ASHAMED OF JESUS?
"Whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father, with the holy angels." -- Mark 8:38
How could we ever be ashamed of Jesus? What has He ever done that would make us ashamed of Him? It is easy to see why He might be ashamed of us. Too often we have done shameful things. But what is there about Him that would cause us to be ashamed?
I have read the Bible through several times, and have yet to find anything shameful about Jesus. On the contrary, I have found many things that would make me proud of Him, and happy to be associated with Him. One elder of a large denomination wrote an article telling some of the things he has against Jesus Christ. But I must confess, I have nothing against Him. In fact I am convinced no one will have anything against Him if they really know Him.
The Bible says, "He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord." This is not too difficult when we read a portion of Scripture like Philippians 2:6-11. Speaking of Jesus Christ, this passage reads: "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.
"Wherefore, God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God, the Father."
Why did He make this trip to earth, and then to the Cross, and finally back to glory? For you and for me!!! Through His coming He worked out our salvation. Now salvation may be freely ours for the taking.
How could we ever be ashamed of Jesus? All He has ever done has been for our eternal good. "He that believeth on him shall not be put to shame" (Romans 9:33b). "(This) hope maketh not ashamed" (Romans 5:5).
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"He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life."
I John 5:12
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THE DEATH OF CHRIST
(Its Meaning)
What does the death of Christ mean to us?
Among other things it was for us a SUBSTITUTIONARY SACRIFICE.
This exact term is not found in the Bible, but the Bible is filled with the idea.
Substitution is taught by direct statement in such passages as these: "Jehovah hath laid on him the iniquity of us all" -- "Him who knew no sin he made to be sin on our behalf" -- "Christ . . . having become a curse for us" -- "Who his own self bare our sins in his body upon the tree? -- "Christ . . . suffered for sins . . . the righteous for the unrighteous."
In Matthew 20:28 substitution is taught by the Greek preposition, "anti." It is translated "for" in the English. "The Son of man came to give his life a ransom FOR many." Actually this should read: "in the stead of many." In other words, "as a substitute for many."
Substitution is taught indirectly in certain passages. In Isaiah 53:10, the prophet speaking of the sufferings of Christ, we read: "It pleased Jehovah to bruise him." Why did it please God to bruise Jesus? Does He like to injure innocent men? There is only one explanation -- substitution. Christ was, according to God's plan and pleasure, giving His life in the place of sinners.
In Matthew 27:46 we hear Christ crying out to the Father from the cross: "Why hast thou forsaken me?" Does God forsake good men when they die? There is only one answer possible -- substitution. Christ was on this occasion forsaken by the Father, for He was there as our substitute, bearing our sins upon His own sinless person.
Finally, substitution is taught by the Old Testament sacrifices which were typical of Christ's death. When a person sinned in those days, in order to be forgiven, the sinner was required to offer an animal in sacrifice. The offender placed his hand upon the head of the animal to identify himself with it, the animal was slain in the designated place before Jehovah, the blood was applied as required, and the remains were burned on appropriate altars. Thus the animal died in the stead of the person who had sinned. (See Leviticus 4)
It is God's universal law that "the wages of sin is death." In the old economy an animal died for the sinner. But God said there was coming something better. "For the law having a shadow of the good things to come, not the very image of the things, can never with the same sacrifices year by year, which they offered continually, make perfect them that draw nigh" (Hebrews 10:1). "The good things to come" was Christ's sacrifice which He would make for the sinner, as the sinner's substitute. This was the perfect sacrifice which was pleasing to God, a "once for all" sacrifice.
Our Lord Jesus Christ was slain before God on Calvary, His blood was shed, His flesh torn; He suffered the burning, consuming wrath of a holy God against sin (sin not His own, but ours). Thus He died in our place -- as our substitute. Now all who will identify themselves with Him by faith, shall be forever forgiven and shall themselves never have to suffer for their sins.
Thank God for our Substitute!
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THE BIBLE SPEAKS
I am the Bible.
I am God's wonderful library.
I make known to all, Him who is the Truth.
To the weary pilgrim, I am a good staff.
To the one who sits in black gloom, I am the glorious light.
To those who stoop beneath heavy burdens, I am sweet rest.
To him who has lost his way, I am a safe guide.
To those who have been hurt by sin, I am healing balm.
To the discouraged, I whisper a glad message of hope.
To those who are distressed by the storms of life, I am an anchor, sure and steadfast.
