Blog Archives - WELCOME TO THE JOY OF TROY

November 12, 2019

11/12/2019

When thou passeth through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flames kindle upon thee (Isa. 43:2)

    There is no bridge or ferry--we must pass through the deep waters; but the Lord Himself says, "I will be with thee." Enemies may surround us, persecutions and cruel mockings be as a fiery furnace. What shall we do? Walk through them, for "the form of the fourth" (Dan. 3:25) will be by your side, and there shall not be even the smell of fire upon us. Such is the security of heaven-born, heaven-bound pilgrims. The flood cannot drown them, nor the fire burn them.

                                And He walks with me, and He talks with me,
                                And He tells me I am His own.
                                                                                __Austin Miles

    A minister sat down at the bedside of an aged Christian. Pointing to a chair on the other side of the bed facing at such an angle as to suggest that another visitor had just left, he said, "I see I am not your first visitor today."

    "Ah," said the afflicted one. "I'll tell you about that chair. Years ago I found it impossible to pray. Often I would fall asleep on my knees, and if I kept awake, my thoughts would wander. I spoke to a minister about it, and he told me to sit down with a chair opposite me and think of the Lord Jesus sitting in it; and then to talk to Him as to a friend, face to face. I have been doing that ever since, and He has become very real to me. That is why the chair stands like that by my bed." Later that week the good man died with his hand resting on the chair reserved for the Lord.

    Our Savior has promised, "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee" (Heb. 13:5).

MEDITATION PRAYER:  "O God, be not far from me: O my God, make haste for my help" (Ps. 71:12).

November 11, 2019

11/11/2019

Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved (Ps. 55:22).

    We are not to lay our burden down and pick it up again, but to roll it on the Lord and leave it there. It may be a heavy burden, but He is omnipotent. Do not try to bear your burden alone; it is too heavy, it is too much for you. Remember, "he shall sustain thee." He accepts us in Christ as righteous, and He will never suffer us to be moved from our standing before Him. "O Lord, my strength, and my fortress, and my refuge in the day of affliction," prayed His servant Jeremiah (Jer. 16:19).

    Some of the most beautiful characters of earth have been afflicted in their bodies and have borne agonies for years. One such was Nathaniel Kendrick, the founder of Colgate University. He was paralyzed in the prime of life and lay in bed for many years, unable to move. Then it seemed that the majesty of his Christian faith shone forth with power. Once his son said to him, "Father, I have never loved you as I do now. Oh, if I could only bear your pain for you!"

    The reply was: "No, son, I have not one pain to spare. He who allows me to suffer loves me even more than you do and knows just what is best for me. I sometimes think this is the happiest period of my life. His mercies to me are so great."

                                All thy griefs by Him are ordered,
                                        Needful is each one for thee;
                                Every tear by Him is counted,
                                        One too much there cannot be.

                                And if, whilst they fall so thickly,
                                        Thou canst own His way is right,
                                Then each bitter tear of anguish
                                        Precious is in Jesus' sight.

MEDITATION PRAYER:  "In the day of my trouble I will call upon thee: for thou wilt answer me" (Ps. 86:7).

November 10, 2019

11/10/2019

  For the Lord God will help me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed (Isa. 50:7).

    These are prophetically the words of Christ, who would suffer as our sin-bearing substitute. The Son of God, who was also the Son of man, was treated with all the malignity of evil people and demons. In those times of terrible persecution and suffering His heart trusted in God; yet, in His humanity, at the climax of His crucifixion He cried, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" (Matt. 27:46). But in it all He said, "I shall not be confounded." He set His face like a flint to accomplish the salvation of humanity, and in it He was not ashamed. Those who are guided by the Lord will find blessing even in calamity. "Behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth: therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty" (Job 5:17). Out of the evil, God can and will bring good.

    A man had a very rare plant in a flowerpot, close to a pool of water. Although he tended it carefully, it barely kept alive. One day in his absence a careless boy knocked it over, breaking the pot and toppling the plant into the water. When the owner returned weeks later, he noticed the luxuriant growth of an unknown plant coming out of the water. Later he learned that the plant that had languished so in the pot was a water plant. So it is many times with starving, thirsting souls. What seems to be calamity, a great, unmitigated sorrow permitted by what seems to them to be a callous Providence, is really a blessing in disguise--something that beautifies the character and brings out strength and patience and understanding never known before.

    Those who meet disaster and sorrow in true faith are able to say with the psalmist, "I know, O Lord, that thy judgments are right, and that thou in faithfulness hast afflicted me" (Ps. 119:75).

MEDITATION PRAYER:  "It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statues" (Ps. 119:71).

November 9, 2019

11/9/2019

But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom (Matt. 26:29).

