GRACE AND THE TRUTH - DAILY INSPIRATION

[nChrist]

______________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
Please share this Inspirational with others.
Free Email Subscription
_______________________________________

NOW IS THE ACCEPTED TIME
Part  3 of 3
by Fred Bachand


In II Corinthians 6:1-2, Paul writes to Gentiles; "We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain. (For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)" In the first part of verse 2, Paul quotes from Isaiah 49:8, Thus saith the LORD, In an acceptable time have I heard thee, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee." And in the last part of ll Corinthians 6:2, Paul states that NOW IS THE ACCEPTED TIME, and that NOW is the DAY OF SALVATION. At the time Paul wrote this epistle it was the Acceptable Year of the Lord, and it had become the day of Salvation for the Gentiles. Here we find an overlapping of two periods of time, which does not appear according to prophecy. God would not delay His day of Salvation to the Gentiles, in spite of Israel's rejection of Jesus Christ. Yet He graciously extended His Acceptable Year to Israel for at least through the time covered by the book of Acts. But it is no longer the Acceptable Year for Israel. They are now reckoned among the Gentiles, and God's Day of Salvation.

The Day of Salvation, as it is proclaimed by Paul to the Gentiles, though it is not in exact chronological accordance with prophecy, is by no means contrary to prophecy. But God could not have brought His Day of Salvation to the Gentiles at that time under the prevailing conditions according to prophecy. Therefore, the Day of Salvation, as it is proclaimed by Paul to the Gentiles, is in accordance with a Divine Secret, which was revealed to Paul when God appointed him as the Apostle of the Gentiles. This Divine Secret is now revealed as the Dispensation of the Grace of God, which was given to Paul to be administered to the Gentiles, and is described in Ephesians 3:1-11.

Yes, Christ was made a light unto the Gentiles in order that He should be God's Salvation unto the ends of the earth. But when Christ was on earth among the people of Israel, He was "not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel" (Matt.15:24). Therefore, at that time, the Gentiles "were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers form the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God ... " (Eph.2:12). Now if Christ is God's Salvation, then God's Salvation could not be sent to the Gentiles apart from Christ. The Day of Salvation began for the Gentiles when Christ, God's Salvation, was sent to the Gentiles, in spite of the prophesied conditions, though the instrument of Paul, the Apostle of the Gentiles.

Therefore, NOW is the Accepted Time. Now is the Day of Salvation for the Gentiles. As long as Christ is among the Gentiles by means of the Church which is His Body (see Eph. 1:22,23, and Col. 1:24-27) it will be the Day of Salvation. This Day of Salvation will end when Christ is no longer among the Gentiles; when the Church, His Body, is complete and we who are His are caught up to meet the Lord in the air (I Thess. 4:16-17). Then it will be the Day of Vengeance.

Christ, God's Salvation, has been sent to you! Christ died for your sins! But Christ also arose from the dead, victorious over sin and death, in order that you might have life, through faith in Him. This gospel of Christ is the power of God unto Salvation to every one believing it. This power has been extended to you. NOW is your Accepted Time. NOW is your Day of Salvation. If you have never seriously considered this, consider it NOW. Do not put it off! Tomorrow may be too late!

[nChrist]

______________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
Please share this Inspirational with others.
Free Email Subscription
_______________________________________

Why Do I Exist?
Part 1 of 2
By Bill Gillham


D0 you remember, the story of Pinocchio?  I recalled enough of it to suspect a parallel between Pinocchio and us, so I picked the book up at the library. Sure enough, Geppetto lovingly fashioned Pinocchio for fellowship with him and poured his sacrificial love on to him. But, Pinocchio rebelled against his creator and authored a declaration of independence; he did things his way. He is aptly called a "dummy" and humans who think that living in rebellion against our Creator are as well. In the end Pinocchio was transformed and became his creator's precious son. We all have a lot in common with 'ol Pinocchio. Ultimately he said, "How ridiculous I was when I was a puppet! And how glad I am that I have become a well behaved [son]."

Have you ever pondered a question such as the title of this article, Why Do I Exist? We exist for the same reasons that Pinocchio was fashioned by his creator. God lovingly recreated you for His own pleasure and He is so proud of His handiwork. Now He wants you to bring honor ("glory" is the biblical term) to His name (His reputation). You can identify with that. How did you feel when you first saw your child, that you helped bring into the world? Proud enough to take pictures and show them to your friends, I'll bet! How did you acquire that trait? You got it from our Father. God has a special feeling for His kids, and He has passed that trait along to you.

Can you imagine how proud He was as He recreated you in Christ (Eph. 2:1O)? Imagine Him holding you when you were born into His forever-family and showing you to all the angels. I like to think of Him as a proud daddy (Rom. 8:15; Gal. 4:6), with a grin from ear to ear which says, "Look what I did!" You think this is a far-fetched idea? No way! If you, an earthly parent, experience such a self-sacrificing love for your kids, consider how much greater the Father's love is for you (Heb.12:10). You have never given up your only son that you might give birth to another child (much less one who insists on squirming out of your lap so he might live in rebellious independence like Pinocchio).

How fathomless is His love for you; and oh, how wrong are those people who believe the Father harbors hostility towards His recreated children; that He will one day humiliate us publicly for our sins as if they were not under the blood. What a grotesque image Satan has sold to some of us about our relationship to our Father. Indeed, some Christians have such a wrong view of Him that they feel He scowls at the mention of their name. Many in Christ even fear the very thing Christ has conquered ... death. They cling to planet earth as if they prefer it over being with Jesus. It would seem their attitude is I'm sure I enjoy a greater happiness here than I ever could with You, Jesus. I have so much to live for.

Look at that... Pinocchio still lives, gang!

God created you in His image, and since He is Spirit so are you. You are a spirit-critter who lives in an earth suit that will age some seventy years (give or take a few years)and then it dies and the spirit -critter ejects. All dead spirit-critters will eject to exist in the realm of darkness forever; live spirit-critters will eject to live in heaven with Jesus. If you are in Christ, you  will never die; only your body will die.

Both the lost and the saved have a human nature. Although the terms human nature and sin nature are eons apart, some believe that they are synonyms! Ever heard a Christian say, "My human nature took over and I sinned"? That's wrong thinking. To have a human nature is not bad, it's good! Let's reason together about that. .. Jesus had a human nature (Phil. 2:7). Adam was created with a human nature. So it can't be bad to have one. Without a human nature you could never have been recreated in Christ. Think about it: gorillas do not have that privilege.

[nChrist]

______________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
Please share this Inspirational with others.
Free Email Subscription
_______________________________________

Why Do I Exist?
Part 2 of 2
By Bill Gillham



The word nature means the basic characteristics of something. Birds have a flying nature; hogs have a mud-wallowing nature. Let's examine a few of the characteristics of a human nature. Humans are comprised of spirit, soul (personality), and body; we have needs in each of these three areas which motivate us toward realizing that Christ alone is the only trustworthy Source of our supply. But look, the world has taught us "Pinocchio" philosophy: that we must be our own source.

Let's examine a few of your human needs. The Creator implanted in your spirit the basic need to know God. He created your mind with the need to have understanding and peace; your will needs the freedom to choose; your emotions need to experience loving and being loved; your body needs gratification of its various appetites. Although this is not an exhaustive list, these needs are part of your human nature; all of them are godly and good. The rub is that the devil is trying to get you to satisfy them by rebelling against your Creator and "doing it your way", just like Pinocchio, which brings us to the topic of the sin nature.

