Grace Gems

[nChrist]

Could every damned sinner weep a whole ocean!

(Thomas Brooks, "London's Lamentations" 1670)

"They will be tormented day and night forever and ever!"
    Revelation 20:10

Our earthly fires may be quenched and extinguished.
The hottest flames, the greatest conflagrations have
been quenched and extinguished by water. Fires on
our hearths and in our chimneys often die and go out
by themselves. Our fire is maintained with wood--and
put out with water. But the fire of hell never goes out;
it can never be quenched. It is . . .
  an everlasting fire,
  an eternal fire,
  an unquenchable fire!

In Mark 9 from verse 43 to verse 49, this fire is five
times said to be unquenchable--as if the Lord could
never speak enough of it. Beloved, the Holy Spirit is
never guilty of idle repetitions; but by these frequent
repetitions, the Holy Spirit would awaken men, and
teach them to look upon hell as a real thing, and as
a serious thing, and not sport with unquenchable
flames--nor go to hell in a dream!

Certainly the fire into which the damned shall be cast
shall be without all intermission of time or punishment.
No tears, nor blood, nor time--can extinguish the fire
of hell. Could every damned sinner weep a whole
ocean--yet all those oceans of tears together, would
never extinguish one spark of infernal fire!

The damned are in "everlasting chains of darkness;"
they are under the "vengeance of eternal fire;"
they are "in blackness of darkness forever."

Said a poor despairing creature on his deathbed,
"Oh, that word 'forever'--breaks my heart!"

The damned in hell would gladly die--but they cannot.
They shall be always a-dying--yet never dead.
They shall be always a-consuming--yet never consumed.

"The smoke of their torment rises forever and ever!"
    Revelation 14:11

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[nChrist]

That immortal bird!

(Thomas Brooks, "London's Lamentations" 1670)

As the mercy of God is infinite towards the elect--
so the justice of God is infinite towards the reprobate
in hell. The reprobate shall have . . .
  punishment without pity,
  misery without mercy,
  sorrow without support,
  crying without compassion,
  mischief without measure,
  and torment without end!

All men in misery comfort themselves with
the hope of an ending to their misery.
The prisoner comforts himself with hope of a deliverance.
The mariner comforts himself with hope of a safe harbor.
The soldier comforts himself with hope of victory.
The slave comforts himself with hope of liberty.

But the impenitent sinner has no hope in hell!
He shall have . . .
  death without death,
  night without day,
  mourning without mirth,
  sorrow without solace,
  bondage without liberty!

The damned shall live as long in hell,
as God Himself shall live in heaven!

Suppose, say some--that the whole world were turned
to a mountain of sand, and that a little bird should come
every thousandth year and carry away one grain of sand
from that heap. What an infinite number of years--not to
be numbered by all finite beings--would be spent and
expired before this supposed mountain would be fetched
away!

Now if a man should lie in everlasting burnings so long a
time as this--and then have an end of his woe--it would
administer some ease, refreshment, and comfort to him.
But when that immortal bird shall have carried away
this supposed mountain a thousand times over and over;
alas! alas! man shall be as far from the end of his anguish
and torment as ever he was! He shall be no nearer coming
out of hell, than he was the very first moment that he
entered into hell.

If the fire of hell were terminable, it might then
be tolerable; but being endless, it must needs be
easeless and remediless!

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[nChrist]

The true salamander's skin!

(Thomas Brooks, "London's Lamentations" 1670)

"The blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all our sins."
    1 John 1:7

O you who truly fear the Lord, and who are united
to Christ by faith, know for your everlasting comfort
and support--that Christ has secured you . . .
  from infernal fire,
  from everlasting fire,
  from unquenchable fire,
  from eternal fire, and
  from the worm which never dies!

Christ by His blood has quenched the violence
of infernal flames--so that they shall never . . .
  scorch you nor burn you,
  hurt you nor harm you!