    This was our Savior's promise of reunion, as He celebrated the Last Supper with His disciples. The Passover wine used by our Lord was the pure juice of the grape. The prophet Isaiah refers to it when he speaks of "the new wine...in the cluster" (Isa 65:8). Here it represents Christ's "blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins" (Matt. 26:28). By this expression "new testament," or covenant, our Lord means the reconciliation that God has established between Himself and humankind by the atoning sacrifice of His Son upon the cross.

    From what our Lord says here it is clear that the Communion itself is a pledge to all true Christians of the joy that awaits them in the kingdom of glory. Their spiritual enjoyments here are great, but to be with the Lord Himself will be "far better" (Phil. 1:23).

    On a cupboard shelf in the humble cottage of a poor Highland widow was an old cracked cup covered with a glass globe. Years before on a hot day a carriage had stopped at her door, and the woman inside had asked for a drink of water, which was given to her in this very cup. Imagine the widow's astonishment when she learned that the one who had used the cup was Queen Victoria. Her lips had touched it and made it an object of priceless value to the widow.

    The cup that our Master used at the Last Supper has become to all true disciples a symbol of His undying love and sacrifice. As the cup on the widow's shelf reminded her of the queen's visit, so the cup in the Communion service reminds us of our Savior's sacrifice and of His promise, "I [will] drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom."

MEDITATION PRAYER:  "I will sing praise to thy name, O thou most High" (Ps. 9:2).

November 8, 2019

11/8/2019

And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him (Mal. 3:17).

    In connection with this we should read the preceding verse: "Then they that feared the Lord spoke often one to another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon his name."

    In the great Palace Tower of the Parliament buildings in Ottawa, Canada, there is a beautiful room lined with slabs of stone on which are carved the great battles of the First World War, in which the Canadian Army took part. In the center of the room is a white marble altar on which rests the open Book of Remembrance containing the names of those who gave their lives in their country's service. Every day a page is turned, exposing new manes to the visitor's view.

    Our God has a book of remembrance of those who converse about Him. He listens to their talk and records it. Is the Lord pleased with our conversation? Those who please Him in this way are said to be His jewels. "They shall be mine," He says, "when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them." He who has bought us, sought us, and wrought in us His own image will spare us in that day.

    In the National Gallery of London one may see the famous painting of two Roman women in the home of Cornelia, the mother of the Gracchi. The visitor has been exhibiting her jewels, and now says to Cornelia, "Show me your jewels." Just at that moment her two boys enter the room. Clasping them to her, Cornelia replies, "These are my jewels."

    Those who think about God and talk about Him are His jewels. Of all such it is said, "Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God" (Isa. 62:3).

MEDITATION PRAYER: "And my tongue shall speak of thy righteousness and of thy praise all the day long" (Ps. 35:28).

November 7, 2019

11/7/2019

So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the things whereto I sent it (Isa. 55:11).

    As the rain and snow falling upon the earth make possible the production of food for human bodies, so shall the Word of God bring forth spiritual food to the hearts of those who feed upon it. God's Word always accomplishes the purpose for which He sends it. It never returns void, but always laden with a harvest. it is sure to accomplish that which He pleases, and it prospers in the thing whereto He sends it.

    God sends His Word on definite errands. "He sendeth forth his commandment upon earth: his word runneth very swiftly" (Ps. 147:15). The entire process of nature "is turned round about by his counsels: that they may do whatsoever he commandeth them upon the face of the world in the earth" (Job 37:12). And in the affairs of humanity His Word accomplishes His purpose and does not return void.

    A little girl unwittingly expressed a great truth when she said, "I tell you, the Bible does not end in Timothy; it ends in revolutions." Of course, she meant Revelation; but, as Toyohiko Kagawa once said: "When you start a Bible movement it means revolution, a quiet revolution against darkness and crime."

    The Word of God changes civilizations and nations by changing hearts. Every regenerated believer is born again "by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever" (1 Peter 1:23).

                                'Tis a pearl of price exceeding
                                        All the gems in ocean found;
                                And, its sacred precepts heeding,
                                        So shall you in grace abound.

MEDITATION PRAYER: "Stablish thy word unto thy servant, who is devoted to thy fear" (Ps. 119:38).

November 6, 2019

11/6/2019

  For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection (Rom. 6:5).

    Our Savior died upon the cross, was buried in Joseph's new tomb, and rose again victorious over death. In baptism we are planted together with Him in the likeness of His death, and rise again in the likeness of His resurrection. This shows (1) that we have faith in His death and resurrection for us; (2) that our old man of sin is dead and buried, and we rise to live a new life; (3) that we believe that if we are taken by death we shall rise again in the first resurrection and live eternally with our Lord. "Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life" (Rom. 6:4).

    When we see the meaning of baptism, there is no doubt as to its form. We read of the baptism of the chancellor of Ethiopia by Phillip: "And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Phillip and the eunuch; and he baptized him" (Acts 8:38). Our Savior was baptized in the Jordan, not because He was a sinner, but that He might "fulfill all righteousness," and also be our example. There is "one Lord, one faith, one baptism" (Eph. 4:5).

