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GRACE AND THE TRUTH - DAILY INSPIRATION
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The God of Peace Part 1 of 7
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The God of Peace Part 1 of 7
By K. Blades
Peace. Even the sound of the word has something soothing and pleasant about it. Though not strictly classified as an onomatopoetic word, it possesses the essential quality of such, both in English as well as in other languages. It has no sharpness in sound nor in appearance; no jarring impact occurs when it is spoken, heard, or read. Rather in accordance with its meaning it possesses the exact opposite features, being quiet in sound and gentle on contact.
Hence in meaning and in sound the word "peace" is welcomed by our inner man. It is no intruder or unwanted guest. Of all the visitors that come 'knocking on the door of our mind,' peace is one that we long to see and readily receive. It is the most welcome of guests. Moreover we want it to reside with us; to make itself at home with us. It can never overstay its welcome, for it is always welcome. Because of this we are grieved whenever peace takes its leave, and when unwanted guests arrive to take its place in our minds. We are not at ease and relaxed when we are intruded upon by such characters as stress, distress, grief, sorrow, perplexity, anxiety; carefulness, worry, fear, dread, despair, and the like. Their visits are always unsettling and up-setting. Hence we long to see them leave, and for peace to pay us a visit again.
Peace, therefore, is something we much desire. We also view it as a most precious commodity. For often we will seek it at great cost; sometimes even at all costs. This is because there is little that compares with 'being at peace,' both in our inner man and in our relationships with others. In view of this, being 'at peace' is often the consummate expression used by psychologists and the like when referring to what best characterizes 'good mental health.'
Now peace in its various forms and occurrences is not only something that we naturally desire in the details of our lives, it is also something that God Himself wants us to possess. Hence He has fully provided for us to have it, and as such He both deliberately and constantly extends it to us. In fact understanding and appreciating the reality of this is so fundamental to our relationship with God, and to our fellowship with Him in our daily lives, that He has Paul preface each of his epistles to us with this very offering by saying,..
"Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ:"
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The God of Peace Part 2 of 7
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The God of Peace Part 2 of 7
By K. Blade
Moreover in the outworking of our sonship edification, (as we progress through its curriculum for our godly edifying, processing its numerous forms of doctrine and so growing and maturing), we encounter God presenting Himself to us as "the God of peace" in various contexts and for various reasons. For example,...
"Now the God of peace be with you all. Amen. (Romans 15:33)
"And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen. (Romans 16:20)
"Finally, brethren, farewell. Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace shall be with you. (II Corinthians 13:11 )
"Peace be to the brethren, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. (Ephesians 6:23)
"Those things, which ye have both learned,and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you. (Philippians 4:9)
"Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always by all means. The Lord be with you all. (II Thessalonians 3:16)
God is indeed "the God of peace." And though realizing this is not something that is exclusive to us in this present dispensation of God's grace, there is a real sense in which we today are to have a special understanding and appreciation for God as such. For the fact is that knowing God as "the God of peace," deeply appreciating Him as such, and hence loving Him as such, is a definite and preplanned objective in our sonship education and edification. It is not only one of the specific ways in which we as "sons" have intimacy of fellowship with God our Father, it is also one of the primary ways in which we learn about the excellency of the power of God's word operating within us. Moreover this particular aspect of our education and edification provides for the development within us of an increasing ability to trust in, and operate upon, the power of the effectual working of God's word within us no matter what.
Wherefore our God and Father presents Himself to us as "the God of peace" a number of times and in several different contexts. With this being so, as we proceed through the curriculum for our sonship edification we are taught to understand and appreciate the issue of "peace" in a number of different ways, ranging from the fundamental issue of having "peace with God" being justified in His sight, to the issue of possessing complete inner peace, along with joy, even when encountering the most extreme adversities from the Satanic policy of evil against us.
