An Explanation of Trials

 

APRIL 29 An Explanation of Trials

You are my refuge in the day of disaster. Jeremiah 17:17

The path of the Christian is not always bright with sunshine; he has his seasons of darkness and of storm. It is true that God’s Word says, “Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace”;1 and it is a great truth that faith is calculated to give a man happiness below as well as bliss above. But life confirms that if the experience of the righteous is “like the light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day,”2 sometimes that light is eclipsed. At certain periods clouds cover the believer’s sun, and he walks in darkness and sees no light. There are many who have rejoiced in the presence of God for a season; they have basked in the sunshine in the early stages of their Christian life; they have walked along the “green pastures” by the side of the “still waters.” But suddenly they find that the glorious sky is clouded; instead of the promised land they have to endure the wilderness; in place of sweet waters, they find troubled streams, bitter to their taste, and they say, “Surely, if I were a child of God, this would not happen.” Do not say that if you are walking in darkness. The best of God’s saints must drink the bitter potion; the dearest of His children must bear the cross. No Christian has enjoyed perpetual prosperity; no believer can always keep his heart in constant tune. Perhaps the Lord gave you in the beginning a smooth and unclouded path because you were weak and timid. He moderated the wind on account of your weakness, but now that you are stronger in the spiritual life, you must enter upon the riper and rougher experience of God’s full-grown children. We need winds and tempests to exercise our faith, to tear off the rotten branches of self-reliance, and to root us more firmly in Christ. The day of evil reveals to us the value of our glorious hope.

Proverbs 3:17 Proverbs 4:18 Because of Jesus, Ted

Claiming God’s Promises

 

APRIL 28 Claiming God’s Promises

Remember your word to your servant, in which you have made me hope. Psalm 119:49

Whatever your particular need may be, you will find some promise in the Bible related to it. Are you faint and feeble because your way is rough and you are weary? Here is the promise—“He gives power to the faint.”1 When you read such a promise, take it back to the great Promiser and ask Him to fulfill His own word. Are you seeking for Christ and thirsting for closer communion with Him? This promise shines like a star upon you—“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”2 Take that promise to the throne continually; do not plead anything else, but go to God over and over again with this—“Lord, You have said it; do as You have said.” Are you distressed because of sin and burdened with the heavy load of your iniquities? Listen to these words—“I, I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins.”3 You have no merit of your own to plead why He should pardon you, but plead His written promises and He will perform them. Are you afraid that you might not be able to hold on to the end and that after having thought yourself a child of God you should prove a castaway? If that is your condition, take this word of grace to the throne and plead it: “The mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you.”4 If you have lost the sweet sense of the Savior’s presence and are seeking Him with a sorrowful heart, remember the promises: “Return to me . . . and I will return to you.”5 “For a brief moment I deserted you, but with great compassion I will gather you.”6 Feast your faith upon God’s own Word, and whatever your fears or wants, take them to the Bank of Faith with your Father’s note, which reads, “Remember your word to your servant, in which you have made me hope.” 7

Isaiah 40:29 Matthew 5:6 Isaiah 43:25 Isaiah 54:10 Zechariah 1:3 Isaiah 54:7 Psalm 119:49 Because of Jesus, Ted

Come Away

 

APRIL 25 Come Away

Arise, my love, my beautiful one, and come away. Song of Songs 2:10

I hear the voice of my Beloved! He speaks to me! Fair weather is smiling upon the face of the earth, and He does not want me to be spiritually asleep while nature is all around me awaking from her winter’s rest. He bids me “Arise,” as well He might, for I have been lying long enough among the weeds of worldliness. He is risen, and I am risen in Him; so why should I still cleave to the dust? From lower loves, desires, pursuits, and aspirations, I want to rise to Him. He calls me by the sweet title “my love” and counts me “beautiful”; this is a good argument for my rising. If He has exalted me and thinks me fair, how can I linger in the tents of wickedness and make my friends in the wrong company? He bids me “Come away”; further and further from everything selfish, groveling, worldly, sinful, He calls me; yes, from the outwardly religious world that doesn’t know Him and has no sympathy with the mystery of godliness. “Come away” has no harsh sound to my ear, and what is there to hold me in this wilderness of vanity and sin? My Lord, I want desperately to come away, but I am held among the thorns and cannot escape from them as I wish. I would, if it were possible, close my eyes and ears and heart to sin. You call me to Yourself by saying, “Come away,” and this is indeed a melodious call. To come to You is to come home from exile, to reach the shore out of the raging storm, to finally rest after hard labor, to reach the goal of my desires and the summit of my wishes. But, Lord, how can a stone rise; how can a lump of clay come away from the horrible pit? Please raise me; draw me by Your grace. Send Your Holy Spirit to kindle sacred flames of love in my heart, and I will continue to rise until one day I will leave life and time behind me and come away indeed. Because of Jesus, Ted

