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

"Seek meekness." - Zephaniah 2:3 [KJV] How are we to follow after this grace of meekness? By learning the contrary. How often have we mistaken false fire for the light and fire of God's Spirit! and have contended more for our own views, in our own spirit, with many rash and unbecoming words, rather than for the glory of God. But after a time we are led to see that strife and contention, in our own spirit, are contrary to the spirit and temper of the gospel, and are brought to see what a blessed grace the spirit of meekness is.    Nay, the very want of it, the risings up of an excited temper, the anger, strife, envy, and jealousy that often work in our bosoms convince us how little we know of "the meekness and gentleness of Christ." We thus feel what a blessing it is to be made humble and submissive; and how impossible it is to enter into communion with a broken-hearted Jesus, till the soul is in some measure meekened by His Spirit. But it is by having a succes...

"Giving all diligence: add to your faith," etc. II Peter 1:5  Here is the Christian’s work. All diligence is required in it. O believer, be assured (the Lord impress it upon your heart and mine) there is no being a lively, comfortable disciple, without it. Beware you do not add to your faith licentious notions and Antinomian sloth, instead of Christian virtues, holy tempers, and heavenly affections, which adorn our profession, and glorify our Saviour. Ever remember, you are called to honour Christ by your life on earth, as well as to be saved by and enjoy Him in heaven. By faith we receive Christ, rest upon Him, and look to Him alone for justification unto eternal life. But a lively faith will not leave us barren and unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. If there be not an habitual disposition of soul, to add to faith, virtue, knowledge, patience, godliness, etc., we should examine and see to it; lest, instead of Christ dwelling in our hearts by faith, we hav...

"For I know that this shall turn to my salvation, through your prayer, and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ." -Philippians 1:19 [KJV]   Blessed frame of mind! when, like Paul, however unpromising circumstances are, to be able to say, `I know that this exercise, be it what it may, is among the all things which work together for good to them that love God, and are the called according to His purpose!' My soul, do thou, once for all, mark down this one certain and never-to-be-questioned truth: that thy God, thy Jesus, hath but one end in view from all the providences He appoints to His people, and is invariably and everlastingly promoting it, however to thy apprehension at times, things seem to run counter. And when thou hast settled this in thy mind, as a certain fixed principle, next take into the account all, or (at least as thou canst not know all,) some of the many foundations on which the certainty, for the accomplishment of a final issue of good to the peopl...

"Wherefore in all things it behoved Him to be made like unto His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people." -Hebrews 2:17 [KJV] What heart can conceive or tongue express the infinite depths of the Redeemer's condescension in thus being made like unto His brethren—that the Son of God should assume a finite nature, subject to the sinless infirmities necessarily connected with a time state and a dwelling on earth; that He should leave the bosom of His Father in which He had lain before all worlds, and should consent to become a denizen of this world of tears; to breathe earthly air; to be an eye-witness of, and Himself share in human sorrows; to have before His eyes the daily spectacle of human sins; to be banished so long from His native home; to endure hunger, weariness, and thirst; to be subject to the persecutions of men, the flight of all His disciples, and the treacher...

     "It is now twenty-three years since I was awakened to know the work of God upon my heart: and I feel my need of Christ more deeply at the end of these three and twenty years, than I even did when I was first drawn to Him." -Mr. Joss, in conversation, at Bristol, this day, August 23, 1775 A.D.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5xweZuOxRc  Sermon preached by Henry Mahan (28 minutes) This powerful Christian sermon from Romans ch. 10 explains the difference between religion and true salvation, faith and works, and knowing God versus knowing about God. On the Lord’s Day, believers gather worldwide not out of duty, but because they believe God, delight in worship, and long for others to know Christ. This message exposes the danger of trusting in religious works and highlights the only righteousness God accepts — the righteousness of Jesus Christ.  Using Scripture from Romans 10, 1 John, Hebrews, and the Old Testament, this sermon clearly teaches:  • Why faith is essential to pleasing God  • Why religion without Christ cannot save  • How Christ fulfilled the law perfectly  • What it means to confess Jesus as Lord   • Why salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone This message is a call to abandon self-righteousness and rest fully in Ch...

"Wisdom is justified of all her children."   -Luke 7:35 [KJV] “O! could I but know, and be sure, I am a child of God, I should be quite happy. The want of this makes me very uncomfortable.” Such is the language of many a doubting believer. Well, soul, here is a mark laid down: by it judge of thyself, and know thy state. Art thou a child of wisdom? If so, thou wilt justify wisdom. But what is wisdom? What is it to justify wisdom?    (1st.) Thy Saviour is “the wisdom of God” (I Corinthians 1:24.) He is not only wise to win souls, but is wisdom itself. He makes all His children wise unto salvation, by knowing Him, “of God, made unto them wisdom” (I Corinthians 1:30.) Wisdom is here arraigned, and His ways censured by the calumny of fools. He is condemned as a licentious person; a sot; an epicure; a jovial friend, and companion of wicked sinners. If you are a child of wisdom, you will also meet with the same treatment from a carnal world and self-righteous men. If you dar...

