Grace Gems

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The most eloquent mouths that ever spoke!

(Charles Spurgeon)

"Behold, I saw a Lamb looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne!" Revelation 5:6

Why should our exalted Savior appear in Heaven with His wounds? The wounds of Jesus are . . .
  His glories,
  His jewels,
  His sacred ornaments!

To the eye of the believer, Jesus is more than beautiful because He is "white and ruddy" Song of Solomon 5:10. He is white with innocence, and ruddy with His own blood.

We see Him as the 'Lily' of matchless purity--and as the 'Rose' encrimsoned with His own blood.

Christ never was so matchless as when He hung on the cross! There we behold all His beauties in perfection.

The wounds of Jesus are far more beautiful than all the splendor and pomp of kings.

Jesus appears as the slain Lamb who sought our souls and redeemed them by His complete atonement.

His wounds are the trophies of His love and of His victory.

He has redeemed for Himself a great multitude which no one can number--His scars are the memorials of the fight.

If there were not an audible word, those wounds are the mouths which speak of His love!

The most eloquent mouths that ever spoke, are the wounds of Christ!

Listen! Listen!

Every blood-drop says, "Pardon!"
Every wound says, "Life, eternal life!"

"In a loud voice they sang: Worthy is the Lamb who was slain--to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!" Revelation 5:12

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The remedy of all our miseries!

(Stephen Charnock)

"For there is one God and one mediator between God and men--the man Christ Jesus!" 1 Timothy 2:5

God, apart from Christ, is an angry, offended Sovereign.

Unless we behold God in and through Christ, the only Mediator--the terrors of His Majesty would overwhelm us.

Because of our sins--we dare not approach the Father, except in Christ.
We first fasten our eyes upon Christ, then upon the Father.

If Christ does not bear our guilt and reconcile us unto God, we must surely perish everlastingly!

Before any man can think . . .
  to stand before the face of God's justice,
  be admitted to the secret chamber of God's mercy,
  or partake of the riches of His grace--
he must look to one the Mediator, Christ Jesus.

Let us look upon a crucified Christ, as the remedy of all our miseries.
His cross has procured our crown.
His passion has expiated our transgressions.
His death has disarmed the law.
His blood has washed our sinful souls, spotless.

His death is . . .
  the destruction of our enemies,
  the spring of our happiness, and
  the eternal testimony of divine love!

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The principle of iniquity is embedded in the human race

(John MacArthur)

The Bible is absolutely crystal clear that all children are sinners from conception...all children. The principle of iniquity is embedded in the human race. Children are born morally corrupt. They are born with an irresistible bent toward evil. And any notion that children are born morally neutral and free from a predisposition to sin is absolutely contrary to Scripture.

All humans are born in sin. If infants were not sinful, if they were not morally corrupt, then they wouldn't die. If they were born innocent or pure or morally neutral there would be no basis for their death. The very fact that they die indicates that the disease of sin is there in them because sin is the killer. It is in their inherited sin nature that the seeds of death are planted.

   ~  ~  ~  ~

"The LORD saw how great man's wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time." Genesis 6:5

" . . . every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood." Genesis 8:21

"The LORD looks down from Heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God. All have turned aside, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one!" Psalm 14:2-3

"Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me!" Psalm 51:5

"Even from birth the wicked go astray; from the womb they are wayward and speak lies." Psalm 58:3

"There is not a righteous man on earth who does what is right and never sins." Ecclesiastes 7:20

"The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked!" Jeremiah 17:9

"All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one!" Romans 3:12

"Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest." Ephesians 2:3

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In a few years

(Thomas Chalmers, 1780-1847)

"For we were born only yesterday and know nothing, and our days on earth are but a shadow." Job 8:9

"He springs up like a flower and withers away; like a fleeting shadow, he does not endure." Job 14:2

"Only a few years will pass before I go on the journey of no return!" Job 16:22

"My days are like the evening shadow; I wither away like grass." Psalm 102:11

"Man is like a breath; his days are like a fleeting shadow." Psalm 144:4

How transient is human life--yet no one lays it to heart. With the magnificence of eternity before us--let fleeting time, with all its fluctuations, dwindle into its own littleness.

In a few years our heads will be laid in the cold grave, and the green turf will cover us. The children who come after us will tread upon our graves.

They will weep for us a few days.

They will talk of us a few months.

They will remember us a few years.

Then our memory shall disappear from the face of the earth, and not a tongue shall be found to recall it!

