Ye Shall Receive Power

[BlessedMan]

This will be a daily post for a little while - from the devotional book "Ye Shall receive Power"

Thankfulness

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In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you. 1Th_5:18.

There is much needless worrying, much trouble of mind, over things that cannot be helped. The Lord would have His children put their trust fully in Him. Our Lord is a just and righteous God. His children should acknowledge His goodness and His justice in the large and the small things of life. Those who cherish the spirit of worry and complaint are refusing to recognize His guiding hand. Needless anxiety is a foolish thing; and it hinders us from standing in a true position before God.  

When the Holy Spirit comes into the soul, there will be no desire to complain and murmur because we do not have everything we want; rather, we will thank God from a full heart for the blessings that we have. There is great need of more thankfulness among our workers today; and until they have this spirit they will be unprepared for a place in the kingdom of heaven. There is a mighty work to be done for every one of us. We comprehend but little of what God desires to work out through us. We should seek to realize the breadth of His plans, and profit by every lesson that He [has] tried to teach us.  
A great deal of mischief is wrought in the imagination of our own hearts and minds when we seek to carry our own way contrary to the law of kindness. Here is where many fail. We do not cultivate a disposition to kindness; we want everything to come in an easy way to ourselves. But the question of greatest importance to each one of us should be not how we can carry our own plans against the plans of others, but how we can have the power to live for Christ every day. Christ came to earth and gave His life that we might have eternal salvation. He wants to encircle each of us with the atmosphere of heaven, that we may give to the world an example that will honor the religion of Christ.--Loma Linda Messages, p. 602. 

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Isa 26:3  You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.

 

[TrevorL]

Greetings Blessedman,

4 hours ago, BlessedMan said:

When the Holy Spirit comes into the soul, there will be no desire to complain and murmur because we do not have everything we want; rather, we will thank God from a full heart for the blessings that we have.

I looked up what is "The Lorna Linda Messages" and found that it was written by Ellen G White. I am not trying to hijack this thread, but could you explain the first phrase above "When the Holy Spirit comes into the soul". Do SDAs believe that they receive the Holy Spirit directly or only through the Word of God, and to explain could you detail When? and in What form? Do SDAs believe that they receive the Holy Spirit gifts, such as Healing and Speaking in Tongues?

Kind regards Trevor

[BlessedMan]

You would have to start another thread for that type of discussion. Thats not the purpose of this one.

[BlessedMan]

14 hours ago, BlessedMan said:

Isa 26:3  You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.

March 17th

Harmony

Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling. Eph_4:3-4.

The Holy Spirit will work with the consecrated human instrument; for this is God's purpose. God has opened a door between heaven and earth, which no power can close. He calls upon every human being to be pure, holy, sanctified, in order that the work for this time may be accomplished. When God's people place themselves in proper relation to Him and to one another, there will be a full impartation of the Holy Spirit for the harmonious combination of the whole body.  

Nothing so manifestly weakens a church as disunion and strife. Nothing so wars against Christ and the truth as this spirit. "By their fruits ye shall know them" (Mat_7:20). "Doth a fountain send forth at the same place sweet water and bitter? Can the fig tree, my brethren, bear olive berries? either a vine, figs? so can no fountain both yield salt water and fresh. Who is a wise man and endued with knowledge among you? Let him shew out of a good conversation his works with meekness of wisdom" (Jam_3:11-13).  

"Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees; and make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed. Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord: looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled" (Heb_12:12-15).  

As long as we are in this world we must be linked with one another. Humanity is interlaced and interwoven with humanity. As Christians we are members one of another. The Lord has made us thus, and when disappointments come, we are not to think the worse of one another. We are individual members of the general body. In helplessness and disappointment we are fighting the battles of life, and the Lord designs us, as His sons and daughters, whom He calls His friends, to help one another. This is to be a part of our practical Christian work.--Signs of the Times, Feb. 7, 1900. 

[BlessedMan]

Oneness

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And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me. Joh_17:22-23.

What attainments are there presented for the Christian's endeavor, but how far short are our practices. Were our practices in harmony with the command of our Lord, the result would be glorious. He says, "Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; that they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me" (Joh_17:20-21). . . .  

