OS/2 Shareware BBS: Educate/Educate.zip/aidos2d.zip/bibleaid.inf

OS/2 Help File | 1997-09-02 | 372KB | 10,368 lines

ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 1. Introduction ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

              +Bible Aid+ for OS/2
                  KJV Demo
            Copyright 1996, S. O. Brennan
               All Rights Reserved


This is a Demo of the King James Version of +Bible Aid+, a rich collection of
special Bible verses organzied by subject for easy access and reference. You
will no longer be forced to fumble through your Bible to find "just the right
verse." With the click of a button you will easily and quickly find the
strength and guidance you need from scripture.

Also contains:
--Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary
  well over 2,500 Bible and Bible-related proper names
  and their meanings which you can search.

--Morning & Evening: Daily Readings by Charles Spurgeon
 Bible verses and thought provoking commentary for every
 morning and evening 365 days a year.

This Demo contains abbreviated versions of the above for trial use purposes
only. In order to enjoy the benefits of the full version, it must be ordered.
Click here for details --> ordering information.

Features Include:

 1. Words of Jesus are indicated with a red font.
 2. Comprehensive search capabilities by word or phrase.
 3. Ability to Print out text
 4. Table of Contents
 5. Ability to take your own notes by using Copy to
  your word processor of choice.
 6. Bookmarking features
 7. Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary
 8. Detailed Manual
 9. Complete and unlimited support
10. Programmers who care about you!!

This program is available for Windows and OS/2.

If you have any questions, comments, suggestions or bug reports contact us at:

      Compuserve:  71726,2342
      Internet:  [e-mail]


S. O. Brennan
P.O. Box 4422
Tequesta, Florida 33469
USA

Software updates and other shareware programs are available at:
Christians in Recovery  http://www.christians-in-recovery.com
             and
Software for Recovering People  http://www.shadow.net/~obie

      May God bless you as you read His Word!


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 2. Tips & Hints ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

1) On some systems the text and headers of panels might appear out of
alignment. This is caused by the wide range of monitors and system resolutions
available to computer users and is not a defect in the program.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3. Bible Guide to Life's Problems ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This is a demo version only. You must order the complete version to enjoy the
full benefits of this program. Click here for ordering information.

All quotes are taken from the King James Version (also known as the Authorized
Version) of the Holy Bible. The quotes are not in any particular order under
each heading.

We have not included every quote in the Bible pertaining to each topic. In many
cases it would be redundant and tedious reading. We endeavored to include a
cross section of verses from both the Old and New Testaments to give the reader
a well rounded overview of Biblical wisdom pertaining to various subjects.

The words LORD and JEHOVAH have been capitalized in all instances.  All
references to God, Jesus or the Holy Spirit in the first, second and third
person pronouns have a capital as the first letter (e.g., Him, He,  Me, My,
etc.). This has been done to clarify the meaning of the text.

The words of Jesus are indicated by a red font:
         I am come that they might have life,
         and that they might have it more abundantly.

It is our sincere prayer that this compilation will help the scriptures come
alive for you and that they will be more meaningful in your daily walk with God.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.1. Acceptance ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

1 Samuel 3:18
It is the LORD: let Him do what seemeth Him good.

Job 1:21-22
Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the
LORD gave, and the LORD hath taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD. In
all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly.

Job 22:21
Acquaint now thyself with Him, and be at peace:
thereby good shall come unto thee.

Ecclesiastes 1:15
That which is crooked cannot be made straight:
and that which is wanting cannot be numbered.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
A time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
A time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
A time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
A time to cast away stones,
and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
time to get, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
A time to rend, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
A time to love, and a time to hate;
a time of war, and a time of peace.

Jeremiah 42:6
Whether it be good, or whether it be evil, we will obey the voice of the LORD
our God, to whom we send thee; that it may be well with us, when we obey the
voice of the LORD our God.

Mark 14:36
And He said, Abba, Father, all things are possible unto Thee;
take away this cup from Me: nevertheless not what I will
but what Thou wilt.

John 18:11
The cup which my Father hath given Me, shall I not drink it?

John 19:17
And He bearing His cross went forth into a place called the place of a skull.

Acts 21:14
The will of the Lord be done.

Philippians 2:14-15
Do all things without murmurings and disputings: That ye may be blameless and
harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and
perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world.

Hebrews 12:5-8
And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children,
My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art
rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth every son
whom He receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons;
for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?

1 Peter 2:20-21
When ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable
with God. For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for
us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow His steps.

1 Peter 3:17
For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing,
than for evil doing.

Romans 15:7
Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.2. Alcoholism - Addiction ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Isaiah 59:1
Behold, the LORD'S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save;
neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear.

Proverbs 20:1
Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging:
and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.

Proverbs 23:29-35
Who hath woe? Who hath sorrow? Who hath contentions? Who hath babbling? Who
hath wounds without cause? Who hath redness of eyes? They that tarry long at
the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine. Look not thou upon the wine when it
is red,  when it giveth his colour in the cup when it moveth itself aright. At
the last, it biteth like a serpent and stingeth like an adder. Thine eyes shall
behold strange women and thine heart shall utter perverse things. Yea, thou
shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth
upon the top of a mast. They have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not
sick; they have beaten me, and I felt it not: when shall I awake? I will seek
it yet again.

Psalm 69:1-5
Save me, O God; for the waters are come in unto my soul.
I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing:
I am come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me.
I am weary of my crying: my throat is dried:
mine eyes fail while I wait for my God.
They that hate me without a cause
are more than the hairs of mine head:
they that would destroy me,
being mine enemies wrongfully, are mighty:
then I restored that which I took not away.
O God, thou knowest my foolishness;
and my sins are not hid from thee.

Psalm 40:1-3
I waited patiently for the LORD;
and He inclined unto me, and heard my cry.
He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay,
and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.
And He hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God:
many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the LORD.

Ephesians 5:15-18
See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the
time, because the days are evil. Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding
what the will of the Lord is. And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess;
but be filled with the Spirit.

Proverbs 23:21
For the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty.

Isaiah 5:11
Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong
drink; that continue until night, till wine inflame them!

Isaiah 19:14
As a drunken man staggereth in his vomit.

Habakkuk 2:15
Woe unto him that giveth his neighbour drink, that puttest thy bottle to him,
and makest him drunken also.

Hosea 4:11
Whoredom and wine and new wine take away the heart.

1 Thessalonians 5:6-8
Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. For
they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the
night. But let us, who are of the day,  be sober, putting on the breastplate of
faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.

Titus 2:1-8
But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine: That the aged men be
sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience. The aged
women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false
accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things; That they may teach
the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children, To
be discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands,
that the word of God be not blasphemed. Young men likewise exhort to be sober
minded. In all things shewing thyself a pattern of good works: in doctrine
shewing uncorruptness, gravity, sincerity, Sound speech, that cannot be
condemned; that he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed, having no evil
thing to say of you.

1 Peter 1:13-16
Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the
grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; As
obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in
your ignorance: But as He which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all
manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.

1 Peter 4:7
But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.

1 Peter 5:8
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion,
walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.

Psalm 107:19-20
Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble,
and He saveth them out of their distresses.
He sent His word, and healed them,
and delivered them from their destructions.

I Corinthians 10:13
There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is
faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but
will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

Proverbs 25:16
Hast thou found honey? eat so much as is sufficient for thee, lest thou be
filled therewith, and vomit it.

Romans 1:24-25
Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own
hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who changed the truth
of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the
Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.

Romans 8:18-25
For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be
compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest
expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.
For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of
him who hath subjected the same in hope, Because the creature itself also shall
be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the
children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in
pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the
firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting
for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. For we are saved by hope:
but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope
for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.3. Anger - Resentment ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Matthew 5:38-39
Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a
tooth: But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite
thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

Ephesians 4:26-27
Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath:
Neither give place to the devil.

James 1:19-20
Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak,
slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.

Proverbs 16:32
He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty.

Proverbs 21:14
A gift in secret pacifieth anger.

Ecclesiastes 7:9
Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry:
for anger resteth in the bosom of fools.

Psalm 37
Fret not thyself because of evildoers,
neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity.
For they shall soon be cut down like the grass,
and wither as the green herb.

Trust in the LORD, and do good;
so shalt thou dwell in the land,
and verily thou shalt be fed.
Delight thyself also in the LORD;
and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart.

Commit thy way unto the LORD;
trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass.
And He shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light,
and thy judgment as the noonday.

Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for Him:
fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way,
because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass.

Cease from anger, and forsake wrath:
fret not thyself in any wise to do evil.
For evildoers shall be cut off:
but those that wait upon the LORD, they shall inherit the earth.

For yet a little while, and the wicked shall not be:
yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be.
But the meek shall inherit the earth;
and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

The wicked plotteth against the just,
and gnasheth upon him with his teeth.
The Lord shall laugh at him:
for He seeth that his day is coming.

The wicked have drawn out the sword,
and have bent their bow,
to cast down the poor and needy,
and to slay such as be of upright conversation.
Their sword shall enter into their own heart,
and their bows shall be broken.

A little that a righteous man hath
is better than the riches of many wicked.
For the arms of the wicked shall be broken:
but the LORD upholdeth the righteous.

The LORD knoweth the days of the upright:
and their inheritance shall be for ever.
They shall not be ashamed in the evil time:
and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied.
But the wicked shall perish,
and the enemies of the LORD shall be as the fat of lambs:
they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume away.

The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again:
but the righteous sheweth mercy, and giveth.
For such as be blessed of Him shall inherit the earth;
and they that be cursed of Him shall be cut off.

The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD:
and he delighteth in his way.
Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down:
for the LORD upholdeth him with His hand.

I have been young, and now am old;
yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken,
nor his seed begging bread.
He is ever merciful, and lendeth;
and his seed is blessed.

Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell for evermore.
For the LORD loveth judgment, and forsaketh not His saints;
they are preserved for ever:
but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off.
The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein for ever.

The mouth of the righteous speaketh wisdom,
 and his tongue talketh of judgment.
The law of his God is in his heart;
none of his steps shall slide.

The wicked watcheth the righteous, and seeketh to slay him.
The LORD will not leave him in his hand,
nor condemn him when he is judged.

Wait on the LORD, and keep His way,
and He shall exalt thee to inherit the land:
when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it.

I have seen the wicked in great power,
and spreading himself like a green bay tree.
Yet he passed away, and, lo, he was not:
yea, I sought him, but he could not be found.

Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright:
for the end of that man is peace.
But the transgressors shall be destroyed together:
the end of the wicked shall be cut off.

But the salvation of the righteous is of the LORD:
He is their strength in the time of trouble.
And the LORD shall help them, and deliver them:
He shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them,
because they trust in Him.

Job 5:2
For wrath killeth the foolish man, and envy slayeth the silly one.

Matthew 5:22
But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause
shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother,
Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool,
shall be in danger of hell fire. Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar,
and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee;  Leave there
thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother,
and then come and offer thy gift.

Proverbs 14:29
He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding:
but he that is hasty of spirit exalteth folly.

Proverbs 15:1-4
A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger. The tongue
of the wise useth knowledge aright: but the mouth of fools poureth out
foolishness. The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and
the good. A wholesome tongue is a tree of life: but perverseness therein is a
breach in the spirit.

Proverbs 16:32
He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty;
and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.

Proverbs 19:11
The discretion of a man deferreth his anger;
and it is his glory to pass over a transgression.

Proverbs 22:24
Make no friendship with an angry man;
and with a furious man thou shalt not go.

Proverbs 30:32-33
If thou hast done foolishly in lifting up thyself, or if thou hast thought
evil, lay thine hand upon thy mouth. Surely the churning of milk bringeth forth
butter, and the wringing of the nose bringeth forth blood: so the forcing of
wrath bringeth forth strife.

Psalms 103:8-9
The LORD is merciful and gracious,
slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy.
He will not always chide:
neither will He keep His anger for ever.

Leviticus 19:18
Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.

1 John 2:9-11
He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even
until now. He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none
occasion of stumbling in him. But he that hateth his brother is in darkness,
and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that
darkness hath blinded his eyes.

James 3:16
For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.

Malachi 2:10
Have we not all one father? hath not one God created us?

1 John 4:12
No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another,
God dwelleth in us, and His love is perfected in us.

John 13:34-35
A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved
you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye
are My disciples, if ye have love one to another.

Ephesians 4:31-32
Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be
put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another,
tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath
forgiven you.

Luke 17:3-4
Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and
if he repent, forgive him. And if he trespass against thee seven times in a
day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt
forgive him.

Romans 12:9-10
Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that
which is good. Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in
honour preferring one another.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.4. Confidence - Courage ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Psalm 27:1&3
The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?
the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear:
though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident.

Micah 7:7-8
Therefore I will look unto the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation:
my God will hear me. Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall
arise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD shall be a light unto me.

Psalm 31:24
Be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart,
all ye that hope in the LORD.

Jonah 2:7
When my soul fainted within me I remembered the LORD.

Ephesians 6:12-18
For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against
powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual
wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God,
that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to
stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on
the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of
the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall
be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of
salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: Praying
always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto
with all perseverance and supplication for all saints.

Proverbs 3:26
For the LORD shall be thy confidence,
and shall keep thy foot from being taken.

Isaiah 30:15
For thus saith the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel; In returning and rest
shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength.

Ephesians 3:11-12
According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord: In
whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of Him.

1 Peter 2:9
But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar
people; that ye should shew forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of
darkness into His marvellous light:
Isaiah 54:17
No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that
shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of
the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of Me, saith the LORD.

Psalm 62:6-8
He only is my rock and my salvation:
He is my defence; I shall not be moved.
In God is my salvation and my glory:
the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.
Trust in Him at all times;
ye people, pour out your heart before Him:
God is a refuge for us.

Psalm 118:6
The LORD is on my side; I will not fear:
what can man do unto me.

Isaiah 40:9
Lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid.

Matthew 19:26
But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but
with God all things are possible.

Mark 9:23
Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.

Romans 8:31
If God be for us, who can be against us?

1 Corinthians 10:12
Let him who thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.

Philippians 4:13
I can do all things through Christ which strentheneth me.

2 Thessalonians 2:2
Be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word.

2 Timothy 1:7
For God hath not given us a spirit of fear;
but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

2 Timothy 1:12
I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed.

Hebrews 10:35
Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward.

Hebrews 13:6
So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man
shall do unto me.

Proverbs 21:31
The horse is prepared against the day of battle: but safety is of the LORD.

 Hebrews 13:5-6
Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things
as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. so
that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man
shall do unto me.

Isaiah 41:10
Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will
strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right
hand of my righteousness.

Isaiah 50:5-9
The Lord GOD hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned
away back. I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked
off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and spitting. For the Lord GOD will
help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like
a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed. He is near that justifieth me;
who will contend with me? let us stand together: who is mine adversary? let him
come near to me. Behold, the Lord GOD will help me; who is he that shall
condemn me? lo, they all shall wax old as a garment; the moth shall eat them up.

Joshua 1:6-11
Be strong and of a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an
inheritance the land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them. Only be
thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to
all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the
right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest.
This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate
therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is
written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou
shalt have good success. Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good
courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with
thee whithersoever thou goest. Then Joshua commanded the officers of the
people, saying, Pass through the host, and command the people, saying, Prepare
you victuals; for within three days ye shall pass over this Jordan, to go in to
possess the land, which the LORD your God giveth you to possess it.

Psalms 23:4
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil: for thou art with me;
thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

Psalms 27:14
Wait on the LORD: be of good courage,
and He shall strengthen thine heart:
wait, I say, on the LORD.

Psalms 84:5
Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee;
in whose heart are the ways of them.

Psalms 91:5-6
Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night;
nor for the arrow that flieth by day;
Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness;
nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.

2 Samuel 22:33
God is my strength and power: and He maketh my way perfect.
He maketh my feet like hinds' feet: and setteth me upon my high places.

Luke 10:19
Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all
the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.5. Death ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Psalm 23:4
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil: for Thou art with me.

Psalm 116:15
Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His saints.

Romans 14:8-9
For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the
Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord's. For to this end
Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead
and living.

2 Corinthians 5:1
For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we
have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

Philippians 1:21
For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

1 Thessalonians 5:9-10
For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord
Jesus Christ, Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live
together with Him.

Revelation 21:4
And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more
death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for
the former things are passed away.

Luke 20:34-36
And Jesus answering said unto them, The children of this world marry, and are
given in marriage: But they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that
world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in
marriage: Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels;
and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection.

1 Corinthians 15:35-57
But some man will say, How are the dead raised up? and with what body do they
come? Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die: And
that which thou sowest, thou sowest not that body that shall be, but bare
grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some other grain: But God giveth it a body
as it hath pleased Him, and to every seed his own body. All flesh is not the
same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts,
another of fishes, and another of birds.

There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the
celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. There is one
glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the
stars: for one star differeth from another star in glory. so also is the
resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in
incorruption: It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in
weakness; it is raised in power: It is sown a natural body; it is raised a
spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.

And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam
was made a quickening spirit. Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual,
but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual. The first man
is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven. As is the
earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are
they also that are heavenly. And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we
shall also bear the image of the heavenly.

Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of
God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I shew you a
mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in
the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and
the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this
corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
so when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall
have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is
written, Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting? O
grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin
is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord
Jesus Christ.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are
asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we
believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus
will God bring with Him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that
we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent
them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a
shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead
in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught
up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall
we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

2 Corinthians 7:10
For godly sorrow worketh repentance to salvation not to be repented of: but the
sorrow of the world worketh death.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-2
To every thing there is a season,
and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
A time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted.

Ecclesiastes 8:8
There is no man that hath power over the spirit to retain the spirit; neither
hath he power in the day of death: and there is no discharge in that war;
neither shall wickedness deliver those that are given to it.

Ecclesiastes 9:5-6
For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing,
neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten. Also
their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have
they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the sun.

Ecclesiastes 12:7
Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was:
and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.

Genesis 3:19
In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the
ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt
thou return.

Jeremiah 21:8
And unto this people thou shalt say, Thus saith the LORD;
Behold, I set before you the way of life, and the way of death.

Jeremiah 22:10
Weep ye not for the dead, neither bemoan him: but weep sore for him that goeth
away: for he shall return no more, nor see his native country.

Job 3:17
There the wicked cease from troubling;
and there the weary be at rest.

John 5:24
Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him
that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but
is passed from death unto life.

John 11:25-26
I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were
dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never
die. Believest thou this?

Luke 2:29-32
Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: For
mine eyes have seen thy salvation, Which thou hast prepared before the face of
all people; A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.

Luke 23:43
And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee,
To day shalt thou be with me in paradise.

Proverbs 8:36
But he that sinneth against Me wrongeth his own soul:
all they that hate Me love death.

Proverbs 12:28
In the way of righteousness is life;
and in the pathway thereof there is no death.

Proverbs 14:32
The wicked is driven away in his wickedness:
but the righteous hath hope in his death.

Proverbs 16:25
There is a way that seemeth right unto a man,
but the end thereof are the ways of death.

Proverbs 18:21
Death and life are in the power of the tongue:
and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.

Proverbs 21:16
The man that wandereth out of the way of understanding shall remain in the
congregation of the dead.

Psalms 33:18-19
Behold, the eye of the LORD is upon them that fear him,
upon them that hope in his mercy;
To deliver their soul from death,
and to keep them alive in famine.

Psalms 39:4
LORD, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days,
what it is; that I may know how frail I am.

Psalms 68:20
He that is our God is the God of salvation;
and unto GOD the Lord belong the issues from death.

Psalms 88:3-10
For my soul is full of troubles:
and my life draweth nigh unto the grave.
I am counted with them that go down into the pit:
I am as a man that hath no strength:
Free among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave,
whom thou rememberest no more:
and they are cut off from thy hand.
Thou hast laid me in the lowest pit, in darkness, in the deeps.
Thy wrath lieth hard upon me,
and thou hast afflicted me with all thy waves. Selah.
Thou hast put away mine acquaintance far from me;
thou hast made me an abomination unto them:
I am shut up, and I cannot come forth.
Mine eye mourneth by reason of affliction:
LORD, I have called daily upon thee,
I have stretched out my hands unto thee.
Wilt thou shew wonders to the dead?
shall the dead arise and praise thee? Selah.

Psalms 90:9-10
For all our days are passed away in thy wrath:
we spend our years as a tale that is told.
The days of our years are threescore years and ten;
and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years,
yet is their strength labour and sorrow;
for it is soon cut off, and we fly away.

Psalms 104:27-30
These wait all upon thee;
that thou mayest give them their meat in due season.
That thou givest them they gather:
thou openest thine hand, they are filled with good.
Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled:
thou takest away their breath, they die, and return to their dust.
Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created:
and thou renewest the face of the earth.

Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through
Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 8:2
For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the
law of sin and death.

Romans 8:6
For to be carnally minded is death;
but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

John 12:44-50
Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on Me, but on Him
that sent Me. And He that seeth Me seeth Him that sent Me. I am come a light
into the world, that whosoever believeth on Me should not abide in darkness.
And if any man hear My words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not
to judge the world, but to save the world. He that rejecteth Me, and receiveth
not My words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same
shall judge him in the last day. For I have not spoken of Myself; but the
Father which sent me, He gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I
should speak. And I know that His commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I
speak therefore, even as the Father said unto Me, so I speak.

John 14:1-3
Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in Me. In My
Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I
go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will
come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

Job 19:25-26
For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day
upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my
flesh shall I see God.

Romans 8:18
For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be
compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.

Romans 6:7-10
For he that is dead is freed from sin. Now if we be dead with Christ, we
believe that we shall also live with Him: Knowing that Christ being raised from
the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over Him. For in that He
died, He died unto sin once: but in that He liveth, He liveth unto God.

John 3:16
For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Isaiah 25:8-9
He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from
off all faces; and the rebuke of His people shall He take away from off all the
earth: for the LORD hath spoken it. And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this
is our God; we have waited for Him, and He will save us: this is the LORD; we
have waited for Him, we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.6. Depression ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

John 14:1
Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God,
believe also in Me.

John 14:15-16
If ye love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He shall
give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you for ever.

John 15:11
These things have I spoken unto you, that My joy might remain in you, and that
your joy might be full.

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.

Romans 15:13
Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may
abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.

Matthew 11:28-30
Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
Take My yoke upon you, and learn of Me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and
ye shall find rest unto your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is
light.

Psalm 34:15-17
The eyes of the LORD are upon the righteous,
and His ears are open unto their cry.
The face of the LORD is against them that do evil,
to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.
The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth,
and delivereth them out of all their troubles.

Matthew 5:12
Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so
persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

Song of Solomon 2:11-12
For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone;
The flowers appear on the earth;
the time of the singing of birds is come,
and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land.

Psalm 40:2-3
He brought me up also out of an horrible pit,
out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock,
and established my goings.
And He hath put a new song in my mouth.

Psalm 34:17-19
The righteous cry, and the LORD heareth,
and delivereth them out of all their troubles.
The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart;
and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.
Many are the afflictions of the righteous:
but the LORD delivereth him out of them all.

1 John 1:5-7
This then is the message which we have heard of Him, and declare unto you, that
God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have
fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: But if
we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with
another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin.

John 16:20
Verily, verily, I say unto you, That ye shall weep and lament, but the world
shall rejoice: and ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy.

Psalms 42:5-6
Why art thou cast down, O my soul?
and why art thou disquieted in me?
hope thou in God:
for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance.
O my God, my soul is cast down within me:
therefore will I remember Thee from the land of Jordan,
and of the Hermonites, from the hill Mizar.

Psalms 91:1-16
He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High
shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress:
my God; in Him will I trust.
Surely He shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler,
and from the noisome pestilence.
He shall cover thee with his feathers,
and under His wings shalt thou trust:
His truth shall be thy shield and buckler.
Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night;
nor for the arrow that flieth by day;
Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness;
nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday.
A thousand shall fall at thy side,
and ten thousand at thy right hand;
but it shall not come nigh thee.
Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see
the reward of the wicked.
Because thou hast made the LORD,
which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation;
There shall no evil befall thee,
neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.
For He shall give His angels charge over thee,
to keep thee in all thy ways.
They shall bear thee up in their hands,
lest thou dash thy foot against a stone.
Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder:
the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet.
Because He hath set his love upon me,
therefore will I deliver him:
I will set him on high, because he hath known my name.
He shall call upon me, and I will answer him:
I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour him. With long
life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.

Psalms 121:1-8
I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills,
from whence cometh my help.
My help cometh from the LORD,
Which made heaven and earth.
He will not suffer thy foot to be moved:
He that keepeth thee will not slumber.
Behold, He that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.
The LORD is thy keeper:
the LORD is thy shade upon thy right hand.
The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night.
The LORD shall preserve thee from all evil:
He shall in from this time forth, and even for evermore.

Job 22:29
When men are cast down, then Thou shalt say,
There is lifting up; and He shall save the humble person.

Psalm 30:2-5
O LORD my God, I cried unto Thee, and Thou hast healed me.
O LORD, Thou hast brought up my soul from the grave:
Thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit.
Sing unto the LORD, O ye saints of His,
and give thanks at the remembrance of His holiness.
For His anger endureth but a moment; in His favour is life:
weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.7. Eternal Life ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Matthew 10:39
He that findeth his life shall lose it:
and he that loseth his life for My sake shall find it.

Matthew 16:27-28
For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with His angels; and
then He shall reward every man according to his works. Verily I say unto you,
There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the
Son of man coming in His kingdom.

Matthew 19:17
If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.

John 3:15-16
That whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. For
God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever
believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

John 4:35-36
Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to
harvest. And he that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life
eternal: that both he that soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together.

John 5:24
Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth My word, and believeth on Him
that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but
is passed from death unto life.

John 6:51
I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this
bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is My flesh,
which I will give for the life of the world.

John 6:54-56
Whoso eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, hath eternal life; and I will
raise him up at the last day. For My flesh is meat indeed, and My blood is
drink indeed. He that eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, dwelleth in Me,
and I in him.

John 8:51
Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep My saying,
he shall never see death.

John 11:25-26
Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in
Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth
in Me shall never die.

John 14:2-3
In My Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told
you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you,
I will come again, and receive you unto Myself; that where I am, there ye may
be also.

Romans 6:22-23
But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your
fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life. For the wages of sin is
death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

1 Corinthians 15:56-57
The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to
God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Galatians 6:8
For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that
soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.

1 Timothy 6:12
Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art
also called.

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

1 John 5:11
And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life
is in His Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of
God hath not life.

Revelation 2:10
Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.

Revelation 21:6
I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is
athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.8. Fear ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Mark 5:36
Be not afraid, only believe.

Joshua 1:9
Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid,
neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou
goest.

Psalm 23:4
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no
evil: for Thou art with me.

Psalm 27:1
The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the
strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?

Psalm 56:3-4
What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee. In God I will praise his word, in
God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.

John 14:27
Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give
I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

Hebrews 13:5-6
For He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. so that we may
boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.

Psalm 121
I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills,
from whence cometh my help.
My help commeth from the LORD,
which made heaven and earth.
He will not suffer thy foot to be moved:
He that keepeth thee will not slumber.
Behold, He that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.
The LORD is thy keeper: the LORD is thy shade upon thy right hand.
The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night.
The LORD shall preserve thee from all evil:
He shall preserve thy soul.
The LORD shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in
from this time forth, and even for evermore.

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.

Romans 28:31
If God be for us, who can be against us?

Romans 28:35-39
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?  Shall tribulation, or distress,
or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written,
For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the
slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him
that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels,
nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor
height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from
the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Matthew 19:26
With God all things are possible.

Isaiah 43:5
Fear not; for I am with thee.

Joshua 1:5
I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.

Matthew 6:34
Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for
the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

Proverbs 29:25
The fear of man bringeth a snare:
but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe.

1 John 4:18
There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear:
because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.

Psalm 112:7
He shall not be afraid of evil tidings;
his heart is fixed, trusting in the LORD.

Jeremiah 17:7-8
Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD,
and whose hope the LORD is.
For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters,
and that spreadeth out her roots by the river,
and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green;
and shall not be careful in the year of drought,
neither shall cease from yielding fruit.

2 Timothy 1:7
For God hath not given us the spirit of fear;
but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

Jonah 2:1-2
Then Jonah prayed unto the LORD his God out of the fish's belly, And said, I
cried by reason of mine affliction unto the LORD, and He heard me; out of the
belly of hell cried I, and Thou heardest my voice.

Matthew 10:28-31
And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but
rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not
two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground
without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye
not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.

Psalm 46:1-3
God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will
not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried
into the midst of the sea; Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled,
though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof.

Isaiah 41:10
Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will
strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right
hand of My righteousness.

Matthew 10:26
Fear them not therefore: for there is nothing covered, that shall not be
revealed; and hid, that shall not be known.

John 10:9-11
I am the door: by Me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in
and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill,
and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have
it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth His life
for the sheep.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.9. Forgiveness - Amends - Reconciliation ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Matthew 7:12
Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even
so to them.

1 John 2:9-11
He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even
until now. He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none
occasion of stumbling in him. But he that hateth his brother is in darkness,
and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that
darkness hath blinded his eyes.

Matthew 5:23-24
Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy
brother hath ought against thee; Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go
thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.

Proverbs 20:22
Say not thou, I will recompense evil;
but wait on the LORD, and He shall save thee.

John 13:35-35
A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved
you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are My
disciples, if ye have love one to another.

Luke 6:27-29
But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate
you, Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.
And unto him that smiteth thee on the one cheek offer also the other; and him
that taketh away thy cloke forbid not to take thy coat also.

Luke 6:35-38
But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and
your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for He
is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. Be ye therefore merciful, as your
Father also is merciful. Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not,
and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven: Give, and it
shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and
running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye
mete withal it shall be measured to you again.

Romans 13:7-8
Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to
whom custom; fear to whom fear; honour to whom honour. Owe no man any thing,
but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.

Ephesians 4:26-27
Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give
place to the devil.

Luke 17:3-4
Take heed to yourselves: If thy brother trespass against thee, rebuke him; and
if he repent, forgive him. And if he trespass against thee seven times in a
day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt
forgive him.

Ephesians 4:2
With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in
love; Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

Mark 11:25-26
And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your
Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if ye do
not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.

Matthew 18:21-22
Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against
me, and I forgive him? till seven times?
Jesus saith unto him, I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until
seventy times seven.

Ephesians 4:32
And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as
God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.10. Guidance ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Psalm 32:8
I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go:
I will guide thee with Mine eye.

Isaiah 30:21
And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye
in it.

Psalm 119:105
Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.

Isaiah 58:11
And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought, and
make fat thy bones: and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring
of water, whose waters fail not.

Luke 1:78-79
Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath
visited us, To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of
death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Luke 11:9-10
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be
opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh
findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

John 16:13
Howbeit when He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you into all
truth: for He shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever He shall hear, that
shall He speak: and He will shew you things to come.

2 Samuel 22:29
For thou art my lamp, O LORD: and the LORD will lighten my darkness.

Psalm 48:14
For this God is our God for ever and ever:
He will be our guide even unto death.

Proverbs 6:23
For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light.

John 14:6
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto
the Father, but by Me.

Colossians 3:16
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom.

Proverbs 3:6
In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.

Isaiah 42:16
And I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not; I will lead them in
paths that they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and
crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them.

Matthew 6:33
But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness;
and all these things shall be added unto you.

Genesis 21:22
God is with thee in all that thou doest.

Isaiah 48:17
Thus saith the LORD, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I am the LORD thy
God Which teacheth thee to profit, Which leadeth thee by the way that thou
shouldest go.

Proverbs 16:9
A man's heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.

John 8:12
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.

Isaiah 40:11
He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: He shall gather the lambs with His
arm, and carry them in His bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.

Jeremiah 29:11-13
For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of
peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Then shall ye call upon
Me, and ye shall go and pray unto Me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall
seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall search for Me with all your heart.

Deuteronomy 31:8
And the LORD, He it is that doth go before thee; He will be with thee, He will
not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed.

John 14:26
But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in My
name, He shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance,
whatsoever I have said unto you.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.11. Healing ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Psalm 103:2-4
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all His benefits:
Who forgiveth all thine iniquities;
Who healeth all thy diseases;
Who redeemeth thy life from destruction;
Who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies.

Proverbs 17:22
A merry heart doeth good like a medicine:
but a broken spirit drieth the bones.

Isaiah 53:5
With His stripes we are healed.

Jeremiah 17:14
Heal me, O LORD, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved: for Thou
art my praise.

Ezekiel 34:16
I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away,
and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick.

Luke 8:48
Thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace.

Matthew 10:8
Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils:
freely ye have received, freely give.

Matthew 14:35-36
And when the men of that place had knowledge of Him, they sent out into all
that country round about, and brought unto Him all that were diseased; And
besought Him that they might only touch the hem of His garment: and as many as
touched were made perfectly whole.

Mark 16:18
They shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

Luke 4:18
He hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the
captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised.

Luke 4:40
Now when the sun was setting, all they that had any sick with divers diseases
brought them unto Him; and He laid his hands on every one of them, and healed them.

Acts 3:6-8
In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk. And he took him by
the right hand, and lifted him up: and immediately his feet and ankle bones
received strength. And he leaping up stood, and walked, and entered with them
into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God.

Acts 4:10
Even by Him doth this man stand here before you whole.

Acts 5:16
And they were healed, every one.

Acts 9:34
Jesus Christ maketh thee whole: arise, and make thy bed.

James 5:15-16
And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up;
and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults
one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual
fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

Malachi 4:2
But unto you that fear My name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with
healing in His wings.

Job 5:18
For He maketh sore, and bindeth up: He woundeth, and His hands make whole.

Exodus 15:26
I am the LORD that healeth thee.

Job 12:10
In Whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind.

Psalm 138:8
The LORD will perfect that which concerneth me:
Thy mercy, O LORD, endureth for ever:
forsake not the works of Thine own hands.

Jeremiah 30:17
For I will restore health unto thee, and I will heal thee of thy wounds, saith
the LORD.

Psalm 41:3
The LORD will strengthen him upon the bed of languishing:
Thou wilt make all his bed in his sicknes.

Psalm 107:19-20
Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble,
and He saveth them out of their distresses.
He sent His word, and healed them,
and delivered them from their destructions.

Proverbs 16:24
Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones.

Romans 8:11
But if the Spirit of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, He
that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by
His Spirit that dwelleth in you.

Romans 8:26
The Spirit also helpeth our infirmaties.

Revelation 21:5
Behold, I make all things new.

Matthew 11:5
The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and
the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them.

Luke 13:12-13
Thou art loosed from thine infirmity. And He laid His hands on her: and
immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.

Isaiah 58:8
Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring
forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the
LORD shall be thy rereward.

2 Corinthians 4:13-16
We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and
therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak; Knowing that He
which raised up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus, and shall
present us with you. For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace
might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God. For which
cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is
renewed day by day.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.12. Humility ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Proverbs 22:4
By humility and the fear of the LORD are riches, and honour, and life.

Micah 6:8
He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of
thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God.

Romans 12:3
For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not
to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly,
according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

Philippians 2:3
Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let
each esteem other better than themselves.

1 Peter 5:5-6
Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be
subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the
proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the
mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time.

1 Kings 3:7
I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in.

Job 22:29
He shall save the humble person.

Psalm 115:1
Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto Thy name give glory.

Proverbs 15:33
Before honour is humility.

Zechariah 9:9
Behold, thy King cometh unto thee: He is just, and having salvation; lowly, and
riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.

Matthew 18:3-4
Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children,
ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble
himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

Matthew 20:27
And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant.

Luke 14:11
For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself
shall be exalted.

Mark 9:35
And he sat down, and called the twelve, and saith unto them, If any man desire
to be first, the same shall be last of all, and servant of all.

Luke 9:48
For he that is least among you all, the same shall be great.

Luke 22:27
I am among you as he that serveth.

John 5:30
I can of mine own self do nothing.

John 13:16-17
Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord;
neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him. If ye know these things,
happy are ye if ye do them.

Acts 11:17
What was I, that I could withstand God?

1 Corinthians 3:18-19
Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this
world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise. For the wisdom of this world
is foolishness with God.

James 4:6
God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.

James 4:10
Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord,
and He shall lift you up.

Galatians 6:1
Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore
such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.13. Jesus ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

John 1:17
For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.

1 John 4:19
We love Him, because He first loved us.

John 12:49-50
For I have not spoken of Myself; but the Father which sent Me, He gave Me a
commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. And I know that his
commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the
Father said unto Me, so I speak.

Matthew 1:21
He shall save His people from their sins.

Matthew 3:17
This is My beloved son, in whom I am well pleased.

Matthew 8:27
What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him!

Luke 5:34
That ye may know that the Son of man hath power upon earth to forgive sins.

Matthew 10:32-33
Whosoever therefore shall confess Me before men, him will I confess also before
My Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny Me before men, him will
I also deny before My Father which is in heaven.

Luke 14:27
And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after Me, cannot be My disciple.

Matthew 18:11
For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost.

John 1:1-5
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him; and
without Him was not any thing made that was made. In Him was life; and the life
was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness
comprehended it not.

John 1:14
And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld His glory, the
glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

John 1:29
The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of
God, which taketh away the sin of the world.

John 3:15-17
That whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. For
God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever
believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not
His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him
might be saved.

John 4:42
For we have heard Him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the
Saviour of the world.

John 5:23-24
That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that
honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent Him. Verily,
verily, I say unto you, He that heareth My word, and believeth on Him that sent
me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed
from death unto life.

John 6:38-40
For I came down from heaven, not to do Mine own will, but the will of Him that
sent Me. And this is the Father's will which hath sent Me, that of all which He
hath given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last
day. And this is the will of Him that sent Me, that every one which seeth the
Son, and believeth on Him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up
at the last day.

John 6:56
He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in Me and I in him.

John 7:37
If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink.

John 8:42
Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love Me: for I
proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of Myself, but He sent Me.

John 9:5
As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.

John 10:9-11
I am the door: by Me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in
and out, and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill,
and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have
it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth His life
for the sheep.

John 11:25
Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in
Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:  And whosoever liveth and believeth
in Me shall never die.

John 14:6
I am the way, the truth, and the life.

John 14:14-15
If ye shall ask any thing in My name, I will do it. If ye love Me, keep My commandments.

John 21:19
Follow Me.

Acts 5:31
Him hath God exalted with His right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour.

Acts 10:43
Through His name whosoever believeth in Him shall receive remission of sins.

Romans 5:1-2
Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord
Jesus Christ: By Whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we
stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through
Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 9:33
Whosoever believeth on Him shall not be ashamed.

1 Corinthians 3:23
Ye are Christ's; and Christ is God's.

Galatians 2:20
Christ liveth in me.

Galatians 3:28
There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is
neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.

Galatians 5:1
Christ hath made us free.

Ephesians 2:14
He is our peace.

Ephesians 5:30
For we are members of His body, of His flesh, and of His bones.

Philippians 2:10
At the name of Jesus every knee should bow.

Colossians 1:17
He is before all things, and by Him all things consist.

Colossians 1:18
He is the head of the body, the church.

Colossians 2:10
And ye are complete in Him, which is the head of all principality and power.

Colossians 3:11
Christ is all, and in all.

1 Timothy 3:16
God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels,
preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

Hebrews 12:12
Jesus the author and finisher of our faith.

1 John 4:9
In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent His
only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him.

1 Timothy 2:5
For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.

Romans 5:8
While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

1 John 2:1-2
My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any
man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:   And
He is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the
sins of the whole world.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.14. Light - Darkness ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Genesis 1:3
And God said, let there be light: and there was light.

Isaiah 9:2
The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in
the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.

Matthew 5:14-16
Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.
Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick;
and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine
before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is
in heaven.

Luke 11:34-36
The light of the body is the eye: therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole
body also is full of light; but when thine eye is evil, thy body also is full
of darkness. Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not
darkness. If thy whole body therefore be full of light, having no part dark,
the whole shall be full of light, as when the bright shining of a candle doth
give thee light.

John 1:4-5
In Him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in
darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.

John 3:19-21
That light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light,
because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light,
neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that
doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they
are wrought in God.

John 9:4-5
I must work the works of Him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh,
when no man can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.

Acts 26:16-18
But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this
purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou
hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee; Delivering
thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, To open
their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of
Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance
among them which are sanctified by faith that is in Me.

Ephesians 5:13-14
But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever
doth make manifest is light. Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and
arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.

1 John 1:5
God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all.

Revelation 21:23-25
And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for
the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof. And the
nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it: and the kings of
the earth do bring their glory and honour into it. And the gates of it shall
not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there.

Ephesians 6:12-18
For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against
powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual
wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God,
that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to
stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on
the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of
the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall
be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of
salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: Praying
always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto
with all perseverance and supplication for all saints.

Matthew 6:23
But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If
therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!

John 8:12
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.

John 12:46
I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not
abide in darkness.

Romans 13:12
The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works
of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.

2 Corinthians 4:6
For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our
hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of
Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 5:8-14
For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as
children of light: (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and
righteousness and truth;)  Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord. And have
no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.
For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in
secret. But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for
whatsoever doth make manifest is light. Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that
sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.

1 Thessalonians 5:4-5
But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a
thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are
not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others;
but let us watch and be sober.

1 Peter 2:9
But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar
people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of
darkness into his marvellous light


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.15. Lonliness ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Matthew 28:20
Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

Romans 8:35-39
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress,
or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written,
For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the
slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him
that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels,
nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor
height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from
the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Psalm 142:4-7
I looked on my right hand, and beheld,
but there was no man that would know me:
refuge failed me; no man cared for my soul.
I cried unto thee, O LORD:
I said, Thou art my refuge and my portion in the land of the living.
Attend unto my cry; for I am brought very low:
deliver me from my persecutors; for they are stronger than I.
Bring my soul out of prison, that I may praise thy name:
the righteous shall compass me about; for
Thou shalt deal bountifully with me.

John 14:16-20
And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He
may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot
receive, because it seeth Him not, neither knoweth Him: but ye know Him; for He
dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I
will come to you. Yet a little while, and the world seeth Me no more; but ye
see Me: because I live, ye shall live also. At that day ye shall know that I am
in my Father, and ye in Me, and I in you.

Revelation 3:20
Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear My voice, and open the
door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me.

Romans 14:7-8
For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself. For whether we
live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether
we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord's.

John 16:32-33
Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that ye shall be scattered, every
man to his own, and shall leave me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the
Father is with Me. These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me ye might
have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I
have overcome the world.

John 15:5
I am the vine, ye are the branches.

Romans 12:5
So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.

John 14:26
But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in My
name, He shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance,
whatsoever I have said unto you.

John 16:7
Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for
if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will
send Him unto you.

Ephesians 2:19-22
Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with
the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon the foundation of
the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;
In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in
the Lord: In Whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through
the Spirit.

Colossians 2:5
For though I be absent in the flesh, yet am I with you in the spirit.

1 John 1:3-4
That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have
fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his
Son Jesus Christ. And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be
full.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.16. One Day At A Time ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Matthew 6:34
Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for
the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

Proverbs 27:1
Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth.

Acts 1:7
It is not for you to know the times or the seasons.

Luke 12:22-31
Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat; neither for the body, what ye
shall put on. The life is more than meat, and the body is more than raiment.
Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have
storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the
fowls? And which of you with taking thought can add to his stature one cubit?
If ye then be not able to do that thing which is least, why take ye thought for
the rest?

Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say
unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. If
then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and to morrow is
cast into the oven; how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith?
And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of
doubtful mind. For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and
your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things. But rather seek ye the
kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you.

John 14:27
Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give
I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

Psalm 118:24
This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.17. Peace - Serenity ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Numbers 6:24-26
The LORD bless thee, and keep thee: The LORD make His face shine upon thee, and
be gracious unto thee: The LORD lift up His countenance upon thee, and give
thee peace.

Psalm 119:165
Great peace have they which love Thy law:
and nothing shall offend them.

1 Peter 5:14
Peace be with you all that are in Christ Jesus.

Exodus 4:18
Go in peace.

Psalm 34:14
Seek peace, and persue it.

Matthew 5:9
Blessed are the peacemakers:
for they shall be called the children of God.

John 14:27
Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give
I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

Romans 5:1
Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord
Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 14:33
For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace.

Colossians 3:15
And let the peace of God rule in your hearts.

Philippians 4:4-7
Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice. Let your moderation be
known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. Be careful for nothing; but in every
thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made
known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall
keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

Mark 4:38-40
And He arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And
the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And He said unto them, Why are ye
so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?

Mark 5:34
Thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.

Luke 1:77-79
To give knowledge of salvation unto His people by the remission of their sins,
Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath
visited us, To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of
death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Galatians 5:22-24
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness,
goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they
that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

Colossians 1:19-20
For it pleased the Father that in Him should all fulness dwell; And, having
made peace through the blood of His cross, by Him to reconcile all things unto
Himself; by Him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.

1 Thessalonians 5:23
And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly.

2 Timohty 2:22
Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with
them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

1 Peter 3:10-11
For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from
evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: Let him eschew evil, and do good;
let him seek peace, and ensue it.

