Grace Gems

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Her goodness touches their vileness!

(J.R. Miller)

A lovely and godly woman learned of a poor district in a great city, whose people are ruled by the basest passions. They live in wretchedness and degradation. Moved by a loving pity--she leaves her own happy home, and goes to live in the midst of these debased men and women. She moves in and out among them. She teaches their children. She visits their miserable abodes when they are sick, and ministers to their needs.

It is costly serving for her. She suffers terribly in her sensitive soul, from their abject wickedness. But she makes no complaint, and continues to live out her sweet, pure life among them. Her goodness touches their vileness--and begins to dispel it. Her love blesses their soiled lives.

There she stays--a loving, patient, ministering angel, giving out her life--until that spot of wretchedness has begun to change. The degradation yields to purity. Into the squalor of their homes--come bits of beauty, and hints of moral refinement. On Sundays you may see this lovely angel-woman, with a company of restored lives around her, which she has lifted up out of sin and debasement, by the mighty power of her pure, unselfish love. That is true Christlike serving!

"Then the King will say to those on His right: Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world!
For I was hungry--and you gave Me something to eat;
I was thirsty--and you gave Me something to drink;
I was a stranger--and you invited Me in;
I was naked--and you clothed Me;
I was sick--and you visited Me;
I was in prison--and you came to visit Me!" Matthew 25:34-36

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His unsleeping watchfulness

(J.R. Miller)

"You are the God who sees me!" Genesis 16:13

Go where we may, we cannot get away from the calm, clear gaze of the Divine Eye! Neither in the blue depths of the heavens, nor in the dark abysses of the grave--can we hide away from God. If we could take the morning sunbeams for wings, and fly away on them with all the swiftness of light to the remotest bounds of space--we could not get beyond the reach of the Divine Eye. If we creep into the darkness, darkness so deep and dense that no human eye can behold us--still God sees us as clearly as if we stood in the bright noon-day sunshine! Darkness hides not from Him. Night shines to His eye, as brightly as day.

When we know that God loves us, there is infinite comfort in this thought of His unsleeping watchfulness. It is our Father who watches us! There ought also to be wondrous encouragement and inspiration in this consciousness.

While the Eye of divine love is looking upon us, we should always strive to be pleasing to Him in all things!

"If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea--even there Your hand will guide me, Your right hand will hold me fast! If I say, 'Surely the darkness will hide me, and the light become night around me,' even the darkness will not be dark to You; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to You!" Psalm 139:9-12

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"It is appointed for man once to die--and after that comes judgment!" Hebrews 9:27

The contracting walls!

(J.R. Miller)

There was a medieval dungeon of singular construction. When the prisoner first entered it--it seemed very bright and pleasant. It had a cheerful appearance. But in three or four days, he saw that the walls, which were of iron, were slowly contracting. On oiled hinges and in silent grooves, the metal plates were ever drawing nearer and nearer to each other.

By and by the prisoner could hardly move. Then the place was too small for him to lie down in. The next day, there was only room for him to stand. Now he put his hands frantically against the iron walls to keep them from crushing him. But all was in vain. The walls silently and remorselessly closed upon him.

In the same way, your years are the walls of just such a prison. They are bright and beautiful to you. But each day the prison is contracting, its walls are narrowing around you. With every pulse-beat, the iron walls draw closer and closer around your soul.

The only refuge from this prison, is Christ. Without Christ, life means nothing but illusion and disappointment, ending in death and eternal damnation! Christ is the only door into liberty, into blessedness, into joy, into Heaven!

"For the wages of sin is death" Romans 6:23

"I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved!" John 10:9

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There is nothing here, but a bit of glass

(J.R. Miller)

One of the most wonderful diamonds in the world is the 'Mountain of Light'. It now belongs to England, but originally came from India. The gem was put into the hands of Lord John Lawrence for safe keeping. Half unconsciously, Lord John thrust the diamond, which lay in a little box, into his waistcoat pocket. Burdened with many cares, he forgot all about the precious stone.