Only "un-recreated" humans have a sin nature. Your sin nature was crucified in Christ (Romans 6:6). Although it's true that we all were originally born with a sin nature, new creations in Christ no longer have one. Satan creates much confusion about the meaning of the term sin nature. The sin nature's basic characteristics can be summed up by this attitude: Jesus, You are a party pooper and I refuse to let You control me. I run my life. I have needs which I want to fulfill my way; way; I have the right to go where I want to go and do what I want to do. I do things my way. You will readily see that new creatures in Christ no longer have this sin nature. Granted we sin, but we do not yearn to live like that.

Christians have a new nature; we are "partakers of the divine nature" (2 Peter 1:4). We were reborn in Christ as new spirit-critters (2 Corinthians 5:17). We are now spirit, sons and daughters of the living God (John 1:12). Our spiritual characteristics have been radically changed. We died in one kingdom and were born into another. The indisputable evidence of your new nature is a deep yearning, an inner longing to obey Jesus Christ, to please Him, to hunger for an intimate, loving relationship with Him. Self-examination before the Lord will reveal this to be true for all new creations in Christ. This longing is a thirst which can only be slaked by the indwelling Spirit of Christ Himself.

Think about it. These things being true, you and I can now snuggle up to the God of the entire universe - without fear- as the loving Dad that He is to us. My Father delights in me since I am "without spot or blemish," forever in His presence and favor because of Christ's finished work. I am "the righteousness of God in Christ," a partaker of [His] divine nature." I am holy; my sins are forgiven, gone ... my guilt has vanished. There is nothing that can prevent my spending the rest of my earthly life, as well as eternity, in intimate union with God (Colossians 2:2-3 ). The coast is clear! The way has been paved! The glory of such truth! I am totally, unconditionally loved by my Creator! Think about it: "Pinocchio" has repented and now experiences life ... life abundant. " ... Through [His] death He [rendered] powerless him who had the power of death ... the devil; and [delivered] those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives" (Hebrews 2:14-15). Death? Fear death? Are you kidding? "Come on death; your teeth have been pulled. You don't scare me one whit. I am alive! It's impossible for me to die!"

So "Why You Exist?" It can be summed up in three words ... TO GLORIFY GOD (Romans 15:6, 1 Peter 4:15). Does your lifestyle demonstrate a pursuit of that worthy goal? If not, you are missing your purpose. You and I have been lovingly recreated and abundantly endowed with grace and favor at the cost of Jesus' life, By this we are now equipped (and indeed yearn) to spend our lives bringing honor to His blessed name (reputation).

Any Christian who walks in the truths described above simply has to talk about it. He would feel like he would pop if he couldn't praise the Lord or share his joy with others as the Holy Spirit leads. He's like "Old Faithful;" he has to erupt regularly to release the river of Living Water within. When he does, those with eyes to see will glorify God. Listen, folks don't travel to Old Faithful to give honor to a hole in the ground, but to see the fountain which pours forth from that hole. The Holy Spirit is a tour guide who brings travelers into contact I with you so you can honor the Fountain Who is in you by letting Him live through you, Christian.

Why do you exist? You exist to glorify God. Are you pursuing this ... or are you playing Pinocchio?

[nChrist]

______________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
Please share this Inspirational with others.
Free Email Subscription
_______________________________________

An Easter Exhortation

The Word of God for today says that we believers have been bought out of the sphere of satanic darkness and transferred into the sphere of light and eternal life in the Lord.

The universal truth in the Bible is that the wages of sin is death. The purpose of the sinless Person of Jesus Christ's death on the Cross was to pay the penalty for the sin that separated the human race from God the Father.

We Christians, to whom God has given faith, should never forget that Jesus Christ paid the death penalty that was against us--He died for our sin, and as a consequence, we have been forgiven and have eternal life!

Indeed, Jesus Christ has purchased us out of the satanic sphere of sin and death. Apart from this death on Calvary's Cross, we would still be spiritually on death row!

All that we are and all that we have, we have because of Him! The least we can do is make ourselves and all that He has given to us available to Him. Please join with us in teaching His Word for today-the Gospel of Grace!
 E.R.Campbell

GRACE AS A DOCTRINE

Sometimes as I've traveled, people have said to me, "Our church is focusing on grace this year." When I'm told that, I can't help but find myself thinking, "What did you focus on last year? What will you focus on next year?" I've even heard some say that grace is a very important doctrine and how important it is that we understand it.

These kinds of statements sound good on the surface, but they completely miss the point of grace. Grace is not an important doctrine. In fact, grace is a Person. His name is Jesus Chris, He is Grace personified. When we talk about grace, we're talking about Him.

Grace is the essence of our very lives in Christ. Grace is the foundation of who God the Father is to us through His Son, Jesus Christ. To say that grace is an important doctrine puts it in a categorical list of other doctrines, which undermines its value and meaning. Grace is not to be put in a list of doctrinal teachings. It is the fountainhead from which every doctrine of the Bible flows.

To suggest that grace is an important doctrine is like saying that breathing is an important part of my life. That would be an understatement of ridiculous proportions. Breathing is not an important part of my life. When Paul said, "For me to live is Christ," he might as well have said, "For me to live is grace." They are the same. John said that Jesus came "full of grace." (See John 1:14) It's who He is.

Yes, grace is as much a part of our lives as is breathing. It is the core and essence of the gospel. In Acts 20:24, Paul showed that grace is the gospel. "I do not consider my life of any account, as dear to myself, so that I may finish my course, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify solemnly of the gospel of the grace of God." Note how the gospel is inseparably joined to grace here.

The word gospel means "hilariously good news." What is this good news that Paul said he had been entrusted to share with those around him? It was the good news of the grace of God. Once we wander away from grace in what we proclaim, we've left the gospel. We might be telling the truth, but we've left the gospel. We might be helping people to some degree, but we've left the gospel. The gospel is the message of grace. It's the only thing that has the power to transform lives. Paul described it as "the power of God unto salvation."

Let's not think we flatter grace when we call it an important doctrine. It's more than that. It's everything.
 Steve McVey

THANK YOU FATHER FOR SENDING YOUR
 SON TO GIVE US ETERNAL LIFE,
  THANK YOU THAT HE IS THE GRACE
 WE  NEEDED IN OUR  LIFE
IN HIS  PRECIOUS NAME,
AMEN

[nChrist]

______________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
Please share this Inspirational with others.
Free Email Subscription
_______________________________________

GOD'S WAY THROUGH THE WORDS AND THE WEEDS
PART 1 of 2

DFW Airport wasn't yet operational when we drove the ninety miles to Love Field in Dallas where I boarded a nonstop flight to Los Angeles' LAX. From there I would take a series of buses that would eventually drop me off with Dale and Linda Ebel in San Clemente, California.

Dale was the youth director at a Presbyterian church there, and I was going to live with them for the summer of my sixteenth year and help with the youth program. You should understand at this point that my folks' real goal was for me to be exposed to a unique spiritual environment, live with people other than family who really loved Jesus, and grow in my faith through the process. It would be icing on the cake if I actually helped the youth program.

After an uneventful fight, I caught a shuttle downtown to the main bus station and boarded a southbound Greyhound for San Clemente, famous for being the Western White House for then President Nixon. Buses were not new to me. As a kid, my folks had put me on the bus to Poteau several times to visit my grandparents. I'd sit in the front seat and watch the Oklahoma hills pass outside the big window, wondering why the driver had what appeared to be two accelerator pedals. ("Why?" has always been one of my favorite questions.) "Muskogee. Stigler. Keota." The driver would call out the town names as we pulled into the depot, most of which were primarily roadside cafes until the bus arrived; then they were the bus station. "Shady Point," and I knew Poteau was next. My granddad Hoyle would be waiting for me. We'd throw my bag onto the wooden bed of his old green Chevy, then drive up the hill toward a house filled with the smells of Grandmother's cooking.

