Holy Longings

There is no truer test of the state of the soul, than its deepest longings and desires. Outward conduct may be restrained by fear, reputation, or habit. But longing true, inward, unforced longing reveals the condition of the heart. As a person longs in secret, so they truly are.

"As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul longs after You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, the living God. When shall I come and appear in God's presence?" (Psalm 42:1-2) This is not casual interest. It is desperation. The deer in a drought-stricken wilderness, will not be distracted by secondary things it must have water or it will die. In the same way, the regenerate soul longs for Jesus. Not merely for blessings, not merely for relief, but for God Himself.

Longing for Jesus. Conversion is not the addition of religion to a busy life; it is the creation of new desires. The Spirit removes the heart of stone and gives a heart of flesh (Ezekiel 36:26-27) Wherever there is saving grace, holy longings are born.

Psalm 63:1 says, "O God, you are my God. Earnestly I seek You; my soul thirsts for You. My body yearns for You in a dry and weary land without water." Notice the intensity. Saving faith is not a cold mental assent to doctrine though doctrine is essential; it is a living hunger for the living Jesus.

The believer says, "Whom have I in Heaven but You? And on earth I desire no one besides You. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever!" (Psalm 73:25-26) This is the language of supreme affection. "On earth I desire no one besides You." Jesus is treasured above all competitors. When flesh fails, when earthly joys fade, when strength diminishes then God remains as "the strength of my heart and my portion forever!"

Examine yourself here. What do you most deeply desire? Wealth? Fame? Lust? Or Jesus? One of the surest evidences of regeneration is this: when stripped of everything else, the soul still says, "Give me Jesus!"

Longing for Heaven. The Christian is, in a profound sense, a stranger here in this wilderness world. He is a citizen of Heaven, living temporarily on earth (Philippians 3:20.) This poor world cannot satisfy the renewed heart. "Arise and depart; for this is not your rest, because it is polluted." (Micah 2:10)

Thus, believers groan for glory (Romans 8:23) They do not merely fear Hell; they long for Heaven. They yearn to see the face of the One they now know by faith. Heaven is precious, not because of golden streets, but because Jesus is there. When the heart whispers, "Come, Lord Jesus" (Revelation 22:20), it reveals allegiance to another kingdom.

Whenever saving grace comes, it creates heavenly longings; desires which the world cannot understand. The saints crave Heaven, and thirst for the presence of God. Such longing marks them as strangers and pilgrims in this present world. "You have made known to me the path of life; You will fill me with joy in Your presence, with eternal pleasures at Your right hand!"

The righteous long for holy living, because God Himself authors those desires. What He intends to give, He first teaches us to crave. Spiritual desires are the buds of coming fruit. Do you long to conquer sin? That longing is evidence of spiritual life. Do you grieve your remaining corruption? That grief signals regeneration.

May your soul pant for Him. May your heart cry, "Whom have I in heaven but You?" May your deepest desire be Jesus now, Heaven soon, and holiness always.

The unconverted regret the consequences of sin, but they do not hate sin itself. The believer sighs to be free from sin altogether.

[Charles H. Spurgeon]

Proverbs 10:24 ... The fear of the wicked, it shall come upon him: but the desire of the righteous shall be granted.

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You Will Be Damned if You Live in Sin!

We preach salvation by grace alone, but we do not preach the salvation of those who still continue to live in sin. The children of God are a holy people, washed, purged, sanctified, and made zealous for good works. He who talks about faith but has no works to prove that his faith is a living faith is simply lying. It is faith that saves us, not works but the faith that saves us, always produces a holy life. 

God-given faith always renews the heart, changes the character, and influences the desires and motives. One who merely professes to be a Christian but lives continually in unrepentant sin shows by his life that he is not a genuine believer. The New Testament consistently affirms that saving faith always produces holiness. (James 2:17; 1 John 2:3-6) Persistent, willful, unrepentant sin demonstrates that one's profession is false. 