Jesus did not pray for that which was not attainable by us, and if this unity is possible, why do not those who are professed followers of Christ strive more earnestly for this condition of grace? When we are one with Christ, we shall be one with His followers. The great want of the soul is Jesus, the hope of glory. Through the Holy Spirit this unity may be attained, and love for the brethren will abound, and men will take knowledge of us that we have been with Jesus and learned of Him. Our life will be a reflection of His holy character. As believers in Him we shall represent His meekness of spirit, His gentleness of demeanor. Individually the church of God must answer the prayer of Christ till we all come into the unity of the Spirit.  

What is it that causes dissension and discord? It is the result of walking apart from Christ. At a distance from Him, we lose our love for Him, and grow cold toward His followers. The farther the beams of light recede from their center, the wider separated they become. Each believer is as a beam of light from Christ the Sun of righteousness. The more closely we walk with Christ, the center of all love and light, the greater will be our affection for His light-bearers. When the saints are drawn close to Christ, they must of necessity be drawn close to each other, for the sanctifying grace of Christ will bind their hearts together. You cannot love God and yet fail to love your brethren.--Ellen G. White 1888 Materials, pp. 1048, 1049

[BlessedMan]

Brotherly Love

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Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another. Rom_12:10.

When the Holy Spirit moves upon human minds, all petty complaints and accusations between man and his fellow man will be put away. The bright beams of the Sun of righteousness will shine into the chambers of the mind and heart. In our worship of God there will be no distinction between rich and poor, white and black. All prejudice will be melted away. When we approach God, it will be as one brotherhood. We are pilgrims and strangers, bound for a better country, even a heavenly. There all pride, all accusation, all self-deception, will forever have an end. Every mask will be laid aside, and we shall "see him as he is" (1Jn_3:2). There our songs will catch the inspiring theme, and praise and thanksgiving will go up to God.--Review and Herald, Oct. 24, 1899.  

The Lord Jesus came to our world to save men and women of all nationalities. . . . Jesus came to shed light over the whole world. At the beginning of His ministry He declared His mission: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; 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, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord" (Luk_4:18-19). . . .  

The Lord's eye is upon all His creatures; He loves them all, and makes no difference between white and black, except that He has a special tender pity for those who are called to bear a greater burden than others. Those who love God and believe on Christ as their Redeemer, while they must meet the trials and the difficulties that lie in their path, should yet with a cheerful spirit accept their life as it is, considering that God above regards these things, and for all that the world neglects to bestow, He will Himself make up to them in the best of favors.--Selected Messages, book 2, pp. 487, 488. 

[BlessedMan]

Generosity

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How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality. 2Co_8:2.

It is only when Christian motives are fully acknowledged, and the conscience is awake to duty, when divine light makes impressions upon the heart and character, that selfishness is overcome, and the mind of Christ is exemplified. The Holy Spirit, working upon human hearts and characters, will expel all tendency to covetousness, to deceptive dealing.  
When the Lord's messenger bears a message to the church, God is speaking to the people, awakening the conscience to see that they have not been rendering an honest tithe to the Lord, and that when it was not convenient to give, they have failed to present their offerings to Him. They have used the Lord's own money for themselves, in building houses, in purchasing horses, carriages, or lands. They do this in the hope of large returns, and every year they have the same excuse. "Will a man rob God?" (Mal_3:8). Oh, yes, he has done this many times, because he has not been spiritual, to discern the spiritual things.  

On some occasions the Lord has moved decidedly upon worldly, selfish men. Their minds were illuminated by the Holy Spirit, their hearts felt His softening, subduing influence. Under a sense of the abundant mercy and grace of God, they felt it their duty to promote His cause, to build up His kingdom. They remembered the requirement, "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal" (Mat_6:19-20). They felt a desire to have a share in the kingdom of God, and they pledged to give of their means to some of the various enterprises of the Lord's cause. That pledge was not made to man, but to God in the presence of His angels, who were moving upon the hearts of these selfish, money-loving men.--Review and Herald, May 23, 1893.  

 

[BlessedMan]

Purity

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Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Mat_5:8.

When one is fully emptied of self, when every false god is cast out of the soul, the vacuum is supplied by the inflowing of the Spirit of Christ. Such a one has the faith which works by love and purifies the soul from every moral and spiritual defilement. The Holy Spirit, the Comforter, can work upon the heart, influencing and directing, so that he enjoys spiritual things. He is "after the Spirit" (Rom_8:1), and he minds the things of the Spirit. He has no confidence in self; Christ is all in all. Truth is constantly being unfolded by the Holy Spirit; he receives with meekness the engrafted word, and he gives the Lord all the glory, saying, "God has revealed them unto us by his Spirit" (1Co_2:10). "Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God" (1Co_2:12).  

