Bible Study Hungry Heart Daily Devotional Anthology -mjs

[netchaplain]

7-6. AFFLICTION'S EFFECT

"But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ " (Philippians 3:7).

Our Father has many reasons for administering trial— all good. Trial teaches us the futility of the old life, and the faithfulness of the Lord Jesus-our new life.

"The Christian suffers the same calamities as others, perhaps even worse; he faces difficulties and losses in the things of this life; he has to be prepared to meet death itself. In all these circumstances he is calm and trustful; he is not only sure of ultimately going to heaven, but already abides there and enjoys something of it in his own heart.

"God is real to him and ever near. He knows a peace which passes all understanding, and he experiences a joy which no man can take from him. This, surely, should be our testimony in the world, but it can only be as the Lord Jesus Himself lives out this life in us." -H.F.

"The world is divided into two things-pleasures and afflictions; I am more afraid of the pleasures than the afflictions. In afflictions you turn to the Lord. The danger is of being carried away by the very favors God has given to man. "

"Those who suffer from chastening ought to be before the Father, owning His hand; and He who has wounded will heal. The Lord Jesus did not take the cup which He had to drink from us, from man, nor from Satan; but from His Father's hand."

"Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus, my Lord" (Philippians 3:8).

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[netchaplain]

7-7. "PEACE ON EARTH"

"Let the peace of God rule in your hearts " (Colossians 3:15).
Peace does not, and cannot, exist in the fallen Adam life; and as long as the old man reigns within, there is going to be turmoil both within and without. The path of the Cross is alone the path of peace.

"The moment came when the Lord Jesus could say, 'Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you' (John 14:27). This could only be on the ground of His death, for the man in Adam could never give up his will: to do so would be to give up his very existence. But the death of the Lord Jesus is-judicially, and for faith-the end of that man, and the Christian walking in the Spirit owns him no more.

"The believer can thus, and only thus, have freedom from the tyranny of sin as he reckons himself to have died unto sin, and to be alive unto God as one 'alive from the dead.' He presents his body a living sacrifice unto God, and proves what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Thus walking, the peace of the Lord Jesus becomes an experiential reality in the heart of the believer. Thank God! we are no longer linked with the fallen Adam, and the Holy Spirit has placed us in union with Christ risen and glorified." -C.A.C.

"The more clearly we enter, by faith, into objective truth, or what is true of us in the Lord Jesus, the deeper, more experiential and practical will be the Spirit's subjective work in us, and the more complete will be the manifestation of the moral effect in our life and character. " -C.H.M.

"Both He that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one" (Hebrews 2:11).

WithChrist.org

 

[farouk]

7-7. "PEACE ON EARTH"

"Let the peace of God rule in your hearts " (Colossians 3:15).
Peace does not, and cannot, exist in the fallen Adam life; and as long as the old man reigns within, there is going to be turmoil both within and without. The path of the Cross is alone the path of peace.

"The moment came when the Lord Jesus could say, 'Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you' (John 14:27). This could only be on the ground of His death, for the man in Adam could never give up his will: to do so would be to give up his very existence. But the death of the Lord Jesus is-judicially, and for faith-the end of that man, and the Christian walking in the Spirit owns him no more.

"The believer can thus, and only thus, have freedom from the tyranny of sin as he reckons himself to have died unto sin, and to be alive unto God as one 'alive from the dead.' He presents his body a living sacrifice unto God, and proves what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Thus walking, the peace of the Lord Jesus becomes an experiential reality in the heart of the believer. Thank God! we are no longer linked with the fallen Adam, and the Holy Spirit has placed us in union with Christ risen and glorified." -C.A.C.

"The more clearly we enter, by faith, into objective truth, or what is true of us in the Lord Jesus, the deeper, more experiential and practical will be the Spirit's subjective work in us, and the more complete will be the manifestation of the moral effect in our life and character. " -C.H.M.

"Both He that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one" (Hebrews 2:11).

WithChrist.org

Great meditation.

Yes, for believers, it's the case of the Lord Jesus 'having made peace through the blood of His cross' (Colossians 1.20).

Blessings.

 

[netchaplain]

How often have we forgotten when enduring a hardness, that the Lord is not only with us in it but knew it was inevitable and that even if we think we may not have not properly responded to it, He always works it “together for good†to our advantage? If we think it’s the result of something in which we've made a wrong decision, He still works accordingly.