No doubt about it, sirs. You may be baptized and re-baptized, you may attend to sacraments, and you may believe an orthodox creed; but you will be damned if you live in sin! You may become a deacon, or an elder, or a minister but there is no salvation for any man who still harbors his sins. "The wages of sin is death" (Romans 6:23) death to professors as well as to non-professors.  If you hug your sins in secret and will not part with them then God will reveal those sins in public and condemn you according to the strict justice of His Word. 

[Charles H. Spurgeon] 

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1 John 2:16-17 ... For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.  And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.

1 John 3:8-9 ... He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.  Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.

Titus 1:16 ... They profess that they know God; but in works they deny him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unto every good work reprobate. ❤

Scullion in Your Kitchen

The prayer is, "Teach me to do Your will." This is a practical prayer. David does not say merely, "Teach me to know your will." That is a very excellent prayer; but there are a great many who never progress past the knowing of God's will, to the doing of His will. These are forgetful hearers, deceiving themselves. An ounce of doing, is worth a ton of knowing. The most orthodox faith in the world, if it is accompanied by an unholy life, will only increase a man's damnation. If there is not both the knowing and the practicing of God's will then the more we know, the greater will be our condemnation! 

There are many who long to know all the mysterious aspects of Scripture. Others labor incessantly to understand the depths of prophecy, and a nice muddle they make when they get there. We have had, I do not know how many theories of prophecy, each one of them more absurd than the rest; and so, it will be, I fear, to the world's end. Truly, it would be a good thing to understand the prophecies and fathom all mysteries and all knowledge. But "I will show you the most excellent way". That most excellent way is to live a life of humility, godly sincerity, and faith; and to show forth the love of Jesus in your life. Lord, I chiefly long to please You and obey Your will. Teach me that, and I am content. Let me be a scullion in Your kitchen, if so, I may glorify You. 

[Charles H. Spurgeon] 

Psalm 143:10 ...  Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness.

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The Half-Converted Cowboy!

There is grief in my spirit when I go into the average church, for we have become a generation rapidly losing all sense of divine sacredness and reverence in our worship. God has been abridged, reduced, modified, edited, changed and amended until He is no longer the high and lifted up God whom Isaiah saw! We've reduced the God of Abraham and Jacob, to a "stuffed God" that can be appealed to by anybody at any time. The religious clown on the radio can break into his fun and say, "Now we will have a minute of prayer." 

In the religious concert, the half-converted cowboy dressed like an idiot will say after he's twanged out some catchy numbers, "Now I'll do a holy number for you." The God of today's Christianity is a weakling a little cheap, palsied God that you can pal around with. He's the "man upstairs." He's the fellow that can help you when you're in difficulty and not bother you too much when you're not. It is a major tragedy in the life of any man, to live in a church from childhood to old age with nothing more than some synthetic God compounded of sentimentality and logic but having no eyes to see, no ears to hear and no heart to love the holy God of Scripture! 

In the majority of our church meetings, there is scarcely a trace of reverence, little sense of the divine Presence, no solemnity, no awe, no holy fear. But so often there is a dull or a breezy song leader full of awkward jokes, in an effort to make everything hold together. The most pressing need just now is that we who call ourselves Christians should frankly acknowledge to each other and to God that we are gone far astray. We should confess that we are worldly, that our moral standards are low, and that we are spiritually cold and lethargic. We need to cease our multitude of unscriptural activities, and cease trying to sanctify carnal and worldly projects by promoting them "in the name of the Lord" and "for the glory of God." 

We need to return to the message, methods and objectives of the New Testament! We need boldly and indignantly to cleanse the church of all who sell cattle in the holy place; and overthrow the tables of the moneychangers! This must be done in our own lives first and then in the churches of whom we are a part. We need men and women who love the Savior, until adoration becomes the music of their soul until they don't have to be fooled with entertainment and amusement! 

