NEEDED WINTER

"It is said that in some countries trees will grow, but will bear no fruit because there is no winter there."; "JOHN BUNYAN"

BRUISED REEDS AND DISQUIETMENTS

"Ignorance of God and of ourselves is the great principle and cause of all our disquietments; and, this ariseth mostly not from want of light and instruction, but for want of consideration and application."; "JOHN OWEN"
Here God gives his people some taste, that they may not faint; and he gives them but a taste, that they may long to be at home, that they may keep humble, that they may sit loose from things below, that they may not break and despise bruised reeds, and that heaven may be more sweet to them at last."; "THOMAS BROOKS"

VERY GLORIOUS

"Men think all things would be very glorious, it they might be done according to their mind. Perhaps, indeed, they would -- but with their glory, not the glory of God."; "JOHN OWEN"

NOT CONTINGENT

We do have a responsibility to make wise decisions or to discover the will of God, whichever term we may prefer to use. But God's plan for us is not contingent upon our decisions. God's plan is not contingent at all. God's plan is sovereign. It includes our foolish decisions as well as our wise ones.

    Author: Jerry Bridges
    Source: Trusting God, 1988, p. 170.

wisdom

A contented heart looks to God’s disposal, and submits to God’s disposal, that is, he sees the wisdom of God in everything. In his submission he sees his sovereignty, but what makes him take pleasure is God’s wisdom. The Lord knows how to order things better than I. The Lord sees further than I do; I only see things at present but the Lord sees a great while from now. And how do I know but that had it not been for this affliction, I should have been undone. ~ The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment by Jeremiah Burroughs -

Music Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=peWd3Td9Xl8 Gary McSpadden He is the King

BEEKE QUOTE

Joel Beeke writes in an excerpt from "A Salutation from the Throne of Heaven"; If Christ is unchangeable as the Son of God, we may submit our lives to Him (Job 23:13–14), set our hopes on His promises (Ps. 33:11), and commit our plans to Him (Prov. 19:21), while expecting eternal blessings from Him (Heb. 6:17–18), believing that He will always work for our good (James 1:16–18). How futile, then, it is to challenge Him, His Word, His people, or Christianity itself (1 Sam. 15:29; Num. 23:19; Heb. 1:10–12, 2:1) when we may live by the immutability of the Lord who is and was and is to come. Christ is also almighty and omnipotent over history. In our English Bible, Christ describes Himself as “the Almighty” by using the Greek word pantokrator, meaning “ruler of all” and in the Old Testament by using El Shaddai—“God Almighty.” As El Shaddai and Pantokrator, Christ wields the very might of God to bring all things into subjection to Himself as God’s anointed king and “governor among the nations” (Ps. 22:28). Christ is Lord and Master of history, never its slave or pawn. Whatever powers oppose Him, Christ will prevail. This claim is central to Revelation. Though the power of Christ is contested, He masters all the powers of creation, puts His enemies to flight, conquers the world, establishes His kingdom, condemns the wicked, and brings His loved ones safely home to God.

FATIGUE

"There are not wanting here and there the signs that good Christians are suffering from a kind of spiritual metal-fatigue. In our fellowships iron rarely sharpens iron any longer. Much preaching that is orthodox lacks that ring of conviction which is needed to thrust it home into sinners’ consciences. A guilty tameness smothers our zeal. Prayers are hum-drum and predictable. The apostolic fire has died down and looks like dying away. The gospel, even where it is preached at all, is clothed with the impeding garments of excessive politeness and respectability. Our sermons are frequently no more than a gentle homily or a quiet talk about good religious ideas. Slowly and imperceptibly evangelical people are coming to terms, emotionally and intellectually, with the spirit of the age. Though we should not care to say so, we nonetheless betray our inner despair of ever seeing revival, or even a reversal of the present trend downwards.

CHRISTIANS NEED NOT BE DISCOURAGED

Creatures sometimes would help us--but they cannot; and sometimes they could help--but they will not. Yet the Christian need not be discouraged; he has a Friend who can, and is always willing to help him: it is his God--his sure resource. He may be disappointed by others--but this is divinely appointed, in order to lead him to trust only in his God. Beloved, our God Himself loves to help us. It is His delight to do us good. He is pleased to see us coming to Him for assistance, or for grace, or for His blessing; especially if we come in a filial spirit, as children to a Father. Help is sure to be needed--for we have . . . many difficulties to overcome, many foes to conquer, many trials to endure, many duties to perform, and many privileges to enjoy. But not one of them can be attended to with success--without divine help. --James Smith

