“But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called ‘today,’ that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.” – Hebrews 3:13
All need regular encouragement to listen to His voice above others. Knowing our commonality in failure and struggle, as well as in obedience and triumph, gives us strength to stay on the path of faith.
Today is an opportunity to exhort. As one of the elders at my church says: “How do you know someone needs encouragement? They’re breathing.”
“Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents. This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God.” – Philippians 1:27-28
Romans 12:20 says when we love our enemy, we “heap burning coals on his head.” Alternatively, panic in the face of opposition is what happens when we rely on our own strength and methods.
May He be strong in us.
Today’s post comes from Charles Spurgeon’s “Morning and Evening” devotional. The September 12 (morning) entry was based on part of Nahum 1:2 – “God is jealous”.
Read the entire entry below:
Your Lord is very jealous of your love, O believer. Did He choose you? He cannot bear that you should choose another. Did He buy you with His own blood? He cannot endure that you should think that you are your own, or that you belong to this world. He loved you with such a love that He would not stop in heaven without you; He would sooner die than you should perish, and He cannot endure that anything should stand between your heart’s love and Himself. He is very jealous of your trust. He will not permit you to trust in an arm of flesh. He cannot bear that you should hew out broken cisterns, when the overflowing fountain is always free to you. When we lean upon Him, He is glad, but when we transfer our dependence to another, when we rely upon our own wisdom, or the wisdom of a friend—worst of all, when we trust in any works of our own, He is displeased, and will chasten us that He may bring us to Himself. He is also very jealous of our company. There should be no one with whom we converse so much as with Jesus. To abide in Him only, this is true love; but to commune with the world, to find sufficient solace in our carnal comforts, to prefer even the society of our fellow Christians to secret intercourse with Him, this is grievous to our jealous Lord. He would fain have us abide in Him, and enjoy constant fellowship with Himself; and many of the trials which He sends us are for the purpose of weaning our hearts from the creature, and fixing them more closely upon Himself. Let this jealousy which would keep us near to Christ be also a comfort to us, for if He loves us so much as to care thus about our love we may be sure that He will suffer nothing to harm us, and will protect us from all our enemies. Oh that we may have grace this day to keep our hearts in sacred chastity for our Beloved alone, with sacred jealousy shutting our eyes to all the fascinations of the world!
Dear fellow travelers,
Here is another “Quint of Quotes” from my collection. These quints are five quotes somewhat related to each other, but not exactly in agreement. These deal with the importance of forgiveness. Hope you find them interesting and thought-provoking. Enjoy!
“You can have vengeance, or peace, but you can’t have both” – Herbert Hoover, after World War II
“Resentment is like taking poison and waiting for the other person to die.” -Malachy McCourt, Irish-American actor, writer and politician
“Forgiveness is the greatest miracle that Jesus ever performs. It meets the greatest need; it costs the greatest price; and it brings the greatest blessing and the most lasting results.” – Warren Wiersbe
“In taking revenge, a man is but even with his enemy; but in passing it over, he is superior.” – Francis Bacon
“If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same.” – Jesus, in Luke 6:32-33
Here in the United States, the year 1776 is celebrated as the political beginning of the nation, because the Declaration of Independence was approved on July 4 of that year. Also in 1776, The Wealth of Nations by economist and philosopher Adam Smith was published and is foundational to our nation’s economy. Its full title of An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations shows its purpose was to explore what makes some nations more well-off than others, with Smith concluding that capitalism, especially the elements of free trade and competition, was the best system. I won’t argue here for capitalism or about where wealth comes from, but about where wealth is destined to end up.
Interestingly, the phrase “wealth of the nations” appears in the Bible 3 times, all in Isaiah 60 and 61, and the phrase “wealth of all the surrounding nations” appears once, in Zechariah 14.[1] All of these references describe the future reign of the Messiah when all nations and peoples will acknowledge Him as Lord and dedicate their wealth in tribute to Him.
Isaiah 60:4-5 is the first mention of the phrase, and it says:
“Lift up your eyes all around, and see;
they all gather together, they come to you;
your sons shall come from afar,
and your daughters shall be carried on the hip.
Then you shall see and be radiant;
your heart shall thrill and exult,
because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you,
the wealth of the nations shall come to you.”
The next few verses read like an inventory of goods (camels, gold, flocks, ships, lumber) and places (Midian, Sheba, Kedar, Tarshish, Lebanon), showing that no thing and no place is excluded from the tribute to God. Wealth from every source belongs to Him.
In the same chapter, verse 11 declares about the eternal city of God:
“Your gates shall be open continually;
day and night they shall not be shut,
that people may bring to you the wealth of the nations,
with their kings led in procession.”
When we inquire into future of wealth, rather than its past and its sources, we find that the wealth of the nations is all His. We own nothing. We are only stewards and caretakers, regardless of what economic system we live in or believe in.
“The earth is the LORD’S and the fullness thereof,
the world and those who dwell therein” – Psalm 24:1
Soli Deo Gloria
[1] It may be where Smith got his title idea, or it may just be coincidence.
Driving Toward the Morning Sun 