Grace Gems

[nChrist]

__________________________________________
From Grace Gems:
Very Old - But Beautiful and Timeless Treasures.
Everything is FREE and Public Domain.
http://www.gracegems.org/19/literature.htm
___________________________________________

What a farce it all is!

(Arthur Pink)

The vast majority of the churches are in a sorry state! Those that are out-and-out worldly are at their wits end to invent new devices for drawing a crowd. Others which still preserve an outward form of godliness often provide nothing substantial for the soul; there is little ministering of Christ to the heart, and little preaching of sound doctrine without which souls cannot be built up and established in the faith.

The great majority of the pastors summon to their aid some professional speaker, who puts on a high-pressure campaign and secures sufficient new 'converts' to take the place of those who have 'lapsed' since he was last with them.

What a farce it all is!

[nChrist]

__________________________________________
From Grace Gems:
Very Old - But Beautiful and Timeless Treasures.
Everything is FREE and Public Domain.
http://www.gracegems.org/19/literature.htm
___________________________________________

Experimental conformity to the image of Christ

(Arthur Pink)

"As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the Word--that you may grow thereby" 1 Peter 2:2

It behooves each one of us to honestly and diligently examine himself, so as to discover whether or not we are growing in grace.

We are not to be content with an increase of mere head-knowledge of Scripture. What we need to be most concerned about is our practical growth--our experimental conformity to the image of Christ.

One point at which we may test ourselves is: "Does my reading and study of God's Word make me less worldly?"

"But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be glory both now and forever! Amen." 2 Peter 3:18

[nChrist]

__________________________________________
From Grace Gems:
Very Old - But Beautiful and Timeless Treasures.
Everything is FREE and Public Domain.
http://www.gracegems.org/19/literature.htm
___________________________________________

Who cares for pebbles--when jewels glitter before him?

(Charles Spurgeon)

"To rule a kingdom, is a nobler matter than to play with marbles."

What, then, is the folly of the worldling's choice, when he prefers to be contending among men for earthly toys--instead of seeking those eternal treasures above!

How great is the degradation of professing Christians, when their minds are taken up with fashionable trivialities--instead of living alone to glorify their God, and acting as those whom Jesus has made to be kings and priests!

Who cares for pebbles--when jewels glitter before him?

Who would choose toys and rattles--when the wealth of the Indies is offered him?

Let us be no longer children or fools--but act as men who have put away childish things.

"Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ--keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above--not on the things that are on earth!" Colossians 3:1-2

[nChrist]

__________________________________________
From Grace Gems:
Very Old - But Beautiful and Timeless Treasures.
Everything is FREE and Public Domain.
http://www.gracegems.org/19/literature.htm
___________________________________________

They would pass by these glittering unrealities

(J.R. Miller)

"Will you set your eyes upon that which is not? Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone--for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle!" Proverbs 23:5

People are badly cheated in this world. They often imagine that gold, silver, houses, lands, and stocks are the real treasures. So they toil for these things and gather them into their possession, and pile up what they suppose to be wealth. Thus they live like princes in their fine houses, and call themselves millionaires.

But one day their supposed riches take to themselves wings and fly away like eagles to the skies. Or they may keep their wealth, perhaps, and die at last in the midst of it, and have a great funeral. But then they find that they cannot carry a penny of it with them!

"How much did he leave?" was asked about a rich man who had died.

"He left all of it!" was the answer.

If men only knew that there are other things far more worth setting eyes and heart upon--things which will never fly away--they would pass by these glittering unrealities--to lay hold of the true riches!

"No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived--what God has prepared for those who love Him!" 1 Corinthians 2:9

[nChrist]

__________________________________________
From Grace Gems:
Very Old - But Beautiful and Timeless Treasures.
Everything is FREE and Public Domain.
http://www.gracegems.org/19/literature.htm
___________________________________________

He left Heaven for us!

