"And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left." Matthew 25:33

 

 DOUBLE TRUTHS OF SCRIPTURE.

BY William Lincoln (1859)

1. Cheist is God. He is also man. Avoid the peril of steering, in your view of the truth here, and steer between the two extremes. He is God, being of the same substance as the Father, in one nature; He is man — perfect man — much more perfectly man than you or I; for we are fallen and imperfect men. We resemble a mirror smashed to atoms. He, as a man, is like the mirror whole. Or, rather, we by nature have been broken up by sin that was without, obtaining entrance into us. But He was bruised on the cross through the love that was erst pent up in Him, at length flowing out.

2. There are two advents of Christ ; keep your eye on each. Each advent will be found to be comprised in two stages — the first at Bethlehem and Calvary, the second into the clouds for His saints., and to the world, to judge and reign

3. Christ crucified is both the burnt-offering in which God shall ever find exquisite delight, and the sin-offering from which he turned away his face (Lev. i and iv).

4. He that believes in Christ is clean every whit (John xiii). Yet is there need of a daily cleansing by Christ's priestly aplication unto us of the water of the Word (Eph. v, 12, and 1 John i, 8). Salvation is a present gift (John v, 24). It is also a process (Phil. ii, 12). Yet it is future (Rom. xiii, 11; Heb. ix, 28). Our sanctification is complete, for Christ is it (1 Cor. i, 30). Yet it is progressive as to our apprehension (1 Thess. v, 23).

5. Scripture speaks not only of peace with God, but also of the peace of God. All Christians have the former ; many have not the latter. The one is for my conscience; the other is for my heart. Having peace with God, I can look up to him boldly, and know that he has no anger toward me; yea, and that He beholds me in Christ with delight. In possession of the peace of God, I am then unmoved by any circumstances around me, however appalling.

6. In each believer the Holy Ghost intercedes with groanings which cannot be uttered; for each believer Christ intercedes with God. Each Christian has the Holy Ghost as his paraclete, comforter, or advocate; but Christ also is our advocate with the Father. Thus the Holy Ghost and Christ are both our intercessors as to God; both our advocates as to the Father.

7. Two attitudes as to us does the Lord Jesus take: he is both in the ship of the church with us here, and he is on yon mountain's brow, watching it as tossed with the waves and billows (Mark iv, 38, and vi, 48).

8. Two attitudes or characters does the Holy Ghost take : he is the seal, marking God's claim on us ; he, as the earnest, marking our claims, through grace and blood.

9. And if we follow Christ, we will find that He has a second rest to which He can bring us. If we give Him the burden of our sin, He will give us rest. If we take His yoke and His burden on us, we shall enjoy a found rest. Thus there are two burdens and two rests in Matthew xi, 28-30.

 

 Purely out of Fatherly, Divine Goodness and Mercy.

"Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear Him." Psalms 103:13.

God manifested His love in the creation of the world. Many are the blessings which He showered upon us according to the First Article of our holy Christian Creed. God has made us and all creatures. He has given us a rational soul and made us the fore­ most of all visible creatures. For us He created heaven and earth and all that is therein. The whole world was made for man. Sun, moon, and stars give light to our earth, which is the center of the universe. The life of all creatures is in reality only subservient to our welfare. Even the angels in heaven are our servants. God sustains the earth and all that is therein; but He mainly provides for man, who is a sinner and therefore does not deserve any love or kindness on the part of his Creator, and — oh, fatherly, divine good­ ness and mercy!— defends us against all danger and guards and protects us from all evil. He has made us His dear children in Christ Jesus and opens for us the way to eternal life for our

Savior’s sake, who has redeemed us with His precious blood. The holy and almighty God stoops down to us poor sinners and becomes our good and merciful Father.

What may have induced God to do all this? Does He derive any benefit from us? Could He not dwell in glory and in perfect happiness without us? What impelled Him to call us into exist­ ence and to overwhelm us with His tender mercies ? Any merit or worthiness in us? No; God owes us nothing. All His blessings He showers upon us purely out of His fatherly, divine goodness and mercy, and we must confess with Jacob that we are not worthy of the least of all the mercies with which He has blessed us so abund­ antly. This is the sentiment of every true Christian. Hence he sings his Maker’s praise. “ O give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good; because His mercy endureth forever.”

Prayer.

O Lord, how great is Thy goodness towards us, who are not worthy of even the least of Thy manifold blessings! And how wonderfully infinite Thine omnipotence is in greatly multiplying the seed that decays in the soil! O Lord, Thou God of riches, all that men harvest is indeed Thine, for we cannot of ourselves cause anything to spring forth out of the earth; so if we get much or little, it is nevertheless more than we deserve. Thanks, therefore, bo to Thy holy name for each and every thing that Thou hast given us! Thou alone art the God that didst sustain us from early infancy and dost bestow on us all manner of blessings. To Thee alone be all praise and honor. Amen.

 DAILY READINGS IN THE LIFE OF CHRIST - J.R. Miller (1890)

January 25. Strange Insignia

"And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a mange." Luke 2:12

What a strange sign this by which to recognize the King of glory! The shepherds would not find Him robed in purple garments, like the child of a prince — but wrapped in swaddling clothes. They would not find Him in a palace — but in a stable, with a feeding trough for His cradle. Is it not strange that the very marks and authentications of Messiah's character and mission, by which these shepherds recognized Him when they found Him — were these tokens of poverty and humiliation?

This tells us what empty things are the world's marks of greatness. No one would expect ever to recognize earthly royalty by any such insignia as these. When Christ came, He despised all the badges of rank by which men indicate greatness — and wore the insignia of earthly poverty and humiliation. Yet was He less great — because He did not bear the world's stamp of honor?

True greatness is in the character — never in the circumstances. It does not matter if you do not wear a crown — make sure that you have a head worthy of wearing a crown. It does not matter if you do not wear purple garments — make sure that you have a heart worthy of the purple. It does not matter if you do not have a throne to sit on — make sure that your life is regal in its own intrinsic character, that men will recognize the king in you, though your toil in the field or mine, or service in the lowliest place.

These strange tokens tell us also, of Christ's sympathy with the lowliest phases of life, with the plainest and poorest of the people. None can say that Christ never came to them. If He had been born in a palace amid splendors — then the common people would never have felt that He was their Savior — as they feel now that He is. Christ went down and touched life at its lowest point — that there might be none to whom His mission of love and grace should not reach.

THE BURNT OFFERING

THE BURNT OFFERING

TWO MOUNTAINS

THE TWO MOUNTAINS - Grace or works?