Transforming Power {J.R. Miller}

“Simon he surnamed Peter.”

Mark 3:16

In a gallery in Europe are shown, side by side, the first and the last works of a great artist. The first is very rude and most faulty; the last is a masterpiece. The contrast shows the results of long culture and practice.

These two names are like those two pictures. “Simon” shows us the rude fisherman of Galilee, with all his rashness, his ignorance, his imperfectness. “Peter” shows us the apostle of the Acts and the Epistles, the rock firm and secure, the man of great power, before whose Spirit-filled eloquence thousands of proud hearts bow, swayed like the trees of the forest before the tempest; the gentle, tender soul whose words fall like a benediction; the noble martyr witnessing to the death for his Lord. Study the two pictures together to see what grace can do for a man.

It is not hard to take roses, lilies, fuchsias, and all the rarest flowers, and with them make forms of exquisite beauty; but to take weeds, dead grasses, dried leaves trampled and torn, and faded flowers, and make lovely things out of such materials, is the severest test of skill. It would not be hard to take an angel and train him into a glorious messenger; but to take such a man as Simon, or as Saul, or as John Newton, or as John Bunyan, and make out of him a holy saint or a mighty apostle, that is the test of power. Yet that is what Christ did and has been doing ever since. He takes the poorest stuff, despised and worthless, outcast of men ofttimes, and when He has finished His gracious work we behold a saint whiter than snow.

The sculptor beheld an angel in the rough, blackened stone, rejected and thrown away; and when men saw the stone again, lo! there was the angel cut from the block. Christ can take us, rough and unpolished as we are, and in His hands our lives shall grow into purity and loveliness, until He presents them at last before the throne, faultless and perfect.

Drawing Near

But it is good for me to draw near to God:

I have put my trust in the Lord GOD,

that I may declare all thy works.

 Psalms 73:28

The Cross Was His Own {unknown}

They borrowed a bed to lay his head,

When Christ the Lord came down;

They borrowed an ass in the mountain pass

For Him to ride to town;

But the crown that He wore

And the cross that He bore

Were His Own.

 

He borrowed the bread when the crowd He fed

On the grassy mountainside;

He borrowed the dish of broken fish

With which He satisfied;

But the crown that He wore

And the cross that He bore

Were His Own.

 

He borrowed the ship in which to sit

To teach the multitude;

He borrowed the nest in which to rest,

He had never a home so rude;

But the crown that He wore

And the cross that He bore

Were His Own.

 

He borrowed a room on the way to the tomb

The Passover lamb to eat;

They borrowed a cave, for Him a grave,

They borrowed a winding sheet;

But the crown that He wore

And the cross that He bore

Were His Own.

 

The thorns in His head were worn in my stead;

For me the Saviour died;

For the guilt of my sin the nails drove in

When Him they crucified;

Though the crown that He wore

And the cross that He bore

Were His own,

They rightly were mine – instead.

They Came unto Him {J.R. Miller}

“He … calleth unto him whom he would: and they came unto him.”

Mark 3:13

That is the way Jesus is doing continually—standing and calling men to come to Him. And here we see the way every one who hears His voice should answer,—leave the world’s company, step boldly out, cross over the line and take his place by the side of Jesus.

There are several things to be said about the way these men responded to Christ’s call. They did it freely. Although He had chosen them out of a whole nation, and called them, there was no compulsion laid upon them to go with Him. They could have refused if they had chosen. Christ never makes disciples by force. We must be willing, and must choose to come to Him.

Then they responded promptly. There was no hesitation. They said nothing about considering the matter for a while. They did not talk about being unfit or unworthy. They did not tell Jesus they were afraid they could not continue faithful. They did not say, “To-morrow we will go.” The moment they heard their names called they answered.

Then their answer was given in a way that could be understood. Whenever they heard the call they stepped out with firm tread, and crossing over the space between the crowd and the Master, they joined themselves to Him. It was not done secretly. They did not wait till they were alone with Him, and then tell Him quietly that they had resolved to accept His invitation. They did not propose to become His disciples, and yet stay among their old friends, and keep on at their old business. They immediately separated themselves from the people about them and went over to Him, putting themselves absolutely into His hands, to be His and to do His bidding so long as they lived. This is the way these men started, and this is the way everyone should start whom Jesus calls to be His disciple.

Jesus’ Wonderful Works

And there are also many other things which Jesus did,

the which, if they should be written every one,

I suppose that even the world itself

could not contain the books that should be written.

Amen.

John 21:25

Power to Raise {C.H. Spurgeon}

The Lord openeth the eyes of the blind: the Lord raiseth them that are bowed down. (Psalm l46:8 )

Am I bowed down? Then let me urge this word of grace before the Lord. It is His way, His custom, His promise, His delight, to raise up them that are bowed down. Is it a sense of sin and a consequent depression of spirit which distresses me? Then the work of Jesus is, in this case, made and provided to raise me up into rest. O Lord, raise me, for Thy mercy’s sake!

Is it a sad bereavement or a great fall in circumstances? Here again the Comforter has undertaken to console. What a mercy for us that one Person of the sacred Trinity should become the Comforter! This work will be well done since such a glorious One has made it His peculiar care.

