Some of Your gifts have come to us in strange form!

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(J.R. Miller, "Family Prayers")

Father, let Your face shine upon our home today. We thank You for it. May it be . . .
  a shelter to us from the world's storms,
  a nest of love,
  a school where we may learn love's lessons, and
  where we may grow into the beauty of Christlikeness.
We pray continually that our home may become more and more like Heaven. Teach all of us how to live, so as to add to its sweetness.

Come and be a guest in our home. Then its love will become sweeter, and more and more holy. For Your presence gives light, blessing, and joy. Make our home, Your home. Dwell with us. Then we shall be happy. Then we shall live beautifully together.

We thank You for Your goodness to us this past week. You have showered Your blessings upon us with a most bountiful hand. You have given us favors of many kinds. Some of Your gifts have come to us in strange form--in trials, in burdens, in disappointments, in losses. Still we know that they are Your gifts, and as such, have in them good and blessing for our lives. Give us grace to accept whatever You send to us, knowing that Your love can never give us anything but kindness. Even if the cup is bitter--may we be enabled to accept it. We would get near to Your heart, we would creep into Jesus' bosom, into His everlasting arms, and be still.

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The meek and lowly One

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek, and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30
Suggested Further Reading: Matthew 21:1-17
Christ on earth was a king; but there was nothing about him of the exclusive pomp of kings, which excludes the common people from their society. Look at the eastern king Ahasuerus, sitting on his throne. He is considered by his people as a superior being. None may come in unto the king, unless he is called for. Should he venture to pass the circle, the guards will slay him, unless the king stretches out the golden sceptre. Even Esther, his beloved wife, is afraid to draw near, and must put her life in her hand, if she comes into the presence of the king uncalled. Christ is a king; but where is his pomp? Where the janitor that keeps his door, and thrusts away the poor? Where the soldiers that ride on either side of his chariot to screen the monarch from the sight of poverty? See thy King, O Sion! He comes, he comes in royal pomp! Behold, Judah, behold thy King cometh! But how cometh he? “Meek and lowly, riding upon an ass, and upon a colt, the foal of an ass.” And who are his attendants? See, the young children, boys and girls! They cry, “Hosannah! Hosannah! Hosannah!” And who are they that wait upon him? His poor disciples. They pull the branches from the trees; they cast their garments in the street, and there he rides on—Judah’s royal king. His courtiers are the poor; his pomp is that tribute which grateful hearts delight to offer. O sinners, will you not come to Christ? There is nothing in him to keep you back. You need not say, like Esther did of old, “I will go in unto the king, and if I perish, I perish.” Come and welcome! Come and welcome! Christ is more ready to receive you than you are to come to him. Come to the King!
For meditation: The character of the King should be reflected in the character of his subjects (Matthew 5:3,5,10). 3 John 9,10 describes exactly what is not called for!
Sermon no. 265
31 July (1859)
C.H. Spurgeon

Almighty God

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(J.R. Miller, "Family Prayers")

Almighty God, our heavenly Father, look upon us graciously as we wait at Your feet. You have given us many invitations to come to You. You have invited us . . .
  to come with our sins,
  to come with our troubles,
  to come with our mistakes,
  to come with our cares,
  to come with our sorrows.
You have told us to come at all times, that we shall . . .
  never be unwelcome,
  never be turned away, and
  never find You too busy to hear us.
You have promised us . . .
  mercy for our sins,
  comfort for our sorrows,
  strength for our duties, and
  wisdom for our ignorance,
when we come to You. We thank You for all these precious invitations and assurances.

What would we do, O God, if we might not thus come to You? To whom else could we go? There is no other in all the universe who could help us--as we must be helped. Our hearts are full of praise and rejoicing, that we may thus come to You. There is nothing we cannot bring to You--nothing too small to bring--and nothing too large. We thank You that we are so blessed, that we have all Your divine love and grace to help us in our times of need. We need no other help, but Yours. We come now with all our burdens.

We have many sins. These are our worst burdens. They will sink us to eternal despair, unless we find help. We thank You that the Lord Jesus paid for our sins, and bore them away. In His name, depending upon His atonement, we come with our sins.

We have other needs.
We are not strong enough for duty.
We cannot stand against the ensnaring world, and the power of Satan.
We have no wisdom for life's problems, its duties, its responsibilities.
We need strength,
we need wisdom,
we need grace--
for every moment!

So we come to You, our Father, as Your redeemed children. Receive us, bless us, keep us, help us. We ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

"Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need!" Hebrews 4:16

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Sin slain

“And, behold, as Barak pursued Sisera, Jael came out to meet him, and said unto him, Come, and I will shew thee the man whom thou seekest. And when he came into her tent, behold, Sisera lay dead, and the nail was in his temples.” Judges 4:22
Suggested Further Reading: Hebrews 12:1-4
Rest not content till the blood of your enemy stains the ground, until he is crushed, and dead, and slain. Oh, sinner, I beseech you, never be content until grace reign in your heart, and sin is altogether subdued. Indeed, this is what every renewed soul longs for, and must long for, nor will it rest satisfied until all this shall be accomplished. There was a time when some of us thought we would slay our sins. We wanted to put them to death, and we thought we would drown them in floods of penitence. There was a time, too, when we thought we would starve our sins; we thought we would keep out of temptation, and not go and pander to our lusts, and then they would die; and some of us can recollect when we gagged our lusts, when we pinioned their arms, and put their feet in the stocks, and then thought that would deliver us. But brethren, all our ways of putting sin to death were not sufficient; we found the monster still alive, insatiate for his prey. We might rout his hired ruffians, but the monster was still our conqueror. We might put to flight our habits, but the nature of sin was still in us, and we could not overcome it. Yet did we groan and cry daily, “Oh wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” It is a cry to which we are accustomed even at this day, and which we shall never cease to utter, till we can say of our sins, “They are gone,” and of the very nature of sin, that it has been extinguished, and that we are pure and holy even as when the first Adam came from his Maker’s hands.
For meditation: We should never underestimate the power of sin, but we can never overestimate the power of the Lord Jesus Christ to conquer sin. Sin may remain, but it need not reign (Romans 6:12).
Sermon no. 337
30 July (Preached 29 July 1860)
C.H. Spurgeon

But he was a leper!

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(Arthur Pink, "Gleanings from Elisha")

"Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great man . . . but he was a leper!" 2 Kings 5:1

Naaman was a great man . . . but he was a leper! He was the victim of a loathsome and incurable disease. He was a pitiful and repulsive object, with no prospect whatever of any improvement in his condition.

Yes, my reader, the highly-privileged and honored Naaman was a leper--and as such he portrays what you are and what I am by nature. God's Word does not flatter man. It lays him in the dust, which is one reason why it is so unpalatable to the great majority of people. It is the Word of truth, and therefore instead of painting flattering pictures of human nature--it represents things as they actually are.

