Jesus

There is alot debating about what God thinks, and alot of talk about what we need to do for revival. But where is all the talk about Jesus Christ Himself? Is not He our Source for all things? Why not kick off our theological shoes for awhile, and just glory in the Lord? Let's exalt Him. As He said "If I be lifted up, I will draw all men unto me."

I want to share this article of Andrew Murray's.

[b]Jesus' Surrender Of Himself[/b]

"Christ also loved the Church, and gave Himself for it; that He might sanctify and cleanse it; that He might present it to Himself a glorious Church, not having spot or wrinkle; but that it should be holy and without blemish" Ephesians 5:25-27.

Jesus' work for the sinner was so great and wonderful that it was necessary for Him to give Himself on the cross for that work. Jesus' love for us was so great and wonderful that He actually gave Himself for us and to us. Jesus' surrender is so great and wonderful that all which He gave Himself for can be truly and entirely ours. For Jesus, the Holy, the Almighty, has taken it upon Himself to do it. He gave Himself for us. And now the one necessary thing is that we should rightly understand and firmly believe in His surrender for us.

To what end, then, was it that He gave Himself for the Church? Hear what God says. The aim of Jesus is that He might sanctify the Church so that it would be without blemish. He will attain His aim in the soul as long as the soul falls into His will, makes His will its most important consideration, and relies on Jesus' surrender of Himself to do so.

Hear this word of God, "Who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto Himself a people for His own possession, zealous of good works" (Titus 2:14). Jesus gave Himself in order to prepare for Himself a pure people, a people of His own, a zealous people. When I receive Him, and when I believe that He gave Himself for me, I will certainly experience it. I will be purified through Him. I will be held securely as His possession and be filled with zeal and joy to work for Him.

And notice how the operation of this surrender of Himself will result in His having us entirely for Himself--"that He might present us to Himself," "that He might purify us to Himself, a people of His own." The more I understand and contemplate Jesus' surrender of Himself for me, the more I give myself again to Him. The surrender is a mutual one--the love comes from both sides. His giving of Himself makes such an impression on my heart, that my heart, with the self-same love and joy, becomes entirely His. Through giving Himself to me, He takes possession of me. He becomes mine and I become His. I know that I have Jesus wholly for me, and that He has me wholly for Himself.

And how do I come to the full enjoyment of this blessed life? "I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me" (Galatians 2:20). Through faith, I reflect on and contemplate His surrender to me as sure and glorious. Through faith, I believe it. Through faith, I trust in Jesus to confirm this surrender, to communicate Himself to me, and to reveal Himself within me. Through faith, I await--with certainty-for the full experience of salvation which comes from having Jesus as mine, to do all for me. Through faith, I live in Jesus who loved me and gave Himself for me. And I say, "No longer do I live, but Christ liveth in me" (Galatians 2:20). Christian, please believe with your whole heart that Jesus gives Himself for you. He is wholly yours. He will do all for you.

Lord Jesus, what wonderful grace is this, that You gave Yourself for me. In You there is eternal life. You are the life, and You give Yourself to be all that I need in my life. You purify me, sanctify me, and make me zealous in good works. You take me wholly for Yourself and give Yourself wholly for me. Yes, my Lord, in all You are my life. Make me rightly understand this. Amen.

[b]Power of the Blood of Jesus by Andrew Murray[/b]

What is it that gives to the blood of Jesus such power? How is it that in the blood, alone, there is power possessed by nothing else?

The answer to this question is found in Leviticus 17:11, 14. "The life of the flesh is in the blood"; and "I have give it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes an atonement for the soul."

It is because the soul, or life, is in the blood; and that the blood is offered to God on the altar, that it has in it redemptive power.

The soul or life is in the blood, therefore the value of the blood corresponds to the value of the life that is in it.

. . . The life of man is more valuable than that of many sheep or oxen.

And now who can tell the value or the power of the blood of Jesus? In that blood, dwelt the soul of the holy Son of God.

The eternal life of the Godhead was carried in that blood (Acts 20:28).

The power of that blood in its divers effects is nothing less than the eternal power of God Himself. . . . it is offered to God on the altar for redemption.

When we think of blood as shed, we think of death; death follows, when the blood or the soul is poured out. Death makes us think of sin, for death is the punishment of sin. God gave Israel the blood on the altar, as the atonement or covering for sin; that means--the sins of the transgressors were laid on the victim, and its death was reckoned as the death or punishment for the sins laid upon it.

The blood was thus the life given up to death for the satisfaction of the law of God, and in obedience to His command. Sin was so entirely covered and atoned for, it was no longer reckoned as that of the transgressor. He was forgiven.

But all these sacrifices and offerings were only types, and shadows, till the Lord Jesus came. His blood was the reality to which these types pointed.

His blood was in itself of infinite value, because it carried His soul or life. But the atoning virtue of His blood was infinite also, because of the manner in which it was shed. In holy obedience to the Father's will He subjected Himself to the penalty of the broken law, by pouring out His soul unto death. By that death, not only was the penalty borne, but the law was satisfied, and the Father glorified. His blood atoned for sin, and thus made it powerless. It has a marvelous power for removing sin, and opening heaven for the sinner; whom it cleanses, and sanctifies, and makes meet for heaven (The Power of the Blood of Jesus, pp. 18-20).

This is My blood of the covenant, which is to be shed on behalf of many for forgiveness of sins (Matthew 26:28).

[b]How Did Jesus Work? by Charles Price[/b]

. . . In each statement He is saying it was the activity of the Father that made His work what it was. ". . . . It is the Father living in Me, who is doing His work" (John 14:10). The explanation for all that Jesus was and did was the Father "living in Me, and who is doing His work." Jesus fulfilled His role as a Man on the understanding that God's presence and activity was indispensable to being a true man.