THE LORD IS MY HELPER

Believer, see what you have to expect! You will be tried. You will feel your own weakness. You will learn more and more--your need of divine help. Yes, you will be brought to see that only the Lord can afford you the help you need--that you need a helper, who is . . . infinite in wisdom, omnipotent in power, and whose grace is immutable and free. See to whom you are to look for help in every duty, trial or conflict--to the Lord, to the Lord always, for all that you need--and to Him alone. "The Lord is my helper!" Hebrews 13:6 : James Smith

GOD EXALTED

"A true Christian delights to have God exalted at his own abasement, because he loves him. He is willing to own that God is worthy of this, and it is with delight that he casts himself in the dust before the most high, from a sincere love to him." ~Jonathan Edwards"

GOD HAS ORDAINED

God has ordained the measure of fruit which each servant of His shall reap from his labours, the degree of success which each Gospel lamp-bearer shall have. He has determined what number of souls should be edified, and which shall be hardened by his light. "So that neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth ; but God that giveth the increase." (1 Cor. 3:7) Arthur W. Pink ~ The Ordained Lamp

TIMID MOUSE

It is for this reason that God suffers it to appear that the best of men are but men at the best. No matter how richly gifted they may be, how eminent in God’s service, how greatly honored and used of Him, let His sustaining power be withdrawn from them for a moment and it will quickly be seen that they are “earthen vessels.” No man stands any longer than he is supported by Divine grace. The most experienced saint, if left to himself, is immediately seen to be as weak as water and as timid as a mouse. AWP.

SIN DARKENS

Sin darkens the understanding, so that man is unable to perceive his real state before God. Satan "hath blinded the minds of them which believe not" (2 Cor. 4:4). The deep-rooted pride of our hearts makes us think the best of ourselves, so that if a question is raised in our hearts, we are ever prone to give ourselves the benefit of the doubt. A spirit of sloth possesses us by nature, so that we are unwilling to go to the trouble which real self-examination calls for. Hence the vast majority of religious professors remain with a head knowledge of the Truth, with outward attention to forms and ceremonies, or resting on a mere consent to the letter of some verse like John 3:16, refusing to "make their calling and election sure." - A.W. Pink, An Exposition of Hebrews

KEPT LOW

"The man whom the Lord uses has to be kept low: severe discipline has to be experienced by him, if the flesh is to be duly mortified. How humbling! Alas, how little is man to be trusted: how little is he able to bear being put into the place of honour! How quickly self rises to the surface, and the instrument is ready to believe he is something more than the instrument! How sadly easy it is to make of the very service God entrusts us with a pedestal on which to display ourselves. But God will not share His glory with another, and therefore does He 'hide' those who may be tempted to take some of it unto themselves. It is only by retiring from the public view and getting alone with God that we can learn our own nothingness."--Arthur Pink, "The Life of Elijah"

Who Can Thwart Him

Arthur Pink ( The Sovereignty of God) For the Lord Almighty has purposed--and who can thwart Him? His hand is stretched out--and who can turn it back?" Isaiah 14:27 To say that God is sovereign, is to declare that He is the Almighty, the Possessor of all power in Heaven and earth--so that none can . . . defeat His counsels, thwart His purpose, or resist His will. Whatever takes place in time--is but the outworking of that which He has decreed in eternity. The sovereignty of the God of Scripture, is . . . absolute, irresistible and infinite! We insist that God does . . . as He pleases, only as He pleases, always as He pleases! "But our God is in the heavens--He has done whatever He has pleased!" Psalm 115:3 "The Lord does whatever pleases Him, in the Heavens and on the earth, in the seas and all their depths!" Psalm 135:6 "All the peoples of the earth are regarded as nothing. He does as He pleases with the powers of Heaven and the peoples of the earth. No one can hold back His hand or say to Him: What have you done?" Daniel 4:35

Heart Rending, and other quotes to keep

CHS- Heart-rending is divinely wrought--and solemnly felt. It is a secret grief which is personally experienced, not in mere form--but as a deep, soul-moving work of the Holy Spirit upon the inmost heart of each believer. It is not a matter to be merely talked of--but keenly and sensitively felt in every living child of the living God. It is powerfully humiliating and sin-purging! But also, it is sweetly preparative for those gracious consolations which proud unhumbled souls are unable to receive! This heart-rending distinctly belongs to the elect of God--and to them alone.

