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

" This people have I formed for Myself: they shall shew forth My praise." -Isaiah 42:21 [KJV] What says the world, of God’s new formed creatures? “These men turn the world upside down” (Acts 17:6.) Well, if they do, is it not right? Seeing the devil by sin turned it upside down once, Christ, by the power of His grace, turned it upside down again, then it is turned into its right state. The Lord is here about to perform a wonder of grace. He calls for our special attention to it. “Behold, I will do a new thing” (vs. 19.) He was going to take those who were not a people, to make them His people. The eminent displays of God’s grace, should be the admiration of our hearts, and the glory of our souls.  See (1st.) the description of this people. They are compared to the beasts of the field, to dragons and owls. Yet the Lord calls them “My people, My chosen.” My soul, remember what thy nature is. As filthy as a beast, as fierce as a dragon, as stupid as an owl. Wa...

"...the holy Scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation, through faith which is in Christ Jesus." -II Timothy 3:13 [KJV] We never think to any purpose about salvation, till we see our own condemnation for sin. Has there ever been a tribunal set up in your conscience? Have you been arraigned, and have you held up your hand at the bar of justice? Has the law of God brought its charge against you? Have you, from inward conviction of sin, been forced to plead guilty? Then the law pronounces its curses upon you, and there it leaves you, under its guilt and terror. For, to convince and to condemn, is all the law can do.  The Lord knows, and self-condemned sinners know too, (I speak for one,) this is a most deplorable state. Now, the once neglected book of God becomes most precious to the soul. The believing sinner now sees, as he had no knowledge of sin, but by the law, so he can obtain no knowledge of salvation, but by the gospel. Such a soul is wise...

" O visit me with Thy salvation." -Psalm 106:4 [KJV] There is no good obtained by paying trifling visits, and receiving trifling visitors. The soul that is alive to God, will refrain from such an impertinent way of sacrificing its time. “Christ hath redeemed us from our vain conversation” (I Peter 1:18.) Our grand business is, to be looking at, glorying in, and talking of His righteousness, and His salvation all the day long. This was David’s practice. If we followed it more, we too should say with him, “My lips shall greatly rejoice, and my soul which Thou hast redeemed” (Psalm 71:23.)   As our joy in Jesus increases, carnal, impertinent acquaintance will forsake us. Here is the cry of a convinced sinner, of a truly gracious heart, O visit me with Thy salvation. This is a blessed frame of soul. Lord help us to consider it, and animate us to live to Thee. Here is spiritual sight, and spiritual feeling. What is a Christian without these? Truly sunk into a s...

  Holy Anger by D.G. Miles McKee   We live in a day and age when many people tell us that Christians should never get angry.   However, did you know that the Bible doesn´t say that.  It says, " Be ye Angry, and sin not " (Ephesians 4:26). And did you know that gentle Jesus meek and mild got angry? For example, He got angry at the merchandisers in the temple (Mark 11:15–19; Matthew 21:11-13). Do you think He went up to those money-changers and said, "Excuse me, but if it's not too inconvenient I'd like to throw your tables on the ground, that is if you don't mind." No, Jesus got angry-He made a whip and threw those rascals out of God´s House----He wasn't bluffing, He was big enough, strong enough and angry enough to clear the temple. They saw in Jesus a man inflamed, enraged, angry against sin and passionate for the glory of God. And they ran from Him! He also got angry at the sin of the religious leaders of the day, … those long-bearde...

" And that He died for all, that they who live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto Him Who died for them, and rose again." -II Corinthians 5:15 [KJV] Christ died for all, “Whom the Father gave to Him” (John 17:9.) Sooner or later, all these willingly and cheerfully come unto, or believe on Christ. Joyful to remember, we are drawn to Christ by the love of the Father, or else we never should have come to Him (John 6:44.) Now, we have done with working for life, and asking, What must we do to be saved? For now, we actually are saved, and really do live.  (1st.) We are saved from the love of sin, from our natural hatred to the doctrines of grace, and from our aversion to full justification and final salvation by the word of Christ only. Legal self-righteous professors exclaim, ‘Do not tell us of doctrines of grace, but of what we must do to be saved.’ Truly, the way is plain: there is work enough for them to do. If they will enter into life b...

" Now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity." -I Corinthians 13:13 [KJV] It is a pity it was not rendered love, instead of charity, all through this chapter: it certainly would have been a means of preventing much error.  Consider, (1st.) The abiding of love. It springs from faith and hope, and has no existence in the heart without them. We have no more love to God, than a beast, yea, than a devil has, till we believe His love to us, and hope in His promises made to us in Christ Jesus. We love Him. Why? Because, merely of the glories and perfections of His nature, is He the object of our supreme love? No, but rather “because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19.) How has God manifested His love to us? In this: Because that "God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him” (vs. 9.) But our hearts are strangers to this love, till we believe in Jesus, and hope in His salvation. Then the effec...

"The rod of the wicked shall not rest upon the lot of the righteous, lest the righteous put forth their hands unto iniquity." -Psalm 125:3 [KJV] How shall we draw the line between the righteous and the wicked? How shall we distinguish them, seeing they are both alike the subjects of a wicked nature, derived from Adam the sinner, their father? The Holy Ghost does this. He sets a mark upon the righteous, by which they are essentially distinguished from the wicked, in the first verse of this Psalm: “They trust in the Lord.” The wicked trust in themselves, that they are righteous; trust in their own power, to make and keep themselves so; and hope for God’s favour and heaven, because they are so. They trust in their own wisdom to guide them through life, and to their own goodness to make them happy in death.  The righteous are stript of their righteousness: they are convinced of sin: they are poor, hopeless, desperate, and in a forlorn and wretched condition as to...