He Died For Me!

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath ,and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

"For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us . . ."  1 Thessalonians  5:9,10

     Oliver Cromwell once ordered that a soldier should be shot for his crimes at the ringing of the evening curfew bell.  For some reason that night the bell did not toll.  The incident has been immortalized in poetry and song.  It seems that the girl whom the condemned soldier was to marry had climbed up into the belfry and clung to the great clapper of the bell to prevent it from striking.  When she was called by Cromwell to give an account of herself, she only wept and showed him her bruised and bleeding hands.  Cromwell's heart was touched and he said,  "Your lover shall live because of your sacrifice.  Curfew shall not ring tonight!"  So too all of us are rebels against God and under a sentence of death.  Another, Christ, has intervened in our behalf.  We too are saved, but only at the expense of His blessed Person.  When skeptics questioned the truth of substitutionary atonement after His resurrection from the dead, Christ showed them His hands - His bruised, nail-pierced hands!  If you claim Him as the Lover of your soul, the curfew of eternal death will never toll for you!

     A converted Japanese woman was once trapped by a prairie fire.  Seeing that it was going to catch up with her and the child she carried on her back, she laid the little one down, desperately scooped a hole in the earth with her hands, and with trembling haste laid the child in it, covering its body with her own.  Later they found the two.  The poor woman was dead, but the child was saved.  A Christian Japanese who discovered them said with tears,  "So too Jesus died that I might live.  He put His blessed body between me and the everlasting fire."  He had caught the truth of 1 Thessalonians  5:10.

     Can you say with confidence born of faith in Christ and His Word:  "He died for me"?

"Bread For Each Day"

Union And Communion

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

                                                     ". . . this grace wherein we stand."
                                                                                                          Romans  5:2
                                                     ". . . walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing."
                                                                                                                  Colossians  1:10

     Standing and walking.  These two words describe the ideal relationship of the believer with His Lord. Every believer has a permanent "standing" in Christ, never to be lost.  Positionally by grace, he is complete in Him  (Colossians  2:10).  This settles our salvation and guarantees our security forever in Him.  But after we have received our standing we are to begin walking.  Our "standing" justifies us in God's sight because it is all of grace and does not depend upon the slightest merit or worth or works of our own.  It establishes our union with Christ.

     But those who "stand" in Christ are admonished to walk  (Romans  4:12, 1 Corinthians  7:17, Ephesians 5:15, 1 John 2:6).  Walking means going forward - growth in grace and the knowledge of Christ.  We are told to walk honestly, walk in love, walk in the Spirit.  This walking determines our fellowship, assurance, fruitfulness, joy, and reward.

     Some Christians have been saved 20 to 30 years but are no farther along than they were when they started.  By faith we stand justified in His sight; this is union.  But our communion and fellowship depends on our walk.  Our union is once for all and cannot be broken  (John  10:28), but our communion can be broken by carelessness and sin, and must be restored by confession and repentance.  Christ left us two ordinances: Baptism and the Lord's Supper.  The baptism speaks of union once for all, never to be repeated.  But communion is to be observed often - "as often as you eat this bread"  (1 Corinthians  11:26).  Union is God's free gift; communion is our responsibility.  "If we walk in the light as He is in the light (then) we have fellowship (communion) one with another"  (1 John  1:17).  "Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh"  (Galatians  5:16).  Brother, sister, watch your step today as you walk the pathway of sanctification.

"Bread For Each Day"

THANK ME.....

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."   Ephesians  4:31

THANK ME FOR THE GLORIOUS GIFT OF MY SPIRIT.  This is like priming the pump of a well.  As you bring Me the sacrifice of thanksgiving, regardless of your feelings, My Spirit is able to work more freely within you.  This produces more thankfulness and more freedom, until you are overflowing with gratitude.

I shower blessings on you daily, but sometimes you don't perceive them.  When your mind is stuck on a negative focus, you see neither Me nor My gifts.  In faith, thank Me for whatever is preoccupying your mind.  This will clear the blockage so that you can find Me.

"Jesus Calling - Enjoying Peace In His Presence"

God's Part And Man's Part

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

" . . . take a lamb.
  . . . And ye . . . shall kill it.
And they shall take of the blood.
 . . .  strike the lintel and the two side posts."
                                                    Exodus  12:3,6,7,22

     What a flurry of sudden activity among the slaves of Egypt!  Nine plagues or judgments had fallen upon the Egyptians.  Water into blood, frogs, lice swarms of flies, pestilence among cattle, boils on men and beasts, hail and fire, locusts, and three days darkness.  In all this Israel was safe, though they did nothing to prevent the judgment from touching them.  They just sat still - God did it all for them.  It was not because they were better than the Egyptians, but it was all God's sovereign grace.  It was simply because God had chosen them and put a difference between the Egyptians and the children of Israel.