Therefore the "peace" that God extends to us is manifold and varied, existing in many forms. Yet of all its forms and occurrences, one of the most fundamental is the Godly peace for our inner man that our Father wants us to possess when we experience disquieting, disturbing, and trying circumstances in the details of our lives. And though this is a fundamental matter, and we are taught about it right from the outset of our sonship edification, it is also something that God has designed for us to benefit from throughout the growth and maturing of our Christian lives. In view of this the Godly peace that our Father extends to us is far-reaching and mighty in its capacity, being able to deal effectually with whatsoever may come our way as we progress through our sonship edification.
Wherefore it behooves us to be certain that we understand and appreciate the issue of possessing such Godly peace. Especially the particular mechanism by which God has purposed for us to acquire it and enjoy it, and also through which we are to grow to love Him as "the God of peace." And the mechanism for all of this is the direct communion and fellowship we are able to have, and should have, with our Father through prayer.
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The God of Peace Part 3 of 7
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The God of Peace Part 3 of 7
By K. Blades
Peace and the Role of Prayer
Prayer truly is designed to be an integral component of our peace. For this reason when we are in the initial stage of our sonship edification and the apostle Paul deals with us about properly responding to tribulation in our lives, he teaches us to be,...
Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer; (Romans 12:12)
Likewise in God's program with Israel is this so. Hence, for example, as James says to the members of the remnant of Israel,. . .
Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. (James 5:13a)
Prayer, therefore, is a pivotal mechanism for producing peace when needed. It is designed to have a tranquilizing ministry to it. And as we partake of its tranquilizing ministry, and benefit from it amid the details of our lives, we come to know, understand, appreciate, and love our God and Father as "the God of peace" that He is.
Now before considering this any further, there is an important matter that needs to be addressed regarding prayer itself.
An Intelligent Communion; Not an Abstract or Mystical Experience
Unfortunately a lot of Christians lack a real solid and clear understanding of what prayer is. Hence their ability to appreciate its tranquilizing ministry, and fully benefit from it, is hindered. Moreover there is also much misunderstanding, misinformation, and erroneous teaching about prayer today, which contributes to a lack of proper understanding and so compounds the problem all the more. Because of this a lot of Christians actually look upon prayer as something different from what it really is. Likewise many seek to obtain benefits from it that either do not exist, or that do not pertain to what God is doing today.
Now when Christians learn the need to be "rightly dividing the word of truth" in accordance with the great dispensational change that God has made, this certainly goes a long way towards rectifying the problem. For at least they are no longer trying to operate upon doctrines and promises about prayer, and examples of it, that pertain to God's program and dealings with Israel, and not to us in this present dispensation of His grace.
Yet this does not clear up all the misunderstanding and misinformation about prayer. For often times the very nature of prayer itself is either not clearly understood, or it is badly misunderstood. And sadly this seems to be on the rise today, with prayer more frequently being taught and described as something other than what it really is. Consequently instead of prayer being understood to be an intelligent, thoughtful activity that we participate in with God, in which we have heart-to-heart fellowship based upon specific knowledge that God has given to us in His word, Christians are given to understand it to be something other than this; something more lofty and transcendental in nature; something more experiential.
Hence increasingly prayer is being looked upon, and actually taught to be, 'an incomprehensible experience that transcends our knowing,' through which one 'feels God's presence' or 'experiences contact with God' in an inscrutable way and on a 'higher or different level of consciousness.' Though expressions and descriptions like these are normally encountered in mysticism, idolatry, the occult, and mystical forms of men's religions, such ideas and thinking about prayer also exist 'under the umbrella of Christianity.' Sometimes even among ones known for being 'Bible-believing' and 'fundamentalists. '
However neither the tranquilizing ministry of prayer, nor prayer itself, is some unintelligent or abstract or inscrutable experience. It is not some mindless, or mind-emptying experience by which one achieves a state of mental relaxation and inner peace. Hence it is not a yoga-like exercise or practice. Nor is it a transcendental meditation of any kind. Neither is it some process for the abstraction, or the distraction, of the mind; nor a practice involving the concentration of the mind by which a mind-over-matter state is reached, through which our disquieting thoughts and overwrought emotions are mastered. Nor is it a relaxation technique; or a calming exercise.
