GRACE AND THE TRUTH - DAILY INSPIRATION

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WHY, DID HE DO IT?
By Pastor Paul Hume



Scripture Reading: Provo 16:4; Gen. 1:1-2:7

Why is the universe made up of many galaxies and solar systems so immense and vast that no human can ever begin to comprehend them?  Why is there a sun like ours along with millions of stars and several planets including the Moon which our country has been so interested in recently? Why is there a planet--Earth--which alone is habitable? (see Psa. 115:15-16). Why is there an atmosphere about six to seven miles deep surrounding our planet composed of 21% Oxygen, 78% Nitrogen, and 1% inert gases? Without this perfect balance in the atmosphere, or should the slightest change take place to upset that balance, death would come swiftly to all who live on Earth! Why the faithful cycle of evaporation, clouds, and finally precipitation? Why should two-thirds of the surface of this planet be covered by oceans? Why are some places virtually uninhabitable and unproductive--like the Sahara Desert--which seem like a terrible waste of valuable land? Why man? Why not something better than man? We could go on and on asking "Why?"

The answer is not given by merely citing certain scientific laws. The answer is found in the Word of God which makes it clear that all things which God made and the way He has made them function are simply for His pleasure! Look again at the statements in Genesis 1 Where God said "and it was good." Why was it good? Because "The Lord hath made all things for Himself." This is amplified in Colossians 1:16: "For by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth; visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him, and for Him." Thus Paul states in Romans 11:36: "For of Him, and through Him, and to Him are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen." Even the wicked, says Proverbs 16:4, have been made by Him "for the day of evil." Yes, even sin, wickedness, and all its attendant miseries, while not having been created by God Himself, nevertheless, He has sovereignly purposed that it should serve His purpose to the praise of His glory!  "Since God is God, who dare challenge His prerogative? To murmur against Him is rank rebellion." Worship ye Him!

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OUR FOOLISH WISDOM
By Pastor R. Hanna

Scripture Reading: I Corinthians 3:18-20

The source of all life, all knowledge and all wisdom, is God. When we reason by exercising our own intellect apart from His leading, we make a mockery of true wisdom. 'There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death" (Proverbs 14:12). When we take it upon ourselves to set our own standards of right and wrong, we err greatly. We then often compound the error by seeking justification for our mistakes and attempting to gloss them over by further demonstrations of human logic.

Strangely enough, our search seems always to be one for freedom. In the flesh, we always seek material means to attain freedom. But God tells us, "Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:32). And how shall we know the truth? Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life" (John 14:6). Our search for freedom ends when we are in Christ - and not before! "Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty ... Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free (II Corinthians 3:17) (Galatians 5:1).

In this age of grace, we as members of the body of Christ have an even greater freedom than did His disciples at the time of His earthly ministry. For we are free' from not only the bondage of sin, but also from the letter of the law and all the ceremonies and rituals and sacrifices contained therein. The basic principle, however, is unchanged. "Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God."

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THE "RIGHTNESS" OF GOD
by C. R. Stam

    St. Paul's great Epistle to the Romans has much to say about "the righteousness of God"; in fact this is the theme of the Book of Romans. Sad to say, however, the Bible is so little read and studied of late that many people do not even know what the word "righteousness" means.

    Actually, every man, woman and child should know about the righteousness of God -- or, to simplify the word -- the rightness of God. It is most important to understand that God does always and only that which is right. He can do nothing and will do nothing that is not right.

    Thus God cannot and does not merely forgive sinners and smuggle them into heaven, for this would not be right. As Job 8:20 rightly says: "Behold, God will not cast away a perfect man; neither will He help evil doers", for neither would be right.

    It was Bildad who said this to Job, and Job replied, almost exasperated: "I know it is so of a truth, but how shall a man be just with God?" In other words, how can a holy God look upon a sinner and pronounce him righteous?

    With this background let's consider Paul's great declaration in Romans 1:16,17:

    *"I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth...for therein is the righteousness [i.e., the rightness] of God revealed...."*

    True the love of God is revealed in the gospel, but what made Paul so proud to proclaim the gospel is the fact that it tells how God dealt "righteously", or rightly with sin, paying its just penalty Himself at Calvary so that He might offer salvation to all by free grace.

    Thus the Apostle declares in Romans 6:23: "The wages of sin is death [this is its just penalty]; but the [free] gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord".