It is not long life, but public service for God, that we are to esteem a blessing in this world. A little time filled up with service and duty is inexpressibly to be preferred before a multitude of days spent in unprofitableness and vanity. ~John Owen

There is nothing in the Bible which can remotely give the impression that some people are good and some people are bad, and being good is how we get God to accept us. We're all bad. The Bible draws a sweeping and devastating picture of human beings in Adam as corrupt, greedy, foolish, selfish, mean, envious, hateful, sexually perverse, cruel and violent. And even if we do not always exhibit all these characteristics outwardly, the germ of all these acts dwell in each heart. That is why those who declare that certain individuals are 'born this way' and so cannot change only understand half the truth. We were ALL 'born this way' captive to our lusts and corruptions and none of us can do anything pleasing to God to appease His displeasure with us (See Rom 1-3). This is no hyperbole. Our state is so hopeless that we can do nothing, except, by the grace of God, acknowledge that we justly deserve God's wrath save for Jesus Christ alone. Given that we are 'born this way' our only hope is to be born again... and since we cannot give birth to ourselves, this is only something God can do.
Sat, 01/17/2015 - 12:30 -- john_hendryx

He was born for His people.
He kept the law for His people.
He suffered for His people.
He died for His people.
He arose from the dead for His people.
He ascended into glory for His people.
He rules all things for His people.
He intercedes for His people.
He is coming again for His people.
Listen to the reverberation of God's distinguishing grace as the apostle Paul sounds the gospel trumpet: "Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her . . . to present her to Himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless!" Ephesians 5:25-27
---- from grace gems.

(Thomas Brooks)
"The LORD saw how great man's wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time!" Genesis 6:5
There is the seed of all sins, of the vilest and worst of sins--in the best of men!
Did God leave us to act according to our sinful natures--we would all be incarnate devils, and this world would be an absolute Hell!
"He has rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins!" Colossians 1:13

"By nature man is independent, self-sufficient, self-confident: what a miracle of grace has been wrought when he now feels and owns his helplessness!"~ Arthur Pink, "Practical Christianity"

"When the Gospel is presented to the sinner, not only is his understanding completely ignorant of its glorious contents, but the will is utterly perverse against it. Not only is there no desire for Christ, but there is inveterate hostility against Him. Nothing but the almighty power of God can overcome the enmity of the carnal mind."~ Arthur Pink, "The Holy Spirit"

"It is extremely painful not to wait patiently, for it points out our unwillingness to accept God’s timing, which is really a spirit of insubordination. Fretful impatience takes issue with God’s authority and calls into question His goodness."~ Arthur Pink, "Gleanings from Paul - The Prayer for Patience"

DELIGHTING TO HAVE GOD EXALTED

"A true Christian delights to have God exalted at his own abasement, because he loves him. He is willing to own that God is worthy of this, and it is with delight that he casts himself in the dust before the most high, from a sincere love to him." ~Jonathan Edwards

A post on Prayer by J.A.M.

Scripture calls us to pray all the time. We all know this. We all know we should pray, but we don’t always pray. If we are honest with ourselves we don’t always want to pray. We cannot always focus in prayer. There are times when we just do not want to pray, it is the last thing we would want to do. Most of us probably wouldn’t admit this. John Bunyan, however, was willing to admit this. I came across this quote while I was preparing last week to teach on the Holy Spirit’s ministry of intercession and supplication. I think we’d all do well to share in Bunyan’s honesty and reliance on the Holy Spirit in those times where we loathe prayer. May I but speak my own experience, and from that tell you the difficulty to praying to God as I ought; it is enough to make you poor, blind, carnal men, to entertain strange thoughts of me, for, as my heart, when I go to pray, I find it so loathe to go to God, and when it is with him, so loathe to stay with him, that many times I am force in my prayers; first to beg God that he would take mine heart, and set it on himself in Christ, and when it is there, that he would keep it there (Psalm 86:11). Nay, many times I know not what to pray for, I am so blind, nor how to pray I am so ignorant; only (blessed be Grace) that the Spirit helps our infirmities [Romans 8:26]. Oh the starting-holes that the heart hath in time of prayer! None knows how many by-ways the heart hath, and back-lanes, to slip away from the presence of God. How much pride also, if enabled with expressions. How much hypocrisy, if before others? And how little conscience is there made of prayer between God and the soul in secret, unless there Spirit of supplication [Zech. 12:10] be there to help. – as quoted in, A Puritan Theology by Joel Beeke and Mark Jones. p. 426. May we pray with Bunyan for the Lord to constantly set our affections and set it on himself in Christ, and once our hearts rest there that He might keep our hearts there. May we pray with the disciples, “teach us how to pray.”

A Wonderful Prayer

Almighty God, the fountain of all wisdom, you know our necessities before we ask and our ignorance in asking: Have compassion on our weakness, and mercifully give us those things which for our unworthiness we dare not, and for our blindness we cannot ask; through the worthiness of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. BCP (Contemporary Collects); Thanks Lee.