Tuesday, December 31, 2013

Friday, December 20, 2013

The First Love by Andrew Murray

“I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love” (Rev. 2:4).

In Revelation 2:2-3, eight signs are mentioned showing the zeal and activity of the Church at Ephesus. But there was one bad sign, and the Lord said: “Except thou repent, I will come unto thee, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place.” And what was this sign? “Thou hast left thy first love.”

We find the same lack in the Church of the present day. There is zeal for the truth, there is continuous and persevering labor, but that which the Lord values most is wanting, the tender, fervent love to Himself.

This is a thought of great significance. A church or a community or a Christian may be an example in every good work, and yet the tender love to the Lord Jesus in the inner chamber is missing.

There is no personal daily fellowship with Christ, and all the manifold activities with which people satisfy themselves are as nought in the eyes of the Master Himself.

Dear brother and sister, this book speaks of the fellowship of love with Christ in the inner chamber. Everything depends on this. Christ came from heaven to love us with the love wherewith the Father loved Him. He suffered and died to win our hearts for this love. His love can be satisfied with nothing less than a deep, personal love on our part.

Christ considers this of the first importance. Let us do so too. Many ministers and missionaries and Christian workers confess with shame that in spite of all their zeal in the Lord’s work, their prayer life is defective because they have left their first love. I pray you, write this down on a piece of paper and remember it continually–The love of Jesus must be all–in the inner chamber, in all my work, in my daily life.

Lord Jesus, I pray that Thou wilt be my all, in the inner chamber, in all my work, in my daily life. Amen.

Jan. 11 devotional thought from the Andrew Murray's devotional, "God's Best Secrets".
http://www.sermonindex.net/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=51055&forum=45

Friday, December 13, 2013

THE MEANING OF TEMPTING GOD by David Wilkerson

The psalmist writes of Israel’s sin, “They tempted God in their heart” (Psalm 78:18). The Hebrew meaning of this phrase indicates that the Israelites were “tested beyond endurance.” This means they had no human means left to provide for themselves. When they came to this place, they believed God had abandoned them and was remaining silent and out of sight.

In short, this is what it means to tempt God. It happens when His chosen, blessed ones are placed in the fires of testing and their crisis keeps growing more intense until fear grips their hearts, and they cry out, “Lord, where are You? Where is my deliverance? Why aren’t You on the scene? Are You with me or not?"

It is impossible for an unsaved person to tempt the Lord since such a person does not acknowledge God in any area of his life. To him, everything that happens is either good luck or bad luck. Only those who are closest to the Lord can tempt Him, those who have seen His power, tasted His mercy and grace, and been called to walk by faith.

Even the righteous John the Baptist faced the kind of trial that can lead to tempting God. As he sat in prison, he must have wondered where God was in his situation. Word had come back to him of all the wonderful things Jesus was doing—healing people, performing miracles, drawing crowds who had once flocked to him. And now here he sat alone, awaiting execution.

John had known that he had to decrease so Christ could increase. But now the thought crossed his mind, “Decrease, yes, but death? Why do I have to die if Jesus is truly God? If He is performing all these wonders for others, why can’t He deliver me? Lord, this is all too much to endure.” (Remember, Christ had not yet removed the sting of death.)

The last words Jesus sent to John were incredibly significant: “Blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me” (Matthew 11:6). Christ was telling this godly servant, “Don't be offended at me, John. You know I only do what I see and hear from the Father. He has a plan in all this, and He is worthy to be trusted. If He wanted Me to come and release you, you know I would be there in a moment. You can rest assured that whatever comes of this, it will be to His glory. And it will mean eternal glory for you!

“You are enduring your final test, John. Don’t let doubt rob you of your faith. Instead, rest in the Father’s love and faithfulness to you. You’re not being judged. On the contrary, you are greatly honored in His eyes. Just hold steady!”

I believe John did endure. When he was finally beheaded by Herod, he went home to glory full of faith and honor!