2 Peter 1:2-4
Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of
Jesus our Lord, According as His divine power hath given unto us all things
that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him that hath
called us to glory and virtue: Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and
precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature,
having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

Jude 1:2
Mercy unto you, and peace, and love, be multiplied.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.18. Prayer ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Judges 16:28
O Lord GOD, remember me, I pray Thee, and strengthen me, I pray Thee, only this once.

2 Kings 20:5
I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will heal thee.

Psalm 19:14
Let the words of my mouth,
and the meditation of my heart,
be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer.

Psalm 91:15
He shall call upon me, and I will answer him:
I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him.

Jeremiah 33:3
Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things,
which thou knowest not.

Joel 2:32
And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD
shall be delivered.

Matthew 6:5-14
And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love
to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they
may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou,
when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door,
pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret
shall reward thee openly. But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the
heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be
not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have
need of, before ye ask him. After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father
which art in heaven, Hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done
in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us
our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but
deliver us from evil: For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory,
for ever. Amen.

Luke 11:9-10
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be
opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh
findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

Matthew 18:20
For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the
midst of them.

Mark 11:24-25
Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe
that ye receive them, and ye shall have them. And when ye stand praying,
forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven
may forgive you your trespasses.

Mark 13:33
Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.

Luke 18:1
Men ought always to pray, and not to faint.

John 14:13-14
And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be
glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in My name, I will do it.

John 16:24
Ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.

Philippians 4:6
Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with
thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

1 Thessalonians 5:17
Pray without ceasing.

James 1:5-8
If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men
liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in
faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven
with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any
thing of the Lord. A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.

James 4:3
Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amis.

1 Peter 3:12
For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and His ears are open unto
their prayers.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.19. Relapse ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

1 Samuel 16:7
The LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but
the LORD looketh on the heart.

Jeremiah 17:7-10
Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. For
he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots
by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green;
and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from
yielding fruit. The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately
wicked: who can know it?  I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to
give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.

Habakkuk 3:19
The LORD God is my strength, and He will make my feet like hinds' feet, and He
will make me to walk upon mine high places.

Psalm 57:1-3
Be merciful unto me, O God, be merciful unto me: for my soul trusteth in Thee:
yea, in the shadow of thy wings will I make my refuge, until these calamities
be overpast. I will cry unto God most high; unto God that performeth all things
for me. He shall send from heaven, and save me from the reproach of him that
would swallow me up. Selah. God shall send forth His mercy and His truth.

Deuteromony 28:13
And the LORD shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be
above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken unto the
commandments of the LORD thy God.

Proverbs 16:3
Commit thy works unto the LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established.

Isaiah 7:9
If ye will not believe, surely ye shall not be established.

Mark 3:25
And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand.

Zechariah 4:6
Not by might, nor by power, but by My spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.

Mark 10:31
But many that are first shall be last; and the last first.

Ezekial 34:16
I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away,
and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick.

John 1:29
Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.

Romans 6:14
For sin shall not have dominion over you:
for ye are not under the law, but under grace.

Colossians 1:13-14
Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into
the kingdom of His dear Son: In whom we have redemption through His blood, even
the forgiveness of sins.

1 John 1:7-9
But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with
another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin. If we
say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If
we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to
cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Ephesians 4:21-24
That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is
corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your
mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in
righteousness and true holiness.

Ezekial 11:19-20
And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I
will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of
flesh: That they may walk in My statutes, and keep Mine ordinances, and do
them: and they shall be My people, and I will be their God.

1 Peter 2:24-25
Who His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, being dead
to sins, should live unto righteousness: by Whose stripes ye were healed. For
ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and
Bishop of your souls.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.20. Salvation ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Exodus 15:2
The LORD is my strength and song, and He is become my salvation.

2 Samuel 22:3
The God of my rock; in Him will I trust: He is my shield, and the horn of my
salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour.

Psalm 3:8
Salvation beloneth unto the LORD.

Psalm 37:39-40
But the salvation of the righteous is of the LORD:
He is their strength in the time of trouble.
And the LORD shall help them, and deliver them:
He shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them,
because they trust in Him.

Psalm 62:1-2
Truly my soul waiteth upon God:
from Him cometh my salvation.
He only is my rock and my salvation.

Psalm 119:155
Salvation is far from the wicked: for they seek not Thy statutes.

Isaiah 9:2
The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in
the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.

Isaiah 12:2-3
Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the LORD
JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; He also is become my salvation. Therefore
with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation.

Lamentations 3:26
It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of
the LORD.

Ezekial 3:19
Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his
wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.

Jonah 2:9
Salvation is of the LORD.

Habakkuk 3:18
Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.

Zepheniah 3:17
The LORD thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; He will save, He will rejoice
over thee with joy; He will rest in His love, He will joy over thee with singing.

Malachi 4:2
But unto you that fear My name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with
healing in His wings.

Matthew 7:14
Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and
few there be that find it.

Matthew 16:25
For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his
life for My sake shall find it.

Matthew 18:11
The Son of man come to save that which was lost.

Mark 13:13
He that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

Mark 1:15
The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and
believe the gospel.

Mark 16:16
He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not
shall be damned.

Luke 19:10
For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.

John 3:15-17
That whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. For
God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever
believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not
His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him
might be saved.

John 5:34
These things I say, that ye might be saved.

John 10:9
I am the door: by Me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in
and out, and find pasture.

John 12:46
I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on Me should not
abide in darkness.

John 14:6
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto
the Father, but by Me.

John 17:12
While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Thy name: those that Thou
gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition.

Acts 2:21
Whosoever shall call upon the name of the LORD shall be saved.

Acts 13:26
Whosoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of this salvation sent.

Acts 13:47
For so hath the Lord commanded us, saying, I have set thee to be a light of the
Gentiles, that thou shouldest be for salvation unto the ends of the earth.

Acts 15:11
But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved.

Romans 10:9-10
That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in
thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For
with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession
is made unto salvation.

Romans 13:11-12
And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for
now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. The night is far spent, the
day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put
on the armour of light.

1 Corinthians 9:22
To the weak became I as weak, that I might gain the weak: I am made all things
to all men, that I might by all means save some.

2 Corinthians 6:2
For He saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation
have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day
of salvation.

Ephesians 2:8
Bt grace are ye saved through faith.

Philippians 2:12
Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.

1 Thessalonians 5:9
God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation.

1 Timothy 1:15
Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.

1 Timothy 2:3
God our Saviour.

Titus 3:5-7
Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He
saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which
He shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; That being justified
by His grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

Hebrews 10:36-39
For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye
might receive the promise. For yet a little while, and He that shall come will
come, and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw
back, My soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we are not of them who draw
back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.

James 5:20
Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way
shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.

1 Peter 4:18
And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner
appear ?

2 Peter 3:15
And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation.

1 John 4:14-15
And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour
of the world. Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God
dwelleth in him, and he in God.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.21. Strength ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Psalm 46:1
God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.

Psalm 55:22
Cast thy burden upon the LORD,
and He shall sustain thee.

Psalm 91:2-4
I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress:
my God; in Him will I trust.
Surely He shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler,
and from the noisome pestilence.
He shall cover thee with His feathers,
and under His wings shalt thou trust:
His truth shall be thy shield and buckler.

Psalm 145:14
The LORD upholdeth all that fall,
and raiseth up all those that be bowed down.

Isaiah 40:29-31
He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might He increaseth
strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall
utterly fall: But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they
shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they
shall walk, and not faint.

Isaiah 41:10
Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will
strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right
hand of My righteousness.

Isaiah 41:17
When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth
for thirst, I the LORD will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them.

Psalm 23:2-3
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:
He leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul.

2 Corinthians 12:9-10
My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.
Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of
Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in
reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake:
for when I am weak, then am I strong.

Psalm 73:22-26
So foolish was I, and ignorant:
I was as a beast before thee.
Nevertheless I am continually with thee:
thou hast holden me by my right hand.
Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel,
and afterward receive me to glory.
Whom have I in heaven but thee?
and there is none upon earth that I desire beside thee.
My flesh and my heart faileth:
but God is the strength of my heart,
and my portion for ever.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3.22. Temptation ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

1 Peter 1:6-7
Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in
heaviness through manifold temptations: That the trial of your faith, being
much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire,
might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 5:8-10
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion,
walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist stedfast in the faith,
knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in
the world. But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto His eternal glory
by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect,
stablish, strengthen, settle you.

James 4:6-8
But He giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but
giveth grace unto the humble. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the
devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you.

Matthew 4:1-11
Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the
devil. And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, He was afterward an
hungred. And when the tempter came to Him, he said, If Thou be the Son of God,
command that these stones be made bread. But He answered and said, It is
written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth
out of the mouth of God.

Then the devil taketh Him up into the holy city, and setteth Him on a pinnacle
of the temple, And saith unto Him, If thou be the Son of God, cast Thyself
down: for it is written, He shall give His angels charge concerning thee: and
in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot
against a stone. Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt
the Lord thy God.

Again, the devil taketh Him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth Him
all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; And saith unto Him, All
these things will I give Thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. Then
saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt
worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve. Then the devil leaveth
him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto Him.

James 1:12-16
Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall
receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love Him.
Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be
tempted with evil, neither tempteth He any man: But every man is tempted, when
he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived,
it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

1 Corinthians 10:13
There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is
faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but
will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

Ephesians 6:14-18
Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the
breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the
gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be
able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of
salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: Praying
always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit.

1 John 2:15-17
Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love
the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 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.

Matthew 7:15-20
Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly
they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather
grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles? Even so every good tree bringeth forth
good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. A good tree cannot
bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.
Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the
fire. Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.

Romans 8:5-6
For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they
that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded
is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

Psalm 62:5-7
My soul, wait thou only upon God;
for my expectation is from  Him.
He only is my rock and my salvation:
He is my defence; I shall not be moved.
In God is my salvation and my glory:
the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.

Romans 8:13-16
For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do
mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. For as many as are led by the
Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of
bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we
cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we
are the children of God.

1 John 4:4
Greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world.

Hebrews 2:18
For in that He himself hath suffered being tempted, He is able to succour them
that are tempted.

Romans 6:12-14
Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the
lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness
unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead,
and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. For sin shall not
have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.

Colossians 3:2
Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 4. Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This is a demo version only. You must order the complete version to enjoy the
full benefits of this program. Click here for ordering information.


       HITCHCOCK'S BIBLE NAMES DICTIONARY

This dictionary is from "Hitchcock's New and Complete Analysis of the Holy
Bible," published in the late 1800s. It contains well over 2,500 Bible and
Bible-related proper names and their meanings which you can search. Some Hebrew
words of uncertain meaning have been left out.

The dictionary has been edited using colored fonts and changing some
punctuation in order to make the text more readable. An example follows:

Original text
Zepho, Zephon, that sees and observes; that expects or covers

Edited text
Zepho, Zephon = that sees and observes; that expects or covers


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 4.1. - A - ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ


Aaron = a teacher; lofty; mountain of strength
Abaddon = the destroyer
Abagtha = father of the wine-press
Abana = made of stone; a building
Abarim = passages; passengers
Abba = father
Abda = a servant; servitude
Abdeel = a vapor; a cloud of God
Abdi = my servant
Abdiel = servant of God
Abdon = servant; cloud of judgment
Abednego = servant of light; shining
Abel = vanity; breath; vapor
Abel = a city; mourning
Abel-beth-maachah = mourning to the house of Maachah
Abel-maim = mourning of waters
Abel-meholah = mourning of sickness
Abel-mizraim = the mourning of Egyptians
Abel-shittim = mourning of thorns
Abez = an egg; muddy
Abi = my father
Abiah = the Lord is my father
Abi-albon = most intelligent father
Abiasaph = consuming father; gathering
Abiathar = excellent father; father of the remnant
Abib = green fruit; ears of corn
Abidah = father of knowledge
Abidan = father of judgment
Abiel = God my father
Abiezer = father of help
Abigail = the father's joy
Abihail = the father of strength
Abihu = he is my father
Abihud = father of praise; confession
Abijah = the Lord is my father
Abijam = father of the sea
Abilene = the father of mourning
Abimael = a father sent from God
Abimelech = father of the king
Abinadab = father of a vow = or of willingness
Abinoam = father of beauty
Abiram = high father; father of deceit
Abishag = ignorance of the father
Abishai = the present of my father
Abishalom = father of peace
Abishua = father of salvation
Abishur = father of the wall; father of uprightness
Abital = the father of the dew; or of the shadow
Abitub = father of goodness
Abiud = father of praise
Abner = father of light
Abram = high father
Abraham = father of a great multitude
Absalom = father of peace
Accad = a vessel; pitcher; spark
Accho = close; pressed together
Aceldama = field of blood
Achab = brother of the father
Achaia = grief; trouble
Achaicus = a native of Achaia; sorrowing; sad
Achan = or Achar = he that troubleth
Achaz = one that takes = or possesses
Achbor = a rat; bruising
Achim = preparing; revenging; confirming
Achish = thus it is; how is this
Achmetha = brother of death
Achor = trouble
Achsah = adorned; bursting the veil
Achshaph = poison; tricks
Achzib = liar; lying; one that runs
Adadah = testimony of the assembly
Adah = an assembly
Adaiah = the witness of the Lord
Adaliah = one that draws water; poverty; cloud; death
Adam = earthy; red
Adamah = red earth; of blood
Adami = my man; red; earthy; human
Adar = high; eminent
Adbeel = vapor or cloud of God
Addi = my witness; adorned; prey
Addin = adorned; delicious; voluptuous
Addon = basis; foundation; the Lord
Adiel = the witness of the Lord
Adin = Adina = adorned; voluptuous; dainty
Adithaim = assemblies; testimonies
Adlai = my witness; my ornament
Admah = earthy; red; bloody
Admatha = a cloud of death; a mortal vapor
Adna = pleasure; delight
Adnah = eternal rest
Adoni-bezek = the lightning of the Lord; the Lord of lightning
Adonijah = the Lord is my master
Adonikam = the Lord is raised
Adoniram = my Lord is most high; Lord of might and elevation
Adoni-zedek = justice of the Lord; lord of justice
Adoraim = strength of the sea
Adoram = their beauty; their power
Adrammelech = the cloak = glory = grandeur or power of the king
Adramyttium = the court of death
Adriel = the flock of God
Adullam = their testimony; their prey; their ornament
Adummim = earthy; red; bloody things
Aeneas = praised; praiseworthy
Aenon = a cloud; fountain; his eye
Agabus = a locust; the father's joy or feast
Agag = roof; upper floor
Agar = Hagar = a stranger; one that fears
Agee = a valley; deepness
Agrippa = one who causes great pain at his birth
Agur = stranger; gathered together
Ahab = uncle or father's brother
Aharah = a smiling brother; a meadow of a sweet savor
Aharhel = another host; the last sorrow; a brother's sheep
Ahasbai = trusting in me; a grown-up brother
Ahasuerus = prince; head; chief
Ahava = essence; being; generation
Ahaz = one that takes or possesses
Ahaziah = seizure; vision of the Lord
Ahi = my brother; my brethren
Ahiah = brother of the Lord
Ahiam = mother's brother; brother of a nation
Ahian = brother of wine
Ahiezer = brother of assistance
Ahihud = brother of vanity = or of darkness = or of joy = or of praise;
   witty brother
Ahijah = same with Ahiah
Ahikam = a brother who raises up or avenges
Ahilud = a brother born = or begotten
Ahimaaz = a brother of the council
Ahiman = brother of the right hand
Ahimelech = my brother is a king; my king's brother
Ahimoth = brother of death
Ahinadab = a willing brother; brother of a vow
Ahinoam = beauty of the brother; brother of motion
Ahio = his brother; his brethren
Ahira = brother of iniquity; brother of the shepherd
Ahiram = brother of craft = or of protection
Ahisamach = brother of strength
Ahishahur = brother of the morning or dew; brother of blackness
Ahishar = brother of a prince; brother of a song
Ahithophel = brother of ruin or folly
Ahitub = brother of goodness
Ahlab = made of milk = or of fat; brother of the heart
Ahlai = beseeching; sorrowing; expecting
Ahoah = a live brother; my thorn or thistle
Aholah = his tabernacle; his tent
Aholiab = the tent of the father
Aholibah = my tent = or my tabernacle = in her
Aholibamah = my tabernacle is exalted
Ahumai = a meadow of waters; a brother of waters
Ahuzam = their taking or possessing vision
Ahuzzah = possession; seizing; collecting
Ai or Hai = mass; heap
Aiah = vulture = raven; an isle; alas = where is it?
Aiath = same as Ai; an hour; eye; fountain
Aijeleth-Shahar = the land of the morning
Ain = same as Aiath
Ajalon = a chain; strength; a stag
Akkub = foot-print; supplanting; crookedness; lewdness
Akrabbim = scorpions
Alammelech = God is king
Alemeth = hiding; youth; worlds; upon the dead
Alexander = one who assists men
Alian = high
Alleluia = praise the Lord
Allon = an oak; strong
Allon-bachuth = the oak of weeping
Almodad = measure of God
Almon = hidden
Almon-diblathaim = hidden in a cluster of fig trees
Alpheus = a thousand; learned; chief
Alush = mingling together
Alvah = his rising up; his highness
Amad = people of witness; a prey
Amal = labor; iniquity
Amalek = a people that licks up
Aman = mother; fear of them
Amana = integrity; truth; a nurse
Amariah = the Lord says; the integrity of the Lord
Amasa = sparing the people
Amasai = strong
Amashai = the people's gift
Amashi-ali = same as Amaziah
Ami = mother; fear; people
Amaziah = the strength of the Lord
Aminadab = same as Amminadab
Amittai = true; fearing
Ammah = my or his people
Ammi = same as Ammah
Ammiel = the people of God
Ammihud = people of praise
Ammi-nadab = my people is liberal
Ammishaddai = the people of the Almighty; the Almighty is with
      me
Ammizabad = dowry of the people
Ammon = a people; the son of my people
Amnon = faithful and true; tutor
Amok = a valley; a depth
Amon = faithful; true
Amorite = bitter; a rebel; a babbler
Amos = loading; weighty
Amoz = strong; robust
Amplias = large; extensive
Amram = an exalted people; their sheaves; handfuls of corn
Amraphel = one that speaks of secrets
Amzi = strong = mighty
Anab = a grape; a knot
Anah = one who answers; afflicted
Anaharath = dryness = burning = wrath
Anak = a collar; ornament
Anamim = a fountain; answer; affliction
Anammelech = answer; poverty of the king
Anani = a cloud; prophecy; divination
Ananias or Ananiah = the cloud of the Lord
Anathema = separated; set apart
Anathoth or Anath = answer; song; poverty
Andrew = a strong man
Andronicus = a man excelling others
Anem or Anen = an answer; their affliction
Aner = answer; song; affliction
Aniam = a people; the strength or sorrow of people
Anim = answerings; singings; afflicted
Anna = gracious; one who gives
Annas = one who answers; humble
Antichrist = an adversary to Christ
Antioch = speedy as a chariot
Antipas = for all = or against all
Antipatris = for or against the father
Antothijah = answers or songs of the Lord; afflictions
Anub = same as Anab
Apelles = exclusion; separation
Apharsathchites = Apharsites (from a root meaning) dividing or rending
Aphek = Aphekah = Aphik = strength; a rapid torrent
Aphiah = speaking = blowing
Apocalypse = uncovering = revelation
Apocrypha = hidden
Apollonia = perdition = destruction
Apollonius = destroying
Apollos = one who destroys; destroyer
Apollyon = a destroyer
Appaim = face; nostrils
Apphia = productive; fruitful
Aquila = an eagle
Ar = awakening; uncovering
Ara = cursing; seeing
Arab = multiplying; sowing sedition; a window; a locust
Arabia = evening; desert; ravens
Arad = a wild ass; a dragon
Arah = the way; a traveler
Aram = highness = magnificence = one that deceives; curse
Aran = an ark; their curse
Ararat = the curse of trembling
Araunah = ark; song; joyful cry
Arba = four
Archelaus = the prince of the people
Archippus = a master of horses
Arcturus = a gathering together
Ard = one that commands; he that descends
Ardon = ruling; a judgment of malediction
Areli = the light or vision of God
Areopagus = the hill of Mars
Aretas = agreeable = virtuous
Argob = a turf = or fat land
Ariel = altar; light or lion of God
Arimathea = a lion dead to the Lord
Arioch = long; great; tall
Aristarchus = the best prince
Aristobulus = a good counselor
Armageddon = hill of fruits; mountain of Megiddo
Arnon = rejoicing; sunlight
Aroer = heath; tamarisk
Arpad = the light of redemption
Arphaxad = a healer; a releaser
Artaxerxes = the silence of light; fervent to spoil
Artemas = whole = sound
Arumah = high; exalted
Asa = physician; cure
Asahel = creature of God
Asaiah = the Lord hath wrought
Asaph = who gathers together
Asareel = the beatitude of God
Asenath = peril; misfortune
Ashan = smoke
Ashbel = an old fire
Ashdod = effusion; inclination; theft
Asher = happiness
Ashima = crime; offense
Ashkenaz = a fire that spreads
Ashnah = change
Ashriel = same as Asareel
Ashtaroth = Ashtoreth = flocks; sheep; riches
Ashur = who is happy; or walks; or looks
Asia = muddy; boggy
Asiel = the work of God
Askelon = weight; balance; fire of infamy
Asnapper = unhappiness; increase of danger
Asriel = help of God
Assir = prisoner; fettered
Asshurim = liers in want; beholders
Assos = approaching; coming near
Assur = same as Ashur
Assyria = country of Assur or Ashur
Asuppim = gatherings
Asyncritus = incomparable
Atad = a thorn
Atarah = a crown
Ataroth = crowns
Ataroth-addar = crowns of power
Ater = left hand; shut
Athach = thy time
Athaiah = the Lord's time
Athaliah = the time of the Lord
Athlai = my hour or time
Attai = same as Athlai
Attalia = that increases or sends
Attalus = increased = nourished
Augustus = increased = augmented
Ava = or Ivah = iniquity
Aven = iniquity; force; riches; sorrow
Avim = wicked or perverse men
Avith = wicked = perverse
Azaliah = near the Lord
Azaniah = hearing the Lord; the Lord's weapons
Azareel = help of God
Azariah = he that hears the Lord
Azaz = strong one
Azazel = the scape-goat
Azaziah = strength of the Lord
Azekah = strength of walls
Azgad = a strong army; a gang of robbers
Azmaveth = strong death; a he-goat
Azmon = bone of a bone; our strength
Aznoth-tabor = the ears of Tabor; the ears of purity or contrition
Azor = a helper; a court
Azotus = the same as Ashdod
Azriel = same as Asriel
Azrikam = help = revenging
Azubah = forsaken
Azur = he that assists or is assisted
Azzan = their strength
Azzur = same as Azur


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 4.2. - B - ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Baal = master; lord
Baalah = her idol; she that is governed or subdued; a spouse
Baalath = a rejoicing; our proud lord
Baalath-beer = subjected pit
Baal-berith = idol of the covenant
Baale = same as Baalath
Baal-gad = idol of fortune or felicity
Baal-hamon = who rules a crowd
Baal-hermon = possessor of destruction or of a thing cursed
Baali = my idol; lord over me
Baalim = idols; masters; false gods
Baalis = a rejoicing; a proud lord
Baal-meon = idol or master of the house
Baal-peor = master of the opening
Baal-perazim = god of divisions
Baal-shalisha = the god that presides over three; the third idol
Baal-tamar = master of the palm-tree
Baal-zebub = god of the fly
Baal-zephon = the idol or possession of the north; hidden; secret
Baanah = in the answer; in affliction
Baara = a flame; purging
Baaseiah = in making; in pressing together
Baasha = he that seeks, or lays waste
Babel = confusion; mixture
Babylon = same as Babel
Baca = a mulberry-tree
Bahurim = choice; warlike; valiant
Bajith = a house
Balaam = the ancient of the people; the destruction of the people
Baladan = one without judgment
Balak = who lays waste or destroys
Bamah = an eminence or high place
Barabbas = son of shame, confusion
Barachel = that bows before God
Barachias = same as Barachel
Barak = thunder, or in vain
Barjesus = son of Jesus or Joshua
Barjona = son of a Jona; of a dove
Barnabas = son of the prophet, or of consolation
Barsabas = son of return; son of rest
Bartholomew = a son that suspends the waters
Bartimeus = son of the honorable
Baruch = who is blessed
Barzillai = son of contempt; made of iron
Bashan = in the tooth, in ivory
Bashemath = perfumed; confusion of death; in desolation
Bathsheba = the seventh daughter; the daughter of satiety
Bathsuha = same as Bathsheba
Bealiah = the god of an idol; in an assembly
Bealoth = cast under
Bebai = void = empty
Becher = first begotten; first fruits
Bechorath = first fruits
Bedad = alone; solitary
Bedaiah, Bedeiah = the only Lord
Bedan = according to judgment
Beeliada = an open idol
Beelzebub = same as Baalzebub
Beer = a well
Beera = a well; declaring
Beerelim = the well of Elim = or of rains
Beeri = my well
Beer-lahai-roi = the well of him that liveth and seeth me
Beeroth = wells; explaining
Beersheba = the well of an oath; the seventh well
Behemoth = beasts
Bekah = half a shekel
Belah = destroying
Belial = wicked = worthless
Belshazzar = master of the treasure
Belteshazzar = who lays up treasures in secret
Ben = a son
Benaiah = son of the Lord
Ben-ammi = son of my people
Beneberak = sons of lightning
Bene-jaakan = sons of sorrow
Benhadad = son of Hadad, or noise
Benhail = son of strength
Benhanan = son of grace
Benjamin = son of the right hand
Benimi = our sons
Beno = his son
Benoni = son of my sorrow, or pain
Benzoheth = son of separation
Beon = in affliction
Beor = burning; foolish; mad
Bera = a well; declaring
Berachah = blessing; bending the knee
Berachiah = speaking well of the Lord
Beraiah = the choosing of the Lord
Berea = heavy; weighty
Bered = hail
Beri = my son; my corn
Beriah = in fellowship; in envy
Berith = covenant
Bernice = one that brings victory
Berodach-baladan = the son of death
Berothai = wells; a cypress
Berothath = of a well
Besai = a despising; dirty
Besodeiah = counsel of the Lord
Besor = glad news; incarnation
Betah = confidence
Beten = belly
Bethabara = the house of confidence
Bethanath = house of affliction
Bethany = the house of song; the house of affliction
Betharabah = house of sweet smell
Beth-aram = house of height
Beth-aven = the house of vanity; of iniquity of trouble
Beth-azmaveth = house of death's strength
Beth-baalmeon = an idol of the dwelling-place
Beth-barah = the chosen house
Beth-birei = the house of my Creator = the house of my health
Beth-car = the house of the lamb
Beth-dagon = the house of corn, or of fish
Beth-diblathaim = house of dry figs
Beth-el = the house of God
Bethemek = house of deepness
Bether = division, or in the trial
Bethesda = house of pity or mercy
Beth-ezal = a neighbor's house
Beth-gader = a house for a mouse
Beth-gamul = house of recompense, or of the camel
Beth-haccerem = house of the vineyard
Beth-haran = house of grace
Beth-horon = house of wrath
Beth-lebaoth = house of lionesses
Beth-lehem = house of bread
Beth-marcaboth = house of bitterness wiped out
Beth-meon = house of the dwelling-place
Beth-nimrah = house of rebellion
Beth-palet = house of expulsion
Beth-pazzez = house of dividing asunder
Beth-peor = house of gaping, or opening
Bethphage = house of my month, or of early figs
Beth-phelet = same as Beth-palet
Beth-rapha = house of health
Bethsaida = house of fruits, or of food, or of snares
Bethshan = Beth-shean = house of the tooth, or of ivory, or of sleep
Beth-shemesh = house of the sun
Bethuel = filiation of God
Beth-zur = house of a rock
Betonim = bellies
Beulah = married
Bezai = eggs
Bezaleel = in the shadow of God
Bezek = lightning; in the chains
Bezer = vine branches
Bichri = first-born; first fruits
Bidkar = in compunction or sharp pain
Bigthan = in the press; giving meat
Bigvai = in my body
Bildad = old friendship
Bileam = the ancient of the people; the devourer
Bilgah = ancient countenance
Bilhah, Bilhan = who is old or confused
Bilshan = in the tongue
Binea = son of the Lord
Binnui = building
Birsha = an evil; a son who beholds
Bishlam = in peace
Bithiah = daughter of the Lord
Bithron = divisions
Bithynia = violent precipitation
Bizjothjah = despite
Blastus = that buds or brings forth
Boanerges = son of thunder
Boaz, Booz = in strength
Bocheru = the first born
Bochim = the place of weeping; or of mulberry-trees
Bohan = in them
Boskath = in poverty
Boson = taking away
Bozez = mud; bog
Bozrah = in tribulation or distress
Bukki = void
Bukkiah = the dissipation of the Lord
Bul = old age; perishing
Bunah = building; understanding
Bunni = building me
Buz = despised; plundered
Buzi = my contempt


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 4.3. - C - ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Cabbon = as though understanding
Cabul = displeasing; dirty
Caiphas = he that seeks with diligence; one that vomiteth
Cain = possession = or possessed
Cainan = possessor; purchaser
Calah = favorable; opportunity
Calcol = nourishing
Caleb = a dog; a crow; a basket
Caleb-Ephratah = see Ephratah
Calneh = our consummation
Calno = our consummation; altogether himself
Calvary = the place of a skull
Camon = his resurrection
Cana = zeal; jealousy; possession
Canaan = merchant; trader; or that humbles and subdues
Candace = who possesses contrition
Capernaum = the field of repentance; city of comfort
Caphtor = a sphere, buckle, or hand
Cappadocia = the same as Caphtor
Carcas = the covering of a lamb
Charchemish = a lamb; as taken away; withdrawn
Careah = bald; ice
Carmel = circumcised lamb; harvest; full of ears of corn
Carmi = my vineyard; lamb of the waters
Carpus = fruit; fruitful
Carshena = a lamb; sleeping
Casiphia = money; covetousness
Casluhim = hopes of life
Cedron = black; sad
Cenchrea = millet; small pulse
Cephas = a rock or stone
Cesar = a name applied to those who are cut out of the womb
Chalcol = who nourishes, consumes, and sustains the whole
Chaldea = as demons, or as robbers
Charran = a singing or calling out
Chebar = force or strength
Chedorlaomer = roundness of a sheaf
Chelal = as night
Chelub = a basket
Chelluh = all
Chelubai = he altogether against me
Chemarims = black ones
Chemosh = handling; stroking; taking away
Chenaanah = broken in pieces
Chenani = my pillar
Chenaniah = preparation. or disposition, or strength, of the Lord
Chephirah = a little lioness
Cheran = anger
Cherethims, Cherethites = who cut or tear away
Cherith = cutting; piercing; slaying
Chesed = as a devil or a destroyer
Chesil = foolishness
Chesulloth = fearfulness
Chidon = a dart
Chiliab = totality; or the perfection of the father
Chilion = finished; complete; perfect
Chilmad = teaching or learning
Chimham = as they; like to them
Chios = open; opening
Chisleu, Cisleu, Casleu = rashness; confidence
Chislon = hope = trust
Chisloth-tabor = fears; purity
Chittem = those that bruise; gold
Chloe = green herb
Chorazin = the secret; here is a mystery
Chozeba = men liers in wait
Christ = anointed
Chun = making ready
Chushan-rishathaim = blackness of iniquities
Chuza = the seer or prophet
Cilicia = which rolls or overturns
Cis = same as Kish
Clauda = a lamentable voice
Claudia, Claudius = lame
Clement = mild; good; merciful
Cleophas = the whole glory
Cnidus = age
Colhozeh = every prophet
Colosse = punishment; correction
Coniah = strength of the Lord
Coos = top, summit
Corinth = which is satisfied; ornament; beauty
Cornelius = of a horn
Cosam = divining
Coz = a thorn
Cozbi = a liar; sliding away
Crescens = growing; increasing
Crete = carnal; fleshly
Crispus = curled
Cush, Cushan, Cushi = Ethiopians; blackness
Cuth, Cuthah = burning
Cyprus = fair; fairness
Cyrene = a wall; coldness; the floor
Cyrenius = who governs
Cyrus = as miserable; as heir


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 4.4. - D - ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Dabareh = the word; the thing; a bee; obedient
Dabbasheth = flowing with honey
Daberath = same as Dabareh
Dagon = corn; a fish
Dalaiah = the poor of the Lord
Dalmanutha = a bucket; a branch
Dalmatia = deceitful lamps; vain brightness
Dalphon = the house of caves
Damaris = a little woman
Damascus = a sack full of blood; the similitude of burning
Dan = judgment; he that judges
Daniel = judgment of God; God my judge
Dannah = judging
Darah = generation; house of the shepherd or of the companion
Darda = home of knowledge
Darius = he that informs himself
Darkon = of generation; of possession
Dathan = laws or rites
David = well-beloved, dear
Debir = an orator; a word
Deborah = word; thing; a bee
Decapolis = containing ten cities
Dedan = their breasts; friendship; a judge
Dedanim = the descendants of Dedan
Dekar = force
Delaiah = the poor of the Lord
Delilah = poor; small; head of hair
Demas = popular
Demetrius = belonging to corn, or to Ceres
Derbe = a sting
Deuel = the knowledge of God
Deuteronomy = repetition of the law
Diana = luminous = perfect
Diblaim = cluster of figs
Diblath = paste of dry figs
Dibon = abundance of knowledge
Dibon-gad = great understanding; abundance of sons
Dibri = an orator
Dibzahab = Dizahab = where much gold is
Didymus = a twin; double
Diklah, Dildah = his diminishing
Dilean = that is poor
Dimon = where it is red
Dimonah = dunghill
Dinah = judgment; who judges
Dinhabah = he gives judgment
Dionysius = divinely touched
Diotrephes = nourished by Jupiter
Dishan = a threshing
Dishon = fatness; ashes
Dodai = Dodanim = beloved
Dodavah = love
Dodo = his uncle
Doeg = careful = who acts with uneasiness
Dophkah = a knocking
Dor = generation = habitation
Dorcas = a female roe-deer
Dothan = the law; custom
Drusilla = watered by the dew
Dumali = silence; resemblance
Dura = same as Dor


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 4.5. - E to F - ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Ebal = ancient heaps
Ebed = a servant; laborer
Ebed-melech = the king's servant
Eben-ezer = the stone of help
Eber = one that passes; anger
Ebiasaph = a father that gathers or adds
Ebronah = passage over; being angry
Ecclesiastes = a preacher
Ed = witness
Eden = pleasure; delight
Eder = a flock
Edom = red = earthy; of blood
Edrei = a very great mass, or cloud
Eglah = heifer; chariot; round
Eglaim = drops of the sea
Eglon = same as Eglah
Egypt = that troubles or oppresses; anguish
Ehud = he that praises
Eker = barren, feeble
Ekron = barrenness; torn away
Eladah = the eternity of God
Elah = an oak; a curse; perjury
Elam = a young man; a virgin; a secret
Elasah = the doings of God
Elath = a hind; strength; an oak
El-beth-el = the God of Bethel
Eldaah = knowledge of God
Eldad = favored of God; love of God
Elead = witness of God
Elealeh = burnt-offering of God
Eleazar = help of God, court of God
El-elohe-Israel = God = the God of Israel
Eleph = learning
Elhanan = grace, or gift, or mercy of God
Eli = the offering or lifting up
Eli = Eli = my God, my God
Eliab = God is my father; God is the father
Eliada = knowledge of God
Eliah = God the Lord
Eliahba = my God the Father
Eliakim = resurrection of God
Eliam = the people of God
Elias = same as Elijah
Eliasaph = the Lord increaseth
Eliashib = the God of conversion
Eliathah = thou art my God
Elidad = beloved of God
Eliel = God = my God
Elienai = the God of my eyes
Eliezer = help, or court, of my God
Elihoreph = god of winter, or of youth
Elihu = he is my God himself
Elijah = God the Lord, the strong Lord
Elika = pelican of God
Elim = the rams; the strong; stags
Elimelech = my God is king
Elioenai = toward him are mine eyes; or to him are my fountains
Eliphal = a miracle of God
Eliphalet = the God of deliverance
Eliphaz = the endeavor of God
Elisabeth = Elizabeth, the oath, or fullness of God
Elisha = salvation of God
Elishah = it is God; the lamb of God: God that gives help
Elishama = God hearing
Elishaphat = my God judgeth
Elisheba = same as Elisabeth
Elishua = God is my salvation
Eliud = God is my praise
Elizur = God is my strength; my rock; rock of God
Elkanah = God the zealous; the zeal of God
Elkeshai = hardiness or rigor of God
Ellasar = revolting from God
Elkoshite = a man of Elkeshai
Elmodam = the God of measure, or of the garment
Elnaam = God's fairness
Elnathan = God hath given; the gift of God
Elohi = Elohim, God
Elon = oak; grove; strong
Elon-beth-hanan = the house of grace or mercy
Elpaal = God's work
Elpalet = same as Eliphalet
Eltekeh = of grace or mercy
Elteketh = the case of God
Eltolad = the generation of God
Elul = cry or outcry
Eluzai = God is my strength
Elymas = a magician, a corrupter
Elzabad = the dowry of God
Elzaphan = God of the northeast wind
Emims = fears; terrors; formidable; people
Emmanuel = God with us
Emmaus = people despised or obscure
Emmor = an ass
Enam = fountain, open place
Enan = cloud
En-dor = fountain, eye of generation, or of habitation
Eneas = laudable
En-eglaim = eye, or fountain, of calves
En-gannim = eye, or fountain, of protection or of gardens
En-gedi = eye, or fountain, of the goat, or of happiness
En-haddah = quick sight; well of gladness
En-hakkore = fountain of him that called or prayed
En-hazor = the grass of the well
En-mishpat = fountain of judgment
Enoch = dedicated; disciplined
Enon = cloud; mass of darkness; fountain; eye
Enos = mortal man; sick; despaired of; forgetful
En-rimmon = well of weight
En-rogel = the fuller's fountain; the well of searching
En-shemesh = fountain, or eye, of the sun
En-tappuah = fountain of an apple, or of inflation
Epaphras = covered with foam
Epaphroditus = agreeable; handsome
Epenetus = laudable; worthy of praise
Ephah = weary; tired
Epher = dust; lead
Ephes-dammim = effusion of blood
Ephesus = desirable
Ephesians-lal = judging; praying
Ephphatha = be opened
Ephraim = fruitful; increasing
Ephratah, Ephrath = abundance; bearing fruit
Ephron = dust
Epicurean = follower of Epicurus, i.e., of one who gives assistance
Er = watchman
Eran = follower
Erastus = lovely, amiable
Erech; length; health; physic
Eri = my city
Esaias = same as Isaiah
Esar-haddon = that closes the point; joy; cheerfulness
Esau = he that acts or finishes
Esek = contention
Esh-baal = the fire of the idol, or of the ruler
Esh-ban = fire of the sun
Eshcol = bunch of grapes
Eshean = held up
Eshek = violence, force
Eshkalon = same as Askelon
Eshtaol = a strong woman
Eshtemoa = the bosom of a woman
Esli = near me; he who separates
Esmachiah = joined to the Lord
Esrom = dart of joy; division of a song
Esther = secret; hidden
Etam = their bird, their covering
Etham = their strength; their sign
Ethan = strong; the gift of the island
Ethanim = strong; valiant
Ethbaal = toward the idol, or with Baal
Ether = talk
Ethiopia = blackness; heat
Ethnan = gift
Ethni = strong
Eubulus = prudent; good counselor
Eunice = good victory
Euodias = sweet scent
Euphrates = that makes fruitful
Eutychus = happy; fortunate
Eve = living; enlivening
Evi = unjust
Evil-merodach = the fool of Merodach; the fool grinds bitterly
Exodus = going out = departure
Ezbon = hastening to understand
Ezekiel = the strength of God
Ezel = going abroad; walk
Ezem = a bone
Ezer = a help
Ezion-geber = the wood of the man
Ezra = help; court
Ezri = my help


Felix = happy = prosperous
Festus = festive = joyful
Fortunatus = lucky, fortunate


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 4.6. - G - ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Gaal = contempt; abomination
Gaash = tempest; commotion
Gabbai = the back
Gabbatha = high; elevated
Gabriel = God is my strength
Gad = a band; a troop
Gadarenes = men of Gadara, i.e., a place surrounded or walled
Gaddi = my troop; a kid
Gaddiel = goat of God; the Lord my happiness
Gaius = lord; an earthly man
Galal = a roll = a wheel
Galatia = white; the color of milk
Galeed = the heap of witness
Galilee = wheel; revolution
Gallim = who heap up; who cover
Gallio = who sucks, or lives on milk
Gamaliel = recompense of God; camel of God
Gammadims = dwarfs
Gamul = a recompense
Gareb = a scab
Garmites = men of Garmi, ie., bones, or, my cause
Gatam = their lowing; their touch
Gath = a wine-press
Gath-rimmon = the high wine-press
Gaza = strong; a goat
Gazabar = a treasurer
Gazer = a dividing; a sentence
Gazez = a passing over
Gazzam = the fleece of them
Geba = a hill; cup
Gebal = bound; limit
Geber = manly, strong
Gebim = grasshoppers; height
Gedaliah = God is my greatness
Geder = Gederah, Gederoth, a wall
Gederothaim = hedges
Gehazi = valley of sight
Geliloth = rolling, wheel, heap
Gemalli = wares; a camel
Gemariah = accomplishment or perfection of the Lord
Gennesaret = garden of the prince
Genesis = beginning
Genubath = theft; robbery
Gera = pilgrimage, combat; dispute
Gerar = same as Gera
Gergesenes = those who come from pilgrimage or fight
Gerizim = cutters, hatchets
Gershom = a stranger here
Gershon = his banishment; the change of pilgrimage
Geshur = Geshuri = sight of the valley; a walled valley
Gether = the vale of trial or searching
Gethsemane = a very fat or plentiful vale
Geuel = God's redemption
Gezer = dividing, sentence
Giah = to guide; draw out; produce; a groan or sigh
Gibbar = strong, manly
Gibbethon = a back; a high house
Gibeah = a hill
Gibeon = hill; cup; thing lifted up
Giddel = great
Gideon = he that bruises or breaks; a destroyer
Gideoni = same as Gideon
Gihon = valley of grace
Gilalai = a wheel
Gilboa = revolution of inquiry
Gilead = the heap or mass of testimony
Gilgal = wheel; rolling; heap
Giloh = he that rejoices; he that overturns
Gimzo = that bulrush
Ginath = Ginnetho = a garden
Girgashite = who arrives from pilgrimage
Gispa = coming hither
Gittah-hepher = digging; a wine-press
Gittaim = a wine-press
Gittites = men of Gath, ie., of a wine-press
Goath = his touching; his roaring
Gob = cistern; grasshopper
Gog = roof; covering
Golan = passage; revolution
Golgotha = a heap of skulls; something skull-shaped
Goliath = passage; revolution; heap
Gomer = to finish; complete
Gomorrah = rebellious people
Goshen = approaching; drawing near
Gozan = fleece; pasture; who nourisheth the body
Gudgodah = happiness
Guni = a garden; a covering
Gur = the young of a beast; a whelp
Gur-baal = the governor's whelp


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5. Morning & Evening Daily Readings ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

This is a demo version only. You must order the complete version to enjoy the
full benefits of this program. Click here for ordering information.


        MORNING & EVENING: DAILY READINGS
             by Charles Spurgeon



"He wakeneth morning by morning. He wakeneth mine ear to hear as
the learned."  (Isaiah 50:4)

"My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my
mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips; when I remember Thee
upon my bed, and meditate on Thee in the night watches." (Psalms 63:5,6)

---------------------------------------------------------------

This material was scanned from the printed edition published
by Hendrickson.  The scanned material was cleaned and formated
by Ernie Stefanik, Derry PA.