Six months afterward, a message came from the Queen ordering that the great jewel be sent to her at once. Then Lord John remembered that the gem had been given to him--and also his carelessness. Summoning his servant, he asked him if he had found a little parcel some months before, in one of his pockets. With great anxiety Lord John awaited the man's answer, "Yes, Sir, I found it and put it in one of your dressers." Lord John bade him to bring it, and the servant brought the little box. Fold after fold of wrappings were removed, and there lay the wondrous diamond shining like the sun.

The old servant was utterly unconscious of the immense treasure he held in his hands. "There is nothing here, but a bit of glass," he said. Then Lord John told him of its value, and most carefully was the gem guarded, until the Queen herself laid it among the jewels of her crown.

There is in the possession of each one of us, a far more precious and costly gem than the 'Mountain of Light'. What are we doing with our soul? Are we treating it as if it were of no value? Are we, like Lord John, wrapping it up in the folds of neglect and overlooking it altogether, while we are busy with other things?

"For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his soul?" Mark 8:36

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They only think of amusements and entertainments

(J.R. Miller)

Some people seem never to have any serious thoughts of life. They only think of amusements and entertainments, and never get beyond the airy surface of things. But to one who thinks deeply, life is not all a round of selfish and empty pleasures.

A traveler who tarried several days at Antwerp, describes the effect which the bells in the great tower had upon him. Every quarter hour they rang out on the air their sweet notes, in soft melody, which fell like a delicious rain of music dropping from the heavens, as tender and holy as the song of angels. Then at the full hour, amid their shower of liquid notes of silver--rang out the solemn strokes of the great bell, with iron tongue, deep and heavy; and these heavy tones inspired him with a feeling of awe.

As he listened, hour after hour, to the chime--the tender melody of the smaller, sweeter bells reminded him of the mercy and love of God; and the solemn undertones that broke on his ear at the end of each full hour, spoke of the solemn themes of justice, judgment, eternity.

So it is, that every thoughtful person is impressed in reading the Scriptures. Their usual tone is mercy. Love rings everywhere, like the notes of angels' songs. But here and there, amid the words of divine tenderness--comes some deep note, telling of justice, of wrath against sin, of the dreadful judgment day.

It is the same in life. The flow of the common days, is gladness. There is music everywhere. Flowers' bloom. Love lights its lamp in our path. Then suddenly there breaks in, amid the merry laughter--a deep and solemn tone, which fills us with awe.

Life is not all gaiety. Even now, its undertone is serious. We should be thoughtful. Eternity lies close to time. The momentous things of judgment, are hidden only by a thin veil of mist.

"It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment!" Hebrews 9:27

"Prepare to meet your God!" Amos 4:12

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

(J.R. Miller)

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

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

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

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

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

"Be sure your sin will find you out!" Numbers 32:23

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The mark of healthy spiritual life

(J.R. Miller)

"As the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God!" Psalm 42:1-2

Hunger is a mark of health--and the lack of appetite proclaims disease. The cessation of the desire for knowledge, shows that intellectual growth has ended.

Just so in spiritual life--dissatisfaction is the token of health. "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness." Blessed are the unsatisfied. Blessed are those who long for more and more. The mark of healthy spiritual life, is an intense thirst for God, and a deep, passionate yearning for closer, fuller, richer, more satisfying communion with Christ Himself. The ideal Christian life is one of insatiable thirst, of unquenchable yearning, of divine discontent--wooed ever on by visions of an increase in spiritual life, new joy, and new attainments in Christlikeness. The best thing in us, is never what we now are, nor what we have already reached--but the longing for that which is yet higher and holier.

"Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Philippians 3:12-14

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The instructions and writings of spiritual men

(Letters of John Newton)

"Examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good" 1 Thessalonians 5:21

Remember your exalted privilege--you have the Bible in your hands, and are not bound to follow books or preachers any farther than what they teach agrees with the Oracles of Truth. We have great reason to be thankful for the instructions and writings of spiritual men--but they are all fallible--even as ourselves. One is our master, even Christ--what He says, we are to receive implicitly--but we do not owe implicit subjection to the best of our fellow-creatures.