The depot in downtown L.A. shared few similarities with any I'd seen in eastern Oklahoma. This thought, and a crowd of others, filled my mind as the bus drove through the shoulder-to-shoulder suburbs of L.A. along I-5: Anaheim, Santa Ana, Mission Viejo.

I stepped onto a dark platform in the beach town that would be my summer home; there was no one around but a male desk clerk sporting a ten inch ponytail. I'd heard the men were wearing those things out there, but I'd never seen one. A few of the hard-core Indians back home had long braids, but they were supposed to. This guy was my Dad's age. With bags to hold enough clothes for the summer at my feet, I called from the pay phone to announce my arrival to a total stranger named Dale in a town full of total strangers.

The initial days of my stay were as you might imagine: I busied myself getting my bearings, learning people's names, trying to decide if it was OK for everyone to laugh at my drawl and Okieisms, overhauling an old three-speed bike so I could get to the beach and back, adjusting to Presbyterianism, and finding my spot in the Ebel household. (These people were eating yogurt and granola for breakfast. At least I'd heard about men wearing ponytails. As near as I could tell, yogurt was simply bad ice cream.) But I was welcomed with open arms by the family and youth group. I was regularly asked to read the scripture aloud at the beginning of a Bible study, partly to acquaint everyone with the passage, but mostly so they could listen to me drawl along. With white-blond, shoulder length hair, my friendship with Dale and a few other key folks, I settled into a summer routine appearing very much Californian---at least until I opened my mouth.

I slept on the hide-a-bed in the living room, pleased that my bedroom was the only one in the house that had a kitchen attached. Late at night, after the Ebel's had gone to bed, the house would grow quiet and solitude would move into the room to share my space. It was as though this friend waited at the screen door to enter on the sea breeze as soon as the opportunity was right. And there, lying on my belly, propped up on my elbows, I would read and ask the Lord to teach me. For the first time in my life, my parents weren't around to interpret the Spirit for me or introduce God's thoughts from His Word. The God of my parents was becoming my God.

By Pres Gilham

[nChrist]

______________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
Please share this Inspirational with others.
Free Email Subscription
_______________________________________

GOD'S WAY THROUGH THE WORDS AND THE WEEDS
PART  2 of 2



I carried a Living Paraphrase Bible covered with suede leather in those days. It was well-worn because I could understand what I was reading. I'd started the year reading the Bible through and was now in the midst of Romans. It hadn't ever occurred to me to skip around in my reading and in so doing get smaller doses of books like Leviticus and Numbers. Let's face it, Moses was no Tom Clancy! But, I was excited to be in Romans and not the minor prophets.

Settling down in front of the screen door, I read what the Lord had to say in Romans 6. "Well then, shall we keep on sinning so that God can keep on showing us more and more kindness and forgiveness? Of course not! Should we keep on sinning when we don't have to? For sin's power over us was broken when we became Christians. Your old evil desires were nailed to the cross with Him; that part of you that loves to sin was crushed and fatally wounded, so that your sin loving body is no longer under sin's control, no longer needs to be a slave to sin; for when you are deadened to sin you are freed from all its allure and its power over you. So look upon your old sin nature as dead and unresponsive to sin, and instead be alive to God, alert to Him, through Jesus Christ our Lord." It was as though the Spirit Himself had sat down beside me and leaned up against the door jam to instruct me in the meaning of this passage. In my heart I now realized that I no longer had to sin. Not only was I free to say no to Satan's temptations, I was responsible to say no. Not only did I want to say no to temptation, I could say no. The power that had held me in bondage to sin was a toothless
tiger, lying to me about myself and the extent of his authority.

The notes in the margin of my old Living Paraphrase indicate that I had difficulty verbalizing just what it was the Lord had shown me on July 27, 1972. But you know as well as I do that Christ can speak to our hearts very clearly as to what's on His mind: we can comprehend perfectly, but to tell someone else leaves us stammering and flailing. In retrospect, I realize better now what occurred then and understand more clearly God's rationale in Romans 6. We were separated from Him by our heritage in Adam, lost due to our roots, consumed by an old self bent on living independently. Our performance stunk, but not nearly so much as we stunk, being descendants of Adam and sinful by nature. Fixing the problem wasn't as simple as forgiving our sins. That's what the Old Testament system of sacrifices was about. A new covenant was necessary; a fundamental change was needed. Our inherent propensity to rebel and live independently of God had to be dealt a fatal blow. As Jesus told Nicodemus, we needed to be born again, taken out of Adam's lineage and placed into Christ's. So Christ sacrificed Himself once and for all; in so doing, the stronghold of the enemy, which said we had no choice but to sin and rebel, was broken; the old heritage was crucified in Christ and killed, and we were reborn in His family, children who long to please their Father. We became new people, created in His likeness, free to say no to the enemy's temptations and desiring to live lives exemplary of who we really are. This is in no way to be construed as a potential to achieve sinless perfection. Paul was trying to impress us with the magnitude of Christ's work at the cross and hammer home the profundity of being born again into His family.

Well, Dale and his family drove a VW Bus in those days, and it was in that bus on the way to the office one day that I made my first effort to explain what I'd seen in God's Word. My words were awkward and my sentences were anything but eloquent. Yet Dale understood and reinforced the magnitude of the Spirit's revelation.

As was my custom, not long after work that day I made my way to the beach astride my gnarly looking, overhauled, trashbag green, three-speed bicycle. Going to the beach was great fun because it was all downhill. Coming home ... well, it was a good time to leave the beach when some guy with a pickup was departing as well.

Anyway, Riviera Beach was accessed through a residential area via a drainage ditch that ran under the railroad tracks. Once past the tracks, there was a narrow, sandy trail lined by waist-high weeds that deposited you onto the main beach about fifty yards from the breakers. I parked my bike and began walking the trail, all the while studying a fellow sitting in a beach chair smack dab in the middle of the trail. Sitting in the trail wasn't the curious thing to me; that's the only place a person who decided to sit in the trail could sit. But fifty yards from the water, in the weeds, and in the middle of the trail? Now that's different. As I approached I surmised he was reading a girlie magazine, and right on cue the enemy attacked with his temptation, verbalized as my thoughts: "I ought to be able to get a good look at those pictures on my way by. I wonder what page he's on?" But guess what? Just as quickly as the enemy finished his offer, the Spirit spoke to my heart and said, "I don't have to look. God said so in Romans 6!" I recognized the voice of the Spirit and the truth of God's Word from the night before, then waded into the weeds and around Satan's snare in the middle of the trail. That was victory!

I learned a lot that summer in San Clemente, like how to body surf, fix a three-speed bike, run a vacation Bible school, and look out for folks sitting in the middle of the trail; I learned that yogurt wasn't half bad, and that the guy with the pony tail at the bus station went to our church. Most of all, though, I learned that I don't have to go along with Satan's temptations to sin. I'm a new man a new CREATION in Christ. God said so! Oh yeah, I also discovered that God speaks with an Okie drawl.

By Pres Gillham

[nChrist]

______________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
Please share this Inspirational with others.
Free Email Subscription
_______________________________________

LIBERTY - WHO GETS IT? AND HOW?
Part 1 of 7


IT is ever God's way to produce a sense of need in the soul before He meets it. No sinner gets the forgiveness of his sins, for example, until, as a self-condemned offender, he is brought to feel the need of it.