He knows we never want to ultimately decide on anything that would displease Him, so we need not to ever allow the Enemy, our old self or anyone to use anything to make us feel guilty, concerning anything (this doesn’t include non-repented wrongs); remorseful for wrongs but not guilt. It's not as though we are on probation, because all forgiveness has been settled for us and everything is now part of Him teaching us.

7-9. PATH PROXIMITY

"God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that ye, always having all sufficiency, may abound to every good work " (2 Corinthians 9:8).
Suffering takes us in condition where truth has us in position.

"We will never learn any truth in experience excepting in the deepening knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is the lack of this which is the cause of weakness among believers; bare doctrine is not personal fellowship with Him. We have that which is lovely and full of blessing in Him; but if we are to know it as such; to prove its truth, to enjoy it always, it must be in taking these things as connected with Him." -J.N.D.

"The passive power of faith needs for its sustenance closer communion with the Father than its active energy. Action, as it were, nerves us to the conflict; but quiet endurance of wrong, or suffering of any kind, which neither friend nor foe sees, but only God, this indeed needs divine power, and without God's support none would bear the strain. Many a saint has shown the courage of faith before his enemies, as Elijah when he faced Ahab, but who, like him, quails and flees, where there is nothing to do, but quietly trust in God."

"There is but one thought with our Father in disciplining us, namely, to make our trials an opportunity for our heart to learn and discover more of His love, and the resources which are in Him as He has revealed them to us in His Son." -J.B.S.

"There is no way of learning faith except by trial. It is God's school of faith, and it is far better for us to learn to trust our Father than to enjoy life."

"As sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, and yet possessing all things " (2 Corinthians 6:10).

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[netchaplain]

7-10. BEHOLD, THE MAN!

"[God] hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus " (Ephesians 2:6).

There aren't many truly happy Christians simply because there aren't many who really abide in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Our risen Lord is the source of our happiness as we rest in Him-triumphant over circumstances; not hopelessly underneath them. Happy is the abiding believer, "hid with Christ in God" (Colossians 3:3).

"I must not only see my position in the Lord Jesus, but I must come near to the One who set me there. Many are
disappointed that after hearing with delight and receiving the truth of their position they are not more affected by it.

"The reason is that they rest too much in the position and have not occupied themselves increasingly with their risen Lord; have not drawn nearer to Him, and recognized Him as the only One who can make it all experiential in them." -J.B.S.

"Is the living Person now in heavenly glory really the Object of our hearts? For some time after I knew the Savior I used to think of Him as One who had lived and died on earth long years ago, and I well remember the day when I knelt down with a dear brother who prayed that we might know the Lord Jesus as a living Person in heavenly glory, and it dawned upon me that there was a present Object for my heart in heaven. Our hearts will never be satisfied until that glorified Lord Jesus becomes our Object bright and fair. "

"Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth" (Colossians 3:2).

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[netchaplain]

7-11. GRACE AND MERCY

"But my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:19).
If and when the trial comes, you will find Him waiting there.

"We should always be prepared for circumstances that will arise, and for blessings that are to come, without foreseeing what these circumstances and blessings will be. This preparation consists in attention to present responsibility, and acceptance of present discipline.

"If day by day we first seek divine direction, and then follow it, we shall be ready, when new circumstances arise, for the new blessings which will be offered. Today should be preparation for tomorrow. The only proof that we shall be equal to tomorrow's test is that we are meeting today's test believingly and courageously. The only evidence that we shall be willing for God's will tomorrow is that we are subject to His will today. " -W.G. S.

"Our Lord has special reserves of grace for special needs. If ever you feel that you could not go through a certain trial, that if you had to face that, you just could not go through with it, you are taking on something that you have no right to take on.
"If the Lord calls you to go through fire or water, He has a special reserve of grace for you in that. And that grace will be from the throne of grace. It is the throne above, mediating grace for need and suffering as it is required." -T. A-S.

"Let us. . . come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need " (Hebrews 4:16).

WithChrist.org

 

[netchaplain]

It is not that Christ’s walk is substituted for ours, or His holiness which is imputed to us, or anything of the kind. It is not yet the question of how to walk, but of what I am; but a question which, when settled in God’s way, stops necessarily the effort to be what no effort of mine can make me, and what, thank God, His infinite grace has already made me: “complete in Him.†“As Christ is, so are we in this world†(1 John 4:17).

