Prayer will do more to bring a deep and lasting and sweeping revival, a revival that is real and lasting and altogether of the right sort, than all the organizations that were ever devised by man. If you will study the history of the living church, you will find it has been very largely a history of revivals. Humanly speaking the church of Jesus Christ owes its very existence today to revivals. Time and time again the church has seemed to be on the verge of utter shipwreck, but just then God has sent a great revival and saved it. If you will study the history of revivals you will find that every real revival in the church has been the child of prayer. There have been revivals without much preaching; there have been revivals with absolutely no organization; but there has never been a mighty revival without mighty praying…. A God-Sent Revival What we need more than anything else today in our own land and in all lands, is a real, mighty outpouring of the Spirit of God. The most fundamental trouble with most of our present-day so-called revivals is that they are man-made and not God-sent. They are worked up by man’s cunningly devised machinery – not prayed down. Oh, for an old-time revival, a revival that is really and not spuriously of the Pentecostal pattern, for that revival was born of a fourteen days’ prayer-meeting. But let us not merely sigh for it. Let us cry for it, cry to God, cry long and cry loud if need be, and then it will surely come! – R. A. Torrey (1856 – 1928) was an American evangelist, pastor, educator, writer, and successor to D. L. Moody. This article is provided by permission of Herald of His Coming: heraldofhiscoming.org

The main part of praying in the Spirit must lie not merely in the Spirit’s power, or in the Spirit’s teaching us the matter, but in the Spirit’s assisting us in the manner. There is but one manner of praying which the Lord accepts. You know what it is; I will briefly describe its attributes. He that cometh to God must remember that He is “a Spirit, and that they who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth, for the Father seeketh such to worship Him” (John 4:24). The very first essential of prayer is to pray in truth, and we do not pray in truth unless the Spirit of God leads our vain minds into the sincerity and reality of devotion. To pray in truth, is this – it is not to use the empty expression of prayer, but to mean what we say; it is for the heart to agonize with God and heave with strong desires. And where will you obtain such a manner of prayer except in the spiritual man, when moved by the Holy Spirit? Only the spiritual man can sigh and long, and cry in his inmost heart, and in the chamber of his soul before God, and he will not do it except as the Spirit of truth leadeth him in sincerity into the secret of heart-prayer. Praying in the Holy Spirit is praying in fervency. Cold prayers, my brethren, ask the Lord not to hear them. Those who do not plead with fervency, plead not at all. As well speak of lukewarm fire as of lukewarm prayer; it is essential that it be red-hot. Real prayer is burnt as with hot iron into a man’s soul, and then comes forth from the man’s soul like coals of juniper which have a most vehement heat. Such prayers none but the Holy Spirit can give. …There is a way of praying with power in which a man seems to get hold of the posts of heaven’s gate, as Samson grasped the pillars of the temple, and appears as though he would pull all down upon himself sooner than miss the blessing. It is a brave thing for the heart to vow, “I will not let Thee go except Thou bless me” (Gen. 32:26). That is praying in the Holy Spirit. May we be tutored in the art of offering effectual fervent prayer! Next to that, it is essential in prayer that we should pray perseveringly. Any man can run fast at a spurt, but to keep it up mile after mile, there is the battle. And so, certain hot spirits can pray very fervently once now and then, but to continue in prayer – who shall do this except the Spirit of God sustaineth him? Mortal spirits flag and tire. The course of mere fleshly devotion is as the course of a snail which melts as it crawls. Carnal minds go onward and their devotion grows small by degrees and miserably less, as they cry out, “What a weariness it is!” But when the Holy Spirit fills a man and leads him into prayer, he gathers force as he proceeds, and grows more fervent even when God delays to answer. The longer the gate is closed the more vehemently does he use the knocker, till he thunders in his prayer; and the longer the angel lingers the more resolved is he that if he grasps him with a death-grip he will never let him go without the blessing. Beautiful in God’s sight is tearful and yet unconquerable importunity. Jesus delights to be laid hold of by one who says, “I cannot take No for an answer, this blessing I must have, for Thou hast promised it and Thou hast taught me to ask for it, and I will not believe that Thou canst belie Thyself.” Surely we must have the Holy Spirit to help us thus to pray. Praying in the Spirit we shall be sure to pray in a holy frame of mind. Brethren and sisters, do you ever get distracted in your minds? “Ah,” you say, “I wonder when I am not.” But when the Holy Spirit cometh, He takes a scourge of small cords and drives these buyers and sellers out of the temple and leaves it clear for God, and then you can come with a holy, devout frame of mind, fixed and settled in your great object of approach to God. This is to approach Him in the Spirit. Oh, for more of this blessed undisturbed devotion! I could not, however, finish the description of praying in the Spirit if I did not say that it means praying humbly, for the Holy Spirit never puffs us up with pride. He is the Spirit that convinces of sin, and so bows us down in contrition and brokenness of spirit. We must pray before God like the humble publican, or we shall never go forth justified as he was. We shall never sing “Gloria in excelsis” except we pray to God De profundis; out of the depths must we cry, or we shall never see the glory in the highest. Moreover, true prayer must be a prayer full of faith. The effectual fervent prayer of a man prevails only as he believes in God, and the Holy Spirit is the Author of faith in us, and nurtures and strengthens it so that we pray believing God’s promise. Oh, that this blessed combination of excellent graces, priceless and sweet as the spices of the merchant, might be fragrant within us because the Holy Spirit’s power is shed abroad in our hearts! – Charles H. Spurgeon (1834 – 1892) was a Baptist minister in London known as the “Prince of Preachers.” This article is provided by permission of Herald of His Coming: heraldofhiscoming.org

The one who believes God is his God, and that all providences work for his good, patiently yields himself to the will of God. Thus faith is a living principle. The life of a saint is nothing else but a life of faith. His prayer is the breathing of faith (Jas. 5:15). His obedience is the result of faith (Rom. 16:26). A godly man lives in Christ by faith, as the beam lives in the sun: “...I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me...” (Gal. 2:20). Set Against Sin The godly set themselves against evil, both in purpose and in practice. They are fearful of what looks like sin (1 Thes. 5:22). The appearance of evil may prejudice a weak Christian. If it does not defile a man’s own conscience, it may offend his brother’s conscience; and to sin against him is to sin against Christ (1 Cor. 8:12). A godly man will not go as far as he may, lest he go further than he should. A godly man dare not vary from the pattern which God has shown him in the Scripture. Love for the Word A godly man loves the written Word and shows his love… 1) By diligently reading it. The noble Bereans “searched the Scriptures daily” (Acts 17:11). Apollos was mighty in the Scriptures (Acts 18:24). A godly man’s heart is the library to hold the Word of God; it dwells richly in him (Col. 3:16). The Word has a double work: to teach us and to judge us. Those who will not be taught by the Word, shall be judged by the Word. Oh, let us make ourselves familiar with the Scripture! 