Some say that Nebuchadnezzar's fiery furnace was
a type of hell. Now look! As the three Hebrew children,
or rather champions, had not one hair of their heads
singed in that fiery furnace--just so, hell-fire shall
never singe one hair of your heads! O sirs, Christ's
blood has so quenched the flames of hell--that they
shall never be able to scorch or burn those souls who
are saved by Him! Such as are washed and cleansed
from their sins in the blood of Jesus, such shall never
experimentally know what everlasting burnings or a
devouring fire means. Such as are washed in Christ's
blood--need no purifying by hell's flames!

The fable says that a salamander cannot burn. Nero
had a shirt made of a salamander's skin, so that if he
walked through the fire in it--it would keep him from
burning. O sirs! Christ is the true salamander's
skin--which will certainly keep every gracious soul
from burning in everlasting flames!

"The blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all our sins."
    1 John 1:7

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[nChrist]

But woe and alas!

(Thomas Brooks, "London's Lamentations" 1670)

Suppose, say some, that a man were to endure
the torments of hell as many years, and no more,
as there are . . .
  sands on the sea-shore,
  drops of water in the sea,
  stars in heaven,
  leaves on the trees,
  blades of grass on the ground;
yet he would comfort himself with this poor thought,
"Well, there will come a day when my misery and
torment shall certainly have an end!" But woe and
alas! this word "Forever! Forever! Forever!" will fill
the hearts of the damned with the greatest . . .
  horror and terror,
  wrath and rage,
  dread and astonishment!

Suppose, say others, that the torments of hell were to
end after a little bird should have emptied the sea, and
only carry out in her bill, but one drop once in a thousand
years--and so continue until the whole ocean was taken
away.

Suppose, say others, that the whole world, from the
lowest earth to the highest heavens, were filled with
grains of sand, and once in a thousand years an angel
should come and fetch away one grain of sand--and
so continue until the whole heap were taken away.

Suppose, say others, if one of the damned in hell
should weep after this manner--namely, that he
should only weep one tear in a hundred years, and
these should be kept together until such time as they
should equal the drops of water in the sea. How many
millions of ages would pass, before they could make
up one river, much more a whole sea! And when that
were done, should he weep again after the same manner
until he had filled a second sea, a third sea, a fourth sea
--if then there should be an end of their miseries--there
would be some hope, some comfort that they would end
at last! But hell shall never, never, never end! The
eternity of hell--is that which sinks them under the
most tormenting terrors and horrors!

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[nChrist]

Oh how sweet is!

(Thomas Brooks, "London's Lamentations" 1670)

"Better the little that the righteous have, than
 the wealth of many wicked." Psalm 37:16

The righteous man's mite, is better than the wicked
man's millions.

The righteous man has his little, from the special love
and favor of God. Lazarus' scraps, crusts and rags
--are better and greater mercies than Dives' riches,
purple robes, and dainty fare!

A godly man improves his little, to the stirring up of
his heart to thankfulness, and to be much in admiring
and blessing of God for his little. The least mercies
which the righteous man has, make him humble, "I
am not worthy of the least of all the mercies which
You have showed unto Your servant." Genesis 32:10

The righteous man enjoys his little, with a great deal
of comfort, peace, quiet and contentment. Though he
has but necessities from hand to mouth--yet seeing
that God feeds him from heaven, as it were with
manna--he is content, quiet and cheerful.

All the honors, riches, pleasures, and profits of this world,
cannot yield contentment to a worldly man--they are all
surrounded with briers and thorns. Who can sum up the
many grievances, fears, jealousies, disgraces, temptations
and vexations--which men meet with in their vain pursuit
after the things of this world! Oh how sweet is, it to
lack these bitter-sweets!

Riches may well be called thorns; because they pierce
both head and heart--the one with care of getting, and
the other with grief in parting with them. The world and
all its enchantments, are a paradise to the eye--but
painfulness to the soul.

But a righteous man, with his little, enjoys both peace of
conscience and peace of contentment; and this makes every
bitter--sweet; and every little sweet--to be exceeding sweet.
A dish of green herbs, with peace of conscience and peace of
contentment, is a noble feast, a continual feast to a gracious
soul. In every crust, crumb, drop, and sip of mercy which a
righteous man enjoys, he sees much of the love of his God,
and the care of his God, and the wisdom of his God, and the
power of his God, and the faithfulness of his God, and the
goodness of his God--in making the least provision for him.

