Monday, March 18, 2024

They have not all obeyed the gospel.

 


MARCH 18.
 
They have not all obeyed the gospel.
Romans 10:16

 

AND does the gospel require obedience?
 
Yes: it commands us to repent of sin;
  to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ;
  to pray always and not to faint;
  to confess Christ before men;
  to glorify God in our bodies and
     spirits which are God’s;
  to consecrate ourselves and
    all we have to the Lord’s glory.
 
But comparatively few obey the gospel.
 
Reader, do you?
 
Are you daily sorrowing over sin?
 
Are you placing your entire confidence in Jesus,
  and resting on his finished work alone
  for acceptance with God?
 
Do you pray as naturally as you breathe, and
  pray for all you need and desire?
 
Have you confessed Jesus before your fellow-men,
  and taking up the apostle’s determination
    to glorify only in his cross?
 
Do you aim at God's glory in every purpose you form,
  in every plan you draw,
  in every work you execute?
 
Have you concentrated your person,
  property, and talents to the Lord;
  and do ministering angels see written upon all
  you have, “This is the Lord's?”
 
Solemn inquiries these!
 
Let them sink down into your heart.
 
Take them, and search your heart with them.
 
Turn and claim me as thine own,
Be my portion, Lord, alone;
In me all thy grace display,
And thy gospel I'll obey.
 
James Smith 1849

Saturday, March 16, 2024

WHOSE I AM.

 


 

MARCH 16.


Whose I am.
Acts 27:23
 

WE are all the Lords by creation:
  “it is he that made us, and not we ourselves.”
 
He produced us by his power, and
  intended us for his glory.
 
But the generality withhold from God his right.
 
They do not own him,
   worship him, or obey him.
 
He is not in all their thoughts.
 
But this was not the case with Paul.
 
He had made a surrender of himself to God.
He had consecrated all his power to his service.
He sought by all means to promote his cause,
   and advance his glory.
He was the Lord's child by adoption and grace.
He was the Lord's servant by solemn engagement.
He had given himself to God, and
  he recognized God as his owner, sovereign, and master.
He consulted God's will.
He was employed in God's work.
He expected God’s protection.
He was now in danger, but his God sent an angel
   to assure him of his safety, and
   to comfort him in his sorrow.
 
The Lord always cares for his own.
 
He never did neglect a faithful servant, or
  failed to bless an obedient child.
 
Beloved, are you the Lords?
 
Do you recognize his rights to you?
 
 
Have you entered into engagements with him?
 
If so, you are in a happy state.
 
If I am thine, Lord, let me be
Entirely set apart for thee;
If I am not, thy I right assert,
This moment claim and win my heart.
 
James Smith 1849

Friday, March 15, 2024

IN THE LORD HAVE I RIGHTEOURNESS AND STRENGTH.

 


MARCH 15
 
In the Lord have I righteousness and strength.
Isaiah 45:24

 

EVERY believer proves that he has neither in himself.
 
The longer he lives, the more deeply
  he feels that he must look out of himself
  for the righteousness that is to justify
    him before God, and
  daily go to the Saviour for strength to conquer sin,
  overcome the world, perform duty,
    resist Satan, and glorify God.
 
What an unspeakable mercy it is,
  that this morning the Lord whom we worship
   is our righteousness;
  that the perfect obedience of the Lord Jesus
  is unto all and upon all that believe
    without any differences.
 
Everyone of us who believe in Jesus,
  have a perfect righteousness; and
  in him shall all the seed of Israel be justified,
    and shall glory.
 
In the Lord also we have strength;
  strength is provided for us,
   and promised to us.
 
Let us therefore go boldly to the throne of grace
  that we may obtain mercy, and
  find grace to help us in every time of need.
 
Our righteousness and strength being in the Lord,
  they are always the same;
  they can never be forfeited;
  they can never be lost.
 
Let us then look up and say,
  “He is near that justified me,
   who will contend with me?”
 
Jesus, thy blood and righteousness
My beauty are, my glorious dress;
‘Midst flaming worlds, in these arrayed,
With joy shall I lift up my head.
 
James Smith 1849
 

Thursday, March 14, 2024

ALL THINGS THAT THE FATHER HATH ARE MINE.

 


MARCH 14.
 
All things that the Father hath are mine.
John 16:15
 

HERE is an indirect proof of the Divinity of Jesus;
  for if he claims and possesses all that the father hath,
  he must be God.
 
But all things that the Father hath,
  belongs to Jesus;
  that Jesus in whom we trust,
  to whom we are united, and
  with whom we shall live forever.
 
Jesus possesses the Divine nature equally with the Father,
  and is God overall, blessed for evermore.
 
He claims all the Divine attributes and perfections;
  and they are all ascribed to him in the Holy Scriptures.
 
He wears all the Divine names and,
  shares in the honour of all the Divine works.
 
His are all the boundless resources of the universe.
 
