Category Archives: Israel

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Israel

Morning

“And so all Israel shall be saved.”
Romans 11:26

Then Moses sang at the Red Sea, it was his joy to know that all Israel were safe. Not a drop of spray fell from that solid wall until the last of God’s Israel had safely planted his foot on the other side the flood. That done, immediately the floods dissolved into their proper place again, but not till then. Part of that song was, “Thou in thy mercy hast led forth the people which thou hast redeemed.” In the last time, when the elect shall sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and of the Lamb, it shall be the boast of Jesus, “Of all whom thou hast given me, I have lost none.” In heaven there shall not be a vacant throne.

“For all the chosen race

Shall meet around the throne,

Shall bless the conduct of his grace,

And make his glories known.”

As many as God hath chosen, as many as Christ hath redeemed, as many as the Spirit hath called, as many as believe in Jesus, shall safely cross the dividing sea. We are not all safely landed yet:

“Part of the host have crossed the flood,

And part are crossing now.”

The vanguard of the army has already reached the shore. We are marching through the depths; we are at this day following hard after our Leader into the heart of the sea. Let us be of good cheer: the rear-guard shall soon be where the vanguard already is; the last of the chosen ones shall soon have crossed the sea, and then shall be heard the song of triumph, when all are secure. But oh! if one were absent–oh! if one of his chosen family should be cast away–it would make an everlasting discord in the song of the redeemed, and cut the strings of the harps of paradise, so that music could never be extorted from them.

Evening

“He was sore athirst, and called on the Lord, and said, thou hast given this great deliverance into the hand of thy servant: and now shall I die for thirst?”
Judges 15:18

Samson was thirsty and ready to die. The difficulty was totally different from any which the hero had met before. Merely to get thirst assuaged is nothing like so great a matter as to be delivered from a thousand Philistines! but when the thirst was upon him, Samson felt that little present difficulty more weighty than the great past difficulty out of which he had so specially been delivered. It is very usual for God’s people, when they have enjoyed a great deliverance, to find a little trouble too much for them. Samson slays a thousand Philistines, and piles them up in heaps, and then faints for a little water! Jacob wrestles with God at Peniel, and overcomes Omnipotence itself, and then goes “halting on his thigh!” Strange that there must be a shrinking of the sinew whenever we win the day. As if the Lord must teach us our littleness, our nothingness, in order to keep us within bounds. Samson boasted right loudly when he said, “I have slain a thousand men.” His boastful throat soon grew hoarse with thirst, and he betook himself to prayer. God has many ways of humbling his people. Dear child of God, if after great mercy you are laid very low, your case is not an unusual one. When David had mounted the throne of Israel, he said, “I am this day weak, though anointed king.” You must expect to feel weakest when you are enjoying your greatest triumph. If God has wrought for you great deliverances in the past, your present difficulty is only like Samson’s thirst, and the Lord will not let you faint, nor suffer the daughter of the uncircumcised to triumph over you. The road of sorrow is the road to heaven, but there are wells of refreshing water all along the route. So, tried brother, cheer your heart with Samson’s words, and rest assured that God will deliver you ere long.

All rights belong to the collections of Charles Spurgeon(C)

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Israel – Apple of God

Psalms 122:6 | View whole chapter | See verse in context Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee.


Isaiah 62:1 | View whole chapter | See verse in context For Zion’s sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem‘s sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth.

Zechariah 2:8 | View whole chapter | See verse in context For thus saith the LORD of hosts; After the glory hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you: for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye.

(Israel)

 

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ISRAEL AND SAMSON

Morning

Psalm 91
Pray for the peace of Jerusalem!

“And so all Israel shall be saved.”
Romans 11:26

Then Moses sang at the Red Sea, it was his joy to know that all Israel were safe. Not a drop of spray fell from that solid wall until the last of God’s Israel had safely planted his foot on the other side the flood. That done, immediately the floods dissolved into their proper place again, but not till then. Part of that song was, “Thou in thy mercy hast led forth the people which thou hast redeemed.” In the last time, when the elect shall sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and of the Lamb, it shall be the boast of Jesus, “Of all whom thou hast given me, I have lost none.” In heaven there shall not be a vacant throne.