2) By frequently meditating on it. “…It is my meditation all the day” (Psa. 119:97). A pious soul meditates on the truth and holiness of the Word. He not only has a few transient thoughts – but leaves his mind steeping in the Scripture. By meditation, he sucks honey from this sweet flower, and ruminates on holy truths in his mind. 3) By delighting in it. It is his recreation. “Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and Thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart…” (Jer. 15:16). Never did a man take such delight in a dish that he loved, as the prophet did in the Word. And indeed, how can a saint choose but take great pleasure in the Word? All of his eternal hopes are contained in it. 4) By hiding it. “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against Thee” (Psa. 119:11). Many hide the Word in their memory – but not in their heart. And why would David enclose the Word in his heart? “That I might not sin against Thee.” As a man would carry an antidote about him when he comes near an infected place, so a godly man carries the Word in his heart as a spiritual antidote to preserve him from the infection of sin. Why have so many been poisoned with error, others with moral vice – but because they have not hidden the Word as a holy antidote in their heart? 5) By preferring it above most precious things. (a) Above food. “…I have esteemed the words of His mouth more than my necessary food” (Job 23:12). (b) Above riches. “The law of Thy mouth is better unto me than thousands of gold and silver” (Psa. 119:72). (c) Above worldly honor. Memorable is the story of King Edward the Sixth. On the day of his coronation [at the age of nine], when they presented three swords before him, signifying to him that he was monarch of three kingdoms, the king said, “There is still one sword missing.” On being asked what that was, he answered, “The Holy Bible, which is the ‘Sword of the Spirit’ and is to be preferred before these ensigns of royalty.” 6) By conforming to it. The Word is his sundial, by which he sets his life, the balance in which he weighs his actions. He copies out the Word in his daily walk: “…I have kept the faith” (2 Tim. 4:7). Paul kept the doctrine of faith, and lived the life of faith. Devotion to Prayer A godly man is a praying man. “For this shall every one that is godly pray unto Thee” (Psa. 32:6). Prayer is the soul’s traffic with heaven: God comes down to us by His Spirit, and we go up to Him by prayer. A godly man cannot live without prayer: a man cannot live unless he takes breath, nor can the soul unless it breathes forth its desires to God. As soon as the babe of grace is born, it cries; no sooner was Paul converted but, “Behold, he prayeth” (Acts 9:11). A godly man is every day upon the mount of prayer; he begins the day with prayer: before he opens his shop, he opens his heart to God. He engageth in no business without seeking God. A godly man consults God in everything. – Adapted. Thomas Watson (1620 – 1686) was a Puritan preacher and author. This article is provided by permission of Herald of His Coming: heraldofhiscoming.org

"They that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever" (Dan. 12:3). That is the testimony of an old man, and one who had the richest and deepest experience of any man living on the face of the earth at the time. He was taken down to Babylon when a young man; some Bible students think he was not more than twenty years of age. If anyone had said, when this young Hebrew was carried away into captivity, that he would outrank all the mighty men of that day – probably no one would have believed it. Yet for five hundred years no man whose life is recorded in history shone as did this man – Daniel. He outshone Nebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, Cyrus, Darius, and all the princes and mighty monarchs of his day. We hear people nowadays talking about the hardness of the field where they labor; they say their position is a very peculiar one. Think of the field in which Daniel had to work. He was not only a slave, but he was held captive by a nation that detested the Hebrews. The language was unknown to him. There he was among idolaters; yet he commenced at once to shine. He took his stand for God from the very first, and so he went on through his whole life. He gave the dew of his youth to God, and he continued faithful right on till his pilgrimage was ended. Notice that all those who have made a deep impression on the world, and have shone most brightly have been men who lived in a dark day. Look at Joseph; he was sold as a slave into Egypt by the Ishmaelites; yet he took his God with him into captivity, as Daniel afterwards did. And he remained true to the last; he did not give up his faith because he had been taken away from home and placed among idolaters. He stood firm, and God stood by him. Look at Moses who turned his back upon the gilded palaces of Egypt, and identified himself with his despised and down-trodden nation. If a man ever had a hard field it was Moses; yet he shone brightly, and never proved unfaithful to his God. Elijah lived in a far darker day than we do. The whole nation was going over to idolatry. Ahab and his queen, and all the royal court were throwing their influence against the worship of the true God. Yet Elijah stood firm, and shone brightly in that dark and evil day. How his name stands out on the page of history! Look at John the Baptist. I used to think I would like to live in the days of the prophets; but I have given up that idea. You may be sure that when a prophet appears on the scene, everything is dark, and the professing church of God has gone over to the service of the god of this world. So it was when John the Baptist made his appearance. See how his name shines out today! Eighteen centuries have rolled away, and yet the fame of that wilderness preacher shines brighter than ever. He was looked down upon in his day and generation, but he has outlived all his enemies; his name will be revered and his work remembered as long as the church is on the earth. Talk about your field being a hard one! See how Paul shone for God as he went out, the first missionary to the heathen, telling them of the God whom he served, and who had sent His Son to die a cruel death in order to save the world. Men reviled him and his teachings; they laughed him to scorn when he spoke of the crucified One. But he went on preaching the Gospel of the Son of God. He was regarded as a poor tent-maker by the great and mighty ones of his day; but no one can now tell the name of any of his persecutors, or of those who lived at that time, unless their names happen to be associated with his, and they were brought into contact with him. Living for God It does not say in Daniel 12:3 that the statesmen are going to shine as the brightness of the firmament. The statesmen of Babylon are gone; their very names are forgotten. It does not say that the nobility are going to shine. Earth’s nobility are soon forgotten. John Bunyan, the Bedford tinker, has outlived the whole crowd of those who were the nobility in his day. They lived for self, and their memory is blotted out. He lived for God and for souls, and his name is as fragrant as ever it was. We are not told that the merchants are going to shine. Who can tell the name of any of the millionaires of Daniel’s day? They were all buried in oblivion a few years after their death. Who were the mighty conquerors of that day? But few can tell. It is true that we hear of Nebuchadnezzar, but probably we should not have known very much about him but of his relations to the Prophet Daniel. How different with this faithful prophet of the Lord! Twenty-five centuries have passed away, and his name shines on, and on, and on, brighter and brighter. And it is going to shine while the church of God exists. "They that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever" (Dan. 12:3). How empty and short-lived are the glory and pride of this world! If we are wise, we will live for God and eternity; we will get outside of ourselves, and will care nothing for the honor and glory of this world. In Proverbs 11:30 we read: "He that winneth souls is wise." If any man, woman, or child by a godly life and example can win one soul to God, their life will not have been a failure. They will have outshone all the mighty men of their day, because they will have set a stream in motion that will flow on and on forever and ever. Called to Shine God has left us down here to shine. We are not here to buy and sell and get gain, to accumulate