Instead of lauding man--it abases him.

Instead of speaking of the dignity and nobility of human nature--it declares it to be leprous--sinful, corrupt, depraved, defiled!

Instead of eulogizing human progress--it insists that "every man at his best state is altogether vanity!" (Psalm 39:5)

And when the Holy Scriptures define man's attitude toward and relationship with God, they insist that "There is none righteous, no, not one. There is none that understands, there is none that seeks after God" (Romans 3:10-11). They declare that we are His enemies by our wicked works (Colossians 1:21), and that consequently we are under the condemnation and curse of God's law, and that His holy wrath abides on us! (John 3:36)

The Word of truth declares that by nature all of us are spiritual lepers--foul and filthy, unfit for the divine presence, "being alienated from the life of God." (Ephesians 4:18)

You may occupy a good position in this world, even an eminent station in the affairs of this life. You may have made good in your vocation, and wrought praiseworthy achievements by human standards. You may be honorable in the sight of your fellows--but how do you appear in the eyes of God? You are a leper--one whom His law pronounces unclean, one who is utterly unfit for His holy presence! As it was with Naaman, so it is with you: "He was a great man--but a leper!"

We would not be faithful to our calling were we to glide over that in God's Word which is distasteful to proud flesh and blood. Nor would we be faithful to our readers if we glossed over their frightful and fatal natural condition. It is in their souls' interests that they should face this humiliating and unpleasant fact--that in God's sight, they are spiritual lepers!

But we must personalize it. Have you, my reader, realized this fact in your own case? Have you seen yourself as you are in God's sight? Are you aware that your soul is suffering from a disease that neither you nor any human being can cure? It is so, whether you realize it or not. The Scriptures declare that from the sole of your foot to the crown of your head, there is no soundness in you. Yes, that in the sight of the holy God, you are a mass of "wounds, and bruises, and putrefying sores!" (Isaiah 1:6) Only as you penitently accept that divine verdict, is there any hope for you.

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Everywhere and yet forgotten

“Who knoweth not in all these that the hand of the Lord hath wrought this? In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind.” Job 12:9,10
Suggested Further Reading: Deuteronomy 8:11-20
This forgetfulness of God is growing upon this perverse generation. Time was, in the old puritanic days, when every shower of rain was seen to come from heaven, when every ray of sunshine was blessed, and God was thanked for having given fair weather to ingather the fruits of the harvest. Then, men talked of God as doing everything. But in our days where is our God? We have the laws of matter. Alas! Alas! That names with little meaning should have destroyed our memory of the Eternal One. We talk now of phenomena, and of the chain of events, as if all things happened by machinery; as if the world were a huge clock which had been wound up in eternity, and continued to work without a present God. Nay, not only our philosophers, but even our poets rant in the same way. They sing of the works of nature. But who is that fair goddess, Nature? Is she a heathen deity, or what? Do we not act as if we were ashamed of our God, or as if his name had become obsolete? Go abroad wherever you may, you hear little said concerning him who made the heavens, and who formed the earth and the sea; but everything is nature, and the laws of motion and of matter. And do not Christians often use words which would lead you to suppose that they believed in the old goddess, Luck, or rested in that equally false deity, Fortune, or trembled before the demon of Misfortune? Oh for the day when God shall be seen, and little else beside! Better, my brethren, that philosophical discoveries were lost, than that God should be concealed behind them. Better that our poets had ceased to write, and that all their flaming words were buried with their ashes, than that they should serve as a cloud before the face of the eternal Creator.
For meditation: When men replace Father God by mother nature, God leaves them to behave in ways which are unnatural and opposed to their false new deity (Romans 1:21-27).
Sermon no. 326
29 July (1860)
C.H. Spurgeon

The faultless assembly

“They are without fault before the throne of God.” Revelation 14:5
Suggested Further Reading: 1 Corinthians 11:17-22
We need not go far without seeing that there is, among Christians, a want of love to one another. There is not too much love in our churches; certainly, we have none to give away. We have heard that:

“Whatever brawls disturb the street,
There should be peace at home.”

But it is not always as it should be. We have known churches where the members can scarcely sit down at the Lord’s table without some disagreement. There are people who are always finding fault with the minister, and there are ministers finding fault with the people; there is among them “a spirit that lusteth to envy,” and “where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.” We have met with people among whom it would be misery to place ourselves, because we do not love war; we love peace and charity. Alas! How continually do we hear accounts of disputings and variance in churches! O beloved, there is too little love in the churches! If Jesus were to come amongst us, might He not say to us, “This is My commandment, that ye love one another; but how have you kept it when you have been always finding fault with one another? And how ready you have been to turn your sword against your brother!” But, beloved, “they are without fault before the throne of God.” Those who on earth could not agree, are sure to agree when they get to heaven. There are some who have crossed swords on earth, but who have held the faith, and have been numbered amongst the saints in glory everlasting. There is no fighting amongst them now; “they are without fault before the throne of God.”
For meditation: The very best of Christians may have fallen out with one another (Acts 15:39), but the Bible entreats disputants to agree in the Lord (Philippians 4:2). It is beautiful when brothers dwell in unity (Psalm 133:1), but perplexing when they wrong each other (Acts 7:26). May God help us to do “on earth as it is in Heaven.”
2nd sermon at New Park St.
28 July (Preached 18 December 1853)
C.H. Spurgeon

Can it be possible?

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(Charles Spurgeon)

"Do this in remembrance of Me!" (1 Corinthians 11:24)

It appears that Christians may forget Christ! There would be no need for this loving exhortation--if there were not a fearful possibility that our memories might prove treacherous. Nor is this an empty notion. It is, sadly, too well confirmed in our experience; not as a possibility--but as a lamentable fact!

It appears almost impossible that those who have been redeemed by the blood of the dying Lamb, and loved with an everlasting love by the eternal Son of God--could forget their gracious Savior! But if startling to the ear, sadly, it is too apparent to the eye to allow us to deny the crime.

Can we forget Him--who never forgot us!
Can we forget Him--who poured His blood out for our sins!
Can we forget Him--who loved us even to death!
Can it be possible?

Yes, it is not only possible--but conscience confesses that is is too sadly a fault with all of us. Instead of Him being a permanent resident in our memories--we treat Him as a visitor. The cross--where one would expect that memory would linger--is desecrated by the feet of forgetfulness.
Doesn't your conscience say that this is true? Don't you find yourselves forgetful of Jesus? Some other love steals away your heart--and you are unmindful of Him upon whom your chief affection ought to be set. Some earthly business engrosses your attention--when you ought to be fixed steadily upon the cross. It is the incessant turmoil of the world, the constant attraction of earthly things--which takes the soul away from Christ! While memory works to preserve a poisonous weed--it allows the rose of Sharon to wither!

Let us charge ourselves to tie a heavenly forget-me-not around our hearts for Jesus our Beloved, and whatever else we let slip, let us hold tight to Him!