The maintained text files can be found on:

 The Bible Foundation BBS 602-789-7040 (14.4 kbs)

Or by contacting:

 Mark Fuller
 1129 East Loyola Drive
 Tempe, Arizona, 85252
 602-829-8542 (voice)


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5.1. Index - Old Testament ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

 Genesis 1:4      * 01/05/AM
 Genesis 1:4      * 01/05/PM
 Genesis 1:4      * 07/09/PM
 Genesis 1:5      * 06/01/AM
 Genesis 1:5      * 07/10/PM
 Genesis 3:8      * 07/01/PM
 Genesis 4:2      * 01/20/AM
 Genesis 7:16     * 06/05/AM
 Genesis 8:9      * 06/25/PM
 Genesis 8:9      * 03/13/PM
 Genesis 8:11     * 01/29/PM
 Genesis 9:14     * 08/12/PM
 Genesis 9:15     * 08/13/PM
 Genesis 21:6     * 06/15/AM
 Genesis 24:63     * 08/15/AM
 Genesis 25:11     * 02/17/AM
 Genesis 29:26     * 11/14/PM
 Genesis 32:12     * 04/18/PM
 Genesis 35:18     * 03/08/PM
 Genesis 39:12     * 07/25/AM
 Genesis 41:4     * 07/03/AM
 Genesis 42:2     * 05/21/PM
 Genesis 42:8     * 01/04/PM
 Genesis 46:3,4    * 05/12/PM
 Genesis 49:24     * 02/22/AM

 Exodus 3:7      * 08/14/PM
 Exodus 7:12     * 06/28/PM
 Exodus 8:28     * 06/27/AM
 Exodus 14:13     * 07/24/AM
 Exodus 16:21     * 07/16/AM
 Exodus 17:12     * 04/16/PM
 Exodus 20:25     * 07/14/AM
 Exodus 22:6     * 08/24/PM
 Exodus 25:6     * 08/28/AM
 Exodus 28:38     * 01/08/AM
 Exodus 34:20     * 10/15/PM
 Exodus 35:8     * 11/29/PM

 Leviticus 1:4      * 04/13/PM
 Leviticus 6:13     * 07/15/AM
 Leviticus 13:13     * 02/26/PM
 Leviticus 13:13     * 09/29/AM
 Leviticus 19:16,17   * 11/29/AM
 Leviticus 19:36     * 09/04/PM

 Numbers 2:31     * 07/18/AM
 Numbers 6:4      * 08/29/PM
 Numbers 11:11     * 10/07/AM
 Numbers 11:23     * 06/08/PM
 Numbers 12:1     * 10/06/PM
 Numbers 14:2     * 04/30/AM
 Numbers 14:11     * 08/27/AM
 Numbers 21:17     * 06/17/PM
 Numbers 32:6     * 08/05/PM

 Deuteronomy 1:38     * 09/17/PM
 Deuteronomy 5:24     * 07/19/AM
 Deuteronomy 32:5     * 12/22/PM
 Deuteronomy 32:9     * 11/15/AM
 Deuteronomy 33:27     * 11/10/AM
 Deuteronomy 33:27     * 11/11/AM
 Deuteronomy 33:29     * 09/27/AM

 Joshua 1:7     * 05/11/PM
 Joshua 2:21     * 04/18/AM
 Joshua 5:12     * 01/01/AM
 Joshua 6:26     * 05/29/PM
 Joshua 20:3     * 02/04/PM

 Judges 7:20     * 09/20/AM
 Judges 15:18    * 01/21/AM
 Judges 16:6     * 07/08/AM

 Ruth 1:14     * 12/15/AM
 Ruth 2:2      * 08/01/AM
 Ruth 2:3      * 10/25/PM
 Ruth 2:14     * 03/19/PM
 Ruth 2:17     * 08/02/PM

 1 Samuel 1:27     * 09/19/PM
 1 Samuel 7:12     * 12/29/AM
 1 Samuel 13:20    * 03/02/AM
 1 Samuel 15:22    * 10/18/PM
 1 Samuel 18:17    * 04/20/PM
 1 Samuel 27:1     * 10/17/AM
 1 Samuel 30:13    * 03/12/PM

 2 Samuel 1:26     * 02/01/PM
 2 Samuel 2:26     * 12/30/PM
 2 Samuel 5:23     * 02/09/AM
 2 Samuel 5:24     * 01/30/AM
 2 Samuel 7:25     * 01/15/AM
 2 Samuel 9:8     * 05/27/PM
 2 Samuel 9:13     * 05/27/AM
 2 Samuel 11:2     * 01/17/PM
 2 Samuel 15:23    * 05/31/AM
 2 Samuel 18:23    * 01/31/PM
 2 Samuel 21:10    * 03/31/PM
 2 Samuel 23:1     * 08/20/AM
 2 Samuel 23:5     * 12/21/AM

 1 Kings 17:16    * 02/28/PM
 1 Kings 18:40    * 07/17/PM
 1 Kings 18:43    * 09/28/PM
 1 Kings 19:4     * 05/19/PM
 1 Kings 19:8     * 10/05/AM
 1 Kings 22:48    * 01/13/AM

 2 Kings 3:16,17   * 05/16/PM
 2 Kings 6:9     * 01/13/PM
 2 Kings 7:3     * 03/13/AM
 2 Kings 25:30    * 02/14/AM

 1 Chronicles 4:22     * 02/02/PM
 1 Chronicles 4:23     * 06/03/AM
 1 Chronicles 5:22     * 06/08/AM
 1 Chronicles 9:33     * 07/31/PM

 2 Chronicles 25:9     * 11/30/AM
 2 Chronicles 30:27    * 11/03/PM
 2 Chronicles 31:21    * 03/15/PM
 2 Chronicles 32:31    * 06/29/PM

 Ezra 7:22     * 12/13/AM
 Ezra 8:22     * 09/24/AM

 Nehemiah 3:8      * 08/20/PM
 Nehemiah 3:15     * 04/12/PM
 Nehemiah 9:20     * 02/16/PM
 Nehemiah 9:38     * 04/24/AM

 Esther 10:3     * 11/28/PM

 Job 1:5     * 12/25/PM
 Job 1:9     * 01/22/PM
 Job 7:12     * 09/16/PM
 Job 8:11     * 12/27/AM
 Job 10:2     * 02/18/AM
 Job 13:23    * 07/06/PM
 Job 14:1     * 03/10/PM
 Job 14:14    * 05/06/PM
 Job 19:25    * 04/21/AM
 Job 19:27    * 01/10/PM
 Job 22:21    * 05/08/PM
 Job 23:3     * 11/19/PM
 Job 29:2     * 08/11/AM
 Job 35:10    * 10/19/PM
 Job 36:2     * 01/12/PM
 Job 38:16    * 09/05/PM
 Job 38:31    * 03/21/PM
 Job 40:4     * 06/06/AM

 Psalms 4:2      * 04/07/AM
 Psalms 5:8      * 09/11/PM
 Psalms 9:1      * 10/30/AM
 Psalms 10:16     * 04/27/PM
 Psalms 11:5     * 09/03/PM
 Psalms 12:1     * 06/17/AM
 Psalms 17:7     * 05/20/AM
 Psalms 18:35     * 04/09/PM
 Psalms 19:13     * 03/16/PM
 Psalms 22:1     * 04/15/AM
 Psalms 22:7     * 04/14/AM
 Psalms 22:14     * 04/11/AM
 Psalms 22:14     * 04/12/AM
 Psalms 23:4     * 04/08/PM
 Psalms 24:4     * 07/04/PM
 Psalms 24:8     * 12/03/PM
 Psalms 25:5     * 07/08/PM
 Psalms 25:18     * 04/11/PM
 Psalms 26:9     * 09/21/PM
 Psalms 27:1     * 06/16/PM
 Psalms 27:14     * 08/30/AM
 Psalms 28:1     * 07/02/PM
 Psalms 28:9     * 04/15/PM
 Psalms 29:2     * 08/16/AM
 Psalms 30:5     * 05/13/AM
 Psalms 30:6     * 03/10/AM
 Psalms 31:4     * 08/19/PM
 Psalms 31:5     * 08/27/PM
 Psalms 32:5     * 09/14/PM
 Psalms 33:13     * 09/28/AM
 Psalms 33:21     * 07/02/AM
 Psalms 35:3     * 03/05/PM
 Psalms 36:8     * 03/04/PM
 Psalms 36:9     * 11/04/PM
 Psalms 36:9     * 10/16/PM
 Psalms 37:4     * 06/14/AM
 Psalms 38:21     * 05/25/AM
 Psalms 39:1     * 03/14/PM
 Psalms 39:12     * 03/16/AM
 Psalms 42:9     * 07/21/PM
 Psalms 45:2     * 06/21/AM
 Psalms 45:7     * 05/29/AM
 Psalms 45:8     * 02/15/PM
 Psalms 46:1     * 05/03/PM
 Psalms 47:4     * 11/11/PM
 Psalms 51:1     * 08/29/AM
 Psalms 51:10     * 10/31/AM
 Psalms 51:14     * 04/07/PM
 Psalms 52:8     * 08/17/AM
 Psalms 55:22     * 05/26/AM
 Psalms 56:9     * 07/13/PM
 Psalms 61:2     * 09/22/PM
 Psalms 62:5     * 02/28/AM
 Psalms 62:8     * 09/01/PM
 Psalms 65:11     * 08/01/PM
 Psalms 65:11     * 10/18/AM
 Psalms 66:2     * 09/30/AM
 Psalms 66:20     * 05/24/AM
 Psalms 67:6     * 04/27/AM
 Psalms 68:10     * 12/08/PM
 Psalms 68:28     * 11/15/PM
 Psalms 72:19     * 08/06/PM
 Psalms 73:22     * 07/28/AM
 Psalms 73:23     * 07/29/AM
 Psalms 73:24     * 09/01/AM
 Psalms 74:16     * 12/23/PM
 Psalms 74:17     * 12/01/AM
 Psalms 76:3     * 06/11/PM
 Psalms 84:6     * 09/13/AM
 Psalms 84:7     * 12/14/AM
 Psalms 84:11     * 10/01/PM
 Psalms 89:19     * 01/23/AM
 Psalms 91:3     * 01/24/AM
 Psalms 91:5     * 04/22/PM
 Psalms 91:9     * 02/27/AM
 Psalms 92:4     * 08/14/AM
 Psalms 93:2     * 11/18/PM
 Psalms 97:1     * 08/12/AM
 Psalms 97:10     * 06/07/AM
 Psalms 100:2     * 01/09/PM
 Psalms 100:4     * 11/05/PM
 Psalms 101:1     * 09/12/PM
 Psalms 102:13,14   * 07/16/PM
 Psalms 103:2     * 07/09/AM
 Psalms 103:3     * 05/31/PM
 Psalms 104:16    * 08/13/AM
 Psalms 104:16    * 10/24/AM
 Psalms 107:7     * 05/22/AM
 Psalms 107:8     * 12/01/PM
 Psalms 109:4     * 01/15/PM
 Psalms 111:9     * 08/26/AM
 Psalms 112:7     * 09/15/AM
 Psalms 113:8     * 07/26/PM
 Psalms 118:8     * 03/07/PM
 Psalms 118:12    * 04/06/PM
 Psalms 119:15    * 10/12/AM
 Psalms 119:37    * 01/20/PM
 Psalms 119:49    * 04/28/AM
 Psalms 119:53    * 11/02/PM
 Psalms 119:57    * 05/13/PM
 Psalms 120:5     * 09/05/AM
 Psalms 126:3     * 06/09/AM
 Psalms 138:5     * 02/01/AM
 Psalms 138:8     * 05/23/AM
 Psalms 139:17    * 04/30/PM
 Psalms 148:14    * 09/15/PM
 Psalms 149:2     * 09/22/AM
 Psalms 149:4     * 04/29/PM

 Proverbs 1:33     * 07/06/AM
 Proverbs 11:25     * 08/21/AM
 Proverbs 15:33     * 04/05/PM
 Proverbs 16:20     * 05/05/PM
 Proverbs 16:33     * 12/19/AM
 Proverbs 18:12     * 03/06/PM
 Proverbs 24:33,34   * 11/24/PM
 Proverbs 27:23     * 12/18/PM
 Proverbs 30:8     * 06/13/PM
 Proverbs 30:26     * 11/20/PM

 Ecclesiastes 1:7      * 10/26/PM
 Ecclesiastes 1:14     * 12/02/PM
 Ecclesiastes 7:8      * 12/30/AM
 Ecclesiastes 9:4      * 09/30/PM
 Ecclesiastes 9:10     * 11/26/AM
 Ecclesiastes 10:7     * 05/19/AM
 Ecclesiastes 10:9     * 11/17/PM
 Ecclesiastes 11:6     * 09/20/PM

 Song of Solomon 1:2      * 01/08/PM
 Song of Solomon 1:2      * 04/01/AM
 Song of Solomon 1:4      * 01/01/PM
 Song of Solomon 1:4      * 01/23/PM
 Song of Solomon 1:4      * 08/07/AM
 Song of Solomon 1:7      * 02/03/PM
 Song of Solomon 1:7      * 09/03/AM
 Song of Solomon 1:13     * 04/13/AM
 Song of Solomon 1:16     * 05/22/PM
 Song of Solomon 2:1      * 05/01/PM
 Song of Solomon 2:3      * 08/25/AM
 Song of Solomon 2:8      * 03/20/AM
 Song of Solomon 2:10     * 04/25/AM
 Song of Solomon 2:12     * 04/24/PM
 Song of Solomon 2:15     * 05/30/AM
 Song of Solomon 2:16,17    * 06/19/PM
 Song of Solomon 3:1      * 01/19/AM
 Song of Solomon 3:4      * 09/29/PM
 Song of Solomon 4:7      * 12/02/AM
 Song of Solomon 4:7      * 12/03/AM
 Song of Solomon 4:12     * 01/07/PM
 Song of Solomon 4:12     * 11/18/AM
 Song of Solomon 4:16     * 03/01/AM
 Song of Solomon 5:1      * 06/18/PM
 Song of Solomon 5:2      * 09/24/PM
 Song of Solomon 5:4      * 09/27/PM
 Song of Solomon 5:6      * 03/29/PM
 Song of Solomon 5:8      * 08/22/AM
 Song of Solomon 5:11     * 10/28/PM
 Song of Solomon 5:13     * 05/01/AM
 Song of Solomon 5:16     * 03/09/AM
 Song of Solomon 7:11,12    * 05/09/PM
 Song of Solomon 7:13     * 10/01/AM
 Song of Solomon 8:6      * 10/13/PM
 Song of Solomon 8:13     * 10/30/PM

 Isaiah 2:3     * 04/04/PM
 Isaiah 3:10     * 04/14/PM
 Isaiah 7:14     * 12/25/AM
 Isaiah 14:10    * 06/26/AM
 Isaiah 21:11    * 08/06/AM
 Isaiah 26:4     * 07/05/PM
 Isaiah 30:18    * 12/09/AM
 Isaiah 32:18    * 12/09/PM
 Isaiah 33:16    * 11/09/PM
 Isaiah 33:17    * 11/16/PM
 Isaiah 33:21    * 11/24/AM
 Isaiah 36:5     * 10/07/PM
 Isaiah 37:22    * 07/21/AM
 Isaiah 40:5     * 12/24/PM
 Isaiah 40:9     * 06/25/AM
 Isaiah 40:9     * 11/23/PM
 Isaiah 40:11    * 05/14/PM
 Isaiah 40:11    * 10/17/PM
 Isaiah 41:1     * 01/02/PM
 Isaiah 41:9     * 05/17/PM
 Isaiah 41:10    * 12/22/AM
 Isaiah 41:14    * 01/16/AM
 Isaiah 43:6     * 10/20/PM
 Isaiah 43:24    * 05/23/PM
 Isaiah 44:3     * 11/06/AM
 Isaiah 44:22    * 02/10/PM
 Isaiah 45:19    * 08/21/PM
 Isaiah 48:8     * 12/16/PM
 Isaiah 48:10    * 03/03/AM
 Isaiah 49:8     * 01/03/AM
 Isaiah 49:16    * 11/07/AM
 Isaiah 51:3     * 06/01/PM
 Isaiah 51:5     * 08/31/AM
 Isaiah 53:5     * 03/31/AM
 Isaiah 53:6     * 04/03/PM
 Isaiah 53:10    * 04/02/PM
 Isaiah 53:12    * 03/30/AM
 Isaiah 54:1     * 08/28/PM
 Isaiah 54:5     * 06/18/AM
 Isaiah 54:11    * 12/15/PM
 Isaiah 54:12    * 12/13/PM
 Isaiah 54:17    * 11/05/AM
 Isaiah 57:18    * 08/30/PM
 Isaiah 58:11    * 12/27/PM
 Isaiah 59:5     * 08/08/AM
 Isaiah 62:12    * 03/11/PM
 Isaiah 63:1     * 01/14/AM
 Isaiah 63:7     * 01/25/AM
 Isaiah 64:6     * 10/27/PM
 Isaiah 65:19    * 08/23/AM

 Jeremiah 2:2     * 12/17/AM
 Jeremiah 2:18     * 07/20/PM
 Jeremiah 3:14     * 07/22/AM
 Jeremiah 8:20     * 12/31/PM
 Jeremiah 15:21    * 10/10/PM
 Jeremiah 16:20    * 05/04/AM
 Jeremiah 17:14    * 08/30/PM
 Jeremiah 17:17    * 04/29/AM
 Jeremiah 23:6     * 01/31/AM
 Jeremiah 31:3     * 02/29/AM
 Jeremiah 31:3     * 12/20/AM
 Jeremiah 31:33    * 01/09/AM
 Jeremiah 32:17    * 06/30/PM
 Jeremiah 32:41    * 09/21/AM
 Jeremiah 33:3     * 09/09/AM
 Jeremiah 49:23    * 09/07/PM
 Jeremiah 51:51    * 08/18/AM

 Lamentations 3:21     * 05/28/PM
 Lamentations 3:24     * 11/16/AM
 Lamentations 3:40     * 03/30/PM
 Lamentations 3:41     * 10/11/AM
 Lamentations 3:58     * 11/20/AM

 Ezekiel 3:7     * 04/28/PM
 Ezekiel 15:2     * 01/22/AM
 Ezekiel 16:6     * 07/07/PM
 Ezekiel 16:10    * 12/21/PM
 Ezekiel 20:41    * 03/28/PM
 Ezekiel 33:22    * 01/06/PM
 Ezekiel 34:26    * 02/24/AM
 Ezekiel 35:10    * 02/17/PM
 Ezekiel 36:26    * 08/15/PM
 Ezekiel 36:37    * 02/19/AM

 Daniel 3:16,18    * 06/24/PM
 Daniel 5:27     * 06/12/AM
 Daniel 9:8      * 06/14/PM
 Daniel 9:26     * 01/16/PM
 Daniel 10:11     * 10/02/PM
 Daniel 11:32     * 08/04/AM

 Hosea 3:1      * 02/04/AM
 Hosea 5:7      * 12/12/PM
 Hosea 5:15     * 07/25/PM
 Hosea 7:8      * 06/23/AM
 Hosea 10:12     * 04/01/PM
 Hosea 11:4     * 05/20/PM
 Hosea 12:2     * 11/22/AM
 Hosea 13:5     * 10/31/PM
 Hosea 14:4     * 10/22/AM
 Hosea 14:8     * 09/08/AM

 Joe 1:3     * 07/11/PM
 Joe 2:8     * 07/18/PM
 Joe 2:11     * 07/24/PM
 Joe 2:13     * 12/18/AM

 Amos 9:9      * 06/20/AM

 Obadiah 1:11     * 07/23/AM

 Jonah 1:3     * 02/25/PM
 Jonah 2:9     * 02/26/AM
 Jonah 4:9     * 07/13/AM

 Micah 2:10     * 02/07/AM
 Micah 2:13     * 08/24/AM
 Micah 5:2     * 02/27/PM
 Micah 5:4     * 08/19/AM

 Nahum 1:2      * 09/12/AM
 Nahum 1:3      * 02/22/PM

 Habakkuk 1:8     * 09/10/PM
 Habbakkuk 3:6     * 12/12/AM

 Zephaniah 1:5     * 11/14/AM

 Hagggai 1:9     * 10/26/AM
 Haggai 2:7     * 08/04/PM

 Zecchariah 1:8     * 09/26/AM
 Zechariah 1:12,13   * 02/24/PM
 Zecchariah 1:20     * 12/05/PM
 Zechariah 3:1     * 11/27/AM
 Zechariah 4:10     * 11/26/PM
 Zechariah 6:13     * 06/22/AM
 Zechariah 11:2     * 09/26/PM
 Zechariah 14:7     * 10/04/AM
 Zechariah 14:8     * 07/01/AM

 Malachi 3:2     * 10/15/AM
 Malachi 3:6     * 11/02/AM


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5.2. Index - New Testament ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

 Matthew 1:21     * 02/08/AM
 Matthew 1:21     * 02/08/PM
 Matthew 3:7      * 02/25/AM
 Matthew 3:16     * 03/03/PM
 Matthew 4:1      * 02/20/PM
 Matthew 5:9      * 03/17/PM
 Matthew 5:43     * 03/12/AM
 Matthew 6:9      * 10/29/AM
 Matthew 6:26     * 01/26/AM
 Matthew 7:7      * 12/05/AM
 Matthew 9:6      * 08/10/PM
 Matthew 10:25     * 11/10/PM
 Matthew 10:34     * 12/28/PM
 Matthew 11:25     * 02/05/PM
 Matthew 11:28     * 12/16/AM
 Matthew 12:15     * 05/07/AM
 Matthew 12:20     * 07/19/PM
 Matthew 14:30     * 01/14/PM
 Matthew 15:23     * 10/09/PM
 Matthew 15:27     * 03/27/PM
 Matthew 19:16     * 06/02/PM
 Matthew 20:8     * 12/20/PM
 Matthew 22 42     * 12/29/PM
 Matthew 24:39     * 11/01/PM
 Matthew 26:39     * 03/22/AM
 Matthew 26:56     * 03/27/AM
 Matthew 27:14     * 04/02/AM
 Matthew 27:51     * 04/19/AM
 Matthew 28:1     * 07/14/PM
 Matthew 28:20     * 05/11/AM
 Matthew 28:20     * 12/26/PM

 Mark 1:18     * 06/20/PM
 Mark 1:30     * 09/02/AM
 Mark 1:41     * 09/04/AM
 Mark 2:4      * 09/07/AM
 Mark 3:13     * 09/10/AM
 Mark 4:36     * 09/14/AM
 Mark 8:38     * 03/26/PM
 Mark 9:15     * 08/26/PM
 Mark 9:19     * 09/17/AM
 Mark 9:23     * 08/08/PM
 Mark 9:23     * 09/23/PM
 Mark 10:21     * 02/23/PM
 Mark 11:22     * 03/07/AM
 Mark 14:14     * 11/08/PM
 Mark 14:72     * 07/30/AM
 Mark 15:23     * 08/18/PM
 Mark 16:9     * 07/15/PM
 Mark 16:9     * 08/09/PM
 Mark 16:16     * 10/05/PM

 Luke 2:18     * 01/26/PM
 Luke 2:19     * 01/27/PM
 Luke 2:20     * 01/28/PM
 Luke 3:4      * 01/03/PM
 Luke 4:18     * 11/25/AM
 Luke 5:4      * 10/08/AM
 Luke 6:12     * 11/12/PM
 Luke 8:13     * 01/11/AM
 Luke 8:42     * 08/03/PM
 Luke 8:47     * 02/14/PM
 Luke 10:21     * 03/24/PM
 Luke 10:40     * 01/24/PM
 Luke 11:4     * 02/09/PM
 Luke 11:27,28   * 06/24/AM
 Luke 14:10     * 12/23/AM
 Luke 15:2     * 09/13/PM
 Luke 15:18     * 02/18/PM
 Luke 18:1     * 11/13/PM
 Luke 19:40     * 03/23/PM
 Luke 22:32     * 01/11/PM
 Luke 22:44     * 03/23/AM
 Luke 22:46     * 10/23/PM
 Luke 22:48     * 03/25/AM
 Luke 23:26     * 04/05/AM
 Luke 23:27     * 04/09/AM
 Luke 23:31     * 04/08/AM
 Luke 23:33     * 04/10/AM
 Luke 24:16     * 10/29/PM
 Luke 24:27     * 01/18/PM
 Luke 24:33,35   * 05/25/PM
 Luke 24:38     * 10/21/PM
 Luke 24:45     * 01/19/PM

 John 1:14     * 05/10/PM
 John 1:16     * 01/27/AM
 John 1:41     * 02/19/PM
 John 3:7     * 03/06/AM
 John 3:13     * 03/25/PM
 John 4:14     * 10/06/AM
 John 4:48     * 09/02/PM
 John 5:8     * 05/07/PM
 John 5:13     * 05/08/AM
 John 5:39     * 06/09/PM
 John 5:39     * 06/10/PM
 John 6:37     * 07/29/PM
 John 6:37     * 07/30/PM
 John 6:67     * 10/23/AM
 John 7:37     * 12/31/AM
 John 10:9     * 12/17/PM
 John 10:27    * 09/18/PM
 John 10:28    * 06/16/AM
 John 11:4     * 08/17/PM
 John 12:2     * 11/21/AM
 John 12:21    * 04/17/PM
 John 13:5     * 10/24/PM
 John 14:16    * 02/12/PM
 John 14:21    * 05/12/AM
 John 14:26    * 10/12/PM
 John 15:4     * 03/09/PM
 John 15:4     * 11/13/AM
 John 15:9     * 03/18/PM
 John 15:19    * 10/28/AM
 John 16:15    * 10/22/PM
 John 16:32    * 03/21/AM
 John 16:33    * 05/03/AM
 John 17:15    * 05/02/AM
 John 17:17    * 07/04/AM
 John 17:22    * 06/30/AM
 John 17:23    * 07/31/AM
 John 17:24    * 03/22/PM
 John 18:8     * 03/26/AM
 John 19:5     * 07/22/PM
 John 19:16    * 04/03/AM
 John 21:12    * 10/16/AM

 Acts 1:8      * 11/07/PM
 Acts 2:4      * 06/19/AM
 Acts 4:13     * 02/11/AM
 Acts 5:31     * 04/22/AM
 Acts 8:30     * 02/21/PM
 Acts 8:37     * 08/25/PM
 Acts 9:11     * 11/03/AM
 Acts 10:38     * 07/28/PM
 Acts 13:39     * 05/15/AM
 Acts 14:22     * 03/08/AM
 Acts 14:22     * 05/26/PM
 Acts 16:14     * 12/10/PM
 Acts 18:10     * 12/04/AM
 Acts 27:23     * 04/10/PM

 Romans 1:7      * 07/05/AM
 Romans 3:26     * 09/25/AM
 Romans 3:31     * 01/25/PM
 Romans 4:20     * 03/19/AM
 Romans 6:6      * 05/30/PM
 Romans 7:13     * 03/11/AM
 Romans 8:1      * 02/13/PM
 Romans 8:12     * 02/03/AM
 Romans 8:17     * 05/14/AM
 Romans 8:23     * 06/23/PM
 Romans 8:23     * 08/16/PM
 Romans 8:23     * 12/04/PM
 Romans 8:28     * 08/05/AM
 Romans 8:30     * 05/28/AM
 Romans 8:30     * 10/11/PM
 Romans 8:33     * 07/27/PM
 Romans 8:34     * 04/21/PM
 Romans 8:37     * 04/23/AM
 Romans 9:15     * 11/25/PM
 Romans 11:26     * 01/21/PM
 Romans 11:36     * 11/17/AM
 Romans 12:2     * 10/14/PM
 Romans 14:8     * 06/10/AM

 1 Corinthians 1:2     * 07/12/AM
 1 Corinthians 1:28     * 12/07/AM
 1 Corinthians 1:30     * 09/25/PM
 1 Corinthians 2:12     * 02/29/PM
 1 Corinthians 3:1     * 10/19/AM
 1 Corinthians 3:23     * 01/12/AM
 1 Corinthians 7:20     * 06/27/PM
 1 Corinthians 9:22     * 12/07/PM
 1 Corinthians 10:12    * 03/14/AM
 1 Corinthians 11:24    * 04/26/AM
 1 Corinthians 15:20    * 05/10/AM
 1 Corinthians 15:45    * 12/26/AM
 1 Corinthians 15:48    * 12/06/AM

 2 Corinthians 1:5     * 02/12/AM
 2 Corinthians 4:18     * 01/29/AM
 2 Corinthians 5:14     * 10/21/AM
 2 Corinthians 5:21     * 04/04/AM
 2 Corinthians 6:16     * 05/05/AM
 2 Corinthians 6:17     * 09/11/AM
 2 Corinthians 7:6     * 02/20/AM
 2 Corinthians 7:10     * 10/13/AM
 2 Corinthians 8:9     * 12/24/AM
 2 Corinthians 11:22    * 06/06/PM
 2 Corinthians 12:9     * 03/04/AM
 2 Corinthians 12:9     * 11/04/AM

 Galatians 2:10     * 03/17/AM
 Galatians 2:20     * 12/14/PM
 Galatians 2:20     * 12/28/AM
 Galatians 3:26     * 03/18/AM
 Galatians 5:1      * 09/19/AM
 Galatians 5:17     * 06/02/AM
 Galatians 5:18     * 09/06/PM
 Galatians 5:25     * 09/18/AM

 Ephesians 1:3     * 05/09/AM
 Ephesians 1:6     * 09/23/AM
 Ephesians 1:7     * 11/27/PM
 Ephesians 1:11     * 01/30/PM
 Ephesians 1:11     * 08/02/AM
 Ephesians 1:14     * 07/20/AM
 Ephesians 1:19,20   * 09/08/PM
 Ephesians 2:19     * 07/10/AM
 Ephesians 3:8     * 03/02/PM
 Ephesians 3:8     * 08/22/PM
 Ephesians 3:17     * 08/23/PM
 Ephesians 3:19     * 03/28/AM
 Ephesians 4:15     * 10/20/AM
 Ephesians 4:30     * 11/21/PM
 Ephesians 5:25     * 03/20/PM
 Ephesians 6:18     * 02/06/AM

 Philippians 1:21     * 01/07/AM
 Philippians 1:27     * 05/24/PM
 Philippians 2:8     * 06/03/PM
 Philippians 2:15     * 09/06/AM
 Philippians 3:8     * 10/14/AM
 Philippians 3:10     * 11/22/PM
 Philippians 4:11     * 02/16/AM
 Philippians 4:12     * 02/10/AM

 Colossians 1:5     * 10/02/AM
 Colossians 1:28     * 01/28/AM
 Colossians 2:6     * 11/08/AM
 Colossians 2:6     * 11/09/AM
 Colossians 2:9,10    * 05/18/AM
 Colossians 3:4     * 08/10/AM
 Colossians 3:24     * 12/11/PM
 Colossians 4:2     * 01/02/AM

 1 Thessalonians 1:4     * 07/17/AM
 1 Thessalonians 2:18     * 08/07/PM
 1 Thessalonians 4:14     * 06/29/AM
 1 Thessalonians 4:17     * 12/10/AM
 1 Thessalonians 5:6     * 03/05/AM
 1 Thessalonians 5:24     * 12/11/AM
 1 Thessalonians 5:25     * 07/07/AM

 2 Thessalonians 2:16     * 08/11/PM

 1Timothy 3:16     * 06/04/PM
 1Timothy 6:17     * 05/16/AM

 2Timothy 1:9     * 06/12/PM
 2Timothy 2:1     * 03/15/AM
 2Timothy 2:11     * 10/27/AM
 2Timothy 2:12     * 07/03/PM
 2Timothy 2:19     * 06/21/PM
 2Timothy 4:8     * 01/10/AM
 2Timothy 4:18     * 07/12/PM

 Titus 3:4     * 06/04/AM
 Titus 3:9     * 11/19/AM

 Philemon 1:2     * 11/01/AM

 Hebrews 1:14     * 10/03/AM
 Hebrews 2:14     * 04/20/AM
 Hebrews 2:18     * 10/03/PM
 Hebrews 4:9     * 01/18/AM
 Hebrews 5:7     * 03/24/AM
 Hebrews 5:8     * 03/29/AM
 Hebrews 9:20     * 11/06/PM
 Hebrews 9:22     * 02/02/AM
 Hebrews 11:13    * 05/02/PM
 Hebrews 12:2     * 06/28/AM
 Hebrews 12:11    * 05/18/PM
 Hebrews 12:23    * 05/15/PM
 Hebrews 12:24    * 04/17/AM
 Hebrews 12:27    * 06/22/PM
 Hebrews 13:5     * 02/21/AM
 Hebrews 13:5     * 02/23/AM
 Hebrews 13:13    * 04/06/AM

 James 5:16     * 02/06/PM

 1Peter 1:2     * 07/12/AM
 1Peter 1:7     * 11/12/AM
 1Peter 1:19     * 04/16/AM
 1Peter 1:23     * 05/04/PM
 1Peter 2:3     * 05/21/AM
 1Peter 2:7     * 03/01/PM
 1Peter 5:7     * 01/06/AM
 1Peter 5:10     * 07/11/AM

 2Peter 1:4     * 06/26/PM
 2Peter 1:4     * 07/27/AM
 2Peter 1:4     * 09/16/AM
 2Peter 1:5,6    * 07/26/AM
 2Peter 3:18     * 01/04/AM
 2Peter 3:18     * 02/15/AM

 1John 1:6     * 11/23/AM
 1John 1:7     * 07/23/PM
 1John 1:7     * 08/31/PM
 1John 2:1     * 10/04/PM
 1John 2:6     * 05/17/AM
 1John 3:1,2    * 02/13/AM
 1John 4:8     * 06/05/PM
 1John 4:13     * 05/06/AM
 1John 4:14     * 02/05/AM
 1John 4:19     * 06/11/AM

 2John 1:2     * 10/25/AM

 3John 1:3     * 11/28/AM

 Jude 1:1     * 07/12/AM
 Jude 1:20    * 10/08/PM
 Jude 1:24    * 10/09/AM
 Jude 1:24    * 10/10/AM

 Revelation 1:13     * 12/06/PM
 Revelation 2:4      * 02/11/PM
 Revelation 3:4      * 12/08/AM
 Revelation 3:7      * 06/15/PM
 Revelation 3:14     * 04/19/PM
 Revelation 3.19     * 06/07/PM
 Revelation 3:20     * 04/25/PM
 Revelation 4:4      * 09/09/PM
 Revelation 5:6      * 04/23/PM
 Revelation 11:12     * 02/07/PM
 Revelation 12:7     * 11/30/PM
 Revelation 14:1     * 01/17/AM
 Revelation 16:15     * 04/26/PM
 Revelation 21:1     * 12/19/PM
 Revelation 21:23     * 08/03/AM
 Revelation 21:23     * 08/09/AM
 Revelation 22:17     * 06/13/AM


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5.3. Mornings ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

January  1-10
January  11-20
January  21-31

February  1-10
February 11-20
February 21-29

March  1-10

Note this is a Demo version only!! The full version of this program must be
ordered in order for your to enjoy the benefits of the full program.

Click here for ordering information.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5.3.1. January 1-10 ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

* 01/01/AM

"They did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year."
                          --Joshua 5:12

  Israel's weary wanderings were all over, and the promised
rest was attained. No more moving tents, fiery serpents, fierce
Amalekites, and howling wildernesses: they came to the land
which flowed with milk and honey, and they ate the old corn of
the land. Perhaps this year, beloved Christian reader, this may
be thy case or mine. Joyful is the prospect, and if faith be in
active exercise, it will yield unalloyed delight. To be with
Jesus in the rest which remaineth for the people of God, is a
cheering hope indeed, and to expect this glory so soon is a
double bliss. Unbelief shudders at the Jordan which still rolls
between us and the goodly land, but let us rest assured that we
have already experienced more ills than death at its worst can
cause us. Let us banish every fearful thought, and rejoice with
exceeding great joy, in the prospect that this year we shall
begin to be "for ever with the Lord."

  A part of the host will this year tarry on earth, to do
service for their Lord. If this should fall to our lot, there is
no reason why the New Year's text should not still be true. "We
who have believed do enter into rest." The Holy Spirit is the
earnest of our inheritance; He gives us "glory begun below." In
heaven they are secure, and so are we preserve in Christ Jesus;
there they triumph over their enemies, and we have victories
too. Celestial spirits enjoy communion with their Lord, and this
is not denied to us; they rest in His love, and we have perfect
peace in Him: they hymn His praise, and it is our privilege to
bless Him too. We will this year gather celestial fruits on
earthly ground, where faith and hope have made the desert like
the garden of the Lord. Man did eat angels' food of old, and why
not now ? O for grace to feed on Jesus, and so to eat of the
fruit of the land of Canaan this year!



* 01/02/AM

"Continue in prayer."
                        --Colossians 4:2

  It is interesting to remark how large a portion of Sacred
Writ is occupied with the subject of prayer, either in
furnishing examples, enforcing precepts, or pronouncing
promises. We scarcely open the Bible before we read, "Then
began men to call upon the name of the Lord;" and just as we are
about to close the volume, the "Amen" of an earnest supplication
meets our ear. Instances are plentiful. Here we find a wrestling
Jacob--there a Daniel who prayed three times a day--and a David
who with all his heart called upon his God. On the mountain we
see Elias; in the dungeon Paul and Silas. We have multitudes of
commands, and myriads of promises. What does this teach us, but
the sacred importance and necessity of prayer? We may be certain
that whatever God has made prominent in His Word, He intended to
be conspicuous in our lives. If He has said much about prayer,
it is because He knows we have much need of it. so deep are our
necessities, that until we are in heaven we must not cease to
pray. Dost thou want nothing? Then, I fear thou dost not know
thy poverty. Hast thou no mercy to ask of God?  Then, may the
Lord's mercy show thee thy misery! A prayerless soul is a
Christless soul. Prayer is the lisping of the believing infant,
the shout of the fighting believer, the requiem of the dying
saint falling asleep in Jesus. It is the breath, the watchword,
the comfort, the strength, the honour of a Christian. If thou be
a child of God, thou wilt seek thy Father's face, and live in
thy Father's love. Pray that this year thou mayst be holy,
humble, zealous, and patient; have closer communion with Christ,
and enter oftener into the banqueting-house of His love. Pray
that thou mayst be an example and a blessing unto others, and
that thou mayst live more to the glory of thy Master. The motto
for this year must be, "Continue in prayer."

* 01/03/AM

"I will give thee for a covenant of the people."
                          --Isaiah 49:8

  Jesus Christ is Himself the sum and substance of the
covenant, and as one of its gifts. He is the property of every
believer. Believer, canst thou estimate what thou hast gotten in
Christ? "In Him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily."
Consider that word "God" and its infinity, and then meditate
upon "perfect man" and all his beauty; for all that Christ, as
God and man, ever had, or can have, is thine--out of pure free
favour, passed over to thee to be thine entailed property
forever. Our blessed Jesus, as God, is omniscient, omnipresent,
omnipotent. Will it not console you to know that all these great
and glorious attributes are altogether yours?  Has he power?
That power is yours to support and strengthen you, to overcome
your enemies, and to preserve you even to the end. Has He love?
Well, there is not a drop of love in His heart which is not
yours; you may dive into the immense ocean of His love, and you
may say of it all, "It is mine." Hath He justice? It may seem a
stern attribute, but even that is yours, for He will by His
justice see to it that all which is promised to you in the
covenant of grace shall be most certainly secured to you. And
all that He has as _perfect man_ is yours. As a perfect man the
Father's delight was upon Him. He stood accepted by the Most
High. O believer, God's acceptance of Christ is thine
acceptance; for knowest thou not that the love which the Father
set on a perfect Christ, He sets on thee _now_? For all that
Christ did is thine. That perfect righteousness which Jesus
wrought out, when through His stainless life He kept the law and
made it honourable, is thine, and is imputed to thee. Christ is
in the covenant.

   "My God, I am thine--what a comfort divine!
   What a blessing to know that the Saviour is mine!
   In the heavenly Lamb thrice happy I am,
   And my heart it doth dance at the sound of His name."

* 01/04/AM

"Grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour
Jesus Christ."
                         --2 Peter 3:18

  "Grow in grace"--not in one grace only, but in _all_ grace.
Grow in that root-grace, _faith_. Believe the promises more
firmly than you have done. Let faith increase in fulness,
constancy, simplicity. Grow also in _love_. Ask that your love
may become extended, more intense, more practical, influencing
every thought, word, and deed. Grow likewise in _humility_. Seek
to lie very low, and know more of your own nothingness. As you
grow _downward_ in humility, seek also to grow _upward_--having
nearer approaches to God in prayer and more intimate fellowship
with Jesus. May God the Holy Spirit enable you to "_grow in the
knowledge of our Lord and Saviour_." He who grows not in the
knowledge of Jesus, refuses to be blessed. To know Him is "life
eternal," and to advance in the knowledge of Him is to increase
in happiness. He who does not long to know more of Christ, knows
nothing of Him yet. Whoever hath sipped this wine will thirst
for more, for although Christ doth satisfy, yet it is such a
satisfaction, that the appetite is not cloyed, but whetted. If
you know the love of Jesus--as the hart panteth for the
water-brooks, so will you pant after deeper draughts of His
love. If you do not desire to know Him better, then you love Him
not, for love always cries, "Nearer, nearer." Absence from
Christ is hell; but the presence of Jesus is heaven. Rest not
then content without an increasing acquaintance with Jesus.
Seek to know more of Him in His divine nature, in His human
relationship, in His finished work, in His death, in His
resurrection, in His present glorious intercession, and in His
future royal advent. Abide hard by the Cross, and search the
mystery of His wounds. An increase of love to Jesus, and a more
perfect apprehension of His love to us is one of the best tests
of growth in grace.

* 01/05/AM

"And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the
light from the darkness."
                          --Genesis 1:4

  Light might well be good since it sprang from that fiat of
goodness, "Let there be light." We who enjoy it should be more
grateful for it than we are, and see more of God in it and by
it. Light _physical_ is said by Solomon to be sweet, but
_gospel_ light is infinitely more precious, for it reveals
eternal things, and ministers to our immortal natures. When the
Holy Spirit gives us _spiritual_ light, and opens our eyes to
behold the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ, we behold
sin in its true colours, and ourselves in our real position; we
see the Most Holy God as He reveals Himself, the plan of mercy
as He propounds it, and the world to come as the Word describes
it. Spiritual light has many beams and prismatic colours, but
whether they be knowledge, joy, holiness, or life, all are
divinely good. If the light received be thus good, what must the
_essential_ light be, and how glorious must be the place where
He reveals Himself. O Lord, since light is so good, give us more
of it, and more of Thyself, the true light.

  No sooner is there a good thing in the world, than _a
division is necessary_. Light and darkness have no communion;
God has divided them, let us not confound them. Sons of light
must not have fellowship with deeds, doctrines, or deceits of
darkness. The children of the day must be sober, honest, and
bold in their Lord's work, leaving the works of darkness to
those who shall dwell in it for ever. Our Churches should by
discipline divide the light from the darkness, and we should by
our distinct separation from the world do the same. In judgment,
in action, in hearing, in teaching, in association, we must
discern between the precious and the vile, and maintain the
great distinction which the Lord made upon the world's first
day. O Lord Jesus, be Thou our light throughout the whole of
this day, for Thy light is the light of men.

* 01/06/AM

"Casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you."
                          --1 Peter 5:7

  It is a happy way of soothing sorrow when we can feel--"HE
careth for me." Christian!  do not dishonour religion by always
wearing a brow of care; come, cast your burden upon your Lord.
You are staggering beneath a weight which your Father would not
feel. What seems to you a crushing burden, would be to Him but
as the small dust of the balance. Nothing is so sweet as to

        "Lie passive in God's hands,
        And know no will but His."

O child of suffering, be thou patient; God has not passed thee
over in His providence. He who is the feeder of sparrows, will
also furnish you with what you need. Sit not down in despair;
hope on, hope ever. Take up the arms of faith against a sea of
trouble, and your opposition shall yet end your distresses.
_There is_ One who careth for you. His eye is fixed on you, His
heart beats with pity for your woe, and his hand omnipotent
shall yet bring you the needed help. The darkest cloud shall
scatter itself in showers of mercy. The blackest gloom shall
give place to the morning. He, if thou art one of His family,
will bind up thy wounds, and heal thy broken heart. Doubt not
His grace because of thy tribulation, but believe that He loveth
thee as much in seasons of trouble as in times of happiness.
What a serene and quiet life might you lead if you would leave
providing to the God of providence! With a little oil in the
cruse, and a handful of meal in the barrel, Elijah outlived the
famine, and you will do the same. If God cares for you, why need
you care too? Can you trust Him for your soul, and not for your
body? He has never refused to bear your burdens, He has never
fainted under their weight. Come, then, soul! have done with
fretful care, and leave all thy concerns in the hand of a
gracious God.

* 01/07/AM

"For me to live is Christ."
                       --Philippians 1:21

  The believer did not always live to Christ. He began to do so
when God the Holy Spirit convinced him of sin, and when by grace
he was brought to see the dying Saviour making a propitiation
for his guilt. From the moment of the new and celestial birth
the man begins to live to Christ. Jesus is to believers the one
pearl of great price, for whom we are willing to part with all
that we have. He has so completely won our love, that it beats
alone for Him; to His glory we would live, and in defence of His
gospel we would die; He is the pattern of our life, and the
model after which we would sculpture our character. Paul's words
mean more than most men think; they imply that the _aim and end
of his life_ was Christ--nay, his life itself was Jesus. In the
words of an ancient saint, he did eat, and drink, and sleep
eternal life. Jesus was his very breath, the soul of his soul,
the heart of his heart, the life of his life. Can you say, as a
professing Christian, that you live up to this idea? Can you
honestly say that for you to live is Christ? Your business--are
you doing it _for Christ_? Is it not done for self-
aggrandizement and for family advantage? Do you ask, "Is that a
mean reason?" For the _Christian_ it is. He professes to live
for Christ; how can he live for another object without
committing a spiritual adultery? Many there are who carry out
this principle in some measure; but who is there that dare say
that he hath lived wholly for Christ as the apostle did? Yet,
this alone is the true life of a Christian--its source, its
sustenance, its fashion, its end, all gathered up in one
word--Christ Jesus. Lord, accept me; I here present myself,
praying to live only in Thee and to Thee. Let me be as the
bullock which stands between the plough and the altar, to work
or to be sacrificed; and let my motto be, "Ready for either."