wealth, to acquire worldly position. This earth, if we are Christians, is not our home; it is up yonder. God has sent us into the world to shine for Him – to light up this dark world. Before Christ went up on high, He said in effect to His disciples: "Ye are the light of the world. Ye are My witnesses. Go forth and carry the Gospel to the perishing nations of the earth." So God has called us to shine, just as much as Daniel was sent into Babylon to shine. Let no man or woman say that they cannot shine because they have not so much influence as some others may have. What God wants you to do is to use the influence you have. Daniel probably did not have much influence down in Babylon at first, but God soon gave him more, because he was faithful and used what he had. Remember a small light will do a great deal when it is in a very dark place. Put one little tallow candle in the middle of a large hall, and it will give a good deal of light. Then we must remember that we are to let our light shine. It does not say, "Make your light shine." You do not have to make light to shine; all you have to do is to let it shine. I remember hearing of a man at sea who was very seasick. While this man was sick, he heard that someone had fallen overboard. He was wondering if he could do anything to help to save the man. He laid hold of a light, and held it up to the porthole. The drowning man was saved. When this man got over his attack of sickness, he went on deck one day and was talking with the man who was rescued. The saved man gave this testimony. He said he had gone down the second time and was just going down again for the last time, when he put out his hand. Just then, he said, someone held a light at the port-hole, and the light fell on it. A sailor caught him by the hand and pulled him into the lifeboat. It seemed a small thing to do to hold up the light; yet it saved the man’s life. If you cannot do some great thing you can hold the light for some poor, perishing soul, who may be won to Christ and delivered from destruction. Let us take the torch of salvation and go into the dark homes, and hold up Christ to the people as the Savior of the world. If the perishing masses are to be reached, we must lay our lives right alongside theirs, and pray with them and labor for them. I would not give much for a man’s Christianity if he is saved himself and is not willing to try to save others. It seems to me the basest ingratitude if we do not reach out the hand to others who are down in the same pit from which we were delivered. Who is able to reach and help drinking men like those who have themselves been slaves to the intoxicating cup? Will you not go out this very day and seek to rescue these men? If we were all to do what we can, we should soon empty the drinking saloons. Do Not Be a Cause for Stumbling A blind man was found sitting at the corner of a street in a great city with a lantern beside him. Someone went up to him and asked what he had the lantern there for, seeing that he was blind, and the light was the same to him as the darkness. The blind man replied: "I have it so that no one may stumble over me." Dear friends, let us think of that. Where one man reads the Bible, a hundred read you and me. That is what Paul meant when he said we were to be living epistles of Christ, known and read of all men. I would not give much for all that can be done by sermons, if we do not preach Christ by our lives. If we do not commend the Gospel to people by our holy walk and conversation, we shall not win them to Christ. Some little act of kindness will perhaps do more to influence them than any number of long sermons. Keep the Lower Lights Burning Let us keep our lights in the proper place, so that the world may see that the religion of Christ is not a sham but a reality. It is said that in the Grecian sports they had one game where the men ran with lights. They lit a torch at the altar, and ran a certain distance; sometimes they were on horseback. If a man came in with his light still burning, he received a prize; if his light had gone out, he lost the prize. How many there are who, in their old age, have lost their light and their joy! They were once burning and shining lights in the family, in the Sunday School, and in the church. But something has come in between them and God – the world or self – and their light has gone out. Reader, if you are one who has had this experience, may God help you to come back to the altar of the Savior’s love and light up your torch anew, so that you can go out into the lanes and alleys, and let the light of the Gospel shine in these dark homes. Far-reaching and Lasting Influence If we only lead one soul to Jesus Christ we may set a stream in motion that will flow on when we are dead and gone. Away up the mountainside there is a little spring; it seems so small that an ox might drink it up at a draught. By and by it becomes a rivulet; other rivulets run into it. Before long it is a large brook, and then it becomes a broad river sweeping onward to the sea. On its banks are cities, towns and villages, where many thousands live. Vegetation flourishes on every side, and commerce is carried down its stately bosom to distant lands. So if you turn one to Christ, that one may turn a hundred; they may turn a thousand, and so the stream, small at first, goes on broadening and deepening as it rolls toward eternity. There are many mentioned in the Scriptures of whom we read that they lived so many years and then they died. The cradle and the grave are brought close together; they lived and they died, and that is all we know about them. So in these days you could write on the tombstone of a great many professing Christians that they were born on such a day and they died on such a day; there is nothing whatever between. But there is one thing you cannot bury with a good man; his influence still lives. They have not buried Daniel yet; his influence is as great today as it ever was. Do you tell me that Joseph is dead? His influence still lives and will continue to live on. You may bury the frail body of clay that a good man lives in, but you cannot get rid of his influence and example. Paul was never more powerful than he is today. Do you tell me that John Howard, who went into so many of the dark prisons in Europe, is dead? Is Henry Martyn, or Wilberforce, or John Bunyan dead? They who lived for something else besides themselves will never die out of the hearts of those for whom they lived and labored. Is Wesley or Whitefield dead? The names of those great evangelists were never more honored than they are now. Is John Knox dead? You can go to any part of Scotland today, and feel the power of his influence. I will tell you the ones who are dead. The enemies of these servants of God – those who persecuted them and told lies about them. But the men themselves have outlived all the lies that were uttered concerning them. Not only that; they will shine in another world. How true are the words of the Bible: "They that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever" (Dan. 12:3). Let us go on turning as many as we can to righteousness. Let us be dead to the world, to its lies, its pleasures, and its ambitions. Let us live for God, continually going forth to win souls for Him. – Taken from The Overcoming Life. D. L. Moody (1837 – 1899) was a prominent American evangelist and publisher. This article is provided by permission of Herald of His Coming: heraldofhiscoming.org

