Favorite Pastor Quotes 10

Favorite Pastor Quotes 10

Mark him down as a proud man!

(Ashton Oxenden, "The Touchstone of Humility")

One way in which a really humble Christian shows himself, is by having a high opinion of others. Paul says, "In lowliness of mind--let each esteem other better than himself." "Honor one another above yourselves."

Whenever you see a person who appears to take every opportunity of putting down others--mark him down as a proud man--and be sure that he does it in order to exalt himself!

On the other hand, whenever you see any one anxious to hide his brother's failings, unwilling to expose his little defects--you will generally find that he is a humble man, and one who deeply feels the many faults of his own character.
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The evangelistic methods of our present golden-calf Christianity!

(A.W. Tozer)

Any objection to the evangelistic methods of our present golden-calf Christianity, is met with the triumphant reply, "But we are winning the lost!"

And what are you winning them to?

To true discipleship?
To cross-carrying?
To self-denial?
To separation from the world?
To crucifixion of the flesh?
To holy living?
To nobility of character?
To a despising of the world's treasures?
To total committal to Christ?

Of course, the answer to all these questions is NO!

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His teaching makes practical Christians!

(James Smith)

"But the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name--He will teach you all things!" John 14:26

The Holy Spirit is the Teacher of the church. To Him the promise refers, "All Your children shall be taught of the Lord, and great shall be the peace of your children."

He taught the apostles all things necessary for their office and work.

He teaches the true ministers of Christ, leading them into the truth as it is in Jesus.

And He teaches every believer--all that is really necessary for him to know!

The Bible is the lesson-book, 
the believer is the scholar, 
the blessed Spirit is the teacher, and
experimental religion is the education! 

No one teaches like Him!
He teaches us . . .
  gradually,
  silently, and
  always effectually!
For only what the Spirit teaches us--do we really know!

He teaches us . . .
  what God requires in His Word,
  what He has provided in His gospel;
  what Christ is to His people,
  what His people are to Him.

His teaching makes practical Christians--for He always teaches us to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts, and to live soberly, righteously, and godly, in the present world!

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We would never commit a sin!

(Charles Spurgeon, "How God Condemned Sin") 

Such are the assemblage of graces found only in Jesus, each sparkling with peerless luster, and all blending with such exquisite gracefulness--that we are at once moved with awe and touched with love as we contemplate Him.

Such majesty--and yet such meekness in His demeanor.

Such solemnity--and yet such tenderness in His speech.

So impartial in judgment--and yet so forgiving in temper.

So full of zeal--and yet so equally full of patience.

So keen to detect malice--and yet so slow to resent it.

Such a wise mentor--and yet such a gentle sympathizing friend.

Jesus was perfectly . . .
   innocent,
   harmless,
   gentle,
   meek,
   loving,
   tender.

All His words were love.

All His actions were kindness.

We would never commit a sin, if we would but first say to ourselves, "Would Jesus have done this?"

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The Infinite has become an infant!

(Charles Spurgeon, "The Condescension of Christ!")

"Even angels long to look into these things!" 1 Peter 1:12

Oh, how surprised angels were, when they were first informed that Jesus Christ, the Prince of Light and Majesty, intended to shroud Himself in clay and become a babe, and live and die! We do not know how it was first mentioned to the angels--but when the rumor first began to get afloat among the sacred hosts, you may imagine what strange wonderment there was.

What! Was it true that He whose crown was all bedecked with stars, would lay that crown aside?

What! Was it certain that He about whose shoulders was cast the government of the universe, would become a man dressed in a peasants garment?

Could it be true that He who was everlasting and immortal, would one day be nailed to a cross?

And when He descended from on high, they followed Him; for Jesus was "seen by angels," and seen in a special sense, for they looked upon Him in rapturous amazement, wondering what it all could mean.

Oh, can you conceive the yet increasing wonder of the heavenly hosts when He put aside His majesty--when they saw the tiara taken off, when they saw Him unbind His belt of stars, and cast away His sandals of gold?