* 01/08/AM

"The iniquity of the holy things."
                         --Exodus 28:38

  What a veil is lifted up by these words, and what a
disclosure is made! It will be humbling and profitable for us to
pause awhile and see this sad sight. The iniquities of our
public worship, its hypocrisy, formality, lukewarmness,
irreverence, wandering of heart and forgetfulness of God, what a
full measure have we there! Our work for the Lord, its
emulation, selfishness, carelessness, slackness, unbelief, what
a mass of defilement is there! Our private devotions, their
laxity, coldness, neglect, sleepiness, and vanity, what a
mountain of dead earth is there!  If we looked more carefully we
should find this iniquity to be far greater than appears at
first sight. Dr. Payson, writing to his brother, says, "My
parish, as well as my heart, very much resembles the garden of
the sluggard; and what is worse, I find that very many of my
desires for the melioration of both, proceed either from pride
or vanity or indolence. I look at the weeds which overspread my
garden, and breathe out an earnest wish that they were
eradicated. But why? What prompts the wish? It may be that I may
walk out and say to myself, 'In what fine order is my garden
kept!' This is _pride_. Or, it may be that my neighbours may
look over the wall and say, 'How finely your garden flourishes!'
This is _vanity_. Or I may wish for the destruction of the
weeds, because I am weary of pulling them up. This is
indolence." so that even our desires after holiness may be
polluted by ill motives. Under the greenest sods worms hide
themselves; we need not look long to discover them. How cheering
is the thought, that when the High Priest bore the iniquity of
the holy things he wore upon his brow the words, "HOLINESS TO
THE LORD:" and even so while Jesus bears our sin, He presents
before His Father's face not our unholiness, but his own
holiness. O for grace to view our great High Priest by the eye
of faith!

* 01/09/AM

"I will be their God."
                        --Jeremiah 31:33

  Christian! here is all thou canst require. To make thee happy
thou wantest something that shall satisfy thee; and is not this
enough? If thou canst pour this promise into thy cup, wilt thou
not say, with David, "My cup runneth over; I have more than
heart can wish"?  When this is fulfilled, _"I am thy God_," art
thou not possessor of all things? Desire is insatiable as death,
but He who filleth all in all can fill it. The capacity of our
wishes who can measure? but the immeasurable wealth of God can
more than overflow it. I ask thee if thou art not complete when
God is thine? Dost thou want anything but God? Is not His
all-sufficiency enough to satisfy thee if all else should fail?
But thou wantest more than quiet satisfaction; thou desirest
_rapturous delight_. Come, soul, here is music fit for heaven in
this thy portion, for God is the Maker of Heaven. Not all the
music blown from sweet instruments, or drawn from living
strings, can yield such melody as this sweet promise, "I will be
their God." Here is a deep sea of bliss, a shoreless ocean of
delight; come, bathe thy spirit in it; swim an age, and thou
shalt find no shore; dive throughout eternity, and thou shalt
find no bottom. "I will be their God." If this do not make thine
eyes sparkle, and thy heart beat high with bliss, then assuredly
thy soul is not in a healthy state. But thou wantest more than
present delights--thou cravest something concerning which thou
mayest exercise _hope_; and what more canst thou hope for than
the fulfillment of this great promise, "I will be their God"?
This is the masterpiece of all the promises; its enjoyment makes
a heaven below, and will make a heaven above. Dwell in the light
of thy Lord, and let thy soul be always ravished with His love.
Get out the marrow and fatness which this portion yields thee.
Live up to thy privileges, and rejoice with unspeakable joy.

* 01/10/AM

"There is laid up for me a crown of righteousness."
                         --2 Timothy 4:8

  Doubting one! thou hast often said, "I fear I shall never
enter heaven." Fear not! all the people of God shall enter
there. I love the quaint saying of a dying man, who exclaimed,
"I have no fear of going home; I have sent all before me; God's
finger is on the latch of my door, and I am ready for Him to
enter." "But," said one, "are you not afraid lest you should
miss your inheritance?" "Nay," said he, "nay; there is one crown
in heaven which the angel Gabriel could not wear, it will fit no
head but mine. There is one throne in heaven which Paul the
apostle could not fill; it was made for me, and I shall have
it." O Christian, what a joyous thought! thy portion is secure;
"there remaineth a rest." "But cannot I forfeit it?" No, it is
entailed. If I be a child of God I shall not lose it. It is mine
as securely as if I were there. Come with me, believer, and let
us sit upon the top of Nebo, and view the goodly land, even
Canaan. Seest thou that little river of death glistening in the
sunlight, and across it dost thou see the pinnacles of the
eternal city? Dost thou mark the pleasant country, and all its
joyous inhabitants? Know, then, that if thou couldst fly across
thou wouldst see written upon one of its many mansions, "This
remaineth for such a one; preserved for him only. He shall be
caught up to dwell for ever with God." Poor doubting one, see
the fair inheritance; it is _thine_. If thou believest in the
Lord Jesus, if thou hast repented of sin, if thou hast been
renewed in heart, thou art one of the Lord's people, and there
is a place reserved for thee, a crown laid up for thee, a harp
specially provided for thee. No one else shall have thy portion,
it is reserved in heaven for thee, and thou shalt have it ere
long, for there shall be no vacant thrones in glory when all the
chosen are gathered in.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5.3.2. January 11-20 ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

* 01/11/AM

"These have no root."
                           --Luke 8:13

  My soul, examine thyself this morning by the light of this
text. Thou hast received the word with joy; thy feelings have
been stirred and a lively impression has been made; but,
remember, that to receive the word in the ear is one thing, and
to receive Jesus into thy very soul is quite another;
superficial feeling is often joined to inward hardness of heart,
and a lively impression of the word is not always a lasting one.
In the parable, the seed in one case fell upon ground having a
rocky bottom, covered over with a thin layer of earth; when the
seed began to take root, its downward growth was hindered by the
hard stone and therefore it spent its strength in pushing its
green shoot aloft as high as it could, but having no inward
moisture derived from root nourishment, it withered away. Is
this my case? Have I been making a fair show in the flesh
without having a corresponding inner life? Good growth takes
place upwards and downwards at the same time. Am I rooted in
sincere fidelity and love to Jesus? If my heart remains
unsoftened and unfertilized by grace, the good seed may
germinate for a season, but it must ultimately wither, for it
cannot flourish on a rocky, unbroken, unsanctified heart. Let me
dread a godliness as rapid in growth and as wanting in endurance
as Jonah's gourd; let me count the cost of being a follower of
Jesus, above all let me feel the energy of His Holy Spirit, and
then I shall possess an abiding and enduring seed in my soul. If
my mind remains as obdurate as it was by nature, the sun of
trial will scorch, and my hard heart will help to cast the heat
the more terribly upon the ill-covered seed, and my religion
will soon die, and my despair will be terrible; therefore, O
heavenly Sower, plough me first, and then cast the truth into
me, and let me yield Thee a bounteous harvest.

* 01/12/AM

"Ye are Christ's."
                      --1 Corinthians 3:23

  Ye _are_ Christ's." You are His by donation, for the Father
gave you to the Son; His by His bloody purchase, for He counted
down the price for your redemption; His by dedication, for you
have consecrated yourself to Him; His by relation, for you are
named by his name, and made one of His brethren and joint-heirs.
Labour practically to show the world that you are the servant,
the friend, the bride of Jesus. When tempted to sin, reply, "I
cannot do this great wickedness, for I am Christ's." Immortal
principles forbid the friend of Christ to sin. When wealth is
before you to be won by sin, say that you are Christ's, and
touch it not. Are you exposed to difficulties and dangers?
Stand fast in the evil day, remembering that you are Christ's.
Are you placed where others are sitting down idly, doing
nothing? Rise to the work with all your powers; and when the
sweat stands upon your brow, and you are tempted to loiter, cry,
"No, I cannot stop, for I am Christ's. If I were not purchased
by blood, I might be like Issachar, crouching between two
burdens; but I am Christ's, and cannot loiter." When the siren
song of pleasure would tempt you from the path of right, reply,
"Thy music cannot charm me; I am Christ's." When the cause of
God invites thee, give thy goods and thyself away, for thou art
Christ's. Never belie thy profession. Be thou ever one of those
whose manners are Christian, whose speech is like the Nazarene,
whose conduct and conversation are so redolent of heaven, that
all who see you may know that you are the Saviour's, recognizing
in you His features of love and His countenance of holiness. "I
am a Roman!" was of old a reason for integrity; far more, then,
let it be your argument for holiness, "I am Christ's!"

* 01/13/AM

"Jehoshaphat made ships of Tharshish to go to Ophir for gold:
but they went not; for the ships were broken at Ezion-geber."
                         --1 Kings 22:48

  Solomon's ships had returned in safety, but Jehoshaphat's
vessels never reached the land of gold. Providence prospers one,
and frustrates the desires of another, in the same business and
at the same spot, yet the Great Ruler is as good and wise at one
time as another. May we have grace to-day, in the remembrance
of this text, to bless the Lord for ships broken at Ezion-geber,
as well as for vessels freighted with temporal blessings; let us
not envy the more successful, nor murmur at our losses as though
we were singularly and specially tried. Like Jehoshaphat, we may
be precious in the Lord's sight, although our schemes end in
disappointment.

  The secret cause of Jehoshaphat's loss is well worthy of
notice, for it is the root of very much of the suffering of the
Lord's people; it was his alliance with a sinful family, his
fellowship with sinners. In 2 Chron. 20:37, we are told that the
Lord sent a prophet to declare, "Because thou hast joined
thyself with Ahaziah, the Lord hath broken thy works." This was
a fatherly chastisement, which appears to have been blest to
him; for in the verse which succeeds our morning's text we find
him refusing to allow his servants to sail in the same vessels
with those of the wicked king. Would to God that Jehoshaphat's
experience might be a warning to the rest of the Lord's people,
to avoid being unequally yoked together with unbelievers! A life
of misery is usually the lot of those who are united in
marriage, or in any other way of their own choosing, with the
men of the world. O for such love to Jesus that, like Him, we
may be holy, harmless, undefiled, and separate from sinners; for
if it be not so with us, we may expect to hear it often said,
"The Lord hath broken thy works."

* 01/14/AM

"Mighty to save."
                          --Isaiah 63:1

  By the words "to save" we understand the whole of the great
work of salvation, from the first holy desire onward to complete
sanctification. The words are _multum in parro_: indeed, here
is all mercy in one word. Christ is not only "mighty to save"
those who repent, but He is able to make men repent. He will
carry those to heaven who believe; but He is, moreover, mighty
to give men new hearts and to work faith in them. He is mighty
to make the man who hates holiness love it, and to constrain the
despiser of His name to bend the knee before Him. Nay, this is
not all the meaning, for the divine power is equally seen in the
after-work. The life of a believer is a series of miracles
wrought by "the Mighty God." The bush burns, but is not
consumed. He is mighty to keep His people holy after He has made
them so, and to preserve them in his fear and love until he
consummates their spiritual existence in heaven. Christ's might
doth not lie in making a believer and then leaving him to shift
for himself; but He who begins the good work carries it on; He
who imparts the first germ of life in the dead soul, prolongs
the divine existence, and strengthens it until it bursts asunder
every bond of sin, and the soul leaps from earth, perfected in
glory. Believer, here is encouragement. Art thou praying for
some beloved one? Oh, give not up thy prayers, for Christ is
"mighty to save." You are powerless to reclaim the rebel, but
your Lord is Almighty. Lay hold on that mighty arm, and rouse it
to put forth its strength. Does your own case trouble you? Fear
not, for His strength is sufficient for you. Whether to begin
with others, or to carry on the work in you, Jesus is "mighty to
save;" the best proof of which lies in the fact that He has
saved _you_. What a thousand mercies that you have not found Him
mighty to destroy!

* 01/15/AM

"Do as thou hast said."
                         --2 Samuel 7:25

  God's promises were never meant to be thrown aside as waste
paper; He intended that they should be used. God's gold is not
miser's money, but is minted to be traded with. Nothing pleases
our Lord better than to see His promises put in circulation; He
loves to see His children bring them up to Him, and say, "Lord,
do as Thou hast said." We glorify God when we plead His
promises. Do you think that God will be any the poorer for
giving you the riches He has promised? Do you dream that He will
be any the less holy for giving holiness to you? Do you
imagine He will be any the less pure for washing you from your
sins? He has said "Come now, and let us reason together, saith
the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white
as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as
wool." Faith lays hold upon the promise of pardon, and it does
not delay, saying, "This is a precious promise, I wonder if it
be true?" but it goes straight to the throne with it, and
pleads, "Lord, here is the promise, 'Do as Thou hast said.'" Our
Lord replies, "Be it unto thee even as thou wilt." When a
Christian grasps a promise, if he do not take it to God, he
dishonours Him; but when he hastens to the throne of grace, and
cries, "Lord, I have nothing to recommend me but this, 'Thou
hast said it;'" then his desire shall be granted. Our heavenly
Banker delights to cash His own notes. Never let the promise
rust. Draw the word of promise out of its scabbard, and use it
with holy violence. Think not that God will be troubled by your
importunately reminding Him of His promises. He loves to hear
the loud outcries of needy souls. It is His delight to bestow
favours. He is more ready to hear than you are to ask. The sun
is not weary of shining, nor the fountain of flowing. It is
God's nature to keep His promises; therefore go at once to the
throne with "Do as Thou hast said."

* 01/16/AM

"I will help thee, saith the Lord."
                         --Isaiah 41:14

  This morning let us hear the Lord Jesus speak to each one of
us: "I will _help_ thee." "It is but a small thing for Me, thy
God, to _help_ thee. Consider what I have done already. What!
not help thee? Why, I bought thee with My blood. What! not help
thee? I have died for thee; and if I have done the greater, will
I not do the less? _Help_ thee! It is the least thing I will
ever do for thee; I _have_ done more, and will do more. Before
the world began I chose thee. I made the covenant for thee. I
laid aside My glory and became a man for thee; I gave up My life
for thee; and if I did all this, I will surely help thee now. In
helping thee, I am giving thee what I have bought for thee
already. If thou hadst need of a thousand times as much help, I
would give it thee; thou requirest little compared with what I
am ready to give. 'Tis much for thee to need, but it is nothing
for me to bestow. '_Help_ thee?' Fear not! If there were an ant
at the door of thy granary asking for help, it would not ruin
thee to give him a handful of thy wheat; and thou art nothing
but a tiny insect at the door of My all-sufficiency. 'I will
help thee.'"

  O my soul, is not this enough? Dost thou need more strength
than the omnipotence of the United Trinity? Dost thou want more
wisdom than exists in the Father, more love than displays itself
in the Son, or more power than is manifest in the influences of
the Spirit? Bring hither thine empty pitcher! Surely this well
will fill it. Haste, gather up thy wants, and bring them
here--thine emptiness, thy woes, thy needs. Behold, this river
of God is full for thy supply; what canst thou desire beside? Go
forth, my soul, in this thy might. The Eternal God is thine
helper!

    "Fear not, I am with thee, oh, be not dismay'd!
    I, I am thy God, and will still give thee aid."

* 01/17/AM

"And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion."
                        --Revelation 14:1

  The apostle John was privileged to look within the gates of
heaven, and in describing what he saw, he begins by saying, "I
looked, and, lo, a Lamb!" This teaches us that the chief object
of contemplation in the heavenly state is "the Lamb of God,
which taketh away the sins of the world." Nothing else attracted
the apostle's attention so much as the person of that Divine
Being, who hath redeemed us by His blood. He is the theme of the
songs of all glorified spirits and holy angels. Christian, here
is joy for thee; thou hast looked, and thou hast seen the Lamb.
Through thy tears thine eyes have seen the Lamb of God taking
away thy sins. Rejoice, then. In a little while, when thine eyes
shall have been wiped from tears, thou wilt see the same Lamb
_exalted on His throne_. It is the joy of thy heart to hold
daily fellowship with Jesus; thou shalt have the same joy to a
higher degree in heaven; thou shalt enjoy the constant vision of
His presence; thou shalt dwell with Him for ever. "I looked,
and, lo, a Lamb!" Why, that Lamb is heaven itself; for as good
Rutherford says, "Heaven and Christ are the same thing;" to be
with Christ is to be in heaven, and to be in heaven is to be
with Christ. That prisoner of the Lord very sweetly writes in
one of his glowing letters--"O my Lord Jesus Christ, if I could
be in heaven without thee, it would be a hell; and if I could be
in hell, and have thee still, it would be a heaven to me, for
thou art all the heaven I want." It is true, is it not,
Christian? Does not thy soul say so?

         "Not all the harps above
         Can make a heavenly place,
         If God His residence remove,
         Or but conceal His face."

All thou needest to make thee blessed, supremely blessed, is "to
be with Christ."

* 01/18/AM

"There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God."
                          --Hebrews 4:9

  How different will be the state of the believer in heaven
from what it is here! Here he is born to toil and suffer
weariness, but in the land of the immortal, fatigue is never
known. Anxious to serve his Master, he finds his strength
unequal to his zeal: his constant cry is, "Help me to serve
Thee, O my God." If he be thoroughly active, he will have much
labour; not too much for his will, but more than enough for his
power, so that he will cry out, "I am not wearied _of_ the
labour, but I am wearied _in it_." Ah! Christian, the hot day
of weariness lasts not for ever; the sun is nearing the horizon;
it shall rise again with a brighter day than thou hast ever seen
upon a land where they serve God day and night, and yet rest
from their labours. _Here_, rest is but partial, _there_, it is
_perfect_. _Here_, the Christian is always unsettled; he feels
that he has not yet attained. _There_, all are at rest; they
have attained the summit of the mountain; they have ascended to
the bosom of their God. Higher they cannot go. Ah, toil-worn
labourer, only think when thou shalt rest for ever! Canst thou
conceive it? It is a rest _eternal_; a rest that "remaineth."
Here, my best joys bear "mortal" on their brow; my fair flowers
fade; my dainty cups are drained to dregs; my sweetest birds
fall before Death 's arrows; my most pleasant days are shadowed
into nights; and the flood-tides of my bliss subside into ebbs
of sorrow; but _there_, everything is immortal; the harp abides
unrusted, the crown unwithered, the eye undimmed, the voice
unfaltering, the heart unwavering, and the immortal being is
wholly absorbed in infinite delight. Happy day! happy! when
mortality shall be swallowed up of life, and the Eternal Sabbath
shall begin.

* 01/19/AM

"I sought him, but I found him not."
                     --Song of Solomon 3:1

  Tell me where you lost the company of a Christ, and I will
tell you the most likely place to find Him. Have you lost
Christ in the closet by restraining prayer? Then it is there
you must seek and find Him. Did you lose Christ by sin? You
will find Christ in no other way but by the giving up of the
sin, and seeking by the Holy Spirit to mortify the member in
which the lust doth dwell. Did you lose Christ by neglecting
the Scriptures?  You must find Christ in the Scriptures. It is
a true proverb, "Look for a thing where you dropped it, it is
there." so look for Christ where you lost Him, for He has not
gone away. But it is hard work to go back for Christ. Bunyan
tells us, the pilgrim found the piece of the road back to the
Arbour of Ease, where he lost his roll, the hardest he had ever
travelled. Twenty miles onward is easier than to go one mile
back for the lost evidence.

  Take care, then, when you find your Master, to cling close to
Him. But how is it you have lost Him? One would have thought you
would never have parted with such a precious friend, whose
presence is so sweet, whose words are so comforting, and whose
company is so dear to you! How is it that you did not watch Him
every moment for fear of losing sight of Him? Yet, since you
have let Him go, what a mercy that you are seeking Him, even
though you mournfully groan, "O that I knew where I might find
Him!" Go on seeking, for it is dangerous to be without thy Lord.
Without Christ you are like a sheep without its shepherd; like a
tree without water at its roots; like a sere leaf in the
tempest--not bound to the tree of life. With thine whole heart
seek Him, and He will be found of thee: only give thyself
thoroughly up to the search, and verily, thou shalt yet discover
Him to thy joy and gladness.

* 01/20/AM

"Abel was a keeper of sheep."
                          --Genesis 4:2

  As a shepherd Abel _sanctified his work to the glory of God,
and offered a sacrifice of blood upon his altar, and the Lord
had respect unto Abel and his offering_. This early type of our
Lord is exceedingly clear and distinct. Like the first streak of
light which tinges the east at sunrise, it does not reveal
everything, but it clearly manifests the great fact that the sun
is coming. As we see Abel, a shepherd and yet a priest, offering
a sacrifice of sweet smell unto God, we discern our Lord, who
brings before His Father a sacrifice to which Jehovah ever hath
respect. Abel was hated by his brother--hated without a cause;
and even so was the Saviour: the natural and carnal man hated
the accepted man in whom the Spirit of grace was found, and
rested not until his blood had been shed. Abel fell, and
sprinkled his altar and sacrifice with his own blood, and
therein sets forth the Lord Jesus slain by the enmity of man
while serving as a priest before the Lord. "The good Shepherd
layeth down His life for the sheep." Let us weep over Him as we
view Him slain by the hatred of mankind, staining the horns of
His altar with His own blood. _Abel's blood speaketh_. "The Lord
said unto Cain, 'The voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto Me
from the ground.'" The blood of Jesus hath a mighty tongue, and
the import of its prevailing cry is not vengeance but mercy. It
is precious beyond all preciousness to stand at the altar of our
good Shepherd! to see Him bleeding there as the slaughtered
priest, and then to hear His blood speaking peace to all His
flock, peace in our conscience, peace between Jew and Gentile,
peace between man and his offended Maker, peace all down the
ages of eternity for blood-washed men. Abel is the first
shepherd in order of time, but our hearts shall ever place Jesus
first in order of excellence. Thou great Keeper of the sheep, we
the people of Thy pasture bless Thee with our whole hearts when
we see Thee slain for us.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5.3.3. January 21-31 ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

* 01/21/AM

"And so all Israel shall be saved."
                         --Romans 11:26

  Then Moses sang at the Red Sea, it was his joy to know that
all Israel were safe. Not a drop of spray fell from that solid
wall until the last of God's Israel had safely planted his foot
on the other side the flood. That done, immediately the floods
dissolved into their proper place again, but not till then. Part
of that song was, "Thou in thy mercy hast led forth the people
which thou hast redeemed." In the last time, when the elect
shall sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and of the
Lamb, it shall be the boast of Jesus, "Of all whom thou hast
given me, I have lost none." In heaven there shall not be a
vacant throne.

       "For all the chosen race
       Shall meet around the throne,
       Shall bless the conduct of His grace,
       And make His glories known."

As many as God hath chosen, as many as Christ hath redeemed, as
many as the Spirit hath called, as many as believe in Jesus,
shall safely cross the dividing sea. We are not all safely
landed yet:

      "Part of the host have crossed the flood,
      And part are crossing now."

The vanguard of the army has already reached the shore. We are
marching through the depths; we are at this day following hard
after our Leader into the heart of the sea. Let us be of good
cheer: the rear-guard shall soon be where the vanguard already
is; the last of the chosen ones shall soon have crossed the sea,
and then shall be heard the song of triumph, when all are
secure. But oh! if one were absent--oh! if one of His chosen
family should be cast away--it would make an everlasting discord
in the song of the redeemed, and cut the strings of the harps of
paradise, so that music could never be extorted from them.

* 01/22/AM

"Son of man, What is the vine tree more than any tree, or than a
branch which is among the trees of the forest?"
                         --Ezekiel 15:2

  These words are for the humbling of God's people; they are
called God's vine, but what are they by nature more than others?
They, by God's goodness, have become fruitful, having been
planted in a good soil; the Lord hath trained them upon the
walls of the sanctuary, and they bring forth fruit to His glory;
but what are they without their God? What are they without the
continual influence of the Spirit, begetting fruitfulness in
them? O believer, learn to reject pride, seeing that thou hast
no ground for it. Whatever thou art, thou hast nothing to make
thee proud. The more thou hast, the more thou art in debt to
God; and thou shouldst not be proud of that which renders thee a
debtor. Consider thine origin; look back to what thou wast.
Consider what thou wouldst have been but for divine grace. Look
upon thyself as thou art now. Doth not thy conscience reproach
thee? Do not thy thousand wanderings stand before thee, and tell
thee that thou art unworthy to be called His son? And if He hath
made thee anything, art thou not taught thereby that it is grace
which hath made thee to differ? Great believer, thou wouldst
have been a great sinner if God had not made thee to differ. O
thou who art valiant for truth, thou wouldst have been as
valiant for error if grace had not laid hold upon thee.
Therefore, be not proud, though thou hast a large estate--a wide
domain of grace, thou hadst not once a single thing to call
thine own except thy sin and misery. Oh! strange infatuation,
that thou, who hast borrowed everything, shouldst think of
exalting thyself; a poor dependent pensioner upon the bounty of
thy Saviour, one who hath a life which dies without fresh
streams of life from Jesus, and yet proud! Fie on thee, O silly
heart!

* 01/23/AM

"I have exalted one chosen out of the people."
                          --Psalm 89:19

  Why was Christ chosen out of the people?  Speak, my heart,
for heart-thoughts are best. Was it not that He might be able
to be our brother, in the blest tie of kindred blood? Oh, what
relationship there is between Christ and the believer! The
believer can say, "I have a Brother in heaven; I may be poor,
but I have a Brother who is rich, and is a King, and will He
suffer me to want while He is on His throne? Oh, no! He loves
me; He is my Brother." Believer, wear this blessed thought, like
a necklace of diamonds, around the neck of thy memory; put it,
as a golden ring, on the finger of recollection, and use it as
the King's own seal, stamping the petitions of thy faith with
confidence of success. He is a brother born for adversity, treat
Him as such.

  Christ was also chosen out of the people that He might know
our wants and sympathize with us. "He was tempted in all points
like as we are, yet without sin." In all our sorrows we have His
sympathy. Temptation, pain, disappointment, weakness, weariness,
poverty--He knows them all, for He has felt all. Remember this,
Christian, and let it comfort thee. However difficult and
painful thy road, it is marked by the footsteps of thy Saviour;
and even when thou reachest the dark valley of the shadow of
death, and the deep waters of the swelling Jordan, thou wilt
find His footprints there. In all places whithersoever we go, He
has been our forerunner; each burden we have to carry, has once
been laid on the shoulders of Immanuel.

   "His way was much rougher and darker than mine
   Did Christ, my Lord, suffer, and shall I repine?"

Take courage! Royal feet have left a blood-red track upon the
road, and consecrated the thorny path for ever.

* 01/24/AM

"Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler."
                          --Psalm 91:3

  God delivers His people from the snare of the fowler in two
senses. _From_, and _out of_. First, He delivers them _from_ the
snare--does not let them enter it; and secondly, if they should
be caught therein, He delivers them _out of_ it. The first
promise is the most precious to some; the second is the best to
others.

  "He shall deliver thee _from_ the snare." How? Trouble is
often the means whereby God delivers us. God knows that our
backsliding will soon end in our destruction, and He in mercy
sends the rod. We say, "Lord, why is this?" not knowing that our
trouble has been the means of delivering us from far greater
evil. Many have been thus saved from ruin by their sorrows and
their crosses; these have frightened the birds from the net. At
other times, God keeps His people _from_ the snare of the fowler
by giving them great spiritual strength, so that when they are
tempted to do evil they say, "How can I do this great
wickedness, and sin against God?" But what a blessed thing it is
that if the believer shall, in an evil hour, come into the net,
yet God will bring him out of it! O backslider, be cast down,
but do not despair. Wanderer though thou hast been, hear what
thy Redeemer saith--"Return, O backsliding children; I will have
mercy upon you." But you say you cannot return, for you are a
captive. Then listen to the promise--"Surely He shall deliver
thee out of the snare of the fowler." Thou shalt yet be brought
out of all evil into which thou hast fallen, and though thou
shalt never cease to repent of thy ways, yet He that hath loved
thee will not cast thee away; He will receive thee, and give
thee joy and gladness, that the bones which He has broken may
rejoice. No bird of paradise shall die in the fowler's net.

* 01/25/AM

"I will mention the lovingkindnesses of the Lord, and the
praises of the Lord, according to all that the Lord hath
bestowed on us."
                         --Isaiah 63:7

  And canst thou not do this? Are there no mercies which thou
_hast experienced_? What though thou art gloomy now, canst thou
forget that blessed hour when Jesus met thee, and said, "Come
unto me"? Canst thou not remember that rapturous moment when He
snapped thy fetters, dashed thy chains to the earth, and said,
"I came to break thy bonds and set thee free"? Or if the love
of thine espousals be forgotten, there must surely be some
precious milestone along the road of life not quite grown over
with moss, on which thou canst read a happy memorial of His
mercy towards thee? What, didst thou never have a sickness like
that which thou art suffering now, and did He not restore thee?
Wert thou never poor before, and did He not supply thy wants?
Wast thou never in straits before, and did He not deliver thee?
Arise, go to the river of thine experience, and pull up a few
bulrushes, and plait them into an ark, wherein thine infant-
faith may float safely on the stream. Forget not what thy God
has done for thee; turn over the book of thy remembrance, and
consider the days of old. Canst thou not remember the hill
Mizar? Did the Lord never meet with thee at Hermon? Hast thou
never climbed the Delectable Mountains? Hast thou never been
helped in time of need? Nay, I know thou hast. Go back, then, a
little way to the choice mercies of yesterday, and though all
may be dark _now_, light up the lamps of the past, they shall
glitter through the darkness, and thou shalt trust in the Lord
till the day break and the shadows flee away. "Remember, O
Lord, thy tender mercies and thy lovingkindnesses, for they
have been ever of old."

* 01/26/AM

"Your heavenly Father."
                         --Matthew 6:26

  God's people are doubly His children, they are His offspring
by creation, and they are His sons by adoption in Christ. Hence
they are privileged to call Him, "Our Father which art in
heaven." Father! Oh, what precious word is that. Here is
_authority_: "If I be a Father, where is mine honour?" If ye be
sons, where is your obedience? Here is _affection_ mingled with
authority; an authority which does not provoke rebellion; an
obedience demanded which is most cheerfully rendered--which
would not be withheld even if it might. The obedience which
God's children yield to Him must be _loving_ obedience. Do not
go about the service of God as slaves to their taskmaster's
toil, but run in the way of His commands because it is your
_Father's_ way. Yield your bodies as instruments of
righteousness, because righteousness is your Father's will, and
_His_ will should be the will of His child. _Father_!--Here is
a kingly attribute so sweetly veiled in love, that the King's
crown is forgotten in the King's face, and His sceptre becomes,
not a rod of iron, but a silver sceptre of mercy--the sceptre
indeed seems to be forgotten in the tender hand of Him who
wields it. Father!--Here is honour and love. How great is a
Father's love to his children! That which friendship cannot do,
and mere benevolence will not attempt, a father's heart and
hand must do for his sons. They are his offspring, he must
bless them; they are his children, he must show himself strong
in their defence. If an earthly father watches over his
children with unceasing love and care, how much more does our
heavenly Father? Abba, Father! He who can say this, hath
uttered better music than cherubim or seraphim can reach. There
is heaven in the depth of that word--Father! There is all I can
ask; all my necessities can demand; all my wishes can desire. I
have all in all to all eternity when I can say, "Father."

* 01/27/AM

"And of his fulness have all we received."
                           --John 1:16

  These words tell us that there is a fulness in Christ. There
is a fulness of essential Deity, for "in Him dwelleth all the
fulness of the Godhead." There is a fulness of perfect manhood,
for in Him, bodily, that Godhead was revealed. There is a
fulness of atoning efficacy in His blood, for "the blood of
Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from all sin." There is a
fulness of justifying righteousness in His life, for "there is
therefore now no condemnation to them that are in Christ
Jesus." There is a fulness of divine prevalence in His plea,
for "He is able to save to the uttermost them that come unto
God by Him; seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for
them." There is a fulness of victory in His death, for through
death He destroyed him that had the power of death, that is the
devil. There is a fulness of efficacy in His resurrection from
the dead, for by it "we are begotten again unto a lively hope."
There is a fuIness of triumph in His ascension, for "when He
ascended up on high, He led captivity captive, and received
gifts for men." There is a fulness of blessings of every sort
and shape; a fulness of grace to pardon, of grace to
regenerate, of grace to sanctify, of grace to preserve, and of
grace to perfect. There is a fulness at all times; a fulness of
comfort in affliction; a fulness of guidance in prosperity. A
fulness of every divine attribute, of wisdom, of power, of
love; a fulness which it were impossible to survey, much less
to explore. "It pleased the Father that in Him should _all_
fulness dwell." Oh, what a fulness must this be of which _all_
receive! Fulness, indeed, must there be when the stream is
always flowing, and yet the well springs up as free, as rich,
as full as ever. Come, believer, and get all thy need supplied;
ask largely, and thou shalt receive largely, for this "fulness"
is inexhaustible, and is treasured up where all the needy may
reach it, even in Jesus, Immanuel--God with us.

* 01/28/AM

"Perfect in Christ Jesus."
                       --Colossians 1:28

  Do you not feel in your own soul that perfection is not in
you? Does not every day teach you that? Every tear which
trickles from your eye, weeps "imperfection"; every harsh word
which proceeds from your lip, mutters "imperfection." You have
too frequently had a view of your own heart to dream for a
moment of any perfection _in yourself_. But amidst this sad
consciousness of imperfection, here is comfort for you--you are
"perfect in _Christ Jesus_."In God's sight, you are "complete
in Him;" _even now_ you are "accepted in the Beloved." But
there is a second perfection, yet to be realized, which is sure
to all the seed. Is it not delightful to look forward to the
time when every stain of sin shall be removed from the
believer, and he shall be presented faultless before the
throne, without spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing? The Church
of Christ then will be so pure, that not even the eye of
Omniscience will see a spot or blemish in her; so holy and so
glorious, that Hart did not go beyond the truth when he said--

         "With my Saviour's garments on,
         Holy as the Holy One."

Then shall we know, and taste, and feel the happiness of this
vast but short sentence, "Complete in Christ." Not till then
shall we fully comprehend the heights and depths of the
salvation of Jesus. Doth not thy heart leap for joy at the
thought of it? Black as thou art, thou shalt be white one day;
filthy as thou art, thou shalt be clean. Oh, it is a marvellous
salvation this! Christ takes a worm and transforms it into an
angel; Christ takes a black and deformed thing and makes it
clean and matchless in His glory, peerless in His beauty, and
fit to be the companion of seraphs. O my soul, stand and admire
this blessed truth of perfection in Christ.

* 01/29/AM

"The things which are not seen."
                      --2 Corinthians 4:18

  In our Christian pilgrimage it is well, for the most part,
to be looking forward. Forward lies the crown, and onward is
the goal. Whether it be for hope, for joy, for consolation, or
for the inspiring of our love, the future must, after all, be
the grand object of the eye of faith. Looking into the future
we see sin cast out, the body of sin and death destroyed, the
soul made perfect, and fit to be a partaker of the inheritance
of the saints in light. Looking further yet, the believer's
enlightened eye can see death's river passed, the gloomy stream
forded, and the hills of light attained on which standeth the
celestial city; he seeth himself enter within the pearly gates,
hailed as more than conqueror, crowned by the hand of Christ,
embraced in the arms of Jesus, glorified with Him, and made to
sit together with Him on His throne, even as He has overcome
and has sat down with the Father on His throne. The thought of
this future may well relieve the darkness of the past and the
gloom of the present. The joys of heaven will surely compensate
for the sorrows of earth. Hush, hush, my doubts! death is but a
narrow stream, and thou shalt soon have forded it. Time, how
short--eternity, how long! Death, how brief--immortality, how
endless! Methinks I even now eat of Eshcol's clusters, and sip
of the well which is within the gate. The road is so, so short!
I shall soon be there.

      "When the world my heart is rending
      With its heaviest storm of care,
      My glad thoughts to heaven ascending,
      Find a refuge from despair.
      Faith's bright vision shall sustain me
      Till life's pilgrimage is past;
      Fears may vex and troubles pain me,
      I shall reach my home at last."

* 01/30/AM

"When thou hearest the sound of a going in the tops of the
mulberry trees, then thou shalt bestir thyself."
                        --2 Samuel 5:24

  The members of Christ's Church should be very prayerful,
always seeking the unction of the Holy One to rest upon their
hearts, that the kingdom of Christ may come, and that His "will
be done on earth, even as it is in heaven;" but there are times
when God seems especially to favour Zion, such seasons ought to
be to them like "the sound of a going in the tops of the
mulberry trees." We ought then to be doubly prayerful, doubly
earnest, wrestling more at the throne than we have been wont to
do. Action should then be prompt and vigorous. The tide is
flowing--now let us pull manfully for the shore. O for
Pentecostal outpourings and Pentecostal labours. Christian, in
yourself there are times "when thou hearest the sound of a
going in the tops of the mulberry trees." You have a peculiar
power in prayer; the Spirit of God gives you joy and gladness;
the Scripture is open to you; the promises are applied; you
walk in the light of God's countenance; you have peculiar
freedom and liberty in devotion, and more closeness of
communion with Christ than was your wont. Now, at such joyous
periods when you hear the "sound of a going in the tops of the
mulberry trees," is the time to bestir yourself; now is the
time to get rid of any evil habit, while God the Spirit helpeth
your infirmities. Spread your sail; but remember what you
sometimes sing--

    "I can only spread the sail;
    Thou! Thou! must breathe the auspicious gale."

Only be sure you have the sail up. Do not miss the gale for
want of preparation for it. Seek help of God, that you may be
more earnest in duty when made more strong in faith; that you
may be more constant in prayer when you have more liberty at
the throne; that you may be more holy in your conversation
whilst you live more closely with Christ.

* 01/31/AM

"The Lord our Righteousness."
                        --Jeremiah 23:6

  It will always give a Christian the greatest calm, quiet,
ease, and peace, to think of the perfect righteousness of
Christ. How often are the saints of God downcast and sad! I do
not think they ought to be. I do not think they would if they
could always see their perfection in Christ. There are some who
are always talking about corruption, and the depravity of the
heart, and the innate evil of the soul. This is quite true, but
why not go a little further, and remember that we are "perfect
in Christ Jesus." It is no wonder that those who are dwelling
upon their own corruption should wear such downcast looks; but
surely if we call to mind that "Christ is made unto us
righteousness," we shall be of good cheer. What though
distresses afflict me, though Satan assault me, though there may
be many things to be experienced before I get to heaven, those
are done for me in the covenant of divine grace; there is
nothing wanting in my Lord, Christ hath done it all. On the
cross He said, "It is finished!" and if it be finished, then am
I complete in Him, and can rejoice with joy unspeakable and full
of glory, "Not having mine own righteousness, which is of the
law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the
righteousness which is of God by faith." You will not find on
this side heaven a holier people than those who receive into
their hearts the doctrine of Christ's righteousness. When the
believer says, "I live on Christ alone; I rest on Him solely for
salvation; and I believe that, however unworthy, I am still
saved in Jesus;" then there rises up as a motive of gratitude
this thought-- "Shall I not live to Christ? Shall I not love Him
and serve Him, seeing that I am saved by His merits?" "The love
of Christ constraineth us," "that they which live should not
henceforth live unto themselves but unto Him which died for
them." If saved by imputed righteousness, we shall greatly value
imparted righteousness.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5.3.4. February  1-10 ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

* 02/01/AM

"They shall sing in the ways of the Lord."
                          --Psalm 138:5

  The time when Christians begin to sing in the ways of the
Lord is when they first lose their burden at the foot of the
Cross. Not even the songs of the angels seem so sweet as the
first song of rapture which gushes from the inmost soul of the
forgiven child of God. You know how John Bunyan describes it. He
says when poor Pilgrim lost his burden at the Cross, he gave
three great leaps, and went on his way singing--

    "Blest Cross! blest Sepulchre! blest rather be
    The Man that there was put to shame for me!"

Believer, do you recollect the day when _your_ fetters fell off?
Do you remember the place when Jesus met you, and said, "I have
loved thee with an everlasting love; I have blotted out as a
cloud thy transgressions, and as a thick cloud thy sins; they
shall not be mentioned against thee any more for ever." Oh! what
a sweet season is that when Jesus takes away the pain of sin.
When the Lord first pardoned my sin, I was so joyous that I
could scarce refrain from dancing. I thought on my road home
from the house where I had been set at liberty, that I must tell
the stones in the street the story of my deliverance. so full
was my soul of joy, that I wanted to tell every snow-flake that
was falling from heaven of the wondrous love of Jesus, who had
blotted out the sins of one of the chief of rebels. But it is
not only at the commencement of the Christian life that
believers have reason for song; as long as they live they
discover cause to sing in the ways of the Lord, and their
experience of His constant lovingkindness leads them to say, "I
will bless the Lord at all times: His praise shall continually
be in my mouth." See to it, brother, that thou magnifiest the
Lord _this day_.

       "Long as we tread this desert land,
       New mercies shall new songs demand."

* 02/02/AM

"Without the shedding of blood is no remission."
                         --Hebrews 9:22

  This is the voice of unalterable truth. In none of the Jewish
ceremonies were sins, even typically, removed without blood-
shedding. In no case, by no means can sin be pardoned without
atonement. It is clear, then, that there is no hope for me out
of Christ; for there is no other blood-shedding which is worth a
thought as an atonement for sin. Am I, then, believing in Him?
Is the blood of His atonement truly applied to my soul? All men
are on a level as to their need of Him. If we be never so moral,
generous, amiable, or patriotic, the rule will not be altered to
make an exception for us. Sin will yield to nothing less potent
than the blood of Him whom God hath set forth as a propitiation.
What a blessing that there is the one way of pardon! Why should
we seek another?

  Persons of merely formal religion cannot understand how we
can rejoice that all our sins are forgiven us for Christ's sake.
Their works, and prayers, and ceremonies, give them very poor
comfort; and well may they be uneasy, for they are neglecting
the one great salvation, and endeavouring to get remission
without blood. My soul, sit down, and behold the justice of God
as bound to punish sin; see that punishment all executed upon
thy Lord Jesus, and fall down in humble joy, and kiss the dear
feet of Him whose blood has made atonement for thee. It is in
vain when conscience is aroused to fly to feelings and evidences
for comfort: this is a habit which we learned in the Egypt of
our legal bondage. The only restorative for a guilty conscience
is a sight of Jesus suffering on the cross. "The blood is the
life thereof," says the Levitical law, and let us rest assured
that it is the life of faith and joy and every other holy grace.

       "Oh! how sweet to view the flowing
       Of my Saviour's precious blood;
       With divine assurance knowing
       He has made my peace with God."

* 02/03/AM

"Therefore, brethren, we are debtors."
                          --Romans 8:12

  As God's creatures, we are all debtors to Him: to obey Him
with all our body, and soul, and strength. Having broken His
commandments, as we all have, we are debtors to His justice, and
we owe to Him a vast amount which we are not able to pay. But of
the _Christian_ it can be said that he does not owe God's
_justice_ anything, for Christ has paid the debt His people
owed; for this reason the believer owes the more to _love_. I am
a debtor to God's grace and forgiving mercy; but I am no debtor
to His justice, for He will never accuse me of a debt already
paid. Christ said, "It is finished!" and by that He meant, that
whatever His people owed was wiped away for ever from the book
of remembrance. Christ, to the uttermost, has satisfied divine
justice; the account is settled; the handwriting is nailed to
the cross; the receipt is given, and we are debtors to God's
justice no longer. But then, because we are not debtors to our
Lord in that sense, we become ten times more debtors to God than
we should have been otherwise. Christian, pause and ponder for a
moment. What a debtor thou art to divine _sovereignty_! How
much thou owest to His disinterested love, for He gave His own
Son that He might die for thee. Consider how much you owe to His
forgiving _grace_, that after ten thousand affronts He loves you
as infinitely as ever. Consider what you owe to His _power_; how
He has raised you from your death in sin; how He has preserved
your spiritual life; how He has kept you from falling; and how,
though a thousand enemies have beset your path, you have been
able to hold on your way. Consider what you owe to His
_immutability_. Though you have changed a thousand times, He
has not changed once. Thou art as deep in debt as thou canst be
to every attribute of God. To God thou owest thyself, and all
thou hast--yield thyself as a living sacrifice, it is but thy
reasonable service.

* 02/04/AM

"The love of the Lord."
                           --Hosea 3:1

  Believer, _look back_ through all thine experience, and
think of the way whereby the Lord thy God has led thee in the
wilderness, and how He hath fed and clothed thee every day--how
He hath borne with thine ill manners--how He hath put up with
all thy murmurings, and all thy longings after the flesh-pots of
Egypt--how He has opened the rock to supply thee, and fed thee
with manna that came down from heaven. Think of how His grace
has been sufficient for thee in all thy troubles--how His blood
has been a pardon to thee in all thy sins--how His rod and His
staff have comforted thee. When thou hast thus looked back upon
the love of the Lord, then let faith survey His love _in the
future_, for remember that Christ's covenant and blood have
something more in them than the _past_. He who has loved thee
and pardoned thee, shall never cease to love and pardon. He is
Alpha, and He shall be Omega also: He is first, and He shall be
_last_. Therefore, bethink thee, when thou shalt pass through
the valley of the shadow of death, thou needest fear no evil,
for He is with thee. When thou shalt stand in the cold floods of
Jordan, thou needest not fear, for death cannot separate thee
from His love; and when thou shalt come into the mysteries of
eternity thou needest not tremble, "For I am persuaded, that
neither death; nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor
powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor
depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from
the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Now, soul,
is not thy love refreshed? Does not this make thee love Jesus?
Doth not a flight through illimitable plains of the ether of
love inflame thy heart and compel thee to delight thyself in the
Lord thy God? Surely as we meditate on "the love of the Lord,"
our hearts burn within us, and we long to love Him more.