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Sovereign Grace Missionary Baptist Church 1217 Dillon Texarkana, Texas 75501 July 28, 2013            Newsletter Number 426 Brother Randy Johnson, Pastor                    Brother Ronnie Henderson, Song Director Pastor E-Mail: pastor@sgmbaptist.com          Web Site: www.sgmbaptist.com "Where The Truths Of God’s Word Have Been Taught For More Than Fifty Years”

You Were Asked To Pray For: All of Our Military, Their Family’s & All the Civilian Workers in The Middle East, Zee Mink Fuller and Family, Her son’s Bryan Armstrong and Hunter Hackie, Daughter Shannon, and Brother Philip & Sondra Thornsberry, Junior Baldridge, Frankie Baldridge and daughter, Buckie Thompson, Frank & Sonya Trusty, Frank & Dawana Reigel, Andrew Preston, Larry & Martha Mollette, Larry Mollette II & Family, Kerry Pennington, Kim Poole, Danny & Nita Mollette, Robert Riggs, Wendell Henderson, Judy Dunn, Martha Gray, Joshua Kidd, Matthew Kidd, Ronnie Henderson Jr. & Children, Ricky Henderson and Family, Jacie Henderson, Velma Hammond, Charles, Don Hammond and Families, Archie & Barbara Griffin, Bro. & Sister Bob Keller, Mary Ramsey, Donna Johnson, Fay Johnson, James and Luann Reynolds, Timothy and Nathan Fails, Jacob Ramsey, Jerry Hughes, Sister Nita Bookout, Teresa Bookout, Pastor G. L. Burr, Melody Carr, Janie Capps, Imajo Tracy, Linda Hughes, Roy Lemmon, Rosie Tomlin, Lee Mollette’s Daughter & Granddaughter Kristal, Pat Abercrombie, Barbara Brewer, Donna Jones, Dale and Linda Trahan, Ricky and Margaret McCoy, Brother David O’Neal, Tommy Walker and family, Dina Thomas, Gina Peel, James and Lynn Tomlin, Brother Kelley and Sister Hinson, Brother Steve McCool and the work in Canada, Brother Curtis Pugh, Brother Dan Sullivan and the work in Thailand, Brother Raul and the work in Romania, and Bro. Sergey Mochalov and the Churches in Russia.

A Thought From Our Pastor: The Church’s That God Built. “But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him.” 1 Corinthians 12:18 I know that this article will not set well with some who read it; however it is absolutely truth and cannot be denied. There is no doubt in the scriptures that this scripture is talking about the local New Testament Church. We see in out text scripture that “…God set the members, every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him…” not as it pleased the pastor or other membership but as it pleased God. We must always have an understanding when studding the Holy Script that God is in control, God is accomplishing His blessed will, and that God knows best and has the power to control every detail of everything. Here we see that it was God who assembled the church together and with the membership pleasing to Him. I saw one commentary that said this refers to the human body but I believe a man that was as blessed by God with the knowledge he had that he should have known better. In our fleshly minds some folks just cannot accept the very fact that God does everything according to His blessed ordained will. He saves the sinner and He builds the churches. In Jeremiah 23:3 – 4 we read this "And I will gather the remnant of my flock out of all countries whither I have driven them, and will bring them again to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and increase. (4.) And I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them: and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall they be lacking, saith the LORD." Notice how the scriptures conclude that God did everything not man. Man wants to take the credit for Gods work but if one is true to the scriptures then we must all admit that God builds the churches. Jesus started the first church when He called out a remnant of people that followed Him as He called. Notice in  Matthew 4:18 - 20 "And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers. (19.) And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. (20.) And they straightway left their nets, and followed him." The word “straightway” means – immediately – that is because they had been called of God and they obeyed. But who were these two men? They were Apostles, the first members of the Lord church.  “And God hath set some in the church, first apostles...” 1 Corinthians 12:28 Once the Lord Jesus came to the end of His calling out the remnant then they went up into the mountain and held the first church service every member being chosen and called out by Jesus Christ. This church settled in Jerusalem until scattered by Saul of Tarsus (Paul) where many other church started as a result. Each church is an independent, sovereign, body of called out members. Anyone who has spent any time studding the history of the church will see this fact. Any serious person who studies the Holy Script knows nothing was started in Acts chapter two. But people continue to believe that there is some universal church out there that has no resemblance to the church that Jesus started and God built. People simply want to take the glory away from God with this universal, man made salvation and churches. I declare that it is nothing but pride in man heart, how could they get glory for something God did, if God saves sinners and God builds the churches then what glory is man to get? NONE! I can take absolutely no credit for anything in this church, all credit belongs to God. Now some men (in fact most men) will say that God done it but in the same breath brag on themselves.  We know that the membership was God selected, we also know the pastor was God selected, and so were the missionaries. Acts 13:2 “As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.” This is not only to this one church but every church. While men want to take credit for saving souls and building churches they would be better to study God word and see for themselves that God has never put this work into the hands of man and He never will. GOD BUILDS THE CHURCHES!

For Our Weekly  Meditation: These streams of defilement! Until we taste the bitterness of our own misery—we will never relish the sweetness of God's mercy. Until we see how foul our sins have made us—we will never pay our tribute of praise to Christ for washing us. Outward acts are most scandalous among men—but inward lusts are most atrocious before God!  Reader! if you would know the heart of your sin—then you must know the sins of your heart! "For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are the things that defile a man!" Matthew 15:19-20. These streams of defilement which appear in your life—do but show what a fountain of wickedness there is in your heart! Even the "thought of foolishness is sin!" There is no sin so little—as not to kindle an eternal fire!  "When sin has conceived—it brings forth death!"  Sin's first-born is death—and its last-born is hell. By William Secker  1660

Sacred picklocks! By  Charles Spurgeon Whenever you cannot understand a text, open your Bible, bend your knee, and pray over that text; and if it does not split into atoms and open itself, try again. If prayer does not explain it, it is one of the things God did not intend for you to know, and you may be content to be ignorant of it. Prayer is the key that opens the cabinets of mystery! Prayer and faith are sacred picklocks that can open secrets, and obtain great treasures! There is no college for holy education like that of the blessed Spirit, for He is an ever-present tutor, to whom we have only to bend the knee, and He is at our side, the great expositor of truth!

The Master taught me this in the washing of the disciples' feet

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(J.R. Miller, in a letter to a young pastor)

Cultivate love for Christ--and then live for your work. It goes without saying that the supreme motive in every minister's life, should be love to Christ. 'The love of Christ constrains me!' was the keynote of Paul's marvelous ministry.