I read recently of a speaker who preached on the mercy of God “until it seemed there was nothing in God but mercy.” But I fear he misrepresented God. Such misrepresentation is easy, and to people who do not think deeply, and who do not want to take life seriously, it is pleasant, but it is unspeakably dangerous. If we are to win souls and save our own, we must not distort the picture of God’s character which we hold up to view. It is life eternal to know God and Jesus Christ whom He has sent (John 17:3), but it must be the true and holy God, as He is, and not some false god who conforms to our poor little warped human desires and opinions. Some religious teachers misrepresent God by making Him utterly savage and cruel, and they gloat over unutterably horrid pictures of hell, where they imagine God delighting in the tortures of the damned, and thus men are embittered against God until they feel there is no hope of His mercy. Others misrepresent God by making Him appear as a sort of goody-goody God, who fawns upon sinners with undue sympathy and looks upon worldlings and triflers and lukewarm professors with weak, sentimental pity. Nothing can be further from the truth concerning God. We find God Himself bitterly rebuking those who, living in sin, thought He did not disapprove their ways. He sets before them a list of their sins (Psa. 50:17-20), and then says: “These things hast thou done, and I kept silence; thou thoughtest that I was altogether such an one as thyself; but I will reprove thee, and set them in order before thine eyes. Now consider this, ye that forget God, lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver” (vv. 21-22). The truth lies between these extremes. There is mercy in God, but it is mingled with severity; there is wrath in God, but it is tempered with mercy. The great soul-winners from Bible times till now have recognized this. They have held an even balance between the goodness and the severity of God, because the Bible does so. The Bible, of all the innumerable books written, is the only one which gives us an authoritative representation of God. Nature Warns Us The book of nature reveals to us the goodness and the severity of God. Fire will not only bake our food and bless us, but it will also burn us. Water will not only quench our thirst and refresh us, but if we trifle with it, it will drown us. If we recognize God’s ways of working in nature, and take heed and obey, we shall find nature’s laws most kind and helpful. But if we neglect or refuse to obey we shall find them most terrible and destructive. Scripture Warns Us If we want to know God in all the richness of His character, and all the fullness of His self-revelation, we must study the Bible and compare Scripture with Scripture. The Bible tells us of God’s unutterable love leading Him to seek sinners in mercy; but His righteousness requires of the sinner penitence, faith, separation from evil and obedience to His will. Various Bible descriptions show how God holds an even balance between His mercy and His judgments. “Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God,” writes Paul: “On them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in His goodness; otherwise,” he says (showing that God’s goodness does not destroy His severity), “thou also shalt be cut off.” We must beware! Then he adds a touch of tenderness, making clear how even in His severity God waits to show mercy – “And they also,” though they have been cut off, “if they abide not still in unbelief, shall be grafted in, for God is able to graft them in again” (Rom. 11:22-23). Again Paul writes, “...I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth.... For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, the just shall live by faith.” And then he adds, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness” (Rom. 1:16-18). Paul further writes: “...Despisest thou the riches of His goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; who will render to every man according to his deeds; to them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory and honour and immortality, eternal life: but unto them that are contentious, and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and wrath, tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that doeth evil...but glory, honour, and peace to every man that worketh good, to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile: for there is no respect of persons with God” (Rom. 2:4-11). The saving mercy of God revealed in the Scriptures is invariably set over against the wrath of God, as the great mountains are set over against the deep seas. The writer to the Hebrews says of Jesus, “...He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him...” (Heb. 7:25); while Paul writes of some upon whom “wrath is come....to the uttermost” (1 Thes. 2:16). There is, then, an uttermost salvation for all who “trust and obey,” and an uttermost woe for all who go on in selfish unbelief and worldliness and sin. Truly “God is not mocked” (Gal. 6:7), and He is a God of judgment. Jesus Warns Us We find Jesus keeping this even balance when He says that those who hear His sayings and do them are like those who build upon a rock, against which rain and floods and winds cannot prevail, while those who hear and do not obey are like those who build upon sand, which will be swept away by rain and floods and wind (Matt. 7:24-27). Again, He says that the wicked shall “go away into everlasting punishment; but the righteous into life eternal” (Matt. 25:46). Jesus tells of the shut door at the marriage, with some on the inside with their Lord, and some on the outside, rejected and unknown; of the joy of their Lord into which good and faithful servants enter, and the outer darkness, into which the wicked and slothful are cast; of the great, fixed gulf which is impassable, with some on the right side in the bosom of comfort and security and peace, and some on the wrong side in the bitter woe of fierce remorse and torment. We find John faithful to this great truth. He cries out, “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him” (John 3:36). Likewise all through the Old Testament this even balance is maintained. “Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before Mine eyes; cease to do evil; learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow. 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. If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: but” – here is the unfailing alternative – “but if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword...” (Isa. 1:16-20). These Bible word-pictures show us that no one word, not even the sweet word “mercy,” will sum up the rich and manifold character of God. The Bible says, “...God is love...” (1 John 4:8), but it also says, “...Our God is a consuming fire” (Heb. 12:29). To penitent hearts who trust in Jesus, God will be found to be rich in mercy, but He will defend the moral and spiritual order of His universe by uttermost penalties against those who go on proudly, carelessly, or wickedly in their own ways. Our only hope is in the wounds of Jesus, and the shelter of His blood. There, and only there, shall we find mercy, since we have sinned; but there mercy is boundless and free! Hallelujah! Extreme Seriousness of Sin “Fools make a mock at sin,” wrote Solomon (Prov. 14:9), and professedly wise men still lead simple souls astray as the serpent beguiled Eve, saying, “Ye shall not surely die” (Gen. 3:4). But men who understand the unchangeable holiness of God’s character and law tremble and fear before Him at the thought of sin. They know that He is to be feared; “the terror of the Lord” is before them. This is not inconsistent with the perfect love that casteth out fear. Rather it is inseparably joined with that love, and the man who is most fully possessed of that love is the one who fears most – with that reverential fear that leads him to depart from sin. He who is exalted to the greatest heights of divine love and fellowship in Jesus Christ sees most plainly the awful depths of the divine wrath against sin and the bottomless pit to which sinners out of Christ are hastening. This vision and sense of the exceeding sinfulness of sin and of God’s wrath against wickedness begets not a panicky, slavish fear that makes a man hide from God, as Adam and Eve hid among the trees of Eden, but a holy, filial fear that leads the soul to come out into the open and run to God to seek shelter in His arms, and to be washed in the blood of “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). – Samuel L. Brengle (1860 – 1936) was a Salvation Army officer and a leading author, teacher and preacher on the doctrine of holiness. This article is provided by permission of Herald of His Coming: heraldofhiscoming.org