Can you conceive it, when He said to them: "I do not disdain the womb of the virgin--I am going down to earth to become a man!"

And now wonder, you angels, the Infinite has become an infant!

He, upon whose shoulders the universe hangs--hangs at His mothers bosom!

He who created all things, and bears up the pillars of creation--has now become so weak that He must be carried by a woman!

And oh, wonder, you angels who knew Him in His riches, while you admire His poverty!

Where does the new-born King sleep? Had He the best room in Caesar's palace? Has a cradle of gold been prepared for Him, and pillows of down, on which to rest His head? No! Where the ox fed, in the dilapidated stable, in the feeding trough--there the Savior lies, swathed in the swaddling bands of the children of poverty!

See Him who made the worlds--handle the hammer and the nails, assisting Joseph in the trade of a carpenter!

Mark Him who has put the stars on high, and made them glisten in the night; mark Him without one star of glory upon His brow--a simple child, as other children.

Let us leave the scenes of His childhood and His earlier life. See Him when He becomes a man--as for His food, He oftentimes hungered; and always was dependent upon the charity of others for the relief of His needs!

He who scattered the harvest over the broad acres of the world--at times had nothing to stop the pangs of His hunger!

He who dug the springs of the ocean--sat upon a well and said to a Samaritan woman, "Give me a drink!"

He rode in no chariot, but He walked His weary way, foot-sore, over the flints of Galilee!

He had no where to lay His head. He looked upon the fox as it hurried to its burrow, and the fowl as it went to its resting-place, and He said, "Foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests--but I have nowhere to lay my head."

He who had once been waited on by angels--becomes the servant of servants, takes a towel, girds Himself, and washes His disciples' feet!

He who was once honored with the hallelujahs of ages--is now spit upon and despised!

Oh, there are no words to picture the humiliation of Christ! What leagues of distance between Him that once sat upon the throne--and Him that died upon the cross! Oh, who can tell the mighty chasm between yon heights of glory--and the cross of deepest woe!

Trace Him, Christian. Follow Him all His journey through. Begin with Him in the wilderness of temptation, see Him fasting there, and hungering with the wild beasts around Him. Trace Him along His weary way, as the Man of Sorrows, and acquainted with grief. He is the byword of the drunkard, He is the song of the scorner, and He is hooted at by the malicious--see Him as they point their finger at Him, and call Him a "drunken man and wine-bibber!"

Follow Him along His 'Via Dolorosa', until at last you meet Him among the olive groves of Gethsemane--see Him sweating great drops of blood!

Follow Him to the pavement of Gabbatha--see Him pouring out rivers of gore beneath the cruel whips of Roman soldiers!

With weeping eye follow Him to the cross of Calvary, see Him nailed there!

Mark His poverty--so poor that His unpillowed head is girt with thorns in death!

Oh, Son of Man, I know not which to admire most--Your height of glory--or Your depths of misery!

If I had a tale to tell you this day of some king, who, out of love to some fair maiden, left his kingdom and became a peasant like herself--you would stand and wonder, and would listen to the charming tale. But when I tell of God concealing His dignity to become our Savior--our hearts are scarcely touched!

"For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich!" 2 Corinthians 8:9

Are You Normal?

Are You Normal?

Are you normal? You would probably answer yes to that question, but do you really know what normality is for a human being?

After all, a knowledge of normality is the only basis upon which we can diagnose accurately. That is why we have to understand very clearly how God created us: only then can we have an intelligent understanding of what has gone wrong, and its consequences, and what God has done to put things right.

In Psalm 8, David asks God, "What is man that You are mindful of him?" Then David acknowledges, "You have made him a little lower than the angels, and You have crowned him with glory and honor. You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet" (Psalm 8:4-6). This was man in his innocence, man in normality, man as God created him in Adam: crowned with glory!

What was the glory with which God crowned man? God had said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness: ( Genesis 1:26). Man in the image of God was to be equipped by His divine indwelling, the Holy Spirit occupying the human spirit, so that man would manifest the very glory of God. It was a derived glory, exclusively dependent upon the presence of the Creator within the creature. Likewise the authority man was to exercise over the earth was the authority that derived exclusively from his submission to God's authority.