“For all the chosen race

Shall meet around the throne,

Shall bless the conduct of his grace,

And make his glories known.”

As many as God hath chosen, as many as Christ hath redeemed, as many as the Spirit hath called, as many as believe in Jesus, shall safely cross the dividing sea. We are not all safely landed yet:

“Part of the host have crossed the flood,

And part are crossing now.”

The vanguard of the army has already reached the shore. We are marching through the depths; we are at this day following hard after our Leader into the heart of the sea. Let us be of good cheer: the rear-guard shall soon be where the vanguard already is; the last of the chosen ones shall soon have crossed the sea, and then shall be heard the song of triumph, when all are secure. But oh! if one were absent–oh! if one of his chosen family should be cast away–it would make an everlasting discord in the song of the redeemed, and cut the strings of the harps of paradise, so that music could never be extorted from them.

Evening

“He was sore athirst, and called on the Lord, and said, thou hast given this great deliverance into the hand of thy servant: and now shall I die for thirst?”
Judges 15:18

Samson was thirsty and ready to die. The difficulty was totally different from any which the hero had met before. Merely to get thirst assuaged is nothing like so great a matter as to be delivered from a thousand Philistines! but when the thirst was upon him, Samson felt that little present difficulty more weighty than the great past difficulty out of which he had so specially been delivered. It is very usual for God’s people, when they have enjoyed a great deliverance, to find a little trouble too much for them. Samson slays a thousand Philistines, and piles them up in heaps, and then faints for a little water! Jacob wrestles with God at Peniel, and overcomes Omnipotence itself, and then goes “halting on his thigh!” Strange that there must be a shrinking of the sinew whenever we win the day. As if the Lord must teach us our littleness, our nothingness, in order to keep us within bounds. Samson boasted right loudly when he said, “I have slain a thousand men.” His boastful throat soon grew hoarse with thirst, and he betook himself to prayer. God has many ways of humbling his people. Dear child of God, if after great mercy you are laid very low, your case is not an unusual one. When David had mounted the throne of Israel, he said, “I am this day weak, though anointed king.” You must expect to feel weakest when you are enjoying your greatest triumph. If God has wrought for you great deliverances in the past, your present difficulty is only like Samson’s thirst, and the Lord will not let you faint, nor suffer the daughter of the uncircumcised to triumph over you. The road of sorrow is the road to heaven, but there are wells of refreshing water all along the route. So, tried brother, cheer your heart with Samson’s words, and rest assured that God will deliver you ere long.

All rights belong to the collections of Charles Spurgeon(C)

 

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Jerusalem – Embassy United States of America May 14, 2018

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PRAISE YOU JESUS!

THE LAMB WHO WAS SLAIN AND TOOK AWAY THE SINS OF THE WORLD! (ISAIAH 9:6/JOHN 3:16)

THE BIRTH OF JESUS CHRIST

Isaiah 9:6 – For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.

Luke 2:7 – And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

John 3:16 – For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Matthew 1:18-25 – Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.   (Read More…)

Isaiah 7:14 – Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

John 1:14 – And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

John 1:1 – In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

John 1:3 – All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.

John 14:6 – Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Colossians 1:15-17 – Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:   (Read More…)

Matthew 2:1-12 – Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,   (Read More…)

Matthew 2:1 – Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,

Romans 6:23 – For the wages of sin [is] death; but the gift of God [is] eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Revelation 1:8 – I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.

John 17:3 – And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.

Hebrews 1:3 – Who being the brightness of [his] glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;

Colossians 1:15 – Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:

John 1:18 – No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared [him].

By:  Malinda Kathleen Reese

Return unto the Lord thy God

John 1:36 | View whole chapter | See verse in context And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God!

Revelation 22:3 | View whole chapter | See verse in context And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it; and his servants shall serve him:

1 Peter 1:19 | View whole chapter | See verse in context But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:

John 1:29 | View whole chapter | See verse in context The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.

