"Salvation is of the LORD." -Jonah 2:9

"So Moses the servant of the L ORD died." -Deuteronomy 34:5 [KJV] My soul! close the month, in contemplating the death of this highly-favoured servant of the Lord: and mark in him the sure event of all flesh: "Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return." What a blessed account hath the Holy Ghost give of this man. "There arose not a prophe t (we are told) like unto Moses, whom Jehovah knew face to face."   But, as if to draw an everlasting line of distinction between him and his Master; between the highest prophet, and the Lord God of the prophets; the Holy Ghost was pleased, by the ministry of His servant the apostle, to state the vast distinction: "Moses verily was faithful (saith he) in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after: but Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house are we;" Hebrews 3:5, 6 . Indeed all the great and distinguishing events in the life of Moses became more o

"That I may glory with Thine inheritance." - Psalm 106:5 [KJV] The Church is Christ's  inheritance . He purchased it by His own blood. He went into captivity for it, and He redeemed it by pouring out His precious blood for it. Now this inheritance  glories:  "That I may glory with Thine inheritance."   And in Whom does it glory? It glories in its covenant Head. It does not glory in itself—in its pious self, righteous self, strong self, religious self; "let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches, but let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth Me." "He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord." The glory of the Church is to glory in her covenant Head—to glory in Christ and in Christ alone; to glory in His strength, love, blood, grace, and righteousness; and to glory in it, herself being covered with shame.   None can glory in Chri

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"That I may rejoice in the gladness of Thy nation." - Psalm 106:5 [KJV] What is  "the gladness of God's nation?"   To be saved "without money and without price;" to be saved by grace—free, rich, sovereign, distinguishing grace, without one atom of works, without one grain of creature merit, without anything of the flesh . This is "the gladness of God's nation;" to rejoice in free grace, grace superabounding over the aboundings of sin, grace reigning triumphant over the dreadful evils of our heart. It is grace that "gladdens" a man's heart. Oh! sweet grace, blessed grace! when it meets our case and reaches our souls. Oh! what a help, what a strength, what a rest for a poor toiling, striving, labouring soul, to find that grace has done all the work, to feel that grace has triumphed in the cross of Christ, to find that nothing is required, nothing is wanted, nothing is to be done. It is a full and perfect, complete and finish

"An old disciple." -Acts 21:16  [KJV] My soul! of what standing art thou in the church of Christ? If there be any thing of real rank and dignity in human life, to cause one man to differ from another, certainly that age, which consisteth not in a multitude of years, but in fellowship and long acquaintance with Jesus, must be most honourable. But in this, as in all other distinctions, the believer's dignity is the reverse of the world's. He that is highest in grace, is the lowest in humility. How beautiful and engaging to this point are the words of Christ: "Whosoever will be chief among you (saith that divine Teacher) , let him be your servant: even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give His life a ransom for many."     Hence the simplicity and lowliness of the weaned child, Jesus, make the character and feature of those that are "greatest in the kingdom of heaven." And wherefore is this? Is it because of

"That I may see the good of Thy chosen." - Psalm 106:5 [KJV] Did you ever see any good in God's chosen? Oh! "how goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, and thy tabernacles, O Israel!" Did you ever see what good God has blessed His people with, and how good it is to be one of them? All God's people see that there is a "good" in God's chosen family, peculiar to them, and  that  they sigh and long for. But some will say, Had David never seen it when he penned this psalm? Aye, surely; he had seen it. But did he not want to see it again? Yes; he had lost the sight of it, the sweet vision of it had retired, the old veil had come back, his eyes were dim, he wanted fresh "eyesalve."  So with us; we have seen, we trust, at times "the good of God's chosen," have felt our affections drawn towards them, and drawn up towards God, and have said, "Whom have I in heaven but Thee? and there is none upon earth that I desire beside Thee.&qu

"And after the second veil, the tabernacle, which is called the holiest of all." -Hebrews 9:3 [KJV] The veil of separation between the two tabernacles, no doubt, typified Christ's body, which, in the moment of His death, by an invisible hand, was torn in twain from the top to the bottom, thereby intimating that now all separation was removed, and true believers were permitted to enter, by the blood of Jesus, into the presence of God, He having obtained eternal redemption for them. The second or inner sanctuary, had several very interesting particulars, by way of distinction, belonging to it. The veil of separation, under the Jewish dispensation, intimated, that it was impossible for any to draw nigh to God, but by a mediator.   When Jesus threw down the separation, and opened a new and living way by His blood, access was obtained to God in Christ; and Jesus, first for Himself, and then for His people, led the way into the holy of holies. The veil of separation set forth

"Remember me, O L ORD , with the favour that Thou bearest unto Thy people: O visit me with Thy salvation." - Psalm 106:4 [KJV] How is a man brought and taught to want to be "visited with" God's salvation? He must know something first of condemnation. Salvation only suits the condemned. "The Son of man came to seek and to save that which was lost;" and therefore salvation only suits the lost. A man must be lost— utterly lost—before he can prize God's salvation. And how is he lost? By losing all his religion, losing all his righteousness, losing all his strength, losing all his confidence, losing all his hopes, losing all that is of the flesh; losing it by its being taken from him, and stripped away by the hand of God. A man who is brought into this state of utter beggary and complete bankruptcy—to be nothing, to have nothing, to know nothing—he is the man, who in the midnight watches, in his lonely hours, by his fireside, and at times, well-nigh n