[A. W. Tozer] 

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2 Timothy 4:3-4 ... For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

Romans 12:1 ... I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

Psalm 29:2 ... Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness. ❤

Sound Doctrine ....

Sound doctrine is useless if it is not accompanied by a holy life! It is my firm impression that we need a thorough revival of Scriptural holiness. I have had a deep conviction for many years, that practical holiness and consecration to God are not sufficiently attended to by modern Christians. Worldliness has eaten out the heart of vital piety in too many of us. The subject of personal godliness has fallen sadly into the background. The standard of Christian living has become painfully low in many quarters. The immense importance of "adorning the doctrine of God our Savior" (Titus 2:10) and making it lovely and beautiful by our daily habits and tempers has been far too much overlooked! 

The details and particular ingredients of which holiness is composed in daily life ought to be fully set forth and pressed on believers. True holiness does not consist merely of believing but of doing, and a practical exhibition of the active and passive graces. Our tongues, our tempers, our natural passions and inclinations, our conduct at home and abroad, our dress, our employment of time, our behavior in business, our demeanor in sickness and health, in riches and poverty all, all these are matters which are fully treated by inspired writers. They go into particulars. They specify what a holy man ought to do an be in his own family, by his own fireside, and at the workplace. 

True holiness is something of "the image of Christ" which can be seen and observed by others in our private life, and habits, and character, and doings! 

[J.C. Ryle] 

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1 Timothy 6:3-5  ...  If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness; He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings, Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.

1 Thessalonians 4:1 ... Furthermore then we beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, that as ye have received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God, so ye would abound more and more. ❤

Sin No More!!

Sin dwells in hell, and holiness in heaven. Remember that every temptation is from the devil, to make you like himself. Remember when you sin, that you are learning and imitating of the devil and are so far like him. And the end of all, is that you may feel his pains. If hellfire be not good, then sin is not good. 

[Richard Baxter]

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James 4:7 ... Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

John 8:11-12 ... She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go, and sin no more. Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

1 Peter 1:16 ... Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. ❤

The Essence of Christ's Mission

The essence of Christ's mission: To Save from Sin This verse is a glorious declaration of the very heart of the mission of the Lord Jesus Christ. Not salvation from suffering. Not salvation from political oppression. Not salvation from earthly poverty. But salvation from their SIN that which separates man from God, damns the soul, and defiles every part of life. He did not come to be a moral teacher, a political reformer, or a cultural icon. He came to save from sin. Sin is not a light matter. 

It is the rebellion of the creature against the Creator, the transgression of God's holy Word, and the corruption of human nature. Sin stains every thought, word and deed. Sin places every sinner under the righteous wrath of Almighty God. Therefore, the greatest need of every human soul, is not self-improvement or religious reformation but divine salvation. Jesus did not come merely to forgive sin, but to save from sin. That means He delivers from sin's guilt, by His atoning death, from sin's power, by His Spirit's indwelling presence, and soon from sin's presence altogether, in eternal glory. 

He came not only to justify, but to sanctify. Any gospel that offers pardon without purification, or Heaven without holiness is a false gospel. Jesus saves entirely from the penalty, power, and pollution of sin. 

[Charles H. Spurgeon] 

Matthew 1::21 ... And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus: for he shall save his people from their sins.

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Holiness of God

Holiness is not merely one attribute of God; it is the very beauty of all that He is. It is the totality of His moral perfection. God's holiness is the infinite distance between His purity, and all that is defiled. God is not just sinless, He is utterly "other" exalted above all creation in majestic sanctity. "God is light; in Him there is no darkness at all." (1 John 1:5) 

In Heaven's courts, the seraphim cry, not love, love, love nor power, power, power but holy, holy, holy. This threefold repetition is not poetic flourish; it is the language of awe. His holiness is absolute, incomparable, and consuming. It strikes terror in the hearts of the guilty and causes the redeemed to fall in humility and reverent wonder before Him. 

