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

" He who is washed, needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean ." -John 13:10 [KJV] How precious is the word of the Lord! being in great disorder of body and heaviness of soul, our Lord refreshed and comforted me with these words. Here, Christ most plainly teaches us these blessed truths:  (1st.) That every believer is washed by Him from the filth of all his sins.  (2nd.) That each and every one are equally and alike perfectly clean from all sin, in God’s sight; “not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing , ” (Ephesians 5:27.) — “Justified from all things before God , ” (Acts 13:39.) There is not one condemnation against them from God (see Romans 8:1.)   Therefore, (3d.) They need no other cleansing to make them acceptable to God, pure in His sight, meet to come into His presence now, and to enjoy Him to all eternity.  Rejoice, O my fellow-sinners! and thou, too, my soul! in a lowly, self-abasing, disciple washin...

" ...in the hand of a Mediator ." -Galatians 3:19 [KJV] The hand of a Mediator was the great blessing every, enlightened son of Adam, from the fall, sighed after, and looked for, in every approach to God. Hence the first transgressor, for the want of it, hid himself from the presence of God, amidst the trees of the garden. Hence Israel cried out to Moses, "Go thou near, and hear all that the L ORD our God shall say; but let not God speak with us, lest we die." And Job longed for a day's man, that is, a Mediator, that might lay his hand upon both parties. See then, my soul, thy privileges; for thou hast a Mediator, and a glorious one indeed, in whose almighty hand all thy concerns are eternally secured. "Ye are come," saith the apostle; he doth not say, ye are coming. but, ye are come, to Jesus, the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling." Oh then, in all thy approaches, have an eye to Jesus. Put all thine affai...

"For My people have committed two evils; they have forsaken Me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water." -Jeremiah 2:13 [KJV] There is nothing so cutting as the remembrance of backsliding against a good and holy God. There is nothing so wounding to a tender conscience as having sinned against manifested mercy and revealed salvation. It seems almost like doing despite to the Spirit of grace; almost like trampling under foot the blood of the covenant whereby we were sanctified, and treating our best Friend worse than His very enemies treated Him. And as these things are brought to mind, and laid upon the conscience with weight and power, they will sometimes sink us very low into despondency and gloom so as almost to take away our very hope. But the Lord is very merciful and compassionate to those who fear His name. He regards the prayer of the destitute, and will not despise their cry. He listens to the s...