Could effort of ours make us “as Christ is’? It would be clearly impossible; and yet nothing but this would reach up to the standard God has given us. Nothing short of this would be perfection, and nothing short of perfection could we rightly rest in. If imperfection God cannot accept, and perfection I cannot bring Him, what then? Then I must accept of my Father’s providing, and find in the Lord Jesus a new self that needs no mending and cannot be improved, where no body of death disturbs or oppresses, and occupation with which is not legalism, nor Pharisaism.

I am privileged to turn away from what I find in myself as a man down here, then, because in the death of the Cross, the death wherein I died with Him, “sin in the flesh†has been fully dealt with. The condemnation of it by God has already found its full expression on the Cross. For faith, not for experience, I too have died and that “to sinâ€, because “He died unto sin once.†I reckon myself (not feel or find myself) to be dead indeed unto sin, and alive unto God in Christ Jesus Rom 6:11). -- F.W. Grant

7-12. POSITIONAL CONDUCT

"They who receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:1 7).

"Law and grace are separated by the infinite chasm of the Cross. Law required right conduct first, with earthly position to be earned thereby. Grace gives heavenly position immediately, which ultimately produces right conduct. "Ye are not under the law, but under grace" (Romans 6:14).

"The believer does not walk in order to reach the throne. On the contrary. His walk is determined by the fact that he has been placed with the Lord Jesus in a position of immeasurable ascendancy. He has been made to sit together with Christ in heavenly places in order that, having received an abundance of grace and the gift of righteousness, he might reign in life by one, even the Lord Jesus.

"He walks like a king because he is a king (Revelation 1:6). He is not called upon to walk in kingly fashion in order that he may reach the throne. God's order is different. The Christian begins at the throne and his kingly manner is only the inevitable outcome of his exalted position.

"Our frustrations and agonies in an effort to attain the unattainable, our shame and our defeats such as we find in Paul's own experience tabulated so faithfully in Romans 7, come about naturally and inevitably when, failing to grasp all this, we put the emphasis on our conduct rather than our position, which must come first." -F.J.H.

"Unto Him that loveth us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and hath made us a kingdom of priests unto God and His Father, to Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever " (Revelation 1 :5, 6).

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[netchaplain]

What does “casting all your care upon Him†involve (1 Pet 5:7)? It involves an ongoing dependence on the Father at all times for all things, “for He cares for youâ€. Any action other than this is an expectation of provision from self and disappointment is sure to follow; for not only is this a failure to realize that God wants to provide for “all your careâ€, there is also the idea that there must something that falls to us out of responsibility of doing our part. Though there may appear to be a seemingly necessity to “help yourselfâ€, self-help is infinitely inferior to God’s desire for us.

There are certain expectations of us from God but they are always within the framework of depending on Him to cause whatever occurs in our life (even bad decisions) to “work together for good†(Rom 8:28). The saying, “it’s all good†has been popularized but this truism is only for the believer; to and from the unbeliever is nothing truly good, for only “He who does good is of God†(3 John 1:11). “To the pure all things are pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure; but even their mind and conscience are defiled.†(Titus 1:15).

Identifying the vulnerability of self, which will repetitiously occur - esp. during times of excessive self-concern, is the evidence of learning to understand that “the old man†is ever present, which through the Spirit’s work is kept dormant: “For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish†(Gal 5:17). -NC

7-13. LOOK AND LIVE!

"But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord " (2 Corinthians 3:18).

As the plant to the sun, we look to the Son for growth!

"What is the good of a man being ennobled, made a prince of, if he feels he has gained no more or sensible acquisition by it? This is the disappointment which souls feel without being able to account for it; and they are subject to nights of wrestling, because they have rested in their grand title, instead of in the means of supporting their titles, which is dependence on, and ever deepening acquaintance with, the One who has conferred them. -J.B.S.