In contrast, wicked men are like the the mule which drinks
from the brook--but never thinks of the spring. They are like
the swine which eats up the fruit--but never looks up to the
tree from whence the fruit falls.

A little will satisfy a temperate Christian. "Give me neither
poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread."
Proverbs 30:8. Agur asks only for daily bread, necessary
for his life--not for his lusts. He prays for enough to satisfy
necessity--not luxury. He asks for bread--not for delicacies.
He begs that his body may be sustained--not pampered.

A little will satisfy nature, and less will satisfy grace; yet
nothing will satisfy a wicked man's lusts! Wicked men
never have enough--they are never satisfied! Those who
are separated from the world's lusts, can live with a little.

Solomon, the wisest prince who ever sat upon a throne,
after his most diligent, critical, and impartial search into
all the creatures, gives this as the sum total of his inquiries,
"Vanity of vanities, all is vanity!" And how then can any of
these things, yes, all these things heaped up together,
satisfy the soul of man!

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[nChrist]

You would not like it!

(J. C. Ryle, "Having the Spirit")

"Nothing impure will ever enter it" Revelation 21:27

Heaven is the place to which all people hope to go
after they die. It would be well for many, if they
considered calmly what kind of dwelling-place
heaven is. It is the habitation of the King of kings,
who is "of purer eyes than to behold iniquity."
Heaven is a holy place. It is a place where there
shall be nothing wicked, sinful or sensual; nothing
worldly, foolish, frivolous or profane.

Let the covetous man remember--there
shall be no more money in heaven.

Let the pleasure seeker remember--there
shall be no more races, theaters, novel reading,
or parties in heaven.

Let the drunkard and the gambler, remember--
there shall be no more strong drink, no more dice,
no more betting, no more cards in heaven.

The everlasting presence of God; the perpetual
doing of God's will; the complete absence of
everything which God does not approve--these
are the chief things which shall make up heaven.

For this heaven we are all by nature utterly unfit.
We have no capacity for enjoying its happiness.
We have no taste for its blessings.
We have no eye to see its beauty.
We have no heart to feel its comforts.

Instead of freedom, we would find it bondage.
Instead of glorious liberty, we would find it constant constraint.
Instead of a splendid palace, we would find it a gloomy prison.

A fish on dry land, a sheep in the water, an eagle
in a cage--would all feel more at ease and in their
place, than an unholy man in heaven.

For this heaven it is the special office of the Holy
Spirit to prepare men's souls. He alone can change
the earthly heart, and purify the corrupt worldly
affections. He alone can bring their minds into
harmony with God, and tune them for the eternal
company of saints, and angels, and Christ. He
alone can make them . . .
  love what God loves,
  hate what God hates,
  delight in God's presence.

Let this also be written down on the tablet of your
memory. No entrance into heaven--without the Spirit
first entering your heart upon earth! No admission into
glory in the next life--without previous sanctification in
this life! No Holy Spirit in you in this world--then no
heaven in the world to come!

You would not be fit for it!

You would not be ready for it!

You would not like it!

You would not enjoy it!

"Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic
 arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the
 idolaters and everyone who loves and practices
 falsehood." Revelation 22:15

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[nChrist]

What a holy, happy life is this!

(Octavius Winslow, "The Lord's Prayer" 1866)

"Give us this day our daily bread." Matthew 6:11

God will have us live a life of daily faith upon His
bounty. If we would live a life of holy victory amid
the daily conflict of the flesh--we must live a life
of daily faith upon Jesus, a life of daily waiting
upon God.

