Names Written in Heaven!!

This blessed title the Savior gives to his disciples, is above all present gifts in value. They returned with joy from a successful exercise of their ministry. He lifted their minds to a higher privilege than that. He himself rejoiced over their possession of this privilege. It was the father's gift. It was a special gift to his elect. The Lord knew those who were his. Their record was on high. 

But it belongs equally to the whole church of the firstborn. They are all written in heaven an imperishable record the Lamb's book of life. (Revelation 21:27) They are called by his Spirit on earth, according to this record. They are acknowledged, when their earthly pilgrimage is passed, as the children of God, thus chosen and registered. He will own them as his, when he makes up his jewels. (Malachi 3:17)

It is an inestimable privilege a glorious prospect! Am I one of this recorded company? If I believe in Jesus, and love him, and follow him, I am. And how great are the blessings of it!

[Unknown Author]

Luke 10:20 ... Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.

Hebrews 12:23 ... To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,

Psalm 87:6 ... The Lord shall count, when he writeth up the people, that this man was born there. Selah. ❤

The Great God Entertainment!

The only power God recognizes in His Church, is the power of His Spirit. Whereas the only power actually recognized today by the majority of evangelicals, is the power of man. God does His work by the operation of the Spirit; while Christian leaders attempt to do theirs, by the power of entertainment. 

Bright personality has taken the place of the Spirit's influence. But only what is done through the Holy Spirit, will abide eternally. For centuries the Church stood solidly against every form of worldly entertainment, recognizing it for what it was: a device for wasting time, a refuge from the disturbing voice of conscience, a scheme to divert attention from eternal realities. But of late she appears to have decided that if she cannot conquer the great god entertainment, then she may as well join forces with him and make what use she can of his trifles. 

Christianity is so entangled with the world, that millions never guess how radically they have missed the New Testament pattern. Compromise is everywhere! Evangelical Christianity is now tragically below the New Testament standard. Worldliness is an accepted part of our way of life. Our religious mood is social, instead of spiritual. We have lost the art of genuine worship. 

We are not producing holy people. Our models are successful businessmen, celebrated athletes and performers. We carry on our religious activities, after the methods of the modern advertiser. Our homes have been turned into theaters. Our desires are worldly, our literature is shallow, and our music borders on sacrilege. And scarcely anyone appears to care! 

[A.W. Tozer] 

Malachi 1:10 ... Who is there even among you that would shut the doors for nought? neither do ye kindle fire on mine altar for nought. I have no pleasure in you, saith the Lord of hosts, neither will I accept an offering at your hand.

✫❤•°*”˜˜”*°•❤✫...•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫...•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫

Purifying Fires of Christ's Furnace!

O my soul, what deep need is there for this refining and purifying of your Lord what inward corruption, what carnality, what worldliness, what self-seeking, what creature idolatry, what God dishonoring unbelief! All these imperatively demand the searching, burning, purifying fires of Christ's furnace! 

My soul, your Refiner and Purifier is Jesus! It is a consolatory thought that our refining is in the hands of Jesus - in the hands that were pierced for us on the cross! Jesus shapes all your trials! Jesus sends all your afflictions! Jesus mixes all your sorrows! Jesus shapes and balances all the clouds of your pilgrimage! Jesus prepares and heats the furnace that refines you as silver and purifies you as gold! 

Then, O my soul, tremble not at the knife that wounds you, at the flame that scorches you, at the cloud that shades you, at the billows that surge above you. Jesus is in it all, and you are as safe as though you had reached the blissful climate where the vine needs no pruning, and where the ore needs no purifying, where the sky is never darkened, and upon whose golden sands where no storms of adversity ever blow, or waves of sorrow ever break. Mark the Refiner's position. "He will SIT as a refiner and purifier of silver." (Malachi 3:3)

It would be fatal to his purpose, if the human refiner were to leave his post while the liquid mass was seething in the cauldron. But there he patiently sits, watching and tempering the flame, and removing the refuse and the dross as it floats upon the surface of the molten ore. Just so, Christ sits as a Refiner and with an eye that never slumbers, and with a patience that never wearies, and with a love that never chills, and with a faithfulness that never falters, He watches and controls the process that purifies our hearts, burnishes our graces, sanctifies our nature, and impresses more vividly His own image of loveliness upon our soul. If He places you in the fire, He will bring you through the fire, "that the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perishes, though it is tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ." (1 Peter 1:7)

But sweet and soothing are the truth that the believer is not alone in the fire! The Refiner is with us, as with the three Hebrew children passing through the king's burning furnace. The Lord will have us be polished stones. As some believers are more rusty and some more alloyed than others they need a rougher file, and a hotter furnace! 

