GRACE AND THE TRUTH - DAILY INSPIRATION

[nChrist]

FRUSTRATED ENEMY
By Miles Stanford



"Then saith Jesus unto him, Begone, Satan" (Matt. 4:10).

There is a great difference between a foe, and a defeated foe. A conquered enemy can be put to valuable use in the hands of the victor, and that is exactly what God is doing with that old serpent. Satan is allowed to sift, and try the believer; he is used of God as a winnowing machine to clear away the chaff in us.

"No power in present things allowed to Satan annuls the will of the invisible God." - W.K.

"The story of Job shows clearly that it is God who sets the limit to the extent of the devil's activities and power. From the human viewpoint the Cross looks like a colossal failure. In it the victory of the power of evil seemed complete, But 'the weakness of God is stronger than men' or the enemy, and by the power of weakness having 'spoiled principalities and powers, He made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it' (Col. 2:15)." -CJ.M.

"It is inevitable that in a world like this the faith of Christians must be tried. For we are in an enemy's land, and he resents our presence. And we have an enemy within our gates --- the old man --- that opposes us too. But take heart, fellow believer, the trials of the faith will be found unto praise, honor and glory at the appearing of the Lord Jesus Christ (I Pet. 1:7). The happy outcome is a foregone conclusion. Trials work patience, experience, hope --- and these are abiding qualities. Satan as it were is God's scavenger, and all he can do is to remove out of your life those things that mar your joy, your growth, and your service."

"For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy [undo] the works of the devil" (I John 3:8 ).

___________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
http://www.graceandthetruth.com/

If this devotion has been a blessing to you, please share it with others. The Word of God is so needed in our troubled world.

Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.

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[nChrist]

SELFLESS SERVICE
By Miles Stanford


"In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will" (Eph. 1:11).

It is easy to just "let George do it," but it is so unrewarding. There is a Christ-honoring ministry of being and sharing awaiting each believer, and the secret is to let Christ do it!

"Our Father has a different line of things for everyone, and each of us has been sent into this world for some special mission. It is not a question whether it is great or small; it may be only a flower to shed fragrance, though this is really the greatest of all.

"There is no higher service than moral influence, 'thy whole body ... full of light'; and this, of all the highest moral order, is within the compass of all. 'Christ shall be magnified in my body whether by life or by death' (Phil. 1 :20) ."-J.B.S.

"A mark of the true servant is that he is consciously nothing. John could speak of himself as only a 'voice,' and a greater than John was consciously 'less than the least of all saints.' The moment we think ourselves to be anything, we are out of the servant's true position and spirit. There is a beautiful contrast between John's account of himself, and the Lord's description of him (John 1:22-27; Luke 7:26-28 ). The more worthy we are of the Lord's commendation, the less do we think of ourselves." - CA.C

"For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them" (Eph. 2.10).

___________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
http://www.graceandthetruth.com/

If this devotion has been a blessing to you, please share it with others. The Word of God is so needed in our troubled world.

Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.

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[nChrist]

Christ Is All
By John Nelson Darby



Christ is the key to the puzzle of this world. May God give us to be anything or nothing, so that the Lord Jesus may be everything. The magnet always turns towards the pole; the needle always trembles a little when the storm and tempest roar, but its direction changes not; the needle of the Christian heart always points toward Christ.  The only thing which can be truly blessing to our brethren, so precious because they belong to Him, is that which we reproduce of Him. . . .  If He is the life, all which that life does has Him for its end and object..

Everything relates to Him: we do not eat without Him (how can we when He is our very life?), we do not drink without Him; what we say, what we do, is said and done in the name of the Lord Jesus.

The most eminent Christian is one of whom no one has ever heard speak, some poor labourer or servant, whose all is Christ, and who does all for HIS eye, and His alone. Jesus is the fountain of all blessedness, sent to poor, weak, wretched sinners, that they may have abundance of comfort, of peace and of enjoyment.

We must find everything but Christ nothing.

No trial can touch a person who has Christ for his all. He may have lost this or lost that; but if he has Christ he has that which he cannot lose.  It is not the quantity we do that makes spirituality, but the measure of presenting Christ: that is the value of our service, in a world where there is nothing of God.