* 02/05/AM

"The Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world."
                          --1 John 4:14

  It is a sweet thought that Jesus Christ did not come forth
without His Father's permission, authority, consent, and
assistance. He was sent of the Father, that He might be the
Saviour of men. We are too apt to forget that, while there are
distinctions as to the _persons_ in the Trinity, there are no
distinctions of _honour_. We too frequently ascribe the honour
of our salvation, or at least the depths of its benevolence,
more to Jesus Christ than we do the Father. This is a very great
mistake. What if Jesus came? Did not His Father send Him? If He
spake wondrously, did not His Father pour grace into His lips,
that He might be an able minister of the new covenant? He who
knoweth the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost as he should
know them, never setteth one before another in his love; he sees
them at Bethlehem, at Gethsemane, and on Calvary, all equally
engaged in the work of salvation. O Christian, hast thou put
thy confidence in the Man Christ Jesus? Hast thou placed thy
reliance solely on Him? And art thou united with Him? Then
believe that thou art united unto the God of heaven. Since to
the Man Christ Jesus thou art brother, and holdest closest
fellowship, thou art linked thereby with God the Eternal, and
"the Ancient of days" is thy Father and thy friend. Didst thou
ever consider the depth of love in the heart of Jehovah, when
God the Father equipped His Son for the great enterprise of
mercy? If not, be this thy day's meditation. The _Father_ sent
Him! Contemplate that subject. Think how Jesus works what the
_Father_ wills. In the wounds of the dying Saviour see the love
of the great I AM. Let every thought of Jesus be also connected
with the Eternal, ever-blessed God, for "It pleased the Lord to
bruise Him; He hath put Him to grief."

* 02/06/AM

"Praying always."
                        --Ephesians 6:18

  What multitudes of prayers we have put up from the first
moment when we learned to pray. Our first prayer was a prayer
for ourselves; we asked that God would have mercy upon us, and
blot out our sin. He heard us. But when He had blotted out our
sins like a cloud, then we had more prayers for ourselves. We
have had to pray for sanctifying grace, for constraining and
restraining grace; we have been led to crave for a fresh
assurance of faith, for the comfortable application of the
promise, for deliverance in the hour of temptation, for help in
the time of duty, and for succour in the day of trial. We have
been compelled to go to God for our souls, as constant beggars
asking for everything. Bear witness, children of God, you have
never been able to get anything for your souls elsewhere. All
the bread your soul has eaten has come down from heaven, and all
the water of which it has drank has flowed from the living
rock--Christ Jesus the Lord. Your soul has never grown rich in
itself; it has always been a pensioner upon the daily bounty of
God; and hence your prayers have ascended to heaven for a range
of spiritual mercies all but infinite. Your wants were
innumerable, and therefore the supplies have been infinitely
great, and your prayers have been as varied as the mercies have
been countless. Then have you not cause to say, "I love the
Lord, because He hath heard the voice of my supplication"? For
as your prayers have been many, so also have been God's answers
to them. He has heard you in the day of trouble, has
strengthened you, and helped you, even when you dishonoured Him
by trembling and doubting at the mercy-seat. Remember this, and
let it fill your heart with gratitude to God, who has thus
graciously heard your poor weak prayers. "Bless the Lord, O my
soul, and forget not all His benefits."

* 02/07/AM

"Arise, and depart."
                          --Micah 2:10

  The hour is approaching when the message will come to us, as
it comes to all--"Arise, and go forth from the home in which
thou hast dwelt, from the city in which thou hast done thy
business, from thy family, from thy friends. Arise, and take thy
last journey." And what know we of the journey? And what know we
of the country to which we are bound? A little we have read
thereof, and somewhat has been revealed to us by the Spirit; but
how little do we know of the realms of the future! We know that
there is a black and stormy river called "Death." God bids us
cross it, promising to be with us. And, after death, what
cometh? What wonder-world will open upon our astonished sight?
What scene of glory will be unfolded to our view? No traveller
has ever returned to tell. But we know enough of the heavenly
land to make us welcome our summons thither with joy and
gladness. The journey of death may be dark, but we may go forth
on it fearlessly, knowing that God is with us as we walk through
the gloomy valley, and therefore we need fear no evil. We shall
be departing from all we have known and loved here, but we shall
be going to our Father's house--to our Father's home, where
Jesus is--to that royal "city which hath foundations, whose
builder and maker is God." This shall be our last removal, to
dwell for ever with Him we love, in the midst of His people, in
the presence of God. Christian, meditate much on heaven, it will
help thee to press on, and to forget the toil of the way. This
vale of tears is but the pathway to the better country: this
world of woe is but the stepping-stone to a world of bliss.

       "Prepare us, Lord, by grace divine,
       For Thy bright courts on high;
       Then bid our spirits rise, and join
       The chorus of the sky."

* 02/08/AM

"Thou shalt call his name Jesus."
                         --Matthew 1:21

  When a person is dear, everything connected with him becomes
dear for his sake. Thus, so precious is the person of the Lord
Jesus in the estimation of all true believers, that everything
about Him they consider to be inestimable beyond all price. "All
Thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia," said David,
as if the very vestments of the Saviour were so sweetened by His
person that he could not but love them. Certain it is, that
there is not a spot where that hallowed foot hath trodden--there
is not a word which those blessed lips have uttered--nor a
thought which His loving Word has revealed--which is not to us
precious beyond all price. And this is true of the _names_ of
Christ--they are all sweet in the believer's ear. Whether He be
called the Husband of the Church, her Bridegroom, her Friend;
whether He be styled the Lamb slain from the foundation of the
world--the King, the Prophet, or the Priest--every title of our
Master--Shiloh, Emmanuel, Wonderful, the Mighty Counsellor--
every name is like the honeycomb dropping with honey, and
luscious are the drops that distil from it. But if there be one
name sweeter than another in the believer's ear, it is the name
of _Jesus_. Jesus! it is the name which moves the harps of
heaven to melody. Jesus! the life of all our joys. If there be
one name more charming, more precious than another, it is this
name. It is woven into the very warp and woof of our psalmody.
Many of our hymns begin with it, and scarcely any, that are good
for anything, end without it. It is the sum total of all
delights. It is the music with which the bells of heaven ring; a
song in a word; an ocean for comprehension, although a drop for
brevity; a matchless oratorio in two syllables; a gathering up
of the hallelujahs of eternity in five letters.

       "Jesus, I love Thy charming name,
       'Tis music to mine ear."

* 02/09/AM

"And David enquired of the Lord."
                         --2 Samuel 5:23

  When David made this enquiry he had just fought the
Philistines, and gained a signal victory. The Philistines came
up in great hosts, but, by the help of God, David had easily put
them to flight. Note, however, that when they came a second
time, David did not go up to fight them without enquiring of the
Lord. Once he had been victorious, and he might have said, as
many have in other cases, "I shall be victorious again; I may
rest quite sure that if I have conquered once I shall triumph
yet again. Wherefore should I tarry to seek at the Lord's
hands?" Not so, David. He had gained one battle by the strength
of the Lord; he would not venture upon another until he had
ensured the same. He enquired, "Shall I go up against them?" He
waited until God's sign was given. Learn from David to take no
step without God. Christian, if thou wouldst know the path of
duty, take God for thy compass; if thou wouldst steer thy ship
through the dark billows, put the tiller into the hand of the
Almighty. Many a rock might be escaped, if we would let our
Father take the helm; many a shoal or quicksand we might well
avoid, if we would leave to His sovereign will to choose and to
command. The Puritan said, "As sure as ever a Christian carves
for himself, he'll cut his own fingers;" this is a great truth.
Said another old divine, "He that goes before the cloud of God's
providence goes on a fool's errand;" and so he does. We must
mark God's providence leading us; and if providence tarries,
tarry till providence comes. He who goes before providence, will
be very glad to run back again. "I will instruct thee and teach
thee in the way which thou shalt go," is God's promise to His
people. Let us, then, take all our perplexities to Him, and say,
"Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?" Leave not thy chamber this
morning without enquiring of the Lord.

* 02/10/AM

"I know how to abound."
                       --Philippians 4:12

  There are many who know "how to be abased" who have not
learned "how to abound." When they are set upon the top of a
pinnacle their heads grow dizzy, and they are ready to fall. The
Christian far oftener disgraces his profession in prosperity
than in adversity. It is a dangerous thing to be prosperous. The
crucible of adversity is a less severe trial to the Christian
than the fining-pot of prosperity. Oh, what leanness of soul and
neglect of spiritual things have been brought on through the
very mercies and bounties of God! Yet this is not a matter of
necessity, for the apostle tells us that he knew how to abound.
When he had much he knew how to use it. Abundant grace enabled
him to bear abundant prosperity. When he had a full sail he was
loaded with much ballast, and so floated safely. It needs more
than human skill to carry the brimming cup of mortal joy with a
steady hand, yet Paul had learned that skill, for he declares,
"In all things I am instructed both to be full and to be
hungry." It is a divine lesson to know how to be full, for the
Israelites were full once, but while the flesh was yet in their
mouth, the wrath of God came upon them. Many have asked for
mercies that they might satisfy their own hearts' lust. Fulness
of bread has often made fulness of blood, and that has brought
on wantonness of spirit. When we have much of God's providential
mercies, it often happens that we have but little of God's
grace, and little gratitude for the bounties we have received.
We are full and we forget God: satisfied with earth, we are
content to do without heaven. Rest assured it is harder to know
how to be full than it is to know how to be hungry--so desperate
is the tendency of human nature to pride and forgetfulness of
God. Take care that you ask in your prayers that God would teach
you "how to be full."

      " Let not the gifts Thy love bestows
      Estrange our hearts from Thee."


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5.3.5. February 11-20 ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

* 02/11/AM

"And they took knowledge of them, that they had been with
Jesus."
                           --Acts 4:13

  A Christian should be a striking likeness of Jesus Christ.
You have read lives of Christ, beautifully and eloquently
written, but the best life of Christ is His living biography,
written out in the words and actions of His people. If we were
what we profess to be, and what we should be, we should be
pictures of Christ; yea, such striking likenesses of Him, that
the world would not have to hold us up by the hour together, and
say, "Well, it seems somewhat of a likeness;" but they would,
when they once beheld us, exclaim, "He has been with Jesus; he
has been taught of Him; he is like Him; he has caught the very
idea of the holy Man of Nazareth, and he works it out in his
life and every-day actions." A Christian should be like Christ
in his _boldness_. Never blush to own your religion; your
profession will never disgrace you: take care you never disgrace
_that_. Be like Jesus, very valiant for your God. Imitate Him in
your _loving_ spirit; think kindly, speak kindly, and do kindly,
that men may say of you, "He has been with Jesus." Imitate Jesus
in His _holiness_. Was He zealous for His Master? so be you;
ever go about doing good. Let not time be wasted: it is too
precious. Was He self-denying, never looking to His own
interest? Be the same. Was He devout? Be you fervent in your
prayers. Had He deference to His Father's will? so submit
yourselves to Him. Was He patient? so learn to endure. And best
of all, as the highest portraiture of Jesus, try to forgive your
enemies, as He did; and let those sublime words of your Master,
"Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do," always
ring in your ears. Forgive, as you hope to be forgiven. Heap
coals of fire on the head of your foe by your kindness to him.
Good for evil, recollect, is godlike. Be godlike, then; and in
all ways and by all means, so live that all may say of you, "He
has been with Jesus."

* 02/12/AM

"For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our
consolation also aboundeth by Christ."
                       --2 Corinthians 1:5

  There is a blessed proportion. The Ruler of Providence bears
a pair of scales--in this side He puts His people's trials, and
in that He puts their consolations. When the scale of trial is
nearly empty, you will always find the scale of consolation in
nearly the same condition; and when the scale of trials is full,
you will find the scale of consolation just as heavy. When the
black clouds gather most, the light is the more brightly
revealed to us. When the night lowers and the tempest is coming
on, the Heavenly Captain is always closest to His crew. It is a
blessed thing, that when we are most cast down, then it is that
we are most lifted up by the consolations of the Spirit. One
reason is, because _trials make more room for consolation_.
Great hearts can only be made by great troubles. The spade of
trouble digs the reservoir of comfort deeper, and makes more
room for consolation. God comes into our heart--He finds it
full--He begins to break our comforts and to make it empty; then
there is more room for grace. The humbler a man lies, the more
comfort he will always have, because he will be more fitted to
receive it. Another reason why we are often most happy in our
troubles, is this--_then we have the closest dealings with God_.
When the barn is full, man can live without God: when the purse
is bursting with gold, we try to do without so much prayer. But
once take our _gourds_ away, and we want our _God_; once cleanse
the idols out of the house, then we are compelled to honour
Jehovah. "Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O Lord."
There is no cry so good as that which comes from the bottom of
the mountains; no prayer half so hearty as that which comes up
from the depths of the soul, through deep trials and
afflictions. Hence they bring us to God, and we are happier; for
nearness to God is happiness. Come, troubled believer, fret not
over your heavy troubles, for they are the heralds of weighty
mercies.

* 02/13/AM

"Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us,
that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world
knoweth us not, because it knew Him not. Beloved, now are we the
sons of God."
                         --1 John 3:1,2

  "Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon
us. Consider who we were, and what we feel ourselves to be even
now when corruption is powerful in us, and you will wonder at
our adoption. Yet we are called "_the sons of God_." What a high
relationship is that of a son, and what privileges it brings!
What care and tenderness the son expects from his father, and
what love the father feels towards the son! But all _that_, and
more than that, we now have through Christ. As for the temporary
drawback of suffering with the elder brother, this we accept as
an honour: "Therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew
Him not." We are content to be unknown with Him in His
humiliation, for we are to be exalted with Him. "_Beloved, now
are we the sons of God_." That is easy to read, but it is not so
easy to feel. How is it with your heart this morning? Are you in
the lowest depths of sorrow? Does corruption rise within your
spirit, and grace seem like a poor spark trampled under foot?
Does your faith almost fail you? Fear not, it is neither your
graces nor feelings on which you are to live: you must live
simply by faith on Christ. With all these things against us,
now--in the very depths of our sorrow, wherever we may be--
_now_, as much in the valley as on the mountain, "Beloved, _now_
are we the sons of God." "Ah, but," you say, "see how I am
arrayed! my graces are not bright; my righteousness does not
shine with apparent glory." But read the next: _"It doth not yet
appear what we shall be: but we know that, when He shall appear,
we shall be like Him_." The Holy Spirit shall purify our minds,
and divine power shall refine our bodies, then shall _we see Him
as He is_.

* 02/14/AM

"And his allowance was a continual allowance given him of the
king, a daily rate for every day, all the days of his life."
                         --2 Kings 25:30

  Jehoiachin was not sent away from the king's palace with a
store to last him for months, but his provision was given him as
a daily pension. Herein he well pictures the happy position of
all the Lord's people. A daily portion is _all that a man really
wants_. We do not need tomorrow's supplies; that day has not
yet dawned, and its wants are as yet unborn. The thirst which we
may suffer in the month of June does not need to be quenched in
February, for we do not feel it yet; if we have enough for each
day as the days arrive we shall never know want. Sufficient for
the day is _all that we can enjoy_. We cannot eat or drink or
wear more than the day's supply of food and raiment; the surplus
gives us the care of storing it, and the anxiety of watching
against a thief. One staff aids a traveller, but a bundle of
staves is a heavy burden. Enough is not only as good as a feast,
but is all that the veriest glutton can truly enjoy. This is
_all that we should expect_; a craving for more than this is
ungrateful. When our Father does not give us more, we should be
content with his daily allowance. Jehoiachin's case is ours, we
have a sure portion, a portion _given us of the king_, a
_gracious_ portion, and a _perpetual portion_. Here is surely
ground for thankfulness.

  Beloved Christian reader, in matters of grace _you need a
daily supply_. You have no store of strength. Day by day must
you seek help from above. It is a very sweet assurance that _a
daily portion is provided for you_. In the word, through the
ministry, by meditation, in prayer, and waiting upon God you
shall receive renewed strength. In Jesus all needful things are
laid up for you. Then _enjoy your continual allowance_. Never go
hungry while the daily bread of grace is on the table of mercy.

* 02/15/AM

"To Him be glory both now and forever."
                         --2 Peter 3:18

  Heaven will be full of the ceaseless praises of Jesus.
Eternity! thine unnumbered years shall speed their everlasting
course, but forever and for ever, "to Him be glory." Is He not a
"Priest I for ever after the order of Melchisedek"? "To Him be
glory." Is He not king for ever?--King of kings and Lord of
lords, the everlasting Father? "To Him be glory _for ever_."
Never shall His praises cease. That which was bought with blood
deserves to last while immortality endures. The glory of the
cross must never be eclipsed; the lustre of the grave and of the
resurrection must never be dimmed. O Jesus! thou shalt be
praised for ever. Long as immortal spirits live--long as the
Father's throne endures--for ever, for ever, unto Thee shall be
glory. Believer, you are anticipating the time when you shall
join the saints above in ascribing all glory to Jesus; but are
you glorifying Him _now_? The apostle's words are, "To Him be
glory both now and for ever." Will you not this day make it your
prayer? "Lord, help me to glorify Thee; I am poor, help me to
glorify Thee by contentment; I am sick, help me to give Thee
honour by patience; I have talents, help me to extol Thee by
spending them for Thee; I have time, Lord, help me to redeem it,
that I may serve thee; I have a heart to feel, Lord, let that
heart feel no love but Thine, and glow with no flame but
affection for Thee; I have a head to think, Lord, help me to
think _of_ Thee and _for_ Thee; Thou hast put me in this world
for something, Lord, show me what that is, and help me to work
out my life-purpose: I cannot do much, but as the widow put in
her two mites, which were all her living, so, Lord, I cast my
time and eternity too into Thy treasury; I am all Thine; take
me, and enable me to glorify Thee _now_, in all that I say, in
all that I do, and with all that I have."

* 02/16/AM

"I have learned, in whatever state I am, therewith to be
content."
                       --Philippians 4:11

  These words show us that contentment is not a natural
propensity of man. "Ill weeds grow apace." Covetousness,
discontent, and murmuring are as natural to man as thorns are to
the soil. We need not sow thistles and brambles; they come up
naturally enough, because they are indigenous to earth: and so,
we need not teach men to complain; they complain fast enough
without any education. But the precious things of the earth must
be cultivated. If we would have wheat, we must plough and sow;
if we want flowers, there must be the garden, and all the
gardener's care. Now, contentment is one of the flowers of
heaven, and if we would have it, it must be cultivated; it will
not grow in us by nature; it is the new nature alone that can
produce it, and even then we must be specially careful and
watchful that we maintain and cultivate the grace which God has
sown in us. Paul says, "I have _learned_ . . . to be content;"
as much as to say, he did not know how at one time. It cost him
some pains to attain to the mystery of that great truth. No
doubt he sometimes thought he had learned, and then broke down.
And when at last he had attained unto it, and could say, "I have
learned in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content," he
was an old, grey-headed man, upon the borders of the grave--a
poor prisoner shut up in Nero's dungeon at Rome. We might well
be willing to endure Paul's infirmities, and share the cold
dungeon with him, if we too might by any means attain unto his
good degree. Do not indulge the notion that you can be
contented with _learning_, or learn without discipline. It is
not a power that may be exercised naturally, but a science to be
acquired gradually. We know this from experience. Brother, hush
that murmur, natural though it be, and continue a diligent pupil
in the College of Content.

* 02/17/AM

"Isaac dwelt by the well Lahai-roi."
                         --Genesis 25:11

  Hagar had once found deliverance there and Ishmael had drank
from the water so graciously revealed by the God who liveth and
seeth the sons of men; but this was a merely casual visit, such
as worldlings pay to the Lord in times of need, when it serves
their turn. They cry to Him in trouble, but forsake Him in
prosperity. Isaac _dwelt_ there, and made the well of the living
and all-seeing God his constant source of supply. The usual
tenor of a man's life, the _dwelling_ of his soul, is the true
test of his state. Perhaps the providential visitation
experienced by Hagar struck Isaac's mind, and led him to revere
the place; its mystical name endeared it to him; his frequent
musings by its brim at eventide made him familiar with the well;
his meeting Rebecca there had made his spirit feel at home near
the spot; but best of all, the fact that he there enjoyed
fellowship with the living God, had made him select that
hallowed ground for his dwelling. Let us learn to live in the
presence of the living God; let us pray the Holy Spirit that
this day, and every other day, we may feel, "Thou God seest me."
May the Lord Jehovah be as a well to us, delightful, comforting,
unfailing, springing up unto eternal life. The bottle of the
creature cracks and dries up, but the well of the Creator never
fails; happy is he who dwells at the well, and so has abundant
and constant supplies near at hand. The Lord has been a sure
helper to others: His name is Shaddai, God All-sufficient; our
hearts have often had most delightful intercourse with Him;
through Him our soul has found her glorious Husband, the Lord
Jesus; and in Him this day we live, and move, and have our
being; let us, then, dwell in closest fellowship with Him.
Glorious Lord, constrain us that we may never leave Thee, but
dwell by the well of the living God.

* 02/18/AM

"Shew me wherefore thou contendest with me."
                           --Job 10:2

  Perhaps, O tried soul, the Lord is doing this to develop thy
graces. There are some of thy graces which would never be
_discovered_ if it were not for thy trials. Dost thou not know
that thy faith never looks so grand in summer weather as it does
in winter? Love is too often like a glow-worm, showing but
little light except it be in the midst of surrounding darkness.
Hope itself is like a star--not to be seen in the sunshine of
prosperity, and only to be discovered in the night of adversity.
Afflictions are often the black foils in which God doth set the
jewels of His children's graces, to make them shine the better.
It was but a little while ago that on thy knees thou wast
saying, "Lord, I fear I have no faith: let me know that I have
faith." Was not this really, though perhaps unconsciously,
praying for trials?--for how canst thou know that thou hast
faith until thy faith is exercised? Depend upon it, God often
sends us trials that our graces may be discovered, and that we
may be certified of their existence. Besides, it is not merely
discovery, _real growth_ in grace is the result of sanctified
trials. God often takes away our comforts and our privileges in
order to make us better Christians. He trains His soldiers, not
in tents of ease and luxury, but by turning them out and using
them to forced marches and hard service. He makes them ford
through streams, and swim through rivers, and climb mountains,
and walk many a long mile with heavy knapsacks of sorrow on
their backs. Well, Christian, may not this account for the
troubles through which thou art passing? Is not the Lord
bringing out your graces, and making them grow? Is not this the
reason why He is contending with you?

        "Trials make the promise sweet;
        Trials give new life to prayer;
        Trials bring me to His feet,
        Lay me low, and keep me there."

* 02/19/AM

"Thus saith the Lord God; I will yet for this be enquired of by
the house of Israel, to do it for them."
                         --Ezekiel 36:37

  Prayer is the forerunner of mercy. Turn to sacred history,
and you will find that scarcely ever did a great mercy come to
this world unheralded by supplication. You have found this true
in your own personal experience. God has given you many an
unsolicited favour, but still great prayer has always been the
prelude of great mercy with you. When you first found peace
through the blood of the cross, you had been praying much, and
earnestly interceding with God that He would remove your doubts,
and deliver you from your distresses. Your assurance was the
result of prayer. When at any time you have had high and
rapturous joys, you have been obliged to look upon them as
answers to your prayers. When you have had great deliverances
out of sore troubles, and mighty helps in great dangers, you
have been able to say, "I sought the Lord, and He heard me, and
delivered me from all my fears." Prayer is always the preface to
blessing. It goes before the blessing _as the blessing's
shadow_. When the sunlight of God's mercies rises upon our
necessities, it casts the shadow of prayer far down upon the
plain. Or, to use another illustration, when God piles up a hill
of mercies, He Himself shines behind them, and He casts on our
spirits the shadow of prayer, so that we may rest certain, if we
are much in prayer, our pleadings are the shadows of mercy.
Prayer is thus connected with the blessing _to show us the value
of it_. If we had the blessings without asking for them, we
should think them common things; but prayer makes our mercies
more precious than diamonds. The things we ask for are precious,
but we do not realize their preciousness until we have sought
for them earnestly.

     "Prayer makes the darken'd cloud withdraw;
     Prayer climbs the ladder Jacob saw;
     Gives exercise to faith and love;
     Brings every blessing from above."

* 02/20/AM

"God, that comforteth those that are cast down."
                       --2 Corinthians 7:6

  And who comforteth like Him? Go to some poor, melancholy,
distressed child of God; tell him sweet promises, and whisper in
his ear choice words of comfort; he is like the deaf adder, he
listens not to the voice of the charmer, charm he never so
wisely. He is drinking gall and wormwood, and comfort him as you
may, it will be only a note or two of mournful resignation that
you will get from him; you will bring forth no psalms of praise,
no hallelujahs, no joyful sonnets. But let _God_ come to His
child, let Him lift up his countenance, and the mourner's eyes
glisten with hope. Do you not hear him sing--

       "'Tis paradise, if thou art here;
       If thou depart, 'tis hell?"

You could not have cheered him: but the Lord has done it; "He is
the God of all comfort." There is no balm in Gilead, but there
is balm in God. There is no physician among the creatures, but
the Creator is Jehovah-rophi. It is marvellous how one sweet
word of God will make whole songs for Christians. One word of
God is like a piece of gold, and the Christian is the
goldbeater, and can hammer that promise out for whole weeks. so,
then, poor Christian, thou needest not sit down in despair. Go
to the Comforter, and ask Him to give thee consolation. Thou art
a poor dry well. You have heard it said, that when a pump is
dry, you must pour water down it first of all, and then you will
get water, and so, Christian, when thou art dry, go to God, ask
Him to shed abroad His joy in thy heart, and then thy joy shall
be full. Do not go to earthly acquaintances, for you will find
them Job's comforters after all; but go first and foremost to
thy "God, that comforteth those that are cast down," and you
will soon say, "In the multitude of my thoughts within me Thy
comforts delight my soul."


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5.3.6. February 21-29 ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

* 02/21/AM

"He hath said."
                         --Hebrews 13:5

  If we can only grasp these words by faith, we have an
all-conquering weapon in our hand. What doubt will not be slain
by this two-edged sword? What fear is there which shall not fall
smitten with a deadly wound before this arrow from the bow of
God's covenant? Will not the distresses of life and the pangs of
death; will not the corruptions within, and the snares without;
will not the trials from above, and the temptations from
beneath, all seem but light afflictions, when we can hide
ourselves beneath the bulwark of "He hath said"? Yes; whether
for delight in our quietude, or for strength in our conflict,
"He hath said" must be our daily resort. And this may teach us
the extreme value of _searching_ the Scriptures. There may be a
promise in the Word which would exactly fit your case, but you
may not know of it, and therefore you miss its comfort. You are
like prisoners in a dungeon, and there may be one key in the
bunch which would unlock the door, and you might be free; but if
you will not look for it, you may remain a prisoner still,
though liberty is so near at hand. There may be a potent
medicine in the great pharmacopoeia of Scripture, and you may
yet continue sick unless you will examine and search the
Scriptures to discover what "He hath said." Should you not,
besides reading the Bible, store your memories richly with the
promises of God? You can recollect the sayings of great men; you
treasure up the verses of renowned poets; ought you not to be
profound in your knowledge of the words of God, so that you may
be able to quote them readily when you would solve a difficulty,
or overthrow a doubt? Since "He hath said" is the source of all
wisdom, and the fountain of all comfort, let it dwell in you
richly, as "A well of water, springing up unto everlasting
life." so shall you grow healthy, strong, and happy in the
divine life.

* 02/22/AM

"His bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made
strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob."
                         --Genesis 49:24

  That strength which God gives to His Josephs is _real_
strength; it is not a boasted valour, a fiction, a thing of
which men talk, but which ends in smoke; it is true--_divine
strength_. Why does Joseph stand against temptation? Because God
gives him aid. There is nought that we can do without the power
of God. All true strength comes from "the mighty God of Jacob."
Notice in what a _blessedly familiar way_ God gives this
strength to Joseph--"The arms of his hands were made strong by
the hands of the mighty God of Jacob." Thus God is represented
as putting His hands on Joseph's hands, placing His arms on
Joseph's arms. Like as a father teaches his children, so the
Lord teaches them that fear Him. He puts His arms upon them.
Marvellous condescension! God Almighty, Eternal, Omnipotent,
stoops from His throne and lays His hand upon the child's hand,
stretching His arm upon the arm of Joseph, that he may be made
strong! This strength was also covenant strength, for it is
ascribed to "the mighty _God of Jacob_." Now, wherever you read
of the God of Jacob in the Bible, you should remember the
covenant with Jacob. Christians love to think of God's
covenant. All the power, all the grace, all the blessings, all
the mercies, all the comforts, all the things we have, flow to
us from the well-head, through the covenant. If there were no
covenant, then we should fail indeed; for all grace proceeds
from it, as light and heat from the sun. No angels ascend or
descend, save upon that ladder which Jacob saw, at the top of
which stood a covenant God. Christian, it may be that the
archers have sorely grieved you, and shot at you, and wounded
you, but still your bow abides in strength; be sure, then, to
ascribe all the glory to Jacob's God.

* 02/23/AM

"I will never leave thee."
                         --Hebrews 13:5

  No promise is of private interpretation. Whatever God has
said to any one saint, He has said to all. When He opens a well
for one, it is that all may drink. When He openeth a granary-
door to give out food, there may be some one starving man who is
the occasion of its being opened, but all hungry saints may come
and feed too. Whether He gave the word to Abraham or to Moses,
matters not, O believer; He has given it to thee as one of the
covenanted seed. There is not a high blessing too lofty for
thee, nor a wide mercy too extensive for thee. Lift up now
thine eyes to the north and to the south, to the east and to the
west, for all this is thine. Climb to Pisgah's top, and view the
utmost limit of the divine promise, for the land is all thine
own. There is not a brook of living water of which thou mayst
not drink. If the land floweth with milk and honey, eat the
honey and drink the milk, for both are thine. Be thou bold to
believe, for He hath said, "I will never leave _thee_, nor
forsake _thee_."In this promise, God gives to His people
everything. "_I_ will never leave thee." Then no attribute of
God can cease to be engaged for us. Is He mighty ? He will show
Himself strong on the behalf of them that trust Him. Is He love?
Then with lovingkindness will He have mercy upon us. Whatever
attributes may compose the character of Deity, every one of them
to its fullest extent shall be engaged on our side. To put
everything in one, there is nothing you can want, there is
nothing you can ask for, there is nothing you can need in time
or in eternity, there is nothing living, nothing dying, there is
nothing in this world, nothing in the next world, there is
nothing now, nothing at the resurrection-morning, nothing in
heaven which is not contained in this text--"I will never leave
thee, nor forsake thee."

* 02/24/AM

"I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall
be showers of blessing."
                         --Ezekiel 34:26

  Here is _sovereign mercy_--"I will give them the shower in
its season." Is it not sovereign, _divine_ mercy?--for who can
say, "I will give them showers," except God? There is only one
voice which can speak to the clouds, and bid them beget the
rain. Who sendeth down the rain upon the earth? Who scattereth
the showers upon the green herb? Do not I, the Lord? so grace is
the gift of God, and is not to be created by man. It is also
_needed_ grace. What would the ground do without showers? You
may break the clods, you may sow your seeds, but what can you do
without the rain? As absolutely needful is the divine blessing.
In vain you labour, until God the plenteous shower bestows, and
sends salvation down. Then, it is _plenteous grace_. "I will
send them showers." It does not say, "I will send them drops,"
but "showers." so it is with grace. If God gives a blessing, He
usually gives it in such a measure that there is not room enough
to receive it. Plenteous grace! Ah! we want plenteous grace to
keep us humble, to make us prayerful, to make us holy; plenteous
grace to make us zealous, to preserve us through this life, and
at last to land us in heaven. We cannot do without saturating
showers of grace. Again, it is _seasonable grace_. "I will cause
the shower to come down _in his season_." What is thy season
this morning? Is it the season of drought? Then that is the
season for showers. Is it a season of great heaviness and black
clouds? Then that is the season for showers. "As thy days so
shall thy strength be." And here is a _varied_ blessing. "I will
give thee _showers_ of blessing." The word is in the plural. All
kinds of blessings God will send. All God's blessings go
together, like links in a golden chain. If He gives converting
grace, He will also give comforting grace. He will send
"showers of blessing." Look up to-day, O parched plant, and open
thy leaves and flowers for a heavenly watering.

* 02/25/AM

"The wrath to come."
                          --Matthew 3:7

  It is pleasant to pass over a country after a storm has spent
itself; to smell the freshness of the herbs after the rain has
passed away, and to note the drops while they glisten like
purest diamonds in the sunlight. That is the position of a
Christian. He is going through a land where the storm has spent
itself upon His Saviour's head, and if there be a few drops of
sorrow falling, they distil from clouds of mercy, and Jesus
cheers him by the assurance that they are not for his
destruction. But how terrible is it to witness the approach of a
tempest: to note the forewarnings of the storm; to mark the
birds of heaven as they droop their wings; to see the cattle as
they lay their heads low in terror; to discern the face of the
sky as it groweth black, and look to the sun which shineth not,
and the heavens which are angry and frowning! How terrible to
await the dread advance of a hurricane--such as occurs,
sometimes, in the tropics--to wait in terrible apprehension till
the wind shall rush forth in fury, tearing up trees from their
roots, forcing rocks from their pedestals, and hurling down all
the dwelling-places of man! And yet, sinner, this is your
present position. No hot drops have as yet fallen, but a shower
of fire is coming. No terrible winds howl around you, but God's
tempest is gathering its dread artillery. As yet the
water-floods are dammed up by mercy, but the flood-gates shall
soon be opened: the thunderbolts of God are yet in His
storehouse, but lo! the tempest hastens, and how awful shall
that moment be when God, robed in vengeance, shall march forth
in fury! Where, where, where, O sinner, wilt thou hide thy head,
or whither wilt thou flee? O that the hand of mercy may now lead
you to Christ! He is freely set before you in the gospel: His
riven side is the rock of shelter. Thou knowest thy need of Him;
believe in Him, cast thyself upon Him, and then the fury shall
be overpast for ever.

* 02/26/AM

"Salvation is of the Lord."
                           --Jonah 2:9

  Salvation is the work of God. It is He alone who quickens the
soul "dead in trespasses and sins," and it is He also who
maintains the soul in its spiritual life. He is both "Alpha and
Omega." "Salvation is of the Lord." If I am prayerful, God makes
me prayerful; if I have graces, they are God's gifts to me; if I
hold on in a consistent life, it is because He upholds me with
His hand. I do nothing whatever towards my own preservation,
except what God Himself first does in me. Whatever I have, all
my goodness is of the Lord alone. Wherein I sin, that is my own;
but wherein I act rightly, that is of God, wholly and
completely. If I have repulsed a spiritual enemy, the Lord's
strength nerved my arm. Do I live before men a consecrated life?
It is not I, but Christ who liveth in me. Am I sanctified? I
did not cleanse myself: God's Holy Spirit sanctifies me. Am I
weaned from the world? I am weaned by _God's_ chastisements
sanctified to my good. Do I grow in knowledge? The great
Instructor teaches me. All my jewels were fashioned by heavenly
art. I find in God all that I want; but I find in myself nothing
but sin and misery. "He only is my rock and my salvation." Do I
feed on the Word? That Word would be no food for me unless the
Lord made it food for my soul, and helped me to feed upon it. Do
I live on the manna which comes down from heaven? What is that
manna but Jesus Christ himself incarnate, whose body and whose
blood I eat and drink? Am I continually receiving fresh increase
of strength? Where do I gather my might? My help cometh from
heaven's hills: without Jesus I can do nothing. As a branch
cannot bring forth fruit except it abide in the vine, no more
can I, except I abide in Him. What Jonah learned in the great
deep, let me learn this morning in my closet: "Salvation is of
the Lord."

* 02/27/AM

"Thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the Most
High, thy habitation."
                          --Psalm 91:9

  The Israelites in the wilderness _were continually exposed to
change_. Whenever the pillar stayed its motion, the tents were
pitched; but tomorrow, ere the morning sun had risen, the
trumpet sounded, the ark was in motion, and the fiery, cloudy
pillar was leading the way through the narrow defiles of the
mountain, up the hillside, or along the arid waste of the
wilderness. They had scarcely time to rest a little before they
heard the sound of "Away! this is not your rest; you must still
be onward journeying towards Canaan!" They were never long in
one place. Even wells and palm trees could not detain them. Yet
they had an abiding home in their God, His cloudy pillar was
their roof-tree, and its flame by night their household fire.
They must go onward from place to place, continually changing,
never having time to settle, and to say, "Now we are secure; in
this place we shall dwell." "Yet," says Moses, "though we are
always changing, Lord, thou hast been our dwelling-place
throughout all generations." The Christian knows no change with
regard to God. He may be rich to-day and poor to-morrow; he may
be sickly to-day and well to-morrow; he may be in happiness
to-day, to-morrow he may be distressed--but there is no change
with regard to his relationship to God. If He loved me
yesterday, He loves me to-day. My unmoving mansion of rest is my
blessed Lord. Let prospects be blighted; let hopes be blasted;
let joy be withered; let mildews destroy everything; I have lost
nothing of what I have in God. He is "my strong habitation
whereunto I can continually resort." I am a pilgrim in the
world, but at home in my God. In the earth I wander, but in God
I dwell in a quiet habitation.

* 02/28/AM

"My expectation is from Him."
                          --Psalm 62:5

  It is the believer's privilege to use this language. If he is
looking for aught from the world, it is a poor "expectation"
indeed. But if he looks to God for the supply of his wants,
whether in temporal or spiritual blessings, his expectation"
will not be a vain one. Constantly he may draw from the bank of
faith, and get his need supplied out of the riches of God's
lovingkindness. This I know, I had rather have God for my
banker than all the Rothschilds. My Lord never fails to honour
His promises; and when we bring them to His throne, He never
sends them back unanswered. Therefore I will wait only at His
door, for He ever opens it with the hand of munificent grace. At
this hour I will try Him anew. But we have "expectations" beyond
this life. We shall die soon; and then our "expectation is from
Him." Do we not expect that when we lie upon the bed of sickness
He will send angels to carry us to His bosom? We believe that
when the pulse is faint, and the heart heaves heavily, some
angelic messenger shall stand and look with loving eyes upon us,
and whisper, "Sister spirit, come away!" As we approach the
heavenly gate, we expect to hear the welcome invitation, "Come,
ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you
from the foundation of the world." We are expecting harps of
gold and crowns of glory; we are hoping soon to be amongst the
multitude of shining ones before the throne; we are looking
forward and longing for the time when we shall be like our
glorious Lord--for "We shall see Him as He is." Then if these be
thine "expectations," O my soul, live for God; live with the
desire and resolve to glorify Him from whom cometh all thy
supplies, and of whose grace in thy election, redemption, and
calling, it is that thou hast any "expectation" of coming glory.

* 02/29/AM

"With lovingkindness have I drawn thee."
                         --Jeremiah 31:3

  The thunders of the law and the terrors of judgment are all
used to bring us to Christ; but the final victory is effected by
lovingkindness. The prodigal set out to his father's house from
a sense of need; but his father saw him a great way off, and ran
to meet him; so that the last steps he took towards his father's
house were with the kiss still warm upon his cheek, and the
welcome still musical in his ears.

        "Law and terrors do but harden
        All the while they work alone;
        But a sense of blood-bought pardon
        Will dissolve a heart of stone."

The Master came one night to the door, and knocked with the iron
hand of the law; the door shook and trembled upon its hinges;
but the man piled every piece of furniture which he could find
against the door, for he said, "I will not admit the man." The
Master turned away, but by-and-bye He came back, and with His
own soft hand, using most that part where the nail had
penetrated, He knocked again--oh, so softly and tenderly. This
time the door did not shake, but, strange to say, it opened, and
there upon his knees the once unwilling host was found rejoicing
to receive his guest. "Come in, come in; thou hast so knocked
that my bowels are moved for thee. I could not think of thy
pierced hand leaving its blood-mark on my door, and of thy going
away houseless, 'Thy head filled with dew, and thy locks with
the drops of the night.' I yield, I yield, Thy love has won my
heart." so in every case: lovingkindness wins the day. What
Moses with the tablets of stone could never do, Christ does with
His pierced hand. Such is the doctrine of effectual calling. Do
I understand it experimentally? Can I say, "He drew me, and I
followed on, glad to confess the voice divine?" If so, may He
continue to draw me, till at last I shall sit down at the
marriage supper of the Lamb.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5.3.7. March 1-10 ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

* 03/01/AM

"Awake, O north wind; and come, thou south; blow upon my garden,
that the spices thereof may flow out."
                     --Song of Solomon 4:16

  Anything is better than the dead calm of indifference. Our
souls may wisely desire the north wind of trouble if that alone
can be sanctified to the drawing forth of the perfume of our
graces. so long as it cannot be said, "The Lord was not in the
wind," we will not shrink from the most wintry blast that ever
blew upon plants of grace. Did not the spouse in this verse
humbly submit herself to the reproofs of her Beloved; only
entreating Him to send forth His grace in some form, and making
no stipulation as to the peculiar manner in which it should
come? Did she not, like ourselves, become so utterly weary of
deadness and unholy calm that she sighed for any visitation
which would brace her to action? Yet she desires the warm south
wind of comfort, too, the smiles of divine love, the joy of the
Redeemer's presence; these are often mightily effectual to
arouse our sluggish life. She desires either one or the other,
or both; so that she may but be able to delight her Beloved with
the spices of her garden. She cannot endure to be unprofitable,
nor can we. How cheering a thought that Jesus can find comfort
in our poor feeble graces. Can it be? It seems far too good to
be true. Well may we court trial or even death itself if we
shall thereby be aided to make glad Immanuel's heart. O that our
heart were crushed to atoms if only by such bruising our sweet
Lord Jesus could be glorified. Graces unexercised are as sweet
perfumes slumbering in the cups of the flowers: the wisdom of
the great Husbandman overrules diverse and opposite causes to
produce the one desired result, and makes both affliction and
consolation draw forth the grateful odours of faith, love,
patience, hope, resignation, joy, and the other fair flowers of
the garden. May we know by sweet experience, what this means.

* 03/02/AM

"But all the Israelites went down to the Philistines, to sharpen
every man his share, and his coulter, and his ax, and his
mattock."
                        --1 Samuel 13:20

  We are engaged in a great war with the Philistines of evil.
_Every weapon within our reach must be used_. Preaching,
teaching, praying, giving, all must be brought into action, and
talents which have been thought too mean for service, must now
be employed. Coulter, and axe, and mattock, may all be useful in
slaying Philistines; rough tools may deal hard blows, and
killing need not be elegantly done, so long as it is done
effectually. Each moment of time, in season or out of season;
each fragment of ability, educated or untutored; each
opportunity, favourable or unfavourable, must be used, for our
foes are many and our force but slender.

  _Most of our tools want sharpening_; we need quickness of
perception, tact, energy, promptness, in a word, complete
adaptation for the Lord's work. Practical common sense is a very
scarce thing among the conductors of Christian enterprises. We
might learn from our enemies if we would, and so _make the
Philistines sharpen our weapons_. This morning let us note
enough to sharpen our zeal during this day by the aid of the
Holy Spirit. See the energy of the Papists, how they compass sea
and land to make one proselyte, are they to monopolize all the
earnestness? Mark the heathen devotees, what tortures they
endure in the service of their idols! are they alone to exhibit
patience and self-sacrifice? Observe the prince of darkness,
how persevering in his endeavours, how unabashed in his
attempts, how daring in his plans, how thoughtful in his plots,
how energetic in all! The devils are united as one man in their
infamous rebellion, while we believers in Jesus are divided in
our service of God, and scarcely ever work with unanimity. O
that from Satan's infernal industry we may learn to go about
like good Samaritans, seeking whom we may bless!

* 03/03/AM

"I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction."
                         --Isaiah 48:10

  Comfort thyself, tried believer, with this thought: God
saith, "I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction." Does
not the word come like a soft shower, assuaging the fury of the
flame? Yea, is it not an asbestos armour, against which the heat
hath no power? Let affliction come--God has chosen me. Poverty,
thou mayst stride in at my door, but God is in the house
already, and He has chosen me. Sickness, thou mayst intrude, but
I have a balsam ready--God has chosen me. Whatever befalls me in
this vale of tears, I know that He has "chosen" me. If,
believer, thou requirest still greater comfort, remember _that
you have the Son of Man with you in the furnace_. In that silent
chamber of yours, there sitteth by your side One whom thou hast
not seen, but whom thou lovest; and ofttimes when thou knowest
it not, He makes all thy bed in thy affliction, and smooths thy
pillow for thee. Thou art in poverty; but in that lovely house
of thine the Lord of life and glory is a frequent visitor. He
loves to come into these desolate places, that He may visit
thee. Thy friend sticks closely to thee. Thou canst not see Him,
but thou mayst feel the pressure of His hands. Dost thou not
hear His voice? Even in the valley of the shadow of death He
says, "Fear not, I am with thee; be not dismayed, for I am thy
God." Remember that noble speech of Caesar: "Fear not, thou
carriest Caesar and all his fortune." Fear not, Christian; Jesus
is with thee. In all thy fiery trials, His presence is both thy
comfort and safety. He will never leave one whom He has chosen
for His own. "Fear not, for I am with thee," is His sure word of
promise to His chosen ones in the "furnace of affliction." Wilt
thou not, then, take fast hold of Christ, and say--


     "Through floods and flames, if Jesus lead,
     I'll follow where He goes."