This may account for the great severity of trial through which some of the Lord's precious jewels are called to pass. Not less dear to His heart, are they for this refining. Look up, my soul, to your Refiner! The knife is in a father's hand! The flame is under a Savior's control! Be still, be humble, be submissive. 

[Octavius Windslow] 

 ✞  ✞   ✞ 

Micah 6:9 ... The Lord's voice crieth unto the city, and the man of wisdom shall see thy name: hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it.

Zechariah 13:9 ... And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God.

Job 23:10 ... But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold. ❤

Distinction Between The Righteous and The Wicked!

The prophet ministered in an age of spiritual declension one much like our own, when men scoffed at God and divine justice. They said, "Where is the God of justice?" (Malachi 2:17) In their blindness, they mistook God's patience, for indifference. Yet even then, God had a remnant a few who trembled at His Word, who feared His name, and who lived for His glory. Of these it is written, "Then those who feared the Lord spoke often one to another, and the Lord harkened and heard." Here we see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked a difference not outward, but inward; not temporal, but eternal. 

First, they feared the Lord. This holy fear is not terror, but "reverent awe" a gift of the Spirit that bends the heart in worship and obedience. The fear of God set them apart as those who walk by faith, not by sight. Second, they spoke often one to another. Their fellowship was not frivolous but sacred rooted in God and sustained by love for Him. Like coals gathered together, their conversation burned brighter in the cold night of unbelief. In these humble assemblies, God Himself was present: "Where two or three are gathered in My name, there am I in the midst of them." (Matthew 18:20) Third, they thought upon His name. While others filled their minds with personal gain and pleasure these saints delighted in meditating upon God and counting Him as the sweetest subject of their contemplations. And what was the Lord's response? The Scripture says, "The Lord harkened and heard." 

Every whisper of faith, every sigh of longing, every quiet word of encouragement was written down in His book of remembrance. The righteous were not forgotten they were recorded, loved, and treasured! Then comes the glorious promise: "They shall be Mine, in the day when I make up My treasured possession!" What comfort is here! The Lord Himself claims His chosen and redeemed people as His precious jewels. Though now they may be overlooked, afflicted, or despised, yet in that final great day of judgment, they will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. 

For that day will soon arrive, when the Lord will make a just, final, complete, and eternal distinction between the righteous and the wicked. No longer will the proud prosper, while the humble suffer; no longer will the mocker question God's justice. The books will be opened, and every secret thing will be brought to light. The faithful shall then be owned by Jesus Himself as His "treasured possession". The wicked will then experience the full weight of His holy judgment. 

[Charles H. Spurgeon] 

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Malachi 3:16-18 ... Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon his name. And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him. Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not.

Matthew 25:46 ... And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal. ❤

"The Attributes of God" 1

1. The Solitariness of God “Before the mountains were born or You brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting You are God.” Psalm 90:2 Before there was time, before there was light, before there was an angel in Heaven or a speck of dust in the cosmos God was. He dwelt in solitary majesty, needing nothing, lacking nothing, desiring nothing outside Himself. He was eternally perfect in all His glorious attributes. There was no heaven for Him to inhabit, no earth to govern, no creatures to praise Him and yet He was altogether blessed. 

2. The Decrees of God "The counsel of the LORD stands forever, the plans of His heart to all generations." Psalm 33:11 Before the foundation of the world, in the infinite recesses of eternity, God established His eternal decrees. These decrees are the manifestation of His sovereign will, the blueprint by which all creation unfolds. They are not formed in response to events, for nothing takes the Omniscient by surprise. Instead, they are the cause of all that transpires, the predetermined plan that governs the universe. 

3. The Knowledge of God “Great is our Lord and mighty in power; His understanding has no limit.”  Psalm 147:5 The knowledge of God is infinite, perfect, and eternal. There is no learning with God, for He has always known all things. He never discovers, never forgets, never improves in understanding. His knowledge is not acquired it is essential to His very nature. He knows Himself fully and knows all things outside Himself perfectly, from eternity past to eternity future. 

4. The Foreknowledge of God "For those God foreknew He also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of His Son." Romans 8:29 To "foreknow," in the language of Scripture, is not merely to foresee but to fore love. God's foreknowledge is not detached observation of future events it is His eternal; sovereign delight set upon His chosen people before the foundation of the world. He knows all because He has ordained all. 

5. The Supremacy of God “I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me.” Isaiah 46:9 God is unrivaled in majesty, authority, and glory. His supremacy means He rules overall, answers to none, and is accountable only to Himself. Every creature from angels to atoms was created by His will and exists for His glory. The heart that sees this truth is laid low. He is not a deity to be invited into our plans, but the One who ordains all things from eternity. Worship Him, for none can stay His hand or say to Him, "What have You done?" 

