Seeznak

The Prospect of Cannibals

John Paton (1824-1907) was among the first to bring the Gospel to the untamed New Hebrides Islands in the South Pacific. From his biography:

‘Amongst many who sought to deter me, was one dear old Christian gentleman, whose crowning argument always was,- “The Cannibals! you will be eaten by Cannibals!”

At last I replied, “Mr. Dickson, you are advanced in years now, and your own prospect is soon to be laid in the grave, there to be eaten by worms; I confess to you, that if I can but live and die serving and honouring the Lord Jesus, it will make no difference to me whether I am eaten by Cannibals or by worms; and in the Great Day my resurrection body will arise as fair as yours in the likeness of our risen Redeemer.” ‘

O that I would have such a heart, abandoned to the glory and Gospel of Christ!

A Puritan’s Thoughts on Movie-Watching

Amusement must never become an end in life. It
must always be a means, a help on the way–just
as sleep is, just as rest is. An hour’s amusement,
should be to you, just what a night’s sleeping is. It
should make you stronger, clearer-headed, braver,
calmer-souled, more hopeful, more earnest, more
enthusiastic–inspiring you for godly living.

Anything which leaves a taint of impurity upon the
life, or starts a thought of impurity in the mind,
anything which degrades or debases the soul–is
an unfit and unworthy amusement for a Christian.
Christian amusements must be such, as do not
harm spiritual life; they must be means of grace.

- J. R. Miller, In Green Pastures

My Sin Does Not Deserve This:

“That Christ should come from the eternal bosom of his Father, to a region of sorrow and death, John i. 18; that God should be manifested in the flesh, the Creator made a creature, Isa. liii. 4; that he that was clothed with glory, should be wrapped with rags of flesh, 1 Tim. iii. 16; that he that filled heaven, should be cradled in a manger, John xvii. 5; that the God of Israel should fly into Egypt, Mat. ii. 14; that the God of strength should be weary; that the judge of all flesh should be condemned; that the God of life should be put to death, John xix. 41; that he that is one with his Father, should cry out of misery, ‘O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me!’ Mat. xxvi. 39: that he that had the keys of hell and death, Rev. i. 18, should lie imprisoned in the sepulchre of another, having, in his lifetime, nowhere to lay his head; nor after death, to lay his body, John xix. 41, 42; and all this for man, for fallen man, for miserable man, for worthless man, is beyond the thoughts of created natures.

The sharp, the universal and continual sufferings of our Lord Jesus Christ, from the cradle to the cross, does above all other things speak out the transcendent love of Jesus Christ to poor sinners.

That wrath, that great wrath, that fierce wrath, that pure wrath, that infinite wrath, that matchless wrath of an angry God, that was so terribly impressed upon the soul of Christ, quickly spent his natural strength, and turned his moisture into the drought of summer, Ps. xxxii. 4; and yet all this wrath he patiently underwent, that sinners might be saved, and that ‘he might bring many sons unto glory,’ Heb. ii. 10.”

-Thomas Brooks, 1608-1680

O, what great foolishness to treat sin so lightly! O what greater foolishness to think so little of the grace of God in Christ as I do! May I live repentantly, humbly, thankfully, and joyfully in the wake of such a Redeemer.

Cowper Is a Good Friend to Those of Us Who Forget How to Pray

God of my life, to Thee I call;
Afflicted, at Thy feet I fall;
When the great water-floods prevail,
Leave not my trembling heart to fall.

Friend of the friendless and the faint,
Where should I lodge my deep complaint?
Where but with Thee, whose open door
Invites the helpless and the poor?

Did ever mourner plead with Thee
And Thou refuse that moumer’s plea?
Does not the word still fixed remain
That none shall seek Thy face in vain?

Fair is the lot that’s cast for me;
I have an Advocate with Thee.
They whom the world caresses most
Have no such privilege to boast.
 
Poor though I be, despised, forgot,
Yet God, my God, forgets me not;
And he is safe and must succeed
For whom the Lord vouchsafes to plead.
 
