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

"And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt." -Genesis 45:4     What an interview was this, in the first manifestation the governor of Egypt made of himself to his brethren! We are told that he wept aloud. His bowels yearned over them. He had long smothered in his own bosom those he now manifests himself to every poor sinner, whom, by his grace, he makes partaker in the first resurrection on whom the second death hath no power? I am Jesus, your brother, saith that adored Lord; but he doth not add, whom ye sold for worse than a slave. There is no upbraiding, nothing of our baseness and sins. And yet we have all not only sold him, but by our transgressions crucified him. What a beautiful feature this is in the Redeemer; and how much even the love of Joseph falls short of Jesus! And what endears it still more, is the peculiar attention the Redeemer manifesteth upon the occasion.     If there be one of his brethren more distressed and di...

"Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me?" -John 14:10 [KJV] My soul, thou wilt never sufficiently contemplate this blessed oneness between the Father and the Son, in the great work and glory of redemption. Pause this morning, and observe for the confirmation of thy faith, that as Jesus is one with the Father in all the essence and attributes of the Godhead, so God the Father is one with Jesus in all the offices of redemption. God was in Christ's human nature; for He is said to have been "God manifest in the flesh." God was in every name of Christ, every work of Christ, every word of Christ, every office of Christ, every attribute of Christ. And hence, in seeing Christ, we truly see God; in all His grace, mercy, love, salvation, and every blessing connected with our present, future, eternal happiness.     And what a sweet thought is that, my soul, for thee to dwell upon; that as the Father is in Jesus, and in Him dwelleth...

Full Assurance of Faith : Part 2 by D.G. Miles McKee.   We cannot possibly come to a place of personal assurance of salvation if we don’t believe the Bible to be the Word of God.   Consider what the Bible says about itself.  We read, “ Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and Thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of my heart ” (Jeremiah 15:16).   Then in Psalm 119: 7-10,  “The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.  The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.  The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether."   And again,  “Thy testimonies have I taken as a heritage for ever: for they are the rejoicing of my heart"  (Psalm 119:111).   Jesus taught , “Man shall not live by bread alone but by ev...

“For the eyes of the LORD are over the righteous, and His ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the LORD is against them that do evil.” -I Peter 3:12 [KJV] What a comforting thought it is for God’s children to know that He watches over us as a shepherd watches over his sheep. He has saved us, He keeps us, protects us, and preserves us by His sovereign grace in and by the Lord Jesus Christ. He has ordained and arranged all persons and events in our lives to work for His glory and our eternal good. He also hears our prayers as a father listens to the children he loves. Our prayers go up before Him in the beauty of Christ our Redeemer and Intercessor and by the merits of His righteousness whereby we stand justified in God’s sight and from which we receive spiritual life from God. But this verse states also that God’s “face” (His glory and His presence) is “against them that do evil....

"Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless" (Matthew 22:12). He had a garment, but not a wedding garment - one of his own providing; like those who have a righteousness of their own, of whom the Lord elsewhere speaks: "Woe to the rebellious children, saith the LORD, that take counsel, but not of Me; and that cover with a covering, but not of My Spirit, that they may add sin to sin" (Isaiah 30:1). Precious Lord Jesus, clothe me with the wedding garment of Thy righteousness; and feed me with the rich food of Thy body and blood; yea, Lord, be Thou my covering, my joy, my all; that when at Thy church, at Thy table, at Thine house of prayer below and at Thine kingdom of glory above, the King cometh in to see His guests, my soul may cry out, in Thine own blessed words and with a joy unspeakable and full of glory: "I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for He hath clothed me wit...

Long before the law was given by Moses, our whole race fell when Adam fell in the garden of Eden. Adam, a representative man, sinned against God and in him “all sinned” (Romans 5:12). This is why “death reigned from Adam to Moses” (Romans 5:14). But the penalty for sin against God is far more than physical death. Sin cannot be reversed, it must be punished. The penalty God requires for sin is death, a death that will satisfy divine justice. “Behold, all souls are Mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is Mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die” (Ezekiel 18:4). “For the wages of sin is death...” (Romans 6:23). That penalty must be paid. It cannot be paid by a sinner but requires the death of a sinless sacrifice. Every picture in the Old Testament sacrifices shows this. Christ, if He be that “one sacrifice for sins forever,” must be such.  If He be our Substitute, He must do the one thing God could not do from heaven, He must die.  If you...

"Sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed, and in his right mind." - Luke 8:35  [KJV] Look at this man, my soul, and see whether thou canst find any resemblance to thyself. Before that he heard the voice of Jesus, he was under the possession of the evil spirit. It is said of him, that he wore no clothes. He dwelt in no house, but abode among the tombs. He was cutting himself with stones. No man could tame him, neither fetters nor chains bind him. Poor miserable creature! And yet, my soul, was not this a true emblem of thy state; and indeed, of every man's state by nature? Had not Satan full possession of thine heart and affections, my soul, before that thou becamest savingly acquainted with the Lord Jesus Christ? Did he not lead thee in the pursuit and gratification of thy lusts and pleasure at his will? Thou mightest truly be said to wear no clothes; for so far from having on the garment of Jesus's righteousness, in those days of thine unregeneracy, thou wert naked to ...