6. The Sovereignty of God “Our God is in heaven; He does whatever pleases Him.” Psalm 115:3 God's sovereignty means He reigns with absolute control over all that is and ever will be. He governs the flight of every bird, and the rise of every king. There is no detail too small, no power too great. The believer rests securely in this our lives are not ruled by luck or fate, but by the perfect wisdom and power of our God. Let us yield to His rule with reverence, trust, and joyful submission. 

7. The Immutability of God “I the LORD do not change.” Malachi 3:6 God is unchanging in His essence, purposes, and promises. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. In a world of constant shifting, He alone is the Rock. His love will not fade, His Word will not fail, His will cannot be overturned. Trust Him when everything around you crumbles, for His character is steadfast and His covenant is sure. 

8. The Holiness of God “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty.” Isaiah 6:3 God's holiness is the crown of all His attributes He is morally perfect, separate from all sin, and infinitely pure. His justice flows from His holiness; His grace magnifies it. To approach Him lightly, is spiritual suicide. And yet, through Christ's atonement, the Holy One calls sinners to Himself. Stand in awe, tremble in worship, and pursue holiness, for without it, no one will see the Lord. 

9. The Power of God “Ah, Sovereign LORD, you have made the heavens and the earth… Nothing is too hard for You.” Jeremiah 32:17 God's power is infinite, irresistible, and never exhausted. He speaks, and it is done. He raises the dead, subdues the proud, and upholds the universe by His Word. This power works for us who believe guarding, strengthening, and transforming us. When you are weak, remember: His strength is made perfect in your weakness. Nothing is impossible with God. 

10. The Faithfulness of God “Your faithfulness continues through all generations.” Psalm 119:90 God never forgets, never fails, never falters. What He promises, He performs. Men change; God does not. He is faithful in affliction, faithful in blessing, faithful in correction, faithful in His threatening's. His covenant cannot be broken, and His Word stands forever. Trust Him in the storm He is the anchor of your soul. 

11. The Goodness of God “Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good.” Psalm 107:1 God's goodness is His kindness, generosity, and benevolence in action. Every sunrise, every meal, every comfort, is a token of His goodness. But the supreme display is in the gift of His Son. Even in trials, He works for our good. Let us not doubt His heart, even when we cannot trace His hand. 

12. The Patience of God “The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.” Psalm 103:8 How long God has endured our rebellion! His patience holds back the wrath we deserve, giving space for repentance. Yet it is not weakness it is holy restraint. Those who reject His longsuffering, invite judgment; those who embrace His mercy, bow in grateful wonder. Praise Him for His forbearance and plead with others not to presume upon it. 

 [A.W. Pink]

✫❤•°*”˜˜”*°•❤✫...•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫...•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫

Success is ...

 Success is when the Lord Jesus Christ writes your name in His Book of Life.

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Luke 10:20 ...  Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.

Malachi 3:16 ... Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon his name.

Revelation 21:7 ... And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life.❤

O The Wonders Couched in Electing Love!

Did the shepherd prize his flock? God calls His people, "His flock, His beautiful flock." Does the miser prize his wealth? God says of His people, "You shall be a special treasure unto Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine." Does the prince prize his jewels? God says of His people, "They shall be Mine, in that day when I make up My jewels!" (Malachi 3:17) Does the bridegroom prize his beloved and dearly purchased bride? It is written, "As the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you!" (Isaiah 62:5) Does the reigning monarch prize his crown? God has said, "You shall be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God."  (Isaiah 62:3)

What wondrous love, such expressions as these represent! How precious must the Lord's people be to Him! Truly they are His special treasure! God chose them to be special unto Himself. He chose them out from among others. He chose them in preference to others. He chose them out from others, on purpose that they may be a special people unto Himself. And in so doing, He acted FREELY. It was not on account of anything He saw in them, or on account of anything He expected from them; but in the exercise of His most free and holy sovereignty, He chose them to participate in the glory of His Son! In choosing them, He acted also DELIBERATELY. It was no hasty choice. His thoughts had been eternally filled with them. His heart had been eternally set upon them. 

Therefore, He chose them in Christ before the foundation of the world! In choosing them, He acted WISELY, as He really desired to have them. For each one of them is ready to confess that if God had not chosen them, that they would never have chosen Him! The nature regulates the choice; and as our nature is carnal and impure, we would never have chosen God who is spiritual and holy. His choice was just an early expression of His LOVE. The love which chose them, would do anything for them, and give anything to them! 

Therefore, God spared not His own Son but delivered Him up for them all; and in so doing, gave them the assurance that He will also freely give them all things in Christ. O the wonders couched in electing love! This act of choosing such creatures as we are, to be a special people unto Himself, displays such grace, such condescension, such infinite wisdom and love! 

[James Smith] 

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Deuteronomy 7:6 ... For thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God: the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth.

John 17:23 ... For thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God: the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth. ❤

Presence of a Loving God!