The Spirit that reveals also works in him the fruits of righteousness. Christ is in him "a well of water springing up into everlasting life" (Joh_4:14). He is a branch of the True Vine, and bears rich clusters of fruit to the glory of God. What is the character of the fruit borne? "The fruit of the Spirit is love." Mark the words--love, not hatred; it is joy, not discontent and mourning; peace, not irritation, anxiety, and manufactured trials. It is "longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law" (Gal_5:22-23).  

Those who have this Spirit will be earnest laborers together with God; the heavenly intelligences cooperate with them, and they go weighted with the Spirit of the message of truth which they bear. They are a spectacle to the world, to angels, and to men. They are ennobled, refined, through the sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth. They have not brought into the treasury of the soul wood, hay, stubble, but gold, silver, and precious stones. They speak words of solid sense, and from the treasures of the heart bring forth pure and sacred things according to the example of Christ.--Home Missionary, Nov. 1, 1893. 

[BlessedMan]

Outward Neatness

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She is not afraid of the snow for her household: for all her household are clothed with scarlet. She maketh herself coverings of tapestry; her clothing is silk and purple. Pro_31:21-22

Educate, educate, educate. Parents who receive the truth are to conform their habits and practices to the directions God has given. The Lord desires all to remember that the service of God is a pure and holy service, and that those who receive the truth must be purified in disposition, in temper, in heart, in conversation, in the dress, and in the home, so that the angels of God, unseen by them, shall come in to minister to those who shall be heirs of salvation.  

All who join the church should reveal a transformation of character which shows their reverence for holy things. Their whole life should be molded after the refinement of Christ Jesus. Those who join the church are to be humble enough to receive instruction on the points wherein they are remiss, and wherein they can and must change. They must exert a Christian influence. Those who make no change in words or deportment, in their dress or in their homes, are living unto themselves and not unto Christ. They have not been created anew in Christ Jesus, unto the purifying of the heart and the outward surroundings.  

Christians will be judged by the fruit they bear in reformatory work. Every true Christian will show what the truth of the gospel has done for [them personally]. Anyone who has been made a son or daughter of God must practice habits of neatness and cleanliness. Every action, however small, has an influence. The Lord desires to make every human being an agency through whom Christ can manifest His Holy Spirit. Christians are in no case to be careless or indifferent in regard to their outward appearance. They are to be neat and trim, though without adornment. They are to be pure inside and out.--Testimonies to Southern Africa, p. 87. 

[BlessedMan]

On 3/16/2020 at 4:56 PM, BlessedMan said:

This will be a daily post for a little while - from the devotional book "Ye Shall receive Power"

I was impressed to start using a variety of EGW devotional books for this topic. I have quite a number of them in a software program. The intention is to sift through a few of them each day to find something that seems to speak to the hour at hand on a given day. here is today's:

Peter's Sifting Resulted in His Conversion

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And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren. Luk_22:31-32.  

The reason so many of Christ's professed disciples fall into grievous temptation is that they have not a correct knowledge of themselves. Here is where Peter was so thoroughly sifted by the enemy. If we could understand our own weakness, we should see so much to do for ourselves that we would humble our hearts under the mighty hand of God. Hanging our helpless souls upon Christ, we would supplement our ignorance with His wisdom, our weakness with His strength, our frailty with His enduring might. Peter fell because he did not know his own frailty. He thought himself strong. . . .  

Had Peter walked humbly with God, hiding self in Christ; had he earnestly looked for divine help; had he been less self-confident; had he received the Lord's instruction and practised it, he would have been watching unto prayer. . . . Had he closely examined himself, the Lord would have given him divine help and there would have been no need of Satan's sifting. . . . There is no power in the whole satanic force that can disable the soul that trusts, in simple confidence, in the wisdom that comes from God.  

The watch-care of Christ for Peter was the cause of his restoration. Satan could do nothing against the all-powerful intercession of Christ. And the prayer that Christ offered for Peter He offers in behalf of all who are humble and contrite in heart. . . . Peter sinned against light and knowledge, and against great and exalted privileges. It was self-confidence that caused him to fail, and it is this same evil that is now working in human hearts. It may be our purpose to be right and to do right, but we shall most surely err unless we are constant learners in the school of Christ. Our only safety is in walking humbly with God. (taken from Sons And Daughter's of God)

 

[BlessedMan]

Godliness

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And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him. Gen_5:24.