The Bible makes it abundantly clear that God Himself (the Creator within the creature) must be the origin of His own image. After God completed His work of creation by creating man, "God saw that everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good" (Genesis 1:31). What did He see in that moment when He looked at man whom He created in His perfect image? He saw Himself! For "God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him" (Genesis 1:27).

God Himself, as our Creator, always intended that He should indwell us; His cherished ambition was to be seen and heard in those He created. That is normality for a human being, when God Himself is behaving in and through a man or woman. This is the purpose for which He created us, that we might be a physical, visible expression on this earth of the God who is otherwise invisible, as John tells us: "No one has seen God at any time" (John 1:18).

God created each human being with a physical, visible, and audible body to be inhabited by an invisible God, to make Himself visible through what that person does and says and is. God Himself must be the origin of this activity within us, which is called "righteousness. God is the author of all righteousness, and for you and me to produce it, He must be within us the origin of His own image, the source of His own activity, the dynamic of His own demands, and the cause of His own effect.

Therefore if any human being is truly normal in his or her behavior, there is only One Person to be congratulated, and that is God Himself. Normality for a human being is when God can be seen by anything and everything which that person does and says and is.

Our "natural" man, or who we are in our flesh, is void of righteousness and also of any true spirituality: "The natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are spiritually discerned" (1 Corinthians 2:14). The natural man cannot know the things of the Spirit of God because he is morally and intellectually incapacitated. The natural man is not normal; he is not what God created and intended man to be. In his fallen condition he is destitute, empty, and alienated from the person of his Creator. 

The moment you come to realize that only God can make a person righteous and godly, you are left with no option but to find God, and to know Him, and to let God be God in and through you, whatever that will mean. This will leave you with no margin for picking and choosing, for there is only one God, and He is absolute, and He made you expressly for Himself.

"Be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and .... put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness" (Ephesians 4:23-24).

1. How normal are you? What is true normality for a human being?

2. What does it mean "to let God be God in and through you?

~W. Ian Thomas~

What Kind of a Christian?

What Kind of a Christian?

God is the absolute source of righteousness, but there is also an absolute source of unrighteousness - the devil. All human activity derives from one or the other of these two origins.

That is why the Bible says, "Whatsoever is not of faith is sin" (Romans 14:23). Whatever does not derive from your attitude of total dependence upon God, whatever does not release God's activity through your life, is sin. It is sin because it stems from an attitude of independence that makes you open to any and all of satan's deceptions in his long history of usurping God's authority.

Every step you take, every attitude you adopt, every decision you make, everything you do and all you hope to be, is either in dependence upon the God who created you as His own dwelling place, or else the byproduct of the demon spirit of this world, "who now works in the sons of disobedience" (Ephesians 2:2), and who perpetuates his lies through a mindset of self-reliance in fallen humanity.

The Bible calls this attitude of independence a "carnal mind" (Romans 8:7). It is a mind that is set "on the things of the flesh" rather than on "the things of the spirit" (Romans 8:5). It means exercising the faculties of your personality in ways that are not dependent on the God whose presence alone imparts to you the quality of true humanity that He always intended for you.

It means thinking godlessly. In other words, thinking lightlessly, with a mind still in darkness. You take a step, you make a decision, you conceive your plans, you assume a responsibility, all without relating the situation to God and to His light and to all that He is within you.

This carnal mind can be in the believer just as much as in the unbeliever. Carnal or fleshly Christians have been regenerated by the restoration of the Holy Spirit to their human spirit but in certain ways they still repudiate the Spirit's legitimate right to reestablish the rule of Christ in their minds, in their emotions, and in their wills. Although they profess Christ as Redeemer, their actions and decisions typically are taken for the sake of their own interests and for who they are in themselves, rather than for God's interests and for who He is. Their minds are still the plaything and the workshop of the devil, for the devil is smart enough and cunning enough that he can always persuade countless numbers of professing Christians to try and be Christians without Christ. They are willing to do anything for Jesus' sake, but they fail to understand that His presence is absolutely imperative to do it, that without Him we are nothing, have nothing, and can do nothing.