God loves His people with a first love! 1 John 4:19, "We love Him because He first loved us."

By nature, we were without God, and afar off from God; we were strangers to God, and enemies to God, yes, haters of God! Therefore, if God had not loved us first, we would have been everlastingly undone! God loves His people with a free love! Hosea 14:4, "I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely." 

I know they are backslidden, but I will heal their backslidings. I know there is nothing at all in them, which is excellent or eminent, which is honorable or acceptable, which is laudable or lovely yet "I will love them freely" of My own, free, rich, absolute and sovereign grace! God loves His people with an everlasting love! Jeremiah 31:3, "I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore, with loving-kindness have I drawn you." 

 

That is, "I love you with the love of perpetuity, or with the love of eternity. My love and My affections to you shall continue forever!" God loves His people with an unchangeable love! Malachi 3:6, "I am the Lord, I do not change; therefore, you sons of Jacob are not consumed." Men change, and counsels change, and occurrences change, and friends change, and relations change, and kingdoms change; but God never changes! "He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change His mind; for He is not a man, that He should change His mind," 1 Samuel 15:29. 

God is immutable in His nature, in His essence, in His counsels, in His attributes, in His decrees, in His promises, etc. He is Omnina immutabilis, "Altogether immutable!" God loves His people with a special love, with a peculiar love, with a distinguishing love, with a superlative love! God loves His people with the greatest love, with a matchless love! John 3:16, "God so loved." This signifies the greatness of God's love, the vehemence of His love, and the admirableness of His love. What an unspeakable comfort must this be to God's people to have the presence of a loving God, to have the presence of such a loving God with them in all their troubles and deep distresses! 

If the presence of a loving friend, a loving relation in our troubles and distresses, is such a mercy oh, what then is the presence of a loving God!

[Thomas Brooks]

Isaiah 43:4... 4 Since thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable, and I have loved thee: therefore will I give men for thee, and people for thy life.

✫❤•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫...•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫...•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫

The Sun of Righteousness

The golden tressed sun is the most glorious object in creation, and in Jesus, the fullness of glory dwells. The sun is at the same time the most influential of existences, acting upon the whole world. Just so our Lord is, in the deepest sense both eye and soul of this great world. He with benevolent ray sheds beauty, life, and joy from above. The sun is, moreover, the most abiding of creatures; and therein it is also a type of Him who remains from generation to generation, and is the same yesterday, today, and forever. 

The 'king of day' is so vast and so bright that the human eye cannot bear to gaze upon him. We delight in his beams, but we would be blinded should we continue to peer into his face. Even yet more brilliant is our Lord by nature for as God, He is a consuming fire. But He deigns to smile upon us with milder beams, as our brother and Redeemer. 

Jesus, like the sun, is the center and soul of all things, the fullness of all good, the lamp that lights us, the fire that warms us, the magnet that guides and controls us. Jesus is the source and fountain of all life, beauty, fruitfulness, and strength. Jesus is the fosterer of tender herbs of penitence, the quickener of the vital sap of grace, the ripener of fruits of holiness, and the life of everything that grows within the garden of the Lord. Whereas to adore the sun would be idolatry it is treason not to ardently worship the divine Sun of righteousness. 

As the sun is the center, so is Christ to His people. As the sun is the great source of power, so is Christ to His people. As the sun is the fountain from which light, life, and heat perpetually flow, so is the Savior to His people. As the sun is the fructifier by which fruits multiply and ripen, so is Christ to His people. Enthrone Jesus as the central sun of your hearts! Bask in his beams and let Him rule your entire being enlightening your understanding; warming your hearts; filling all your powers, passions, and faculties with the fullness of His presence. 

Come and lay your souls beneath His divine influence. Come, plunge into this sea of sweetness, dive deep into this abyss of happiness! 

[Charles H. Spurgeon] 

Malachi 4:2 ... But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.

✫❤•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫...•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫...•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫

The Presence of a Loving God!

By nature, we were without God, and afar off from God; we were strangers to God, and enemies to God, yes, haters of God! Therefore, if God had not loved us first, we would have been everlastingly undone! God loves His people with a free love! Hosea 14:4. "I will heal their backsliding; I will love them freely." I know they are backslidden, but I will heal their backslidings. 

I know there is nothing at all in them, which is excellent or eminent, which is honorable or acceptable, which is laudable or lovely yet "I will love them freely" of My own, free, rich, absolute and sovereign grace! God loves His people with an everlasting love! Jeremiah 31:3, "I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore, with loving-kindness have I drawn you." That is, "I love you with the love of perpetuity, or with the love of eternity. My love and My affections to you shall continue forever!" 

God loves His people with an unchangeable love! Malachi 3:6, "I am the Lord, I do not change; therefore, you sons of Jacob are not consumed." 