Remember Me

 

APRIL 26 Remember Me

Do this in remembrance of me. 1 Corinthians 11:24

It appears that Christians may forget Christ! There would be no need for this loving exhortation if there were not a fearful possibility that our memories might prove treacherous. Nor is this an empty notion: It is, sadly too well confirmed in our experience, not as a possibility, but as a lamentable fact. It appears almost impossible that those who have been redeemed by the blood of the dying Lamb and loved with an everlasting love by the eternal Son of God could forget that gracious Savior; but if startling to the ear, sadly it is too apparent to the eye to allow us to deny the crime. Forget Him who never forgot us! Forget Him who poured His blood out for our sins! Forget Him who loved us even to death! Can it be possible? Yes, it is not only possible, but conscience confesses that it is too sadly a fault with all of us that we treat Him as a stranger, like an overnight guest. Instead of Him being a permanent resident in our memories, we treat Him as a visitor. The cross where one would expect that memory would linger and disinterest would be an unknown intruder is desecrated by the feet of forgetfulness. Doesn’t your conscience say that this is true? Don’t you find yourselves forgetful of Jesus? Some other love steals away your heart, and you are unmindful of Him upon whom your affection ought to be set. Some earthly business engrosses your attention when you ought to be fixed steadily upon the cross. It is the incessant turmoil of the world, the constant attraction of earthly things, that takes the soul away from Christ. While memory works to preserve a poisonous weed, it allows the rose of Sharon to wither. Let us charge ourselves to tie a heavenly forget-me-not around our hearts for Jesus our Beloved, and whatever else we let slip, let us hold tight to Him. Because of Jesus, Ted

Our Fault

 

APRIL 27 Our Fault

God, our God, shall bless us. Psalm 67:6

It is strange how little use we make of the spiritual blessings that God gives us, but it is even stranger that we make such little use of God Himself. Though He is “our God,” we scarcely give ourselves to Him, and we ask so little of Him. How seldom do we seek counsel at the hands of the Lord! How often do we go about our business without seeking His guidance! In our troubles how we constantly struggle to bear our burdens ourselves instead of casting them upon the Lord, that He may sustain us! This is not because we may not, for the Lord seems to say, “I am yours, soul; come and make use of Me as you will. You may freely come to My store, and the more you come, the more welcome you will be.” It is our own fault if we do not enjoy the riches of our God. Since you have such a friend, and He invites you, draw from Him daily. Never be wanting while you have a God to go to; never fear or faint while you have God to help you; go to your treasure and take whatever you need—there is all that you can ever want. Learn the divine skill of making God all things to you. He can supply you with everything; or better still, He can be everything to you. Let me urge you, then, to make use of your God. Make use of Him in prayer. Go to Him often, because He is your God. Will you fail to use such a great privilege? Run to Him; tell Him all your needs. Use Him constantly by faith at all times. If some dark providence has cast a shadow on you, use God as a sun; if some strong enemy has attacked you, find in Jehovah a shield, for He is a sun and shield to His people. If you have lost your way in the mazes of life, use Him as a guide, for He will direct you. Whatever you are, and wherever you are, remember, God is just what you want and just where you want, and that He can do everything you want. Because of Jesus, Ted

Renew Your Covenant

 