Godliness is the fruit of Christian character. If we abide in the Vine, we shall bear the fruits of the Spirit. The life of the Vine will manifest itself through the branches. We must have a close and intimate connection with heaven, if we bear the grace of godliness. Jesus must be a guest in our homes, a member of our households, if we reflect His image and show that we are sons and daughters of the Most High.  

Religion is a beautiful thing in the home. If the Lord abides with us, we shall feel that we are members of Christ's family in heaven. We shall realize that angels are watching us, and our manners will be gentle and forbearing. We shall be fitting up for an entrance into the courts of heaven, by cultivating courtesy and godliness. Our conversation will be holy, and our thoughts will be upon heavenly things.  

Enoch walked with God. He honored God in every affair of life. In his home and in his business, he inquired, "Will this be acceptable to the Lord?" And by remembering God, and following His counsel, he was transformed in character, and became a godly man, whose ways pleased the Lord. We are exhorted to add to godliness brotherly kindness. Oh, how much we need to take this step, to add this quality to our characters! In many of our homes there is a hard, combative spirit manifested. Critical words and unkind actions are offensive to God. Dictatorial commands and haughty, overbearing manners are not acceptable to heaven. The reason there are so many differences existing between brethren is that they have failed to add brotherly kindness. We should have that love for others that Christ has had for us.  

A man is estimated at his true value by the Lord of heaven. If he is unkind in his earthly home, he is unfit for the heavenly home. If he will have his own way, no matter whom it grieves, he would not be content in heaven, unless he could rule there. The love of Christ must control our hearts, and the peace of God will abide in our homes.--Review and Herald, Feb. 21, 1888. 

[BlessedMan]

Holiness

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Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord. Heb_12:14.

God has from eternity chosen men to be holy. "This is the will of God [concerning you], even your sanctification" (1Th_4:3). The echo of His voice comes to us, ever saying, "Holier, holier still." And ever our answer is to be, "Yes, Lord, holier still."  

No man receives holiness as a birthright, or as a gift from any other human being. Holiness is the gift of God through Christ. Those who receive the Saviour become sons of God. They are His spiritual children, born again, renewed in righteousness and true holiness. Their minds are changed. With clearer vision they behold eternal realities. They are adopted into God's family, and they become conformed to His likeness, changed by His Spirit from glory to glory. From cherishing supreme love for self, they come to cherish supreme love for God and for Christ.  
"Being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom_5:1).

Justification means pardon. It means that the heart, purged from dead works, is prepared to receive the blessing of sanctification. God has told us what we must do to receive this blessing. "Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Do all things without murmuring 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" (Php_2:12-15).  

The love of God, cherished in the heart and revealed in the words and acts, will do more to elevate and ennoble human beings than all else can. In the life of Christ, this love found full and complete expression. On the cross of Christ the Saviour made an atonement for the fallen race. Holiness is the fruit of this sacrifice. It is because He has died for us that we are promised this great gift. And Christ longs to bestow this gift on us. He longs to make us partakers of His nature. He longs to save those who by sin have separated themselves from God. He calls upon them to choose His service, to give themselves wholly into His control, to learn from Him how to do God's will.--Signs of the Times, Dec. 17, 1902. 

[BlessedMan]

Mat 6:25  "I tell you, do not worry. Don't worry about your life and what you will eat or drink. And don't worry about your body and what you will wear. Isn't there more to life than eating? Aren't there more important things for the body than clothes?
Mat 6:26  "Look at the birds of the air. They don't plant or gather crops. They don't put away crops in storerooms. But your Father who is in heaven feeds them. Aren't you worth much more than they are?
Mat 6:27  "Can you add even one hour to your life by worrying? (NiRV)

[BlessedMan]

Hands Toward Heaven

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I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting. 1Ti_2:8.  

Because of Israel's disobedience and departure from God, they were allowed to be brought into close places and to suffer adversity; their enemies were permitted to make war with them, to humble them and lead them to seek God in their trouble and distress. . . .  

When Israel was assailed by the Amalekites, Moses gave Joshua directions to fight with their enemies.  