Men change, and counsels change, and occurrences change, and friends change, and relations change, and kingdoms change; but God never changes! "He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change His mind; for He is not a man, that He should change His mind," 1 Samuel 15:29. 

God is immutable in His nature, in His essence, in His counsels, in His attributes, in His decrees, in His promises, etc. He is Omnina Immutabilis, "Altogether immutable!" God loves His people with a special love, with a peculiar love, with a distinguishing love, with a superlative love! God loves His people with the greatest love, with a matchless love! John 3:16, "God so loved." This signifies the greatness of God's love, the vehemence of His love, and the admirableness of His love. 

What an unspeakable comfort must this be to God's people to have the presence of a loving God, to have the presence of such a loving God with them in all their troubles and deep distresses! If the presence of a loving friend, a loving relation in our troubles and distresses, is such a mercy oh, what then is the presence of a loving God! 

[Thomas Brooks]

Isaiah 43:4 ...  Since thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable, and I have loved thee: therefore will I give men for thee, and people for thy life.

1 John 4:19 ...  We love him, because he first loved us. ❤

The Distinction Between the Righteous and the Wicked!

Malachi speaks not only to his contemporaries but to all generations, proclaiming the day when the Lord will make a clear distinction between the righteous and the wicked. This distinction is not according to mere human judgment, but of divine discernment. It is a separation wrought by the very hand of God, who sees into the depths of the human heart, and weighs our actions, our words, our thoughts, and our desires with perfect justice. 

The righteous, those who serve the Lord with steadfast devotion, shall stand as witnesses to His glory. Their lives are marked by sincere faith in Jesus, obedience to His commandments, humility before His majesty, and love for their fellow man. Though they may endure trials and tribulations in this earthly pilgrimage, their reward is sure. For the Lord, in His infinite mercy, will preserve them and exalt them in due time. 

But woe to the wicked those who reject the ways of the Lord and walk in the paths of disobedience! Their hearts are filled with pride, and their deeds with iniquity. They scoff at the precepts of God and mock the warnings of His prophets. Yet their laughter shall turn to lamentation, for the day of reckoning draws near. In that day, they shall be cast down into the abyss of darkness, where there is weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth. "Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life." (Matthew 25:46) 

Beloved, let us ponder these words of Malachi and take heed to our ways. Let us strive to walk in righteousness, knowing that our God is a God of justice, who will reward every man according to his deeds. May we be found faithful on that great and terrible day, when the righteous and the wicked shall be separated; and may we hear the blessed words, "Well done, good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your Lord!" (Matthew 25:21)

[Anonymous] 

Malachi 3:18 ... Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not.

✫❤•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫...•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫...•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫

God's Chastening Rod!

They know from whence all their trials spring even from the hand of God Himself! They see their afflictions to be the fruit of their heavenly Father's love, sent for the production of the most gracious ends. They feel within themselves the humbling, sanctifying efficacy of their afflictions. They perceive that their trials are instrumental to the carrying on of God's work within them, and to the enhancing of that weight of glory which shall be granted to them at the last day. They know that their afflictions, of whatever kind they are, "do not spring out of the ground!" (Job 5:6) 

They understand that their trials are all appointed by God in number, weight, measure, and duration. If it is disease of body, it is God who inflicts the wound. If the trial comes from any other quarter, it still is God's chastening rod that strikes us, with a view to our spiritual good, "that we may be made partakers of His holiness. 

They realize that "no discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." (Hebrews 12:11) 

Our trials, of whatever kind, are to humble us, to purge away our dross, to make us cleave more closely to our Savior, and to fit us for our eternal rest! To view them in this light will greatly compose our minds. Instead of murmuring against the Lord we shall be thankful to Him. Instead of increasing our misery our trials shall be a source of joy. "Hear the rod and the One who appointed it!" (Micah 6:9) 

There is no rod which has not a voice to us. By putting us into His furnace, we shall be purged from our dross, and come out of it as vessels better fitted for His service! (Malachi 3:2-3) Well therefore may the consideration of the end for which afflictions are sent, and of the benefit to be derived from them; reconcile us to the difficulty of them and dispose us patiently to wait for the removal of them. Could Job have foreseen the outcome of his troubles, they would have been deprived of more than half their weight! 

All of our afflictions, of whatever kind they are, will endure but a little time! The Apostle speaks of all, even the heaviest afflictions, as "light and momentary!" "What is your life? You are but a mist that appears for a little while, and then vanishes away!" (James 4:14) And when once this frail life is ended, there is an everlasting termination of all our sorrows! Every genuine believer enters immediately into "God's presence, where there is fullness of joy for evermore!" Into that blissful world, nothing that is afflictive can ever enter to disturb their peace! "God will wipe every tear from our eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever!" (Revelation 21:4)  

How little will the transient clouds that once occasioned a momentary gloom be remembered, when our dwelling is forever fixed in the full splendor of the Sun of Righteousness. Surely, we need not be much cast down at trials, however painful to flesh and blood when we consider that their duration is but as the twinkling of an eye, and that they will so soon terminate in inconceivable and everlasting felicity! 