The tranquilizing ministry of prayer is also not some mystical, mysterious, and unexplainable experience. It is not an ethereal thing, which is beyond comprehension; or something that takes place unconsciously, passively, magically, or subliminally. Hence it is not an experience in which you just let the Spirit of God infuse you with a calming sensation, as you shut out all outside distractions and concerns by focusing upon God in prayer; intoning His holy name, letting go, and feeling the Spirit take control.
Instead the tranquilizing ministry of prayer is a function of what prayer itself is: i.e. intelligent, communicative communion and fellowship with God based upon specific knowledge that God has given to us in His word. There is nothing abstract, inscrutable, or mystical about it. In accordance with this, the tranquilizing ministry of prayer is the product of intelligent, thoughtful communion with God, by which our minds are actively occupied with knowledge, understanding, and thoughts that God has designed to produce peace. To put it more pointedly, the tranquilizing ministry of prayer is the product of specifically designed living words of the living God effectually working within us to displace what is disturbing our inner man and replacing it with intelligent Godly thinking that produces peace.
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The God of Peace Part 4 of 7
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The God of Peace Part 4 of 7
By K. Blades
Once again, there is nothing abstract, mystical, or mysterious to this. Instead both prayer itself and its tranquilizing ministry are functions of the intelligent, information-based functioning of our inner man, which God has designed to be both the source and the foundation for the Godly lives that He has purposed us to live with Him.
Accordingly, therefore, prayer and its tranquilizing ministry are functions of Godly thinking. With this being so, the mechanics of prayer's tranquility are easily described. Indeed they are just what Isaiah declared to Israel in Isaiah 26:3 regarding God's provision for the peace of their inner man, ...
Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace,
whose mind is stayed on thee: because he
trusteth in thee. (Isaiah 26:3)
So it is then that as we intelligently and doctrinally commune with our Father in prayer, it functions to keep our minds and hearts sober and sound in godliness, instead of the opposite. Through prayer we deliberately and pointedly hold ourselves accountable to sound doctrine that we have learned as "sons." In so doing "the doctrine which is according to godliness" controls and governs our thinking; stabilizing it, adjusting it, and thereby settling our minds and hearts.
Moreover this is something that prayer does especially when our minds and hearts have become unsettled by some situation, circumstance, or event with the result that we are upset, disturbed, distressed, and lacking inner peace. This, once again, is prayer's tranquilizing ministry. And it is something that we should deeply appreciate and enjoy when we are experiencing any of the afflictions belonging to "the sufferings of this present time" and/or any of "the sufferings of Christ."
Godly Peace
Now as was previously stated, specific living words of the living God are designed by God to effectually work within us to displace what is disturbing our inner man and replace it with Godly thinking that produces peace. And indeed this is accomplished by specific living words of the living God. In fact they are the very same words that live and operate in God's own mind. They are the very words that form and comprise His thinking about us and about our situation, which in turn has Him in a state of peace and contentment regarding us.
It may seem almost silly to put it this way, but the truth of the matter is that neither God our Father, nor the Lord Jesus Christ, nor the Spirit of God within us, become distressed when we encounter and experience disturbing situations. With God there is no onset of anxiety or worry; no racing of the mind; no 'fight or flight response'; no wringing of the hands, pacing of the floor, sleepless nights, or any other product of distress and uneasiness of mind. Instead our Father, our Lord, and the Spirit within us, are at peace within themselves regarding us.
Yet this is not simply because God is God, and anything but contentment is impossible for Him. For though God is God, He is not a detached, impersonal, or unaffected God, as He clearly testifies. Rather He has a direct, interactive and personal relationship with His creation as a whole, and more specifically with His people. Because of this God is personally affected by what occurs, having not only purposed and designed for this to be so, but also having enabled it to be so. And this is true both in His program with Israel and with us in this present dispensation of His grace. With this being so God acts and reacts with real actions and reactions; not merely with sentiments that are anthropopathisms in description, but not true sentiments in nature. For God is not only the "true" God, He is also the "living God." As such God lives and has a living, involved relationship both to us and with us. So much so that He is neither a casual, nor detached, nor unaffected observer of us or of what occurs with us. Instead God is genuinely touched by us and by what occurs with us; and this is true and real with God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the Holy Ghost that dwells in us.