. . . . Man has been created in such a way that his ability to be what man is intended to be is the presence of God within him and the power of God released through him. Man is no more capable of functioning in independence of God than a light bulb is in independence of electricity. . . Hence, the Lord Jesus Christ said to His disciples: "Apart from Me you can do nothing." That is why, living as a Man, Jesus had to say: "The Son can do nothing by Himself." As we are brought back into a relationship with God, we receive by His presence within us all that we need to be what human beings were intended to be. We become like bulbs connected to the electric current, and the purpose of our creation can be restored. Therefore, if apart from God we can do nothing, the presence and work of God makes something inevitable, "For nothing is impossible with God" (Luke 1:37).

To be indwelt by God, giving Him the freedom to be at work in us and through us, makes "nothing" an impossibility. Before, it was impossible to do anything, now it is impossible to do nothing! . . . Outside of God, "nothing" is inevitable, but in a true and functioning relationship with God, "nothing" is impossible. Our lives inevitably accomplish nothing, or it becomes impossible to accomplish nothing.

It is wonderful to know that having been forgiven of our sin, being indwelt by God and giving Him the freedom to direct our lives, give us our orders, and empowers us by His Spirit, we now spend our time knowing that nothing is impossible! God is doing something, our lives do have significance, and things are being accomplished that are of eternal value. If Jesus could say, "Apart from Me you can do nothing," the apostle Paul later wrote, "I can do everything through Him who gives me strength" (Phil. 4:13). By "everything" he means . . . all God has planned and intends for him is possible in the strength of Jesus Christ. Outside of Christ, nothing is inevitable. At the end of time, we will stand before God with empty hands. In Christ, nothing is impossible. At the end of time we will stand full of gratitude for all that God has chosen to do. Are you living a life where nothing is inevitable, or are you enjoying the life where nothing is impossible? (Christ for Real, pp. 29-31).

[b]Looking to the Pierced One by Horatius Bonar[/b]

"They will look on me whom they have pierced and mourn for him as for an only son. They will grieve bitterly for him as for a firstborn son who has died. Zech. 12:10

Let us take up this passage under the following heads, which will bring out all its parts:
(1.) the pierced one;
(2.) the piercers;
(3.) the lookers;
(4.) the mourners.

I. THE PIERCED ONE. Messiah– the seed of the woman; the man with the bruised heel; he is the pierced one. It is He, Himself, who speaks. He was pierced by the nails and by the spear; by the nails to effect his death, by the spear to prove it; both of these, the exhibitions of man's hatred, before and after death. It is as the pierced one that we see him in the twenty-second Psalm and in the fifty-third of Isaiah; as such on the cross; as such in heaven, the Lamb slain. Divine yet human; human yet divine; both of these perfectly; human, that he might be pierced; divine, that his piercing might be efficacious. By his stripes we are healed.

II. THE PIERCERS. These in the first place are the Jews and the Romans, at the cross; Jew and Gentile uniting in this act, the Jew the planner and counselor, the Gentile the executioner. It was the united hatred of Jew and Gentile that did the deed. The crowd surrounding the cross, they are consenting and partaking– and all to whom the proclamation of this piercing comes, who do not come out from the crowd and protest against the deed by believing in the pierced one. In this way it is that all the world is guilty of the deed.

III. THE LOOKERS. In one sense the first piercers were lookers. They looked and pierced; they pierced and looked. But that looking wrought no change; they looked and hated only the more. Jew and Gentile then looked, but they remained the same. The lookers in our text are not those who surrounded the cross, but those who came afterwards, not looking at the actual cross, but listening to the story of the pierced one. How idly they talk who say, Had we seen the cross we should have been melted down!

At Pentecost we find these lookers; in many places, and times, and ages we find them; we find them still. In the latter day our text is to be more fully verified to Jew and Gentile, "Behold he comes with clouds, and every eye shall see him," that is, look upon him. The whole world shall be lookers then– "every eye." In our day we may say that it is by the ear we look; it is the record that brings the cross before the eye, and presents to us the pierced one. We preach the story of the cross and say, Look!

IV. THE MOURNERS. The actual piercers at the cross did not mourn; they railed and wagged their heads; the sight of the pierced one then produced only hatred and mockery. A man might see the cross and remain hardhearted. The cross and the crucifix in themselves can do nothing for a soul. Yet the pierced one is the object to which God turns our eye. It is of him that the Holy Spirit makes use in breaking the hard heart and binding up the broken one. He does not work except in connection with the cross of Christ. He uses the cross for producing godly sorrow. Mark,

1. The sorrow here referred to is VERY DEEP. It is like mourning for an only son; it is like the bitterness of soul for a first-born. It is not the sorrow of a moment or an hour, but prolonged; not surface-sorrow, but deep; not sentimentalism, but genuine grief– the grief of the whole man.

2. It is sorrow PRODUCED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT. His hand is in it, else we might look a thousand times over at the cross and remain unmoved. It is not the sorrow produced by pictures, or statues, or the sight of Sinai or Jerusalem, or harrowing descriptions, or sad poetry, or plaintive music, like the "Miserere" of Rome, or by the darkness of a gloomy chamber– these are artificial and mechanical ways of calling up apparent religious feeling; but it is only the sorrow of the world which works death, not godly sorrow working repentance unto life, nor is it even so deep as that of Judas when he said, "I have sinned." It is manmade conviction, if it is conviction at all, not the sorrow of the Holy Spirit.

3. It is sorrow FLOWING FROM LOOKING AT THE PIERCED ONE. We do not first mourn and then look; we look and mourn. Not the one without the other; and not the mourning before the looking. Many, in their self-righteousness, would first mourn, and then carry their mourning to God as a recommendation. But there is no genuine sorrow except that which flows directly from looking at the pierced one. What do we see in this pierced one that produces such a result?

(1.) We see INFINITE LOVE. This melts the heart and draws tears from the eyes. It is love that is bleeding on that cross.

(2.) We see OUR OWN REJECTION OF THAT LOVE. We have long been rejecters, despisers of it. Our years of rejection come up before us and fill us with bitterness. What, so long despise such love!

(3.) We see SUFFERING. It is suffering beyond all suffering of man. It is the suffering of love. The sufferer is love itself. He suffers because he loves. He loves and suffers!