[Charles Simeon] 

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 1 Peter 1:6 ... Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:

 2 Corinthians 4:17 ... For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; ❤

His Special People!!

God highly prizes His people. Yes, it is impossible to say how highly He prizes them. Those are wondrous words, "For the Lord has chosen Jacob for Himself, Israel for His own special treasure!" (Psalm 135:4) Did the shepherd prize his flock? God calls His people, "His flock, His beautiful flock." Does the miser prize his wealth? God says of His people, "You shall be a special treasure unto Me above all people; for all the earth is Mine." Does the prince prize his jewels? 

God says of His people, "They shall be Mine, in that day when I make up My jewels!" (Malachi 3:17)   Does the bridegroom prize his beloved and dearly purchased bride? It is written, "As the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you!" (Isaiah 62:5) Does the reigning monarch prize his crown? God has said, "You shall be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God." (Isaiah 62:3) 

What wondrous love, such expressions as these represent! How precious must the Lord's people be to Him! Truly they are His special treasure! God chose them to be special unto Himself. He chose them out from among others. He chose them in preference to others. He chose them out from others, on purpose that they may be a special people unto Himself. And in so doing, He acted FREELY. It was not on account of anything He saw in them, or on account of anything He expected from them; but in the exercise of His most free and holy sovereignty, He chose them to participate in the glory of His Son! 

In choosing them, He acted also DELIBERATELY. It was no hasty choice. His thoughts had been eternally filled with them. His heart had been eternally set upon them. Therefore, He chose them in Christ before the foundation of the world! In choosing them, He acted WISELY, as He really desired to have them. For each one of them is ready to confess that if God had not chosen them, that they would never have chosen Him! The nature regulates the choice; and as our nature is carnal and impure, we would never have chosen God who is spiritual and holy. His choice was just an early expression of His LOVE. The love which chose them, would do anything for them, and give anything to them! 

Therefore, God spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for them all; and in so doing, gave them the assurance that He will also freely give them all things in Christ. O the wonders couched in electing love! This act of choosing such creatures as we are, to be a special people unto Himself, displays such grace, such condescension, such infinite wisdom and love! God's election says, "The Lord loves you!" Loves us! Yes, and with a love that is eternal, immutable, sovereign, infinite, and free! 

All the love of God is lavished upon us as His special people in Christ. Oh, those wondrous words of Jesus, "You have loved them, even as You have loved Me!" (John 17:23) But few among the worldly wise, but few of nobler race, Obtain the favor of Your eyes, Almighty King of grace! 

[James Smith] 

Deuteronomy 7:6 ... For thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God: the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth.

✫❤•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫...•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫...•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫

Jesus Christ is Completely Sufficient!!

One of the great tenets of Scripture, is the claim that Jesus Christ is completely sufficient for all matters of life and godliness! 2 Peter 1:3-4

He is sufficient for:

  Creation (Colossians 1:16-17)

  Salvation (Hebrews 10:10-12)

  Sanctification (Ephesians 5:26-27)

  and Glorification (Romans 8:30).

So pure is He, that there is no blemish, stain, spot of sin, defilement, deception, corruption, error, or imperfection in Him! (1 Peter 1:18-20)

So complete is He, that:

  there is no other God besides Him (Isaiah 45:5)

  He is the only begotten Son (John 1:14, John 1:18)

  all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are in Him (Colossians 2:3)

  the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily in Him (Colossians 2:9)

  He is heir of all things (Hebrews 1:2)

  He created all things, and all things were made by Him,

      through Him, and for Him (Colossians 1:16)

  He upholds all things by the word of His power (Colossians 1:17, Hebrews 1:3)

  He is the firstborn of all creation (Colossians 1:15)

  He is the exact representation of God (Hebrews 1:3).