It was not enough for the prodigal to be needy and hungry; before he was induced to take a single step homeward, the cry had to be wrung out of him, "I perish with hunger." And so with a new-born soul thirsting for liberty; he must not only be brought to wish for it, but be reduced to the sense of absolute helplessness, before, by the power of another, he is really and experimentally set free.

Take an illustration. A little bird attempts to build his nest in your chimney, and, finding himself unable to ascend, comes down, all blackened, into your sitting-room. At once he discovers two sets of eyes upon him --- your own and the cat's; and his little bosom throbs again with fear. You see his real enemy---the cat---and long that he may escape unhurt, and with your own hand you act as his deliverer, by throwing open the door which leads to liberty. He does not understand, however, that you are no enemy, but a true friend, and begins to rush here and there in great fright, seeking, in frantic haste, a way of escape. From the window to the mantel-piece he quickly dashes; then, with a stunning bump, he is back once more at the window; and it is not until he can positively do no more, and sinks down through weariness and disappointment, that he sees what before he had not noticed, viz., the wide-open door, and free access to it. Another moment he is outside, and enjoying full liberty. (In that the bird, however, had enjoyed a life of liberty before, the illustration falls short.)

Now, undelivered believers may be divided into three classes.

1. The uninstructed class. These know next to nothing of what the word of God says about this subject, though they may have felt something of the exercises that lead to it.

2. The enlightened class. These could possibly explain, in a very orthodox way, the terms of this deliverance, and are yet in such a sleepy, self-satisfied moral state that they are quite content with knowing the letter of it, while thoroughly destitute of its power. It is one thing to be told, by those who have experimentally learnt it, that by throwing your head back, keeping your hands beneath the surface, and lying quietly on your back in the water, your body will float, and quite another thing to find yourself, in ten fathoms deep, putting it into practice. We may think we know all about it as we stand on the bank. But in the water we must either trust its buoyancy, lie still, and float; or, for want of confidence, vainly struggle, and sink.

3. The consciously needy class; and how great their number! Some of these have, perhaps, for long years been in perplexity. How often have they struggled and sunk, to use our figure.  They have buffeted with grave difficulties  as to their personal state before God, until they have become a daily puzzle even to themselves; and you, how earnestly!--- do they long to see their way out of it.

It is for the help of such that these few pages are written. Oh that the Lord, in His rich and precious grace, would be pleased to bless it to them!

THREE SOLEMN DISCOVERIES.

There are three great soul-affecting discoveries which every truly converted person is sure to make sooner or later.

1. That he has committed sins and offences against a holy God.

2. That not only has he done evil things, but that he is thoroughly sinful in himself.

3· That, with true desires to do the right thing, he constantly finds himself doing the wrong, and often does the worst when he means the best. To put it more briefly----
    He is guilty in what he has done.
    He is sinful in what he is.
    He is helpless in what he feels he ought to do---a slave of sin.

The first difficulty is met when we find that the blessed Son of God has been "delivered for our offences," and "raised again for our justification," Rom. 4:25; that He " bare our sins in His own body on the tree," I Peter 2: 24; "Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness in respect of the passing by the sins done aforetime, through the forbearance of God; to declare at this time His righteousness: that He might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus," Rom. 3: 25, 26. Yes, it is because" He was wounded for our transgressions," and "bruised for our iniquities;" because "the chastisement of our peace was upon Him ; " that "with His stripes we are healed." Isaiah 53:5. "The blood of Jesus Christ" God's Son" cleanseth us from all (or every) sin," I John I: 7·

Faith can sing---

    "'Tis finished! " cried His suffering soul,
      And I my title see;
      I was the guilty sinner,
      But Jesus died for me."

Freedom In Trusting God

God can be trusted no matter what. We should have an attitude of complete faith, for this pleases God.

God as our trust because He is not a man that He can lie. He is the God of integrity, the only One who can be relied upon at all times. "It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man" (Psalm118:8 ). We are let down so many times because we place our trust in man when God is the only One who is faithful. "If we are faithless, he will remain faithful" (II Timothy 2:13, NIV). Let go and place all of your trust in God; He will never fail you. "Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised)" (Hebrews 10:23).

[nChrist]

______________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
Please share this Inspirational with others.
Free Email Subscription
_______________________________________

LIBERTY - WHO GETS IT? AND HOW?
Part 2 of  7


Thus does His precious blood give us righteous peace about our sins. God is well satisfied, and the believer stands clear. But there is more in it than being cleared by the blood of Christ. God is now righteously free to express to any poor returning prodigal, confessing his sins, all the pent-up love of His large and tender heart. The father "ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him." And if the prodigal cannot enter into the depth and enormity of his sin against such a God, there is One who has done it fully. Yes, Jesus has felt about our sins as they ought to be felt about. He has fully confessed them, and voluntarily borne their full penalty. His loving heart was "straitened" till it was "accomplished." Oh, what a circle of love the repentant sinner is brought into! Grace, grace, ALL GRACE! How hateful sin becomes in the light of it!

The next two discoveries are of a different character, and are often beset with far deeper exercises. They involve our having to face all kinds of contradictory experience in ourselves.

Let us then carefully consider the various struggles in this EXPERIMENTAL CONFLICT.

It is helpful to see, in the latter part of Romans 7, that the experimental struggles and difficulties which characterize the undelivered soul are carefully mapped out, and this by one who has been brought out of them into the full liberty of the grace of God. You will find that the one in this conflict has his eye turned in two directions-outward upon God's just claims, the law giving the measure of this, whereby he finds what he ought to be for God; and inward upon himself, whereby he finds what he really is. God is not known in the activities of His precious grace. The renewed soul, while owning the righteous claims of God, finds itself totally incapable of meeting them. Satan harasses, and the soul is launched into a sea of misery.

Now, this kind of self-examination and legal exercise brings with it two serious disappointments. These we hope to consider.

But before speaking of this matter it may be as well to take into consideration the source of all disappointments. We must remember that there can be no disappointment without expectation; these two are as closely bound together as the light of day is with the sun-rising. For example, a friend asks, "Did you receive a letter from the Sandwich Islands this morning?"

You answer, " No."

"Were you disappointed when the postman passed your door without leaving one? "

"No, I was not disappointed, because I did not expect one."

Exactly. Now, had there been even a little expectation, there would have been a little disappointment; and similarly, great expectations precede great disappointments; but when there is no expectation there can be no disappointment.

DISAPPOINTMENT NO. I.

"I expected," says the poor, tried soul, "that the new birth would put everything right within me, and that what was meant by an inward change (which I really hoped I had experienced) was my evil nature being changed into a good and holy one; and now to find evil still within, as bad or even worse than before! How alarming! Can I be real? Was my conversion genuine? or my profession then and since only a hollow sham?" Such questioning as this, in an earnest soul thoroughly desirous of being right with God, is no light matter. God is holy. '"The law is spiritual,' " he says, "and I hoped that I was spiritual too, but I find that 'I am carnal, sold under sin.''' How depressing! How disappointing!

Now, what is the secret of this first disappointment? The cause is twofold; a wrong thought of the true character of our fallen nature, and a mistaken idea as to what is really brought about by the new birth.

An illustration from the Old Testament may help us. You will call to mind, no doubt, that first incident in the history of Samson, in the Book of Judges; how that as he journeyed to the land of the Philistines, and drew near to the vineyard of Timnath, a young lion came out, and roared at him, and that Samson caught him, and rent him as though he had been a kid, leaving him dead by the way-side.