(4.) We see that suffering CAUSED BY OURSELVES. We not only rejected the love, but we nailed the loving sufferer to the tree. This is sin; this is our sin. We are the murderers. We hated, mocked, nailed, slew. Oh, what sin is ours; and what must sin be! Yet hear his voice, "Look unto me, and be you saved!"

We see INFINITE LOVE

Yes, that Infinte Love = The Lord Jesus

JoeA, thanks for honoring the Lord by titling this thread to His Name and glory!

[b]Christ in the Book of Isaiah[/b]

[i]"Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed? For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: [b]he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him[/b]." [/i] Isaiah 53:1, 2

When God became man, He didn't come with a mighty noise. He didn't come with a triumphal procession. He didn't even come in a palace. He came in a manger, the lowliest of the low. He came humbly and meekly: as a baby. All He had to announce His birth from the virgin's womb was a star to guide the way, and a message from the angel of the Lord. When mercy and truth met together, when righteousness and peace kissed each other, a new star was shining in the sky that night, and three wise men from the east followed it.

[b]This star can be likened to God.[/b]
In it we can see the brightness of God's glory. We can see the purity of His presence. We can see the fire of His being, "For our God is a consuming fire" (Heb 12:29). We can see that the Light of the world is shining.
[i]"That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world."[/i] John 1:9
He stepped down into darkness, and the darkness didn't know Him.
[i]"And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not."[/i] John 1:5
The Creator of the world stooped down to save His helpless creation, and they rejected Him!
[i]"He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.[/i] John 1:10
It says "Who hath believed our report?"
[i]"He came unto his own, and his own received him not."[/i] John 1:11
"And to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed?"
[i]"But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name."[/i] John 1:12
He came down for us. Think about it. HE came DOWN for US! That's why it is so wonderful. That is why salvation is so great. That is why salvation can only be aquired by believing on Him, because HE wants US!

[b]This star was a guiding light.[/b]
It led the way for the wise men to find the babe they were searching for. It almost seems foolish to leave your home in search of a King who hasn't yet been born. Yet they did, and the Bible calls them wise men. I like that saying "Wise men still seek Him". They knew that something was going to happen, something bigger than themselves, something more important than anything they had done, and they wanted to be there. When God moves, we ought to want a part of it. We ought to follow that Light that says "Look here. Here is your salvation. Here is your Redeemer. Here is your King". They left all they had because somehow they found out that God was coming down. Would we do the same? Would we forsake all for Him? Would we suffer shame and ridicule and persecution for Him? Have we? Is what we've suffered worthy to be compared with what others have suffered? And if it is, is it worthy to compared to what we've to gain? "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us" (Rom 8:18). Are we willing to leave all for Him. Let's take up our cross daily and follow the Lord Who died for us.

[b]The star was a beacon.[/b]
The Bible says when they saw the star they rejoiced. When they saw [i]the star[/i]. It brought them hope, and they believed, and what they believed came to pass. The King they sought was there. And He grew up, and He died for the sins of the world. The star that guided those wise men to Jesus is still shining today. If you follow it, you will find Him, and rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of Glory.

1 Peter 1:8 [i]"Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory."[/i]

Along with this shining star seen by the wise men, there were shpeherds abiding in the field, and the angel of the Lord appeared to them. This angel in all his heavenly spledor frightened the shepherds, yet he brought not a message of doom or wrath, but a glorious Divine message from the very throne of God.

[b]The angel's message was one of joy.[/b]
He said "I bring you good tidings of great joy". Notice first he says "I bring". This message was sent from God Himself. God heralding the birth of His Son into the world. He brought from God a message that was "good tidings of great joy". Not one of wrath, nor one of vengeance, but one of peace and restoration, and forgiveness. A message of hope! God has become man in order to satisfy His own wrath for sin! He doesn't want to take it out on you! What joy! What hope! What wonder! He didn't have to come, He wanted to! No one made Him come, He chose to! With a message of joy such as this, what right have we to be downcast about anything? What right have we to be upset about this or that? It happens yes, but when we realize the awesomeness of God's love for us, when we are "able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; and to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge" (Eph 3:18, 19), how can we stay down? That lifts me up to know how much God cares for me! Oh what a message of joy God has sent to us.

[b]The message was all-inclusive.[/b]
He said "I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be [b]to all people[/b]". Young old, male female, black, white, red, yellow, brown, orange, pink. All are included in this message, because God so loved the world. You see, God never likes to leave anyone out of anything. Even in the Old Testament when Gentiles were thought of as dogs and unclean, God promised that one day His Name would be great among the Gentiles. And it is! Thank God He saved us! Japheth is indeed dwelling in the tents of Shem, and all because of Christ's blood.

[i]"But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby."[/i] Ephesians 2:13-16

God wants everyone. Christ didn't die for some, He died for all. His blood was shed as the propitiation for all sins ever comitted, and all that are going to be comitted. All we have to do is grasp this precious truth by faith.

[b]It was a message of salvation.[/b]
He made it clear, that the child to be born is a Savior. Not a prosperer, not a warrior, but a Savior. Gabriel told Joseph to name the babe "Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins". That is what the Name Jesus means "The Lord our Savior". It can't be stated enough that God became a man in order to redeem us from iniquity. God's love and mercy are summed up in this one thing: God became man.

[i]"Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross."[/i] Philippians 2:5-8

[b]It was a message of assurance.[/b]

The angel said "Ye [i]shall[/i] find the babe". If you seek Him, you will find Him. If you thirst for Him, He will satisfy. If you want to be saved, He will save you! God is there. You need not look far, it is He Who calls you. You have nothing to lose but sin, death, and hell. Come to Christ today. "Ye shall find the babe"!

[i]"Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it."[/i] Isaiah 1:18-20

Hence, the Lord Jesus Christ said to His disciples: "Apart from Me you can do nothing." That is why, living as a Man, Jesus had to say: "The Son can do nothing by Himself."