To those who suffer in lonely solitude, I am as a cool, soft hand resting on a fevered brow.
Oh, child of man, to best defend me, just use me.
-- Selected.
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NOT ALONE
Beneath, My everlasting arms,
Above, My watchful care;
Your name engraved upon My hands,
Numbered your every hair.
Would I forsake the small chill lamb,
Upon the mountains lost?
COULD I forget that one I bought
At such a fearful cost?
When weary, worn, come unto Me,
And I will give you rest;
When darkness falls, pillow your head
Upon My tender breast.
He loves you well who lately came
And passed through Heaven's door;
But hold this to your aching heart --
My child, I love you MORE!
-- Martha Snell Nicholson
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THE CROSS
By Walter Scott
We desire increasingly to keep the Cross well to the front in all our preaching and teaching, and would emphasize the fact that the Cross of Christ is our chief glory. We refuse to regard it simply as the sign of the Christian faith. It is a force, a conviction, a divine reality in our souls. On the Cross we rest; in the Cross we boast. It is the grandest counsel of eternity; it is the supreme fact of time. The Cross is to Christianity what the brazen altar was to Judaism; and what the sun is to the solar system, its center and from whence every ray of light emanates. The removal of the sun would create a huge blank in the material universe, but a more awful catastrophe would occur were the Cross to be blotted out from Christianity. The latter could have no existence apart from the former.
As we read the words of Paul -- fearless and bold -- in the stern and rugged Epistle to the Galatians (1:6-9), we greatly fear for many professed servants of Christ who are wont to discard the old Gospel as not up-to-date: "I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel; which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before: so say I once again, if any preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed." Let us cleave to the good old Gospel of Paul, of Peter, of John, of Luther, of Bunyan, of Darby, of Spurgeon, and millions of others. The Cross alone is that which stands between us and the lake of fire.
The Cross is unique in many respects. There is nothing like it; nothing to be compared to it. It towers beyond all else in moral sublimity. It outshines all else in undying interest. It presents a combination utterly without parallel -- a combination of good and evil, of light and darkness, of sin and holiness, of love and hatred. It is the most touching story ever penned or uttered.
See the Actors. The central figure and object of all is Christ -- the incarnation of love, of tenderness, of holiness; the embodiment of all moral excellence. In these and other respects, He stands alone and apart from all others -- solitary and the only One in peerless perfection.
God, too, is there, not as the God of grace, not as the God of deliverance, but God in inflexible righteousness; in unbending judgment; in infinite holiness; in intolerance of sin. God in wrath is justly calling upon the clouds to break over the head of Calvary's Victim; demanding the angry billows -- restrained for over four thousand years -- to burst every barrier, and dash themselves over and around that solitary Sufferer -- great in His unspeakable agony!
Satan is there urging on in fiendish hate and high glee the civil and ecclesiastical powers. The guild of the throne and the temple, of Gentile and Jew, of Roman and priest are combined in that dread hour. Satan is the moving spring in all the action.
Weeping women and terrified disciples are there beholding afar off. But neither the tears of the one nor the fears of the other can still the horrors of that scene.
Pilate is there, from whose unwilling lips were wrung the condemnation of the Lord. He tarnished the Roman name for justice. He has sullied the fair fame of Rome for inflexible integrity. Again and again, he publicly declared the innocence of his august Prisoner, yet, overawed by the angry and passionate clamors of the people, deliberately delivered over to scourging and crucifixion the Lord of glory.
The high priest, the chief priests (of whom there were 24) and the whole of the ecclesiastical governing body there without pity, without compassion, without feeling, yea, more active and more guilty than even the civil power in glutting their vengeance upon the Lord of the temple.
Judas, the only Judean Apostle, had one of the guiltiest parts of all in the scene of the Cross. He sold his Master and his soul in the bargain for the miserable sum of 30 pieces of silver, the price of a common slave. Satan lured him on, and when his purpose was accomplished, left him in his despair. The silver burned a hole in his conscience. What a bargain! What an end!
What was there? Infinite love -- the might of God's love -- a love intense, vast, and utterly beyond all comprehending or telling. A love was there which rose in moral triumph over the whole scene of agony, a love which fought and conquered. It was the battle of divine love against the might of Satanic and human wickedness.
The badness, the vileness of man was there. Undying and unconquerable hatred to God was met by undying and victorious love to man.
Our sins were there. God laid them on Him in that dread hour -- there and only there were they borne. He bore our sins on the tree -- now purged, forgiven, forgotten and remembered no more.