"THIS day, my Father! The supplies of yesterday
are exhausted; those of tomorrow I leave with
You. Give me this day all that its circumstances
may demand. Give me . . .
  the clearness of judgment,
  the soundness of decision,
  the resoluteness of will,
  the integrity of principle,
  the uprightness of heart,
  the moral courage,
  the Christlike meekness,
  the holy love,
  the watchfulness and prayerfulness,
  the integrity and consistency,
its yet unshaped history may require.
I know not . . .
  what temptations I shall be exposed to,
  what foes I shall be assailed by,
  what trials I shall pass through,
  what clouds will shade,
  what sorrows will embitter,
  what circumstances will wound my spirit.
Lord, give me . . .
  grace,
  strength,
  love,
  guidance,
  faith.
Give me this day my daily bread."

What a holy, happy life is this!

It removes all care from the mind but the
present; and for that present, the believer
hangs upon a Father's care!

Thus begin and continue your day
with God. Its history is all . . .
  undeveloped,
  uncertain, and
  untraced.
You cannot . . .
  foresee one step,
  be certain of one circumstance,
  or control one event.

Let your prayer be, "Give me, Lord, all
supplies for this day. I may have . . .
  trials of my judgment,
  trials of my affections,
  trials of conscience,
  trials of my principles,
  trials from those I most tenderly love.
Lord, be with me,
guide me with Your counsel,
hold up my steps that they slide not,
let Your comforts delight my soul."

Day by day is the life of faith you are
to live upon Jesus. It is DAILY bread . . .
  Jesus for each and for every day.
  Jesus for each day's needs.
  Jesus for each day's trials.
  Jesus for each day's sins.
  Jesus for life.
  Jesus for death.
  Jesus forever!

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[nChrist]

Suffering, groaning, dying!

(Thomas Boston, "Human Nature in its Fourfold State")

"He who did not spare His own Son!" Romans 8:32

Behold how an angry God dealt with His own Son, standing
in the place of elect sinners! Sparing mercy might have been
expected here--if any place at all. If any person could have
obtained sparing mercy, surely His own Son would have! But
God did not even spare His own Son! The Father's delight--is
made a man of sorrows! He who is the wisdom of God--becomes
sore amazed, ready to faint away in a fit of horror. The weight
of this wrath makes Him sweat great drops of blood. By the
fierceness of this fire--His heart was melted like wax.

Behold, here, how severe God is against sin!
The sun was struck blind with this terrible sight!

What is a deluge, a shower of fire and brimstone, on the
people of Sodom; the terrible noise of a dissolving world,
the whole fabric of heaven and earth disuniting at once,
and angels cast down from heaven into the bottomless pit!
What are all these, I say, in comparison with this--God
in human nature suffering, groaning, dying upon a
cross! Infinite holiness did it, to make sin look like
itself, that is, infinitely odious.

Turn your eyes, O sinners, towards the Lord Jesus Christ;
and embrace Him, as He offers Himself in the gospel.
"Salvation is found in no one else!" Acts 4:12.

God is a consuming fire; you are children of wrath; if the
Mediator does not interpose between Him and you--you
are undone forever! If you would be safe, come under His
shadow--one drop of that wrath cannot fall there, for He
"delivers us from the wrath to come," 1 Thess. 1:10. His
blood will quench that fire of wrath which burns
against you! In the white raiment of His righteousness
you will be safe; for no storm of wrath can pierce it.

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[nChrist]

He lived poor and died poor

(Thomas Brooks, "London's Lamentations" 1670)

"Jesus replied—Foxes have holes and birds of the
 air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place
 to lay His head." Matthew 8:20

Jesus does not say, Kings have palaces—but I have none.
Nor He does say that rich men have houses and lands and
mansions to entertain their followers—but I have none;
but, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests,
but I have no place to lay My head."

Your outward condition is not worse than Christ's was,
when He was in the world. Christ's condition was low,
yes, very low and humble in this world. He was born
in a stable, lived on the charity of others, and did
not have enough money to pay His taxes. The great
Architect of the world had no place to lay His head—
but emptied Himself of all, and became poor to make
us rich, not in goods—but in grace; not in worldly
wealth—but in the treasures of the eternal world.
He lived poor and died poor.

Are you houseless, are you penniless, are you poor,
and low, and base in this world? So was Christ!
Remember "the servant is not greater than his Lord!"

