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8/28/2023     Yesterday     Tomorrow


Lamentations 1 - 3:36



Lamentations 1

How Lonely Sits the City

Lamentations 1:1     How lonely sits the city
that was full of people!
How like a widow has she become,
she who was great among the nations!
She who was a princess among the provinces
has become a slave.

2 She weeps bitterly in the night,
with tears on her cheeks;
among all her lovers
she has none to comfort her;
all her friends have dealt treacherously with her;
they have become her enemies.

3 Judah has gone into exile because of affliction
and hard servitude;
she dwells now among the nations,
but finds no resting place;
her pursuers have all overtaken her
in the midst of her distress.

4 The roads to Zion mourn,
for none come to the festival;
all her gates are desolate;
her priests groan;
her virgins have been afflicted,
and she herself suffers bitterly.

5 Her foes have become the head;
her enemies prosper,
because the Lord has afflicted her
for the multitude of her transgressions;
her children have gone away,
captives before the foe.

6 From the daughter of Zion
all her majesty has departed.
Her princes have become like deer
that find no pasture;
they fled without strength
before the pursuer.

7 Jerusalem remembers
in the days of her affliction and wandering
all the precious things
that were hers from days of old.
When her people fell into the hand of the foe,
and there was none to help her,
her foes gloated over her;
they mocked at her downfall.

8 Jerusalem sinned grievously;
therefore she became filthy;
all who honored her despise her,
for they have seen her nakedness;
she herself groans
and turns her face away.

9 Her uncleanness was in her skirts;
she took no thought of her future;
therefore her fall is terrible;
she has no comforter.
“O Lord, behold my affliction,
for the enemy has triumphed!”

10 The enemy has stretched out his hands
over all her precious things;
for she has seen the nations
enter her sanctuary,
those whom you forbade
to enter your congregation.

11 All her people groan
as they search for bread;
they trade their treasures for food
to revive their strength.
“Look, O Lord, and see,
for I am despised.”

12 “Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by?
Look and see
if there is any sorrow like my sorrow,
which was brought upon me,
which the Lord inflicted
on the day of his fierce anger.

13 “From on high he sent fire;
into my bones he made it descend;
he spread a net for my feet;
he turned me back;
he has left me stunned,
faint all the day long.

14 “My transgressions were bound into a yoke;
by his hand they were fastened together;
they were set upon my neck;
he caused my strength to fail;
the Lord gave me into the hands
of those whom I cannot withstand.

15 “The Lord rejected
all my mighty men in my midst;
he summoned an assembly against me
to crush my young men;
the Lord has trodden as in a winepress
the virgin daughter of Judah.

16 “For these things I weep;
my eyes flow with tears;
for a comforter is far from me,
one to revive my spirit;
my children are desolate,
for the enemy has prevailed.”

17 Zion stretches out her hands,
but there is none to comfort her;
the Lord has commanded against Jacob
that his neighbors should be his foes;
Jerusalem has become
a filthy thing among them.

18 “The Lord is in the right,
for I have rebelled against his word;
but hear, all you peoples,
and see my suffering;
my young women and my young men
have gone into captivity.

19 “I called to my lovers,
but they deceived me;
my priests and elders
perished in the city,
while they sought food
to revive their strength.

20 “Look, O Lord, for I am in distress;
my stomach churns;
my heart is wrung within me,
because I have been very rebellious.
In the street the sword bereaves;
in the house it is like death.

21 “They heard my groaning,
yet there is no one to comfort me.
All my enemies have heard of my trouble;
they are glad that you have done it.
You have brought the day you announced;
now let them be as I am.

22 “Let all their evildoing come before you,
and deal with them
as you have dealt with me
because of all my transgressions;
for my groans are many,
and my heart is faint.”


Lamentations 2

The Lord Has Destroyed Without Pity

Lamentations 2:1     How the Lord in his anger
has set the daughter of Zion under a cloud!
He has cast down from heaven to earth
the splendor of Israel;
he has not remembered his footstool
in the day of his anger.

2 The Lord has swallowed up without mercy
all the habitations of Jacob;
in his wrath he has broken down
the strongholds of the daughter of Judah;
he has brought down to the ground in dishonor
the kingdom and its rulers.

3 He has cut down in fierce anger
all the might of Israel;
he has withdrawn from them his right hand
in the face of the enemy;
he has burned like a flaming fire in Jacob,
consuming all around.

4 He has bent his bow like an enemy,
with his right hand set like a foe;
and he has killed all who were delightful in our eyes
in the tent of the daughter of Zion;
he has poured out his fury like fire.

5 The Lord has become like an enemy;
he has swallowed up Israel;
he has swallowed up all its palaces;
he has laid in ruins its strongholds,
and he has multiplied in the daughter of Judah
mourning and lamentation.

6 He has laid waste his booth like a garden,
laid in ruins his meeting place;
the Lord has made Zion forget
festival and Sabbath,
and in his fierce indignation has spurned king and priest.

7 The Lord has scorned his altar,
disowned his sanctuary;
he has delivered into the hand of the enemy
the walls of her palaces;
they raised a clamor in the house of the Lord
as on the day of festival.

8 The Lord determined to lay in ruins
the wall of the daughter of Zion;
he stretched out the measuring line;
he did not restrain his hand from destroying;
he caused rampart and wall to lament;
they languished together.

9 Her gates have sunk into the ground;
he has ruined and broken her bars;
her king and princes are among the nations;
the law is no more,
and her prophets find
no vision from the Lord.

10 The elders of the daughter of Zion
sit on the ground in silence;
they have thrown dust on their heads
and put on sackcloth;
the young women of Jerusalem
have bowed their heads to the ground.

11 My eyes are spent with weeping;
my stomach churns;
my bile is poured out to the ground
because of the destruction of the daughter of my people,
because infants and babies faint
in the streets of the city.

12 They cry to their mothers,
“Where is bread and wine?”
as they faint like a wounded man
in the streets of the city,
as their life is poured out
on their mothers' bosom.

13 What can I say for you, to what compare you,
O daughter of Jerusalem?
What can I liken to you, that I may comfort you,
O virgin daughter of Zion?
For your ruin is vast as the sea;
who can heal you?

14 Your prophets have seen for you
false and deceptive visions;
they have not exposed your iniquity
to restore your fortunes,
but have seen for you oracles
that are false and misleading.

15 All who pass along the way
clap their hands at you;
they hiss and wag their heads
at the daughter of Jerusalem:
“Is this the city that was called
the perfection of beauty,
the joy of all the earth?”

16 All your enemies
rail against you;
they hiss, they gnash their teeth,
they cry: “We have swallowed her!
Ah, this is the day we longed for;
now we have it; we see it!”

17 The Lord has done what he purposed;
he has carried out his word,
which he commanded long ago;
he has thrown down without pity;
he has made the enemy rejoice over you
and exalted the might of your foes.

18 Their heart cried to the Lord.
O wall of the daughter of Zion,
let tears stream down like a torrent
day and night!
Give yourself no rest,
your eyes no respite!

19 “Arise, cry out in the night,
at the beginning of the night watches!
Pour out your heart like water
before the presence of the Lord!
Lift your hands to him
for the lives of your children,
who faint for hunger
at the head of every street.”

20 Look, O Lord, and see!
With whom have you dealt thus?
Should women eat the fruit of their womb,
the children of their tender care?
Should priest and prophet be killed
in the sanctuary of the Lord?

21 In the dust of the streets
lie the young and the old;
my young women and my young men
have fallen by the sword;
you have killed them in the day of your anger,
slaughtering without pity.

22 You summoned as if to a festival day
my terrors on every side,
and on the day of the anger of the Lord
no one escaped or survived;
those whom I held and raised
my enemy destroyed.


Lamentations 3

Great Is Your Faithfulness

Lamentations 3:1     I am the man who has seen affliction
under the rod of his wrath;
2  he has driven and brought me
into darkness without any light;
3  surely against me he turns his hand
again and again the whole day long.

4  He has made my flesh and my skin waste away;
he has broken my bones;
5  he has besieged and enveloped me
with bitterness and tribulation;
6  he has made me dwell in darkness
like the dead of long ago.

7  He has walled me about so that I cannot escape;
he has made my chains heavy;
8  though I call and cry for help,
he shuts out my prayer;
9  he has blocked my ways with blocks of stones;
he has made my paths crooked.

10  He is a bear lying in wait for me,
a lion in hiding;
11  he turned aside my steps and tore me to pieces;
he has made me desolate;
12  he bent his bow and set me
as a target for his arrow.

13  He drove into my kidneys
the arrows of his quiver;
14  I have become the laughingstock of all peoples,
the object of their taunts all day long.
15  He has filled me with bitterness;
he has sated me with wormwood.

16  He has made my teeth grind on gravel,
and made me cower in ashes;
17  my soul is bereft of peace;
I have forgotten what happiness is;
18  so I say, “My endurance has perished;
so has my hope from the LORD.”

19  Remember my affliction and my wanderings,
the wormwood and the gall!
20  My soul continually remembers it
and is bowed down within me.
21  But this I call to mind,
and therefore I have hope:

22  The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases;
his mercies never come to an end;
 23  they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
 
24  “The LORD is my portion,” says my soul,
“therefore I will hope in him.”

25  The LORD is good to those who wait for him,
to the soul who seeks him.
26  It is good that one should wait quietly
for the salvation of the LORD.
27  It is good for a man that he bear
the yoke in his youth.

28  Let him sit alone in silence
when it is laid on him;
29  let him put his mouth in the dust—
there may yet be hope;
30  let him give his cheek to the one who strikes,
and let him be filled with insults.

31  For the Lord will not
cast off forever,
32  but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion
according to the abundance of his steadfast love;
33  for he does not afflict from his heart
or grieve the children of men.

34  To crush underfoot
all the prisoners of the earth,
35  to deny a man justice
in the presence of the Most High,
36  to subvert a man in his lawsuit,
the Lord does not approve.

ESV Study Bible


What I'm Reading

The Love Without Measure or End (Prayer)

By Charles Haddon Spurgeon (1834-1892)

     LORD, we would come to Thee, but do Thou come to us. Draw us and we will run after Thee. Blessed Spirit, help our infirmities, for we know not what we should pray for as we ought. Come, Holy Spirit, and give right thoughts and right utterance that we may all be able to pray in the common prayer, the whole company feeling that for each one there is a portion. We are grateful as we remember that if the minister in the sanctuary should not be able to pray for any one of us there is One who bears the names of all His redeemed upon His breast, and upon His shoulder, who will take care with the love of His heart and the power of His arm to maintain the cause of all His own.

     Dear Saviour, we put ourselves under Thy sacred patronage. Advocate with the Father, plead for us this day, yea, make intercession for the transgressors. We desire to praise the name of the Lord with our whole heart, so many of us as have tasted that the Lord is gracious. Truly Thou hast delivered us from the gulf of dark despair, wherein we wretched sinners lay. Thou hast brought us up also out of the horrible pit and out of the miry clay, Thou hast set our feet upon a rock, and the new song which Thou hast put into our mouths we would not stifle, but we would bless the Lord whose mercy endureth for ever.

     We thank Thee, Lord, for the love without beginning which chose us or ever the earth was, for the love without measure which entered into covenant for our redemption, for the love without failure which in due time appeared in the person of Christ and wrought out our redemption, for that love which has never changed, though we have wandered ; that love which abideth faithful even when we are unfaithful.

     O God, we praise Thee for keeping us till this day, and for the full assurance that Thou wilt never let us go. Some can say, "He restoreth my soul," they had wandered, wandered sadly, but Thou hast brought them back again. Lord keep us from wandering, then will we sing, "Unto Him that is able to keep us from stumbling and to present us faultless before His presence with exceeding joy." Bless the Lord, our inmost soul blesses the Lord. Blessed be the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, the Triune ; blessed be the Lord for every office sustained by each divine person, and for the divine blessing which has come streaming down to us through each one of those condescending titles worn by the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit.