He has no beginning and no end (Revelation 1:17-18)

He is the spotless Lamb of God (John 1:29)

He is our peace (Ephesians 2:14)

He is our hope (1 Timothy 1:1)

He is our life (Colossians 3:4)

He is the living and true Way (John 14:6)

He is the Root and Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star (Revelation 22:16)

He is Faithful and True (Revelation 19:11)

He is the Author and Finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:1-2)

He is Captain of our Salvation (Hebrews 2:10) 

He is the Elect One (Isaiah 42:1)

He is the Apostle and High-Priest of our confession (Hebrews 3:1)

He is the Righteous Servant (Isaiah 53:11)

He is the Lord Almighty (Malachi 3:17)

He is the Redeemer (Isaiah 41:14)

He is the Holy One of Israel (Isaiah 54:5)

He is the God of the whole earth (Isaiah 54:5)

He is the Man of Sorrows (Isaiah 53:3)

He is the Light of the world (John 9:5)

He is the Son of Man (Matthew 20:28)

He is the true Vine (John 15:5)

He is the Bread of Life (John 6:48)

He is the Door to Heaven (John 10:7)

He is the Sovereign Lord (Philippians 2:10-13)

He is Prophet, Priest and King (Hebrews 1:1-3)

He is our Sabbath rest (Hebrews 4:9)

He is our Righteousness (Jeremiah 23:6)

He is the Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God,

    the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6)

He is the Chief Shepherd (1 Peter 5:4)

He is the Lion of Judah (Revelation 5:5)

He is the Rock of Salvation (Psalm 62:2)

He is the Ancient of Days (Daniel 7:13)

He is the Counselor and Comforter (John 14:26)

He is the Messiah (John 4:25-26) and

He is the great I AM! (John 8:58) 

[Author Unknown]

Colossians 2:9-10 ... For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.  And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power: ❤

Can Jesus Delight in Such Worms?

Jesus presents Himself unto us as the bridegroom of our souls. He says, "I will betroth you to Me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion. I will betroth you in faithfulness, and you will acknowledge the Lord!" (Hosea 2:19-20) He here promises to bring us into the nearest possible union. He becomes one with us. 

He says, "I will be your portion, and you shall be My possession!" (Malachi 3:16-17) He manifests His beauties to attract us; He sends His Spirit to prepare us; He gives His sweet gospel to allure us; He puts forth His power and draws us and then makes Himself over to us in an everlasting covenant. He calls us by every sweet appellation, such as "My beloved, My dove, My sister, My darling, My flawless one, My delight, My spouse!" (Song of Solomon 5:2) 

He gives us His person, His unsearchable riches, and a share in His eternal glories and honors! He loves us most tenderly, constantly, and prudently. He assures us that He will never leave us, that He will come and commune with us, and that He will withhold no good thing from us! He says, "Though the mountains be shaken, and the hills be removed yet My unfailing love for you will not be shaken, nor My covenant of peace be removed, says the Lord, who has compassion on you!" (Isaiah 54:10)

 "No weapon formed against you shall prosper. (Isaiah 54:17) For your Maker is your Husband, the Lord Almighty is His name!" (Isaiah 54:5) "As a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you! I will take delight in My people!" (Isaiah 62:5)

What love is here! Can Jesus delight in such worms? Can He rejoice over such unworthy creatures? Can He enter into a marriage contract with such depraved beings? Yes! He loved His Church and gave Himself for it! He has redeemed it unto Himself by His blood, and will everlastingly rejoice over it, to bless it and honor it! 

[James Smith]

✫❤•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫...•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫...•°*”˜˜”*°•.❤✫

Immutability

The Unchangeableness of God. What an anchor for a storm tossed sea! Change is our portion here! Scenes are altering. Joys are fading. Friends! some of them are removed at a distance; others have gone to their 'long home'. Who, amid these checkered experiences, does not sigh for something permanent, stable, enduring? The vessel has again and again slipped its earthly moorings. 

We long for some secure and sheltered harbor. "I am the Lord, and I do not change!" Heart and flesh may faint; yes, do faint and fail. But there is an unfainting, unfailing, unvarying God. All the changes in the world around cannot affect Him. Our own fitfulness cannot alter Him. When we are depressed, downcast, fluctuating; our treacherous hearts turning aside "like a broken bow," He does not change. "God who cannot lie," is the superscription on His eternal throne; and inscribed on all His dealings. "I am the Lord, and I do not change!" This forms a blessed guarantee that nothing can befall me but what is for my good. I cannot doubt His faithfulness. 

I dare not arraign the rectitude of His dispensations. It is 'covenant love' which is now darkening my earthly horizon. This hour He is the same as when He "spared not His own Son!" Oh, instead of wondering at my trials, let me rather wonder that He has borne with me so long! It is because of the Lord's unchanging mercies that I am not consumed. Had He been man, changeful, vacillating, as myself, long before now would He have spurned me away, and consigned me to the doom of the cumberer.

[John MacDuff]

 

Malachi 3:6 ... For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed. ❤

A Genuine Christian

Just a reminder unless we’ve forgotten, Christian values and morals do not change with society; instead, Christian principles are rooted in the Bible, whose concepts reflect God’s perfect will. They don’t, nor cannot evolve with a progressive culture.

While society does in fact change, our beliefs do not. To expect otherwise is to misunderstand what our faith represents, and why God’s word remains timeless. We don’t bend or change our views regardless of public opinion.