The character with which we sink into the grave at death--is the very character with which we shall reappear at the final judgment!

"O God, impress upon me the value of time--and give regulation to all my thoughts and to all my actions. O God, help me to live for Your glory. As the years roll over me, may I withdraw my affections from time, and feel that in moving through the world, I am moving toward eternity!"

"So teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom." Psalm 90:12

    ~  ~  ~  ~

Editor's note: My wife's unsaved brother died suddenly of a heart attack this morning. He was 56 and in the best of health. How true is God's Word: "Now listen, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.' Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, 'If it is the Lord's will, we will live and do this or that.'" James 4:13-15

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This is not mine to keep!

(Charles Spurgeon)

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Matthew 6:19-21

Christian! If you have anything that you prize very highly, hold it very loosely--for you may easily lose it.

Hold everything earthly with a loose hand, but grasp eternal things with a deathlike grip.

Of everything on earth, it is wise for us to say, "This is not mine to keep!" It is essential to realize that this it is true, for everything here is temporary.

Mind what you are doing--you prosperous people, you who have nice homes, you who are hoarding up money. There is nothing permanent for you here on earth. Your home is in Heaven--your home is not here. If you find your treasure here--your heart will be here also.

You must keep all earthly treasures out of your heart.

Let Christ be your treasure, and let Him have your heart!

"This world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God, will live forever!" 1 John 2:17

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We do not know what we might have been!

(Charles Spurgeon)

"God is our refuge and strength--a very present help in times of trouble." Psalm 46:1

We do not know what we might have been--if God's gracious protection had not been like a wall of fire around us, as it still is--for the Lord continues to deliver all who put their trust in Him.

Believe with unquestioning confidence that God is delivering you even now. You know that He has delivered you--be just as sure that He will continue to help you in every time of trouble.

"I am locked in a prison of despair!" Yes, but your Lord has a key that can open the door and let you out.

"I am in great poverty!" another says. But He knows all about it, and He is going to supply all your needs.

Yet another says, "But I am fainting!" God is near, ready to revive and encourage your fainting soul.

Perhaps a person says, "I find faith for the past and the ultimate future quite easy, but I don't have enough faith for the present." We sometimes forget that God is "a very present help in times of trouble," but it is true.

There may be many trials before you, but there is an abundance of mercy ready to meet those trials. There may be troubles that you do not know yet, as well as repetitions of those you have experienced. But the Lord will give you strength and will continue to deliver you.

As the eyes gradually fail, and the limbs grow weak, and the infirmities of old age creep over us--we are likely to be distressed, but our Lord will not forsake us.

When severe sickness invades our earthly bodies and our pains multiply and intensify--we wonder how we will endure.

As we consider our death--we wonder how we will be able to bear our last hours.

Be encouraged: He who has delivered and does deliver--will continue to deliver.
Even as the trial comes, the Lord will show you a way of escape.

He has delivered you--give Him your gratitude.
He is delivering you--give Him your confidence.
He will deliver you--begin now to praise Him for mercies that He has yet to show you, and for grace that you have not yet experienced but that He will grant you in the future.

"He has delivered us from such a deadly peril--and He will deliver us!" 2 Corinthians 1:10

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Faith never prospers so well!

(Charles Spurgeon)

"In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the trial of your faith--of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire--may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed." 1 Peter 1:6-7

Untried faith may be true faith--but it is sure to be little faith, and it is likely to remain dwarfish so long as it is without trials. Faith never prospers so well, as when all things are against her.

When a calm reigns on the sea--you may spread the sails as you will, but the ship will not move to its harbor. Only let the winds rush howling forth--it is then that she makes headway toward her desired haven.

No stars gleam so brightly--as those that glisten in the polar sky,
no water tastes so sweet--as that which springs up amid the desert sand,
and no faith is so precious--as that which lives and triumphs in adversity.

Tried faith brings experience. You could not have believed your own weakness, had you not been compelled to pass through the rivers of difficulty. Just so, you would never have known God's strength, had you not been supported amid the flood-waters. Faith increases in solidity, assurance and intensity--the more it is exercised with tribulation. Faith is precious, and its trial is precious, too.

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God is our abode, our home!

(Charles Spurgeon)

"The eternal God is your refuge." Deuteronomy 33:27

The word "refuge" may be translated "abiding place"--which gives the thought that God is our abode, our home.

There is a fullness and sweetness in the metaphor, for our home is dear to our hearts--although it may be the humblest cottage or the scantiest garret. But dearer far is our blessed God, who is our eternal refuge.