After a time, we read, Samson paid the Philistines a second visit, and passing by the same place, he turned to see the carcass of this young lion, when, to his surprise, he found that life had entered the dead beast----another kind of life---and that something had thereby been produced which all the lions in the world could not have produced. You will know what I refer to. A swarm of bees had entered the dead carcass, and deposited honey there.

Now to apply this figure. When a man is born again, a new life is produced in him by the Spirit of God through the instrumentality of the Word received by faith---a life and nature as distinct from the old as the nature of the bee was distinct from that of the lion; nay, as distinct as the fallen human nature is distinct from the divine; for we are made "partakers of the divine nature." Moreover, the old is no more improved by the impartation of the new than the lion's carcass was by the entrance of the bees, or the deposit of the honey. Hear the word of the Lord to Nicodemus: "That which is born of the flesh is flesh " (the old man, which is corrupt); "and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit," John 3:6.

If you are a Christian,
you are not a citizen of this world
trying to get to heaven;
 you are a citizen of heaven
making your way through this world.

Vance Havner

[nChrist]

______________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
Please share this Inspirational with others.
Free Email Subscription
_______________________________________

LIBERTY - WHO GETS IT? AND HOW?
Part 3 of  7


The mistaken notion in the minds of many professing Christians as to this, is a fruitful source both of mischief and of misery; mischief for the unconverted and indifferent; misery for those born of the Spirit, and really in earnest. Endless pains are bestowed upon the improvement of the dead lion (to use our figure); i.e., upon bettering man in the flesh; and every kind of moral disinfectant resorted to to make him more bearable in decent and religious society; but the lion is the same lion still, adorn him as you will.

On the other hand, who can estimate the misery which has resulted in honest, newborn souls from the mistaken idea that the new birth either improves the flesh, or gets rid of its presence? It does neither; and hence the experimental discovery of its unimproved existence is most distressing. They are not prepared to find old tastes coming up again, and are shocked to find, after their first joy, perhaps, has abated, that their old habits are re-asserting themselves with increased power. Again and again they are tripped up; deeper and deeper grows their inward distress, until they discover that the source of all the mischief is "the flesh" within ever lusting against the Spirit, and that conversion has not removed or changed it in any sense. Hence the discovery recorded in Romans 7:20, "If I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me." That is, there is the "I" In connection with the newborn life which hates the inward evil, and deplores its workings; and there is also the evil nature-the indwelling sin.

     "But how is it," says the troubled soul, " that
     " I can't make myself any better?"

     " I try hard enough to be different, but it is fruitless, disappointing work, and I am often ready to give all up in despair. I know that the flesh still lusts within me, and that every trace of evil in me springs from it; but still I feel I must have goodness for God, and how can this be if I can't in some way overcome the badness of the flesh ? "

This is the language of thousands of perplexed believers. Let us, by the Spirit's help, seek to meet their difficulty.

First, then, we must learn that God is not expecting to improve man in the flesh, or looking for goodness in him of any kind. "The carnal mind" (or "mind of the flesh," as it really is), is now declared to be " enmity against God" (enmity itself); "it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh CANNOT please God." Romans 8; 7, 8. Take a New Testament illustration. The " fig-tree" was a picture of the nation of Israel; i.e., of man under the most favourable circumstances, man under God's own culture. When the Lord came to the fig-tree, and found no fruit thereon, He pronounced this solemn sentence upon it, "Let no fruit grow on thee henceforward for ever," Matt. 21;19. Passing by the same road the day following, the disciples found it "withered away," "dried up from the roots," Mark II:20. Now, who would expect to get fruit from it after that? What would you have thought of the disciples commencing some new method of pruning and cultivating that tree, with the hope of getting fruit from it after all? Oh, but they knew better; they knew that the tree was hopelessly gone, and that they must look to some other tree for fruit, or figs they would never see again. So with man, as man, even at his best. The end of all hope in him came, when at Calvary he crucified the Son of God, and refused the grace He brought. But God has found another "tree," One that "bringeth forth His fruit in His season," and whose "leaf shall not wither." That ever fair, ever fruitful One, is Christ

Yes, God has Christ before His eye, and finds all His pleasure in connection with Him. He would have us to learn, therefore, that He has set man aside, as in the flesh, and begun a new order, an entirely new race, in Christ, the last Adam, as its Head, and those who live through Him. This, however, we are very slow to learn, and consequently have often to be brought through the bitterest experiences before we are made willing to submit to the fact that---
   
      " No good in creatures can be found,
      All, all is found in Thee."

We are like a man who has lost his way at night in some extensive slate-quarry. Finding himself in complete darkness, and totally unable to grope his way out (to say nothing of the peril of trying to do so without a light), he remembers, with thankfulness, that he has in his possession a box of matches, and sets to work at once to get a light. One by one they miss fire. Still he has plenty left, and will go on trying more carefully for the future. More than half the matches have now been struck, and yet no light. He begins to fear they are damp or worthless; but surely, he thinks, one good match will be found among the number. So, with increased painstaking, he continues the striking. Eventually the very last is reached. It is his only hope; and when he puts it to the test it is no better than the rest. It is all over now! Alas! alas! what can he do? He must give up his efforts, and throw away his box in despair. But no sooner has he done so than he finds coming toward him, in the hand of another, the very thing he was trying to get by his own hand; viz., a light. What a welcome and timely discovery! The way out is now made clear.

As with this man so with us; we do not believe that there is no goodness to be got out of the flesh, and are therefore allowed to go on with our fruitless "trying" until, like the man In Romans 7, we are brought, by heart-breaking experience, to the humbling confession, "I know in me (that is, in my flesh) dwelleth no good thing." And then it is that we find, to our joy, that what we could not find in ourselves for God, God has found in Christ for us, and that if we look there for what is "good" we shall lever be disappointed.

What a relief, then, after all one's ~efforts to make the flesh better, to find that God cannot find a good thing in it, and does not expect me to do so. Never again, then, need I look for any good in myself; never again be disappointed at the discovery of any depth of evil.

Dear Lord Jesus, what a good reminder
this is of the desperate condition I was in when
 You justified me.
 I was not merely needy; I was spiritually dead.
I thank You for burying that old life
 with Jesus in His tomb.
 I praise You for raising me with
 Christ to a new life.
 I rejoice in the radical nature of Your saving grace.
Lord, by the power of the resurrection,
 lead me in the reality of newness of life, in Jesus name, Amen.

[nChrist]

______________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
Please share this Inspirational with others.
Free Email Subscription
_______________________________________

LIBERTY - WHO GETS IT? AND HOW?
Part 4 of  7



DISAPPOINTMENT NO.2.

I know what is right, but have no power to do it.

"To will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not," Rom. 7:18.

To see the right thing to do; to have a wish to do it, and yet so constantly to fail in the performance of it, is galling indeed. Nor is the bitterness diminished, but rather increased, when one sees in others a thorough contrast to one's own state. "They seem to have devotedness; they have evidently got the secret of power for a holy walk; but as for myself there seems to be nothing but defeat and disappointment, do what I may."

We have seen that God has to show us what total bankrupts we are as to goodness, that we may find all we want---nay, more, all He Himself wants---in Christ. And He must next bring us to realize our perfect weakness that we may find our strength in Christ as well. " Apart from Me," saith the Lord, "ye can do nothing." On the other hand Paul could say, " I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me" (or "who gives me power"), Phil. 4:13. And when Paul had learned the lesson, he could even glory in his infirmities, and do it "gladly," because he knew that his weakness only made the more room for Christ's power, as he says, "That the power of Christ may rest upon me," 2 Cor. 12:9. He does not make me conscious of having power, but in the consciousness of my weakness I avail myself of His power. "I take pleasure in infirmities ... for when I am weak, then am I strong," ver.10.