That’s being a genuine Christian.

[Christopher Gregory]

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Hebrews 13:8 ... Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.

1 Corinthians 2:5 ... That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.

Ephesians 6:14 ... Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;

Malachi 3:6 ...  For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.❤

The Great Day of His Wrath!!

"The great day of His wrath has come and who shall be able to stand!" (Revelation 6:17) 

Who may abide the day of His coming? Who shall stand when He appears? Oh, beloved! this is not the day of man's wrath! Men have had their day of reigning and raging, and despising God but that day is over and gone, and now God's day has come! This is the day of His wrath and woe to wicked, and woe to the whore of Babylon, for the hour of her judgment has come! This will be a day of great ASTONISHMENT to the wicked and ungodly, "The Lord shall smite them with madness and blindness, and astonishment of heart!" (Deuteronomy 28:28) 

 This will be a day of great TERROR to those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus! Therefore, says the apostle, "Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men." (2 Corinthians 5:11)  This day of God's wrath will be a day of great DISTRESS to the wicked, "I in turn will laugh at your disaster! I will mock when calamity overtakes you when calamity overtakes you like a storm, when disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind, when distress and trouble overwhelm you!" (Proverbs 1:26-27)  This day of God's wrath will be a day of great CONTEMPT to the ungodly, "The Lord Almighty has purposed it, to stain the pride of all glory, and to bring into contempt all the honorable of the earth!" (Isaiah 23:9)  This day of God's wrath will be a day of great DESTRUCTION, "The wicked are reserved to the day of destruction; they shall be brought forth to the day of wrath!" (Job 21:30) 

 Oh, beloved! God's GREAT wrath will be very terrible to the wicked! 

1. God's great wrath will tear them in pieces like a lion! "I will be like a lion to Israel, like a strong young lion to Judah. I will tear them to pieces! I will carry them off, and no one will be left to rescue them!" (Hosea 5:14.) "Consider this, all you who forget God, or I will tear you to pieces, with none to rescue you!" (Psalm 50:22)  

2. God's great wrath will consume them like fire! "The Lord Almighty says, The day of judgment is coming, burning like a furnace. On that day the arrogant and the wicked will be burned up like straw. They will be consumed, roots, branches, and all." (Malachi 4:1)  

3. God's great wrath will swallow up all His enemies! "You will capture all your enemies. Your strong right hand will seize all who hate You. You will throw them in a fiery furnace when You appear. In His wrath the Lord will swallow them up, and His fire will consume them!" (Psalm 21:8-9)

 Oh! the wrath of the Almighty is called in the Scripture: "The fierceness of His great wrath!" (2 Kings 23:26)   "The fierceness of His anger, wrath, and indignation!" (Psalm 78:49)   "The fury of His wrath!" (Revelation 16:19)

 [Willian Dyer]

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God's Love!!

God loves His people with a first love! (1 John 4:19,) "We love Him because He first loved us." By nature we were without God, and afar off from God; we were strangers to God, and enemies to God, yes, haters of God! Therefore if God had not loved us first we would have been everlastingly undone! God loves His people with a free love! (Hosea 14:4,) "I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely."

I know they are backslidden but I will heal their backslidings. I know there is nothing at all in them, which is excellent or eminent, which is honorable or acceptable, which is laudable or lovely yet "I will love them freely" of My own, free, rich, absolute and sovereign grace! God loves His people with an everlasting love! (Jeremiah 31:3,) "I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore, with loving-kindness have I drawn you."

That is, "I love you with the love of perpetuity, or with the love of eternity. My love and My affections to you shall continue forever!"  God loves His people with an unchangeable love! (Malachi 3:6,) "I am the Lord, I do not change; therefore you sons of Jacob are not consumed."

Men change, and counsels change, and occurrences change, and friends change, and relations change, and kingdoms change; but God never changes! "He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change His mind; for He is not a man, that He should change His mind," (1 Samuel 15:29.)

God is immutable in His nature, in His essence, in His counsels, in His attributes, in His decrees, in His promises, etc. He is Omnina immutabilis, "Altogether immutable!"

God loves His people with a special love, with a peculiar love, with a distinguishing love, with a superlative love!

God loves His people with the greatest love, with a matchless love! (John 3:16,) "God so loved." This signifies the greatness of God's love, the vehemence of His love, and the admirableness of His love.

What an unspeakable comfort must this be to God's people to have the presence of a loving God, to have the presence of such a loving God with them in all their troubles and deep distresses! If the presence of a loving friend, a loving relation in our troubles and distresses, is such a mercy, oh, what then is the presence of a loving God!

[Thomas Brooks]

Isaiah 43:4 … Since thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable, and I have loved thee: therefore will I give men for thee, and people for thy life.❤