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

"And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabacthani ; that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me ?"   -Matthew 27:46 [KJV]   Mark, my soul! Jesus had hung upon the cross now for six hours. Think what agonies he sustained both in soul and body. The fury of hell had broke out upon him, and in the cruelties of the men around him, exercised upon his sacred person, manifested how extensive that fury was. But had this been all; had God the Father smiled upon him, had the cup of trembling been taken away, some alleviation would have taken place in Jesus's sufferings; but so far was this from being the case, that the heaviest load of the sorrow his holy soul sustained, was the wrath of the Father due to sin, as the sinner's Surety. Angels, no doubt, looked on. All heaven stood amazed. And, at length, overpowered with the fulness of sorrow and anguish of soul, the dying Lamb cried out, "My God, my God, why hast thou fo...

"And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say, unto thee, today shalt thou be with Me in Paradise ." -Luke 23:43 [KJV]   My soul, hear the gracious words of thy Jesus. This was the   third   cry of the Redeemer on the cross. And Oh! how full of grace, rich, free, unmerited, unexpected, unlooked-for grace, to a poor lost perishing sinner, even in the very moment of death. Let the self-righteous pharisee behold this example of redeeming love, and wonder, and be confounded. Surely no one will venture to suppose that this man's good works were any recommendation, when the poor wretch was dying under the hands of justice. What was it then that saved him but the complete salvation of Jesus? The Son of God was offering His soul on the cross a sacrifice for sin, and being between two notorious sinners, gave a rich display of the sovereignty of His grace, and His love to poor sinners; and in confirmation, snatched this one as a brand from the burning—took him from the very j...

  "When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple standing by, whom He loved, He saith unto His mother, Woman, behold thy son . Then saith He to the disciple, Behold thy mother ."   -John 19:26,27 [KJV]   This was the   second   among the dying words of the Lord Jesus; and no doubt, of high importance in their full sense and meaning: not simply to recommend Mary to the care of the beloved apostle, John, but probably of greater moment in reference to the church of Jesus at large. My soul, is it not very certain that the Lord Jesus knew all the events which would take place in all generations of His people? And as such, did not Jesus perfectly well know also that the time would come when divine honours would be offered to Mary? These points cannot be disputed. Well then, is it not worthy the closest observation, that Jesus both in this place, and upon all other occasions, when speaking of Mary, called her woman? Why so? If, as Jesus knew, that there would b...

"Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do ." - Luke 23:34    My soul, art thou still taking thy stand at the foot of the cross? Art thou still looking up to Jesus? If so, listen now to His voice. There were seven expressions of Jesus, which were His last words, which He uttered on the cross. The last words of dying friends are particularly regarded: how much more the last words of the best of all friends; even the dying friend of poor lost perishing sinners. Those which I have chosen for the portion of the day were the first; and they contain the strong cry of Jesus to His Father for forgiveness to His murderers.    And what endears those expressions yet more to the heart are, that they are not only the first upon the cross, but they are wholly, not for Himself, but the people. During the whole painful process of suffering, when they scourged Him, crowned Him with thorns, smote Him with their hands, and mocked Him, we hear no voice of co...

  Weekend Gospel message to follow for All Hands   (09-11APR21) 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 - from  our  sins and from Hell: CHRIST JESUS OUR SUBSTITUTE! "From whence this fear and unbelief? Hath not the Father put to grief His spotless Son for me? And will the righteous Judge of men Condemn me for that debt of sin Which, Lord, was charged to Thee?   Complete atonement Thou hast made; And to the utmost Thou hast paid Whatever Thy people owed; Nor can God's wrath take place If sheltered in Thy righteousness, And sprinkled with Thy blood.   If Thou hast my discharge procured, And freely in my place endured The whole of wrath divine, Payment God cannot twice demand, First at my bleeding Surety's hand, And then again at mine!" * Since all men by nature hav...

"He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross." - Philippians 2:8 [KJV]   My soul, dost thou not feel, at every step towards Calvary, somewhat of the angel's words when he cried, “One woe is past, and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter,” Revelation 9:12 . Surely, never was there a manifestation of the holiness of Jehovah, nor the utter detestation of God against sin, as was set forth in the crucifixion of Jesus. Would men, would angels, see what sin really is, let them go to the cross of Jesus. The casting rebellious angels out of heaven, the curse pronounced upon the earth, the drowning the old world by water, the burning of Sodom by fire; nay, the millions of miseries among men, and the unquenchable fire of hell; though all these may make the souls of the awakened exclaim against sin, yet all these are slight and inconsiderable things, compared to the wrath of God poured out upon the person of God's own Son, when He died...

  "He hath poured out His soul unto death." -Isaiah 53:12  [KJV]   My soul! from the garden to the cross, follow Jesus. Behold Him apprehended and hurried away, both to judgment and to death. He who struck to the ground the band that came to take Him, might surely, by the same breath of His mouth, have struck them to hell, and prevented His being apprehended by them. But one of the sweetest and most blessed parts of Jesus's redemption of His people, consisted in the freeness and willingness of His sacrifice. Yes, Thou precious Lamb of God! No man (as Thou Thyself hadst before said) had power to take Thy life from Thee; but Thou didst lay it down Thyself: Thou hadst power to lay it down, and Thou hadst power to take it again. Delightful consideration, to Thee, my soul! Now, my soul, let this day's meditation be sacred to the view of thy Redeemer pouring out His   soul   unto death.     And tomorrow, if the Lord give thee to see the morrow, let the sole...