Gems for the Week
July 17
"To obey is better than sacrifice and to hearken than the fat of rams."
(1 Samuel 15:22)
The first and most important point in the training of children is to teach them the blessedness of obedience. They must learn obedience to properly constituted authority, which is the foundation of all moral excellency, not only in childhood, but all through life. If a child never learns to be obedient at home to the God-given authority of its parents, it will be disobedient to authorities of the Government. Obedience to God is the very essence of a happy Christian life and if we would desire our children to be converted and be obedient Christians, we must teach them obedience at home from the very beginning. A child that has never learned obedience to its parents will seldom be an obedient Christian, if ever converted. Obedience to parental authority is essential to subjection to God's authority.
The parent's will should be supreme with a child, because the parent stands in the place of God in relation to the child. It is self-will, the inborn tendency of every child of Adam, that is the very essence of sin, and this will need to be brought into subjection to God. Upon parents, mothers especially, God has laid the task of beginning the work in childhood. Children should be trained to implicit and unquestioning obedience to their parents and to all authorities. We are living in the last days described in 2 Timothy 3, when disobedience to parents and all the various forms of self-will and rebellion are rampant everywhere, therefore it is all the more necessary that parents train their children in obedience.
(The Christian Home - R.K. Campbell)
N.J. Hiebert # 3404
July 18
"Thou anointest my head with oil." (Psalm 23:5)
FRESHNESS AND FULNESS - By comparing the scriptures which speak of it we learn that this "anointing" produces freshness (Psalm 92:10); and joy (Psalm 45:7); just as its absence denotes mourning (2 Samuel 14:2); and sadness (Matthew 16:16-18). And it is evident that Psalm 45:7 applies primarily to the Lord Jesus, Who, though a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, was, nevertheless, anointed with the oil of gladness above His fellows (Isaiah 53:3; Hebrews 1:8,9).
Holiness and happiness are as firmly linked together as are sin and sorrow . Spotlessly holy, His joy was deep, tranquil, and perennial; but in "bearing away the sin of the world", He endured suffering and sorrow of which we can have no conception, but in the contemplation of which we can only worship and adore. And because the dignity of His person adds infinite and eternal value to His redemptive work, the bitter cry which fell from His lips on the hill called Calvary, shall find its echo in the triumph-songs of the redeemed throughout eternity. (The Pearl of Psalms - George Henderson)
N.J. Hiebert # 3405
July 19
"Watch unto prayer." (1 Peter 4:7)
Peter's fall began by want of dependence and neglect of prayer. We must be "watching unto prayer" - not merely ready to pray when temptation comes, but walking with God and so meeting it in the power of previous prayer.
We all say that He is enough, but it is quite a different thing to know it practically. You can never prove the worth of anyone until you are absolutely dependent on Him. (Christian Newsletter)
N.J. Hiebert # 3406
July 20
"I thank my God upon every remembrance of you." (Philippians 1:3)
Use every remembrance of anyone who loves our Lord as a reminder to look up and thank Him. When the thought of such a one floats through the mind, don't let it merely float. Definitely thank God for that one, and ask for anything known to be needed. If nothing is known, "Do Thou for him" covers it all.
There is a good deal about remembering in the Bible, and a good deal about reminders of different kinds. Some of these reminders are like flashes for quickness; others bring a thing gradually to our minds, as the cock crowing caused Peter to "remember gradually" the words of his Lord (Luke 22:61).
The Spirit of God is ready, in His loving way, to bring anyone to mind who needs the help of prayer. If only we are careful not to smother and ignore His soft, reminding whispers, they will come more and more. (Amy Carmichael - Whispers of His Power)
N.J. Hiebert # 3407
July 21
"Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths."
(Proverbs 3:5,6)
Keep my moments and my days;
Let them flow in ceaseless praise.
If we have found help and blessing by going a certain distance in one direction, is it not probable we shall find more if we go farther in the same? And so, if we may commit the days to our Lord, why not the hours, and why not the moments? And may we not expect a fresh and special blessing in so doing?
We do not realize the importance of moments. Only let us consider those two sayings of God about them, "In a moment shall they die," and "We shall all be changed in a moment," and we shall think less lightly of them. Eternal issues may hang upon any one of them, but it has come and gone before we can even think about it. Nothing seems less within the possibility of our own keeping, yet nothing is most inclusive of all other keeping. Therefore let us ask Him to keep them for us. (Kept for the Master's Use - Frances Ridley Havergal)
N.J. Hiebert # 3408
July 22
"The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms."
(Deuteronomy 33:27)
I have read of a mountain traveler who was walking near a dangerous precipice at night. His foot slipped and he grabbed a bush to hang on for dear life, fearing that he was hanging over the abyss. His grip finally gave out and he fell - just a few inches to solid ground below! Some of us cliff-hangers fancy we are over the precipice and hang on in frantic desperation. When we finally "let go and let God" we find underneath the Everlasting Arms. (Vance Havner - Though I Walk Through the Valley)
N.J. Hiebert # 3409
July 23
"And when he (Paul) had thus spoken, he took bread, and gave thanks to God in presence of them all: and when he had broken it, he began to eat. Then were they all of good cheer, and they also took some meat. And we were in all in the ship two hundred three score and sixteen souls."
(Acts 27:33,34)
Paul set the example by giving thanks and eating. See the power and effect of a good example! The rest watched him, saw his confidence, believed his word, and they were of good cheer. Perhaps you have tasted deep sorrow in your life and realized that self-will has brought it about. Now, repentant and forgiven, it is vitally important to follow examples given in the Word of God. God promises not only to forgive confessed sin, but to cleanse . . . from all unrighteousness. Let this give you hope for if God be for us, who can be against us?
You need the food of God's precious Word to nourish, 276 souls on the ship who were desperately in need of taking some meat. You have a far greater number of reasons to take Divine nourishment! Whether in school, at work, in your neighbourhood - whatever the daily contacts of your life, you need food to act for God's glory for every single situation you will face. If the Lord has graciously restored you from a storm resulting from self will, remember - be of good cheer and take some meat. (The Journey of Life)
N.J. Hiebert # 3410