Desolation, agony, darkness, and the sum of accumulated horrors were there. The Psalm of Sobs (Psalm 22) tells of the anguish of the Sufferer. Forsaken by God and abandoned by man, with no Mary to wipe the cold sweat of agony, and the vile spittle of the creature from His sorrow-stricken face. He stands alone -- O Rock of Ages! -- and consumes to the uttermost the vengeance of God against sin for all who believe. The infinite sacrifice has consumed the fire of judgment. Now we stand in the place where the fire has been and has done his work.
See how the Cross is attested. God and nature add their solemn Amen to the death of Christ.
Darkness, like a huge funeral pall, wrapped itself around the land. There never was a midnight like those three hours. It was not an eclipse. It was God who covered the face of the sky.
The Veil of the Temple was 'rent in the midst' is the record of one inspired oracle, and 'from top to bottom' the significant statement of another. The whole Levitical system was shaken from its center to its circumference. God is fully revealed and heaven open.
The rocks were rent. The strength of nature gave way before the greater power of that death.
The earth quaked. It throbbed horrified at the awfullest deed ever perpetrated on its surface.
The graves of Jewish saints were shattered and opened, although the dead were not raised til after His resurrection. The power of Satan which is death, was thus shivered to pieces.
What is the Cross to us? Is it the resting-place of our conscience? The peace of our souls? Is the Cross our boast and glory? Is it the ground of our preaching and teaching?
May God grant that as the Cross is everything to God it may be all and everything to us.
-- In Things Concerning Himself
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'MY FATHER OWNS THE AIRLINES'
Dr. Jack Hyles, well known Baptist pastor in Indiana, had a most unusual experience that he tells about.
I boarded a plane, bound for Greenville SC, and found only one empty seat on the plane, I sat down, and noticed there sat beside me a young lady, whose bejeweled fingers indicated she was a person of means. Before I knew it, the plane took off and I soon went to sleep. Presently I was awakened by the thud of wheels with the landing gear on the runway of the airport at Cincinnati OH. Then the lady spoke to me. "How could you sleep through that storm all the way?" I replied, "I did not realize there had been a storm" She said, "I know that. As you slept, we were all afraid of the storm, but a little amused by the way you snored."
I apologized and said, "Perhaps the reason that I can sleep through such a storm is, my Father owns the plane." She looked surprised, and I continued, "Yes, He owns the entire Delta Airlines." She sat up and seemed impressed. "I did not realize that I was sitting beside the heir of the Delta Airlines . . . " She obviously was impressed with my Father and His Son. Finally she said, "What is your father's name?" I said, "His name is the Almighty God, the Father of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ."
She began to weep and tremble and said, "It is so strange that a minister would sit down beside me. Just a few minutes before I got on this plane I tried to commit suicide. My husband is the manager of a large company, but he had threatened to divorce me -- so I took a razor blade and cut my wrist. Friends and relatives are sending me to Atlanta, GA, where I have a sister, in the hope that she can talk me out of ending it all."
By this time the airplane was again 28,000 feet in the air between Cincinnati and Atlanta. She looked at me with her quivering lips and said, "Mister, does your God love me too?" I told her that God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." She heard from me more of the Gospel story -- and I think she believed it. Since then I have often heard the echo of her words -- "Does your God love me too?" Let us tell the wide world -- the red, the yellow, the black, the white -- of the Love "that drew Salvation's Plan!"
-- In Life Of Faith
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KONFUSED
By Alvin F. Gage
The title of this devotional is not misspelled. I was just given a new typewriter and it spells real good; the "error" at the heading of this column was intentional.
Perhaps you are familiar with the story of the man who went to Washington, D. C. and wore a tag on his lapel reading, "I.A.K." As he got into a taxi the driver noticed it. He had seen many tags before, but none like this one, so he asked the man what it meant. The man replied, "It means, 'I Am Konfused'." "You don't spell 'Confused' with a 'K'," stated the driver. To which the man replied, "You don't know how confused I am!"
Our nation is confused today. While writing this I heard the news of the shooting of Senator Robert Kennedy. I thought: Our nation is confused enough without having another tragedy like this. There seems to be no end to the confusion we as a nation and individuals face. Perhaps God is allowing this for a real good reason.
We may ask ourselves: Why all this confusion? The Apostle Paul says, "God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints" (I Corinthians 14:33). Then someone will say, "If God is not the author of confusion, why do we have so much?"