In my inner life, I desire to be kept absolutely pure and lovely. O Holy and Spotless One, be in me the Crystal Fountain of Purity! O Lamb of God, be in me the Source of absolute meekness and humility! O Lover of men, be in me a Fire of unwaning, all-subduing Tenderness! Make me instantly sensitive to the least taint of impurity and uncharity. Before ever the suggestion has assumed a tangible shape, may I detect it and shelter in Thee. In my home life, may I be made a blessing; its sunbeam when the days are dark; its inspiration when the days are sad and hopeless; its tender comfort when the days are full of pain and tears. Always thinking of others before myself; never imposing my private sorrows or moods; ever with the girt loin and the lighted torch; washing my face, and anointing my head and confiding my griefs to Thee only, that I may ever have "A heart at leisure from itself, to soothe and sympathize." In my religious life, may the neglect of prayer and Thy Holy Word be things of the past. Wake me morning by morning to hear as a disciple! Enable me to spring up at Thy call, and, like all Thy true servants, to rise up early in the morning to gather the manna ere the dew be gone from it. May my fellowship with Thee be unbroken through the day, that I may often look up into Thy face, even if I have not time to speak. Draw me, and I will run after Thee! "Each moment call from earth away My soul that only waits Thy call." In my daily calling, make me diligent in business, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord. May I do my work, not for the wages I may get, not to secure an advance, but so as to please Thee! May it be the only object of my daily striving to do all to the glory of God – not with eye-service, as pleasing men, but in singleness of heart, fearing the Lord, doing the will of God as it is indicated in the circumstances of my life, and looking for my reward from Thy hand, O Divine Master! (1 Cor. 10:31.) In my use of money, I would not be anxious about the future, nor hoard up and keep for myself of that which Thou hast given me: I want to be Thy very slave, counting myself and all I have as Thy purchased property, and using all things as Thy representative and steward. In my use of time and health and all the opportunities of life, I desire to act with reverent care, redeeming the time, buying up each opportunity, conserving my body as the pure temple of the Holy Ghost, so partaking of recreation, food, natural scenery, travel, and all lawful pastimes, that I may the better serve Thy purpose in my creation and redemption. Show me what Thy talents are which Thou hast entrusted to me, and help me to make the two – four, and the five – ten. (Matt. 25:14-30.) Now bless me, even me, O Lord; I am Thine; Thy Father gave me to Thee before the world was made; Thou didst purchase me for Thyself by Thy precious blood; Thou hast begun a good work within me by Thy Holy Spirit. And now afresh take me to Thine heart, and seal me with Thy Holy Spirit. May He enlighten, comfort, and sanctify me, teaching me to pray, and opening the eyes of my heart that I may know Thee and the power of Thy resurrection, that, as Thou hast ascended into the heavens, so I may also, in heart and mind, thither ascend – and with Thee continually dwell, Who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end! Amen! – F. B. Meyer (1847 – 1929) was a Baptist pastor and evangelist in England. This article is provided by permission of Herald of His Coming: heraldofhiscoming.org

“But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thine inner chamber, and having shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret, and thy Father which seeth in secret shall recompense thee” (Matt. 6:6). To the man who withdraws himself from all that is of world and man, and prepares to wait upon God alone, the Father will reveal Himself. As he forsakes and gives up and shuts out the world, and the life of the world, and surrenders himself to be led of Christ into the secret of God’s presence, the light of the Father’s love will rise upon him. Christians often complain that private prayer is not what it should be. They feel weak and sinful, the heart is cold and dark; it is as if they have so little to pray, and in that little no faith or joy. They are discouraged and kept from prayer by the thought that they cannot come to the Father as they ought to or as they wish. Child of God! Listen to your Teacher. He tells you that when you go to private prayer your first thought must be: The Father is in secret, the Father waits me there. Just because your heart is cold and prayerless, get you into the presence of the loving Father. As a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth you. Do not be thinking of how little you have to bring God, but of how much He wants to give you. Just place yourself before, and look up into, His face; think of His love, His wonderful, tender, pitying love. Just tell Him how sinful and cold and dark all is: it is the Father’s loving heart will give light and warmth to yours. O do what Jesus says: Just shut the door and pray to thy Father which is in secret. Is it not wonderful? To be able to go alone with God, the infinite God. And then to look up and say: My Father! “And thy Father, which seeth in secret shall recompense thee.” Here Jesus assures us that secret prayer cannot be fruitless: its blessing will show itself in our life. Our Lord would thus teach us that as infinite Fatherliness and Faithfulness is that with which God meets us in secret, so on our part there should be the childlike simplicity of faith, the confidence that our prayer does bring down a blessing. “He that cometh to God must believe...that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him” (Heb. 11:6). Not on the strong or the fervent feeling with which I pray does the blessing of the closet depend, but upon the love and the power of the Father to whom I there entrust my needs. – Andrew Murray (1828 – 1917) was a South African pastor, missionary leader and prolific writer. This article is provided by permission of Herald of His Coming: heraldofhiscoming.org

"...Holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord" (Heb. 12:14). Let me try to draw a picture of Biblical holiness, that we may see it clearly before the eyes of our minds. Holiness is the habit of being of one mind with God, according as we find His mind described in Scripture. It is the habit of agreeing in God’s judgment, hating what He hates, loving what He loves, and measuring everything in this world by the standard of His Word. He who most entirely agrees with God – he is the most holy man. A holy man will endeavor to shun every known sin, and to keep every known commandment. He will have a decided bent of mind towards God, a hearty desire to do His will, a greater fear of displeasing Him than of displeasing the world, and a love for all His ways. He will feel what Paul felt when he said, "I delight in the law of God after the inward man" (Rom. 7:22), and what David felt when he said, "I esteem all Thy precepts concerning all things to be right; and I hate every false way" (Psa. 119:128). A holy man will strive to be like our Lord Jesus Christ. He will not only live the life of faith in Him and draw from Him all his daily peace and strength – but he will also labor to have the mind that was in Him, and to be conformed to His image (Rom. 8:29). It will be his aim to bear with and forgive others, even as Christ forgave us; to be unselfish, even as Christ pleased not Himself; to walk in love, even as Christ loved us; to be lowly-minded and humble, even as Christ made Himself of no reputation and humbled Himself. He will remember that Christ was a faithful witness for the truth; that He came not to do His own will; that it was His food and drink to do His Father’s will; that He would continually deny Himself in order to minister to others; that He was meek and patient under undeserved insults; that He thought more of godly poor men, than of kings; that He was full of love and compassion to sinners; that He was bold and uncompromising in denouncing sin; that He sought not the praise of men, when He might have had it; that He went about doing good; that He was separate from worldly people; that He continued instant in prayer; that He would not let even His nearest relations stand in His way when God’s work was to be done. All these things, a holy man will try to remember. By them, he will endeavor to shape his course in life. He will lay to heart the saying of John: "He that saith he abideth in [Christ], ought himself also so to walk, even as He walked" (1 John 2:6); and the saying of Peter, that "Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow His steps" (1 Pet. 2:21). Happy is he who has learned to make Christ his "all," both for salvation and example! Much