But this is not all. If a man is swayed by the love of Christ--then he must also have in his heart love for his fellow men. If I were to give you what I believe is one of the secrets of my own life, it is that I have always loved people. I have had an intense desire all of my life, to help people in every way; not merely to help them into the church--but to help them in their personal lives, in their struggles and temptations, their quest for the best things in character. I have loved other people with an absorbing devotion. I have always felt that I would go anywhere, do any personal service, and help any individual, even the lowliest. The Master taught me this in the washing of the disciples' feet, which showed His heart in being willing to do anything to serve His friends.

If you want to have success as a winner of men, as a helper of people, as a pastor of little children, as the friend of the tempted and imperiled--then you must love them and have a sincere desire to do them good. It seems to me that your secret of success will be, not in developing the professional ideals, nor in following any rules which you have learned in the seminary--but in caring for people with such intensity, that you will be ready to make any self-sacrifice to do them good.

[Editor's note: All who knew him marveled as they saw how full Miller's days were of varied service. Talmage said of Miller, "I doubt if there is a living minister in all the world who has done a greater work than Dr. Miller. He is the marvel of the age--he has done the work of ten men! While others were attending banquets or sitting by their firesides--his tireless feet have been tramping the streets of the city calling upon the sick, and like Paul, carrying the gospel into many homes. Of all the great ministers of the past, not one has wielded greater influence for good. The whole city should be thankful for the noble life of this wonderful man!"

Miller once said, "Most ministers have their 'free Mondays' and their evenings for concerts and that type of thing--or relaxing at home. I give up every hour to ministry of some sort. I am very busy at the office all day--people are there with their troubles all the time. In the evenings I go out visiting the sick and others. At about 9:30 I return home and have an hour with my family before they scatter off to bed."]

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The Father of lights

“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.” James 1:17
Suggested Further Reading: Revelation 21:22-22:5
The apostle, having thus introduced the sun as a figure to represent the Father of lights, finding that it did not bear the full resemblance of the invisible God, seems constrained to amend it by a remark that, unlike the sun, our Father has no turning or variableness. The sun has its daily variation; it rises at a different time each day, and it sets at various hours in the course of the year. It moves into other parts of the heavens. It is clouded at times, and eclipsed at times. It also has tropic; or, turning. It turns its chariot to the South, until, at the solstice, God bids it reverse its rein, and then it visits us once more. But God is superior to all figures or emblems. He is immutable. The sun changes, mountains crumble, the ocean shall be dried up, the stars shall wither from the vault of night; but God, and God alone, remains ever the same. Were I to enter into a full discourse on the subject of immutability, my time, if multiplied by a high number, would fail me. But reminding you that there is no change in His power, justice, knowledge, oath, threatening, or decree, I will confine myself to the fact that His love to us knows no variation. How often it is called unchangeable, everlasting love! He loves me now as much as he did when first he inscribed my name in his eternal book of election. He has not repented of his choice. He has not blotted out one of his chosen; there are no erasures in that book; all whose names are written in it are safe for ever.
For meditation: As part of creation the sun speaks of the character of God (Romans 1:20) but even at its brightest can only give a glimpse of his glory. Praise God for the Lord Jesus Christ, the true light (John 1:9) whose face, when transfigured, shone like the sun (Matthew 17:2); God the Son has made God the Father of light known to us (John 1:18).
1st sermon at New Park St.
27 July (Preached 18 December 1853)
C.H. Spurgeon

What a mercy that I have been preserved so long!

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(James Smith's autobiography, "Marvelous Mercy!" 1862)

Lord, You know my weaknesses and follies, and what sins I am likely enough to commit--unless You hold me fast. "Hold up my goings in thy paths, that my footsteps slip not." Psalm 17:5

What a mercy that I have been preserved so long! How many thousands who have been born since myself, have been chopped down by the scythe of death--and where are they? What is become of them? Are not many of them suffering Your eternal wrath, as the just desert of their sins? No doubt but they are!

And what am I--that I should be distinguished from them! What was there in me--that a difference should be made between us! Lord, you know that there was nothing. It is all of your rich, free, and sovereign grace--that there is the least difference between me, and the vilest wretch in Hell!

"But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me." 1 Corinthians 15:10

"Hold thou me up, and I shall be safe: and I will have respect unto thy statutes continually." Psalm 119:117

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A preacher from the dead

“And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.” Luke 16:31
Suggested Further Reading: 1 Samuel 28:3-19
Spirit that hath returned from another world, tell me, how are men judged? Why are they condemned? Why are they saved? I hear him say, “Men are condemned because of sin. Read the ten commandments of Moses, and you will find the ten great condemnations whereby men are for ever cut off.” I knew that before, bright Spirit; thou hast told me nothing! “No,” says he, “and nothing can I tell.” “Because I was hungry, and ye gave me no meat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink; I was sick, and ye visited me not; I was in prison, and ye came not unto me; therefore, inasmuch as ye did it not unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye did it not to me. Depart, ye cursed!” “Why, Spirit, was that the word of the king?” “It was” says he. “I have read that too; thou hast told me no more.” If you do not know the difference between right and wrong from reading the Scripture, you would not know it if a spirit should tell you; if you do not know the road to hell and the road to heaven from the Bible itself, you would never know it at all. No book could be more clear, no revelation more distinct, no testimony more plain. And since without the agency of the Spirit, these testimonies are insufficient for salvation, it follows that no further declaration would avail. Salvation is ascribed wholly to God, and man’s ruin only to man. What more could a spirit tell us, than a distinct declaration of these two great truths.—“O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself; but in me is thine help found!” Beloved, we do solemnly say again, that Holy Scripture is so perfect, so complete, that it cannot want the supplement of any declaration concerning a future state. All that you ought to know concerning the future you may know from Holy Scripture.
For meditation: The rich man in the account (not called a parable) given by Jesus was full of false doctrine—praying to a saint, seeking some kind of second chance after death, rejecting the sufficiency of Scripture (Luke 16:24,30). Note the place from which these doctrines come (1 Timothy 4:1; James 3:15).
Sermon no. 143
26 July (1857)
C.H. Spurgeon

Weep not for me!

  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~

(The following was written by Matthew Henry, and was found after his death.)

Would you know where I am? I am at home in my Father's house--in the mansion Jesus prepared for me there. I am where I want to be--where I have long and often desired to be. I am no longer on a stormy sea--but in a safe and quiet harbor. My working time is done--I am resting! My sowing time is done--I am reaping! My joy is as the joy of harvest!

Would you know how it is with me? I am perfect in holiness; grace is swallowed up in glory!

Would you know what I am doing? I see God; I see Him as He is; not as through a glass darkly, but face to face. The sight is transforming, it makes me like Him! I am in the sweet enjoyment of my blessed Redeemer, whom my soul loved, and for whose sake I was willing to part with all. I am here bathing myself at the spring-head of heavenly pleasures and unutterable joys; and, therefore, weep not for me. I am here singing hallelujahs incessantly to Him who sits upon the throne, and rest not day or night from praising Him!