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THE CAPTAIN OF OUR SALVATION
by C. R. Stam


Years ago a man of God was asked to preach at the funeral of a young soldier whose parents were unsaved.

During the course of his message the preacher sought to impress upon his hearers the basic fact that “the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life, through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom. 6:23).

This greatly upset the parents. After the service they complained: “This is embarrassing. Our boy was not a sinner.”

The truth was that shortly before his death this young man had done what every true, born-again Christian has done. He acknowledged himself to be a lost sinner and, trusting Christ as his Savior, had been so gloriously saved that his parents were mystified that he could be so happy in the face of death.

The simplest believer in Christ understands all this. He knows that for the “old man” the death of the body is indeed a “dishonorable discharge” for laws broken, orders disobeyed, responsibilities unmet, and trusts betrayed. But for the “new man the death of the body is the vestibule through which he is ushered into the blessed presence of “the Captain of our Salvation,” the One who “by the grace of God tasted death for every man” that He might “bring many sons unto glory” (See Hebrews 2:9,10).

This is why we read in Hebrews 2:14,15:

“Forasmuch, then, as the children [of Adam] were partakers of flesh and blood, He [Christ] also Himself likewise took part of the same; that through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;
“And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

No wonder St. Paul’s simple message of salvation was: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved” (Acts 16:31).

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Boldness In Proclaiming the Gospel
by Steve McVey

In August of 1521, Martin Luther wrote a letter to his friend, Philipp Melanchthon. Here's what he had to say about how to proclaim the gospel:

If you are a preacher of mercy; do not preach an imaginary but the true mercy. If the mercy is true, you must therefore bear the true, not an imaginary sin. God does not save those who are only imaginary sinners.

Be a sinner, and let your sins be strong, but let your trust in Christ be stronger, and rejoice in Christ who is the victor over sin, death, and the world. We will commit sins while we are here, for this life is not a place where justice resides. We, however, says Peter, are looking forward to "a new heaven and a new earth" where justice will reign. It suffices that through God's glory we have recognized the Lamb who takes away the sin of the world. No sin can separate us from Him, even if we were to kill or commit adultery thousands of times each day. Do you think such an exalted Lamb paid merely a small price with a meager sacrifice for our sins?

Raw grace --- it's dangerous stuff. At the least, it makes some people nervous. Others will be outraged. Tell folks that their sins are all forgiven and some of them will become incredibly offended by such good news. Tell them that there's nothing they can do to separate themselves from the love of God and they'll accuse you of preaching license to sin. Tell them Jesus has done it all and there's nothing left for them to do to make themselves acceptable to God and they may say you're teaching passivity. It's a strange thing to see how much people often despise good news.

Share the truth in its purity and you'll likely find that your enemies will hate you and your friends will worry about you. That's a given. Plainly and simply put, if you are never misunderstood; if you are never criticized for your view of grace; if you never ruffle any feathers, you aren't being bold enough in proclaiming the gospel of grace.

From the Apostle Paul forward, everybody who has proclaimed pure grace has riled up self-righteous religionists. Don't forget that the greatest opponents of Jesus were the religious people. I don't believe we should try to be offensive, but the Bible calls the gospel an offense, so if nobody is ever being offended by our proclamation of grace, we have to wonder how clearly we are presenting it in its purity.

Luther and others, both before and after him, paid a price for refusing to budge on the subject. May God raise up a generation of grace walkers today that show the same resolve. The need is great and the potential is staggering.

Be bold about grace. Don't raise the white flag by accepting that there must be balance. Don't surrender by agreeing that it may simply be a matter of semantics when we discuss the subject. Don't think for one moment that you can take grace too far. You can't because if you did it would stop being grace and morph into disgrace.

As Luther said, the exalted Lamb didn't pay a small price with a meager sacrifice for our sins. The Trinity of Heaven spent every ounce of Divine Equity for our forgiveness and to bring us into the Divine Circle of Life. Let us not insult such a great expression of love with a wishy-washy testimony. Stand strong. Speak plainly and refuse to compromise. Too much has been spent and too much is at stake to do any less.

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GODLINESS IN AN UNGODLY DAY
by C. R. Stam

It is an interesting fact that the words "godly" and "godliness" are not found in Paul's writings until we come to the Pastoral Epistles, the very epistles that have so much to say about evil days and evil surroundings.