It is a part of the nature of things that we never learn in a vital way by information. We really only come into the good of things by being "pressed out of measure". So the Lord has to take much time to make spiritual history. When at length our eyes are open, we cry, O, why did I not see it before! But everything else had to prove insufficient before we could really be shown, and that takes time. Thus it was that we were turned in that dark hour to Romans chapter six, and, almost as though He spoke in audible language, the Lord said: ‘When I died, you died. When I went to the Cross I not only took your sins, but I took [i]you[/i]. When I took you, I not only took you as the sinner that you might regard yourself to be, but I took you as being all that you are by nature; your good (?) as your bad; your abilities as well as your disabilities; yes, every resource of yours. I took you as a "worker", a "preacher", an organizer! My Cross means that [i]not even for Me can you be or do anything out from yourself[/i], but if there is to be anything at all it must be out from Me, and that means a life of absolute dependence and faith.’

At this point, therefore, we awoke to the fundamental principle of our Lord's own life while here, and it became the law of everything for us from that time. That principle was: "nothing of (out from) Himself", but "all things of (out from) God".

[i]The Son can do nothing of (out from) Himself, but what He seeth the Father doing: for what things soever He doeth, then the Son also doeth in like manner'[/i] (John 5:19).

[i]"I can of Myself do nothing: as I hear judge"[/i] (John 5:30).

[i]"My teaching is not Mine, but His that sent Me"[/i] (John 7:16).

We saw that this explains so many strange and - naturally - perplexing things in His behavior: acting and refusing to act; going and refusing to go; speaking and refusing to speak. Later, we came to see that this is the whole meaning of life in the Spirit, and that it is an altogether different life from the natural ways of men, even of Christian men ([i]more on this later[/i]). At the time of this seeing, it was a matter of this law becoming basic, absolute, and ultimate, and it was something totally different from what had been in all our ideas and activities in Christian life and work.

Such a revelation, if it is to be a staggering and breaking thing, so that there is no strength left in us, requires a background of much vain effort. But then, it carries with it a great implication. While an end is written large in the Cross, and while that end is to be accepted as [i]our[/i] end indeed, so that there [i]can[/i] be no more of [i]anything[/i] so far as we are concerned, Jesus Lives! and that means boundless possibilities.

T. Austin Sparks
[url=http://www.austin-sparks.net/english/000535.html]Explanation of the Nature and History of "This Ministry"[/url]

I've been musing that the Lord is not just some crutch that we lean on as many in the world assume. He is not some crutch that we lean on when we're hurt. He is a gurney that we lay on because (as one brother helped point out to me) we're dead.

Take the focus off for one second, and self begins to take over. I've experienced it first hand recently (despite talking much about Christ living in us). This truly goes to show that without Him WE CAN DO NOTHING.

It was Roy Daniel who said "It's no good to talk Jesus if you don't walk Jesus."

"That in all things He might have the preeminence." Colossians 1:18

Take the focus off for one second, and self begins to take over.

[i]O LORD, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps.[/i] Jer 10:23

I do think Jesus should be the centre !!! I always like Charles SPurgeons Quote that when you are doing a sermon that you should go over every high road and low road and every ditch until you find a path to jesus and like London has roads coming to it from all directions , Scripture has paths leading to jesus from every part!!
I need Jesus , I need a new bible as I have given my last one away, I need him so bad !!!
Dom

Charles Spurgeon also said that when he preached, he always made a beeline for the cross.

What of our lives? May we make a beeline for Christ day by day, hour by hour, minute by minute, second by second. I have often had this thought: "Consumed with Christ". O to be consumed. May it be our desire to know our precious Lord more each day.

1 Corinthians 1:30 "Christ Jesus, Who of God is made unto us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption."

He's all i need
He's all i need
Jesus is all i need
He's all i need
He's all i need
Jesus is all i need

Jesus, Jesus, Jesus
There's just something about that Name
Master, Savior, Jesus
Like the fragrance after the rain
Jesus, Jesus, Jesus
Let all heaven and earth proclaim
Kings and kingdoms shall all pass away
But there's something about that Name

[i]"Come unto me, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; and ye shall find rest to your souls[/i] -MATT.11:28-29

REST for the soul: Such was the first promise with which the Saviour sought to win the heavy-laden sinner. Simple though it appears, the promise is indeed as large and comprehensive as can be found. Rest for the soul--does it not imply deliverance from every fear, the supply of every want, the fulfilment of every desire? And now nothing less than this is the prize with which the Saviour woos back the wandering one--who is mourning that the rest has not been so abiding or so full as it had hoped--to come back and abide in Him. Nothing but this was the reason that the rest has either not been found, or, if found, has been disturbed or lost again: you did not abide with, you did not abide in Him.

Have you ever noticed how, in the original invitation of the Saviour to come to Him, the promise of rest was repeated twice, with such a variation in the conditions as might have suggested that abiding rest could only be found in abiding nearness. First the Saviour says, "Come unto me, and I will give you rest"; the very moment you come, and believe, I will give you rest--the rest of pardon and acceptance--the rest in my love. But we know that all that God bestows needs time to become fully our own; it must be held fast, and appropriated, and assimilated into our inmost being; without this not even Christ's giving can make it our very own, in full experience and enjoyment. And so the Saviour repeats His promise, in words which clearly speak not so much of the initial rest with which He welcomes the weary one who comes, but of the deeper and personally appropriated rest of the soul that abides with Him. He now not only says, "Come unto me," but "Take my yoke upon you and learn of me"; become my scholars, yield ourselves to my training, submit in all things to my will, let your whole life be one with mine--in other words, Abide in me. And then He adds, not only, "I will give," but "ye shall find rest to your souls." The rest He gave at coming will become something you have really found and made your very own--the deeper the abiding rest which comes from longer acquaintance and closer fellowship, from entire surrender and deeper sympathy. "Take my yoke, and learn of me," "Abide in me"--this is the path to abiding rest.