The fact is that we are, when really put to the test, as powerless to keep ourselves, as a bit of thistledown is unable to stand its ground before a driving north-east wind. Stand in the current and hold it if you will, but the instant you relax your hold it is gone. Yet how slow we are to learn this lesson! What we naturally do, after a fall, is to resolve more solemnly to try the harder next time. But this is not the way of true power; and it is only when we find, through perhaps a sad series of crushing disappointments, that we really have no power of our own, that we submit to look to Him as our alone sufficiency. Peter could not, by any amount of effort, have walked on the water, even had it been ever so smooth. It was only with his eye upon his Master that he could do it.

A few years since, while the Royal Charlotte was being launched, a gentleman from G---- was standing by. Hundreds at the same time were crowding a small bridge to witness the event, when suddenly the bridge gave way, precipitating numbers of them into the water. Mr. S------stood looking on, not offering to go to the rescue, though he was well known to be an expert swimmer.

"How is this, Mr. S----?" exclaimed one of the bystanders. "How is it that such a powerful swimmer as you are, and one so well able to save some of these people, can stand so calmly looking on? "

"The time has not come yet," he replied; "I am waiting till some of them have done struggling."

Then, pulling off his coat, he jumped in, and bravely rescued several.

As with those drowning ones so with us. We never really get out of this second disappointment until we find that struggling means sinking, and until, having done with it as utterly fruitless, we look for deliverance altogether in Another. Naturally we want to make self better, and get nothing but heart-sickening disappointment every time we try. And as for the law, while exposing the wrong and condemning us for it, it gives no more power to do what is right than does the lighthouse, which discovers to some exhausted boatman that in battling with adverse currents he has missed his way, but gives him no power of rowing his leaky, disabled boat to the wished-for harbour. His only chance now is in an outside deliverer. Not that he gives up the thought of deliverance; he dare not do that; but for the first time he feels that it must come from another source. His hope is not in being himself made stronger, or better able to cope with the tidal currents, or of bringing to land in any way his fast filling boat. No; but lighting his flaring signal of distress, he is soon out of his sinking craft and on board a rescuing steamer, no longer to trust to his own boat or his own strength for reaching the desired haven.

This is the point reached in Romans 7:24: "0 wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me?" It is not, "Who shall help me to deliver myself?" or, "Who shall help me to make myself better?" but, "Who shall deliver me from myself altogether? " And the answer is found in God Himself. "I thank God, through Jesus Christ our Lord." Deliverance does not come through his battling for the victory, but by finding that he is in Christ, through whom before God he now lives; that he has died to sin, and is no longer in the flesh before Him.

He now stands before God in the life of Another---Christ-and is victorious in the power of Him whose grace has placed him there.

The point of deliverance being in principle thus reached, we are then free, in the details of daily life, to put it into practice. We learn to look to the Lord in helpless dependence for everything; and in that happy confidence, of which the Spirit of God is the power, we find in Him our entire sufficiency.

[nChrist]

______________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
Please share this Inspirational with others.
Free Email Subscription
_______________________________________

LIBERTY - WHO GETS IT? AND HOW?
Part 5 of  7


Not long since a man who had led a very dissipated course was converted. He had got the name among his comrades, of "Bulldog Tom," because he kept and trained a number of fighting dogs. One day he was met by a fellow-Christian, who enquired after his spiritual welfare; and in the course of their conversation Tom made the following remark:

"When I had a dog in training I only allowed him a certain kind of food at certain times in the day. Sometimes, while walking with me, he would see a bone, and, of course, instantly make toward it. ( 'No!' I would say, firmly; and at once he would turn away his eye from the bone to look at me. Then he would slyly turn toward the bone again, until I once more spoke, and got his eye. And so I found in this way, that while he was looking at me there was a power in me that kept him from the very thing which of all others a dog likes best. And thus it is with myself," he said. "If I would be kept from my old besetments, my only power is in looking to Him."

Full well he knew that these old habits were far too strong for him to conquer in his own strength.

Of course, like other human illustrations, this one falls short; for, after all there was nothing in the dog but the nature which loved the forbidden thing, unless it was the fear of consequences if he took it; whereas in every converted soul there is. He can say, " I delight in the law of God after the inward man;" so that there is a nature which takes pleasure in doing His will, though he finds no power in himself to accomplish it. He is like lame Mephibosheth, who ardently wished to accompany his royal benefactor during his exile, but was robbed by Ziba of the means of doing so, 2 Samuel 19:26.

Let us now consider the question, How is this Deliverance brought about?

It may simplify the matter somewhat, perhaps, to put what is said under three heads; viz., learning from God; reckoning with God; yielding to God, Rom. 6 :11,16.

1. LEARNING FROM GOD.

We have seen that conversion neither improves nor removes the sinful flesh, and this at once suggests another question; viz., "How can such an evil thing escape the judgment of God?" There is but one answer. It cannot, and what is more, it has not escaped; for already has it had its condemnation. "What the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh."

There is an immense difference between a criminal escaping, or even being forgiven, and his getting the full penalty of his wickedness. Now, sin in the flesh has not escaped. Its full judgment was awarded when He who knew no sin was made a sacrifice for sin on the cross. And thus, if God has already judged this evil thing in the death of Him who is now my life, then in God's account I am associated with Him in that judgment, and my life is in Him beyond it. The apostle can therefore write to the believers in Colosse, though he had never seen their faces, and say, "Ye are dead (or, "ye have died "), and your life is hid with Christ in God," Col. 3:3.

When faith has received from God this wondrous fact, the language of Romans 6:6 becomes consciously ours; we are entitled to count all that happened to Him as having happened to us- "Knowing this, that our old man is (or " has been ") crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin." This verse says nothing about our feeling it, though when the fact is learned from God by faith, we become morally affected by it, and know the blessed power of it. But it may be asked, What is meant by our "old man"? It is our entire standing as fallen children of Adam, our state as characterized by the flesh, and it is this which faith now sees, and which we now own, has come to an end in judgment before God at the cross; and deliverance is ours, experimentally, in consequence.


2. RECKONING WITH GOD.

"Our old man," then, we have seen, has not escaped, was not forgiven (though our sins have been forgiven), but has been crucified---" crucified with Christ." I learn from the Word that this is the way God reckons, and what I have to do is to reckon with Him. "Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God in Jesus Christ our Lord," ver. 11. There is no other life for me before God but the life of Christ. As in the Flood, all flesh was either in the waters of death and judgment outside the ark, or alive inside, so is it now. See John 12:31; Gen. 6:13. I am either alive to God (and that can only be in Christ) or I am alive in self under judgment. A soul must quit the ground of self to be clear of condemnation, and this he can only do as by faith he reckons with God.

But now comes a practical difficulty. Some troubled one may say, "How can I go and reckon myself dead to sin when I daily find the actual workings of the flesh within me? What shameful hypocrisy do I find in myself, what pride, what unworthy motives, what unclean thoughts! Yea, even in the attitude of prayer, what vain and unholy feelings will spring up within me! How, then, can I reckon myself to be dead unto sin?"

God does not ask us to feel that "our old man" is dead; for, as an actual fact, the flesh is still within us, and will be to the end of the story; but He does ask us to reckon with Him about it, and to remember that He counts it as having already had its judgment.

We need to cast our eyes upon His Word,
 and what He says about situations
 which try to beat us down.
  We don't have to carry burdens,
 but only release them to the One
 Who can handle them all.