Would you know what company I have? Blessed company--better than the best on earth; here are holy angels, and the spirits of just men made perfect. I am here with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of God; with blessed Paul, and Peter, and James, and John, and all the saints. And here I meet with many old acquaintances that I fasted and prayed with, who came here before me.

And, lastly, would you consider how long this is to continue? It is a garland that never withers; a crown of glory that never fades away; after millions of millions of ages, it will be as fresh as it is now; and, therefore, weep not for me!
     ~  ~  ~  ~  ~

Everybody’s sermon

“I have multiplied visions, and used similitudes.” Hosea 12:10
Suggested Further Reading: Matthew 13:36-43
If you have an opportunity to journey into the country during the next three weeks, you will, if your heart is rightly attuned, find a marvellous mass of wisdom couched in a cornfield. Why, I could not attempt for a moment to open the mighty mines of golden treasure which are hidden there. Think, beloved, of the joy of the harvest. How does it tell us of the joy of the redeemed, if we, being saved, shall at last be carried like shocks of corn fully ripe into the granary. Look at the ear of corn when it is fully ripe, and see how it bends toward the earth! It held its head erect before, but in getting ripe how humble does it become! And how does God speak to the sinner, and tell him, that if he would be fit for the great harvest he must drop his head and cry, “Lord have mercy upon me a sinner.” And when we see the weeds spring up amongst wheat, have we not our Master’s parable over again of the tares among the wheat; and are we not reminded of the great day of division, when he shall say to the reaper, “Gather first the tares and bind them in bundles, to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.” O yellow field of corn, thou preachest well to me, for thou sayest to me, the minister, “Behold, the fields are ripe already to the harvest. Work thou thyself, and pray thou the Lord of the harvest to send forth more labourers into the harvest.” And it preaches well to thee, thou man of years, it tells thee that the sickle of death is sharp, and that thou must soon fall, but it cheers and comforts thee, for it tells thee that the wheat shall be safely housed, and it bids thee hope that thou shalt be carried to thy Master’s home to be his joy and his delight for ever. Hark, then, to the rustling eloquence of the yellow harvest.
For meditation: Some Scriptures on summer and harvest: (Genesis 8:22; Proverbs 6:8; 10:5; 26:1; Jeremiah 8:20).
Sermon no. 206
25 July (1858)
C.H. Spurgeon

How saints may help the devil

“That thou mayest bear thine own shame, and mayest be confounded in all that thou hast done, in that thou art a comfort unto them.” Ezekiel 16:54
Suggested Further Reading: Nehemiah 5:1-9
The church of Christ appears to be as worldly as the world itself, and professors of religion have become as sharp in trade and as ungenerous in their dealing as those that have never professed to serve him. And now what does the world say? It throws this in our teeth. If it is accused of loving the things of time and sense, it answers, “And so do you.” If we tell the world that it has set its hopes upon a shadow, it replies, “But we have set our hope upon the selfsame thing in which you are trusting; you are as worldly, as grasping, as covetous as we are; your protest has lost its force; you are no longer witnesses against us—we are accusers of you.” Another point in which the sinner often excuses himself is the manifest worldliness of many Christians. You will see Christian men and women as fond of dress, and as pleased with the frivolities of the age, as any other persons possible could be; just as anxious to adorn their outward person, so as to be seen of men; just as ambitious to win the praise which fools accord to fine dressing, as the most silly fop or the most gaudy among worldly women. What saith the world, when we turn round to it, and accuse it of being a mere butterfly, and finding all its pleasures in gaudy toys? “Oh! Yes,” it says, “we know your cant, but it is just the same with you. Do you not stand up and sing,

‘Jewels to thee are gaudy toys,
And gold is sordid dust’

And yet you are just as fond of glittering as we are; your doctors of divinity pride themselves just as much in their D.D. as any of us in other titles.”
For meditation: Do your deeds give the world reasons to glorify God (Matthew 5:16) or excuses to blaspheme God (Romans 2:24)?
Sermon no. 264
24 July (1859)
C.H. Spurgeon

Some secret sin has long been eating its way to the heart!

  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~

(J.R. Miller)

"You have placed our iniquities before You--our secret sins in the light of Your presence!" Psalm 90:8

It does not take a rifle-bullet to destroy a life. Men have died from little scratch-wounds.

Some shepherds once saw an eagle soar out from a crag. It flew majestically far up into the sky, but by and by became unsteady in its motions, and began to waver in its flight. At length one wing drooped and then the other, and the poor bird struggled vainly for a moment, and then fell swiftly to the ground. The shepherds sought the fallen bird, and found that a poisonous little serpent had fastened itself upon it while it rested on the crag. The eagle did not know that the serpent was there. But the reptile gnawed in through the feathers, and while the proud monarch was sweeping through the air, the serpent's fangs were thrust into its flesh, and the eagle came reeling down into the dust!

This illustrates the story of many a human life. For a time they seem quite promising; then suddenly they struggle and fall. Some secret sin has long been eating its way to the heart, and at last the proud life lies soiled and dishonored in the dust!

We need to be ever on our watch against these treacherous and insidious perils, these little, secret sins--which, unperceived, work death in the soul!

     ~  ~  ~  ~  ~

We may safely let our life write its own record

  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~

(J.R. Miller)

"And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is My disciple, I tell you the truth, he will certainly not lose his reward!" Matthew 10:42

We need not trouble ourselves to keep diaries of our good deeds and sacrifices, or to write autobiographies filled with pages of the good things we have done. We may safely let our life write its own record, and let Jesus be our biographer. He will never forget anything we do--and the judgment day will reveal everything. The lowliest services and the obscurest deeds, will then be manifested.

"Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God!" 1 Corinthians 4:5

     ~  ~  ~  ~  ~

Continental tour H4

Suggested Reading: Job 38:22-30
We went up the Mer de Glace on mules. I had the great satisfaction of hearing three or four avalanches come rolling down like thunder. In descending, I was alone and in front, I sat down and mused, but I soon sprang up, for I thought the avalanche was coming right on me, there was such a tremendous noise and rushing. We crossed many places where the snow, in rushing down from the top, had swept away every tree and every stone, and left nothing but the stumps of the trees, and a kind of slide from the top of the mountain to the very valley. What extraordinary works of God there are to be seen here! We have no idea of what God is. As I went among these valleys, I felt like a little creeping insect, wondering what the world could be, but having no idea of its greatness. I sank lower and lower, and growing smaller and smaller, while my soul kept crying out “Great God, how infinite art thou! What worthless worms are we!”
For meditation: (Spurgeon): If you cannot travel, remember this sweet verse:-

“But in his looks a glory stands,
The noblest labour of thine hands;”

Get a view of Christ, and you have seen more than mountains, cascades, and valleys, and seas can ever show you. Thunders may bring their sublimest uproar, and lightnings their awful glory; earth may give its beauty, and stars their brightness; but all these put together can never rival HIM;

“God in the person of his Son,
Has all his mightiest works outdone.”