So it is, therefore, that God is genuinely touched by any and all of the disturbing and distressing things that we may encounter in our lives.
Now though God is genuinely affected by them, He is not disturbed and distressed by them. For operating within Him is some particular peace-producing and peace-maintaining knowledge, which is the product of His own counsel and purpose regarding us as His "sons." And on the basis of this particular knowledge God thinks differently about our situations and circumstances than we do. Hence His mind generates responses to our situations that differ from those that are typically generated by our natural minds. Consequently with this particular knowledge operating within Him, God is not distressed regarding us. Instead, He is at peace and content.
..neither God our
Father, nor the Lord
Jesus Christ, nor
the Spirit of God
within us, become
distressed when we
encounter and
experience disturb-
ing situations.
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The God of Peace Part 5 of 7
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The God of Peace Part 5 of 7
By K. Blades
Godly Peace from "The God of Peace"
Now it is God's own brand of peace that He not only offers to us, but expects us to receive and operate upon in our lives. In connection with this, what the Lord said to His disciples in the climactic stage in Israel's program is also true regarding us in this present dispensation.
Peace I leave with you, my
peace I give unto you: not as
the world giveth, give I unto
you. Let not your heart be
troubled, neither let it be
afraid. (John 14:27)
The peace that God provides for us to have in this present dispensation is also "not as the world giveth." It too is "my peace"; i.e. God's own peace.
Furthermore just as the peace that the Lord gave to the remnant of Israel comes from specific information and knowledge about God's counsel and purpose with them in the climactic stage of their program, so too does our peace come from specific knowledge and information regarding God's counsel and purpose with us as His "sons" in this present dispensation. Through both general and specific information thereon God provides us with the ability to possess the very thinking and understanding that He operates upon regarding us. This makes it so that when we likewise think what He thinks, and understand what He understands, it effectually produces within us the same peace and contentment that it produces in Him.
Therefore when this is the case with us we not only have peace from "the God of peace," but we truly have Godly peace. That is, we have the very same peace that God Himself possesses.
Let's appreciate the reality of this by briefly considering some examples of it. First in God's program with Israel. Then we will deal with our Godly peace today.
Godly Peace in God's Program with Israel
The book of Psalms deals with many of the distressing, worrisome, and dreadful situations that the remnant of Israel will experience throughout the climactic stage in Israel's program. In particular, as their program enters its final installment, the intense afflictions that will come upon them will have the tendency to easily overwhelm them and drive them to despair. Indeed, this will be one of the objectives of the Adversary's persecution as he works to 'wear them out' and have their hearts fail them in their stand for the truth.
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The God of Peace Part 6 of 7
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The God of Peace Part 6 of 7
By K. Blades
However they will not be 'in a lurch.' For they will have much knowledge from God's word upon which to operate at that time. Knowledge that is specifically designed to produce peace and stability within them in the very situations they find themselves, and knowledge that does this by being specifically about God's counsel and purpose with them during that time. Hence, as the following examples show, it will be by having their minds occupied with this specific knowledge, and communing with God about it in prayer, that they will have the peace that the Lord promised them when He said to them,...
In your patience possess ye
your souls. (Luke 21 :19)
God has given them specific knowledge and information for 'their patience.' And when they operate upon it, and hold themselves accountable to it in prayer, they will be able to 'possess their souls' and be at peace within.
Note the reality of this, for example, in Psalm 94.
17 Unless the LORD had been
my help, my soul had almost
dwelt in silence.
18 When I said, My foot
slippeth; thy mercy, a LORD,
held me up.
19 In the multitude of my
thoughts within me thy com-
forts delight my soul. (Psalm
94:17-19)
This Psalm has the final installment in God's program with Israel in view. In that time the remnant of Israel will be experiencing the temporary 'triumphing of the wicked' described in the beginning of the Psalm, along with all of the afflictions that they will experience as that apparent 'triumphing' takes place. However during that time there is a specific doctrine that God expects the remnant to have learned, and hence to have operating within them. This is the doctrine of the Lord Jesus Christ functioning as Israel's Avenger, fulfilling the third mandate of the Davidic Covenant. By its effectual working within them it is designed to give them the clear understanding of what is happening at that time and why. It teaches them about God's counsel and specific purpose with them during that time, including why the wicked are allowed to triumph to the extent they will and the wisdom of God in connection with it. As such this specific knowledge is designed to be the subject of their prayers and their cries to God for vengeance, as the 'triumphing' is underway and the afflictions are experienced.