"I cannot conceive anything more satisfying or cheering to the heart than the consciousness that I may not only draw near, but that I draw near in answer to the thought and interest that the Lord Jesus has about me, and that I draw nigh to enjoy myself in His presence where there is so much thought and interest about me. It is there my heart goes out in acknowledgment of Him in answer to His deep, gracious, and everlasting love. "

"By means of the Word, look to the Lord Jesus in faith. Exercise the blessed trust that He is yours, and that He has given Himself to you, and that you have a claim to all that is in Him. It is His purpose to work out His image in you. Behold Him with the joyful and certain expectation: the glory that I behold in Him is destined for me!" -A.M.

"For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shone in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the fare of Jesus Christ" (2 Corinthians 4:6).

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[netchaplain]

7-14. THE MARCH OF TIME

"Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him " (Psalm 37 7).

The difference between knowing the Lord Jesus as Savior and knowing Him as Life, is the better part of a lifetime; even for the hungriest of hearts. "I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:14).

"In receiving the Word of God by faith, there is first, light; then exercise of conscience; third, prayer-you are cast on God; fourth, the work of the Spirit to lead you into it.

"Not one of us is beyond the work of the Spirit in us. Many think, because they have the light of a truth that they are in the power and reality of it. No! you may have all the Bible, have much light, but there is no growth beyond the measure of the Spirit's work in us.

"Conception of a truth is one thing, and execution is quite another. Grace may have been furnished you with a true conception, but you must wait on the Lord to carry it out by His Spirit. The working out of a true conception is the real discipline."

"Do not be discouraged because you may not carry out your purpose at once; God will carry it out, but you must keep in the place where you will be preserved, in the circle of His interests.

"Moses had to wait forty years to carry out his purpose, which was a right one, though in the first flush the flesh sought to carry it out; but in the Lord's time, how fully every purpose of his heart was met–all the way to the Mount of Transfiguration!"

"Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the Lord. (Hosea 6:3).

WithChrist.org

 

[netchaplain]

7-14. THE MARCH OF TIME

"Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him " (Psalm 37 7).

The difference between knowing the Lord Jesus as Savior and knowing Him as Life, is the better part of a lifetime; even for the hungriest of hearts. "I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:14).

"In receiving the Word of God by faith, there is first, light; then exercise of conscience; third, prayer-you are cast on God; fourth, the work of the Spirit to lead you into it.

"Not one of us is beyond the work of the Spirit in us. Many think, because they have the light of a truth that they are in the power and reality of it. No! you may have all the Bible, have much light, but there is no growth beyond the measure of the Spirit's work in us.

"Conception of a truth is one thing, and execution is quite another. Grace may have been furnished you with a true conception, but you must wait on the Lord to carry it out by His Spirit. The working out of a true conception is the real discipline."

"Do not be discouraged because you may not carry out your purpose at once; God will carry it out, but you must keep in the place where you will be preserved, in the circle of His interests.

"Moses had to wait forty years to carry out his purpose, which was a right one, though in the first flush the flesh sought to carry it out; but in the Lord's time, how fully every purpose of his heart was met–all the way to the Mount of Transfiguration!"

"Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the Lord. (Hosea 6:3).

WithChrist.org

 

[netchaplain]

Are you “enduring hardness†(2 Tim 2:3) or going through a “fiery trial†(1 Pet 4:12)? Usually it’s not related to anything we have have done but is the orchestrated hand of the Father in His conforming us “to the image of His Son†(Rom 8:29). What we do is determined by where we are in God’s conformation process and so we are always met with proportionate situations just for this purpose. When the trial is related to something we have incurred, He applies His chastising-love for the same reason and remember, He always knows when this is to happen.

Out of the self-centeredness of the “old man†we at times attribute occurrences, good and bad, to ourselves when in actuality it’s the result of God’s direction. There’s nothing we can think or do that He doesn’t already know about beforehand and remembering He uses it all for our “conforming†encourages us to know the complete control He continually has over our lives. “The steps of a [good] man are ordered by the LORD, And He delights in his way (Psa 37:23). -NC

7-15. THE HAND OF LIFE

"That I may know Him . . being made conformable unto His death " (Philippians 3:10).

The life that emerges from death is administered by a loving, nail-pierced hand.

"As with the seed that is buried once for all, but then disintegrated through a gradual process that sets free the new life, even so does our Father deal with our old nature by delivering it to death with the Lord Jesus once for all, and then bringing about its mortifying in detail through the circumstances of daily life, until the power of the old man has lost its hold on us. " -L.T.