It is not always in the correction of the failures which come before us that sources of unhappiness are heaped; they disappear when souls are nourished upon the riches which are in Christ. We must think of this; we must, while ourselves feeding upon Christ, and He gives us to feed on Him without stint, cause other to breathe a new atmosphere, where Christ is.  He has purchased a peculiar people, zealous of good work. He has brought you to Himself, to have your whole heart wrapped up in His interests, your thoughts, your actions, everything for Him. . . . Are we living enough out of the world (not merely out of its pleasures but its cares) and enough with Christ for Him to have a large place in the daily thoughts of our hearts? . . . Have we the consciousness from the time we get up in the morning till we go to bed at night, that our hearts are with Christ, . . .  a consciousness that He is in us, and we identified with Him?

___________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
http://www.graceandthetruth.com/

If this devotion has been a blessing to you, please share it with others. The Word of God is so needed in our troubled world.

Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.

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[nChrist]

SLOW BUT SURE
By Miles Stanford




"Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him,. fret not thyself" (Ps. 37:7).

Our Father moves on the basis of His finished work, therefore hurry is not a factor with Him nor should it be with us. We are to 'walk in the Spirit,' and the blessed Holy Spirit will see to it that we obtain all that our Father has for us, step by step. ''The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and he delighteth in His way" (Ps. 37:23). Don't be discouraged --- Enoch walked with God for three hundred years before he was translated!

"We cannot become spiritual all at once; we must be content to begin as babes. Spiritual maturity and strength do not come by effort but by growth; and growth is the result of being nourished by proper food. But if we do not grow by effort it is important to remember that we do not grow without exercise.

"God begins by giving our hearts a sense of the blessedness of the grace in which He has called us, that we may be awakened and enhungered to pursue the knowledge of all this with purpose of heart and prayerful study." - C.A.C.

"Whatever we do accurately must take time and collectedness of mind, and there is no accuracy in all the world like keeping company with God, and yet nothing so free from bondage or tediousness. By going slow with the Lord we accomplish more than by going with a rush, because what we do is done so much better and does not have to be undone. It is done in a better spirit, with deeper motives, and bears fruit far out in the future, when all mushroom performances have been dissipated forever." - G.B.W.

"Delight thyself also in the Lord, and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart" (Ps.37:4).

___________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
http://www.graceandthetruth.com/

If this devotion has been a blessing to you, please share it with others. The Word of God is so needed in our troubled world.

Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.

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[nChrist]

"GOOD GROUND"
By Miles Stanford

 

"Jesus answered and said unto him, Before Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee" (John 1:48 ).

"And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bore fruit an hundred-fold" (Luke 8:8 ). The more fully and thoroughly hearts are cultivated before conversion the more healthy and fruitful they will be after conversion. Many Christians hurriedly seek to plant the seed in unprepared soil, and then wonder why it is so soon withered, choked, or snatched away. "Good ground are they who ... having heard the Word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience" (Luke 8:15).

"I believe that a work of God sometimes goes on behind a particular man or family, village or district before the knowledge of the truth ever reaches them. It is a silent, unsuspected work, not in mind and heart, but in the unseen realm behind these. Then, when the light of the Gospel is brought, there is no difficulty, no conflict. The battle has been won.

"It is, then, simply a case of 'stand still and see the salvation of God.' This should give us confidence in praying intelligently for those who are far from Gospel light. The longer the preparation, the deeper the work. The deeper the root, the firmer the plant when once it springs above the ground. I do not believe that any deep work of God takes root without long preparation somewhere." - J.O.F.

"Concentrate your prayers on behalf of some soul or souls and pray for such, night and day, until they come to Christ. Then continue to pray for them until Christ is formed in them!" (Phil. 4:19).

"Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before Me" (Mal. 3:1).

___________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
http://www.graceandthetruth.com/

If this devotion has been a blessing to you, please share it with others. The Word of God is so needed in our troubled world.

Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.

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[nChrist]

PEACE IN THE EYE OF THE STORM
by Dale E. Price


The storm is terrible. We have been struggling against the winds and the sea for hours in our small boat. There is no sign of it letting up, and the waves are beginning to crash over our bow. We're losing the battle. I am truly frightened.

How can He sleep through all this? Can't He feel the water sloshing in the bottom of the boat? Doesn't He know how perilous our situation is? Doesn't He care? Finally, I can't stand it, so I tell John to wake Him up. John shakes Him awake and tells Him we're about to die. But the Master is not afraid. Instead, He rebukes us for our lack of faith. He turns His face into the wind and rebukes the wind and the sea. At His command, the storm ceases, and the sea is calm.

We're amazed! Who is this man that can calm the storm?

On September 11, violent aggression crashed against our homeland. Waves of darkness, anger, sorrow, and fear assaulted our sense of safety and security. The winds of hate and violence tear at us, trying to rob us of our peace and joy. As believers in Christ Jesus, what can we learn from the disciples' experience described in Matthew 8:23-27? Three questions come to mind.