Some are so bowed down that only Jesus can loose them from their infirmity, but He can, and He will, do it. He can raise us up to health, to hope, to happiness. He has often done so under former trials, and He is the same Savior and will repeat His deeds of lovingkindness. We who are today bowed down and sorrowful shalt yet be set on high, and those who now mock at us shall be greatly ashamed. What an honor to be raised up by the Lord! It is worthwhile to be bowed down that we may experience His upraising power.

Lessons in the Valley {unknown}

“I have been through the valley of weeping,
The valley of sorrow and pain;
But the ‘God of all comfort’ was with me,
At hand to uphold and sustain.

“As the earth needs the clouds and sunshine,
Our souls need both sorrow and joy;
So He places us oft in the furnace,
The dross from the gold to destroy.

“When He leads thro’ some valley of trouble
His omnipotent hand we trace;
For the trials and sorrows He sends us,
Are part of His lessons in grace.

“Oft we shrink from the purging and pruning,
Forgetting the Husbandman knows
That the deeper the cutting and paring,
The richer the cluster that grows.

“Well He knows that affliction is needed;
He has a wise purpose in view,
And in the dark valley He whispers,
‘Hereafter thou’lt know what I do.’

“As we travel thro’ life’s shadow’d valley,
Fresh springs of His love ever rise;
And we learn that our sorrows and losses,
Are blessings just sent in disguise.

“So we’ll follow wherever He leadeth,
Let the path be dreary or bright;
For we’ve proved that our God can give comfort;
Our God can give songs in the night.”

Salvation, a Must

Neither is there salvation in any other:

for there is none other name under heaven given among men,

whereby we must be saved.

Acts 4:12

Comforted {J.R. Miller}

“Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.”

Matthew 5:4

We do not usually regard sorrowing people as blessed. Here, however, is a special beatitude for mourners. In particular, Jesus probably meant penitent mourners. In all this world there is nothing so precious before God as tears of contrition; no diamonds or pearls shine with such brilliance in His sight. It was Jesus Himself Who said, “there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth”. Truly blessed, therefore, are those who in true penitence grieve over their sins; a holy light shines from heaven upon all such mourners. They are comforted with God’s pardon and peace.

But no doubt the beatitude refers also to those children of God who are in sorrow, from whatever cause. Blessing is never nearer to us than when we are in affliction. If we do not get it, it is because we will not receive it. Some day we shall see that we have gotten our best things from heaven, not in the days of our earthly joy and gladness, but in the times of trial and affliction.

Tears are lenses through which our dim eyes see more deeply into heaven and look more fully upon God’s face than in any other way. Sorrows cleanse our hearts of earthliness and fertilize our lives. The days of pain really do far more for us than the days of rejoicing. We grow best when clouds hang over us, because clouds bear rain, and rain refreshes. Then God’s comfort is such a rich experience that it is well worth while to endure trial, just to enjoy the sweet and precious comfort which God gives in it.

But to receive from our sorrows their possibilities of blessing, we must accept the affliction as a messenger from God, and pray for true comfort, not the mere drying of our tears, but grace to profit by our affliction, and to get from it the peaceable fruit of righteousness.

What is it to be Patient?

The suffering of afflictions, pain, toil,

calamity, provocation or other evil,

with a calm, unruffled temper;

endurance without murmuring or fretfulness.

Patience may spring from constitutional fortitude,

from a kind of heroic pride,

or from christian submission to the divine will.

{Webster’s 1828 Dictionary}

The Weaver {unknown}

My life is but a weaving

between the Lord and me.

I cannot choose the colours;

He worketh steadily.

 

Oftimes He weaveth sorrow,

and I in foolish pride

forget He sees the upper,

and I the underside.

 

Not ‘til the loom is silent

and the shuttles cease to fly,

shall God unroll the canvas

and explain the reason why.

 

The dark threads are as needful

in the Waver’s skillful hand,

as the threads of gold and silver

in the pattern He has planned.

Christ the Great Healer {J.R. Miller}

“This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.

Luke 4:21

The words had been written seven hundred years before. Now Jesus reads them and says, “I am the One to whom these golden sentences refer. This scripture is fulfilled before your eyes. I am the Anointed One and this is the mission on which I came to this world.”

The whole Old Testament was full of Christ. There were a thousand fingers along its pages, every one pointing to Him. All its types and prophecies and promises were fulfilled when He came, and lived, and died, and was raised up and glorified. It is very interesting to take up Christ’s whole public life and ministry, and show how perfectly He lived out the wonderful mission which the prophet here outlined for Him centuries before He came. He preached the gospel to the poor; He was the friend of the poor. He healed the broken-hearted. Wherever He went the sorrowing and the troubled came flocking around Him. As a magnet draws steel-filings to itself from the heap of rubbish, so there was something in Him that drew the sad to Him.

There are two classes always of the broken-hearted. There are those whose hearts are broken because of sin. There are those who are crushed by affliction. Both these classes came to Christ. Sinners came, and found in Him not a stern, censorious Judge, but a tender, compassionate Saviour. The afflicted came and found true comfort.

He loved all men and sympathized with them, and was able to help them. Then He also brought deliverance to sin’s captives, setting them free, breaking their chains. He opened blind eyes; not only the natural eyes to see the beautiful things of this world, but the spiritual eyes as well, to behold the things of heaven and everlasting life. Then He lifted the yoke of the crushed or oppressed, inviting all the weary to Himself to find rest to their souls. Thus His whole life was simply the filling up of this outline sketch.