The Father

The Well of Refreshment

Sherry Attributes of God, Character of Jesus, Christian Life, prayer, promises, The Father, The Holy Spirit 1 Comment

Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. -Hebrews 4:16

What a well that is to the Christian when he can draw nigh unto God with a true heart! It is a glorious thing to have such a well as that in the family, where, in prayer with the children, you can bring all the necessities of the household before God, and mention each child if you will, and all the troubles of the past, or all the expected difficulties of the coming day. Let us never give up that well. But, as for private prayer, brethren, this world were drear indeed if we could not pour out our sorrows into our Father’s ear. This is the poor man’s riches; this is the sick man’s medicine; this is the faint man’s cordial; this is the weak one’s strength; this is the ignorant man’s school; this is the strong man’s confidence. Neglect prayer, and you will soon discover that all your spiritual powers wax weak; but be much in supplication-and he that is mighty on his knees, is mighty everywhere. He that looketh God in the face every morning, will never fear the face of man; and he who looketh Christ in the face each evening, may well close his eyes in sweet repose, feeling that, if he should never wake to this world of care, he shall wake up in the likeness of his Lord. Oh, yes! the mercy seat is a well of refreshment indeed! Over and above this, every form of fellowship with Jesus, wrought in us by the Spirit, is a well of salvation…Beloved, we are no strangers to Jesus Christ, blessed be His name, and He is no stranger to us; we have seen Him through the lattices of the ordinances; we have found the means of grace to be like windows of agate and gates of carbuncle, through which we have beheld Him; we have Him in our hearts full often, He embraces our soul-we carry the fire of His love flaming on the altar of our affections. He is our dear companion, our ever present help in time of trouble.~ C.H. Spurgeon

https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/spurgeon_charles/sermons/0763.cfm

“I will arise and go unto my Father”

Sherry Attributes of God, Character of Jesus, Christian Life, promises, The Father, The Holy Spirit 1 Comment

“Come, and let us return unto the Lord: for He hath torn, and He will heal us; He hath smitten and He will bind us up. After two days He will revive us: in the third day He will raise us up, and we shall live in His sight.”- Hosea 6:1-2

The Lord, in His long-suffering, dealt very kindly with His erring Israel, sending them favor after favor, and blessing after blessing, saying by His acts, “I have given them their corn, and their wine, and their oil, they will surely turn unto Me and say, ‘Our Father, thou shalt be the guide of our youth.’ But the more He multiplied His bounties, the more they multiplied their iniquities, and they burned sacrifice unto the gods of Edom, and of Moab, even to those that were no gods, saying, “These be thy gods, O Israel, which have given unto thee thy corn, and thy wine, and thy oil;” so they spent the mercies of God in sacrifice upon their idols…consuming upon their lusts the very mercies which God had sent to bring them to repentance.

Now, my brethren, the people of Israel are but a picture of ourselves…God has tried you with mercy upon mercy; kept you long in health, till you scarce ever had a day’s sickness; given you all that you could wish, till your cup was brimming and flowing over; but you used His mercies for your own self-indulgence, and the bodily strength which was given you to be a blessing you have made a curse. Streams of mercy never ceasing God has vouchsafed to you, but your only return has been stream of sin, broad, and black, and deep. And now today He has been changing His ways with you…You are troubled and sore broken..you are complaining.-“I am the man that has seen affliction;” and perhaps worse than that you are groaning, “His wrath lieth hard upon me, I cannot look up.”…Oh! may you…whose case is the case of Israel in Hosea, may you say, “Come, and let us return unto the Lord, for He hath torn, and He will heal us; He hath smitten, and He will bind us up.” I desire to come straight up to you who are in this condition and put my hand inside yours, holding you fast while I strive in God’s name to reason with you, beseeching God the Holy Spirit to reason better than I can, sweetly moving your soul, till you say, “I will arise and go unto my Father.”~ C.H. Spurgeon

https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/spurgeon_charles/sermons/0400.cfm

 

 

The Mourner’s Comforter

Sherry Attributes of God, Character of Jesus, Christian Life, promises, salvation, The Father 1 Comment

He has anointed Me to preach good news to the poor…To preach the acceptable year of the Lord… to comfort all that mourn– Luke 4:18,19 and Isaiah 61:1,2

God has taken upon Himself human flesh. The infinite Jehovah came down from heaven and became an infant, lived among us, and then died for us. Behold in the person of the incarnate God the sure pledge of divine benevolence. “He that spared not His own Son, but freely delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” Beloved, the very fact that a Savior came to the world should be a source of hope to us, and when we think what a Savior He was, how He suffered, how He finished the work that was given Him to do, and what a salvation it is which He has wrought out for us, we may well feel that the comfort of mourners is work for which He is well suited, and which He can execute most effectually. How beautiful upon Olivet and Calvary are the feet of Him that bringeth, in His person and His world “good tidings, that publisheth peace, that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation.” But I must not linger. I have spoken to you enough to lead your thoughts to the blessed person who here declares that He will comfort the mourner. May the Holy Ghost reveal Him unto you in all the power of His arm, the love of His heart, the virtue of His blood, the prevalence of His plea, the majesty of His exaltation, and the glory of His character.

Oh that every one of us, if we have never felt mourning for sin may feel it at this hour. May we mourn to think that we have pierced the Savior, that we have transgressed against a God so good, and a Redeemer so generous…Mourners are not suffered long to tarry; grace takes their load of guilt away. Their transgressions are covered. ~ C.H. Spurgeon

https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/spurgeon_charles/sermons/1016.cfm

We Shall Be Comforted

Sherry Attributes of God, Character of Jesus, Christian Life, promises, salvation, The Father, The Holy Spirit 1 Comment

To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He might be glorified. – Isaiah 61:3.