* 03/04/AM

"My grace is sufficient for thee."
                      --2 Corinthians 12:9

  If none of God's saints were poor and tried, we should not
know half so well the consolations of divine grace. When we find
the wanderer who has not where to lay his head, who yet can say,
"Still will I trust in the or, when we see the pauper starving
on bread and water, who still glories in Jesus; when we see the
bereaved widow overwhelmed in affliction, and yet having faith
in Christ, oh! what honour it reflects on the gospel. God's
grace is illustrated and magnified in the poverty and trials of
believers. Saints bear up under every discouragement, believing
that all things work together for their good, and that out of
apparent evils a real blessing shall ultimately spring--that
their God will either work a deliverance for them speedily, or
most assuredly support them in the trouble, as long as He is
pleased to keep them in it. This patience of the saints proves
the power of divine grace. There is a lighthouse out at sea: it
is a calm night--I cannot tell whether the edifice is firm; the
tempest must rage about it, and then I shall know whether it
will stand. so with the Spirit's work: if it were not on many
occasions surrounded with tempestuous waters, we should not know
that it was true and strong; if the winds did not blow upon it,
we should not know how firm and secure it was. The master-works
of God are those men who stand in the midst of difficulties,
stedfast, unmoveable,--


         "Calm mid the bewildering cry,
         Confident of victory."

He who would glorify his God must set his account upon meeting
with many trials. No man can be illustrious before the Lord
unless his conflicts be many. If then, yours be a much-tried
path, rejoice in it, because you will the better show forth the
all-sufficient grace of God. As for His failing you, never dream
of it--hate the thought. The God who has been sufficient until
now, should be trusted to the end.

* 03/05/AM

"Let us not sleep, as do others."
                      --1 Thessalonians 5:6

  There are many ways of promoting Christian wakefulness. Among
the rest, let me strongly advise Christians to converse together
concerning the ways of the Lord. Christian and Hopeful, as they
journeyed towards the Celestial City, said to themselves, "To
prevent drowsiness in this place, let us fall into good
discourse." Christian enquired, "Brother, where shall we begin?"
And Hopeful answered, "Where God began with us." Then Christian
sang this song--


    "When saints do sleepy grow, let them come hither,
    And hear how these two pilgrims talk together;
    Yea, let them learn of them, in any wise,
    Thus to keep open their drowsy slumb'ring eyes.
    Saints' fellowship, if it be managed well,
    Keeps them awake, and that in spite of hell."

Christians who isolate themselves and walk alone, are very
liable to grow drowsy. Hold Christian company, and you will be
kept wakeful by it, and refreshed and encouraged to make quicker
progress in the road to heaven. But as you thus take "sweet
counsel" with others in the ways of God, take care that the
theme of your converse is the Lord Jesus. Let the eye of faith
be constantly looking unto Him; let your heart be full of Him;
let your lips speak of His worth. Friend, live near to the
cross, and thou wilt not sleep. _Labour to impress thyself with
a deep sense of the value of the place to which thou art
going_. If thou rememberest that thou art going to heaven, thou
wilt not sleep on the road. If thou thinkest that hell is behind
thee, and the devil pursuing thee, thou wilt not loiter. Would
the manslayer sleep with the avenger of blood behind him, and
the city of refuge before him? Christian, wilt thou sleep whilst
the pearly gates are open--the songs of angels waiting for thee
to join them--a crown of gold ready for thy brow? Ah! no; in
holy fellowship continue to watch and pray that ye enter not
into temptation.

* 03/06/AM

"Ye must be born again."
                           --John 3:7

  Regeneration is a subject which lies at the very basis of
salvation, and we should be very diligent to take heed that we
really are "born again," for there are many who fancy they are,
who are not. Be assured that the name of a Christian is not the
nature of a Christian; and that being born in a Christian land,
and being recognized as professing the Christian religion is of
no avail whatever, unless there be something more added to
it--the being "born again," is a matter so _mysterious_, that
human words cannot describe it. "The wind bloweth where it
listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell
whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is
born of the Spirit." Nevertheless, it is a change which is
_known and felt_: known by works of holiness, and felt by a
gracious experience. This great work is _supernatural_. It is
not an operation which a man performs for himself: a new
principle is infused, which works in the heart, renews the soul,
and affects the entire man. It is not a change of my name, but a
renewal of my nature, so that I am not the man I used to be, but
a new man in Christ Jesus. To wash and dress a corpse is a far
different thing from making it alive: man can do the one, God
alone can do the other. If you have then, been "born again,"
your acknowledgment will be, "O Lord Jesus, the everlasting
Father, Thou art my spiritual Parent; unless Thy Spirit had
breathed into me the breath of a new, holy, and spiritual life,
I had been to this day 'dead in trespasses and sins.' My
heavenly life is wholly derived from Thee, to Thee I ascribe it.
'My life is hid with Christ in God.' It is no longer I who live,
but Christ who liveth in me." May the Lord enable us to be well
assured on this vital point, for to be unregenerate is to be
unsaved, unpardoned, without God, and without hope.

* 03/07/AM

"Have faith in God."
                          --Mark 11:22

  Faith is the foot of the soul by which it can march along the
road of the commandments. Love can make the feet move more
swiftly; but faith is the foot which carries the soul. Faith is
the oil enabling the wheels of holy devotion and of earnest
piety to move well; and without faith the wheels are taken from
the chariot, and we drag heavily. With faith I can do all
things; without faith I shall neither have the inclination nor
the power to do anything in the service of God. If you would
find the men who serve God the best, you must look for the men
of the most faith. Little faith will save a man, but little
faith cannot do great things for God. Poor Little-faith could
not have fought "Apollyon;" it needed "Christian" to do that.
Poor Little-faith could not have slain "Giant Despair;" it
required "Great-heart's" arm to knock that monster down. Little
faith will go to heaven most certainly, but it often has to hide
itself in a nut-shell, and it frequently loses all but its
jewels. Little-faith says, "It is a rough road, beset with sharp
thorns, and full of dangers; I am afraid to go;" but Great-faith
remembers the promise, "Thy shoes shall be iron and brass; as
thy days, so shall thy strength be:" and so she boldly ventures.
Little-faith stands desponding, mingling her tears with the
flood; but Great-faith sings, "When thou passest through the
waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall
not overflow thee:" and she fords the stream at once. Would you
be comfortable and happy? Would you enjoy religion? Would you
have the religion of cheerfulness and not that of gloom? Then
"have faith in God." If you love darkness, and are satisfied to
dwell in gloom and misery, then be content with little faith;
but if you love the sunshine, and would sing songs of rejoicing,
covet earnestly this best gift, "great faith."

* 03/08/AM

"We must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of
God."
                          --Acts 14:22

  God's people have their trials. It was never designed by God,
when He chose His people, that they should be an untried people.
They were chosen in the furnace of affliction; they were never
chosen to worldly peace and earthly joy. Freedom from sickness
and the pains of mortality was never promised them; but when
their Lord drew up the charter of privileges, He included
chastisements amongst the things to which they should inevitably
be heirs. Trials are a part of our lot; they were predestinated
for us in Christ's last legacy. so surely as the stars are
fashioned by his hands, and their orbits fixed by Him, so surely
are our trials allotted to us: He has ordained their season and
their place, their intensity and the effect they shall have upon
us. Good men must never expect to escape troubles; if they do,
they will be disappointed, for none of their predecessors have
been without them. Mark the patience of Job; remember Abraham,
for he had his trials, and by his faith under them, he became
the "Father of the faithful." Note well the biographies of all
the patriarchs, prophets, apostles, and martyrs, and you shall
discover none of those whom God made vessels of mercy, who were
not made to pass through the fire of affliction. It is ordained
of old that the cross of trouble should be engraved on every
vessel of mercy, as the royal mark whereby the King's vessels of
honour are distinguished. But although tribulation is thus the
path of God's children, they have the comfort of knowing that
their Master has traversed it before them; they have His
presence and sympathy to cheer them, His grace to support them,
and His example to teach them how to endure; and when they reach
"the kingdom," it will more than make amends for the "much
tribulation" through which they passed to enter it.

* 03/09/AM

"Yea, He is altogether lovely."
                     --Song of Solomon 5:16

  The superlative beauty of Jesus is all-attracting; it is not
so much to be admired as to be loved. He is more than pleasant
and fair, He is lovely. Surely the people of God can fully
justify the use of this golden word, for He is the object of
their warmest love, a love founded on the intrinsic excellence
of His person, the complete perfection of His charms. Look, O
disciples of Jesus, to your Master's lips, and say, "Are they
not most sweet?" Do not His words cause your hearts to burn
within you as He talks with you by the way? Ye worshippers of
Immanuel, look up to His head of much fine gold, and tell me,
are not His thoughts precious unto you? Is not your adoration
sweetened with affection as ye humbly bow before that
countenance which is as Lebanon, excellent as the cedars? Is
there not a charm in His every feature, and is not His whole
person fragrant with such a savour of His good ointments, that
therefore the virgins love Him? Is there one member of His
glorious body which is not attractive?--one portion of His
person which is not a fresh loadstone to our souls?--one office
which is not a strong cord to bind your heart? Our love is not
as a seal set upon His heart of love alone; it is fastened upon
His arm of power also; nor is there a single part of Him upon
which it does not fix itself. We anoint His whole person with
the sweet spikenard of our fervent love. His whole life we would
imitate; His whole character we would transcribe. In all other
beings we see some lack, in Him there is all perfection. The
best even of His favoured saints have had blots upon their
garments and wrinkles upon their brows; He is nothing but
loveliness. All earthly suns have their spots: the fair world
itself hath its wilderness; we cannot love the whole of the most
lovely thing; but Christ Jesus is gold without alloy-light
without darkness--glory without cloud--"Yea, He is _altogether_
lovely."

* 03/10/AM

"In my prosperity I said I shall never be moved."
                          --Psalm 30:6

  "Moab settled on his lees, he hath not been emptied from
vessel to vessel." Give a man wealth; let his ships bring home
continually rich freights; let the winds and waves appear to be
his servants to bear his vessels across the bosom of the mighty
deep; let his lands yield abundantly: let the weather be
propitious to his crops; let uninterrupted success attend him;
let him stand among men as a successful merchant; let him enjoy
continued health; allow him with braced nerve and brilliant eye
to march through the world, and live happily; give him the
buoyant spirit; let him have the song perpetually on his lips;
let his eye be ever sparkling with joy--and the natural
consequence of such an easy state to any man, let him be the
best Christian who ever breathed, will be _presumption_; even
David said, "I shall never be moved;" and we are not better than
David, nor half so good. Brother, beware of the smooth places of
the way; if you are treading them, or if the way be rough, thank
God for it. If God should always rock us in the cradle of
prosperity; if we were always dandled on the knees of fortune;
if we had not some stain on the alabaster pillar; if there were
not a few clouds in the sky; if we had not some bitter drops in
the wine of this life, we should become intoxicated with
pleasure, we should dream "we stand;" and stand we should, but
it would be upon a pinnacle; like the man asleep upon the mast,
each moment we should be in jeopardy.

  We bless God, then, for our afflictions; we thank Him for our
changes; we extol His name for losses of property; for we feel
that had He not chastened us thus, we might have become too
secure. Continued worldly prosperity is a fiery trial.

       "Afflictions, though they seem severe,
       In mercy oft are sent."


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5.4. Evenings ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

January  1-10
January  11-20
January  21-31

February  1-10
February 11-20
February 21-29

March  1-10

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ordered in order for your to enjoy the benefits of the full program.

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ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5.4.1. January 1-10 ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

* 01/01/PM

"We will be glad and rejoice in Thee."
                      --Song of Solomon 1:4

  We will be glad and rejoice in Thee. We will not open the
gates of the year to the dolorous notes of the sackbut, but to
the sweet strains of the harp of joy, and the high sounding
cymbals of gladness. "O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us
make a joyful noise unto the rock of our salvation." We, the
called and faithful and chosen, we will drive away our griefs,
and set up our banners of confidence in the name of God. Let
others lament over their troubles, we who have the sweetening
tree to cast into Marah's bitter pool, with joy will magnify the
Lord. Eternal Spirit, our effectual Comforter, we who are the
temples in which Thou dwellest, will never cease from adoring
and blessing the name of Jesus. _We_ WILL, we are resolved about
it, Jesus must have the crown of our heart's delight; we will
not dishonour our Bridegroom by mourning in His presence. We are
ordained to be the minstrels of the skies, let us rehearse our
everlasting anthem before we sing it in the halls of the New
Jerusalem. _We will_ BE GLAD AND REJOICE: two words with one
sense, double joy, blessedness upon blessedness. Need there be
any limit to our rejoicing in the Lord even now?  Do not men of
grace find their Lord to be camphire and spikenard, calamus and
cinnamon even now, and what better fragrance have they in heaven
itself? _We will be glad and rejoice_ IN THEE. That last word is
the meat in the dish, the kernel of the nut, the soul of the
text. What heavens are laid up in Jesus!  What rivers of
infinite bliss have their source, ay, and every drop of their
fulness in Him! Since, O sweet Lord Jesus, Thou art the present
portion of Thy people, favour us this year with such a sense of
Thy preciousness, that from its first to its last day we may be
glad and rejoice in Thee. Let January open with joy in the Lord,
and December close with gladness in Jesus.

* 01/02/PM

"Let the people renew their strength."
                          --Isaiah 41:1

  All things on earth need to be renewed. No created thing
continueth by itself. "Thou renewest the face of the year," was
the Psalmist's utterance. Even the trees, which wear not
themselves with care, nor shorten their lives with labour, must
drink of the rain of heaven and suck from the hidden treasures
of the soil. The cedars of Lebanon, which God has planted, only
live because day by day they are full of sap fresh drawn from
the earth.Neither can man's life be sustained without renewal
from God. As it is necessary to repair the waste of the body by
the frequent meal, so we must repair the waste of the soul by
feeding upon the Book of God, or by listening to the preached
Word, or by the soul-fattening table of the ordinances.How
depressed are our graces when means are neglected! What poor
starvelings some saints are who live without the diligent use of
the Word of God and secret prayer! If our piety can live without
God it is not of divine creating; it is but a dream; for if God
had begotten it, it would wait upon Him as the flowers wait upon
the dew. Without constant restoration we are not ready for the
perpetual assaults of hell, or the stern afflictions of heaven,
or even for the strifes within. When the whirlwind shall be
loosed, woe to the tree that hath not sucked up fresh sap, and
grasped the rock with many intertwisted roots.When tempests
arise, woe to the mariners that have not strengthened their
mast, nor cast their anchor, nor sought the haven. If we suffer
the good to grow weaker, the evil will surely gather strength
and struggle desperately for the mastery over us; and so,
mayhap, a painful desolation, and a lamentable disgrace may
follow. Let us draw near to the footstool of divine mercy in
humble entreaty, and we shall realize the fulfillment of the
promise, "They that wait on the Lord shall renew their
strength."

* 01/03/PM

"The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way
of the Lord, make his paths straight."
                           --Luke 3:4

  The voice crying in the wilderness demanded _a way for the
Lord, a way prepared, and a way prepared in the wilderness_. I
would be attentive to the Master's proclamation, and give Him a
road into my heart, cast up by gracious operations, through the
desert of my nature. The four directions in the text must have
my serious attention.

  _Every valley must be exalted_. Low and grovelling thoughts
of God must be given up; doubting and despairing must be
removed; and self-seeking and carnal delights must be forsaken.
Across these deep valleys a glorious causeway of grace must be
raised.

  _Every mountain and hill shall be laid low_. Proud creature-
sufficiency, and boastful self-righteousness, must be levelled,
to make a highway for the King of kings. Divine fellowship is
never vouchsafed to haughty, highminded sinners. The Lord hath
respect unto the lowly, and visits the contrite in heart, but
the lofty are an abomination unto Him. My soul, beseech the Holy
Spirit to set thee right in this respect.

  _The crooked shall be made straight_. The wavering heart must
have a straight path of decision for God and holiness marked out
for it. Double-minded men are strangers to the God of truth. My
soul, take heed that thou be in all things honest and true, as
in the sight of the heart-searching God.

  _The rough places shall be made smooth_. Stumbling-blocks of
sin must be removed, and thorns and briers of rebellion must be
uprooted. so great a visitor must not find miry ways and stony
places when He comes to honour His favoured ones with His
company. Oh that this evening the Lord may find in my heart a
highway made ready by His grace, that He may make a triumphal
progress through the utmost bounds of my soul, from the
beginning of this year even to the end of it.

* 01/04/PM

"And Joseph knew his brethren, but they knew not him."
                         --Genesis 42:8

  This morning our desires went forth for growth in our
acquaintance with the Lord Jesus; it may be well to-night to
consider a kindred topic, namely, _our heavenly Joseph's
knowledge of us_. This was most blessedly perfect long before we
had the slightest knowledge of Him. "His eyes beheld our
substance, yet being imperfect, and in His book all our members
were written, when as yet there was none of them." Before we had
a being in the world we had a being in His heart. When we were
enemies to Him, He knew us, our misery, our madness, and our
wickedness. When we wept bitterly in despairing repentance, and
viewed Him only as a judge and a ruler, He viewed us as His
brethren well beloved, and His bowels yearned towards us. He
never mistook His chosen, but always beheld them as objects of
His infinite affection. "The Lord knoweth them that are His," is
as true of the prodigals who are feeding swine as of the
children who sit at the table.

  But, alas! _we knew not our royal Brother_, and out of this
ignorance grew a host of sins. We withheld our hearts from Him,
and allowed Him no entrance to our love. We mistrusted Him, and
gave no credit to His words. We rebelled against Him, and paid
Him no loving homage. The Sun of Righteousness shone forth, and
we could not see Him. Heaven came down to earth, and earth
perceived it not. Let God be praised, those days are over with
us; yet even now it is but little that we know of Jesus compared
with what He knows of us. We have but begun to study Him, but He
knoweth us altogether. It is a blessed circumstance that the
ignorance is not on His side, for then it would be a hopeless
case for us. He will not say to us, "I never knew you," but He
will confess our names in the day of His appearing, and
meanwhile will manifest Himself to us as He doth not unto the
world.

* 01/05/PM

"And God saw the light."
                          --Genesis 1:4

  This morning we noticed the goodness of the light, and the
Lord's dividing it from the darkness, we now note the special
eye which the Lord had for the light. "God saw the light"--He
looked at it with complacency, gazed upon it with pleasure, saw
that it "was good." If the Lord has given you light, dear
reader, He looks on that light with peculiar interest; for not
only is it dear to Him as His own handiwork, but because it is
like Himself, for "He is light." Pleasant it is to the believer
to know that God's eye is thus tenderly observant of that work
of grace which He has begun. He never loses sight of the
treasure which He has placed in our earthen vessels. Sometimes
we cannot see the light, but God always sees the light, and that
is much better than our seeing it. Better for the judge to see
my innocence than for me to think I see it. It is very
comfortable for me to know that I am one of God's people--but
whether _I_ know it or not, if the Lord knows it, I am still
safe. This is the foundation, "The Lord knoweth them that are
His." You may be sighing and groaning because of inbred sin, and
mourning over your darkness, yet the Lord sees "light" in your
heart, for He has put it there, and all the cloudiness and gloom
of your soul cannot conceal your light from His gracious eye.
You may have sunk low in despondency, and even despair; but if
your soul has any longing towards Christ, and if you are seeking
to rest in His finished work, God sees the "light." He not only
_sees_ it, but He also _preserves_ it in you. "I, the Lord, do
keep it." This is a precious thought to those who, after anxious
watching and guarding of themselves, feel their own
powerlessness to do so. The light thus preserved by His grace,
He will one day develop into the splendour of noonday, and the
fulness of glory. The light within is the dawn of the eternal
day.

* 01/06/PM

"Now the hand of the Lord was upon me in the evening."
                         --Ezekiel 33:22

  In the way of _judgment_ this may be the case, and, if so, be
it mine to consider the reason of such a visitation, and bear
the rod and Him that hath appointed it. I am not the only one
who is chastened in the night season; let me cheerfully submit
to the affliction, and carefully endeavour to be profited
thereby. But the hand of the Lord may also be felt in another
manner, strengthening the soul and lifting the spirit upward
towards eternal things. O that I may in this sense feel the Lord
dealing with me! A sense of the divine presence and indwelling
bears the soul towards heaven as upon the wings of eagles. At
such times we are full to the brim with spiritual joy, and
forget the cares and sorrows of earth; the invisible is near,
and the visible loses its power over us; servant-body waits at
the foot of the hill, and the master-spirit worships upon the
summit in the presence of the Lord. O that a hallowed season of
divine communion may be vouchsafed to me this evening!  The Lord
knows that I need it very greatly. My graces languish, my
corruptions rage, my faith is weak, my devotion is cold; all
these are reasons why His healing hand should be laid upon me.
His hand can cool the heat of my burning brow, and stay the
tumult of my palpitating heart. That glorious right hand which
moulded the world can new-create my mind; the unwearied hand
which bears the earth's huge pillars up can sustain my spirit;
the loving hand which incloses all the saints can cherish me;
and the mighty hand which breaketh in pieces the enemy can
subdue my sins. Why should I not feel that hand touching me this
evening? Come, my soul, address thy God with the potent plea,
that Jesu's hands were pierced for thy redemption, and thou
shalt surely feel that same hand upon thee which once touched
Daniel and set him upon his knees that he might see visions of
God.

* 01/07/PM

"My sister, my spouse."
                     --Song of Solomon 4:12

  Observe the sweet titles with which the heavenly Solomon
with intense affection addresses His bride the church. "_My
sister_, one near to me by ties of nature, partaker of the same
sympathies. _My spouse_, nearest and dearest, united to me by
the tenderest bands of love; my sweet companion, part of my own
self. _My sister_, by my Incarnation, which makes me bone of thy
bone and flesh of thy flesh; _my spouse_, by heavenly betrothal,
in which I have espoused thee unto myself in righteousness. _My
sister_, whom I knew of old, and over whom I watched from her
earliest infancy; _my spouse_, taken from among the daughters,
embraced by arms of love, and affianced unto me for ever. See
how true it is that our royal Kinsman is not ashamed of us, for
He dwells with manifest delight upon this two-fold relationship.
We have the word "my" twice in our version; as if Christ dwelt
with rapture on His possession of His Church. "His delights were
with the sons of men," because those sons of men were His own
chosen ones. He, the Shepherd, sought the sheep, because they
were _His_ sheep; He has gone about "to seek and to save that
which was lost," because that which was lost was _His_ long
before it was lost to itself or lost to Him. The church is the
exclusive portion of her Lord; none else may claim a
partnership, or pretend to share her love. Jesus, thy church
delights to have it so! Let every believing soul drink solace
out of these wells. Soul! Christ is near to thee in ties of
relationship; Christ is dear to thee in bonds of marriage union,
and thou art dear to Him; behold He grasps both of thy hands
with both His own, saying, "_My_ sister, _my_ spouse." Mark the
two sacred holdfasts by which thy Lord gets such a double hold
of thee that He neither can nor will ever let thee go. Be not, O
beloved, slow to return the hallowed flame of His love.

* 01/08/PM

"Thy love is better than wine."
                      --Song of Solomon 1:2

  _Nothing gives the believer so much joy as fellowship with
Christ_. He has enjoyment as others have in the common mercies of
life, he can be glad both in God's gifts and God's works; but in
all these separately, yea, and in all of them added together, he
doth not find such substantial delight as in the matchless
person of his Lord Jesus. He has wine which no vineyard on earth
ever yielded; he has bread which all the corn-fields of Egypt
could never bring forth. Where can such sweetness be found as we
have tasted in communion with our Beloved?  In our esteem, the
joys of earth are little better than husks for swine compared
with Jesus, the heavenly manna. We would rather have one
mouthful of Christ's love, and a sip of his fellowship, than a
whole world full of carnal delights. What is the chaff to the
wheat? What is the sparkling paste to the true diamond? What is
a dream to the glorious reality?  What is time's mirth, in its
best trim, compared to our Lord Jesus in His most despised
estate? If you know anything of the inner life, you will confess
that our highest, purest, and most enduring joys must be the
fruit of the tree of life which is in the midst of the Paradise
of God. No spring yields such sweet water as that well of God
which was digged with the soldier's spear. All earthly bliss is
of the earth earthy, but the comforts of Christ's presence are
like Himself, heavenly. We can review our communion with Jesus,
and find no regrets of emptiness therein; there are no dregs in
this wine, no dead flies in this ointment. The joy of the Lord
is solid and enduring. Vanity hath not looked upon it, but
discretion and prudence testify that it abideth the test of
years, and is in time and in eternity worthy to be called "the
only true delight." For nourishment, consolation, exhilaration,
and refreshment, no wine can rival the love of Jesus. Let us
drink to the full this evening.

* 01/09/PM

"Serve the Lord with gladness."
                          --Psalm 100:2

  Delight in divine service is a token of acceptance. Those who
serve God with a sad countenance, because they do what is
unpleasant to them, are not serving Him at all; they bring the
form of homage, but the life is absent. Our God requires no
slaves to grace His throne; He is the Lord of the empire of
love, and would have His servants dressed in the livery of joy.
The angels of God serve Him with songs, not with groans; a
murmur or a sigh would be a mutiny in their ranks. That
obedience which is not voluntary is disobedience, for the Lord
looketh at the heart, and if He seeth that we serve Him from
force, and not because we love Him, He will reject our offering.
Service coupled with cheerfulness is heart-service, and
therefore true. Take away joyful willingness from the Christian,
and you have removed _the test of his sincerity_. If a man be
driven to battle, he is no patriot; but he who marches into the
fray with flashing eye and beaming face, singing, "It is sweet
for one's country to die," proves himself to be sincere in his
patriotism. Cheerfulness is _the support of our strength_; in
the joy of the Lord are we strong. It acts as _the remover of
difficulties_. It is to our service what oil is to the wheels of
a railway carriage. Without oil the axle soon grows hot, and
accidents occur; and if there be not a holy cheerfulness to oil
our wheels, our spirits will be clogged with weariness. The man
who is cheerful in his service of God, proves that obedience is
his element; he can sing,

       "Make me to walk in Thy commands,
       'Tis a delightful road."

Reader, let us put this question--do _you_ serve the Lord _with
gladness_? Let us show to the people of the world, who think our
religion to be slavery, that it is to us a delight and a joy!
Let our gladness proclaim that we serve a good Master.

* 01/10/PM

"In my flesh shall I see God."
                           --Job 19:26

  Mark the subject of Job's devout anticipation "I shall see
God." He does not say, "I shall see the saints"--though
doubtless that will be untold felicity--but, "I shall see God."
It is not--"I shall see the pearly gates, I shall behold the
walls of jasper, I shall gaze upon the crowns of gold," but "I
shall see God." This is the sum and substance of heaven, this is
the joyful hope of all believers. It is their delight to see Him
now in the ordinances by faith. They love to behold Him in
communion and in prayer; but there in heaven they shall have an
open and unclouded vision, and thus seeing "Him as He is," shall
be made completely like Him. _Likeness to God_--what can we wish
for more? And _a sight of God_--what can we desire better? Some
read the passage, "Yet, I shall see God in my flesh," and find
here an allusion to Christ, as the "Word made flesh," and that
glorious beholding of Him which shall be the splendour of the
latter days. Whether so or not it is certain that Christ shall
be the object of our eternal vision; nor shall we ever want any
joy beyond that of seeing Him. Think not that this will be a
narrow sphere for the mind to dwell in. It is but one source of
delight, but that source is infinite. All His attributes shall
be subjects for contemplation, and as He is infinite under each
aspect, there is no fear of exhaustion. His works, His gifts,
His love to us, and His glory in all His purposes, and in all
His actions, these shall make a theme which will be ever new.
The patriarch looked forward to this sight of God as _a
personal_ enjoyment. "Whom mine eye shall behold, and not
another." Take realizing views of heaven's bliss; think what it
will be _to you_. "_Thine eyes_ shall see the King in His
beauty." All earthly brightness fades and darkens as we gaze
upon it, but here is a brightness which can never dim, a glory
which can never fade--"_I shall see God_."


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5.4.2. January 11-20 ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

* 01/11/PM

"I have prayed for thee."
                          --Luke 22:32

  How encouraging is the thought of the Redeemer's never-
ceasing intercession for us. When we pray, He pleads for us; and
then we are _not_ praying, He is advocating our cause, and by
His supplications shielding us from unseen dangers. Notice the
word of comfort addressed to Peter--"Simon, Simon, Satan hath
desired to have you that he may sift you as wheat; but"--what?
"But go and pray for yourself." That would be good advice, but
it is not so written. Neither does he say, "But I will keep you
watchful, and so you shall be preserved." That were a great
blessing. No, it is, "_But I have prayed for thee_, that thy
faith fail not." We little know what we owe to our Saviour's
prayers. When we reach the hill-tops of heaven, and look back
upon all the way whereby the Lord our God hath led us, how we
shall praise Him who, before the eternal throne, undid the
mischief which Satan was doing upon earth. How shall we thank
Him because He never held His peace, but day and night pointed
to the wounds upon His hands, and carried our names upon His
breastplate! Even before Satan had begun to tempt, Jesus had
forestalled him and entered a plea in heaven. Mercy outruns
malice. Mark, He does not say, "Satan hath _desired_ to have
you." He checks Satan even in his very desire, and nips it in
the bud. He does not say, "But I have desired to pray for you."
No, but "I _have_ prayed for you: I have done it already; I have
gone to court and entered a counterplea even before an
accusation is made." O Jesus, what a comfort it is that thou
hast pleaded our cause against our unseen enemies; countermined
their mines, and unmasked their ambushes. Here is a matter for
joy, gratitude, hope, and confidence.

* 01/12/PM

"I have yet to speak on God's behalf."
                           --Job 36:2

  We ought not to court publicity for our virtue, or notoriety
for our zeal; but, at the same time, it is a sin to be always
seeking to hide that which God has bestowed upon us for the good
of others. A Christian is not to be a village in a valley, but
"a city set upon a hill;" he is not to be a candle under a
bushel, but a candle in a candlestick, giving light to all.
Retirement may be lovely in its season, and to hide one's self
is doubtless modest, but the hiding of _Christ_ in us can never
be justified, and the keeping back of truth which is precious to
ourselves is a sin against others and an offence against God. If
you are of a nervous temperament and of retiring disposition,
take care that you do not too much indulge this trembling
propensity, lest you should be useless to the church. Seek in
the name of Him who was not ashamed of you to do some little
violence to your feelings, and tell to others what Christ has
told to you. If thou canst not speak with trumpet tongue, use
the still small voice. If the pulpit must not be thy tribune, if
the press may not carry on its wings thy words, yet say with
Peter and John, "Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have
give I thee." By Sychar's well talk to the Samaritan woman, if
thou canst not on the mountain preach a sermon; utter the
praises of Jesus in the house, if not in the temple; in the
field, if not upon the exchange; in the midst of thine own
household, if thou canst not in the midst of the great family of
man. From the hidden springs within let sweetly flowing rivulets
of testimony flow forth, giving drink to every passer-by. Hide
not thy talent; trade with it; and thou shalt bring in good
interest to thy Lord and Master. To speak for God will be
refreshing to ourselves, cheering to saints, useful to sinners,
and honouring to the Saviour. Dumb children are an affliction to
their parents. Lord, unloose all Thy children's tongue.

* 01/13/PM

"The iron did swim."
                          --2 Kings 6:9

  The axe-head seemed hopelessly lost, and as it was borrowed,
the honour of the prophetic band was likely to be imperilled,
and so the name of their God to be compromised. Contrary to all
expectation, the iron was made to mount from the depth of the
stream and to swim; for things impossible with man are possible
with God. I knew a man in Christ but a few years ago who was
called to undertake a work far exceeding his strength. It
appeared so difficult as to involve absurdity in the bare idea
of attempting it. Yet he was called thereto, and his faith rose
with the occasion; God honoured his faith, unlooked-for aid was
sent, and the iron did swim. Another of the Lord's family was in
grievous financial straits, he was able to meet all claims, and
much more if he could have realized a certain portion of his
estate, but he was overtaken with a sudden pressure; he sought
for friends in vain, but faith led him to the unfailing Helper,
and lo, the trouble was averted, his footsteps were enlarged,
and the iron did swim. A third had a sorrowful case of depravity
to deal with. He had taught, reproved, warned, invited, and
interceded, but all in vain. Old Adam was too strong for young
Melancthon, the stubborn spirit would not relent. Then came an
agony of prayer, and before long a blessed answer was sent from
heaven. The hard heart was broken, the iron did swim.

  Beloved reader, what is thy desperate case? What heavy matter
hast thou in hand this evening? Bring it hither. The God of the
prophets lives, and lives to help His saints. He will not suffer
thee to lack any good thing. Believe thou in the Lord of hosts!
Approach Him pleading the name of Jesus, and the iron shall
swim; thou too shalt see the finger of God working marvels for
His people. According to thy faith be it unto thee, and yet
again the iron shall swim.

* 01/14/PM

"Beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me."
                         --Matthew 14:30

  _Sinking times are praying times_ with the Lord's servants.
Peter neglected prayer at starting upon his venturous journey,
but when he began to sink his danger made him a suppliant, and
his cry though late was not too late. In our hours of bodily
pain and mental anguish, we find ourselves as naturally driven
to prayer as the wreck is driven upon the shore by the waves.
The fox hies to its hole for protection; the bird flies to the
wood for shelter; and even so the tried believer hastens to the
mercy seat for safety. Heaven's great harbour of refuge is
All-prayer; thousands of weather-beaten vessels have found a
haven there, and the moment a storm comes on, it is wise for us
to make for it with all sail.

  _Short prayers are long enough_. There were but three words
in the petition which Peter gasped out, but they were sufficient
for his purpose. Not length but strength is desirable. A sense
of need is a mighty teacher of brevity. If our prayers had less
of the tail feathers of pride and more wing they would be all
the better. Verbiage is to devotion as chaff to the wheat.
Precious things lie in small compass, and all that is real
prayer in many a long address might have been uttered in a
petition as short as that of Peter.

  _Our extremities are the Lord's opportunities_. Immediately a
keen sense of danger forces an anxious cry from us the ear of
Jesus hears, and with Him ear and heart go together, and the
hand does not long linger. At the last moment we appeal to our
Master, but His swift hand makes up for our delays by instant
and effectual action. Are we nearly engulfed by the boisterous
waters of affliction? Let us then lift up our souls unto our
Saviour, and we may rest assured that He will not suffer us to
perish. When we can do nothing Jesus can do all things; let us
enlist His powerful aid upon our side, and all will be well.

* 01/15/PM

"But I give myself unto prayer."
                          --Psalm 109:4

  Lying tongues were busy against the reputation of David, but
he did not defend himself; he moved the case into a higher
court, and pleaded before the great King Himself. Prayer is the
safest method of replying to words of hatred. The Psalmist
prayed in no cold-hearted manner, he gave himself to the
exercise--threw his whole soul and heart into it--straining
every sinew and muscle, as Jacob did when wrestling with the
angel. Thus, and thus only, shall any of us speed at the throne
of grace. As a shadow has no power because there is no substance
in it, even so that supplication, in which a man's proper self
is not thoroughly present in agonizing earnestness and vehement
desire, is utterly ineffectual, for it lacks that which would
give it force. "Fervent prayer," says an old divine, "like a
cannon planted at the gates of heaven, makes them fly open." The
common fault with the most of us is our readiness to yield to
distractions. Our thoughts go roving hither and thither, and we
make little progress towards our desired end. Like quicksilver
our mind will not hold together, but rolls off this way and
that. How great an evil this is! It injures us, and what is
worse, it insults our God. What should we think of a petitioner,
if, while having an audience with a prince, he should be playing
with a feather or catching a fly?

  Continuance and perseverance are intended in the expression
of our text. David did not cry once, and then relapse into
silence; his holy clamour was continued till it brought down the
blessing. Prayer must not be our chance work, but our daily
business, our habit and vocation. As artists give themselves to
their models, and poets to their classical pursuits, so must we
addict ourselves to prayer. We must be immersed in prayer as in
our element, and so pray without ceasing. Lord, teach us so to
pray that we may be more and more prevalent in supplication.

* 01/16/PM

"The Messiah shall be cut off, but not for himself."
                          --Daniel 9:26

  Blessed be His name, there was no cause of death in Him.
Neither original nor actual sin had defiled Him, and therefore
death had no claim upon Him. No man could have taken His life
from Him justly, for He had done no man wrong, and no man could
even have lain Him by force unless He had been pleased to yield
Himself to die. But lo, one sins and another suffers. Justice
was offended by us, but found its satisfaction in Him. Rivers of
tears, mountains of offerings, seas of the blood of bullocks,
and hills of frankincense, could not have availed for the
removal of sin; but Jesus was cut off for us, and the cause of
wrath was cut off at once, for sin was put away for ever. Herein
is wisdom, whereby substitution, the sure and speedy way of
atonement, was devised! Herein is condescension, which brought
Messiah, the Prince, to wear a crown of thorns, and die upon the
cross! Herein is love, which led the Redeemer to lay down His
life for His enemies!

  It is not enough, however, to admire the spectacle of the
innocent bleeding for the guilty, we must make sure of our
interest therein. The special object of the Messiah's death was
the salvation of His church; have we a part and a lot among
those for whom He gave His life a ransom? Did the Lord Jesus
stand as our representative? Are we healed by His stripes? It
will be a terrible thing indeed if we should come short of a
portion in His sacrifice; it were better for us that we had
never been born. Solemn as the question is, it is a joyful
circumstance that it is one which may be answered clearly and
without mistake. To all who believe on Him the Lord Jesus is a
present Saviour, and upon them all the blood of reconciliation
has been sprinkled. Let all who trust in the merit of Messiah's
death be joyful at every remembrance of Him, and let their holy
gratitude lead them to the fullest consecration to His cause.

* 01/17/PM

"And it came to pass in an evening-tide, that David arose from
off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king's house."
                         --2 Samuel 11:2

  At that hour David saw Bathsheba. We are never out of the
reach of temptation. Both at home and abroad we are liable to
meet with allurements to evil; the morning opens with peril, and
the shades of evening find us still in jeopardy. They are well
kept whom God keeps, but woe unto those who go forth into the
world, or even dare to walk their own house unarmed. Those who
think themselves secure are more exposed to danger than any
others. The armour-bearer of Sin is Self-confidence.

  David should have been engaged in fighting the Lord's
battles, instead of which he tarried at Jerusalem, and gave
himself up to luxurious repose, for he arose from his bed at
eventide. Idleness and luxury are the devil's jackals, and find
him abundant prey. In stagnant waters noxious creatures swarm,
and neglected soil soon yields a dense tangle of weeds and
briars. Oh for the constraining love of Jesus to keep us active
and useful! When I see the King of Israel sluggishly leaving his
couch at the close of the day, and falling at once into
temptation, let me take warning, and set holy watchfulness to
guard the door.

  Is it possible that the king had mounted his housetop for
retirement and devotion? If so, what a caution is given us to
count no place, however secret, a sanctuary from sin!  While our
hearts are so like a tinder-box, and sparks so plentiful, we had
need use all diligence in all places to prevent a blaze. Satan
can climb housetops, and enter closets, and even if we could
shut out that foul fiend, our own corruptions are enough to
work our ruin unless grace prevent. Reader, beware of evening
temptations. Be not secure. The sun is down but sin is up. We
need a watchman for the night as well as a guardian for the day.
O blessed Spirit, keep us from all evil this night. Amen.

* 01/18/PM

"He expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things
concerning himself."
                          --Luke 24:27

  The two disciples on the road to Emmaus had a most profitable
journey. Their companion and teacher was _the best of tutors_;
the interpreter one of a thousand, in whom are hid all the
treasures of wisdom and knowledge. The Lord Jesus condescended
to become a preacher of the gospel, and He was not ashamed to
exercise His calling before an audience of two persons, neither
does He now refuse to become the teacher of even one. Let us
court the company of so excellent an Instructor, for till He is
made unto us wisdom we shall never be wise unto salvation.

  This unrivalled tutor used as His class-book _the best of
books_. Although able to reveal fresh truth, He preferred to
expound the old. He knew by His omniscience what was the most
instructive way of teaching, and by turning at once to Moses and
the prophets, He showed us that the surest road to wisdom is not
speculation, reasoning, or reading human books, but meditation
upon the Word of God. The readiest way to be spiritually rich
in heavenly knowledge is to dig in this mine of diamonds, to
gather pearls from this heavenly sea. When Jesus Himself sought
to enrich others, He wrought in the quarry of Holy Scripture.

  The favoured pair were led to consider _the best of
subjects_, for Jesus spake of Jesus, and expounded the things
concerning Himself. Here the diamond cut the diamond, and what
could be more admirable? The Master of the House unlocked His
own doors, conducted the guests to His table, and placed His own
dainties upon it. He who hid the treasure in the field Himself
guided the searchers to it. Our Lord would naturally discourse
upon the sweetest of topics, and He could find none sweeter than
His own person and work: with an eye to these we should always
search the Word. O for grace to study the Bible with Jesus as
both our teacher and our lesson!

* 01/19/PM

"Then opened He their understanding, that they might understand
the Scriptures."
                          --Luke 24:45

  He whom we viewed last evening as opening Scripture, we here
perceive opening the understanding. In the first work He has
many fellow-labourers, but in the second He stands alone; many
can bring the Scriptures to the mind, but the Lord alone can
prepare the mind to receive the Scriptures. Our Lord Jesus
differs from all other teachers; they reach the ear, but He
instructs the heart; they deal with the outward letter, but He
imparts an inward taste for the truth, by which we perceive its
savour and spirit. The most unlearned of men become ripe
scholars in the school of grace when the Lord Jesus by His Holy
Spirit unfolds the mysteries of the kingdom to them, and grants
the divine anointing by which they are enabled to behold the
invisible. Happy are we if we have had our understandings
cleared and strengthened by the Master!  How many men of
profound learning are ignorant of eternal things! They know the
killing letter of revelation, but its killing spirit they cannot
discern; they have a veil upon their hearts which the eyes of
carnal reason cannot penetrate. Such was our case a little time
ago; we who now see were once utterly blind; truth was to us as
beauty in the dark, a thing unnoticed and neglected. Had it not
been for the love of Jesus we should have remained to this
moment in utter ignorance, for without His gracious opening of
our understanding, we could no more have attained to spiritual
knowledge than an infant can climb the Pyramids, or an ostrich
fly up to the stars. Jesus' College is the only one in which
God's truth can be really learned; other schools may teach us
what is to be believed, but Christ's alone can show us how to
believe it. Let us sit at the feet of Jesus, and by earnest
prayer call in His blessed aid that our dull wits may grow
brighter, and our feeble understandings may receive heavenly
things.

* 01/20/PM

"Turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity; and quicken Thou me
in Thy way."
                         --Psalm 119:37

  There are divers kinds of vanity. The cap and bells of the
fool, the mirth of the world, the dance, the lyre, and the cup
of the dissolute, all these men know to be vanities; they wear
upon their forefront their proper name and title. Far more
treacherous are those equally vain things, the cares of this
world and the deceitfulness of riches. A man may follow vanity
as truly in the counting-house as in the theatre. If he be
spending his life in amassing wealth, he passes his days in a
vain show. Unless we follow Christ, and make our God the great
object of life, we only differ in appearance from the most
frivolous. It is clear that there is much need of the first
prayer of our text. "Quicken Thou me in Thy way." The Psalmist
confesses that he is dull, heavy, lumpy, all but dead. Perhaps,
dear reader, you feel the same. We are so sluggish that the best
motives cannot quicken us, apart from the Lord Himself. What!
will not hell quicken me? Shall I think of sinners perishing,
and yet not be awakened? Will not heaven quicken me? Can I think
of the reward that awaiteth the righteous, and yet be cold? Will
not death quicken me?  Can I think of dying, and standing before
my God, and yet be slothful in my Master's service? Will not
Christ's love constrain me? Can I think of His dear wounds, can
I sit at the foot of His cross, and not be stirred with fervency
and zeal? It seems so! No mere consideration can quicken us to
zeal, but God Himself must do it, hence the cry, "Quicken _Thou_
me." The Psalmist breathes out his whole soul in vehement
pleadings: his body and his soul unite in prayer. "Turn away
mine eyes," says the body: "Quicken Thou me," cries the soul.
This is a fit prayer for every day. O Lord, hear it in my case
this night.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5.4.3. January 21-31 ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

* 01/21/PM

"He was sore athirst, and called on the Lord, and said, Thou
hast given this great deliverance into the hand of Thy servant:
and now shall I die for thirst?"
                         --Judges 15:18

  Samson was thirsty and ready to die. The difficulty was
totally different from any which the hero had met before. Merely
to get thirst assuaged is nothing like so great a matter as to
be delivered from a thousand Philistines!  but when the thirst
was upon him, Samson felt that little present difficulty more
weighty than the great past difficulty out of which he had so
specially been delivered. It is very usual for God's people,
when they have enjoyed a great deliverance, to find a little
trouble too much for them. Samson slays a thousand Philistines,
and piles them up in heaps, and then faints for a little water!
Jacob wrestles with God at Peniel, and overcomes Omnipotence
itself, and then goes "halting on his thigh!" Strange that there
must be a shrinking of the sinew whenever we win the day. As if
the Lord must teach us our littleness, our nothingness, in order
to keep us within bounds. Samson boasted right loudly when he
said, "I have slain a thousand men." His boastful throat soon
grew hoarse with thirst, and he betook himself to prayer. God
has many ways of humbling His people. Dear child of God, if
after great mercy you are laid very low, your case is not an
unusual one. When David had mounted the throne of Israel, he
said, "I am this day weak, though anointed king." You must
expect to feel weakest when you are enjoying your greatest
triumph. If God has wrought for you great deliverances in the
past, your present difficulty is only like Samson's thirst, and
the Lord will not let you faint, nor suffer the daughter of the
uncircumcised to triumph over you. The road of sorrow is the
road to heaven, but there are wells of refreshing water all
along the route. so, tried brother, cheer your heart with
Samson's words, and rest assured that God will deliver you ere
long.