time would be saved, and much sin prevented – if men would oftener ask themselves the question: "What would Jesus have said and done – if He were in my place?" A holy man will follow after meekness, patience, gentleness, kind tempers, and government of his tongue. He will bear much, forbear much, overlook much and be slow to talk of standing on his rights. We see a bright example of this in the behavior of David when Shimei cursed him (2 Sam. 16:10), and of Moses when Aaron and Miriam spoke against him (Num. 12:3). A holy man will follow after temperance and self-denial. He will labor to mortify the desires of his body, to crucify his flesh with his affections and lusts, to curb his passions, to restrain his carnal inclinations – lest at any time they break loose. Oh, what a word is that of the Lord Jesus to the apostles: "Take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares" (Luke 21:34); and that of the Apostle Paul: "I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway" (1 Cor. 9:27). A holy man will follow after love and brotherly kindness. He will endeavor to observe the "golden rule" of doing as he would have men do to him – and speaking as he would have men speak to him. He will be full of affection towards his brethren, towards their bodies, their property, their characters, their feelings, their souls. "He that loveth another," says Paul, "hath fulfilled the law" (Rom. 13:8). He will abhor all lying, slandering, backbiting, cheating, dishonesty and unfair dealing – even in the least things. He will strive to adorn his religion by all his outward demeanor, and to make it lovely and beautiful in the eyes of all around him. Alas, what condemning words are the thirteenth chapter of First Corinthians, and the Sermon on the Mount – when laid alongside the conduct of many professing Christians! A holy man will follow after a spirit of mercy and benevolence towards others. He will not stand idle all the day. He will not be content with doing no harm – he will try to do good. He will strive to be useful in his day and generation, and to lessen the spiritual needs and misery around him as far as he can. Such was Dorcas: "full of good works and alms-deeds, which she did" (Acts 9:36) – nor merely purposed and talked about – but did. Such a one was Paul: "I will very gladly spend and be spent for you," he says, "though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be loved" (2 Cor. 12:15). A holy man will follow after purity of heart. He will dread all immorality, and impurity of spirit, and seek to avoid all things that might draw him into it. He knows his own heart is like tinder – and will diligently keep clear of the sparks of temptation. Who shall dare to talk of their own strength – when David can fall? A holy man will follow after the fear of God. I do not mean the fear of a slave – who only works because he is afraid of punishment and would be idle if he did not dread discovery. I mean rather the fear of a child – who wishes to live and move as if he was always before his father’s face, because he loves him. What a noble example Nehemiah gives us of this! When he became governor at Jerusalem, he could have been supported by the Jews and required money from them for his sustenance. The former governors had done so. There was none to blame him, if he did. But he says, "The former governors that had been before me, were chargeable unto the people, and had taken of them bread and wine, beside forty shekels of silver; yea, even their servants bare rule over the people: but so did not I, because of the fear of God" (Neh. 5:15). A holy man will follow after humility. He will desire, in lowliness of mind, to esteem all others better than himself. He will see more evil in his own heart – than in any other in the world. He will understand something of Abraham’s feeling, when he says, "I am dust and ashes!" (Gen. 18:27). And Jacob’s feeling, when he says, "I am unworthy of the least of all Your mercies!" (Gen. 32:10). And Job’s feeling, when he says, "Behold! I am vile!" (Job 40:4). And Paul’s feeling, when he says, "I am the chief of sinners!" (1 Tim. 1:15). Holy John Bradford, that faithful martyr of Christ, would sometimes finish his letters with these words: "A most miserable sinner, John Bradford." The godly William Grimshaw’s last words, when he lay on his deathbed, were these: "Here goes an unprofitable servant!" A holy man will follow after faithfulness in all the duties and relations in life. He will try, not merely to fill his place as well as others who take no thought for their souls – but even better, because he has higher motives and more help than they. Those words of Paul should never be forgotten: "Whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord" (Col. 3:23). "Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord" (Rom. 12:11). Holy people should aim at doing everything well and should be ashamed of allowing themselves to do anything poorly, if they can help it. Like Daniel, they should seek to give no "occasion" against themselves, except concerning the law of their God (Dan. 6:5). They should strive to be good husbands and good wives, good parents and good children, good masters and good servants, good neighbors, good friends, good subjects, good in private and good in public, good in the place of business and good by their firesides. Holiness is worth little indeed – if it does not bear this kind of fruit. The Lord Jesus puts a searching question to His people when He says, "What do ye more than others?" (Matt. 5:47). Last – but not least, a holy man will follow after spiritual-mindedness. He will endeavor to set his affections on things above, and to hold things on earth with a very loose hand. He will not neglect the business of the present life; but the first place in his mind and thoughts will be given to eternal realities. He will aim to live like one whose treasure is in heaven, and to pass through this world like a stranger and pilgrim traveling to his home. To commune with God in prayer, in the Bible, and in the assembly of His people – these things will be the holy man’s chief enjoyments. He will value every thing and place and company – just in proportion as it draws him nearer to God. He will enter into something of David’s feeling, when he says, "My soul follows hard after Thee!" (Psa. 63:8). "Thou art my portion!" (Psa. 119:57). …I am sure that to have such a character as I have faintly drawn, is the heart’s desire and prayer of all true Christians. They press towards it – if they do not reach it. They may not attain to it – but they always aim at it. It is what they strive and labor to be – if it is not what they are. And I do boldly and confidently say, that true holiness is a great reality. It is something in a man that can be seen and known and marked and felt by all around him: It is light – if it exists, it will show itself. It is salt – if it exists, its savor will be perceived. It is a precious ointment – if it exists, its fragrance cannot be hidden. …Such are the leading characteristics of practical holiness. Let us examine ourselves and see whether we are acquainted with it. Let us prove our own selves. …I do not set up myself to be better than other people; and if anyone asks, "What are you, that you write in this way?" I answer, "I am a very poor creature indeed." But I say that I cannot read the Bible without desiring to see many believers more spiritual, more holy, more single-eyed, more heavenly-minded, more whole-hearted, than they are at the present time. I want to see among believers more of a pilgrim spirit, a more decided separation from the world, a conversation more evidently in heaven, a closer walk with God – and therefore I have written as I have. Is it true, that we need a higher standard of personal holiness in this day? Where is our patience? Where is our zeal? Where is our love? Where are our works? Where is the power of religion to be seen, as it was in times gone by? Where is that unmistakable tone which used to distinguish the saints of old and shake the world? Truly our silver has become dross, our wine mixed with water, and our salt has very little savor. We are all more than half asleep! The night is far spent, and the day is at hand. Let us awake – and sleep no more. Let us open our eyes more widely, than we have done up to this