Eph 3:19 "and to know the love of Christ fthat surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God."
"There is no other solution to the marvelous mysteries of His Incarnation and Sacrificial Death but this- Christ has loved us. Love originated all, explains all, illustrates all- love is the interpreter of every Divine mystery. There is not a circumstance of our Lord's history which is not another form or manifestation of love. His incarnation, is love stooping; His sympathy, is love weeping; His compassion, is love succouring; His grace, is love acting; His teaching, is the voice of love; His silence, is the repose of love; His patience, is the restraint of love; His obedience, is the labor of love; His suffering, is the travail of love; His cross, is the altar of love; His death is the burned offering of love; His resurrection, is the triumph of love; His ascension into heaven, and His sitting down at the right hand of God, is the enthronement and the intercession of love."
"Do not limit your heart-experience of Christ's love, for it is infinite in its nature and boundless in its extent. The prayer of the apostle for the Eplhesian saints was, that they might "know the love of Christ which passes knowledge." As yet, how many of us stand but upon the shore of this ocean! How little do we know, experimentally, of the love of Christ in our souls, disloding slavish fear, a bondage spirit, unbelieving doubt, and so enlarging our hearts that we may run the way of the Lord's commandments. Bring your heart with its profoundest emptiness, its most startling discovery of sin, its lowest frame, its deepest sorrow, and sink it into the depths of the Savior's love. That infinite sea will flow over all, erase all, absorb all, and your soul shall swim and sport amid its gentle waves, exclaiming in your joy and transport, "Oh, the depths!" The Lord direct your heart into the love of God! Just as it is, hard, cold, fickle, sinful, sad and sorrowful. Christ's love touching your hard heart, will dissolve it! Christ's love touching your cold heart will warm it! Christ's love touching your sinful heart will purify it! Christ's love touching your sorrowful heart will soothe it! Christ's love touching your wandering heart will draw it back to Jesus. Only bring your heart to Christ's love. Believe in its existence, its reality, its fulness, and its freeness. Believe that He loves you, and just as love begets love, so the simple belief in the love of Jesus will inspire you with a reflected, responsive affection; and your soul, like the chrysalis, will burst from its captivity and bloom, and, soaring in life, liberty, and beauty, will float in the sunbeams of Gods full, free, and eternal love, and, in a little while, will find itself in heaven- where all is love!"Octavius Winslow
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Octavius Winslow - Marriage
"Jesus sustains no association to His Church more expressive, than that of the marriage relationship. From all eternity, He forever betrothed her to Himself. He asked for her at the hands of her Father — and the Father gave her to Him. He entered into a covenant that she would be His. The conditions of that covenant were great, but not too great for His love to undertake. They were, that He should assume her nature, discharge her legal obligations, endure her punishment, repair her ruin, and bring her to glory! He undertook all, and He accomplished all — because He loved her! The love of Jesus to His Church, is the love of the most tender husband. It is single, constant, affectionate, matchless, wonderful. Jesus . . .
sympathizes with her,
nourishes her,
provides for her,
clothes her,
watches over her, and
indulges her with the most intimate and endearing tenderness!" O. Winslow
sympathizes with her,
nourishes her,
provides for her,
clothes her,
watches over her, and
indulges her with the most intimate and endearing tenderness!" O. Winslow
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Spurgeon "Without Christ"
WITHOUT CHRIST!
-Spurgeon, "Without Christ"
Where might you have been without Christ?
You might have been in hell-- you might have been
shut out forever from all mercy, condemned to eternal
banishment from the presence of God.
I think the Indian's picture is a very fair one
of where we should have been without Christ--
When asked what Christ had done for him,
he picked up a worm, put it on the ground,
and made a ring of straw and wood around it,
which he then set on fire.
As the wood began to glow,
the poor worm began to twist and wriggle in agony,
whereupon he stooped down, took it gently up with his
finger, and said, "That is what Jesus did for me--
I was surrounded, without power to help myself,
by a ring of dreadful fire that would have been my ruin,
but his pierced hand lifted me out of the burning!"