The Bereans were commended because they would not implicitly believe even the Apostle Paul--but searched the Scriptures to see whether the things which Paul taught were true. May the Lord give us a spirit of humility and discernment in all things.

"Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true." Acts 17:11

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A welcome guest!

("A Few Sighs From Hell" or "The Groans of the Damned Soul" by that poor and contemptible servant of Jesus Christ, John Bunyan, 1658. Being an exposition of Luke 16:19-31, concerning the Rich Man and the Beggar, wherein is revealed the lamentable state of the Damned--their cries, and their desires in their distresses, with the determined judgment of God upon them. A good warning word to lost sinners, both old and young, to seek salvation by faith in Jesus Christ--lest they come into the same place of torment.)

"Although a wicked man commits a hundred crimes and still lives a long time--yet surely I know that it will be well with God-fearing men, who are reverent before God!" Ecclesiastes 8:12

Believer, it will be well with you!
Consider how safe, how sure, how happy are you!
For when others go to Hell--you must go to Heaven!
When others go to the devil--you must go to God!
When as others go to eternal prison--you must be set at liberty, and at ease!
When others must roar for sorrow of heart--you shall sing for the joy of heart!

Consider, you must have . . .
all your well-spent life to follow you--instead of all your sins;
the glorious blessings of the gospel--instead of the dreadful curses and condemnations of the law;
the blessing of the loving Father--instead of a fiery sentence from the righteous Judge.

Let death come when it will, it can do you no harm; for it will be but only a passage . . .
   out of a prison--into a palace;
   out of a sea of troubles--into a haven of rest;
   out of a crowd of enemies--into an innumerable company of true, loving, and faithful friends;
   out of shame, reproach, and contempt--into exceeding great and eternal glory!

For death shall not hurt you with his sting, nor bite you with his soul-murdering teeth; but shall be a welcome guest to you--in that it is sent to free you from your troubles which you are in, while here in this poor world.

"For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain!" Philippians 1:21
"I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far!" Philippians 1:23

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The making of Christian character

(J.R. Miller)

It used to be a custom for travelers in Switzerland to bring home clusters of the edelweiss. The flower is not sought because of its beauty or for its fragrance--but in recognition of its hardiness and victoriousness in living and blooming under very difficult conditions. It grows on the Alps and Pyrenees, at lofty altitudes, where almost nothing else lives, and on crags difficult of access, and is among the hardiest of all plants. Thus the edelweiss becomes the symbol of noble life which . . .
  endures hardness,
  is victorious amid antagonisms,
  rises superior to obstacles.

The man who has never known hardship, who never has had to practice self-denial or make a personal sacrifice--may be the envy of other men whose lives have been one continual struggle. They may think that if they could have had his easy circumstances--that they could have made a great deal more of their life. But really, their opportunities in life thus far, has been far better than his. Christian character is made in the field of struggle and hardship--not in ways of ease and luxury.
Hindrances are opportunities.
Difficulty is a school for character.

Strength is the glory of manhood. Yet it is not easy to be strong--it is easier to be weak and to drift. It is easier for the boy in school not to work hard to get his lessons--but to let them go, and then at the last depend on some other boy to help him through. It is easier, when something happens to make you irritable, just to fly into a temper and to say bitter words--than it is to keep quiet and self-controlled. It is easier, when you are with other young people, and they are about to do something that you know to be unworthy, just to go with them--than it is to say, "I cannot do this wickedness against God!" It is easier to be weak--than to be strong. But weakness never leads to mature Christian character.

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We were made to fly!

(J.R. Miller)

"Those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles!" Isaiah 40:31

A gentleman had an eagle which had been caught when young, and brought up in a cage like a domestic bird. At length the owner was going away over the sea, and decided to give the eagle its freedom. So he brought it out of its cage, and it walked about, but seemed to have no thought whatever of flying away. The gentleman was disappointed. At length he lifted the great bird to the garden wall. It stood there a moment, and then looked up toward the sun. It seemed suddenly to remember that it was an eagle, whose home was amid the crags and the cliffs. A moment more and it lifted one wing, then the other, and was gone--soaring away into the blue of the sky!