Do not these words of the Saviour discover what you have perhaps often sought in vain to know, how it is that the rest you at times enjoy is so often lost. It must have been this: you had not understood how entire surrender to Jesus is the secret of perfect rest. Giving up one's whole life to Him, for Him alone to rule and order it; taking up His yoke, and submitting to be led and taught, to learn of Him; abiding in Him, to be and do only what He wills--these are the conditions of discipleship without which there can be no thought of maintaining the rest that was bestowed on first coming to Christ. The rest is in Christ, and not something He gives apart from Himself, and so it is only in having Him that the rest can really be kept and enjoyed.

It is because so many a young believer fails to lay hold of this truth that the rest so speedily passes away. With some it is that they really did not know; they were never taught how Jesus claims the undivided allegiance of the whole heart and life; how there is not a spot in the whole of life over which He does not wish to reign; how in the very least things His disciples must only seek to please Him. They did not know how entire the consecration was that Jesus claimed. With others, who had some idea of what a very holy life a Christian ought to lead, the mistake was a different one: they could not believe such a life to be a possible attainment. Taking, and bearing, and never for a moment laying aside the yoke of Jesus, appeared to them to require such a strain of effort, and such an amount of goodness, as to be altogether beyond their reach. The very idea of always, all the day, abiding in Jesus, was too high--something they might attain to after a life of holiness and growth, but certainly not what a feeble beginner was to start with. They did not know how, when Jesus said, "My yoke is easy," He spoke the truth; how just the yoke gives the rest, because the moment the soul yields itself to obey, the Lord Himself gives the strength and joy to do it. They did not notice how, when He said, "Learn of me," He added, "I am meek and lowly in heart," to assure them that His gentleness would meet their every need, and bear them as a mother bears her feeble child. Oh, they did not know that when He said, "Abide in me," He only asked the surrender to Himself, His almighty love would hold them fast, and keep and bless them. And so, as some had erred from the want of full consecration, so these failed because they did not fully trust. These two, consecration and faith, are the essential elements of the Christian life--the giving up all to Jesus, the receiving all from Jesus. They are implied in each other; they are united in the one word--surrender. A full surrender is to obey as well as to trust, to trust as well as to obey.

With such misunderstanding at the outset, it is no wonder that the disciple life was not one of such joy or strength as had been hoped. In some things you were led into sin without knowing it, because you had not learned how wholly Jesus wanted to rule you, and how you could not keep right for a moment unless you had Him very near you. In other things you knew what sin was, but had not the power to conquer, because you did not know or believe how entirely Jesus would take charge of you to keep and to help you. Either way, it was not long before the bright joy of your first love was lost, and your path, instead of being like the path of the just, shining more and more unto the perfect day, became like Israel's wandering in the desert--ever on the way, never very far, and yet always coming short of the promised rest. Weary soul, since so many years driven to and fro like the panting hart, O come and learn this day the lesson that there is a spot where safety and victory, where peace and rest, are always sure, and that that spot is always open to thee--the heart of Jesus.

But, alas! I hear someone say, it is just this abiding in Jesus, always bearing His yoke, to learn of Him, that is so difficult, and the very effort to attain to this often disturbs the rest even more than sin or the world. What a mistake to speak thus, and yet how often the words are heard! Does it weary the traveller to rest in the house or on the bed where he seeks repose from his fatigue? Or is it a labour to a little child to rest in its mother's arms? Is it not the house that keeps the traveller within its shelter? do not the arms of the mother sustain and keep the little one? And so it is with Jesus. The soul has but to yield itself to Him, to be still and rest in the confidence that His love has undertaken, and that His faithfulness will perform, the work of keeping it safe in the shelter of His bosom. Oh, it is because the blessing is so great that our little hearts cannot rise to apprehend it; it is as if we cannot believe that Christ, the Almighty One, will in very deed teach and keep us all the day. And yet this is just what He has promised, for without this He cannot really give us rest. It is as our heart takes in this truth that, when He says, "Abide in me," "Learn of me," He really means it, and that it is His own work to keep us abiding when we yield ourselves to Him, that we shall venture to cast ourselves into the arms of His love, and abandon ourselves to His blessed keeping. It is not the yoke, but resistance to the yoke, that makes the difficulty; the whole-hearted surrender to Jesus, as at once our Master and our Keeper, finds and secures the rest.

Come, my brother, and let us this very day commence to accept the word of Jesus in all simplicity. It is a distinct command this: "Take my yoke, and learn of me, " "Abide in me. " A command has to be obeyed. The obedient scholar asks no questions about possibilities or results; he accepts every order in the confidence that his teacher has provided for all that is needed. The power and the perseverance to abide in the rest, and the blessing in abiding--it belongs to the Saviour to see to this; 'tis mine to obey, 'tis His to provide. Let us this day in immediate obedience accept the command, and answer boldly, "Saviour, I abide in Thee. At Thy bidding I take Thy yoke; I undertake the duty without delay; I abide in Thee." Let each consciousness of failure only give new urgency to the command, and teach us to listen more earnestly than ever till the Spirit again give us to hear the voice of Jesus saying, with a love and authority that inspire both hope and obedience, "Child, abide in me." That word, listened to as coming from Himself, will be an end of all doubting--a divine promise of what shall surely be granted. And with ever-increasing simplicity its meaning will be interpreted. Abiding in Jesus is nothing but the giving up of oneself to be ruled and taught and led, and so resting in the arms of Everlasting Love.

Blessed rest! the fruit and the foretaste and the fellowship of God's own rest! found of them who thus come to Jesus to abide in Him. It is the peace of God, the great calm of the eternal world, that passeth all understanding, and that keeps the heart and mind. With this grace secured, we have strength for every duty, courage for every struggle, a blessing in every cross, and the joy of life eternal in death itself.

O my Saviour! if ever my heart should doubt or fear again, as if the blessing were too great to expect, or too high to attain, let me hear Thy voice to quicken my faith and obedience: "Abide in me"; "Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; ye shall find rest to your souls."

