March 19
Morning
"Strong in faith." — Rom_4:20
Christian, take good care of thy faith; for recollect faith is the only
way whereby thou canst obtain blessings. If we want blessings from God, nothing
can fetch them down but faith. Prayer cannot draw down answers from God's
throne except it be the earnest prayer of the man who believes. Faith is the
angelic messenger between the soul and the Lord Jesus in glory. Let that angel
be withdrawn, we can neither send up prayer, nor receive the answers. Faith is
the telegraphic wire which links earth and heaven-on which God's messages of
love fly so fast, that before we call he answers, and while we are yet speaking
he hears us. But if that telegraphic wire of faith be snapped, how can we
receive the promise? Am I in trouble?-I can obtain help for trouble by faith.
Am I beaten about by the enemy?-my soul on her dear Refuge leans by faith. But
take faith away-in vain I call to God. There is no road betwixt my soul and
heaven. In the deepest wintertime faith is a road on which the horses of prayer
may travel-aye, and all the better for the biting frost; but blockade the road,
and how can we communicate with the Great King? Faith links me with divinity.
Faith clothes me with the power of God. Faith engages on my side the
omnipotence of Jehovah. Faith ensures every attribute of God in my defence. It
helps me to defy the hosts of hell. It makes me march triumphant over the necks
of my enemies. But without faith how can I receive anything of the Lord? Let
not him that wavereth-who is like a wave of the Sea-expect that he will receive
anything of God! O, then, Christian, watch well thy faith; for with it thou
canst win all things, however poor thou art, but without it thou canst obtain
nothing. "If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that
believeth."
Romans 4:20
staggered: Num_11:13-23;
2Ki_7:2, 2Ki_7:19;
2Ch_20:15-20; Isa_7:9; Jer_32:16-27;
Luk_1:18, Luk_1:45
but was: Isa_35:4;
Dan_10:19, Dan_11:32; Hag_2:4;
Zec_8:9, Zec_8:13;
1Co_16:13; 2Co_12:10; Eph_6:10;
2Ti_2:1
Evening
"And she did eat, and was sufficed, and left." — Rth_2:14
Whenever we are privileged to eat of the bread which Jesus gives, we
are, like Ruth, satisfied with the full and sweet repast. When Jesus is the
host no guest goes empty from the table. Our head is satisfied with the
precious truth which Christ reveals; our heart is content with Jesus, as the
altogether lovely object of affection; our hope is satisfied, for whom have we
in heaven but Jesus? and our desire is satiated, for what can we wish for more
than "to know Christ and to be found in him?" Jesus fills our conscience
till it is at perfect peace; our judgment with persuasion of the certainty of
his teachings; our memory with recollections of what he has done, and our
imagination with the prospects of what he is yet to do. As Ruth was
"sufficed, and left," so is it with us. We have had deep draughts; we
have thought that we could take in all of Christ; but when we have done our
best we have had to leave a vast remainder. We have sat at the table of the
Lord's love, and said, "Nothing but the infinite can ever satisfy me; I am
such a great sinner that I must have infinite merit to wash my sin away;"
but we have had our sin removed, and found that there was merit to spare; we
have had our hunger relieved at the feast of sacred love, and found that there
was a redundance of spiritual meat remaining. There are certain sweet things in
the Word of God which we have not enjoyed yet, and which we are obliged to
leave for awhile; for we are like the disciples to whom Jesus said, "I
have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now." Yes,
there are graces to which we have not attained; places of fellowship nearer to
Christ which we have not reached; and heights of communion which our feet have
not climbed. At every banquet of love there are many baskets of fragments left.
Let us magnify the liberality of our glorious Boaz.
Ruth 2:14
At mealtime: Job_31:16-22;
Pro_11:24-25; Isa_32:8, Isa_58:7,
Isa_58:10-11; Luk_14:12-14
dip thy morsel: Vinegar, robb of fruits, etc.,
are used for this purpose in the East to the present day; into which, says Dr.
Shaw, they dip the bread and hand together.
parched: 1Sa_17:17,
1Sa_25:18; 2Sa_17:28
she did: Deu_8:10,
Deu_11:15; 2Ki_4:43-44; Mat_14:20
was sufficed: Rth_2:18;
Psa_23:5
Daily Devotions.
Extract from
e-Sword- the sword of the LORD with an
electronic edge.
Through the Bible Day by Day.(F.B Meyer)
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