God Is Here

The day is yours, and yours also the night;
you established the sun and moon.
- Psalm 74:16 -

The Lord does not abdicate His throne when the sun goes down, nor does He leave the world during the long winter nights.

This is very sweet indeed.

The nights of affliction are under the arrangement and control of the Lord of Love. So are the bright summer days when all is bliss.

The Lord Jesus Christ is in the tempest.

From the first watch of the night to the break of day, the Lord God observes His saints for their highest good.

Gloomy seasons of religious indifference and social sin are not exempted from the divine purpose.

When the altars of truth are defiled, and the ways of God forsaken, the Lord's servants weep with bitter sorrow. But they may not despair, for the darkest eras are governed by the Lord, and shall come to their end at His bidding.

What may seem defeat to us may be victory to Him.

Since the Lord Himself is here, we must not fear.

How God Has Clothed Us

I clothed you with an embroidered dress and put sandals of fine leather on you. I dressed you in fine linen and covered you with costly garments. - Ezekiel 16:10 -

See how the Lord has clothed us.

See His matchless generosity.

See His unrivaled embroidered work.

See His work in our salvation.

See His work in the righteousness of the saints.

Justification is the theme of admiration in eternity.

See all this elaboration, mingled with usefulness and durability.

The righteousness by grace through faith endures forever.

We are clothed in pure white.

We are clothed in the royal apparel which is delicate and rich as silk.

No expense is spared.

No beauty withheld.

Oh! See how the Lord God has clothed us.

Let us express our gratitude and joy to Him.

Christian's Privileges

I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture. - John 10: 9 -

Jesus is the entrance into the true Church.

He is the way of access to God Himself.

Jesus gives to the man who comes to God by Him four privileges:

(1) He shall be saved.

No one can be lost if they take Jesus as the door of faith to their souls.

Jesus is the only door.

Blessed is he who rests all his hope upon the crucified Redeemer.

(2) He shall go in.

He shall go in among the family of God, participating in all their honors and enjoyments.

He shall go in to the King of kings.

(3) He shall go out.

He shall go out into the world in the name and power of Jesus.

He shall bear witness to the truth, to cheer the disconsolate, to warn the careless, to win souls, and to glorify God.

He shall go out as God's messenger in His name and strength.

(4) He shall find pasture.

Having made Jesus his all, he shall find all in Jesus.

He shall lack nothing.

Unfaithful Servant

They are unfaithful to the LORD;
they give birth to illegitimate children.
When they celebrate their New Moon feasts,
he will devour their fields.
- Hosea 5:7 -

Here is a sorrowful truth.

We are the beloved of the LORD, redeemed by blood, called by grace, preserved in Christ Jesus, accepted in the Beloved, and on our way to Heaven.

But we are unfaithful to the LORD.

We are found to be unfaithful in the matter of vows and promises.

We have forgotten the happy time, the springtime of our spiritual life.

Oh, how closely we clang to our Master then!

But now, we are unfaithful to the LORD.

Prayer has oftentimes been slurred.

It has been short, but not sweet.

Brief, but not fervent.

Communion with Christ has been forgotten.

Instead of a heavenly mind, there have been carnal cares, worldly vanities and thoughts of evil.

Instead of service, there has been disobedience.

Instead of fervency, lukewarmness.

Instead of patience, petulance.

Instead of faith, confidence in an arm of flesh.

As a soldier of the cross, there has been cowardice, disobedience, and desertion, to a very shameful degree.

We are unfaithful to the LORD.

We have sinned against Him terribly.

Oh LORD! Forgive us.

Oh! Let us not sin again!

How shameful it is to be unfaithful to the LORD who never forgets us.

Peace And Rest

My people will dwell in a peaceful habitation,
In secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places,
- Isaiah 32:18 -

Peace and rest belong only to God's people.

 

The God of Peace gives perfect peace to those whose hearts are with Him.
 

Before the fall of Adam, God gave him the garden of Eden as his quiet resting place.
 

When the flood swept away the guilty race, the chosen family was secured in the resting place of the ark.
 

When the destroying angel struck the first-born of Egypt, the people of Israel rested safely in the blood sprinkled habitations.
 

In the wilderness, under the shadow of the pillar of cloud, and the flowing rock, the weary Israelites enjoyed their sweet rest.
 

At this hour...
 

We rest in the promises of our faithful God.
 

We rest in Him whose words are full of truth and power.
 

We rest in the doctrines of His word.
 

We rest in the covenant of His grace.
 

Nothing can invade or destroy our shelter of peace and rest.
 

The person of the Lord Jesus Christ is the quiet resting place of His people.
 

Let us draw near to Him and enjoy the return of peace to our spirits.