Moses and Aaron and Hur were stationed on a hill overlooking the battlefield. With arms outstretched toward heaven, and holding the rod of God in his right hand, Moses prayed for the success of the armies of Israel. As the battle progressed, it was observed that so long as his hands were reaching upward, Israel prevailed, but when they were lowered, the enemy was victorious. As Moses became weary, Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands until the going down of the sun, when the enemy was put to flight.  

As Aaron and Hur supported the hands of Moses, they showed the people their duty to sustain him in his arduous work while he should receive the word from God to speak to them. And the act of Moses also was significant, showing that God held their destiny in His hands; while they made Him their trust, He would fight for them and subdue their enemies; but when they should let go their hold upon Him, and trust in their own power, they would be even weaker than those who had not the knowledge of God, and their foes would prevail against them.  

As the Hebrews triumphed when Moses was reaching his hands toward heaven and interceding in their behalf, so the Israel of God prevail when they by faith take hold upon the strength of their mighty Helper. Yet divine strength is to be combined with human effort. Moses did not believe that God would overcome their foes while Israel remained inactive. While the great leader was pleading with the Lord, Joshua and his brave followers were putting forth their utmost efforts to repulse the enemies of Israel and of God.  {taken from Conflict & Courage}

 

[BlessedMan]

Two Hands for God

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We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain. 2Co_6:1.  

The Lord gave an important lesson to His people in all ages when to Moses on the mount He gave instruction regarding the building of the tabernacle. In that work He required perfection in every detail. Moses was proficient in all the learning of the Egyptians; he had a knowledge of God, and God's purposes had been revealed to him in visions; but he did not know how to engrave and embroider.  

Israel had been held all their days in the bondage of Egypt, and although there were ingenious men among them, they had not been instructed in the curious arts which were called for in the building of the tabernacle. They knew how to make bricks, but they did not understand how to work in gold or silver. How was the work to be done? . . .   

Then God Himself explained how the work was to be accomplished. He signified by name the persons He desired to do a certain work. Bezaleel was to be the architect. This man belonged to the tribe of Judah--a tribe that God delighted to honor. . . .  

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"And I, behold, I have given with him Aholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan: and in the hearts of all that are wisehearted I have put wisdom, that they may make all that I have commanded thee" (Exo_31:1-6).

Among the multitude were Egyptians, who had acted as overseers for such work, and thoroughly understood how it should be done. But the work was not dependent upon them. The Lord united with human agencies, giving them wisdom to work skillfully.  

Skill in the common arts is a gift from God. He provides both the gift and the wisdom to use the gift aright.  

In order that the earthly tabernacle might represent the heavenly, it must be perfect in all its parts, and it must be, in every smallest detail, like the pattern in the heavens. So it is with the characters of those who are finally accepted in the sight of heaven.  

Let the workmen in the service of God today pray to Him for wisdom and keen foresight, that they may do their work perfectly.  {taken from Conflict & Courage}

[BlessedMan]

To Draw Us to God

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I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee. Jer_31:3.  

The Lord of life and glory clothed His divinity with humanity to demonstrate to man that God through the gift of Christ would connect us with Him. Without a connection with God no one can possibly be happy. Fallen man is to learn that our Heavenly Father cannot be satisfied until His love embraces the repentant sinner, transformed through the merits of the spotless Lamb of God.  

The work of all the heavenly intelligences is to this end. Under the command of their General they are to work for the reclaiming of those who by transgression have separated themselves from their Heavenly Father. A plan has been devised whereby the wondrous grace and love of Christ shall stand revealed to the world. In the infinite price paid by the Son of God to ransom man, the love of God is revealed. This glorious plan of redemption is ample in its provisions to save the whole world. Sinful and fallen man may be made complete in Jesus through the forgiveness of sin and the imputed righteousness of Christ.  

In all the gracious deeds that Jesus did, He sought to impress upon men the parental, benevolent attributes of God. . . . Jesus would have us understand the love of the Father, and He seeks to draw us to Him by presenting His parental grace. He would have the whole field of our vision filled with the perfection of God's character. . . . It was only by living among men that He could reveal the mercy, compassion, and love of His heavenly Father; for it was only by actions of benevolence that He could set forth the grace of God.  