     We feel like singing all the time ; we would take down our harp from the willows, if we had hung it there, and we would waken every string to the sweetest melody of praise unto the Lord our God. Yet, Lord, we cannot close with praise, for we are obliged to come before Thee with humble confession of sin. We are not worthy of the least of all these favours ; we cannot say, " He is worthy for whom Thou shouldst do this thing," nay, but we are altogether unworthy, and Thy gifts are according to the riches of Thy grace, for which again we praise Thee.

     Lord, forgive us all our sin. May Thy pardoned ones have a renewed sense of their acceptance in the Beloved. If any cloud has arisen to hide Thee from any believing eye, take that cloud away. If in our march through this world, so full of mire as it is, we have any spot on us, dear Saviour, wash our feet with that blessed foot-bath, and then say to us, "Ye are clean every whit." May we know it so, that there is no condemnation, no separation ; sin is removed as to its separating as well as its destroying power, and may we enter into full fellowship with God. May we walk in the light as God is in the light, and have fellowship with Him, while the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from all sin. Let no child of Thine have any dead work upon his conscience, and may our conscience be purged from dead works to serve the living and true God.

     And oh ! if there are any that after having made the profession of religion have gone astray by any form of sin. Lord, restore them. If they have fallen by strong drink, if they have fallen by unchastity, if they have fallen by dishonesty, if, in any way, they have stained their garments, Oh ! that Thy mighty grace might bring them back and put them yet among the children. But give them not up, set them not as Admah, make them not as Zeboim, but let Thy repentings be kindled and Thy bowels of compassion be moved for them, and let them also be moved, and may they return with weeping and with supplication, and find Thee a God ready to pardon.

     Furthermore, we ask of Thee, our Father, this day to perfect Thy work within our hearts. We are saved, but we would be saved from sin of every form and degree ; from sins that lie within, and we are scarcely aware that they are there. If we have any pride of which we are not conscious, any unbelief of which we are not aware, if there is a clinging to the creature, a form of idolatry which we have not yet perceived, we pray Thee, Lord, to search us as with candles till Thou dost spy out the evil and then put it away. We are not satisfied with pardoned sin, "We pray, create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me." Help us in our daily life, in our families, in our relations as husbands or wives, parents or children, masters or servants, in our business transactions with our fellow men, in our dealings with the Church of God, may we be true, upright, pure ; kept from the great transgression because we are kept from the minor ones.

     Oh ! that we may be such as glorify Christ. Save us, we pray Thee, from the common religion ; give us the peculiar grace of a peculiar people. May we abide in Christ, may we live near to God. Let not the frivolities of the world have any power over us whatever. May we be too full grown in grace to be bewitched with the toys which are only becoming in children. Oh! give us to serve Thee, and especially, and this prayer we have already prayed but we pray it again, make us useful in the salvation of our fellow man. O Lord, have we lived so long in the world and yet are our children unconverted? May we never rest until they are truly saved. Have we been going up and down in business, and are those round about us as yet unaware of our Christian character ? Have we never spoken to them the Word of Life? Lord, arouse us to a deep concern for all with whom we come in contact from day to day. Make us all missionaries at home or in the street, or in our workshop, wherever Providence has cast our lot, may we there shine as lights in the world.

     Lord, keep us right, true in doctrine, true in experience, true in life, true in word, true in deed. Let us have an intense agony of spirit concerning the many who are going down to the everlasting fire of which our Master spoke. Lord, save them! LORD, SAVE THEM! Stay, we pray Thee, the torrents of sin that run down the streets of London ; purge the dead sea of sin, in which so many of the heathen are lying asoak. Oh ! that the day were come when the name of Jesus shall be a household word, when everybody knew of His love, and of His death, and of His blood, and of its cleansing power. Lord, save men, gather out the company of the redeemed people ; let those whom the Father gave to Christ be brought out from among the ruins of the fall to be His joy and crown. "Let the people praise Thee, O God, yea, let all the people praise Thee." Let the ends of the earth fear Him who died to save them. Let the whole earth be filled with the glory of God.

     This is our great prayer, and we crown it with this : Come, Lord Jesus, come Lord and tarry not! Come in the fulness of Thy power and the splendour of Thy glory ! Come quickly, even so come quickly. Lord Jesus. Amen.

Some Things You Should Know About Christians Who Struggle With Anxiety

By Tim Challies 8/15/2016

     You have probably bumped into Adam Ford before, either through his comics at Adam4d.com or through his satire at The Babylon Bee. Over the past couple of years I’ve come to enjoy Adam as a friend and recently asked if he’d like to try his hand at another medium by penning a guest article. He obliged and this is the result. I trust you’ll benefit from it.

     For 7 years I have lived with Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Panic Disorder, and Social Anxiety. It has completely changed my life. I have written and drawn about these things before and the response has proven to me that there are tons of Christians who relate to my story. This probably includes people you know. I also know that many are hesitant to tell others about their struggles. So for them, based on my experience, I compiled a little list of things you should know about your Christian friends and family who struggle with anxiety.

     It changes us. | Before I had these issues I was an outgoing, type-A extrovert. I fed off social situations and loved being the center of attention. Today I’m a serious introvert who struggles mightily with social situations, unfamiliar settings, having any attention on me, meeting new people, talking on the phone, or even writing an article like this one. More often than not, I just can’t do it. I’ve been unable to leave my house for stretches of time. I’ve almost crashed my car while having a panic attack. I hate going to the doctor or the barber shop. I can’t do small groups with people I don’t know. I’ve tried so, so hard to go to conferences (I wanted to go to T4G so bad this year!), but I’ve never been able to go through with it. I’m a mess, really.

     It’s not a Matthew 6 or Philippians 4 issue—it’s a physiological issue. | Pre-anxiety-me would probably have scoffed at this. But having an anxiety disorder is not the same thing as being a worrywart. Most people with anxiety don’t go to the doctor and say, “I dunno doc, I can’t stop worrying about stuff.” Most of us go to the doctor with troubling physical symptoms, and only then do we learn that anxiety is the cause. In my case, I went to the doctor thinking I was having a stroke or some major brain issue. In reality, I was having my first panic attack. When the doctor told me it was anxiety I thought he was crazy or that he was not taking me seriously. I was convinced I was experiencing medical trauma! My entire central nervous system was telling me so. And then this guy tells me I have anxiety. It was surreal. I’ve had tons of people tell me that this is their story as well. This is not the same type of anxiety that manifests mainly as nagging worry. We have a mental disorder, not a control problem.

     We know it doesn’t make any sense. | It doesn’t make sense to you—or us, most of the time. It’s called a disorder because it is a disorder—our brains are malfunctioning. We know our thoughts are illogical. We know there is no good reason for our adrenaline to be pumping like we’re running from a T-Rex. We know it’s just the anxiety messing with us. But knowing that doesn’t help a single bit.

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     Tim Challies: I am a Christian, a husband to Aileen and a father to three children aged 10 to 16. I worship and serve as an elder at Grace Fellowship Church in Toronto, Ontario. I am a book reviewer, co-founder of Cruciform Press, and have written five books:

     I began my web site in 2002 and have been writing there daily since 2003. It is my place to think out loud and in public while also sharing some of the interesting things I’ve discovered in my online travels.

Tim Challies Books:

Seeing Through, Not With, The Eye

By Justin Taylor 10/13/2009

     Ravi Zacharias: “We now learn to listen with our eyes and think with our feelings. . . . We are meant to see through the eye, with the conscience; when we start seeing with the eye devoid of the conscience, all kinds of belief can invade your imagination.”

     This life’s dim windows of the soul
     Distorts the heavens from pole to pole
     And leads you to believe a lie
     When you see with, not through, the eye.

     I was standing today in the dark toolshed. The sun was shining outside and through the crack at the top of the door there came a sunbeam. From where I stood that beam of light, with the specks of dust floating in it, was the most striking thing in the place. Everything else was almost pitch-black. I was seeing the beam, not seeing things by it.

     Then I moved, so that the beam fell on my eyes. Instantly the whole previous picture vanished. I saw no toolshed, and (above all) no beam. Instead I saw, framed in the irregular cranny at the top of the door, green leaves moving on the branches of a tree outside and beyond that, 90 odd million miles away, the sun. Looking along the beam, and looking at the beam are very different experiences. --- C.S. Lewis

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Justin Taylor is executive vice president of book publishing and book publisher for Crossway and blogs at Between Two Worlds. You can follow him on Twitter.

By John Walvoord

The Promise of Deliverance of Judah and Ephraim

     Zechariah 10:1–8. God was described as the One who ultimately gave victory to Israel. God was the One who gave showers of rain (v.  1 ). He would punish her shepherds who did not properly care for the flock (vv.  2–3 ). He would raise up Judah as a power for God (vv.  4–6 ). The promise of blessing on the Ephraimites may have referred to the entire Northern Kingdom of the ten tribes (vv.  7–8 ).

The Regathering of Israel

     Zechariah 10:9–12. In addition to any blessing that will come to Israel before the kingdom on earth, though God will scatter them in distant lands (v.  9 ), they will survive and come back from Egypt, Assyria, and other parts of the world (v.  10 ). When they pass through the “sea of trouble” (v. 11 ) they will be strengthened in contrast to God’s judgment on Assyria and Egypt (vv.  11–12 ). This was one of many prophecies that were yet to be fulfilled that pictured Israel’s being scattered over the world but regathered at the time of the second coming of Christ in order to possess their Promised Land.

The Rejection of Israel’s Messiah and Its Consequences

     Zechariah 11:1–17. Though previous Scriptures had anticipated the ultimate restoration of Israel, the long process before this was fulfilled was related to their rejection of their Messiah. Accordingly, the cedars of Lebanon, the oaks of Bashan, and the rich pastures of the land were all to be destroyed (vv.  1–3 ).

     Zechariah was told to assume the role of a shepherd and pasture the flock of Israel (vv.  4–6 ). The religious leaders of Israel, represented by Zechariah, were not true shepherds and did not care for the sheep but instead would oppress them (vv.  4–6 ).

     Zechariah, acting the part of a shepherd, took two staffs called Favor and Union (v.  7 ). It is not clear what Scripture means when it states, “In one month I got rid of the three shepherds” (v.  8 ). The leaders of Israel occupied the offices of prophet, priest, and king, and it is possible it referred to this.

     But the flock would not receive Zechariah as her shepherd. Accordingly, he broke the staff Favor, indicating that she no longer was in favor with God. As a shepherd he asked for his pay (v.  12 ). Scripture records, “So they paid me thirty pieces of silver” (v.  12 ). This was the price of a slave, but Zechariah, acting the role of the shepherd, threw the thirty pieces of silver into the house of the Lord for the potter (v.  13 ). By this means he then broke the second staff called Union, representing the brotherly relation between Judah and Israel, already fractured into two kingdoms. This anticipated prophetically that Judas would be paid thirty pieces of silver to betray Christ ( Matt. 26:14–16; 27:3–10 ).

     Zechariah was then told to take the role of a foolish shepherd ( Zech. 11:15 ), representing prophetically the Antichrist, who will lead Israel in the end time, and the false leader of Israel. Woe was pronounced on this restless shepherd (v.  17 ).

     While all the prophetic details of this chapter are not clear, it generally indicates the reason why Israel’s restoration did not take place sooner and points to her rejection of the Messiah in His first coming.

     Despite Israel’s rejection of the Messiah at His first coming, it was God’s settled purpose to enthrone Christ as the King of Israel. The statement of this purpose of God was set in the context of the military conflict that will precede His coming.