Part of nos. 331-332
23 July
C.H. Spurgeon

God's school!

  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~


(Hannah More)

"Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word. " Psalm 119:67

"I know, O LORD, that thy judgments are right, and that thou in faithfulness hast afflicted me. "  Psalm 119:75

"Behold, I have refined thee, but not with silver; I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction. " Isaiah 48:10

Affliction is God's school in which holy virtues are acquired, and Christian character is formed.

"It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes." Psalm 119:71

"Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby." Hebrews 12:11

     ~  ~  ~  ~  ~

I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are right!

  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~

(Francis Bourdillon)

"I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are right, and that in faithfulness You have afflicted me." Psalm 119:75

"I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are right." God orders all things! His "judgments" here mean His general orderings, decisions, dealings--not afflictions only, though including them.

And when the Psalmist says, "Your judgments," he means especially God's judgments towards him, God's dealings with him, and thus all that had happened to him or would happen to him. For in the Psalmist's creed, there was no such thing as chance. God ordered all that befell him, and he delighted to think so. He expresses a sure and happy confidence in all that God did and would do, with regard to him. He trusted fully in God's wisdom, God's power, and God's love.

"I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are right"--quite right, right in every way, perfectly wise and good--without one single point that might have been better. David shows the firmest persuasion of this. "I know," he says; not merely "I think." But these very words, "I know," clearly show that this was a matter of faith, not of sight. For he does not say, "I can see that your judgments are right"--but "I know." The meaning plainly is, "Though I cannot see all--though there are some things in Your dealings which I cannot fully understand--yet, I believe, I am persuaded, and thus I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are right."

"Your judgments." Not some of them--but ALL. He takes into view all God's dealings with him and says of them without exception, "I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are right."

When the things that happen to us are plainly for our comfort and good, as many of them are--then we thankfully receive what God thus sends to us, and own Him as the Giver of all, and bless Him for His gracious dealing; and this is right. But all the faith required for this, is to own God as dealing with us, instead of thanklessly receiving the gifts with no thought of the Giver. It is a far higher degree of faith, that says of ALL God's dealings, even when seemingly not for our happiness, "I know that Your judgments are right!"

Yet this is the meaning here, or certainly the chief meaning. For though the word "judgments" does mean God's dealings of every kind--yet here the words which follow, make it apply especially to God's afflictive dealings--that is, to those dealings of His that do not seem to be for our happiness, "I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are right, and that You in faithfulness have afflicted me."

The judgments which the Psalmist chiefly had in view, and which he felt so sure were right, were not joys--but sorrows; not things bestowed--but things taken away; those blessings in disguise; those veiled mercies; those gifts clad in the garb of mourning--which God so often sends to His children. The Psalmist knew, and knew against all appearance to the contrary, that these judgments were "right." Whatever they might be--losses, bereavements, disappointments, pain, sickness--they were right, perfectly right; so right that they could not have been better; just what were best--and all because they were God's judgments.

That one thing satisfied the Psalmist's mind, and set every doubt at rest. The dealings in themselves, he might have doubted--but not Him whose dealings they were. "Your judgments." That settled all.

"And that in faithfulness You have afflicted me." This means that, in appointing trouble as his lot, God had dealt with him in faithfulness to His word, in faithfulness to His purposes of mercy, and in faithful love. God had sent him just what was most for his good, though not always what was most pleasing; and in this He had shown Himself faithful. Gently and lovingly does the Lord deal with His children. He gives no unnecessary pain; but that which is needful, He will not withhold.

     ~  ~  ~  ~  ~ 

Continental tour H2

Suggested Reading: Philippians 2:12-16
At Zurich I saw in the great fair what I also saw at Baden-Baden, a sight which gave me pleasure, namely, the little star of truth shining amid the darkness. Opposite the house at Baden, where Satan was winning souls at the gaming table, there was a little stall at which an agent of the Bible Society was selling Bibles and Testaments. I went up and bought a Testament from him, and felt quite cheered to see the little battery erected right before the fortifications of Satan, for I felt in my soul it was mighty through God to the pulling down of the stronghold. There in the midst of the fair at Zurich where they were selling all manner of things, like John Bunyan’s Vanity Fair, there stood a humble looking man with his stall, upon which there were Bibles, Testaments, and Mr Ryle’s Tracts. It is always a great comfort to me to see my sermons in French and other languages sold at the same shops as those of that excellent man of God. There is the simple gospel in his tracts, and they are to my knowledge singularly owned of God. How sweet it is to see these dear brethren in other churches, loving our Lord, and honoured by him. At Lucerne we stopped and spent our third Sabbath day and of all days in the year, Sabbath days on the Continent are most wretched, so far as the means of grace are concerned. This, however, was spent in quiet worship in our own chamber. Our first Sabbath was a dead waste, for the service at church was lifeless, spiritless, graceless, powerless. Even the grand old prayers were so badly read, that it was impossible to be devout while hearing them, and the sermon upon “The justice of God in destroying the Canaanites,” was as much adapted to convert a sinner, or to edify a saint, as Burke’s Peerage, or Walker’s dictionary.
For meditation: In what ways do you think Spurgeon would have applied the title of the sermon which so disappointed him, so that it could be beneficial to saint and sinner alike?
Part of nos. 331-332
21 July

C.H. Spurgeon

Sovereign Grace Missionary Baptist Church
1217 Dillon Texarkana, Texas 75501
July 21, 2013          
 Newsletter Number 425

Brother Randy Johnson, Pastor                    Brother Ronnie Henderson, Song Director
Pastor E-Mail: pastor@sgmbaptist.com          Web Site: www.sgmbaptist.com

"Where The Truths Of God’s Word Have Been Taught For More Than Fifty Years”

You Were Asked To Pray For:

All of Our Military, Their Family’s & All the Civilian Workers in The Middle East, Zee Mink Fuller and Family, Her son’s Bryan Armstrong and Hunter Hackie, Daughter Shannon, and Brother Philip & Sondra Thornsberry, Junior Baldridge, Frankie Baldridge and daughter, Buckie Thompson, Frank & Sonya Trusty, Frank & Dawana Reigel, Andrew Preston, Larry & Martha Mollette, Larry Mollette II & Family, Kerry Pennington, Kim Poole, Danny & Nita Mollette, Robert Riggs, Wendell Henderson, Judy Dunn, Martha Gray, Joshua Kidd, Matthew Kidd, Ronnie Henderson Jr. & Children, Ricky Henderson and Family, Jacie Henderson, Velma Hammond, Charles, Don Hammond and Families, Archie & Barbara Griffin, Bro. & Sister Bob Keller, Mary Ramsey, Donna Johnson, Fay Johnson, James and Luann Reynolds, Timothy and Nathan Fails, Jacob Ramsey, Jerry Hughes, Sister Nita Bookout, Teresa Bookout, Pastor G. L. Burr, Melody Carr, Janie Capps, Imajo Tracy, Linda Hughes, Roy Lemmon, Rosie Tomlin, Lee Mollette’s Daughter & Granddaughter Kristal, Pat Abercrombie, Barbara Brewer, Donna Jones, Dale and Linda Trahan, Ricky and Margaret McCoy, Brother David O’Neal, Tommy Walker and family, Dina Thomas, Gina Peel, James and Lynn Tomlin, Brother Kelley and Sister Hinson, Brother Steve McCool and the work in Canada, Brother Curtis Pugh, Brother Dan Sullivan and the work in Thailand, Brother Raul and the work in Romania, and Bro. Sergey Mochalov and the Churches in Russia.