Christ came to manifest the love of God to the world, to draw the hearts of all men to Himself. . . . The first step toward salvation is to respond to the drawing of the love of Christ. . . . It is that men may understand the joy of forgiveness, the peace of God, that Christ draws them through the manifestation of His love. If they respond to His drawing, yielding their hearts to His grace, He will lead them on step by step, to a full knowledge of Himself, and this is life eternal.  {taken from God's Amazing Grace}

 

[BlessedMan]

To Change the Heart

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A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. Eze_36:26.  

When Jesus speaks of the new heart, He means the mind, the life, the whole being. To have a change of heart is to withdraw the affections from the world, and fasten them upon Christ. To have a new heart is to have a new mind, new purposes, new motives. What is the sign of a new heart?--a changed life. There is a daily, hourly dying to selfishness and pride.  

The appetites and passions, clamoring for indulgence, trample reason and conscience underfoot. This is the cruel work of Satan, and he is constantly putting forth the most determined efforts to strengthen the chains by which he has bound his victims. Those who have been all their lives indulging wrong habits do not always realize the necessity of a change. . . . Let the conscience be aroused and much is gained. Nothing but the grace of God can convict and convert the heart; here alone can the slaves of custom obtain power to break the shackles which bind them. The self-indulgent must be led to see and feel that a great moral renovation is necessary if they would meet the claims of the divine law; the soul-temple has been defiled, and God calls upon them to arouse and strive with all their might to win back the God-given manhood which has been sacrificed through sinful indulgence.  

Oh, what rays of softness and beauty shone forth in the daily life of our Saviour! What sweetness flowed from His very presence! The same spirit will be revealed in His children. Those with whom Christ dwells will be surrounded with a divine atmosphere. Their white robes of purity will be fragrant with perfume from the garden of the Lord. Their faces will reflect light from His, brightening the path for stumbling and weary feet.  

No man who has the true ideal of what constitutes a perfect character will fail to manifest the sympathy and tenderness of Christ. The influence of grace is to soften the heart, to refine and purify the feelings, giving a heaven-born delicacy and sense of propriety. {taken from God's Amazing Grace}

[BlessedMan]

Face to Face

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And the Lord spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. Exo_33:11.  

After the transgression of Israel in making the golden calf, Moses again goes to plead with God in behalf of his people. . . . He has learned from experience that in order to have an influence with the people he must first have power with God. The Lord reads the sincerity and unselfish purpose of the heart of His servant and condescends to commune with this feeble mortal, face to face, as a man speaks with a friend. Moses casts himself and all his burdens fully upon God and freely pours out his soul before Him. The Lord does not reprove His servant, but stoops to listen to his supplications. . . .  

The answer comes: "My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest." But Moses does not feel that he can stop here. He has gained much, but he longs to come still nearer to God, to obtain a stronger assurance of His abiding presence. He has carried the burden of Israel; he has borne an overwhelming weight of responsibility; when the people sinned, he suffered keen remorse, as though he himself were guilty; and now there presses upon his soul a sense of the terrible results should God leave Israel to hardness and impenitence of heart. . . . Moses presses his petition with such earnestness and fervency that the answer comes: I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken: for thou hast found grace in my sight, and I know thee by name."  

Now, indeed, we would expect the prophet to cease pleading; but no, emboldened by his success, he ventures to come still nearer to God, with a holy familiarity which is almost beyond our comprehension. He now makes a request which no human being ever made before: "I beseech thee, show me thy glory." What a petition to come from finite, mortal man! But is he repulsed? Does God reprove him for presumption? No; we hear the gracious words: "I will make all my goodness pass before thee."...  

In the history of Moses we may see what intimate communion with God it is man's privilege to enjoy.  

 

[BlessedMan]

25 minutes ago, BlessedMan said:

Face to Face

{taken from Conflict And Courage}

[BlessedMan]

My Guide and Pilot

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I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye. Psa_32:8.  

Often the Christian life is beset with dangers, and duty seems hard to perform. The imagination pictures impending ruin before, and bondage and death behind. Yet the voice of God speaks clearly, Go forward. . . . Faith looks beyond the difficulties, and lays hold of the unseen, even Omnipotence, therefore it cannot be baffled. Faith is the clasping of the hand of Christ in every emergency.  