"We are going to have to learn death in order to know life. Redemption must be known first, and the ultimate effect will be death to sin, to selfishness; and all this is very trying. One might be tempted to say, All this trial comes upon me because I have not been redeemed. Not so; it is just because you are redeemed. We may seek to avoid the bitter waters of Marah, but our Father will bring us to them. He intends to break down what is of the old man, and then, in His own good time, He will pour in that which sweetens all.

"But because God has brought me to Himself, He is putting His finger on everything that hinders complete dependence upon Him, or my soul's full enjoyment of Himself. So count it not strange, though it be a fiery trial which is to try you; for the Father will have you drink of the very thing (death) that redeemed you."

"Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 2:5).

WithChrist.org

 

[God's_gift]

"But because God has brought me to Himself, He is putting His finger on everything that hinders complete dependence upon Him, or my soul's full enjoyment of Himself. So count it not strange, though it be a fiery trial which is to try you; for the Father will have you drink of the very thing (death) that redeemed you."

"Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 2:5).

i'm in tears with this verse..thank you. i'm just in the situation right now that God wants me to put my full dependence on Him. Again thanks for this reminder....

 

[netchaplain]

Why must the subject of the “old man†so often arise? It slumbers not and ever flies its colors and therefore, we are to “see then that you walk circumspectly†(Eph 5:15) of its vices (Co 3:5-9); for it must be through these that the Enemy vies for position, which can interrupt but not inhibit our progress in Christ (Eph 4:27).

Being prepared to identify the works of our old nature does not involve an unceasing watch, as though it could affect our standing in Christ if missed, but is an urgency to keep it in check as the Spirit often reveals it to us in what we do; He identifies it to us then causes us to allow Him to deal with us in it (Gal 5:17). The works of the old nature are active in varying degrees, depending upon maturity (Eph 5:11-14), and are never completely avoided in our doings (1 John 1:8).

The primary understanding in it all is to realize that it is our ways which indicates our maturity in Christ and this determines the level of our fellowship, in this life, with the Father, but the condition of our fellowship with Him does not affect our acceptance with Him; for our acceptance is determined only by being “accepted in the Beloved†(Eph 1:6). -NC

7-17. ZEAL'S PRECOCITY

"For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge" (Romans 10:2).

It takes more to break inertia than to ease momentum. Misdirected zeal is more easily corrected than inert sloth.

"It is possible, and very humiliating, to be awakened to the fact, though we have had a measure of zeal for the Lord, that we have barely known the things we should have known, nor the behavior that is becoming to us in this marvelous day of grace.

"But it is the love of the Lord Jesus that would lead us on, through the judgment of ourselves and ways, into deeper communion with Himself to be better representatives of Him here in whose likeness we shall soon appear. "

"The snare with zealous, but unprepared and unbroken hearts, is to do the right thing in the wrong way. It is not enough to know the right thing, but I must know the right way of doing it. The latter is not easily learned; the former is the fruit of light; the latter is never acquired but as there is practical grace and love-the activity of the Lord Jesus' nature in me by the Spirit." -J.B.S.

"Denial of the old man is where he is most felt, not where he is least felt; and all the light of Scripture cannot promote growth without self-denial. Here is where most fail, and in this day there is a great deal more zeal to acquire knowledge and intelligence in the wonders of revelation, than to deny the man that has no sympathy with it, nor part in it, but condemnation. "

"Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil " (1 Timothy 3:6).

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[netchaplain]

We all should be familiar with “the pauseâ€. This involves those times of seemingly emptiness, which for me can last for a day or two. The pause tests us by giving us the opportunity to evaluate where our learning level is concerning our patience and trust; are we going to patiently wait for normalcy, knowing He is still with us, or allow place for wondering and despondency which may hint of dejection?

Similar to the process in which gold is purer after every firing, the Christian “enduring hardness†(2 Tim 2:3) results in “the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perishes, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ†(1 Pet 1:7).
-NC

7-18. HIS WAY AND TIME

"That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of Cod." (Colossians 1:10).

When once we see and accept our Father's purpose for our lives to the extent that it becomes our will also, the time and details of His process cease to matter. "Thy will be done" (Luke 11:2).