     Now notice the change in the last and final judgment - the death of the firstborn!  Here it was not a matter of sitting still and letting God do it all.  Now they must do something.  Take a lamb - kill it - take the blood - sprinkle it on the doorposts - stay inside - eat the lamb - and be ready to go.  The first nine judgments speak of sovereign grace.  The last one emphasizes Israel's part - faith.  It all comes down to a matter of faith.  If they did not believe Moses, they would not act, but just sit still as before.  God's grace was their protection, but it must be received by faith.  You can go to Hell by hiding behind the sovereignty of God.  You must believe and act.  We often hear it said, you do nothing to be saved.  The truth is you do nothing to be lost! You are already lost - you do nothing to be lost.  But you must do something about it to be saved.  Not work, but believe.  Listen to Paul in answer to the question:  What must I do to be saved?  "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ!"

"Bread For Each Day"

TRUST AND THANKFULNESS...

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

TRUST AND THANKFULNESS WILL get you safely through this day.  Trust protects you from worrying and obsessing.  Thankfulness keeps you from criticizing and complaining:  those "sister sins"  that so easily entangle you.

Keeping your eyes on Me is the same thing as trusting Me.  It is a free choice that you must make thousands of times daily.  The more you choose to trust Me, the easier it becomes.  Thought patterns of trust become etched into your brain.  Relegate troubles to the periphery of your mind, so that I can be central in your thoughts.  Thus you focus on Me, entrusting your concerns into My care.

"Jesus Calling - Enjoying Peace In His Presence"

IT IS GOOD THAT YOU RECOGNIZE.....

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

IT IS GOOD THAT YOU RECOGNIZE YOUR WEAKNESS.  That keeps you looking to Me, your Strength. Abundant life is not necessarily health and wealth; it is living in continual dependence on Me. Instead of trying to fit this day into a preconceived mold, relax and be on the lookout for what I am doing. This mind-set will free you to enjoy Me and to find what I have planned for you to do.  This is far better than trying to make things go according to your own plan.

Don't take yourself so seriously.  Lighten up and laugh with Me.  You have Me on your side, so what are you worried about?  I can equip you to do absolutely anything, as long as it is My will.  The more difficult your day, the more I yearn to help you.  Anxiety wraps you up in yourself, trapping you in your own thoughts.  When you look to Me and whisper My Name, you break free and receive My help.  Focus on Me, and you will find Peace in My Presence.

"Jesus Calling - Finding Peace In His Presence"

Conquered By Christ

Come, sit, and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee in the comfort of the Lord:  "Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour,and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice."  Ephesians  4:31

"And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.  And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched, the hollow of his thigh and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him."       
                                                                                                                          Genesis  32:24, 25

     Jacob's night of wrestling, as recorded in Genesis 32, was a turning point in his life.  If we read the context we see that he is literally at "wit's-end corner."  Up until that time, by scheming and conniving he had craftily tried to direct his own future, but now he has finally come to the end of human devices.  God is seeking by these adverse events to take full control in his life.  The Man who wrestled with Jacob makes him realize what a poor, feeble creature he is by throwing his hip out of joint.  Jacob surrenders, seeks a blessing, and God takes over.

     J. H. McConkey once said to a physician friend of his,  "Doctor, what is the exact significance of God's touching Jacob upon the sinew of his thigh?"  The doctor replied,  "The sinew of the the thigh is the strongest in the human body.  A horse could scarcely tear it apart."  Ah, I see,"  said McConkey.  "God has to break us down at the strongest part of our self-life before He can have His own way of blessing with us."

     God is not looking for brilliant men; He is not dependent upon eloquent men; He is not even shut up to the use of talented men in sending His Gospel out to the world.  As the late Dr. Ironside has remarked, "God is looking for broken men, for men who have judged themselves in the light of the cross of Christ.  When He wants anything done, He takes up men who have come to an end of themselves and whose trust and confidence is not in themselves but in God."  If you will let God touch the strongest part of your "self-life" - the thing that is holding back His full blessing - you too will become a "prince" and a power with God.

"Bread For Each Day"