Every ship sailing the sea of life needs to have the divine Pilot on board; but when storms arise, when tempests threaten, many persons push their Pilot overboard, and commit their bark into the hand of finite man, or try to steer it themselves. Then disaster and wreckage generally follow, and the Pilot is blamed for running them into such dangerous waters. Do not commit yourselves into the keeping of men, but say, "The Lord is my helper"; I will seek His counsel; I will be a doer of His will. . . . It is as impossible for us to receive qualification from man, without the divine enlightenment, as it was for the gods of Egypt to deliver those who trusted in them. . . . Do not trust yourself to men. Act under the divine Guide.  

You have been chosen by Christ. You have been redeemed by the precious blood of the Lamb. Plead before God the efficacy of that blood. Say unto Him: "I am Thine by creation; I am Thine by redemption. I respect human authority, and the advice of my brethren; but I cannot depend wholly upon these. I want Thee, O God, to teach me. I have covenanted with Thee to adopt the divine standard of character, and make Thee my counselor and guide--a party to every plan of my life; therefore teach me." Let the glory of the Lord be your first consideration. . . . Let every act of your life be sanctified by a holy endeavor to do the Lord's will, that your influence may not lead others into forbidden paths.  {taken from The Faith That I Live By)

 

[BlessedMan]

The Sacrificial Blood of Christ

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Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. 1Pe_1:18-19.

Upon Christ as our substitute and surety was laid the iniquity of us all. He was counted a transgressor, that He might redeem us from the condemnation of the law.  

Hating sin with a perfect hatred, He yet gathered to His soul the sins of the whole world. Guiltless, He bore the punishment of the guilty. Innocent, yet offering Himself as a substitute for the transgressor. The guilt of every sin pressed its weight upon the divine soul of the world's Redeemer. The evil thoughts, the evil words, the evil deeds of every son and daughter of Adam, called for retribution upon Himself; for He had become man's substitute.  

Behold Him in the wilderness, in Gethsemane, upon the cross! The spotless Son of God took upon Himself the burden of sin. He who had been one with God, felt in His soul the awful separation that sin makes between God and man. This wrung from His lips the anguished cry, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" Mat_27:46. It was the burden of sin, the sense of its terrible enormity, of its separation of the soul from God--it was this that broke the heart of the Son of God.  

"Ye know," says Peter, "that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold." 1Pe_1:18. Oh, had these been sufficient to purchase the salvation of man, how easily it might have been accomplished by Him who says, "The silver is mine, and the gold is mine"! Hag_2:8. But the sinner could be redeemed only by the precious blood of the Son of God.  

By pouring the whole treasury of heaven into this world, by giving us in Christ all heaven, God has purchased the will, the affections, the mind, the soul, of every human being.  

{taken from Faith That I Live By}

[BlessedMan]

 

[BlessedMan]

{taken from the book, Christ Triumphant}

God Delivers His People From The Enemy

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And the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea. Exo_14:21-22.

"Go forward” was the word given by Moses, and it was echoed by the captains of the different divisions. In obedience the host of Israel stepped into the path so strangely and so wonderfully prepared for them. The light from God's pillar of fire shone upon the foam-capped billows and lighted the road that was cut like a mighty furrow through the waters of the sea.  

As the cloud moved slowly on, the Egyptian sentinels discovered that the Israelites had moved their encampment, and at once the mighty army was set in readiness for motion. They heard the sound of the marching of the Hebrews, but they could see nothing, for the cloud that gave light to Israel was to the Egyptians a wall of darkness. Guided by the sound, they followed on into the miraculous path God had prepared for His people. All night they followed, but they moved slowly, for their chariots drove heavily. Yet still they moved on, expecting soon to break through the cloud and overtake the fugitives.  

At last the shadows of the night passed away, the morning dawned, and the pursuing army was almost within reach of the fleeing Hebrews. . . . Before their astonished eyes the mysterious cloud changed to a pillar of fire reaching from earth to heaven. The thunders pealed and the lightnings flashed. “The clouds poured out water: the skies sent out a sound: thine arrows also went abroad. The voice of thy thunder was in the heaven: the lightnings lightened the world: the earth trembled and shook.”  

The Egyptians were seized with confusion and dismay. Amid the wrath of the elements, in which they heard the voice of an angry God, they endeavored to retrace their steps and to flee to the shore they had quitted. But Moses stretched out his rod, and the piled-up waters, hissing, roaring, and eager for their prey, rushed together and swallowed the Egyptian army in their black depths.  