(Thomas Brooks, "The Golden Key to Open Hidden Treasures")

"If anyone would come after Me--he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me." Matthew 16:24

Let the sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ, work us into a gracious willingness to embrace sufferings for His sake, and cheerfully and resolutely to take up His cross and follow Him.

Did Christ suffer, who knew no sin--and shall we think it strange to suffer, who know nothing but sin?

Shall He lie sweltering under His Father's wrath--and shall we cry out under men's anger?

Was He crowned with thorns--and must we be crowned with rose-buds?

Was His whole life, from the cradle to the cross, made up of nothing but sorrows and sufferings--and must our lives, from the cradle to the grave, be filled up with nothing but pleasures and delights?

Was He despised--and must we be admired?

Was He debased--and must we be exalted?

Was He poor--and must we be rich?

Was He low--and must we be high?

Did He drink of a bitter cup, a bloody cup--and must we have only cups of consolation?

Let us not think anything too much to do for Christ,
nor anything too great to suffer for Christ,
nor anything too dear to part with for such a Christ, such a Savior--who thought nothing too much to do, nor too grievous to suffer--so that He might accomplish the work of our redemption!

He left Heaven for us--and shall not we let go of this world for Him?

He left his Father's bosom for us--and shall not we leave the bosoms of our dearest relations for him?

He underwent all sorts of sufferings for us--let us as readily encounter with all sorts of sufferings for Him.

[nChrist]

__________________________________________
From Grace Gems:
Very Old - But Beautiful and Timeless Treasures.
Everything is FREE and Public Domain.
http://www.gracegems.org/19/literature.htm
___________________________________________

The object of God's tender, perfect and ceaseless care!

(James Smith, "Divine Care!" 1865)

"Casting all your care upon Him--for He cares for you!" 1 Peter 5:7

Our cares must be cast upon our God, or they will prove a burden too heavy for us--they will depress, bewilder, and make us wretched!

WHO is it that cares for us?

It is the Lord Almighty--the high and lofty one who inhabits eternity, whose name is holy!
It is He whom the angels obey, the seraphim adore, and all creation glorifies!
It is the Lord--who is so great, that we have no adequate conception of His greatness!
It is He who is so good--that it is impossible fully to set forth His goodness!
It is He who is so glorious--that no sinner can see His face and live!
It is He who created all things with His Word!
It is He who governs all things by His wisdom!
It is He who upholds all things by His power!
It is He whose resources are infinite!
It is He whose compassion is exquisite!
It is He whose patience is without limit!

But though He is so exalted, so happy, and so unspeakably great--He cares for you!

He cares for you--as base as you are.
He cares for you--as sinful as you are.
He cares for you--as depressed and discouraged as you are.

HE cares for YOU!

May I pass through the present world under the impression, "I am the object of God's tender, perfect and ceaseless care!"
"Cast your cares on the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous fall." Psalm 55:22

[nChrist]

__________________________________________
From Grace Gems:
Very Old - But Beautiful and Timeless Treasures.
Everything is FREE and Public Domain.
http://www.gracegems.org/19/literature.htm
___________________________________________

Reader! have you enjoyed the presence of Jesus today?

(James Smith, "A Help to Devotion" 1859)

"Abide with us--for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent." Luke 24:29

The presence of Jesus, is the life and the joy of the saints. When we enjoy it--we dread the thought of losing it; and when we have lost it--we cannot rest until we have regained it. That is a gloomy day--in which the presence of Jesus is not enjoyed; and that is a dreary night--when Jesus is absent from us.

Reader! have you enjoyed the presence of Jesus today? Has He communed with your spirit, thereby . . .
  strengthening your faith,
  exciting your hope, and
  deepening your comfort?