APRIL 24 Renew Your Covenant

Because of all this we make a firm covenant. Nehemiah 9:38

There are many occasions in our experience when we may very rightly, and with benefit, renew our covenant with God. After recovery from sickness when, like Hezekiah, we have had a new lease of years added to our life, we may do so appropriately. After any deliverance from trouble, when our joys spring forth anew, let us again visit the foot of the cross and renew our consecration. Especially let us do this after any sin that has grieved the Holy Spirit or brought dishonor upon the cause of God; let us then look to that blood that can make us whiter than snow and again offer ourselves to the Lord. We should not only let our troubles confirm our dedication to God, but our prosperity should do the same. If we ever meet with occasions that deserve to be called “crowning mercies,” then surely, if He has crowned us, we ought also to crown our God; let us bring out again all the jewels of the divine regalia that have been stored in the jewel-closet of our heart, and let our God sit upon the throne of our love, arrayed in royal apparel. If we could learn to profit by our prosperity, we would not need to face so much adversity. If we would gather from a kiss all the good it might confer upon us, we would not have to bear the imprint of punishment so often. Have we recently received some blessing that we hadn’t expected? Has the Lord opened our way? Can we sing of mercies multiplied? Then this is the day to put our hand upon the horns of the altar and say, “Bind me here, my God; bind me here with cords, even forever.” Just as we need the fulfillment of new promises from God, let us offer renewed prayers that our old vows may not be dishonored. This morning let us make with Him a firm covenant because of the sacrifice of Jesus that we have been considering with gratitude for the last month. Because of Jesus, Ted

Has He Forsaken You?

 

APRIL 15 Has He Forsaken You?

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Psalm 22:1

Here we view the Savior in the depth of His sorrows. No other place displays the griefs of Christ like this, and no other moment at Calvary is so full of agony as when His cry rends the air My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? At this moment physical weakness was united with acute mental torture from the shame and ignominy through which He had to pass; His grief culminated in suffering the spiritual agony beyond all telling that resulted from the departure of His Father's presence. This was the black midnight of His horror when He descended the abyss of suffering. No man can enter into the full meaning of these words. Some of us think at times that we could cry, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? There are seasons when the brightness of our Father's smile is eclipsed by clouds and darkness; but let us remember that God never really does forsake us. It is only a seeming forsaking with us, but in Christ's case it was a real forsaking. We grieve at a little withdrawal of our Father’s love; but the real turning away of God's face from His Son who can calculate how deep the agony that caused Him? In our case, our cry is often dictated by unbelief: In His case, it was the utterance of a dreadful fact, for God had really turned away from Him for a season. Poor, distressed soul who once lived in the sunshine of God's face but now in darkness, remember that He has not really forsaken you. God in the clouds is as much our God as when He shines forth in all the beauty of His grace; but since even the thought that He has forsaken us gives us agony, what must the suffering of the Savior have been when He exclaimed, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? HE Never Will! Because of Jesus, Ted

I Know

 

APRIL 21 I Know

I know that my Redeemer lives. Job 19:25

The essence of Job’s comfort lies in the little word “my”—“my Redeemer”—and in the fact that the Redeemer lives. Oh, to get hold of a living Christ. We must get a share in Him before we can enjoy Him. What is gold to me while it is still in the mine? It is gold in my possession that will satisfy my necessities by purchasing the things I need. So a Redeemer who does not redeem me, an avenger who will never stand up for my blood, what benefit is there in that? Do not rest content until by faith you can say, “Yes, I cast myself upon my living Lord; and He is mine.” You may hold Him with a feeble hand and half think it presumption to say, “He lives as my Redeemer.” But remember, if you have faith even as a grain of mustard seed, that little faith entitles you to say it. But there is also another word here, which expresses Job’s strong confidence: “I know.” To say, “I hope so, I trust so” is comfortable, and there are thousands in the fold of Jesus who hardly ever get much further. But to reach the essence of consolation you must say, “I know.” Ifs, buts, and maybes are sure destroyers of peace and comfort. Doubts are dreary things in times of sorrow. Like wasps they sting the soul! If I have any suspicion that Christ is not mine, then there is vinegar mingled with the gall of death. But if I know that Jesus lives for me, then darkness is not dark: Even the night is light about me. Surely if Job, in those ages before the coming of Christ, could say, “I know,” we should not speak less positively. God forbid that our positiveness should be presumption. Let us make sure that our evidences are right, in case we build upon an ungrounded hope; and then let us not be satisfied with the mere foundation, for it is from the upstairs rooms that we get the panoramic views. A living Redeemer, truly mine, is unspeakable joy. Because of Jesus, Ted

Exalted With Him

 