As all things were created by him,
  so also they were created for him.
 
All power is given under him in heaven and in earth;
  therefore we may look to him for all that we need,
  flee to him from all we fear, and
    trust him with all we value.
 
Let us this day exercise our minds on this glorious fact.
 
Precious Lord Jesus,
  help me to rejoice in thee,
  expect from thee,
  and labour by all means to glorify thee!
 
Jesus, is there not in thee,
Grace, sufficient grace for me?
Let me now, with thee, receive
All thou dost to sinners give;
All thou hast, and all thou art,
Dwell for ever in my heart!
 
James Smith 1849

Wednesday, March 13, 2024

THY MERCY, O LORD, HELD ME UP

 

MARCH 13.
 
Thy mercy, O Lord, held me up.
Psalm 94:18
 

WE are at best poor tottering creatures,
  never fit to be left alone for one moment.
 
And then the road we have to travel is dangerous,
  and the path often slippery.
 
One incautious step involves us in many long
  and severe troubles.
 
Nor are we ever sure,
  but that our foot may next be placed on ice.
 
Circumspection, therefore, is absolutely necessary;
  but circumspection alone is not sufficient to preserve us.
 
The prayer of David is always suitable –
  “Hold thou me up, and I shall be safe; and
    I will have respect unto thy statutes continually.”
 
The moment we take our eyes off the LORD,
  Satan redoubles his efforts to trip us up.
 
The psalmist felt himself going; he cried,
  “My foot slippeth!” and
   mercy stepped forward and caught him
    before he was down.
That mercy can up- hold us.
 
It is our friend.
It is pledged to us in the promise.

But it must be sought.
 
It must be honoured with a place in our minds.
It must also be trusted.
 
We must daily feel that we need to be upheld,
 -- that we have no claim upon God,
 -- that we can look to mercy alone to uphold;
  and live under the convictions,
  we should trust in the mercies of the Lord for ever.
 
Who loves me so well, my Helper has been,
And saved me from hell, and saved me from sin
His gracious protection I joyfully prove,
His strength of affections, his feelings of love.
 
James Smith 1849



Tuesday, March 12, 2024

BEING BORN AGAIN.

 

MARCH 12.
 
Being born again.
I Peter 1:23
 

A NEW birth is absolutely necessary.
 
No one can possibly be saved without it.
 
Therefore Jesus told Nicodemus twice,
   that he must be born again.
 
As our first birth was necessary to bring us
  into this world, and
  fit us for its employments and enjoyments,
  so a second birth is necessary to bring us
  into the Church of Christ, and
  fit us for its duties and privileges.
 
No new birth,
  no true happiness here.
No new birth,
  no heaven at death.
 
But how shall I know that I am born again?
 
If prayer to God becomes natural, and is enjoyed;
 if we overcome the world,
  instead of being led away by its follies an its fashions;
 if we hate sin as sin, and
  strive and pray for deliverance from it;
 if we love our enemies,
  because Christ commanded it;
  and love the Saints, because they are holy;
 if we trust in the finished work of Christ,
  and glory in his cross;
 if we feel a deep concern for the salvation of others,
  and zealous in spreading abroad the truth,
  that Jesus may be honored; then,
  beyond a doubt, we are born of God.
 
Beloved, have you these evidences?
 
Have you any of them?
 
Let nothing satisfy you but
  the knowledge that you are born again.
 
Saints produce the fruits of grace
In the works of righteousness;
Born of God, they hate all sin;
God's pure word abides within.
 
James Smith 1849

Monday, March 11, 2024

TEACH ME THY WAY, O LORD

 


MARCH 11.
 
Teach me thy way, O Lord.
Psalm 86:11
 

WE all need divine teaching,
  for our ignorance is great, and
  there are many evil influences operating upon us.
 
If we have discovered our ignorance,
  we desire to be taught of God.
 
If we desire to be taught of God,
  he has promised to teach us;
  he has said,
    “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way
     which now should go: I will guide thee with my eye.”
 
This is a very suitable and a very precious promise;
  a promise which we should plead until it is fulfilled.
 
The Lord's way is that course which we should pursue;
  that path which he has marked out for us in his word.
 
It leads to acceptance with him, and
  enables us to glorify him.
 
There is the way of salvation,
  by faith in Jesus;
  in which we may obtain freedom,
    peace, and holiness.
 
There is the way of obedience,
  which is a practical conformity to his precepts.
 
In this way the Lord meets with us,
  cheers us, gives us more grace, and
    makes us honourable and useful.
 
In this way we find many difficulties,
  there are many things to
  perplex, confused, and try us.
 
It is a way that requires constant self denial, and
  the surrender of our wills to the will of God.
 
Divine Instructor, lest I stray,
O teach my erring feet thy way;
Thy truth, with every fresh delight,
Shall guide my doubtful steps aright.
 
James Smith 1849