If so, I know that your prayer tonight will be, "Abide with me! Yes, precious Lord Jesus, we do beseech You to visit us, converse with us, open up the Scriptures to us, and abide with us. Let us feast our eyes on Your glory--and our hearts on Your grace. With You, we can feel at home--we can be happy anywhere. Without You, we cannot rest, we cannot feel satisfied, we cannot enjoy repose--let us have whatever we may. You have won our heart's love--You have made yourself the center and source of our comfort. Come, then, and abide with us this evening--and then a blessed evening it will be. Your presence will free us from all our cares, and raise us above all our troubles. Your presence will feast us, refresh us, and make us satisfied with our lot, be it what it may!"

[nChrist]

__________________________________________
From Grace Gems:
Very Old - But Beautiful and Timeless Treasures.
Everything is FREE and Public Domain.
http://www.gracegems.org/19/literature.htm
___________________________________________

That time has arrived!

(Arthur Pink)

"In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of His appearing and His kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage--with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth, and turn aside to myths." 2 Timothy 4:1-4

That time has arrived! Church-goers today will not endure "sound doctrine." Those . . .
   who preach the total depravity of man,
   who insist upon the imperative necessity of the new birth,
   who set forth the inflexible righteousness and holiness of God, and
   who warn against the eternal and conscious torment awaiting every rejecter of Christ,
find it almost impossible to obtain a hearing! Such preachers are regarded as puritanic pessimists, and are not wanted.

In these degenerate times, the masses demand that which will soothe them in their sins--and amuse them while they journey down the Broad Road which leads to eternal destruction! The multitude is affected with "itching ears" which crave novelty and that which will amuse them.

Not only are many of our Seminaries cesspools of spiritual corruption,
not only are hundreds of our pulpits now filled by traitors to the cause they profess to champion,
not only is every cardinal doctrine of the faith attacked and denied by the very ones paid to defend them--
but the evil effects of such teaching from our religious leaders have influenced multitudes of souls committed to their care.

The man in the pew, following the lead of his teachers, has lost faith in the Bible as a Divine revelation, and in consequence, no longer submits to its authority.

[nChrist]

__________________________________________
From Grace Gems:
Very Old - But Beautiful and Timeless Treasures.
Everything is FREE and Public Domain.
http://www.gracegems.org/19/literature.htm
___________________________________________

Their greatest obstacle in the way of spiritual growth and transformed character

(J.R. Miller, "The Transfigured Life!" 1893)

Nothing helps more to develop the transfigured life in us, than work. Some people chafe because they have so much to do. Their days are filled from morning to night with dreary, monotonous task-work. With men it is the never-ending work of the farm, the office, the store, the shop, the mill. With women it is the thousand duties of the household, the care of the home, the tending of children, the weary chores of domestic life.

There are many people who think their greatest obstacle in the way of spiritual growth and transformed character--is in the drudgeries to which they are indentured by their condition. They imagine that if they could be freed from these and could have leisure for reading, for study, and for fellowship--then they would grow into far more radiant beauty of character.

But this is a mistaken impression. The only one perfect life the world has ever known, was not spent with a book--but with a hammer and a saw! The school of common taskwork, with its perpetual round of dreary duties--is the best place in the world in which to attain noble spiritual culture. There is no other way in which one's life will be so surely, so quickly transfigured--as in the faithful, cheerful doing of every-day tasks.

We need to remember that this world is not so much a place for doing things--as for developing character. Household life is not primarily a sphere for good cooking, tidy keeping of rooms, thorough sweeping and dusting, careful nursing and training of children, hospitable entertainment of friends, and the thousand things that must be done each day; it is a sphere for transforming women's souls into radiant beauty.

The shop, the mill, the factory, the store, the office, the farm--are not primarily places for making machines, selling goods, weaving cloths, building engines, and growing crops; they are, first of all, places for making men, building character, growing souls.

Right in the midst of what some people call drudgery--is the very best place to get the transformed, transfigured life! The doing of common tasks patiently, promptly, faithfully, cheerfully--makes the character beautiful and bright!

