Month: October 2014

Three Facts

The careful, attentive reader of the New Testament will find in its pages three solemn and weighty facts presented to his view.

First: The Son of God has come into this world and gone away. “Christ Jesus came into the world” (1 Timothy 1:15).

Second: The Holy Spirit has come down to this earth, and is still here. “He may abide with you forever; Even the Spirit of truth” (John 14:16-17).

Third: The Lord Jesus is coming again. “I will come again” (John 14:3).

These are the three great subjects unfolded in the New Testament. It is impossible for anyone to avoid the bearing of these three grand facts upon their own personal condition and future destiny. The facts speak for themselves; they are recorded and left to produce their own powerful effect upon the soul. Acknowledgement and acceptance of these truths will be for the blessing of the soul now and forever.

 

Security – Part 3

“Yes, I see,” she said, “and I can rest now quietly and safely in Him.”

“Thank God,” I said, “and now let us bow down on our knees, and praise Him for His grace in giving Himself for us, and for His infinite power and might in carrying us safely along through all the dangers and circumstances of life.”

We did so, and she arose and went on her way, happy and rejoicing in the Lord.

May God use this brief and simple story to establish many of His sheep and lambs in the infinite love and power of the Lord Jesus Christ, as the only Saviour and Great Shepherd of His flock.

“What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until he find it? And when he hath found it, he layeth it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbours, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost” (Luke 15:4-6).

 

Security – Part 2

Seeing that the young lady’s difficulty was that, though she had faith in Him as the one who had died for her, and rose again, she had not faith in Him as a living all-powerful Saviour and Shepherd of the sheep in the bright glory of God above. I said, “Suppose you could see a shepherd coming across the field with a strayed lamb in his arms, tell me would the shepherd be carrying the lamb, or the lamb the shepherd?”

“Why of course, the Shepherd would be carrying the lamb,” was her reply.

“Yes,” I said, “Now tell me, which are you, the lamb or the shepherd?”

“The lamb,” she replied.

“Yes, to be sure; and do you not see the lamb does not hold the shepherd, but the ‘Good’ and ‘Great’ Shepherd, the Lord Jesus, holds in His almighty arms the little lamb, and carries it safely home to heaven? Isaiah 40:11 says, ‘He shall feed His flock like a shepherd: He shall gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.’”

Continued…

 

Security – Part 1

“Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that Great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, Make you perfect in every good work to do His will, working in you that which is wellpleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen” (Hebrews 13:20-21).

One evening after a gospel meeting, a young woman returned to the room desiring to speak with me. After a few minutes conversation I found that, though she did believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as the one who had died to save her, and put away her sins by His precious atoning blood, yet she was not at rest about her eternal salvation and security, saying that she was afraid she would lose, or let Him go.

I then asked Her, “Can you rest upon Him as the one who “once suffered for sins, the Just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18)?”

She immediately replied, “Yes, I can! I know that John 10:11 Says, ‘the Good Shepherd giveth His life for the sheep.’”

Continued…

 

Overwhelmed

“The Lord is my Rock” (2 Samuel 22:2).

(Continued from September 2)

There is a place where I can hide,

When troubles press on every side;

But oh, how quickly I forget,

And in distress, struggle and fret.

When overwhelmed my heart – I cry,

Lead to the Rock, higher than I.

And when I take my eyes from Thee,

And sink beneath the raging sea;

Recall my heart — and let me fly

Back to the Rock, higher than I.

When overwhelmed…etc.

Soon all the trials will be past,

And I shall reach the goal at last;

Beyond the tears, and fears, and grief,

Glorious departing, sweet relief.

When overwhelmed…etc.

 

Dear Young Christian:

I am writing this page from Guyana, South America, where I have had the privilege of distributing gospel literature and preaching the good news of salvation with a fellow missionary for the past few days. We have also been visiting many dear believers who truly love the Lord and want to please Him.

It is overwhelming to be in a country where there is such spiritual need, and yet such darkness. Witchcraft, voodoo, and Hinduism surround us. And yet the light of the Word of God and the testimony of so many Christians shine so brightly. It puts me to shame really!

Many Christians in Guyana have never been able to afford their own Bible, and when they do get one, they value and read it. Many of us live in areas of the world where affordable Bibles abound. Most of us have more than one in our home. What are we doing with the Word of God? Are we reading it and walking in its light?

Your Christian Friend,

Jim Hyland

We would love to hear from you. Send your comments or questions to jhyland@primus.ca

Redeemed

“Thou hast redeemed us to God by Thy blood” (Revelation 5:9).

“Redeemed…with the precious blood of Christ” (1 Peter 1:18).

There is nothing as precious as the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. The biblical principle is that “without the shedding of blood is no remission” (Hebrews 9:22). In other words, sin cannot be put away or cancelled without the blood and death of an innocent victim. The shedding of animal blood in Old Testament times satisfied God temporarily, but it didn’t permanently cleanse from sin. The only permanent, eternal solution for man’s sin problem was the shed blood of the Lord Jesus.

When Scripture refers to the blood of Christ as “precious” it is God’s value and estimation of the blood of His Lamb, not so much our appreciation of it. Thankfully our redemption does not depend on our estimation of the blood, but on God’s. The value of that blood is as precious and valuable to His heart as it was when it was shed by His Son so long ago at Calvary.

 

Compassion

Compassion (awareness of another’s suffering coupled with a desire to alleviate it) is a wonderful character trait. It was seen in perfect fullness in the life of our Lord Jesus. “And Jesus went forth and was moved with compassion toward them, and He healed their sick” (Matthew 14:14). The evening had come and they had not eaten so the disciples wanted to send them on their way. But again, the compassion of Christ was seen. “But Jesus said unto them, they need not depart; give them to eat” (Matthew 14:16). There were only five loaves of bread and two fishes, yet He fed the five thousand plus people and so ample was the provision that there were leftovers.

It was a miracle. But a greater miracle of compassion involves you and me. The Lord Jesus has compassion for us because we are sinners, and He has proved this by laying down His life at Calvary for all mankind. What He accomplished is a completed work. In John 19:30 Jesus said, “It is finished!” It is all done! His compassion and His all-sufficiency are evident. He is “able” and “mighty” to save.

 

Hands Together

Here is an interesting bumper sticker I saw the other day while driving on the highway with my family:

When you find time on your hands
put them together in prayer.

It made us think of several verses of scripture, including the following:

“Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints” (Ephesians 6:18).

“Pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17).

“Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving” (Colossians 4:2).

There are plenty of things to pray about! Needs concerning ourselves, our family members, other believers that we know, as well as the gospel and the salvation of the lost. If we run out of things to pray about we have become insensitive to our circumstances, and need to pray that the Lord will touch our hearts and awaken us to realities of life once again.

 

Purpose of Heart

Put your whole heart into whatever you do for the best of Masters, the Lord Jesus Christ. Notice what the Bible says concerning the life and work of King Hezekiah. “And thus did Hezekiah throughout all Judah, and wrought that which was good and right and truth before the Lord his God. And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, and in the law, and in the commandments, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart, and prospered” (2 Chronicles 31:20-21).

May it be true of young people who love the Lord. Half-hearted Christians make poor servants, and we certainly do not want to be poor servants for the Master.

We read of another young man: “Daniel purposed in his heart” (Daniel 1:7). Someone has aptly said: “Purpose of heart is a desire where the affections are motivated by an object.”

When Barnabas visited Antioch, we read: “Who when he came, and had seen the grace of God, was glad, and exhorted them all, that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord” (Acts 11:23).