APRIL 22 Exalted with Him

God exalted him. Acts 5:31

Jesus, our Lord, who once was crucified, dead, and buried, now sits upon the throne of glory. The highest place that heaven affords is His by undisputed right. It is vital and helpful to remember that the exaltation of Christ in heaven is a representative exaltation. He is exalted at the Father’s right hand, and though as Jehovah He had eminent glories, in which finite creatures cannot share, yet as the Mediator, the honors that Jesus wears in heaven are the heritage of all the saints. It is delightful to think of how close Christ’s union is with His people. We are actually one with Him; we are members of His body; and His exaltation is our exaltation. He will allow us to sit upon His throne, even as He has overcome and is seated with His Father on His throne. He has a crown, and He gives us crowns too. He has a throne, but He is not content with having a throne to Himself; on His right hand there must be His queen, dressed in fine gold. He cannot be glorified without His bride. Look up, believer, to Jesus now. Let the eye of your faith see Him with many crowns upon His head; and remember that one day you will be like Him, when you will see Him as He is. You shall not be as great as He is, you will not be as divine; but you will, in some measure, share the same honors and enjoy the same happiness and the same dignity that He possesses. Be content to live unknown for a little while and to walk your weary way through the fields of poverty or up the hills of affliction; for soon enough you will reign with Christ, for He has “made [us] a kingdom and priests to our God,” and we shall reign forever and ever.1 What a wonderful thought for the children of God! We have Christ for our glorious representative in heaven’s courts right now, and soon He will come and receive us to Himself, to be with Him there, to see His glory and to share His joy.

Revelation 5:10 Because of Jesus, Ted

Torn in Two

 

APRIL 19 Torn in Two

And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. Matthew 27:51

No small miracle was performed in the tearing of so strong and thick a curtain; but it was not intended merely as a display of power—many lessons were contained in it. The old law of ordinances was put away and, like a worn-out garment, torn and set aside. When Jesus died, the sacrifices were all finished, because they were fulfilled in Him; and therefore the place of sacrifice, the temple, was marked with a clear sign of this change. With the curtain torn, all the hidden things of the old dispensation became apparent: The mercy-seat could now be seen, and the glory of God gleaming above it. By the death of our Lord Jesus we have a clear revelation of God, for He was “not like Moses, who would put a veil over his face.”1 Life and immortality are now brought to light, and things that have been hidden since the foundation of the world are displayed in Him. The annual ceremony of atonement was also abolished. The atoning blood that once every year was sprinkled inside the curtain was now offered once for all by the great High Priest, and therefore the place of the symbolical rite was finished. No blood of bullocks or of lambs is needed now, for Jesus has entered inside the curtain with his own blood. Therefore access to God is now permittedand is the privilege of every believer in Christ Jesus. It is not just a small opening through which we may peer at the mercy-seat, but the tear reaches from the top to the bottom. We may come with boldness to the throne of heavenly grace. Is it wrong to suggest that the opening of the Holy of Holies in this marvelous manner by our Lord’s expiring cry was signifying the opening of the gates of paradise to all the saints by virtue of the Passion? Our bleeding Lord has the key of heaven; He opens and no man shuts; let us enter in with Him to the heavenly places and sit with Him there until our common enemies shall be made His footstool.

2 Corinthians 3:13 Because of Jesus, Ted

 

Evidence and Answers

Evidence and Answers is a category where you can easily find information defending the Christian faith.  It covers topics including the reliability of the Bible, biblical people, answers to objections, and much more.

“Then He said to Thomas, ‘Reach here your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand, and put it into My side; and be not unbelieving, but believing,’” (John 20:27).

 

Introduction

• Introduction to Evidence and Answers
• What does it mean that the Bible is inspired and inerrant?
• The Miracles of Jesus

Evidence supporting the Bible

• Manuscript Evidence for Superior New Testament Reliability
• Illustration of Bible text manuscript tree and variant readings
• Non-biblical accounts of New Testament events and/or people
• Archaeological Evidence verifying biblical cities
• The writings of Josephus mention many biblical people and places
• When were the gospels written and by whom?
• Evidence of biblical inspiration
• Is the battle of Jericho in Joshua a real historical event?
• Archaeology, the Bible, and Jeroboam son of Nebat
• En Gedi and the accuracy of Scripture
• Archaeology, history, and Paul’s arrest and trial at Jerusalem and Caesarea
• New Testament figures attested in other early historical sources
• The historicity of Acts 12 and the death of Herod Agrippa I
• Was Barabbas a real person or just a literary device?
• Did Barabbas’ insurrection actually happen?