Think of that, Christians, and, as your hearts melt,
praise him that you are not now without Christ.
Then think what his blood has done for you.
Take only one thing out of a thousand--
It has put away your many, many sins.
You were without Christ,
and your sins stood like yonder mountain,
whose black and rugged cliff threaten the very skies.
There fell a drop of Jesus' blood upon it,
and your mountain of sin vanished in a moment.
The sins of all your days were gone in an instant by
the application of the precious blood!
-Spurgeon, "Without Christ"
Where might you have been without Christ?
You might have been in hell-- you might have been
shut out forever from all mercy, condemned to eternal
banishment from the presence of God.
I think the Indian's picture is a very fair one
of where we should have been without Christ--
When asked what Christ had done for him,
he picked up a worm, put it on the ground,
and made a ring of straw and wood around it,
which he then set on fire.
As the wood began to glow,
the poor worm began to twist and wriggle in agony,
whereupon he stooped down, took it gently up with his
finger, and said, "That is what Jesus did for me--
I was surrounded, without power to help myself,
by a ring of dreadful fire that would have been my ruin,
but his pierced hand lifted me out of the burning!"
Think of that, Christians, and, as your hearts melt,
praise him that you are not now without Christ.
Then think what his blood has done for you.
Take only one thing out of a thousand--
It has put away your many, many sins.
You were without Christ,
and your sins stood like yonder mountain,
whose black and rugged cliff threaten the very skies.
There fell a drop of Jesus' blood upon it,
and your mountain of sin vanished in a moment.
The sins of all your days were gone in an instant by
the application of the precious blood!
Saturday, August 6, 2011
They are all head--but no feet!
They are all head—but no feet!
(Thomas Watson, "The Good Practitioner")
A sermon is never rightly heard—until it is practiced.
"If you know these things, happy are you if you do
them." John 13:17
Christ does not put happiness upon knowing—but upon
doing. It is not knowledge of the points of religion—but
practice, which renders a man truly happy and blessed.
Luke 6:46, "Why do you call Me 'Lord, Lord,' and don't
do the things I say?" It is not the mere knowledge and
acceptance of the most glorious Gospel truths—which will
bring a man to heaven. If a man could fluently discourse
on all Scriptural truths, if his head were a treasury of
wisdom, an ocean of learning—yet this could not entitle
him to happiness. His knowledge might make him admired
by men—but not blessed by God. If a man knew and
believed all the doctrines of Scripture—this would not
crown him with happiness.
Knowledge is a fair garland to look upon—but it is like
Rachael. Though she was beautiful—yet being barren
she said, "Give me children or I die!" Just so, if knowledge
does not bring forth the child of obedience—it will die and
come to nothing.
I would by no means disparage knowledge. Knowledge
is the pilot to guide us in our obedience. Yet, knowledge
must usher in obedience. Knowledge may put us into the
way of happiness, but it is only practice which brings us
there! Knowledge alone, cannot make a man eternally
happy and blessed.
Knowledge alone, does not make a man better; therefore,
it cannot make him happy and blessed. Bare knowledge
has no influence; it does not leave a spiritual tincture of
holiness behind. Knowledge informs—not transforms.
Knowledge, of itself, has no power upon the heart to
make it more holy. Bare knowledge is like weak medicine,
which does not work. It does not warm the affections nor
purge the conscience; it does not fetch virtue from Christ
to dry up the bloody issue of sin.
A man may receive the light of the truth—yet not love the
truth, "They perish because they refused to love the truth
and so be saved." 2 Thessalonians 2:10. The Apostle calls
it "a form of knowledge," Romans 2:20. Knowledge alone,
is but a dead form, having nothing to animate it. He who
has knowledge alone—is a spiritual stillborn! He looks like
a Christian—but has neither appetite nor motion.
Knowledge alone, makes men monsters in religion! They
are all head—but no feet! They do not walk in Christ,
Colossians 2:6. A man may have Scriptural knowledge—
and still be profane! He may have a clear head—and a
foul heart! The understanding may be illumined—when
the foot treads in unholy paths. If knowledge is divorced
from practice, and does not make a man better—then it
cannot make a man eternally happy and blessed.
