Day: January 11, 2017

How encouraging is the thought of the Redeemer’s never- ceasing intercession for us. When we pray, he pleads for us; and when 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 …

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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 …

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Reflections Paul said, “My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you.“ (Gal 4:19) The word translated, “formed,” means, “to inwardly realize or express.” In short, Paul desired for saints to inwardly realize and express the Christ who dwells in them. Paul TRAVAILED that Christ might be formed in the saints. This reflected God’s mind in His inspired Word. Thus, we might ask: Is this our travail? The travail of the churches? To the contrary, many saints today are completely blind to the reality of Christ in us. Paul also said, “For whom …

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To get a plentiful crop of spiritual fruit, the Lord sometimes acts as a pruning force in people’s lives. John 15:1-4 15 I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. 2 Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. 3 Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can …

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Reflections From the Psalms For thou, Lord, will bless the righteous; with favor wilt thou compass him as with a shield. (Ps. 5:12) The OT is a type and shadow of Jesus Christ. The NT is Christ Himself – “Christ in us, the hope of glory.” (Col. 1:27) The Psalms often give us a prophetic revelation – in type and shadow – of the Person of Jesus Christ. In this Psalm, there is reference to, “the righteous.” This is a reference only to Jesus Christ – for other than Christ, “none is righteous, no, not one.” By extension, it is …

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Isaiah 40:31 “But those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” ____________________________________________________________ I can still remember the first time I saw an airplane takeoff. It was at a small airport in Orange County near the coast. That little airport had just one simple runway, no control tower, and no fence to keep people out, so I took full advantage of getting as close as I possibly could to the planes. I sat down in the grass and …

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