A Thought From Our Pastor:

God Will Never Forsake His Elect.
“For the LORD loveth judgment, and forsaketh not his saints; they are preserved for ever: but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off.” Psalms 37:28

If you are a child of God, then you are indeed most blessed. Blessed because you belong to the most High and Powerful God, you are Gods property. You have been elected, and bought with the price of all prices, the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. You are not only elected but also preserved, preserved in every detail of your life until the predetermined date of your demise. If you are a servant of the Lord in one of His churches you are preserved by God and no one can change what God has set forth for you to do. As I look back over my life I can see several times when I should have expired but I did not, coincidence, I think not, lucky, there is no such thing, no none of these things, it was God determined hand. God had predetermined my life before this world had ever come into existence. “Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world.” Acts 15:18 there is no chance, no luck, nothing just happens, no nothing because God has chosen every detail of everything that happens. We know that the powers that be are ordained by God. “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.” Romans 13:1 this is why we are to be subject to them. God is in control, and no one, no other power that be can change what God has ordained. This is why Christians do not need to fret about the world and its system. I will not fight abortion because if God wanted it stopped He would stop it; this is just like gay marriage if it is to be then no one can stop it. God will allow these things and then judge those that support them. It seems like the world system just keeps having victory after victory but in the long run they will lose. This is why God told us to depart from it all and not to have part in it. “Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell for evermore.” Psalms 37:27 Christians are not allowed to do as they please, we have no right to support the evil of the world system as though it is good. As Christians we must put our standards higher than that and lead good Christian lives. I see some that call themselves Christians today and wonder what fruits show them to be Gods. To us who are God’s elect, we are His and everything that happens, happens only by His blessed will. I know sometimes life and events in life happens that make us wonder, but believe God when He says “forsaketh not his saints; they are preserved for ever” therefore we are to carry on as though we are right and the world is wrong. While it seems like the world system wins every battle but let us remember those that died horrible deaths for the Lord, His churches, and the truth of His word. Where these bad luck? Was God not watching? And if God was not watching or if God could not do anything about it then how is it He can say “his saints; they are preserved”. God gave the life of his own Son in order that we might be saved, and He gave the lives of millions in this world for many other reasons. But as for me and you, we are also “preserved” of God and nothing will ever happen that God has not ordained. Therefore it is my duty to God to sanctify myself for the Lord Who had sanctified me before the foundation of the world. The world will pay account to Jesus Christ for their sins even if they continue to have victories in this world. The final victory is ours (the children of God) no matter what happens in this life. Even if we suffer jail or even death victory is ours and no one can change that. “But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (58.) Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.” 1 Corinthians 15:57 – 58   be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord because no matter if the entire world hates you, God will eternally love and keep you. Thank you Lord for your grace, mercy, love, and preservation of me, AMEN. 

For Our Weekly  Meditation:

20/20 Vision Is No Guarantee of Sight
“And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.  And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also?  Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.” (Jn. 9:39-41) 

The religious elite of the day upbraided the Lord Jesus as a sinner because He was a non-conformist to the powers and traditions of sanctimonious men, self-elevated law guardians, eminences of pompous braying.  Just the very presence of the Son of God in their midst unleashed a firestorm of raging jealousy.  Their pedestals were shaken to the foundations.  How dare Jesus infringe upon their domain?  What could the Pharisees not see?  Who is this man Jesus? 

Much of the religious society honestly believed they were seeing and understanding the things of God.  Yet, the Son of God stood in their midst and they were oblivious to His true identity.  They were as blind men believing they can see all things, but see nothing.  They had 20/20 vision, but they could not see Jesus as the redeemer of men’s souls.  His giving of sight to the blind man was far more than flesh could perceive.  The spirit of the man received sight as well, and he said, “Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him.” (Verse 38)  The blind man received physical and spiritual sight.  The great all-seeing Pharisees were blinded from the Word of Truth, for they could not accept the reality of their spiritual blindness. 

Salvation only comes to those awakened out from among the dead bound in the Graveyard of Darkness.  Reality of death’s bondage must be as real as the power of the Lamb’s blood that rips the Dark Reaper’s claws from one’s eternal spirit.  One cannot know genuine life until he knows genuine death.  Likewise, the magnificent sight of the Son of God cannot be known until one fully comprehends the absence of Him on the eyes of his eternal soul.

By Dr. M. J. Seymour, Sr.

Church News.

Brother Frank has alerted the church that our carpet will be installed on September 02 and the pews on September 09. Please keep these dates in mind and on your prayer list because the conference is on the 20^th and we do not need any delays. God is in control and therefore let’s keep these dates before God’s throne of mercy. The church plans to observe the Lords Supper on Sunday September 15^th following the morning service.  Please be prepared. 

Continental tour H1

Suggested Reading: Mark 9:38-41
In Brussels I heard a good sermon in a Romish church. The church was crowded with people, many of them standing, though you might have a seat for a halfpenny or a farthing. But I stood too. And that good man—for I believe he is a good man—preached the Lord Jesus with all his might. He spoke of the love of Christ, so that I, a very poor hand at the French language, could fully understand him, and my heart kept beating within me as he spoke of the beauties of Christ and the preciousness of his blood, and of his power to save the chief of sinners. He did not say justification by faith, but he did say, “Efficacy of the blood,” which comes to very much the same thing. He did not tell us we were saved by grace and not by our works, but he did say that all the works of men were less than nothing when they were brought into competition with the blood of Christ, and that that blood was in itself enough. True there were objectionable sentences, as naturally there must be, but I could have gone to that man and could have said, “Brother, you have spoken the truth;” and if I had been handling the text myself, I must have done it in the same way, if I could have done it as well. I was pleased to find my own opinion verified in that case, that there are some, even in the apostate church, who cleave unto the Lord; some sparks of heavenly fire that tremble amidst the rubbish of old superstition, some lights that are not blown out, even by the strong wind of popery, but still cast a feeble gleam across the waters sufficient to guide the soul to the rock Christ Jesus.
For meditation: We may find it impossible to understand or agree with their position, but the true believing saints of God can sometimes be found in the most unexpected places (1 Kings 18:3-4; Philippians 4:22. NB: The Caesar in question was Nero!)
Part of nos. 331-332
20 July ( From A Lecture on August 21 1860 )
C.H. Spurgeon

Who can find a virtuous woman?