Who gives this word? It is a word to mourners in Zion, meant for their consolation. But who gives it? The answer is not far to seek. It comes from Him who said, “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me,” “He hath sent Me to bind up the broken-hearted.” …If He declares that He will comfort us, then we may rest assured we shall be comforted! The stars in His right hand may fail to penetrate the darkness, but the rising of the Sun of Righteousness effectually scatters the gloom. If the consolation of Israel Himself comes forth for the uplifting of His downcast people, then their doubts and fears may well fly apace, since His presence is light and peace…

“The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me; because the Lord hath appointed Me to preach good tidings unto the meek.” Remember what kind of preacher Jesus was. “Never man spake like this man.” He was a Son of consolation indeed. It was said of Him, “A bruised reed shall He not break, and the smoking flax shall He not quench.” He was gentleness itself…Now, if such be the person who declares He will comfort the broken-hearted, if He be such a preacher, we may rest assured He will accomplish His work.~ C.H. Spurgeon

https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/spurgeon_charles/sermons/1016.cfm

 

Conformable Unto Christ

Sherry Attributes of God, Character of Jesus, Christian Life, promises, The Father Leave a comment

That I may know Him, and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being made conformable unto His death – Philippians 3:10

Ravishing, indeed, is the reflection in the midst of all our grief and suffering, that Jesus Christ suffers with us. In all thine affliction, O member of the body, the Head is still a sharer. Deep are the sympathies of the Redeemer, acute, certain, quick, infallible; He never forgets His saints.

All the while the Lord lays His chastening hand upon His servants they may be cheered by this reflection, that in this He is making them conformable unto Christ. What should they know of Gethsemane if they had no sweat of pain? What should they know of the passion if they never had to cry, “I thirst,” or “My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?” They were poor scholars in the school of Christ’s sufferings if they endured no sufferings themselves; and it is a blessed thing, a sweet thing to drink of His cup, and to be baptised with His baptism.

Moreover, when the child of God is in his right state, it is always enough for him that his condition is the result of his Father’s will. Is it God’s will? Is it Christ’s will? Then it is my will. How could I dare to wish anything to be otherwise than divine love appoints? ~ C.H. Spurgeon

https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/spurgeon_charles/sermons/0987.cfm

Sweetened Affliction

Sherry Attributes of God, Character of Jesus, Christian Life, promises, The Father 1 Comment

…and the LORD shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet – Exodus 15:25

Let me assure you, that in the case of our trouble, the cross is a most effective sweetener. Shall I put the tree into the water for a minute, and then ask you to drink? Have you been suffering pain, or any other form of tribulation? I will lay the cross asoak in it for a minute, and your first reflection will be-“In all this that I am called to suffer there is not even a single particle of punishment for my sin; God has punished Christ, consequently He cannot punish me: to punish two for one offense would be unjust, therefore there is nothing penal in all that I am suffering.” I do not know of any reflection more consoling than this, that my sorrow is not laid on me by a judge, nor inflicted on me as the result of divine anger. There is not a drop of wrath in a riverful of a believer’s grief. Does not that take the bitterness out of affliction and make it sweet? And then the reflection goes further. Since Christ has died for me, I am God’s dear child; and now if I suffer, all my suffering comes from my Father’s hand-nay, more, from my Father’s heart. He loves me, and therefore makes me suffer; not because He does not love, but because He does love does He thus afflict me. In every stripe I see another token of paternal love… You shall not have one half a drop of grief more than is absolutely needful for your good and God’s glory. And does not this also sweeten the cross, that it is laid on us by infinite wisdom, and by a Father’s hand? This it is to sweeten Marah’s waters indeed.~ C.H. Spurgeon

https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/spurgeon_charles/sermons/0987.cfm

 

Far Better the Bitter Waters

Sherry Attributes of God, Christian Life, promises, The Father, The Holy Spirit Leave a comment

So Moses brought Israel from the Red sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water. And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: – Exodus 15:22,23

It is a notion, I have no doubt, of very young Christians who still have the shell upon their heads and are scarce hatched, that their trials are over now that they have become winged with faith; they had far better have reckoned that their trials have begun with tenfold force, now that they are numbered with the servants of the Most High. Whatever else comes not to thee, O servant of God, this will surely be fulfilled, “In the world ye shall have tribulation.” “What son is he whom the Father chasteneth not?”

When Israel was in Egypt, they drank of the river Nile. No ordinary water that…What a change from the sweetness of the Nile to the bitterness of Marah! Did not the suggestion rise in their hearts, “It was better with us in the bondage of Egypt, with water in abundance, than it is now in the liberty of the wilderness with the bitterness of Marah?” The devil tempted some of us at the very first by saying: “See what you have got by being a Christian. While you were as others are, your mind had mirth; now you have come out and followed the Crucified, you have lost the liveliness of your spirits, the brightness of your wit-that which made life worth having is taken away from you.” Young Christian, is that your case to-day? Be not stumbled, neither believe the enemy. Man, it were better to die at Marah free, than live a slave by the sweet Nile. Even men that know not the Spirit of God have felt it were better to die free than live slaves, and truly to be a slave to Satan is so degrading a thing, that if this mouth were for ever filled with Marah’s bitterness, yet were it better to be so than to be enchanted with the pleasures of sin. Yet these early trials are very severe, and need much grace lest they cause us great mischief.~ C.H. Spurgeon

https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/spurgeon_charles/sermons/0987.cfm