*    How could Jesus sleep in the midst of the storm?

Throughout Jesus' life we find Him at peace when circumstances cast others into a sea of doubt and fear. What did He know that they didn't? He knew and believed what He had taught in the Sermon on the Mount, that we are more precious to God than all of the rest of creation. He also knew that His life on earth was truly in the Father's hands. He knew God's prophetic Word that "He will command His angels concerning You to guard You in all Your ways. They will bear You up in their hands, so that You will not strike Your foot against a stone" (Psalm 21:11-12). Jesus could rest peacefully because He was resting in the hands of His loving Father, the hands of the God of all creation.

*    Didn't He care about their fears?

I John 4:18 tells us that "There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear ... " He cared about their fears, but He cared more about their faith. In this world, we will have trouble. Do we believe that God is in control of every breath, every heartbeat, and every day of our life on earth? Romans 8:37-39 tells us that in the midst of famine, persecution, or the sword, we are more than conquerors. There is nothing in the vast universe that can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus!

*    Why did Jesus rebuke them for their lack of faith?

It was evening when they set out in that boat. The disciples had witnessed Jesus' miraculous healing throughout the day. Who did they think was in the boat with them? He rebuked them because their faith in Him did not extend to their immediate perilous circumstance. When we believe in Jesus Christ as God's only begotten Son, the image (exact representation) of the Father, full of grace and truth, we believe that our eternity is in His hands. Is it too much to ask that we trust Him with the troubles of this life? The reason we can walk through this life without fear is that we know the one that is in our boat, and we know the one whose boat it is.

Each of us must face our own doubts, fears, and insecurities in the midst of this storm tearing at our homeland. When we find His peace in the eye of the storm, we must lift our eyes to see those still struggling against the tempest. We must seek the ministry God has for us in our hour of national and international distress. I believe that there are three critical roles for believers and for Christian ministries as we confront this present darkness.

1. We must shine in the midst of the darkness. The greater the darkness, the more brilliant we must shine. If we only shine within the walls of our local assemblies or in our Christian camp facilities nestled in beautiful canyons or perched on lofty mountaintops, who will see? The pain and the loss of September 11 are still rippling through the lives of our friends and neighbors. We must actively demonstrate compassion, gentleness, peace, and love within our communities. Doors of opportunity for hospitality and gracious giving are open to us now. We must actively seek for those doors and then walk through them boldly.

2. We must be places of safety and security. The families of America need to know that there are still places of beauty where they and their children can be out of harm's way. Local assemblies must reach out to individuals and families in their communities to provide the Word of Truth, spoken in love, from hearts filled with God's compassion. In Christian camps, our selection and preparation of staff, our health and safety programs, the security of our grounds and facilities, and our emergency response procedure are all critical to creating and maintaining a safe camp environment for all our guests. We must remember that camp, in order to be camp, will never be totally risk-free. But we must be both diligent and prudent in our efforts to ensure that every child or family who attends our fellowship, every camper, or guest at our camps will be safe while in our care.

3. We must be places with an answer. Peter tells us in his first epistle that we are always to be ready" ... to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence." When we can rest like Jesus in the midst of the storm people will ask why. Doors of ministry opportunity will open for us in the midst of the despair and devastation caused by sinful men. Children and families will come to us whose world has been turned upside down. Lives built on the shifting sands of wealth and false expectations of peace have been shaken. We need to bring them to the Rock, the Chief Cornerstone. They need to find in Him an anchor for the soul, sure and steadfast. They need to know that this anchor holds through every storm this life can throw at us. The spontaneous singing of "God Bless America" across our nation has moved many of us with hope for a true revival. I pray that they will all come to know, through Jesus Christ, the God to whom they are appealing.

*   Does the Lord still have power over the storm?

When Jesus calmed the wind and the sea, He demonstrated His authority and power over the storm. Does He have power over the winds of violence and waves of hatred assaulting us now? I believe that this storm, like the storm that terrified the disciples two thousand years ago, will test our faith. We must never forget that as believers in the Lord Jesus we are in His boat. We must rest in His peace. In the end, this storm will prove anew the demonstration of the power and love of God and an opportunity for believers to be God's loving ambassadors sharing the truth of the Gospel of God's Grace.

___________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
http://www.graceandthetruth.com/

If this devotion has been a blessing to you, please share it with others. The Word of God is so needed in our troubled world.

Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.