Then hear, 0 Lord, my humble cry
And bend on me Thy pitying eye.
To Thee their prayer Thy people make:
Hear us for our Redeemer’s sake

-William Cowper, Olney Hymns

Listen to a great version by Red Mountain Church here.

A Borrowed Praise

The Lord is King! lift up thy voice,
O earth; and all ye heavens, rejoice!
From world to world the joy shall ring,
The Lord omnipotent is King.

The Lord is King! who then shall dare
resist his will, distrust his care,
or murmur at his wise decrees,
or doubt his royal promises?

The Lord is King! bow down you must,
the Judge of the all the earth is just;
holy and true are all his ways;
let every creature speak his praise.

He reigns! ye saints, exalt your strains;
your God is King, your Father reigns;
and he is at the Father’s side,
the Man of love, the Crucified.

Come, make your wants, your burdens known;
he will present them at the throne;
and angel bands are waiting there
his messages of love to bear.

The Lord is King! lift up thy voice,
O earth; and all ye heavens, rejoice!
From world to world the joy shall ring,
The Lord omnipotent is King.

- Josiah Conder (1789-1855)

Check out this version, by Nathan Partain. My attention was first caught by this incredible line: The Lord is King, bow down you must. Sit on that awhile…

Then take a second look at the second verse. If the Lord is indeed King, the writer asserts, there is no way, no option, no cause, no justification, and no possibility that we should resist, distrust, or doubt His perfect decrees and promises. If we could slow down and meditate on the Lord’s Kingship as Josiah Conder has done in composing this hymn, we just might begin to contribute to the ringing joy of Christ’s praise.

A Little Somp’n Somp’n About The Man

Check out Mark Driscoll’s posts on Spurgeon is the Man Week. 

I Have Not Yet Understood the Value of Gethsemane

 From J. R. Miller:

“Being in an agony–He prayed,” is the record of our Savior’s Gethsemane experience. The lesson stands for all time. Like a bright lamp, the little sentence shines amid the olive trees of the garden. It shows us the path to comfort in our time of sorrow. Never before or since–was there such grief as the Redeemer’s, that night. But in His prayer, He found comfort. As we watch Him the hour through, we see the agony changing as He prayed, until at last its bitterness was all gone–and sweet, blessed peace took its place. The gate of prayer is always the gate to comfort. There is no other way to consolation.

We may learn also from our Lord’s Gethsemane, how to pray in our Gethsemanes. God will never blame us for asking to have the cup removed, nor for the intensity of our supplication; but we must always pray with submission. It is when we say, in our deepest sorrow and intensity, “Not my will–but may Your will be done,” that comfort comes, that peace comes.

A Song to Preach to Yourself

This song has fed my soul whenever it rattles around in my brain:

My rest is in heaven, my rest is not here,
Then why do I worry when trials are near!
Be hushed my dark spirit, the worst that can come
But shortens your journey, and hastens you home.

I have died to this world, and am hidden with Christ
So my mind will be set on this:
Glory is certain, for Christ is in me,
Glory is certain, for Christ is in me.

I dare not be seeking my comfort and bliss,
Or building my hopes in a place such as this;
I look for the city God promised and built,
Where Jesus has banished my sin and its guilt.

Afflictions may press me but cannot destroy,
One glimpse of His love turns them all into joy;
The tears of a lifetime will vanish away
When He stoops to dry them on that coming day.

So let Satan’s army assail me full force;
Their plans cannot help but to steady my course.
Come joys or come sorrows, whate’er may befall
An hour with my Savior will sweeten them all.

-Henry Lyte (1793-1847), updated by David L. Ward

Walking to Emmaus

by Fritz von Uhde

Note the bowed heads and the short steps; these listeners who do not realize how focused they are. Note also the gentle power of the deep greens, possibly emphasizing the life-giving nature of Jesus’ words. I had always pictured the walk to Emmaus as dry and dusty, but now von Uhde has given me a fresh sense of mystery surrounding this short but magical event. See Luke 24:13-35.

A borrowed prayer

Savior shine and cheer my soul,

Bid my dying hopes revive;

Make my wounded spirit whole,

Far away the tempter drive:

Speak the word and set me free,

Let me live alone to thee.

- John Newton, Olney Hymns #44