Wherefore as this specific knowledge of God's counsel works effectually within them, the Psalmist declares,.. .
12 Blessed is the man whom
thou chastenest, 0 LORD,
and teachest him out of thy
law;
13 That thou mayest give him
rest from the days of adver-
sity, until the pit be digged for
the wicked. (Psalm 94:12-13)
So then when the distress of this particular situation becomes overwhelming for the believing remnant during that time, as the Psalmist says there is tranquility, rest, and even delight for their souls as their prayers hold them accountable to the specific doctrine that God has given to them for this situation and it effectually works within them.
Hence as the Psalmist says, "In the multitude of my thoughts within me thy comforts delight my soul"; with those "comforts" being the specific knowledge from the law about the Lord being their Avenger at that time.
A similar type testimony is found earlier on in Psalm 55 and Psalm 61 in connection with some different afflictions.
16 As for me, I will call upon
God; and the LORD shall save
me.
17 Evening, and morning, and
at noon, will I pray, and cry
aloud: and he shall hear my
voice.
18 He hath delivered my soul
in peace from the battle that
was against me: for there
were many with me. (Psalm
55:16-18.)
1 Hear my cry, a God; attend
unto my prayer.
2 From the end of the earth will
I cry unto thee, when my heart
is overwhelmed: lead me to
the rock that is higher than I.
(Psalm 61 :1-2)
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The God of Peace Part 7 Conclusion
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The God of Peace Part 7 Conclusion
By K. Blades
Our Godly Peace Today
The Godly peace is true and with us today. When we too through prayer intelligently commune with our Father about specific matters of His counsel and purpose with us as His "sons," it effectually works within us to displace disturbing thoughts about what may be happening to us and have them replaced with the Godly thinking that produces peace.
For this reason after our sonship edification gets underway in Romans 8:14ff, and we are taught the fundamentals of God's specific counsel and purpose with us as His "sons" in this present dispensation, we are then immediately exhorted to make use of that knowledge as we encounter the inevitable "sufferings of this present time" and tribulations of this life. Hence, for example, in Romans 12:12 we are told to be,...
12 Rejoicing in hope; patient in
tribulation; continuing instant
in prayer; (Romans 12:12)
Through what we are taught regarding God's counsel and purpose with us in this present dispensation we learn about the particular "hope" in which we should be "rejoicing." We also are taught to understand and appreciate a number of specific, fundamental reasons why we should be "patient in tribulation" when it occurs in our lives. Hence when such tribulation does occur, the issue for us is to think on the things that we are taught regarding God's counsel and purpose with us, and to commune with our Father about them by being "instant in prayer" in connection with them.
Now when we do occupy our minds with this information, and do intelligently commune with our Father about our tribulation specifically in the light of this information, it effectually works to produce within us the Godly peace that our Father Himself has regarding our situation. The tranquilizing ministry of prayer occurs within us as the disturbing and distressing thoughts that we have in response to the tribulation are displaced by the effectual working of God's word regarding us, making it so that our thoughts become the same as our Father's thoughts, and there-by producing Godly peace within us.
And not only so, but Godly peace is able to be effectually produced within us throughout the entire range of sufferings, afflictions, tribulations, and trouble to which we can be subject in this present dispensation. Nothing is outside its range, or beyond its capacity. For it is produced within us by the excellency of the power of God's word to us, which in perfect accordance with God's counsel and purpose regarding us has been specifically written to address and deal with every form of suffering to which we are subject as His "sons."
Wherefore even when it comes to facing the extreme tribulations belonging to the policy of evil against us, as was the case when Paul wrote to the saints in Philippi, the tranquilizing ministry of prayer is effectual. Hence as they faced death and were being 'terrified by their adversaries,' Paul said to them,...
