly exalted Christ and has put us in His hands. Every sinner. without exception, is in the hands of Christ to be disposed of as Christ, the Lord and Judge, decides.

I know that what I have just said is not taught in most evangelical churches today. Today men are told that they are king and captain of their own soul. The sinner is his own lord and his "free will" is totally in charge. Poor Jesus can do nothing but plead with the sinner to give Him a chance. If the sinner will just take the first step, then Jesus will be able to help. In other cases, Jesus is pictured as freely giving forgiveness, and then pleading for the right to be the Christian's Lord. What a corruption of the gospel is this easy believism of our generation!

Let us suppose that the would-be bride that we talked about earlier said, "I do," instead of "I'll take his credit cards." The wedding is over, and all of the vows have been taken, and the last person has gone through the receiving line at the rear of the church. The bride turns to the man she just received as her husband and says, "Jim, this has been one of the most wonderful and exciting days of my life. Phone me some day next week and maybe we can have lunch together." I am sure that not a single person can imagine that such a thing could be possible. It is just as impossible, if we are honest with the writings of the apostles, to think that a sinner can truly receive Christ and then part company with Him and go in a different direction until next Sunday morning! Never! The bride and groom now begin a joint life that is shared in all things, so we take Christ into every room of our house and every aspect of our life at our conversion.

That is the gospel of the apostle Paul. That is the true Christian Faith. That is the Christ of the Bible. Have you personally received the Lord Jesus Christ as the gift of God?