The Future Deliverance of Israel from Her Enemies

     Zechariah 12:1–9. God declared His purpose: “‘I am going to make Jerusalem a cup that sends all the surrounding peoples reeling. Judah will be besieged as well as Jerusalem. On that day, when all the nations of the earth are gathered against her, I will make Jerusalem an immovable rock for all the nations. All who try to move it will injure themselves. On that day I will strike every horse with panic and its rider with madness,’ declares the LORD. ‘I will keep a watchful eye over the house of Judah, but I will blind all the horse of the nations’” (v.  2–4 ). The prophetic picture goes on to describe Jerusalem in her defense against the nations. God declared, “On that day I will set out to destroy all the nations that attack Israel” (v.  9 ).

The Repentance of Israel in That Day

     Zechariah 12:10–14. In addition to the physical deliverance of the people of Israel, there will be spiritual restoration and repentance on the part of those delivered. God declared, “I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son” (v.  10 ). The passage goes on to speak of the weeping throughout the land (vv.  11–14 ). This prophecy will be fulfilled in preparation for the second coming.

The Cleansing of the Remnant of Israel

     Zechariah 13:1–7. In keeping with the spiritual preparation indicated by Israel in repentance, God promised, “On that day a fountain will be opened to the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and impurity” (v.  1 ). This will be fulfilled at the second coming.

The Purging Judgments on Israel

     Zechariah 13:8–9. The time of Israel’s complete restoration will be preceded by a time of purging judgments. The Lord stated, “‘On that day, I will banish the names of the idols from the land, and they will be remembered no more,’ declares the LORD Almighty. ‘I will remove both the prophets and the spirit of impurity from the land. And if anyone still prophesies, his father and mother, to whom he was born, will say to him, “You must die, because you have told lies in the LORD’s name.” When he prophesies, his own parents will stab him’” (vv.  2–3 ). The reference to “that day” refers to the day of the Lord, which at its beginning at the rapture will include the great tribulation before the second coming of Christ. The reference to “that day” occurs many times in the closing chapters of  Zechariah 12:3–4, 6, 8–9, 11; 13:1, 4; 14:4, 6, 8–9, 13, 20–21 ).

     Though the cleansing was provided by the death of Christ on the cross, Israel will not experience this until she turns to the Lord as portrayed in this passage. The banishing of idols (v.  2 ) is a reference to the fact that the world dictator will set up an idol of himself in the temple and will be worshipped as God ( 2 Thess. 2:3–4; Rev. 13:14–15 ). There will be many false prophets in that day, and God will judge them as well (v.  3 ). The false prophets will attempt to deny that they are prophets (vv.  4–5 ). As prophets sometimes had self-inflicted wounds that were connected with idol worship, they will say that these were given them in the house of a friend (v.  6 ).

The Prophecy of the True Prophet

     In the poetic prophecy that follows, the true Shepherd was declared to be struck, with the result that the sheep were scattered (v.  7 ). This was fulfilled in the crucifixion of Christ.

The Purging Refinement of Israel

     It was prophesied that two-thirds of Israel in the land will perish: “‘In the whole land,’ declared the LORD, ‘two-thirds will be struck down and perish; yet one-third will be left in it. This third I will bring into the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. They will call on my name and I will answer them; I will say, “They are my people,” and they will say, “The LORD is our God”’” (vv.  8–9 ). This prophecy will be fulfilled in the great tribulation when two out of three of the Jews in the land attempting to flee their persecutor — the future world leader — will perish, and only one-third will escape and be waiting for Christ when He comes. The 144,000 of  Revelation 7 and  Revelation 14 will be part of that remnant.

The Triumphant Coming of Israel’s Messiah and the Lord’s Second Coming

     Zechariah 14:1–3. The interpretation of this difficult portion was made clear by later revelation concerning the events of the end time leading up to the second coming of Christ.

     The final drama of the great tribulation ending in the second coming of Christ was described in these verses: “The day of the LORD is coming when your plunder will be divided among you. I will gather all the nations of Jerusalem to fight against it; the city will be captured, the houses ransacked, and the women raped. Half of the city will go into exile, but the rest of the people will not be taken from the city. Then the LORD will go out and fight against those nations as he fights in the day of battle” (vv.  1–3 ). This will be a stage in what is called in  Revelation 16:14 “the battle on the great day of God Almighty,” also commonly referred to as the Battle of Armageddon ( Rev. 16:16 ).

Physical Changes in the Holy Land

     Zechariah 14:4–8. Attending the second coming of Christ will be cataclysmic events, including the division of the Mount of Olives into northern and southern halves with the great valley between: “On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south” (v.  4 ). Those who seek to escape Jerusalem will flee by this newly made valley, which apparently will extend from Jerusalem down to the city of Jericho. This makes clear that the second coming is a future event, as the Mount of Olives is still intact.

     That day will also be unique in that apparently it will be lengthened: “On that day there will be no light, no cold or frost. It will be a unique day, without daytime or nighttime — a day known to the LORD. When evening comes, there will be light” (v.  6 ).

     Other topological changes will take place that apparently will elevate Jerusalem so waters flowing from Jerusalem will go half to the eastern sea, or the Sea of Galilee, and half to the western sea, or the Mediterranean (v.  8 ). There will be other unusual phenomena occurring in connection with the second coming of Christ ( Isa. 11:10; 34:4; Joel 2:10, 30–31; 3:15; Matt. 24:29 ). A great many events are packed into a relatively short period of time.

The Millennial Kingdom Established

     Zechariah 14:9–21. The millennial kingdom will be distinguished by the fact that the Lord, Jesus Christ as the Messiah of Israel and King of Kings, will rule over the entire earth (v.  9 ). Included in the topographical changes will be the elevation of Jerusalem as described in verse  10. From that day forward Jerusalem will be secure and will never be destroyed again.

     An indication of the rule of Christ as King of Kings and Lord of Lords is that He will judge the nations that fought against Jerusalem (vv.  12–13 ). A plague will seize man and beast alike, but in the results a great quantity of gold, silver, and clothing will accrue to Israel’s benefit (v.  14 ).

     Those who survive the purging judgments at the beginning of the millennial kingdom will be required to worship Christ annually (v.  16 ). If they do not worship Him as commanded, God will hold their rain (vv.  17–19 ). It will be a time when the holiness of God is especially revealed, and false elements like the Canaanites will be shut out (vv.  20–21 ). The partial revelation of the nature of the millennial kingdom as described here is amplified in many other Scriptures in both the Old and New Testaments.

          __________________________________________________________________

Every Prophecy of the Bible: Clear Explanations for Uncertain Times

The New/Old Way Our Culture Pressures Us To Conform

By Tim Challies 8/11/2017

     Every culture has certain standards that distinguish good and respectable people from the bad and disreputable people. Every culture has ways of compelling people to adhere to its standards. Some force adherence through guilt, some through fear, and some through shame.

     In a guilt-innocence culture, your standing before others depends upon your level of guilt or innocence. Your reputation is measured by adherence to laws, so nations and cities and even organizations all have their laws carefully codified. If you break one of these laws you enter into a state of guilt and can only have your innocence restored by satisfying the requirements of the laws you’ve broken, perhaps by paying a fine or serving a jail sentence.

     In a fear-power culture, your standing before others depends upon your level of fear or power, especially over gods and spirits. Your reputation is measured by the amount of power you gain and maintain. Fear comes when power has been taken by others or ceded through a failure to conform to society’s expectations. The way to overcome fear is to gain power, perhaps by offering a sacrifice (with the most costly sacrifices gaining the greatest amount of power) or by consulting with a shaman or witch doctor.

     In a shame-honor culture, your standing before others depends upon your level of shame or honor. When you fail to maintain cultural norms, you gain shame and need to restore it with acts of honor. The greater the shame, the greater the act of honor needed to balance the scales. This is why we sometimes hear of honor killings in which a man will murder members of his family. The horror of bearing shame is greater than the horror of slaughtering his own child.

     Every culture has elements of all three, but one always predominates. You probably see that western cultures tend to be guilt-innocence, southern cultures tend to be fear-power, and eastern cultures tend to be shame-honor.

Click here to go to source

     Tim Challies: I am a Christian, a husband to Aileen and a father to three children aged 10 to 16. I worship and serve as an elder at Grace Fellowship Church in Toronto, Ontario. I am a book reviewer, co-founder of Cruciform Press, and have written five books:

     I began my web site in 2002 and have been writing there daily since 2003. It is my place to think out loud and in public while also sharing some of the interesting things I’ve discovered in my online travels.

Tim Challies Books:

When God Messes with Your Life Plan

By Stephen Altrogge 8/14/2017

     Creating life plans is big business these days. For a sum of money, you can hire a Life Coach (Life Guru, Life Master, Life Sensei, whatever it’s called), and they will then help you construct a master life plan. The life plan will probably contain some, or all, of the following items:

  • A grandiose life mission statement, which makes you sound pretty awesome.
  • One-year goals, five-years goals, and life goals.
  • Specific areas of focus in your life (spiritual, physical, familial, etc.).
  • A specific trajectory for your life. In other words, a specific description of where you want to be in five years. Most likely, this will include a specific job, a specific level of income, a specific geographic location, and perhaps a specific body mass index.
     And the reality is, even if you don’t have a formal, written life plan, you have a life plan in your head. We all do. You have an imagined future in your head. You want to have a family, have kids, get a college degree, start a business, travel to Europe, etc. You get the point. I don’t have a formally stated life plan, but I want to accomplish certain things. I want to attain a certain level of comfort and stability for me and my family. I want my life to actually mean something. To reference a well-known author who seems to get quoted a lot on this site, I don’t want to waste my life.

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Stephen Altrogge is a husband, dad, and writer. His most recent book is entitled, Untamable God: Encountering the One Who Is Bigger, Better, and More Dangerous Than You Could Possibly Imagine. He also writes regularly at The Blazing Center.

Stephen Altrogge Books:

The God Who Commands Our Emotions

By John Piper 8/12/2015

     To obey God is to love God, right? Well, it depends on what you mean, as John explained in his message titled “What Jesus Demands from the World” at The Gospel Coalition 2015 conference. Here’s what he said:

     And how many people have you ever heard say, “Loving God or loving Jesus is obeying Jesus”? They base it on the text, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments” (John 14:15). That text says the exact opposite.

     Conditions | An “if-then” sentence doesn’t say that the then or the if are the same, but “If I am hungry, I will eat lunch” doesn’t mean hunger is lunch. “If you love me, you will obey” doesn’t mean love is obedience. It means, in fact, it comes before and enables — “If you love me, you will obey.” They are not the same.

     Love goes first. Love is underneath, holding up, staying in the yoke, abiding, enjoying, treasuring, marveling, being entranced by, being filled with. And out of that, a good tree bears good fruit. A bad tree bears bad fruit. Make the tree good. That is another command that comes later in the book.

     So my answer to the question, “What is this love?” is, first, that it is not synonymous with obedience.

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     John Piper Books:

Shedd, Plato, and the Nature of Human Thinking

By E.J. Hutchinson 8/13/2017

     In the first chapter of Homiletics and Pastoral Theology, “Relation of Sacred Eloquence to Biblical Exegesis,” W.G.T. Shedd discusses what “originality” might mean for the “sacred orator,” for he has just said that the study of sacred revelation does indeed grant an originality to “religious thinking and discourse.”

     Shedd writes: | Originality is a term often employed, rarely defined, and very often misunderstood. It is frequently supposed to be equivalent to the creation of truth. An original mind, it is vulgarly imagined, is one that gives expression to ideas and truths that were never heard of before,–ideas and truths “of which the human mind never had even an intimation or presentiment, and which come into it by a mortal leap, abrupt and startling, without antecedents and without premonitions.”

     But Shedd finds such vulgarizing silly, and its silliness is predicated on a failure to observe the distinction between creature and creator. For creatures, such “originality” is impossible. He goes on:

     But no such originality as this is possible to a finite intelligence. Such aboriginality as this is the prerogative of the Creator alone, and the results of it are a revelation, in the technical and strict sense of the term. Only God can create de nihilo, and only God can make a communication of truth that is absolutely new. Originality in man is always relative, and never absolute.