4 Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.
5 Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.
6 Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:4-7)
Indeed our Father is "the God of peace." He truly has provided for us to have His peace - Godly peace-in all areas of our lives. Both within and without; from mild disturbances to the most extreme occurrences of carefulness, anxiety, or distress.
May it be that through our sonship edification and sonship prayer, as we learn both general and specific matters regarding God's counsel and purpose with us and commune with Him about them in prayer, that we truly learn to know our Father and love Him as "the God of peace" that He is, and thereby possess peace "always by all means." Especially may this be so as we frequently encounter and experience any of the common "sufferings of this present time," but more so as we are privileged to bear any of "the sufferings of Christ." - K.R. Blades
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PROFIT
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PROFIT
By Miles Stanford
"Heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ-sharing His inheritance with Him; only we must share His suffering if we are to share His glory" (Rom. 8:17, Amp.).
The term "profit and loss" is reversed in the Christian life to "loss and profit." The principle never varies: our losses are all in the realm of the old, never the new. Every loss in the life of self brings greater gain and profit in the new --- our life in Christ. And, conversely, every gain for the self-life is loss for our growth and His glory. "But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ" (Phil. 3:7).
"It is not the design of God to deprive His children of happiness, but only to pour the cup of bitterness into that happiness which the believer has in anything outside of Christ." - F.F.
"Everything that tries us, that is a check upon us, that causes exercise of heart, and makes us sensible of weakness in ourselves, is of the nature of chastisement (child-training). It may come in the way of difficulties in the path of faith; or in the shape of such trials and sorrow as are common to all men---loss of property, loss of health, or bereavement; or it may be as the governmental consequences of sin; but in one way or other all have it. It is 'for our profit, that we might be partakers of His holiness' (Heb. 12:10). That is, it serves to break down that which is not of God in us, that the life of the Lord Jesus might be made manifest." - C.A.C.
"When He hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold" (Job 23:10).
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DEATH-THE LAST ENEMY
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DEATH-THE LAST ENEMY
By Pastor Paul Sadler
Scripture Reading: I Corinthians 15:26
There are many who have the misconception that death means annihilation or cessation of existence. The Spirit of God defines the word as "separation." If we examine physical death we learn that at the moment of death the soul and spirit separates from the body (II Cor. 5:8.). Medical science has told us for years that death takes place when the heart stops. Recently, however, they claim that death takes place when the brain impulses discontinue. They have finally caught up to what the Bible has taught for centuries, "the body without the spirit is dead" (James 2:26).
The believer has many enemies, the world, the flesh and the devil, also the enemy of death which will overcome these mortal bodies because of sin. But we are not as others who have no hope, but understand from God's Word that the Lord Jesus Christ overcame the power of death. It could not hold Him, He arose victoriously over it. This is why Paul was able to write to Timothy, "our Saviour Jesus Christ, Who hath abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel," It is good news to the believer that Christ has conquered death for us. Death has no claims on us for we shall be raised from the dead and have life and immortality.
Christ has abolished death and God has rendered it a defeated foe. Practically speaking, death still remains and will remain until the end. God at the White Throne Judgment will cast Death and Hades into the Lake of Fire (Rev. 20:14). Death and Hades here are personified (Rev. 6:8.). The death angel here being representative of the circumstance of death and the angel hades being representative of the place of torment. After the last enemy is put away, God will sum up all things in Christ and the New Heaven & New Earth will remain forever without the enemy of death.
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PATTERN OF MERCY
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PATTERN OF MERCY
By M. Stanford
"That He might make known the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had a fore prepared unto glory" (Rom. 9:23).
Mercifully, day by day, He unfolds before our startled eyes the evil depths of the self-life. It is thus we come to know Him as the "God who is rich in mercy," and ourselves as "vessels of mercy."
"Today sinful men, not angels, are entrusted with the preaching of the Gospel, and before they can be used of God must first of all have plumbed the depths of their own sinfulness, and have, there-- fore, discovered the heights and glories of God's long-suffering. In this way they can become a pattern of His mercy, by means of which He can demonstrate His grace to others." - ].C.M.