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[nChrist]

THE TIME ELEMENT IN SCRIPTURE
by C. R. Stam



How many Scriptural problems would be solved, how many seeming contradictions explained, if we were more careful to note the time element, emphasized so strongly in the Word of God.

In Romans 5:12 we learn that sin entered the human race by Adam. Then later "the law entered" (Ver. 20). But still later the Apostle Paul arose to say: "But now, the righteousness of God without the law is manifested" (Rom. 3:21).

Early in man's history blood sacrifices were required for acceptance with God (See Gen. 4:4; Heb. 11:4), later circumcision and the Law (Gen. 17:14; Ex. 19:5), and still later, repentance and water baptism (Mark 1:4; Acts 2:38 ). But not until Paul do we learn of salvation by grace through faith alone, on the basis of Christ's finished, all-sufficient work of redemption.

This is why the Apostle refers in Gal. 3:23 to "the faith which should afterward be revealed." This is why he declares that our Lord "gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time", and adds: "whereunto I am ordained a preacher and an apostle" (I Tim. 2:6,7).

It is only as we recognize the time element in Scripture that we see the difference between "the kingdom of heaven" and "the Body of Christ," between "the gospel of the kingdom" and "the gospel of the grace of God," between the "dispensation of law" and "the dispensation of the grace of God."

A comparison of Romans 3:21 and 26 shows how this time element is emphasized in Scripture. After discussing the function of the Law in Verses 19 and 20, the Apostle Paul declares: "But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested..." Then, in Ver. 26 he states that it is God's purpose: "To declare, I say, at this time His [Christ's] righteousness; that He [God] might be just and the Justifier of him that believeth in Jesus."

___________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
http://www.graceandthetruth.com/

If this devotion has been a blessing to you, please share it with others. The Word of God is so needed in our troubled world.

Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.

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[nChrist]

"Gentiles and the Law"
Part 1 of 2
by Dr. Roland Icke


Romans 2:14-15 "For when the Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature the things contained in the law ... these are a law unto themselves: Which show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts ... accusing or else excusing one another."

Though the conscience may be a guide, it can be deceived and become insensitive (seared) by sin (l Tim. 4:2). From the creation of the world, God clearly revealed His eternal power and Godhead, so that those who violated their own consciences were without excuse when they vainly imagined their own wisdom, worshipped creatures instead of the Creator, and were given up to their own vile affections (Psa. 19:1; Rom. 1:20-32). God remembers that we are but dust (Psa. 103:14). He promised a Redeemer and desires that no one should perish, but that all should come to repentance (Gen. 3:15; 2 Pet. 3:9).

Ephesians 2:11-12 "In time past, Gentiles ... were without Christ, aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world"

Redemption for Gentiles apart from the Law, was revealed later in due time (1 Cor. 2:7-8; 15:8 ).

Romans 5:12-14 "As by one man, sin entered into the world and death by sin, and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned. For until the law, sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law, nevertheless sin reigned from Adam to Moses."

See also Genesis 2: 17; 3 :6-19, and Acts 17:30.

Galatians 3:8 "And the scripture foreseeing that God would justify the heathen [Gentiles] by faith, preached the gospel before to Abraham, saying, 'in thee shall all nations be blessed."

The law was added because of transgression, in the hands of a mediator (Gal. 3:19). God gave Moses the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5, with details of more than 600 civil, ceremonial, and health laws in their other chapters and in Leviticus, for "the children of Israel."

"Because God loved them," He sovereignly chose Israel to be a kingdom of priests, a holy nation, and gave them the Sabbath as a perpetual covenant, a sign between God and the children of Israel, not Gentiles (Ex. 31:14-18; Rom. 2:14-15). All but the Fourth of the Ten Commandments continue as God's righteous standards for man's behavior, but impossible for sinful man to fulfill (Rom. 6:14; 7: 12-24; 1 Cor. 9:21). Jesus said that total love for God with heart, soul, and mind "is the first and great commandment." Love for neighbor as one's self is second and like unto it: "On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets" (Matt. 5:48; 22:36-40).

James 2:10 "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all."

In mercy, God gave Israel "carnal ordinances" to be observed sincerely as a temporary atonement (covering) for man's failures (Lev. 17:11; Acts 22:17; Heb. 9:9-10). Instead of being the God-ordained witness to the Gentiles, observance of these ordinances became Israel's showpiece of "religious piety" (Rom. 9:31-33). Peter called the Law "an unbearable yoke" (Acts 15:1 0).

___________________________________
From Grace And The Truth Ministries
http://www.graceandthetruth.com/

If this devotion has been a blessing to you, please share it with others. The Word of God is so needed in our troubled world.

Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.

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[nChrist]

THE WILL OF GOD IN CHRIST
By Pastor M. Duncan


Scripture Reading: I Thessalonians 5:18

In I Thessalonians chapter five, Paul outlines several activities that God expects of the saints. It is God's will that the saints "esteem" very highly those men of God who labour among them (Vers. 12-13). They are to "see that none render evil for evil unto any man" (Ver. 15). The saints are to "rejoice ever-more" and "pray without ceasing" (Vers. 16-17). They are not to "quench" the Spirit (Ver. 19) and are to "abstain from all appearance of evil" (Ver. 22). All this activity, Paul says, "is the WILL OF GOD IN CHRIST JESUS" (Ver. 18 ).

The point Paul is making by this statement is that EVERYTHING God expects in the life of the saints can ONLY be carried out by the POWER of Christ through the new nature which the saint received at the moment of salvation. Not only is salvation the GIFT OF GOD, but the where-with-all to do that which God expects is also a GIFT OF GOD. Everything the saint IS or EVER WILL BE comes from Christ. We see this by what Paul says in Philippians 4: 13. "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." We today can only do the will of God as Christ also strengthens us.

Many saints today make the same error in their thinking as the Galatians did in Paul's day and we need to be reproved just as sternly as Paul rebuked the Galatians in Galatians 3:3. "Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?" Can we today be saved through faith in Christ's death for our sins and then take off in the strength of the flesh to accomplish God's will for our Christian life? Surely not! Our only strength is "IN CHRIST" and God's will is that we do all things through HIM Who strengthens
us.

___________________________________

From Grace And The Truth Ministries

http://www.graceandthetruth.com/



If this devotion has been a blessing to you, please share it with others. The Word of God is so needed in our troubled world.



Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.



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[nChrist]

POPULARIZING THE GOSPEL
By late Pastor Win Johnson


Dr. Vance Havner, one of the most lucid and interesting preachers this pastor has ever heard, wrote in one of his recent books a paragraph on modern-day evangelism. Commenting on the fact that it isn't necessary for a popular singer to have any musical ability or be able to sing in order to sell a million records, he continues by saying: "This has gotten over into the world of religion. Worship has become a performance instead of an experience. The notion has spread somehow, that the gospel must be made into a form of entertainment. Some have discovered that a fortune can be made out of religious jazz. Sacred themes have been prostituted into hillbilly ragtime, and the same performers who turn out sexy ads also produce sacred albums. Athletic and theatrical prowess draw out crowds who would never go to hear a mere preacher, and evangelists may have to add sideburns, medallions and a gittar to guarantee a congregation. The churches even in dignified circles, are working out a coalition with the world to popularize the gospel."

TO WHICH WE ADD: Recently a radio preacher said that the church is getting so worldly and the world is getting so churchy that you can't tell them apart. He was speaking of course, of visible local church organizations. Thank God, the true Church, the Body of Christ, though IN the world, is not OF the world. Genuine believers desire to obey the Scriptural commands, "Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness but rather reprove them" (Ephesians 5:11), "Be not conformed to this world (age) 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 12:2).

If our preaching is popular with the world it is not the gospel which proclaims the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ for hell-deserving sinners.

___________________________________

From Grace And The Truth Ministries

http://www.graceandthetruth.com/



If this devotion has been a blessing to you, please share it with others. The Word of God is so needed in our troubled world.



Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.



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[nChrist]

THE VIRGIN BIRTH
By J.A. Verleur


"Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call His name Immanuel" ([sa. 7:14)

This familiar verse sparkles like a translucent gem in Isaiah's grand prophecy. It was during a time when Israel's history was fraught with crucial dangers, affecting domestic, social and religious life, that Isaiah's promise of the coming Redeemer brought new hope to the faithful few who still were looking for the Messiah. Of course, leading minds of decadent paganism ridiculed and repudiated the virginal birth, impeccable life and substitutionary death of a coming Christ. Since human nature has not changed, we are not surprised to find the forces of religious nihilism attacking the preliminary step of God's redemptive act in time: the virgin birth of the Lord Jesus. These forces. flanked by lax Liberalism have been engaged to de-Christianize Christianity by placing reason above history, creating a faith without mysteries and peddling these atheistic and agnostic views to the gullible many. Let us briefly examine the Word of God and notice the attention arresting Asterismos (a figure of speech calling particular attention to some point of subject) "Behold." The exact Hebrew text reads: "Behold the virgin is pregnant and is bearing a Son and thou shalt call His name Emmanuel." The translation, however, reads in the future tense. Why the discrepancy? The introductory words, "Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign. Behold ..."  will help to understand the accuracy of the future tense. The prophet foretells future events so realistically because to him they appear as already having taken place or about to be taking place.