"It is the knowledge of the Lord Jesus that matures the soul. Our Father chooses His opportunities to teach us these things, and when He has accomplished this work the special communications of His wisdom and love no longer continue, for He desires we should walk by faith, according to what we know we possess in the Lord Jesus. Hence our path is in company with a Christ much better known, and in much closer communion with Him.

"After receiving the instruction, we have to return to the ordinary activity of a life of responsibility, and to those relationships with our brethren in which love is developed and exercised, as it is put to "The proof, either in the assembly or in individual relationships."

"Patience is the secret of it all. We want to hurry God sometimes, but we never can. We find this at times in the desire for restoring a soul-a right thing to want, but God must first go to the bottom. "Patience requires thorough confidence in God. He is working His own purposes meanwhile, but I must follow Him, not go before Him. If I am 'strengthened. . . unto all patience,' I shall be longsuffering toward others."

"Strengthened. . . according to His glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering" (Colossians 1:11).

WithChrist.org.

 

[netchaplain]

7-19. LOVED, TO LOVE

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ " (Ephesians 1:3).

His love is mine when I know what He did for me; my love is His when I know who He is to me-He who is Love, is my Life. He loved, and died; that I might live, and love. "I am my beloved's, and my beloved is mine" (Song of Solomon 6:3).

"My Father, in His grace, has come in and ended my history in the flesh, by the Cross, and now by the Spirit I am brought into association with His Son at His own right hand in heaven.

"The Lord Jesus wins my heart in His humiliation; He satisfies it in His glory. A won heart is not necessarily a satisfied heart. But if a heart is truly won by the Lord Jesus it never will be satisfied without Him. No heart that is won is ever satisfied but in the company of the One who won it. Absence does not 'make the heart grow fonder'! You only discover in absence what you have gained in presence. "

"We talk of difficulties and perplexities. How little the heart is really in concert, in simple concert with the Lord Jesus! He has gone up to the right hand of the Father in greater power than ever, and He is using the elevation that He has gone to, to effect deliverance for me from all things that would break fellowship between Him and me. And He uses His Word to keep me from all that would interfere with that blessed communion. "

"Thy Word have I hidden in mine heart, that I might not sin against Thee " (Psalm l l 9:11).

 

[netchaplain]

7-20. CALVARY'S SECRET

"Partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world" (2 Peter 1:4).

We are to find out in Romans 6, through the gracious teaching of the Spirit of truth, all that happened to the Lord Jesus there on the Cross. Then we will know our own position and standing, since we were judicially in Him there.

"Have you ever thought about God's thought about you, that you are 'to be conformed to the image of His Son'? 'It doth not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that, when He shall appear, we shall be like Him' (Romans 8:29; 1 John 3:2).

"This cannot fail. The Lord Jesus presses on our hearts that He brings us into association with Himself. He 'hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ Jesus' (Ephesians 1:3). He puts us in this position answering perfectly to His nature, and with a nature to enjoy it."

"He imparts to us of Himself in order to qualify us for Himself. "

"Not only is my blessing in heaven, but I need the Lord Jesus' power to enable me to rise above the sense of my infirmity down here; for this world, instead of contributing to me, makes me feel my weakness and need, and that I must rise out of it to find and enjoy my blessing.

"The very infirmity which this evil age makes me conscious of makes me draw upon the power of Christ, as the One outside it, passing into the heavens, so that I take pleasure in the very infirmity which is exposed here, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. "

"God forbid that I should glory, except in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ " (Galatians 6:14).

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[netchaplain]

7-21. COUNTER-BALANCED

"Having therefore, brethren, boldness enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus" (Hebrews 10:19).

Personal knowledge of and fellowship with our risen Lord Jesus is counter-balanced by personal knowledge of and fellowship in the death of the Cross. The principle of balance prevents our slipping past the Cross and pushing into His presence.

"Where do you dwell? 'Come and see. They came. . . and abode with Him' (John 1:39). The highest satisfaction He can have is that we should be at home with Himself. He has removed the distance from His own side.

"If you believe that, you say, I will approach Him. That is one thing. The next thing is, His love is so great He delights to have your company. It is not that you will feel yourself out of place there-you will be there in all the beauty of the Lord Jesus Christ."

"Our Father delights in having us with Himself. Love yearns to satisfy itself about me. It is not only that I can go in, but a much greater thing—my Father, in all His majesty and glory, can come out, All is equipoise. Not only have I entree, but I am shaped to the grandeur of the scene, conformed to the glory of God. Not admitted like a stranger, but changed into the same image; not to equality but similarity; transformed into moral correspondence." -J.B.S.