1 Corinthians 15:23 23But every man in his own order: Christ the first fruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.

IS THE CHURCH READY FOR THE WEDDING?

Matthew 22:1-14  (KJV)

22 And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said,

2 The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son,

3 And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come.

4 Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready: come unto the marriage.

5 But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise:

6 And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them.

7 But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.

8 Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy.

9 Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.

10 So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests.

11 And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment:

12 And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.

13 Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness, there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

14 For many are called, but few are chosen.

King James Version     Public Domain

[ Psalm 150 ] Praise ye the Lord. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in the firmament of his power. Praise him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his excellent greatness. Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp. …

Huppah = “canopy”

Matthew 25:10 | View whole chapter | See verse in context And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.

Revelation 19:7 | View whole chapter | See verse in context Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.

2 Corinthians 5:20 | View whole chapter | See verse in context Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ‘s stead, be ye reconciled to God.

Colossians 3:1 | View whole chapter | See verse in context If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God.

1 Corinthians 15:23 | View whole chapter | See verse in context But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ‘s at his coming.

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TIME IS HERE! OVERCOME “EVERY” FOE IN CHRIST

THE BRIDE GROOM COMETH

Morning

“The breaker is come up before them.”
Micah 2:13

Inasmuch as Jesus has gone before us, things remain not as they would have been had he never passed that way. He has conquered every foe that obstructed the way. Cheer up now thou faint-hearted warrior. Not only has Christ travelled the road, but he has slain thine enemies. Dost thou dread sin? He has nailed it to his cross. Dost thou fear death? He has been the death of Death. Art thou afraid of hell? He has barred it against the advent of any of his children; they shall never see the gulf of perdition. Whatever foes may be before the Christian, they are all overcome. There are lions, but their teeth are broken; there are serpents, but their fangs are extracted; there are rivers, but they are bridged or fordable; there are flames, but we wear that matchless garment which renders us invulnerable to fire. The sword that has been forged against us is already blunted; the instruments of war which the enemy is preparing have already lost their point. God has taken away in the person of Christ all the power that anything can have to hurt us. Well then, the army may safely march on, and you may go joyously along your journey, for all your enemies are conquered beforehand. What shall you do but march on to take the prey? They are beaten, they are vanquished; all you have to do is to divide the spoil. You shall, it is true, often engage in combat; but your fight shall be with a vanquished foe. His head is broken; he may attempt to injure you, but his strength shall not be sufficient for his malicious design. Your victory shall be easy, and your treasure shall be beyond all count.

“Proclaim aloud the Saviour’s fame,

Who bears the Breaker’s wond’rous name;

Sweet name; and it becomes him well,

Who breaks down earth, sin, death, and hell.”

BE A BEAREAN ACT S 17:11

Evening

“If fire break out, and catch in thorns, so that the stacks of corn, or the standing corn, or the field, be consumed therewith; he that kindled the fire shall surely make restitution.”
Exodus 22:6

But what restitution can he make who casts abroad the fire-brands of error, or the coals of lasciviousness, and sets men’s souls on a blaze with the fire of hell? The guilt is beyond estimate, and the result is irretrievable. If such an offender be forgiven, what grief it will cause him in the retrospect, since he cannot undo the mischief which he has done! An ill example may kindle a flame which years of amended character cannot quench. To burn the food of man is bad enough, but how much worse to destroy the soul! It may be useful to us to reflect how far we may have been guilty in the past, and to enquire whether, even in the present, there may not be evil in us which has a tendency to bring damage to the souls of our relatives, friends, or neighbours.

The fire of strife is a terrible evil when it breaks out in a Christian church. Where converts were multiplied, and God was glorified, jealousy and envy do the devil’s work most effectually. Where the golden grain was being housed, to reward the toil of the great Boaz, the fire of enmity comes in and leaves little else but smoke and a heap of blackness. Woe unto those by whom offences come. May they never come through us, for although we cannot make restitution, we shall certainly be the chief sufferers if we are the chief offenders. Those who feed the fire deserve just censure, but he who first kindles it is most to blame. Discord usually takes first hold upon the thorns; it is nurtured among the hypocrites and base professors in the church, and away it goes among the righteous, blown by the winds of hell, and no one knows where it may end. O thou Lord and giver of peace, make us peacemakers, and never let us aid and abet the men of strife, or even unintentionally cause the least division among thy people.

