“The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; for the Lord upholds him with His hand” (Ps 37:23-24). For the Christian, failure is not final; in fact, failure is an opportunity to begin again, this time […]
CHRIST the SPOILER of principalities and powers (Col. 2:15). To the eye of reason, the cross is the center of sorrow and the lowest depth of shame. In the midst of mockery, jest, scorn, and blasphemy, He dies. Earth rejects Him, and heaven affords Him no light, but darkens the midday sun in the hour […]
“And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’” (Lk 18:13). What a prayer to offer! It opens Heaven to every undeserving sinner. It could be rightly translated, “God, be to me, the sinner, as […]
“The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, and will cast them into a furnace of fire; there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth” (Mt 13:41-42). Count the frail and fragrant blossoms spring has scattered through […]
“As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God…” (Ps 42:1-2). The singular passion to which you may give yourself wholeheartedly without it corrupting you is the passion for God: this is the one and only magnificent obsession. […]
CHRIST our HELPER: “So we may boldly say: ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?’” (Heb 13:6). Robert Lee was the Superintendent of the Manchester (England) City Mission from 1924 to 1947. It was a united ministry linking practical good works with the power of the Good […]
“So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom” (Ps 90:12, KJV). Our days on this planet are so short that the psalmist described them this way: “You have made my days as handbreadths, and my age is as nothing before You; certainly every man at his best state […]
“I think myself happy, King Agrippa, because today I shall answer for myself before you concerning all the things of which I am accused by the Jews” (Acts 26:2). Happiness is a decision, not a consequence; some people, in the most favorable circumstances are miserable, while others, in the midst of adversity, shine in the […]
“Jesus on the judgment throne will be consternation for His enemies and consolation for His people.” —J. Murray Psalm 9 will be a shocker on several counts. First, its subject is judgment. Not a-slap-on-the-wrist judgment, but the kind where David says to the Lord, “You have destroyed the wicked; You have blotted out their name forever […]