I looked this up and found the answer in Daniel 9:8 where Daniel prays, "O Lord, to us belongeth confusion of face, to our kings (presidents), to our princes (congressmen), to our fathers, because we have sinned against Thee." Why is there confusion in our beloved nation? Because of sin. Tom Skinner, the famous black evangelist, put it well when he said, "It is not race, it's grace; it is not skin, it's sin." Race riots, campus riots, peace marches, poor people's marches, defying the law, injustice, and many other things are the result of sin in our land.
As I counsel many people there is much evidence of confusion in lives. Why? For the same reason that we have it in our nation. Sin! Daniel said that there was confusion because of sin.
The Apostle James has something to say about this in James 3:16, "For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work." James is saying about the same thing that Daniel said. Again it is sin. There is envying and strife in our nation and in many lives.
Are you confused today? We cannot deny that we are living in a confusing day. There is strife all around us. But there is no confusion to those who are living close to Christ. We can live above the strife and confusion. Our God is the God of peace. Do you want real peace during these days of confusion? Come to Christ! He alone gives lasting peace.
When you reject the Savior you are sinning against God. Daniel says there is confusion because "we sinned against Thee." Stop sinning against God and His Son. Receive Him and receive the peace that He gives. Then you can sing:
"Coming to Jesus, my Savior I found
Wonderful Peace, Wonderful Peace,
Storms in their fury may rage all around,
I have peace, sweet peace.
Christian, are you in confusion? Maybe there is sin in your life that needs to be confessed. Maybe there is some one whom you have sinned against and this needs to be made right. It is easy to backslide and hard to go back up the hill. But God can give you the victory through Christ. Seek Him . . . serve Him . . . honor Him. Your life will greatly change and the confusion will disappear.
Sinner, how about you? Are you willing to give God a try? Does the world situation disturb you? Has the murder of Senator Kennedy really gotten to you? Where do you stand in relation to Christ? All of these questions could be answered if you would receive Christ as your personal Lord and Savior.
How do you spell "Confusion?" With a "C" or a "K?" Some people are so confused that they do not know which way to turn. There is only one way to turn -- to Christ! Will you turn to Him? He invites you: "Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28). Confusion can make a person heavy laden. Christ will give you rest.
-- In The Evangel
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HELD BY HIM
HOW unable you may feel to make any stand for Christ at all! Well, just put your hand into His, as simply as a little child, and say, "Lord, hold me by Thy power." Pray in every difficulty. Pray before you go into the dangers of the day, though it be but a few words. If you lean your weakness upon His strength He will not fail you. Apart from Him you can do nothing. Your feet cannot be kept standing in the right place on His side here, unless your hand is also in the right place, that is, held by Him. Therefore "pray without ceasing."
"I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee" (Isaiah 41:13).
-- Arthur Cutting.
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THY REDEEMER
By Charles H. Spurgeon
JESUS, the Redeemer, is altogether ours and ours forever. All the offices of Christ are held on our behalf.
He is king for us, priest for us, and prophet for us. Whenever we read a new title of the Redeemer, let us appropriate Him as ours under that name as much as under any other.
The shepherd's staff, the father's rod, the captain's sword, the priest's mitre, the prince's sceptre, the prophet's mantle, all are ours.
Jesus hath no dignity which He will not employ for our exaltation, and no prerogative which He will not exercise for our defense. His fulness of Godhead is our unfailing, inexhaustible treasure-house.
His manhood also, which He took upon Himself for us, is ours in all its perfection. To us our gracious Lord communicates the spotless virtue of a stainless character; to us He gives the meritorious efficacy of a devoted life; on us He bestows the reward procured by obedient submission and incessant service.
He makes the unsullied garment of His life our covering beauty; the glittering virtues of His character our ornaments and jewels; and the superhuman meekness of His death our boast and glory.
He bequeaths us His manger, from which to learn how God came down to man; and His Cross to teach us how man may go up to God.
All His thoughts, emotions, actions, utterances, miracles, and intercessions, were for us.
He trod the road of sorrow on our behalf, and hath made over to us as His heavenly legacy the full results of all the labors of His life.
He is now as much ours as heretofore; and He blushes not to acknowledge Himself "our Lord Jesus Christ," though He is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords.
Christ everywhere and every way is our Christ, forever and ever most richly to enjoy.
O my soul, by the power of the Holy Spirit! call Him this day, "thy Redeemer." (Isaiah 54:5)
In "Morning and Evening," published by Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, MI.
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