Answers to Questions about the Bible

• Can we trust the New Testament as a historical document?
• Wasn’t the New Testament written hundreds of years after Christ?
• Hasn’t the Bible been rewritten so many times it can’t be trusted?
• Has the New Testament been corrupted?
• Has the Old Testament been corrupted?
• Since the NT writers were biased, can we trust what they wrote?
• What is the gospel of Q and does it prove the Gospels are false?
• Why isn’t there other evidence of the massacre of the babies?
• Why isn’t there any record of millions of Jews wandering in the desert?
• Do the lost books of the Bible prove that the Bible has been altered?
• Is there non-biblical evidence of a day of darkness at the crucifixion?
• Do references to camels in Genesis prove the Bible is false?

Evidence supporting biblical manuscripts

• Papyri, p1 through p76; 200 AD to 700 AD copies
• Letter Uncials; 4th to 10th-century copies
• Numbered Uncials, 046 through 0250; 2nd to 14th-century copies
• Numbered Minuscules, 1 through 1985; 9th to 16th-century copies
• Minuscules, 2 through 399; 9th to 16th-century copies
• Minuscules, 404 through 999; 8th to 16th-century copies
• Minuscules, 1012 through 2768; 9th to 16th-century copies

Evidence supporting Jesus’ existence

• Regarding the quotes from the historian Josephus about Jesus
• The writings of Josephus mention many biblical people and places
• 1 Cor. 15:3-4 demonstrates a creed too early for a legend to corrupt
• An analysis of the pre-Pauline creed in 1 Corinthians 15:1-11

Evidence supporting Jesus’ claim to be the Messiah

• Does Isaiah 53 predict that Jesus would be the Messiah?
• Does Daniel 9:24-27 predict the coming of Jesus?
• Does Micah 5:2 predict that Jesus would be the Messiah?
• Does Zechariah 12:10 predict that Jesus would be the Messiah?
• Is Psalm 22 a Messianic Prophecy?

Answers to objections concerning Jesus’ miracles and resurrection

• Is the Easter Story of Jesus’ Resurrection True?
• Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence
• Does the Bible provide extraordinary evidence for Jesus’ resurrection?
• It is improbable that Jesus rose from the dead
• The Christians were mistaken about Jesus’ resurrection
• The New Testament writers conspired together to gain power
• Jesus was a magician who made people hallucinate about His miracles
• Jesus only appeared to have died on the cross – Swoon Theory
• The disciples stole Jesus’ body and faked His resurrection
• There are no non-biblical accounts to the resurrection
• Miracles cannot happen
• Has the tomb of Jesus been found?
• Is there historical evidence of Jesus’ miracles?
• What is the Nazareth Inscription?

Answers to Questions about Jesus

• Was Jesus just a myth?
• Did Jesus really die on the cross?
• Is the empty tomb of Jesus historical?
• Did Jesus rise from the dead? An outline
• Did Jesus rise from the dead?
• Was the resurrection story of Jesus borrowed from pagan mythology?
• Didn’t Jesus simply rise in a non-physical, spirit form?
• If Jesus is God in flesh, why did He not inherit original sin?
• Can’t all of Jesus’ miracles be explained naturally?

Other Objections answered

• Are the New Testament themes found in the Old Testament?
• Apollonius of Tyana also did miracles and rose. What about him?
• Doesn’t Mithra prove that Christians borrowed from this myth?
• Why believe in Christianity over all other religions?

Answers to Questions about other things

• If God is all-powerful and loving, why is there suffering in the world?
• A loving God would never send anyone to hell
• Is there physical evidence that God is real?
• It is intolerant to say that Christianity is the only true religion
• Why did animals have to die for the sins of Adam and Eve and others?
• Why would God have to die to save people from Himself?
• If God is not the author of confusion, what about the Tower of Babel?
• If babies go to heaven when they die, why is abortion wrong?
• How do we know Christianity is true and we are not deceived?