Andrew Murray

To the chief Musician upon Shoshannim, for the sons of Korah, Maschil, A Song of loves.

My heart is inditing a good matter: I speak of the things which I have made touching the king: my tongue is the pen of a ready writer.

Thou art fairer than the children of men: grace is poured into thy lips: therefore God hath blessed thee for ever.

Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty, with thy glory and thy majesty.

And in thy majesty ride prosperously because of truth and meekness and righteousness; and thy right hand shall teach thee terrible things.

Thine arrows are sharp in the heart of the king’s enemies; whereby the people fall under thee.

Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: the sceptre of thy kingdom is a right sceptre.

Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest wickedness: therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.

All thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia, out of the ivory palaces, whereby they have made thee glad.

Kings’ daughters were among thy honourable women: upon thy right hand did stand the queen in gold of Ophir.

Hearken, O daughter, and consider, and incline thine ear; forget also thine own people, and thy father’s house;

So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty: for he is thy Lord; and worship thou him.

And the daughter of Tyre shall be there with a gift; even the rich among the people shall intreat thy favour.

The king’s daughter is all glorious within: her clothing is of wrought gold.

She shall be brought unto the king in raiment of needlework: the virgins her companions that follow her shall be brought unto thee.

With gladness and rejoicing shall they be brought: they shall enter into the king’s palace.

Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children, whom thou mayest make princes in all the earth.

I will make thy name to be remembered in all generations: therefore shall the people praise thee for ever and ever.

The Man Christ Jesus
Is Everything to me
Wisdom, Rightouesness, Sanctification,
Redemption. All i need

Mercy and Truth met together
Cornerstone, King of Kings
This precious Man, Christ Jesus
Is all i ever need

Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God
Humbled as a man
Righteousness and Peace kissing each other
A Lion and a Lamb

His Name is that above all Names
His eyes a flaming fire
His Word is piercing, makes me clean
To know Him my desire

In Him is found all treasure
The fullness of Deity all in all
His Knowledge alone become my pleasure
To love Him, trust Him, and on Him call

Jesus the Savior from all sin
On His blood rely
Apart from Him i can do nothing
The Way, the Truth, Resurrection and Life

Jesus grant that i may sit with Thee
Beholding Thee in Thy throne
Dsitracted by naught the world can bring
But captured by Thee alone

JoeA, this is very beautiful, praise God, did you write this?

Honor and glory be to Christ's Name forever and ever and ever..

[b]Heart Breathings by Leonard Ravenhill[/b]

God owed us nothing - He gave us everything
pertaining to life and godliness in His Son, the
Lord Jesus Christ.

No intelligent man has to be convinced that
there is a God,
though he may have to be convinced of which
is the true God.

It was through a tree that the first Adam lost
his purity and power.
It was on a tree that the last Adam bought back
that purity and power
for all who will accept Him.

Satan lied to man about God,
but he cannot lie to God about man.

The first Adam had a perfect environment,
but he failed.
The last Adam had a polluted environment,
but He triumphed!

God, Who made the first Adam without a mother,
and Who made the last Adam without a father,
can easily make a saint out of a sinner.

Wise men came and worshipped Him.
They still do.

God needs no alibis.

God needs no sponsors.

No man ever did, or ever will do God a favor -
God does all the favors.

A teacher may communicate truth by word.
It is taught only by example.

In a world suffocating in false love, Divine love
is like a breath of oxygen.

Jesus did not have the "Midas Touch,"
He had the Mercy Touch

I find it most intriguing to contemplate the fact
that while men are considering what place to
give Jesus Christ in history, He has already
decided what place to give them in eternity

Are the things we are living for
worth Christ's dying for?

Good Friday.
Today- The Holy One
The Lowly One
The Lonely One
The Only One - Died
To reconcile us to God- Amazing Grace!

How sad He must have been that mighty
morning when He had shattered the powers of
hell, when He had led captivity captive and
given gifts unto men, to find as He emerged
from the tomb, with a million demons behind
Him mourning that mighty Resurrection, that
there was no welcoming party for Him.

There can be no leadership of Christ without
the Lordship of Christ.

Wonder here, majesty there
i can see His glory everywhere
Day and night He displays His might
Yet He speaks to man in prayer

Holy, in likeness He is alone
Earth His footstool, Heaven His throne
Angels bow down, He is crowned with many crowns
Yet to man He makes Himself known

True and righteous His judgments abide
Was made a man, and now glorified
Holy and True, no sin He knew
Yet for sinners He died

Jesus Christ, all to Him we owe
To be saved we to Him go
No other king can salvation bring
Jesus Christ, He alone we must know

Lord let us know Thee
Lord let us love Thee
Lord let us see Thee
Lord let us touch Thee
Lord let us take Thee into our hearts
Lord take up residence, and never depart

Who but He can melt my heart?
My hardened heart of stone?
Who but He can make it flesh?
Who but Christ alone?

Who but Christ can turn my night
Into brightest day?
His presence, fire, and love impart
Acquired when i pray

Who but He can break the chains
Of sin and death and hell?
Who but Christ could die for man
And make the sin-sick well?

Who but Christ could grant that man
May know Divine company?
Who but Christ could become flesh
And die to make all free?

Who but Christ can change my life?
Make holiness be true?
Who but Christ can light the flame?
His Spirit to endue

Who but He the One Who lived
The perfect life on earth?
Shatter my insincerities
And wet my spiritual dearth?

Who but Christ shall my eyes long
To see that final day?
Who but He Whose love endures
When all else fades away?

Christ is the only One i know
Who makes such things to be
Rooted in Him i'll surely grow
And one day clearly see

[b]Love the Lord Jesus Christ!
by Thomas Brooks [/b]

Look that ye love the Lord Jesus Christ with a superlative love, with an overtopping love. There are none have suffered so much for you as Christ; there are none that can suffer so much for you as Christ. The least measure of that wrath that Christ hath sustained for you, would have broke the hearts, necks, and backs of all created beings.