[nChrist]

______________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
Please share this Inspirational with others.
Free Email Subscription
_______________________________________

LIBERTY - WHO GETS IT? AND HOW?
Part 6 of  7


A story is told of an old Scotchman who might be seen reading his Bible, and that after a very interesting fashion, too; for while doing so he would slowly run his finger along each line, saying, "I think Thy thoughts after Thee, 0 God." Now, here was a simple, bright specimen of faith. Consider it well, my reader. Faith gets God's thoughts, and thinks with Him; faith learns how He reckons, and reckons with Him; and does this even when appearances, or even experiences, may go dead against it May like wisdom be ours!

Now, it is because God reckons us as dead with Christ that we are privileged to reckon ourselves as having died with Him.

After the prophet Daniel had been brought out of the den of lions by the very king whose unalterable law had put him in, he had nothing more to fear from that side. Let the accusers, if they will, repeat their charges against him. The king himself can now give a righteous answer, and Daniel be free to echo the same. "He has already been into the den, and having thus endured the full penalty, it is now behind his back for ever." So also with the three Hebrew children; they could say, "We have been into the furnace at its hottest, in company with one like unto the Son of God; we have passed through it, and come out of it, and all that the fire did was to sever the cords that bound us."

Now, we repeat, it is not that we have been bodily into the judgment, but our blessed, adorable Substitute has, and God holds us as identified with Him there, and alive in Him at the other side of it; and here come in for us the reckonings of faith, Rom. 6. In other words, faith reckons that the judgment of death (like the fire) has severed the tie which bound me to my old self as a fallen child of Adam, and I live now before God in Christ beyond both death and judgment. If that old Christian who, in the writer's hearing, once said, "I dare not even tell myself how bad I am," had known this, she could have well afforded to face the worst about herself.

Mark well, then, that there is a double reckoning, and that both sides must go together. 1. That we are "dead indeed unto sin." 2. That we are "alive unto God in Christ Jesus." (R.V.)

Not only, therefore, are our sins gone on the cross, but our status as in the flesh too. We have lost our old position, and are now set before God in the life of Him who died for us. "The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death," Rom. 8:2. It is a new life, and a free life.

A distressed lady once remarked to the writer, "I'm so worried with what I find in myself that I often feel I should just like to jump out of my own skin into some one else's." So making use of her figure, I replied, "That is exactly what I have done." Or, I might rather have said, what God's grace has done for me. Let me explain. I once saw a little salamander in a small aquarium belonging to some children in Ireland. A few days before my visit they had been greatly interested in seeing him perform the feat of casting his skin, and coming out in his bright scarlet new one. But, after all, you see, this little lizard had only got the same kind of skin over again---brighter looking and fresher, it is true, but still the same kind.

Now, if the lady just referred to could really have done what she wished, all that could have been said to her would be, " Be sure you find a better, and remember that the whole of Adam's race cannot furnish you with one, for God has reviewed the whole, and pronounced that there is no difference."

But it is not with us as with the salamander; for though, by our death with Christ, we have got out of our old state, yet, instead of only getting into a better one after the first Adam type, we have come into a new one altogether; i.e., in the life of Christ risen. We are "alive to God in Christ Jesus." As another has put it, Christ having died, we reckon ourselves dead, as though we had done so. He who has become our life, the true I, has died. I have died, have been crucified with Him, and, as a Christian, do not own the flesh to be any more alive at all. I speak of all that has happened to Christ as if it had happened to me, because He is become my life, and I live by Him. As a son (whose father has not only paid his debts, but made him partner) would speak of 'our capital, our connection,' because he is partner, though he brought nothing in, and all was done and acquired before he became partner; so we, in much truer, because living association with the Son.

The great difficulty arises from not seeing that, while the evil principle still exists in us, it is no part of the Christian's new status before God. Until this has been learnt the soul must, if honest, be constantly deploring that he is not what he ought to be; for in the state of his soul he is still in connection with the flesh, and, as we have seen, that never can be what it ought to be, never be bettered. But when he is taught of the Spirit to look upon the flesh as having only to do with his former state (as the salamander might regard his cast-off skin), that death has severed the tie between the old and the new, and that he is set in a new position before God----alive in Christ BEYOND CONDEMNATION---what a relief it is! what a deliverance!

May the comfort of it be yours, dear reader!

Of Himself He said,
"The Son can do nothing of Himself" (John 5:19),
and you He says, "Without Me you can do nothing" (John 15:5)

Therefore expect and allow Christ to work
in and through you just as Christ,
 in His life on earth,
 expected and allowed the Father
 to work in and through Him.
Expect Him to do this ...
and He will, Just say
 "Thank You"---
and let Him surprise you!

[nChrist]

______________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
Please share this Inspirational with others.
Free Email Subscription
_______________________________________

LIBERTY - WHO GETS IT? AND HOW?
Part 7 of  7



Let us now come to the third thing.

3. YIELDING TO GOD.

In the history of David, in the first Book of Samuel, we are told that on one occasion, when pursuing the troop of Amalekites who had burned Ziklag, they found in the field a young Egyptian, abandoned three days before by his master, an Amalekite, because, as he said, " I fell sick." David's men brought him to their master, gave him food and drink, and thus saved his life. When David asked if he could conduct him to their retreating foes, he made entreaty that he might not be delivered into the hands of his old master. To this David consented, and henceforth the young man willingly yielded himself to the service of his deliverer.

This will serve to illustrate our present subject. The young Egyptian had before his mind two masters, the old and the new. The old master's
service would have landed him in death but for the timely interference of the new. He owed his life to the new master, and nothing but death to the old. To which, then, should he now yield himself to serve and obey? Yield to his old master? Never! The question was as quickly settled as it was proposed. Grace, kindness, and power were all on the side of the new master, and to his service he would gladly and instantly yield himself. In doing so, next to death itself, his greatest fear was being given up again into the power and service of the old, though both his fears were groundless.

Now, our old master was "sin," and to his service we once yielded ourselves as willing slaves, and the end of it was, as with the young Egyptian, death; "for the wages of sin is death." But a deliverer has come in out of pure grace, and has by the Lord Jesus Christ wrought deliverance. Thus I am set free, "free from sin" (Rom. 6:18 ); not in the sense, as pointed out elsewhere, of being free from its presence, as a horse is sometimes spoken of as being "free from vice;" but free from its dominion, as the young Egyptian was free from his old master. I am set free by death; am free in the life of Him who on my account once "died to sin." Being thus set at liberty, the question arises, "To which master shall I now yield myself?" And then how agreeably to the renewed heart comes the answer by the Spirit--- "Yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead," v. 13. Now, we do not yield to get freedom. This exhortation clearly supposes that we have got it. We yield because we are free, though only in yielding thus do we enjoy our true liberty; only thus have we "our fruit unto holiness," v. 22.

To God, then, we are debtors, and "not to the flesh, to live after the flesh;" for we are alive in the life of Christ, and not in our own; and this blessed position of being "alive" out of death is entirely of grace, and not of legal effort, and therefore He can add, " Sin shall not have dominion over you; for ye are not under law, but under grace," Rom. 6:13,14; 8:12. The claims of the law supposed that I had power to obey its commands, or that I thought I had; grace supposes that I have none at all, but teaches me, as in the life of another, now my life by the Spirit, to yield myself to God, thereby getting His victorious power in place of my own utter helplessness. "When I am weak, then am I strong."