When Isaiah beheld the LORD high and lifted up, he did not marvel at God's wisdom or rejoice in His love he was undone by His holiness. "Woe to me!" he cried. For in the presence of perfect purity every sin is seen as vile, every excuse is silenced, and every boast is laid in the dust. The cross alone unveils the cost of approaching such a God. Divine love did not lower the standard divine holiness demanded that the sinless Son suffer in the place of the guilty. 

There, righteousness and mercy met. There, the Holy One made a way for the unholy. What glory, those sinners, once rebels, may now draw near! Clothed in the righteousness of Christ, we are called not only to behold God's holiness but to reflect it. "Without holiness no one will see the Lord." (Hebrews 12:14) 

Let us then worship with trembling, walk with purity, and hate every stain of sin. The One who called us is holy so let us be holy in all we do. 

[A.W. Pink] 

Isaiah 6:3 ... And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.

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"The Beauty of Holiness"

Holiness is the antithesis of sin; and the beauty of holiness is in direct contrast from the ugliness of sin. Sin is a deformity, a monstrosity. Sin is repulsive, repellent to the infinitely pure God: that is why He selected leprosy, the most loathsome and horrible of all diseases, to be its emblem. When the Prophet was Divinely inspired to depict the condition of degenerate Israel, it was in these words, "From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrefying sores." (Isaiah 1:6) 

O that sin was sickening and hateful to us: not merely its grosser forms but sin itself. At the opposite extreme from the hideousness of sin is "the beauty of holiness." Holiness is lovely in the sight of God: necessarily so. It is the reflection of His own nature, for He is "glorious in holiness" (Exodus 15:11) 

O that it may be increasingly attractive to, and earnestly sought after, by us! 

[J. C. Ryle]

Psalm 29:2 ... Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.

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Be Ready!!

There won't be time to get ready. 

 You have to be ready!

2 Peter 3:10-11 ... But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, ❤

All The Sins of The Saints!

All the afflictions, and all the temptations, and all the oppressions, and all the oppositions, and all the persecutions which befall a godly man, shall work for his good. Every cross, and every loss, and every disease which befall the holy man, shall work for his good. Every device of Satan, every snare of Satan, every deceit of Satan, every stratagem of Satan, and every enterprise of Satan against the holy man, shall work for his good. They shall all help to make him more humble, more holy, more heavenly, more spiritual, more faithful, more fruitful, more watchful.  Every prosperity and every adversity, every storm and every calm, every bitter and every sweet, every cross and every comfort, shall work for the holy man's good. 

When God gives a mercy that shall work for his good. When God takes away a mercy that shall work for his good. Yes, even all the falls and all the sins of the saints shall work for their good! Oh, the care, the fear, the watchfulness, the tenderness, the zeal which God raises in the souls of His saints by their very falls! Oh, the hatred, the indignation, and the detestation which God raises in the hearts of His children against sin by their very falling into sin! 

Oh, what love to Christ, what thankfulness for Christ, what admiration of Christ, what cleaving to Christ, what exalting of Christ, what drawings from Christ's grace are saints led to, by their very falls!  It is the glory of God's holiness, that He can turn spiritual diseases into holy remedies! He can turn soul poisons into heavenly cordials! He can prevent sin by sin and cure falling by falling! 

O Christian! What though friends and relations frown upon you, what though enemies are plotting and conspiring against you, what though needs, like armed men, are breaking in upon you, what though men rage, and devils roar against you, what though sickness is devastating your family, what though death stands every day at your elbow yet there is no reason for you to fear nor faint, because all these things shall work for your good! Yes, there is wonderful cause of joy and rejoicing in all the afflictions and tribulations which come upon you considering that they shall all work for your good. 

[Thomas Brooks] 

Romans 8:28 ...  And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.❤

Holiness is Happiness!!