    A minister went to what is said to be the tomb of Jesus in Jerusalem, and lay down in it. He felt that he had been buried with Christ, but he was really buried with Him when he went with Him into the watery grave of baptism.

                                Thus through the emblematic grave
                                        The glorious suffering Savoir trod;
                                Thou art our Pattern, through the wave
                                        We follow Thee, blest Son of God.
                                                                                __S. F. Smith

MEDITATION PRAYER:  "For thy lovingkindness is before mine eyes: and I have walked in thy truth" (Ps. 26:3).

November 5, 2019

11/5/2019

For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming (1 Cor. 15:22, 23).

    All sinned in Adam; all rise in Christ. "But every man in his own order." As Hugh Fausset reminds us, the Greek here uses the figure of troops, "each in his own regiment." All will rise, but all will not be saved. Each will have their proper place--Christ first (Col 1:18); after Him, those who are Christ's at His coming. "For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven...: and the dead in Christ shall rise first" (1 Thess. 4:16). This is the first resurrection, the resurrection unto life. "Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection" (Rev. 20:6). "Then cometh the end" (1 Cor. 15:24), with the resurrection of "the rest of the dead," which live "not again until the thousand years [are] finished"--the wicked (Rev. 20:5).

    It is those who are Christ's who obtain the resurrection from the dead in the highest sense. As surely as our Savior rose from the dead, so shall all those who are His. Jesus said, "Every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day" (John 6:40).

    An Army chaplain tells of having bivouacked with his brigade, each soldier wrapped in his blanket with nothing over him but the cold, cloud sky. During the night snow fell. Early in the morning the chaplain looked out over the field and saw long rows of little mounds of new graves all covered with snow. Suddenly reveille sounded. There was a stir and a shaking of snow as hundreds of men stood up in momentary amazement at the sight. So will it be at the last trump, when those in Christ arise.

MEDITATION PRAYER:  "Return, O Lord, deliver my soul: oh save me for thy mercies' sake. For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who shall give thee thanks?" (Ps. 6:4, 5).

November 4, 2019

11/4/2019

Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; there shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling (Ps. 91:9, 10).

    When the 10 strokes of God were falling upon old Egypt land, no harm came to anyone in a dwelling marked with the blood sign over the door on that terrible night of the firstborn. "When I see the blood, I will pass over you" was the promise (Ex. 12:13). So in the latter days of earth, during the seven last plagues, no plague shall come nigh the dwelling of one of God's children.

    In ancient Israel those who fled to the city of refuge to escape the avenger's blood must, for their own safety, remain there until the death of the high priest. His death meant life to them. So it is with the followers of the religion of Jesus Christ. Christ, our high priest, has died for us, and we are safe only "under the blood."

    It is those who make the Most High not only their refuge but their habitation who have this promise. They are the ones who dwell in God. They know that "the name of the Lord is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe" (Prov. 18:10).

    From the beginning of time, people of faith have really dwelt in God. "Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations. Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God" (Ps. 90:1, 2). It is the person who dwells in the secret place of the Most His who abides under the shadow of the Almighty (Ps. 91:1). And to all such, these words of Moses apply: "The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms" (Deut. 33:27).

MEDITATION PRAYER:  "Give us help from trouble: for vain is the help of man" (Ps. 108:12).

November 3, 2019

11/3/2019

Call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me (Ps. 50:15).

    Again and again God urges us to call upon Him, but this is an urgent occasion--the day of trouble, when it is dark at noon and the sky gets blacker every hour. In such an emergency the Lord invites us to lay our case before Him, and He reassures us, "I will deliver thee." Then we are to glorify Him.

    Let us never forget that the Lord is our strength, our fortress, and our refuge in the day of affliction (Jer. 16:19). He is the "God of all comfort; who comforteth us in all our tribulation" (2 Cor. 1:3, 4).

    Christian biography testifies to God's deliverance of His servants. As a child, John Wesley was delivered from a burning house. Under his portrait there is a house in flames with the inscription "Was not this a brand plucked from the burning?" (See Zech. 3:2). Thomas Guthrie had a miraculous escape on the cliffs of Arbroath. John Knox was delivered in arising from his chair a second or two before it was shattered by a bullet. John Howard escaped the hand of an assassin, and George Washington had a similar experience in White Plains. David Livingstone sometimes met with as many as three hairbreadth escapes in a single day. Some of us count our burdens more than our blessings, but let us think of God's many deliverances and say, "Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits" (Ps. 103:2).

    When the storm is raging, or a dark mood is upon us, let us look at the beautiful Jesus. Let us say, "Christ, the Son of God, loves me, and He died to save me." Then we shall praise Him as did Charles Kingsley, who wrote, "Must we not thank, and thank forever, and toil, and toil forever, for Him?"

MEDITATION PRAYER:  "But do thou for me, O God the Lord, for thy name's sake: because thy mercy is good, deliver thou me" (Ps. 109:21).