It is at home that we are safe--here we shut the world out and dwell in quiet security. Just so, God is our shelter and retreat--our abiding refuge.

It is at home that we take our rest--it is there that we find repose after the fatigue and toil of the day. In the same way, our hearts find rest in God when, wearied with life's conflict, we turn to Him, and our soul dwells at ease.

At home, also, we let our hearts loose--we are not afraid of being misunderstood nor of our words being misconstrued. Just so, when we are with God--we can commune freely with Him, laying open all our hidden desires.

Home, too, is the place of our truest and purest happiness. In the same way, it is in God that our hearts find their deepest delight.

"God is our refuge and strength--a very present help in times of trouble!" Psalm 46:1

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(Charles Spurgeon)

"Behold the Man!" John 19:5

If there is one place where our Lord Jesus most fully becomes the joy and comfort of His people--it is where He plunged deepest into the depths of woe.

Come, behold the Man in the garden of Gethsemane.
Behold His heart so brimming with love, that He cannot hold it in.
Behold the bloody sweat as it distills from every pore of His body and falls upon the ground.

Behold the Man upon the bloody tree.
Stand amazed as they drive the nails into His hands and feet.
Look up and see the sorrowful image of your suffering Lord.
Mark Him as the ruby drops stand on the thorn crown.
Behold the Man when all His bones are out of joint, and He is poured out like water and brought into the dust of death.
God has forsaken Him--and Hell encompasses Him.

Behold and see--was there ever sorrow like His sorrow?

Gaze upon Him!

We have only to sit longer at the cruel cross--to be less troubled with our trials and woes.

We have but to see His sorrows--and we shall be ashamed to mention our sorrows .

We have but to gaze into His wounds--and heal our own.

If we would grow in grace--it must be by considering His humiliation and His sorrow.
If we would live holily--it must be by the contemplation of His sin-atoning death.

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We have need to use this prayer at all times!

(Charles Spurgeon)

"Do not forsake me, O Lord!
 O my God, do not be far from me!" Psalm 38:21

We frequently pray that God would not forsake us in the hour of trial and temptation--but we often forget that we have need to use this prayer at all times! There is no moment of our life, however holy, in which we can do without His constant upholding. Whether in light or in darkness, in communion or in temptation--we alike need the prayer: "Do not forsake me, O Lord! O my God, do not be far from me!"

We cannot do without continued aid from above. Let this be then, your daily prayer:

  "Father! Do not forsake Your helpless child, lest I fall by the hand of the enemy.

   Shepherd! Do not forsake Your wayward lamb, lest I wander from the safety of the fold.

   Great Gardener! Do not forsake Your frail plant, lest I wither and die.

   Do not forsake me in my joys--lest they absorb my heart.

   Do not forsake me in my sorrows--lest I murmur against You.

   Do not forsake me--for without You I am as weak as water.

   Do not forsake me--for my path is dangerous and full of snares, and I cannot do without Your guidance.

   Do not be far from me, O Lord--for trouble is near, and no other can help me.

   Do not forsake me, O Lord! O my God, do not be far from me!

   Do not leave me or forsake me, O God my Savior--at any moment of my life!"

"Hold me up, and I shall be safe!" Psalm 119:117

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The spring of true obedience to God!

(Charles Spurgeon)

"This is love: that we walk in obedience to His commands." 2 John 1:6

Love to God is the spring of true obedience to God.

One who is not obedient to His commandments, is evidently not a true believer; for although good works do not save us--yet, being saved, believers are sure to produce good works.

Though the fruit is not the root of the tree--yet a well-rooted tree will, in its season, bring forth its fruits. So, though the keeping of the commandments does not make me a child of God--yet, being a child of God, I shall be obedient to my heavenly Father. But this I cannot be, unless I love God.

A mere external formal obedience--is not sincere obedience in God's sight. He abhors the sacrifice, where the heart is not found. I must obey Him because I love Him--or else I have not truly obeyed at all. See then, that to produce the indispensable fruits of saving faith--there must be sincere love for God.

"If you love Me, you will obey what I command." John 14:15

"Whoever has My commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves Me." John 14:21

"If anyone loves Me, he will obey My teaching." John 14:23

"He who does not love Me will not obey My teaching." John 14:24

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The Spirit's leading!

("Every Day!" Author unknown, 1872)

"As many as are led by the Spirit of God--they are the sons of God." Romans 8:14

Here is a mark of divine sonship: All who follow the leadings of the Holy Spirit--they are children of God.