O my friends! There is no love but a superlative love that is any ways suitable to the transcendent sufferings of dear Jesus. Oh, love him above your lusts, love him above your relations, love him above the world, love him above all your outward contentments and enjoyments; yea, love him above your very lives; for thus the patriarchs, prophets, apostles, saints, primitive Christians, and the martyrs of old, have loved our Lord Jesus Christ with an overtopping love: Rev. xii. 11, 'They loved not their lives unto the death;' that is, they slighted, contemned, yea, despised their lives, exposing them to hazard and loss, out of love to the Lamb, 'who had washed them in his blood.' I have read of one Kilian, a Dutch schoolmaster, who being asked whether he did not love his wife and children, answered, Were all the world a lump of gold, and in my hands to dispose of, I would leave it at my enemies' feet to live with them in a prison; but my soul and my Saviour are dearer to me than all. If my father, saith Jerome, should stand before me, and my mother hang upon, and my brethren should press about me, I would break through my brethren, throw down my father, and tread underfoot my mother, to cleave to Jesus Christ. Had I ten heads, said Henry Voes, they should all off for Christ. If every hair of my head, said John Ardley, martyr, were a man, they should all suffer for the faith of Christ. Let fire, racks, pulleys, said Ignatius, and all the torments of hell come upon me, so I may win Christ. Love made Jerome to say, O my Saviour, didst thou die for love of me?-a love sadder than death; but to me a death more lovely than love itself. I cannot live, love thee, and be longer from thee. George Carpenter, being asked whether he did not love his wife and children, which stood weeping before him, answered, My wife and children!- my wife and children! are dearer to me than all Bavaria; yet, for the love of Christ, I know them not. That blessed virgin in Basil being condemned for Christianity to the fire, and having her estate and life offered her if she would worship idols, cried out, 'Let money perish, and life vanish, Christ is better than all.' Sufferings for Christ are the saints' greatest glory; they are those things wherein they have most gloried: Crudelitas vestra, gloria nostra, your cruelty is our glory, saith Tertullian. It is reported of Babylas, that when he was to die for Christ, he desired this favour, that his chains might be buried with him, as the ensigns of his honour. Thus you see with what a superlative love, with what an overtopping love, former saints have loved our Lord Jesus; and can you, Christians, who are cold and low in your love to Christ, read over these instances, and not blush?

Certainly the more Christ hath suffered for us, the more dear Christ should be unto us; the more bitter his sufferings have been for us, the more sweet his love should be to us, and the more eminent should be our love to him. Oh, let a suffering Christ lie nearest your hearts; let him be your manna, your tree of life, your morning star. It is better to part with all than with this pearl of price. Christ is that golden pipe through which the golden oil of salvation runs; and oh. how should this inflame our love to Christ! Oh that our hearts were more affected with the sufferings of Christ! Who can tread upon these hot coals, and his heart not burn in love to Christ, and cry out with Ignatius, Christ my love is crucified? Cant. viii. 7,8. If a friend should die for us, how would our hearts be affected with his kindness! and shall the God of glory lay down his life for us, and shall we not be affected with his goodness i John x. 17, 18. Shall Saul be affected with David's kindness in sparing his life, 1 Sam. xxiv. 16, and shall not we be affected with Christ's kindness, who, to save our life, lost his own? Oh, the infinite love of Christ, that he should leave his Father's bosom, John i. 18, and come down from heaven, that he might carry you up to heaven, John xiv. 1-4; that he that was a Son should take upon him the form of a servant, Phil. ii. 5-8; that you of slaves should be made sons, of enemies should be made friends, of heirs of wrath should be made heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ, Rom. viii. 17; that to save us from everlasting ruin, Christ should stick at nothing, but be willing to be made flesh, to lie in a manger, to be tempted, deserted, persecuted, and to die upon a cross!

Oh what flames of love should these things kindle in all our hearts to Christ! Love is compared to fire; in heaping love upon our enemy, we heap coals of fire upon his head, Rom. xii. 19, 20; Prov. xxvi. 21. Now the property of fire is to turn all it meets with into its own nature: fire maketh all things fire; the coal maketh burning coals; and is it not a wonder then that Christ, having heaped abundance of the fiery coals of his love upon our heads, we should yet be as cold as corpses in our love to him. Ah! what sad metal are we made of, that Christ's fiery love cannot inflame our love to Christ! Moses wondered why the bush consumed not, when he sees it all on fire, Exod. iii. 3; but if you please but to look into your own hearts, you shall see a greater wonder; for you shall see that, though you walk like those three children in the fiery furnace, Dan. iii., even in the midst of Christ's fiery love flaming round about you; yet there is but little, very little, true smell of that sweet fire of love to be felt or found upon you or in you. Oh, when shall the sufferings of a dear and tender-hearted Saviour kindle such a flame of love in all our hearts, as shall still be a-breaking forth in our lips and lives, in our words and ways, to the praise and glory of free grace? Oh that the sufferings of a loving Jesus might at last make us all sick of love! Cant. ii. v. Oh let him for ever lie betwixt our breasts, Cant. i. 13, who hath left his Father's bosom for a time, that he might be embosomed by us for ever.

[b]He is Risen by Leonard Ravenhill[/b]

Matthew 28:1-7
"In the end of the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, come Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulcher.
And behold, there was a great earthquake; for the angel of the Lord descended form heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it.
His countenance was like lightning, and his raiment white as snow;
And for fear of him the keepers did shake, and became as dead men.
And the angel answered and said to the women, Fear not ye; for I know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified.
He is not here; for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.
And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead; and behold, he goeth before you into Galilee; there shall ye see him: lo, I have told you."

I think it was Campbell Morgan who said that the resurrection is the most stupendous, supernatural miracle that the world has ever known. It supercedes everything else - because if He is not risen from the dead then everything else collapses!

Think of this as a great pyramid the apostle built through the writing of his fourteen epistles, including Hebrews: then he turns that great pyramid over and he balances the fine point on one thing! It is this awesome verse in the 15th chapter of first Corinthians. He says, "if in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable."