Some of us like that eagle, shut up in the cage, using only its feet, not knowing it had wings, and that its true home was in the heavens. Let us lift up our eyes to the heavens--there is our home. We were made for God. Let us try our soul's wings; we were made to fly! It is a desecration of life to live amid the dust--when we were created for flights in the blue heavens!

"Set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things!" Colossians 3:1-2

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An easy, self-indulgent life!

(J.R. Miller)

And Jesus was saying to them all: If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me." Luke 9:23

We cannot live a life that will please Christ--without great cost to ourselves. It is never an easy thing, to be a disciple of Christ. An easy, self-indulgent life--can never be a Christ-like life.

It was not easy for Christ to redeem sinners. From beginning to end of His earthly ministry, He poured out His own precious life. The people thronged about Him with their sins, their sorrows, and their needs--and virtue went out of Him continually to heal them, to comfort them, to feed their heart-hunger. He utterly forgot Himself--and gave His life and love without stint to every one who asked. At last He literally gave Himself, emptying out His heart's blood--to give eternal life to sinful and dead souls. His sufferings were finished, when He bowed His head on the cross.

It is now our privilege to suffer for Him--to perpetuate the self-sacrificial love of Christ on this earth. Only in so far as we do this, are we living a life that will please Him.

"I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death!" Philippians 3:10

"Anyone who does not take his cross and follow Me, is not worthy of Me." Matthew 10:38

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Green pastures

(J.R. Miller, "Daily Bible Readings in the Life of Christ" 1890)

"The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake." Psalm 23:1-3

The shepherd takes care that his sheep are well fed. Christ also feeds His people, and leads them out to find pasture.

The Bible is His pasture-land, and the pasturage there is always good. Every chapter is a field of rich grass. Some of these fields seem at first to be bare and sterile; but even in the barest--there is enough pasture to feed a hungry soul.

Then there are the pasture-fields of prayer. These lie very close to the border of Heaven. They are always up in the quiet valleys among the mountains. The Good Shepherd leads us to them through the gates of prayer. We bow down in lowly humility, and enter with Him into the green pastures, and feed our souls until their hunger is satisfied.

The church is another of our Shepherd's pasture-fields. We enter the gates of the sanctuary, and at once we find spiritual food. We find it in the preaching of the Scriptures, in the ordinances, and in the fellowship of other believers.

In our common life in this world, if we are faithfully following Christ, we are continually in fields of rich pasture. Christ never leads us into any places in which there is nothing to feed us. Even in the hot plains of trial and sorrow--there is food. We sometimes think there is only barrenness in our toilsome life, filled with temptations, cares and sacrifices; but the Good Shepherd is ever with us--and there is always pasture.

Thus the whole world is a rich field--when Jesus leads His flock. If any Christians are not well fed--it is because they will not feed. The trouble must be that they do not hunger for spiritual food.

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To eat to the glory of God

(J.R. Miller)

"Whether therefore you eat or drink, or whatever you do--do all to the glory of God." 1 Corinthians 10:31

Nothing in life is left out--"whatever you do." It extends even to eating and drinking. We are to do all things to the glory of God. This means that we must do everything in a way that will please Him.

To eat to the glory of God is to recognize Him as the Giver of our daily bread, to seek His blessing on it, to eat according to the divine laws, eating to be ready for the best service, and then to use all our strength in doing the work which God gives us to do.

One who eats self-indulgently or gluttonously, or who eats food that is injurious to his health, or who does not use the strength he derives from his food in living obediently--is not glorifying God. In all our life, in everything we do, we are to think of what will honor God.

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Don't worry about the package!

(J.R. Miller)

"No chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it." Hebrews 12:11

Beyond the River of Sorrow, there is a Promised Land. Just so, no trial for the present seems joyous, yet afterward it leads to blessing. There are rich possibilities for good--beyond every pain and trial. There are green fields--beyond Jordan's sorrows. Our disappointments are really God's appointments, and bring rich rewards. God takes our losses--and molds them into gains for us. There is nothing really evil in the experiences of a Christian, for "God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose." Our Father sends us nothing but good. Don't worry about the package! Be it dull or attractive--it enfolds a 'gift of love'!