It is unfitting to see the Head all begored with blood
and crowned with thorns—and the members to be
decked with roses and jewels, and to smell of rich
spices, and perfumes!

Are you in a worse condition than Christ was, in this
world? Oh no, no! Why then do you murmur and
complain? Why do you say there is no sorrow like
your sorrow, nor any suffering compared to your
suffering? O sirs! it is honor enough for the disciples
of Christ to fare as Christ fared in this world. Why
should the servant be in a better condition than His
Lord? Did you but seriously and frequently meditate
and ponder upon the poverty and low estate of Christ
while He was in this world, your hearts would be more
calm and quiet under all their crosses and losses!

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[nChrist]

The monsters and fools of the world

(Thomas Brooks, "The Glorious Day of the Saints Appearance")

Oh, many say with those in Job 21:15, "Who is the Almighty,
that we should serve Him? What would we gain by praying to
Him?" They are ready to say, when they look upon the sorrows,
miseries, and evils which attend the saints in this wilderness--
"Who have so many miseries, as Christians do? It is madness
and folly to live holily as they live, and to do righteously as
they do!" Oh, the world accounts them a company of crazy,
foolish people, who refrain from evil.

But God will have His people at last appear glorious, that the
mouths of ungodly wretches may be stopped, that they may
justify God in His goodness and mercy towards His own people.
When they shall see those who they accounted as the monsters
and fools of the world, men not worthy to live in the world--
when they shall see crowns set on their heads, and glorious
robes put on their backs--oh how will ungodly men gnash their
teeth, and say, "Oh! we thought them fools and madmen, who
thus served God, and walked with God--but now we see that
we ourselves are the only fools, the only mad ones, who have
turned our backs on God, and have said--It is futile to serve
God. What did we gain by carrying out His requirements and
going about like mourners before the Lord Almighty?"
Malachi 3:14

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[nChrist]

The outpouring of the everlasting wrath of God

(J. C. Philpot, "Daily Words for Zion's Wayfarers")

"The Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all."
    Isaiah 53:6

What heart can conceive, what tongue express,
what the holy soul of Christ endured--when the
Lord laid on Him the iniquity of us all?

In the garden of Gethsemane . . .
  what a load of guilt,
  what a weight of sin,
  what an intolerable burden of the wrath of God,
did that sacred humanity endure, until the pressure
of sorrow and woe forced the drops of blood to fall
as sweat from His brow!

When the blessed Lord was made a sin offering for
us, He endured in His holy soul, all the pangs of . . .
  distress,
  misery,
  guilt,
  anguish,
  darkness,
  condemnation,
  shame,
  guilt, and
  unutterable horror,
that all the elect would have felt in hell forever; as
they would have experienced under the outpouring
of the everlasting wrath of God!

What heart can conceive, what tongue express--the
bitter anguish which must have wrung the soul of our
suffering Substitute under this agonizing experience?

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[nChrist]

Active, operating, influential principles of the life!

(John MacDuff, "The Throne of Grace")

It is the work of the blessed Spirit to take of the
things of Christ, and to show them to the soul; to
reveal to us the precious benefits of redemption,
and the riches of Divine grace--and to present them
to us in such a transforming, and convincing, and
penetrating form, as that they shall not only become
sources of abiding comfort to the heart--but active,
operating, influential principles of the life!

It is the work of the blessed Spirit to be the
Comforter of the children of God. Yes . . .
  wherever a believer is afflicted;
  wherever he sheds a sorrowful tear;
  wherever he is pained by some heart-rending grief;
  wherever he is bowed beneath some oppressive burden
--there is the Comforter to cheer, to solace, to sustain;
pointing him . . .
  from the wound--to its balm,
  from the grief--to its ultimate cure,
  from present suffering--to eternal rest at God's right hand!

The Holy Spirit is not a traveler to sojourn for a season,
but He is a Friend to abide and dwell with you--a
spiritual mentor to be always near . . .
  to guide you--in all seasons of perplexity,
  to strengthen you--in all times of weakness,
  when you are discouraged--to uphold you,
  when you are wandering--to lead you back,
  when you are nearly overcome in your spiritual conflict
--to bring you more of His divine strength and grace.