The Satan-deceived world imagines that godliness is a thing of gloom rather than of gladness; that it is something which the saints endure rather than enjoy. On the contrary, holiness is happiness! It is neither the mirth of the fool, nor the giddy gaiety of the thoughtless but a "peace which passes all understanding" (Philippians 4:7) and a heart-satisfaction not to be found elsewhere! 

So far from piety robbing us of freedom, it conducts into true liberty delivering from the bondage of sin. Christ's yoke is easy, and His burden is light. (Matthew 11:30) God has established an inseparable connection between holiness and happiness; between our pleasing Him and our enjoyment of His providential smile. Worldly mirth is at best evanescent, but the delights of holiness are eternal. Only the One Who made us can truly content us! 

[A. W. Pink]

 

Proverbs 3:17 ... Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace.❤

Holiness.

Holiness has become a popular term today within the church movement, a resurgence among those who are either Pentecostal or Charismatic, even Evangelicals have raised the holiness flag as the measurement of being born again. Yet too many times the term “holiness” conveys another meaning when one examines what they are really promoting, legalism by works. 

Holiness is what we are when we place our trust in Christ, it’s an automatic response to a declaration of faith. But too many see holiness as an effort driven principle whereby the believer has to do something that merits our holiness before God. This is not correct. It’s not your outward apparel that makes you holy, nor is it your hair length that makes you holy. Holiness is not brought about simply because you don’t watch movies, or listen to music, that has nothing to do with your holiness. That’s simply a life surrendered to Christ. And it’s a process. 

Holiness is not brought about because you try to obey the commandments every day, and to be honest, it never works. Why? Because it relies on performance and not faith alone. It’s rooted in works. Faith, simple faith in the cross and what Christ did there is how we become holy, how we are justified, sanctified, regenerated. We rest in the completed work of Christ and what he did for us, not what we are doing for him. Once the believer grasps that message of simply walking by faith alone, then and only then will they understand true holiness. 

It’s in the cross. 

[Christopher Gregory]

Ephesians 4:24 ...  And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.

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Affliction Prepared For and Improved

As it is the duty of God's children to prepare for affliction before it comes, so is it also their duty to improve affliction when it does come. If we do not prepare for affliction, we shall be surprised by it; and, if we do not improve it, we are likely to increase it. 

He who would prepare for affliction, must beforehand: resign all to God, strengthen his graces, store up divine promises, and search out secret sins. And he who would improve affliction when it does come, must labor to see: sin more and more in its filthiness, so as to mortify it; his heart in its deceitfulness, so as to watch over it; the world in its emptiness, so as to be crucified to it; grace in its amiableness, so as to prize it; God in His holiness, so as to revere Him; and Heaven in its desirableness, so as to long after it. 

He who takes more care to avoid afflictions, than to be fitted for them; or is more solicitous to be delivered from them, than to be bettered by them; is likely to come soonest into them, and to live longest under them! God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in His holiness. 

[Thomas Sherman] 

Hebrews 12:10-11 ... For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.  Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.

 Psalm 119:71 ...  It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes.

 Psalm 119:75 ... I know, O Lord, that thy judgments are right, and that thou in faithfulness hast afflicted me. ❤

The Existence and Attributes of God

If every attribute of the Deity were a distinct member, holiness would be the soul to animate them. Without holiness His patience would be an indulgence to sin, His mercy would be a fondness, His wrath would be a madness, His power would be a tyranny, His wisdom would be an unworthy subtlety. Holiness gives balance to them all. 

The holiness of God is His glory and crown. Holiness is the blessedness of His nature. Holiness renders Him glorious in Himself, and glorious to His creatures. "Holy" is more fixed as an epithet to His name than any other. Holiness is His greatest title of honor. He is pure and unmixed light free from all blemish in His essence, nature and works. He cannot be deformed by any evil. 