"If we are not with Him where He is, we cannot be for Him where He is not. We must be inside the veil to be outside the camp."

"Let us draw near with a true heart in fall assurance of faith " (Hebrews 10:22).

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7-22. GUARDED AND GUIDED

"My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:19).

How difficult it is for the hungry heart to adjust to the Father's pace. He is so deliberate and thorough, while our need is so pressing and paramount. Apart from never being behind time, our Father is an eternity ahead of time! We have but to see in the Word what He has accomplished on our behalf in the Lord Jesus, and then quietly rely upon Him, "according as His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness" (2 Peter 1:3).

"God will perfect that which concerns His own; and even where there are mistakes and failures, as alas! there are in abundance with all of us, the Lord's rich grace abounds over all, and actually takes occasion from our very mistakes to shine out all the more brightly-though, assuredly, the mistakes and failures must produce their own painful and humiliating results.

"It is the remembrance of this which alone can give calm repose in the midst of the most discouraging circumstances. If we take the eye of faith off God, our souls must soon be overwhelmed. It is our privilege to be able, in our little measure, to thank God in view of everything, and take refuge in His eternal counsels, which must be made good despite all the unbelief of man, and all the malice of Satan.

"May God give us to increasingly know Him! If we had one end."only to learn what we are, we should surely be cast down, and sink into despondency; but His object in giving us a knowledge of ourselves and of His grace, is to give us an expected end."

"Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life" (Psalm 23:6).

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IMITATING IS IMITATION

"For to me to live is Christ" (Philippians 1:2l).

Once we learn the truth of our union with the Lord Jesus, and of the Holy Spirit's indwelling, any attempt to imitate Christ will be seen for what it is: unscriptural, and futile.

"Our Father is going to teach us, mainly through personal failure, that the life we live is the life of our Lord Jesus alone. The Christian life is not our living a life like Christ, or our trying to be Christ-like, nor is it Christ giving us the power to live a life like His; but it is Christ Himself living His own life through us; 'no longer I, but Christ.'"

"The end of Christ's incarnation, death and resurrection was to prepare and form a holy nature and frame for us in Himself, to be communicated to us by union and fellowship with Him; and not to be able to produce in ourselves the first originals of such an holy nature by our own endeavors."

"The believer's true education is in the growth of Christ within. The Church's real ministry is not multitudinous public services, so-called, but the forming of the Lord Jesus Christ in the lives of His people; the reproduction of Christ; epistles made alive by the Holy Spirit, to be seen and read of all men." -C.A.F.

"There is no answer to infidelity like the life of the Lord Jesus displayed through the Christian. Nothing puts the madness of the infidel, and the folly of the superstitious more to shame and silence than the humble, quiet, devoted walk of a thorough-going, heavenly-minded, and divinely-taught believer."

"But the Lord is faithful, who shall stablish you" (2 Thessalonians 3:3).

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7-24. TERMINAL CONDITION–ETERNAL POSITION

"Ye have put off the old man with his deeds" (Colossians 3 9).

Sometimes our Christian life and love are divided between the two Adams. It may be 60-40 in favor of the Last Adam, still it is shared. But the Lord Jesus paid it all, gave His all, deserves our all, requires all, because He is our ALL. Ours is to be total separation-death to the old, life in the New.

"Our Father has removed everything to His own satisfaction, and you learn in the first eleven verses of Romans 5 the terms He is on with you. It means much to the heart of the believer to know that he is received on the ground of another Man who perfectly glorified God.

"We are accepted in Him, the Beloved. God has changed His man, and you are never happy until you believe that and are able to say, I have, too. If you do not see that God has changed His man you will never change your man."

"The only way to freedom is to leave Adam for Christ-to change your man; then it is 'not I, but Christ liveth in me' (Galatians 2:20). There are two sides; one, that you are cleared from the old in the eye of God in the Cross; the other, that you are now new in Christ risen. 'For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death' (Romans 8:2). The old is held in the place of death as you walk in newness of life in the Spirit."

"And have put on the new man, that is renewed in knowledge after the image of Him that created him." (Colossians 3:10).

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