Time and place often fade from the mind of the prophet since 4000 years, or 700 years, as in this case, do not constitute a factor with God. However, there are two more factors to be considered. The word Ecce (Behold) connotates futurity (Isa. 3: I; 8:7; 19:I, etc.). Passingly, the prophet could neither have Achaz' son in mind nor his own son since Achaz' son was then already eight years old and Shear-Jashub (see 7:3) was already with his father at the king's court. Consequently they are, by the very fact of birth and age, excluded from this prophecy. In addition, the child's name, Immanuel, occurs for the first time in the Old Testament. No child born of human parents could ever be given this name which means "God with us."

The Virgin

The next step in meeting the points at issue is to establish the meaning of the word "virgin." Here, too, theologians, philologists and exegetes are at loggerheads. The Hebrew text reads "ha almah. " The definite article is used. In Hebrew, or Greek, whenever the definite article is used it specifies and determines the meaning of the word to which it is joined. Therefore, a particular person is meant by ha almah. A look at the concordance reveals that but three times this word is accompanied by the article ha. Altogether the word almah occurs seven times (Gen. 24:43; Ex. 2:8; Ps. 68:25; Provo 30:19; Song 1:3; 6:8; Isa. 7:14), with the article only three times. (1) In Genesis 24:43 the context clearly reveals the meaning of the word almah, or virgin (vs. 16). (2) In Exodus 2:8 the word occurs again. This time it is used of Miriam, Moses' sister. (3) The last occurrence is our text. The Greek equivalent of ha almah is he parthenos, the word used of Mary, the mother of our Lord.

Parthenogenesis

Turn our attention to the miraculous conception; we are admittedly confronted with an impenetrable mystery. But before the scoffers laugh away this profound problem, let them explain the mystery of life: the natural birth. What is life? The latest  dictionary cannot supply the answer to this riddle. There are two sciences. biology and geology, both affirming as one of their most basic generalizations, that life only comes from pre-existing life. The science of geology informs us that there was a time when the earth was a molten mass of exceedingly hot gases. No life could possibly have existed thereon. Science affirms also that life has not been found on any other planet. Therefore, life must have been produced by a Living Cause, independent of, and external to, the Universe. Similarly, the science of biology states in the language of Tyndall, "I affirm that no shred of trustworthy experimental testimony exists to prove that life in our day has ever appeared independently of antecedent lite." Reinke, another eminent biologist declares. "Under no circumstance can chemical and mechanical forces produce a living being." All are agreed that life came mysteriously and independently of any natural causes. Hence, since blind chance is ruled out by all reputable scientists, we are confronted once again by the Giver of all life, God. But if we cannot explain this life, why then question the life super induced without the intervention of virile semen? Cannot God, Who wrote all biochemical laws, go above and beyond these in producing life without the male semen? Of course, those who refuse to admit God's omnipotence and man's limitation will not tolerate these truths. They would rather limit God and deify man!

Virgin Birth in the Economy of Nature

But science has demonstrated the fact of virgin birth among certain species of both animal and vegetable kingdom. Mostly these observable facts are noted among creatures of a rudimentary scale of development. Among the Annelids (any of the earthworms, etc.), noted examples are the Sylla Vivipara and Chaetogaster diastrophus. With the Syllu, males are unknown. The second class showed forty-five generations to have occurred parthenogenetically. "A few insects," writes Menge, "give birth to living young, but by far the greater portion develop from unfertilized eggs. It takes place with the bees, when the queen bee lays eggs which become drones." E. Slosson, the late noted chemist, observed the dandelion to produce plant seed without pollenization, i.e., fertilization of the pollen - a kind of vegetable virgin birth. These examples have not been given to adduce proof for the virgin birth of our Lord. Yet it is fair to ask: "
If God could have endowed these creatures with the unknown and unbelievable method of propagation, would it have been more difficult for Him to bring about the birth of His only begotten Son in a parthenogenetic manner?" (Vecchierello).

To deny the virgin birth is to deny the virgin life; it sends the Virgin Mary down the centuries as a fallen woman; it makes Christ the illegitimate son of a weak-willed Jew; it denies the Scriptures and in short, is nothing else but arrogant and arrant folderol. Thank God some day the "Seed of the woman" will be acknowledged as the Lord of Life, the One Who came into the world as an infinitesimally small human cell, conceived of the virgin Mary, begotten by the Holy Spirit, crucified under Pontius Pilate, raised again the third day and coming back again to vindicate His righteous claims which, among others, include this wondrous birth.