There are many philosophies about the resurrection of Jesus Christ, but the Scripture is the first, the foremost, and the final word.
There are those who say that Jesus never died. All He did was faint, because He had been up all night, and pushed around, and He had lost some blood. They put Him into a tomb and then He revived in the cool tomb and He came out again. Well, the apostles, of course, shatter all that argument absolutely.

Remember that this is the thing that got the apostles into trouble! If Jesus wasn't risen from the dead, I think they could have gone back to the temple and said, "Look, He was a good man, we saw miracles, and He was a marvelous man, but He didn't come through on the last thing. He said, 'I'm going to rise from the dead under My own power.' - we're sorry He didn't make it. And we feel that we have something that we should share with you..." You know, I think in the temple they could have started a new school, and a new sect of Jesus followers, and had no trouble. But the thing right out in the open was that these men who had trembled and run away, who forsook Him and fled, become as bold as lions.

Why? Because they knew that Jesus had risen from the dead, that's why!
It says in the Acts of the Apostles concerning Jesus, first chapter and verse three, "To whom also He showed Himself alive after His passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God." Now look, if it was a fallacy, as the world says, why do this bunch of men stand up and live in danger of their lives. Can these men have had hallucination for forty days in succession? "He showed Himself alive after His passion by many infallible proofs." I can't find one modern version of scripture that includes the word infallible. Man hates that word infallible. He showed himself alive. To who? Oh, to a whole bunch of people; as many as five hundred in broad daylight. Can you see visions in broad daylight? Suffer hallucinations? He showed Himself alive, by many infallible proofs!

What were the infallible proofs? The infallible proofs were,
"we have touched Him, we have seen Him."
Peter testifies to that later in his first epistle, doesn't he? He says, "We don't follow cunningly devised fables, we have seen Him, we handled Him, we heard Him." For forty days He confirmed their faith.

Oh, that's wonderful.
Yes, it's wonderful! But to me it's also terrible, you see, because the world hadn't believed Him for three years, for the next forty days He said, "Get out of it, world, I am not appearing to you."
He could have won the world in a day!
All He had to do was go to Pontius Pilate at one o'clock in the morning and tap
him and say, "Hey, what are you going to do now?"
Then go down the road to Caiaphas house, stand by his bed and only say,
"Well? Well?" Oh, he'd have shuddered in his bed and had to say, "Oh, My
God, have mercy on me."
Or go to the village cemetery and shout over the wall, "I am
the resurrection and the Life."

THE RESURRECTION IS NOT PART OF MY THEOLOGY, THE RESURRECTION IS A PERSON.
"I AM THE RESURRECTION."
HE IS AS MUCH MY RESURRECTION AS HE IS MY SAVIOR, AND MY LORD AND MY KING!
Now it says in the Emmaus walk that He appeared unto them in another form. That's right and they didn't understand. How many forms did He appear in?
He appeared as a little baby. GOD appeared as a babe.
He appeared as a great teacher. Their ears must have burned when He
preached the Sermon on the Mount. They said, "This is the most
marvelous thing man has ever uttered. Is this possible?" He appeared
as their teacher, as He had appeared as a babe.
He appeared as a servant, to their embarrassment. One day He put a towel
around His waist, and took some water, and He knelt, and washed their feet.
He appeared one day on a cross, as the atoning Lamb to take away the
sin of the world.

And now He appears in another form. They are walking down that road, just seven miles from Jerusalem on the Emmaus road and He overtook them. Their feet were heavy, but their hearts were heavier still.

You know what? I think the resurrection morning was the most
disappointing morning in the life of the Son of God.
You know why? Because if one
of them had believed Him they would have been lined up
outside of the tomb waiting for Him, but not one of them turned up.
He'll appear to you in different forms... the way you need Him.
Sometimes He comes in tenderness and compassion when you have a wounded
heart and a wounded spirit, and He binds up the brokenhearted.
Sometimes He will come and pierce the heart. Because He loves us,
He will come and pierce us.
Sometimes He will come in overwhelming majesty, you have to bow at
His feet in adoration.
He doesn't have to come in one form or another, He appears as He wants to appear.
He showed Himself alive unto His disciples with many infallible proofs. Oh, I think they enjoyed it when He broke bread, you know, when He called one morning and they were tired after fishing, "Hi boys!" Actually the Greek says, "lads, come here." And they went, and as the hymn says, "they met their heart's desire, bread and fish upon the fire." That was the greatest breakfast ever cooked.

I think He took some rocks and put them down and said, "Become bread."
Then He said to the devil, "I'll do it when I want, not when you want."
Because the devil once said to Him, "If you are the Son of God,
turn those rocks into bread." Well, you can never do the wrong thing
at the right time, but you can do the right thing at the wrong time, and He said, "No."
I guess He collected fish the same way Peter did under His instruction when they needed to pay taxes. So, He
made breakfast for His disciples.

Do you think they ever forgot that breakfast?
Did Peter ever forget when Jesus looked on him in compassion?
Did Thomas ever forget when He said, "Put your hands in..."
Those were wonderful appearances.
But I'll tell you the thing that was most wonderful of all: you know why they were strong enough to do what God told them? He BREATHED on them.
He BREATHED on a piece of clay. Oh, Adam was very beautiful when he was first made. As beautiful as a corpse, because he had no life in him. Beautiful eyes, fingernails were perfect, body perfect, and then finally, God BREATHED in him, and he became a living soul.

Remember, He took a man called Abram A B R A M, and He BREATHED into Abram and Abram became AbraHam. Changed his whole life.
He breathed on them in the upper room, BEFORE Pentecost, and said, "Receive ye the Holy Ghost." And they received the Holy Ghost! Because if a man has not the Spirit of Christ he is none of His. But they received an enduement of power, a Baptism, in that upper room.

Many infallible proofs of His Resurreccion!
[b]Again, this is the key to the apostolic church.
This is the key to the apostolic church of Jesus Christ today.
All the warranties of the future are in Jesus Christ and the resurrection. [/b]