To be a carnal Christian is still to claim the right to exercise your own jurisdiction, make your own decisions and plans, choose your own pathway. But you will be useless to God, and you will make it into heaven only "as through fire" (1 Corinthians 3:15).

What kind of Christian do you want to be? To choose to be a carnal Christian is to choose spiritual oblivion. But if you decide genuinely that Christ must be everything, and have everything in your life, if you say in your heart, "I want nothing less that to be all that for which the blood of God's dear Son was shed," then He is ready to lead you into discoveries that can completely revolutionize your whole humanity for time and eternity.

"He who sins is of the devil" (1 John 3:8).

1. In what ways might there be some self-dependence behind any current plans or decisions that you may have made? Of what current attitudes or actions of self-dependence in your life do you need to repent?

2. In the responsibilities, duties, and activities that lie immediately ahead, what can you identify as God's purpose and interests? What is He wanting to accomplish?

3. What kind of Christian do you truly want to be? How would you express this in your own words?

~W. Ian Thomas~

Favorite Pastor Quotes 7

Favorite Pastor Quotes 7

Formula for Personal Growth

James 1:22

Growing in Christ involves far more than just attending church, tithing, and listening to a sermon. In fact, many believers do these yet remain stagnant in their walk. There are two elements necessary for us to become more like Jesus: instruction and involvement.

The first of these, learning truth, is vital to a healthy walk with God. Our Savior proved the importance of instruction by devoting much of His time on earth to it. The apostle Paul is another example, as he wrote letters to educate Christians about godliness.

So how can we gain knowledge and understanding? One of the most important and effective ways is to read the Word of God. Scripture instructs us that just as newborns crave milk, we are to desire His Word so that we might grow. I pray your spiritual thirst will become insatiable.

Yet simply listening to the truth does not mean that we've acquired it. I know many people who love attending Bible studies and expanding their knowledge base, but their lives remain unchanged. Just as today's passage teaches, we have to apply the Word to our lives. Even so, actual growth requires more than merely inputting information. It requires action.James 2:26 states, "For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead."

Are we careless hearers, deceived into thinking that we're growing? Or are we listening intently and abiding in the truth? If we're truly maturing, our lives will be increasingly Christlike, and our desires will align more closely with God's heart. Make sure that you are listening and responding to His truth.

~Dr. Charles F. Stanley~

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The Vital Sign of Pride

Pride and self-sufficiency are unmistakable signs of a heart that is in desperate need of reviving.  Isaiah 57:15tells us,

For thus says the High and Lofty One who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy:  "I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones."

To have a contrite heart literally means you break easily.  Even at the thought of grieving God's Spirit you break and repent very quickly.  It means you walk softly in your heart before God. 

God says He will revive those with a humble spirit and a contrite heart.  But one of the great dangers among Christians today--especially for those living in the western world with all of its abundance--is a belief that we don't need anything.

More than ever we need to read the words of Jesus in Revelation 3:17,

"Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing'--and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked."

How can you be miserable and naked and not know it?   It's obvious that Jesus is speaking of their inward, spiritual condition.  Apparently, their outward wealth blinded them to their inward poverty.   They fell into the trap of pride, which is one of the inherent dangers that comes with prosperity.  As Christians living in a very prosperous western world, we need to heed this word!

At Disneyland there is a ride with cool little cars.  I remember once seeing a little boy on the ride with his dad, and his feet didn't even reach the pedals!  But Junior thought he was driving, oblivious to the fact that Daddy was actually driving the car and making it go. 

We need to remember that our feet don't even reach the pedals, and that Daddy, our God, is the One who makes this thing go.  We need to maintain a humble heart.