All rights belong to the collections of Charles Spurgeon(C)

 

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JULY 15 2014 ISRAELI SHARED NEWSLETTER

 

 

Is Your Name

Don’t Give in to Anger

July 15, 2014

Moses was angry with the officers of the army—the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds—who returned from the battle. — Numbers 31:14

The Torah portion for this week is Matot, which means “branches,” from Numbers 30:2–32:42, and the Haftorah is from Jeremiah 1:1–2:3.

Abraham Lincoln once said, “You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry.” If that’s the case, then we can tell a lot about the greatness of Moses from what made him angry in this week’s Torah portion. God had commanded Moses to instruct the Israelites to go to war against the nation of Midian. This was the same nation that had attempted to destroy the children of Israel by sending women to seduce the men and trick them into idolatry. However, when the fighters returned from war, Moses was angered to see that the Midianite women – the ones who caused the most damage – were left alive. The people had disobeyed God and that was what angered Moses. He was angry because of his intense devotion to God.

That being said, it seems that Moses was punished for his anger even though it originated from an admirable place. A few verses later we learn that it was Eleazar the priest who communicated the laws regarding the purification of vessels taken in war rather than Moses. (See Numbers 31:21–24.) The Sages explain that Eleazar had to instruct the soldiers about the law because Moses was made to forget the laws when he became angry. Certainly Moses was justified in his anger, and we can even argue that his zealousness was praiseworthy, so why was he seemingly punished for it?

Maybe you’ve had the following experience. You are trying to open a door to a house or car and the key just won’t turn. You might be in a rush or your hands full of packages and you start to get frustrated. You jam the key in further but the door still won’t open. You become angry and annoyed, trying desperately to open the door in all sorts of foolish ways. Had you stayed calm and rational you might have realized that you simply had the wrong key!

In Proverbs 29:11 it is written: “Fools give full vent to their rage, but the wise bring calm in the end.” One way to understand this verse is that when we are angry, we become foolish, but when we are calm, we are wise. Moses wasn’t punished with forgetfulness because of his anger; rather, it was the natural consequence of his anger. When we are angry, we compromise our mental faculties. We do all sorts of foolish things and say things that we later regret. We lose control and rationality. Moses’ anger clouded his ability to give instructions clearly and rationally, so Eleazar had to do it.

The word “anger” is one letter away from the word “danger.” Next time you find yourself angered, even if it is fully justified, stop and do nothing. Wait for your anger to subside and only then take action. One moment of anger can destroy a lifetime of work, but one moment of patience can save us from a lifetime of regret.

With prayers for shalom, peace,

Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein
Founder and President

http://www.blog.standforisrael.org/iitn

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IN CHRIST(AS PAUL EXPERIENCED)THE CELL DOOR IS OPEN!

 

 

ACTS 16:16-40
ACTS 16:16-40

God will guard you from the evil one

 

How can I defend myself against Satan’s attacks?

10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. 11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

Ephesians 6:10-12  

Tricking Houdini

During his life, Harry Houdini had a standing challenge that he could escape from any jail cell within an hour. A small town in the British Isles had just constructed a new jail cell they thought was escape-proof, and they wanted to put it to the test. Houdini entered the cell and immediately went to work. After two grueling hours — an hour past his deadline — Houdini finally withdrew his file from the lock and leaned against the door in exhaustion. To his amazement, the cell door swung open.

The jailors had tricked the great magician by closing the jail door but never bolting the lock. He was free all along, he just didn’t know it.

Satan has the same strategy, doesn’t he? His greatest weapon is to make us think that we are trapped, when in reality the cell door is always open. Satan can’t bind us, so he tricks us into making us believe the cell door is locked.