     Shedd then takes Plato as an example. Shedd gives Plato the highest praise and comments:

     Select, for illustration, an original thinker within the province of philosophy,–select the contemplative, the profound, the ever fresh and living Plato. Thoughtfully peruse his weighty and his musical periods, and ask yourself whether all this wisdom is the sheer make of his intellectual energy, or whether it is not rather an emanation and efflux from a mental constitution which is as much yours as his. He did not absolute originate these first truths of ethics, these necessary forms of logic, these fixed principles of physics. They were inlaid in his rational structure by a higher author, and by an absolute authorship; and his originality consists solely in their exegesis and interpretation. And this is the reason that, on listening to his words, we do not seem to be hearing tones that are wholly unknown and wholly unheard of. We find an answering voice to them in our own mental and moral constitution.

Click here to go to source

     E. J. Hutchinson | Associate Professor of Classics, Hillsdale College. Director, Collegiate Scholars Program (formerly Honors Program), Hillsdale College | 33 East College Street | Kendall 211 | Hillsdale, MI 49242

     Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, PA. Ph.D., Classics, 2009. | Dissertation: “Quid facit cum evangeliis Maro?: The Cultural Background of Sedulius' Intertextual Argument with Vergil in the Paschale carmen.”

     Affiliated Fellow, American Academy in Rome, 2005-2006, Classical Summer School, American Academy in Rome, 2004, Bryn Mawr College, Bryn Mawr, PA. M.A., Classics, 2004, Thesis: “Exegesis and Exclusion: Concepts of Lex in the Apotheosis of Prudentius.”

     Hillsdale College, Hillsdale, MI. B.A. summa cum laude, Classics (Departmental Honors), 2002.

Read The Psalms In "1" Year

Psalm 94

The LORD Will Not Forsake His People
94

1 O LORD, God of vengeance,
O God of vengeance, shine forth!
2 Rise up, O judge of the earth;
repay to the proud what they deserve!
3 O LORD, how long shall the wicked,
how long shall the wicked exult?
4 They pour out their arrogant words;
all the evildoers boast.
5 They crush your people, O LORD,
and afflict your heritage.
6 They kill the widow and the sojourner,
and murder the fatherless;
7 and they say, “The LORD does not see;
the God of Jacob does not perceive.”

8 Understand, O dullest of the people!
Fools, when will you be wise?
9 He who planted the ear, does he not hear?
He who formed the eye, does he not see?
10 He who disciplines the nations, does he not rebuke?
He who teaches man knowledge—
11 the LORD—knows the thoughts of man,
that they are but a breath.

ESV Study Bible

The Coming of the Kingdom part 7

By Dr. Andrew Woods 6/11/2012

Evangelical Confusion

Because today's evangelical world equates the church with the messianic kingdom, we began a biblical study about the kingdom. This earthly kingdom is anticipated in the office of Theocratic Administrator lost in Eden, the biblical covenants, the predictions of the Old Testament prophets, and the Theocracy governing Israel from the time of Moses to Zedekiah. This arrangement terminated with the initiation of the "Times of the Gentiles," when the nation had no king reigning on David’s Throne as Judah was trampled by various Gentile powers. Eventually Christ, the rightful Heir to David's Throne, appeared. Had first-century Israel enthroned Christ, the earthly kingdom would have materialized. Sadly, Israel rejected this kingdom offer ( Matt. 12:24 ) leading to the kingdom's postponement. Consequently, Christ began to explain the spiritual conditions that would now prevail during the kingdom's absence. This interim program includes His revelation of the kingdom mysteries ( Matt. 13 ) and the church ( Matt. 16:18 ).

Kingdom Mysteries

The first aspect of this interim phase is the kingdom mysteries ( Matt. 13:1-52 ). These represent the course of events to be experienced by the kingdom's heirs or the “sons of the kingdom” ( 13:38 ) between Israel’s rejection and future acceptance of the kingdom offer. Thus, these mysteries cover the time period between Israel’s formal rejection of the kingdom and the Second Advent ( 13:40-42, 49-50 ). The kingdom mysteries represent new truths concerning the kingdom that were undisclosed in the Old Testament. Jesus made this point clear when He said,  "To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted... But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. For truly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it"Matt. 13:11, 16-17 ).

When the eight parables of  Matthew 13 are understood harmoniously, they reveal a complete picture of this “mystery age.” First, the parable of the sower teaches that the gospel will be preached throughout the course of the mystery age with varying responses based upon how the heart has been prepared. Responders to the truth will be given additional revelation ( 13:1-9, 18-23 ). Second, the parable of the wheat and tares teaches that it will be difficult to distinguish between the saved and unsaved within professing Christendom throughout the mystery age. The separation between believer and unbeliever will not be made until the Second Advent ( 13:24-30, 36-43 ). Third, the parable of the mustard seed teaches that Christendom will experience great numerical and geographical expansion from a small beginning ( 13:31-32 ). Fourth, because leaven in Scripture typically represents something pernicious or evil ( Exod. 12; Lev. 2:11; 6:17; 10:12; Matt. 16:6, 12; Mark 8:15; Luke 12:1; 1 Cor. 5:6-8; Gal. 5:9 ), the parable of the leaven working its way through the meal teaches that professing Christendom will experience increasing moral and doctrinal corruption as the age progresses ( Matt. 13:33 ). This parable predicts increasing apostasy throughout the present age. Unfortunately, "kingdom now" interpreters miss this crucial point by interpreting the leaven as something good rather than evil. Walvoord explains:

What does the leaven represent? Postmillenarians and amillenarians…usually assume dogmatically that leaven cannot represent evil in the parable, although it is universally used to represent evil in both the Old and New Testaments…It is more evident than ever in the last third of the twentieth century that the gospel has not permeated the world and that evil tends to permeate the entire professing church, which is exactly what  Matthew 13 teaches. In the Old Testament leaven is consistently used to represent evil…In the New Testament, leaven was used by Christ of the externalism of the Pharisees, of the unbelief of the Sadducees, and of the worldliness of the Herodians, and in general of evil doctrine ( Mt 16:6-12; Mk 8:14-21 ). In Paul’s letters, likewise, leaven represents evil, as in  1 Corinthians 5:6-8 and  Galatians 5:7-10. In the parable, the meal represents that which is good…The professing church, however, is permeated by evil doctrine, externalism, unbelief, and worldliness, which tends to inflate the church and make it larger in appearance, even as the leaven inflates the dough but actually adds nothing of real worth. The history of the church has all too accurately fulfilled this anticipation, and the professing church in the world, large and powerful though it may be, is permeated by the leaven of evil which will be judged in the oven of divine judgment at the end of the age…To some extent, evil will extend even to…the body of true believers in the church as well as those that come to Christ after the rapture…even true believers fall far short of perfection and can embrace to some extent worldliness, externalism, and bad doctrine.[1]

Toussaint similarly notes:

The discussion revolves around the significance of the word “leaven” (zyme). Many contend that leaven is used here in a good sense and pictures the spread of the gospel throughout the earth. Others state that the word represents evil and is used to illustrate the growth of evil within the group which professes to inherit the kingdom. This latter interpretation has the stronger support. It is consistent with the doctrine of Scripture concerning the evil character of the end of the church age and the tribulation ( 1 Timothy 4; 2 Timothy 3; Jude; 2 Peter 3; Revelation 6–19 ). One of the greatest supports for the interpretation that leaven speaks of evil is the use of the word in Scripture. Invariably leaven pictures sin ( Exodus 12; Leviticus 2:11; 6:17; 10:12; Matthew 16:12; Mark 8:15; Luke 12:1; 1 Corinthians 5:6-8; Galatians 5:9 ). Finally the verb used here, “to hide”…is very unusual if leaven represents good. It is a much more fitting word if leaven is to have a sinister effect. This is similar to the idea in the parable of the wheat and the darnel. The way the woman hides the leaven in the meal parallels very closely the manner in which the enemy sowed darnel by night. This parable reveals the fact that evil will run its course and dominate the new age. But it also indicates that when the program of evil has been fulfilled, the kingdom will come. [2]

Thus, the present age represents a period when the gospel is preached resulting in the salvation of some. However, a counterfeit sowing will also take place. Despite God’s work throughout this age, Christendom will experience an increasing corruption. This teaching concerning the increasing apostasy of the present mystery age can be found not only in the epistolary material ( 1 Tim. 4; 2 Tim. 3; 2 Pet. 3; Jude ) but also in the  Matthew 13 parables.

This teaching on the apostasy of the church does not mean that God cannot sovereignly send refreshing waves of revival and reformation, as He has done at various times. However, these refreshing seasons are not the norm but rather occur only intermittently throughout church history. A proper understanding of this apostasy represents a worldview that is diametrically opposed to “kingdom now” theology, which is the idea that the church will gradually Christianize the world thereby ushering in long-term cultural progress. The only way “kingdom now” theology can be defended from Scripture is to ignore what the New Testament predicts concerning apostasy in the present mystery age.

Fifth, because Scripture refers to Israel as God's special treasure ( Exod. 19:5 ), the parable of the earthen treasure teaches that Christ came to purchase Israel. However, Israel will remain in unbelief throughout the course of the mystery age and will not be converted until the age’s conclusion ( Matt. 13:44 ). Sixth, the parable of the pearl of great price refers to Christ’s death that redeems members of the church throughout this age allowing the Lord to gain a treasure from among the Gentiles ( 13:45-46 ). Seventh, the parable of the dragnet teaches the coexistence of the righteous and the wicked throughout the age only to be separated by Christ at the age’s conclusion ( 13:47-50 ). Eighth, the parable of the householder teaches that these kingdom mysteries must be considered alongside Old Testament kingdom truth if one is to understand the totality of God’s kingdom agenda ( 13:51-52 ). In sum, when these eight parables are taken together, the Lord reveals the spiritual conditions that will prevail in the world during an interim period when the kingdom is not present.

Mystery Form Of The Kingdom?

A mistake typically made even by dispensational interpreters is to contend that the  Matthew 13 parables reveal a present spiritual form of the kingdom known as the mystery form of the kingdom. While not contending that the Davidic kingdom is present, they instead believe that the kingdom is spiritually present in mystery form only. [3] However, even this perspective is to read far more into the text of  Matthew 13 than what is actually there. Toussaint explains:

It is often alleged that the Lord predicted a form of the kingdom for the Church age in His parables, particularly those in  Matthew 13. For many years dispensationalists have referred to these parables as teaching a mystery form or a new form of the kingdom...However, nowhere in  Matthew 13 or anywhere does the Lord Jesus use the term mystery form. Rather, He refers to the “mysteries of the kingdom of heaven” (v.  11 ); that is, the Lord in these parables is giving to His disciples new truths about the kingdom that were hitherto unknown. It is strange that so many dispensationalists claim a new form of the kingdom is introduced in  Matthew 13. Dispensationalists argue strenuously for a literal, earthly kingdom that is the fulfillment of the Old Testament when John, Jesus, and His disciples announce its nearness. Then suddenly these dispensationalists change the meaning in  Matthew 13. [4]
Continue Reading (Part 8 on Aug 29 web page)

ENDNOTES
[1] John F. Walvoord, Matthew: Thy Kingdom Come (Chicago: Moody, 1974), 102-4.
[2] Stanley D. Toussaint, Behold the King: A Study of Matthew (Grand Rapids, Kregel, 2005), 182.
[3] J. Dwight Pentecost, Thy Kingdom Come (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1990), 215-28.
[4] Stanley D. Toussaint, "Israel and the Church of a Traditional Dispensationalist," in Three Central Issues in Contemporary Dispensationalism, ed. Herbert W. Bateman (Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1999), 237.

     Dr. Andrew Woods Books

Note I copied this article from The Bible Prophecy Blog.

Dr. Andrew Woods Ministry Page, YouTube Channel, and Church.

What does it mean that God’s mercies are new every morning?