~Bayless Conley~

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Today's Reading: Job 25; Acts 12

Today's Thoughts: Step into New Land

Now the Lord had said to Abram: "Get out of your country, From your family And from your father's house, To a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." So Abram departed as the Lord had spoken to him, and Lot went with him. And Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. Then Abram took Sarai his wife and Lot his brother's son, and all their possessions that they had gathered, and the people whom they had acquired in Haran, and they departed to go to the land of Canaan. So they came to the land of Canaan. - Genesis 12:1-5

The Lord called Abram out. He told him to leave his country, not just his home, but his country. God told Abram to leave his family and head towards a new land. Can we begin to imagine how Abram must have felt? I wonder if his family thought he was crazy. Let's see now--you are going to leave your home, family, country and head to a land that you have not seen yet? Abram did leave his home and country behind and went as the Lord directed him. Abram was a man of great faith. He believed in the promises of God and it was accounted to him as righteousness.

In the New Testament, Jesus told his disciples a similar message when he said, "Follow Me." To follow Jesus meant leaving everything else behind, including homes and families. Some did and some did not. The same is true today. How many of us are truly willing to forsake all for the gospel of Jesus Christ? Do we really have to go to such extremes in this day and age? In our hearts, we must answer those questions. Despite our behaviors and outward appearances, God knows our hearts. If we are willing to surrender all to Jesus, the Lord will do the rest.

Think upon these verses today. Maybe God has a new land that awaits you. Without a doubt, God has blessings planned for your life, planned from before you were born. Are you willing to step out of your comfort zone? If so, this could be the step that changes your life in amazing ways.

~Daily Disciples Devotional~

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A Clean Heart

Psalms 119:9-11

Reaching our full potential begins with a clean heart--one that loves the Lord and desires to obey Him. However, each of us was born with a nature bent away from God. Jeremiah 17:9describes the heart as deceitful and inclined towards wickedness. Pleasing self is man’s normal state.

Salvation changed our hearts and lives. Jesus’ death on the cross paid the penalty for our sin and broke its power over us. By receiving Christ as Savior, we each became a new creation--with a heart sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s leading and a mind that strongly desires to know the Father better. We also received the Spirit’s power to deny our selfish desires and obey God. With clean hearts, we can begin to realize the capabilities our loving Lord has given us.

The best way to maintain a clean heart is by meditating on Scripture. It acts like a mirror in which we see ourselves as God does. Through it, we discover the areas where we have been faithful and also the places where we’ve veered from His path. Expressing genuine repentance brings God’s forgiveness and cleansing (1 John 1:9).

The heart represents the seat of our mind, will, and emotions. When we strive to keep it pure, we will more easily discern the Lord’s plan, submit our will to His, and follow Him obediently.

Becoming the person God planned for each of us to be requires an intimate relationship with Him and a desire to obey His Word. Apart from Jesus, we can’t achieve anything of lasting value (John 15:5). Cooperating with the Holy Spirit’s transforming work will help us keep our hearts clean.

~Dr. Charles F. Stanley~

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Refreshing Sleep

"So He giveth His beloved sleep" (Psalm 127:2).
Ours is not a life of anxious care but of happy faith. Our heavenly Father will supply the wants of His own children, and He knoweth what we have need of before we ask Him. We may therefore go to our beds at the proper hour and not wear ourselves out by sitting up late to plot, and plan, and contrive. If we have learned to rely upon our God, we shall not lie awake with fear gnawing at our hearts; but we shall leave our care with the LORD, our meditation of Him shall be sweet, and He will give us refreshing sleep.

To be the LORD's beloved is the highest possible honor, and he who has it may feel that ambition itself could desire no more, and therefore every selfish wish may go to sleep. What more is there even in heaven than the love of God? Rest, then, O soul, for thou hast all things. Yet we toss to and fro unless the LORD Himself gives us not only the reasons for rest but rest itself. Yea, He doth this. Jesus Himself is our peace, our rest, our all, On His bosom we sleep in perfect security, both in life and in death.

Sprinkled afresh with pardoning blood,
I lay me down to rest
As in the embraces of my God,
Or on my Saviour's breast.

~Charles Spurgeon~