[nChrist]

__________________________________________
From Grace Gems:
Very Old - But Beautiful and Timeless Treasures.
Everything is FREE and Public Domain.
http://www.gracegems.org/19/literature.htm
___________________________________________

We have seen such a tragic repetition of it in our own days

(Arthur Pink)

"With their silver and gold they make idols for themselves to their own destruction!" Hosea 8:4

Sad indeed is the above passage--and the more so, because we have seen such a tragic repetition of it in our own days.

Oh what earthly-mindedness, what indulging of the flesh, what sinful extravagance--are now seen among professing Christians today!

How practical godliness has waned;
how the denying of self has disappeared;
how covetousness, pleasure and worldliness now possess the great majority of those calling themselves the people of God.

Yet as great as the sin of the people is--far greater is that of most of the preachers, who, instead of warning, admonishing, rebuking, and setting before their people an example of sobriety and contentment--criminally remain silent upon the crying sins of their hearers, while they themselves encourage the reckless indulgence of worldly lusts.

[nChrist]

__________________________________________
From Grace Gems:
Very Old - But Beautiful and Timeless Treasures.
Everything is FREE and Public Domain.
http://www.gracegems.org/19/literature.htm
___________________________________________

J.C. Ryle Gems #1

   ~  ~  ~  ~

It costs something to be a true Christian. It will cost us our sins, our self-righteousness, our ease and our worldliness!

   ~  ~  ~  ~

A Christian is a walking sermon. Christians preach far more than a minister does--for they preach all week long!

   ~  ~  ~  ~

According to the men of the world--few are going to Hell.
According to the Bible--few are going to Heaven.

   ~  ~  ~  ~

Nothing is so offensive to Christ, as lukewarmness in religion!

   ~  ~  ~  ~

Beware of manufacturing a God of your own . . .
  a God who is all mercy--but not just;
  a God who is all love--but not holy;
  a God who has a Heaven for everybody--but a Hell for none;
  a God who will make no distinction between godly and ungodly in eternity.
Such a God is an idol of your own--as truly an idol as any snake or crocodile in an Egyptian temple! The hands of your own imagination and sentimentality have made him. He is not the God of the Bible--and beside the God of the Bible, there is no God at all.

   ~  ~  ~  ~

Pride is the oldest and most common of sins.
Humility is the rarest and most beautiful of graces.

[nChrist]

__________________________________________
From Grace Gems:
Very Old - But Beautiful and Timeless Treasures.
Everything is FREE and Public Domain.
http://www.gracegems.org/19/literature.htm
___________________________________________

J.C. Ryle Gems #2

   ~  ~  ~  ~

Look to the cross, think of the cross, meditate on the cross--and then go and set your affections on the world if you can!

   ~  ~  ~  ~

A crucified Savior will never be content to have a self-pleasing, self-indulging, worldly-minded people!

   ~  ~  ~  ~

The Gospel was not meant merely to reside in our intellect, memories, and tongues--but to be seen in our lives.

   ~  ~  ~  ~

Happiness does not depend on outward circumstances--but on the state of the heart.

   ~  ~  ~  ~

Health is a good thing. But sickness is far better--if it leads us to God.

   ~  ~  ~  ~

The beginning of the way to Heaven--is to feel that we are on the way to Hell.

   ~  ~  ~  ~

There is a common, worldly kind of Christianity in this day, which many have, and think they have enough. It is a cheap Christianity which offends nobody, and requires no sacrifice--which costs nothing, and is worth nothing.

[nChrist]

__________________________________________
From Grace Gems:
Very Old - But Beautiful and Timeless Treasures.
Everything is FREE and Public Domain.
http://www.gracegems.org/19/literature.htm
___________________________________________

The providences of God are often dark and mysterious!