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From Grace And The Truth Ministries

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Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.



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[nChrist]

KNOWING CHRIST AS HE SHOULD BE KNOWN
By Pastor C.R. Stam


John the Baptist introduced our Lord with the proclamation: "Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matthew 3:2). Throughout His earthly ministry Christ was known as the "Son of David," the King with whom God made a covenant to establish His kingdom forever.

The Old Testament prophets predicted that Christ would (and He will) reign on earth upon the throne of His father David. While His kingdom was being proclaimed "at hand" He walked and talked and ate with men as "the Son of Man". Wearied with traveling He sat at Jacob's well and asked for a drink of water. Pressed by the throng, He got into a fishing boat and addressed the multitude from the sea. Hated by His adversaries, He was tied, scourged, spit upon and nailed to a tree. This was indeed "Christ manifest in the flesh."

With regard to His humiliation, however, the Apostle Paul says by divine inspiration that "God also hath highly exalted Him and given Him the Name which is above every name" (Philippians 2:9).

Again, the Apostle declares that God's mighty power was "wrought in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead, and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenlies, far above all (Ephesians 1:20). He is no longer to be known as "the lowly Jesus" but as the exalted Lord in Heaven. And this has its bearing on us too: "Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: Yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now, henceforth, know we Him no more" (II Corinthians 5:16). Our blessed Lord is now to be known as the glorified Son of God, the great Dispenser of Grace to a lost humanity; the One who in love and mercy "tasted death for every man" (Hebrews 2:9).

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From Grace And The Truth Ministries

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Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.



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[nChrist]

BYPASSING THE DEATH SENTENCE



The modern teaching of consecration, which is tantamount to the consecration of the "old man," seeks to bypass the death sentence and, therefore, only leads to frustration and failure. When, however, you and I are prepared in simple humility to make the FACT of our death with Christ our daily basis of life and service, there is nothing that can prevent the uprising and outflow of new life to meet the need of thirsty souls around us.

Here is the crux of the matter. The question is, which life is to be consecrated to Him, the old self-life or the new Christ-life? God can accept absolutely nothing from the old. He sees and acknowledges only that which is centered in His Son, Who is our life. Hence God has but one stipulation for consecration: "Yield yourselves to God as those that are alive from the dead" (Romans 6:13). This is our only ground and from this platform we are to count ourselves dead unto sin (the sin nature), self, the Law and the world, and alive unto God in Christ risen; to walk "in newness of life" (Romans 6:4, 11).

God asks us to present our bodies as living sacrifices to Him (Romans 12:1). Until we have done this, there is nothing else we can do. Notice that this exhortation comes after Romans 6. There is reason for this order -- crucifixion comes before consecration. Uncrucified self refuses to be consecrated. This is why so many people walk down the aisles again and again, consecrating uncrucified self to God.

A careful study of all the Epistles of Paul will show that they are written on the basis of the cross set forth in Romans 6 ---the fact that God consigns the old fallen Adam-life to the cross, and has nothing to say to it. God deals with all believers on the ground "in Christ you died." But the church of Jesus Christ ignores this fact. It treats the fallen creature as capable of self improvement, and the meaning of the cross bringing to death the old Adam race as fallen beyond repair, is thus nullified.   (Selected)

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From Grace And The Truth Ministries

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Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.



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[nChrist]

The Gift
by Steve McVey



When the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary 2000 years ago, she was told that God's Spirit was about to come upon her and as a result she would give birth to Divine Life. What a shocking realization for a young Jewish girl. Her world was about to be forever changed. The question of her morality was about to come to the forefront. Her soon-to-be husband would need a visit from no less than an angel in order to believe her story. Her Child that was to be born would turn the religious applecart of His day upside down. Yes, things were about to change --- in a big way. Christmas might seem sentimental to us today but when Jesus Christ was born it was shockingly radical in almost every imaginable way.

Someone has rightly said that grace which isn't disruptive isn't really grace. Deity breaking in on humanity and taking over, forever altering our lives and our circumstances, changing the way we see God, ourselves, and others. It's unsettling, to say the least. It takes control away from us and forces us to live in the place of constant faith, where some days are horribly wonderful and others are wonderfully horrible.