"The power effectively to present Christ as Lord, is by means of revelation deep within us, bringing into being an unshakable knowledge of His authority and might, and making us content to accept our weakness and nothingness in order that we may see the pleasure of the Lord prosper in His hand (Isa. 53 :10)." - J.C.M.
"The more useful anyone is, the more he requires to be brought to an end of himself, and to find that his all is in the Lord Jesus. We find some of His servants deeply chastened at first, in order to prepare them for a useful course; and some after a useful period are brought low and afflicted in order that they might learn how truly and fully our Father is sovereign." - ].B.S.
"From Me is thy fruit found" (Hosea 14:8.).
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ALIENATION AND RECONCILIATION
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ALIENATION AND RECONCILIATION
by C. R. Stam
It is impossible, and unnecessary, to reconcile friends. Reconciliation postulates alienation. It is only after men become alienated that we may try to reconcile them. Thus the reconciliation of Jews and Gentiles to God "in one body"could not begin until Israel, along with the Gentiles, had been alienated from God. This is why the Apostle Paul declares in Rom. 11:15 that "the casting away of them is," or opens the way for, "the reconciling of the world." Thus "God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that He might have mercy upon all" (Rom. 11:32). Little wonder the Apostle goes on to exclaim:
"O, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are His judgments, and His ways past finding out!" (Ver. 33).
So now the wonderful message from God to a lost world is one of grace and peace, and it is with these words that the Apostle Paul opens all of his epistles signed by his name. In Ephesians 2, where he declares that we were all "the children of disobedience," and therefore "by nature the children of wrath," he goes on to tell of the riches of God's mercy and love and grace, and says:
"And [He] came and preached peace to you [Gentiles] which were afar off, and to them [Israelites] that were nigh" (Ver. 17).
What a blessing to enjoy peace with God, to be reconciled to Him! But this is possible only as we commit ourselves to Him who was "delivered for our offences and raised again for our justification." Indeed, Paul follows these words in Romans 4:25 with the declaration:
"Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom. 5:1).
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The Sins That Are Past
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The Sins That Are Past
by Pastor C. R. Stam
In Chapter 3 of St. Paul’s letter to the Romans he declares that God has set forth Christ as a satisfaction for man’s sin and that redemption is obtained by faith in “His blood,” or His payment for sin at Calvary, entirely apart from works, religious or otherwise (Rom. 3:21-26).
But in this same passage he states that this “remission”concerns the “sins that are past” (Ver. 25). What does he mean by this? Some have taught from this verse that when a sinner turns to God for salvation all his sins are forgiven up to that time and now that he is saved he is henceforth responsible for himself. But this would mean that God saves men by His grace only to turn them over again to their own weak and sinful natures. If this were the case, the converted sinner would be lost again the same day, for what Christian believer is wholly free from sin?
Paul rather looks back here at past ages and declares that we now know and proclaim that men like Abel, Noah and Abraham, and also like Moses, David and Daniel (who lived under the Law) were actually saved by the redemption wrought by Christ, although Christ’s death was still future in their day. In other words, Christ died, not only for the sins which we have committed, but also for the “sins which are past.” The believers of past ages simply believed what God told them then, and God counted them righteous (Gen. 15:6) on the basis of Christ’s coming payment for sin.
We have the same truth set forth in Hebrews 9:15, where we are told that Christ’s death availed also “for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first covenant,” i.e., the Law.
How blessed we are to live at a time when God’s plan of salvation has been fully revealed, and that we can now look to the Lord Jesus Christ and exclaim with Paul:
“He loved me, and gave Himself for me!” (Gal. 2:20).
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NO FADS AND FASHIONS HERE
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NO FADS AND FASHIONS HERE
By Pastor Paul Hume
Scripture Reading: Mal. 3:6; Rom. 11:29; Jas. 1:17
It's really amusing to review the changes in men's and women's apparel over the years! Remember the longer fuller dresses which women wore just a few years ago at the outbreak of World War II? Remember the wide flowery neckties men wore in the mid-40's? Behold! How the hemline on feminine clothing has risen! How narrow men's ties became just a few years ago, and how wide they have suddenly become now! What will develop next? You never really know!