If bare knowledge will save, then all who have knowledge
shall be saved. But that is not true—for then Judas would
be saved, for he had knowledge enough. Then the devil
would be saved! A man may have right knowledge, and
be no better than a devil! Hell is full of learned heads!
Knowledge alone, makes a man's case worse! Knowledge
takes away all excuse. Knowledge adds to a man's torment.
"Woe to you! I tell you, it will be more tolerable for the land
of Sodom on the day of judgment than for you!" It will be
better with heathen—than with professing Christians living
in a contradiction to their knowledge. Luke 12:47, "The
servant will be severely punished, for though he knew his
duty, he refused to do it!"
Knowledge without practice, serves only as a torch to light
men to hell—the brighter the light, the hotter the fire!
(Thomas Watson, "The Good Practitioner")
A sermon is never rightly heard—until it is practiced.
"If you know these things, happy are you if you do
them." John 13:17
Christ does not put happiness upon knowing—but upon
doing. It is not knowledge of the points of religion—but
practice, which renders a man truly happy and blessed.
Luke 6:46, "Why do you call Me 'Lord, Lord,' and don't
do the things I say?" It is not the mere knowledge and
acceptance of the most glorious Gospel truths—which will
bring a man to heaven. If a man could fluently discourse
on all Scriptural truths, if his head were a treasury of
wisdom, an ocean of learning—yet this could not entitle
him to happiness. His knowledge might make him admired
by men—but not blessed by God. If a man knew and
believed all the doctrines of Scripture—this would not
crown him with happiness.
Knowledge is a fair garland to look upon—but it is like
Rachael. Though she was beautiful—yet being barren
she said, "Give me children or I die!" Just so, if knowledge
does not bring forth the child of obedience—it will die and
come to nothing.
I would by no means disparage knowledge. Knowledge
is the pilot to guide us in our obedience. Yet, knowledge
must usher in obedience. Knowledge may put us into the
way of happiness, but it is only practice which brings us
there! Knowledge alone, cannot make a man eternally
happy and blessed.
Knowledge alone, does not make a man better; therefore,
it cannot make him happy and blessed. Bare knowledge
has no influence; it does not leave a spiritual tincture of
holiness behind. Knowledge informs—not transforms.
Knowledge, of itself, has no power upon the heart to
make it more holy. Bare knowledge is like weak medicine,
which does not work. It does not warm the affections nor
purge the conscience; it does not fetch virtue from Christ
to dry up the bloody issue of sin.
A man may receive the light of the truth—yet not love the
truth, "They perish because they refused to love the truth
and so be saved." 2 Thessalonians 2:10. The Apostle calls
it "a form of knowledge," Romans 2:20. Knowledge alone,
is but a dead form, having nothing to animate it. He who
has knowledge alone—is a spiritual stillborn! He looks like
a Christian—but has neither appetite nor motion.
Knowledge alone, makes men monsters in religion! They
are all head—but no feet! They do not walk in Christ,
Colossians 2:6. A man may have Scriptural knowledge—
and still be profane! He may have a clear head—and a
foul heart! The understanding may be illumined—when
the foot treads in unholy paths. If knowledge is divorced
from practice, and does not make a man better—then it
cannot make a man eternally happy and blessed.
If bare knowledge will save, then all who have knowledge
shall be saved. But that is not true—for then Judas would
be saved, for he had knowledge enough. Then the devil
would be saved! A man may have right knowledge, and
be no better than a devil! Hell is full of learned heads!
Knowledge alone, makes a man's case worse! Knowledge
takes away all excuse. Knowledge adds to a man's torment.
"Woe to you! I tell you, it will be more tolerable for the land
of Sodom on the day of judgment than for you!" It will be
better with heathen—than with professing Christians living
in a contradiction to their knowledge. Luke 12:47, "The
servant will be severely punished, for though he knew his
duty, he refused to do it!"
Knowledge without practice, serves only as a torch to light
men to hell—the brighter the light, the hotter the fire!
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