time. "Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us" (Heb. 12:1). "Let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God" (2 Cor. 7:1). "Did Christ die," says John Owen, "and shall sin live? Was He crucified in the world – and shall our affections to the world be quick and lively? Oh, where is the spirit of Paul, who by the Cross of Christ, was crucified to the world, and the world to him?" A word of advice. Would you be holy? Would you become a new creature? Then you must begin with Christ. You will do just nothing at all, and make no progress – until you feel your sin and weakness, and flee to Him. He is the root and beginning of all holiness – and the way to be holy, is to come to Him by faith and be joined to Him. Christ is not wisdom and righteousness only to His people – but sanctification also. Men sometimes try to make themselves holy first of all – and sad work they make of it. They toil and labor and turn over many new leaves, and make many changes; and yet, like the woman with the issue of blood, before she came to Christ, they feel "nothing bettered, but rather grew worse" (Mark 5:26). They run in vain and labor in vain, and little wonder – for they are beginning at the wrong end. They are building up a wall of sand; their work runs down – as fast as they throw it up. They are bailing water out of a leaky vessel; the leak gains on them – not they on the leak. Other foundations of holiness can no man lay, than that which Paul laid – even Christ Jesus. Without Christ we can do nothing (John 15:5). It is a strong but true saying of Robert Traill’s: "Wisdom out of Christ is damning folly; righteousness out of Christ is guilt and condemnation; sanctification out of Christ is filth and sin; redemption out of Christ is bondage and slavery!" Do you want to attain holiness? Do you feel this day a real hearty desire to be holy? Would you be a partaker of the divine nature? Then go to Christ! Wait for nothing. Wait for nobody. Linger not. Do not think to make yourself ready. Go and say to Him, in the words of that beautiful hymn: "Nothing in my hand I bring, Simply to Your Cross I cling; Naked, flee to You for dress; Helpless, look to You for grace." There is not a brick nor a stone laid in the work of our sanctification – until we go to Christ. Holiness is His special gift to His believing people. Holiness is the work He carries on in their hearts by the Spirit whom He puts within them. He is appointed a "Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance" (Acts 5:31) as well as remission of sins. To as many as receive Him, He gives power to become sons of God (John 1:12). Holiness comes not by blood – parents cannot give it to their children; nor of the will of the flesh – man cannot produce it in himself; nor of the will of man – ministers cannot give it to you by baptism. Holiness comes from Christ. It is the result of vital union with Him. It is the fruit of being a living branch of the true Vine. Go then to Christ and say, "Lord, not only save me from the guilt of sin – but send the Spirit, whom You promised, and save me from sin’s power. Make me holy. Teach me to do Your will." Would you continue holy? Then abide in Christ (John 15:4-5). It pleased the Father that in Him should all fullness dwell – a full supply for all a believer’s needs. He is the Physician to whom you must daily go – if you would keep well. He is the Manna which you must daily eat, and the Rock from which you must daily drink. His arm is the arm on which you must daily lean, as you come up out of the wilderness of this world. You must not only be rooted – you must also be built up in Him. Paul was a man of God indeed, a holy man, a growing, thriving Christian – and what was the secret of it all? He was one to whom Christ was all in all. He was ever looking unto Jesus (Heb. 12:2). "I can do all things," he says, "through Christ which strengtheneth me" (Phil. 4:13). "I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God" (Gal. 2:20). Let us go and do likewise. May all who read these pages, know these things by experience – and not by hearsay only! May we all feel the importance of holiness far more than we have ever done yet! May our years be holy years with our souls – and then they will be happy ones! Whether we live – may we live unto the Lord: or whether we die – may we die unto the Lord. And if He comes for us – may we be found in peace, without spot, and blameless! – Taken from Holiness! by J. C. Ryle (1816 – 1900), an evangelical Anglican clergyman known for his powerful preaching and extensive writing. This article is provided by permission of Herald of His Coming: heraldofhiscoming.org

“When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice…” (2 Tim. 1:5). “But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; and that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus” (2 Tim. 3:14-15). It is one of the highest honors God has for the believing parent, that He has made him/her the minister of His holy Word to his/her children. It is the unfeigned faith of father or mother, a faith which lives on and according to the Word, and speaks of it in the power of personal testimony and experience, that will be used of God to waken a child’s faith. In real living faith there is something contagious; the life of the Spirit breathes in it, and makes its words a blessing. With this in mind, seek to teach your child the following: To Believe the Word . . . Teach your child to believe the Word of God. Of old, God sought above everything to train His saints to be men of faith. There is nothing more pleasing to Him than faith. Faith is the soul’s surrender to God, to hear what He says, to take what He gives, to receive what He works, to be entirely at His disposal. Faith in God begins with faith in His Word, and there is no habit a parent can cultivate in a child of deeper importance than that of a trustful acceptance of all that God has said. Teach your child to believe in His love, in the gift of His Son, and in the life through Him, as realities which come true to us as our faith simply trusts the Word and is assured of what it says. Teach your child day by day to look upon every promise, every truth in the Word, as the food of faith, meant to make our faith, and through it our life, stronger. Parents, a child is naturally trustful; guide his young trust to that Word which never fails. The child wants to trust; the Word wants to be trusted; let your unfeigned faith bring them into contact. To Know the Word . . . Teach your child to know the Word of God. Faith depends upon knowledge. Timothy had known the sacred writings as able to make him wise unto salvation (2 Tim. 3:14-15). If the grace of God is to save us, it must teach us; it is a wisdom from above; we must love God with the mind as well as the heart. Let the parent seek to give the child a clear and intelligent apprehension of the great truths of salvation God has revealed. He may not entrust this work to school or church; it is astonishing how vague the knowledge thus obtained often is. Let family worship be so ordered as to be really helpful in the knowledge of God’s Word. Take time to lodge in the mind not only the truths and the history of the Bible, but specially to store the memory with some of God’s own words. Be not content with the child’s learning and saying his text at fixed times; it is often forgotten as soon as said. But seek to have some of these words, by frequent repetition, so rooted in the mind that nothing can efface them. Teach the child to know the Book itself too; to be at home in it, to feel at home and more at ease in it; to be taught by unfeigned faith thus to know the sacred writings is an inestimable blessing. To Love the Word . . . Teach your child to love God’s Word. This is more difficult than to teach your child to believe and to know it. There is often the assent of faith, and an interest in the knowledge of Scripture, with very little of real love to it. To teach this is no easy task. Its first requisite is, of course, that we love it ourselves. A parent’s holy, tender love to the Word of God will be the surest means of inspiring the child’s love. To Obey the Word . . . And then, teach your child to obey the Word of God. God connects all believing, knowing, loving, with doing; obedience is God’s test of uprightness and reality. Teach the child to make what the Father has said the standard