BELIEVE!

"...Be not afraid, only believe." -Mark 5:36 [KJV]

A short answer to a case of great distress. A simple recipe from the greatest physician. A grand catholicon, or universal remedy that suits all cases, states, and circumstances, and is seasonable at all times. Look at this history. Look to the author of faith to profit by it. Here is a ruler falls at Christ’s feet, beseeching help for his daughter, who is at the point of death. Jesus went with him. Before he arrives at the house, news is brought that the child is dead. The Lord of life and death forbids the father’s fears. Be not afraid. He encourages his hope: Only believe. Fears are natural to sinners. Faith expels them. Christ restores her to life. Joyful news for us. 

(1st.) Here is precious encouragement for our faith, in every application to Christ. 

For, (2d.) here is a marvellous display of His great love, ready will, and almighty power, to help and relieve us. He not only restores at the last gasp, but, when life is departed, recalls it. If your soul is alive to God, you have experienced this. It was dead to sin. Christ quickened you. Now He is your life, how are you to walk and enjoy the comfort of this? Only believe. How many hearts heave with indignation against this doctrine? How many taunt at us? 

“O you are all for faith—nothing but faith—only believe.” True, we are all for Christ, nothing but Christ, only Christ. And we can enjoy Him only by believing. He reproves our slowness of heart to believe, as our greatest folly (Luke 24:25.) All our comfort flows from faith; all our misery from unbelief. Bring this to a point. Are we groaning under the burden of inbred sin, vexed with sore temptations? Do we feel the accusations of conscience, fear the terrors of a broken law, see the drawn sword of justice in the hand of a sin-avenging God, and tremble at the solemn thoughts of death and judgment? 

Under all this, what can bring relief to our conscience, hope to our mind, and peace to our soul? Only believe that Christ hath redeemed, justified, and will eternally glorify us. This is death to our fears, and life to our joys. Again, how is the life of holiness maintained? Only believe, that walking in fellowship with Christ infinitely exceeds all the pleasures of sin, the joys of sense, and the happiness of the world. Faith elevates the soul above all this, and causes it to look down with a holy contempt upon it. Faith enjoys Christ, that is heaven in the heart. In this steadfast faith we are to resist Satan, (1 Pet. 5:9.) and overcome the world (1 John 5:4.) 

Only believe: Lord, give the pow’r 

To look to Thee in ev’ry hour, 

When sorrow, need, and sore distress, 

On our dejected spirits press. 

Faith brings all glory to the Lord, 

It trusts His pow’r, believes His word: 

It lifts dejected spirits up, 

When call’d to drink the bitter cup. 

 

-preacher William Mason (1724-1797 A.D.)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

CHRIST OUR ONLY AND PERFECT RIGHTEOUSNESS

" The flesh lusteth against the Spirit." —Galatians 5:17 [KJV] Christian experience fully proves this apostolic truth. Hence the children of God cannot do the things that they would: nor have we any authority from God's word to conclude this lusting ever ceased in any of the saints till they got to glory; none are delivered from it while in the flesh. For, as the renewed soul or spirit loves to enjoy spiritual and heavenly objects, so the flesh, or unrenewed part, lusts after those objects it is naturally conversant with, and from which it derives its happiness.  Here is thy conflict, O Christian. Hence the necessity of thy Lord's command, "Watch always." This is the use of the doctrine. What woeful effects have fulfilling the lusts or desires of the flesh produced in eminent saints! Thou standest by faith, be not high-minded, but fear. The conceptions of lust are the productions of sin.— see James 1:15 . The commission of sin contracts fresh s
Read more

Incoming GOOD NEWS!

  Weekend Gospel message to follow for All Hands   (17-19SEP21) Heads-Up   ---   Please find enclosed encouragement in   SO GREAT SALVATION   by the perfect and finished work of   our Lord Jesus Christ in saving poor, needy and wretched sinners by His sovereign free grace - God's unmerited favor to save us  from our sins and from Hell: HOW GOD SAVES SINNERS In Genesis chapter six and seven we have the story of the flood and how God  saved Noah and his family from the horrendous destruction by putting them  into an Ark. We see the righteous judgment of God against sin and the mercy  of God revealed through Christ. The Ark of God is a worthy picture and  pattern of how the Lord is pleased to save sinners and justify them in Jesus  Christ. Here are five things to remember about how God saves sinners. 1). The grace of God , "Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD" (Genesis 6:8) .  Noah did not earn, merit or deserve grace, he found God to be gracious. It  was the sovereign
Read more

3 LIES ABOUT GOD & 3 TRUTHS ABOUT GOD

 I want to share three lies about God I’ve recently seen tossed about on social media as truth by professed believers: (1) God can move in your life.......if you permit Him. (2) Christ can be Lord.......if you confess Him. (3) God can do anything ........except overcome a man’s will. Friends, if God doesn’t even have sovereignty over the human heart (without being granted permission, of course) who is serving who? Who really has all power in this universe? Many of you reading this post pray to God for the salvation of your loved ones. Yet you believe it is your loved one who has to grant God permission to save! God is left only to making their life miserable in the hopes they come to Him. Such foolishness! Such powerlessness! Truth #1 : God moves in the lives of His children without human permission . Truth #2 : Men do not make Christ Lord. He IS Lord. Your current opinion of Him no more changes His Lordship over you than if you declared a boiling lava pit to be a s
Read more