Saturday, June 21, 2014

The World is a Great Enemy

What is this world, and all things in it, if a man does not have God for his friend?

All things around us remind us that
we are nothing better than grass, and are like a fleeting shadow. And if we are void of saving grace, awful is our state, whether we feel it so or not. But we find that the Lord must make us view things in their true colors. And if He favors us with a few breathings after the 'heavenly manna', it will stop us from so earnestly seeking that 'bread which perishes'.

The world is a great enemy! It contains so many snares and baits so suitable to our carnal appetite!  We are surrounded with everything that is trying to fasten our hearts to earthly things. And if we were to have no crosses, and no enjoyment and comfort in spiritual things, we would be endeavoring, still more than we are, to find our happiness in earthly things.

A tender conscience and godly fear in the heart, are great mercies. And if the Lord does bless our souls with a sense of His pardoning love, it is a wonderful favor. For we know our vileness sufficiently to be sure that there is no hope for us but through His rich, unmerited love and mercy. It is a very narrow path, and the Lord must guide and direct us in it.

[William Tiptaft]



 


Isaiah 40:8 ... The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.

 
1 Peter 1:24-25 ... For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away:  But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.


Matthew 6:19-21 ... Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:  But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:  For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.



1 John 2:17 ...  And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever. ❤