Jesus didn't come to make our lives better. He came so that we might die, right along with Him. In our co-crucifixion with Christ, He took away the old life we inherited from Adam and gave us another one in its place. The life He has given to us stands in stark contradiction to life as we used to know it. This Life isn't better. It's new.

In "This Life" we don't live for ourselves, but for others. We don't seek to gather but to pour ourselves out for the benefit of those around us. We don't assert our own agendas, but rather lay them down and allow Him to express His agenda through us in whatever way He chooses. We quit trying to be religious in an attempt to impress God, ourselves and others and begin to learn to be real, acting like who we really are in Him. We stop scrambling to carve out an enviable life for ourselves and instead just yield to death --- the one we experienced with Him on His cross.

Mary had to die to a lot as the baby Jesus grew inside her. She died to the way she had  anticipated her life would unfold. She died to her reputation. She died to the right to manage or even understand her life's circumstances. She died to her religious check and balance system where good girls have good things happen in life and bad girls get the bad stuff of life. She began to realize early on that God's ways aren't our ways, but they are better. She learned to yield to Him and in her "be it unto me according to thy word," (Luke 1:38 ), the door opened for the rest of the world to see the divine life she had been given by God's Spirit.

So it is to be with us. Let us choose to embrace Christmas in all of its implications. Let's give up our agendas, our reputations, our rights and yield to the growth of Christ, first within us and then through us so that all the world may see His glory. Let us agree with His Spirit that we will gladly embrace every disruptive aspect of grace that shakes us out of our comfort zones, breaking away the things that interfere with living as our authentic selves, and causing us to come to more fully and intimately know Him. To embrace His life and to see it grow in us --- to see His life be produced through us --- that is the greatest gift anyone could know. That is indeed a God-sized gift.

May you and your family be richly blessed during this Christmas season and may you cherish The Gift that exceeds everything this world has to offer.

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From Grace And The Truth Ministries

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If this devotion has been a blessing to you, please share it with others. The Word of God is so needed in our troubled world.



Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.



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[nChrist]

A MESSAGE OF JOY



As Christmas draws near, our focus is on two very important truths: First, the fact that the eternal Son of God became incarnate in a human body; Second, what He accomplished in His sinless body.

The fact that the Son of God was destined to become incarnate in human flesh was prophesied in the Old Testament. The Spirit of God says in Isaiah 7: 14: "Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel." In Matthew 1:23, the Holy Spirit applies this statement to Mary, adding that the name Immanuel means "God with us."

The Holy Spirit also applies what He said through the prophet Micah, hundreds of years earlier, to the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, that "out of you One shall come forth to be a ruler in Israel, whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting" (Micah 5:2).

The incarnation of the Son of God in a human body is also affirmed in the New Testament. The Holy Spirit says in Matthew 1:18, prior to a conjugal relation between Joseph and Mary, "she was found with child out of the Holy Spirit."

This was a great shock to Joseph, a Jew imbued with the high moral standards of the Law! As he reflected on the counsel given to him, that he should secretly separate from Mary, the Lord said to him through an angel, "Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your woman, for the one conceived in her is out of the Holy Spirit" (Matt. 1:20). This verse certainly affirms that the Holy Spirit produced in Mary's womb the body which the Son of God was to occupy!

The Holy Spirit via Luke gives us a very graphic picture of how God produced the physical body for His Son to inhabit on earth. The angel of the Lord told Mary: "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore, the one who is born will be called Holy, the Son of God" (Luke 1:35). How could language more explicitly declare that Jesus of Nazareth is indeed the Son of God?

Now let us consider the second important truth, which is based on the fact that the conception and birth of Jesus were produced by God via the Holy Spirit. As the Mediator between the holy God and sinful men, the Person of Jesus Christ had to be both True God and True Man. As the eternal Son of God, He is True God, and, as a result of the Holy Spirit producing Mary's conception, He is True Man, void of Adam's sin.

In the book of Hebrews, this same truth is confirmed regarding Jesus Christ's relation to God and to men. First, the Spirit says that He is a "Great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God ... who has been tried as we are, yet without sin" (Heb. 4:14-15).

Second, since He came to rescue flesh and blood sinners, "He Himself also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil" (Heb. 1:14). Furthermore, "He had to be made like His brethren in all things, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people" (Heb. 2:17).

Grateful to Him for the sacrifice of His perfect, sinless Body for our sin,

May we all renew our purpose to make the Gospel of His Grace known to all!

by Ernest R. Campbell

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From Grace And The Truth Ministries
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If this devotion has been a blessing to you, please share it with others. The Word of God is so needed in our troubled world.

Ephesians 3:9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.

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