 In the epistles to Timothy we read about the "perilous times" with which this present dispensation of grace will be brought to a close, while in the letter to Titus we read of "unruly and vain talkers and deceivers," of "liars... evil beasts... lazy gluttons," whom Satan would use to neutralize the work and witness of God's servants.

 To Timothy and Titus, these young men of God, the Apostle had much to say about godliness, and we must not forget that Paul's words to them are also God's Word to us, believers in Christ, who indeed appear to be living in the closing days of the dispensation of grace, surrounded by a steadily-rising tide of evil and an ever-growing number of wicked, godless men.

 We do not mean to imply that the Apostle does not deal with the various phases of the Christian life in his other epistles, but rather that here in the Pastoral Epistles he wages a sort of campaign for individual godly living in the midst of increasing apostasy and godlessness.

 May God help us, in our character and conduct, to exhibit "the power of godliness," the spiritual power that comes from putting Christ first in all things.

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AN ENLARGED HEART
By  John Baker, Bible Teacher

2 CORINTHIANS 6:11
"O ye Corinthians, our mouth is open unto you,
our heart is enlarged."

The believer is admonished in the Scriptures over and over to be patient, longsuffering and loving. We are to speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15), walk in love (Ephesians 5:2), love one another (Romans 13:8 ), and love our neighbors (Matthew 5:44). This love is a part of the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22) and the result of an enlarged heart (2 Corinthians 6:11-13).

Enlarged as used in 2 Corinthians 6 has the idea of to make broad, to widen or to extend. A part of the gift of wisdom that God gave Solomon was largeness of heart in order that he might have compassion on the people over which he ruled (See 1 Kings 4:29). Paul's prayer for the Ephesians was, "That Christ may dwell in our hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth and height; and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with the fullness of God" (Ephesians 3:17-19). It is so easy to simply rest in our salvation and become cold and indifferent to those around us. The supreme example of love from an enlarged heart was our Lord Jesus Christ. He showed His love for us while we were yet enemies and, "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13)

As we yield to the indwelling Spirit, God will enlarge our hearts so that we can be patient, longsuffering and loving as we ought; "because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is give unto us" (Romans 5:5). Our prayer and goal should ever be that "the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men" ( 1 Thessalonians 3:12).

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THE DOCTRINE OF SANCTIFICATION
By Pastor Robert Hanna,


Scripture Reading: II Timothy 2:20, 21


"We are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all...For by one offering He hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified" (Hebrews 10:10,14). God has set us apart unto Himself. "He (in Christ) gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and PURIFY UNTO HIMSELF A PECULIAR PEOPLE, ZEALOUS OF GOOD WORKS" (Titus 2:14). This is our positional sanctification, which places us under spiritual obligation to prove ourselves worthy of His expectation. "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus UNTO GOOD WORKS, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them" (Ephesians 2:10).

The Apostle Paul exhorts us to faithfully dedicate ourselves to this end. "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God. which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God" (Romans 12:I, 2).

Paul explains his responsibility to encourage our faithfulness through "ministering the gospel of God, that the offering up of the Gentiles might be acceptable, BEING SANCTIFIED BY THE HOLY GHOST" (Romans 15:16b). "If a man purge himself from these (vessels of dishonor), he shall be a vessel unto honour, SANCTIFIED, and meet for the Master's use, and prepared unto every good work."

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LOVE'S ETERNALITY
By Miles Stanford



"The Lord direct your hearts into the love of God" (2 Thess. 3:5).

Between the activity of the old man and the accusations of Satan, we often find it very difficult to believe and understand that God is lovingly and legally on our side, both now and forever.

"One of the great secrets of growth is the looking upon the Lord Jesus as gracious. How strengthening it is, to know that He is at this moment feeling exercising the same love and grace towards me as when He died upon the Cross for me." -J.N.D.

"I have got away from grace if I have the slightest doubt about God's love for me. I shall then be saying, I am not happy, because I am not what I should like to be. But, dear friend, this is not the question: the real question is, whether God is what we shall like Him to be, whether the Lord Jesus is all we could wish.

"If the consciousness of what we are in ourselves, has any other effect than, while it humbles us, to crease our adoration of what our Father is, we are off the ground of pure grace. The immediate effect such consciousness should be to make our hearts reach out to God and to His grace as abounding over all."

"May our hearts get such a lesson in the love of the Father, that, instead of being depressed by trying circumstances, or elated by what are called providential inter positions, we may know that we are the objects of this wonderful love, and are being educated into it by the only One who knew it in all its power as walked here below through this wilderness world."-J.B.S.

