Work is Done; Rest in Him

Sep 28

There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. (Hebrews 4:9)

     God has provided a Sabbath, and some must enter into it. Those to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief; therefore, that Sabbath remains for the people of God. David sang of it; but he had to touch the minor key, for Israel refused the rest of God. Joshua could not give it, nor Canaan yield it: it remains for believers.

     Come, then, let us labor to enter into this rest. Let us quit the weary toil of sin and self. Let us cease from all confidence, even in those works of which it might be said, "They are very good." Have we any such? Still, let us cease from our own works, as God did from His. Now let us find solace in the finished work of our Lord Jesus. Everything is fully done: justice demands no more. Great peace is our portion in Christ Jesus.

     As to providential matters, the work of grace in the soul and the work of the Lord in the souls of others, let us cast these burdens upon the Lord and rest in Him. When the Lord gives us a yoke to bear, He does so that by taking it up we may find rest. By faith we labor to enter into the rest of God, and we renounce all rest in self-satisfaction or indolence. Jesus Himself is perfect rest, and we are filled to the brim in Him.

Jewish Tradition vs Christ the Redeemer (Hebrews Chapter 1)

Oh Jews. Don't think you have a better religion, daily sacrifices, regular cleansing, a great temple, etc.,.

Christ Is Better Than Angels

(Heb. 1:1-2:18)

I. He has a more excellent name than the angels (1:1-5).

A. He is God’s Son.

1. The Hebrew writer establishes that Jesus is the Son of God by quoting the Old Testament (Psa. 2:7; 2 Sam. 7:14).

2. The more excellent name of “Son” denotes the deity of Christ.

B. He is God’s final revelation.

1. The Old Testament delivered by the prophets was for those of the past.

2. The New Testament given by Christ and His apostles is for us in this final age of history.

C. He is heir of all things.

1. Of course, God’s Son would inherit all things because all things are God’s.

2. In fact, all things were made for Him (Col. 1:16).

D. He is the One through whom God made the worlds.

1. The creation was the cooperative work of the Father and the Son (Col. 1:16; John 1:2-3).

E. He is just like God.

1. He radiates God’s glory fully (John 1:14).

2. He mirrors God’s person exactly (John 14:9).

F. He upholds all things.

1. He is so powerful that everything depends on what He says (Col. 1:17).

2. His word is the power that sustains our universe.

G. He Himself purged our sins.

1. The only sacrifice sufficient to provide the forgiveness of our sins was the one that Jesus made.

2. It was the sacrifice of Himself on the cross.

H. He sits at God’s right hand.

1. Jesus fully assumed the position of ultimate power and authority.

2. No one can occupy a higher office than He has taken.

II. He is worshiped and served by the angels (1:6-7).

A. The Hebrew writer establishes this by quoting from the Old Testament (Deu. 32:43 footnote; Psa. 104:4).

B. Their worship and service of Christ indicates that they recognized Him as deity (Mat. 4:10).

III. He is God enthroned by God (1:8-9).

A. The Hebrew writer establishes this by quoting from the Old Testament (Psa. 45:6-7).

B. In this passage the Father addresses the Son as “God” indicating His deity (John 1:1; Phi. 2:6; Tit. 2:13; Rev. 1:8).

C. His rule is everlasting and righteous. He was chosen for this position because He is righteous.

IV. He is Lord of the heavens and the earth (1:10-12).

A. The Hebrew writer establishes this by quoting from the Old Testament (Psa. 102:25-27).

B. In this passage the Son is called “LORD”. The Hebrew text in Psalm 102 from which this quotation is taken reads YHWH, which is translated Yahweh or Jehovah. This is the name of God (Deu. 6:4) and indicates the Son’s deity.

C. He is the eternal unchanging Creator, not part of the ever changing and transitory creation (Heb. 13:8).

V. He sits at God’s right hand while the angels are sent to minister to the saved (1:13-14).

A. The Hebrew writer establishes this by quoting from the Old Testament (Psa. 110:1; 103:20-21).

B. God installed Jesus in the most powerful position of all and grants Him victory over those who refuse to submit to His rule (1 Pet. 3:22; 1Tim. 6:15; Rev. 17:14; 19:16).

C. The angels are servants of the citizens of Christ’s kingdom.

He had also given believers a promise. Those who believe on Him are already purified and are heirs of His Kingdom. The promise given to Jews thru Abraham will be fulfilled for only those who are in CHRIST. (Rom 11:23)

Solus Christos!

The Divine Light in Darkness

Sep 27

For thou wilt light my candle. (Psalm 18:28)

     It may be that my soul sits in darkness; and if this be of a spiritual kind, no human power can bring me light. Blessed be God! He can enlighten my darkness and at once light my candle. Even though I may be surrounded by a "darkness which might be felt," yet He can break the gloom and immediately make it bright around me.