"I have said to corruption, Thou art my father; to the worm, Thou art my mother, and my sister." - Job 17:14 [KJV] My soul, take a turn now and then to the grave. It will be profitable to look at the bed where thou art shortly to take up thy residence, before thou art sent there to remain. Nothing so profitable to allay all that heat and folly which keep men in a continual ferment, as a solemn view of "the house appointed for all living." To be sure, nothing can be more humbling than what Job here speaks of his relations: great men and nobles will not be very fond of the alliance; but in reality, all the other affinities of life are imaginary. Corruption is the common father of all. In this we all are formed; for corruption when dried, becomes the original dust it was before it was animated. And as corruption is the father, so the worm is both mother and sister; for here they burrow, and this is their proper element.    But, my soul, while thou knowest these thing...

"A little that a righteous man hath is better than the riches of many wicked." -Psalm 37:16 [KJV] Hard may be your lot here below, ye suffering saints of the most High, as regards external matters; painful may be the exercises through which you almost daily pass, through the rebellion and desperate wickedness of your carnal mind; grievous temptations may be your continual portion; many a pricking thorn and sharp brier may lie in your path; and so rough and rugged may be the road, that at times you may feel yourself of all men to be the most miserable; and so indeed you would be but for the grace of God in your heart now and the glory prepared for you beyond the grave.    Yet with it all, were your afflictions and sorrows a thousand times heavier, well may it be said of you— "Happy, thrice happy, art thou, O Israel!" Whom upon earth need you envy if you have the grace of God in your heart? With whom would you change, if ever the love of God has visited your soul? L...

  Old Crimes Paid for in Full!   by D G Miles McKee   “But now is Christ risen from the dead and become the firstfruits of them that slept." -I Corinthians 15:20 An Irish graffiti artist once wrote, “God is dead, Buddha is dead, Mohammed is dead and I’m not feeling so good myself!” Even though he got it all wrong about God, he was right about the two religious leaders. In the light of this, have you ever considered that most major religions are actually following the teachings of some dead guy? But here’s some good news.  Bible Christianity is not like that. Our leader is very much alive. It’s true He was dead for three days, but He then came bursting out of the grave in resurrection power. By the way, the resurrection of Christ proves that everything Jesus ever taught was true.  Had He been a liar, He would have stayed in the grave. Not only so but the resurrection also tells us that our sins have been bought and paid for by Christ Jesus! Let me illustrate. Su...

"Lest Israel vaunt themselves against Me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me."   -Judges 7:2 [KJV] Thus the Lord reasoned with Gideon. He knows what is in man. He sees the pride of the human heart: how prone we all are to boast in an arm of flesh. The Lord is jealous of His own glory. Gideon’s army of two and thirty thousand, is brought down to three hundred. By this handful of men, and no more, did Gideon gain the victory of the Midianites. The Lord’s wisdom in this was, “Lest Israel should vaunt themselves, and say, Mine own hand hath saved me.” But I have not transcribed the text right. There are two little words of great import, which I have omitted.    Mind then, O Christian—against me. Now remember, whenever thou dost boast of thy power, thy free-will, thy human goodness, thy works, ditties, conditions, and performances in order to be saved, thou art then, as it were, two and thirty thousand strong. “Thou vauntest thyself against the Lord.” Thou art glorying in t...

"O the hope of Israel, the Saviour thereof in time of trouble, why shouldest Thou be as a stranger in the land, and as a wayfaring man that turneth aside to tarry for a night?" - Jeremiah 14:8 [KJV] My soul, follow up these holy pleadings with thy Lord. Jesus loves boldness, and not bondage frames. Remember, when thou goest to Him, thou goest to a tried friend, a long-proved, a faithful friend, and one that loveth at all times; and He that was and is the hope of Israel, hath ever been, and will be thy hope, thy Saviour, the Rock of Ages; yea, "Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever." Is then thy Jesus as a stranger to thee? Are His visits short, and but as the wayfaring man that is hastening on his journey, who, though he stops at the inn for the night, stops only to refresh himself, and takes no account of what passeth in the house?   Pause, my soul, it is time to enquire. I hope no shyness has crept in between thy Lord and thee! When did He last ...

