Losing To Gain

“For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; and whosoever will lose his life for My sake shall find it.” Matthew 16:25 Dear Ones: It was Jim Elliot, missionary to the Auca Indians, who once wrote:  “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep, to gain what he cannot lose.”  Of what…


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Perseverance

“For you have need of patience (endurance), that, after you have done the will of God, you might receive the promise.” Hebrews 10:36 Dear Ones: After the Lord had called Gideon to deliver Israel, there came a significant battle where the enemy was routed.  Gideon and his three hundred men were in necessary pursuit, but…


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The Centerpiece Of Heaven

“And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.” Matthew 7:25 Dear Ones: In our present time, there are many, very many, waves and winds of culture and circumstances that could, and would, toss us about,…


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The Power Of Mercy

“…And the publican, standing afar off, …smote upon his breast, saying, ‘God be merciful to me a sinner.’ ‘…this man went down to his house justified.’” Luke 18:13,14 Dear Ones: Jeremiah writes very descriptively concerning the true condition of the human heart without God:  “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who…


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The Moving Of The Spirit

“…And the Spirit of the Lord began to move him at times…” Judges 13:25 Dear Ones: When the Spirit of the Lord moved upon the “face of the waters” in Genesis 1:2, there was not only that action of the Spirit, but the resulting reaction of creation.  When the Spirit of the Lord came upon…


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The Burning Heart

“Is not My word like a burning fire?” Jeremiah 23:29 Dear Ones: There are those who have put God in a box, and limit Him in the manner and extent of His working in the heart.  Listen to Charles Wesley’s hymn:  “Come, Jesus Lord, with holy fire; Come, and my quickened heart inspire cleansed in…


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The Miracle Of Snow

“…Come now and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be white as snow.”  Isaiah 1:18 Dear Ones: Who can forgive sins but God?  And who can cleanse the heart and mind of man but God, by the Spirit, applying the purifying properties  and power of the…


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The Healing Of Malchus’ Ear

“…And He touched his ear, and healed him.” Luke 22:51 Dear Ones: The setting was the betrayal of Jesus by Judas.  The soldiers had come to take Him to be tried, and eventually crucified.  In a natural response to the antagonistic “crowd,” which was pressing upon Jesus, Peter takes a sword and cuts off the…


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The Battle For The Mind

“…And he (the serpent) said unto the woman, ‘Yes, hath God said…?'” Genesis 3:1 Dear Ones: When the Apostle Paul wrote the epistle to the Philippians from prison, he made a remarkable statement concerning the mind.  “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever…


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