Adapted from a devotional by Frank Martin in Embracing Eternity (Tyndale House) p 292
Content is derived from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation and other publications of Tyndale Publishing House

JESUS HELP ME!

MY ROSE

MY ROSE

 

All the prison doors flew open, and the chains came loose!

Personal Testimony:

The title above is in red for a reason!  If it were not for the shed blood of Jesus Christ (1 John 1:7 – But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.) I would still be sitting in prison spiritually.  As a child I knew about Jesus from Sunday School lessons and the such; as a teenager I wondered about Him and God’s creation; yet I knew Him not.  The Word had been made known to me; prayers had been prayed over me.  Yet I knew Him not.  I was still a child on milk with a longing unfulfilled not knowing all the time I was born for a time such as this!!  I won’t bore you with all the trial and tribulations; but, I will tell you forth running that in my adulthood as a mother with first child that is when the Lord God Almighty grabbed me by my boot straps and put a mentor in my life that set me on track to know God’s Word, to be among believers in Christ, to be baptized, and to serve the Lord.  At this point I saw the prison door opened and the chains dropped.  Fast forward:  We were living in Florida at the time and this is when God said in an “Audible Voice,”  “ARE YOU READY TO GET UP YET!!!”  THAT got my attention:  This is how it happened….
Typical family night, I’m giving my boys their bath and getting ready for bed.  All of the sudden out of the blue I hear, “ARE YOU READY TO GET UP YET!!!”  I looked around, ask the boys if they heard anything, “No, they said.”  I asked my daughter who was sitting at the computer in the living room doing homework and she said “No.”  Then I ask my husband and he said “No.”  The only other sounds was the normal neighborhood children getting last few minuets of playtime in before being called in for the evening.  Dogs barking, cats meowing, just normal stuff and no TV on in our house.  I finished with my boy’s bath and got them off to bed.  I waited till all were turned in and sought the Lord in prayer.

This was the night the Lord truly revealed Himself to me my brothers and sisters in Christ!  Father God on this night revealed His treasures to me and gave me my nugget (Rhema Word) for life:  My Life verse:

Isaiah 30:21 (AKJV)

21 and thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left. 

On this night my journey with Jesus Christ truly began.  Little did I know that He would use Prophecy as tool for being born for a time such as this.  The journey took an even deeper turn when I learned by trial and tribulations on a personal level to “Willingly Allow” the Holy Spirit to be the driver and not me.  I am here to tell you that I am still learning!  I would not be here today if it were not for the precious Blood of Christ, the Grace and Mercy of God, Protection of Christ, Leading of the Holy Spirit!  I share all of this to tell you not to discouraged or dismayed of heart in these perilous times we face.  God is control and Jesus Christ is Foundation which the gates of hell “SHALL NOT” prevail!

Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

Call out to Jesus and He will uplift you through your faith in Him, He will strengthen you, He will comfort you, He will never leave or forsake you; KNOW THIS.

With these treasures of the Lord I bless you, ask the Lord to keep you, encourage you and protect you and yours in the precious name of Jesus Christ! Amen

 

PEACE AS ONLY CHRIST CAN GIVE! AMEN

PRISON DOOR OPEN AND THE CHAINS DROPPED

Acts 16:16-40   (AKJV)

16 And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying: 17 the same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation. 18 And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour.

19 And when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone, they caught Paul and Silas, and drew them into the marketplace unto the rulers, 20 and brought them to the magistrates, saying, These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city, 21 and teach customs, which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans. 22 And the multitude rose up together against them: and the magistrates rent off their clothes, and commanded to beat them. 23 And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely: 24 who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.

25 And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them. 26 And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one’s bands were loosed. 27 And the keeper of the prison awaking out of his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, he drew out his sword, and would have killed himself, supposing that the prisoners had been fled. 28 But Paul cried with a loud voice, saying, Do thyself no harm: for we are all here. 29 Then he called for a light, and sprang in, and came trembling, and fell down before Paul and Silas, 30 and brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved? 31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. 32 And they spake unto him the word of the Lord, and to all that were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night, and washed their stripes; and was baptized, he and all his, straightway. 34 And when he had brought them into his house, he set meat before them, and rejoiced, believing in God with all his house.