"Wherein shall it be known that I and Thy people have found grace in Thy sight?" -Exodus 33:16 [KJV] Grace is always "found." It is not earned, nor merited, nor worked into; but it is found; and if a man never "found" it, he never had it. It is stumbled upon, so to speak, as the Lord sets forth in the parable of the man who found the treasure hid in a field (Matthew 13:44) . The man was not thinking about the treasure. He was, we may suppose, ploughing in the field. He had no idea that there was gold beneath the clods. But he finds it all on a sudden, in the most unexpected and unlooked-for manner, and for joy thereof "goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field."     So it is with the way in which grace is found. It comes so suddenly, so unexpectedly, and so sweetly into a man's soul, that when it comes he is like a man who has found something which he had no conception of till he found it. He had no idea what it was, nor h...

"And Israel said unto Joseph, Now let me die, since I have seen thy face, because thou art yet alive ."   -Genesis 46:30 [KJV] Strange request! What, just come to the sight and embrace of thy long lost son, and yet want to leave him at the very first interview? One should have thought the language of Jacob would have been, Happy man! I not only see my beloved son, but also see him governor over all the land. Well, I hope I shall live long to enjoy his riches and grandeur. But, no. The good man had lived long enough to make an estimate of the uncertainties of life: to know the evil of days, the vicissitudes of time, and how soon the day of brilliant joy might be changed into the night of gloom and sadness. The sight of his son was the summit of his wishes: that granted, he sought no more. He wished to be at home with his Lord.    Happy Christian! thus to set loose to all creature enjoyments, even when there is the highest enjoyment of them, than to have one’s mind go out...

"And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled." -Acts 4:31 [KJV] Think, my soul, what a blessed testimony this must have been, in confirmation to the disciples, that their God was a prayer-hearing, and a prayer-answering God! And what a full reply to all they had been praying for!' The enemies of God, and of His Christ, had threatened the poor disciples what they would do to them, if they persisted in preaching Jesus to the people. The purport, therefore, of the apostles prayer was, not that the Lord would stop their malice, and silence all their opposition: this they sought not to avoid. But the single prayer was, that their souls might be animated to go on, let the malice of their foes manifest itself as it might. In answer, "the place is shaken." As if the Lord had said, "He that shakes the place, can make your enemies hearts tremble." And so it proved.    Now, my soul, take thine improvement from it. Jesus sees all, k...

"Peace, peace to him that is far off." -Isaiah 57:19 [KJV] Far off! What means that? It means that the soul passing through that experience is separated, in its feelings, and at an infinite distance from God. Now this inward sense of being "far off" is one of the most painful feelings that a quickened soul can experience. The ungodly, who are really afar off, know nothing experimentally of distance from God, for they have never been brought spiritually near. They have felt no "cords of love, no bands of a man" drawing them with sweet attraction to the throne of the most High; they have never sighed after the sweet manifestations of God's mercy and love; but they live gladly, and wallow willfully in those things which separate the soul from its Maker.    But those who are "afar off" in their feelings, are such as have seen something of the beauty of the Lord, and felt the evil of sin, who spiritually know Jehovah's purity and the creat...

"First, souls look to Christ, by faith, for pardon through His blood; and then they mourn for sins pardoned: and never do they mourn better and more kindly, or are more ashamed and confounded because of their sins, than when they are most satisfied that God is pacified towards them for all that they have done." -preacher John Gill

"Take heed and beware of covetousness."   -Luke 12:15 [KJV]   It is said, if a person seeks for the philosopher’s stone (-which turns all metals into gold) with a covetous desire to be rich, he may be sure not to find it. We are sure, that precious jewel contentment, is not to be found in a covetous heart. Let philosophers and moralists reason ever so persuasively against the evil of covetousness, yet the love of money will rise superior to all. What mighty charms are there in gold! But the voice of our Beloved here speaks. His words are spirit and life. Hear then, O disciple, “Take heed and beware.” Consider,    (1st.) This admonition of thy Lord. It is redoubled. “Take heed: beware!” Just as the loving parent, seeing his dear child running into the jaws of danger, cries out with vehemence, Take care! take care! Fix this in thy mind, there is great, very great danger here. Our Lord sees it. His love speaks with the utmost earnestness, that we may avoid covetousn...

"And His feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem." -Zechariah 14:4 [KJV] My soul, pause over this blessed promise. To whom could it refer, but to Jesus? "That day," through all the old testament dispensation, meant the gospel church of the new testament dispensation. And when the Son of God came, the day was come also. And did not Jesus stand often, during this day of His grace, in His own ministry, teaching the people on the mount of Olives? Yea, was it not the very last sacred spot on which His holy feet stood, when from thence He ascended to heaven, having finished redemption-work upon earth? My soul, do thou often, by faith, visit the hallowed ground, and from thence let thy meditation take wing, after thine ascended and exalted Saviour.   And while, like the wondering disciples, looking after Jesus as He went up, thou art contemplating the glory of thy Lord, Who is now above, carrying on all the blessed designs of His ...