* 01/22/PM

"Doth Job fear God for nought?"
                            --Job 1:9

  This was the wicked question of Satan concerning that upright
man of old, but there are many in the present day concerning
whom it might be asked with justice, for they love God after a
fashion because He prospers them ; but if things went ill with
them, they would give up all their boasted faith in God. If
they can clearly see that since the time of their supposed
conversion the world has gone prosperously with them, then they
will love God in their poor carnal way; but if they endure
adversity, they rebel against the Lord. Their love is the love
of the table, not of the host; a love to the cupboard, not to
the master of the house. As for the true Christian, he expects
to have his reward in the next life, and to endure hardness in
this. The promise of the old covenant is adversity. Remember
Christ's words--"Every branch in Me that beareth not fruit"--
What? "_He purgeth it, that it may bring forth fruit_." If you
bring forth fruit, you will have to endure affliction. "Alas!"
you say, "that is a terrible prospect." But this affliction
works out such precious results, that the Christian who is the
subject of it must learn to rejoice in tribulations, because as
his tribulations abound, so his consolations abound by Christ
Jesus. Rest assured, if you are a child of God, you will be no
stranger to the rod. Sooner or later every bar of gold must pass
through the fire. Fear not, but rather rejoice that such
fruitful times are in store for you, for in them you will be
weaned from earth and made meet for heaven; you will be
delivered from clinging to the present, and made to long for
those eternal things which are so soon to be revealed to you.
When you feel that as regards the present you do serve God for
nought, you will then rejoice in the infinite reward of the
future.

* 01/23/PM

"We will remember Thy love more than wine."
                      --Song of Solomon 1:4

  Jesus will not let His people forget His love. If all the
love they have enjoyed should be forgotten, He will visit them
with fresh love. "Do you forget my cross?" says He, "I will
cause you to remember it; for at My table I will manifest Myself
anew to you. Do you forget at I did for you in the
council-chamber of eternity?  I will remind you of it, for you
shall need a counsellor, and shall find Me ready at your call."
Mothers do not let their children forget them. If the boy has
gone to Australia, and does not write home, his mother
writes--"Has John forgotten his mother?" Then there comes back a
sweet epistle, which proves that the gentle reminder was not in
vain. so is it with Jesus, He says to us, "Remember Me," and our
response is, "We will remember Thy love." _We will_ remember Thy
love and its matchless history. It is ancient as the glory which
Thou hadst with the Father before the world was. We remember, O
Jesus, Thine eternal love when Thou didst become our Surety, and
espouse us as Thy betrothed. We remember the love which
suggested the sacrifice of Thyself, the love which, until the
fulness of time, mused over that sacrifice, and long for the
hour whereof in the volume of the book it was written of Thee,
"Lo, I come." We remember Thy love, O Jesus as it was manifest
to us in Thy holy life, from the manger of Bethlehem to the
garden of Gethsemane. We track Thee from the cradle to the
grave--for every word and deed of Thine was love--and we rejoice
in Thy love, which death did not exhaust; Thy love which shone
resplendent in Thy resurrection. We remember that burning fire
of love which will never let Thee hold Thy peace until Thy
chosen ones be all safely housed, until Zion be glorified, and
Jerusalem settled on her everlasting foundations of light and
love in heaven.

* 01/24/PM

"Martha was cumbered about much serving."
                          --Luke 10:40

  Her fault was not that she _served_: the condition of a
servant well becomes every Christian. "I serve," should be the
motto of all the princes of the royal family of heaven. Nor was
it her fault that she had "_much_ serving." We cannot do too
much. Let us do all that we possibly can; let head, and heart,
and hands, be engaged in the Master's service. It was no fault
of hers that she was busy preparing a feast for the Master.
Happy Martha, to have an opportunity of entertaining so blessed
a guest; and happy, too, to have the spirit to throw her whole
soul so heartily into the engagement. Her fault was that she
grew "_cumbered_ with much serving," so that she forgot _Him_,
and only remembered the service. She allowed service to override
communion, and so presented one duty stained with the blood of
another. We ought to be Martha and Mary in one: we should do
much service, and have much communion at the same time. For this
we need great grace. It is easier to serve than to commune.
Joshua never grew weary in fighting with the Amalekites; but
Moses, on the top of the mountain in prayer, needed two helpers
to sustain his hands. The more spiritual the exercise, the
sooner we tire in it. The choicest fruits are the hardest to
rear: the most heavenly graces are the most difficult to
cultivate. Beloved, while we do not neglect external things,
which are good enough in themselves, we ought also to see to it
that we enjoy living, personal fellowship with Jesus. See to it
that sitting at the Saviour's feet is not neglected, even though
it be under the specious pretext of doing Him service. The first
thing for our soul's health, the first thing for His glory, and
the first thing for our own usefulness, is to keep ourselves in
perpetual communion with the Lord Jesus, and to see that the
vital spirituality of our religion is maintained over and above
everything else in the world.

* 01/25/PM

"Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea,
we establish the law."
                         --Romans 3:31

  When the believer is adopted into the Lord's family, his
relationship to old Adam and the law ceases at once; but then
he is under a new rule, and a new covenant. Believer, you are
God's child; it is your first duty to obey your heavenly
Father. A servile spirit you have nothing to do with: you are
not a slave, but a child; and now, inasmuch as you are a
beloved child, you are bound to obey your Father's faintest
wish, the least intimation of His will. Does He bid you fulfil
a sacred ordinance? It is at your peril that you neglect it,
for you will be disobeying your Father. Does He command you to
seek the image of Jesus? It is not your joy to do so? Does
Jesus tell you, "Be ye perfect, even as your Father which is in
heaven is perfect"? Then not because the law commands, but
because your Saviour enjoins, you will labour to be perfect in
holiness. Does He bid his saints love one another? Do it, not
because the law says, "Love thy neighbour," but because Jesus
says, "If ye love Me, keep My commandments;" and this is the
commandment that He has given unto you, "that ye love one
another." Are you told to distribute to the poor?  Do it, not
because charity is a burden which you dare not shirk, but
because Jesus teaches, "Give to him that asketh of thee." Does
the Word say, "Love God with all your heart"? Look at the
commandment and reply, "Ah! commandment, Christ hath fulfilled
thee already--I have no need, therefore, to fulfill thee for my
salvation, but I rejoice to yield obedience to thee because God
is my Father now and He has a claim upon me, which I would not
dispute." May the Holy Ghost make your heart obedient to the
constraining power of Christ's love, that your prayer may be,
"Make me to go in the path of Thy commandments; for therein do
I delight." Grace is the mother and nurse of holiness, and not
the apologist of sin.

* 01/26/PM

"All they that heard it wondered at those things."
                          --Luke 2:18

  We must not cease to wonder at the great marvels of our God.
It would be very difficult to draw a line between holy wonder
and _real worship_; for when the soul is overwhelmed with the
majesty of God's glory, though it may not express itself in
song, or even utter its voice with bowed head in humble prayer,
yet it silently adores. Our incarnate God is to be worshipped
as "the Wonderful." That God should consider His fallen
creature, man, and instead of sweeping him away with the besom
of destruction, should Himself undertake to be man's Redeemer,
and to pay his ransom price, is, indeed marvellous!  But to
each believer redemption is most marvellous as he views it in
relation to himself. It is a miracle of grace indeed, that
Jesus should forsake the thrones and royalties above, to suffer
ignominiously below _for you_. Let your soul lose itself in
wonder, for wonder is in this way a very practical emotion.
Holy wonder will lead you to _grateful worship_ and _heartfelt
thanksgiving_. It will cause within you _godly watchfulness_;
you will be afraid to sin against such a love as this. Feeling
the presence of the mighty God in the gift of His dear Son, you
will put off your shoes from off your feet, because the place
whereon you stand is holy ground. You will be moved at the same
time to _glorious hope_. If Jesus has done such marvellous
things on your behalf, you will feel that heaven itself is not
too great for your expectation. Who can be astonished at
anything, when he has once been astonished at the manger and
the cross? What is there wonderful left after one has seen the
Saviour? Dear reader, it may be that from the quietness and
solitariness of your life, you are scarcely able to imitate the
shepherds of Bethlehem, who told what they had seen and heard,
but you can, at least, fill up the circle of the worshippers
before the throne, by wondering at what God has done.

* 01/27/PM

"But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her
heart."
                          --Luke 2:19

  There  was an exercise, on the part of this blessed woman,
of three powers of her being: her _memory_--she kept all these
things; her _affections_--she kept them in her heart; her
_intellect_--she pondered them; so that memory, affection, and
understanding, were all exercised about the things which she
had heard. Beloved, remember what you have heard of your Lord
Jesus, and what He has done for you; make your heart the golden
pot of manna to preserve the memorial of the heavenly bread
whereon you have fed in days gone by. Let your memory treasure
up everything about Christ which you have either felt, or
known, or believed, and then let your fond affections hold
_Him_ fast for evermore. Love the person of your Lord! Bring
forth the alabaster box of your heart, even though it be
broken, and let all the precious ointment of your affection
come streaming on His pierced feet. Let your intellect be
exercised concerning the Lord Jesus. Meditate upon what you
read: stop not at the surface; dive into the depths. Be not as
the swallow which toucheth the brook with her wing, but as the
fish which penetrates the lowest wave. Abide with your Lord:
let Him not be to you as a wayfaring man, that tarrieth for a
night, but constrain Him, saying, "Abide with us, for the day
is far spent." Hold Him, and do not let Him go. The word
"ponder, ' means to weigh. Make ready the balances of judgment.
Oh, but where are the scales that can weigh the Lord Christ?
"He taketh up the isles as a very little thing:"--who shall
take _Him_ up?  "He weigheth the mountains in scales"--in what
scales shall we weigh _Him_? Be it so, if your understanding
cannot comprehend, let your affections apprehend; and if your
spirit cannot compass the Lord Jesus in the grasp of
understanding, let it embrace Him in the arms of affection.

* 01/28/PM

"And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for
all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told
unto them."
                          --Luke 2:20

  What was the subject of their praise? They _praised God for
what they had heard_--for the good tidings of great joy that a
Saviour was born unto them. Let us copy them; let us also raise
a song of thanksgiving that we have heard of Jesus and His
salvation. They also _praised God for what they had seen_.
There is the sweetest music--what we have experienced, what we
have felt within, what we have made our own--"the things which
we have made touching the King." It is not enough to _hear_
about Jesus: mere hearing may tune the harp, but the fingers of
living faith must create the music. If you have seen Jesus with
the God-giving sight of faith, suffer no cobwebs to linger
among the harpstrings, but loud to the praise of sovereign
grace, awake your psaltery and harp. One point for which they
praised God was _the agreement between what they had heard and
what they had seen_. Observe the last sentence--"As it was told
unto them." Have you not found the gospel to be in yourselves
just what the Bible said it would be? Jesus said He would give
you rest--have you not enjoyed the sweetest peace in Him? He
said you should have joy, and comfort, and life through
believing in Him--have you not received all these? Are not His
ways ways of pleasantness, and His paths paths of peace? Surely
you can say with the queen of Sheba, "The half has not been
told me." I have found Christ more sweet than His servants ever
said He was. I looked upon His likeness as they painted it, but
it was a mere daub compared with Himself; for the King in His
beauty outshines all imaginable loveliness. Surely what we
have "_seen_" keeps pace with, nay, far exceeds, what we have
"_heard_." Let us, then, glorify and praise God for a Saviour
so precious, and so satisfying.

* 01/29/PM

"The dove came in to him in the evening."
                         --Genesis 8:11

  Blessed be the Lord for another day of mercy, even though I
am now weary with its toils. Unto the preserver of men lift I
my song of gratitude. The dove found no rest out of the ark,
and therefore returned to it; and my soul has learned yet more
fully than ever, this day, that there is no satisfaction to be
found in earthly things--God alone can give rest to my spirit.
As to my business, my possessions, my family, my attainments,
these are all well enough in their way, but they cannot fulfil
the desires of my immortal nature. "Return unto thy rest, O my
soul, for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee." It was at
the still hour, when the gates of the day were closing, that
with weary wing the dove came back to the master: O Lord,
enable me this evening thus to return to Jesus. She could not
endure to spend a night hovering over the restless waste, not
can I bear to be even for another hour away from Jesus, the
rest of my heart, the home of my spirit. She did not merely
alight upon the roof of the ark, she "came in to him;" even so
would my longing spirit look into the secret of the Lord,
pierce to the interior of truth, enter into that which is
within the veil, and reach to my Beloved in very deed. To Jesus
must I come: short of the nearest and dearest intercourse with
Him my panting spirit cannot stay. Blessed Lord Jesus, be with
me, reveal Thyself, and abide with me all night, so that when I
awake I may be still with thee. I note that the dove brought in
her mouth an olive branch plucked off, the memorial of the past
day, and a prophecy of the future. Have I no pleasing record to
bring home? No pledge and earnest of lovingkindness yet to
come? Yes, my Lord, I present Thee my grateful acknowledgments
for tender mercies which have been new every morning and fresh
every evening; and now, I pray Thee, put forth Thy hand and
take Thy dove into Thy bosom.

* 01/30/PM

"In whom also we have obtained an inheritance."
                        --Ephesians 1:11

  When Jesus gave Himself for us, He gave us all the rights
and privileges which went with Himself; so that now, although
as eternal God, He has essential rights to which no creature
may venture to pretend, yet as Jesus, the Mediator, the federal
Head of the covenant of grace, He has no heritage apart from
us. All the glorious consequences of His obedience unto death
are the joint riches of all who are in Him, and on whose behalf
He accomplished the divine will. See, He enters into glory, but
not for Himself alone, for it is written, "Whither the
Forerunner is _for us_ entered." Hebrews. 6:20. Does He stand in
the presence of God?--"He appears in the presence of God _for
us_." Hebrews. 9:24. Consider this, believer. You have no right to
heaven in yourself: your right lies in Christ. If you are
pardoned, it is through _His_ blood; if you are justified, it
is through _His_ righteousness; if you are sanctified, it is
because _He_ is made of God unto you sanctification; if you
shall be kept from falling, it will be because you are
preserved in Christ Jesus; and if you are perfected at the
last, it will be because you are complete in _Him_. Thus Jesus
is magnified--for all is in Him and by Him; thus the
inheritance is made certain to us--for it is obtained in Him;
thus each blessing is the sweeter, and even heaven itself the
brighter, because it is Jesus our Beloved "in whom" we have
obtained all. Where is the man who shall estimate our divine
portion? Weigh the riches of Christ in scales, and His treasure
in balances, and then think to count the treasures which belong
to the saints. Reach the bottom of Christ's sea of joy, and
then hope to understand the bliss which God hath prepared for
them that love Him. Overleap the boundaries of Christ's
possessions, and then dream of a limit to the fair inheritance
of the elect. "All things are yours, for ye are Christ's and
Christ is God's."

* 01/31/PM

"Then Ahimaaz ran by the way of the plain, and overran Cushi."
                        --2 Samuel 18:23

  Running is not everything, there is much in the way which we
select: a swift foot over hill and down dale will not keep pace
with a slower traveller upon level ground. How is it with my
spiritual journey, am I labouring up the hill of my own works
and down into the ravines of my own humiliations and
resolutions, or do I run by the plain way of "Believe and live"?
How blessed is it to wait upon the Lord by faith! The soul runs
without weariness, and walks without fainting, in the way of
believing. Christ Jesus is the way of life, and He is a plain
way, a pleasant way, a way suitable for the tottering feet and
feeble knees of trembling sinners: am I found in this way, or am
I hunting after another track such as priestcraft or metaphysics
may promise me? I read of the way of holiness, that the
wayfaring man, though a fool, shall not err therein: have I been
delivered from proud reason and been brought as a little child
to rest in Jesus' love and blood? If so, by God's grace I shall
outrun the strongest runner who chooses any other path.  This
truth I may remember to my profit in my daily cares and needs.
It will be my wisest course to go at once to my God, and not to
wander in a roundabout manner to this friend and that.  He knows
my wants and can relieve them, to whom should I repair but to
Himself by the direct appeal of prayer, and the plain argument
of the promise. "Straightforward makes the best runner." I will
not parlay with the servants, but hasten to their master.

  In reading this passage, it strikes me that if men vie with
each other in common matters, and one outruns the other, I ought
to be in solemn earnestness so to run that I may obtain. Lord,
help me to gird up the loins of my mind, and may I press forward
towards the mark for the prize of my high calling of God in
Christ Jesus.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5.4.4. February 1-10 ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

* 02/01/PM

"Thy love to me was wonderful."
                         --2 Samuel 1:26

  Come, dear readers, let each one of us speak for himself of
the wonderful love, not of Jonathan, but of Jesus. We will not
relate what we have been told, but the things which we have
tasted and handled-of the love of Christ. Thy love to me, O
Jesus, was wonderful when I was a stranger wandering far from
Thee, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind. Thy
love restrained me from committing the sin which is unto death,
and withheld me from self-destruction. Thy love held back the
axe when Justice said, "Cut it down! why cumbereth it the
ground?" Thy love drew me into the wilderness, stripped me
there, and made me feel the guilt of my sin, and the burden of
mine iniquity. Thy love spake thus comfortably to me when, I was
sore dismayed--"Come unto Me, and I will give thee rest." Oh,
how matchless Thy love when, in a moment, Thou didst wash my
sins away, and make my polluted soul, which was crimson with the
blood of my nativity, and black with the grime of my
transgressions, to be white as the driven snow, and pure as the
finest wool. How Thou didst commend Thy love when Thou didst
whisper in my ears, "I am thine and thou art Mine." Kind were
those accents when Thou saidst, "The Father Himself loveth you."
And sweet the moments, passing sweet, when Thou declaredst to me
"the love of the Spirit." Never shall my soul forget those
chambers of fellowship where Thou has unveiled Thyself to me.
Had Moses his cleft in the rock, where he saw the train, the
back parts of his God? We, too, have had our clefts in the rock,
where we have seen the full splendours of the Godhead in the
person of Christ. Did David remember the tracks of the wild
goat, the land of Jordan and the Hermonites? We, too, can
remember spots to memory dear, equal to these in blessedness.
Precious Lord Jesus, give us a fresh draught of Thy wondrous
love to begin the month with. Amen.

* 02/02/PM

"And these are ancient things."
                       --1 Chronicles 4:22

  Yet not so ancient as those precious things which are the
delight of our souls. Let us for a moment recount them, telling
them over as misers count their gold. _The sovereign choice_ of
the Father, by which He elected us unto eternal life, or ever
the earth was, is a matter of vast antiquity, since no date can
be conceived for it by the mind of man. We were chosen from
before the foundations of the world. _Everlasting love_ went
with the choice, for it was not a bare act of divine will by
which we were set apart, but the divine affections were
concerned. The Father loved us in and from the beginning. Here
is a theme for daily contemplation. _The eternal purpose_ to
redeem us from our foreseen ruin, to cleanse and sanctify us,
and at last to glorify us, was of infinite antiquity, and runs
side by side with immutable love and absolute sovereignty. _The
covenant_ is always described as being everlasting, and Jesus,
the second party in it, had His goings forth of old; He struck
hands in sacred suretyship long ere the first of the stars began
to shine, and it was in Him that the elect were ordained unto
eternal life. Thus in the divine purpose a most blessed covenant
union was established between the Son of God and His elect
people, which will remain as the foundation of their safety when
time shall be no more. Is it not well to be conversant with
these ancient things? Is it not shameful that they should be so
much neglected and even rejected by the bulk of professors? If
they knew more of their own sin, would they not be more ready to
adore distinguishing grace? Let us both admire and adore
tonight, as we sing--

        "A monument of grace,
        A sinner saved by blood;
        The streams of love I trace
        Up to the Fountain, God;
        And in His sacred bosom see
        Eternal thoughts of Love to me."

* 02/03/PM

"Tell me . . . where Thou feedest, where Thou makest Thy flock
to rest at noon."
                      --Song of Solomon 1:7

  These words express the desire of the believer after Christ,
and his longing for present communion with Him. Where doest Thou
feed Thy flock? In _Thy house_? I will go, if I may find Thee
there. In private _prayer_? Then I will pray without ceasing. In
the _Word_? Then I will read it diligently. In Thine
_ordinances_? Then I will walk in them with all my heart. Tell
me where Thou feedest, for wherever Thou standest as the
Shepherd, there will I lie down as a sheep; for none but Thyself
can supply my need. I cannot be satisfied to be apart from Thee.
My soul hungers and thirsts for the refreshment of Thy presence.
"Where dost Thou make Thy flock to rest at noon?" for whether at
dawn or at noon, my only rest must be where Thou art and Thy
beloved flock. My soul's rest must be a grace-given rest, and
can only be found in Thee. Where is the shadow of that rock? Why
should I not repose beneath it? "Why should I be as one that
turneth aside by the flocks of thy companions?" Thou hast
companions--why should I not be one? Satan tells me I am
unworthy; but I always was unworthy, and yet Thou hast long
loved me; and therefore my unworthiness cannot be a bar to my
having fellowship with Thee now. It is true I am weak in faith,
and prone to fall, but my very feebleness is the reason why I
should always be where Thou feedest Thy flock, that I may be
strengthened, and preserved in safety beside the still waters.
Why should I turn aside? There is no reason why I should, but
there are a thousand reasons why I should not, for Jesus beckons
me to come. If He withdrew Himself a little, it is but to make
me prize His presence more. Now that I am grieved and distressed
at being away from Him, He will lead me yet again to that
sheltered nook where the lambs of His fold are sheltered from
the burning sun.

* 02/04/PM

"Your refuge from the avenger of blood."
                          --Joshua 20:3

  It is said that in the land of Canaan, cities of refuge were
so arranged, that any man might reach one of them within half a
day at the utmost. Even so the word of our salvation is near to
us; Jesus is a present Saviour, and the way to Him is short; it
is but a simple renunciation of our own merit, and a laying hold
of Jesus, to be our all in all. With regard to the roads to the
city of refuge, we are told that they were strictly preserved,
every river was bridged, and every obstruction removed, so that
the man who fled might find an easy passage to the city. Once a
year the elders went along the roads and saw to their order, so
that nothing might impede the flight of any one, and cause him,
through delay, to be overtaken and slain. How graciously do the
promises of the gospel remove stumbling blocks from the way!
Wherever there were by-roads and turnings, there were fixed up
hand-posts, with the inscription upon them--"To the city of
refuge!" This is a picture of the road to Christ Jesus. It is no
roundabout road of the law; it is no obeying this, that, and the
other; it is a straight road: "Believe, and live." It is a road
so hard, that no self-righteous man can ever tread it, but so
easy, that every sinner, who knows himself to be a sinner may by
it find his way to heaven. No sooner did the man-slayer reach
the outworks of the city than he was safe; it was not necessary
for him to pass far within the walls, but the suburbs themselves
were sufficient protection. Learn hence, that if you do but
touch the hem of Christ's garment, you shall be made whole; if
you do but lay hold upon him with "faith as a grain of mustard
seed," you are safe.

        "A little genuine grace ensures
        The death of all our sins."

Only waste no time, loiter not by the way, for the avenger of
blood is swift of foot; and it may be he is at your heels at
this still hour of eventide.

* 02/05/PM

"At that time Jesus answered."
                         --Matthew 11:25

  This is a singular way in which to commence a verse--"At that
time Jesus answered." If you will look at the context you will
not perceive that any person had asked Him a question, or that
He was in conversation with any human being. Yet it is written,
"Jesus answered and said, I thank Thee, O Father." When a man
answers, he answers a person who has been speaking to him. Who,
then, had spoken to Christ? His Father. Yet there is no record
of it; and this should teach us that Jesus had constant
fellowship with His Father, and that God spake into His heart so
often, so continually, that it was not a circumstance singular
enough to be recorded. It was the habit and life of Jesus to
talk with God. Even as Jesus was, is this world, so are we; let
us therefore learn the lesson which this simple statement
concerning Him teaches us. May we likewise have silent
fellowship with the Father, so that often we may answer Him, and
though the world wotteth not to whom we speak, may we be
responding to that secret voice unheard of any other ear, which
our own ear, opened by the Spirit of God, recognizes with joy.
God has spoken to us, let us speak to God--either to set our
seal that God is true and faithful to His promise, or to confess
the sin of which the Spirit of God has convinced us, or to
acknowledge the mercy which God's providence has given, or to
express assent to the great truths which God the Holy Ghost has
opened to our understanding. What a privilege is intimate
communion with the Father of our spirits! It is a secret hidden
from the world, a joy with which even the nearest friend
intermeddleth not. If we would hear the whispers of God's love,
our ear must be purged and fitted to listen to His voice. This
very evening may our hearts be in such a state, that when God
speaks to us, we, like Jesus, may be prepared at once to answer
Him.

* 02/06/PM

"Pray one for another."
                          --James 5:16

  As an encouragement cheerfully to offer intercessory prayer,
remember that _such prayer is the sweetest God ever hears_, for
the prayer of Christ is of this character. In all the incense
which our Great High Priest now puts into the golden censer,
there is not a single grain for Himself. His intercession must
be the most acceptable of all supplications--and the more like
our prayer is to Christ's, the sweeter it will be; thus while
petitions for ourselves will be accepted, our pleadings for
others, having in them more of the fruits of the Spirit, more
love, more faith, more brotherly kindness, will be, through the
precious merits of Jesus, the sweetest oblation that we can
offer to God, the very fat of our sacrifice. Remember, again,
that _intercessory prayer is exceedingly prevalent_. What
wonders it has wrought! The Word of God teems with its
marvellous deeds. Believer, thou hast a mighty engine in thy
hand, use it well, use it constantly, use it with faith, and
thou shalt surely be a benefactor to thy brethren. When thou
hast the King's ear, speak to Him for the suffering members of
His body. When thou art favoured to draw very near to His
throne, and the King saith to thee, "Ask, and I will give thee
what thou wilt," let thy petitions be, not for thyself alone,
but for the many who need His aid. If thou hast grace at all,
and art not an intercessor, that grace must be small as a grain
of mustard seed. Thou hast just enough grace to float thy soul
clear from the quicksand, but thou hast no deep floods of grace,
or else thou wouldst carry in thy joyous bark a weighty cargo of
the wants of others, and thou wouldst bring back from thy Lord,
for them, rich blessings which but for thee they might not have
obtained:--

      "Oh, let my hands forget their skill,
      My tongue be silent, cold, and still,
      This bounding heart forget to beat,
      If I forget the mercy-seat!"

* 02/07/PM

"And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come
up hither."
                       --Revelation 11:12

  Without considering these words in their prophetical
connection, let us regard them D as the invitation of our great
Forerunner to His sanctified people. In due time there shall be
heard "a great voice from heaven" to every believer, saying,
"Come up hither." This should be to the saints _the subject of
joyful anticipation_. Instead of dreading the time when we shall
leave this world to go unto the Father, we should be panting for
the hour of our emancipation. Our song should be--

       "My heart is with Him on His throne,
       And ill can brook delay;
       Each moment listening for the voice,
       'Rise up and come away.'"

We are not called down to the grave, but up to the skies.
Our heaven-born spirits should long for their native air.
Yet should the celestial summons be _the object of patient
waiting_. Our God knows best when to bid us "Come up
thither." We must not wish to antedate the period of our
departure. I know that strong love will make us cry,

       "O Lord of Hosts, the waves divide,
       And land us all in heaven;"

but patience must have her perfect work. God ordains with
accurate wisdom the most fitting time for the redeemed to abide
below. Surely, if there could be regrets in heaven, the saints
might mourn that they did not live longer here to do more good.
Oh, for more sheaves for my Lord's garner! more jewels for His
crown! But how, unless there be more work? True, there is the
other side of it, that, living so briefly, our sins are the
fewer; but oh! when we are fully serving God, and He is giving
us to scatter precious seed, and reap a hundredfold, we would
even say it is well for us to abide where we are. Whether our
Master shall say "go," or "stay," let us be equally well pleased
so long as He indulges us with His presence.

* 02/08/PM

"He shall save His people from their sins."
                         --Matthew 1:21

  Many persons, if they are asked what they understand by
salvation, will reply, "Being saved from hell and taken to
heaven." This is one result of salvation, but it is not one
tithe of what is contained in that boon. It is true our Lord
Jesus Christ does redeem all His people from the wrath to come;
He saves them from the fearful condemnation which their sins had
brought upon them; but His triumph is far more complete than
this. He saves His people "from their sins." Oh! sweet
deliverance from our worst foes. Where Christ works a saving
work, He casts Satan from his throne, and will not let him be
master any longer. No man is a true Christian if sin reigns in
his mortal body. Sin will be in us--it will never be utterly
expelled till the spirit enters glory; but it will never have
_dominion_. There will be a striving for dominion--a lusting
against the new law and the new spirit which God has
implanted--but sin will never get the upper hand so as to be
absolute monarch of our nature. Christ will be Master of the
heart, and sin must be mortified. The Lion of the tribe of Judah
shall prevail, and the dragon shall be cast out. Professor! is
sin subdued in you? If your _life_ is unholy your _heart_ is
unchanged, and if your heart is unchanged you are an unsaved
person. If the Saviour has not sanctified you, renewed you,
given you a hatred of sin and a love of holiness, He has done
nothing in you of a saving character. The grace which does not
make a man better than others is a worthless counterfeit. Christ
saves His people, not in their sins, but _from_ them. "Without
holiness no man shall see the Lord." "Let every one that nameth
the name of Christ depart from iniquity." If not saved from
sin, how shall we hope to be counted among His people. Lord,
save me now from all evil, and enable me to honour my Saviour.

* 02/09/PM

"Lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil [or, the
evil one]."
                           --Luke 11:4

  What we are taught to seek or shun in prayer, we should
equally pursue or avoid in action. Very earnestly, therefore,
should we avoid temptation, seeking to walk so guardedly in the
path of obedience, that we may never tempt the devil to tempt
us. We are not to enter the thicket in search of the lion. Dearly
might we pay for such presumption. This lion may cross our path
or leap upon us from the thicket, but we have nothing to do with
hunting him. He that meeteth with him, even though he winneth
the day, will find it a stern struggle. Let the Christian pray
that he may be spared the encounter. Our Saviour, who had
experience of what temptation meant, thus earnestly admonished
His disciples--"Pray that ye enter not into temptation."

  But let us do as we will, we shall be tempted; hence the
prayer "deliver us from evil." God had one Son without sin; but
He has no son without temptation. The natural man is born to
trouble as the sparks fly upwards, and the Christian man is born
to temptation just as certainly. We must be always on our watch
against Satan, because, like a thief, he gives no intimation of
his approach. Believers who have had experience of the ways of
Satan, know that there are certain seasons when he will most
probably make an attack, just as at certain seasons bleak winds
may be expected; thus the Christian is put on a double guard by
fear of danger, and the danger is averted by preparing to meet
it. Prevention is better than cure: it is better to be so well
armed that the devil will not attack you, than to endure the
perils of the fight, even though you come off a conqueror. Pray
this evening first that you may not be tempted, and next that if
temptation be permitted, you may be delivered from the evil one.

* 02/10/PM

"I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions, and,
as a cloud, thy sins: return unto Me; for I have redeemed thee."
                         --Isaiah 44:22

  Attentively observe THE INSTRUCTIVE SIMILITUDE: our sins are
like a _cloud_. As clouds are of many shapes and shades, so are
our transgressions. As clouds obscure the light of the sun, and
darken the landscape beneath, so do our sins hide from us the
light of Jehovah's face, and cause us to sit in the shadow of
death. They are earth-born things, and rise from the miry
places of our nature; and when so collected that their measure
is full, they threaten us with storm and tempest. Alas! that,
unlike clouds, our sins yield us no genial showers, but rather
threaten to deluge us with a fiery flood of destruction. O ye
black clouds of sin, how can it be fair weather with our souls
while ye remain?

  Let our joyful eye dwell upon THE NOTABLE ACT of divine
mercy--"blotting out." God Himself appears upon the scene, and
in divine benignity, instead of manifesting His anger, reveals
His grace: He at once and for ever effectually removes the
mischief, not by blowing away the cloud, but by blotting it out
from existence once for all. Against the justified man no sin
remains, the great transaction of the cross has eternally
removed His transgressions from him. On Calvary's summit the
great deed, by which the sin of all the chosen was for ever put
away, was completely and effectually performed.

  Practically let us obey THE GRACIOUS COMMAND, "_return unto
me_."Why should pardoned sinners live at a distance from their
God? If we have been forgiven all our sins, let no legal fear
withhold us from the boldest access to our Lord. Let
backslidings be bemoaned, but let us not persevere in them. To
the greatest possible nearness of communion with the Lord, let
us, in the power of the Holy Spirit, strive mightily to return.
O Lord, this night restore us!


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5.4.5. February 11-20 ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

* 02/11/PM

"Thou hast left thy first love."
                        --Revelation 2:4

  Ever to be remembered is that best and brightest of hours,
when first we saw the Lord, lost our burden, received the roll
of promise, rejoiced in full salvation, and went on our way in
peace. It was spring time in the soul; the winter was past; the
mutterings of Sinai's thunders were hushed; the flashings of its
lightnings were no more perceived; God was beheld as reconciled;
the law threatened no vengeance, justice demanded no punishment.
Then the flowers appeared in our heart; hope, love, peace, and
patience sprung from the sod; the hyacinth of repentance, the
snowdrop of pure holiness, the crocus of golden faith, the
daffodil of early love, all decked the garden of the soul. The
time of the singing of birds was come, and we rejoiced with
thanksgiving; we magnified the holy name of our forgiving God,
and our resolve was, "Lord, I am Thine, wholly Thine; all I am,
and all I have, I would devote to Thee. Thou hast brought me
with Thy blood--let me spend myself and be spent in Thy service.
In life and in death let me be consecrated to Thee." _How have
we kept this resolve_? Our espousal love burned with a holy
flame of devoutedness to Jesus--is it the same _now_? Might not
Jesus well say to us, "I have somewhat against thee, because
thou hast left they first love"? Alas!  it is but little we have
done for our Master's glory. Our winter has lasted all too long.
We are as cold as ice when we should feel a summer's glow and
bloom with sacred flowers. We give to God pence when He
deserveth pounds, nay, deserveth our heart's blood to be coined
in the service of His church and of His truth. But shall we
continue thus? O Lord, after Thou hast so richly blessed us,
shall we be ungrateful and become indifferent to Thy good cause
and work? O quicken us that we may return to our first love, and
do our first works! Send us a genial spring, O Sun of
Righteousness.

* 02/12/PM

"He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you
for ever."
                          --John 14:16

  Great Father revealed Himself to believers of old before the
coming of His Son, and was known to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as
the God Almighty. Then Jesus came, and the ever-blessed Son in
His own proper person, was the delight of His people's eyes. At
the time of the Redeemer's ascension, the Holy Spirit became
the head of the present dispensation, and His power was
gloriously manifested in and after Pentecost. He remains at this
hour the present Immanuel--God with us, dwelling in and with His
people, quickening, guiding, and ruling in their midst. Is His
presence recognized as it ought to be? We cannot control His
working; He is most sovereign in all His operations, but are we
sufficiently anxious to obtain His help, or sufficiently
watchful lest we provoke Him to withdraw His aid? Without Him we
can do nothing, but by His almighty energy the most
extraordinary results can be produced: everything depends upon
his manifesting or concealing His power. Do we always look up to
Him both for our inner life and our outward service with the
respectful dependence which is fitting? Do we not too often run
before His call and act independently of His aid? Let us humble
ourselves this evening for past neglects, and now entreat the
heavenly dew to rest upon us, the sacred oil to anoint us, the
celestial flame to burn within us. The Holy Ghost is no
temporary gift, He abides with the saints. We have but to seek
Him aright, and He will be found of us. He is jealous, but He
is pitiful; if He leaves in anger, He returns in mercy.
Condescending and tender, He does not weary of us, but awaits to
be gracious still.

       Sin has been hammering my heart
       Unto a hardness, void of love,
       Let supplying grace to cross his art
       Drop from above.

* 02/13/PM

"There is therefore now no condemnation."
                          --Romans 8:1

  Come, my soul, think thou of this. Believing in Jesus, thou
art actually and effectually cleared from guilt; thou art led
out of thy prison. Thou art no more in fetters as a bond-slave;
thou art delivered _now_ from the bondage of the law; thou art
freed from sin, and canst walk at large as a freeman, they
Saviour's blood has procured thy full discharge. Thou hast a
right now to approach thy Father's throne. No flames of
vengeance are there to scare thee now; no fiery sword; justice
cannot smite the innocent. Thy disabilities are taken away: thou
wast once unable to see thy Father's face: thou canst see it
now. Thou couldst not speak with Him: but now thou hast access
with boldness. Once there was a fear of hell upon thee; but thou
hast no fear of it now, for how can there be punishment for the
guiltless? He who believeth is not condemned, and cannot be
punished. And more than all, the privileges thou mightst have
enjoyed, if thou hadst never sinned, are thine now thou art
justified. All the blessings which thou wouldst have had if thou
hadst kept the law, and more, are thine, because Christ has kept
it for thee. All the love and the acceptance which perfect
obedience could have obtained of God, belong to thee, because
Christ was perfectly obedient on thy behalf, and hath imputed
all His merits to thy account, that thou mightst be exceeding
rich through Him, who for thy sake became exceeding poor. Oh!
how great the debt of love and gratitude thou owest to thy
Saviour!

     "A debtor to mercy alone,
     Of covenant mercy I sing;
     Nor fear with Thy righteousness on,
     My person and offerings to bring:
     The terrors of law and of God,
     With me can have nothing to do;
     My Saviour's obedience and blood
     Hide all my transgressions from view."

* 02/14/PM

"She was healed immediately."
                           --Luke 8:47

  One of the most touching and teaching of the Saviour's
miracles is before us to-night. The woman was very ignorant. She
imagined that virtue came out of Christ by a law of necessity,
without His knowledge or direct will. Moreover, she was a
stranger to the generosity of Jesus' character, or she would not
have gone behind to steal the cure which He was so ready to
bestow. Misery should always place itself right in the face of
mercy. Had she known the love of Jesus' heart, she would have
said, "I have but to put myself where He can see me--His
omniscience will teach Him my case, and His love at once will
work my cure." We admire her faith, but we marvel at her
ignorance. After she had obtained the cure, she rejoiced with
trembling: glad was she that the divine virtue had wrought a
marvel in her; but she feared lest Christ should retract the
blessing, and put a negative upon the grant of His grace: little
did she comprehend the fulness of His love!  We have not so
clear a view of Him as we could wish; we know not the heights
and depths of His love; but we know of a surety that He is too
good to withdraw from a trembling soul the gift which it has
been able to obtain. But here is the marvel of it: little as
was her knowledge, her faith, because it was real faith, saved
her, and saved her at once. There was no tedious delay--faith's
miracle was instantaneous. If we have faith as a grain of
mustard seed, salvation is our present and eternal possession.
If in the list of the Lord's children we are written as the
feeblest of the family, yet, being heirs through faith, no
power, human or devilish, can eject us from salvation. If we
dare not lean our heads upon His bosom with John, yet if we can
venture in the press behind Him, and touch the hem of his
garment, we are made whole. Courage, timid one!  thy faith hath
saved thee; go in peace. "_Being_ justified by faith, we _have_
peace with God."

* 02/15/PM

"Whereby they have made Thee glad."
                          --Psalm 45:8

  And who are thus privileged to make the Saviour glad? His
church--His people. But is it possible? He makes _us_ glad, but
how can _we make Him glad_? By our love. Ah! we think it so
cold, so faint; and so, indeed, we must sorrowfully confess it
to be, but it is very sweet to Christ. Hear His own eulogy of
that love in the golden Canticle: "How fair is thy love, my
sister, my spouse!  how much better is thy love than wine!" See,
loving heart, how He delights in you. When you lean your head on
His bosom, you not only receive, but you give Him joy; when you
gaze with love upon His all-glorious face, you not only obtain
comfort, but impart delight. Our _praise_, too gives Him
joy--not the song of the lips alone, but the melody of the
heart's deep gratitude. Our _gifts_, too, are very pleasant to
Him; He loves to see us lay our time, our talents, our substance
upon the altar, not for the value of what we give, but for the
sake of the motive from which the gift springs. To Him the
lowly offerings of His saints are more acceptable than the
thousands of gold and silver. _Holiness_ is like frankincense
and myrrh to Him. Forgive your enemy, and you make Christ glad;
distribute of your substance to the poor, and He rejoices; be
the means of saving souls, and you give Him to see of the
travail of His soul; proclaim His gospel, and you are a sweet
savour unto Him; go among the ignorant and lift up the cross,
and you have given Him honour. It is in your power even now to
break the alabaster box, and pour the precious oil of joy upon
His head, as did the woman of old, whose memorial is to this day
set forth wherever the gospel is preached. Will you be backward
then? Will you not perfume your beloved Lord with the myrrh and
aloes, and cassis, of your heart's praise? Yes, ye ivory
palaces, ye shall hear the songs of the saints!

* 02/16/PM

"Thy good Spirit."
                         --Nehemiah 9:20

  Common, too common is the sin of forgetting the Holy Spirit.
This is folly and ingratitude. He deserves well at our hands,
for He is good, supremely good. As God, He is good essentially.
He shares in the threefold ascription of Holy, holy, holy, which
ascends to the Triune Jehovah. Unmixed purity and truth, and
grace is He. He is _good benevolently_, tenderly bearing with
our waywardness, striving with our rebellious wills; quickening
us from our death in sin, and then training us for the skies as
a loving nurse fosters her child. How generous, forgiving, and
tender is this patient Spirit of God. He is _good operatively_.
All His works are good in the most eminent degree: He suggests
good thoughts, prompts good actions, reveals good truths,
applies good promises, assists in good attainments, and leads to
good results. There is no spiritual good in all the world of
which He is not the author and sustainer, and heaven itself will
owe the perfect character of its redeemed inhabitants to His
work. He is _good officially_; whether as Comforter, Instructor,
Guide, Sanctifier, Quickener, or Intercessor, He fulfils His
office well, and each work is fraught with the highest good to
the church of God. They who yield to His influences become good,
they who obey His impulses do good, they who live under His
power receive good. Let us then act towards so good a person
according to the dictates of gratitude. Let us revere His
person, and adore Him as God over all, blessed for ever; let us
own His power, and our need of Him by waiting upon Him in all
our holy enterprises; let us hourly seek His aid, and never
grieve Him; and let us speak to His praise whenever occasion
occurs. The church will never prosper until more reverently it
believes in the Holy Ghost. He is so good and kind, that it is
sad indeed that He should be grieved by slights and negligences.

* 02/17/PM

"Whereas the Lord was there."
                         --Ezekiel 35:10

  Edom's princes saw the whole country left desolate, and
counted upon its easy conquest; but there was one great
difficulty in their way--quite unknown to them--"_The Lord was
there_"; and in His presence lay the special security of the
chosen land. Whatever may be the machinations and devices of the
enemies of God's people, there is still the same effectual
barrier to thwart their design. The saints are God's heritage,
and He is in the midst of them, and will protect His own. What
comfort this assurance yields us in our troubles and spiritual
conflicts! We are constantly opposed, and yet perpetually
preserved! How often Satan shoots his arrows against our
_faith_, but our faith defies the power of hell's fiery darts;
they are not only turned aside, but they are quenched upon its
shield, for "the Lord is there." _Our good works_ are the
subjects of Satan's attacks. A saint never yet had a virtue or a
grace which was not the target for hellish bullets: whether it
was hope bright and sparkling, or love warm and fervent, or
patience all-enduring, or zeal flaming like coals of fire, the
old enemy of everything that is good has tried to destroy it.
The only reason why anything virtuous or lovely survives in us
is this, "the Lord is there."

  If the Lord be with us through life, we need not fear for our
dying confidence; for _when we come to die_, we shall find that
"the Lord is _there_"; where the billows are most tempestuous,
and the water is most chill, we shall feel the bottom, and know
that it is good: our feet shall stand upon the Rock of Ages when
time is passing away. Beloved, from the first of a Christian's
life to the last, the only reason why he does not perish is
because "_the Lord is there_." When the God of everlasting love
shall change and leave His elect to perish, then may the Church
of God be destroyed; but not till then, because it is written,
JEHOVAH SHAMMAH, "_The Lord is there_."

