We Must Give Time to Knowing God
We Must Give Time to Knowing God
Progress in the Christian life is exactly equal to the growing knowledge we gain of the triune God in personal experience. And such experience requires
a whole life devoted to it and plenty of time spent at the holy task of cultivating our knowledge of God. God can be known satisfactorily only as we devote time to Him.
A thousand distractions would woo us away from thoughts of God, but if we are wise, we will sternly put them from us and make room for the King and
take time to entertain Him. Some things may be neglected with little loss to the spiritual life. But to neglect communion with God is to hurt ourselves where
we cannot afford it. God will respond to our efforts to know Him. The Bible tells us how, but it is altogether a matter of how much determination we bring to
the holy task.
- A. W. Tozer
Let us go outside the camp.
In a week I will be preaching at a small church in OK. I need tremendous prayer – prayer for humility, a contrite heart, love, and obedience to the Word of God, the honor of Christ and submission to the Holy Spirit. This morning I received this email from brother Mack Tomlinson, author of, “In Light of Eternity” (bio of Leonard Ravenhill). This could not have come at a better time. May the Lord use this in your life and walk with Christ.
Blessings,
Jeremy Strang
Christian. Husband. Father. Author.
“Let us go therefore unto Him, outside the camp.” – Hebrews 13:13
Jesus, bearing His cross, went forth to suffer without the gate. The Christian’s reason for leaving the camp of the world’s sin and religion is not because he loves to be singular, but because Jesus did so; and the disciple must follow his Master. Christ was “not of the world.” His life and His testimony were a constant protest against conformity with the world. Never was such overflowing affection for men as you find in Him; but still He was separate from sinners. In like manner Christ’s people must “go forth unto Him.” They must take their position “without the camp,” as witness-bearers for the truth. They must be prepared to tread the straight and narrow path. They must have bold, unflinching, lion-like hearts, loving Christ first, and His truth next, and Christ and His truth beyond all the world. Jesus would have His people “go forth without the camp” for their own sanctification.
You cannot grow in grace to any high degree while you are conformed to the world. The life of separation may be a path of sorrow, but it is the highway of safety; and though the separated life may cost you many pangs, and make every day a battle, yet it is a happy life after all. No joy can excel that of the soldier of Christ: Jesus reveals Himself so graciously, and gives such sweet refreshment, that the warrior feels more calm and peace in his daily strife than others in their hours of rest. The highway of holiness is the highway of communion. It is thus we shall hope to win the crown if we are enabled by divine grace faithfully to follow Christ “without the camp.” The crown of glory will follow the cross of separation. A moment’s shame will be well recompensed by eternal honour; a little while of witness-bearing will seem nothing when we are “for ever with the Lord.”
- C. H. Spurgeon
How You Should Be A Man
How You Should Be A Man.
My 7 year old son wrote this to his mom, my wife, just the other day and I thought I would share it. I am going to do my best to spell it just as he has written it. Yes, indeed he (we) have some spelling to work on, but he was very happy to be able to give this and read this to his mom. We are happy that he is thinking and trying to write things on his own rather than watch TV. Usually he writes about God and such, but this is what we were given this time.
May the Lord bless you all.
Haw You Shood Be A Man.
by Isaac Strang, age 7
dear mom. I love you. I am a man. I shood fite for my children and wife. I am a American. I shood fite for my contry. I shood nevre be a whimp. dad said I shood be a tough man. my name shood be brav man. some dads are whimps some aren’t. I am not. my dad is not. he tot me. like my mother did.
He is our wall of fire
He is our wall of fire.
Zec 2:5 And I, says Jehovah, will be to her a wall of fire all around, and will be the glory in her midst.
At the particular time that this was written, Jerusalem was a city without a wall. She was naked and vulnerable, and open to attack. In those days, a city without a wall would be like an army without guns. Now , with broken down walls, God Himself would be a wall of fire to them. In these last days, the remnant people of God will be a people without walls. The conventional wisdom of the past will no longer apply. Not unlike the City of Jerusalem of that day, God’s remnant people will be a broken people, a vulnerable people, and a people without the traditional protection of the Church. They will seem lonely and isolated. Yet, when God brings this group of people together, He will be their wall. It will not be a wall that is built by human hands. Consider why Jerusalem was in such a position when the above Scripture was written. Their wall, built by human hands, had been breached, undermined, overcome, tore down and ultimately destroyed. If we are God’s remnant people, we will be a people that has been breached, undermined, our brokenness will be apparent, we will seek God will all of our heart. In our brokenness, in our hunger and because of our driving thirst for the things of God and for His presence, we will seek Him with all of our hearts and we will become fully dependent upon Him. When we seek Him in this way, He will be found by us. He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. His presence is our wall of fire! So, we will be a people without walls around our hearts. Walls are designed to contain, to keep out, to mark boundaries, to hide behind. We will not be a people who will be able to contain the things of God. As He pours out His latter rain upon us and it enlarges our capacity to receive (If I am a vessel that wants to be filled, I must first be emptied to make room for that which I seek), then we will freely give what has been given to us. We will love more and we will forgive more and we will do good to those who miss-treat us. And as we do all that, the world will hate us more and more. It’s ironic that the more love that will be poured out into a dying and ever darkening world, the more the world will reject it. When Jesus walked the earth in all His love and mercy, He was ultimately rejected by a multitude who at first received Him. As with the Lord, so it will be with His children. Yet, no matter, love will conquer evil, the gates of hell shall not prevail against Gods remnant children. Their love shall overcome evil even as it seeks to destroy them.
(via: A Call to the Remnant: http://acalltotheremnant.com/2013/03/28/he-is-our-wall-of-fire/)
Look unto Me
Look unto Me
The Lord says, “Look to me, I am the author and the finisher of your faith.” Shall we begin in the Spirit and attempt to finish this journey in the flesh? Brothers and sisters, if you would join this ancient army, this kingdom that was and is and is to come, if you would march in lockstep with Gideon and with David and with Joshua, if you would run towards Goliath, if you would take on ten thousand and slay them all, if you would kneel down in the arena of life as the lions approach, if you would take your place with the heroes of faith then it is high time that we take our eyes of of ourselves and look up, look up to the cross of Calvary. Brothers and sisters, when I look up I see humility. I see my Lord humbled and naked for the whole world to see. Nothing hidden. When I look up I see justice. I see sin condemned. Oh brothers and sisters when I look up I see mercy . Mercy for me, mercy for me, mercy for me. I do not see my own condemnation, I see my Jesus. Yes, I see Jesus. There is therefore, now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who walk not according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.Oh what a glorious freedom. Free indeed, free indeed , free indeed. Free indeed to stand and fight. To battle even unto death, with my fellow freed men. I pray today that those whom the Son has set free will push the doors of their captivity of wretchedness, that they would realize their freedom, that they would reckon their freedom and walk out of their cells into the glorious sunlight of no condemnation and join the Lord’s army in these the final days of the battle, one more battle in the war that is already won.
(via: http://acalltotheremnant.com/2013/03/26/look-unto-me/)