By Got Questions.org

     The ESV and KJV use the word mercies instead of compassions. God’s mercy and compassion are “new every morning,” yet another reason to praise Him.

     The prophet Jeremiah wrote Lamentations in a time of grief and national mourning, after the once great city of Jerusalem fell to Babylon, circa 586 BC. The book describes great anguish—and great hope—in poetic form. The main theme of the book is God’s judgment on Judah’s sin as well as His compassion for His people. Lamentations contains “laments” or “loud cries” for Jerusalem and many expressions of anguish and pain, but in chapter 3, right in the middle of the book, there is a beautiful passage of confidence and hope.

     Jeremiah’s tone changes from despair to hope in Lamentations 3:21: “Yet this I call to mind / and therefore I have hope.” From this and ensuing verses, we know that, even in the darkest times, God is faithful and will not cast off His people forever. Every day, every morning, God shows His mercy and compassion.

     Taking a closer look at Lamentations 3:22–23, we notice a couple important themes. First, the Lord’s “great love” (“steadfast love” in some translations) abides even in times of trouble and divine judgment. God never stopped loving Israel, despite His discipline of them. The Hebrew word translated “great love” is used about 250 times in the Old Testament; it refers to love, of course, but it also encompasses elements of grace, mercy, goodness, forgiveness, compassion, and faithfulness. It is God’s “great love” for His people that spared them from being utterly wiped out by Babylon. As we know from history, God later restored His people to their land and blessed them again.

“great love”     846 ידד Strong’s Hebrew #3033
846c יְדִידוּת (yĕdîdût) beloved one.
יָדִיד (yādîd). Beloved, lovely. The basic meaning of the noun is “one greatly loved” by God or by man. The noun is derived from the verb “love” (ydd) (BDB; KB).
Ralph H. Alexander, “846 ידד,” ed. R. Laird Harris, Gleason L. Archer Jr., and Bruce K. Waltke, Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (Chicago: Moody Press, 1999), 364.


     A second theme is God’s unfailing compassion or mercy. Mercy in the Bible is God’s withholding of a just punishment. The particular Hebrew word used in Lamentations 3:22 has to do with tender love, great and tender mercy, or pity. The same word is used in Isaiah 63:7 and translated “compassion”: “I will tell of the kindnesses of the LORD, the deeds for which he is to be praised, according to all the LORD has done for us—yes, the many good things he has done for Israel, according to his compassion and many kindnesses.” The Lord has pity on His suffering children; in fact, His mercies are new every morning.

     Jeremiah’s statement that God’s mercies are “new every morning” is related to the statement that follows: “Great is your faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:23). God is unchanging, and His mercies toward Israel were unfaltering. His covenant with Abraham’s descendants would be kept (see Jeremiah 31:35–37). This was the bright ray of hope that shone through the smoke of Jerusalem’s ruins.

     The dawning of every new day could be seen as a symbol of God’s light breaking through the darkness and His mercy overcoming our troubles. Every morning demonstrates God’s grace, a new beginning in which gloom must flee. We need look no further than the breath in our lungs, the sun that shines upon us, or the rain that falls to nourish the soil. The mercies of God continue to come to us via a multitude of manifestations.

     There is no expiration date on God’s mercy toward us. His mercies are new every morning in that they are perpetual and always available to those in need. We have our ups and downs, and “even youths grow tired and weary” (Isaiah 40:30), but God is faithful through it all. With the dawn of each day comes a new batch of compassion made freshly available to us. God’s compassion is poured out from an infinite store; His mercies will never run out. Some mornings we get up on the wrong side of the bed, but even there we find God’s mercies awaiting us.

     Believers still sin and grieve the Holy Spirit, but forgiveness is always available (1 John 1:8–9). God’s mercy is ready to forgive our sins, as they are atoned for by the shed blood of Jesus Christ on the cross. We serve a great, loving, and merciful God, and because of His great love we are not consumed. Our God is for us, not against us.

     In Jesus Christ we have the fullest expression of God’s mercy and compassion (see Matthew 14:14), and He is “the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). Jesus’ mercy is indeed “new every morning.”

Lamentations 3:21 But this I call to mind,
and therefore I have hope:

22  The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases;
his mercies never come to an end;
23  they are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.


Isaiah 63:7  I will recount the steadfast love of the LORD,
the praises of the LORD,
according to all that the LORD has granted us,
and the great goodness to the house of Israel
that he has granted them according to his compassion,
according to the abundance of his steadfast love.


Jeremiah 31:35  Thus says the LORD,
who gives the sun for light by day
and the fixed order of the moon and the stars for light by night,
who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—
the LORD of hosts is his name:
36  “If this fixed order departs
from before me, declares the LORD,
then shall the offspring of Israel cease
from being a nation before me forever.”

37  Thus says the LORD:
“If the heavens above can be measured,
and the foundations of the earth below can be explored,
then I will cast off all the offspring of Israel
for all that they have done,
declares the LORD.”


Isaiah 40:  Even youths shall faint and be weary,
and young men shall fall exhausted;


1 John 1:8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.


Matthew 14:14 When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.


Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
  ESV

Click here to go to source

     S. Michael Houdmann is the Founder, President, and CEO of Got Questions Ministries, the parent ministry for GotQuestions.org. We rarely receive questions about S. Michael Houdmann, and that is a good thing. He does not want GotQuestions.org to be about him. He does not want people to accept or reject the answers given at GotQuestions.org because of name recognition. Rather, his hope is that people will accept or reject GotQuestions.org answers because they have read them, compared them with the Word of God, and prayed about them – and determined them to be true and biblical.

The Continual Burnt Offering (Acts 3:6)

By H.A. Ironside - 1941

August 28
Acts 3:6 But Peter said, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!”    ESV


     The “signs of an apostle” (2 Corinthians 12:12), that is, the ability to work miracles in the name of the risen Christ, followed close upon the Pentecostal endowment in order to confirm the apostles as the direct, authorized representatives of the glorified Lord. When He was on earth and His mission confined to the lost sheep of the house of Israel (Matthew 15:24), He gave them similar powers, but in resurrection these were confirmed and enlarged. Such gifts were not promised to all believers, but to “those who believe” of the apostolic company (Mark 16:17-18). And so we see Peter, once cravenly denying his Lord, now not only boldly confessing Him, but doing mighty deeds in His name. He bore testimony to the might of the One whom Jew and Gentile had united to crucify, but who had been raised from the dead by the power of God.

     All blessing for mankind is bound up in the risen Christ. He sits now exalted at the Father’s right hand to dispense riches of grace to all who come in His name, owning their need and confessing their sin. The healing of the man lame from his birth was in order to demonstrate the power and authority of the name of the Lord Jesus.


2 Corinthians 12:12 The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with utmost patience, with signs and wonders and mighty works.

Matthew 15:24 He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

Mark 16:17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.”
  ESV

We see Thee, Lord, vacate Thy home—
That scene immune from blight,
To visit man in all his woe,
To save him from his plight.
Thy love to us constrained Thee, Lord,
To suffer, bleed and die,
That we, redeemed with Thine own blood
Might dwell with Thee on high.
Rejected here and put to death
By those whom Thou didst love,
Thou art no more in Person here,
But in bright courts above.
--- C. C. Crowston

The Continual Burnt Offering: Daily Meditations on the Word of God


  • Tim Barnett
  • Tim Savage
  • Atheists vs Evidence

Prayer of 1 or 2 |
Georgetown Universty


 

Treasuring the Treasure | Truth 4 Life

 

Looking For Glory | Truth 4 Life

 


     Devotionals, notes, poetry and more

American Minute
     by Bill Federer

     August 28, 1963. The event: the Civil Rights March on Washington, D.C. Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., declared: “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character…. where little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls and walk together… I have a dream that one day… the glory of the Lord shall be revealed… when all of God’s children, black and white, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing… ‘Free at Last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!’"

American Minute

Is Science the Sole Means
     of Knowing Truth?


     Modern culture esteems science as the preeminent means of understanding the world. If something cannot be established by science, then, according to many, it is either unknowable or simply a matter of personal faith.
     While science is an undeniably important means of discovering truths about our world, and it has contributed greatly to human flourishing, it is unwarranted to claim that it’s the sole—or even the best—means of knowing truth.
     In his excellent book, The Experience of God, philosopher David Bentley Hart provides a penetrating response to the claim that science is the sole means of knowing truth:
     Quite a few otherwise intelligent men and women take it as established principle that we can know as true only what can be verified by empirical method of experimentation and observation. This is, for one thing, a notoriously self-refuting claim, inasmuch as it cannot itself be demonstrated to be true by any application of empirical method.
     More to the point, though, it is transparent nonsense: most of the things we know to be true, often quite indubitably, do not fall within the realm of what can be tested by empirical methods; they are by their nature episodic, experiential, local, personal, intuitive, or purely logical. The sciences concern certain facts as organized by certain theories, and certain theories as constrained by certain facts; they accumulate evidence and enucleate hypotheses within very strictly limited paradigms; but they do not provide proofs of where reality begins or ends, or of what the dimensions of truth are. They cannot even establish their own working premises—the real existence of the phenomenal world, the power of the human intellect accurately to reflect that reality, the perfect lawfulness of nature, its mathematical regularity, and so forth—and should not seek to do so, but should confine themselves to the truths to which their methods give them access.
     They should also recognize what the boundaries of the scientific rescript are. There are, in fact, truths of reason that are far surer than even the most amply supported findings of empirical science because such truths are not, as those findings must always be, susceptible of later theoretical revision; and then there are truths of mathematics that are subject to proof in the most proper sense and so are more irrefutable still. And there is no single discourse of truth as such, no single path to the knowledge of reality, no single method that can exhaustively define what knowledge is, no useful answer whose range has not been limited in advance by the kinds of questions that prompted them.
     The failure to realize this can lead only to the delusions of the kind expressed in, for example, G.G. Simpson’s self-parodying assertion that all attempts to define the meaning of life or the nature of humanity made before 1859 are not entirely worthless, or in Peter Atkin’s ebulliently absurd claims that modern science can “deal with every aspect of existence” and that it has never in fact “encountered a barrier.” Not only do sentiments of this sort verge upon the deranged, they are nothing less than violent assaults upon the truth dignity of science.
     Science is an unbelievably value means of knowing the world. We should never downplay its significance. But, as Hart points out, we should avoid the temptation to overplay its significance as well.

     Sean McDowell, Ph.D. is a professor of Christian Apologetics at Biola University, a best-selling author of over 18 books, an internationally recognized speaker, and a part-time high school teacher. Follow him on Twitter: @sean_mcdowell and his blog: seanmcdowell.org.

Lean Into God
     Compiled by Richard S. Adams


A man's most glorious actions
will at last be found to be but glorious sins,
if he hath made himself,
and not the glory of God,
the end of those actions.
--- Thomas Brooks


God shall be all in all.
--- John Milton
Paradise Lost (Hackett Classics)

We often learn more of God under the rod that strikes us
than under the staff that comforts us.
--- Stephen Charnock

Christian spirituality does not begin merely in our quest for understanding. It begins in our understanding that something is deeply wrong with us – a realization that can lead to a renewed dedication to the values of the gospel.
--- Mark R. McMinn

... from here, there and everywhere

History of the Destruction of Jerusalem
     Thanks to Meir Yona

     5. Those therefore that were able to find the ways out of the city retired. But now Vespasian always staid among those that were hard set; for he was deeply affected with seeing the ruins of the city falling upon his army, and forgot to take care of his own preservation. He went up gradually towards the highest parts of the city before he was aware, and was left in the midst of dangers, having only a very few with him; for even his son Titus was not with him at that time, having been then sent into Syria to Mucianus. However, he thought it not safe to fly, nor did he esteem it a fit thing for him to do; but calling to mind the actions he had done from his youth, and recollecting his courage, as if he had been excited by a divine fury, he covered himself and those that were with him with their shields, and formed a testudo over both their bodies and their armor, and bore up against the enemy's attacks, who came running down from the top of the city; and without showing any dread at the multitude of the men or of their darts, he endured all, until the enemy took notice of that divine courage that was within him, and remitted of their attacks; and when they pressed less zealously upon him, he retired, though without showing his back to them till he was gotten out of the walls of the city. Now a great number of the Romans fell in this battle, among whom was Ebutius, the decurion, a man who appeared not only in this engagement, wherein he fell, but every where, and in former engagements, to be of the truest courage, and one that had done very great mischief to the Jews. But there was a centurion whose name was Gallus, who, during this disorder, being encompassed about, he and ten other soldiers privately crept into the house of a certain person, where he heard them talking at supper, what the people intended to do against the Romans, or about themselves [for both the man himself and those with him were Syrians]. So he got up in the night time, and cut all their throats, and escaped, together with his soldiers, to the Romans.