* 02/18/PM

"Father, I have sinned."
                          --Luke 15:18

  It is quite certain that those whom Christ has washed in His
precious blood need not make a confession of sin, as culprits or
criminals, before God the Judge, for Christ has for ever taken
away all their sins in a legal sense, so that they no longer
stand where they can be condemned, but are once for all accepted
in the Beloved; but having become children, and offending as
children, ought they not every day to go before their heavenly
Father and confess their sin, and acknowledge their iniquity in
that character? Nature teaches that it is the duty of erring
children to make a confession to their earthly father, and the
grace of God in the heart teaches us that we, as Christians, owe
the same duty to our heavenly father. We daily offend, and ought
not to rest without daily pardon. For, supposing that my
trespasses against my Father are not at once taken to Him to be
washed away by the cleansing power of the Lord Jesus, what will
be the consequence? If I have not sought forgiveness and been
washed from these offences against my Father, I shall feel at a
distance from Him; I shall doubt His love to me; I shall tremble
at Him; I shall be afraid to pray to Him: I shall grow like the
prodigal, who, although still a child, was yet far off from his
father. But if, with a child's sorrow at offending so gracious
and loving a Parent, I go to Him and tell Him all, and rest not
till I realize that I am forgiven, then I shall feel a holy love
to my Father, and shall go through my Christian career, not only
as saved, but as one enjoying present peace in God through Jesus
Christ my Lord. There is a wide distinction between confessing
sin _as a culprit_, and confessing sin _as a child_. The
Father's bosom is the place for penitent confessions. We have
been cleansed once for all, but our feet still need to be washed
from the defilement of our daily walk as children of God.

* 02/19/PM

"He first findeth his own brother Simon."
                           --John 1:41

  This case is an excellent pattern of all cases where
spiritual life is vigorous. _As soon as a man has found Christ,
he begins to find others_. I will not believe that thou hast
tasted of the honey of the gospel if thou canst eat it all
thyself. True grace puts an end to all spiritual monopoly.
Andrew _first_ found his own brother Simon, and then others.
_Relationship has a very strong demand upon our first individual
efforts_. Andrew, thou didst well to begin with Simon. I doubt
whether there are not some Christians giving away tracts at
other people's houses who would do well to give away a tract at
their own--whether there are not some engaged in works of
usefulness abroad who are neglecting their special sphere of
usefulness at home. Thou mayst or thou mayst not be called to
evangelize the people in any particular locality, but certainly
thou art called to see after thine own servants, thine own
kinsfolk and acquaintance. Let thy religion begin at home. Many
tradesmen export their best commodities--the Christian should
not. He should have all his conversation everywhere of the best
savour; but let him have a care to put forth the sweetest fruit
of spiritual life and testimony in his own family. When Andrew
went to find his brother, he little imagined how eminent Simon
would become. _Simon Peter was worth ten Andrews_ so far as we
can gather from sacred history, and yet Andrew was instrumental
in bringing him to Jesus. You may be very deficient in talent
yourself, and yet you may be the means of drawing to Christ one
who shall become eminent in grace and service. Ah! dear friend,
you little know the possibilities which are in you. You may but
speak a word to a child, and in that child there may be
slumbering a noble heart which shall stir the Christian church
in years to come. Andrew has only two talents, but he finds
Peter. Go thou and do likewise.

* 02/20/PM

"Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be
tempted of the devil."
                          --Matthew 4:1

  A Holy character does not avert temptation--Jesus was
tempted. When Satan tempts us, his sparks fall upon tinder; but
in Christ's case, it was like striking sparks on water; yet the
enemy continued his evil work. Now, if the devil goes on
striking when there is no result, how much more will he do it
when he knows what inflammable stuff our hearts are made of.
Though you become greatly sanctified by the Holy Ghost, expect
that the great dog of hell will bark at you still. In the haunts
of men we expect to be tempted, but even seclusion will not
guard us from the same trial. Jesus Christ was led away from
human society into the wilderness, and was tempted of the devil.
Solitude has its charms and its benefits, and may be useful in
checking the lust of the eye and the pride of life; but the
devil will follow us into the most lovely retreats. Do not
suppose that it is only the worldly-minded who have dreadful
thoughts and blasphemous temptations, for even spiritual-minded
persons endure the same; and in the holiest position we may
suffer the darkest temptation. The utmost consecration of
spirit will not insure you against Satanic temptation. Christ
was consecrated through and through. It was His meat and drink
to do the will of Him that sent Him: and yet He was tempted!
Your hearts may glow with a seraphic flame of love to Jesus, and
yet the devil will try to bring you down to Laodicean
lukewarmness. If you will tell me when God permits a Christian
to lay aside his armour, I will tell you when Satan has left off
temptation. Like the old knights in war time, we must sleep with
helmet and breastplate buckled on, for the arch-deceiver will
seize our first unguarded hour to make us his prey. The Lord
keep us watchful in all seasons, and give us a final escape from
the jaw of the lion and the paw of the bear.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5.4.6. February 21-29 ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

* 02/21/PM

"Understandest thou what thou readest?"
                           --Acts 8:30

  We should be abler teachers of others, and less liable to be
carried about by every wind of doctrine, if we sought to have a
more intelligent understanding of the Word of God. As the Holy
Ghost, the Author of the Scriptures is He who alone can
enlighten us rightly to understand them, we should constantly
ask His teaching, and His guidance into all truth. When the
prophet Daniel would interpret Nebuchadnezzar's dream, what did
he do? He set himself to earnest prayer that God would open up
the vision. The apostle John, in his vision at Patmos, saw a
book sealed with seven seals which none was found worthy to
open, or so much as to look upon. The book was afterwards opened
by the Lion of the tribe of Judah, who had prevailed to open it;
but it is written first--"I wept much." The tears of John, which
were his liquid prayers, were, so far as he was concerned, the
sacred keys by which the folded book was opened. Therefore, if,
for your own and others' profiting, you desire to be "filled
with the knowledge of God's will in all wisdom and spiritual
understanding," remember that prayer is your best means of
study: like Daniel, you shall understand the dream, and the
interpretation thereof, when you have sought unto God; and like
John you shall see the seven seals of precious truth unloosed,
after you have wept much. Stones are not broken, except by an
earnest use of the hammer; and the stone-breaker must go down on
his knees. Use the hammer of diligence, and let the knee of
prayer be exercised, and there is not a stony doctrine in
revelation which is useful for you to understand, which will not
fly into shivers under the exercise of prayer and faith. You may
force your way through anything with the leverage of prayer.
Thoughts and reasonings are like the steel wedges which give a
hold upon truth; but prayer is the lever, the prise which forces
open the iron chest of sacred mystery, that we may get the
treasure hidden within.

* 02/22/PM

"The Lord is slow to anger, and great in power."
                           --Nahum 1:3

  Jehovah "_is slow to anger_." When mercy cometh into the
world she driveth winged steeds; the axles of her chariot-wheels
are red hot with speed; but when wrath goeth forth, it toileth
on with tardy footsteps, for God taketh no pleasure in the
sinner's death. God's rod of mercy is ever in His hands
outstretched; His sword of justice is in its scabbard, held down
by that pierced hand of love which bled for the sins of men.
"The Lord is slow to anger," because He is GREAT IN POWER. He is
truly great in power who hath power over himself. When God's
power doth restrain Himself, then it is power indeed: the power
that binds omnipotence is omnipotence surpassed. A man who has
a strong mind can bear to be insulted long, and only resents the
wrong when a sense of right demands his action. The weak mind is
irritated at a little: the strong mind bears it like a rock
which moveth not, though a thousand breakers dash upon it, and
cast their pitiful malice in spray upon its summit. God marketh
His enemies, and yet He bestirs not Himself, but holdeth in His
anger. If He were less divine than He is, He would long ere
this have sent forth the whole of His thunders, and emptied the
magazines of heaven; He would long ere this have blasted the
earth with the wondrous fires of its lower regions, and man
would have been utterly destroyed; but the greatness of his
power brings us mercy. Dear reader, what is your state this
evening? Can you by humble faith look to Jesus, and say, "My
substitute, Thou art my rock, my trust"? Then, beloved, be not
afraid of God's power; for by faith you have fled to Christ for
refuge, the power of God need no more terrify you, than the
shield and sword of the warrior need terrify those whom he
loves. Rather rejoice that He who is "great in power" is your
Father and Friend.

* 02/23/PM

"Take up the cross, and follow Me."
                          --Mark 10:21

  You have not the making of your own cross, although unbelief
is a master carpenter at cross-making; neither are you permitted
to choose your own cross, although self-will would fain be lord
and master; but your cross is prepared and appointed for you by
divine love, and you are cheerfully to accept it; you are to
take up the cross as your chosen badge and burden, and not to
stand cavilling at it. This night Jesus bids you submit your
shoulder to His easy yoke. Do not kick at it in petulance, or
trample on it in vain-glory, or fall under it in despair, or run
away from it in fear, but take it up like a true follower of
Jesus. Jesus was a cross-bearer; He leads the way in the path of
sorrow. Surely you could not desire a better guide! And if He
carried a cross, what nobler burden would you desire? The _Via
Crucis_ is the way of safety; fear not to tread its thorny
paths.

  Beloved, the cross is not made of feathers, or lined with
velvet, it is heavy and galling to disobedient shoulders; but it
is not an iron cross, though your fears have painted it with
iron colours, it is a wooden cross, and a man can carry it, for
the Man of sorrows tried the load. Take up your cross, and by
the power of the Spirit of God you will soon be so in love with
it, that like Moses, you would not exchange the reproach of
Christ for all the treasures of Egypt. Remember that Jesus
carried it, and it will smell sweetly; remember that it will
soon be followed by the crown, and the thought of the coming
weight of glory will greatly lighten the present heaviness of
trouble. The Lord help you to bow your spirit in submission to
the divine will ere you fall asleep this night, that waking with
to-morrow's sun, you may go forth to the day's cross with the
holy and submissive spirit which becomes a follower of the
Crucified.

* 02/24/PM

"O Lord of hosts, how long wilt thou not have mercy upon
Jerusalem? . . . And the Lord answered the angel . . . with good
words and comfortable words."
                       --Zechariah 1:12,13

  What a sweet answer to an anxious enquiry!  This night let us
rejoice in it. O Zion, there are good things in store for thee;
thy time of travail shall soon be over; thy children shall be
brought forth; thy captivity shall end. Bear patiently the rod
for a season, and under the darkness still trust in God, for His
love burneth towards thee. God loves the church with a love too
deep for human imagination: He loves her with all His infinite
heart. Therefore let her sons be of good courage; she cannot be
far from prosperity to whom God speaketh "good words and
comfortable words." What these comfortable words are the prophet
goes on to tell us: "I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion
with a great jealousy." The Lord loves His church so much that
He cannot bear that she should go astray to others; and when she
has done so, He cannot endure that she should suffer too much or
too heavily. He will not have his enemies afflict her: He is
displeased with them because they increase her misery. When God
seems most to leave His church, His heart is warm towards her.
History shows that whenever God uses a rod to chasten His
servants, He always breaks it afterwards, as if He loathed the
rod which gave his children pain. "Like as a father pitieth his
children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear Him." God hath not
forgotten us because He smites--His blows are no evidences of
want of love. If this is true of His church _collectively_, it
is of necessity true also of _each individual member_. You may
fear that the Lord has passed you by, but it is not so: He who
counts the stars, and calls them by their names, is in no danger
of forgetting His own children. He knows your case as thoroughly
as if you were the only creature He ever made, or the only saint
He ever loved. Approach Him and be at peace.

* 02/25/PM

"But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of
the Lord, and went down to Joppa."
                           --Jonah 1:3

  Instead of going to Nineveh to preach the Word, as God bade
him, Jonah disliked the work, and went down to Joppa to escape
from it. There are occasions when God's servants shrink from
duty. But what is the consequence? What did Jonah lose by his
conduct? _He lost the presence and comfortable enjoyment of
God's love_. When we serve our Lord Jesus as believers should
do, our God is with us; and though we have the whole world
against us, if we have God with us, what does it matter? But the
moment we start back, and seek our own inventions, we are at sea
without a pilot. Then may we bitterly lament and groan out, "O
my God, where hast Thou gone? How could I have been so foolish
as to shun Thy service, and in this way to lose all the bright
shinings of Thy face? This is a price too high. Let me return to
my allegiance, that I may rejoice in Thy presence." In the next
place, Jonah _lost all peace of mind_. Sin soon destroys a
believer's comfort. It is the poisonous upas tree, from whose
leaves distil deadly drops which destroy the life of joy and
peace. Jonah _lost everything upon which he might have drawn
for comfort in any other case_. He could not plead the promise
of divine protection, for he was not in God's ways; he could not
say, "Lord, I meet with these difficulties in the discharge of
my duty, therefore help me through them." He was reaping his own
deeds; he was filled with his own ways. Christian, do not play
the Jonah, unless you wish to have all the waves and the billows
rolling over your head. You will find in the long run that it is
far harder to shun the work and will of God than to at once
yield yourself to it. _Jonah lost his time_, for he had to go
to Tarshish after all. It is hard to contend with God; let us
yield ourselves at once.

* 02/26/PM

"Behold, if the leprosy have covered all his flesh, he shall
pronounce him clean that hath the plague."
                        --Leviticus 13:13

  Strange enough this regulation appears, yet there was wisdom
in it, for the throwing out of the disease proved that the
constitution was sound. This evening it may be well for us to
see the typical teaching of so singular a rule. We, too, are
lepers, and may read the law of the leper as applicable to
ourselves. When a man sees himself to be altogether lost and
ruined, covered all over with the defilement of sin, and in no
part free from pollution; when he disclaims all righteousness of
his own, and pleads guilty before the Lord, then he is clean
through the blood of Jesus, and the grace of God. Hidden,
unfelt, unconfessed iniquity is the true leprosy; but when sin
is seen and felt, it has received its deathblow, and the Lord
looks with eyes of mercy upon the soul afflicted with it.
Nothing is more deadly than self-righteousness, or more hopeful
than contrition. We must confess that we are "nothing else but
sin," for no confession short of this will be the whole truth;
and if the Holy Spirit be at work with us, convincing us of sin,
there will be no difficulty about making such an acknowledgment
--it will spring spontaneously from our lips. What comfort does
the text afford to truly awakened sinners: the very circumstance
which so grievously discouraged them is here turned into a sign
and symptom of a hopeful state!  Stripping comes before
clothing; digging out the foundation is the first thing in
building--and a thorough sense of sin is one of the earliest
works of grace in the heart. O thou poor leprous sinner,
utterly destitute of a sound spot, take heart from the text, and
come as thou art to Jesus--

"For let our debts be what they may, however great or small,
As soon as we have nought to pay, our Lord forgives us all.
'Tis perfect poverty alone that sets the soul at large:
While we can call one mite our own, we have no full discharge."

* 02/27/PM

"Whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting."
                           --Micah 5:2

  The Lord Jesus had goings forth for His people _as their
representative before the throne, long before they appeared upon
the stage of time_. It was "from everlasting" that He signed
the compact with His Father, that He would pay blood for blood,
suffering for suffering, agony for agony, and death for death,
in the behalf of His people; it was "from everlasting" that He
gave Himself up without a murmuring word. That from the crown of
His head to the sole of His foot He might sweat great drops of
blood, that He might be spit upon, pierced, mocked, rent
asunder, and crushed beneath the pains of death. His goings
forth as our Surety were from everlasting. Pause, my soul, and
wonder! Thou hast goings forth in the person of Jesus "from
everlasting." Not only when thou wast born into the world did
Christ love thee, but His delights were with the sons of men
before there were any sons of men. Often did He think of them;
from everlasting to everlasting He had set His affection upon
them. What! my soul, has He been so long about thy salvation,
and will not He accomplish it? Has he from everlasting been
going forth to save me, and will He lose me now? What! has He
carried me in His hand, as His precious jewel, and will He now
let me slip from between His fingers? Did he choose me before
the mountains were brought forth, or the channels of the deep
were digged, and will He reject me now? Impossible! I am sure He
would not have loved me so long if He had not been a changeless
Lover. If He could grow weary of me, He would have been tired of
me long before now. If He had not loved me with a love as deep
as hell, and as strong as death, He would have turned from me
long ago. Oh, joy above all joys, to know that I am His
everlasting and inalienable inheritance, given to Him by His
Father or ever the earth was! Everlasting love shall be the
pillow for my head this night.

* 02/28/PM

"The barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil
fail, according to the word of the Lord, which He spake by
Elijah."
                         --1 Kings 17:16

  See the faithfulness of divine love. You observe that this
woman had daily necessities. She had herself and her son to
feed in a time of famine; and now, in addition, the prophet
Elijah was to be fed too. But though the need was threefold, yet
the supply of meal wasted not, for she had a _constant supply_.
Each day she made calls upon the barrel, but yet each day it
remained the same. You, dear reader, have daily necessities,
and because they come so frequently, you are apt to fear that
the barrel of meal will one day be empty, and the cruse of oil
will fail you. Rest assured that, according to the Word of God,
this shall not be the case. Each day, though it bring its
trouble, shall bring its help; and though you should live to
outnumber the years of Methuselah, and though your needs should
be as many as the sands of the seashore, yet shall God's grace
and mercy last through all your necessities, and you shall never
know a real lack. For three long years, in this widow's days,
the heavens never saw a cloud, and the stars never wept a holy
tear of dew upon the wicked earth: famine, and desolation, and
death, made the land a howling wilderness, but this woman never
was hungry, but always joyful in abundance. so shall it be with
you. You shall see the sinner's hope perish, for he trusts his
native strength; you shall see the proud Pharisee's confidence
totter, for he builds his hope upon the sand; you shall see even
your own schemes blasted and withered, but you yourself shall
find that your place of defence shall be the munition of rocks:
"Your bread shall be given you, and your water shall be sure."
Better have God for your guardian, than the Bank of England for
your possession. You might spend the wealth of the Indies, but
the infinite riches of God you can never exhaust.

* 02/29/PM

"Now we have received . . . the spirit which is of God; that we
might know the things that are freely given to us of God."
                      --1 Corinthians 2:12

  Dear reader, have you received the spirit which is of God,
wrought by the Holy Ghost in your soul? The necessity of the
work of the Holy Spirit in the heart may be clearly seen from
this fact, that _all which has been done by God the Father, and
by God the Son, must be ineffectual to us, unless the Spirit
shall reveal these things to our souls_. What effect does the
doctrine of election have upon any man until the Spirit of God
enters into him? Election is a dead letter in my consciousness
until the Spirit of God calls me out of darkness into marvellous
light. _Then_ through my calling, I see my election, and knowing
myself to be called of God, I know myself to have been chosen in
the eternal purpose. A covenant was made with the Lord Jesus
Christ, by His Father; but what avails that covenant to us until
the Holy Spirit brings us its blessings, and opens our hearts
to receive them? There hang the blessings on the nail--Christ
Jesus; but being short of stature, we cannot reach them; the
Spirit of God takes them down and hands them to us, and thus
they become actually ours. Covenant blessings in themselves
are like the manna in the skies, far out of mortal reach, but
the spirit of God opens the windows of heaven and scatters the
living bread around the camp of the spiritual Israel. Christ's
finished work is like wine stored in the wine-vat; through
unbelief we can neither draw nor drink. The Holy Spirit dips our
vessel into this precious wine, and then we drink; but without
the Spirit we are as truly dead in sin as though the Father
never had elected, and though the Son had never bought us with
His blood. The Holy Spirit is absolutely necessary to our
well-being. Let us walk lovingly towards Him and tremble at the
thought of grieving Him.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 5.4.7. March 1-10 ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

* 03/01/PM

"He is precious."
                          --1 Peter 2:7

  As all the rivers run into the sea, so all delights centre in
our Beloved. The glances of His eyes outshine the sun: the
beauties of His face are fairer than the choicest flowers: no
fragrance is like the breath of His mouth. Gems of the mine, and
pearls from the sea, are worthless things when measured by His
preciousness. Peter tells us that Jesus is precious, but he did
not and could not tell us _how_ precious, nor could any of us
compute the value of God's unspeakable gift. Words cannot set
forth the preciousness of the Lord Jesus to His people, nor
fully tell how essential He is to their satisfaction and
happiness. Believer, have you not found in the midst of plenty
a sore famine if your Lord has been absent? The sun was shining,
but Christ had hidden Himself, and all the world was black to
you; or it was night, and since the bright and morning star was
gone, no other star could yield you so much as a ray of light.
What a howling wilderness is this world without our Lord! If
once He hideth Himself from us, withered are the flowers of our
garden; our pleasant fruits decay; the birds suspend their
songs, and a tempest overturns our hopes. All earth's candles
cannot make daylight if the Sun of Righteousness be eclipsed. He
is the soul of our soul, the light of our light, the life of our
life. Dear reader, what wouldst thou do in the world without
Him, when thou wakest up and lookest forward to the day's
battle? What wouldst thou do at night, when thou comest home
jaded and weary, if there were no door of fellowship between
thee and Christ? Blessed be His name, He will not suffer us to
try our lot without Him, for Jesus never forsakes His own. Yet,
let the thought of _what life would be without Him_ enhance His
preciousness.

* 03/02/PM

"Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this
grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the
unsearchable riches of Christ."
                         --Ephesians 3:8

  The apostle Paul felt it a great privilege to be allowed to
preach the gospel. He did not look upon his calling as a
drudgery, but he entered upon it with intense delight. Yet while
Paul was thus thankful for his office, his success in it
greatly humbled him. The fuller a vessel becomes, the deeper it
sinks in the water. Idlers may indulge a fond conceit of their
abilities, because they are untried; but the earnest worker soon
learns his own weakness. If you seek humility, _try hard work_;
if you would know your nothingness, attempt some great thing for
Jesus. If you would feel how utterly powerless you are apart
from the living God, attempt especially the great work of
proclaiming the unsearchable riches of Christ, and you will
know, as you never knew before, what a weak unworthy thing you
are. Although the apostle thus knew and confessed his weakness,
he was never perplexed as to the _subject_ of his ministry. From
his first sermon to his last, Paul preached Christ, and nothing
but Christ. He lifted up the cross, and extolled the Son of God
who bled thereon. Follow his example in all your personal
efforts to spread the glad tidings of salvation, and let "Christ
and Him crucified" be your ever recurring theme. The Christian
should be like those lovely spring flowers which, when the sun
is shining, open their golden cups, as if saying, "Fill us with
thy beams!" but when the sun is hidden behind a cloud, they
close their cups and droop their heads. so should the Christian
feel the sweet influence of Jesus; Jesus must be his sun, and he
must be the flower which yields itself to the Sun of
Righteousness. Oh! to speak of Christ alone, this is the subject
which is both "seed for the sower, and bread for the eater."
This is the live coal for the lip of the speaker, and the
master-key to the heart of the hearer.

* 03/03/PM

"He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove."
                         --Matthew 3:16

  As the Spirit of God descended upon the Lord Jesus, the head,
so He also, in measure, descends upon the members of the
mystical body. His descent is to us after the same fashion as
that in which it fell upon our Lord. There is often a singular
_rapidity_ about it; or ever we are aware, we are impelled
onward and heavenward beyond all expectation. Yet is there none
of the hurry of earthly haste, for the wings of the dove are as
soft as they are swift. _Quietness_ seems essential to many
spiritual operations; the Lord is in the still small voice, and
like the dew, His grace is distilled in silence. The dove has
ever been the chosen type of _purity_, and the Holy Spirit is
holiness itself. Where He cometh, everything that is pure and
lovely, and of good report, is made to abound, and sin and
uncleanness depart. _Peace_ reigns also where the Holy Dove
comes with power; He bears the olive branch which shows that the
waters of divine wrath are assuaged. _Gentleness_ is a sure
result of the Sacred Dove's transforming power: hearts touched
by His benign influence are meek and lowly henceforth and for
ever. _Harmlessness_ follows, as a matter of course; eagles and
ravens may hunt their prey--the turtledove can endure wrong, but
cannot inflict it. We must be harmless as doves. The dove is an
apt picture of _love_, the voice of the turtle is full of
affection; and so, the soul visited by the blessed Spirit,
abounds in love to God, in love to the brethren, and in love to
sinners; and above all, in love to Jesus. The brooding of the
Spirit of God upon the face of the deep, first produced _order
and life_, and in our hearts, He causes and fosters new life and
light. Blessed Spirit, as Thou didst rest upon our dear
Redeemer, even so rest upon us from this time forward and for
ever.

* 03/04/PM

"They shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of Thy
house."
                          --Psalm 36:8

  Sheba's queen was amazed at the sumptuousness of Solomon's
table. She lost all heart when she saw the provision of a single
day; and she marvelled equally at the company of servants who
were feasted at the royal board. But what is this to the
hospitalities of the God of grace? Ten thousand thousand of his
people are daily fed; hungry and thirsty, they bring large
appetites with them to the banquet, but not one of them returns
unsatisfied; there is enough for each, enough for all, enough
for evermore. Though the host that feed at Jehovah's table is
countless as the stars of heaven, yet each one has his portion
of meat. Think how much grace one saint requires, so much that
nothing but the Infinite could supply him for one day; and yet
the Lord spreads His table, not for one, but many saints, not
for one day, but for many years; not for many years only, but
for generation after generation. Observe the full feasting
spoken of in the text, the guests at mercy's banquet are
satisfied, nay, more "abundantly satisfied;" and that not with
ordinary fare, but with fatness, the peculiar fatness of God's
own house; and such feasting is guaranteed by a faithful promise
to all those children of men who put their trust under the
shadow of Jehovah's wings. I once thought if I might but get the
broken meat at God's back door of grace I should be satisfied;
like the woman who said, "The dogs eat of the crumbs that fall
from the master's table;" but no child of God is ever served
with scraps and leavings; like Mephibosheth, they all eat from
the king's own table. In matters of grace, we all have
Benjamin's mess--we all have ten times more than we could have
expected, and though our necessities are great, yet are we often
amazed at the marvellous plenty of grace which God gives us
experimentally to enjoy.

* 03/05/PM

"Say unto my soul, I am thy salvation."
                          --Psalm 35:3

  What does this sweet prayer teach me? It shall be my
evening's petition; but first let it yield me an instructive
meditation. The text informs me first of all that _David had his
doubts_; for why should he pray, "Say unto my soul, I am thy
salvation," if he were not sometimes exercised with doubts and
fears? Let me, then, be of good cheer, for I am not the only
saint who has to complain of weakness of faith. If David
doubted, I need not conclude that I am no Christian because I
have doubts. The text reminds me that _David was not content
while he had doubts and fears_, but he repaired at once to the
mercy-seat to pray for assurance; for he valued it as much fine
gold. I too must labour after an abiding sense of my acceptance
in the Beloved, and must have no joy when His love is not shed
abroad in my soul. When my Bridegroom is gone from me, my soul
must and will fast. I learn also that _David knew where to
obtain full assurance_. He went to his God in prayer, crying,
"Say unto my soul I am thy salvation." I must be much alone with
God if I would have a clear sense of Jesus' love. Let my prayers
cease, and my eye of faith will grow dim. Much in prayer, much
in heaven; slow in prayer, slow in progress. I notice that
_David would not be satisfied unless his assurance had a divine
source_. "Say unto my soul." Lord, do _Thou_ say it ! Nothing
short of a divine testimony in the soul will ever content the
true Christian. Moreover, David could not rest unless his
assurance had _a vivid personality_ about it. "Say unto _my_
soul, I am _thy_ salvation." Lord, if Thou shouldst say this to
all the saints, it were nothing, unless Thou shouldst say it to
me. Lord, I have sinned; I deserve not Thy smile; I scarcely
dare to ask it; but oh!  say to _my_ soul, even to _my_ soul, "I
am _thy_ salvation." Let me have a present, personal,
infallible, indisputable sense that I am Thine, and that Thou
art mine.

* 03/06/PM

"Before destruction the heart of man is haughty."
                        --Proverbs 18:12

  It is an old and common saying, that "coming events cast
their shadows before them;" the wise man teaches us that a
haughty heart is the prophetic prelude of evil. Pride is as
safely the sign of destruction as the change of mercury in the
weather-glass is the sign of rain; and far more infallibly so
than that. When men have ridden the high horse, destruction has
always overtaken them. Let David's aching heart show that there
is an eclipse of a man's glory when he dotes upon his own
greatness. 2 Sam. 24:10. See Nebuchadnezzar, the mighty builder
of Babylon, creeping on the earth, devouring grass like oxen,
until his nails had grown like bird's claws, and his hair like
eagle's feathers. Dan. 4:33. Pride made the boaster a beast, as
once before it made an angel a devil. God hates high looks, and
never fails to bring them down., All the arrows of God are aimed
at proud hearts. O Christian, is thine heart haughty this
evening? For pride can get into the Christian's heart as well as
into the sinner's; it can delude him into dreaming that he is
"rich and increased in goods, and hath need of nothing." Art
thou glorying in thy graces or thy talents? Art thou proud of
thyself, that thou hast had holy frames and sweet experiences?
Mark thee, reader, there is a destruction coming to thee also.
Thy flaunting poppies of self-conceit will be pulled up by the
roots, thy mushroom graces will wither in the burning heat, and
thy self-sufficiency shall become as straw for the dunghill. If
we forget to live at the foot of the cross in deepest lowliness
of spirit, God will not forget to make us smart under His rod. A
destruction will come to thee, O unduly exalted believer, the
destruction of thy joys and of thy comforts, though there can be
no destruction of thy soul. Wherefore, "He that glorieth, let
him glory _in the Lord_."

* 03/07/PM

"lt is better to trust in the Lord, than to put confidence in
man."
                          --Psalm 118:8

  Doubtless the reader has been tried with the temptation to
rely upon the things which are seen, instead of resting alone
upon the invisible God. Christians often look to man for help
and counsel, and mar the noble simplicity of their reliance upon
their God. Does this evening's portion meet the eye of a child
of God anxious about temporals, then would we reason with him
awhile. You trust in Jesus, and only in Jesus, for your
salvation, then why are you troubled? "_Because of my great
care_." Is it not written, "Cast thy burden upon the Lord"? "Be
careful for nothing, but in everything by prayer and
supplication make known your wants unto God." Cannot you trust
God for temporals? "_Ah! I wish I could_." If you cannot trust
God for temporals, how dare you trust Him for spirituals? Can
you trust Him for your soul's redemption, and not rely upon Him
for a few lesser mercies? Is not God enough for thy need, or is
His all-sufficiency too narrow for thy wants? Dost thou want
another eye beside that of Him who sees every secret thing? Is
His heart faint? Is His arm weary? If so, seek another God; but
if He be infinite, omnipotent, faithful, true, and all-wise, why
gaddest thou abroad so much to seek another confidence? Why dost
thou rake the earth to find another foundation, when this is
strong enough to bear all the weight which thou canst ever build
thereon? Christian, mix not only thy wine with water, do not
alloy thy gold of faith with the dross of human confidence. Wait
thou only upon God, and let thine expectation be from Him. Covet
not Jonah's gourd, but rest in Jonah's God. Let the sandy
foundations of terrestrial trust be the choice of fools, but do
thou, like one who foresees the storm, build for thyself an
abiding place upon the Rock of Ages.

* 03/08/PM

"She called his name Ben-oni (son of sorrow), but his father
called him Benjamin (son of my right hand)."
                         --Genesis 35:18

  To every matter there is a bright as well as a dark side.
Rachel was overwhelmed with the sorrow of her own travail and
death; Jacob, though weeping the mother's loss, could see the
mercy of the child's birth. It is well for us if, while the
flesh mourns over trials, our faith triumphs in divine
faithfulness. Samson's lion yielded honey, and so will our
adversities, if rightly considered. The stormy sea feeds
multitudes with its fishes; the wild wood blooms with beauteous
flowerets; the stormy wind sweeps away the pestilence, and the
biting frost loosens the soil. Dark clouds distil bright drops,
and black earth grows gay flowers. A vein of good is to be found
in every mine of evil. Sad hearts have peculiar skill in
discovering the most disadvantageous point of view from which to
gaze upon a trial; if there were only one slough in the world,
they would soon be up to their necks in it, and if there were
only one lion in the desert they would hear it roar. About us
all there is a tinge of this wretched folly, and we are apt, at
times, like Jacob, to cry, "All these things are against me."
Faith's way of walking is to cast all care upon the Lord, and
then to anticipate good results from the worst calamities. Like
Gideon's men, she does not fret over the broken pitcher, but
rejoices that the lamp blazes forth the more. Out of the rough
oyster-shell of difficulty she extracts the rare pearl of
honour, and from the deep ocean-caves of distress she uplifts
the priceless coral of experience. When her flood of prosperity
ebbs, she finds treasures hid in the sands; and when her sun of
delight goes down, she turns her telescope of hope to the starry
promises of heaven. When death itself appears, faith points to
the light of resurrection beyond the grave, thus making our
dying Benoni to be our living Benjamin.

* 03/09/PM

"Abide in Me."
                           --John 15:4

  Communion with Christ is a certain cure for every ill.
Whether it be the wormwood of woe, or the cloying surfeit of
earthly delight, close fellowship with the Lord Jesus will take
bitterness from the one, and satiety from the other. Live near
to Jesus, Christian, and it is matter of secondary importance
whether thou livest on the mountain of honour or in the valley
of humiliation. Living near to Jesus, thou art covered with the
wings of God, and underneath thee are the everlasting arms. Let
nothing keep thee from that hallowed intercourse, which is the
choice privilege of a soul wedded to THE WELL-BELOVED. Be not
content with an interview now and then, but seek always to
retain His company, for only in His presence hast thou either
comfort or safety. Jesus should not be unto us a friend who
calls upon us now and then, but one with whom we walk evermore.
Thou hast a difficult road before thee: see, O traveller to
heaven, that thou go not without thy guide. Thou hast to pass
through the fiery furnace; enter it not unless, like Shadrach,
Meshach, and Abednego, thou hast the Son of God to be thy
companion. Thou hast to storm the Jericho of thine own
corruptions: attempt not the warfare until, like Joshua, thou
hast seen the Captain of the Lord's host, with His sword drawn
in His hand. Thou art to meet the Esau of thy many temptations:
meet him not until at Jabbok's brook thou hast laid hold upon
the angel, and prevailed. In every case, in every condition,
thou wilt need Jesus; but most of all, when the iron gates of
death shall open to thee. Keep thou close to thy soul's Husband,
lean thy head upon His bosom, ask to be refreshed with the
spiced wine of His pomegranate, and thou shalt be found of Him
at the last, without spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing. Seeing
thou hast lived with Him, and lived in Him here, thou shalt
abide with Him for ever.

* 03/10/PM

"Man . . . is of few days, and full of trouble."
                           --Job 14:1

  It may be of great service to us, before we fall asleep, to
remember this mournful fact, for it may lead us to set loose by
earthly things. There is nothing very pleasant in the
recollection that we are not above the shafts of adversity, but
it may humble us and prevent our boasting like the Psalmist in
our morning's portion. "My mountain standeth firm: I shall
never be moved." It may stay us from taking too deep root in
this soil from which we are so soon to be transplanted into the
heavenly garden. Let us recollect the frail tenure upon which we
hold our _temporal mercies_. If we would remember that all the
trees of earth are marked for the woodman's axe, we should not
be so ready to build our nests in them. We should love, but we
should love with the love which expects death, and which reckons
upon separations. Our dear relations are but loaned to us, and
the hour when we must return them to the lender's hand may be
even at the door. The like is certainly true of our _worldly
goods_. Do not riches take to themselves wings and fly away? Our
_health_ is equally precarious. Frail flowers of the field, we
must not reckon upon blooming for ever. There is a time
appointed for weakness and sickness, when we shall have to
glorify God by suffering, and not by earnest activity. There is
no single point in which we can hope to escape from the sharp
arrows of affliction; out of our few days there is not one
secure from sorrow. Man's life is a cask full of bitter wine; he
who looks for joy in it had better seek for honey in an ocean of
brine. Beloved reader, set not your affections upon things of
earth: but seek those things which are above, for _here_ the
moth devoureth, and the thief breaketh through, but _there_ all
joys are perpetual and eternal. The path of trouble is the way
home. Lord, make this thought a pillow for many a weary head!


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 6. Copyright & Notice ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

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         Copyright 1996, by S. O. Brennan
               All rights reserved.

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this program should not be used as a subsitute for such services.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 7. New Freedom Bible ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

The New Freedom Bible is the only Bible software designed specifically for the
recovering community. This powerful Bible program is especially marked.,
indexed and annotated for people who are in recovery, active in 12 Step
Programs, and/or those who just want to lead a better life.

The registered version contains:
         The entire New Testament
         Psalms
         Proverbs
       plus
         Prayers for Recovery
         Serenity Prayer
         The 12 Steps
         Prayers for each of the 12 Steps

Features

1. Special marking and color coding of text as follows:

      Text related to one of the 12 Steps is
      this color.
        Double click on this text and the
        corresponding step will pop up in
        a window.

      Words of Jesus are in this color

      Words of Jesus that relate to the
      Steps are in this color and  underlined.
        Double click on this text and
        the corresponding step will pop
        up in a window

      Each of the 12 Steps will be this color

      Old Testament Quotes are italicized

References from one scripture to another dealing with the same subject will
appear like this:  [See John 3:16]
Double click on it and the scripture will appear.

Note: Commentaries on scripture and recovery appear
    like this.

Scripture of special meaning to the recovering person
look like this.

Available in King James and Modern Language versions for
Windows and OS/2.

       Order your New Freedom Bible today!


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 8. Recovery Companion ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

The Recovery Companion is a compilation of Tools, Resources, and Information
for recovering people, pastors
and those who work with individuals in recovery.

Have you ever:
--Wanted to easily look something up in the "Big Book"
  of Alcoholics Anonymous?
--Felt down and couldn't find that special Bible verse?
--Needed the address and phone number for a recovery
  organization and could not find it?
--Desired an intensive 12 Step Bible Study?
--Wished you could remember the title of a recovery
  book, magazine or movie?
--Wanted easy access to a listing of Biblical references
  for each of the 12 Steps?
--Wished to know what the Bible has to say about
  Alcoholism/Addiction, Temptation, Humility, Honesty,
  Amends, Gratitude, Anger, Resentment?

The Recovery Companion is just what you have been looking for.

Features of this powerful computer program include:
 --Biblical References for the 12 Steps
 --Detailed 12 Step Bible Study
 --Alcoholics Anonymous "Big Book" -1st 164 pages
   (Complete search capabilities)
 --Quick Reference for Life's Problems
 --Comprehensive search capabilities by word, phrase or
   subject throughout the program.
 --Ability to Print out text
 --Bookmarking features
 --Table of Contents
 --Detailed Manual
 --Complete and unlimited support

    Order Your Recovery Companion Today!


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 9. WordWise for Recovery ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

WordWise for Recovery is the most flexible and expandable Daily Scripture
program available. With over 30 Bible versions to choose from, support for most
major operating systems, and a registration price of just $34.95, we believe
that WordWise is an outstanding program.

A lot of work and thoughtful design has gone into making it an entertaining,
flexible, and valuable part of your software collection. Once installed on your
computer, it remains like a faithful friend, bringing you a message from God's
Word, the Big Book of AA and a recovery message as each day begins. WordWise is
a perpetual daily calendar, and contains enough Scriptures to display a new one
each day for an entire year without repeating. Though the Scriptures will begin
to repeat after one year, each verse will be displayed only once per year, and
the calendar date will always be correct. In addition to giving you daily
Scriptures, WordWise can remind you of your daily Bible readings as you read
through on a one-year plan.

Some of the features of WordWise are:

--Quotes for Recovering People (One for each day of the
  year. No repeats!)
--"Alcoholics Anonymous" Big Book Quotes (Unlike similar
  programs, there are no repeats for an entire year!)
--Over 30 versions of the Bible
--Monthly perpetual calendar which can be advanced or
  regressed indefinitely.
--Pop-up references designed to aid in your Bible study.
--Daily reminders of Through-the-Bible readings.
--Automatic saving of daily Scripture and Recovery Quotes
  to a file for use with word or speech processors.
--A Daily Bible Quiz.
--Ability to assign different fonts to each Bible version.
--Topmost feature which allows WordWise to remain on top
  of all other applications.
--Clipboard functions to capture Bible text.
--Three modes of operation from which to choose.
  (Date, Incremental, or Random)
--Future expandability through the addition of extra modules.
--Access to additional Bible versions as they are released.
--Printed user's manual.

       Order WordWise for Recovery today!


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 10. Ordering Information ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

                    +
Available only in 3.5" Disks!

Click Here to order direct
(checks or money orders only)

Click here to order via BMT Micro
(Visa, Mastercard, Discover, American Express,
Diners Club, Cashiers Check, Personal Check).

Click here to order via Compuserve


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 10.1. Order Form ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

                                +


 Name:_____________________________ Order Date:_______________

 Address:___________________________

       ___________________________

 City:______________________________  State/Province:_____________________

 ZIP/Postal Code:____________________  Country:___________________________

 Phone Number:______________________  Email Address:______________________
                (to verify order information)


  Available only in 3.5" Disks!


Bible Aid
 ___ King James Version for Windows             @ $34.95US   ____________
 ___ King James Version for OS/2               @ $34.95US   ____________

New Freedom Bible:
 ___ Modern Language (Weymouth) NT for Windows      @ $34.95US   ____________
 ___ King  James  Version  for  Windows           @ $34.95US   ____________
 ___ Modern Language (Weymouth) NT for OS/2        @ $34.95US   ____________
 ___ King  James  Version  for  OS/2             @ $34.95US   ____________
  [Note: KJV includes Psalms & Proverbs, Modern Language Version does not.]

Recovery Companion:
 ___ Windows Version                      @ $34.95US   ___________
 ___ OS/2 Version                        @ $34.95US   ___________

WordWise for Recovery:
 ___ Windows Version                      @ $34.95US   ___________
 ___ OS/2 Version                        @ $34.95US   ___________

                                            FREE !
                               Shipping & Handling  ____________

                            Total Enclosed for Order  ____________

           Special Offer! Order two or more programs at the same time and
                      receive them for only $29.95 each!


             (Click Here for information on the New Freedom Bible)

             (Click Here for information on the Recovery Companion)

             (Click Here for information on WordWise for Recovery)

Please make your check or money order payable to S. O. Brennan
and mail to:

S. O. Brennan
P.O. Box 4422          Compuserve: 71726,2342
Tequesta, FL 33469       Internet: [e-mail]
USA

Internet Orders:  http://www.christians-in-recovery.com/software/bmtorder.html

Credit Card Orders via BMT Micro, Inc. 1-800-414-4268
Visa, Master Card, Discover, American Express

             BMT Micro, Inc.
             PO Box 15016
             Wilmington, NC 28408
             U.S.A.

Check the Christians in Recovery Internet Site on the World Wide Web for
several other Bible and Recovery programs as well as future updates and
additions to the Recovery Bible.

                    http://www.christians-in-recovery.com
                             or
                      http://www.shadow.net/~obie


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 10.2. BMT Micro Order Form ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

                            +
  _____________________________________________________________________

               Bible Aid Ordering made easy via BMT Micro

                      1-800-414-4268

   _____________________________________________________________________

Bible Aid
 ___ King James Version for Windows            @ $34.95US   ___________
 ___ King James Version for OS/2              @ $34.95US   ___________

New Freedom Bible:
 ___ Modern Language (Weymouth) NT for Windows     @$34.95US   ____________
 ___ King  James  Version  for  Windows         @ $34.95US   ____________
 ___ Modern Language (Weymouth) NT for OS/2      @ $34.95US   ____________
 ___ King  James  Version  for  OS/2           @ $34.95US   ____________
  [Note: KJV includes Psalms & Proverbs, the Modern Language Version does not.]

Recovery Companion:
 ___ Windows Version                    @ $34.95US   ___________
 ___ OS/2 Version                      @ $34.95US   ___________

WordWise for Recovery:
 ___ Windows Version                    @ $34.95US   ___________
 ___ OS/2 Version                      @ $34.95US   ___________

                                          FREE !
                             Shipping & Handling  ____________

                           Total Enclosed for Order  ____________

           Special Offer! Order two or more programs at the same time and
                      receive them for only $29.95 each!


             (Click Here for information on the New Freedom)

             (Click Here for information on the Recovery Companion)

             (Click Here for information on WordWise for Recovery)



Visa, Master Card, American Express, Discover Card, Diners Club, etc. accepted.

     Voice Orders:   1-800-414-4268
              9:00am - 7:00pm EST (-5 GMT)
              [phone] (orders only)
              [phone]

     Mail Orders To: BMT Micro
             PO Box 15016
             Wilmington, NC 28408
             U.S.A.

     Internet Orders:  http://www.christians-in-recovery.com/software/bmtorder.html

    Fax Orders: [phone]  24 hours / 7 Days
                [phone]  24 hours / 7 Days




Name ________________________________________________________________

Address ______________________________________________________________

     _______________________________________________________________

Country:_______________________________________________________________

Phone _______________________  E-Mail ________________________________


     For credit card payment your name, mailing address, charge card type,
           number, and expiration date are required!

   Circle one: VISA / Master / Discover / American Express / Diners Club

   Name:________________________________________________________

   Credit card number: _____________________________________________

   Expiration date: _________________________________________________

   Authorization signature: ________________________________________


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 10.3. Compuserve Orders ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Order via Compuserve: GO SWREG
Select: Register Shareware
Select: Search Criteria, Registration ID
Enter: ID #

Bible Aid:
 ___ King James Version for Windows      ID# 14887
 ___ King James Version for OS/2        ID# 14886

New Freedom Bible:
 ___ Modern Language NT for Windows     ID# 14670
 ___ King  James  Version  for  Windows    ID# 14669

 ___ Modern Language NT for OS/2       ID# 14668
 ___ King  James  Version  for  OS/2       ID# 14667
 [Note: KJV includes Psalms & Proverbs, Modern Language Version does not.]

WordWise for Recovery:
 ___ Windows Version              ID# 14985
 ___ OS/2 Version                 ID# 14984

Recovery Companion and Specials on multiple orders
are not available via