of conduct. Let him see and hear that you do so. In our ordinary Christianity, children are educated into the belief that God’s commandments are grievous; the idea of obedience to Him, whole-hearted and unceasing obedience, being simply happiness, is never thought of. And yet this is the only religion that really will be mighty to plant itself in the hearts of our children. The Bible must not be as a law continually holding us in check, keeping us from what we would like, and demanding what is difficult. No! with our children we must take up an entirely different position. As the Father’s redeemed ones, the children of His covenant and kingdom, we must say, with the only-begotten Son, “I delight to do Thy will, O My God; yea, Thy law is within My heart” (Psa. 40:8). It is His covenant promise to work this in us and our children. If in Christ Jesus we enter into the blessed life of the liberty of God’s children, our children will learn from us how impossible it is to us to read the Father’s Word and not do it. Our study of it with them will all have this as its one purpose: we want to know and do the will of God. Careful, Meaningful Reading If the same care we take to have a properly prepared meal placed on the breakfast table, and each child served with just what he needs, were only taken to see that the children really receive and enjoy the feeding with the Divine Word. Let parents make a study of it to have their family worship so ordered, as indeed to lead the children into the holy place, to be presented before the Lord, to be fed with the bread each one requires, and to receive the Father’s blessing for the day. Let them prepare for reading the Word with the family. Let the reading be as of God’s Word, in His presence, and waiting on His Spirit. Beware of the hurry which just gives time enough for the hasty reading of a chapter. A few moments devoted to a quiet, loving, calling of the attention to what God says, and to making the personal application, encouraging the children to take and keep the Word, may be the beginning of great blessing. Seek the Spirit’s Working Parents! God’s Word is your child’s heritage from the Father in heaven. And you are commissioned to lead him into the knowledge and the love and the possession of its treasures. Make it a matter of earnest prayer that you may wisely and rightly do it. Let that Word dwell richly in you in all wisdom. In giving His promises, Jesus said, “If ye abide in Me and My words abide in you...” (John 15:7). Let your life be one of unfeigned faith, that lives and delights in doing God’s Word, such faith will pass on into your children. The quiet confidence that comes from God’s Word is a power that makes itself felt with our children. And if you often feel that you know not how to bring the Word aright to them, or see in them things that hinder its reception, be still of good cheer, you have God to do the work, to make the Word effectual. Pray and believe for the Holy Spirit’s working; He will make the Word, which you speak and live in unfeigned faith, the seed of faith to your children too. Gracious God! we ask Thee to give us a very deep sense of the blessedness of this part of our work as parents, to bring Thy holy Word to them. May the privilege Timothy had be that of our children: from earliest youth to have the unfeigned faith of a loving parent as the interpreter of holy Scripture. May a deep, full, and very joyous faith in Thy blessed Word be the power in which all our Scripture teaching comes to them. Give us to see clearly how their hearts are claimed by Thee, to be filled with Thy words, that these may be in them the seeds of all holy thoughts and dispositions. We ask of Thee the grace of wisdom, and faith, and patient faithfulness to bring Thy Word day by day to our children. We yield ourselves to the supremacy and the power of Thy holy Word; let it so abide in us, that our life may be the shining forth of its holy light. Let us be so full of faith and love and obedience to the Word, that our dear children learn from their youth to love and believe and obey it too. Father, forgive us that this has been too little so. Wilt Thou not by Thy mighty power make it so now? Amen. – Adapted from Children For Christ by Andrew Murray (1828 – 1917), a South African pastor, missionary leader and prolific writer. This article is provided by permission of Herald of His Coming: heraldofhiscoming.org

“...Christ is all, and in all” (Col. 3:11). Christ is all – in regard of divine assistance. A Christian’s strength lies in Christ, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me” (Phil. 4:13). How is a Christian able to do duty, to resist temptation – but through Christ’s strengthening? How is it that a spark of grace lives in a sea of corruption, the storms of persecution blowing – but that Christ holds this spark in the hollow of His hand? How is it that the roaring lion of hell has not devoured the saints? Because the Lion of the tribe of Judah has defended them! Christ not only gives us our crown – but our shield. He not only gives us our garland when we overcome – but our strength whereby we overcome. “They overcame him [the accuser of the brethren] by the blood of the Lamb” (Rev. 12:11). Christ keeps the royal fort of grace – so that it is not blown up. Peter’s shield was bruised – but Christ ensured that it was not broken. “I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not...” (Luke 22:32), that it be not a total falling away. The crown of all the saints’ vic­tories must be set upon the head of Christ! In Him dwells all fullness (Col. 1:19). Christ is whatever the soul can desire. Christ is beauty to adorn, gold to enrich, balm to heal, bread to strengthen, wine to comfort, and salvation to crown. If we are in danger, Christ is a shield; if we are disconsolate, He is a sun. He has enough in His wardrobe to abundantly furnish the soul. Christ sanctifies all our crosses. They shall be medicinal to the soul; they shall work sin out – and work grace in. God’s stretching the strings of His violin is to tune it and make the music better. Christ sees to it that His people lose nothing in the furnace, but their drossy impurities. If Christ Is All, Then Make Him So to You Make Christ all – in your understanding. Be ambitious to know nothing but Christ (1 Cor. 2:2). Oh, make Christ all! Be willing to know nothing but Christ. Though you may know other things in their due place – yet know Christ in the first place. Let the knowledge of Jesus Christ have the pre-eminence, as the sun among the lesser planets. This is the crowning knowledge. “...The prudent are crowned with knowledge” (Prov. 14:18). We cannot know ourselves, unless we know Christ. It is He who takes us into our hearts and shows us the spots of our souls, whereby we abhor ourselves in dust and ashes. Christ shows us our own emptiness and poverty. Until we see our own emptiness, we are not fit to be filled with the golden oil of mercy. We cannot know God but through Christ (2 Cor. 4:6). Make Christ all – in your affections. Desire nothing but Christ. He is the aggregation of all good things. “Ye are complete in Him...” (Col. 2:10). Christ is the Christian’s perfection. Why should the soul desire less? How can it desire more? Love nothing but Christ. Love is the choicest affection; it is the richest jewel the creature has to bestow. Oh, if Christ is all, love Him better than all! Make Christ all – in your abilities; do all in His strength. “Be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might” (Eph. 6:10). When you are to resist a temptation, or to mortify a corruption – do not go out in your own strength, but in the strength of Christ. Be strong in the Lord. Some go out to duty in the strength of their abilities, and go out against sin in the strength of their resolutions – and they both come home foiled. Alas! What are our resolutions but like the green cords which bound Samson! A sinful heart will soon break these. Do as David when he was to go up against Goliath. He said, “I come to you in the name of the Lord.” So say to your Goliath lust, “I come to you in the name of Christ.” Then we conquer, when the Lion of the tribe of Judah marches before us. – Excerpted from Christ All In All by Thomas Watson (1620 – 1686), a Puritan preacher and author. This article is provided by permission of Herald of His Coming: heraldofhiscoming.org