(James Smith, "The Evening Sacrifice; Or, A Help to Devotion" 1859)

"Your way is in the sea--and Your path is in the great waters. Your footsteps may not be known." Psalm 77:19

The providences of God are often dark and mysterious. It is not easy to ascertain why the Lord acts as He does--or to find out the precise object which He has in view. He carries on His work according to His eternal and pre-ordained plan--and He accomplishes His purposes often by the most unlikely means. He works all things after the counsel of His own will--and He works leisurely, having no cause to hurry. We are naturally hasty, and want to know what God means at once. But He says, "Be still. Wait. Watch. Let patience have her perfect work."

We may not be able to account for our trials, troubles, losses, and crosses--but all will be made plain by-and-by. "Jesus said to him: You do not understand now what I am doing--but you will understand later on." John 13:7

We now know in part--but we shall soon know even as also we are known. And until then, we may well be patient--assured that God is acting wisely, lovingly, and is consulting our good in all that He does.

O wonder-working God, Your dealings with us are often dark, and difficult to be understood! Give us faith to believe Your promises--when we cannot understand Your providences. Let us be assured of Your love to us--when we cannot ascertain the design of Your dealings with us. Preserve us from a repining, complaining, and unbelieving spirit--and grant us grace that we may rest satisfied that You are acting rightly. May we learn, in whatever state we are--therewith to be content. With patience may we do and suffer Your will at present--being fully assured that all will be explained and opened up to us at length. O to be enabled . . .
  to rest on Your covenant love,
  to trust Your faithful promises, and
  to commit all of our ways unto You!

"All the paths of the LORD are mercy and truth--to such as keep His covenant and His testimonies!" Psalm 25:10

[nChrist]

__________________________________________
From Grace Gems:
Very Old - But Beautiful and Timeless Treasures.
Everything is FREE and Public Domain.
http://www.gracegems.org/19/literature.htm
___________________________________________

J.C. Ryle Gems #3

   ~  ~  ~  ~

Christian! Your trials, crosses, and conflicts are all temporary.

   ~  ~  ~  ~

I am one of those old-fashioned ministers who believe the whole Bible and everything that it contains.

   ~  ~  ~  ~

There are no lessons so useful--as those learned in the school of affliction.

   ~  ~  ~  ~

Christ is never fully valued--until sin is clearly seen.

   ~  ~  ~  ~

Our Lord has . . .
  many weak children in his family,
  many dull pupils in his school,
  many raw soldiers in his army,
  many lame sheep in his flock.
Yet He bears with them all, and casts none away.
Happy is that Christian who has learned to do likewise with his brethren.

   ~  ~  ~  ~

A religion that costs nothing is worth nothing. A cheap Christianity, without a cross--will prove in the end a useless Christianity, without a crown.

   ~  ~  ~  ~

That preaching is sadly defective, which dwells exclusively on the mercies of God and the joys of Heaven--yet never sets forth the terrors of the Lord and the miseries of Hell.

   ~  ~  ~  ~

Sin forsaken--is one of the best evidences of sin forgiven.

[nChrist]

__________________________________________
From Grace Gems:
Very Old - But Beautiful and Timeless Treasures.
Everything is FREE and Public Domain.
http://www.gracegems.org/19/literature.htm
___________________________________________

J.C. Ryle Gems #4

   ~  ~  ~  ~

To be a Christian--it will cost a man his sins!

   ~  ~  ~  ~

There is no such thing as 'chance', 'luck', or 'accident' in the Christian journey through this world.
Everything is arranged and appointed by God. All things are working together for the believer's good.

   ~  ~  ~  ~

The standard of the world, and the standard of the Lord Jesus--are widely different.
They are more than different--they are flatly contradictory one to the other.
Never be satisfied with the world's standard of Christianity!

   ~  ~  ~  ~

Hell is truth known too late!

   ~  ~  ~  ~

A tree may always be known by its fruit.
Just so, a true Christian may always be discovered by their habits, tastes and affections.

   ~  ~  ~  ~

Christ is never fully valued--until sin is clearly seen. We must know the depth
and malignity of our disease--in order to appreciate the great Physician!

   ~  ~  ~  ~

That Bible is read best--which is practiced most!