     The mercy is that if He lights the candle none can blow it out, neither will it go out for lack of substance, nor burn out of itself through the lapse of hours. The lights which the Lord kindled in the beginning are shining still. The Lord's lamps may need trimming, but He does not put them out.

     Let me, then, like the nightingale sing in the dark. Expectation shall furnish me with music, and hope shall pitch the tune. Soon I shall rejoice in a candle of God's lighting. I am dull and dreary just now. Perhaps it is the weather, or bodily weakness, or the surprise of a sudden trouble; but whatever has made the darkness, it is God alone who will bring the light. My eyes are unto Him alone. I shall soon have the candles of the Lord shining about me; and, further on in His own good time, I shall be where they need no candle, neither light of the sun. Hallelujah!

Among the Redeemed

September 26

Lo, the people shall dwell alone, and shall not be redeemed among the nations. (Numbers 23:9)

Who would wish to dwell among the nations and to be numbered with them? Why, even the professing church is such that to follow the Lord fully within its bounds is very difficult. There is such a mingling and mixing that one often sighs for "a lodge in some vast wilderness."

Certain it is that the Lord would have His people follow a separated path as to the world and come out decidedly and distinctly from it. We are set apart by the divine decree, purchase, and calling, and our inward experience has made us greatly to differ from men of the world; and therefore our place is not in their Vanity Fair, nor in their City of Destruction, but in the narrow way where all true pilgrims must follow their Lord.

This may not only reconcile us to the world's cold shoulder and sneers but even cause us to accept them with pleasure as being a part of our covenant portion. Our names are not in the same book, we are not of the same seed, we are not bound for the same place, neither are we trusting to the same guide; therefore it is well that we are not of their number. Only let us be found in the number of the redeemed, and we are content to be off and solitary to the end of the chapter.

The Sacrifice Has Been Accepted

September 25

If the Lord were pleased to kill us, he would not have received a burnt offering and a meat offering at our hands, neither would he have showed us all these thing. (Judges 13:23)

This is a sort of promise deduced by logic. It is an inference fairly drawn from ascertained facts. It was not likely that the Lord had revealed to Manoah and his wife that a son would be born to them and yet had it in His heart to destroy them. The wife reasoned well, and we shall do well if we follow her line of argument.

The Father has accepted the great sacrifice of Calvary and has declared Himself well pleased therewith; how can He now be pleased to kill us! Why a substitute if the sinner must still perish? The accepted sacrifice of Jesus puts an end to fear.

The Lord has shown us our election, our adoption, our union to Christ, our marriage to the Well-beloved: how can He now destroy us? The promises are loaded with blessings, which necessitate our being preserved unto eternal life. It is not possible for the Lord to cast us away and yet fulfill His covenant. The past assures us, and the future reassures us. We shall not die but live, for we have seen Jesus, and in Him we have seen the Father by the illumination of the Holy Ghost. Because of this life-giving sight we must live forever.

The Life-Giving Stream

September 24

And it shall come to pass, that every thing that liveth, which moveth, whithersoever the rivers shall come, shall live. (Ezekiel 47:9)

The living waters, in the prophet's vision, flowed into the Dead Sea and carried life with them, even into that stagnant lake. Where grace goes, spiritual life is the immediate and the everlasting consequence. Grace proceeds sovereignly according to the will of God, even as a river in all its windings follows its own sweet will; and wherever it comes it does not wait for life to come to it, but it creates life by its own quickening flow. Oh, that it would pour along our streets and flood our slums! Oh, that it would now come into my house and rise till every chamber were made to swim with it! Lord, let the living water flow to my family and my friends, and let it not pass me by. I hope I have drunk of it already; but I desire to bathe in it, yea, to swim in it. O my Savior, I need life more abundantly. Come to me, I pray Thee, till every part of my nature is vividly energetic and intensely active. Living God, I pray Thee, fill me with Thine own life.

I am a poor, dry stick; come and make me so to live that, like Aaron's rod, I may bud and blossom and bring forth fruit unto Thy glory. Quicken me, for the sake of my Lord Jesus. Amen.

Deliverance from Dust and Chaff

September 23

For, lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all sections, like as corn is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth. (Amos 9:9)

The sifting process is going on still. Wherever we go, we are still being winnowed and sifted. In all countries God's people are being tried "like as corn is sifted in a sieve." Sometimes the devil holds the sieve and tosses us up and down at a great rate, with the earnest desire to get rid of us forever. Unbelief is not slow to agitate our heart and mind with its restless fears. The world lends a willing hand at the same process and shakes us to the right and to the left with great vigor. Worst of all, the church, so largely apostate as it is, comes in to give a more furious force to the sifting process.

Well, well! Let it go on. Thus is the chaff severed from the wheat. Thus is the wheat delivered from dust and chaff. And how great is the mercy which comes to us in the text, "Yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth"! All shall be preserved that is good, true, gracious. Not one of the least of believers lose anything worth calling a loss. We shall be so kept in the sifting that it shall be a real gain to us through Christ Jesus.