     6. And now Vespasian comforted his army, which was much dejected by reflecting on their ill success, and because they had never before fallen into such a calamity, and besides this, because they were greatly ashamed that they had left their general alone in great dangers. As to what concerned himself, he avoided to say any thing, that he might by no means seem to complain of it; but he said that "we ought to bear manfully what usually falls out in war, and this, by considering what the nature of war is, and how it can never be that we must conquer without bloodshed on our own side; for there stands about us that fortune which is of its own nature mutable; that while they had killed so many ten thousands of the Jews, they had now paid their small share of the reckoning to fate; and as it is the part of weak people to be too much puffed up with good success, so is it the part of cowards to be too much affrighted at that which is ill; for the change from the one to the other is sudden on both sides; and he is the best warrior who is of a sober mind under misfortunes, that he may continue in that temper, and cheerfully recover what had been lost formerly; and as for what had now happened, it was neither owing to their own effeminacy, nor to the valor of the Jews, but the difficulty of the place was the occasion of their advantage, and of our disappointment. Upon reflecting on which matter one might blame your zeal as perfectly ungovernable; for when the enemy had retired to their highest fastnesses, you ought to have restrained yourselves, and not, by presenting yourselves at the top of the city, to be exposed to dangers; but upon your having obtained the lower parts of the city, you ought to have provoked those that had retired thither to a safe and settled battle; whereas, in rushing so hastily upon victory, you took no care of your safety. But this incautiousness in war, and this madness of zeal, is not a Roman maxim. While we perform all that we attempt by skill and good order, that procedure is the part of barbarians, and is what the Jews chiefly support themselves by. We ought therefore to return to our own virtue, and to be rather angry than any longer dejected at this unlucky misfortune, and let every one seek for his own consolation from his own hand; for by this means he will avenge those that have been destroyed, and punish those that have killed them. For myself, I will endeavor, as I have now done, to go first before you against your enemies in every engagement, and to be the last that retires from it."

     7. So Vespasian encouraged his army by this speech; but for the people of Gamala, it happened that they took courage for a little while, upon such great and unaccountable success as they had had. But when they considered with themselves that they had now no hopes of any terms of accommodation, and reflecting upon it that they could not get away, and that their provisions began already to be short, they were exceedingly cast down, and their courage failed them; yet did they not neglect what might be for their preservation, so far as they were able, but the most courageous among them guarded those parts of the wall that were beaten down, while the more infirm did the same to the rest of the wall that still remained round the city. And as the Romans raised their banks, and attempted to get into the city a second time, a great many of them fled out of the city through impracticable valleys, where no guards were placed, as also through subterraneous caverns; while those that were afraid of being caught, and for that reason staid in the city, perished for want of food; for what food they had was brought together from all quarters, and reserved for the fighting men.

     The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Wars of the Jews or History of the Destruction of Jerusalem, by Flavius Josephus Translator: William Whiston

The War of the Jews: The History of the Destruction of Jerusalem (complete edition, 7 books)
Proverbs 23:24-25
     by D.H. Stern

24     A righteous person’s father will be filled with joy;
     yes, he whose son is wise will rejoice in him.
25     So let your father and mother be glad;
     let her who gave you birth rejoice.


Complete Jewish Bible : An English Version of the Tanakh (Old Testament) and B'Rit Hadashah (New Testament)
My Utmost For The Highest
     A Daily Devotional by Oswald Chambers


                What’s the good of prayer?

     Lord, teach us to pray. --- Luke 11:1.

     It is not part of the life of a natural man to pray. We hear it said that a man will suffer in his life if he does not pray; I question it. What will suffer is the life of the Son of God in him, which is nourished, not by food, but by prayer. When a man is born from above, the life of the Son of God is born in him, and he can either starve that life or nourish it. Prayer is the way the life of God is nourished. Our ordinary views of prayer are not found in the New Testament. We look upon prayer as a means of getting things for ourselves; the Bible idea of prayer is that we may get to know God Himself.

     “Ask and ye shall receive.” We grouse before God, we are apologetic or apathetic, but we ask very few things. Yet what a splendid audacity a childlike child has! Our Lord says—“Except ye become as little children.” Ask, and God will do. Give Jesus Christ a chance, give Him elbow room, and no man will ever do this unless he is at his wits’ end. When a man is at his wits’ end it is not a cowardly thing to pray, it is the only way he can get into touch with Reality. Be yourself before God and present your problems, the things you know you have come to your wits’ end over. As long as you are self-sufficient, you do not need to ask God for anything.

     It is not so true that “prayer changes things” as that prayer changes me and I change things. God has so constituted things that prayer on the basis of Redemption alters the way in which a man looks at things. Prayer is not a question of altering things externally, but of working wonders in a man’s disposition.

My Utmost for His Highest
The One Furrow (Song At The Year's Turning)
     the Poetry of RS Thomas


                The One Furrow (Song At The Year's Turning)

When I was young, I went to school
  With pencil and foot-rule
  Sponge and slate,
  And sat on a tall stool
  At learning's gate.

When I was older, the gate swung wide;
  Clever and keen-eyed
  In I pressed,
  But found in the mind's pride
  No peace, no rest.

Then who was it taught me back to go
  To cattle and barrow,
  Field and plough;
  To keep to the one furrow,
  As I do now?

Selected poems, 1946-1968
Searching For Meaning In Midrash
     D’RASH


     There is an old Yiddish saying: “Shikker iz a goy,” meaning “Only a gentile gets drunk.” It seems to encapsulate an attitude that Jews were not susceptible to the dangers of alcohol, that though Kiddush wine and schnapps were a part of Jewish culture, Jews knew “when to say when.”

     Abraham Joshua Heschel makes a similar point in his book about eastern European Jewry, The Earth Is the Lord's: The Inner World of the Jew in Eastern Europe (Jewish Lights Classic Reprint):

     Drunkards were rarely seen among Jews. When night came and a man wanted to pass away time, he did not hasten to a tavern to take a drink, but went to pore over a book or joined a group which—either with or without a teacher—revered books, (p. 45)

     Was this an idealized view of the traditional world of the shtetl? Does nostalgia make us see that world through rose-colored glasses? Or did Jews throughout the past struggle with wine and liquor just as everyone else did? After all, according to the Midrash, Aaron’s two sons died because of their abuse of alcohol, and the Book of Proverbs probably wouldn’t have spent time warning people about the dangers of drink if that danger hadn’t been a very real one.

     Rabbi Isaac Trainin, in the introduction to the book Addictions in the Jewish Community, reports that in the early 1950s banquet managers in New York City hotels were unable to bring down the cost of kosher dinners; they made their money on liquor sales and, as they explained, “Jews don’t drink.” Twenty years later, the same banquet managers were actually soliciting Jewish business. Why the change? “You Jews drink like everyone else now.” Today, Jews are to be found in significant numbers at AA meetings, in alcohol detox facilities, and in all manner of therapeutic situations seeking to battle the disease of alcoholism and the devastation of drinking.

     Even if we believe that the values of Judaism and the cohesiveness of the Jewish community once kept Jews immune from drinking problems, that is certainly no longer the case. Over the course of the twentieth century, Jews became more and more a part of the larger American culture, and ties to their religion and people were weakened. Behaviors that were once not spoken about—such as domestic violence, gambling, and drug abuse—were now as commonplace within the Jewish community as they were in the outside world.

     Drinking in the time of the shtetl took place in the tavern after a long day of work. Today, when a Jew is tempted to imbibe, it is in very different situations. Drinking to excess has become a part of the culture on many college campuses. It is not limited to weekend fraternity parties, but for vast numbers of students becomes a daily routine. Since going off to college is an almost universal phenomenon among Jewish high school seniors, the exposure to binge drinking will continue to increase.

     Even sadder is what takes place at many Bar and Bat Mitzvah celebrations. It is an almost routine “game” at many of these parties for thirteen-year-olds to try and obtain hard liquor by any means possible. This includes from parents, who want to be thought of as “good guys,” or from bartenders who are worn down saying “No” over and over again, or even by kids stealing a bottle when no one is looking. How ironic that a lifetime problem with alcohol may begin at a function meant to mark the coming of age and maturity of a Jewish teenager.

     While the drunk has his eye on his cup, we—the parents, we—the Jewish community, need to keep our eyes set on the drunk.

     ANOTHER D’RASH

     “No, you cannot.”

     “What do you mean, ‘No, you cannot’? It’s my car, and I’ll drive it if I want.”

     “It’s your car, but you’re my friend. You had a couple of drinks—fine, that’s what people do at parties. But I can’t let you drive home like this. So the answer remains ‘No.’ You may not have the keys to your car back.”

     Who are our friends? Whom do we trust? Sometimes, it’s hard for us to see what they see. At times, a friend may be doing us a favor by denying us what we want. At other times, a “friend” may do exactly what we ask but may actually be looking out for his or her best interests, and not ours. This is especially true when our own ability to reason is impaired.

     This Midrash text is reminding us to keep our eyes open, to be careful of those who would give us what we want, because this may not always be in our own best interest. There is a prayer that asks God to grant us not what we want, but what we need. The friend who takes our keys away when we are impaired and unable to drive with full faculties is doing just that. The relative who tells us “No” when we want to hear “Yes” may be doing us a favor, though we may be too emotionally impaired to comprehend this at the time.

     The Rabbis who wrote the Midrash were not cynical or pessimistic. It would be best to call them realistic. They knew that when one person is defenseless, there will be another person who is willing to advantage by saying, “Hey, he was asking for it.” Thus, our challenge is twofold: to watch out for the best interests of others when their judgment is lacking and to keep our wits about us when we are vulnerable.

Searching for Meaning in Midrash: Lessons for Everyday Living
Take Heart
     August 28

     God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.
--- Acts 17:27.

     What Saint Paul said to the people of Athens Christ says to everybody, to you and me and all these multitudes. (
Phillips Brooks, “The Nearness of God,” downloaded from the Web site The Unofficial Episcopal Preaching Resource Page, at www.edola.org/clergy/episcopalpreaching.html, accessed Aug. 21, 2001.) He comes to you and says it: You are restless, always on the brink of something that you never reach, always on the point of grasping something that eludes you, always haunted by something that makes it impossible for you to settle down into absolute rest. I tell you what it means. It is God with you. It is Immanuel. His presence it is that will not let you be at peace. You don’t see him, but he is close by you. You never will have peace until you do see him and turn to him to find the peace that he will not let you find away from him. “Come to me,… and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28). That was the revelation of the Incarnation. Listen, how across all the centuries you can hear the Savior giving that revelation, that interpretation of their own troubled lives to multitudes; now to Nicodemus, now to the Samaritan woman, now to Pontius Pilate, and all along, every day, to his disciples by what they saw from hour to hour of his peace in his Father.