A young miner in Yorkshire, who had recently been converted, was being closely watched one day by an overlooker in the pit, who stood unobserved at a little distance. This young collier was in difficulty. A little truck of coal had got off the rails at a point where the metals curved, and he was trying hard to get it on again. The overlooker noticed that when he lifted the truck on at one end it jumped off again at the other. Then he would go round and lift once more, when off went the wheels from the opposite end! Now, the watchman knew what a violent tempered young man this collier had been, and how rash he had often been with his tongue, so he thought to himself, "I'm sure he'll break out directly." And break out he did, as we shall see.

Once more he went round the truck, and with more than usual care he was seen to lift the wheels on to the metals, when, lo! how wearying! how annoying! the other wheels immediately left the rails. And then it was that he "broke out" ---but broke out with what, think you? He broke out singing---

"I need Thee every hour,"

In the moment of need he turned to Him whom he had learned to know as his sufficiency. How blessed! Oh that all our "outbreaks" in moments of trial were of this kind! What praise would redound to our blessed Lord! What joyful victories for us!

"As weaker than a bruised reed,
    I cannot do without Thee,"

should be our constant cry, as in absolute weakness we cling to Him alone.

Another word as to this "yielding." There are many true, earnest souls to-day who are seeking what is called a "higher life." No doubt what they are really seeking is the deliverance we have been speaking of, but they hope to reach it by an act of entire consecration, thus beginning altogether at the wrong end. But look at Rom. 6:13 again. We are here exhorted to yield ourselves to God as those that are alive from the dead. In other words, we do not yield to get this blessing, but because, through grace, it is ours already. We hold ourselves to be such. On the other hand, we cannot have peace and joy by the Holy Ghost in our souls unless there is unreserved surrender to the Lord. It is thus that we prove " what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God," Rom. 12: 2.

This must be the practical every-day exercise of our souls before God: "Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body," 2 Cr. 4:10.

The more our souls are set upon this the more shall we look forward with JOY to the day when our very bodies shall be conformed like to His body of glory. Then we shall enjoy the "liberty of the glory of the children of God." But now He would have us enjoy the liberty of grace. And, oh, what liberty it is! Liberty to look at my sins in the light of His judgment throne, and know that I am justified from them all, and that the very One who will sit in judgment has done it. Liberty to look at all the evil of my corrupt Adam nature, and not only know that God expects no good thing from it, but that its condemnation has taken place once for all upon the cross. Liberty to reckon with God as to indwelling evil, and to regard it as having been condemned in the cross, and that my new standing before Him is in Christ, the old man, the flesh having no place before Him at all, save as a thing whose judgment is passed already. "There is therefore now NO CONDEMNATION to them which are in Christ Jesus," Romans 8:1. Liberty to look away from self for everything, knowing that all God could wish for in a man He finds in Christ, and that "as He is, so are we in this world," 1 John 4:17 ; John 14:20. Liberty to regard myself as entirely connected with the renewed nature, the old "I" no longer, but Christ my life, and the Holy Spirit the power of occupying my heart with Christ, in whom is all my expectation. Liberty to regard God no longer as a Judge taking notice of what I am in myself, but as having put me in Christ's place as a son, so that by the spirit of adoption I cry, " Abba, Father ;" and as finding His delight and joy in blessing me, and making me happy. Liberty to know that if the Son has made me free I am free indeed. John 8:32-36. Liberty to look at the glory shining in the face of Jesus, and to be at home in that blessed place of holiness and love. Liberty to remember that every blessing comes to me through and in Christ in such unmerited grace that I need never henceforth search my own heart for a single reason why He should or should not bless me, either here or hereafter. Liberty to serve, in the constraint of loving gratitude, the     blessed Deliverer Himself, and His beloved saints for His sake, until I the return of His Son from heaven. This is liberty indeed, dear reader. Is it yours?
BY  GEO. CUTTING

Dear Lord, You are my salvation,
from justification throughout a lifetime of sanctification.
Forgive me for underestimating my need for You.
 And concerning the self-sufficient,
 self-confident ways by which I have often lived.
I now thank you for all the Liberties that are mine
which you have given to me.
 I want to live by trust and confidence in You.
 I long to live by Your grace, not by my best efforts.  Amen.

[nChrist]

______________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
Please share this Inspirational with others.
Free Email Subscription
_______________________________________

THE GRAVECLOTHES - CONVINCING EVIDENCE OF RESURRECTION
by Russell S. Miller


When Peter and John had come to the sepulchre, John outran Peter, but Peter rushed immediately into the tomb upon his arrival, “…and seeth the linen clothes lie, and the napkin, that was about His head…. They went in also that other disciple [John], which came first to the sepulchre, and he saw, and believed. For as yet they  knew NOT the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead” (John 20:6-9).

 But what was it that “he saw”? What had they seen in that sepulchre? It must have been some very convincing evidence! What was this evidence in that tomb that caused them to believe apart from the Scriptures? And what exactly was it that they had believed?

 The napkin, or handkerchief, a head-dress, “that [had been] about His head, [was] not lying with the linen clothes, but [was rather] wrapped together in a place by itself” (John 20:7).

 When the Lord raised Lazarus from the dead, he “came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: AND HIS FACE WAS BOUND ABOUT WITH A NAPKIN” and Jesus told the Jews, and Mary and Martha,“Loose him, and let him go” (John 11:44). The Greek word here, “luo," to loose, unbind, release, is used by Christ. So they took the graveclothes from off Lazarus, and unbound him, allowing him to go free.

 The evidence in Joseph’s tomb was remarkable. When Christ arose from the dead the head-dress or napkin and the linen clothes remained just as He lay in them, undisturbed. This is more than remarkable, rare, or extraordinary, it was most astonishing and miraculous evidence of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Clearly He was not there, and that no “gardener” had taken Him away was also so obviously evident. That the grave could not hold Him is manifest proof that He possessed “the Spirit of holiness” (Rom.1:4; Heb.7:26). There was no sin in Him to hold Him in the grave—NOT a chance! The angel rolled the stone away from the door that the disciples, and the women, might see the empty tomb. Indeed, the Lord had already come forth, and He came through that solid stone door much as He had done, “where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews,” in John 20:19.

 “He is not here, but is risen; remember how He spake unto you when He was yet in Galilee” (Luke 24:6).

[nChrist]

______________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
Please share this Inspirational with others.
Free Email Subscription
_______________________________________

POWER PERFECTED IN WEAKNESS
by C.R. Stam


    To Paul was committed the greatest revelation of all time. He was divinely commissioned to proclaim the glorious all-sufficiency of Christ's redemptive work, God's offer of salvation by free grace to all who trust in Christ and their heavenly position, blessings and prospect.

Lest he should become puffed up by the glory of these great truths, God gave him what he calls "a thorn in the flesh", an aggravating physical infirmity of some sort. "For this thing," he says, "I besought the Lord thrice [three times], that it might depart from me" (II Cor.12:8 ). But the Lord knew better than Paul what was best for him:

"And He said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee; for My strength is made perfect in weakness" (Ver. 9).

How right God was! Every Christian knows that with brimming health and "good fortune" comes the tendency to forget our need of Him, while infirmity causes us to lean harder and to pray more and this is where our spiritual power lies. Every believer should acknowledge this and say with Paul:

"Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities...for when I am weak, then am I strong" (II Cor.12:9,10).

Infirmities of the flesh are common even to God's choicest saints. What satisfaction there is, then, in just believing God's Word: "My grace is sufficient for thee, for My strength is made perfect in weakness".

O Lord, my strength,
make my life a daily witness,
declaring in word, deed,
 and attitude that Jesus is alive.
 Lord, my own abilities will never be
 sufficient to accomplish this.
 So, I humbly pray,
 empower me by Your Holy Spirit,
 in Christ's  name, Amen.