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[nChrist]

Hush your insane murmurs, O worm!

(James W. Alexander, "Consolation" 1852)

"Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?"
    Genesis 18:25

The Judge of all the earth will do right! The
reverse is inconceivable. When we think of a
being who can do wrong--we no longer think
of God. Nothing which He does can be . . .
  unjust,
  arbitrary,
  or harsh.

Will not the Judge of all the earth do right? "It
is unthinkable that God would do wrong, that
the Almighty would pervert justice." Job 34:12

Hush your insane murmurs, O worm!

Submission to God's will, and that in the most
absolute sense, is the duty of every believer; and
is a state of mind to which the influences of the
regenerating and sanctifying Spirit infallibly lead.

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[nChrist]

He never misses a sermon!

(William S. Plumer, "Sinners Saved by Unmerited Kindness")

"Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls
 around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour."
     1 Peter 5:8

Though it is not profane, yet it is foolish to speak lightly of the
devil. He is not a sacred person--but he is a dangerous person!
Thoughts of levity concerning him are quite out of place. They
throw us off our guard, make us secure, lead us to sloth and
carelessness--and thus to sin.

He who is our adversary, and has slain his thousands and tens
of thousands--is never more sure of his prey than when there
is least fear of him. He began his work of revolt in heaven,
afterwards invaded Eden, assaulted the Son of God Himself
with the greatest violence and rancor--and will always be busy
until he is chained down in the pit!

He has no pity. He is wholly malignant and unscrupulous.
To dishonor God, destroy souls, fill earth with woe, and
hell with the damned--is his trade and his delight. The
keener the anguish, and the deeper the guilt of man--
the more is Satan gratified.

He does all he can to make . . .
  earth like hell,
  men like devils,
  saints like sinners.

He delights in seeing all wickedness raging and rioting on
earth. He is the god of the men of this world. He commands
and they obey. He is the prince of the power of the air, the
spirit who now works in the children of disobedience. His
empire is built on usurpation and fraud, cruelty and crime,
blood and rebellion.

Satan rages, and hates, and lies, and murders!

His ways are various. Sometimes he appears as an angel of
light. He has cordials for wounded consciences. He speaks
much of mercy. He delights in corrupting the truth. His great
object is to keep men from embracing Christ. He has much
to do with religious men and religious ordinances. He never
misses a sermon! He knows that men can go to hell in the
pew of a church, as well as in the seat of a theater. If they
will rest in 'religious forms', and if they will go about to
establish their own righteousness--he will encourage
them, and help them to be joyful.

"Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your
 stand against the devil's schemes." Ephesians 6:11

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[nChrist]

Death is a change of place

(Brooks, "A Believer's Last Day, His Best Day")

"The day of death is better than the day of birth."
    Ecclesiastes 7:1

"For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain!"
    Philippians 1:21

A believer's last day is his best day! His dying-day
is better than his birthday! This is a very sweet
and useful truth to all believers.

Death is a change of place. When a believer
dies, he does but change his place. He changes . . .
  earth for heaven,
  a wilderness for a Canaan,
  a dunghill for a palace!

It is said of Judas, that "he went to his place," Acts 1:25.
An unbeliever is not yet in his place--hell is his place.

Just so, when a believer dies--he goes to his place.
Heaven, the bosom of Christ--is his place.

A believer is not at present, in his place. His soul is still
working and warring, and he cannot rest until he comes
to center in the bosom of Christ. This Paul understood
well, when he said, "I desire to depart and be with
Christ, which is better by far!" Philippians 1:23

We are not yet in our place, and therefore we groan
to be at home--that is, to be in heaven, to be in the
bosom of Christ--which is our proper place, our most
desirable home!

"Meanwhile we groan, longing to be clothed with our
 heavenly dwelling!" 2 Corinthians 5:2

"We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away
from the body and at home with the Lord." 2 Cor. 5:8

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