     Listen again. Hear Christ giving the same revelation today, and ask yourself this: “If it were true, if God in his perfection, with his perfect standards in himself, with his perfect hopes for me, God in his complete holiness and his complete love—if he were here close to me, only separated from me by the thin veil of my blindness, wouldn’t it explain everything in my life?” There is the everlasting question, my dear friends, to which there is only one answer. What else can explain this mysterious, bewildering, fluttering, hoping, fearing, dreaming, dreading, waiting, human life—what but this, which is the Incarnation truth, that God from whom this life came is always close to it, that he is always doing what he can do for it, even when people do not see him, and that he cannot do for them all his love would do only because of the veil that hangs between him and them? “Not far from each one of us”—there is the secret of our lives—weak and wicked because we will not live with God; restless, unable to be at peace in our weakness and wickedness, because God is not far from us.
--- Phillips Brooks

Take Heart: Daily Devotions with the Church's Great Preachers
On This Day
     A Hymnbook Under His Arm  August 28

     Levi (Matthew) wasn’t the only tax collector to follow Christ into full-time ministry. Ira Sankey did, too. Sankey was born on August 28, 1840, in a small Pennsylvania town. His family later moved to New Castle, where his father became president of a local bank. Ira served in the Union Army during the Civil War, then returned home to serve as the local internal revenue collector.

     His real love, however, was singing, and he was in demand through Pennsylvania and Ohio as a soloist at meetings. His father, hoping he would enter politics, complained, “I am afraid that boy will never amount to anything. All he does is run about the country with a hymnbook under his arm.” His mother replied that she would rather see him with a hymnbook under his arm than a whisky bottle in his pocket.

     In 1870 Ira attended the national convention of the YMCA, meeting in Indianapolis. One of the convention sessions was dragging along so badly that Ira offered to lead some hymns. At the end of the session, he was approached by a big, burly man who pelted him with questions. “Where are you from? What is your business? Are you married?”

     When Sankey told him he was married, lived in Pennsylvania, and worked for the government, the man abruptly announced, “You will have to give that up.”

     “What for?” asked Sankey in amazement.

     “To come to Chicago and help me in my work.”

     Sankey replied that he could not possibly leave his business. To this, the man said, “You must; I have been looking for you for the last eight years.”

     Thus began one of the most famous partnerships in evangelistic history—D. L. Moody and Ira Sankey. For the next quarter century, Moody and Sankey traveled around the world. As Moody preached the Gospel, Sankey sang solos, conducted the singing, and composed music for the Gospel hymns. His Gospel Hymns and Sacred Songs and Solos sold over 50 million copies. He became his generation’s most beloved Gospel singer.

     Once again, Jesus went to the shore of Lake Galilee. A large crowd gathered around him, and he taught them. As he walked along, he saw Levi, the son of Alphaeus. Levi was sitting at the place for paying taxes, and Jesus said to him,
“Come with me!” So he got up and went with Jesus.
--- Mark 2:13,14.

On This Day 365 Amazing And Inspiring Stories About Saints, Martyrs And Heroes
Morning and Evening
     Daily Readings / CHARLES H. SPURGEON

          Morning - August 28

     “Oil for the light.”
--- Exodus 25:6.

     My soul, how much thou needest this, for thy lamp will not long continue to burn without it. Thy snuff will smoke and become an offence if light be gone, and gone it will be if oil be absent. Thou hast no oil well springing up in thy human nature, and therefore thou must go to them that sell and buy for thyself, or like the foolish virgins, thou wilt have to cry, “My lamp is gone out.” Even the consecrated lamps could not give light without oil; though they shone in the tabernacle they needed to be fed, though no rough winds blew upon them they required to be trimmed, and thy need is equally as great. Under the most happy circumstances thou canst not give light for another hour unless fresh oil of grace be given thee.

     It was not every oil that might be used in the Lord’s service; neither the petroleum which exudes so plentifully from the earth, nor the produce of fishes, nor that extracted from nuts would be accepted; one oil only was selected, and that the best olive oil. Pretended grace from natural goodness, fancied grace from priestly hands, or imaginary grace from outward ceremonies will never serve the true saint of God; he knows that the Lord would not be pleased with rivers of such oil. He goes to the olive-press of Gethsemane, and draws his supplies from him who was crushed therein. The oil of Gospel grace is pure and free from lees and dregs, and hence the light which is fed thereon is clear and bright. Our churches are the Saviour’s golden candelabra, and if they are to be lights in this dark world, they must have much holy oil. Let us pray for ourselves, our ministers, and our churches, that they may never lack oil for the light. Truth, holiness, joy, knowledge, love, these are all beams of the sacred light, but we cannot give them forth unless in private we receive oil from God the Holy Ghost.


          Evening - August 28

     “Sing, O barren.” --- Isaiah 54:1.

     Though we have brought forth some fruit unto Christ, and have a joyful hope that we are “plants of his own right hand planting,” yet there are times when we feel very barren. Prayer is lifeless, love is cold, faith is weak, each grace in the garden of our heart languishes and droops. We are like flowers in the hot sun, requiring the refreshing shower. In such a condition what are we to do? The text is addressed to us in just such a state. “Sing, O barren, break forth and cry aloud.” But what can I sing about? I cannot talk about the present, and even the past looks full of barrenness. Ah! I can sing of Jesus Christ. I can talk of visits which the Redeemer has aforetimes paid to me; or if not of these, I can magnify the great love wherewith he loved his people when he came from the heights of heaven for their redemption. I will go to the cross again. Come, my soul, heavy laden thou wast once, and thou didst lose thy burden there. Go to Calvary again.

     Perhaps that very cross which gave thee life may give thee fruitfulness. What is my barrenness? It is the platform for his fruit-creating power. What is my desolation? It is the black setting for the sapphire of his everlasting love. I will go in poverty, I will go in helplessness, I will go in all my shame and backsliding, I will tell him that I am still his child, and in confidence in his faithful heart, even I, the barren one, will sing and cry aloud.

     Sing, believer, for it will cheer thine own heart, and the hearts of other desolate ones. Sing on, for now that thou art really ashamed of being barren, thou wilt be fruitful soon; now that God makes thee loath to be without fruit he will soon cover thee with clusters. The experience of our barrenness is painful, but the Lord’s visitations are delightful. A sense of our own poverty drives us to Christ, and that is where we need to be, for in him is our fruit found.

Morning and Evening
Amazing Grace
     August 28

          ALL THE WAY MY SAVIOR LEADS ME

     Fanny J. Crosby, 1820–1915

     For this God is our God forever and ever; He will be our guide even to the end. Psalm 48:14)

     Often we become discouraged because we cannot see God’s long range plan of guidance for our lives. We need to remember that God has promised to guide our steps, not the miles ahead. “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord” (Psalm 37:23).

     This beloved hymn came from the grateful heart of Fanny Crosby after she had received a direct answer to her prayer. One day when she desperately needed five dollars and had no idea where she could obtain it, Fanny followed her usual custom and began to pray about the matter. A few minutes later a stranger appeared at her door with the exact amount. “I have no way of accounting for this,” she said, “except to believe that God put it into the heart of this good man to bring the money. My first thought was that it is so wonderful the way the Lord leads me, I immediately wrote the poem and Dr. Lowry set it to music.” The hymn was first published in 1875.

     No one knows the importance of guided steps as much as a blind person like Fanny Crosby, who lost her sight at six weeks of age through improper medical treatment. A sightless person is keenly aware that there will be stumbling and uncertainty as he continues on his way. As Fanny wrote, “Cheers each winding path I tread, gives me grace for every trial,” she has reminded us that God has never promised to keep us from hard places or obstacles in life. He has assured us, however, that He will go with us, guide each step, and give the necessary grace.

     All the way my Savior leads me; what have I to ask beside? Can I doubt His tender mercy, who through life has been my Guide? Heavenly peace, divinest comfort, here by faith in Him to dwell! For I know whate’er befall me, Jesus doeth all things well.
     All the way my Savior leads me, cheers each winding path I tread, gives me grace for ev’ry trial, feeds me with the living bread. Though my weary steps may falter, and my soul athirst may be, gushing from the Rock before me, lo! a spring of joy I see.
     All the way my Savior leads me; Oh, the fullness of His love! Perfect rest to me is promised in my Father’s house above. When my spirit, clothed immortal, wings its flight to realms of day, this my song through endless ages: Jesus led me all the way.


     For Today: Psalm 32:8; John 10:3–5; Romans 8:28; 1 Corinthians 10:4

     Ask God to help you find that “perfect rest” in every stressful situation, confident that He is guiding your every step. Sing this musical truth ---

Amazing Grace: 366 Inspiring Hymn Stories for Daily Devotions
The Existence and Attributes of God
     Stephen Charnock

          DISCOURSE III - ON GOD’S BEING A SPIRIT

     2. When we say God is a Spirit, it is to be understood by way of negation. There are two ways of knowing or describing God: by way of affirmation, affirming that of him by way of eminency, which is excellent in the creature, as when we say God is wise, good; the other, by way of negation, when we remove from God in our conceptions what is tainted with imperfection in the creature. The first ascribes to him whatsoever is excellent; the other separates from him whatsoever is imperfect. The first is like a limning, which adds one color to another to make a comely picture; the other is like a carving, which pares and cuts away whatsoever is superfluous, to make a complete statue. This way of negation is more easy; we better understand what God is not, than what he is; and most of our knowledge of God is by this way; as when we say God is infinite, immense, immutable, they are negatives; he hath no limits, is confined to no place, admits of no change. When we remove from him what is inconsistent with his being, we do more strongly assert his being, and know more of him when we elevate him above all, anal above our own capacity. And when we say God is a Spirit, it is a negation; he is not a body; he consists not of various parts, extended one without and beyond another. He is not a spirit, so as our souls are, to be the form of any body; a spirit, not as angels and souls are, but infinitely higher. We call him so, because, in regard of our weakness, we have not any other term of excellency to express or conceive of him by; we transfer it to God in honor, because spirit is the highest excellency in our nature: yet we must apprehend God above any spirit, since his nature is so great that he cannot be declared by human speech, perceived by human sense, or conceived by human understanding.

     II. . The second thing, that “God is a Spirit.” Some among the heathens imagined God to have a body; some thought him to have a body of air; some a heavenly body; some a human body; and many of them ascribed bodies to their gods, but bodies without blood, without corruption, bodies made up of the finest and thinnest atoms; such bodies, which, if compared with ours, were as no bodies.

     The Sadducees also, who denied all spirits, and yet acknowledged a God, must conclude him to be a body, and no spirit. Some among Christians have been of that opinion. Tertullian is charged by some, and excused by others; and some monks of Egypt were so fierce for this error, that they attempted to kill one Theophilus, a bishop, for not being of that judgment. But the wiser heathens were of another mind, and esteemed it an unholy thing to have such imaginations of God. And some Christians have thought God only to be free from anything of body, because he is omnipresent, immutable, he is only incorporeal and spiritual; all things else, even the angels, are clothed with bodies, though of a neater matter, and a more active frame than ours; a pure spiritual nature they allowed to no being but God. Scripture and reason meet together to assert the spirituality of God. Had God had the lineaments of a body, the Gentiles had not fallen under that accusation of changing his glory into that of a corruptible man. This is signified by the name God gives himself (Exod. 3:14): “I am that I am;” a simple, pure, uncompounded being, without any created mixture; as infinitely above the being of creatures as above the conceptions of creatures (Job 37:23); “Touching the Almighty, we cannot find him out.” He is so much a Spirit, that he is the “Father of spirits” (Heb. 12:9). The Almighty Father is not of a nature inferior to his children. The soul is a spirit; it could not else exert actions without the assistance of the body, as the act of understanding itself, and its own nature, the act of willing, and willing things against the incitements and interest of the body. It could not else conceive of God, angels, and immaterial substances; it could not else be so active, as with one glance to fetch a compass from earth to heaven, and by a sudden motion, to elevate the understanding from an earthly thought, to the thinking of things as high as the highest heavens. If we have this opinion of our souls, which, in the nobleness of their acts, surmount the body, without which the body is but a dull inactive piece of clay, we must needs have a higher conception of God, than to clog him with any matter, though of a finer temper than ours: we must conceive of him by the perfections of our souls, without the vileness of our bodies. If God made man according to his image, we must raise our thoughts of God according to the noblest part of that image, and imagine the exemplar or copy not to come short, but to exceed the thing copied by it. God were not the most excellent substance if he were not a Spirit.