Weekend Gospel message to follow for All Hands (27-29MAY22) 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 - Almighty God's unmerited favor - from our sins and from Hell: Stedfast, Unmoveable, Always Abounding “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:58). Because believers have been given the complete victory through our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:57), we have such a sure and certain hope of forgiveness and pardon from all sins (1 John 1:7), full redemption in Christ (Galatians 3:13), total reconciliation in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:18), everlasting righteousness in Christ (Romans 4:6), washing of regeneration in Christ (Titus 3:5), and  a sure and certain hope of a gl

"I will overturn, overturn, overturn it: and it shall be no more, until He come whose right it is; and I will give it Him." - Ezekiel 21:27 [KJV] Are there not seasons in our experience when we can lay down our souls before God, and say, "Let Christ be precious to my soul, let Him come with power to my heart, let Him set up His throne as Lord and King, and let self be nothing before Him?" Well, we utter these prayers in sincerity and simplicity, we desire their fulfilment; but oh, the struggle! the conflict! when God answers these petitions. When our plans are frustrated, what a rebellion works up in the carnal mind! When self is cast down, what a rising up of the fretful, peevish impatience of the creature! When the Lord does answer our prayers, and strips off all false confidence; when He does remove our rotten props, and dash to pieces our broken cisterns, what a storm—what a conflict takes place in the soul!   Angry with the Lord for doing the very work we hav

  Jesus: Our Gospel! By D.G. Miles McKee   The Lord Jesus is God’s good news from heaven about Himself.  (Titus 2:13).  He is our gospel.    Listen to the good news in its fullness.  Christ was prophesied.  Christ was born. Christ was sinless.  Christ lived.  Christ was crucified.  Christ died. Christ was buried.  Christ rose again from the dead.  Christ ascended to heaven.  Christ sat down in cosmic authority as our ever-living High Priest and Christ is coming back (see, 1 Corinthians 15:1ff; Romans 1:1-4; 2 Corinthians 5:21;  Romans 8:34; Hebrews 1:3; Hebrews 10:12; 1 John 2:1; Hebrews 7:25).   These are the great facts of the good news. They are few and simple; so simple that any among us can understand them.  Yet these statements, although unassuming, have profound meaning.  They are treasure chests that contain the riches of heaven.  They are brief statements, but God's wisdom is bound up in them.  Indeed, these facts of the gospel are so simple that a child can grasp them, ye

"A Nazarite unto God from the womb." -Judges 13:5 [KJV] And what, in the language of scripture, was a Nazarite unto God? Certainly what the very term implies; one dedicated to God, set apart, and sanctified. Both the person and character are largely descried, Numbers 6:1-21. And was Samson such? It cannot be doubted, notwithstanding the many strange particularities in his life, which were departures from sanctity of character. But in that part of Samson's life wherein the Nazarite was strongly marked, he was eminently proved to be one; and it is in this feature of the illustrious Danite, that we behold him as a striking type of the Lord Jesus Christ.   My soul! as it hath pleased the Holy Ghost to give the church so circumstantial an account of Samson, do thou ponder the subject well, and remark (what was evidently the only design for which it was given) how gracious the Lord the Spirit was, thus to set forth, in type, Jesus of Nazareth, so many ages before His incarnati

"Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth." - Colossians 3:2 [KJV] Everything upon earth, as viewed by the eyes of the Majesty of heaven, is low and paltry. Earth is after all but a huge clod of dust, and as such, apart from its having been once the place of the Redeemer's sufferings and sacrifice, being now the habitation of His suffering people, and to be hereafter the scene of His glory, as insignificant in the eyes of its Maker as the small dust of the balance or the drop of the bucket.   What, then, are its highest objects, its loftiest aims, its grandest pursuits, its noblest employments, short of the grace of the gospel, in the sight of Him who inhabits eternity, but mean and worthless? Nay, even in our eyes is there not one consideration that when felt stamps vanity upon them all?—that all earth's pursuits, whatever high attainments men may reach in this life, be it of wealth, rank, learning, power, or pleasure, end in death? The breath

"There was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour." -Revelation 8:1 [KJV] This is a very striking scripture, and records as striking an event, when took place on the opening of the seventh seal silence in heaven; not a suspension or interruption to the happiness of the place, but the silent adoration of God and the Lamb. This must be the sense of the passage, if by heaven we are to understand the place where dwell "the spirits of just men made perfect." But as it is more than probable that it refers to the events of the kingdom of Christ upon earth, which are here spoken of under prophetical representations, the silence may rather be supposed to mean, that the church of God, both in heaven and on earth, are waiting in solemn expectation of what events the sounding of the seventh trumpet will bring forth.   But there are some sweet instructions to be taken from what is here said, of silence in heaven by the space of half an hour , which in the silence of