The notion of God cannot be entertained without separating from Him whatever is impure and staining. Though He is majestic, eternal, almighty, wise, immutable, merciful, and whatsoever other perfections may dignify so sovereign a being yet if we conceive Him destitute of this excellent perfection, and imagine Him possessed with the least contagion of evil, we make Him to be an infinite monster, and sully all of His perfections. It is a contradiction for Him to be God and to have any darkness mixed with his light. To deny his purity, makes Him no God. He who says God is not holy, speaks much worse than if he said there is no God at all. 

Where do we read of the angels crying out Eternal or Faithful Lord God? But we do hear them singing Holy, Holy, Holy! God swears by His holiness (Psalm 89:35). His holiness is a pledge for the assurance of His promises. Power is His hand, omniscience is His eye, mercy is His heart, eternity is His duration, and holiness is His beauty! Holiness renders Him lovely and gives beauty to all His attributes. Every action of His is free from all hints of evil. Holiness is the crown of all His attributes, the life of all His decrees, and the brightness of all His actions. Nothing is decreed by Him and nothing is acted by Him, that is not consistent with the beauty of His holiness.

[Stephen Charnock]

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The LORD is Holy.

God is intrinsically holy, being holy in His nature without limits. 

God is primarily holy, being the perfect and the only true pattern of holiness.

God is efficiently holy, being the cause of all holiness in angels and saints. 

God is transcendently holy, being far above the capacity of holy angels and glorified saints to behold, much less fallen man.

[Thomas Watson]

Revelation 4:8 ... And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.

Isaiah 6:3 ... And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.

1 Samuel 2:2 ...  There is none holy as the Lord: for there is none beside thee: neither is there any rock like our God.❤

Spiritual Beauty

Paul enjoins that, "whatsoever things are lovely" shall be in the vision of life, into which we aim to fashion our character. We are to follow in the footsteps of our Master. Jesus Himself was, "Altogether lovely!" (Song of Songs 5:16)

 

Humanity was made to be beautiful. God's ideal for man was spotless loveliness; man was made at first, in God's image. But sin has left its foul trail everywhere! We see something of its debasement wherever we go. What ruins sin has wrought! All of Christ's work of grace, is towards the restoration of the beauty of the Lord in His people. Spiritual beauty is holiness. Nothing unclean is lovely. 

Character is Christ-like, only when it is beautiful. All the precepts of the Bible are towards the fashioning of beauty in every redeemed life. We are to put away all that is sinful, all marring, every blot and blemish, every unholy desire, feeling and affection, everything that would defile- and put on whatsoever is lovely and Christ-like. 

The one great work of Christ in Christian lives, is the fashioning of holiness in them. We are to grow away from our deformities, our faults, our infirmities, our poor dwarfed stunted life into spiritual beauty! 

[J.R. Miller] 

1 John 3:2-3 ... Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.  And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.

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The Burden.

A Christian is truly regenerated, but at the same time only partially sanctified. Sin is dethroned, but not destroyed! His predominant taste and disposition are holy, but godly principles may not yet have struck their roots very deep into his soul. His holy purposes are somewhat vacillating, and his inclinations to evil sometimes strong. We have the burden of our fleshly corruptions to carry, which without great labor and effort, will sadly retard us in our Christian lives. 

We are like a traveler who is on a smooth road, has fine weather, is intimately acquainted with the way, and has agreeable and helpful companions but who at the same time is very lame, or has a load to carry. His lameness or his load will be a great delay to him. His attention must be directed to these things. He must cure the one or lighten the other, or he will make slow progress. 

[John Angell James] 

Romans 7:18 ... For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.

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Kept.

The greatest miracle that God can do today is to take an unholy man out of an unholy world and make him holy, then put him back into that unholy world and keep him holy in it. 

[ Leonard Ravenhill]

1 Peter 1:5 ... Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 

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Christian Life.

God intends the Christian life to be a life of joy not drudgery. The idea that holiness is associated with a dour disposition is a caricature of the worst sort. In fact, just the opposite is true. Only those who walk in holiness experience true joy. 

[Jerry Bridges]

Romans 6:22 ...  But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.

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