As morning broke, it revealed to the multitudes of Israel all that remained of their mighty foe-the mail-clad bodies cast upon the shore. From the most terrible peril one night had brought deliverance. . . .Jehovah alone had brought them deliverance, and to Him their hearts were turned in gratitude and faith. Their emotions found utterance in songs of praise.-Manuscript 6a, 1903. 

[BlessedMan]

{taken from the book Christ Triumphant}

In The End God's Enemies Will Perish

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And the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. Exo_14:27.  

In the whole territory of the world He has created, there is not a kingdom that is independent of God. And when men and women in an earthly kingdom or community understand the laws made to govern the subjects of the Ruler of the universe but still refuse obedience, they bring themselves under condemnation of the law that God, our Supreme Ruler, has established from the foundation of the world. . . .  

Because of the stubbornness of Pharaoh, it was decided that the voice of God, in words of command, must demand that the Israelites be set free from their life of slavery. Pharaoh refused, and the Lord punished the kingdom because the earthly ruler would not let God's people go to become a kingdom under divine rulership. Pharaoh's refusal brought many plagues upon Egypt, until the stubborn king was impelled to concede to God's plan. And then he again hardened his heart in rebellion against God and sent his immense army to bring the Israelites back to continual service for the Egyptian ruler.  

The Lord wrought wonderfully for the salvation of His people. He made a way of escape in the midst of the Red Sea. The waters were piled up as a strong wall, and a path of deliverance was made for the hosts of Israel following the leadership of Moses.  

In pursuit of Israel the vast armies of Egypt ventured to traverse the sea by the same path. A dark cloud was before them, and yet they pressed on. When the whole army-“all Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his horsemen”were in the very bed of the sea, the Lord said unto Moses, “Stretch out thine hand over the sea.” Israel had passed over on dry land, but they heard the shouting of the armies in pursuit. As Moses stretched out his rod over the sea, the embanked waters that had stood as a great wall rolled on in their natural course. Of all the men of Egypt in that vast army, not one escaped. All perished in their determination to have their own way and to refuse God's way. That occasion was the end of their probation.  

Thus it will be with every class who choose to refuse the light God gives, and persist in following a course of action that makes void the law of Him who is Supreme Ruler over all kings-over all human powers that oppose themselves to the law of the Supreme Ruler of the universe, and set themselves in array against the expressed will of the great I AM.-Manuscript 35, 1906 (Manuscript Releases, vol. 21, pp. 64, 65).

[BlessedMan]

Only Genuine Faith Survives When Tested

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And Israel saw the great work which the Lord did upon the Egyptians: and the people feared the Lord, and believed the Lord, and his servant Moses. Exo_14:31.  

The voices of the people rang out over the waters of the Red Sea in glorious triumph.  
But soon their faith was tested. The Lord would know how much He could depend on His people to be true and loyal to Him. They went three days' journey into the wilderness and found no water. “And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter.”. . . “The people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink?” Instead of trusting and fearing the Lord, believing in Him under apparently discouraging circumstances, they cast reflections upon their leader.  

So people act in this generation. Satan's plan of temptation is always the same. While everything moves prosperously, people think that they have faith. But when suffering, disaster, or disappointment comes, they lose heart. A faith that is dependent on circumstances or surroundings, that lives only when everything goes smoothly, is not a genuine faith.  

In his trouble Moses cried to the Lord. This is what the children of Israel, so recently delivered, ought to have done. The Lord heard the cry of His servant, against whom the people had said so many bitter things. He showed Moses a tree, “which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet.” It was not the virtue of the tree that turned the bitter water to sweet; it was the power of Him who was enshrouded in the pillar of cloud, the One who can do all things. . . .  

Did the people then appreciate and acknowledge God's blessings? Were their hearts filled with gratitude and thanksgiving to Him? Did they have a praise service, as when they stood on the banks of the Red Sea? We have no evidence that their faith was strengthened by God's mercy and grace and love toward them. . . .  

When trial comes to prove us, when we cannot see an increase of prosperity and comfort before us, but a probable lessening of these things, when there is a pressure necessitating sacrifice on the part of all, how shall we receive Satan's insinuations that we are going to have a hard time, that everything is going to pieces, that there is sore trouble ahead of us? . . . We ought to gather up the fragments of heaven's blessings and tokens for good, saying, Lord, I believe in Thee, in Thy servants, and in Thy work. I will trust in Thee.-Letter 49a, 1896.  

{taken from Christ Triumphant)