But not so with the Person of the blessed Godhead! Our Triune God is ever "young" and perfectly changeless. This is what the theologians call "the immutability of God." God is unchangeable. He is "the same, yesterday, today, and unto the ages." Therefore the Scriptures liken Him and His beloved Son unto. "the Rock" (Deut. 32:4, I Cor. 10:4).
He is immutable in His essence. "I am the Lord, I change not." Why? Simply because He is the only One in all the universe who can ever state, "I am that I am" (Ex. 3:14). "He is altogether uninfluenced by the flight of time. There is no wrinkle upon the brow of eternity." (A. W. Pink)
He is immutable in His attributes. Semper idem __always the same - is written over every attribute of our blessed God and Savior: His righteousness, holiness, His truth, His mercy, and His love. There-fore His blessed written Word is "forever settled in heaven" (Psa. 119:89). Think of that: "forever SETTLED..."!!
His purpose is immutable. "The Lord of hosts hath sworn, saying...as I have purposed, so shall it stand... For the Lord of hosts hath purposed, and who shall annul it?" (Isa. 14:24,27). Praise the Lord! May we echo with Frederick Faber:
O Lord! my heart is sick
Sick of this everlasting change;
And life runs tediously quick
Through its unresting race and varied range;
Change finds no likeness to itself in Thee,
And wake's no echo in Thy mute Eternity.
Are you linked, by faith through the Holy Spirit, to this unchangeable One?
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UNDER LAW OR UNDER GRACE?
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UNDER LAW OR UNDER GRACE?
By Pastor Joel Finck
Scripture Reading: Romans 6:14
People are always looking for an excuse to sin. If they can somehow justify their sin with Scripture, so much the better --- or so they think. Paul knew that God's super-abounding grace would probably be misused by some to become lax about sin. Therefore, immediately after informing us that we "are not under the law, but under grace," he quickly added, "What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid" (Romans 6:14,15).
We should thank God we are not under the law! No longer are we required to bring animal sacrifices as an offering for sin. No more do we live in the bondage of the Mosaic code, which spelled out every detail of life and threatened death for those who slipped. What freedom we have in Christ!
Yet Christian liberty was never designed to give us freedom to sin; rather, it was meant to give us freedom to serve. "For brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another" (Galatians 5:13).
Indeed, when we exercise genuine Christian love, we actually fulfill in a practical way that which the Law could never produce; that is, experiential righteousness. "Love worketh no ill to his neighbor: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law" (Romans 13:10). While so many today are trying to live by law, let us who know the grace of God live by grace, and thereby demonstrate to a dying world what the power of God can do in the life of a yielded believer.
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SPIRITUAL VICTORY
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SPIRITUAL VICTORY
by C. R. Stam
If we go to the Scriptures and claim, by faith, the Spirit's help in overcoming our sins, we enter into the enjoyment of the fullness of spiritual life and blessing. If we fail to do so, we wither and die --- as far as our spiritual experience is concerned. We can never lose our salvation, of course, for "everlasting life" was obtained by faith in Christ, not by walking in the Spirit. This is confirmed by the fact that the same apostle who pleads: "Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God," hastens to add: "WHEREBY YE ARE SEALED UNTO THE DAY OF REDEMPTION" (Eph. 4:30).
But failure to appropriate God's gracious provision for victory over sin does result in death as far as our Christian experience is concerned. This is what the Apostle means, when he says, by the Spirit:
"FOR TO BE CARNALLY MINDED IS DEATH; BUT TO BE SPIRITUALLY MINDED IS LIFE AND PEACE" (Rom. 8:6).
"FOR IF YE LIVE AFTER THE FLESH, YE SHALL DIE: BUT IF YE THROUGH THE SPIRIT DO MORTIFY [PUT TO DEATH] THE DEEDS OF THE BODY, YE SHALL LIVE" (Rom. 8:13).
To the careless Corinthians, the Apostle Paul exclaimed:
"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).
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