"To know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge" (Eph. 3:19).

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THE DOCTRINE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
By Pastor Robert Hanna



Scripture Reading: I Corinthians 6:19, 20

No aspect of the believer's position can be more vital than proper knowledge of his relationship to the Holy Spirit of God and the functions of the Holy Spirit in this present age of the dispensation of grace. It is popular among many professed Christians today to embrace convictions based upon experiences recorded in the early portion of the Book of Acts. The miraculous events related to the pentecostal church of that time belong to Israel only ---not to the Church which is Christ's Body.

We who have been saved by grace through faith under this present dispensation of the grace of God, do not await a miraculous descending of the Holy Ghost. We do not "pray down the Spirit." or attempt to invite visions and signs and wonders. Upon believing to salvation, "By one Spirit are we all baptized into one body...and have been all made to drink into one Spirit" (I Corinthians 12:13). "Therefore we are buried with [Christ] by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life" (Romans 6:4).

The Holy Spirit indwells us, controlling our lives as we yield ourselves to His will. "Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost?" The Holy Spirit is our teacher of divine truth, "Not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth..." (I Corinthians 2:13.) And the Holy Spirit is our intercessor, "For we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit Himself maketh intercession for us" (Romans 8:26).

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WHO SHALL SEPARATE US?
by C. R. Stam



"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?" (Rom. 8:35).

True Christians have been saved from the penalty of sin for one reason alone: because of "the love of God, which is [manifested] in Christ Jesus our Lord."

St. John wrote by divine inspiration: "Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us, and sent His Son to be the propitiation [satisfaction] for our sin. "We love Him because He first loved us" (I John 4:10,19).

Let us understand this clearly and remember it always. It is not our love to Him, but His love to us, that saves us -- and it is His love to us that keeps us saved. This is where we must begin the Christian life.

A wayward husband returned to his grieving wife one day, after many months of living in sin. Sobbing his heart out in remorse and shame, he told her how often he had longed to be home again with the wife he knew to be so true to him. Asked why, then, he had not returned sooner, he explained that he was ashamed; to which his wife replied: "John, I want you to know something and never forget it: I love you." John sobbed in response: "Who wouldn’t want to live for a woman like this!"

Just so it is the knowledge that Christ loves us no matter what; that nothing shall ever separate us from His love; it is this that makes the sincere believer determine, by God’s grace, to be always true to Him.

Thus the Scripture doctrine of the believer’s eternal security in Christ by no means leads to careless living. On the contrary, it affords the greatest possible motivation to "live soberly, righteously and godly in this present world" (Titus 2:11,12).

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The Teaching of Self-Esteem
by Paul M. Sadler



Scripture Reading:

"Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince [refute] the gainsayers." -- Titus 1:9

Satan never rests in his insatiable desire to corrupt the Word of God. A case in point is the present-day teaching of self-love, self-esteem and self-worth. The influence of this unsound doctrine has nearly permeated every strata of Christendom, including the Grace Movement. Like the beat of a drum, this theme is heard almost constantly from the pulpits of America and frequently appears on the pages of Christian literature. Beware when you hear or read: "It is important to feel good about yourself," "Learn to love yourself," "Probe your innermost self to understand why you think and feel as you do," "God sent His son to die for you because you are of great value."

On the surface these phrases may seem commendable, but in reality they are diametrically opposed to the Scriptures. The above has been weighed in the balance and found to be wanting. For example: "The heart [innermost self] is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" (Jer. 17:9). Paul concurred when he said, "For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh, [old nature or self]) dwelleth no good thing" (Rom. 7:18 ).

The old man (self) is at enmity against God. He hates God and the things of God and left to himself he will not seek God. The Scriptures, from beginning to end, speak with a unified voice that the old nature is rotten to the core (See Rom. 3:9-18 ).

Consequently, our old man (self) has been crucified with Christ. Paul made reference to this when he wrote to the Galatians, "I am crucified with Christ [i.e. his old man]: nevertheless I live [Paul's new nature]; yet NOT I [self], but Christ liveth in me." We are to put off the old nature and put on the new, which is created in holiness and righteousness (Eph. 4:22-24). It is futile to improve one's self-image, especially since God abhors any attempt to do so. Rather, we are to conform ourselves to the image of His dear Son. Thus, those of the household of faith are to live accordingly:

"Let nothing be done through strife or vain glory; but in lowliness of mind let us esteem others better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus" (Phil. 2:3-5).