35 And when it was day, the magistrates sent the serjeants, saying, Let those men go. 36 And the keeper of the prison told this saying to Paul, The magistrates have sent to let you go: now therefore depart, and go in peace. 37 But Paul said unto them, They have beaten us openly uncondemned, being Romans, and have cast us into prison; and now do they thrust us out privily? nay verily; but let them come themselves and fetch us out. 38 And the serjeants told these words unto the magistrates: and they feared, when they heard that they were Romans. 39 And they came and besought them, and brought them out, and desired them to depart out of the city. 40 And they went out of the prison, and entered into the house of Lydia: and when they had seen the brethren, they comforted them, and departed.

May the peace of the Lord be upon you all in Jesus’ name. Amen

 

 

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IDOLATRY

Morning

“Shall a man make gods unto himself, and they are no gods.”
Jeremiah 16:20

One great besetting sin of ancient Israel was idolatry, and the spiritual Israel are vexed with a tendency to the same folly. Remphan’s star shines no longer, and the women weep no more for Tammuz, but Mammon still intrudes his golden calf, and the shrines of pride are not forsaken. Self in various forms struggles to subdue the chosen ones under its dominion, and the flesh sets up its altars wherever it can find space for them. Favourite children are often the cause of much sin in believers; the Lord is grieved when he sees us doting upon them above measure; they will live to be as great a curse to us as Absalom was to David, or they will be taken from us to leave our homes desolate. If Christians desire to grow thorns to stuff their sleepless pillows, let them dote on their dear ones.

It is truly said that “they are no gods,” for the objects of our foolish love are very doubtful blessings, the solace which they yield us now is dangerous, and the help which they can give us in the hour of trouble is little indeed. Why, then, are we so bewitched with vanities? We pity the poor heathen who adore a god of stone, and yet worship a god of gold. Where is the vast superiority between a god of flesh and one of wood? The principle, the sin, the folly is the same in either case, only that in ours the crime is more aggravated because we have more light, and sin in the face of it. The heathen bows to a false deity, but the true God he has never known; we commit two evils, inasmuch as we forsake the living God and turn unto idols. May the Lord purge us all from this grievous iniquity!

“The dearest idol I have known,

Whate’er that idol be;

Help me to tear it from thy throne,

And worship only thee.”

 

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Evening

“Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible.”
1 Peter 1:23

Peter most earnestly exhorted the scattered saints to love each other “with a pure heart fervently” and he wisely fetched his argument, not from the law, from nature, or from philosophy, but from that high and divine nature which God hath implanted in his people. Just as some judicious tutor of princes might labour to beget and foster in them a kingly spirit and dignified behaviour, finding arguments in their position and descent, so, looking upon God’s people as heirs of glory, princes of the blood royal, descendants of the King of kings, earth’s truest and oldest aristocracy, Peter saith to them, “See that ye love one another, because of your noble birth, being born of incorruptible seed; because of your pedigree, being descended from God, the Creator of all things; and because of your immortal destiny, for you shall never pass away, though the glory of the flesh shall fade, and even its existence shall cease.” It would be well if, in the spirit of humility, we recognized the true dignity of our regenerated nature, and lived up to it. What is a Christian? If you compare him with a king, he adds priestly sanctity to royal dignity. The king’s royalty often lieth only in his crown, but with a Christian it is infused into his inmost nature. He is as much above his fellows through his new birth, as a man is above the beast that perisheth. Surely he ought to carry himself, in all his dealings, as one who is not of the multitude, but chosen out of the world, distinguished by sovereign grace, written among “the peculiar people” and who therefore cannot grovel in the dust as others, nor live after the manner of the world’s citizens. Let the dignity of your nature, and the brightness of your prospects, O believers in Christ, constrain you to cleave unto holiness, and to avoid the very appearance of evil.

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