  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~

(Matthew Henry)

"Who can find a virtuous woman? Her price is far above rubies!" Proverbs 31:10

The description of the virtuous woman given in Proverbs 31, is designed to show what kind of wives godly women should make--and what wives godly men should choose.

A virtuous woman is very assiduous to recommend herself to her husband's esteem and affection. She conducts herself so that he may repose an entire confidence in her. She shows her love to him, not by a foolish fondness--but by prudent endearments, accommodating herself to his temperament.

A virtuous woman is one who takes pains in her duties. She hates to sit idle and do nothing. Though she may not need to work for her bread, yet she will not eat the bread of idleness.

A virtuous woman takes care of her family and all the affairs of it, not meddling in the concerns of other people's houses, as she thinks it enough for her to look well to her own affairs.

A virtuous woman is charitable to the poor. She often serves the poor with her own hand, and she does it freely, cheerfully, and very liberally.

A virtuous woman is discreet and obliging in all her discourse--not talkative, censorious, nor peevish. When she does speak, it is with a great deal of prudence and very much to the purpose. The law of love and kindness is written in her heart--and it shows itself in her tongue!

A virtuous woman has a firmness and constancy of mind, to bear up under the many crosses and disappointments which even the wise and godly must expect to meet with in this poor world.

That which completes and crowns her character, is that she fears the Lord. With all these good qualities, she does not lack that one thing needful--she is truly pious. In all she does, she is guided and governed by Christian principles, and a regard to God.

In the day of death, it will be a pleasure for her to think that she has lived to some good purpose. True virtue will have its praise--both from God and man.

"Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised!" Proverbs 31:30

     ~  ~  ~  ~  ~ 

Indeed, he is in trouble--but he is not in Hell!

  ~  ~  ~  ~  ~

(Charles Bridges, "Psalm 119". This one is longer, but will be very profitable for those undergoing severe trials of any kind.)

"I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are right, and that in faithfulness You have afflicted me!" Psalm 119:75

This is the Christian's acknowledgment: he is fully satisfied with God's ordering of his affairs.

The Lord's dealings are called his judgments--not as having judicial curses--but as the acts of His justice in the chastening of sin and in the administration of their measure and application.

In regard to himself, David acknowledges the Lord's particular faithfulness. And this he knew, not from the dictates of the flesh (which give the exact opposite verdict)--but from the testimony of the Word and the witness of his own experience. It could not be doubted, much less denied, "I know, O Lord, that Your rules of proceeding are agreeable to Your perfect justice and wisdom. I am equally satisfied that the afflictions which You have laid upon me from time to time, are only to fulfill Your gracious and faithful promise of making me eternally happy in Yourself."

How blessed is the fruit of affliction, when we can see God in it--that He is of great compassion and of tender mercy; that His thoughts toward us are thoughts of peace, and not of evil! This is a difficult, but most comforting lesson in deciphering the mysteries of God's providence.

Under the severest chastisement, the child of God must acknowledge divine justice. Our gracious reward is always more, and our chastisement always less--than our iniquities deserve. "Why should a living man complain, a man for the punishment of his sins?" Indeed, he is in trouble--but he is not in Hell! If he complains, then let it be of no one but himself and his own wayward choices. "I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are right," and who can doubt God's perfect wisdom?

Who would charge the surgeon with cruelty, in cutting out the cancerous flesh that was bringing death upon the man? Who would not acknowledge the right judgment of his piercing work?

So when the Lord's painful work . . .
  separates us from our sin,
  weans us from the world,
  and brings us nearer to Himself--
what remains for us, but thankfully to acknowledge His faithfulness and love?

The assurance of the Lord's perfect justice, wisdom, and intimate knowledge of our respective cases--leads us to yield to His ordering of our affairs in filial silence.

Thus Aaron, under his most grievous domestic calamity, "held his peace."

Job, under a similar painful dispensation, was enabled to say, "The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away. Blessed be the name of the Lord!"

Eli's language in the same trial was, "It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to Him."

David hushed his impatient spirit, saying, "I was silent, I did not open my mouth, because You are the one who has done this!" And when Shimei cursed him, he said, "Let him alone, and let him curse; for the Lord has ordered him."

Hezekiah kissed the rod, while it was smiting him to the dust, "The word of the Lord which you have spoken, is good."

This is the consistent language of the Lord's people under chastisement: "I know, O Lord, that Your judgments are right!"

The confession of justice may, however, be mere natural conviction. Faith goes further and speaks of divine faithfulness. David not only acknowledges God's right to deal with him as He saw fit, and His wisdom in dealing with him as He actually had done--but he saw also God's faithfulness in afflicting--not faithfulness though He afflicted--but IN afflicting him; not as if it were simply consistent with His love--but that it was the very fruit of His love!

Just so, it is not enough for us to justify God in His providential dealings with us. We have abundant cause to thank and praise Him! It is not enough to cease from murmuring at God's afflictive dealings with us. We must realize that they are a faithful display of His mercy and love to us!
Yes, the trials appointed for us, are nothing less than the faithful performance of God's everlasting promises. And to this cause, we may always trace the reason of much that is painful to the flesh, even though it may not be apparent to our eyes. If we determine to take note of its gracious effects in our restoration--needful instruction, healing of our backslidings, and the continual purging of sins--then we can say, "The faithfulness of God is gloriously displayed!"

The Philistines could not understand Samson's riddle--how meat could come out of the eater, and sweetness come out of the strong. In the same way the world can little comprehend the fruitfulness of God, in the Christian's trials--how his gracious Lord can sweeten the bitter waters, and make the painful affliction--the remedy of sin.

The Christian, then, finds no inclination in having any change made in the Lord's providential appointments, distasteful as they may be to the flesh. He readily acknowledges that God's merciful designs could not have been accomplished in any other way. Under such painful trials, many sweet tokens of divine love are granted--which under circumstances of outward prosperity, could not have been received with the same gratitude and delight.

Affliction is the special token of our heavenly Father's love. It brings us into conformity to the image of Jesus, and prepares us for His service and kingdom. Affliction is the only blessing that the Lord gives without requiring us to ask for it. We receive it, therefore, as promised, not as threatened. When the "peaceable fruits of righteousness," which it brings about in God's time and way, spring up in our hearts--then humbly and gratefully we will acknowledge the righteousness of His judgments and the faithfulness of His corrections.

You who are living at ease in the indulgence of what this poor world can afford--how little does the Christian envy your portion! In some future day, you will surely be taught by experience to envy his! To the Christian, the world's riches are daily becoming poorer, and its pleasures more tasteless. And what will they be, and how will they appear, when eternity is at hand!!

"No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." Hebrews 12:11

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