The Spirit leads His followers to the looking-glass of Divine truth. Here they discover their spiritual deformity and impurity. Here they see what they are--and what they need.

The Spirit leads them to the throne of grace--and there He helps their infirmities, and makes intercession for them according to the will of God.

The Spirit leads them to the cross! When they see Jesus dying for their sins, atoning for their transgressions--they lose the burden of guilt.

The Spirit leads them in the path of loving obedience--and they experience the blessedness of keeping Christ's commands.

The Spirit leads them in the track of the Good Shepherd--and enables them to hear His voice and to follow Him.

"As many as are led by the Spirit of God--they are the sons of God."

Many, alas! are following the leadings of a very different spirit--"the spirit that works in the children of disobedience!" He leads, by paths of unbelief and sin--to endless misery and ruin! Beloved reader, beware of following his leadings--and prayerfully yield yourself to the guidance of the Spirit of truth and love.

"Show me Your ways, O LORD, teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in You all day long." Psalm 25:4-5

   Spirit of Truth, my Leader be,
   And seal adoption mine;
   Impress Christ's image on my heart,
   The pledge of bliss divine!

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They are all gone!

(Charles Spurgeon)

"If you, O Lord, should keep a record of our sins--Lord, who could stand before You?" Psalm 130:3

"I--yes, I alone--will blot out your sins for My own sake, and will never remember them again!" Isaiah 43:25

"You will tread our sins underfoot, and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea!" Micah 7:19

All our transgressions are swept away at once, carried off as by a flood! They are so completely removed from us--that no guilty trace of them remains! They are all gone!

Oh, believers, think of this, for it is no little thing.
Sins against a holy God,
sins against His loving Son,
sins against the Gospel--as well as against the Law,
sins against man--as well as against God,
sins of the body--as well as sins of the mind,
sins as numerous as the sands on the seashore, and as great as the sea itself
--all, all are removed from us--as far as the east is from the west!

All this evil was rolled into one great mass and laid upon Jesus! Having borne it all, He has made an end of it forever. When the Lord forgave us, He forgave us the whole debt. He did not take the bill and say, "I strike out this item, and that item"--but the pen went through it all: Paid in full!

"For as high as the heavens are above the earth--so great is His faithful love toward those who fear Him.
 As far as the east is from the west--so far has He removed our transgressions from us!" Psalm 103:11-12

"My sin, oh the bliss of this glorious thought!
 My sin, not in part but the whole,
 Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
 Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!"
   Horatio Spafford

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A mark which is always set upon Christ's sheep, and never set upon any others!

(Charles Spurgeon)

"And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose." Romans 8:28

There are some graces which in their vigor are not absolutely essential to the bare existence of spiritual life, though they are very important for its healthy growth. But true love for God must be in the heart--or else there is no grace there whatever. If a man does not love God, then he is not a renewed man. Love for God is a mark which is always set upon Christ's sheep, and never set upon any others.

I have no right, therefore, to believe that I am a regenerated person--unless my heart truly and sincerely loves God. If I have been regenerated, I will not be perfect, but this one thing I can say: "Lord, You know all things. You know that I love You!" When by believing we receive the privilege to become sons of God--we also receive the nature of sons, and with filial love we cry, "Abba, Father!"

There is no exception to this rule! If a man does not sincerely love God--then he is not born of God. As the sun must give forth its light--so must a soul that has been created anew by divine grace, display its nature by earnest affection toward God. You are not born again, unless you love God. Sincere love to God is indispensable!

"If anyone does not love the Lord, he is to be accursed!" 1 Corinthians 16:22

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If a lobster loses its claw in a fight

(Charles Spurgeon)

"I will give you a new heart, and put a new spirit in you.
 I will remove your heart of stone, and give you a heart of flesh!" Ezekiel 36:26

What a wonder it is, that a man could ever have a new heart!

You know that if a lobster loses its claw in a fight, it may grow a new claw--and that is thought to be quite marvelous.

It would be far more astonishing, if men could be able to grow new arms and new legs.

But who ever heard of a man who grew a new heart?

You may have seen a bough lopped off a tree, and you may have thought that perhaps the tree will sprout again and there will be a new limb. But who ever heard of a wooden fence post getting new sap and a new life?

Yet my Lord and Master, the crucified and exalted Savior--has given His people new hearts, and has and made new creations of them!

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ--he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!" 2 Corinthians 5:17

Let us rejoice together in this regenerating Savior!