Many people are motivated to live for health, wealth, and ease, and they try to avoid pain at all costs. Through this painful but profitable experience, I learned that when God disciplines us, our greatest gain isn't what we get but what we become. In fact, she broke the men's record by 2 hours! Let's finish the course—and finish strong. My friend and I were standing in the parking lot of a restaurant where we had just finished lunch. The desire to remember those who gave their lives for their country is noble. He "endured the cross, despising the shame" (Heb. (Lk. Such difficulties hurt for a while, but if we yield to the Lord we will find that life's bruises can mark the beginning of spiritual advances. God has revealed Himself in the created world, in our inner nature, and in the Bible. More astounding and amazing than God’s providence in the lives of Moses, Joseph and Jonah was the providence that worked to crucify Christ. Then cocks a wary, bewildered eye —D. We may prefer to remain "seeds," but He wants us to become "fruitful trees." The fires of affliction and trial may be painful for a time, but afterward they will result in great blessing and reward (Hebrews 12:11). How is it possible, then, to have a close relationship with Him? and displaying His unutterable love! The proud from Egypt, the worldly from Babylon, the wrathful from Philistia, the covetous from Tyre [will be] brought under the regenerating, transforming power of the Spirit of God." Last week we were encouraged by the Apostle to Look to Christ as One who ran a perfect race of endurance. These poor Hebrew Christians, outcast from their Temple, and soon to see their beloved city vanish from the earth, were sore at heart. Only a handful of people may praise them. The truth of it is just about on every page. Alexander immediately commanded that all the spoils be thrown into a heap and burned. Jesus said, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him" (John 14:23). God's grace is not license to live as we please—it's liberty to please God. Thank you my friend. They are God's loving way of drawing you closer to Him. Are you battling temptation? Take the toughest issue, the most difficult place. Posted on January 5, 2010 He has commanded an earthly parent to chasten His son while there is hope, and not to let his soul spare for his crying — and by this rule He proceeds. good exposition and good application. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. Jesus was born to die, so we could be born again. Commenting on our need for this virtue, M.H. Those of us who have come to Jesus owe gratitude to those who have made "straight paths" for our walk of faith (v.13). In order, therefore, to maintain our interest clear in the kingdom which cannot be shaken, we must hold grace fast; for as soon we cease to do this, we lose our comfortable prospects of this kingdom, and of our own participation in it and its heavenly blessings. We. Our Daily Homily). Another is the "person who, in spite of bitter disappointments, still praises God as the Giver of all good gifts.". No one has overcome like our Lord. Esau bartered his birthright! "Whom the Lord loves He chastens" (Hebrews 12:6). Nothing but sin and obtuseness of soul can exclude us from living fellowship with saints of all communions and sects, denominations and ages. "Mine wouldn't have brought a dollar. Remarkably, the flowers grow right out of the thorns. Hebrews 12:1, Every fervent desire of your soul after the Lord Jesus Christ; every inward movement of faith, and hope, and love toward his blessed name; every sense of your misery and danger as a poor, guilty, lost, condemned sinner, whereby you flee from the wrath to come; every escaping out of the world and out of sin for your very life, with every breathing of your heart into the bosom of God, that he would have mercy upon you and bless you--all these inward acts of the believing heart in its striving after salvation as a felt, enjoyed reality, as the prize of our high calling, are pointed out by the emblem--"running the race set before us.". "Sally, eat your potatoes," said her mother in a proper parental tone. With spiritual discernment, her friend answered, 'My dear, you are not fully made yet; you're only being made, and this is the Maker's process! On December 5, 2002, the headline announced: A firestorm was raging outside the Australian city. To lie down in the time of grief, to be quiet under the stroke of adverse fortune, implies a great strength; but I know of something that implies a strength greater still: it is the power to work under stress; to have a great weight at your heart and still run; to have a deep anguish in your spirit and still perform the daily tasks. Private Raymond Cote was in Germany with the 12th Infantry after World War II. But eventually I have to pitch. The "merciful" snip, in reality, was cruel. "God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory" (Philippians 4:19). All rights reserved). (NASB: Lockman)Greek: analogisasthe gar ton toiauten upomemenekota upo ton amartolon eis eauton antilogian, ina me kamete tais yuchais umon ekluomenoi. He had concluded that death ends everything. Ask the Lord to help you discern what's worth keeping and what is best discarded. Joshua was just such a man of God. Habakkuk,3:2, Psalm 85:6, Psalm 138:7, Isaiah 57:15, 2 Chronicles 7:14 . --RWD. Hendricks says, "Your primary concern is not what they think of you now, but what they will think 20 years from now. —Bosch. You are guilty and you feel ashamed. God has buried it in the grave of Christ. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? Sometimes it seems as if God allows circumstances into our lives that are harming us and are without sense or plan. Selfish attitudes, besetting sins, and worldly cares keep us from getting off the ground spiritually. That reason being found in the τοιαύτην. In the hand of the Friend who loves at all times; and who is a Brother born for adversity. I had never been a widow before and needed the freedom to be a true learner—even a struggling learner. He proved this by wonderfully providing for her and Ruth after they returned to Israel. Many people feared that this bushfire would prove to be Sydney's worst in decades. These words and the words of Psalm 102 help us to keep the temporary and the eternal in perspective. The need for "bad weather" to stimulate growth can be seen in nature. He will bind up the broken heart, and comfort the sorrowful spirit. His words touched her tender heart. The moment we trust in Jesus, we become members of His body, the church. To Thee we would pour forth our tribute of adoring love, and join with angels and the spirits of the Redeemed in worship. Think about Jesus’ suffering. —Bill Crowder. Later she told a reporter, "Look, I'm not excusing myself. --Oatman. The man then applied this to our relationship with the Lord: "Now that I'm a Christian, I understand that when God begins to clean up my heart, I get closer and closer to Him.". ", When we came to Christ in faith, we joined an invisible host of companions, what the writer of Hebrews says is an "innumerable company of angels," and "the general assembly and church of the firstborn" (12:22-23). An argument seems to have erupted about which way to go next. God wants us to see results as we work for Him, but His first concern is our growth. That's what Esau did. Nor call my gain, my loss. It means to strengthen or to train in righteousness; much like a runner is strengthened as he trains in endurance. Perhaps you feel shame now. Dr. Mickey Anders Today I want talk about two ways to understand the phrase used for the title of my sermon. I've heard them respond something like this: "You're not really afraid of God, are you? —Herbert Vander Lugt. Whatever our circumstances, God knows the seriousness of our difficulties and is working powerfully behind the scenes for our good. He is at the head of the race; he stands at the goal; holding the crown of victory in his hand, which he puts upon the head of the successful runner. When we do, we will find it easier to live in a way that glorifies God. it is intended to do me good;  Then, as time passes, you will become more like Him as the Holy Spirit impresses the Savior's graces on your char­acter and life. But the testimony of a young seminarian showed me how wrong I was! Corrie ten Boom lived through the hellish life of Nazi concentration camps—a place where hope was lost for most people. 4:3). One of the key words is “endurance” for those who are in the race. When God prunes His children, they grow in righteousness yielding fruit. All rights reserved. Apprehend that for which you were apprehended! But if you have confessed and forsaken them, they have been put away, "as far as the east is from the west.'" On August 7, 1954, the two met together for a historic race. [4] In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. Some of the greatest missionaries of history devotedly spread the seed of God's Word and yet had to wait long periods before seeing the fruit of their efforts. I will seek to clarify the meaning of the verse as I understand it, but I admit that my understanding may be limited. Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day. Bible Verse; Newest; Oldest; Most Viewed; Most Shared; Sermon. We need bad weather to stimulate our spiritual development. "And why not?" You can't make spiritual progress by looking back. God may have to break us in order to make us. Christ is thy strength and Christ thy right; If your Christian life is a drag, worldly weights may be holding you back. When He sacrificed His life for us, He provided the forgiveness of sins that sets us free and secures for us an eternal home in heaven. How does God correct His children? ", Lord, give us endurance as we run this race of life. His heart is too tender! He who is God and Man loves you with all the strength of his affectionate nature—nothing can affect that. As Paul put it in Ephesians 4:26, "Do not let the sun go down on your wrath." One battle is fought, but a yet stronger foe bars the way immediately in front. His "climb" began in Egypt and ended in the Promised Land. Then you are a child of God this evening. Unto Him that sitteth upon the Throne, and unto the Lamb, be blessing and honour, glory and dominion, for ever. While visiting New England, I was presented with a tin of pure Vermont maple syrup. —HGB —Henry G. Bosch, Where Christ dwells in heaven's day! His love is too great! ", One of the most descriptive pictures of the Christian life in the Bible is of an athlete competing in a race. After killing the lion we eat the honey; after climbing the Hill Difficulty, we sit down in the arbour to rest; after traversing the Valley of Humiliation, after fighting with Apollyon, the shining one appears, with the healing branch from the tree of life. It is all of grace, from first to last. “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— [23] this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. Heirs of that precious Redemption, which has severed us from things that are seen, and made us part of that blessed throng that no man can number--"the general Assembly and Church of the First-born, which are written in heaven." Table silver weather '' to stimulate our spiritual growth, can keep them the. 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