     Spiritual substances are more excellent than bodily; the soul of man more excellent than other animals; angels more excellent than men. They contain, in their own nature, whatsoever dignity there is in the inferior creatures; God must have, therefore, an excellency above all those, and, therefore, is entirely remote from the conditions of a body. It is a gross conceit, therefore, to think that God is such a spirit as the air is; for that is to be a body as the air is, though it be a thin one; and if God were no more a spirit than that, or than angels, he would not be the most simple being. Yet some think that the spiritual Deity was represented by the air in the ark of the testament. It was unlawful to represent him by any image that God had prohibited. Everything about the ark had a particular signification. The gold and other ornaments about it signified something of Christ, but were unfit to represent the nature of God: a thing purely invisible, and falling under nothing of sense, could not represent him to the mind of man. The air in the ark was the fittest; it represented the invisibility of God, air being imperceptible to our eyes. Air diffuseth itself through all parts of the world; it glides through secret passages into all creatures; it fills the space between heaven and earth. There is no place wherein God is not present. To evidence this,

     1. If God were not a Spirit, he could not be Creator. All multitude begins in, and is reduced to unity. As above multitude there is an absolute unity, so above mixed creatures there is an absolute sirn’licity. You cannot conceive number without conceiving the beginning of it in that which was not number, viz. a unit. You cannot conceive any mixture, but you must conceive some simple thing to be the original and basis of it. The works of art done by rational creatures have their foundation in something spiritual. Every artificer, watchmaker, carpenter, hath a model in his own mind of the work he designs to frame: the material and outward fabric is squared according to an inward and spiritual idea. A spiritual idea speaks a spiritual faculty as the subject of it. God could not have an idea of that vast number of creatures he brought into being, if he had not had a spiritual nature. The wisdom whereby the world was created could never be the fruit of a corporeal nature; such natures are not capable of understanding and comprehending the things which are within the compass of their nature, much less of producing them; and therefore beasts which have only corporeal faculties move to objects by the force of their sense, and have no knowledge of things as they are comprehended by the understanding of man. All acts of wisdom speak an intelligent and spiritual agent. The effects of wisdom, goodness, power, are so great and admirable, that they bespeak him a more perfect and eminent being than can possibly be beheld under a bodily shape. Can a corporeal substance put “wisdom in the inward parts, and give understanding to the heart?”

     2. If God were not a pure Spirit, he could not be one. If God had a body, consisting of distinct members, as ours; or all of one nature, as the water and air are, yet he were then capable of division, and therefore could not be entirely one. Either those parts would be finite or infinite: if finite, they are not parts of God; for to be God and finite is a contradiction; if infinite, then there are as many infinite as distinct members, and therefore as many Deities. Suppose this body had all parts of the same nature, as air and water hath, every little part of air is as much air as the greatest, and every little part of water is as much water as the ocean; so every little part of God would be as much God as the whole; as many particular Deities to make up God, as little atoms to compose a body. What can be more absurd? If God had a body like a human body, and were compounded of body and soul, of substance and quality, he could not be the most perfect unity; he would be made up of distinct parts, and those of a distinct nature, as the members of a human body are. Where there is the greatest unity, there must be the greatest simplicity; but God is one. As he is free from any change, so he is void of any multitude (Deut. 6:4): “The Lord our God is one Lord.”

     3. If God had a body as we have, he would not be invisible. Every material thing is not visible: the air is a body yet invisible, but it is sensible; the cooling quality of it is felt by us at every breath, and we know it by our touch, which is the most material sense. Everybody that hath members like to bodies, is visible; but God is invisible. The apostle reckons it amongst his other perfections (1 Tim. 1:17): “Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible.” He is invisible to our sense, which beholds nothing but material and colored things; and incomprehensible to our understanding, that conceives nothing but what is finite. God is therefore a Spirit incapable of being seen, and infinitely incapable of being understood. If he be invisible, he is also spiritual. If he had a body, and hid it from our eyes, he might be said not to be seen, but could not be said to be invisible. When we say a thing is visible, we understand that it hath such qualities which are the objects of sense, though we may never see that which is in its own nature to be seen. God hath no such qualities as fall under the perception of our sense. His works are visible to us, but not his Godhead. The nature of a human body is to be seen and handled; Christ gives us such a description of it (Luke 24:39): “Handle me and see, for a spirit hath not flesh and bones as you see me have;” but man hath been so far from seeing God, “that it is impossible he can see him” (1 Tim. 6:16).

     There is such a disproportion between an infinite object and a finite sense and understanding, that it is utterly impossible either to behold or comprehend him. But if God had a body more luminous and glorious than that of the sun, he would be as well visible to us as the sun, though the immensity of that light would dazzle our eyes, and forbid any close inspection into him by the virtue of our sense. We have seen the shape and figure of the sun, but “no man hath ever seen the shape of God.” If God had a body, he were visible, though he might not perfectly and fully be seen by us; as we see the heavens, though we see not the extension, latitude, and greatness of them. Though God hath manifested himself in a bodily shape (Gen. 18:1), and elsewhere Jehovah appeared to Abraham, yet the substance of God was not seen, no more than the substance of angels was seen in their apparitions to men. A body was formed to be made visible by them, and such actions done in that body, that spake the person that did them to be of a higher eminency than a bare corporeal creature. Sometimes a representation is made to the inward sense and imagination, as to Micaiah, and to Isaiah (6:1); but they saw not the essence of God, but some images and figures of him proportioned to their sense or imagination. The essence of God no man ever saw, nor can see. John 1:18. Nor doth it follow that God hath a body, because Jacob is said to “see God face to face” (Gen. 32:30); and Moses had the like privilege (Deut. 34:10). This only signifies a fuller and clearer manifestation of God by some representations offered to the bodily sense, or rather to the inward spirit.

     For God tells Moses he could not see his face (Exod. 33:20); and that none ever saw the similitude of God (Deut. 4:15). Were God a corporeal substance, he might in some measure be seen by corporeal eyes.

     4. If God were not a Spirit, he could not be infinite. All bodies are of a finite nature; everybody is material, and every material thing is terminated. The sun, a vast body, hath a bounded greatness; the heavens, of a mighty bulk, yet have their limits. If God had a body he must consist of parts, those parts would be bounded and limited, and whatsoever is limited is of a finite virtue, and therefore below an infinite nature. Reason therefore tells us, that the most excellent nature, as God is, cannot be of a corporeal condition; because of the limitation and other actions which belong to every body. God is infinite, “for the heaven of heavens cannot contain him” (2 Chron. 2:6). The largest heavens, and those imaginary spaces beyond the world, are no bounds to him. He hath an essence beyond the bounds of the world, and cannot be included in the vastness of the heavens. If God be infinite, then he can have no parts in him; if he had, they must be finite or infinite: finite parts can never make ap an infinite being. A vessel of gold, of a pound weight, cannot be made of the quantity of an ounce. Infinite parts they cannot be, because then every part would be equal to the whole, as infinite as the whole, which is contradictory. We see in all things every part is less than the whole bulk that is composed of it; as every member of a man is less than the whole body of man. If all the parts were finite, then God in his essence were finite; and a finite God is not more excellent than a creature: so that if God were not a Spirit, he could not be infinite.

     5. If God were not a Spirit, he could not be an independent being. Whatsoever is compounded of many parts depends either essentially or integrally upon those parts; as the essence of a man depends upon the conjunction and union of his two main parts, his soul and body; when they are separated, the essence of a man ceaseth: and the perfection of a man depends upon every member of the body; so that if one be wanting the perfection of the whole is wanting: as if a man hath lost a limb, you call him not a perfect man, because that part is gone upon which his perfection as an entire man did depend. If God therefore bad a body, the perfection of the Deity would depend upon every part of that body; and the more parts he were compounded of, the more his dependency would be multiplied according to the number of those parts of the body: for that which is compounded of many parts is more dependent than that which is compounded of fewer. And because God would be a dependent being if he had a body, he could not be the first being; for the compounding parts are in order of nature before that which is compounded by them; as the soul and body are before the man which results from the union of them. If God had parts and bodily members as we have, or any composition, the essence of God would result from those parts, and those parts be supposed to be before God. For that which is a part, is before that whose part it is. As in artificial things you may conceive it: all the parts of a watch or clock are in time before that watch which is made by setting those parts together. In natural things you must suppose the members of a body framed before you can call it a man; so that the parts of this body are before that which is constituted by them.

The Existence and Attributes of God

The Bondage of the Will
     Martin Luther | (1483-1546)


     Sect. CXXXII. — READ therefore the Diatribe in this part through five or six pages, and you will find, that by similitudes of this kind, and by some of the most beautiful passages and parables selected from the Gospel and from Paul, it does nothing else but shew us, that innumerable passages (as it observes) are to be found in the Scriptures which speak of the co-operation and assistance of God: from which, if I should draw this conclusion — Man can do nothing without the assisting grace of God: therefore, no works of man are good — it would on the contrary conclude, as it has done by a rhetorical inversion — “Nay, there is nothing that man cannot do by the assisting grace of God: therefore, all the works of man can be good. For as many passages as there are in the Holy Scriptures which make mention of assistance, so many are there which confirm “Free-will;” and they are innumerable. Therefore, if we go by the number of testimonies, the victory is mine.” —

     Do you think the Diatribe could be sober or in its right senses when it wrote this? For I cannot attribute it to malice or iniquity: unless it be that it designed to effectually wear me out by perpetually wearying me, while thus, ever like itself, it is continually turning aside to something contrary to its professed design. But if it is pleased thus to play the fool in a matter so important, then I will be pleased to expose its voluntary fooleries publicly.

     In the first place, I do not dispute, nor am I ignorant, that all the works of man may be good, if they be done by the assisting grace of God. And moreover that there is nothing which a man might not do by the assisting grace of God. But I cannot feel enough surprise at your negligence, who, having set out with the professed design to write upon the power of “Free-will,” go on writing upon the power of grace. And moreover, dare to assert publicly, as if all men were posts or stones, that “Free-will” is established by those passages of Scripture which exalt the grace of God. And not only dare to do that, but even to sound forth encomiums on yourself as a victor most gloriously triumphant! From this very word and act of yours, I truly perceive what “Free-will” is, and what the effect of it is — it makes men mad! For what, I ask, can it be in you that talks at this rate, but “Free-will!”

     But just listen to your own conclusions. — The Scripture commends the grace of God: therefore, it proves “Free-will.” — It exalts the assistance of the grace of God: therefore, it establishes “Free-will.” By what kind of logic did you learn such conclusions as these? On the contrary, why not conclude thus? — Grace is preached: therefore, “Free-will” has no existence. The assistance of grace is exalted: therefore, “Free-will” is abolished. For, to what intent is grace given? Is it for this: that “Freewill,” as being of sufficient power itself, might proudly display and sport grace on fair-days, as a superfluous ornament!

     Wherefore, I will invert your order of reasoning, and though no rhetorician, will establish a conclusion more firm than yours. — As many places as there are in the Holy Scriptures which make mention of assistance, so many are there which abolish “Free-will:” and they are innumerable. Therefore, if we are to go by the number of testimonies, the victory is mine. For grace is therefore needed, and the assistance of grace is therefore given, because “Free-will” can of itself do nothing; as Erasmus himself has asserted according to that ‘probable opinion’ that “Free-will” ‘cannot will any thing good.’ Therefore, when grace is commended, and the assistance of grace declared, the impotency of “Free-will” is declared at the same time. — This is a sound inference — a firm conclusion — against which, not even the gates of hell will ever prevail!


The Bondage of the Will   or   Christian Classics Ethereal Library

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     ==============================      ==============================


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