Self takes great pleasure in acclaim, indulgence, approval and praise. It glories in all these things. But are we not robbing God when self is esteemed more highly than His glory?

"What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit which is in you, which ye have of God, AND YE ARE NOT YOUR OWN? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's" (I Cor. 6:19,20).

Shall we permit the "love of one's self" doctrine to overshadow the love of God in Christ Jesus? God forbid! May God help us to stand against this insidious teaching that essentially robs God of the glory that is rightfully due Him.

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GRACE AND MERCY
By Miles Stanford


"But my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus" (Phil. 4:19).

If and when the trial comes, you will find Him waiting there.

"We should always be prepared for circumstances that will arise, and for blessings that are to come, without foreseeing what these circumstances and blessings will be. This preparation consists in attention to present responsibility, and acceptance of present discipline.

"If day by day we first seek divine direction, and then follow it, we shall be ready, when new circumstances arise, for the new blessings which will be offered. Today should be preparation for tomorrow. The only proof that we shall be equal to tomorrow's test is that we are meeting today's test believingly and courageously. The only evidence that we shall be willing for God's will tomorrow is that we are subject to His will today." -W.G.S.

"Our Lord has special reserves of grace for special needs. If ever you feel that you could not go through a certain trial, that if you had to face that, you just could not go through with it, you are taking on something that you have no right to take on.

"If the Lord calls you to go through fire or water, He has a special reserve of grace for you in that. And that grace will be from the throne of grace. It is the throne above, mediating grace for need and suffering as it is required." -T.A-S.

"Let us... come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need" (Heb. 4:16).

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THE LOVE OF THE TRUTH
by C. R. Stam


In II Thes. 2:10 St. Paul declares that the apostates of the coming age will "perish, because they received not the love of the truth, that they may be saved." This is something worth considering very seriously.

God calls this present dispensation "the dispensation of the grace of God" (Eph. 3:2). During this dispensation faithful Christians are proclaiming "the gospel of the grace of God" (Acts 20:24). This is the message of God’s grace and love in giving Christ to die for our sins so that we might be saved from its penalty and power.

All, however, do not believe this glorious message or accept God’s grace in Christ. These, the Apostle declares, will be left behind when our Lord comes, at the close of this dispensation, to receive His own to Himself. Because they rejected the truth, and the love it proclaimed, God will give them up "that they might believe a lie," and put their faith in Antichrist, "that they all might be damned who believed not the truth" (II Thes. 2:8-12).

It was infinite love that brought Christ to Calvary to suffer shame and disgrace for our sins, and this love is being proclaimed in this dispensation of grace. But this dispensation may be brought to a close at any time and bring in the day of God’s wrath. How important then to accept God’s love, and trust His Son without delay!

"Behold, now is the accepted time... Behold now is the day of salvation" (II Cor. 6:2).

If you do not trust Christ as your Lord and Savior now and you are caught unawares and lost for all eternity, you will never be able to say, "It was because God did not choose to save me." Whatever all the reasons involved in His electing grace, He does not accept the responsibility for your rejection of Christ. He says that the unsaved will perish "because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved." Don’t gamble with the future. Receive God’s gift of salvation now through faith in Christ.

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HIS HUNGER
By M. Stanford


"Oh that men would praise the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men!" (Ps. 107:8 ).

Our Father gave us the hunger to be justified (John 6 :44), and He gave us the hunger to be sanctified (Phil. 3:10). This same principle applies to our service, our sharing. He never pushed us, but drew us in loving kindness - and He would treat others likewise, through us.

"If we are not living near the Lord Jesus and are not where we should be, we neither have an appetite for spiritual things, nor can we feed upon Him who is the living Bread. When God pours into you a hunger for your Beloved and begins to reveal your privileges in Him, rejoice with great joy and gratitude toward God. If He did not put into our hearts the longing to know Him better and to have His very best, we would be satisfied with the least we could have and be saved." - C.H.MacI.

"How wondrous are the working and drawings of God upon a human heart! How little do we behold Him or know that which He is doing, as day by day He works down in the depths of our beings. The most favored place a child of God can be in, is to continually feel the drawing of God urging and constraining him to a greater hunger for Him."

"God never gives anything till the soul is ready to receive it. When you are ready you will long and hunger for it."

"For He satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness" (Ps. 107:9).